===================================================================== AMIC Development presents AMIC PD Term By: David Salas & Albert Kirk ===================================================================== Version: Release beta 55 Date : July 20, 1987 Time : 15:00:00 Status : RELEASE GRANTED FOR ALL USERS, ALL BBS's ===================================================================== ** VERY IMPORTANT ** As of July 28th, new docs for AMIC PD TERM will be available, they're much better in detail and way much more organized! They are as good as good commercial documentation, or at least I am trying. A GREAT deal of time has been put into making this documentation. This also mean one good thing for the users of AMIC PD TERM. We have commited hard into this program, thanks to the comments and registration of you, the users. And this is a way to respond to your confidence. ===================================================================== *** NOTE *** AMIC PD TERM was originally made from Dan James (DJJ) source to COMM version 1.34, but has evolutionized im the last couple weeks into its very own environment. I was actually going to adopt the name of COMM version 2.0, but on requests of DJJ I have adopted this new name. But Dan sure deserves some credit on it, even if the program doesn't look too similar at all. Most of the I/O and Transfer protocol routines are intact, with few changes, this will ultimately change, HAS to change to accomodate our MultiTalk protocol, and it will improve I/O speed greately by using assembly made routines. Thanks and ENJOY this BETA version of AMIC PD TERM, this BETA status implies that the pro- gram might have some bugs here and there, and that some of the items available are not actually implemented. Just be patient, I DO *NOT* intent to release EVERY single update to the public domain,but perio- dically, as I have been doing for about a month since I started with it. There are about 40 testers of it, so I think that is enough to get enough feedback on problems with the program. I would appreciate your feedback, but if I don't reply at all is because that has been taken care already on new releases to selected testers (mostly from AMIC). SYSOPS: Do *NOT* delete COMM 1.34 from your libraries, AMIC PD TERM is NOT considered a newer version of this program, nor want to takeover the great work that DJJ has put into the original version of COMM. --------------------------------------------------------------------- ** DISTRIBUTION AND COPYRIGHT ** --------------------------------------------------------------------- This program is placed in the public domain as SHAREWARE. If you find this program useful, a $20.00 registration fee will be really appre- ciated, and will help us to keep mantaining and enhancing the program on a regular basis. At this point of time I won't release the source code, in first place because I don't feel confortable releasing code that is not being 100% debugged, secondly, I would rather wait until the full implementation of the program has been completed. By then I will make the source code available one way or another. As registered users you are entitle for updates of the program as they become available, uinlike non-registered users that only will be able to update it whenever I release Generally available updates of the program. These updates have to be obtained either by mail or via AMIC. Via mail, the only cost for you is a SASE (Self Addressed Stam- ped Envelope). Via AMIC, just the cost of the call. Also, on AMIC you will be able to read and participate in the AMIC Development Testers Area, with hints and information about AMIC PD TERM, special files, etc. And best of All, AMIC PD TERM registered users are entitled to a $20.00 discount on GraphTerm, our commercial terminal program. Send your registration fee to: David Salas or Albert Kirk AMIC Development 1002 Apple Creek Lane (NEW ADDRESS!!) Santa Rosa, CA 95401-2731 --------------------------------------------------------------------- System Requirements, suggestions --------------------------------------------------------------------- MINIMUM Configurations: - Amiga 1000/500/2000 w/512K of memory - One 3.5 floppy drive - Amiga Monitor - Kickstart/Workbench 1.2 or up! (It does NOT work under 1.1 and we don't plan on doing such thing) SUGGESTED Configuration:- Extra 512K or more of memory. - Second Floppy Drive or Hard Disk - Printer ===================================================================== Features of the NEW AMIC PD Term --------------------------------------------------------------------- Features of AMIC PD TERM .55 --------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: I hardly can find anything buggy in this version, but if you do let us know immediately. Many problems have been removed from this version, and it seems to be very solid. SPEED: We finally sat down and did some tests with Xmodem/WXmodem. As it stands in this version, we are able to transfer, w/a NULL cable at 19200 Baud, at speeds close to 8000 Baud, or 370 blocks per minute, or over 6 blocks per second. Now, at 2400 and 1200 Baud we are, for some reason I don't understand at all, at less than the top speed. But at least it has been im- proved by 10-15% or so, against 100% in the high speed modes. At 9600 Baud MODEMS we are transfering at close to 300 blocks per minute, or 7200 Baud. I would like to have some people comparing this w/your modems! By the way, on NULL modem cable, Diga! wouldn't go faster than 240 blocks per minute, or 5000+ Baud per minute. Online 2.0 was going at 300 Blocks per minute under Xmodem protocol, and just about the same speed of AMIC PD TERM Xmodem when used w/ Zmodem! Now, preliminar tests of Zmodem on AMIC PD TERM tell us that we can go at over 10000 Baud! But hey, I want 15000 or more w/Zmodem! MENUS: The have been changed a great deal. Some COMMSEQ (keyboard shortcuts) have been changed. But now about all the menu items have a keyboard shortcut.. Also the menus order changed, this to make the LEFT SUB-ITEMS possible. Yes, subitems appear now on the LEFT of the Menus, this is more intuitive and selecting a subitem is also much easier this way. If you don't like this, please let us know! =RJ= Mical does recommend this new system, so, here we are giving it a try! - PHONE MENU: Things have changed here quite a bit. First of all. Some of the items have dissapeared. We figured you only need them in the DIAL requester (the ALTSER and REDIAL flags). And we've put a new item called DO REDIAL: - DO REDIAL: It simply goes and does the last DIAL command you did! If you did a simple dial before, it will go and do the same; if you were in auto-redial, it will enter the loop too. This makes this process much faster since you don't need to get into the DIAL requester once again. - SETUP MENU: The INTERLACE switch is now working! Now, here we have some- thing to warn you. I am not sure if it is our fault or what, but if you are ONLINE, and you change resolutions, you may or may not be able to continue entering data to that system. I have been able to continue when connected to AMIC or other BBS-PC's systems, but when connected to GEnie, or other HALF duplex systems I don't seem to be able, even as I can see my modem light still working. So, this is the first version of the switch, and while we debug it completely, try to change resolutions BEFORE connecting (Dialing) any systems. By the way, different fonts option will be available VERY soon now, we are already working w/it. But a bug is preven- ting us from releasing it with this version of AMIC PD TERM. DIAL REQUESTER: Greately improved in some areas! Now you can load the WHOLE Final List in memory if you want! And still have space for some 1500 more entries! Yeah, 2000 phone numbers can be hold in memory at one time with this new version of the requester! Awesome I must say! Best of all is that it's much more memory efficient. Pre 55 versions use 15K of memory for the phone data even if you have 1 or 200 phone entries! With this new version it will use only what you got plus 4K of pointers (2000). So, with 20 phone entries you will be saving aproximately 10K of memory! (each entry will take 73 bytes). I proposed 1000 entries, but some users on AMIC insisted on 2000, so, don't complain!! :-) Now, the problem with the status line when dialing one entry, one time, has been fixed. Let me know if other strange things happen here.. Hey, I have had some WIERD things going when trying this on an Amiga 5000. Specially with AUTOREDIALING. Like 45344354 seconds counter.. I believe this is NOT my fault. Or something changed in that version of 1.2 that I am not aware off. Strange is that it happens once every now and then! SIDEBAR: Lots of changes here! First of all, the layout has changed a lot, no more BACK GADGET, instead, DOUBLE CLICK on the main window to turn the SideBar ON and OFF! Very handy.. You can take as long as you want between the two clicks, as long as no other Intuition events are made in that lapse (like doing something else on the Menus, etc!) Now, if you wonder about the SCREEN GADGET, no problems here. We have moved the SIDEBAR a couple pixels down so that you can now reach the Intution Screen Gadgets, in the TOP RIGHT of the screen. They are not very visible, but VERY easy to reach. Also, the COLOR gadget has been taken out, you can still call and use the COLOR requester from the Menus (or keyboard shortcut). Added a SPLIT GADGET, which does that, split the I/O window for the CHAT mode. Well, I think this is pretty much Intuitive, let me know if you want any changes to this! MACROS REQUESTER: It has been fixed. You can now edit all the F-Keys, and most important, edit the one you selected! Not the one under it! (.53 bug) Also the speed has been improved, if that matters at all. As far as I can tell, you can edit macros WHILE transfers are going on, so that you can just enter the whole string to do the next download while the current one is being dowloaded! FILE REQUESTER: A couple of bugs have been exterminated from the face of this requester! I hope there are no more hidden there! HELP REQUESTER: Now you probably can do a zillion HELPS ON/OFF w/o crashing the system! VIEW TRANSFERS: Same as above.. Please let me know if you can still make it crash, I can't, but then, I don't use it THAT much! OVERALL: The MAIN intention in this release was to give ya something much more solid than any previous version of AMIC PD TERM, while still optimizing the code even more, and adding some functions to the program and enhancing/fixing others.. The average user will be glad to see some extra 10K of RAM for other applications. By the way, I was ASTONISHED to see Diga! leaving just some 40K of RAM for the user once loaded, in NON-INTERLACE/NON-OVERSCAN mode, gee! AMIC PD TERM under the same circunstances laves almost 300K of RAM free for ya! 190K with full 8 colors, INTERLACE/FULL Overscan! =====================================================================