PPMiniCrunch v1.2 ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Documentation ============= oO°System Requirements°Oo ------------------------- PPMiniCrunch requires KickStart 2.04 (v37) or above and powerpacker.library v35 or above. Otherwise should work on any memory/hardware configuration. oO°Installation°Oo ------------------ To run this program the files, powerpacker.library asl.library must be in the LIBS directory on your boot disk or in any directory included in the LIBS: assign. oO°What it is°Oo ---------------- PPMiniCrunch is a data file cruncher/decruncher that uses powerpacker library and provides a small low memory gadtools front-end. It was written as a substitute for powerpacker for when powerpacker's more obscure functions aren't required, mainly for people using a floppy based system as powerpacker is too large (around 70k) to have on workbench disks etc. PPMiniCrunch is designed to be user friendly with gadgets for all functions, and keyboard shortcuts for all gadgets. oO°How to use it°Oo ------------------- -= Running PPMiniCrunch from the Shell =- To run PPMiniCrunch activate a shell/CLI window and type PPMiniCrunch preceded by a path if PPMiniCrunch is not in the current directory or a directory specified in the path list. The PPMiniCrunch requester will then appear on the Workbench screen. All functions (listed below) are controlled from this requester. Current program status/information is displayed in the text gadget at the top of the window. PPMiniCrunch also has several command line options. The format of these is as follows: PPMiniCrunch FILE|DIR C=CUSTOMSCREEN/S and can be displayed by typing: PPMiniCrunch ? Specifying the CUSTOMSCREEN option (i.e. "PPMiniCrunch c" or "PPMiniCrunch customscreen"), will make PPMiniCrunch open on it's own screen rather than the default workbench screen. This uses about 45K of extra memory on my machine. PPMiniCrunch uses a 4 colour hires non-interlaced display for its custom screen. Specifying the FILE|DIR option will set the file requester default directory to the path specified or to the path of the specified file. If a filename is included in the path then PPMiniCrunch will attempt to load it as if it was selected using the 'Source' gadget (see below). If the file specified is already crunched it will be loaded and decrunched, otherwise it will be selected ready for crunching using the 'Crunch' gadget (see below). e.g. PPMiniCrunch df1:Modules/mod.Voodoo_Chile_(Slight_Return).pp C will set the current directory for disk operations (loading and saving) to 'df1:Modules', and will attempt to load and decrunch the powerpacked file, 'mod.Voodoo_Chile_(Slight_Return).pp'. Oh, and all this will happen on a custom screen. -= Running PPMiniCrunch from Workbench =- To run PPMiniCrunch from the Workbench use one of the following three methods: o Double-click on the PPMiniCrunch icon and the window will open allowing you to operate the program as described below. o To load a file for crunching/decrunching as PPMiniCrunch loads, click once on the PPMiniCrunch icon and then, while holding down the shift key double-click on the icon of the file you wish to crunch/decrunch. PPMiniCrunch will be loaded and if the file you selected was already crunched it will be decrunched ready for saving, otherwise it will be selected ready for crunching using the 'Crunch' gadget (see below). o Alternatively you can click once on the PPMiniCrunch icon and then, while holding down the shift key, double click on a drawer icon. This will load PPMiniCrunch as normal, but when you press the 'Source' or 'Save' gadgets (see below), the default directory for the file requester will be the one you double-clicked on. To tell PPMiniCrunch to open on a custom screen you must use the Information option in the Tools menu of the Workbench screen. Set one of the ToolTypes to the following string if it does not already exist: CUSTOMSCREEN=ON This will tell PPMiniCrunch to open on a custom screen rather than the workbench screen. The ON keyword in the above string can be changed to YES yielding the same result as ON, or it can be replaced with anything else, e.g. NO, OFF etc. to disable the option and make PPMiniCrunch open on the workbench screen. -= Controlling PPMiniCrunch =- The following options are available using the gadgets in the PPMiniCrunch window: -Selecting a source file for crunching/decrunching Click on the 'Source' gadget or press the keyboard shortcut - "O". This will select a file for crunching unless the file is already crunched in which case it is loaded and decrunched ready for saving as an uncrunched file. The size of the uncrunched file will be displayed in the 'Original Length' number gadget, and if a crunched file was loaded (and decrunched) the 'Crunched Length' number gadget will display the original length of the file (before it was decrunched). -Choosing the crunch efficiency The quality of the crunching can be controlled by the mutually exclusive 'Crunch Efficiency' gadget. 'Best' is slower than the other options but provides the greatest crunch factor. 'Fast' is the fastest but provides the least saving in file size. These settings are used when the Crunch gadget is activated. The list can be cycled through using the keyboard shortcut - "E", either forwards by pressing E unshifted or backwards by pressing E with the shift key. -Choosing the speedup buffer size If you have enough memory the buffer used for crunching can be increased by selecting 'Large' in the mutually exclusive 'Speedup Buffer' gadget. This gives a large increase in crunch speed whereas selecting 'Small' decreases the speed slightly but uses less memory than the default, 'Medium'. The list can be cycled through using the keyboard shortcut - "B", either forwards by pressing B unshifted or backwards by pressing B with the shift key. -Crunching the current file If a valid uncrunched file was selected (using the 'Source' gadget), then the 'Crunch' gadget will be enabled. Selecting this gadget will then decrunch the current data file and the percentage gain will be displayed in the info gadget, along with the crunched data length in the 'Crunched Length' number gadget. The data can then be saved by clicking on the 'Save' gadget if no errors ocurred during crunching. While the file is crunching, the text info box (at the top of the window) will become highlighted from left to right in proportion to the percentage of crunching done. This should give you a fair idea of how long a file will take to crunch once started. If this seems like too long or for any other reason, crunching can be aborted by pressing the right mouse button. -Saving the current file If the original file (selected with the 'Source' gadget) was already crunched then it will have been loaded and decrunched. It can then be saved as an uncrunched file by selecting the 'Save' gadget. If the original file was uncrunched then the 'Save' gadget will only be enabled after the file has been crunched (see above), in which case selecting 'Save' allows you to save the crunched data to a file. Save can be selected either by clicking on the 'Save' gadget or by pressing the keyboard shortcut - "S". -Quitting from PPMiniCrunch You can quit PPMiniCrunch at any time by clicking on the 'Quit' gadget or by pressing the keyboard shortcut - "Q" PPMiniCrunch displays error messages and verification messages when any operation is performed. When PPMiniCrunch is currently saving data, loading data, crunching/decrunching data, or displaying a file requester the mouse pointer will change to a busy mouse pointer when the PPMiniCrunch requester window is activated. Have fun with PPMiniCrunch ;-] oO°Other bits°Oo ---------------- PPMiniCrunch is Copyright 1993 Sam Baker. PPMiniCrunch is Public Domain and must not be sold for any amount of money without my permission. The program file, 'PPMiniCrunch' should only be distributed with the following files - PPMiniCrunch.doc (this file) PPMiniCrunch.history PPMiniCrunch was written in assembler/E using Amiga E, the excellent public domain E compiler/68000 assembler by someone whose name I have forgotten. It was written on a standard A1200 using Amiga E, the Devpac v3.02 editor and a few blank disks. Oh and the powerpacker.library documentation and the v37 Amiga ROM Kernel manuals. -Obtaining the source For the PPMiniCrunch source code (the latest version) and the latest version in executable form please send £2.50(inc.P&P) to: Sam Baker 100 Beauley Road Southville Bristol BS3 1QG England I would also appreciate any suggested improvements or bug reports at the same address.....Cheers :-) oO°Advert°Oo ------------ COMING SOON: Defektris (the name may change before release) The new falling blocks game enhanced with new and exciting originality by Sam Baker. A free preview version can be obtained direct from me (the author) by sending a disk and a stamped self-addressed envelope/jiffy bag to the address above. This preview should work on all Amigas and will include details of how to register and obtain the full version. (But only if you like it :-]). Defektris is written in 100% assembly language and the source will also be available - details with the preview version. * Most definitely AGA compatible 'cause it was written on an A1200. * OS 3.0 and 1.3 and 68000 and 68020 processor compatible. * Works with 0.5 Mb of RAM. * Hard disk installable.