response 92 of 193:

Feb 23 18:28 UTC 1999

Jim fixed his above problem by choosing a different monitor setting.
Good news:  The Dexter Senior Center may be able to use a few of Tim Ryan's
PS/2s now that he has found color VGA monitors for them, if we can get
Netscape 2 working on them.  Bill Levak knows of a school that might want some
of the 8088s with hard drives.   Will report on developments.

response 94 of 193:

Feb 27 04:35 UTC 1999

Got Netscape 2.02 going but it has occasional GPF errors (crashes) if we look
at several images in a row, and the colors are very poor (16 or less, very
grainy).  Is this inherent in Netscape 2 or do we have wrong settings?  These
same images look good on a VGA monitor viewed with other software, and we are
using the same resolution VGA monitor for Netscape.
        I discovered that a 386 at 2400 bps runs grex much faster than an 8088
at 9600 bps and wish I had a 386 at home to use.  First the Netscape problem.
We have beenat Kiwanis working on it since 2:15 and had ice cream for lunch
and supper again, and cookies.  I feel queasy.

response 96 of 193:

Feb 28 04:00 UTC 1999

That sounds like exactly our problem.  I did not know that it was not finished
loading from one website and I tried to do something else.  I will warn people
to be more patient.  Also I do not know how to use Windows and probably hit
a lot of wrong keys (wrong mice?).  We expanded virtual memory from 4M to 12M,
as recommended, which cut down a lot on GPF frequency.  When I am impatient
with lynx I think it just ignores me, but once in a while I manage to crash
things on grex by typing too far ahead.
        Bill Levak fixed a few more settings for us, such as the correct modem
speed, and now it does not disconnect on us.  The symptom of disconnecting
is when it says it cannot find a URL, such as www.umich.edu or www.ibm.com.
It went way way faster downloading llbean after we turned off auto image
loading.  Llbean must download the entier catalog at you, it took at least
20 minutes before we could read the site.  Same with Borders books.

The other GPF failure may have been a memory problem, when we tried to look
at too many large jpegs in a row.  There is a way to empty the memory cache,
would it help to make the memory cache larger than 600K or the hard disk cache
larger than 5000K, the defaults?  We have a 4M RAM and 400M hard disk to work
on.  We were trying to push the thing to the limit to make GPFs happen so we
knew their cause and could warn people and maybe find a way to prevent them.

The only serious remaining problem is that we get only 16 color images, which
is supposedly something to do with only 256K on the video board, and Windows
will only display 16 colors in this case, and Netscape is stuck with that.
We have a DOs-based viewer program (from NetTamer) that displays 256 colors
and will try to write a simple little program that people can use to download
and view (offline?) any image they want to see in better resolution/color.
We checked and our program works fine on that computer, it also draws the
image several times as large as did the Netscape viewer.  Arachne (Dos-based
browser) uses a 16 color viewer.
        Thanks for corroborating what I suspected was the cause of one GPF.
What other sorts of things cause GPF besides impatience?

response 98 of 193:

Feb 28 17:18 UTC 1999

Jim managed to shrink our nicer looking images to half size and they still
looked better.  The 8-color one was similar to what Netscape produces but had
pink instead of grey skin.  Jazz (agora 77) pointed out that Netscape gets
first choice of the limited color palette (16?) for its buttons and for the
various gifs on the screen, and the images we are interested in seeing end
up in garish colors because they get what is left, so I suspect that even if
we managed to get our viewer working with Netscape it would produce the same
bad results, and we will have to display images outside of Netscape to get
them looking good.   Is there any way to turn off color to everything other
than jpegs at a website?  (To put the Netscape buttons and comet into BW?)

response 100 of 193:

Mar 11 00:53 UTC 1999

My TTL monitor started repeatedly fading out a few days ago and then went
blank.  I tightened the screws on the connector and it worked again.  Next
day it happened again.  New monitor did not help, new video card fixed the
problem.  Today it was blank when I turned it on, Jim wanted to fix it again
but I refused to let him and demanded the 386 which he has been making for
me for the past year.   Five hours later it is operative. 

        Had to change a setting to use a mono VGA monitor.
        The b: drive has been changed from high to lower density 5" floppy
(so I can write to as well as read my disks).
        The keyboard has been changed to a switchable Multitech that will work
with 8088s or 386s, the plug needed adapting first.
        The computer is so large that we had to put the monitor next to instead
of on top of it so I could look at it - 7" high, 2' wide.  Dell.

        Jim spent most of the time rewriting a little script that will take
image files downloaded to a virtual d: drive, convert the jpegs to gifs, view
the gifs, and export anything else to c:\temp, then delete any files left in
it when I exit d: (I think).  He had to write in protection in case I stuffed
too many files into it and there was not space to expand the jpegs to gifs
(up to five times as long) but the current situation is to erase any file
after viewing it so I can only view one file before downloading another.  

If anyone using lynx as the only way to access the internet wants a copy, let
us know and we will customize it.  Downloading to a virtual drive and
converting in the virtual drive are faster.

Reasons why my original Zenith was no longer the ideal computer:

1.  No expansion slots (excpet for two I bought) meant I could not put in a
serial card that would run at 14.4, so I could only use a 9600 external modem.

2.  Procomm Plus but not Procomm has hardware flow control, which you need
for zmodem, and it also allows scripts (to automate login to grex) and
10-digit phone numbers (for call waiting cancellation or use of cheaper phone
services with 7-digit access numbers).  Procomm Plus would not fit into 640K
RAM together with WP4.2, like Procomm plain used to do.

3.  WP5.1 is so bloated with useless features (which make the useful ones take
2 times as long to use - I no longer copy paragraphs but delete and double
restore them instead) that it would not share RAM even with Procomm.  Jim had
to put in a program to shell between WP and Procomm, which took time.  
For a long time I was using Procomm and WP4.2 and converting to WP5.1 before
sending files but things got confused at times and this was also slow.

So the new computer runs at 14.4 (even with an external modem) and has enough
RAM (more than 1M!) to keep WP5.1 nad Procomm Plus in together.

I am hoping the extra RAM will also eliminate the problem of super slow tabs
on long documents in WP5.1, up to 3 sec each.  And it will let me go to the
end of the document in less than 20 sec (I was using ten PgDns instead) and
do a faster spellcheck and retrieve (under 30 sec).  These were not a problem
with WP4.2, WP5.1 is slower at everything.  If my agencies had not insisted
on WP5.1 I would have been happy with my old computer even at 9600 bps.

The 386 puts pages on grex almost instantly instead of having to wait a few
seconds to rewrite every line, so I am ahead in that respcet.

My old monitor is working okay on another computer.  What might have caused
the problem with it if not the video card?  
Jim is playing with it on a 1990 286/20Mhz.  Can anyone tell him the size or
cylinders and heads of the drive - Conner model No. CP30064H?  It is not in
his upgrade book, must be too new for the book.

Jim had been promising me 3 matching AST 386/33 computers, some day, that will
let you switch between TTL and VGA monitors without changing settings (?).
I want to work on TTL so I can read superscripts and Cyrillic and print them
out in RAMFONT (fast as regular text) but occasionally download and view an
image (needs VGA).  We have not found any VGA video cards that do RAM fonts.

response 104 of 193:

Mar 14 04:54 UTC 1999

Lynx was not displaying certain colors at all when we had the wrong mode
setting, now they all show up as white on black.  4DOS had the same problem,
it is fixed now.  Bill Levak found the Conner info, it is a 60M hard drive,
rather large for a 286.  OUr next plan is to get me back to using WP4.2, which
works faster doing the things I need it for, and can be used with a better
spell checker that does not insist on suggesting proper spellings such as
Unfix for Unix, and counts numbers as well as words.  Or maybe find something
that will let me produce text in RTF that Word can convert to Word - I don't
think WP4.2 allows this though.  I don't use 90% of WP features and the long
trudge through all the menus is annoying.

response 106 of 193:

Mar 15 05:28 UTC 1999

We tried out WP4.2 again.  It has the advantage that things are done in two
instead of three steps (such as retrieving files) and that I no longer have
to worry about a section I am copying coming apart into two pieces (the WP5.1
copy command is so complex that I have switched to delete/restore twice).
Superscripts are done in 2 steps instead of 3, but there is no way to view
them without printing out, even by doing Preview.  
We can put in a better spellchecker and a separate word counter that will not
ignore numbers.

I tried to fix WP5.1 by writing a Macro for superscripts but the result takes
even longer to type than the original Ctl-F8, 1, 1.

I am considering typing my files in WP4.2, spellchecking them there, and if
there are many superscripts converting to WP5.1 and typing them in where I
can see them and strikeouts.

Since I cannot send files with other character sets in them (they do not
convert to Word properly) I don't know any advantages of WP5.1 other than
seeing superscripts.  Are there any for typing straight text files?

I could not find any DOS-based HTML or RTF editors on the web.

One reason I switched to 5.1 is so I could read files other people sent me
but there is a back conversion program to 4.2.  And besides nobody sent me
any Wp5.1 files except someone who could not figure out how not to send them
in HTML email mode.  Which made the file too long to email to grex.

I think in 4.2 you can put things in regular macros besides plain characters.
In 5.1 you have to first get to Keyboard, then choose a keyboard, and then
type your macro.  And the Ctl and Alt key keyboard macros are a real pain to
set up.  Everything is more complicated.  When you copy a section you are not
able to hit the enter key until after you move it or it will appear in the
wrong place.  The only other helpful feature is that you can delete mistakes
while in the reveal codes mode, but it takes longer to get out of it.  
        I only used the reveal codes to look at superscripts anyway.

Once Jim gets his spell checker working with 4.2 and a word counter that
counts numbers, we are set.  (And finds some way to put back 4DOS and not
interfere with memory usage).
        If I use 4.2 and Procomm (not plus) I don't need the extra memory, but
I cannot do a script to dial grex at more than 9600 bps so would do a manual
dial and enter loginid and password.

response 108 of 193:

Mar 16 16:00 UTC 1999

The solution to WP only showing the top half of a page as you do PgDn, which
only spell checks the top half of a page, is to make all the pages
half-length, which also helps when paging through the document at other times.
At the very end I can change back the page length.  For some reason there is
a stray line at the top of the page left over from the previous page, but Jim
is figuring that out right now.  So the procedure is to go into WP4.2, set
page length to half-length, type document, spell-check, convert to WP5.1, and
if necessary enter any superscripts and then email off the file.
        If I were not required to supply text in some format usable by Word
I would not be stuck with WP in any form and could find something simpler that
only did what I wanted, or JIm could improve his editor program.  The problem
is that I am only doing wordprocessing but am stuck using a desktop publisher
software with 95-99% irrelevant features.

response 110 of 193:

Mar 16 17:56 UTC 1999

An editor would probably not do underlines so I could see them.

Page length is 54 lines.  Screen length is 23 lines.  If we made page length
23 lines I would not get page breaks (on the 23-line pages) in any of the
proper places, which I need for birth certificates and diplomas.  So to use
Jim's spellchecker, or in general to view the entire page of WP text, we need
some way to go down 23 lines without changing page breaks.  Jim is figuring
out how to write a WP4.1 macro to do this.  We will name it something easy
to type with the right hand, such as j (for jump down).  We just named it j
and now have to define the macro (which I don't think you can do in wp5.1
without wading through two menus, if it contains other than characters).  Next
we hit the down arrow 23 times.  Ctl-f10 again to finish defining the macro.
Now Alt-f10 and j?  First we have to go back to a 54 line page (reveal codes,
delete).  Alt-F10, j, enter - voila!  We just went down 23 lines and can spell
check!  (There is some confusion about the page maybe being 23 lines long and
the monitor 24 lines but we will figure that out soon).

        Does anyone make a TTL portrait monitor?  Altavista showed none.
Why are monitors designed to show only half a page?  25 lines including status
line, this is less than half of 54 line page.

To spell check hit F9 (which you cannot do in WP5.1, that is preempted), words
not in the dictionary are highlighted, since they are all proper nouns ignore
them, Alt-f10, j, enter - on the next page.  You can add words to the
dictionary.  Turbolightning by Borland.  Do any similar spell-checkers ignore
capitalized words?  Or let you choose?  This would cut search time in half.

You have to save the macro before exiting WP, somehow.  Back to the manual.
'If you enter 2 to 8 characters or use the Alt key the macro can be started
whenever you are in WP, otherwise they are temporary'.  I guess it will be
not j but either Alt-J (Alt-F10, Alt-J is sort of a finger twister) or jk.
If you name the macro with teh alt key you do not need to do Alt-f10 to star
the macro.  Alt-J for down 23 lines?  I am using most of the Alt plus letter
combinations for extended ASCII characters, WP4.2 has an easy way to list them
all out.  I have not used Alt-J for a Greek letter, that will be it.
Ctl-F10, Alt-J, Enter, 23 down arrows, Ctl-F10.  To use macro Alt-J.

Why didn't WP incorporate this?  This is much easier to type than PgDn, I can
leave my hands on the keyboard.  WP5.1 requires wading through several menus
each time you use a macro containing things other than characters.

Jim just put the plus card in and now there seems to be some problem with teh
spell checker, it highlights the last three lines as well as proper nouns.
The second page F9 produces gibberish.  Take out the plus card, which has nine
video display buffers instead of one (or more than nine) and may be causing
problems.  He may have to set the Hercules mode.  I hope not to have to choose
between seeing superscripts and Cyrillic, and a quick and easy spellchecker.

ANother reason not to use a VGA monitor - it highlights the misspelled words,
and the VGA highlights superscripts, it would not spot misspelled
superscripts.

With the non-plus video card in , it has the same problem on the first page,
but on the second page it highlighted the top four lines and then locked up
(rather than the gibberish).  Back to the drawing board.  Jim suspects a
memory crunch.  At least the plus card is not the problem.

This time it worked.  Some setting in 4DOS caused a problem?  He turned off
4DOS this time.  Or version 6.2 instead of Novell (??), different combinations
of system software than he normally uses.  This will work eventually.

In Turbolightning you can choose which F key it uses.  Ctl-F9 and F9 are
nothing I would use in WP4.2 (merge functions).  You cannot do this in 5.1
for some reason.  Turbo takes up about 20K memory and DOS 6.22 is larger
than Novell, maybe there is a memory shortage (286 computer)
DOS 6.22 leaves 578K (out of 640), add Turbo to leave 497, add WP4.2 to leave
261K (upper memory is not being used, he could put 4DOS in it), 4DOS takes
up only 5K extra (it substitutes for command.com in 6.22).  That does not
sound like a memory problem.  We may try a different F key for Turbo in case
it conflicts somehow with 4DOS.  F5 would do.  More later.

response 112 of 193:

Mar 16 18:49 UTC 1999

Blast TVs!  All I want to do with my computer is display text, but that does
explain the 24 lines, I guess.  They could have at least done 27 lines.

Full-page VGA will not work with RAM FONT, and if I were to display Cyrillic
in graphics it would take forever to print on my dot-matrix printer.

Jim got the spelle checker working again by removing the DOS 6.22 that came
with the machine (which would not work with his 4DOS substitute for
command.com) and replacing it with Novell DOS, which is shorter.  He thinks
6.22 was optimized to run with Windows and likes the older versions better
for his purposes.  How do the different versions of DOS differ?  He is also
having trouble getting 6.22 to work on other older computers.  It may be
responsible for a disk formatting problem on a 386 computer, perhaps a drive
in a computer set up with one DOS may not recognize a disk formatted with a
different DOS.  JIm wants to replace 6.22 with Novell.

response 114 of 193:

Mar 17 20:43 UTC 1999

This time it would not even scan, just did nothing.

Jim thinks he found a fix.  The Plus card and Turbolightning worked for him
when he started the computer up at 10MHZ, then he switched to 20MHz and it
worked.  He is starting it now at 20MHz, loading WP4.2, now it is working.
Will it work again?????  (Are you sure the Plus card is in there?  Yeah, its
the Plus card).    It was not working in the 386 with the other Plus card,
time to try that.

Both Epson and Toshiba printers (including a 1985 Toshiba) seem to come with
a built-in print buffer that works for both downloadable fonts and as a print
buffer.  I will try out both and make a choice (probably the Toshiba, no
confusing buttons and light to choose fonts with, but font cartridges and I
have no use for alternate fonts).  Toshiba default is draft.  The Dexter
Senior class would like five matching Panasonic KXP1124s, they can have my
three and Kiwanis' three - I am tired of all the flashing lights and the
instructor has one and has the manual.  
        Does anyone have a preference for Toshiba, Epson or Okdiata 24 pint
printers?  THe later Epsons have all the fonts, as do the Okidatas - the
Okidatas have a feature that switches between continuous and sheet paper, and
a paper feed.  Toshibas do not but formfeed paper is essential free so I do
not really need to print on the backs of used single sheet paper.

        My 386 is 25MHz, we have another at 20MHz and he will try the Plus card
in that 386 to see if it works, and if it does swap that Plus card into my
computer.  (One of the two plus cards was originally not working, he swapped
parts between them and they both worked - dirty connections?).  Maybe there
was a dirty pin connection and he kept putting the plus card in and out lots
of times and he has lost track of the exact sequence.  

        The Toshiba wastes paper in that the device that holds the fanfold
paper is vertical and you cannot print on the top half of the first page. 
The Panasonic did not have this problem.  All printers seem to be designed
with semiopaque grey plastic that prevents you from reading what is printing
but the Toshiba is less opaque than most.  What else should I look for in
comparing printers?  (My original criteria were price, and lots of fonts -
both a mistake).  Despite being open in back, the Toshiba is quieter due to
heavier construction, less rattles, the case absorbs the impact.

        We may try switching the two plus cards to see if the problem follows,
or reloading the TSRs and configuration.  (??)  In any event, there is a
working 286/20 Sunset with an HEDAKA board to map upper memory so we can use
the entire 1M and not have problems shelling from WP4.2 to Procomm Plus.  And
a pretty green light that says 10 or 20 (MHz).  And four bays.  We will change
from high to low density large floppy so I can write to my disks.

Which is faster - our Zeos 16 MHz 386 or the Sunset 20 MHz 286, for running
old 16 bit software?  We may try timing it.  386SX.  The 386 cpu is faster
but is that only for 32 bit software?
        The 25MHz 386DX will not let us use more than 640 K RAM yet because
it is not configured properly.  This may take forever to optimize, but we will
have learned a lot in the process. (We could be building a house instead).

Is it 4 pm already?