FLASH 3.0
THE ORIGINAL
DAILY NEWS FILE GENERATOR
FOR
POPULAR BULLETIN BOARD SERVICES
USER'S DOCUMENTATION
Copyrighted (C) Qsoft Software 1989,90
by Kenneth P. Wilcox
LOOK FOR THE LATEST VERSION OF FLASH AND OTHER EXCITING
QSOFT PRODUCTS
on
Linray BBS (805) 942-2410 24hrs
TABLE of CONTENTS
-------------------
INTRODUCTION.................................... 3
A MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR....................... 4
REGISTRATION.................................... 5
REGISTRATION FORM............................... 6
INSTALLING FLASH................................ 7
RUNNING FLASH................................... 8
Style Menu................................. 9
Config Menu................................ 10
News Menu.................................. 13
Rebuilding Files........................... 13
Misc Menu.................................. 14
Quit MENU.................................. 14
EDIT Menu.................................. 15
CREATING NEW MESSAGES........................... 16
EDITING EXISTING MESSAGES....................... 16
EDITOR GRAPHICS................................. 16
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 2.
INTRODUCTION
------------
FLASH (Daily News File Generator) is likely to be the BBS sysop's
handiest utility. With FLASH a sysop can instantly inform his
callers of important information, specials, up coming events,
etc. As most BBS programs will display a certain file at logon
time FLASH takes it a step further allowing attractive and
changeable displays. Old news messages are appended to new
messages so that your important news is not lost to infrequent
callers. How many times have you wanted to communicate an
important message to everyone. Perhaps you will be shutting your
system down for maintenance on a particular date and would like
to inform the user's of the date and time. Because many callers
never bother reading the message base, FLASH guarantees that all
of your caller's will receive your message.
FLASH 3.0 is not an upgrade but a complete rewrite of the
original program. Your comments and feedback have been studied
and the best suggestions have been incorporated into this all new
version of FLASH.
Some of FLASH's new features are:
1. A full screen news file editor.
2. Up to 99 lines per news message.
3. Four output files for those BBS's supporting
multi machine types. ( 40 or 80 character output)
4. News Headlines
5. Support for 100 conferences
each with it's own files, colors, and sysop information.
6. Insertion of a display pause character (BBS dependent)
7. Four (4) different displays.
Plain, Newspaper, Printer Paper, Banner
8. Four (4) screen display modes.
Fast, NoSnow, Bios, Ansi
9. Pull down menus
We hope that you enjoy FLASH as we know that it will save you
countless hours when communicating with your callers.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 3.
A MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR
-------------------------
FLASH is not free nor is it to be considered public domain.
FLASH is a commercial program that is being distributed to the
Public for trial usage through North America's fine system of
Bulletin Boards.
FLASH has been found on systems from Alaska to Puerto Rico and at
least one feeble attempt has been made to copy it. Originally
released (Version 2.3) under the concept of Shareware I must only
conclude that it was a miserable failure. Registrations have
been far and few between, yet, as I've noted FLASH has been found
running all over the continent. You see unlike most programs
released through these channels FLASH can not be hidden. You
either use it or you don't. It is highly visible as it is
usually the first file displayed to callers on your bulletin
board.
I have also heard the feeble excuse that as sysops you've already
spent too much money putting your systems on-line and that you
can't be expected to pay for everything uploaded. This is true
but FLASH becomes one of your daily tools and as such an integral
part of your system. Just as you wouldn't be expected to use an
illegal bulletin board software system I would expect that if you
use FLASH you will pay for it. With the exception of stamping
your messages with "DEMONSTRATION" no attempt has been made to
cripple FLASH. In other words this demonstration software is
completely functional. I would like to continue to support FLASH
and it's user's but version 3.0 will be the last upgrade if
payment continues to be ignored.
My thanks go out to all of you who did support and pay for
Version 2.3 and for the many fine suggestions that were received.
In fact to show my gratitude all registered user's of version 2.3
that contact me will receive 3.0 absolutely FREE ( long distance
connect charges excluded). If you are a registered user please
refer to the REGISTRATION section for further information on
obtaining your free copy of FLASH 3.0. Thank you, Ken Wilcox
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 4.
REGISTRATION
------------
Registration has been designed to be as painless as possible and
can be accomplished in one of two ways.
METHOD #1: (EASY)
-----------------
Simply fill out the registration form provided to you as the file
"FLASH.REG". Send this form along with a check or money order for
$25.00 to Kenneth P. Wilcox. After allowing approximately 2
weeks processing and mail time you will receive a letter
confirming your registration and instructions for DOWNLOADING
your registered copy of FLASH from our BBS.
METHOD #2: (EASIER)
-------------------
Fill out and mail the form including payment of $28.00 to Kenneth
P. Wilcox. The day your check is cleared by our bank your
registered copy of FLASH will be UPLOADED to YOUR bulletin board.
Payments received via money order will be processed and posted to
your board the day they are received.
FREE SOFTWARE:
--------------
If you are a registered user of FLASH 2.3 contact Ken Wilcox on
Linray BBS at (805) 942-2410 and leave a private message with
your REGISTRATION NUMBER. Please allow a couple of days or so
processing time. Your downloading instructions will be left in a
return private message.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 5.
FLASH 3.0 - REGISTRATION FORM:
Thank you for registering. Please take the time to fill
this form out completely. It will assist us in developing future
products. Make checks payable to:
KENNETH WILCOX
2076 Westwood Court, Suite #57
Lancaster, CA. 93534
___ Copies of FLASH at $25.00 ea. $___________
(You DOWNLOAD your copy)
___ Copies of FLASH at $28.00 ea. $___________
(We UPLOAD your copy to you)
(CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS PLEASE ADD 6.5% SALES TAX) $___________
TOTAL ENCLOSED $===========
________________________________________________________________
Name: Address:
__________________________ __________________________________
Phone (___)___-____ __________________________________
BBS (___)___-____ __________________________________
BBS NAME _______________ BBS Software ________________v____
BBS Hardware _____________________
_____________________
_____________________
Color [ ] Monochrome [ ] Both [ ]
Less than 640K [ ] 640K [ ] Extended RAM [ ] Expanded Ram [ ]
Windows [ ] DoubleDos [ ] Desqview [ ]
Comments about FLASH.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 6.
INSTALLING FLASH
----------------
FLASH 3.0 is incompatible with all prior releases. As such all
previous config files and news files must be destroyed. The
following files should have been included with this
demonstration. If you find any of the files missing you can be
assured of a complete/clean set of files by contacting our BBS
and downloading the most recent copy.
FILES INCLUDED IN THIS ARCHIVE:
-------------------------------
FLASH30.EXE THE ACTUAL PROGRAM
FLASH.WP A SAMPLE EDITOR FILE TO GET YOU STARTED
NEWSG A SAMPLE ANSI DISPLAY FILE
NEWS A SAMPLE ASCII DISPLAY FILE
FLASH30.DOC DOCUMENTATION FOR FLASH
FLASH30.REG A TEXT FILE THAT CAN BE PRINTED
TO BE FILLED OUT AND MAILED
READ.ME LATEST CHANGES NOT IN THE DOCUMENTATION
To install FLASH on your system copy the 2 files FLASH30.EXE and
FLASH.WP to any directory on your hard drive. FLASH doesn't care
what drive it is run from. The first time you use FLASH it will
create a file called FLASH.CNF in the same directory as FLASH was
started from. FLASH.CNF will contain all future data as to
selected colors and paths to your various conferences.
After you have copied the files to the directory you want FLASH
to reside in, simply type "FLASH30" from the dos command line.
The configuration file will be created and you will be presented
with the main FLASH screen.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 7.
RUNNING FLASH
-------------
As sysops it is assumed that you are familiar with a wide variety
of software and their various interfaces. Because of this we will
skip the mundane mechanics of how to use pull down menus, cursor
keys etc, and basically explain the various options available
when running FLASH.
There are a few switch commands/options that may be called each
time FLASH is run. Typing FLASH30 by itself on the command line
will cause FLASH to load based on the display adapter it finds.
If it finds a color card the program will operate in color with
no snow checking down for slow displays and if it finds a
monochrome card it will run in black and white. To override these
options the following switches may be included on the command
line.
SWITCH RESULT
------ ------
/S SLOW DOWN SLIGHTLY TO PREVENT SNOW ON SLOW MONITORS
/B ALL SCREEN WRITES WILL GO THROUGH THE DOS BIOS
ROUTINES
/A ALL SCREEN WRITES WILL USE ANSI WRITES
(ANSI.SYS) MUST BE INSTALLED THROUGH CONFIG.SYS
/MONO FORCE BLACK AND WHITE FOR MONOCHROME MONITORS
CONNECTED TO A COLOR CARD, (i.e, Compaq portables)
So to run FLASH in ansi mode with forced black and white displays
the command from dos would be "FLASH30 /A /MONO"
The main screen of FLASH contains a pulldown style menu that will
activate the various options needed to operate FLASH. Also
contained on the main screen are the statistics of the currently
selected conference including the selected display filenames,
sysop's name, message counters, conference name, etc.
The pulldown menus are listed on the first line of the screen and
appear as.
-----------------------------------------------
| Style Config News Misc EDIT Quit |
-----------------------------------------------
To select a particular menu option just press the first letter of
the selection name. For example to select Config, press {C} and
the config menu will be displayed. Following is a description of
each menu option from Style to Quit.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 8.
STYLE MENU:
-----------
STYLE
1. Plain
2. Newspaper
3. Printer Paper
4. Banner
These are the various types of output display files that can be
created with FLASH. While the style of the output file can also
be selected with the edit conference command this the fastest way
to change the output style for the currently selected conference.
Press the number corresponding to the type of file that you would
like to display and then REBUILD the file (see REBUILDING FILES).
By utilizing the different options you can keep a constantly
changing NEWS display so that your callers won't be bored with
the same display everytime they log on.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 9.
CONFIG MENU:
------------
CONFIG
1. Change Conference
2. Edit Conference
3. BBS Name
4. Ansi File Colors
1. Change Conference
--------------------
Conferences are number 0 thru 99. The screen will clear and
display the conferences in groups of 20. You will be prompted to
enter the conference number to activate or you can use the
PgUp/PgDn key to display the next/previous group of 20
conferences.
It is not necessary to page through the conferences to activate
one. For example if you load the change conference screen and
conferences 0-19 are being displayed you can still directly enter
65 if you know that is the conference you want to activate. After
you select your conference press {ESC} to return to the main
screen.
If a conference number does not have a conference name attached
it will not be activated. Refer to Edit Conference for more
details.
2. Edit Conference
------------------
The Edit Conference option will present you with much the same
screen as when changing conferences. Conferences are displayed in
groups of 20 and can be selected by typing the corresponding
conference number. Additional groups of 20 conferences can be
displayed by using the PgUp/PgDn keys. Type the conference number
and press enter (or {ESC} to return to the main screen).
You will be presented with a list of options that when completed
will be in effect for that particular conference only (see NOTE1:
below). The options and their description follow:
OPTION DESCRIPTION
------ -----------
Conference Name A 25 character description(NAME) for the
conference. (i.e. "TURBO C USERS GROUP")
Msg. Pause. Many BBS programs now allow a display
file to be paused during execution. Type
the 3 character numeric code supplied by
your BBS for pausing. (i.e. 004 for ^D)
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 10.
Sysop This is the sysop or co-sysop for the
conference.
Style Select the output display style that you
want this conference to use. (i.e.
1=Plain, 2=Newspaper,etc.)
Path This is the path or directory where your
BBS expects to find the necessary files.
If the directory is on a different drive
than FLASH, the path must be proceeded
by the drive letter.
(i.e., D:\MYBBS\CONF0)
ANSI FILENAME_1 This is the primary ansi output file and
is locked in at a width of 80 chars.
On a PCBOARD system this would be
"NEWSG" for the main conference area.
Supply the appropriate name for your BBS
ASCII FILENAME_1 This is the pure ascii display. On
PCBOARD this would be "NEWS". This is
also an 80 character display.
ANSI FILENAME_2
ASCII FILENAME_2 These are supplemental and optional
files available to those BBS's that
can generate additional files for
caller's with NON-IBM type displays.
These files can be generated in 40 or
80 character widths. No attempt is made
to offer any style option on these 2
files. They will be formatted by default
as PLAIN. 40 character mode may have
strange output as lines may not always
reformat properly depending on the
message content.
You may scroll through the various options by repeatedly pressing
the {ENTER} key or by using the Up and Down arrow keys. When you
are satisfied with the setup press the {ESC} key to lock in the
changes.
Be sure to Rebuild your files after making changes in the
conferences. (refer to REBUILDING FILES)
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 11.
----------
| NOTE1: |
----------
Many systems expect to find all of the display files in the
same directory with different file names. To speed setup
configure conference 0 (zero) first. After that any conferences
that are called up to be edited will default to the options used
in conference 0 so that only the filenames need be changed.
3. BBS Name
-----------
You will be prompted to enter a 25 character description (NAME)
of your BBS to be used across all conferences when generating
news messages.
4. Ansi File Colors
-------------------
The heart of FLASH is it's ability to quickly change the output
displays that your callers see. One of the most important
features is the capability to vary the colors used in the
displays. This option is very flexible as we all have different
ideas as to what looks great and what doesn't. The following
parts of your news file can be colorized to your liking.
[] BBS/Sysop Name [] Border
[] Message Header [] Line One
[] Headlines [] Line Two
Lines one and two when set to different colors can give the
effect of changing lines (like greenbar paper) sometimes making
message reading easier.
To select the colors for the various options above, move the
cursor with the up and down arrow keys and press {ENTER} when it
is next to the selection to be changed.
A color chart will be displayed. Again using the arrow keys move
around the box. As each color is passed in the box the associated
selection will change to that color for review. To aid monochrome
users who can't see the colors no matter how hard they try the
selected colors will be displayed in text form underneath the
color box. For example: "CURRENT SELECTION: WHITE ON BLACK" is
displayed when those colors are high-lighted.
When you are satisfied with the color for that option press the
{ENTER} key to lock the colors in.
Repeat these steps for each option that you want to change.
Colors are in effect only for the currently selected conference.
Don't forget to REBUILD your files after changing colors.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 12.
NEWS MENU:
----------
NEWS
1. Rebuild Files
2. Display Ansi File
3. Display Ascii File
4. Display Supp. Ansi File
5. Display Supp. Ascii File
6. FLASH News Editor
REBUILDING FILES
----------------
Each time changes are made to your conferences or NEWS FILE you
must select this option so that files can be rebuilt. New
messages are always placed at the top so that the news can be
followed chronologically from newest date to oldest. This option
will only rebuild files in the currently selected directory. So
if you make changes in several conferences be sure to Rebuild as
you go.
Selections 2-5 are provided only as a quick means of displaying
the various files that you have created. Select the file to view
by pressing the corresponding number and the file will be
displayed. The display will pause at the end of the news file
and offer you to the chance to {R}eview the file again or quit to
the main screen.
Selection 6 activates the FLASH news editor and is explained
below under EDIT MENU.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 13.
MISC MENU:
----------
MISC
1. Jump to Dos
Simply a way to exit to dos without leaving FLASH. After
completing your dos tasks type {EXIT} and press {ENTER} to return
to FLASH.
QUIT MENU:
----------
QUIT MENU:
1. Exit FLASH
Quit FLASH and return to dos. All changes are saved auto-
matically.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 14.
EDIT MENU:
----------
EDITING NEWS FILES
EDIT MENU:
1. Edit FLASH News
FLASH provides a built in mini word processor for creating and
editing existing News FLASHes. If you've used a word processor
or text editor (of course you have you are SYSOPS) you will be
very comfortable with FLASH's message editor.
When the editor is first loaded you are presented with a view
into the existing messages. The following commands are used to
maneuver around the view portion of the editor.
{F1}HELP, {E}DIT, {K}ILL, {N}EW, {+}NEXT, {-}PREV. {ESC}=EXIT
{F1} Will give you a brief synopsis of these commands.
{E}dit will place you in edit mode to revise an existing message
or to create a new one. (more on this later)
{K}ill will delete the message that is currently being displayed
on the screen. Once killed or deleted this message can not be
recalled as automatic packing is done on the file as soon as the
message is removed (KILLED) from the system.
{N}ew displays a fresh video page, for creating new messages
while browsing.
{+}NEXT.. The plus key is used to page forward one message at a
time for review. The messages will be displayed from newest to
oldest. Forward paging will stop when the oldest message is
reached.
{-}PREV.. The minus key is used to page backwards through the
messages from oldest to newest. Paging will stop after the newest
message.
{ESC}=EXIT.. Quit back to the main screen.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 15.
CREATING NEW MESSAGES:
----------------------
To create a new message start with a clean video page (Press {N}
if you have been reviewing previous messages). Begin typing
using the normal A-z keys. As a line is typed it will
automatically wrap at the end of the line and the cursor will
move to the next line. When the bottom of the display page is
reached it will scroll upward allowing you to type up to 99 lines
per message.
The cursor can be maneuvered around the screen by using the arrow
directional keys or multiple lines can be moved by pressing the
PgUp or PgDn keys.
To end your message press the {F10}. You will be prompted to add
a headline to the message. After typing the headline press
{ENTER} and the message will be saved.
Once a message has been started or editing begins on an existing
message the changes made can be aborted by pressing the {ESC}
key. You will be prompted to confirm the message abort. Type {Y}
Yes to abort the message or changes, or {N} No to resume editing.
EDITING EXISTING MESSAGES:
--------------------------
Select the message to edit by paging through the news file with
the plus and minus keys (+,-). Position the cursor with the
arrow keys at the position to begin editing and type. As when
creating a new message press {F10} to save your changes or {ESC}
to abort.
EDITOR GRAPHICS:
----------------
The editor contains a small graphics mode that will aid in the
creation of your news files. While editing press the {F7} key to
activate graphics mode. The bottom line of the editor will
display several graphics characters and the corresponding key to
press to display them. For example to make the character "│" on
the display press the plus (+) key.
The characters have been matched to the shape of the keypad on
extended keyboards with the number 9 key always being a top left
corner character and the number 3 a bottom right character.
Pressing the {F8} key while in graphics mode will swap character
sets. There are 4 characters sets available which should be
sufficient in making simple boxes and borders around your text.
To end graphics mode press {F7} again or the {ESC} key.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 16.
That's all there is to it. If you've followed the instructions
you should be up and ready to run.
We look forward to hearing from you and of course receiving your
registration. Feel free to pass this Demonstration version of
FLASH to your fellow sysops.
Again if you have any problems contact KEN WILCOX on:
Linray BBS
(805) 942-2410
300,1200,2400 - 24 hours a day.
Flash 3.0 - User's Documentation Page 17.