Re: [ql-users] US Show
sorry to hear this Roy, you look after your Mum, take care all the best - Bill - Original Message - From: Roy wood [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2006 11:46 PM Subject: [ql-users] US Show I am sorry to have to tell you that I will be unable to attend the US show this year. I was all set to do so when my mother fell ill and was taken to hospital I had put off taking the decision about whether to go or not but, right now, I cannot be out of the country in case the worst happens. I hope you will all understand this and I hope you will have a good time there. I will be with you in spirit at least and try to make the next show. -- Roy Wood Q Branch. 20 Locks Hill, Portslade, Sussex.BN41 2LB Tel: +44 (0) 1273 386030fax: +44 (0) 1273 430501 skype : royqbranch web : www.qbranch.demon.co.uk ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.12.4/449 - Release Date: 15/09/2006 ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
[ql-users] QHelp
I've just checked the zip files on the QHelp master very carefully, and there is *no* menu_rext. More to the point, the boot supplied does not load it: just ptr_gen, wman, qlib_run, and hot_rext -- all of which I have! Is DIR_SELECT$ really part of menu_rext? So the problem remains: why does QHelp complain that DIR_SELECT$ is a bad name now under an emulator, when it ran perfectly well on a black box? When I got my QL in 198? I was impressed by how much easier to use it was than my PC at work. Nowadays I'm constantly noticing how much easier Linux is! For anyone who's wrestled with installing QL Lynx, compare the Linux installation: just type rpm -i Lynx. And then the QL version needs half a dozen environment variables set every time you run it. I've never needed to set an environment variable for a Linux program. It seems that as other computers have got simpler, the QL has got more confusing (and confused). ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
[ql-users] SMSQ/E Screen feature whilst CTRL C'ing
Hi, Remember, I'm New ! Soak testing my now working Gold Card last night. Using SMSQ/E and whilst running two copies of Xchange last night, I thought Id run WEST ( talent adventure ) as well, just to see if i could crash my QL. I was shocked and slightly suprised that by running WEST (which runs In MODE 4, low res i believe), when CTRL C'ing between sessions, my exchange jobs were reduced from 80 column to a hybrid low res mode with flashing streaks across my monitor. Whilst nothing crashed I just wondered if this was a known 'feature' and has / has no solution apart from the obvious ( don't run MODE 4 applications whilst MODE 8 applications are running) Also, what is the purpose of SHIFT F4 ( shows two connected squares icon) and SHIFT F5 (shows a Padlock icon) within Xchange ( not sure if this happens outside of SMSQ/E as my QL was running it ) Ok, newby questions over. :-) Neil *** The contents of this email are confidential to the intended recipient. It may not be disclosed to or used by anyone other than the addressee, nor may it be copied in any way. If received in error, please contact the company on 01793-715380, then delete it from your system. Please note neither the company nor the sender accepts any responsibility for viruses and it is your responsibility to scan attachments (if any) for viruses. No contract may be concluded on behalf of the company by means of email communications. www.boxclever.co.uk *** ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] month number
Is there a way of returning the current month as a number? I had thought I had come up with a function for this, but it is getting the ends of some months wrong, eg 1 May is coming out as 31 Apr! (Which seems odd as I thought I had checked out all the month bounds when writing the function...I'll have another look at it tomorrow.) Had a fiddle with it this evening, and seem to have solved the problems (I've checked it against the QL's DATE$() and it's matched as far as today from 1 Jan 1961): snip I could have set a string and made it a function, but the whole point of the exercise was that you were trying to extract the day/month/year from the DATE$ (if I understood you properly) and it would have been a bit silly to package them up in a string to be unpackaged again afterwards. An alternative would be to add the three elements together, eg: packed = (year - 1961) * 372 + (month - 1) * 31 + day - 1 Then: day = packed MOD 31 + 1 month = INT(packed / 31) MOD 12 + 1 year = 1961 + INT(packed / 372) my_mth_no takes one param: secs since ~ and returns the month number of that date: month = my_mth_no(secs) Any help? Yes! Thank you. I can see this is very useful if th emethod I'm actually using fails to work for any reason. It's a very different approach to that which I took, which is more like that suggested by Wolfgang - extracting the 'active' language data by using DATE$ with a parameter at various steps in the clock's first year to extract the month names, and date$ with day-length steps to extract the day names. I have a DATA list of the full month names for the calendar display in the languages currently supported by SMSQ/E, and if the LANGUAGE function returns a value unknown to QDiary, it simply defaults to using the 3 letter month names extracted as Wolfgang suggested. It seems to work even if the programming is a little clumsy and not as tidy as I'd like. There were articles in QL Today about calendars and time-related subjects (especially liked the Star Trek stardates!) which have also been very helpful. In fact, as I was given permission to include those articles on the Documentation CD, may I ask you if I can also include these routines as well? If so, a few lines explaining the algorithm may be in order. I understand parts of it, but not all of it: for example what's the significance of the (dy+0.8) ? -- Dilwyn Jones -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.12.4/448 - Release Date: 14/09/2006 ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] SMSQ/E Screen feature whilst CTRL C'ing
Remember, I'm New ! Soak testing my now working Gold Card last night. Using SMSQ/E and whilst running two copies of Xchange last night, I thought Id run WEST ( talent adventure ) as well, just to see if i could crash my QL. I was shocked and slightly suprised that by running WEST (which runs In MODE 4, low res i believe), when CTRL C'ing between sessions, my exchange jobs were reduced from 80 column to a hybrid low res mode with flashing streaks across my monitor. Whilst nothing crashed I just wondered if this was a known 'feature' and has / has no solution apart from the obvious ( don't run MODE 4 applications whilst MODE 8 applications are running) Flashing is usually because the computer is trying to display mode 4 graphics while the screen is in mode 8. In mode 8, the QL expects every 2nd bit in the colour words to be a bit controlling flashing, but in mode 4 pictures this bit indicates green pixels, so the QL gets confused. Not an easy thing to explain, but see the Concepts part of the QL manual in the section called memory map for an explanation. Also, what is the purpose of SHIFT F4 ( shows two connected squares icon) and SHIFT F5 (shows a Padlock icon) within Xchange ( not sure if this happens outside of SMSQ/E as my QL was running it ) Ok, newby questions over. :-) SHIFT F4 (or F9 on keyboards with that key) toggles between INSERT and OVERWRITE modes in Quill for example. SHIFT F5 (or F10 on keyboards with that key) tries to redraw the display. CTRL F4 brings up the double interlocked squares, which is a MOVE feature - on large displays you can move the Xchange display around the screen to your preferred location. Move the double squares around with the mouse (if you have one) or cursor keys and press space or enter to drop the icon and the Xchange display at that location. On a QL display you'll see the effect, but I don't think there's much room to move the physical Xchange picture around on the 512x256 pixel QL display. CTRL F5 freezes the display, e.g. when you COPY or COPY_N a text file to the screen and it scrolls too fast to read, you can use CTRL F5 to freeze the display and CTRL F5 again (in fact, any key will work) to release it to scroll again. CTRL F3 on some programs (though not Xchange) will bring up a double square (small square within large square) icon which lets you reduce or enlarge the program's display, i.e. how much of the screen it uses. If you use QPAC2 for example, you can use CTRL F3 to make the files list smaller or larger. CTRL F2 causes some programs to redraw their own display, e.g. if an overlapping program destroys the display. CTRL F1 will put some programs to sleep in what is called the QPAC2 button frame, which is very vaguely like a Windows taskbar where minimised programs lie. The 'padlock' feature usually implies that an attempt is made to move the pointer when the QL is in fact awaiting keyboard input for example. There are other such icons, for example an '8' symbol means that you are in mode 4 (4 colour mode) and the part of the screen on which your pointer is resting needs mode 8. A 'square' symbol usually means your pointer has wandered outside the window limits, i.e. no program has its windows under the pointer's current position (a unused part of screen). A 'no entry' red circle with white line across it implies you are within the program's outline on the screen, but you may have gone outside the active window. Usually happens when a program overlaps a new window which is smaller than the main window and the pointer arrow has strayed outside the smaller window, but is still within the border of the larger main window, just that as that window is partially buried, pointer input isn't possible, hence being locked out with the 'no entry' symbol. It sounds like you are starting to find your way around pointer environment. You might find Norman Dunbar's Pointer Environment Idiot's Guide helpful, as it is a gentle introduction to the very basics. It certainly helped me in my early days with it. You can get it from one of my websites at: http://dilwynjones.topcities.com/qldocs/qldocs.html Scroll down to the Pointer Environment section and you 'll see it there along with the hotkeys guides etc. Sorry, this email got a big longer than I'd intended, but I hope it helps to explain a few things. -- Dilwyn Jones -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.12.4/448 - Release Date: 14/09/2006 ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] QHelp
OK I hold my hands up - it has been so long since I actually needed to look at this program. You are right it will report DIR_SELECT$ cannot be found IF: 1) You do not have menu_rext present 2) You have not configured the HELP_obj program to set the correct directory for the location of the help topics - normally win1_BASIC_ As it includes its own boot file to install the files to win1_BASIC_ I guess this bug has never been found !! Rich On Wed, 20 Sep 2006 09:22:03 +0100, David McCann [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I've just checked the zip files on the QHelp master very carefully, and there is *no* menu_rext. More to the point, the boot supplied does not load it: just ptr_gen, wman, qlib_run, and hot_rext -- all of which I have! Is DIR_SELECT$ really part of menu_rext? So the problem remains: why does QHelp complain that DIR_SELECT$ is a bad name now under an emulator, when it ran perfectly well on a black box? When I got my QL in 198? I was impressed by how much easier to use it was than my PC at work. Nowadays I'm constantly noticing how much easier Linux is! For anyone who's wrestled with installing QL Lynx, compare the Linux installation: just type rpm -i Lynx. And then the QL version needs half a dozen environment variables set every time you run it. I've never needed to set an environment variable for a Linux program. It seems that as other computers have got simpler, the QL has got more confusing (and confused). ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm -- Rich Mellor RWAP Services URL:http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk URL:http://www.rwapadventures.com URL:http://www.rwapservices.co.uk URL:http://www.internetbusinessangels.com ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] month number
Google is your friend--e.g. googling zeller's congruence for starters or just visiting US NIST or similar will turn things up. I've been thinking to mention zeller's for some time. Maybe that's one thing the QLT articles dealt with; I haven't looked in a while to say the least. Doug L. 37830 USA -Original Message- From: Dilwyn Jones [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sep 20, 2006 1:22 PM To: QL Users List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [ql-users] month number Is there a way of returning the current month as a number? I had thought I had come up with a function for this, but it is getting the ends of some months wrong, eg 1 May is coming out as 31 Apr! (Which ...snip... ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] SMSQ/E Screen feature whilst CTRL C'ing
On Wed, 20 Sep 2006 16:03:48 +0100, Neil Riley [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi, Remember, I'm New ! Soak testing my now working Gold Card last night. That is ok - go ahead !! Using SMSQ/E and whilst running two copies of Xchange last night, I thought Id run WEST ( talent adventure ) as well, just to see if i could crash my QL. I was shocked and slightly suprised that by running WEST (which runs In MODE 4, low res i believe), when CTRL C'ing between sessions, my exchange jobs were reduced from 80 column to a hybrid low res mode with flashing streaks across my monitor. Whilst nothing crashed I just wondered if this was a known 'feature' and has / has no solution apart from the obvious ( don't run MODE 4 applications whilst MODE 8 applications are running) Alas no - only Minerva ever went anyway to resolving this problem. The QL has two screens (one of which is covered by the system variables normally, but games get around this by running in supervisor mode) freeing up another 32K of spare space at $28000 (normal QL screen on black box is at $2). Minerva allowed you to start the QL in dual screen mode (it moved the system variables which was not very compatible with some old software) and you could have a different screen in each mode. West runs in MODE 8 so far as I recall and that is why you get problems switching to Xchange. The Pointer Environment (which is part of SMSQ/e) does try to keep a tab of the mode in which each job is running but this will only work if you have configured SMSQ/e to only run in standard QL colours. I guess some of the old software (like West) was not made for multitasking and therefore uses some obscure techniques which the pointer environment misses. Try running Xchange, then doing a MODE 8:PAPER 3:CLS (magenta screen) in BASIC and having a pink screen and then try the CTRL C to switch to Xchange. Also, what is the purpose of SHIFT F4 ( shows two connected squares icon) and SHIFT F5 (shows a Padlock icon) within Xchange ( not sure if this happens outside of SMSQ/E as my QL was running it ) SHIFT F4 is to allow you to move Xchange about the screen and SHIFT F5 is redraw (I think). Not much point on a standard QL as it uses all 512x256 of the screen anyway. These are included in the Xchange documentation somewhere. -- Rich Mellor RWAP Services URL:http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk URL:http://www.rwapadventures.com URL:http://www.rwapservices.co.uk URL:http://www.internetbusinessangels.com ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] SMSQ/E Screen feature whilst CTRL C'ing
SHIFT F4 (or F9 on keyboards with that key) toggles between INSERT and OVERWRITE modes in Quill for example. SHIFT F5 (or F10 on keyboards with that key) tries to redraw the display. CTRL F4 brings up the double interlocked squares, which is a MOVE feature - on large displays you can move the Xchange display around the screen to your preferred location. Move the double squares around with the mouse (if you have one) or cursor keys and press space or enter to drop the icon and the Xchange display at that location. On a QL display you'll see the effect, but I don't think there's much room to move the physical Xchange picture around on the 512x256 pixel QL display. CTRL F5 freezes the display, e.g. when you COPY or COPY_N a text file to the screen and it scrolls too fast to read, you can use CTRL F5 to freeze the display and CTRL F5 again (in fact, any key will work) to release it to scroll again. CTRL F3 on some programs (though not Xchange) will bring up a double square (small square within large square) icon which lets you reduce or enlarge the program's display, i.e. how much of the screen it uses. If you use QPAC2 for example, you can use CTRL F3 to make the files list smaller or larger. CTRL F2 causes some programs to redraw their own display, e.g. if an overlapping program destroys the display. CTRL F1 will put some programs to sleep in what is called the QPAC2 button frame, which is very vaguely like a Windows taskbar where minimised programs lie. Thanks Dilwyn - much better explanation than me - it is so easy to forget these things especially as a full size keyboard has the scroll lock which I use :-) The 'padlock' feature usually implies that an attempt is made to move the pointer when the QL is in fact awaiting keyboard input for example. There are other such icons, for example an '8' symbol means that you are in mode 4 (4 colour mode) and the part of the screen on which your pointer is resting needs mode 8. A 'square' symbol usually means your pointer has wandered outside the window limits, i.e. no program has its windows under the pointer's current position (a unused part of screen). A 'no entry' red circle with white line across it implies you are within the program's outline on the screen, but you may have gone outside the active window. Usually happens when a program overlaps a new window which is smaller than the main window and the pointer arrow has strayed outside the smaller window, but is still within the border of the larger main window, just that as that window is partially buried, pointer input isn't possible, hence being locked out with the 'no entry' symbol. -- Rich Mellor RWAP Services URL:http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk URL:http://www.rwapadventures.com URL:http://www.rwapservices.co.uk URL:http://www.internetbusinessangels.com ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] month number
Dilwyn Jones wrote: ... In fact, as I was given permission to include those articles on the Documentation CD, may I ask you if I can also include these routines as well? Sure. If so, a few lines explaining the algorithm may be in order. I understand parts of it, but not all of it: for example what's the significance of the (dy+0.8) ? It's the Fudge factor to get the leap year calculations correct - it could possibly be removed by changing the base year (of the shifted year) from 1960 to 1959 (and adding an extra 366, ie +972 instead of +306 to the days) but I haven't checked it: 0.8 was chosen, as otherwise the first year would be a leap year with 366 days (0-365), the 2nd would then be days 366-730, 3rd 731-1095, 4th 1096-1460; the 5th would also be a leap year. The my_mth_no() fn is just the month stuff extracted from my_date proc, so I'll just explain my_date. I'm not a very good technical author (and I'm currently half asleep), so I'll write what it does and I'll let you tidy it up (if you want to). 88888888 The way it works is by using a calendar based on day 0 = 1 March 1960. The year in this calendar runs from 1 March to 28/29 February - the leap day is added at the end of the year, every 1460 days. (4 years) Having the leap day at the end of the year means that we don't have to worry about it when working out the day offset for any date in the year 1 March or later. As we're passed seconds, we divide by 86400 = 24 * 60 * 60, the number of seconds in a day and ignore the fraction. The passed date needs to be adjusted for our shifted year and as day 306 is 1 January 1961, an offset of 306 is added. The current year is calculated from the base by checking out every 365.25 days. (The fudge factor of (dy + 0.8) simplifies the calculation so that yr 0 = days 0-364, yr 1 = 365-729, yr 2 = 730-1094, yr 3 (leap) = 1095-1460, etc.) Once the relative year to the base year is found, the number of days until the start of that year is removed leaving the day offset within the year. The number 30.6 is useful in that its multiples, when ignoring the fraction bit, provide an increase of 30, 31, 30, 31, 31 which then repeats. This matches the number of days in each of the months in the year that need to be added to get to the start of the current month: 31 (March), 30 (April), 31, 30, 31, 31, 30, 31, 30, 31, 31 (February has 28/29 which then starts the next year and so we don't need it). Adding 31 to the current day number corrects for the sequence of the multiples of 30.6 so that it matches the month sequence. Dividing by 30.6 then gives the month number in the shifted year. We need to subtract the number of days in the month(s) preceeding this one from the day offset in the year. Again, we need to shift the 30.6 sequence and the (mn + 3) provides this. However, we also have to correct for INT(30.6 * 3) = 92 extra days which are subtracted, so we need to add them back with a +92 Finally the shifted month is corrected for the real year by adding 2. If the resultant month is 12 (ie a month past December, ie January or February), subtract 12 from the month number and add one to the year. The year is corrected to the real year by adding the base year of 1960. ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
