

README.1st - PC DiscPassage

This document contains the following information:
	. System Requirements for running DiscPassage
	. Installation instructions
	. Command Line Options
	. Using DiscPassage
	. Special Function Keys
	. Troubleshooting


System Requirements for the IBM PC
----------------------------------
DiscPassage requires:
	. An IBM PC or compatible with MS-DOS version 3.1 or later.
	. A CD-ROM drive with appropriate drivers.
	. Microsoft CD-ROM extensions version 2.0 or later.
	. At least 640K of RAM, with 500K available.
	. A hard drive (optional, but strongly recommended).  Check
your hard drive for free space.  Programs and help files take up
about 450K of available space.
	. Images require a Super VGA card capable of 640 x 480
resolution (256 colors) and 512 Kilobytes of video memory on the
board.  Standard VGA is also supported, though image resolution is
noticeably lower.
	. Audio requires a CD-ROM reader with an audio jack and an
external speaker or headphones.
	. See the READ.ME file on the root of your CD-ROM drive for
up-to-date information on the current release of this software.


Installing and Starting DiscPassage
-----------------------------------
To install the DiscPassage software on your IBM PC:
	. Go to the floppy drive (or the CD-ROM drive, if you
didn't receive a floppy): A: <<enter key>>
	. Type SETUP and the <<enter key>>.  The program will ask
you where you wish to install DiscPassage and its support files.
By default, the software will be loaded into a directory named
\DISCPASS on the drive you designate. 
	. After the programs have been copied to your hard drive,
you can start DiscPassage by logging onto your hard drive
(C:<<enter key>>) then typing DP and the <<enter key>>.
	. Every time you run the software, you will receive a
license agreement message.  Press the <<enter key>> to assent to
the license agreement and you will be able to run your DiscPassage
disc.
	. Installation is complete!  If you had any difficulties,
please refer to the troubleshooting section.


Command Line Options
--------------------
DiscPassage defaults to the first available CD-ROM drive letter.
If there are multiple CD-ROM drives on your system, you can force
the software to initially recognize an alternate drive by typing:
	dp -ddrive    e.g. dp -de (for drive e:)

Also, DiscPassage automatically detects the video card installed in
your system.  If for some reason you need to override the automatic
detection mechanism, you can type:
	dp -vnew_vcard    e.g. dp -vtseng (for tseng)

when you start the program.  To get a complete list
of command-line options, type 
	dp -?

For a complete list of all video options currently supported, type:
	dp -vall


Using DiscPassage
-----------------
DiscPassage displays a menu bar at the top of your screen and a status
line at the bottom.   
	. Help is always available through the F1 key.
	. Database presents a menu of databases on the disc.  
	. Search uses a simple template to enter words, wildcards
or phrases (including proximity) that you want to find in the
database and allows you to combine search terms with Boolean
operators (AND, OR, NOT, and OFF) to make your search more or less
specific.  Press F1 for a more complete description with examples.
You can view the titles with the F10 (Find) key. Select the
document you would like to view by highlighting the title and
pressing the <<enter key>>.  You can print the document (F7), copy
it to disk (F8), view related tables or figures (F9), or find any
search term (F10).  F2 clears the search template.  F3 skips to the
next document in the list.  ESC returns to the previous menu.
	. Browse helps you find a document by scrolling through
lists of words or names with the number of documents in which the
term occurs. 
	. Contents helps you find a document by scrolling through
the table of contents, listing documents in the order in which they
were originally published.
	. Change/Exit allows you to change CD-ROM discs, the currently
active drive, or to leave DiscPassage.  When changing discs, be
sure to use the Change Disc feature.


Special Function Keys
---------------------
	. Enter executes the current selection or words you typed.
	. ESCape leaves the current menu, document, image, or audio
selection and returns to the previous menu.
	. F1.  Help.  On-line help available at any time.
	. F10.  Find displays titles containing a search term;
highlights search term in the text.
	. Press the first letter (S)earch, (B)rowse, etc. of any top
menu item (or alt-letter) to select menus from the top menu bar.


Troubleshooting
---------------
Some commonly-encountered problems and their solutions:

	. If you were unable to log onto the drive (for example,
"Invalid Drive Specification"), contact your hardware dealer for
assistance.
	. If you were able to log onto the CD-ROM drive, but
received the message "CDR101 Disc Not High Sierra" or "CD-ROM
Extensions not Version 2.0 or Greater," you will need version 2.0
or later of the extensions.  Test by typing MSCDEX at a DOS prompt.
	. If you received an error message such as "Cannot find
database."  be sure you have a DiscPassage disc in the drive, the
drive is turned on, snugly connected, closed and operational.  Be
certain that the disc is shiny side down.  Make sure FILES=20 (at
least) in the CONFIG.SYS file.
	. If images don't display properly, run the test
program "VGATEST", found in the root of the CD-ROM drive (or floppy
update), before calling for technical support.  It will determine
the type of video adapter card you have.
	. If you receive an error message "Error in VM save file
handling", and the program abruptly exits and returns to MS-DOS, it
means you do not have a TMP environment variable set.  Be sure to
install from SETUP.
	. DiscPassage requires 500K of *free* memory.  Type
"chkdsk" when logged onto your hard drive to find the amount of
free memory.  You may have to remove some drivers in your
CONFIG.SYS to free memory.
	. See the READ.ME file on the root of your CD-ROM drive for
up-to-date information.  Be sure to install DiscPassage from the
floppy diskette, if one was enclosed.
	. If you have no environment space left, then you will need
to set TMP yourself in your AUTOEXEC.BAT:
		set  TMP  =  C:\DISCPASS
where C:\DISCPASS is a writable location on your hard drive.
	. To increase the size of your environment space (default
is 128 bytes) to 1024 bytes, add the following line to your
CONFIG.SYS:
		shell  =  C:\COMMAND.COM   /e:1024  /p
This may be needed if you have a lot of environment variables.
