 {COMMO} (tm) Help  (C)Copyright 1989-1997 Fred P. Brucker  All Rights Reserved

[00.10] *****  General Information


[00.20] ****  Important Announcements

 {COMMO} (tm) is a Telecommunications Program that offers great power, speed
 and flexibility in a small, easy-to-use package.

 {COMMO} is Shareware.  Please register for legal use and to obtain full
 technical support.  Registration eliminates the startup delay.  See details
 below or the file REGISTER.FRM for ordering information.

 Guidelines for SHAREWARE DISTRIBUTORS are given in the file VENDINFO.DIZ.

 Call or write for quantity pricing and distribution agreement information.

 IMPORTANT: Do you have the latest {COMMO} release?  There may have been new
 features added since this version was released.  See "Getting the Latest
 {COMMO} Release."


[00.30] ****  Purchasing {COMMO} (registration)

 {COMMO} is a "SHAREWARE" product.  You are entitled to evaluate it for 30
 days.  If it suits your needs and you would like to continue using it, then
 you must pay the licensing fee.

 When you REGISTER you will be licensed to use all future releases of {COMMO}.
 You will never have to pay an "update" charge.  Registration eliminates the
 startup delay and makes you eligible for full technical support.

 >>> HOW TO ORDER:

 Print the order form in the file REGISTER.FRM and fill in the blanks.  Or send
 the following information with your payment:

    a. Name
    b. Company name (if company address)
    c. Complete address
    d. Quantity desired
    e. Total amount paid

 >>> PAYMENT OPTIONS:

 1) CHECK or MONEY ORDER:  make payable to FRED P. BRUCKER.

 2) CREDIT CARD:  include the following information:

    a. Credit card type (cards accepted are Visa, MasterCard, Carte Blanche,
       Diners Club, JCB)
    b. Credit card number
    c. Expiration date
    d. Cardholder name
    e. Daytime telephone number
    f. Address on credit card account (if different from mailing address)

    Credit card orders may be mailed, phoned or e-mailed.

 >>> PRICES:

 {COMMO} single user license, with DISKETTE (manual in Online Help):

    Price in USA/Canada/Mexico ....................... $ 40.00
    OHIO residents (includes sales tax) ..............   42.30
    All other countries ..............................   42.00

    (Prices include shipping and handling.)

 Contact me for pricing information on MULTI-USER (SITE) and DISTRIBUTION
 licenses.  Discounts are given on quantities of 10 or more.

 All prices shown are US DOLLARS.  Please remit US FUNDS on US BANK only
 (credit card payment will be converted automatically).  NET 30 TERMS will be
 accepted on purchase orders totalling $100.00 or more.

 The DISKETTE has the latest {COMMO} release plus the latest version of the
 Enhanced MOSTHOST host macro.

 VOICE TELEPHONE:  (614) 326-1309

 For orders, inquiries and support for registered users, call MON-FRI, 9am-5pm,
 EASTERN time.  If you get my answering machine, please try again later.

 MAILING ADDRESS:  Fred P. Brucker
                   605-B Jasonway Ave.
                   Columbus, OH 43214

 E-MAIL:  Internet     71021.356@compuserve.com
          CompuServe   71021,356

          Include the necessary information (see above) in your message.


[00.40] ****  Information for New Users

 Start {COMMO} with "commo /g" to edit the Setup File (setup mode).  Later you
 can take a more detailed look at the Setup File for much greater customization
 of the program.

 Please read "Getting Started" and "Setting Up Your Modem" in this Online Help.


[00.60] ****  {COMMO} for Visually Impaired Users

 {COMMO} is very speech friendly for blind and visually impaired users with
 speech synthesizer equipment.  Start {COMMO} with "commo /b" for temporary
 Speech Friendly Interface.  Use "commo /h/b" for Speech Friendly help mode or
 "commo /g/b" for Speech Friendly setup mode.

 To permanently enable the Speech Friendly Interface, search the Setup File
 (COMMO.SET) for "sfi=no" (it can be found in the "Video and Chat Mode"
 section).  Change it to "sfi=yes".  The entire item will then look like this:

  {sfi=yes}              Speech Friendly Interface (yes/no)

 A {COMMO} Reference Card in Braille is available for $5.00 from:

         National Braille Press Inc.
         88 St. Stephen Street
         Boston, MA 02115
         (617) 266-6160


[00.70] ****  HP 100LX/200LX Users

 The latest {COMMO} release can be used with excellent results on the HP
 100LX/200LX.  If errors occur, try setting {esp=yes} in COMMO.SET.  System
 Manager should NOT be loaded when running {COMMO} on the 100LX/200LX unless a
 utility called APLOAD.COM is installed.  This utility is available on
 CompuServe's HPHAND forum (APLOAD.ZIP).


[00.80] ****  How to Obtain Technical Support

 My (voice) telephone number for orders, inquiries and support for registered
 users is (614) 326-1309.  Please restrict calls to MON-FRI, 9am-5pm, EASTERN
 time.  If you get the answering machine, please try again at a later time.  I
 cannot return long distance calls.

 I can be reached directly via e-mail on CompuServe, which will also have the
 latest {COMMO} release:

    CompuServe (go mail)     71021,356

 Internet users can reach me via CompuServe as well.  Use the address:

    71021.356@compuserve.com

 {COMMO} Internet mailing list:  Send ADD and DELETE requests to:

      listserv@server.nlbbs.com

   with one of these lines in the body of the message:

      add commo
      delete commo

   Send list submissions to commo@server.nlbbs.com


[00.90] ****  Getting the Latest {COMMO} Release

 Getting {COMMO} by registering:

   If you register you will get the latest release of {COMMO}.  The disk also
   contains the latest version of the Enhanced MOSTHOST host macro.

 Getting {COMMO} from CompuServe or Internet:

   CompuServe      Forums: PCCOM, Section: Comm programs.
                           HPHAND, Section: 100LX/200LX Datacomm

   Internet        Anonymous FTP   bbs.nlis.net/commo

   Internet        Anonymous FTP   ftp.ordata.com/COMMO

   Internet        Anonymous FTP   ftp.softcon.com/commo

   Internet        Send e-mail from a MIME friendly site to info@gbx.org.
                   Put "commo" on the subject line and the latest {COMMO}
                   archive will be sent as an attached file.

 Getting {COMMO} from Bulletin Board Systems:

   The BBS's listed in the sample telephone directory COMMO.FON will have the
   latest release.


[01.00] ****  Upgrading from a Previous Release

 The purpose of this section is to let previous {COMMO} users begin using the
 new release as quickly as possible.  After you are running again you should
 study the complete list of changes (see "History of Recent Releases") so that
 you can take full advantage of the new features.

 If you are using any release prior to 7.0, you should install 7.5 from
 scratch.  You can then copy your old COMMO.FON to your new {COMMO} directory.

 Upgrading from {COMMO} 7.0 to 7.5:

 IMPORTANT!  If you have a SET COMMO= statement in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, be
 sure that it points to the directory where {COMMO} 7.5 will be installed.

 Copy the following files from your current {COMMO} directory to a backup
 directory:  COMMO.SET, COMMO.FON.  Also copy any files that you may have
 customized, such as COMMO.MAC (keep these for reference).  Registered users
 should also copy COMMO.ID.

 After making sure you have copied or backed up the necessary files, follow
 these steps:

  >  Delete all of the files from your {COMMO} directory.

  >  Copy all of the files from the COMMO75.ZIP archive to your {COMMO}
     directory.

  >  COMMO.SET:  Update the new Setup File using your old one as a reference.

  >  COMMO.FON:  Copy your old file to your new {COMMO} directory.

  >  COMMO.MAC:  If you've made any custom changes to COMMO.MAC or other files,
     you will have to merge those changes into the new file (note that the new
     COMMO.MAC may contain macros that support new or enhanced features).

       HINT:  If you maintain all of your custom macros in a file called
       CUSTOM.MAC, then upgrading COMMO.MAC is easily accomplished with this
       DOS command:

         copy custom.mac+commo.mac commo.mac

       This command copies CUSTOM.MAC to the top of COMMO.MAC

  >  COMMO.ID:  Registered users:  Copy this file to your new {COMMO}
     directory.


[01.10] ****  History of Recent Releases

 This section contains a list of changes to the current release and also to one
 or more previous releases.  If you have used {COMMO} before, please make sure
 you are aware of the many changes and improvements.

 IMPORTANT!  {COMMO} registration eliminates the startup delay and makes you
 eligible for full technical support.


[01.20] ***  {COMMO} 7.5; November 7, 1997

 >>> Bugs Fixed:

 Zmodem transmit was forcing the remote system to receive all files in binary
 mode, even when the "rz -a" command was used on the remote.

 Because of the order of processing of the serial port information in the Setup
 File, the wrong frequency was being used in some cases (this problem occurred
 only if non-standard frequencies were specified in "com=" items in COMMO.SET).

 If a Dialing Directory PARMS string specified a null speed and a non-default
 serial port, the port would not switch when the entry was selected.

 Short sounds and beeps are no longer cancelable by pressing a key.  This
 prevents keystrokes from being lost unnecessarily.

 The "avm" setup item did not allow VESA video modes.

 The macro function showing on the Status Line during macro execution did not
 change properly when {wind-k} was used.

 The speed field of the Default Terminal Parameters did not show the corrected
 value in the Alt+P window if an invalid speed was specified at program
 startup (did not affect program operation).

 The "other copy running" check was giving a false indication in certain (rare)
 situations.

 Time slices were not always being relinquished during dialing (when running
 under multi-tasking systems).

 The "Press a key to continue" message (on the bottom screen line) was not
 displaying properly when the Status Line was off.

 Several obscure file-window display bugs were fixed.

 >>> Improvements/Changes:

 All {COMMO} documentation and information is now available in Online Help.
 See "How to Use Online Help" for details.  COMMO.DOC and MACRO.DOC are no
 longer provided as separate files.

 NOTE: The Online Help system has been modified.  The HELP macro function and
 the "gdc" setup item are affected.

 A new setup item "cur" has been added to allow setting of the standard and
 insert cursor shapes.

 A new setup item "uff" has been added to control the 16550A FIFOs.  If your
 hardware is faulty, you can disable the FIFOs by setting this item to "no."

 A new setup item "khc" has been added to set the colors in the new Online Help
 Contents window.

 Two new command keys have been added to the file transfer window.  Alt+H tells
 {COMMO} to hang up when the transfer is done (X, Y or Zmodem).  Alt+S tells
 {COMMO} to skip the file currently in progress (Zmodem Receive only).

 Important status messages in the file transfer window should display more
 consistently now (some messages were displaying too fast to be read).  Note
 that some messages (such as "Handshaking") will still display very briefly at
 times.

 A third field has been added to the Terminal Screen colors item in COMMO.SET.
 This item specifies the colors to be used when the "underline" attribute is
 received from the host during ANSI-BBS or VT102 emulation.  Previously the
 underline attribute was ignored when using a color monitor.

 Using a "D0" switch on the INFOrm macro function will display the message and
 immediately continue to the next function.  This can be used with the WIND-K
 function to leave a message box on the screen with no delay.

 A new switch "R" on the DISPlay macro function tells {COMMO} whether or not to
 restore the original Terminal Screen attribute (colors) after displaying the
 string.

 A new switch "E" on the INPUt function causes macro processing to continue and
 the Condition Flag to be set when Esc is pressed.  This prevents macro abort
 and allows the macro to test for Esc (use IFCOndition).

 A new command line switch "/g" will cause {COMMO} to go directly into editing
 the Setup File when starting up, then exit back to DOS.  This is useful for
 new users or when the current Terminal Parameter settings cause the program to
 hang.

 A new command line switch "/h" (or "/?") will cause {COMMO} to go directly
 into Online Help when starting up, then exit back to DOS.  This is useful for
 new users or for reading documentation prior to setting the correct Terminal
 Parameters.

 You can now press Alt+F1 from the Terminal Screen to access Help when F1 is
 used in emulation files (such as VT102.MAC).

 The Spacebar now scrolls down a screen page instead of a line in the Help
 Topic, Scrollback and Variable Space windows.

 The "snow" elimination feature for old CGA display adapters has been removed.
 This should improve display speed somewhat on slower systems.

 >>> Speech Friendly Interface:

 When the insert key is pressed in the Internal Editor or in the Input Line
 Editor, the "up" sound will be made to indicate that insert mode is on.  The
 "down" sound indicates that insert mode is off.

 The Color Chart and return to the editor are now announced in speech.

 A switch "E" has been added to the SFICtrl macro function.  "E1" sets expert
 mode, "E0" sets novice mode.

 When returning from the Internal Editor to the Dialing Directory or Macro File
 windows, {COMMO} will now speak the respective window title.

 The order of informative messages has been changed in some of the pop-up
 windows.


[01.30] ***  {COMMO} 7.0; August 24, 1996

 >>> Bugs Fixed:

 When arguments were used with the BEEP function, the "BEEPing" message on the
 Status Line would not always go away when the BEEP was finished.

 Compiling a source Macro File larger than 65510 bytes caused a system crash.

 The sound on the INFOrm function didn't always work correctly after using the
 "S2" switch.

 >>> Improvements/Changes:

 {COMMO} now supports external communications drivers that use the standard INT
 14 interface.  These include various FOSSIL drivers, network communications
 drivers, Internet protocol drivers and the BIOS in your computer (which was
 the original INT 14 interface).

   See "External Comm Drivers (INT 14)" in Online Help for instructions on
   using the INT 14 interface.

 You can now set any port speed that is valid for your serial port (or internal
 modem).  If you try to set an invalid speed, {COMMO} will set the nearest
 valid speed.  Note that the two character speed abbreviations are no longer
 allowed (i.e., 57 will now be 57 bps, not 57600).

   You can also change the serial port "frequency" (for most PC hardware, this
   is 115200, which is the default).  This parameter may be specified in the
   "com=" item in COMMO.SET or with the PARMs-C macro function.  For example:
   {com=4,2e8,3,256000}.  This value must be the speed that results when the
   Baud Rate Divisor is equal to one (this is usually the crystal frequency
   divided by 16).  It may be as high as 40,000,000 bps (approx.).

 16 serial ports (COM1 to COM16) are now supported.  All ports beyond COM4
 default to {com=n,3f8,4}.  Change these as necessary by adding {com=...} items
 in COMMO.SET.  Note that the {com=...} item is ignored when using an external
 communications driver (INT 14).

 The Alt+P key command now presents the Terminal Parameters in string format
 and allows you to edit them directly.

 You can now specify the size of Variable Space in the Setup File.  The new
 item (in the Miscellaneous section) is:

   {vsp=3}               Variable Space size in kilobytes (1-64)

   Note that the value is now in kilobytes instead of bytes.

   IMPORTANT!  The /v command line switch must now be in kilobytes as well.

 The SETEsc function has a new switch "K".  "K0" causes {COMMO} to ignore all
 typed keys except Ctrl-Break.  "K1" (the default) allows all keys again.

   If a macro label is included with SETEsc, the macro will be executed when
   Ctrl-Break is pressed (no warning message).  Otherwise Ctrl-Break causes the
   macro to STOP.  In either case, the keyboard is active again as soon as
   Ctrl-Break is pressed.

   Example: {sete-k0 label}.

   NOTE: System keys such as Ctrl+Alt+Del, Shift+PrtSc, NumLock, etc., are not
   affected (they remain active).

 Two built-in variables have been added:

   _cfs          Capture File status: 0=closed, 1=open
   _elt          Elapsed timer in clock ticks (18ths of a second)

 {COMMO} now has a B Plus protocol overlay for use on CompuServe.  The file
 BPLUS1.POV must be in your {COMMO} directory.  New macros are included in
 COMMO.MAC to support this.  See "Uploading / Downloading" in COMMO.DOC for
 important details (this protocol is not very speech friendly.)

 There is a new option "auto" for the "min=" item in COMMO.SET.  This setting
 will cause the Modem Init String to be sent only if Carrier Detect is OFF at
 program startup.  The /in or /iy switches will override the setting.

   {min=auto}             Send Modem Init String (auto/yes/no)

 A switch "N" on the SETLook function provides an important new feature.  You
 can now set a label to GOTO if no data comes in from the serial port for a
 specified amount of time.  See SETLook in MACRO.DOC.

 The INPUt macro function has a new switch "Lnnn" which defines the length of
 the input field.  "nnn" can range from 1 to 120; values outside this range (or
 no switch) will default to 60.

 The Alt+U Utility Menu has a new item "U" to unload the current auxiliary
 Macro File.

 The SCREen macro function no longer displays a "saving" message (the message
 is still displayed in manual mode).  This will speed up macros that use this
 function to extract data from the screen.

 In Zmodem {COMMO} will now skip incoming files whose names are not DOS
 compatible.  Previously, the rest of the batch would be cancelled when such a
 filename was received.

 In ANSI-BBS and TTY emulation modes {COMMO} will now wrap to column 1 when a
 character is displayed in the last column on the screen.  Previously the
 cursor would remain in the last column until another character or positioning
 command was received.  This change brings {COMMO} into line with more recent
 industry standards.  Note that VT102 emulation works as before.

   Certain display situations will improve, but in rare instances you may
   notice double spacing or screen scrolling where there was none before.  This
   is normal and must be corrected at the host (which can turn off linewrap,
   if necessary; see "Terminal Emulation" in Online Help).

 The restriction that port addresses must be 200h or greater has been
 eliminated.  Use addresses below 200h with caution.

 The key-label "art" has been replaced with "aen" (Alt+Enter).  Macros that use
 "art" will have to be changed to "aen".

 >>> Speech Friendly Interface:

 The "sfi" item in COMMO.SET can now be set to "expert."  The "yes" option
 ("novice") will speak additional information, primarily when windows pop up.

 The Online Help file and the .DOC files are more speech friendly.  Brackets
 have been removed from key names (for example Alt+A instead of [Alt-A]).  Most
 keys are now shown on separate lines in COMMO.HLP.

 The Alt+L Capture File menu has a new selection "G" to get the current Capture
 File status.  It'll tell you the filename and whether the file is open or
 closed.

 A message announcing Chat Mode on/off will now be given when Speech is on.


[01.40] ***  {COMMO} 6.6; December 16, 1995

 >>> Bugs Fixed:

 If no SETGet was executed, {COMMO} would sometimes send a garbage terminator
 response at the end of a GETString.

 The edit option on the Utility Menu was not allowing a new file to be created.

 The "N" switch on EXECute was being ignored if the "S" switch was present.

 When saving the screen, {COMMO} was sometimes getting more video data than
 necessary (certain Windows video drivers were upset by this).

 The progress indicator wasn't working properly in Ymodem and Zmodem
 "mini-batch mode" (where each file is sent as a separate batch).

 The "no carrier" macro feature was causing certain macro functions (LOOKfor,
 GETString, PAUSe, HOLD, ASCIiup) to "fall through" when carrier dropped and no
 macro label was set.  Now the function will continue as usual unless a label
 has been set.

 The hardware interrupt (IRQ) was not always being masked properly when exiting
 {COMMO} if Shell to DOS or EXECute were used (didn't affect most systems).

 >>> Improvements/Changes:

 The five Terminal Parameters in the {ddp=...} item in COMMO.SET may now be
 specified as separate items (this should make it easier for new users).  The
 new COMMO.SET reflects this change (note that "ddp" is still valid).

 Modem messages received during a successful dialing attempt can now be
 displayed to the screen (and captured if applicable) after the connection is
 established.  This is controlled by a new item in COMMO.SET "dcm=".  Set it to
 "yes" to display the messages.

 A new variation "S2" has been added to the "S" switch on the SETVariable macro
 function.  It tells {COMMO} to expand all variables in the second argument (as
 usual), then expand the second argument again.  This allows variables that are
 contained within variables to be expanded.

   Note that this differs from SETV-S (or S1) which expands the original
   string, then treats the expanded string as a variable name, which is then
   expanded.

 The SEND function now has a "W" switch:

   W or W1 is the default and tells {COMMO} to wait until all characters have
   been sent out the port before proceeding to the next macro function (same as
   before).

   W0 tells {COMMO} to queue the string to the transmit buffer and proceed
   without waiting.  If the transmit buffer is full (about 2k) {COMMO} will
   wait until the entire string has been queued to the buffer before
   preceeding.  Note that tildes and the Inter-character Delay are ignored in
   this mode.

   {send-w} or {send} (no arguments) will cause a wait until there are no
   characters left in the transmit buffer.  So you can use SEND-W0 a number of
   times, then {send-w} to wait (if synchronization is necessary).  This will
   result in faster transmission than waiting after each SEND.

 In the MENU function a new user-defined variable "_mhelp" can be set to a
 label (similar to "_menter").  {COMMO} will GOTO the label if F1 is pressed.
 This allows "1" or "A" to be used for a separate menu selection.  Note that if
 "_mhelp" isn't defined, the first label in the "_mlabel" string will be used
 if F1 is pressed (same as before).

 In the ASCII Upload window you no longer have to enter the Line Pacing
 character each time.  You can just press Enter to send the file.  Or you can
 press Alt-L if you want to change the pacing character.

 ASCII files received with Zmodem will now be converted to the PC end-of-line
 convention (cr/lf) if so requested by the remote system.  You can get your
 remote Unix system to make the request by using the command "sz -a" to send
 the file(s).

 INFOrm-S2 will now make the fail sound.

 There is a new switch "C" on the PARMs macro function that lets you change
 serial ports while specifying a new hardware port address and IRQ.

   The arguments for PARMs-C are the same as for the {com=...} item in the
   Setup File.  For example {parm-c 3,3e8,5} will activate COM3 at base address
   03e8 and IRQ 5.

   This feature can be used to write a macro that locates which port the modem
   is connected to.

   Note: port addresses are now limited from 0200 to ffff (hex);  IRQ's are now
   limited from 2 to 15.  Values outside these ranges will be ignored (old
   value stays in effect).

 A new switch "M" on the SHELl and EXECute macro functions is used to control
 the "Swapping to Disk" message (when the "S" switch is used).  Use "M0" to
 suppress the message.

 When uploading files you can now type in a new starting disk and/or directory
 for the file selector ("sel_up" must be set to "no" in COMMO.SET).  This was
 accomplished by changes to the "gfnu" and "select" macros in COMMO.MAC).

 You can now clear part or all of the macro Variable Space.  SETV-R will clear
 to the end of Variable Space starting with the variable named in the function.
 SETV-R0 will clear all variables in Variable Space.

 A new built-in variable "_vsp" indicates the number of unused bytes in
 Variable Space.

 Ring Indicate (I) is no longer included in the Signal Lights.

 The serial port startup and shutdown routines have been further refined to
 deal with strange UARTs.

 >>> Speech Friendly Interface:

 A new selection "S" has been added to the Alt-U utility menu.  Pressing "S"
 will toggle speech mode on or off.  Sounds will be made to indicate the new
 setting.

 A new macro in COMMO.MAC lets you press Alt-L to bring up an alternative menu
 for Capture Options.  This new menu should be easier for speech users.

 The hardware cursor will now respond to the up and down arrow keys in menus
 created by the MENU function (and the Toggles menu).  This should make the
 menus more speech friendly.

 The hardware cursor will now be positioned properly when entering the Online
 Help, Scrollback and the Variable Space windows.  This should provide a more
 consistent speech interface.

