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                                 PRNTXT.COM                                   

             Size (recs) CRC   Version    Author/Latest Issue      Disk
PRNTXT.TOP     1k (6)    8833  1.6        Terry Hazen 10/91        Z3COM15
PRNTXT.COM     1k (6)    E39D  1.6        Terry Hazen 10/91        Z3COM15
PRNTXT.BOT     1k (1)    A(D7  1.6        Terry Hazen 10/91        Z3COM15

  1- Usage  2- Assembly  3- Notes  4- Help File  5- PRNTXT.HLP                


   PRNTXT is a  message  display  utility to  help  create 'instant' COM files
which display paged text,  added to  PRNTXT.COM  by the user or  passed in the
command line tail  (tokens '$',  '$1',  '$-1'),  on the console.   Text may be
directed to the printer and control characters may  be  synthesized.   Display
command line tail text in mixed upper or lower case.   Now ZCNFG configurable,
including printer status check.  Original (12/03/86) by Terry Hazen.

   See PRNTXT.HLP for details about operation and usage.
:1
 Usage 

   PRNTXT can be used to help create:

      - "README" files that can be run instead of typed, with built
        in paging and video attribute formatting.
      - Help files.
      - STARTUP instruction message files
      - Test files to display and check the layout of menus and display
        screens under development as parts of assembly language programs.
      - Console and/or printer programming files.
      - Console and/or printer "Echo" utilities.
      - Status reporting message files which can accept a command line
        tail parameter such as a filename or video attributes.  These might
        be resident in a message file library, and called from within ZCPR3
        aliases.
:2
 Assembly 

   Assemble directly to a COM file with Z80ASM or equivalent:  
   
      A0>z80asm prntxt

   When assembling PRNTXT, you will be asked to specify which type of file you
with to assemble.  Choose 1<RET> if you want to assemble the normal COM file.  

   2<RET> will produce a file that  quits  at  the  point  of  normal  message
insertion, suitable for renaming to PRNTXT.TOP.

   3<RET> will produce a file that contains the null that is used to terminate
the message, suitable for renaming to PRNTXT.BOT.

   You may use  CONCAT.COM  to produce a  message COM file from a message text
file and the files PRNTXT.TOP and PRNTXT.BOT:

   A0>concat message.com=prntxt.top,message.ws,prntxt.bot

   4<RET> will produce a file containing a  '$'  as the message text, suitable
for renaming to ECHO.COM.
:3
 PRNTXT Notes - 1/2 

   a. Vs 1.6 updates (10/05/91, Terry Hazen):
      - Added configurable printer BIOS status check.  
      - Converted i/o from direct console i/o to BIOS i/o.

   b. Vs 1.5 updates (11/20/88, Terry Hazen):
      - Added '$1',  '$-1' parameters to increase the flexibility of parameter
        passing.   '$'  still  represents the  entire  command line tail, '$1'
        represents the first parameter in the  command  line  tail,  and '$-1'
        represents the  remainder  of  the  command line tail after the  first
        parameter.

   c. Vs 1.4 updates (11/06/87, Terry Hazen):
        - Bug fix only.   Corrected a bug that tried to interpret  a '$' found
          in the command line tail instead of just  displaying it.   Only Z80,
          COM,  TOP,  HIS files are affected.   DOC, HLP, BOT files remain the
          same (with the version number bumped for consistency.
 PRNTXT Notes - 2/2 

   d. Vs 1.3 updates (09/14/87, Terry Hazen):
      - Added command line parameter  commands to  toggle  display  of command
        line tail on both  console and  printer  between upper and lower case.
        Display of regular message text is unaffected.

   e. Vs 1.1 updates (04/05/87, Terry Hazen):
      - Added '$' command line parameter passing to  message display  based on
        suggestions by Rick Charnes.   The command line tail will be processed
        the same way as the message text  except that it will only display '$'
        instead of interpreting it.   Therefore you can  include  things  like
        '^G' to ring the  bell or  strings to  clear  your  screen  or to  set
        reverse video and  restore  normal  video  in  your  command line tail
        (depending on your terminal, of course.
:4
                                PRNTXT.HLP 

             Size (recs) CRC   Version    Author/Latest Issue      Disk
              16k (122)  060A  1.6        Terry Hazen 10/91        Z3HLP4
==============================================================================

   PRNTXT.HLP is a Z-System help file for PRNTXT.COM vs 1.6.
:3 :PRNTXT
