VideoPrompter Demo! 2.2. Great TelePrompter!
Uses CGA/EGA/VGA video. Fast, smooth-scrolls
in both directions. Easy-to-use text editor.
Commercial version has remote joystick/mouse
control, 5000 line editor, Hercules support,
reverse (mirror) display, and custom colors.

VideoPrompter Demo! 2.2. Great TelePrompter!
Uses CGA/EGA/VGA video. Fast, smooth-scrolls
in both directions. Easy-to-use text editor.
Commercial version has remote joystick/mouse
control, 5000 line editor, Hercules support,
reverse (mirror) display, and custom colors.



VideoPrompter Demo 2.2

Copyright 1995
Russell Holloway
Dan Hopping

October 1, 1995





What Is VideoPrompter Demo And How Can It Help Me?




(Note: This Demo version of VideoPrompter only includes the CGA/EGA/VGA
version of the program. This was done to make the file as small as possible.
If you have a Hercules system, give us a call at 1-606-266-2079 and we'll send
you a copy of that version.)

VideoPrompter Demo 2.2 is a graphical TelePrompting system for MSDOS compatible
computer systems. The program has very few hardware requirements. It can use
CGA, EGA, or VGA video, and needs only 256K free memory to run. VideoPrompter
Demo can even be run from Microsoft Windows. Both a .PIF file and a .ICO file
have been included for this purpose. The program is very easy to use, and
takes only a few minutes to learn. All necessary instructions remain on the
editor screen at all times, and there are no unusual key combinations to
remember.

The program is very useful for people who would like a simple way to read text
while looking at a camera. The text is large and easy to read from a distance.
It also scrolls smoothly just like the commercial TelePrompters do. Display
speed can be controlled by either the user or by a second party. To use the
program, just put your camera on top of the computer screen, start
VideoPrompter, and start reading. If you stand at least 10 feet away, your eyes
will not move while you read the text, and it will appear as if you are quoting
from memory.

The Professional version of VideoPrompter includes both a 22 and a 32-Column
display system. To save space, this Demo version includes only the 22-Column
version.

This Demo version of the program has the same editor and display system as the
standard versions. However, it limits you to 70 lines of prompter display, does
not support mirrored text, does not allow you to modify the display colors on
EGA and VGA monitors, and does not support joystick or mouse control.

The Professional version of the program will display up to 5000 lines of text,
supports mirrored text for much more flexible operation, allows you to modify
the display colors on EGA and VGA monitors, and fully supports joystick and
mouse control. An added option to the Professional version is a videotape
that gives detailed instructions about constructing your own prompting system.

If you want to order the Professional version, you can return the form that
appears when the program ends, or you can use our toll-free order line. Refer
to the screen that appears when the program exits for more information.




How Do I Load VideoPrompter Demo On My Computer?




Since you are reading this file, you have obviously decompressed VideoPrompter
Demo. VideoPrompter Demo requires no special installation steps, just copy all
the files to the directory of your choice. If you have any trouble copying the
files or getting the program to run, just give HollowSoft a call at
1-606-266-2079 and we will be happy to help.

To start the program, just switch to the subdirectory where the VideoPrompter
Demo files reside, type VPROM and press Enter. The program can identify just
about any video system, but if it has trouble you can force it with command line
options.

To force the program to use VGA, type VPROM /V. For EGA, type VPROM /E, and to
force CGA, type VPROM /C.

If VideoPrompter Demo runs too slowly on your computer, try loading the program
by typing VPROM /F. This will force the program into a lower-res mode which
is somewhat faster.

VideoPrompter Demo can be run from Windows as a DOS application. Both a .PIF
file and an .ICO file have been included for this purpose. If you would like to
run VideoPrompter Demo from Windows, carefully follow the instructions below:

1) Run Windows

2) When Windows is started, select the File Menu (at the top left of the
screen) and choose New

3) You will then be given a menu titled New Program Object. Make sure that
the Program Item is highlighted and click on OK

4) You will then be given a menu titled Program Item Properties. For the
Description entry, type VideoPrompter Demo

5) For the Command Line entry, type in the full path name where the
VideoPrompter Demo files reside plus the filename VPROM.PIF. For example,
if the VideoPrompter Demo files are stored in the subdirectory VIDPROM on
drive C:, you would enter C:\VIDPROM\VPROM.PIF

6) Click on Change Icon. You will then be given an error message stating that
there are no icons associated with the current file. This is normal, so
click on OK

7) You will be presented with a window titled Change Icon. At the Filename
entry, type in the same path as you used in step 5 plus the filename
VPROM.ICO. For example, if the VideoPrompter! files are stored in the
directory VIDPROM on drive C:, you would enter C:\VIDPROM\VPROM.ICO

8) Click on OK. You will then be taken back to the Program Item Properties
menu. Click on OK

9) You will now have a new Icon on your current window. VideoPrompter Demo can
be run by clicking on this icon.




How Do I Use The VideoPrompter Demo Editor?




When you first load VideoPrompter Demo, you will be presented with an
introduction screen. This screen will vary depending on your video system. To
get past this intro screen, press the Enter key. You will then be taken to the
VideoPrompter Demo editor screen.

The VideoPrompter Demo editor is the base for all VideoPrompter Demo operations.
From the editor you can modify message text, load and save files, and start the
VideoPrompter Demo display.

The most straightforward way to use the editor is to just enter text from the
keyboard. In the Professional version, you will be given from 1000 to 5000
lines for text (depending on how much memory you have). Each line can have up
to 22 characters. You can also import ASCII text files from other word
processors.

The editor is primarily a line editor. This means that it is very good at
editing text on a line-by-line basis. If you want to display very long
documents, we recommend you prepare them first on your word processor.
Instructions for doing this appear in the section titled Loading Text Into
VideoPrompter Demo.

All of the supported editor functions are listed on the editor screen. A more
detailed description of each key can be seen by pressing the F1 key. Each
function works as expected in a line editor (as opposed to a word processor.)

It is important to remember that text will be displayed the same way it is
entered. There are 22 characters per line in the editor and 22 characters per
line will be displayed graphically when playing messages. Each blank line in
the editor will also be shown as a blank line during display. Since there are
no formatting changes made during display, you can set up text in the most
readable manner from within the editor.

New in this version of VideoPrompter Demo is word-wrapping. When you are in
Insert mode (a thin blinking cursor), text will automatically word-wrap. This
means that text will drop to the next line (when possible) to avoid breaking up
words.


Alt-F : Text Finder

The editor contains a Text Finder function. You can find text by pressing the
Alt and F keys at the same time. Just type the desired text into the Finder
and press Enter. If you wish to find the next occurrence of this text, just
press Alt-F again and press Enter.


Alt-J : Justification

You can Left, Center, or Right Justify the current line by repeatedly pressing
the Alt and J keys. This function applies only to the current line.


Alt-C : Configuration

You may also make some configuration changes from inside the editor. Press the
Alt and C keys at the same time to invoke the configuration menu. From the
Configuration Menu you can set the the Default Speed.

The Default Delay represents the speed at which text will be displayed.
The lower this number, the faster the text display. Experiment with
this setting to find the optimum setting for your tastes. Remember,
this is just the default setting. You can change the display speed
at any time while displaying messages.

To exit the Configuration menu without saving, press the Escape key. If you
want to save your settings, press the S key.


Alt-P : Print Text

This option allows you to produce a hard copy of your editor text. The text
will be printed in straight ASCII in 3 columns across the page.


Escape : Exit Program

To exit the program, press the Escape key. You will then be asked if you want
to save first. If you do, you will be taken to the Save File screen before
exiting. If you do not want to save, you will be returned to DOS.




How Do I Display VideoPrompter Demo Text?




To display text from within VideoPrompter Demo, you have several options. If
you would like to display text from the current line (useful for testing the
appearance of a specific section of text), just press the F2 key. If you would
like to begin text display from the first line, press the F3 key. When you tell
the program to start displaying text, it first checks the editor to see if there
is any text to display. If it finds none, it will beep and return you to the
editor screen.


While displaying messages, the following keys are used:


+ / Cursor Up / Cursor Right: Increase scrolling speed.



- / Cursor Down / Cursor Left: Decrease scrolling speed.



Space / P: Pause the display. To resume display, press any key. If you press
Escape while the display is paused, you will be returned to the
editor.


Backspace: Reverse scrolling direction.



Home: Display at maximum speed.



End: Display at minimum speed.



Escape: Returns to the editor. The last line displayed becomes the current
line.



Display Troubleshooting


If you have trouble getting the program to display, check the following:

1) Are there several blank lines in your text that the program might be
displaying? If there are, move to a line with text and press F2.

2) Did you press F2 to begin display while the cursor was at the bottom of
the editor text? If you did, the program will not display anything. Try
pressing F3 to begin display at the top of the document.

3) Is the display speed set too low? If it is, the text may take a very long
time to appear. Try pressing the Home key during display to run the
display at maximum speed.

4) Try another video card setting. Some unusual video cards could cause
problems. If you have VGA, try EGA or CGA. If you have EGA, try CGA.
To load the program with EGA, type VPROM /E. To load the program with
CGA, type VPROM /C.

5) If you still have problems, call HollowSoft at 1-606-266-2079 and we will
be glad to help.




Loading Text Into VideoPrompter Demo!




One very useful feature of VideoPrompter Demo is its ability to convert a text
file into a displayable message. An example of this is a WordPerfect document
that you would like to display through VideoPrompter Demo.

To turn a WordPerfect document into VideoPrompter Demo text, you'll first need
to save it as a text file. This procedure varies between versions of
WordPerfect, so consult you manual if you have problems. To save as a text
file in WordPerfect 5.1, first press Ctrl-F5. Then, select Save Text. Next,
provide a suitable filename (it helps to save with the extension .TXT so you'll
know it is a text file.) Finally, press Enter and the text will be saved as
standard ASCII and can be easily loaded into VideoPrompter Demo.

To save as a text file in WordPerfect 6.0, press F10. Then, fill in the box
titled Filename with an appropriate name (it helps to save with the extension
.TXT so you'll know it is a text file.) Next, select Format and choose ASCII
Text (Standard). Finally, highlight OK and press Enter. The text will now be
saved as standard ASCII and can be easily loaded into VideoPrompter Demo.

When you have a suitable file to load into VideoPrompter Demo, return to the
VideoPrompter Demo editor screen, and press F5. You will then be presented with
a file list of the current directory. Subdirectories are enclosed in brackets,
and other drives are listed with a single letter and a colon.

Example:

[.] - Previous Directory. Select to move back 1 directory.
[..] -
[DOCS] - Subdirectory. Select to list contents of this subdirectory.
[HELP] -
filea.txt - Filenames. Select to load this file into memory.
fileb.txt -
filec.txt -
filed.txt -
A: - Drive letters. Select to switch to this drive.
B: -
C: -
D: -

You can move easily between drives and subdirectories by using the cursor keys
and the Enter key. You can also force the program to load any file by typing
its name (including path) and pressing Enter.


When you select a file to load, the program will open it and attempt to convert
it to message text. It will try to convert any file, including program and
data files. If the file contains enough text, the program will convert it.
The program will reject characters that do not appear on the keyboard. For
instance, if you try to convert a word processor file that has not been saved
as a text file, you may get strange results. Word processors save a lot of
codes along with the text. These codes will be rejected and you will most
likely lose much of your text as well.

When text is converted, it is broken up so that words are not split between
lines. The exception to this is when a word is longer than 22 characters.

As the program converts text, it displays a counter telling you how many lines
have been converted into text. It also displays a spinning line that lets you
know the computer is currently working. You can press the Escape key at any
time to return to the editor. Any text that has been converted will then be
displayed in the editor.

Remember, you cannot load more text than the editor will support. If you try
to load longer files, they will be broken off when the editor runs out of room.

If a file has the extension .T22, VideoPrompter Demo will try to load it as a
VideoPrompter Demo document. This process is much faster than normal file loads
because no conversion is performed. When VideoPrompter Demo saves files, it
saves them with a .T22 extension. These files are specially formatted, so if
you modify them with a text editor, they may not load properly. It is
recommended that you use your word processor to modify the original files only.
Use the VideoPrompter Demo editor to modify the files once they have been saved
with the .T22 extension.

As soon as a file is loaded, you will be returned to the editor screen.




Saving Text From VideoPrompter Demo.




If you would like to save the text that you have edited, press the F10 key.
You will be given a screen identical to the one that appears when you load a
file. Read the section 'Loading Text Into VideoPrompter Demo' for information
about changing drives, switching directories, etc.

If you would like to overwrite an existing file, just highlight that file and
press the Enter key. The program will then ask if you want to overwrite that
file. If you do, press 'Y' and the original file will be replaced with the
current text. VideoPrompter Demo saves all files with a .T22 extension. If
VideoPrompter Demo finds this .T22 extension when loading, it will load much
more quickly.

Remember, because the program always saves files with a .T22 extension, it
is not necessary to add the .T22 extension to the end of your filename. You
need to be careful with this because the program ignores any extension you
type. For example, if you save a file with the name SPEECH1.TXT, it will be
saved as SPEECH1.T22. If you then try to save another file as SPEECH1.DOC, it
will be saved as SPEECH1.T22 and will write over the original SPEECH1.T22 file.
Of course, the program always asks your permission before overwriting an
existing file.

When the file is saved, you will be returned to the editor screen.




Registration Information





The registered version adds the ability to display text as a mirror image of
itself (for use with professional teleprompting systems), and allows you to
configure the colors used during text display on EGA and VGA monitors. The
registered version also includes a 32-Column display mode for those who need to
have more text on the screen.

While this Demo version is limited to displaying the first 70 lines of editor
text, the Standard version is only limited by available memory. The
Professional version permits you to display up to 5000 lines.

The Professional version also permits the use of a mouse and joystick for
display control. Unlike the mouse or keyboard, the joystick will allow you to
instantly move to any display speed you like. Pause and Reverse Scrolling are
also supported through the joystick and mouse buttons.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To order VidePrompter by phone with your Visa or Mastercard, dial 800-806-1994.
If you have a technical question about the program, dial 1-606-266-2079.

Your Name: ______________________________________________

Your Mailing Address: ______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________
Floppy Disk Size: ( )3.5" High Density ( )3.5" Low Density
( )5.25" High Density ( )5.25" Low Density

Which version(s)? Prices:

VideoPrompter 22-Column ______ VideoPrompter Pro (CALL)
VideoPrompter 32-Column ______ VideoPrompter Pro w/How to build a
VideoPrompter Pro ______ VideoPrompter instructional video (CALL)
VideoPrompter Pro w/ tape ______
Shipping and Handling add $4.00
Orders Outside US and Canada add $10.00
Total Amount Enclosed: $______

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Make your check or money order payable to: VidArt Productions
Or call 1-800-806-1994 to order by AMEX, Visa, or MasterCard.

Our mailing address is: VidArt Productions
3665 E. Bay Drive Suite 204-174
Largo, FL 34641
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


For technical help contact Russell Holloway (The author of this software):
Phone : 1-606-266-2079

Address: Russell Holloway
P.O. Box 54225
Lexington, KY 40555-4225

Electronic Addresses: Compuserve - 72144,1376
Internet - [email protected]
America Online - RUSSELL660