Category : Utilities for DOS and Windows Machines
Archive   : ANRK30.ZIP
Filename : ANARKED.DOC

ANARKED
The ANARKEY Keystroke Editor
User Manual

Version 3.00






















Steven Calwas
Moderne Software
P.O. Box 3638
Santa Clara, CA 95055-3638


_______
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| ____|__ | Association of
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Copyright (C) 1989
by Steven Calwas
All rights reserved











Introduction
------------

ANARKED is the ANARKEY keystroke editor. It allows ANARKEY functions
to be reassigned to keystrokes other than their default assignments. With
ANARKED, you can configure ANARKEY to perform like your word processor,
previous command-line editor, or own personal tastes.

ANARKED is not a TSR (Terminate-and-Stay-Resident) program. ANARKED
modifies the ANARKEY.COM disk file so that it will recognize the new
keystroke assignments. ANARKEY does not have to be installed to run
ANARKED. ANARKED will patch the ANARKEY.COM disk file, not the resident
program. After running ANARKED, the new keystroke assignments will be
activated the next time you install ANARKEY.



Getting Started
---------------

Simply execute ANARKED from the DOS command line or from a batch file.
ANARKED will accept one optional command-line parameter.

ANARKED [-U]

Specify the -U option if you are upgrading from a previous version of
ANARKEY (2.00 or later) to a later release. ANARKED will allow you to carry
over the key assignments of the earlier version to the new release. This
will save you from having to go through the entire key assignment operation
each time you upgrade to a new version of ANARKEY. The effects of
specifying the -U option are described a little later.

Note: The -U option is supported only in the registered version of
ANARKED. To receive a registered version, you must send in your paid
registration form contained in the file ORDERFRM. A registered copy of the
entire ANARKEY software package will be sent to you immediately.

When executed without the -U option, ANARKED will ask for the name and
location of the ANARKEY.COM program file you wish to configure. When
executed under DOS version 3.00 and later, the default input file is
ANARKEY.COM located in the same directory and drive from which ANARKED was
executed. If executed in an earlier version of DOS the default input file
will be ANARKEY.COM in the current directory of the current drive.
Whichever version of DOS you're running, the default input filename will be
displayed. Pressing the key will accept the default. To specify a
different filename or location, type the file's drive, path and name
specification and then press .

ANARKED will check the input file to verify it is a valid ANARKEY program
file. ANARKED will modify ANARKEY versions 2.00 or greater. Earlier
versions of ANARKEY are not modifiable. If the program file is found to be
invalid, an error message will appear and ANARKED will prompt for another
input file.

When upgrading (-U option), ANARKED will prompt you for two input files:
(1) the original ANARKEY file whose key assignments you wish to carry over
and (2) the new release ANARKEY file to which you are upgrading. If both
files are valid ANARKEY program files, the key assignments will be
transferred from the old version to the new.

All default key assignments to functions supported in the new release but
not in the old version will be removed. This is done to prevent any
occurrences of a key being assigned to more than one function. All new
functions in a release will be documented in the UPDATE.DOC file included in
each ANARKEY distribution package. If there are any new functions in the
new version, ANARKED will inform you by listing them in a window when the
program is first executed.

After transferring key assignments, the normal ANARKED operation will
continue.

Once all the required input files are specified, ANARKED will prompt for
the output file. Any changes you make during the ANARKED session will be
stored in this output file. By default, ANARKED will write the changes to
the specified input file. Pressing will accept the default. If you
wish to save your changes to a different file, type in the desired file
specification with optional drive and path.

After specifying valid input and output files, ANARKED will display its
main "command/keystroke window."



ANARKED Command/Keystroke Windows
---------------------------------

A "command/keystroke window" is a full-screen window which contains a
group of ANARKEY functions and their assigned keystrokes. Since all of the
ANARKEY functions cannot fit onscreen at once, they are divided into several
windows. Traversing through the windows is possible by pressing one of the
action keys described below.

Each ANARKEY function is displayed on a single line. On each line is a
function description and its keystroke invocations. As displayed,
keystrokes are surrounded by < > characters, for example . These
bracketing characters are not part of the keystroke invocation. Any
keystroke invocation that is not currently assigned is displayed as "<>".

An ANARKEY function may have a maximum of two keystrokes assigned to it.
For example, as shipped, the Find-History-Buffer-Match-and-Edit function is
invoked by pressing either the or keys. Both of these
keystrokes would share the line with the function description and would look
something like this:

Find match and edit

The Active Keystroke Field
--------------------------
One keystroke invocation in the window will be displayed in inverse
video, meaning the characters are displayed on a bright background. This
keystroke is the "active keystroke field." Keystroke assignments are always
performed on the active keystroke field.

Action Keys
-----------
There are seven "action" keys that, when pressed, cause ANARKED to
perform a special operation. The seven action keys are:

-- the arrow keys (Up, Down, Left and Right)
-- and
-- and

Pressing one of the arrow keys (Up, Down, Left or Right) will move the
active keystroke field in the specified direction. These keys are used to
set the active field to any of the displayed keystroke invocations.

All ANARKEY commands are modifiable with ANARKED, but, because they
cannot all fit onscreen at once, commands are divided into several display
windows. Pressing the and keys will cycle through each of
these windows.

Pressing the key will activate the "ANARKED Action Menu." From the
Action Menu you may perform special operations such as saving your changes,
assigning one of the action keys to a function or quitting the program.
Each Action Menu function is explained later in this manual.



Editing ANARKEY Keystrokes
--------------------------

Assigning New Keystrokes
------------------------
Pressing any key (other than an action key) will immediately assign that
key to the active keystroke field. As an example, to assign to the
active keystroke field, simply hit .

This method makes it extremely easy to configure ANARKEY without the
confusing configuration files or installation programs required by many word
processors.

Most of the keystroke combinations available on a keyboard may be
assigned to an ANARKEY function. These include:

-sequences, like and ,
-sequences, like and and
-sequences, like .

Some keys, however, are reserved by DOS for special handling, for
example, and . These DOS-reserved keystrokes may not be
assigned to an ANARKEY function. If you attempt such an assignment, ANARKED
will refuse to carry out your request.

Each particular keystroke may be assigned to a maximum of one ANARKEY
function. Obviously, it would not make sense to have a key assigned to two
different functions. If an attempt is made to assign a key to the active
keystroke field and that key is already assigned to another function,
ANARKED will display a window stating the function to which the key is
currently assigned and asking if you wish to remove it. If you wish to
remove the current key assignment and assign the key to the active keystroke
field, press 'Y' or . Pressing any other key will leave the original
key assignment and active keystroke field unchanged.

Clearing Keystrokes
-------------------
A particular keystroke invocation may be completely removed or cleared
from a function by pressing the key when the field is the active
keystroke field. Notice that you will have to hold down one of the
keys to enter a keystroke. In case you forget this field-clearing
keystroke, the Action Menu (described below) can be used to perform the same
operation.

NOTE: The TOPS local area network will not correctly handle the
keystroke. Either UNLOAD TOPS when running ANARKED or use the corresponding
Action Menu operation to remove keystroke assignments. TOPS may also
interfere with the assignment of otherwise valid keystrokes. If you have
any problems assigning a particular key, UNLOAD TOPS and try again.

An Editing Example
------------------
As an example of editing a keystroke assignment, let's say you want to
configure the Delete-to-End-of-Line function so it will be executed every
time you press .

First, use the / keys to display the window that contains the
Delete-to-End-of-Line function. Then use the arrow keys to move the active
keystroke field to the key-field you wish to change.

By default, Delete-to-End-of-Line is assigned the keys and
. Since a function may be assigned a maximum of two keystrokes, the
new assignment will have to replace one of these. Decide which key to
replace and make it the active field by using the arrow keys.

Finally, press the key. will be immediately assigned to the
active keystroke field. If had already been assigned to another
function, ANARKED would have automatically removed it and beeped to tell you
so.

As another example, say you do not want any possibility of accidently
invoking the Clear-History-Buffer function. You can, in effect, remove this
command from ANARKEY by clearing all keystrokes assigned to it via .

That's all there is to it!



The ANARKED Action Menu
-----------------------

Operations other than keystroke assignments are performed by choosing a
selection from the Action Menu. The Action Menu is activated by pressing
the key. Once active, the Action Menu provides the abilities to:

-- save your editing changes and quit ANARKED,
-- create a summary file of the ANARKEY
functions and their assigned keystrokes,
-- assign one of the action keys to a function,
-- clear the active keystroke field and
-- quit ANARKED without saving your changes.

The Action Menu's active operation is displayed in inverse video.
Pressing the Up and Down arrow keys will cycle the active operation through
the available choices. Pressing will execute the active operation.
Some operations are executed immediately, while others require additional
input before executing. If additional input is required, ANARKED will
prompt you for it. To exit the Action Menu, press .

Each Action Menu operation is explained below.

--- Save changes and quit
-------------------------
This operation saves the current keystroke configuration to the output
file specified during startup. Since ANARKED modifies the ANARKEY.COM disk
file, the new keystroke assignments will not take effect until the next time
ANARKEY is installed.

After writing the output file, ANARKED terminates and you are returned to
the DOS command prompt.

--- Create summary list
-----------------------
Executing this menu option will create a summary listing of ANARKEY
functions and their current keystroke assignments. The listing may be saved
to a disk file or sent directly to a printer for use as a quick and handy
reference when first learning ANARKEY. You will be prompted for the
summary's destination.

To save the summary to a disk file, you may accept the displayed default
destination or enter a different file specification with optional drive and
path. The default file spec will be the same as the output file you
specified at ANARKED startup, but with a ".SUM" extension. For example, if
you specified the output file to be:

C:\BIN\ANARKEY.COM

then the default summary file will be:

C:\BIN\ANARKEY.SUM

To accept the default, simply press when prompted for the
destination.

To send the summary information to a printer, enter "PRN" when prompted
for the destination. The printer must be on-line and active BEFORE sending
anything to it. Check and be sure this is the case before you attempt to
print or you may lose your current editing session.

Pressing will abort the operation without creating a summary list.

Tip: By defining an AKA that loads the summary file into your favorite
word processor or file-viewing program, an on-line help facility can be
created. For example:

:help editor c:\bin\anarkey.sum

--- Assign action key
---------------------
The seven action keys (Up, Down, Left and Right arrow keys, ,
and ) are used to execute special ANARKED operations. To assign
one of these keys to an ANARKEY function requires going through this Action
Menu option.

When this operation is chosen from the Action Menu, the next keystroke
will be directly assigned to the active keystroke field. The keystroke will
not be interpreted by ANARKED. Thus, pressing one of the action keys will
assign that key to the active field. If the key was already assigned to a
function, ANARKED will beep to inform you it is removing the previous
assignment.

Although this method is mainly used to assign one of the action keys, any
keystroke (except ) will be assigned to the active keystroke field.

Pressing will abort the operation without performing a keystroke
assignment.

--- Remove keystroke ()
-------------------------------
When this operation is chosen, the active keystroke field is cleared of
the keystroke currently assigned to it.

This operation is equivalent to pressing in a command/keystroke
window. The Action Menu operation is provided in case you forget
or if is too difficult or not possible to enter.

--- Quit ANARKED without save
-----------------------------
ANARKED will terminate immediately without saving your editing changes to
the output file.



All Keyboards are NOT Created Equal
-----------------------------------

ANARKED will recognize as many keystrokes as your system's hardware and
firmware support.

Some systems have enhanced keyboards containing and keys.
Unfortunately, the system BIOS on many of these machines will not recognize
the extra keys. If the BIOS will not recognize a key then ANARKED will not
recognize it either.

If your keyboard has and keys and ANARKED does not recognize
them, please do not assume there is a problem with ANARKED. More likely the
fault lies with your machine's BIOS.

Also, because ANARKEY must work in conjunction with so many other
programs, it must be extremely well-behaved. This means it must get its
keyboard input from a level far-removed from your system's hardware. Other
programs that do not need to be so well-behaved may be able to access
hardware directly. Thus, these programs may be able to recognize certain
keystrokes, such as , that ANARKED cannot. Again, the problem is not
due to some lack in ANARKED, but rather to the circumstances in which it
must operate.

Please do not deluge me with bug reports about how ANARKED does not
recognize certain keystrokes. If you truly happen to come upon a common
keystroke, for example, , that ANARKED does not accept, I would like
to know. But if you're pressing your and keys and nothing is
happening, the problem lies elsewhere.



Comments and Suggestions
------------------------

I would love to hear your suggestions, comments, and enhancement ideas
concerning ANARKED and the other programs in the ANARKEY software package.
Please send your suggestions to:

Steven Calwas
Moderne Software
P.O. Box 3638
Santa Clara, CA 95055-3638

_______
____|__ | (tm)
--| | |-------------------
| ____|__ | Association of
| | |_| Shareware
|__| o | Professionals
-----| | |---------------------
|___|___| MEMBER