Category : Utilities for DOS and Windows Machines
Archive   : FM56.ZIP
Filename : FM.DOC

FormatMaster 5.6

A Floppy Disk Formatting Utility

Copyright 1987,93 by New-Ware

All Rights Reserved









Contents


1 PROLOG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2 REGISTRATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3 VERSION HISTORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4 REGISTERING FORMATMASTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
5 WHAT IS FORMATMASTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
6 RUNNING FM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
7 THE FM MAIN DISPLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
7.1 FLOPPY DRIVE LIST BOX . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
7.2 ACCESSING DIALOG CONTROLS . . . . . . . . . . . 7
7.3 RADIO BUTTONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

7.4 CHECK BOXES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
7.5 VOLUME LABEL LINE INPUT EDITOR . . . . . . . . . 7
7.6 SERIAL NUMBER INPUT EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . 8
7.7 COMMAND PUSH BUTTONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
8 THE FM ON-LINE HELP SYSTEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
9 HOW FM FORMATS A DISK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
10 BOOTABLE DISKETTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
11 SETTING SCREEN COLORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
12 FILES MAINTAINED BY FM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
13 THE FM.INI FILE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
























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1 PROLOG


DISCLAIMER

New-Ware hereby disclaims all warranties relating to this product,
whether express or implied, including without limitation any implied
warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. New-
Ware cannot and will not be liable for any special, incidental,
consequential, indirect or similar damages due to loss of data or any
other reason, even if New-Ware or an authorized New-Ware agent has been
advised of the possibility of such damages. In no event shall the
liability for any damages ever exceed the price paid for the license to
use software, regardless of the form and/or extent of the claim. The
user of this program bears all risk as to the quality and performance of
the software.

LICENSE

FormatMaster is a Shareware product. As such, it is made available
to the general computing public for evaluation. Users are licensed to
operate FormatMaster on their personal computers for the purpose of test
and evaluation on a trial basis for a limited trial period. It is not
possible to reasonably define any definitive limits of a fair and
equitable time period for evaluation, therefore it is left to the user's
judgment and sense of fair play as to the time required to make a
decision as to its usefulness. If the user decides the program is not
of sufficient merit to warrant purchase through registration with New-
Ware, the program should be removed from their personal computer.
Otherwise, if the program is deemed useful and is in regular use on the
user's personal computer system, registration with New-Ware is required.

Registered users are those users that elect to pay for FormatMaster
and register that payment with New-Ware. By virtue of registration and
payment for the program, registered users are granted a license to
continue to utilize the program on their personal computer for as long
as they choose. This license authorizes the user to use the program on
any personal computer system he or she may own so long as the program is
operated on only one computer system at a time.


2 REGISTRATION


FormatMaster is sole property of New-Ware Shareware products. The
Shareware version, and ONLY that version, may be freely copied and
transferred to individual parties for evaluation purposes. The
Shareware version, and ONLY that version, may be posted on Bulletin
Board systems (BBS) for electronic access as long as NO FEE is charged
for its distribution except for private BBS operations that charge a



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regular user subscription fee. Computer information services such as
Compuserve(CIS), Genie, etc., are authorized to post this product for
subscriber access. The Shareware version of FormatMaster may NOT be
distributed on diskette by any disk distributor/vendor that charges more
than $7.00 for the diskette upon which the program and attendant files
are recorded without written consent from New-Ware. This does NOT apply
if the Shareware version of FM is distributed on a CD-ROM disk.

FormatMaster is a fully functional Shareware product. Shareware is
a computer program distribution/marketing method that permits potential
buyers to thoroughly try the program prior to purchase. It is NOT free
and it is not in the Public Domain. If, after evaluating the program,
you find it to be useful enough to use it on a regular basis, you are
expected to pay for it by registering with New-Ware. The registration
fee is $20.00 and the registered version, which is NOT distributed as
Shareware, will not contain the opening Shareware screen nor the closing
messages. A special TSR version that occupies only 6K of normal RAM
that can be called from any application is available for an additional
$10.00.

You may register FormatMaster in one of the following ways:

1) By mail with check or money order to:

New-Ware
8050 Camino Kiosco
San Diego, CA 92122-1820

2) By telephone with Visa/Mastercard to:

New-Ware
(619) 455-6225
Business hours ONLY please!
Monday thru Friday
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time
Saturday
9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Pacific Time

3) Electronically through the New-Ware BBS:

New-Ware BBS
(619) 455-5226
24 Hours per day
7 Days per week

4) Users in Japan:

Call P. & A. Ltd. at 0425-46-9141.





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The New-Ware BBS operates 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Node
#1 is dedicated to registered users only. Nodes #2 is open to all
callers. Users registering via the BBS receive access to the latest
registered version within 1 day after leaving their credit card data.
Users who register by mail or phone may also access the registered
version by BBS, but you MUST log on and leave a comment to the sysop to
the effect that you are a registered user and desire access. The author
can also be reached on CIS via PPN 71535,665 (please use EMAIL).

The Shareware version of FormatMaster may be freely copied and
passed on to other individual users for their evaluation. Disk vendors
and/or distributors that desire to distribute FormatMaster must adhere
to the guidelines specified in the file named VENDOR.DOC.


3 VERSION HISTORY


Version 5.0

- Complete design overhaul and rewrite.

Version 5.1

- Fixed bug in the volume label history list handler that
could cause the program to lock up.

Version 5.2

- Added an all drive cycle capability.
- Added a no-verify capability.
- Minor bugs fixes.

Version 5.3

- Changed serial number addition to avoid DOS 5.0 problems.

Version 5.4

- Added support for more than two floppy drives.
- Added bootable data diskette feature.
- Changed to the use of an ASCII initialization file
(FM.INI).
- Dropped the use of SYS.COM to transfer system files.
FM will now directly copy the appropriate files to
the target diskette.

Version 5.5

- Fixed bug that could cause FM to fail to save the



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selected capacity setting when updating the .INI file.

Version 5.6

- Fixed a bug in the feature that makes a non-system floppy
diskette bootable. This bug failed to initialize the
target diskette properly.



4 REGISTERING FORMATMASTER


FormatMaster is a Shareware product. It is NOT public domain
software. New-Ware urges those who find FormatMaster to be of
sufficient utility so as to use it on a regular basis to remit a
registration fee of $20.00. Registered users will receive a copy of
FormatMaster on disk that has the opening Shareware information screen
removed. In addition, registered users will have access the Shareware
Products BBS for retrieval of all future registered versions of
FormatMaster. Selecting the Registration item from the program main
menu will result in a pop-up window that will prompt you for all the
necessary information and then print the form for mailing.

Registering FormatMaster is easy and may be accomplished in one of
following ways:

(1) Mail a check or money order in the amount of $20.00
payable to New-Ware. California residents MUST
add 7.25% sales tax ($21.45 total).

(2) Mail your Visa or Mastercard number, card expiration
date, phone number, and signature to New-Ware.

(3) Call (619) 455-6225 and leave your Visa or
MasterCard number, expiration date, name and
address, and phone number.

(4) Call the Shareware Products BBS and register on
line. The number is (619) 455-5226, N/8/1,
1200/2400/9600 (HST) baud. Your credit card can usually
be validated within one day and this is the quickest
way to get a copy of the registered version.

(5) In Japan please call P. & A. Ltd. at 0435-46-9141

FormatMaster will be shipped via first class mail within two days
of receipt of a registration. If you are using Visa or Mastercard for
payment please ensure that you include the full card number (i.e., 1234
5678 0000 1234) and the card expiration date. Visa or Mastercard only,
please. No other credit cards can be accepted.



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If you call the voice number to register, you may get an answering
machine. Have your card or the form printed by FormatMaster ready so
you can leave your registration information quickly and accurately. The
answering machine is operated via a computer and is extremely secure.


5 WHAT IS FORMATMASTER


FormatMaster (hereafter called FM) is a sophisticated yet easy to
use program that specializes in formatting 3 1/2" and 5 1/4" floppy
diskettes. It offers time and labor saving features such as
configurable volume label and sequential serial numbers and a feature
that allows you to created a floppy disk that will pass the boot
sequence on to your hard drive.


6 RUNNING FM


FM is easy to run. Simply place FM.EXE in a directory on your hard
disk. You may wish to place it in a directory that is in your DOS path,
but that is not necessary. FM will maintain its support files in the
same directory in which it is located.


7 THE FM MAIN DISPLAY


The main FM display is organized into three main areas. The top
line of the display contains the main menu bar. Press the F10 key, the
Alt key and one of the highlighted menu item letters, or click with the
left mouse button to access the main menu.

The bottom line of the display is a status line that indicates
certain function key assignments and the Alt+X exit key. You may also
click on a status label to perform that indicated function.

The main area of the display is occupied by the FM dialog box.
This is a rectangle that contains clusters of radio buttons, check
boxes, line input editors, status box, and control buttons.

7.1 FLOPPY DRIVE LIST BOX

The floppy drive list box will automatically adjust to show up to 4
floppy drives. Each drive is represented by its DOS drive letter. If
you have more than two floppy drives in your system, you must use the
DOS utility DRIVER.SYS for each extra drive.





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7.2 ACCESSING DIALOG CONTROLS

FM dialog controls are organized into groups or clusters of radio
buttons, check boxes, line input editors, and push buttons. You may
directly access any one of the clusters by pressing the Alt key in
conjunction with the highlighted character in the cluster title. For
example, press Alt+O to access the Options box and press Alt+V to access
the Volume Label line input editor.

You may also tab through the controls with the Tab key. Pressing
the tab key will access the next control in the sequence. Press
Shift+Tab to access the next control in reverse order.

A third method of accessing controls is to place the mouse cursor
on the control and pressing the left button.

Note that the currently active control will be visually
highlighted.

7.3 RADIO BUTTONS

A radio button cluster consists of a vertical list of items of
which one, and only one, may be selected. An item item may be selected
by highlighting the desired item with the arrow keys or clicking on the
desired item.

7.4 CHECK BOXES

A check box cluster is a vertical list of items, each of which has
a small box formed by a set of brackets. An item may be checked or
unchecked by highlighting the item with the arrow keys and pressing the
space bar or clicking on the item with with mouse. A check mark will
appear in the box of any item that is checked.

7.5 VOLUME LABEL LINE INPUT EDITOR

You may enter a volume label by selecting the line editor that is
labeled "volume Label". Up to 11 DOS legal characters may be entered
here. This line editor has a history buffer that will contain a list of
previously entered labels. To select a label from the history list,
press the down arrow while the editor is active or click on the down
arrow that is immediately adjacent to the line editor. A history list
appears and you may move the cursor bar to the desired label and press
the Enter key to select a label from the list to be entered into the
editor.

FM will save and restore the history buffer to/from a file named
FM.HST from session to session unless the "No History" option box is
checked. You may clear the history buffer at any time by pressing the
F6 key or selecting "Clear History" from the Action menu.



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FM will actually label a freshly formatted target disk with the
volume label that is in the line editor if the Options "add Label" box
is checked.

See the next section for how the volume label is used with disk
serial numbers.

7.6 SERIAL NUMBER INPUT EDITOR

To use this feature, select the Options cluster and check the "add
Serial #" box. Then select the "Serial Num:" input editor and type any
legal serial number. FM will add the serial number to the volume label
immediately after formatting a target diskette. If you desire to
sequentially increment the serial number as a series of disks are
formatted, check the "Incr Serial #" option. For example, if the
"Volume Label" field contains "MYDISK" and the "Serial Num:" field
contains "1000" and the "add Serial #" option is checked, FM will add
"MYDISK1000", "MYDISK1001", "MYDISK1002", etc., successively to each
disk formatted. The volume label field can be blank and the "Add Label"
option does not need to be checked.

7.7 COMMAND PUSH BUTTONS

A vertical array of nine command push buttons occupies the right
hand side of the FM dialog. Each button has a name that describes the
command function that will be performed when the button is pushed. For
example, push the "Quick Format" button to cause FM to perform a quick
format on the target disk.

A button may be pushed in three different ways. One way is to
click on the button with the left mouse. Another is to press the Alt
key and the highlighted shortcut character in the button title. A third
method is to press the Tab key until the button is highlighted and then
press the Enter key. Each of the command buttons is duplicated in the
"Action" menu and by one of the 10 function keys.


8 THE FM ON-LINE HELP SYSTEM


FM is supported by context sensitive on-line help system. To
attain help at any time, press the F1 key or click on the status line
label "F1 Help". The help window that opens will be relevant to the
control item that is active at the time the help system is activated.

Help on how to use the help system is available while in the help
system via the F1 key. You may return to the last topic accessed by
pressing Alt+F1.





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9 HOW FM FORMATS A DISK


When the DOS FORMAT utility formats a floppy disk, it checks to see
if the disk is already formatted. If it is, it saves the FAT and
Directory sectors and proceeds to verify the disk. If it is not
formatted, it then proceeds to format and verify the disk. In the first
case, DOS can restore the formatted disk if the format fails for some
reason or the user chooses to terminate the format by using Ctrl+Break.
DOS will also perform a "quick" format if the user desires.

FM operates in exactly the same way that DOS does. A fresh,
unformatted disk is formatted and verified track-by-track. If FM
detects a formatted target disk then it will warn you and ask for
confirmation to proceed. If you elect to proceed, FM will then verify
the disk and initialize the FAT and directory sectors.

The FM quick format option is the fastest method of initializing a
previously formatted disk because it neither formats nor verifies the
target disk. Instead, it reads the FAT and directory sectors, clears
all but bad sector marks, and rewrites to the disk.

If speed in formatting fresh, unformatted diskettes is essential,
you may elect to use the FM "No Verify" option. Formatting new disks
without verification saves about 6 seconds per diskette but does involve
some risk. If a bad spot exists on a diskette and is not detected it is
possible to later overwrite that bad spot with file data and then
subsequently fail to read the file. This option is not recommended and
you use it at your own risk.


10 BOOTABLE DISKETTES


FM will format a diskette so that it is a system diskette which
means that the system files (IO.SYS, MSDOS.SYS, and COMMAND.COM) are
transferred to the diskette. If you are running DOS 6.0 and
DBLSPACE.BIN is in your DOS path, it will be transferred as well. This
makes the diskette bootable. Most diskettes, however, are formatted as
"data" diskettes with no system files. These disks will not boot and
your system will issue an error message and pause if you happen to have
a non-system disk in drive A: when the system is booted.

FM can make a special non-system diskette that will automatically
pass the boot sequence to drive C: if the special diskette is in drive
A: with the door closed at boot time. To make a diskette capable of
this behavior, place a formatted diskette in one of your drives, make
the drive active, and select the "Make Bootable Floppy" item from the
main "Misc" menu. The target disk should not be a system disk and must
be formatted. FM will read and initialize the target diskette to a



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bootable non-system diskette without disturbing any directories or files
on the diskette.


11 SETTING SCREEN COLORS


Please consult the information provided in the text file named
FMCOLOR.DOC for specific directions concerning setting and saving the FM
color configuration.


12 FILES MAINTAINED BY FM


Up to three files will be maintained by FM in the same directory in
which FM.EXE resides. If you elect to save the configuration, FM will
place that information into a file named FM.INI. A file named FM.HST
that contains a history of your entries into the Volume Label line input
field is maintained. If you elect to configure and save the FM color
scheme, that information is placed into a file named FMCOLOR.SET.


13 THE FM.INI FILE


FM is initialized at start-up by loading the FM.INI file. This is
an editable ASCII text file that must be stored in the same directory
with FM.EXE. The file can be updated in two ways. The preferred method
is by setting the various options on the main FM display as desired and
then using the "Save FM.INI" function. The less preferred method is to
edit the file with a text editor. Here a sample of the file format:

;all comments start with a semicolon
[Startup]
Drive=A ;drive active on startup
CapacityA=0 ;0 is low, 1 is high
CapacityB=1
VolumeLabel=NEW-WARE
SerialNum=0

[Options]
Addlabel=No
AddSerialNum=No
IncrSerialNum=No
TransferSystem=No
ForceFull=No
SkipHistory=No
NoWarning=No
NoBeeps=No



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NoVerify=No
BothDrives=No

You may place comments in this file, but they MUST be preceded with a
semicolon as illustrated above.

=================================================================
Copyright 1987,1993, all rights reserved.

New-Ware
8050 Camino Kiosco
San Diego, CA 92122









































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