Bulletin Board Reader/Response For Windows


Created in Microsoft Visual Basic 1.0 for Windows 
	By D.H.Lee 

Created as Freeware; please distribute freely to PRODIGY(R) service members for use with the PRODIGY service.

Use this program to read an exported bulletin board file from the PRODIGY service . This program allows you to work with the exported file much as you would with the service itself, with the additional function of being able to view the original note while you create your response, using a multiple window interface.  The program works by searching the selected exported file for each note and bulletin, and stores the location of each note for immediate retrieval.  As such, it uses your exported bulletin board files as a database. which allows you to search for notes a number of ways (by To: or From: IDs, by topic, by subject, or note by note).

A recent addition to the program (Version 2.0): responses created within the program can be uploaded using macros created for either PRODIGY for Windows or for Pete Royston's utility program PRO-UTIL 6.

If using a mouse, you can click on the buttons available to activate program options, select text, and select menu items.  For those not using a mouse, most of the functions and menu items have keyboard equivalents, detailed in the online help file.  For those functions that do not provide keyboard equivalents, the Tab Key should get you from button to button and into text fields; menu items can be retrieved using the ALT key and arrow keys.

If you have any questions, please post a notes on the Computer Support bulletin board on the PRODIGY service (PRODIGY UTILITIES topic).  My service ID is TWKS23C.

PRODIGY is a registered mark of Prodigy Services Company. Visual Basic is a product of Microsoft Corporation. PRO-UTIL is a copyright of Pete Royston.

Disclaimer:

This program was created by Dan Lee outside the scope of his employment by Prodigy Services Company, and is not a product of Prodigy Services Company.  Neither the author nor the company make warranties, expressed or implied, as to the quality or performance of this program.  The author nor Prodigy Services Company will be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages resulting from the use of this program.  Your use of this program constitutes your agreement to this disclaimer and your release of the author and Prodigy Services Company from any form of liability or litigation.


Installation:

The .ZIP file contains the following:

BBRRW.EXE   (a Visual Basic for Windows 1.0 .EXE file)
BBRRW.HLP	(a help file in the Windows Help format)
VBRUN100.DLL   (the Visual Basic for Windows 1.0 Dynamic Link Library)
README.TXT   (An information file in plain text format)

Once unZIPpped, these files should be placed together into the same directory, preferably into the directory that will contain your exported bulletin board files.

Also required:

Windows 3.1 
IBM PC or Compatible computer capable of running Windows 3.1

Once Windows is installed and running, place the VBRUN100.DLL file into your WINDOWS directory.

Once these steps have been taken, you can run the file by double-clicking on the file within the Windows File Manager; or, you can run the program from the FILE:RUN option of either Program Manager or File Manager.

For instance, if you place the files into the C:\PRODIGY directory, you can select the File menu, then choose Run..., and type the program name as follows:

            
C:\PRODIGY\BBRRW


Another, more useful option is to create an icon in the Program Manager, to allow you to launch the file by double-clicking.  You can do this one of two ways;

A) With both the File Manager and the Program Manager windows available, drag the icon for BBRRW from the File Manager into an existing program group within the Program Manager.

B) Select (open) a program group within the Program Manager; then select "New..." from the File Manager.  Select Program item, then OK.




Then, enter the appropriate infomation in the Dialog Box:

Description: BB Reader/Response
Command Line: C:\PRODIGY\BBRRW.EXE
Working Directory: C:\PRODIGY

The above information assumes the program to exist in the C:\PRODIGY directory.


Using either of these two methods will create the BB Reader/Response icon.  The BBRRW.HLP file can be given the same treatment, to allow you to launch the help by double-clicking.

The help information is only a keystroke away, once you have entered the program.  The F1 key will bring you information specific to the screen you are viewing, for most of the functions (the exceptions being lists of subjects, topics, or member IDs, and any printer function windows).


Usage:

Note: On any screen, push F1 for Help.

Once you have started the program, you can choose to open a bulletin board file for reading, or you can choose to create a new file for importing (proper word wrap is present).  If you choose to read the bulletin board file, the file dialog box that appears to open any exported bulletin board file created on or after June 28, 1993.  Once the file is read, the first note in the file will be displayed, and you will be able to navigate through the file in much the same way you work on the service.  If there is ever a question on how a particular screen or option should work, just push the F1 key for help on that particular screen.  THe Help function should behave as any other Windows Help file.  The help function is context-sensitive on the dialog box level; it will describe all of the functions available within that dialog box.

Limitations:

Of course there would have to be.  

When you read a bulletin board file, the program finds each note and reply, and remembers where in the file each note is located.  The process should work for files as large as 10MB, although this may best be determined by your memory setup, hard disk space, etc. 

When viewing notes, you can return to a parent note from a reply, but you will not be able to return to a previous note unless you choose "Read All Notes" from the Options window of the Read Notes/Replies screen.

The program relies upon the presence of the lines beginning with "^" or "=", in order to determine when topics and notes begin and end within the file.  Editing these lines out of the bulletin board exported file will make it impossible for the program to read the file, or to work properly with the file.

Since these lines exist only in files created using the PRODIGY service export tools, which were implemented on June 28, exported note files created before that time, or created since that time with another program or utility, cannot be read by this program. If any of the above conditions are present at the time is read, you will be notified by the program at the beginning of the read-file process that it cannot read the file.  

There are also special considerations when creating notes and replies for uploading.  These considerations are discussed within the online help files, under the "Macro" topics.

REV. 5/5/94
Dan Lee