HANDS ON Remote Access UPDATES Page 1 This Product is Shareware, if you continue to use it Please Register to Legalise your usage _______ ____|__ | (R) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| Member Software Updates: Note that some of the utility programs have their own version number and update information in the matching .txt file. An example is HOMNU.EXE and MNU.txt. 5.10 March, 1995 Changing files ending in DOC to TXT to minimise complaints about conflicts with Microsoft Word files. Tidied HOMINS.EXE arrangement, so HOHOSTIN.EXE no longer tries to write to HOMINS.EXE. 5.10 February, 1995 Fixes and improvements for modem init strings. Added over 400 simple modem initialization settings. Added the optional (but recommended) HOMINS.EXE simplified setup utility. The installer now forces you to install in the current directory if you have the BBS version. Hopefully, this will cut down on the complaints on the poliferation of files. 1STHAND is now aware of the simple installer HOMINS.EXE in various ways, and checks for the installers in the current directory. 5.01 February, 1995 Minor changes to help make configuration easier. For example, more prompting in HOHOSTIN to re-create HO.HO and HOHOST.HO. Matching changes in the manuals. 5.00 September, 1994 By far the most common feedback is that BBS people only put part of Hand On on their BBS. The default BBS distribution has been shrunk in reaction. We have also significantly improved the ease of getting Hands On up and HANDS ON Remote Access UPDATES Page 2 running, mainly in 1sthand.exe. This is the first EASY UP AND RUNNING release for Hands On. This includes a large number of minor changes including a more reasonable dialing setup using 1sthand. 1STHAND.EXE is now up to version 2 with numerous 'easy use' changes, including more command line parameters.. 5.00 July, 1994 Added PSL registration option. Cosmetic changes to 1sthand.exe, telemenu.exe and telemenu.hlp. Ongoing changes to the manuals based on user feedback. HOASK.EXE was inadvertently compressed with DIET in the initial 5.00 release and has now been restored to a normal .exe. (Testing shows that HOASK.EXE will normally run fine when DIETed, but that change made the difference) Changed HOHOSTIN.EXE so it leaves the INIT file on disk for further configuration uses. 5.00 June, 1994 Started this section. This is the first distribution where new users have significant likelihood of being less skilled. You should expect ongoing 'updates' as we discover better ways to get new users going. Its likely that the main changes will NOT provide enhanced help, but will instead improve the initial setup and automatic telephone connections. Reworking documentation and internal messages. The design goal is a more user friendly interface. Changed the name to HANDS ON. Now includes the telemenu. Reworked the names below to a generic name wherever appropriate. The version number reflects a clean break that is building on previous work. 4.23 1992 Allowed use of 25x80 text pages other than 0. 4.22 Changed the version number to stop people thinking that version 3.9 was a later version than 3.22!! 4.22 and 3.22 are the same! 3.22 Modified the way HOST's private mode works to avoid problems with CapsLock, NumLock and ScrollLock. Previously some PCs experienced a delay of 20 seconds or so while the BIOS waited for a keyboard interrupt that would never occur since HOST had disabled all keyboard interrupts. Now the keyboard interrupt is briefly enabled after any of these keys has been pressed. Modified the file transfer status window to report throughput HANDS ON Remote Access UPDATES Page 3 in characters per second rather than percentage efficiency. 3.21 Added the capability to limit the length of a session (useful for toll-free numbers). Increased the buffer size to suit higher speed modems (this only affects screen refresh time and only at speeds above 2400 bps). Added to HOSTIN the ability to scan the PC's hardware looking for installed COM ports and locating the associated IRQ lines (from IRQ2 to IRQ15 inclusive). This makes it considerably easier to install for things like internal modems with non-standard IRQ lines. 3.20 Moved control of host printer redirection into HOST,HOSTIN, HOSTC (this now makes it possible to install HOST so that print redirection is off by default). Corrected a problem that caused \\ to be reduced to just \ and then to nothing when strings were being edited in HOSTIN. Added section 0 to HO.txt to provide a quick path to getting the package up and running. Made sending an initial "at&f" to the modem optional in MODSET. 3.19 Added support for IRQ8-15 for 16-bit I/O cards. Added HOSTC.EXE to modify HOST parameters during an active session. Modified HOSTIN so that it is possible to redirect input into it, and added a sample response file HOSTIN.RES. 3.18 Corrected a problem with HO failing to detect a loss of carrier in the middle of a session. 3.17 Improved CTS handshaking for use with V42bis modems. Increased printer buffer size to cope with faster modems and longer propagation delays. Added direct support for external file transfer protocol programs such as DSZ. 3.16 Modified HOST's ring response code so that the user can HANDS ON Remote Access UPDATES Page 4 choose to have a string sent direct to the modem instead of having it "typed". Added a "private" mode option to HOST to allow the host PC to run with a dead keyboard and blank screen. Added HOASK (a program like ASK but with a timeout) to replace HOKEY. Modified HOST to cut down memory usage slightly by freeing environment space. This could be significant for users who have very large amounts of environment text. Finally worked out what needed to be done to allow HOST to be loaded high (by QEMM's LOADHI for example) without hanging when the host should have been rebooted! 3.15 Modified HOST so that the "reboot on loss of carrier" option only takes effect if there has been a successful HANDS ON session at some time in the past (previously the PC would reboot when the carrier was lost even if HANDS ON had never been active, which sometimes caused rebooting to occur at unfortunate moments!). 3.13 Removed the messages about synchronizing the baud rate and sending the password, and replaced them with a beep so that line noise does not disturb the screen text so much. Modified the file transfer timeout process so that HO keeps on waiting for the transfer to commence until the user presses a key, rather than just waiting a specified time period. [Note that this eliminated one parameter from the .HO file.] 3.12 Added a new program, REMOVE, to remove HOST from memory. Previously this could be done by HOSTIN, but having a separate program avoided any danger of inadvertently modifying HOST parameters... 3.11 Added remote printing capability. [Note that this required an extra parameter in the .HO file.] 3.10 Changed HO.EXE and GET.EXE so that directories were created as required during file transfer. portions Copyright (C) 1994-5 P. C. Softsmith All rights reserved *** this is the end (or the beginning, depending on your viewpoint) ***