Copyright: Copyright © 1994 Windows OnLine(tm)
Citation: All rights reserved, Copyright © 1994 Windows OnLine(tm)


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Contents

   About the WinOnLine Review™

WOLR information you should know

NEW to the magazine and Windows Help?

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   Publisher's Desk

This month's comments from our Publisher

   Cache La Byte, by Thom Foulkes

Luke has the latest Windows . . .

   Drafix CAD Professional, by Ed Hoffman

"Few other programs offer the functionality and utility . . . "

   Lotus 123 v.5, by Steven Justice

" . . . finally a Windows spreadsheet with which you can be comfortable."

   Inspiration, by Ed Rasimus

". . . an outlining tool with pretensions of grandeur."

   QEMM, by Steven Jay Cohen

A standard of the industry grows a Windows interface

   Lotus Approach 3.0, by David Morgan

". . . making it easy to create, maintain and use databases."

   Windows OnLine (BBS)

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About the WinOnLine Review
Publisher : Frank J. Mahaney      Editor : Bob Gollihur

Technical Editor: Steven Jay Cohen     Senior Staff Writer: Ed Hoffman

Staff Writers: Steven Jay Cohen, G.L. Heitzmann, David Morgan, Ed Rasimus, Randy Wong

Contributing Writers: Thom Foulkes

The WinOnLine™ Review (WOLR) and its sister publication, the WinOnLine Review™ Shareware Edition (WOLRS), are electronic magazines that are distributed worldwide to major online services. It is estimated that each issue is read by over 100,000 online and network users. (It is reported that there are over 70,000 BBS's in the USA alone as of 1993). The Review is published monthly at the beginning of each month. The Shareware Edition is published monthly and issued mid-month.

These magazines are published by Windows OnLine™, an online (modem) service dedicated to supporting Windows users and Windows network professionals. WOL prides itself on having the most complete and up-to-date library of Windows shareware in the world. We have over 11,000 Windows-specific programs and files to download and many thousands more oriented to DOS and OS/2. WOL operates with 17 nodes (all equipped with US Robotics high speed dual standard modems) operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We hope you will give us the opportunity to become your BBS of choice.

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Publisher's Desk
And a year from now . . .

The big buzz continues to be Chicago, or Windows/95 as it is now to be known. I guess it's a good thing that the marketing wizards at Microsoft didn't think of the name sooner, or they'd really be in a creative crunch, trying to figure out what to do with all those Windows/94 logotypes.

A year ago we were reading some of the first buzzes about Chicago, and thinking that a year later (now) we'd be preparing for its emergence. Kind of makes you wonder where we'll all be a year from now. Also makes me wonder how they'll handle bug fix versions with this new nomenclature. I think I have an idea.

Here's to this time next year, and Windows/95/October.

Frank J. Mahaney

Publisher

frank.mahaney@wol.com


       CACHE LA BYTE

by Thom Folkes

LUKE HAS THE LATEST WINDOWS

My friend Luke (that's short for Lucas) has always said he's not interested in all the whoop-de-do about Windows95 -- he just wants to be sure he's running today's latest version on Windows. He likes the screen-savers, and his sound card talks like Harrison Ford on a deep-space rescue mission.

Luke bought one of those fancy over-the-counter commodity computers at an office superstore a little more than a year ago, and when he turned it on and watched the drive lights flash, up popped Windows 3.1 on his screen. He sent in his registration card to Mother Microsoft, and set about learning to use a mouse and all those other non-human, non-trivial tasks related to operating Windows.

A few weeks later, a postcard showed up in the mail, suggesting he would like to upgrade to Windows for Workgroups. "I don't know what a 'workgroup' is," says Luke, "but if this is a better version of Windows, I want it." So he placed the order.

The box came, he installed the software, learned to play Hearts -- and still felt as if he was missing something. Here were all kinds of things he couldn't do (like chatting with someone else in his single-member workgroup) or didn't want to do (like sending network mail). So, he restored the backup files he'd made before the upgrade and reverted to Win 3.1. He tinkered and toiled, and could recite SYSTEM.INI forwards or backwards.

He found that some of the W4W components could be useful -- like the comm driver. And he still wanted to play Hearts, so he did a custom re-install of the software. All eight discs, but highly selective of what he wanted.

Then an office coworker told Luke what he really needed was Windows 3.11. No one seemed to know why, but it was brand-new. Off to the office superstore he went. He uninstalled most of W4W and the Windows logo on his startup screen shortly said simply "Windows 3.11." Luke said, "Seemed like a lot of work to get a fancier logo."

In the mail came another offer from the Mr. Gates, inviting Luke to upgrade to the new Windows for Workgroups 3.11. A few weeks passed, and one disk arrived in the mail -- not an upgrade, or a "stepup" but an "add-on." Luke soon learned he had to re-install the original Windows for Workgroups, but this time far more selectively.

Then he heard about the quiet release by Microsoft of something called "Windows 32bit extensions," available on the firm's BBS and soon available on many other BBSs. Luke downloaded the lengthy file and installed it. He learned how to play Freecell, and complacently boasted to friends that he now had the latest version of Windows.

Luke's boss at the meat-packing plant popped with a bonus, and Luke plopped all of it into a hardware upgrade -- 486DX2/50, 16MB of 60 nanosecond RAM, and a 540MB IDE hard drive. Luke was certain Windows would now fly. With the new gear installed, all he had to do was restore the backup tape.

I plan to visit Luke later today, in the sanitarium where he's resting. I want to hear the full story. All I've heard was something about how the ambulance crew found Luke on the floor, crying and sobbing and pounding the carpet with his fists. One of the medics said Luke was screaming something that sounded like, "Snarled tape! Snarled tape!" but no one was sure what he meant.

I think I know...

commentary by

(click)

Thom Foulkes


Approach 3.0
       LOTUS APPROACH VERSION 3.0

by David Morgan

The development of database applications over the past several years has been dramatic. One of the most significant factors affecting this dramatic development has been the widespread use of the Graphical User Interface (GUI). Setting up databases, especially creating forms for data entry, is usually the most difficult part of using a database program. Lotus' Approach 3.0 takes full advantage of GUI making it easy to create, maintain and use databases.

The main menu of a sample database.

Within Approach, a user works with two kinds of files: Approach and database. Approach files store forms, reports, worksheets, and other ways of viewing data. When you create a new database file in Approach (or open an existing database file, spreadsheet, or text file from another application), it automatically creates and opens a new Approach file so that you can begin entering data. All work is performed in these files, including editing data, finding and sorting records, and organizing and printing information. The data shown in the Approach files is actually stored behind the scenes in database files. The database files can be maintained and saved in various formats. You do not work directly in a database file, but use Approach's file as a "window" into it.

This design feature lets you create a file in, for example, dbase or Paradox in their native formats and use Approach as the user interface to access them. Its PowerKey technology allows users to work with the following formats in their native formats.

dbase III Plus and IV

Paradox for DOS and Paradox for Windows

FoxPro

Oracle SQL 6.0 and 7.0

SQL Server

ODBC

Microsoft Access

Approach lets you join database files such that you can work with data from more than one database file in an Approach file.

Before getting into the many features of Approach, I want to give special notice to the tutorial provided. This is one of the best instructional pieces I have ever seen for an application of this power and complexity. After spending less than an hour with the tutorial, I had a very good understanding of the many features within Approach and how too use them. And now, here are some of the other impressive features within Approach.

The Form Assistant window.

Task specific dialog boxes called Smart Assistants help you build custom reports, forms, mailing labels, crosstabs, charts and more.

Fifty-one pre-designed templates for common uses like contacts, customers, orders and personnel let you quickly build a database.

The InfoBox.

Using the InfoBox a user can easily apply and change fonts, dimensions, color, lines, macros, label names, field order, check boxes, radio buttons and more.

Select from nine different field types including text, numeric, date, time, calculated, Boolean, memo, variable and PicturePlus.

The calculations feature allows you to quickly generate powerful calculations with 14 operators and 84 functions.

Field Autofill speeds up data entry by automatically filling in routine information like serial numbers and the current date.

The use of macros can help automate you database use.

The Find and Sort features easily pinpoint and organize data with virtually unlimited query capabilities.

The mail merge capability lets you create instant form letters.

With the mailing labels function, you can automatically match to Avery label codes or customize your own.

A spelling checker is provided to ensure error-free documents.

The worksheet view feature lets you see and analyze your data in familiar spreadsheet-like tables.

Crosstabs allow you to perform sophisticated data analysis by simply dragging and dropping fields to design your desired result.

Choose from 120 different charts to view and print your data.

The InfoBox.

The print preview feature called PowerClick Reporting lets you view how a report will look and print as you're constructing it.

Send Approach reports, forms, crosstabs, worksheets and mailings through any VIM- or MAPI-compliant mail system.

Lotus 1-2-3 integration lets you transparently create reports, forms, mailings, crosstabs and more.

Lotus Notes integration.

The system requirements for Approach include at least four megabytes of  RAM (six is recommended) and 19 megabytes of hard drive space for the full installation. Approach is compatibility with many network applications including Novell NetWare and NetWare Lite, MS Windows for Workgroups or LAN Manager, Banyan VINES or Arisoft LANtastic network. No additional setup is required.

Lotus has long been a respected name when it comes to data management. The newest release of Approach will do nothing but enhance that reputation.

Lotus Approach Release 3.0

List Price $ 109.00

for further information please contact:

Lotus Development Corporation

55 Cambridge Parkway

Cambridge, MA 02142

800-343-5414

written by

David R. Morgan

david.morgan@wol.com


Drafix CAD Professional
       DRAFIX CAD PROFESSIONAL 3.0

by Ed Hoffman

Computer Aided Drafting, or CAD, has been around in a wide variety of forms since the computer first arrived on the business scene. The early CAD programs were DOS based applications that while adequate, lacked many of the capabilities and refinements that are available today. Likewise, these early CAD programs required a great deal of technical expertise and experience to use. Despite the fact that there are still many DOS based CAD programs available, it wasn't until the arrival of the Windows operating system that the marriage of the computer and this form of drawing was complete. Today, almost anyone with only minimal experience can produce drawings and illustrations with CAD.

One of the best examples of the CAD and Windows union is Drafix CAD Professional 3.0. This program is the latest version of the first CAD program available for Windows. I've long been impressed with the power and functionality of the Drafix CAD program in all of its earlier versions, and this new version is a worthy successor.

The Drafix CAD Professional program is a true update. Often many new versions of established software programs today are new programs with the old name. Not so in this case. This version has retained the basic look and feel of the older versions, while adding a bushel basket of new features and capabilities. Anyone contemplating an upgrade from an earlier version can be assured that the learning curve is minimal.

For those who have not used the earlier versions but are considering a CAD purchase, this program, despite all its power, is still one of the fastest and easiest CAD programs to learn. To make the transition to the Drafix CAD Professional program even easier, the context sensitive help system has been expanded and refined. The right-mouse button menu feature is also a handy and useful feature, bringing up a series of different menus. The specific menu that appears depends on where you are at and what functions you are using. Similarly, pop-up balloons will also appear as the cursor pauses over a tool, or the property bar area of the screen. These balloons describe the specific functions of the tool or command under the cursor.

One strength of this program is in its ability to be customized to the way you work. You may set the various features such as the property bar, status bar, edit bar, and tool bar to be shown or hidden as you wish. The program also allows you to setup multiple custom toolboxes. These toolboxes permit fast and easy access to the tools, features, commands, or other actions you use most frequently. Several of these toolboxes  may be created for a variety of different types of drawings. Then, as they are needed, it is a very simple matter to load the required toolbox. Often used commands may also be assigned shortcut keys to allow you even faster access to the commands you use most often.

A built in macro utility called the MacroPro™ Tool Kit is also included with the program to permit you to further customize and automate the Drafix CAD Professional program. This utility allows you to quickly and easily perform complex tasks automatically. Fifty ready-to-use components are included with the program. The program also includes database capabilities that allows the attachment of items of information to the specific entities in a drawing. The database allows you to assign database information to drawing entities that can turn simple drawings into very powerful tools. You can select entities based on their properties, to create visual inventory systems, and to export information in a variety of formats suitable for other applications such as spreadsheets, databases, and word processors.

Other very useful attributes of the program are the direct AutoCAD™ DWG support. Now, rather than importing and exporting drawings in a DXF format, you can work directly in the AutoCAD format. The DXF translator, however, is still available for those times when you would prefer the DXF over the DWG format. The program also offers OLE 1.0 (Object Linking and Embedding) server support as well as Multiple Document Interface (MDI) capabilities. Drafix CAD Professional may also be used with digitized input and supports scaled input. Even TrueType fonts may be printed with plotters that do not support these typefaces using the built in converter.

The Drafix CAD Professional program comes on three high density 3.5 disks and also includes a CD with over 5,000 drawing symbols, sample macros, and hundreds of sample drawings and floor plans. Included on the CD are professional symbol libraries for Electrical, Architectural,  Network, Landscape, and Mechanical drawings.

Whether for business or home, CAD is rapidly becoming the most preferred method of producing today's engineering and architectural drawings. From designing simple projects to preparing large architectural drawings for that new computer room addition you've been planning, a good CAD program is an essential drawing and design tool. If CAD is in your future, this program definitely deserves your close consideration. Few other programs offer the functionality and utility of Drafix CAD Professional 3.0.

Drafix CAD Professional 3.0

List price: $495.00

for further information please contact:

Foresight Resources Corporation

10725 Ambassador Drive

Kansas City, MO  64153

800-231-8574

written by

(click)

Ed Hoffman

ed.hoffman@wol.com


       INSPIRATION

by Ed Rasimus

Everyone in the software business is seeking to be the originator of the next "killer app": the application that everyone needs, no one has thought of before, and that every computer user in the civilized world will absolutely have to have. It's too late by a long shot for word processing, spreadsheet, graphics handling, or communications programs. The big boys are there already and they've incorporated every whizbang bit of gadgetry you could ever desire. The market is pretty saturated with presentations, desk-top publishing, engineering, statistics and financial management packages. What then is a software developer to do??

Inspiration Software has an idea! Why not a software to promote, manage and encourage the development of ideas? Sure, that's the ticket. Why not capitalize on the current flush of psychobabble and design a software package that will make use of "mind-mapping" in addition to good old fashioned brainstorming? Why not sell a product that will let the "left-brain dominant" engineer talk to the "right-brained" designer? Why not help the artistic communicate with the pragmatic? Why not something that lets the user outline and flow chart, draw and connect, illustrate and present? Something with lots of "smart" features that expand text boxes, link topics and nest details all automatically. Something that can regurgitate the product of all of this unharnessed intellectual energy into a useful format to sell the idea to management. Yeah, that's the ticket, for sure.

Inspiration is the answer to the question that hasn't yet been asked. It's the solution to a problem many of us don't have, or at least don't realize we have. Inspiration could best be described as an outlining tool with pretensions of grandeur. It opens on a desktop with a central text box labeled "main idea." The user enters whatever the central topic is, and then starts adding boxes with supporting or subordinate comments. Tools provide for direction to link the next box that is generated to support the free flow of ideas. Drop down arrays provide for various text boxes, whether geometric shapes, standard flow chart forms, business graphics, or engineering icons. Enter text and the boxes auto-expand to collect it.

A typical graphic generated by Inspiration.

The tools are not as helpful as one would hope. I was frustrated by the fact that a new text box always defaulted to the previous box shape (how many flow chart "yes-no" diamonds lead to another one?). I also stumbled when the "grabber" tool didn't grab an object for moving, but was used to move the whole worksheet as would the scroll-bars. Changing a link between boxes was a task for the steady hand of a neurosurgeon, and changing the width of all links on a complicated chart was as mind-numbingly tedious as a day on the assembly line. Whatever happened to "Select All"?

If you're thinking faster than you can format, Inspiration can be switched to Rapid Fire mode. Switch on Rapid Fire and enter ideas as fast as your speedy little fingers can type them. With each click of the enter key, a new box is generated until a veritable spider web of ideas covers your screen. The only problems with this concept is that there is no menu or icon to initiate Rapid Fire. You have to look it up in the documentation to find that it is triggered by the F-9 key and terminated with SHIFT-ENTER. More importantly, it takes longer to transform the spider web into a meaningful display than if you had put your ideas down in an orderly orientation in the beginning.

Inspiration uses a family-child metaphor to describe nested outlines. When dealing with complex topics, it is helpful to be able to subordinate outline levels to be dealt with individually. Inspiration does this by using child graphics that are hidden behind the text boxes of the parent graphic. Once explained, the concept is fairly straightforward, but I found it difficult to get the big picture on a project. Finding out which boxes were parents took selection of the Open Entire Family item from the Family submenu of the File menu. If you aren't intimately familiar with the program, you might have trouble finding out what is where. When the entire family is opened, you can then find out what child windows are available by pulling down the Windows menu.

For the more clear-thinking and organized among us, the alternative to inputting data into the graphic format is the outliner. Inspiration offers a detailed outline view that lets the cat out of the bag on where all those child windows are. With the outline view you can enter notes, elevate and drop topics, and generate the graphic for presentation purposes without all of the hoopla of pointing and clicking boxes. Whether you start in outline or graphic, you can switch freely back and forth between them.

When the idea has been developed, Inspiration allows the charts to be dressed up with an assortment of graphics, colors and font variations for printing as presentation materials. Note text can be appended to outline headings and printed for speaker support or audience handout. A spell checker is included.

Inspiration has been available for several years in the Mac environment, and is now available to Windows users. Unfortunately, I came away with the feeling that I had other tools to do the job better. If I wanted to outline, I had a perfectly capable outliner in my word processing program. If I wanted to flowchart, I could use my draw program tools and text formatting almost as easily as Inspiration. If I wanted presentation graphics, I could get much higher quality and greater flexibility with a true presentation package. Somehow, Inspiration left me with the impression of a tool looking for a task.

You, however, may have the task for this kind of tool. Inspiration could very well suit the way you work and the way you generate ideas. If you can't afford a fancy high end presentation software program as well as a flow-charter, this could do the job for you at reasonable cost.

Inspiration

Introductory List: $129.00 through 12/94

List Price: $295.00

for further information please contact:

Inspiration Software, Inc.

2920 S.W. Dolph Ct., Ste 3

Portland OR 97219

(503) 245-9011

(503) 246-4292 FAX

Reviewed by

(click)

Ed Rasimus

ed.rasimus@wol.com


Lotus 1-2-3 v.5
       LOTUS 1-2-3 RELEASE 5

by Steven Justice

There was a time when well-heeled consumers, otherwise quite adult in their behavior, would argue the merits of Chevy and Ford. Now we argue about Borland and Lotus and Microsoft, and I might as well say up front that I'm all for Lotus. From release to release, their products get sleeker and faster where others get fatter and slower; they assume that the user is intelligent, rather than claiming that their software is. And this new release of 1-2-3, the spreadsheet during the DOS years though a slow starter under Windows, tolls something to cheer the heart of the faithful.

1-2-3 for Windows was not a real competitor in the GUI world until Lotus got it right with release 4.0, less than a year ago. Fortunately, they have had the good sense not to give away what they had finally achieved. When you first launch Release 5.0, you may think that only the splash screen has changed; there are no innovations that affect the interface.

Check out your system resources, and you will still think the same (it uses only about 12%, significantly less than its competitors). But open an old worksheet, run some calculations, reformat it, click around the menu bar, and at every turn you will find the small improvements that make life easier. There is a new cursor, little arrows pointing right and down, to show you that extending a selection will cause it to fill out a series (of months, days, numbers, etc.). Print Preview will display multiple pages. When the cursor enters a named range, the range name appears in the selection bar, instead of the usual A1..B2 range address (why didn't they think of this before?). Calculations and searches are faster. And so on.

There are dramatic additions as well -- it just takes a little longer to find them. The first appears if you also have Version 3.0 of Approach, Lotus's database manager, also installed on the system. You'll find new choices appearing in the Tools|Database menu.

"Dynamic Crosstabs" uses the Approach database engine to create manipulable views of data; this is the function for which Lotus once created Improv, a powerful but almost opaque tool for spreadsheet analysis. The marriage of 1-2-3 with Approach gives the same power with  greater ease. If you like, there are "Experts," a sort of cue-card help, to guide you through procedures like this:

Also new to 1-2-3 release 5 are the SmartMaster templates. Some people (and I'm one of them) find that ready-made templates, in word processors, database managers, or graphics programs, never do the job they want. These are different. They are sophisticated, they are intelligently designed, they are easily customized, and they contain full documentation within themselves:

There is even a SmartMaster for creating SmartMasters.

And there are the maps. Early reviews of this product have concentrated its ability to display geographically organized data on maps, so, for example, you could track where sales are high and where they are low:

"Experts" make creating these maps almost embarrassingly easy, and 1-2-3 includes an impressive range of them: US by state, Japan by prefecture, world by country, EU by country, Taiwan, Mexico, and so on. Additional and more detailed maps can be purchased from Strategic Mapping, from which Lotus has licensed them. However, be warned that they are very pricey. Detailed maps of European Union countries lists at $999!

1-2-3 release 5 also includes new @functions, including the crucial @ISEMPTY, and macro functions that include the ability to dismiss that nasty Windows monster: the modeless dialog. There is one little feature, entirely unassuming and nowhere touted in the promotional material, that to my mind encapsulates all the best about Lotus: their willingness to attend to the little things that no one notices in demos but that do what you would like all programs to do. You can print entire sections of the help files so that you no longer have to click on and print each topic individually.

This new release of 1-2-3 is elegant, powerful, fast, and, best of all, right in the details. It's no exaggeration to say that there is finally a Windows spreadsheet with which you can be comfortable.

Lotus 1-2-3 release 5 for Windows
List Price: $495.00

for further information please contact:

Lotus Development Corporation

55 Cambridge Parkway

Cambridge, MA 01242

800-343-5414

written by

(click)

Steven Justice


QEMM 7.0
       QEMM VERSION 7.5

by Steven Jay Cohen

Quarterdeck's Expanded Memory Manager (QEMM) is widely recognized as one of the best, if not the best 386, 486, and Pentium memory manager in the business. This is no accident; this is by design. These fellows have been concentrating on this particular aspect of PC'ing for a very long time. Together with Manifest, an accompanying diagnostic utility, upper memory can be prodded, tweaked, and otherwise manipulated to maximize individual efficiency on the PC. This memory manager is designed to have a powerful flexibility that can be customized according to the way you use your PC. QEMM will squeeze every available ounce of memory out of any system with a minimum of effort. The new QEMM 7.5, which includes a new Windows-based installation, makes it even easier! Of course if you choose to get into the nitty-gritty of manual fine-tuning, here too it will provide the ways and means.

Memory management is a topic that is shrouded in mystery and little understood. Most users have a vague sense of its importance, having been told somewhere along the way that having a lot of memory is a good thing -- in fact, the more, the better! Windows users in particular quickly learn about the desirability of having as much RAM as possible on their systems. It's at least important enough for Windows to post, and keep a running account of the available Memory and System Resources in Program Manager's "ABOUT" dialog box. In order to understand why QEMM is such an excellent memory manger, and why this is important for Windows, some understanding of memory structure is required.

The best place to begin is with a bit of history. If the first IBM PCs had been built differently, Windows users today might not be wrestling with the confusing issue of memory management. Certain flaws in the architecture of the Intel processors that went into the first PC and the decisions made during their subsequent development lie at the heart of the matter. Prior to the development of the 8086 and 8088 processors, the best available chips were capable of addressing a mere 32-64K of memory. The 8086 and 8088 were great advances, capable of addressing up to 1 megabyte (MB). The new operating system for these processors was known as DOS.

Representing a tenfold increase in memory over its predecessor, this single MB was divided into two segments. The first 640K could be used by DOS and applications, and the remaining 384K was reserved for the ROM (Read-Only Memory) chips used to run the subsystems of the computer. (We'll look more closely at ROM and RAM shortly.) This is the basic Intel architecture that persists today. It is responsible for the programmer/user memory nightmare commonly known as the 640K barrier. Somewhere along the way, the "powers that be" elected to continue and build upon this basic structure, rather than to redesign.

Three years after the first PC, IBM debuted the AT containing the Intel 80286 processor (286 for short) which sported a new Protected Mode memory management feature. This feature enabled the processor to address an extended range of memory up to 16MB. With an eye toward marketing, the chip was also designed with a Real Mode to give it backward compatibility with all of the software already in use with the 8086/8088 machines. Lacking foresight, DOS software developers never exploited this increased capability. Nonetheless, a persistent few found the 640K barrier to be intolerable.

Lotus, Intel, and Microsoft banded together in the mid 1980's to develop a standard that would take advantage of the 286's extended capabilities. The result was called LIM 3.2. It permitted users to install memory cards that would allow them to access the additional memory space, yet still run in Real mode. At the time, Lotus 1-2-3 was the only major, popular software re-written to take full advantage of this capability. Not even DOS itself was re-written with this purpose in mind.

Enter the Intel 80386 chip (386 for short) in 1986. Capable of addressing up to 4 gigabytes of memory, this chip was even faster than the 286. Additionally, the new 386 incorporated an important new capability: it could virtualize. This important concept has much to do with the current direction of Windows development. In Enhanced mode, the 386 processors are capable of using 1MB, or smaller slices of memory to create "virtual" 8086 computers that can run concurrently. This is how DOS applications are multitasked on a 386 or 486 computer. Each running application believes it is the only application running on an 8086 machine.

Finally, in 1991, Microsoft released the first version of DOS (5.x) that could take advantage of the extended, Protected Mode capabilities of the 386 and 486 processors. Disappointingly, its main thrust was to maximize the available conventional memory for the countless DOS applications still strapped to the 640K barrier.

While it is true that Windows is a unique operating system, the fact remains that at its heart, it is a DOS application with unique capabilities. The challenge, met most eloquently, is to balance its operation in both Real and Protected Modes simultaneously. Calls to DOS and device drivers must be handled in Real Mode, in the first 640K of memory. At the same time, most of its work and function must be conducted in Protected Mode, in Extended memory. To round out our background discussion of memory and Windows, it is important to have an understanding of two other memory concepts: ROM (Read-Only Memory) and RAM (Random Access Memory).

A ROM is a chip that is capable of storing information even when there is no electricity flowing. These chips are produced by having the information "burned in." A good example is the ROM BIOS (Basic Input Output System) which stores the code required to correctly move data in and out of memory, to and from disk, and in and out of ports. ROMs can also be found on many of the expansion cards in a system, such as the video card and the disk controller card. These ROM chips have memory addresses that lie between 640K and 1MB, as mentioned earlier. In order for DOS to access these addresses, an interrupt table is maintained in conventional memory for programs to reference. Program instructions are then read as if they were contained in RAM at the specified address. The important difference between ROM and RAM is that the computer will not write data into the ROM addresses.

RAM provides the pool of memory that can be written to by the computer. RAM chips are installed and cascaded in such a way as to have each of the 8 bits that make up a byte stored on a different chip. This is the memory you see being tested by your PC when it is first turned on, and it is the area where data and programs operate. Any address in this area can be read or written to at any time, in any order. Actually, when you think about it, the wonder is how so many different components co-exist and operate smoothly in this seemingly chaotic arrangement, but somehow they do.

The above-described basic architecture leads us to explore the three major types of memory with whose names we are all more familiar: Conventional Memory; Extended Memory (XMS); and Expanded Memory (EMS).

Conventional Memory is the name given to the first 1MB (1024K) of RAM addressed by the 8086/8088 family of processors, and by the Real Mode of the 386/486/Pentium family of processors. The first 640K is made up of RAM chips, and the area from 640K to 1MB is where the unalterable system ROM addresses are located. Extended Memory is, very simply, a continuation of the first 1MB of addresses. It starts at the very next byte and continues out as far as the installed memory goes. Because Intel processors are inherently unable to address Extended Memory areas in Real Mode, very few non-Windows programs were ever written to take advantage of this simplest of memory models. Windows, on the other hand, running in Enhanced Mode, wants and loves all the Extended memory it can get.

Now we begin to get down to the nitty-gritty of the job performed by a memory manager. Windows 3.0 and DOS 5.x provided us with HIMEM.SYS, the Upper Memory manager with which most of us are familiar. It is very often the case that some of the addresses between 640-1024K are not being used by a system's RAM. These unused areas are where Upper Memory Blocks (UMB) are created by HIMEM.SYS. Its responsibility is to map Extended Memory into the available areas after it figures out which areas are already taken. It then loads TSRs (memory-resident programs), device drivers, and even parts of DOS into these UMBs in order to free up as much RAM below the 640K division as possible for use by DOS applications. This is the convoluted workaround necessitated by the basic flaw in the Intel chip architecture -- the 640K bottleneck.

The HMA (High Memory Area) is often confused with the system area (640-1024K) in which UMBs are created. They are not the same thing. This mysterious HMA is a 64K slice of RAM located just above the 1MB area we've been discussing (between 1024-1088K). How is that possible? Some time ago it was discovered that an oddity of hexadecimal mathematics makes it possible to trick the Intel processor into addressing this tiny area of extended memory while running in Real Mode. This is an area into which DOS 5.x can load much of its code via the A20 gate, a designation often seen rolling up the monitor during the boot sequence.

That all seems easy enough, right? So, where the heck does Expanded Memory come into the picture? Remember the LIM 3.2 standard I mentioned earlier? This standard bears the responsibility for creating the Page Frame concept and muddying the water with the Expanded Memory designation. This construct very simply allowed a user to plug in a memory expansion card whose memory was swapped in and out of a reserved, contiguous 64K area in the system area of the first MB (above 640K). Thus it was placed into an area that could be "seen" by the processor running in Real Mode. This memory was moved in blocks or "pages" that were 16K in size. Again, this was yet another workaround to expand the capability of Real Mode applications within the 1MB Intel architecture.

There is one other workaround that ought to be mentioned. Not long after the creation of the LIM 3.2 standard, a different group of hardware and software companies invented a different standard called the Enhanced Expanded Memory Specification (EEMS). Instead of using a 64K page frame, this standard used a backfilling technique to populate a 256K range of addresses in the system memory area with the RAM on its expansion board. For a while, this caused some confusion since some software was compatible with one system, but not the other. To end the confusion, the LIM 3.2 standard was updated to the LIM 4.0 specification to incorporate the backfilling techniques involved in the EEMS specification.

Most Windows problems involve memory. To succeed, Windows must necessarily support DOS applications. The truth is that there are still many more DOS programs in use than Windows. Because there is such a wide variety of memory requirements by software being run today, it is extremely difficult to configure Windows in a way that maximizes its performance, while at the same time juggling these varied demands. This delicate balancing act inevitably results in a compromise all the way around. If you run only Windows applications, you no longer have programs competing for the same memory addresses. Windows then becomes the sole overseer, and memory problems all but disappear. Of course, even in this "best of all worlds," consideration must still be given to real device drivers that must be loaded at bootup.

Windows deals with memory differently, depending upon whether it is running in Standard or Enhanced mode. When running in Standard mode, Windows 3.1 absolutely ignores the existence of Expanded memory. It runs in Protected mode (as though running on a 286 processor) on the fuel of Conventional and Extended memory (up to a grand total of 16MB) and gladly uses all that is available. Windows programs are written to run in an environment that equally distributes processor time and system resources so that they can peacefully co-exist. When DOS programs are run from Windows in Standard mode, however, they run full-screen, commanding the full attention of the processor. If the DOS application happens to be written to access EMS, it does so. Windows simply suspends all activity until the DOS program has finished running, or until the user suspends it, returning the focus to the running of Windows. Because DOS programs were designed to be the only thing running, this arrangement permits them to behave as they wish, directly accessing hardware and using all available Conventional memory in the system. In order to accurately switch back and forth from Windows to DOS programs, Windows creates a swap file for itself and one for each DOS program that is running. The swap file stores information that allows each to pick up where it left off when its activity is resumed.

Windows running in Enhanced mode is quite different. When Windows is launched in Enhanced mode, it turns on the 386/486 processors' capability to virtualize. As I mentioned earlier, this is the process by which the 386/486 chip produces completely discrete computers from memory. In this mode, Windows is also able to take advantage of 386/486 virtual memory capability. Whenever an application needs more memory than is available, the processor simulates RAM by using the hard drive to swap 4K pages of memory to meet the demand. Here too, Windows has no need for Expanded memory; it wants the Extended memory that RAM supplies -- up to 4GB! EMM386.EXE is the Microsoft supplied utility that permits Enhanced mode Windows to simulate Expanded memory for the software that needs it. It is also used under DOS to load device drivers and TSRs into the system area between 640K and 1024K. Enhanced mode Windows creates the first virtual machine and launches itself into it. At the same time, it loads the device drivers needed to provide the hardware support needed to maintain the existence of the virtual machines. You'll find these drivers listed in the [386 Enh] section of the SYSTEM.INI file. Because each of these virtual machines is device-independent, multitasking (including DOS programs) becomes possible. Windows itself acts as the buffer through which calls to the hardware are made by all of these virtual machines.

That pretty much brings us up to date. All of this makes it obvious that competent memory management must necessarily handle all of these pre-existing situations to permit DOS applications to run normally. In addition, it must provide a memory structure that will optimize Windows' performance. That's a tall order! QEMM more than fills the bill. It takes the place of HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE, masterfully transforming a PC's memory into whatever kind of memory is needed by the software.

The brand new release of QEMM 7.5 brings Quarterdeck's magnificent manager more fully into the age of Windows. Part of the beauty of QEMM is that it will install, run and manage your memory automatically. You really don't need to know anything at all about memory in order to use it. The included OPTIMIZE utility automatically configures upper memory. It examines your system from top to bottom: the device drivers and TSRs that are loaded at system startup time, and determines which ones can be moved from conventional to upper memory.

QEMM is much more facile at managing memory than Microsoft's HIMEM.SYS. It will automatically detect Windows' presence and deliver 8-24K more upper memory for running DOS programs in Windows' Enhanced mode. QEMM's VIDRAM program, a standalone TSR designed to facilitate only DOS-based text programs, can extend conventional memory by as much as 96K. Another included utility, DOS-Up, can load parts of DOS into upper memory, freeing up 7-70K of conventional memory, depending on how your system is configured.

QEMM incorporates several other singularly focused utilities to assist in the task of maximizing conventional memory. Of particular interest is the SQUEEZE technique. Often a driver or TSR uses more memory to initialize than it does once it is resident This feature relinquishes the extra memory once the initialization process has completed. Special so-called Stealth features are included to effectively deal with DOS 6.'s DoubleSpace or DriveSpace device drivers. The well-known Stealth ROM feature also returns in this version. This feature uses the EMS page frame to manage a PC's ROM, creating up to an additional 224K of high memory on PS/2s, Compaqs and many other PC compatibles. Improvements in this version have greatly widened its range of compatibility.

 	New QEMM 7.5 executables, including the installation program, have the unique ability to sense the environment. If you are in Windows, INSTALL.EXE launches immediately into a Windows installation. Likewise, if you are in DOS, then you get the appropriate DOS installation. The Windows installation automatically creates a QEMM group containing icons for QSETUP, Manifest, and the QEMM READ.ME file. The DOS installation does not add this group and these icons, but does install all components so that each may be added manually.

QuickBoot is a brand new feature in this version. When active, the old familiar Alt-Ctrl-Delete key combination automatically brings it into play. The result is a warm reboot that bypasses the initial system checks that inevitably slow down the process. Bravo! This is an excellent time saver. You'll also find many more provided command-line switches to accomodate hardware, software, and special circumstances.

The new Windows interfaces for the necessarily DOS-based QSETUP and Manifest utilities are quite attractive, and include thorough on-line help. These help files serve as a superb reference, not only for these applications, but for details of the ins and outs of PC memory structure in general. They even include a complete glossary of terms. As shown below, the layout for Manifest is essentially identical to the familiar DOS interface, but it has been given a Windows facelift.

Manifest is one of the most complete diagnostic memory utilities to be found anywhere. It enables you to obtain detailed information about your PC, and to discover how all the different kinds of memory are being used. It is configured to examine individual setups and offers pros and cons of specific advisements based on its findings. In addition to its role as a tool for learning, it also serves as an excellent troubleshooter. Its menu is navigable by mouse or by keyboard.

QSETUP is the utility Quarterdeck supplies to manipulate various parameters of QEMM and to edit the CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files. This is the easiest way to insert needed switches on the QEMM command line in CONFIG.SYS from the Windows environment. The Windows interface for QSETUP displays much better organization than its counterpart in DOS.

  	As you can see from the above menu, there are many other aspects of memory management, depending upon one's system, that may need to be addressed. QEMM covers practically every imaginable variable including specifics involving laptops, Shadow RAM, and Token-Ring adapters, just to name a few.

The only trouble we ran into with the early version sent to us for review was with the Windows-based installation. Our copy hung immediately after beginning the Windows installation. Quarterdeck's excellent Tech support worked with us, and discovered that a certain number of diskettes with a now-known bug accidentally escaped. We happened to be one of the recipients. With their assistance, the Windows installation finally launched and proceeded to a normal, successful completion. It appears that there may be many of these first "shipping build" diskettes already distributed. In the event that you should happen to receive one of these "escaped" sets of diskettes, we have the scoop on the official workaround! Here are the symptoms, and the proscribed workaround:

SYMPTOM:  Immediately after launching INSTALL.EXE in Windows, an Error Dialog Message Box with an "OK" button is encountered with the following message:

There has been an error while copying file A:\qwinst.qix.

Clicking on the provided "OK" button halts the installation and returns you to Windows. In our case, at least, the bug turned out to have a very easy fix.

WORKAROUND:  If you receive this error message as described, check to see if your "SET TEMP = " parameter in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file ends with a backslash. For example, if your SET TEMP line is set to X:\  (where X = the drive letter or subdirectory designation; the important item here being the ending backslash ( \ ) on the line, pointing the directory to the root of the given drive or subdirectory), simply eliminate the "\" (backslash) from the end of that line so that it reads:

SET TEMP = X:

Resave your AUTOEXEC.BAT with this "correction." Then reboot your PC. You will more than probably find, as we did, that the Windows installation then proceeds without a hitch.

Despite these accidentally included bugs in the Windows installation on our copy, the DOS installation proceeded in an absolutely normal, "un-hassled" fashion. Likewise, once installed via DOS, without knowledge of the workaround, the manual Windows installation and operation was also flawless.

Should you happen to encounter seemingly indecipherable or insurmountable difficulties with QEMM 7.5, I encourage you to call Technical Support at one of the phone numbers listed below. You'll be surprised at the knowledgeable depth of response. Their database of all reported, encountered difficulties with practically every imaginable system configuration, during their many years of experience, provides each Quarterdeck Tech support person with the information you need, most of the time. In our experience, this is one corporation that goes the extra mile to assist the end user.

If, as a Windows user, you've been waiting for the "right" version of QEMM to come along before taking the plunge, let me suggest to you that now may be the right time. Allowing QEMM's OPTIMIZE to configure the memory in your system can result in surprising gains in available RAM memory and speed of operation in Windows -- just what the doctor ordered!!

QEMM 7.5

Quarterdeck Extended Memory Manager

List Price: $99.95

for further information, please contact:

Quarterdeck Office Systems, Inc.

150 Pico Boulevard

SantaMonica, California 90405

Product Information

310-392-9851

310-314-4217 fax

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