HELP SYSTEM
By: Ron Abramson, CIS 74676,3345  March 6, 1989
    Copyright 1989 R. Abramson.  You may do whatever you want with the
    executable program in this .arc, but you may use the included
    source code only to create modified programs for your PERSONAL
    use.

Summary documentation is available in the text file 'help.'   More detailed
information is available in the source files, which are nested
in this .arc within the included file 'hsource.arc'.

To install, run 'hinstal' included in this .arc file.  All hinstal does
is make a directory C:\help and copy all the help text files in this
.arc into it.  The help text files in this .arc all have names
of the form *. as in "HELP.",  "XCOPY.", etc.

This program is coded to look into the C:\help directory as the default
directory for help text files.  This is easily changed in the source file 
if you want to modify it and recompile.  If you press F1 you can change
the default directory and/or browsing program (see below).

The default browsing program is called "LIST", as in LIST.COM by Vernon Buerg.  
Any browsing program you specify _must_ be on your DOS path.  LIST.COM 
is NOT included in this .arc.  It's shareware available on CompuServe, GO
IBMSYS, DL5 I believe.  You could well copy or rename your word processor 
as LIST.COM or LIST.EXE.  But for optimal speed, use a small browsing 
program like LIST.  When specifying a browser, do NOT put in a path.  This
program will follow the DOS PATH to it.  Just type it as you'd type
it on the DOS command line.

I've included a smattering of help files to give you the flavor.  They're
simply text files, so you can write your own.  In fact, that's the idea.

I always wanted a program like this for the PC, so I finally wrote one.
There are similar utilities on unix, and my old Epson Equity II had a 
program a lot like this - although it used a proprietary file structure
for the help text that's really a pain to modify.  This just uses text 
files, and you can add files or change them at will.  The limit is 120
files (the most that will fit on 24 lines at 5 across).

Also note that this program could easily be converted into a DOS shell.
But who NEEDS another DOS shell after XTREE PRO and PC TOOLS 5.0?
The only enhancement I can think of that would be worthwhile would be 
to make it a TSR, but then again, who needs another TSR?  Especially 
when you're most likely to want this type of help when you're sitting 
at a DOS prompt and can't remember all the switches for, say, XCOPY.

NOTE - This was developed on a mono/herc system, and it was tested as well
on a Toshiba T1100+ which is essentially a CGA.  It tests for what video
subsystem you're running, and should work.  If not, you've got the source file.
There is no attempt at CGA 'snow control.'