
  ==========================================================================
  =                      DiskOpus v1.53a Documentation                     =
  =           The Comprehensive Multi Utility For Atari Computers          =
  =                         (c) STand Software 1994                        =
  =                             By Thomas Nilsen                           =
  =                        Release Date : 01.06.1994                       =
  ==========================================================================


                           <-  List of Contents: ->

                               1. General Info
                                2. What is it?
                               3. The Main Menu
                                4. The Buttons
                   4.a.1 - 4.d.7. Description of Functions
                                 5. Feedback
                          6. High Resolution Owners
                              7. Falcon030 Notes
                                 8. Thanks to
                            0. Soon to be Included
                             10. Feedback Address

------------------------------------------------------------------------------


1. General Information:
-----------------------
        DiskOpus v1.53a is distributed under the freeware concept. That means
you can freely copy and distribute DiskOpus v1.53a on the conditions that a
copy of this documentation file is included and no payment of any type is
incurred upon recipient of the program.

        The author of DiskOpus cannot be held responsible for any loss of data
or damage to your hardware which results from the use of this program. All use
of DiskOpus is at your own risk!


2. What Is It?
--------------
        DiskOpus was written because I was rather feed up with wasting a lot
of time when using my ST. So, instead of running ten different programs I
though a 'all-in-one' utility was the thing I needed. And as there were no
such program written for the Atari computers I had to write one myself. Those
of you who are familiar with 'Directory Opus' on the Amiga (What an awful
machine!) will see that I have based the design of DiskOpus on that particular
program. I wanted to give the Atari something unusual and avoid that boring
GEM environment. So I wrote my own little environment routines just to
brighten things up a little bit. And the result is rather good to look at too.
A fully working 3D Environment/Button system is a reality on a normal Atari
without running MultiTOS or TOS v4.0x.
          
        Most of DiskOpus is written using GFA Basic v3.5, but some Devpac
v2.25 assembly routines are also used to make things faster. DiskOpus has
taken more than one year to finish so far, and I think it is worth all the
effort. I will continue improving DiskOpus as long as I find it relevant for
the Atari scene.
                                 
        Then, what can DiskOpus really do... Well, as mention above, it is a
multi utility program. Now you will never have to search around your disk
collection to find one particular disk and waste a lot of time runnig several
different programs to do one specific task. Just run DiskOpus and you have
what you need.


        Here are the features of DiskOpus v1.53a:

        - Rename File And Folders
        - Delete File And Folders
        - View 5 Different Pictures Formats
        - Make Folders
        - Depack (Atomik v3.5/Ice v2.40 Packed Data & Exec. Files)
        - Access To GEM Accessory Menu
        - Move Files And Folders
        - Copy Files And Folders
        - Touch Files
        - Change File Attribute
        - Disk Information
        - System Information
        - File And Folder Information
        - Print Directory
        - Print File
        - ASCII Show File
        - HEX Show File
        - Extensive Bootsector Tools
        - Setup Options
        - Play Music (7 Chip Music Formats + Modules)
        - Run Other Applications


3. The Main Menu:
-----------------
        When you select the DISKOPUS.PRG from the desktop a small infoscreen
pops up. Click on the "OK" button and the main menu will appear. You will see
the menu being drawn, but this will only happen once. After the menu has been
drawn for the first time, the whole screen is stored in memory. This is not
the most memory friendly way as the stored screen takes up 32Kb of your RAM,
but it is to avoid the slow drawing routines of GFA.

        The main menu consists of two "File Selectors", two "Driveselectors",
and a button panel at the lower part of the screen. The buttonpanel consist of
28 buttons divided in 4 rows. Not all of these buttons have a function yet,
but at a later time new functions will occupy the free spaces.  The function
to each button are indicated by text on every button, and it should not be any
problem understanding what each button do. Some of the buttons have a two-way
function, activated by either a left- or right mouse button click.

        At first both the "Fileselectors" are empty. To activate a drive,
select a drive by pressing one of the "drive"-indicators. The active drives
are highlighted. The most left "Driveselector" is for the "Source
Fileselector", while the most right is for the "Destination Fileselector".
When a drive has been selected, either in source or destination, the current
directory of the drive- path will be listed in the appropriate "Fileselector".
A folder is indicated after the same principle as in the GEM Desktop, with a
small "box" to the left of the foldername. The size of each folder/file is
shown to the right of the filename. (Folders have a size of 0 bytes!)

        If current directory contains more than 12 files, a slider will be
drawn and it is possible to scroll the directory by either clicking on the
arrows or by dragging the slider. If the disk has a label, it will be shown in
the empty "window" above the filenames. That same "window" can also be used to
update a directory, and equals pressing <ESC> on the GEM Desktop. The current
path of each "Fileselector" is shown at the stippled line above the
"Fileselectors".

        By double clicking on a foldername, you enter the folder. To go back
one folder, just press the "box" in the upper left corner of the
"Fileselector" (Same as GEM). To go all the way back to root directory of the
drive, click on the appropriate "drive"-indicators again.


4. The Buttons:
---------------
        The following paragraph describes the function of each button very
shortly. For a better understanding of each button refer to each buttons
paragraph. (The buttons are described column by column according to the menu
layout!)

        4.a.1: RENAME      - Rename a file/folder.
        4.b.1: DELETE      - Delete file(s)/folder(s).
        4.c.1: VIEW PIC    - View 5 Different Picture formats.
        4.d.1: MAKE DIR    - Create a folder.

        4.a.2: FORMAT      - Format a floppy disk.
        4.b.2: Unused      -
        4.c.2: DEPACK      - Depack Atomik v3.5 and Ice v2.40 packed files.
        4.d.2: ACCESSORY   - Access to the GEM Accessory menu bar.

        4.a.3: MOVE FILE   - Move file(s)/folder(s).
        4.b.3: COPY        - Copy file(s)/folder(s).
        4.c.3: TAG ALL     - Select all files/folders.
        4.c.4: UNTAG ALL   - Deselect all files/folders.

        4.a.4: TOUCH FILE  - Update datestamp of file.
        4.b.4: CHANGE ATTR - Change file-attribute.
        4.c.4: DISK INFO   - Useful information about disk.
        4.d.4: SYSTEM INFO - Full information about your system.

        4.a.5: PRINT FILE  - Dump a file to printer.
        4.b.5: PRINT DIR   - Prints out Directory.
        4.c.5: FILE INFO   - Useful information about selected file/folder.
        4.d.5: BOOTSECTOR  - Comprehensive tools for Bootsectors. (Submenu)

        4.a.6: SETUP       - Your own DiskOpus control panel. (Submenu)
        4.b.6: ASCII SHOW  - Show file as ASCII text.
        4.c.6: HEX SHOW    - Show file as HEX (and ASCII).
        4.d.6: PLAY MUSIC  - Loads of different Music formats.

        4.a.7: HELP        - Small Online help.
        4.b.7: ABOUT       - General information about DiskOpus v1.53a
        4.c.7: LOAD PRG    - Run other applications.
        4.d.7: EXIT        - No, you do not need that one...


4.a.1. Rename:
--------------
        Rename selected file(s)/folder(s). A small window appears and the
original name and an input line will be shown. If the input line is left empty
and  <RETURN> is pressed, you will enter the main menu again and the
file/folder is left untouched. Pressing <ESC> also has the same effect.


4.b.1. Delete:
--------------
        Delete selected file(s)/folder(s). A window will appear and ask the
user if he/she wants to delete the file/folder. Press OK or Cancel
accordingly! If DiskOpus tries to delete a file with the READ-ONLY attribute
set, a new "alert box" will appear, and ask if file shall be deleted or not.
If a folder contains other folders, then these folders will also be deleted
together with their contents.


4.c.1. View Pic:
----------------
        A total of 5 different picture-formats can be viewed. The formats are:

        - Degas (Elite) Uncompressed.   (Low and Medium)
        - Degas (Elite) Compressed.     (Low and Medium)
        - Neochrome.                    (Low)
        - IFF UnCompressed.             (320*200/640*200)
        - IFF Compressed.               (320*200/640*200)
        - Spectrum 512 Uncompressed.    (Low)
        - Crack Art UnCompressed.       (Low and Medium)
        - Crack Art Compressed.         (Low and Medium)

        The IFF format may cause some problems as the IFF header is not always
in accordance with the original IFF standard.  One other problem that may
occur when viewing a IFF picture is the palette. As the IFF format can have a
wide range of different amount of colours, I have chosen only to use the first
16 colours of the picture file. Some IFF pictures can as a result of this be
hard to understand.

        To return to the main menu again after viewing a picture, press a key
or press the left mousebutton. (When viewing a Spectrum picture only the
keyclick will return to the main menu!)


4.d.1. Make Dir:
----------------
        Create a new folder. This button has a two-way function. To create a
new folder in SOURCE (left fileselector!), use the left mousebutton. The right
mousebutton will create a new folder at the DESTINATION (right fileselector!)
disk. When you have pressed the button a small window with an input line will
pop up. If you leave the input line empty and press <RETURN> you will  return
to the main menu without creating a new folder. The same thing will happen if
you press <ESC>, even if you have entered something in the input line.


4.a.2. Format:
--------------
        This function will format a floppy disk with the standard TOS
parameters of 2 sides, 9 sectors and 80 tracks. A new window will pop up with
four buttons. The two buttons labeled  "A" and "B" are the drive selector.
Drive A is default. Press "Format" to start formatting or "Cancel" to leave
the formatting menu. While formatting, the two "Side" fields will be filled.
It is possible to abort the formatting procedure by pressing <UNDO>.

        At a later stage the format function will be modified to format other
non standard format as 2*10*81 and others. (I have chosen to leave the single
sided format out because no one use single sided drives today (I hope).)


4.c.2 Depack:
-------------
        Many files and programs today are packed with either ICE Pack v2.40 or
Atomik v3.5. This function let you depack any file that is packed with these
packers. Both data- and executable packed files can be depacked and saved
using this function of DiskOpus.

        When the DEPACK button is pressed you will be presented with a new
window. The selected file will be tested and if it is packed with one of the
two packers mentioned above, it will depack the file. When the file has been
depacked two buttons will appear - "Save" and "Cancel". If "Save" is selected,
the depacked file will be saved over the packed file. This is not the most
friendly way to do it, but as for now it is done like that.

        If the selected file is unpacked or packed with an unsupported packer,
a message telling you about the unpacked/unsupported packer and a "Cancel"
button will appear.

        Files which are packed with Ice v2.2 will be recognized as Ice v2.4
packed files. This bug will lead to a crash and DiskOpus will return to the
Desktop.


4.d.2. ACCESSORY:
-----------------
        This button will give you access to the GEM drop down menu with its
accessory (if installed!). To go back to the main menu press "DiskOpus
v1.53a". I strongly advice the user to close all accessories before returning
to the menu as open accessories may cause problems for DiskOpus. In the SETUP
menu a important setting is selected for the ACCESSORY function. (See
paragraph 4.a.6. for details!)


4.a.3. Move File:
-----------------
        This function is similar to the GEM Desktop function Copy+Ctrl
(Rainbow TOS and above). The selected source-file(s)/folder(s) (left
fileselector)  will be moved to the active destination drive (right
fileselector). When source- and destionation drive is different, the
file(s)/folder(s) will be copied to destination and then deleted from the
source path.


4.b.3. Copy:
------------
        This function will copy both file(s) and folder(s) (and their
contents). Copy from the SOURCE (left fileselector) to DESTINATION (right
fileselector).


4.a.4. Touch File:
------------------
        A simple function to update the datestamp on a file. A window will
appear asking to confirm the update. Press "OK" or "Cancel" accordingly.
Remember to set the correct time and date before you run this function!!!


4.b.4. Change Attribute:
------------------------
        The files on a disk can have four different attribute settings. These
are:
        - Read/Write (Normal)
        - Read Only
        - Hidden
        - System

        A new menu with these four selections will appear. The selected files
attribute button is pressed when entering this menu. To change the files
attribute, select another attribute-setting and press "OK".


4.c.4. Disk Info:
-----------------
        This functions give you extensive information about the selected
drive. This is also a two way function where a left- and right mousebutton-
press represent the two fileselectors (left mousebutton for left drive
(SOURCE) and right mousebutton for right drive (DESTINATION)).


4.d.4. System Info:
-------------------
        Gives extensive information about your system, i.e. TOS, AES,
Keyboard, Ram, Free Memory, etc.


4.a.5. Print File:
------------------
        Dump selected file to the printer. The printer procedure is not the
fastest around, but it get the job done. Press <UNDO> to abort printing.


4.b.5. Print Dir:
-----------------
        Dump Source- or Destination directory to the printer. A simple
selector will pop up where you select which directory you want to print, or
press "Cancel". The output will show folders with an extension of <DIR>, where
normal files will be shown with their size. Current path and free bytes is
also printed.


4.c.5. File Info:
-----------------
        This function gives full information about selected file/folder. If
selected item is a file; name, size, attribute, time and date are shown. If
selected item is a folder, number of files/folders, total size of files,
number of hidden files and time and date of folder are shown. Press "OK" to
return to main menu.


4.d.5. Bootsector:
------------------
        This leads to a sub menu with several different options and a display
window. Here you can immune virus-infected disks, save bootsectors to a
library file etc. The following buttons/options will appear:

        - Test Boot   -> Test if the bootsector is executable or not.
        - Kill Boot   -> Will clear any bootsector from offset $1e. This will
                         clear any viruses or other exec. bootcode from the
                         bootsector. Be careful, it can destroy important
                         data, especially on game disks.
        - View Boot   -> Read the bootsector and display it in the window. The
                         slider to the right of the window can be dragged to
                         see the rest of the bootsector data.
        - Load Libr.  -> This option loads in bootsectors which have been
                         saved before with the "Save Libr." function. If the
                         library file is found, a small selector-window
                         appears under the display-window and with the arrows
                         at the left and right side of the selector-window you
                         can scroll trough the different stored bootsectors.
                         If you press the selector-window (where the name of
                         the stored bootsector is), DiskOpus will load the
                         bootsector from the library file and view it in the
                         display window. To abort the library-loading, press
                         the right mousebutton when the pointer is outside the
                         selector-window.
        - Save Libr.  -> If you have a bootsector in the display and you want
                         to store this bootsector, press this button. A name-
                         window will appear under that display window where
                         you enter a name of the bootsector you want to store.
                         It can be 43 characters long. Press <RETURN> to save
                         the file to the library, or press <ESC> and then
                         <RETURN> to abort.
                         The "Bootsector Library File" is stored under the
                         name - "DISKOPUS.BTS". If this file exist, the
                         bootsector will be added to the already stored
                         bootsectors in the library file! If not, the library
                         file will be created.
        - Write Boot  -> This function will install current displayed
                         bootsector to the selected drive. You can chose about
                         keeping the format of the disk you install the
                         bootsector to - "Keep Format" - or use the bootsector
                         you are installing own format - "Use Format". The
                         last option may destroy the disk you install the
                         bootsector to. Be absolutely sure what you are doing!
                         Press "Cancel" if you  want to abort.
        - Immune Boot -> This will install DiskOpus's own bootsector to your
                         disks. The DiskOpus bootsector is a protector, and it
                         checks if your machine are infected by viruses or
                         other nasties at bootup.
        - Drive...A/B -> This is the driveselector. When you first enter this
                         menu, the active bootdrive will be the same drive as
                         the SOURCE drive in the main menu if it is drive A or
                         drive B, if not, the active bootdrive is set to be
                         drive A. Press this "textbutton" to select drive A/B.
        - ASCII View  -> This will show the bootsector data as ASCII codes.
        - HEX View    -> Will show the bootsector data as HEX codes.

        To exit this menu, press the small squared button at the left top of
the screen. The button next to HEX View is not used in this version of
DiskOpus.


4.a.6. Setup:
-------------
        The different program settings are controlled from here. A new sub
menu will appear with several buttons and two "textbuttons". At the upper left
part of the menu a colour-board is located with an arrow on each side of the
three "button-sliders". Below these three colour-boards four boxes with one
colour each are located. Under one of the boxes a new arrow points to one of
them. This is the current selected colour. To adjust the colour, press the
arrows on the side of the "button-sliders", and to choose another colour to
adjust, press one of the four boxes under the "button-sliders". The palette
number is indicated by a number ranging from 0 to 7 (Normal ST Palette!). The
default button sets the colours to the same colour scheme as at bootup time of
DiskOpus.

        The 8 boxes to the right of the screen are for a wide range of
different selections for DiskOpus, and they are as follows:

        - 50/60 Hz          -> Switch between 50 and 60 Hz display update.
        - Verify On         -> If pressed, disk are being verified during
                               diskcopy. (Not valid in this version of
                               DiskOpus
                               as there is no diskcopy function, yet.
        - Sort Files        -> Display files in the fileselector after
                               alphabetic order, or by the way the files are
                               stored on disk.
        - Unused            ->
        - Immune Disks      -> Install the DiskOpus protector during
                               formatting.
        - GEM Memory        -> Release memory for GEM when accessing the GEM
                               drop-down menu. (This function is included
                               because some accessories have troubles running
                               from within other applications. (Especially
                               Fastcopy Pro!)
        - Key Click         -> Turn key click on/off.
        - Show Hidden Files -> If ticked, hidden files will be shown in the
                               directory listings in the main menu.
        - Depack Constant   -> This is an important part of the depacker
                               routines. When a file is being viewed as ASCII
                               or HEX, or a file is being played (PLAY MUSIC),
                               the file is checked and depacked if necessary.
                               The space allocated to depack the file is
                               calculated by multiplying the files length with
                               this depack-constant. This is not a very smart
                               way of doing things, but due to other
                               complications, it is done like this in this
                               version of DiskOpus. The constant is set to 2.3
                               as a normal size and that should be sufficient
                               enough for most packed files. But there might
                               be some problems with the size of this
                               constant, especially if you are low on memory
                               and you try to depack a large file.  Anyway,
                               the size of this constant can be adjusted by
                               pressing the button with the left mousebutton
                               to increase it with 0.1, and the right mouse-
                               button to decrease it with 0.1. The size of the
                               constant can range from 1.0 to 9.9. I strongly
                               advice the user of DiskOpus not to play with
                               this constant as it might lead to serious
                               problems. (Bombs!)

        In the middle of the screen, two "textbuttons" are located. The upper
"textbutton" indicates the path of where to save the DiskOpus configuration
file. The default is of course the same path as DiskOpus was executed from,
but as an extra option it is possible to save the configuration file to an
alternative path, instead of the default path. Of course, at bootup DiskOpus
will only look for the configuration file in the default path, and to load an
alternative configuration file, you have to set the new path accordingly. This
option is not very useful, but it is there anyway! To set a new path, just
click on the "textbutton" and type in the new path.

        The next "textbutton", just below the DiskOpus configuration path is
the path of where the "Bootsector Library File" is saved to. The default path
is the same as where DISKOPUS.PRG is located. To set a new path, just click on
the "textbutton" and you can type in the new path.

        The four buttons in the lower part of the Setup screen have the
following functions:

        - Load Setup -> Loads the configuration file, and sets the DiskOpus
                        parameters accordingly.
        - OK         -> Returns you to the main menu with the settings as set
                        in the Setup menu.
        - Cancel     -> Returns you to the main menu, but restore the settings
                        as they were when you entered the Setup menu.
        - Save Setup -> Save the current setup to the configuration file.



4.b.6. ASCII Show:
------------------
        Will show selected file as pure ASCII codes. This function is also
supported by the packers (see paragraph 4.b.2!). Extremely large files may
take some time to format.

        The viewer is controlled by the following keys:

        - Up Arrow   : One Line up
        - Down Arrow : One line down
        - Left Arrow : Up one page
        - Right Arrow: Down on page
        - ESC        : Back to main menu


4.c.6. HEX Show:
----------------
        This function will show you any file as HEX- and ASCII codes. The 16
first bytes of the file is shown in HEX and then those HEX codes are shown as
ASCII. The next 16 as HEX and those 16 as ASCII again. This is repeated all
the way trough the file.


4.d.6. Play Music:
------------------
        The ST is well know for all the lovely chip music from the demo- and
game scene. DiskOpus can will play 7 different formats of chip music and
normal modules. The formats are:

        - Mad Max/Lap     (Offset $8)
        - Count Zero      (Offset $2)
        - TAO             (Offset $4)
        - David Whittaker (Offset $14)
        - Lap (Old LAP)   (Offset $34)
        - Jedi            (Offset $8)
        - Blipp Blopp     (Offset $16)
        - Modules

        After selecting a music-file, press the "PLAY MUSIC" button, and a
selector will appear. The selector contains a row of boxes with the music type
written inside. Select the appropriate box and the file will load and start
playing. The playback routine for the chip music is not bullet-proof and some
music files can lead to crash. To stop the music from playing, just press the
"OK" button or press a key. Some chip music files often contains more than one
tune, and this applies especially for Mad Max files. In the lower part of the
music selector, a tune-selector is located. To select another tune than no. 1,
press the "Tune No." box. It will increase the Tune no. by one every time you
press this button.

        Modules can also be played from with in DiskOpus. Most mod. files will
play OK, but some newer Amiga modules may cause problems for the module
player. The module player is not multitasking an will therefore not let you do
anything while listening to the module playing. Press <SPACE> to return to
main menu.

        To exit the music selector without playing any tunes, press the
"Cancel" button.

MIND: Sometimes the module player routine seems to hang up after having played
a module. Try moving the mouse!

TIP: Some LAP music files uses the same driver as Mad Max. Select "Mad Max"
playback to play these tunes.


4.a.7. Help:
------------
        Online help. Shows information about key-codes and the functions which
are two-way functions.


4.b.7. About:
-------------
        Information about DiskOpus. Contains a few pages with text for you to
read through. Use "Next Page" and "Previous Page" to switch between pages.


4.c.7. Load Program:
--------------------
        Run other applications from with in DiskOpus. Will execute *.PRG,
*.TTP, *.APP and *.TOS. *.TTP (TOS Takes Parameter) files will run with a
command line for the user to type in needed parameters.


4.d.7. Exit:
------------
        Leave DiskOpus when you are tired of it.


5. Feedback:
------------
        To make DiskOpus better, more powerful and the no. one utility for the
ST, I will need feedback from all the users of DiskOpus. Even though you just
like the program, please write a postcard or letter to express what you think
about DiskOpus. I am very interested in ideas of what more I can include in
DiskOpus, what I can improve etc. Without enough feedback DiskOpus will most
likely be ended  at the stage it is now. I will not spend a lot of time on a
program that no one uses. So find your pen and a piece of paper and write me
some words. I am thankful for any feedback I receive.


6. High Resolution Owners:
--------------------------
        Many of the Atari owners only have a monochrome screen, and therefore
cannot use this version of DiskOpus. As a unique offer to monochrome owners I
am willing to write a High Resolution version of DiskOpus, if I feel it is
worth the effort. So, if you would like to see a monochrome version of
DiskOpus, please write to me and say so. I will only write such a version of
DiskOpus if I get enough response for it.


7. Falcon030 Note:
------------------
        DiskOpus also works on the Falcon, but some of the functions will not
work correctly/at all on the Falcon. This applies for :

        -> Print Dir (Works if you run TOS4_FIX)
        -> Print File (      - " -      )
        -> Play Music
        -> SETUP        -> GEM Memory
        -> SETUP        -> 50/60Hz
        -> .SPU Pictures


8. Thanks to:
-------------

        I have to thank the following persons, for whom without DiskOpus would
not be what it is today. (In no special order!)

        - Are Kim Osmundsen
        - Russell Thickings
        - Bjrn Ove rthun
        - Leslie Glover of Breakpoint Software
        - Frank Myrland
        - Simon Harvey
        - Andrew Pointon (Are you still around?)
        - John Hutton (What happened to you?)
        - Paul Chapman
        - Michael Darlison
        - Phantom of Electronic Images
        - Detlef Rttger
        - Jan Borchers


9. Soon To Be Included:
-----------------------
        At a later stage I hope to include several new options. But that
depends on the feedback I get. Here is a list some of the ideas:

        - Format And Read AMIGA Disks
        - Low Level Formatting
        - Disk Copy
        - Scan Disk
        - Improved Diskformatting
        - Improved Mousehandling
        - Free Selection of SOURCE and DESTINATION


10. Feedback Address:
--------------------
        If you of any of the above mentioned reasons should feel like writing
to me, then write to this address:

        STand Software
        v/Thomas Nilsen
        Hellebakkgrenda 21
        N-5215 Lysekloster
        Norway

        Phone: + 47 56 30 93 36
        BBS:   + 47 56 30 58 57

        FidoNet: 2:211/7.13
        SkyNet:  47:100/107.13

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                               REMEMBER TO WRITE!

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