Changes in Spectrum 2.5

These are the new and changed features since version 2.2 of Spectrum.

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SPECTRUM 2.5.3 UPDATER

The Spectrum 2.5.3 Updater requires a fully installed working version of Spectrum™ 2.2 or later. If you do not already have a copy of Spectrum™, please contact Syndicomm™ to purchase your own full copy.

This minor update fixes a number of bugs that were found in Spectrum™ v2.2-2.4 after their release:

SPECTRUM 2.2 - GENERAL

NOTE: The preference file format has been extended to support the new features. Older preference files will be converted automatically to the new format.
NOTE: The new preference format cannot be used with older versions of Spectrum.

You will immediately see some changes with the Spectrum v2.2 menus. These are mainly to include the integrated support of Marinetti 2.0 and its TCP/IP environment. This has led to a number of additional script commands to support TCP/IP through scripting. There are also a few other new menu items that have been added since Spectrum 2.1.
Underneath the surface, there have been many changes, bug fixes and new script commands added. Most of the additional script commands have been designed to enhance and improve script functionality, and many are a result of limitations found while developing both "Spectrum Internet Suite" and "Crock O' Gold". Some of the XCMDs have been expanded since the release of Spectrum v2.1. Some of the XCMD updates have already been issued with the "Crock O' Gold" script sets, but the latest versions of all the current XCMDs are included with this release of Spectrum and should be used in the place of existing versions. Some existing XCMDs that are no longer required will be removed by the Installer.

THE CHANGES


BUG FIXES

AppleWorks 5.0 documents include Inverse and MouseText characters. These will now display correctly within the Editor, though the Inverse attributes will be stripped. These characters will also be sent correctly if you send an AppleWorks file as text.

There is a bug in the original GSPlus XCMD that can cause it to interfere with the messages being sent to other XCMDs. If you have been using this XCMD, you will find a new version supplied with Spectrum 2.2 that cures these problems.


Thanks

My thanks go to Richard Bennett, who by creating Marinetti made TCP/IP possible on the IIgs, and my thanks also go to the Spectrum 2.2 Beta testing team, who have hopefully found all the bugs:

Jeff Blakeney, Tony Diaz, Max Jones, Joe Kohn, Dave Miller, Andrew Roughan, Chris Vavruska, Tony Ward, Geoff Weiss and Don Zahniser.

THE CHANGES IN DETAIL

FILE MENU

Open

  • Holding the Option key down now allows the data or the resource fork of a file to be opened. Files with the suffix '.HTM' or '.HTML' can optionally be viewed by an HTML display.

    • Babelfish

  • Babelfish Import and Export are available. This requires Babelfish to be installed, and Text filters to be available.


    • EDIT MENU

    If an NDA or other concurrent application sends a 'finderSaysBeforeOpen' call, and Spectrum gets the call first, the filetype will be checked to see if it is a Text, Teach or classic AppleWorks file. If so, it will be opened into the Editor.

    Open Editor Document

  • If a file with the suffix '.HTM' or '.HTML' is opened, and the optional 'HTML.Engine' is present in the 'Add.Ons:Drivers' folder, you will be asked if you want to view the file as HTML. You will still see the file in its raw text form in the Editor after you have finished viewing the HTML display.

    • Signature

  • If a Signature has been defined by the 'Set Signature' script command, this will insert that Signature into any open TextEdit window.


    • SHOW MENU

    Chat Line

  • If you are using the SHR display, you can now move around the Chat Line by clicking with the mouse.

    • PHONE MENU - TCP/IP MENU

    Please refer to the documentation that comes with Marinetti for full details on how to setup and activate TCP/IP through the TCP/IP Control Panel.

    Dial Number - Services

  • Dial Number operates as before. The Modem Init dialog has been changed to show a "popup" menu of modem types instead of the original "Normal" and "High Speed" strings. The file that is used to build this menu is held in the new "Preferences" folder and so can be edited to a more manageable size if you wish.
  • "Services" leads to a similar dialog to the "Dial Number" dialog. You can create and edit a service list of your most used services. You can also connect directly to a system by entering an "IP name" or "dotted address" into the Connect box.
  • "Telnet" mode can be optionally selected. In Telnet mode, the setting of the Half Duplex flag is ignored, and echoing to screen will be controlled by the host you are currently connected to.

    • Hangup - Connect - Disconnect

  • In Serial mode, the 'Hangup' menu item is dimmed if offline.
  • In TCP/IP mode, the 'Hangup' menu item is renamed to either 'Connect' or 'Disconnect'. 'Connect' will make a connection to your ISP. 'Disconnect' will warn if you have any active connections, and then Disconnect you from your ISP.

    • Switch to TCP/IP - Switch to Serial

  • Controls the switching between the two operating environments. When in Serial mode, the menu items are named as before, but when in TCP/IP mode, some menu items now have new names and functions:

    • Answer Back - Logout

  • Answer Back operates as before.
  • Logout logs you out from the currently active connection.

    • Service Items

  • When you have logged in to a service, the connection or socket names will be entered at the foot of the TCP/IP menu. Each menu item is numbered, and you can then switch between active connections by selecting from this menu. You can also link these items to FKeys, by running the 'TCPIP.FKeys' script.


    • SCRIPT MENU

    Learn a Script

  • Will now record any pause from the last character being received, and a string being transmitted. This should help produce improved scripts where time sensitive actions are important. You should always edit the scripts to optimise them.

    • Menu Files

  • These files can now have optional pathnames that will be used instead of a linked "Letter" key. A space can also now be used instead of a "Letter" key. To build the file, 'tabs' are used to space any pathname that is given from the menu name. This now means that a Menu file might look like this:


    • SETTINGS MENU

    Options Menu

  • The old "File Transfer Settings" submenu has been renamed. This better reflects its use by the XCMDs.


    • EXTERNAL COMMANDS (XCMDs)

    Many of the XCMDs provided with Spectrum v2.2 have been updated. The BinHQX XCMD for instance, has been expanded since Spectrum 2.1, to include Base 64 and UUencode functions.
    NOTE: The TopCat, BatchXfer and Freezer XCMDs are no longer necessary because their features have been incorporated directly into Spectrum v2.2. The ResEdit XCMD has been replaced by the WorkBench XCMD .

    Return to Spectrum Info Page

    Page prepared by Ewen Wannop.
    To contact me, leave me a message in the comp.sys.apple2 news group and I will get back to you.