VED 2.9 MANUAL

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* Important **

Please backup your original diskette and put it in a safe place before you continue.

Since this diskette is not completely formatted please use the OS-9 script file “makecopy” included on the master diskette to transfer all the files from the master disk to a freshly formatted one.

This Software is offered for sale on an “as is” basis.

No guarantees are made or implied.

Introduction

Thank you for purchasing this software.

We hope you will find it useful.

Please show the program to your friends.

If they like it, ask them to purchase their own copy.

Continued customer support will enable the author to develop more programs for you.

Continued sales also help to feed the family.

Please do your part to stop software piracy…it hurts everyone—especially you, the biggest loser when no more software is developed for your computer!

Unlike much other software you purchase today this package is not copy protected.

In fact we encourage you to make as many copies as you need for your own personal use.

But please be fair with us too.

Don’t give copies of this program away to your friends—after all, if it’s good enough for you to spend your money on, why shouldn’t they do the same?

Getting Started

If you examine your distribution disk you will find several files in the CMDS directory, Ved, is the editor.

It should be copied to the CMDS directory on your main system disk.

IMPORTANT: Do not merge Ved with other program modules, if you do you will decrease the buffer memory available for Ved.

The file, Ved..Help, is a stand alone program, accessible from Ved, containing the help

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files.

This program should also be placed in the CMDS directory of your main system disk, or you can load it into memory with other utilities.

Note: merging Ved..Help with Ved is possible (and perhaps even reasonable for novice users) but it will reduce the buffer size available by 8k.

To edit a file, simply type:

 Ved filename <enter>

where filename is the name of the file you wish to edit.

Examples of valid filenames include:

 myfile /d0/myfile src/letter

In the normal OS-9 manner the first example edits a file in the current data directory, the second a file in the root directory on drive 0, and the third a file in a subdirectory in the current data directory.

As an option, you can specify two filenames on a command line.

The first filename will be considered to be the Infile and the second the Outfile.

In this case the text is initially read from Infile.

Later, when the text is saved, it will be written to Outfile.

An example of this usage would be:

 Ved filename tempfile <enter>

Whenever you use Ved you must use a filename.

If you do not Ved will generate an error message.

If the file does not exist then you will be asked if it is okay to use that filename.

This prevents having a bunch of empty files created when you type in an incorrect name or think you are in a different directory than you really are.

If the file does not exist, it will not be created at this point—files are not created until you exit Ved (see ALT-Q below).

If the file is found it will be read into Ved’s buffer.

This buffer automatically expands as your file grows.

You do not need to use memory modifiers.

The maximum size file Ved can handle is approximately 53,000 characters.

If the file you attempt to edit is larger than this size an error message will be generated and Ved will terminate.

After loading a file Ved scans it for illegal control characters.

These characters, if found, will be removed from the file.

This includes line-feed and tab characters as well as graphics characters, etc.

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Whenever Ved is started up, the current data and execution directories are checked for a file called Ved..Defs.

By checking the data directory first, it is possible for you to have many different Ved..Defs files—a generic one in the execution directory and a special purpose one for a project in a data directory.

If found this file will be used to initialize Ved’s default modes, tab settings and macro definitions.

If Ved..Defs is not found, then Ved’s internal defaults will be used.

You can create your own Ved..Defs files with custom information.

See ALT-/,MakeVdefs,VDefsText below.

Note: For a Ved..Defs file to be found in the execution directory it must have the “E” attribute set.

See the ATTR command in your OS-9 reference manual.

Ved will work only in true CoCo3 window screens.

It will not work in VDG screens (the standard 32×16 text screens are “window”).

The smallest window which Ved will function in is 8 lines by 30 columns—smaller sizes will generate an error.

A note on how Ved handles files: First, Ved only works on files which fit into its internal memory buffer.

If the file you are attempting to edit is too large to handle in memory you will be unable to load it with Ved.

For the case we have supplied a simple “splitter” to break up large files (see VSplit below for details).

Second, when the files are saved they will overwrite the existing files.

No temporary files are created.

The advantage to this that you can use Ved on a nearly full disk; attributes and filename capitalization are preserved; and it is much faster to overwrite a file than it is to create a new one and delete an old one.

The disadvantage is that you original file is lost—if this is a concern, use the optional Outfile parameter with Ved.

The following sections deal with Ved’s many commands.

In order to get the most use out of Ved we suggest you read each section carefully and experiment with the various commands with your own files.

Ved commands are made in three ways.

Some commands require only a single keypress.

These are shown in the format “ENTER”, “UP ARROW” etc.

Most commands require holding down two keys at the same time.

These are shown in the format “ALT-Q”, “CTRL-A”, “SHIFT-UP” etc.

This means that in order to invoke the command ALT-Q you should press the <ALT> key with one finger and, at the same time, press the <Q> key.

A third set of commands require a three key sequence.

These commands always require you to first press both the “CTRL” key and the “O” key at the same time.

Ved will then wait for a “command” key to be pressed.

For example, the command CTRL-O-LEFT (which moves the cursor to the start of a

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work) is invoked by first pressing the “CTRL” key and the “O” key at the same time, then pressing the LEFT ARROW key.

Communication between you and Ved is done through dialogue windows which pop up in the center of the screen.

If you are using a 128K CoCo and have other processes running you may not have enough memory for these windows.

Ved will then generate a 207 error.

If this occurs you should start over with less processes running.

Whenever you enter text in reply to a prompt you can immediately cancel the current operation (and return to the editor) by pressing CTRL-BREAK.

When entering a line for “Find,” etc, you can correct the last character typed by pressing the LEFT ARROW key and then making the correction.

Press ENTER when you are finished typing your response.

Editing Commands

When Ved is started it is normally in INSERT mode.

This means that any characters typed are inserted into the buffer at the current cursor position.

The cursor is the solid, inverse video block.

Note that the squiggle character at the top of the screen (if you are editing new file) indicates the end of the file.

To add characters to a file simply move the cursor to where you want to type and TYPE!

Each character will be inserted into the buffer and, of course, the results are displayed on the screen.

If you are inserting characters into an existing line, you may notice that the end of the line drops off the edge of the screen.

Don’t be alarmed.

Your text is still there.

It will be redisplayed when any of the following occurs:

the cursor moves to the end of the screen line 2.

the internal line buffer (about 200 characters) fills up 3.

you execute a command (find, delete word, etc.) 4.

you move the cursor to a new line.

This may all sound a bit confusing, but you’ll get used to it in no time.

Remember, the only time text disappears is when you are inserting into an existing line.

ENTER Inserts a carriage return into the buffer Carriage

          returns are displayed as a small “o” on the screen.

BREAK The BREAK key is used to delete the character at

          the current cursor position.

SHIFT-BREAK Delete the character before the cursor—a

          backspace+delete.

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ALT-SPACE Insert a space at the current cursor position without

          moving the cursor.

(This is very handy when in

          overstrike mode.)

ALT-Y Delete (yank) the word at the current cursor

          position.

This command will always delete at least

          one character, deleting continues until the end of the
          current word.

A word is defined as a series of

          characters ending in a Block Marker, a SPACE, or a terminating
          punctuation (.,;:?!).

If you are in the

          middle of a word, the current word will be deleted till its end.

Unlike ALT-L (below) ALT-Y will not

          delete the SPACE following the word.

ALT-L Lift word.

This command is very similar to ALT-Y,

          however it first moves the cursor to the start of the current
          word (a character following a Carriage Return, SPACE, or
          Block Marker.

ALT-L will also

          delete the SPACE following the word.

ALT-K Delete until the right edge of the screen (the

          current screen line).

ALT-V Delete until the next carriage return.

Since this

          could entail deleting several screen lines you are first asked
          if you are sure you want to do the deletion.

Pressing any key other than <Y> cancels

          the operation.

Note that if the current screen line

          ends in a carriage return then ALT-V is identical in operation
          to ALT-K, no “sure?” is displayed.

ALT-W Toggles wordwrap.

When Ved starts wordwrap is turned

on.

This means that any words which will not fit on a

          screen lone will be “wrapped” to the next screen line.

Note Ved DOES NOT insert carriage returns into

          the text in order to do this—the only time a carriage return
          is entered into the text buffer is when you press the enter key.

As you edit your text the points

          at which wordwrap occurs changes automatically, you never need
          to concern yourself with it.

In most cases

          you should leave WordWrap on—leaving it off will force extra
          screen updates when block markers are deleted.

ALT-I Toggle auto-indent mode.

This feature will be

          appreciated by people using Ved to write programs in a
          structured language (like Pascal or C) which uses various
          levels of indentation.

Of course, it can

          also be used to create tables, etc.

When auto-indent

          is on, the cursor will be advanced to the same position on
          the new line as the first non-space

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          character on the previous line.

ALT-O Toggles overstrike/insert modes.

When Ved starts up

          it is in insert mode.

ALT-O will change to overstrike

          mode.

When in overstrike the cursor will be changed

          from the normal block to an underline.

When in

          overstrike the character at the cursor will be changed to the
          key you press, in insert the key pressed will be inserted in
          front of the character at the cursor.

If the cursor is at the end of file or

          at a carriage return, characters will always be inserted,
          just as if you were in insert mode.

Cursor Control

UP ARROW Moves cursor up one line.

DOWN ARROW Moves cursor down one line.

LEFT ARROW Moves cursor left one character.

RIGHT ARROW Moves cursor right one character.

SHIFT-UP ARROW Moves cursor to top of screen.

If the cursor is

        currently at the top of the screen it will be moved to the bottom
        of the previous screen.

SHIFT-DOWN ARROW Moves cursor to bottom of the screen.

If the

        cursor is currently at the bottom of the screen it will be moved
        to the top of the next screen.

SHIFT-LEFT ARROW Moves cursor to start of the previous word.

SHIFT-RIGHT ARROW Moves cursor to start of the next word.

CTRL-O-LEFT ARROW Moves the cursor to the start of the

        current word.

If the cursor is on a SPACE, Carriage

        Return or Block Marker no action will be taken.

        This command is useful for macros which attempt to mark a word
        with word processing marks—see the file VedDefs.txt for examples.

CTRL-O-RIGHT ARROW Moves the cursor to the end of the

        current word.

If the cursor is on a SPACE, Carriage

        Return or Block Marker no action will be taken.

        The end of a word is defined as a SPACE, Carriage Return or a
        terminating punctuation (.,;:!?).

Again

        see VedDefs.txt for examples.

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CTRL-UP ARROW Moves cursor up one screen.

Essentially this is

        a paging command…much quicker than using UP ARROW to scroll
        through the file.

Note that the top line of the

        current screen is redisplayed at the bottom of the new screen
        and that the cursor stays on the same screen line.

CTRL-DOWN ARROW Moves the cursor down one screen.

Note that the

        bottom line of the current screen is redisplayed at the top of
        the new screen.

CTRL-LEFT ARROW Moves the cursor to the start of the current

        screen line.

CTRL-RIGHT ARROW Moves the cursor to the end of the current

        screen line.

ALT-UP ARROW Moves cursor to the start of the file.

ALT-DOWN ARROW Moves cursor to the end of the file.

ALT-LEFT ARROW Moves the cursor to the start of the current

        line.

Note that the start of the current line is not

        necessarily on the same screen line.

Lines are

        defined as a string of text starting and ending with a carriage
        return and can span several screen lines.

ALT-RIGHT ARROW Moves the cursor to the end of the current

        line.

(See note above.)

Global Commands

When entering text for the following commands the following keys serve special functions:

ALT-ENTER When included in a search or replace pattern this

        generates a carriage return character.

ALT– (Alt-minus) This key generates a + character.

This is

        a wild-card character which will match any character.

        For example “mo+e” will match both “mole” and “more”.

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Following are the global commands:

ALT-F Find a pattern.

First you will be asked to enter a

        pattern.

The buffer will be scanned for a match

        staring at the cursor position.

If a match is

        found the cursor will be moved to the start of the match and
        the match will be highlighted.

Pressing a

        key will terminate the highlight.

No keypresses will

        be lost.

If no match is found a “no match found”

        message will be displayed.

ALT-N Finds a pattern previously entered for ALT-F.

Very

        useful in those cases when the initial ALT-F finds the wrong match.

ALT-R Find a pattern to replace with new one.

You will first

        be asked for a pattern to find (“original pattern”) and the
        pattern to replace it with.

Next you will be asked

        if you wish to replace only the next occurrence of the pattern,
        all occurrences or prompted.

If you press <N>

        only the next occurrence of the pattern will be changed.

If you press <A> then all occurrences of the

        pattern, from the current cursor position, will be changed.

If you press <P> then the cursor will be moved

        to the next occurrence of the pattern, the pattern will be
        highlighted until you press <Y>, <N> or <BREAK>.

        <Y> will change the pattern and advance the cursor to the next
        match, <N> will not change the pattern, however the cursor will be
        advanced to the next occurrence, <BREAK> will stop the operation
        of replace.

        If you are doing a prompted or global (all) replacement, the
        number of changes made will be displayed when the end of file
        is reached and the cursor will return to the position it was
        when you started the replace.

If no matches at all are found

        then a “no match found” message will be displayed.

        Replace will stop its operation when it encounters an End
        Block marker.

This is useful if you only wish

        to make “global” changes to part of a file.

        You can use a + in both the original pattern and the replacement
        pattern.

A find/replace of:

               Original Pattern     c+t Replacement Pattern  d+g

               will make the following changes:

               cat dog cot dog cut dug

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        Using a wildcard in a replace string only makes sense if a wildcard
        is specified in the same position in the find string, however
        Ved will accept it in either or both strings in any position(s).

        The most likely way wildcards in replace strings will be used is in
        cases where you are editing a file with carriage returns in it and
        you want to make changes to two-word combinations which may or may
        not span a line and you wish to keep the original carriage returns.

ALT-A Duplicates the last ALT-R entered.

Note that this

        includes the mode (N,A or P).

ALT-P We’re not sure if this command belongs here or not,

        but does effect all the text, so it can be called “global”.

ALT-P will “format” the buffer with

        carriage returns to a specified line length.

This can

        be very useful if you are preparing messages to be uploaded to
        a BBS, or for a text formatter which cannot handle long lines
        of text.

But be careful!

The

        effects of ALT-P cannot be undone.

This is because

        the carriage returns inserted by ALT-P are identical to the
        ones you generate with the <ENTER> key (See also comments under
        ALT-N.) ALT-P will prompt you for the line width you want.

Enter a number between

        32 and 250.

Any other vaule will generate an illegal

        value error.

ALT-J Jump to label or line number.

This command is very

        useful when using Ved to prepare assembler (or other programming
        language) source files.

Jump

        prompts for a line number or label.

If you enter a

        number Ved will move the cursor to that line number; note that
        this is actual lines, not screen lines.

If you do not enter a number then Ved

        attempts to fins a line which begins with your input text.

The text must match exactly and be terminated

        with a non-alphanumeric character.

The search is done

        from the start of the file.

Entering “start” would

        position the cursor to any of the following lines:

               start start: start lda #1

        If more than one of the above lines are present in your file
        then the cursor will advance to the first one.

Note that a jump to “start” will not find the

        following:

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               starting lda #1 start1: lda #2 the start,

        Since the search being doneis for text FOLLOWING a carriage
        return the first line in your file will never generate a match.

ALT-; Toggle case sensitivity.

When Ved starts up it is in a

        “case-sense” off mode.

This means that Ved’s searches

        (Find, Replace and Jump) will treat upper and lowercase characters
        as being identical.

For

        example, a find for “cat” will find “Cat” and “CAT”
        as well as “cat”.

Using ALT-; to toggle case-sense

        on forces Ved to treat upper and lowercase letters differently.

Now a search for “cat” will ignore

        “CAT”.

In addition, with case-sense off Replace will

        attempt to maintain the original case of replacements.

For example, changing “cat” to “dog”

        will change “Cat” to “Dog” and “CAT” to “DOG”.

Block Commands

Ved, like any good editor, permits a number of operations on blocks of text.

This includes moving, copying and deleting.

In order for any block operation to function, the block must first be defined.

ALT-, Insert a Begin-Block marker.

This is easier to remember

        as an ALT-< since it inserts a marker in the text which indicates
        the start of a block.

Note that this marker

        can be deleted just as any other character.

If a Begin

        Block marker already exists the existing one will be deleted.

ALT-.

  Insert an End Block marker.

Again, remember this as

        ALT->, this inserts an end of block marker.

If an

        End Block marker already exists the exiting one will be deleted.

When the cursor is on a Block Marker it will

        disappear.

Sorry, but there is no easy way (considering

        memory restraints and some bugs in the OS-9 graphics drivers)
        which can give us a “cursor” over a marker.

        The only solution is to use a character out of the extended
        character set to mark blocks, etc.

This method

        was used by Ved 1.x, but then the markers were hard to find on
        the screen.

In discussions with many users it

        was decided that the current method is most workable.

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ALT-Z Delete all block markers.

This command is seldom

        needed in normal operation since existing markers are deleted
        when new ones are inserted.

However, it can be

        useful in macros (see the supplied file VedDefs.txt for examples).

ALT-B Jump to a Begin-Block marker.

If no marker exists then

        the command is ignored.

ALT-E Jump to an End-Block marker.

If no marker exists then

        the command is ignored.

ALT-C Copy the marked block.

This command will generate an

        error message if both the begin and end marker are not present
        (and in the correct order) or if the cursor is currently in the
        defined block.

Copy

        expands the buffer and places a copy of the marked text at the
        current cursor position.

The existing

        block markers are not deleted, making it easy to do multiple
        block copies.

Use ALT-Z to delete markers

        after you are finished with a block.

ALT-M Move marked block.

This command will generate an error

        message if both the begin and end marker are not present (and
        in the correct order) or if the cursor is currently in the
        defined block.

Move takes the marked

        text and moves it to the current cursor position.

        the marked block is less than 2000 characters then Move uses
        internal buffers, however if the block is larger than 2000
        characters a temporary disk file is created in the current data
        directory (if you are doing a lot of large moves you might want
        to use ALT-H to set up a RAM-Disk as your current data directory).

This file is

        deleted when Move is completed.

Also, note that unlike

        Copy, Move deletes the block markers.

ALT-D Delete marked block.

This command will delete a

        marked block of text.

Note that before deleting the

        block the cursor is first moved to the start of the block and
        you are asked if you are sure you want to delete the text.

In addition to the text, the block

        markers are also deleted.

ALT-S Save marked block.

The marked block will be saved to

        the filename you specify.

Note that specifying “/p”

        will print the marked block to the printer.

ALT-S

        does not effect the block markers.

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ALT-G Get a block of text (append).

This is the only block

        command for which you do not need block markers.

ALT-G

        will prompt you for a filename and append that file to the file
        currently in memory.

Note that the append is

        done at the current cursor position, not the end of the file.

Macros

By permitting the user to define a frequently used series of keystrokes into a single “macro” key, Ved lets you get more done in your limited time.

What can macro keys do for you?

Well, if you are writing a story you might want to put the name of your characters into macro keys—not only is this faster, but it also ensures that they are spelled the same each time they are used; if you are preparing a complex document you might want to use a macro key to insert formatting commands in your file; finally, you can use macro keys to do complex editing.

Ved has three different kinds of macro keys; Single key user defined, two key user defined and predefined.

ALT-8 Number Macro.

To aid in writing documents with

        points (or programs needing line numbers) Ved supplies a number
        register.

Pressing ALT-8 will

        invoke the number macro, inserting the current contents of the
        number register into the text.

After

        each ALT-8 the number register is incremented by 1.

        The number register is initialized to 0.

The number

        register is an un-signed 16 bit value (0..65535).

        Includeing ALT-8 in a macro definition can make setting up
        numbered points very easy.

ALT-7 Initialize number register.

The number register can

        be set at anytime with ALT-7.

You will be prompted

        for a number, this number will be evaluated and (if valid)
        set in the number register.

After the number

        is evaluated you will be prompted for an increment.

        If you wish to change the increment value used each time an
        ALT-8 is done, enter a value.

If you do not

        enter a number the increment will be left the same as it was
        originally (default on starup is 1).

If you

        want to get real tricky you can enter 65535 as the increment value
        and ALT-8 will decrement by 1 each time; 65534 will decrement
        by 2, etc.

CTRL-O-* Filename macro.

The current filename will appear and be

        printed.

This macro can be useful when creating shell

        macros which use VPRINT to print the text in memory.

        See the file VedDefs.txt for examples.

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ALT-: Define a single key macro.

You will first be asked

        which macro key you wish to define.

The keys CTRL-

        A, B, D, F, G, K, N, T, U, V and W are permitted macros.

Even though you must use the CTRL key to

        use a macro, just press the key to define it.

You can

        type in up to 28 characters in your macro definition.

        This includes the ENTER key, cursor keys (LEFT ARROW, etc.),
        Ved commands (ALT-F, ALT-SPACE, etc.), other macros and normal
        text characters.

Since the

        LEFT-ARROW key can be included in a definition, you cannot use
        it to correct a mistake in entering a macro definition—if you
        make a mistake you’ll have to end the entry and type it in again.

To end the entry of a macro

        press CTRL-BREAK.

See the section below on MakeVDefs

        for an alternative method of creating macros.

        To use a single key macro, simply press the CTRL key and the
        key corresponding to the macro key.

The macro

        will be executed just as if you had typed it from the keyboard.

        Note that macro keys can reference other macro keys (CTRL-A is
        permitted in the definition of macro “V”).

        Macro calls can be “nested” to a level of 9 deep.

        This means that CTRL-A could include a call to itself forming
        an infinite loop.

This can be useful in

        creating editing macros.

All macros terminate if an

        error is encountered.

        To take complete advantage of macro keys we suggest you spend
        some time playing with various combinations.

        We’re sure you’ll like them!

ALT– Define a two key macro.

This command is essentially

        the same as ALT-:, however the macro defined requires a two key
        sequence to invoke it.

After pressing ALT—

        you will be asked which “O-Macro” you wish to define.

        Enter any key from “A” to “Z” and enter the macro as
        described above.

        A macro defined with the ALT—command can be invoked by pressing
        CTRL-0 followed by the macro name (“A” to “Z”).

This somewhat complex arrangement is needed to

        expand the number of macro keys available to the user and the
        limited number of keys on the Color Computer.

Tabbing

ALT-ENTER Move the cursor to the next tab stop.

If a carriage

        return is encountered before enough positions have been moved
        over, space characters will be inserted into the text.

If the cursor is currently past the last

        defined tab stop then ALT-ENTER will be ignored.

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ALT-T Define/view tab stops.

When this command is executed

        a “ruler” will appear on the screen.

The “X”s on the

        top line indicate tab stops.

Use the LEFT and RIGHT

        ARROWs to move the cursor to the position you wish to set/delete
        a tabstop.

Use the SPACEBAR to toggle

        tabstops on and off.

When you have the tabs set to your

        liking press BREAK or ENTER to return to the main editor.

Miscellaneous Commands

ALT-U Undo has 2 incarnations.

First, if you are editing a

        line ALT-U will restore the line to what it was before changes.

Note that any command will reset the current

        line and that if you do an ALT-U just after typing a new line
        then that line will be deleted—actually it’s restored to
        what it was before the edit, which is I nothing.

So be careful hitting ALT-U.

        In order to force the start of a new line buffer hit ALT-BREAK.

This is essentially a do nothing command,

        however it forces the current line into the main buffer where
        it is saved from an accidental ALT-U.

Note that I

        ALT-BREAK also brings back the text forced off the screen during
        inserting.

        Second, all line and word deletes are now saved in a buffer.

You can restore a deleted work or line at

        anytime with ALT-U.

The data will be placed back into

        the buffer at the current cursor position, not where you
        deleted it.

        Lines deleted with ALT-V are not saved if you get a ‘sure?’
        message, however they will be saved if the operation of ALT-V
        and ALT-K are the same.

        We find a combination of ALT-K and ALT-U very useful for moving
        one line of text to a new position.

ALT-0 Case switch.

This command will change the case of

        the word under the cursor.

When an ALT-0 is done

        the cursor will be moved to the start of the word.

        Now one of three things will happen, depending on the current
        mix of upper and lower case letters in the word:

1.

If the first letter of the word is a lowercase

           “a”…”z” that letter will be changed to its uppercase
           equivalent.

Page16 Ved Text Editor

2.

If the first letter of the word is an uppercase

           “A”…”Z” and the second character is a lowercase
           “a”…”z” then the entore word will be changed to
           uppercase characters.

3.

If the first two characters of the word are

           uppercase “A”…”Z” then the entire will be changed
           to lowercase.

        This sounds much more complicated than it is.

Why

        not just put the cursor on a word and hit ALT-0 a few times to
        see what happens.

We’re sure you’ll

        find it very handy for fixing up those capitalization errors.

ALT-/ Save current defaults (case-sense, overstrike,

        wordwrap and auto-indent), tab settings and macro definitions.

These items are saved to the file

        Ved..Defs in the current data or Execution directory.

        You will be asked if you wish to save to the Data or Execution
        directory.

Press “D” or “E”; any other

        keystrokes will cancel saving of the defaults.

If an

        existing file exists, it will be overwritten, otherwise a new
        file will be created.

CTRL-O-/ Reload defaults.

This command will first prompt you

        to make sure you want to reload the defaults.

The

        current data directory is first checked for the file Ved..Defs.

If not found there the current execution

        directory is checked.

No error is generated if

        Ved..Defs cannot be found.

This command can be

        handy if you have been “fooling around” with macros and wish
        to restore things to a known setting.

CTRL-O-@ Reload the current file.

Again, handy if you’ve been

        “fooling around,” this command will reload the file specified
        when you started Ved.

If you have

        specified an outfile this is the filename which will be searched
        for.

If the file does not exist (quite

        possible if you haven’t yet done a save and are using both
        infile and outfile) you will receive an OS-9 error.

In this case there will be no change to your

        current file.

ALT-@ Display a ruler.

This is very useful when creating

        tables, etc.

The ruler will be displayed on a line

        directly above the current cursor position.

We hope

        that you’ll find that a rule displayed in this manner is much
        more useful than confusing status lines which reduce the amount
        of text which can be displayed at any one time.

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ALT-X This command will permit you to save your current

        buffer, without leaving Ved.

When you do an ALT-X

        you’ll see a prompt for a filename along with the original
        filename.

If you press <ENTER> you will

        save the current buffer to the current filename.

        you enter a new filename the buffer will be saved to that file.

If the file already exists you’ll be asked

        if you are sure—you must press <Y> to overwrite the existing
        file; if you do not press <Y> you’ll start the Xsave routine
        over.

ALT-Q Quit editing.

Quit will first ask if you wish to save

        the file.

Replying with anything other than <N> will

        start the following process:

1.

The current buffer will be saved to a temporary

           file,
        2.

the original file will be deleted,

3.

the temporary file will be renamed to the original

           filename,
        4.

Ved will terminate.

        Replying with any character other than <Y> will present an “are
        you sure” prompt.

You must then

        press <Y> to force Ved to terminate without saving its buffer.

In this case the original file will be

        unchanged, and no temporary files will be created.

ALT-9 Starts an OS-9 shell.

This lets you view directories,

        etc.

or even start a completely new task.

        There are two different ways this command can be used.

First, if you enter a command at the OS9>

        prompt a sub-shell will process this command.

When

        the command is completed you will return to Ved.

        the other hand, if you just press <ENTER> at the OS9> prompt
        the sub-shell will accept commands until ESCAPE (CTRL-BREAK)
        is pressed.

In either

        case a “press any key” message will appear before the screen
        is refreshed—this will permit you to view the contents of a
        directory, etc.

before the

        editor screen reappears.

        This shell gateway can be used to interface to our VPRINT text
        formatter.

One simple example is the

        “print file” macro in the sample macro file.

This

        macro saves the current text buffer (ALT-X), starts a sub-shell
        (ALT-9) and passes the name of the formatter and the current
        filename as the parameter (Vpt CTRL-0-*).

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ALT-H Change current data directory (chd), Changing the

        current data directory will effect the paths used for ALT-G,
        ALT-/ and ALT-M (if external buffers are needed), as well as
        the directory used for saving the text buffer after an ALT-Q if
        a complete path list is not specified.

For this reason you should be very

        careful in using ALT-H unless you know exactly what you are doing.

F1 Generates a current status summary.

Note that

        “lines” refer to a string of characters terminated by a
        carriage return, not screen lines.

SHIFT-F1 Generates a status window with the current default

        settings.

SHIFT F2 Help summaries are available at any time by pressing

        this key.

In order to function the program Ved..Help

        must be in memory or in the current execution directory.

First select the number key (1..5)

        corresponding to the area you need refreshing in, then after
        the summary press any key to return to Ved.

ALT-6 Insert a position marker in the text file.

This marker

        (in reverse video “^”) can be used to mark a position in
        the text you wish to return to later.

If a position

        marker already exists in the file it will be deleted.

ALT-5 Jump to a position marker inserted previously with

        ALT-6.

If no marker exists the command will be ignored.

Error Messages

From time to time Ved will report an error.

Ved errors are broken down into two types: OS-9 system and Ved internal.

OS-9 system errors (most likely when accessing files and devices) will be reported in standard OS-9 fashion (the error code number, or if a enhanced error driver has been installed, a text message).

Internal errors are shown as “Ved Error!” and a description of the error.

Most should be self-explanatory, however we will expand on “Can’t expand buffer, out of memory.”

This error will occur if Ved is unable to expand it’s interal buffer to accommodate more text.

This can occur because you are truly out of memory, or if Ved’s buffer has approached the 53,000 character limit.

When this error occurs you will have trouble even deleting characters.

This is due to the fact that character deletions are done in a line buffer, and there must be room to expand the text buffer to the full size of the line buffer.

In this case you must use a command like ALT-K, ALT-V or ALT-Y to delete characters.

Once a line or two have been deleted you can

Page19 Ved Text Editor

again use normal editing commands.

However, no file should EVER by that large!

For many reasons it makes sense to break up your files into manageable units no larger than 32,000 characters.

Whenever an error message window is displayed Ved will halt until a key is pressed.

Note also that errors terminate the operation of macros.

VSplit

Included on the distribution diskette is the program Vsplit which will split large files into pieces Ved can handle.

This utility will not work in a 128K system.

It is a packed Basic09 utility so you’ll need RUNB in memory.

To invoke you can either specify a filename:

     vsplit (“bigfile”)

or, if you do not specify a filename, you can enter it at the prompt.

Vsplit will break the file into files each about 30K long.

Vsplit attempts to end each new file at a carriage return so that you don’t have a sentence split into two files.

Each new file will have the original filename with an added section number.

MakeVDefs

This Basic09 procedure is supplied in both source and I-Code format.

This program will take a standard text file with special commands in it and convert it to a Ved..Defs file.

To get a feel for the syntax we suggest you examine the file VedDefs.txt.

MakeVDefs reads a file consisting of individual lines.

The first characters of a line determine what action the program will take.

Note that blank lines are ignored, they can be used to make your file more readable.

Comments Any line starting with a “*” is considered to be a

        comment line and is ignored.

TABS= This will set the tabs.

Follow the “=” by a list of

        values representing tab stops.

Each value must be from

        1 to 80 and separates from the next by a comma.

WRAP= Set the word-wrap mode.

Follow the “=” by either “ON”

        or “OFF”.

OVERSTRIKE= Set edit mode.

Follow the “=” by either “ON” or

        “OFF”.

INDENT Set the auto-indent mode.

Follow the “=” by either “ON”

        or “OFF”.

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CASEMATCH= Set the case-match flag.

Follow the “=” by either “ON”

        or “OFF”.

Ox= Define a two key macro.

Note that “x” represents any

        character from “A” to “Z”.

Follow the “=” with the text

        for the macro definition.

x= Define a single key macro.

Here the “x” represents any

        of the valid one key macro names.

When entering the text for a macro definition you can include both standard text and control characters.

Standard text is entered by entering the appropriate characters.

For example:

    A=Bob van der Poel

Will set single key macro “A” to the text “Bob van der Poel”.

Control keys can be included by prefixing the name of the key with a “\”.

The names of the special keys are:

    \UP    The Up arrow \DOWN  The Down arrow \LEFT  The Left arrow
    \RIGHT The Right arrow \SHFT  The Shift key \CTRL  The Control key
    \ALT   The Alternate key \ENTER The Enter key \SPACE The Spacebar
    \BREAK The Break key

These keys can be combined with the “-“.

For example:

 \CTRL-UP Means hold the CONTROL key and the UP ARROW.

 \ALT-F   Means to hold the ALT key and the F key (a Find).

Examine the supplied file for more examples.

When you run the program you will be prompted for the name of a text file to convert and the name of Ved..Defs file.

Pressing just the Enter key in response to the second prompt will cause the program to use the default filename Ved..Defs.

You can use any valid filename, but Ved can only load the file Ved..Defs.

VDefsText

This utility, again supplied in Basic09 source and I-code format, will take an existing Ved..Defs file and convert it to a text file.

You can then edit this file with Ved and add comments or other commands.

In reality, this program should be unnecessary since you should always keep the original text file used by

Page21 Ved Text Editor

MakeVDefs…but sometimes things get lost.

Besides, it is also useful for extracting macros you have created from within Ved.

At the prompt you will be asked for the name of a file to convert to text.

If you just press the Enter key the program will assume you wish to convert the file Ved..Defs in your current data directory.

Next enter the name of the text file to use, and the program will do its thing.

This program is not well error trapped so anything seriously wrong will cause it to terminate.

The Fine Print

This manual was created using Ved.

It was printed using the Vprint text formatter from Bob van der Poel Software on a Roland PR-1212 printer in proportional and elite print.

All the programs in the package as well as this documentation are protected by copyright.

The original purchasers are granted permission to make copies of the programs (but not the documentation) for their own personal use.

Neither the programs nor the documentation can be lent to anyone, placed in any library or any type, or given away.

The making of illegal copies is prohibited by federal law.

Remember, software piracy is theft.

OS-9 is a trademark of Microware System Corporation.

Your comments, suggestions and questions are always welcome at Bob van der Poel Software.

But if you want an answer to your query you’ll have to abide by a couple if conditions: First a proof of purchase must be enclosed (frankly, we’re tired of answering questions from people who have stolen our software)— save the receipt.

Second, to help offset the high cost of postage and stationary, one dollar (cash, money order or check) must be enclosed.

Thank you for the support you have shown us by purchasing this package.

If you’d like to be added to our mailing list for future upgrade and other product information please feel free to write.

Page22 Ved Text Editor

Index

ALT–, 8, 14 ALT-,, 11 ALT-., 11 ALT-/, 16 ALT-:, 14 ALT-;, 11 ALT-@, 16 ALT-0, 15 ALT-5, 18 ALT-6, 18 ALT-7, 13 ALT-8, 13 ALT-9, 17 ALT-A, 10 ALT-B, 12 ALT-C, 12 ALT-D, 12 ALT-DOWN ARROW, 8 ALT-E, 12 ALT-ENTER, 8, 14 ALT-F, 9 ALT-G, 13 ALT-H, 18 ALT-I, 6 ALT-J, 10 ALT-K, 6 ALT-L, 6 ALT-LEFT ARROW, 8 ALT-M, 12 ALT-N, 9 ALT-O, 7 ALT-P, 10 ALT-Q, 17 ALT-R, 9 ALT-RIGHT ARROW, 8 ALT-S, 12 ALT-SPACE, 6 ALT-T, 15 ALT-U, 15 ALT-UP ARROW, 8 ALT-V, 6 ALT-W, 6

ALT-X, 17 ALT-Y, 6 ALT-Z, 12 Append, 13 Assembler, 10 Attribute, 4 Auto-indent, 6, 16 Basic09, 19, 20 BBS, 10 Begin-Block, 11, 12 Block Commands, 11 Block Marker, 6, 7, 9 BREAK, 5 buffer memory, 2 cancel, 5 capitalization, 4, 16 carriage return, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 18,

CASEMATCH=, 20 case-sense, 11, 16 chd, 18 command line, 3 Comments, 19 control characters, 3, 20 convert, 19, 20, 21 Copy, 12 CTRL-DOWN ARROW, 8 CTRL-LEFT ARROW, 8 CTRL-O-*, 13 CTRL-O-/, 16 CTRL-O-@, 16 CTRL-O-LEFT ARROW, 7 CTRL-O-RIGHT ARROW, 7 CTRL-RIGHT ARROW, 8 CTRL-UP ARROW, 8 cursor, 5, 6, 7 Cursor Control, 7 decrement, 13 default, 20 defaults, 16 delete, 4, 5, 6, 12 DOWN ARROW, 7

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Editing Commands, 5 End Block, 9, 11 ENTER, 5 Error Messages, 18 ESCAPE, 17 F1, 18 filename, 3, 12, 17, 19, 20 Find, 5, 9, 11 format, 10 Global Commands, 8 increment, 13 INDENT, 19 Infile, 3 INSERT, 5 Jump, 10, 12, 18 label, 10 LEFT ARROW, 7 lowercase, 15, 16 macro, 13, 14, 16, 17, 20 MakeVDefs, 14, 19, 21 memory, 2, 19 Miscellaneous Commands, 15 Move, 12, 14 Number Macro, 13 number register, 13 O-Macro, 14 OS9>, 17 Outfile, 3, 4, 16 overstrike, 6, 7, 19 overwrite, 4 Ox=, 20 Position marker, 18 Punctuation, 6, 7 Quit, 17 Replace, 9, 10 RIGHT ARROW, 7

Ruler, 15 RUNB, 19 Save, 12 Screens, 4 Scroll, 8 Shell, 17 SHIFT F2, 18 SHIFT-BREAK, 5 SHIFT-DOWN ARROW, 7 SHIFT-F1, 18 SHIFT-LEFT ARROW, 7 SHIFT-RIGHT ARROW, 7 SHIFT-UP ARROW, 7 Status, 18 Tab, 15, 16 Tabbing, 14 Tables, 16 TABS=, 19 Terminate, 17 Undo, 15 UP ARROW, 7 Uppercase, 15, 16 VDefsText, 4, 20 VDG, 4 Ved..Defs, 4, 16, 19, 20, 21 Ved..Help, 2, 3, 18 VedDefs.txt, 7, 12, 13, 19 VPRINT, 13, 17 VSplit, 4, 19 Wildcard, 10 Windows, 5 Word, 6 Wordwrap, 6, 16 WRAP=, 19 x=, 20 Xsave, 17

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VED 2.9 MANUAL

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