Welcome. All programs and program listings in this issue are on your START disk provided in a special envelope bound into the magazine. If you purchased the $4 nondisk version of START you can still obtain the disk by sending us the bound-in order card or mailing $10.95 plus $2.00 for postage and handling, to START DISK, 524 Second Street, San Francisco, CA 94107. (Be sure to specify the issue of the disk you want.)
Use scissors to open your disk envelope along the outside vertical edge. Place your START disk into drive A and double-click on the disk icon to see its contents. Please refer to your ST owners manual if you are uncertain about proper Desktop procedures.
Your START disk contains six folders. Each folder corresponds to a particular START article. To open a folder and reveal its contents, double-click on the folder's icon. Before running a program, we recommend you read its related article and transfer its files to another disk. Also, it's a good idea to back up your START disk before use.
COMPRESSED FILES
Some of the files on the START disk are in a compressed format. You can identify them by a "Q" as the second letter of the filename extender (e.g., MAILCALL.PQS). These files are unusable unless first decompressed with the Un-Squeeg program included on your START disk. We chose the Squeeg program from Quack Computer Company as the most efficient compressor of ST files. Only the Un-Squeeg program (the decompressor) has been included on your disk. Please note that this program is owned and copyrighted by the Quack Computer Company and is not to be considered part of the public domain. The latest Squeeg/Un-Squeeg package (version 3.1), which includes the compression program, is available for $24.95 from:
Quack Computer Company
257 Robinson Avenue
Bronx, New York 10465
DECOMPRESSING
To decompress a file, first transfer both the compressed file and UNSQUEEG.PRG to another disk. When run, the Un-Squeege program will create a second, decompressed file which may be more than twice the size of the compressed one. Un-Squeege will not alert you if you run out of disk space, so make sure you have plenty of room on your destination disk.
After transfering the files, double-click on UNSQ31.PRG and a file selector box will pop up requesting the file to decompress. Un-Squeege automatically searches for filenames with "Q" as the second letter of the extender. Select a file to decompress and click in the OK box. Un-Squeege responds by asking for a destination path. At this point, it is easiest just to select the default (drive A) by clicking in the OK box. The file will be decompressed and written to disk with the original, unsqueezed filename (e.g., MAILCALL.PQS will be decompressed and written to disk as MAILCALL.PAS).
THE DISK
- UNSQ31.PRG-Double-click on this to decompress a file.
- README.TXT-Text file of additional information; show to the desktop.
- DEGASART.STQ -Art Tips from a Pro folder Contains two medium-resolution DEGAS pictures and assorted brushes and fills. You need DEGAS or DEGAS Elite to use these files. See your DEGAS manual for instructions. See the Reference at the end of the article for information on this product.
- CARTRIDG.STQ -Writing to the Cartridge Slot folder. Contains C source code to drive the cartridge parallel port.
- MAILCALL.STQ - Mail Call folder. Double-click on MAILCALL.PRG to run the program. Complete instructions on operating Mailcall are included in this article. MAILCALL.PQS is the compressed Personal Pascal source code. (See instructions on this page to decompress).
- SOUND.STQ-Hot Sounds folder Double-click on NSQ.PRG to run the sound software. Complete operating instructions appear in the article. Sound files are denoted with a .SND extender.
- STBAS1C.STQ - Getting Around ST BASIC folder. Load BASIC.PRG from your "language" disk supplied with your computer. Then, select Load from the drop-down menu and choose DRAGON.BAS from the STBASIC.STQ folder on your START disk. When the program is loaded, run it by choosing Run from the drop-down menu.
- STWRITER.STQ-ST Writer Secrets folder Double-click on STWRITER.PRG to run the word processor. QUICKREE.STW is a quick reference sheet that can be printed out from ST-Writer and LONGREF.SQW is a complete reference in compressed format. (See instructions on this page to decompress). CONFIG.TOS and CONFIG.TXT allow you to configure your ST-Writer to work with your printer. (See article for a full explanation). For complete ST-Writer documentation, refer to the sources listed in the README.TXT file.