PD & Shareware
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Joe Connor

editor@ataricomputing.com"


Reviews

Software: CAB v1.5

Category:Internet
Reviewer: Roy Goring
Status: Magazine Exclusive
System: All Ataris
Score: 90%

CAB Roy Goring takes a look at the Atari Computing exclusive release of CAB...
Despite being the only graphical web browser available the author continues to add heavyweight features in each release.
This version sees the introduction of a major productivity improvement.
CAB now downloads and displays text first, leaving empty spaces which are subsequently filled with images. In practice this means you can scroll up and down pages while images are being converted and follow links to other pages without hanging around for unwanted images to be displayed.
Text

Animated GIFs


CAB can now display animated GIFs as animations or stills. Animated GIF files contain a series of frames which can be used to attract attention, or annoy surfers, depending on your point of view.

It's rude to point

The cursor now changes to a pointing finger when moved over a link and the link address is displayed in the window status line. This helpfully reveals whether the link is on a different web site, a different page or somewhere else on the same page. It also makes links on multicoloured pages easier to find.
The Print routines have been overhauled yet again and are capable of full colour output given the elusive combination of printer and suitable NVDI driver. However, there are still some niggly problems to be resolved.

Cache back

Run an off-line session after upgrading to this CAB version because the cache structure has been changed and can take several minutes to be converted dependent on the size of your cache.
The new structure creates a series of folders, labelled A to Z, and adds files sequentially as follows:
  • File 00000001 goes in A,
  • 00000002 in B,
  • 00000003 in C etc.

This makes for much faster disk access with large caches compared to the old method of storing everything in a single folder.
Finding a particular file is much like finding a needle in a haystack so do grab a copy of Cache Ed and turn those numbers into something more manageable.

cache

CAB offers 90% of the functionality of NetScape or Microsoft Explorer which is a remarkable achievement for a program capable of running on a standard ST.
There are still minor problems with the CAB.OVL module and STiK but, as any comms enthusiast will admit, it goes with the territory!
Off-line CAB is rock solid.
I'd like to see standard Frame support implemented instead of the half-baked, but usable, workaround in the current release. An option to download pages and images while browsing in text only mode would be a great help and save the on-line time wasted while CAB converts images for display. Off-line the option could be toggled on again to view the images.

Surfing

Apart from CAB you'll need an Internet account, STiK and the CAB OVL module.
In the UK, Internet accounts are available from £7.50 per month upwards. Check the provider supports the SLIP or CSLIP protocols because some don't!
STiK is the TCP/IP stack which connects your computer to the web using your Internet account. The CAB.OVL module adds on-line browsing capability to CAB and is not required for off-line browsing. Cache Ed, SDCABPRG.PRG and XURL are all available from PD/Shareware libraries and on-line services.
Please register any programs you use regularly - it's the best way we, as users, can ensure continued support from the programmers.

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