Upfront

Purpose of the application

A file and program manager.

Distribution category

The academic version of Upfront is site specific and subject to a site licence.

Upfront as shareware is not yet available but will be shortly at USD30.00.

Availability

The code is copyright and is not available.

Description of the application

The application is a user friendly shell for launching programmes (from a list of programmes nominated by the user) without having to go near the DOS prompt. Upfront provides a number of file and disk functions commonly used in MSDOS such as a file finder, disk formatter and calls MSDOS programmes such as backup and restore. It performs background printing and contains context sensitive on-line help for the novice PC user.

Developmental problems

The main problem was, for an inexperienced beginner in C++, the manuals and the learning curve associated with Turbo Vision. Many concepts were not presented clearly and the documentation provided was not aimed at a completely new programmer. This problem was overcome by experimentation and asking lots of questions.

Reason for choosing Turbo Vision

Consistency with software already purchased. The application was developed on a 386SX16, a 486DX2/66 and a 486BL75 using BC3.1/TV1.03 for 8088+ and up.

Contact

Rachel Polanskis at grove@zeta.org.au