



                                 What Floppy Format?
                             (c) 1992-94 by Angel Babudro

                             "Organic Computer Wizardry"
                            Box 132 * Paonia, CO 81428 USA


        I.   DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY

             THIS  SOFTWARE  IS PROVIDED  "AS  IS" WITHOUT  ANY  WARRANTIES OR
        CONDITIONS, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THOSE
        CONCERNING  MERCHANTABILITY  AND  FITNESS  FOR  A  PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
        NEITHER ANGEL BABUDRO  NOR ANYONE ELSE  WHO HAS  BEEN INVOLVED IN  THE
        CREATION, PRODUCTION, OR DELIVERY OF THIS SOFTWARE SHALL BE LIABLE FOR
        ANY INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR INCIDENTAL  DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE
        USE  OR INABILITY TO USE THIS SOFTWARE  EVEN IF ANGEL BABUDRO HAS BEEN
        ADVISED OF  THE POSSIBILITY OF  SUCH DAMAGES OR  CLAIMS.  IN  NO EVENT
        SHALL THE AUTHOR'S  LIABILITY FOR  ANY DAMAGES EVER  EXCEED THE  PRICE
        PAID FOR  THE LICENSE TO USE  THE SOFTWARE, REGARDLESS OF  THE FORM OF
        CLAIM.  THE PERSON USING THE SOFTWARE BEARS ALL RISK AS TO THE QUALITY
        AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE.
             Some States do  not allow the exclusion of the limit of liability
        for consequential or incidental  damages, so the above limitation  may
        not apply to you.
             This agreement shall  be governed  by the State  of Colorado  and
        shall  inure to  the  benefit of  Angel  Babudro and  any  successors,
        administrators, heirs and  assigns.  Any action or  proceeding brought
        by either  party against the other  arising out of or  related to this
        agreement  shall be  brought  only  in a  State  or  Federal Court  of
        competent jurisdiction located in Delta County, Colorado.  The parties
        hereby consent to in personam jurisdiction of said courts.


        II.  COPYRIGHT

             WFF  is owned and copyright  (c) 1992-1994 by  Angel Babudro, all
        rights  reserved.  You  may only use  and/or distribute WFF  under the
        License terms below.


        III. LICENSE

             The  following  terms  and conditions  apply  to  the use  and/or
        distribution of What Floppy Format?:
                        ___________________

             1.   WFF  is being  distributed as  copyright-protected Freeware.
        There is no  registration fee and  you are licensed  to use it for  an
        unlimited time.

             2.  All  files  originally distributed  as  part  of  the package
        (including this  notice) must be  included without modification.   The
        complete  list of files can be found  in the PACKING.LST file which is
        part of this package.

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             3. Individual users  may freely copy this disk and  share it with
        friends, family, and acquaintances.  Non-profit groups (including user
        groups and BBSs) may distribute copies of this disk.  A fee of no more
        than $5 may  be charged to cover disk copying costs.   If the files on
        this disk  have dates more than  a year old please  contact the author
        for a free update to the current version.

             4.  Disk distributors  and dealers  must have  written permission
        before selling  copies of this software.  When you contact me you will
        receive a free copy of the latest version and you will be placed on my
        mailing   list  to  receive  updates  as  they  are  released.    Disk
        distributors may charge no more  than $10 per disk for copies  of this
        software.  If, as a distributor, you supply copies to other resellers,
        the end price to the user may not exceed $10.

             5. You must  obtain written permission  prior to distribution  as
        part  of any "bundled" packages (e.g., CD-ROM, placing on new computer
        systems, etc.).   Such permission  is often  granted; the author  is a
        nice guy - please write to him with your ideas.

             6. You must immediately  stop selling/distributing copies of this
        software upon notice from the author.


        IV.  TECHNICAL SUPPORT (HOW TO REACH ME)

             If  you  have questions  or need  help, just  send  a note  to me
        through the mail or a BBS listed below.  Sysops  and shareware vendors
        please see VENDOR.DOC for distribution information.

              Mail        Angel   Babudro,    "Organic   Computer   Wizardry",
                          PO Box 132, Paonia, CO 81428 USA

              Official Distribution Bulletin Boards

              My software  packages are  "free" downloads on  the BBSs  listed
        below  - you  need not  subscribe to  download my  shareware (although
        other files or functions may  require subscription).  I use  the first
        name "Angelo" on BBSs  since it avoids gender  confusion (I'm used  to
        both  names anyway).   Scan  for the  file name  WFF*.* to  locate the
        latest version.

        West Coast   Researcher's BBS (CA)             USR Dual (805) 949-8151
                     Enter "J;136"  to join  the OrganicSftwr conference  then
                     use "F"  to list files and  "E" to post messages  for me.
                     Over  4 gigabytes of files  on-line; anything you want is
                     here.   Messages can be  sent to  this board  for me  via
                     FidoNet 1:102/1310.

                     Expanding Horizons (CO)         14.4k V.32 (303) 241-2847
                     This is my local BBS so it is the one I most often update
                     and  check for messages.   Log on to  this board with the
                     name  "OCWIZ" and the password "WHAT"  - this will bypass

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                     the  usual  questionnaire so  you  can  begin downloading
                     right away.   Next,  enter "J;3"  to join  conference #3,
                     then type "F" to view the list of my software.

        Midwest      Rusty 'n Edie's BBS (Ohio), six phone numbers:
                            HST 16.8                            (216) 726-1804
                            Hayes 28.8                          (216) 726-3642
                            Hayes V-series                      (216) 726-3610
                            2400/V32/ZyXEL 19.2                 (216) 726-2620
                            USR HST Turbo 21                    (216) 726-3628
                            CompuCom Speed                      (216) 726-3584

        East Coast   Excalibur (Central NY)            USR Dual (315) 736-3792
                     FREQ  (File REQuest)  from  this board  via RBBS  address
                     A:954/401,  FIDO   address   1:26501,  or   ICN   address
                     91:315/101.

                     WhiTech BBS (NC)      ZyXEL 14.4 V32b/V42b (910) 944-1165
                     File Request (FREQ) via Fido address 1:3636/2.

                     Software  Creations (MA) - over 120 lines.  Home of Night
                     Owl CD-ROM.
                            USR Courier 2400 MNP5               (508) 365-2359
                            USR Dual Standard 14.4k             (508) 368-7036
                            USR HST/Dual Std 16.8k              (508) 365-2032
                            USR Dual Std v.32Terbo              (508) 368-6604


        V.       INTRODUCTION

                 WFF is  a menu  shell  for use  with Christoph  Hochstatter's
        FDFORMAT.  WFF is Freeware; it is my contribution back to all the fine
        programmers who have donated their labour in the form of public domain
        software.  Please distribute complete copies of WFF to bulletin boards
        and  friends  --  please shackle  any  temptations  you  might have  to
        eliminate or modify anything -- that wouldn't be nice. :)  I am open to
        donations if feel so inclined.  For the latest version of WFF order my
        Sampler Disk (see ORDER.FRM).

                 Now, let me tell you what it is that I've created.

                 What  Floppy Format? (WFF) is  an easy way  to quickly format
        floppies without remembering commands  and option switches for various
        disk types using FDFORMAT, a formatting utility written and donated to
        the  public  domain  by   Christoph  Hochst tter  (normally  found  as
        FDFRM16A.ZIP or FDFORM18.ZIP on  BBS's).  FDFORMAT is the  best floppy
        format  utility I've  seen,  but it's  so  flexible that  there are  a
        million and one combinations of options.   So I wrote WFF to allow  me
        to set &  test certain options,  save the options  I prefer, and  then
        format a  disks without having  to remember any  of it.   I don't even
        need to remember which drive is A: (not that it's a problem...).

                 I use the extra  high-density and off-colour formats provided

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        via FDFORMAT for my archive disks.  FDFORMAT packs 1.48Mb on a 5-inch
        disk and up  to 1.72Mb on a  3-inch disk, which dramatically  reduces
        the  number of disks  I need to  off-load large software  from my hard
        disk.   And I've noticed that with  a CompatiCard IV the <300-byte TSR
        isn't needed  for the extended densities.  It's the best disk capacity
        extender I've seen, and it's public domain, too!  Can't beat it.

                 If you  can't  find it  on your  local BBS,  FDFORMAT can  be
        downloaded from the BBSs listed above.

                 By the way,  I don't have any interest in FDFORMAT other than
        using it.  I'll have to write a letter to the author some day...


        WARNING   WFF allows  you to  format disks in  drive letters
        _______
                  other  than A: or B: by assigning drive A: to that
                  drive.  I did  this so that I  could format my  8"
                  drive (which is K: on my system) using FDFORMAT.

                  To  illustrate, my 8" drive  is K: so  WFF does an
                  "ASSIGN a=k" before issuing the  FDFORMAT command.
                  When FDFORMAT is finished, an  "ASSIGN" command is
                  issued by itself to remove the drive assignment.

        BEWARE    If you set  a hard  disk letter as  a floppy  disk
        ______
                  drive I  have no idea  what will  happen (I'm  not
                  going  to  try it!).   So  be  careful if  you use
                  something other  than drives  A: and B:  -- double
                  check that it's a floppy disk letter you're using!


        File List
        _________

              The files that make up What Floppy Format? are as follows:

              wff.exe     The executable file
              wff.txt     The documentation (this text) in ASCII format [*]
              wff.wp      The  documentation  (this  text)  in  WordPerfect  5
                          format (so you can format for your printer) [*]
              wff.new     Late-breaking news [*]
              file_id.diz Description file for BBSs [*]
              desc.sdi    Description file for BBSs [*]
              order.frm   Order  form  for  all   of  my  Shareware!    Please
                          TYPE ORDER.FRM > PRN

              These are the files which make up  WFF.  When you give copies to
        friends, BBSs,  etc. please be  sure to  include all  of these  files.
        Additional files  will be created in the same directory as you use the
        software.  The files marked with [*] can be deleted if disk space is a
        premium, but I ask that you please keep ORDER.FRM handy in case you or
        someone else  you know wants to contact me.   Since I am asking for no
        money for WFF I hope you will do this for me.  Thanks.


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        Using WFF
        _________

              NOTE:  WFF.EXE should reside  in a  directory in  your DOS
              PATH.  Otherwise you  will have to  use "cd" to change  to
              that directory each time.   To set your path use  the "set
              path=" command in your autoexec.bat file.

              Just  type WFF from the DOS prompt.   The first time you use it,
        WFF  will pop-up its set-up  screen for you to fill  in.  Just tell it
        whether  you have a monochrome or colour screen, which types of floppy
        disk drives you have (up to 4) and the drive letters, and the  path to
        the FDFORMAT programme.   If FDFORMAT resides in a  directory which is
        in your DOS  PATH it will  automatically be filled  in.  (See  WARNING
        above  about floppy drives.)  Default values for disk verification and
        sector sliding  are also presented for  you to change.   If you aren't
        sure what you want to  use, just leave the defaults as they are -- the
        default  sector sliding values should improve  the floppy disk's speed
        on any computer.  See the documentation for FDFORMAT for details about
        these.

              Directory Command -- While you are formatting disks you can press
        F5  between disks  to see  a directory  on the  screen.   This  is the
        directory command, and  parameters, you like to use.   You can use the
        DOS "DIR" command, or "NDIR" as I use, or "HDIR" or anything else.

              Root Dir  Files -- This is  the maximum number of  files the disk
        may  have in its  root directory (\).   In more  technical terms, this
        setting  determines the size of the FAT  (File Allocation Table).  See
        FDFORMAT docs.   Leave "112" for  default of 112 or  224, depending on
        disk type.   You can lower the number to  squeeze a few more bytes out
        of your  disks.  This does not  affect subdirectories; only the number
        of files you can have in the root.

              After you've  done the set-up,  just pick  the size of  disk you
        want from the  horizontal menu --  3-inch, 5-inch,  and 8-inch --  and
        press RETURN.  You'll see a vertical menu of  the densities available,
        depending on whether  you have double-density or high-density drives --
        densities  which are not valid  for your drive(s)  cannot be selected.
        Highlight your selection and press RETURN.  That's all there is to it!


        Special Features & Functions
        ____________________________

              Quick Format  -- If you  have verification  turned OFF,  FDFORMAT
        version 1.8  will re-format a disk  in 5-10 seconds by  only verifying
        already formatted tracks and clearing the FAT.

              Continuous Format -- After a disk is formatted you will hear some
        tones to tell you the disk is finished (so you don't have to watch the





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        screen),  and a ticking will begin.1  This is to let you know that WFF
        is waiting for your response:

              1. You  can press Esc to  stop formatting disks  or F5 to  see a
        directory of another disk.

              2. You can remove the disk.  This will initiate WFF's Continuous
        Format feature -- WFF will wait for you to insert another disk or press
        Esc to quit or F5 for a directory.

              Before inserting another disk you can  press the F5 key to get a
        directory of a disk.  WFF will prompt for a drive letter at the bottom
        of the  screen.  While  it is  waiting for  the drive  letter you  can
        insert the disk you would like to view.

              NOTE  Both  FDFORMAT and  WFF test  the  disk drive.
                    Usually this causes no noticable delay,  but I
                    stumbled across a  combination of  electronics
                    that   took   16-seconds   to    identify   an
                    unformatted disk.  If this is happening to you
                    there  may  be  a  conflict  in  your  system;
                    experiment with card  settings (address,  IRQ,
                    etc.).  In my case it was an address conflict.

              Drawbacks -- I  designed WFF  to allow selection  of disk  drives
        based on size  rather than drive letter.   This avoids confusion where
        one 5.25" and one 3.5" disk drive are used since you can't even assume
        that the  top drive is A: (Tandy  broke that rule).   But, if you have
        two of the same drives  (like an old AT or XT with  dual 5.25" drives)
        there is currently no  way to choose between  them.  I will spend  the
        time to install this feature as soon as someone asks me to.



















                            
        ____________________
               1  These sounds are only  audible if the  Sound option under
          "File" is turned ON.

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