& Introduction to Unicom 3.1 UNICOM is a complete and easy to use data communications package especially designed for users of the Microsoft Windows 3.1 operating environment. Many common communication tasks can be fully automated such as dialing the host computer, uploading and downloading multiple files. An advanced script language is provided to allow automation of your own specialized communication tasks. In addition, all program features have been designed for background operation. That is, you can instruct Unicom to perform a task then switch to another application while Unicom does it's job. Built-in are many advanced features only found in software costing hundreds of dollars more. Some of the many features include in Unicom are: MANY POPULAR FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOLS: X-Y-ZModem , Ymodem Batch, Ymodem-G, ZModem Resume, Kermit, CompuServe B, QuickB and ASCII. Of these, CompuServe and Zmodem protocols have been implemented for automatic uploading and automatic downloading. Zmodem will now automatically resume an aborted transfer on the next attempt. External protocols are now supported. 16 COLOR TERMINAL EMULATION WITH SPECIAL ATTRIBUTE SUPPORT. Emulations include: DEC VT102 (ANSI), DEC VT52, ANSI-BBS and TTY. Screen fonts, colors and attributes are user selectable. All your installed Windows fonts are readily available for use. AUTO-SENSE 256 COLOR GIF GRAPHICS VIEWER: GIF graphic images are displayed automatically during downloading. Images containing up to 256 simultaneous colors can be viewed (if your video hardware & driver are capable). Support is provided for receiving CompuServe interactive GIF images like weather maps and satellite pictures. On CompuServe, type GO MAPS . BATCH DIALING DIRECTORY will hold an unlimited number of entries, maintain statistics, program settings and a dialing string for each entry. A directory editor is provided for maintaining the directory. Other than disk space, there is no limit to the size of your directory or the number of directories you may have. HOST MODE allows remote users access to your computer similar to that of a computer bulletin board. Each user is assigned an ID and Password. A remote user may upload and download files, examine directories, change directories, type files, page the sysop, read messages, write messages, view the user list or shell to DOS. These capabilities are enabled or disabled for each user by the host sysop. The sysop may monitor interaction, log events, operate in dial-back mode and chat with a remote user. MODEM DISPLAY LIGHTS have been integrated in to the top of the Unicom display. These are the same lights built-in to the more advanced external modems. These indicators give you a visual clue to the physical state of your communications link. A SCROLLBACK BUFFER that can hold up to 1500 lines of information is provided. The user may examine the contents of this buffer with the use of the built-in horizontal and vertical scroll bars. The scrollback buffer can be integrated into the window display or remain hidden until it is needed. WINSCRIPT WINDOWS SCRIPT LANGUAGE. Programmers may customize Unicom and automate many communication tasks. WinScript is 'C - like' in design and provides over 200 statementsand commands including support for conditional program control. Many functions that take advantage of the Windows environment are provided. SCRIPT RECORDING CAPABILITY can be used to create command files automatically as you interact with a remote host computer. SCRIPT SCHEDULING allows up to eight WinScript command files to be executed at specific days and times. Programming the scheduler is just like programming your VCR. DDE SERVER CAPABILITY Other Windows applications that support DDE may exchange information with Unicom using a DDE link. Unicom can receive and execute commands from DDE client applications. A client application may instruct Unicom to execute a specific WinScript file, WinScript command line, hot key, macro or external application. A client application can retrieve the contents of script variables or be advised when they change. DOWNLOAD FILE PROCESSOR Unicom can be setup to watch for incoming files with a specific extension then invoke a utility to process the file after it is received. For example, all .ZIP files can be unzipped by Unicom after downloading. Each file type may be processed automatically or interactively via a queue control. Any DOS or Windows utility can be setup to process specific incoming file types. 16550 UART FIFO TRIGGER CONTROL & I/O PRIORITY CONTROL Unicom allows 16550 users to select the FIFO trigger level. An I/O priority control allows the user to control the amount of processing time Unicom receives during file transfers. A Convenient SCREEN TOOLBAR provides 3-d icon pushbuttons that give you quick access to many of UNICOM's menu selected features. A CUSTOM ICON BAR allows you to add your own icons to the Unicom display screen. These icons may be setup to activate other applications, run scripts, execute macros, hot keys or external protocols. EASY SCREEN EDITING. Highlight text on the screen using the mouse. You may then copy this selected text to the clipboard, erase it, mark as a file or send it back to the host. A file marker feature is built-in to let you highlight filenames off the screen then transmit them to the host when you are prompted. EXTERNAL PROTOCOL SUPPORT Unicom is now compatible with most all external protocols. Unicom can be configured to detect specific upload and/or download signatures then invoke the protocol. Any number of external file transfer protocols may be added. INT 14 AND EXTERNAL I/O DRIVER SUPPORT Unicom can be adapted to special I/O hardware. A user may develop a special Windows DLL driver to allow Unicom to communicate with any special device. An INT 14 driver is included with Unicom. This INT-14 driver allows Unicom to be used on many networks. & What's New In Unicom 3.1 DDE SERVER SUPPORT: Unicom can now exchange data with other Windows applications that support Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE). Unicom operates as a server and can receive commands to provide data, run scripts, execute specific WinScript commands at the request of another application supporting DDE. MODEM INDICATOR LIGHTS Eleven modem indicator lights and 2 program indicator lights are integrated into the display. Internal modem users now have a visual reference as to the state of the modem. Common modem indicators are displayed which include: Receive Data (RD), Send Data (SD), Carrier Detect(CD), Off Hook (OH), Auto Answer (AA), Terminal Ready (TR), Modem Ready (MR), Request to Send (RS), Clear to Send (CS), High Speed (HS) and Ring Indicator (RI). The two program indicator lights include DDE and FIFO. The DDE light is active when Unicom is providing services to another Windows application via a DDE link. If Unicom detects a 16550 uart as your active computer port, the FIFO indicator will light if the port is set for buffered operations. AUTOMATIC 256 COLOR GIF GRAPHICS VIEWER Unicom will automatically display GIF files during downloading using X-Y-Z or CompuServe protocols. Images up to 256 colors are supported if your video driver and hardware are capable. This feature is invoked automatically as Unicom will sense the GIF file extension. Also, this feature is activated for on- line viewing when Unicom receives a CompuServe interactive terminal command. The graphic image is displayed in a pop up - sizable window containing horizontal and vertical scroll bars. You may adjust the size of the window and scroll any part of the incoming image into view. CompuServe color weather maps can now be easily viewed interactively. At the CompuServe prompt type: GO MAPS. USERS MAY CUSTOMIZE UNICOM WITH THEIR OWN ICONS Users may add their own custom icons to a scrollable icon bar. These icons may be defined to activate programs, hot keys, scripts, external protocols, or keyboard macros. There is no limit to the number of icons a user can define. If all the icons cannot be displayed, a mini scroll bar appears to allow the user to scroll through to find the desired icon. This feature is in addition to Unicoms predefined icon toolbar built-in to the top of the screen. INT 14 SUPPORT VIA DLL DRIVER Unicom comes equipped with a driver that will support INT-14 networks (including modem sharing). This driver supports baud rates up to 9600. EXTERNAL PROTOCOL SUPPORT You can add any number of external protocols to Unicom via a simple setup screen. Automatic uploading and downloading are supported. Just enter the specific upload and/or download signature sequence. Unicom will automatically sense any signature and then initiate the external protocol automatically. This will support most all external protocols including HSLINK. AUTOMATIC ZMODEM UPLOADING VIA DRAG & DROP Drag files from the Windows 3.1 file manager and drop them on Unicom. A window appears containing a list of files waiting to be uploaded. When you have finished dropping files onto Unicom, instruct your host computer to receive a Zmodem batch upload. Unicom will automatically sense when the remote host is ready to receive the files and begins transmission on its own. DOWNLOAD FILE PROCESSOR This feature allows you to automatically post process files that have been received. For example, you can instruct Unicom to automatically unzip each file downloaded with a .ZIP extension after it is received. Two processing methods are supported: Via interactive queue control or automatic execution after each file is received. ADVANCED SETUP: 16550 TRIGGER CONTROL & I/O PRIORITY CONTROL. The Windows 3.1 comm driver supports the 16550 uart device but provides no control of the size of the fifo trigger. Microsoft sets the trigger at 14 which can be too small at the higher baud rates to prevent data overflow. Unicom allows you to set the size of this trigger to all possible settings. The I/O priority control allows you to tune Unicom to obtain the fastest possible file transfer performance from your computer. NEW SCRIPT COMMANDS These predefined variables allow a script writer to access the directory fields of the last directory entry dialed. DIRNAME, DIRPHONE, DIRDIALSTRING, DIRBAUD, DIRSCRIPT, DIRPASSWORD, DIRTERMINAL, DIRSESSIONS & DIRLASTONDATE AUTOMATIC ZMODEM RESUME FEATURE Zmodem Resume (also called Zmodem crash recovery) was a manual operation in previous Unicom releases. Now, Unicom will automatically compare the file date and size of an existing file to that of the sender. If the host file is larger and of the same date, Unicom will start the transfer at the point where the previous attempt left off. FILE MARKER SEND ALL FEATURE The ALL feature transmits all filenames from the file marker list box (space delimited) then sends a CR. This makes it easy to specify all your selected files to a remote host that prompts you for multiple files. EXTERNAL I/O DRIVER SUPPORT COMPATIBLE WITH PROCOMM DLC DRIVERS Unicom can be adapted to support special I/O hardware. By developing a Windows DLL according to Procomms DLC specification, Unicom can be adapted to any special devices. The INT-14 driver provided with Unicom illustrates this capability. POWER SCROLL FEATURE Unicom can now scroll over 10 times faster than earlier releases. Thanks to a new power scroll feature, Unicom can display incoming text to the screen at any baud rate without concern as to the performance of your video hardware. PREDEFINED MODEM SETUP STRINGS Unicom now provides custom modem setup strings for over 100 different modems from various manufacturers. A manual modem setup screen is provided for modems we do not specifically support. RUNNING ON-LINE $ CONNECTION CHARGE METER Unicom will automatically calculate and display your hourly connection charges while on-line to pay services every 2 seconds. Hourly rate information is stored in Unicoms dialing directory for each system you define. PUSH-BUTTON PHONE DIALER A new gee whiz push-button telephone dialer has been added. You can just dial the phone with your mouse or, if you prefer, manually enter the numbers from the keypad. OTHER IMPROVEMENTS User Selectable Comm Port Receive and Transmit Buffer Sizes. You may now specify the size of the interrupt receive and transmit queues utilized by the Windows communications driver. Unicoms comm port setup window provides selectable buffer sizes as follows: Unicom previously used a predefined buffer size - overriding any system.ini setting. Receive Buffer 4k, 8k, 16k, 24k Transmit Buffer 2k, 4k, 8k, 16k New ^ Character Prefix You may directly specify all 256 ASCII characters by using the ^ prefix character followed by the decimal number. For example to specify a DEL character (255) in the keyboard macro editor, just enter ^255 in the description field for the key being defined. Host Mode Improvements Access levels (1-3) have been replaced by privileges you specify in the host user setup screen. In this screen you establish privileges for each user by selecting the appropriate checkbox for the following operations: Upload File, Download File, Change Directories, Type Files, List Directories, Shell to DOS, Page Sysop, Read Messages, Write Messages, Examine the User List ist. On-line time limits and Dial back operation settings are now part of each user setup. Host mode will now detect a loss of modem carrier and terminate any active modem session. Screen Editing Time Saver You can highlight a block of text on the screen as always then copy or paste it. Now you may click the mouse on a word - Unicom will highlight the entire word. You may paste or send the highlighted text by clicking the right mouse button. A carriage return will be automatically appended to the transmitted text. MISC FEATURES AND CHANGES ~ characters may be embedded in the modem init string to add a .5 second delay. Host mode should detect DTR drop at any time during a session and then wait for another login. The Elapsed timer now keys on DTR when the port is set to a modem connection. & Packing List UNICOM 3.1 is distributed in 2 ways. Public distribution via zip files or on disk in a compressed file. Both are identical in content. Public Distribution via Electronic Services: UC31-1.zip Complete distribution w/o help UC31-2.zip UNICOM Help (UNICOM.HLP) On Disk from Data Graphics: UC31.EXE Self Extracting Archive of the Complete Distribution READ.ME Instructions for Extraction When you unpack these files, it should contain the same files as below: -------- On disk from Data Graphics ------ UNICOM.EXE - UNICOM executable program UNICOM.FON - fonts for vt100 and BBS UNICOM.SND - user changable music file UNICOM.KEY - example keyboard macro file UNICOM.CFG - example program configuration UNICOM.DIR - example dialing directory UNICOM.XLT - example translation table UNICOM.HLP - UNICOM Windows Help UNICOM.MNU - example Utility menu UC31ORDR.WRI - order form in write format UC31ORDR.TXT - order from in text format UC31READ.ME - UNICOM 3.1 release notes PLAYNOTE.SCR - Example Script Files BITBLT.SCR "" GDI.SCR "" LINES.SCR "" SETPIXEL.SCR "" MODEMREG.SCR "" COMPUSRV.SCR "" PCMAGNET.SCR "" MCI.SCR "" UNICOM.MNU "" ELLIPSE.SCR "" RBBS.SCR "" OPUS.SCR "" PCBOARD.SCR "" WILDCAT.SCR "" SRCHLITE.SCR "" REMOTACC.SCR "" UCINT14.DLC - Int 14 Support DLL UCVIEWER.EXE - Unicom 3.1 GIF Viewer MODEMS.DAT - Predefined Modem Setup File PRO2UNI.EXE - Procom 1.0 to Unicom directory converter utility. & HOW TO ORDER UNICOM TO REGISTER QUICKLY: order by phone! To get registered immediately, just call (206)432-1201 anytime between 9am and 5pm Pacific time weekdays. Have your VISA or MasterCard Ready. You will be issued a temporary registration number over the phone. BY FAX: send your completed order form to Data Graphics fax at (206)432-8673 (24hrs) BY MAIL: Enclose payment and mail to: Data Graphics P.O. Box 58517 Renton,WA 98058 U.S.A. European Distribution: You may also order the latest registered Unicom version from: CDV Software Ettlinger Strasse 5 7500 Karlsruhe 1 Germany (0721)/2 22 95 voice (0712)/2 23 14 fax & Unicom Tech Support Hotline Technical support is available for registered users only. Please call our voice support hotline from 9am-4pm weekdays Pacific time. Have your license key (found in your manual) ready when you call. Because of the great number of written inquiries we receive, we ask that you call when you need prompt support. If this is not possible, you may obtain support via email as shown below: Foreign customers may obtain support via CompuServe by sending Email to: 71631,464. Internet users may contact us at 71631.464@CompuServe.com BEFORE CALLING: 1) Please check the question and answer section of the online help (and in your manual) for answers to commonly asked questions. 2) So that we may help you more efficiently, please have the answers to the following questionaire ready when you call: TECH SUPPORT QUESTIONAIRE: What version of Unicom are you using? ____________ (examples:3.0h, 3.0c, 3.1?) (The file About Box indicates your version of Unicom) What problem or difficulty are you having with the software? Have you checked your computer for an IRQ conflict?(Y/N) ___________ Can you reproduce the problem?____________ If so, what steps did you perform? Please provide a description of your computer hardware: CPU (286,386SX,386DX,486) _________ CPU Clock Speed (MHZ) _________ MHZ Installed Memory(MB) _________ MB Video Adapter Brand Name _________ Video Resolution (640x480, 800x600...) _________ pixels Was your video driver provided by Microsoft? ______________ Number of comm ports in your computer __________ (Even if the port exists but is not attached to anything it can interfere with an internal modem or another comm port. Please check your computer to be sure) Are you using an Internal Modem? __________ & Where to Find the latest UNICOM UNICOM may be found on CompuServe in the following forums: ZENITH, WINADV, IBMCOM, MSOPSYS Browse the forum shareware or new uploads library using the keyword "UNICOM". If you do not have access to this service, Unicom may be found on the following BBS: Pacific NW IBM PC Users Group (206)728-7085 If this BBS is not in operation, please contact Data Graphics European customers: please contact CDV Software for further information at (0721)/2 22 95 & Why Register Unicom ? Unicom blows the commerical comm packages away when it comes to price, performance and features. This product would not have been possible were it not for the many thousands who registered previous versions of Unicom. By registering, you get the latest version of Unicom on disk, a 150+ page owners manual, unlimited phone tech support, free maintenance updates (posted on CompuServe) and special pricing on future releases of our software. As a customer, you have a direct role in the development of this software. If there is a feature you don't see in Unicom, you can reach me by phone and give me your suggestion directly. If the suggestion sounds like a winner , there is an excellent chance your idea will be implemented. Try doing that with the developers of a commercial software. Your support is greatly appreciated and I will continue to do my best to deliver top-notch communication software for Windows. Thank You. David Gan / Unicom Author (206)432-1201 & Updating From An Earier Release? Updating to Unicom 3.1 requires that you copy the following new files over the old installed files of the same name: UNICOM.EXE UNICOM.HLP UNICOM.CFG Update Procedure: 1) Make a backup copy of your dialing directories. 2) Copy the above files off the distribution disk into the directory containing your previous Unicom software. 3) Copy the following new files into your Unicom directory: UCINT14.DLC UCVIEWER.EXE MODEMS.DAT Copy any .SCR script file you would like. NOTE: Make sure not to start Unicom 3.1 with any UNICOM.CFG file created by any previous Unicom version. Installation of this update will require that you re-configure all your program settings. Re-check (and if necessary - re-configure) each Unicom setup screen listed in the setup menu. & Release Notes 1) The manual does not describe the Attribute Override option in the terminal setup window. When you activate the Attribute Override button from the terminal setup window, three checkboxes will be displayed with the following options. Display Bold As Normal: If checked, Unicom disables display of bold characters. Bold does not look crisp on many displays. Display Italics as Normal: Unicom translates blinking into Italics since blinking is not supported. If checked, Italics will not be displayed. Dim Background Colors If checked, the background colors will always be dimmer that the foreground colors. If unchecked, Unicom will display the background using the same colors as used for the foreground characters.