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                  Copyright (c) 1994-1996 By Lee Braiden                                                                







License
*******


   By keeping and using this software, you are implicitly agreeing to a
contract which is discribed below.  There are actually two
descriptions, one of which applies to the EVALUATION package for
ASCIIArt, and the other, which applies to the full, registered version.



EVALUATION PACKAGE


   The Evaluation package may be freely copied and distributed, on
freely available media, and as part of software compilations, such as
PD/Shareware CDs, and as magazine "Coverdisks" or "CoverCDs".  The only
restriction is that all files must be included, no modifications are
made to those files, and any additional files included (for example,
extra readme files or installation files provided to ease use or
installation of the packages in a compilation) must be clearly marked
as additional files, preferably by putting them in a separate parent-
or sub-directory.



REGISTERED PACKAGE


   The Registered package may NOT be distributed under any
circumstances, except under the authority of a contract signed by both
the user and the author.

   You may make as many copies as you want to for backup purposes, and
install the software on different machines at once, under the condition
that only one copy is used at a time for every copy purchased.


Disclaimer
**********

    While every effort has been made to ensure that ASCIIArt is a powerful,
reliable, and easy-to-use program, the idea of a program without errors is
almost a fairy-tale.  For this reason, ASCIIArt is provided "as-is", with
no warranty, or suggestion of fitness for any use, either explicit, or
implicit.

    However, if you DO find any errors (also known as "bugs"), please report
them to the author, via one of the contact methods mentioned below, and I will
will do my utmost to correct them as soon as possible.


Introduction
************

    Although computers have become very powerful graphics tools over the last
few years, there are many situations where graphics are not available,
especially on the IBM-PC/Compatibles under DOS.  Another area where graphics
are very limited is telecommunications, where, for example, Bulletin Board
Systems are almost universally text-based.

    The solution is to arrange characters of text so that the form a picture,
but this has been very complicated in the past, even with the advent of
specialist programs to help with drawing using text characters.

    ASCIIArt is here to change that.  Now, you can draw pictures with your
favourite graphics program, with all it's facilities for special effects etc.,
save it as a GIF file, and run ASCIIArt to convert it into text !!


Overview
********

    ASCIIArt takes a GIF image which you supply, and convert it into a text
representation of that image.  The text file created will use the best possible
combination of characters in the IBM-PC character set to give an accurate
representation of the GIF image.  Better yet, it's fully automagic - you don't
even need to know what characters are in the PC character set !


Installation
************

    Installation is quite simple, but you may need to consult your DOS manuals
if you are unfamiliar with DOS.  You should also have an unzipping program,
such as PKZIP or Unzip.  Here's what you'll need to do:

    *   Create a directory on your C: drive called ASCIIArt

    *   Unzip the archive file (called ASCIIAxx.ZIP, where XX is the
        version number) into the C:\ASCIIArt directory you created.

    *   CD to this directory, and run INSTALL - that will add the
        directory to your path by modifying AUTOEXEC.BAT.  If that
        doesn't work, you'll need to do it manually.  See your DOS
        manual for details of adding directories to the PATH.

That's it !!  Reboot your computer once you've made these changes, and
ASCIIArt will be fully operational.


Usage
*****

    To use ASCIIArt, you just need to create your GIF Image, decide what you
want the text output file to be called, and run ASCIIArt with those two
filenames as arguments.

For example, if you have a GIF file called LOGO.GIF, and you want to convert it
to a text file called LOGO.TXT, just type :

    ASCIIArt LOGO.GIF LOGO.TXT

You can either CD (see your DOS manual for info on CD) to the directory with
the GIF file in it to do this, or supply a full path and filename to the
program, like:

    ASCIIArt C:\IMAGES\LOGO.GIF C:\TEXTIMGS\LOGO.TXT


Display
*******

    During conversion, you will see three panels in the center of the screen,
as well as the title and status bars, which are at the top and bottom of the
screen, respectively.  They are detailed below.


        --------------------------------------------------
        |                    Title bar                   |
        |     Title bar - shareware message/User's name  |
        |------------------------------------------------|
        |                                                |
        |                                                |
        |     ---------       ---------      ---------   |
        |     |  P    |       | P     |      | P     |   |
        |     |  A    |       | A     |      | A     |   |
        |     |  N  1 |       | N   2 |      | N   3 |   |
        |     |  E    |       | E     |      | E     |   |
        |     |  L    |       | L     |      | L     |   |
        |     ---------       ---------      ---------   |
        |                                                |
        |------------------------------------------------|
        |              Status bar - Operation            |
        |      Status bar - Sub-operation/progress-bar   |
        --------------------------------------------------


Title bar
---------
    
    Displays the program's title, and who it is registered to.


Status bar
----------

    Displays information about what the program is currently doing, and
sometimes (depending on the operation), a "progress bar", which will give you
a graphical indication of how much of the operation is completed, and how much
is left to do.  The progress bar is initially blank, and fills from left to
right to indicate the amount completed.  For example, when an task is half-way
through, the progress bar will be half-filled, on the left side, and blank on
the right side.  Note that the progress bar will only appear for certain
operations, as it is not always possible to estimate how long a certain
operation will take.


Panel 1
-------

    This shows the current part of the source image which is being converted.


Panel 2
-------

    This shows the current character which is being compared to the source
area in the source image.  Only the best match found so far is shown, so there
will appear to be delays, when the image doesn't change.  Actually, this is not
a delay, but an optimization - when nothing is being shown on-screen, it means
that ASCIIArt is doing it's work very quickly, and isn't checking every possible
character.


Panel 3
-------

    The last panel shows the current accuracy of the character being checked for
a match with the source image.  Matched areas of foreground are shown with
plus-signs ('+'), matched background areas are shown with minus-signs ('-'),
and errors are shown with ('-').  You will notice less errors in this panel as
ASCIIArt finds new matches for each character.  If you can see anything
(ASCIIArt is FAST !!!), you'll be able to tell how well the conversion is going
by looking for these symbols in Panel 3.


Limitations
***********

 OK, let's get the limitations out of the way now...

 *   Requires a IBM-PC or 100% Compatible with at least a 386 processor. Also
     works on 486s and Pentiums, of course.  This is because the program is
     a full 32-bit system - I feel that since most people have at least a 386
     now, it is in their interest to use the full power of their computers,
     rather than limiting the program to remain compatible with the few users
     who probably haven't upgraded because they only use a few specific
     programs.


 *   GIF files must be 256 colors, with only two colors used, since ASCIIArt
     currently ignores color.  To do this, use your graphics program, like
     Paint Shop Pro, or DPaint, etc., to convert the image to 2 colors, then
     convert it back to 256, so that only black and white will be used.

     A file called TEMPLATE.GIF has been provided which has the correct color
     settings for ASCIIArt, and is the correct size to produce pictures for
     a 80 column by 25 line display.  To use this file as a template for
     drawings, simply load it up, draw your picture using to white in the
     picture's palette, and save it as whatever you want the file to be
     called.  There is also a file called TEMPLATE.PAL which is a palette
     file suitable for Paint Shop Pro, which contains the same color settings
     as TEMPLATE.GIF.


 *   The background color must be color 0 in the image's palette.  Any other
     color numbers will be treated as the foreground color.


Advantages
**********

 Here's the good stuff...

 *   DOS-based, for maximum performance. (Also Windows "DOS-Box" compatible).


 *   Full 32-bit DPMI program, also for best performance.


 *   Highly optimized, for best efficiency.


 *   Virtual memory support, (initially configured to store temporary files
     on drive C:), so you'll never need to worry about memory as long as
     you've got some hard disk space.  Also uses all real memory available
     through the 32-bit DPMI system.  You can even run ASCIIArt off floppies
     if you want !!


 *   Maths co-processor emulation, so it will work on every machine with
     any 386 or better.



Ordering
********

    If you like this program, and want to keep using it after the 14-day
    evaluation period, you must purchase the full program.  There are many
    advantages to this, including:
    
    *   Free technical support Internet.

    *   Direct FTP site and Web Pages coming soon.

    *   Free upgrades to new ANY version of ASCIIArt - color support is in
        development NOW.  This will use the full ANSI color system to create
        color ASCII artwork.  Full Artificial Intelligence will be used
        in future versions too - this will result in an much more exact
        representation of the original image.

        (New versions will not be available to unregistered users for a long
        time after completion - but registered users will get it FREE straight
        away).

    *   Free technical support via regular mail.



    The registered package costs just 7 U.K. pounds.  You can order by
    completing the form below, and sending it along with a cheque made
    payable to Lee Braiden to:


            Lee Braiden,
            11 Poseyhill Road,
            Doagh,
            Co. Antrim,
            N. Ireland.


    This address may change within a month or two, (the time of writing is
    Feb. 1996) so you might be best to check with me first, via EMail (which
    will NOT change) - send an EMail with the Subject line "ASCIIArt" and the
    message body "request info" to:


            EMail:  Support@Celestia.dnet.co.uk


    All other EMail can be sent to this address also - just remember to
    use the subject line "ASCIIArt".

    Please note that it is not viable for me to provide technical support
    to unregistered users, although in a case where you cannot get the
    program working to evaluate it, technical support will be provided via
    EMail as detailed above.



    Order form follows.  Pages are formatted for 80 columns, 66 lines per
    page.  Some editing may be required for other page sizes. Each page
    begins with a three-line header, and ends with a three-line footer.
    Note that if you don't have a printer, the equivalent information will
    be accepted in written form.  Just make sure you use BLOCK CAPITOLS,
    so that I can read it.


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                            ASCIIArt registration
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                                                       version 1.1




        Please use BLOCK CAPITOLS for all entries.  And Ignore any
        entries which do not apply.


      
          Please send me the lastest version of "ASCIIArt" for the
          IBM-PC.  I enclose a cheque for the sum of 7 U.K. pounds
          (Sterling).  I understand that this purchase entitles me
          to free upgrades to new versions, and technical support
          via Internet or regular mail.
      

      
          Surname         :_______________________________________
      
          Forename        :_______________________________________
      
      

          Company         :_______________________________________
      
          Position        :_______________________________________
      
      
          Street          :_______________________________________
      
          Town            :_______________________________________
      
          County/State    :_______________________________________
      
          ZIP/Postal Code :_______________________________________
      
      
          Telephone Number:_______________________________________
      
          FAX Number      :_______________________________________
      
          EMail Address   :_______________________________________
      


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                            ASCIIArt registration
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                                                       version 1.1




        Please use BLOCK CAPITOLS for all entries.  And Ignore any
        entries which do not apply.


      
          Computer Manufacturer/Make/Model
      
          (Please include as much detail as possible - This will
          help with providing technical support, as well as giving
          us details on our users' needs)
      
          ________________________________________________________
      
          ________________________________________________________
          
          ________________________________________________________
      
      
          Where did you hear about and/or get ASCIIArt ?
      
          ________________________________________________________
          
          ________________________________________________________
      
      
          What do you intend to use ASCIIArt for ?
      
          ________________________________________________________
          
          ________________________________________________________
      
      
          Signature

      
          ________________________________________________________
      

        
        Please feel free to attach any comments or extra details
        which might be helpful.  Please also remember to fill out 
        at least your name/address fields, and enclose the cheque
        for 7 U.K. pounds (Sterling), made payable to Lee Braiden,
        as it is not viable for us to enter into correspondance
        with unregistered users.


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