File Copy --------- Version 1.01a ½Carl J. Hafner -------------------- ALL RIGHTS RESERVED -------------------- Revised: 3/08/94 CAUTION ------- This program writes information, as specified by the user, to disk. Please be certain that you have entered all path information in accordance with the GEM/TOS file hierarchical system. If you are unsure of yourself, it is probably best to "lock", or "write-protect" any drives to which you are not currently writing. You may also wish to write to a floppy or ramdisk until you are certain of the programs implementation. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SEE: Section 26, Troubleshooting . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - DISCLAIMER ---------- The author cannot be responsible for any damage to your equipment, other software or hardware products or physical or mental well being caused by the use, misuse, abuse or inability to use this program. The author also makes no guarantee as to the compatibility of this program with other software or hardware products. Using this program means that you understand AND agree with the terms just explained. If you do not understand AND agree, DO NOT use this program. THE CONCEPT ----------- Say you are an Atari software distributor like Suzy B's Software in Niagara Falls N.Y. You have an [[[ ENORMOUS ]]] selection of titles available, but they're spread out over an equally enormous hard disk. Every time you put together a disk for someone you need to access the partition, locate the file you need and manually copy the folder/ file to the destination floppy. Quite a bit of work... Well...Michael at Suzy B's phoned me one day with just such a problem. I put on my thinking cap (as did Michael) and here's the preliminary result... TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------- 1) Loading the program 2) Quitting the program 3) Moving the panel 4) Status Display 5) Setup Name 6) Selecting a setup 7) Copy a) List copying 8) Source Directory Source Drives Destination Drives Selecting a Source Folder 9) Destination Directory a) Explanation of display b) Examples 10) Drives 11) Comments 12) Loading a Library File 13) Saving a Library File .SBL files .SBE files .CNF files 14) Display 15) Alerts 16) Expert 17) File 18) Sort 19) SET 20) Deleting entries - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 21) Sample Session 22) Distribution 23) Credits 24) UncleMouse Support Mouse snapping 25) TroubleShooting File Hierarchy Caching In General Examples 26) Suggested Setups 27) Custom Folder Names -- Version History 1) LOADING THE PROGRAM ------------------- Double-click on the program file name (or icon) to load the program. 2) QUITTING -------- Click in the box in the upper left hand corner to quit the program (just like closing a GEM window). 3) MOVING THE PANEL ---------------- The panel is moved in the same way you move a GEM window. 4) STATUS DISPLAY -------------- o This box displays operations as they are taking place. The speed at which files are copied will be slowed down by about one second per every 4 seconds of operation if the display is on (it takes time to display this information). In other words, a copy that takes 4 seconds with the display OFF will take about 5 seconds with the display ON. A copy which takes 8 seconds with the display off will take about 10 seconds with the display on. This is only an estimate. Different systems may process operations at different speeds (depending on processor, software accelerators...). o The display is turned on and off by selecting or deselecting the DISPLAY button at the bottom of the panel. 5) SETUP NAME ---------- o This is a name which should reflect, or serve to identify, the file(s) you are copying. For example, if your source and destination lines are... C:\DOUBLEIT\ M:\DOUBLEIT\ the "setup" name could be DOUBLEIT. You are free to pick ANY name which most easily helps you to identify the file(s) you wish to copy from source to destination. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SEE ALSO: Section 7a - LIST COPYING - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6) SELECTING A SETUP ----------------- o To the right of the "setup name" is a box containing various arrows pointing in different directions. These arrows are used to scroll through your .SBE library file. ARROW FUNCTION ----- -------- << - Decrements your selection by 100 entries. >> - Increments your selection by 100 entries. < - Decrements your selection by 10 entries. > - Increments your selection by 10 entries. <- - Decrements your selection by 1 entry. -> - Increments your selection by 1 entry. Clicking on ANY arrow automatically "SETS" an entry in memory. The information on the 4 lines will be assigned to the "setup number" which appeared just before you clicked on the arrow. 7) COPY ---- o This button executes the copy procedure. If a folder SOURCE _and_ DESTINATION have been specified on the appropriate lines, the program will COPY the source folder to the destination folder. - - - - - - - - - - - - SEE ALSO: List Copying - - - - - - - - - - - - a) LIST COPYING ------------ A new feature has been added in version 1.0b which will allow you to copy "setups" by merely typing in the "setup name". It is STRONGLY recommended that you come back to this feature AFTER you have learned how the program operates. o Once a list of "setups" has been "SET", "LOADed" or "SAVEd", scroll your "setup list" to an EMPTY SLOT. o Enter the name of the "setup" ( the "setup name" ) you wish to copy and click on the COPY button. DO NOT enter ANYTHING else. The program will interpret a blank source and destination line as a request to search the entire "setup file" for a match to your "setup name". o If a match has been found, the program will copy the source information assigned to the "setup name" to the destination assigned to the "setup name". If NO match has been found the copy will be aborted. EXAMPLE ------- Say one of your "setups" looks like... Setup Name: DOUBLEIT Source: C:\AUTO\OCULTAR\ Destination: I:\FOLDER\ Comments: Screen doubler program. If you scroll to a BLANK entry and enter... Setup Name: DOUBLEIT Source: Destination: Comment: and click on the COPY button, the program will search your "setup FILE" for a "setup NAME" called DOUBLEIT. If one of your "setups" IS named DOUBLEIT, the program will copy the SOURCE information assigned to that "setup name" to the DESTINATION location assigned to that "setup name". - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: You CANNOT substitute backspacing over a source and destination line with scrolling to a BLANK entry since the source and destination line will still be in memory. If you wish to use this method you must first "SET" the blank entry in memory so that that entry is deleted (in memory) from your setup file. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - IN REFERENCE: Section 5 - "Setup Name". Since NO source or destination information will be displayed, the "setup name" serves as a vital link in identifying the file(s) you are copying. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 8) SOURCE DIRECTORY ---------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: The Source and Destination lines are for copying FOLDERS _ONLY_ . You CANNOT copy a root directory listing to a folder or a folder and/or its "contents" to a root directory. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - o This line is used to specify the SOURCE FOLDER, which, along with its contents, will be copied to the destination directory. ie: If the source line reads A:\MYFOLDER\ , the program will copy the entire contents of A:\MYFOLDER\ to the folder specified on the destination line. ie: If the source line reads A:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\ , the program will copy the entire contents of \FOLDER2\ to the folder specified on the destination line. SOURCE DRIVES ------------- o To the right of the words "Source Directory" are the letters "A-P". These letters represent DRIVES A-P . Select an active SOURCE DRIVE by clicking on the appropriate letter. DESTINATION DRIVES ------------------ o To the right of the words "Destination Directory" are the letters "A-P". Select an active DESTINATION DRIVE by clicking on the appropriate letter. SELECTING A SOURCE FOLDER ------------------------- o Click on the WORDS "Source Directory". A fileselector will open to the specified SOURCE DRIVE. OPEN the folder you wish to copy and click on the OKAY button in the fileselector. DO NOT select a file. The line should look something like... A:\MYFOLDER\ This means that you will be copying the folder "MYFOLDER" to the location specified on the destination line. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: If the destination line is blank or has not yet been "set", the program will automatically pass the name of the source folder to the destination LINE (substituting the destination drive letter for the source drive letter). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - o The SOURCE line may also be entered manually. In either case, the SOURCE line _MUST_ contain the name of an EXISTING folder. ------------------------------------------------------ o SEE ALSO: Section 26 - Troubleshooting: File Hierarchy ------------------------------------------------------ 9) DESTINATION DIRECTORY --------------------- This line works just like the source line. It may be set with a fileselector or the information may be entered manually. To set with a fileselector, click on the WORDS "Destination Directory". o The DESTINATION line is used to specify the location to which the contents of the SOURCE line will be copied. It should look something like... B:\MYFOLDER\ o The DESTINATION line _MUST_ contain the name of a FOLDER. o If you are copying into a DESTINATION directory which is MORE than 2 folders deep, ie: B:\FOLDER\FOLDER2\FOLDER3\ the first 2 folders, \FOLDER\ and \FOLDER2\ _MUST_ exist ! a) EXPLANATION OF DISPLAY ---------------------- Entering folders to copy may seem confusing because of the way the interface displays information. It works in the SAME way as a GEM window with the exception of the file names. The program doesn't have the space to display ALL file names. The easiest way to think of it would be to picture the SOURCE and DESTINATION lines as the information which appears in the "title bar" of a GEM window. If the SOURCE line reads A:\MYFOLDER\ , the GEM window equivalent would be... ----------------------------- | |== A:\MYFOLDER\*.* ==== | <- "title-bar" of GEM window. ----------------------------- | FILENAME.DAT |___| | YOURFILE.INF |///| | CONTROL .ACC |///| | DESKTOP .INF |///| | EMULATOR.ACC |///| | FILECOPY.PRG |///| ----------------------------- |///////////////////////| | ----------------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: DO NOT add the string "*.*" to the source OR destination line as the program does this automatically. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - b) EXAMPLES -------- SOURCE: A:\MYFOLDER\ DEST: B:\MYFOLDER\ The program copies the entire contents of A:\MYFOLDER\ to the folder B:\MYFOLDER\ . If the folder B:\MYFOLDER\ does NOT exist, the program will create it. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SOURCE: A:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\ DEST: B:\PROGRAMM\ The program copies the entire CONTENTS of \FOLDER2\ to the folder B:\PROGRAMM\ . If the folder \PROGRAMM\ does not exist, the program will create it. The folder \FOLDER2\ will NOT be created on drive B . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SOURCE: A:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\ DEST: B:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\ The program checks to see if the folder B:\FOLDER1\ exists. If it DOES NOT, the program will create it. If it DOES exist, the program will check to see of the folder \FOLDER2\ exists within \FOLDER1\ on drive B . If it does NOT, the program will create it. If both folders on drive B exist or have been created by the program, the program will proceed to copy the contents of the SOURCE folder, \FOLDER2\ , to the DESTINATION folder, \FOLDER2\ . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SOURCE: A:\UTILITY\ DEST: B:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\FOLDER3\ Since this line is more than 2 folders deep, the program will check to see if the folders \FOLDER1\ and \FOLDER2\ exist on drive B. If they DO NOT exist, the procedure will be aborted. If they DO exist, the program will check to see if a folder named \FOLDER3\ exists within the 2 folders preceding it on drive B . If it does NOT exist, the program will create it. The program will then copy the contents of the SOURCE folder to the destination folder. ------------------------------------------------------ o SEE ALSO: Section 26 - Troubleshooting: File Hierarchy ------------------------------------------------------ 10) DRIVES ------ o The DRIVE buttons are ONLY for setting fileselector paths. The actual PATHS of the folders are taken from the Source and Directory lines. Therefore, if the Source line reads G:\MYFOLDER\ and drive A is selected, the program will look in drive G for "MYFOLDER". 11) COMMENTS -------- o On this line you may enter any comments which may help you in properly identifying a file. For example, if a program name has changed, you could enter a comment like ProFile! used to be UncleLib . 12) LOADING A LIBRARY FILE ---------------------- o This button loads .SBL and/or .SBE "folder copy" setup files. The fileselector will open to the DRIVE in which FileCopy is contained (and NOT the source or destination drive). .SBL ---- If you load an .SBL file, ALL entries will be cleared and the setup contained in your .SBL file will be assigned to setup #1. .SBE ---- If you load an .SBE file, ALL entries will be replaced by the contents of the .SBE file. SORTING ------- An alert will appear BEFORE the display asking if you would like your library sorted (alphabetically). If you select YES, the .SBE file, when loaded, will be loaded in its sorted order. This can be VERY helpful (almost indispensible) in locating files. I highly recommend (in the interest of expedience) that you select YES. Your library will then be displayed in alphabetical order. They will be sorted by "SETUP NAME". When you SAVE your setup file, it will be saved in its sorted order. 13) SAVING A LIBRARY FILE --------------------- When you select the SAVE button an alert will appear. You will have the choice of either saving an .SB? library file or the programs .CNF configuration file. Selecting CANCEL in the fileselector also aborts the procedure. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - CAUTION: The fileselector will remember the name of the last loaded or saved file. If you load an .SBL file and decide to save an .SBE file, the .SBL files name will appear in the fileselector, (and vice-versa). Be certain to select the proper file format. To keep the file as small as possible, FileCopy will stop saving "setups" when a blank entry is detected (why save 900 place holders ? ). If you enter "setups" 1,2,3,5,6,7 (leaving setup 4 empty) the program will only save setups 1,2 and 3. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - .SBL FILES ---------- o This button saves 1 (ONE) .SBL "folder copy" setup. This type of file is used if you wish to catalog your library using individual files for each catalog entry. The name of the file should be something which reflects the contents of the folder. The file format is as follows... SBL1 <-identifies the file as belonging to this program. SetUp Name <- The name of the setup. A:\MYFOLDER\ <- The source folder to copy to... B:\MYFOLDER\ <- the destination. Comments <- Your comments. The file is in plain ASCII and can be edited with any word processor capable of saving in ASCII format. The file MUST follow this format (backslashes included) for the program to work properly. .SBE FILES ---------- o This button allows you to SAVE all "SET" folder copy setups. In other words, this file contains up to 1000 "folder copy" setups. This is a "formatted" file and should NOT be edited with any program other than FileCopy . o A good way to distinguish this file from the .SBL file would be to remember that the E in .SBE denotes SB-Extended library. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SEE ALSO: Section 19 - SET - - - - - - - - - - - - - - .CNF FILES ---------- o This file saves your DISPLAY, ALERTS and EXPERT "on or off" options (so you needn't reset them every time you use the program). The file FILECOPY.CNF _must_ be in the SAME directory as the program if you wish this file loaded when the program runs. 14) DISPLAY ------- o When selected, the STATUS DISPLAY box on the top of the panel displays operations. 15) ALERTS ------ o When selected, warning alerts appear asking for confirmation of your intentions. These alerts also warn you if you are about to overwrite a folder. They also tell you what type of error may have occurred if the error is not a serious one. Serious error alerts always appear. You should DEFINITELY leave this on until you are familiar with the program ! 16) EXPERT ------ o When selected, any .SBL file which is loaded is automatically executed. After the copy is complete a fileselector will appear from which you may select the next .SBL file to load and execute. Select the CANCEL button in the fileselector to cancel operations. EXAMPLE: Say you have a file named DOUBLEIT.SBL whose contents are SBL1 DOUBLEIT A:\DOUBLEIT\ B:\DOUBLEIT\ Comment When EXPERT is selected, and the file DOUBLEIT.SBL is loaded, the program automatically reads the file and copies the folder A:\DOUBLEIT\ to B:\DOUBLEIT\ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: The program will NOT pause or stop in EXPERT mode unless the CANCEL button is selected in the fileselector OR the ALERTS option is ON and a response is required. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - o You may NOT wish to use this option until you are certain (an expert) as to how the program works (and of what you are doing). 17) FILE ---- o This button calls up a "File Options" panel containing the following options... *Copy File --------- This option allows you to copy files of any size from any source to any destination. *Delete File ----------- This option allows you to delete files. *Rename File ----------- This option allows you to rename files. *Disk Space ---------- This option calls up a fileselector. Select a drive and click on the OKAY button in the fileselector. The program will then tell you how much free space remains on that disk/drive. *Create Folder ------------- This option allows for the creation of new folders. *Delete Folder ------------- This option allows for the deletion of EMPTY folders. *Rename Folders -------------- This option allows machines with TOS 1.4 or newer, to rename folders. *Menu Bar -------- This option allows access to the GEM "desk" menu. 18) SORT ---- o This option allows sorting of library files AFTER they have been loaded or set. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - IMPORTANT - To sort a library file you MUST FIRST scroll your library ONE slot PAST the section you wish sorted ! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If your library has 10 entries, and you wish only to sort the first 5 entries, scroll your library to entry SIX. THEN select sort. If you wish to sort all 10, scroll your library to entry ELEVEN (and select sort). PLEASE NOTE that the program will also sort blank spaces if you ask it to do so. The priority of sorting starts with blank spaces. It then goes to special characters (periods, commas) and THEN to letters. If you have only 5 entries, back-scroll to setup 1000 and then select sort, the program will place 995 blank entries in front of your setups. 19) SET --- o After you have entered all of the necessary information, click on the SET button (or on an arrow button). o The SET button saves the information on the lines to the "selected setup" number (the one between the arrows). 20) DELETING ENTRIES ---------------- o To delete an entry, backspace over BOTH the SOURCE and DESTINATION lines and select the SET button. o An alert will appear from which you may delete the current setup (all files will jump down by one position) or clear ALL setups. | - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - | 21) SAMPLE SESSION -------------- Like so many things, you'll need to create the information you need before you can use it. This, undoubtedly, will be most work you will need to do. Once your library is catalogued you need merely access the appropriate file and let FILE COPY do the rest... Since this program was conceived by Michael at Suzy B's, we'll proceed from the assumption that you are a software distributor (or users group librarian or similar) and need to occasionally copy files from a static location (no pun intended) to a floppy disk. o First you'll need to create your library files... EXAMPLE ------- o Someone orders the file GRAMPA from you. The folder/file containing the "GRAMPA" files is contained on drive G in the folder GRAMPA . The SETUP NAME could then be... GRAMPA The SOURCE line would then be... G:\GRAMPA\ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - BE CERTAIN to include ALL backslashes as this is how the program knows it's a folder. If you don't include the backslash on the right, your operating system will look for a FILE named GRAMPA . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - o You wish to copy the folder GRAMPA to a floppy disk in drive A . The destination line would then read... A:\GRAMPA\ o Optionally add the comment... Adventure 1 - A Journey in the Past o Click on the SET button to assign this "setup" to the current "setup number" (the one between the arrows). Your "setup" would then look like... Setup Name: GRAMPA Source: G:\GRAMPA\ Dest: A:\GRAMPA\ Comments: Adventure 1 - A Journey in the Past. o If you are creating an .SBE library file (a file containing up to 1000 setups), you may repeat these steps for each additional "setup". To move to the next setup you need merely click on the "->" (up one) arrow. o Lastly, click on the SAVE button. o An alert will appear from which you may select the type of file to save. SAVING AN .SBL FILE ------------------- If you select .SBL , only the FIRST setup will be saved (regardless of what "setup number" you are on). Enter the name GRAMPA.SBL in the fileselector and click on OKAY to SAVE this library file. The file will then look like... SBL1 GRAMPA <- the SETUP name. G:\GRAMPA\ <- the SOURCE location of the "GRAMPA" files. A:\GRAMPA\ <- the DESTINATION to which the files found in the source location will be copied. Adventure 1 - A Journey in the Past <- your comments. SAVING AN .SBE FILE ------------------- If you select .SBE , ALL setups which have been SET will be saved. Enter the name LIB_A_G.SBE in the fileselector and click on OKAY to SAVE this library file. NOTE: You can name it whatever you like, this example merely denotes Library files A-G. o Repeat this procedure to catalog the rest of your files. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Once your library has been created you can implement it as follows. o Select the LOAD button and load GRAMPA.SBL . GRAMPA will appear on the SETUP NAME line... G:\GRAMPA\ will appear on the source line... A:\GRAMPA\ will appear on the destination line and... Adventure 1 - A Journey in the Past will appear on the comment line. o Click on the COPY button. The program will then go to drive G (in this example) and copy the folder... G:\GRAMPA\ to the floppy, designated as... A:\GRAMPA\ o That's all there is to it ! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: You can change any of the paths on either line at any time if that information has changed since last you saved the .SB? file. Remember, the program gets its information from the the SOURCE and DESTINATION lines. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 22) DISTRIBUTION ------------ You are free to copy and distribute this program as long as the files... FILECOPY.PRG \ FILECOPY.TXT \ FILECOPY.CUR \ EXAMPLE.SBE \ INSTGRAT.TXT \ OTHERTTL.LZH are included, are NOT modified in ANY way and NO FEE of ANY type is incurred upon the recipient for the files _themselves_. This program is Freeware...NOT public domain ! This means that you are free to use it without obligation, but it STILL remains the property of the author. 23) CREDITS ------- FileCopy conceived by Michael R. Burkley Thanks again to Larry D. Duke for his invaluable assistance in overcoming many of GFAs mysteries ! NeoDesk & Active Icons are registered trademarks of Gribnif Software. UncleMouse, ProFile!, UncleLib ½ Carl J. Hafner. GEM is a registered trademark of Digital Research. 24) UNCLEMOUSE ---------- FileCopy also supports the UncleMouse .CURsor file format. Custom mouse cursors placed in the SAME directory as FileCopy will be automatically loaded when the program runs. MOUSE SNAPPING -------------- This feature snaps the mouse cursor back to a button from which a function was selected. This feature defaults to ON every time the program is loaded. You can turn it off temporarily by holding down the key and clicking on the "title bar". I kind of like it on and so have not yet added a permanent off option. If it really bugs you (and you hate turning it off every time you run the program) you can do the following... Include a floppy disk and a self addressed STAMPED envelope with your donation. If you want it to default to OFF, let me know. I'll mail you back a copy with it off. 25) TROUBLESHOOTING --------------- FileCopy uses a MALLOC command to allocate memory for file copies. If you have TOS 1.4 or 1.6 you may run into the TOS "malloc bug" (or you may not). If you don't already have POOLFIXn.PRG from Atari and find the program crashes alot, you probably need this patch. I have also heard that some cache programs conflict with some versions of POOLFIX . Try disabling disk caching. FILE HIERARCHY -------------- The best way to think of it is...you have a drive. A drive has files and folders. You can put files in folders. You CAN'T put folders in files. This may sound overly simple, but it IS important when entering SOURCE and DESTINATION information. A line MUST be entered using the GEM/TOS method of file hierarchy ! A drive MUST be specified as A:\ . Just like in the fileselector. You MUST NOT enter a drive as either "A" , "A:" , "A\" or any other variation. The letter "A" tells your system to use drive A . The characters ":\" tell your system to look in the "root directory". To find a file or folder you must FIRST start at the root directory. If you wish to locate a folder in the root directory, you must first tell your system to look in the root directory FOR it. Folder names MUST end with a backslash "\" or your system will assume it's a file. Say we wish to find, or open... A:\FOLDER1\ . First you tell your system to go to the root directory ":\" of drive "A" , A:\ . Then you tell it there is a folder named FOLDER1 in the root directory of drive A , A:\FOLDER1\ . The last backslash tells your system that FOLDER1 is a folder. Now this may seem obvious, but it IS the way your system locates folders and files. By entering information on the source and destination lines, you are, in effect, telling your system how to find a folder or file. Think of it as giving directions to your house. If you make even 1 mistake, your house may not be found. The same is true for your operating system. ie: A:\FOLDER1\FOLDER2\FOLDER3\ tells your system that there is a folder in the root directory of drive A named FOLDER1 . Within FOLDER1 is another folder named FOLDER2 . Within FOLDER2 is a folder named FOLDER3 . ie: A::\FOLDER1\ tells your system to look in a non-existent location, :: , for FOLDER1 . The program will either a) not be able to find the folder or b) MAY find it, but may create a copy which cannot be interpreted or located later by the operating system (since the operating system doesn't use "::" in its filing system). If this type of error persists, you may render a disk/drive unreadable. ULTRA IMPORTANT --------------- Information MUST ALWAYS be entered in a way which is consistent with the operating systems file management methods. By writing erroneous information to disk, you are, in effect, corrupting your own disk/drive. Although problems may not appear right away, continued input of erroneous information WILL create problems. The best way to avoid accidental errors is to have the fileselector choose the source and destination lines. This doesn't mean you can't enter it manually, it just means that the chances of an error are greater when entered manually. CACHING ------- If you are using any kind of "disk caching", erroneously entered information MAY conflict with the operating systems file structure. ie: A::\FOLDER1\ If your system takes this erroneous information from cache and tries to write it to disk (from the cache memory), you will probably create a useless folder. The information WILL appear on disk, but won't necessarily be accessible. After a while, your operating system may become SO confused that it won't be able to find ANYTHING. In such a case you would probably need to zero and/or reformat the corrupted disk/drive. IN GENERAL ---------- 1) DO NOT use the character : ANYWHERE other than after the drive letter, A:\ . 2) NEVER use more than one colon : in a directory path. 3) NEVER use two or more backslashes in a row, ie: \\ . 3) ALL folders MUST be preceded by a backslash \ , and MUST end in a backslash, \FOLDER\ . 4) If a folder name is NOT followed by a backslash, \ , the program will think it's a file. 5) NEVER copy folders/files to your boot disk unless you are ABSOLUTELY certain that you have entered the information correctly. The boot disk/drive is the biggest pain to restore. 6) NEVER copy folders/files to ANY drive which contains important data unless you are CERTAIN that you have entered your information correctly. 7) ALWAYS HAVE BACKUPS ! If you haven't backed up your hard disk lately then NOW would be an EXCELLENT time (whether you use this program or not). SCARED YET..? ------------- The program, as mentioned, DOES check for the most common errors. It has NEVER been known to cause ANY problems when used as described. Since I cannot anticipate EVERY possible use, I thought I'd just "remind" you of what you are doing. EXAMPLES -------- A:\FOLDER\ <-Correct path and folder identification. A::\FOLDER <-Incorrect path and folder identification. A:\\FOLDER\ <-Incorrect path information. A:\FOLDER\: <-Incorrect path information. A:FOLDER\ <-Incorrect path and folder identification. A\FOLDER\ <-Incorrect path information. A:\FOLDER <-Incorrect FOLDER identification. Correct FILE id. 26) SUGGESTED SETUPS ---------------- You ARE free, of course, to store your library files in any way that fits. Since, however, your library may be quite extensive, you may wish to keep files starting with the same letter in seperate folders. EXAMPLE ------- C:\FILES_A\ AUTOBOOT.SBL ACCESORY.SBL \FILES_B\ BONZAI .SBL BURBANK .SBL While individual files DO take up more visual space, they are currently easier to access, edit and delete if necessary. If you opt for the .SBE file format, you may wish to use a similar setup to allow for future expansion of the file. Remember, the .SBE file currently only supports 1000 setups per file. You may therefore wish to create category files such as... LIB_A_G.SBE or LIB_H_M.SBE . 27) CREATING CUSTOM FOLDER NAMES ---------------------------- While it IS possible to enter custom characters as folder names, it is NOT recommended. I have never heard of any trouble arising from such an implementation, but it is NOT what Atari has deemed their "standard". The following characters... ! @ # $ % ^ & ( ) - + = ~ ` [ ] ; " ' < , > | may be used in conjunction with the "valid" TOS characters when creating a folder name. FileCopy will alert you when one of these characters has been detected and will allow you to abort if you so desire. -- VERSION HISTORY --------------- 1.01a Marks Freeware release of FileCopy. 1.01 Fixed a minor bug which would cause the "up 100" button arrows to disappear (it still worked, you just couldn't see the arrows). Added file and sort options. 1.0c Fixes oversight which wouldn't allow you to cancel out of EXPERT mode (oops ;-). Fileselectors now memorize SOURCE and DESTINATION paths. Clicking on an arrow automatically "SETS" an entry in memory. Removed default button; hitting the key now does nothing. If you use Gribnif Softwares FormDoIt! , hitting the key will move the cursor to the next editable text field. Tried to make this text file less confusing ;-) 1.0b Allows "setups" to be copied by "setup name" only. 1.0a Now creates FIRST folder on line (as well as the last). Source and Destination now selected by clicking on the appropriate titles (not the line). 1.0 Original version.