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                    |____/|_|\__,_|\__, |\___|_|  v0.64
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      This document is best viewed with 77 columes (ie Zap's default)

** What is it?
   ~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Slayer is a desktop virus killer, for use on all RISC OS 3/4 machines.
   
   Currently this help is very brief; as we both hate writing documentation
   and prefer to spend time coding.
   
   Slayer should be fairly easy to use, as Rob is a perfectionist, and does
   insist on all the windows being designed well, interactive help being
   clear and not opaque etc.
   
   If you wish to write a printed/text/StrongHelp manual for Slayer, please
   mail as at the address at the bottom of this file.
   
** Slayer's first days
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Some time ago (1995, I think), Rob suggested we write a virus killer.  
   Luke laughed.  It had, however, been raining for months, and having run
   out of other things to do, we started.  The very first version was a 
   command line program that did very little - not even scan for viruses.
   
   It was shelved, and about a year later, after Luke had become nearly
   competent at programming the WIMP, we started a new multi-tasking one.
   It scanned only the root directory of ADFS drives for one virus.
   Oh dear.
   
   After realizing how fantastically easy it was to do recursive directory
   code (we forgot that BASIC routines can call themselves) we got it to
   scan the entire directory.
   
   After two years of pretty much all our spare time going into Slayer (we
   both go to school/college) this is the result, it seems to work quite
   well, and is becoming usable.
   
   It still needs some work, bug-testing (mainly coordinated by Rob) and
   more viruses added.  If you have any samples of viruses, please send us
   samples, and you will be credited!
   
** How it works
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Slayer works by checking for virus 'signatures' within files, these are
   (hopefully) unique in value and position to a virus, and shouldn't often
   (if at all) occur in non-virus files.  Virus checking is now carried out
   by a small chunk of assembler, and is far quicker than the old BASIC one.
   
   Further details on the VDEngine can be found on the KiwiSoft website.
   At some point new versions of the VDEngine itself will be available from
   this site, allowing you to update Slayer by downloading only a few k.
   
   Slayer can also attempt to heuristically scan !Boot files, but is fairly
   paranoid so the only action taken is to warn the user in the log.
   
   If you wish you can setup fingerprint files.  Slayer will CRC check files
   of certain types, mainly those attacked by viruses, and record their
   values.  This allows you to easily check to see if any files have been
   altered.  This is usually quicker than a full scan.
   
   There is also a comprehensive scripting language which allows you to set
   up scripts to make Slayer automatically perform certain actions.  Details
   of the scripting language should be in a reference file in the script
   directory supplied with this release.
   
   It should automatically detect all FileCore filing systems, for example
   ADFS, RAMFS and IDEFS, as well as CDFS, Memphis, ArcFS, raFS, DoomFS,
   ResourceFS and SparkFS.
   
   Currently other filing systems are not added to the drives menu, although
   they can still be scanned using the 'Scan Path' feature.
   
   If anybody has a filing system which they feel Slayer should be able to
   scan and can't, then please send us details of it.
   
** Compatibility
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Slayer does not work on pre RISC OS 3 machines.  Support for RISC OS 2 is
   a theoretical possiblility, but we would need to re-write several major
   chunks of code.  This will only happen if there is a /lot/ of demand,
   which is unlikely.
   
   Other than that, it appears to work on pretty much any RISC OS machine,
   including StrongARM RiscPCs.
   
   Slayer currently uses 26 bit assembler, and as such is not compatible
   with the pure 32 bit architecture processors such as the ARM10, however
   neither is RISC OS without a major re-write.  Support for 32 bit only
   architecture is being looked into.
   
   For details of filing systems that Slayer has been tested on, please
   refer to the 'FSes' file including in this release.
   
   It can also automatically scan archives which can be read by ArcFS or
   SparkFS, image files for X-Files and PC partitions should you choose to
   tell it to.  The option 'Scan All Images' will scan any file which 
   reports itself to be an image file.
   Slayer can also automatically mount and scan raFS discs should you wish
   it to.
   
   The line in the options file called 'Scan' also contains a list of comma
   separated filetypes.  Slayer will treat any filetypes in this list as an
   image file, and attempt to resurse into them; this will result in
   (hopefully trapped) errors if the relevant image filing system isn't
   loaded.  You can also modify this list from the 'Advanced' section of
   'Scanning'.
   
   Hopefully included with this is the add list (called !ToDo).  This details
   what features we hope to add, with the stars giving a rough approximation
   of how important we view them.
   
** Credits
   ~~~~~~~
   
   This program has been written and designed by Luke Graham and Rob Kendrick
   of KiwiSoft.  Additional help/beta testing/virus samples from:
   
    Paul Vigay; virus samples
    Theo Markettos; general help
    Richard Murray; virus samples
    Pineapple Software; virus samples
    Alisdair McDiarmid; putting up with Rob's constant banter
    Justin Fletcher; DispLib the display manager, and various suggestions
    Thomas Olsson; SlotMachine memory manager    
    Marc Warne; virus samples
    Jonathan Brady; virus samples
    Jon Ripley; bug reports and testing.
    Cam Gregory; loadsa bugs'n'comments

** Bugs
   ~~~~
   
   If you find what you believe to be a bug, please contact us at the
   address below.  We will try to fix it as soon as possible.
   
** Virus Coverage
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Slayer detects every virus strain that KiwiSoft has seen in nearly four
   years of development at several schools and colleges in Hampshire, UK,
   and even some we hadn't seen, of which samples of them were sent to us.
   If however, you have found a virus that Slayer doesn't know about, or is
   a new strain, please email it us.  Also, if Slayer incorrectly identifies
   a file as a virus, please email that file to us too.
   
   For information on which viruses Slayer detects and removes, please
   refer to the 'Viruses' file included with this release.
   
** Contributing to the Slayer effort
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Several people have helped in developing Slayer.  If you would like to
   donate code that either detects viruses, removes them etc. please contact
   us.

** Contacting us
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   
   Our website is at http://www.kiwisoft.co.uk/
   You can email us at info@kiwisoft.co.uk
    
** Disclaimer
   ~~~~~~~~~~
   
   It wasn't us.  Nobody saw anything.  There aren't any witnesses and you
   can't prove a thing.
   
   All code remains within KiwiSoft's and it's licensers copyrights.  We
   maintain copyright on ALL material supplied and reserve the right to
   change these conditions at any time and without notice.
   
   This software is supplied "as is"; no warranty, express or implied, of
   the merchantability of this software of its fitness for any particular
   purpose is given.  In no circumstances shall KiwiSoft, it's licensers,
   or any provider or distributor of this software, be liable for any damage,
   loss of profits, or any indirect or consequential loss arising out of the
   use of this software or the inability to use this software, even if 
   KiwiSoft have been previously advised or informed of such a possibility.
   
   If there are any legal problems than we are prepared to deny everything,
   up to and including our own existence.

_____________________________________________________________________________
Copyright  Kiwi Software (UK), 2000.  All code, documentation and any other
related material will remain the property of Kiwi Software and/or it's
licensers.