
              ------------------------------------
              |  Archimedes Public Domain Library  |
              |                                    |
              |     Frequently Asked Questions     |
              ------------------------------------


This file has been added in self defence.

I often get phone calls, letters, or discs returned with a complaint
that there's something wrong, and often the problem is the user is
either missing the blindingly obvious or is new to Acorn computers and
doesn't understand what 'everybody knows' and no-one has bothered to
explain. This file tries to answer the questions most often asked. If
you have problems READ THIS FILE FIRST. I can't guarantee you'll find
the answer, but you might, or an idea to help you to it.

In 99% of cases the answer is R.T.F.I., which is an abbreviation for
Read The F%^&*ing Instructions. We TRY to help, but normally we don't
know very much about the program, and if you can't find the answer in
the instructions (sometimes with a bit of common sense) it might be best
(and quicker) if you contact the Author directly.

If you have queries about ordering or difficulties with any of the APDL
ordering software there is a section at the end of this file. If you
have written a program or programs or want to 'swap' something see the
section before that.

If you have problems DON'T JUST SEND BACK THE DISCS. There's probably
nothing wrong with them. PHONE, WRITE OR EMAIL FIRST. If possible phone,
if you can't phone then, email or write. If you return discs without
bothering to do any of these and there's nothing physically wrong with
them we may ask you to pay for them to be returned to you.

Phoning is the best method of resolving a problem. You can't easily hold
a conversation any other way, and experience shows that I often need to
ask questions. If you write or email PLEASE include details of your
computer (A3000, A5000, RPC 600, etc), how much RAM you have, what type
of monitor, and other relevant information.

DON'T fax unless I can send a return fax. If your fax machine is on a
shared line with your phone so I have to ring first then I will NOT mess
about sending a reply - you might just as well have phoned in the first
place! If you write please include an SAE.

I can be reached by any of these means -

        Phone - 
        Fax   - 
        email - info@apdl.co.uk

Messages with problems explained here may be ignored, so read this
FIRST. Repeated email of this nature will mean I will soon not bother to
read your messages before I dump them, so if you do eventually have
something important to say it will never be read!


                           ==========
                             F A Q s
 ======================================================================
 1.  The disc is full of blank white icons - where are the programs?

Most programs are compressed using !ArcFS so we get a LOT more on, often
over 1 Mb on an 800K disc. You will find a copy of ArcFS on the
catalogue disc.


 2.  When I try to run the program or use some function I get an error
     message 'Not open for update' or 'Can't open file'.

This means the program wants to write something to disc and can't. If
you are running it from a floppy check it's not write protected. If you
are running it from an archive you will need to de-archive it before it
will work properly.

The version of !ArcFS supplied is 'Read Only', so it can Read or Load
files or data from an archive, but not Write or Save to it. If the
program tries to do so it will give an error. Think of the archive as
like a directory, but you can only take things OUT, not put anything IN,
or change or delete anything in there.


 3.  So how do I de-archive it?

If you have a hard disc double-click on the archive to open it and drag
the CONTENTS of the archive to wherever you want to put it just as you
would with the contents of a normal directory.

Without a hard disc you need to copy it to another floppy. The easiest
way is to use a RAM disc as an intermediary. You need a RAM disc big
enough to hold the archive. You can create one by clicking SELECT on the
Switcher Icon (that's the icon at the right hand end of the icon bar)
and scrolling down the Task Window until you get to the Memory
Allocation section. Find 'RAM disc', put the mouse pointer about half an
inch to the right of the size (which will be 0K if you don't have one),
hold down SELECT, and a 'slider' will appear which you can 'drag' to the
size RAM disc you want. Now close the Task Window and you will see the
RAM disc icon has appeared.

Click on this to open the RAM disc filer window and drag the archive to
it from your floppy disc. Put a blank floppy disc in the drive,
double-click on the archive on the RAM disc to open it, and drag its
contents to the new floppy.


 4.  My discs have arrived damaged - do I need to contact APDL before
     sending them back?

Discs which don't reach you in good condition will be replaced free of
charge.

The most common damage is a bent metal slider. If the slider looks
damaged or doesn't slide freely DON'T USE THE DISC. A bent slider can
jam in the drive, or the spring can come out and get into the works. If
the slider is damaged and you can't wait for a replacement, remove it
completely, making sure you also remove the small spring. Be careful no
dust gets into the disc, but it is safe to use it like this and it will
ensure it doesn't damage your drive.

If possible phone before returning damaged discs.


 5.  When I try to Run a program or Verify the disc I get the message
     'Disc Error at....'

Discs are verified before despatch, but errors do sometimes appear,
either because of minor defects on the disc's surface or damage in
transit. Any disc with physical errors will be replaced free of charge
(but see below).


 6.  When I put the disc in the drive I get the message 'Disc not
     formatted' or 'Disc Error at :0 000000'

It's possible that something is wrong with the disc, and if so we will
replace it, but the most common cause of this error is trying to read a
hi-density (HD, 1.6Mb) disc in a double density (DD, 800K) drive. If you
have one of the older machines (A310, A400, A540 or A3000) you can only
use DD discs. Look at the top right-hand corner of the disc. If it has
'HD' written there it could be a hi-density disc (not always - see
below). If you ordered hi-density by mistake you won't be able to use
the disc. If it was a genuine error we may replace the discs if you
return them, but if it was your mistake we may charge 40p for each disc.
That's 40p for each 800K disc, so if you ordered a single 1.6Mb disc
when you really wanted 2 x 800K it could cost you 80p

If you have a friend who has a machine with a hi-density drive you might
be able to get him/her to copy the contents to two 800K discs.

We sometimes send HD discs formatted to 800K to people with hi density
drives. There is a problem with some machines reading these discs. Try
sticking a bit of tape over the hi-density ident hole (that's the square
hole in the other corner from the write protect slider). This fools the
drive into thinking it's an 800K disc.


 7.  I have a double-density drive. You have sent hi-density discs but I
     can read them OK on my computer.

As the majority of machines now have hi-density drives we find most of
our customers use these discs. To reorganise the Library to 1.6Mb would
be almost impossible, and need two separate catalogues. So customers
with hi-density drives don't get left with lots of 800K discs they don't
want we often use HD discs formatted to 800K. This is OK if the discs
are formatted to this size from new (DON'T reformat a 1.6Mb disc to
800K) and people with HD drives can reformat them to 1.6Mb if they like.


 8.  There don't seem to be any instructions with the program.

Most PD programs have a textfile or a Help Reader application, and this
is normally INSIDE the application directory. To open the application
directory hold down SHIFT and double-click on the application icon. You
might find a file called !Help, Manual, ReadMe, or a directory called
Docs in which there are several files, or there might be an application
called !Help which you can just double-click on.

Programs may rely on Acorn's Interactive Help utility. You will find
this in the Apps directory of a RPC or on Apps Disc 1 of other machines.
If you run this it might give help on the program's windows and menus.

Some PD programmers use StrongHelp instead of a textfile. You will find
this on APDL disc B400

Games often have instructions available from the start-up screen, or as
a scrolltext.

In some cases there are no instructions. Sorry - but you may find that
the program is so easy to use it doesn't need any.


 9.  The program has a large instructions file and I would like to print
     it but it takes *ages* when I use !Printers with my dot matrix
     printer. Is there a quicker way to print it?

The easiest way is to load it into !Zap and use the Quick Print option.
If you don't have a copy of !Zap (!) then, on pre RPC machines, press
F12 and type -

        Filer_OpenDir Printer:$

Press RETURN twice to get back to the desktop and a small window titled
'Printer' will appear. Drag the file to this and it will be sent to the
printer. This doesn't work on the RPC and it won't work if you are using
something like Computer Concepts Turbo Driver which thinks it owns the
printer port and won't let anything else get a look-in.


 10. When I try to run the program on my RPC I get an Address
     Exception error message but the catalogue says that it should work.

There are several answers, one of which is that I could be wrong!

However, assuming it does work one answer (especially with a game or
demo) is that a Module it uses causes the error when it is loaded. This
is common with music players, and quite often it will be OK if you just
run it again. As the Module causing the problem will already have been
loaded you may find the program will run OK the second time.

Another common reason is that the Wimpslot setting it too small. Memory
is allocated on the RPC in 4K pages, but on earlier machines it could be
in up to 32K pages. For example, a program that asked for 48K on a 4Mb
A5000 would get 64K (2 x 32K pages) but on the RPC you would actually
get 48K (12 x 4K pages), and it might not be enough. Load the !Run file
into !Edit and look for a line -

        Wimpslot -min 48K -max 48K

and change it to -

        Wimpslot -min 64K -max 64K

One final possibility is that the program might only work with Game On.
This is an essential tool for all RPC users (especially if you have old
software - it's not just for games).


 11. When I try to run this game/demo on my RPC the screen goes all
     funny

Assuming the program works the probable cause is that you don't have a
definition for a suitable screen mode in your Monitor Definition File.
If you need to ask the question then it will probably be beyond your
capabilities to write one, but Game On could solve the problem as it has
several definition for popular games modes.


 12. When I try to run a Genesis application I get the error message
     'External FN/PROC not found'.

Some Genesis applications (eg. 'Customs') have special modules which
they need to work properly and which are not part of the standard
Genesis Browser. For this reason we have a complete Genesis Browser with
all of these external modules on disc B263. If you get this error make
sure that you are using this version.


 13. How can I make this game run slower on my A5000/ARM3 ?

Some games written to work on an ARM 2 run too fast with later
processors. Press F12 and type -

        cache off

This will slow down any machine fitted with an ARM3. To restore normal
speed press F12 and type -

        cache on


 14. After running a program my RPC desktop is very slow

The program could have switched off the cache (see above), but the most
likely cause is it has set the Font Cache to zero. This was done on
older programs to save memory, but a RPC uses fancy fonts in the
desktop so the Font Cache must be at least 64K. Click on the Switcher
Icon (the Acorn icon at the right hand end of the icon bar) and scroll
down the Task Window until you get to the Memory Allocation section.
Look for the Font Cache and drag out the slider, 128K is about right.


 14. The program quits with an error message saying there's not enough
     System Sprite memory.

Open the Task Window (see above) and allocate some memory to the System
Sprites. The amount required depends on the program, but it will
probably need at least 64K and perhaps as much as 300K


 15. The program says I don't have enough memory.

Quit any other applications you are running, and a RAM disc if you have
one. Use the Task Window to minimise memory in the Module Area and
anywhere else you can. If you have been using the computer for a while
there may be Modules which are taking up memory, and it might be easier
to reset the computer (or switch off and on again) to get rid of them.
You could try switching to a more economical screen mode, especially if
you are using a large 256 colour mode. For example, Mode 40 takes 320K,
Mode 12 only 96K.

With a RPC you can still get this message even if you have HUGE amounts
of free RAM. One reason for this (especially with Demos) is that
incompetent programmers might use RAM page size as a way of determining
the amount of memory, which doen't work with a RPC.

If it still won't work perhaps you really don't have enough memory. Once
most people only had 500K, then 1Mb, and now 2Mb is the recognised
minimum and many programs need 4Mb. Most programs work with 2Mb, but
some won't with 1Mb.


 15.  The program gives a messgae 'File System:Modules.xxx not found'

The program has expected to find a particular Module in your !System
directory. I try to put the module in the Application Directory so this
problem won't arise, but sometimes it gets missed. I have added a disc
with the most frequently used items (B425), so you might need to get
this disc.


 16.  When I try to decompress or run a file with ArcFS it complains
      it doesn't have enough memory

ArcFS uses the Relocatable Module Area (RMA) as it's workspace (except
RPC, see next question), so use the Task Window to increase free memory
in the RMA. With large files this may cause a problem if you don't have
much RAM. You may not have enough memory to run the program from the
archive because you will need both the RAM to decompress it and run it
simultaneously, so you will have to decompress it to another disc,
reduce free memory in the RMA, then run it.


 17.  I have tried using ArcFS on my RPC but it keeps telling me I
      don't have enough memory. I've increased free memory in the RMA
      but with no effect.

This is one that stumped me (and the author of ArcFS, Mark Smith) for a
while. On the RPC ArcFS uses Dynamic memory allocation, but for this to
work you must have Interactive File Copying switched on. If this is off
then ArcFS can't claim memory. The solution will require you to edit the
!Run file in ArcFS. Load this into edit and look for the line -

 RMEns. UtilityModule 3.50 Set Alias$OSSpec RMEns. ArcFSMemMan 1.10 RMLoad <ArcFS$Dir>.MemManRMA

Put a vertical bar (|) in front of this so it will be ignored, This
stops ArcFS using dynamic memory allocation and forces it to use the
RMA as workspace. You will have to allocate RAM manually in the RMA (see
above) but it will cure the problem.

           =================================================
 =============  Sending programs to APDL and disc 'swaps'  ==============
           =================================================

1.  I have written a couple of programs - can I send them to you?
               _  _
Yes, YES,   \/|_ |_
            / |_  _|

There are many ways we get new material, but it's best if the Author
sends it. That way we have a direct contact and know we have the latest
version. We will return your disc(s) with whatever you want on them, and
people who keep in contact and send regular updates get various other
'special considerations'.


2.  I have some programs you don't have or later versions of ones you do
    have - will you 'swap' with things that I want?

Normally, yes. We may even do this on a 'swap' basis, but don't be
greedy. Often by the time we get your discs we already have what you are
sending, but if it was sent in good faith and the programs have only
recently been added or updated we normally respond generously. Please
DON'T send lots of discs of GIF or JPEG pictures unless they are
something special, or can be put into a specific catagory to make up a
compilation disc or set of discs. Take a look at the type of things that
we have in the catalogue first.

People who include a SHORT textfile with new programs describing what
they do get preferential treatment because it saves me work when I add
them to the catalogue!

Anyone sending magazine programs or other copyright material or X-rated
GIF's (yes, I do get them), will certainly NOT get a favourable response
and will probably not get a reply at all!

        ========================================================
 ==========  Queries about ordering and the ordering programs  ==========
        ========================================================

The programs !Order, !GIForder and !PCorder, have been in use since
1994, so THOUSANDS of people have used them. There have been problems,
but they are (by now) fairly bug-free, but there are some 'features'
that might give difficulties. 99% of these wouldn't occur if people
would READ THE INSTRUCTIONS


 1.  When I try to print the order nothing happens.

The printing routine is deliberately crude. It works by sending the
characters directly to the printer port. This is ideal for quick,
simple, printing with a dot matrix printer, and works with most
printers. It WON'T work if you use something like Turbo Driver or an
unusual printer.

This system is used is because it is so quick and easy to print the
order with a cheap printer. If you have something more exotic Save the
order as a textfile (keep a copy for reference) and then drag the
textfile to your Printer Driver. Whatever printing system you use if
your Printer Driver is correctly set up it will print a textfile.


 2.  When I print there's a blank line between each line.

You didn't read the instructions, did you?  On the Menu of the
application there is an item 'Linefeeds'. By default this is 'ticked',
which means that at the end of each line the printer is sent a Carriage
Return (CR) and a Linefeed (LF). To work properly with an Acorn computer
your printer should be configured to 'expect linefeeds from host', but
if this wasn't done every time it gets a CR it automatically goes to the
next line. When the LF arrives it goes down another line, so you get a
blank line.

Click on the Menu so 'Linefeed' isn't ticked and the blank lines will
vanish.


 3.  What do all those funny bits at the top of the order file mean?

They tell us about your computer and the version of the program and
catalogue you have. DON'T DELETE IT. This information can be very
useful if there is a query with your order or if you order something
that I can see is unsuitable for your machine. There is nothing here
that is 'sensitive' in any way.


 4.  Why do you want my phone number?

So that if there is a problem I can phone you and sort it out quickly.
If there's no phone number I may have to return your order. This is
important if you pay by 'plastic' as it's easy to mistype a number.


 5.  Do you keep my details on a database, and if so what information do
     you keep and who sees it?

Transactions are recorded for VAT and accounting. Other than name and
address and records of purchases we do not record other data. Your
details are NEVER made available to anyone else.


 6.  How do I send an order on disc?

DON'T send it as an Order File, save a text file and send that. This is
better for me  and it's a lot smaller. If you copy it onto the catalogue
disc (delete something to make room) I will update the catalogue and
return it with your order.

It's best to include a small piece of paper with your name and address
or phone number in case the disc is damaged. If I can't read the disc
for any reason and don't know who you are I can't contact you!


 7.  What about ordering by credit/debit/switch card?

If you send your order on disc then you MUST include a brief SIGNED note
authorising the transaction. If you send a printed order you MUST sign it.


 8.  Can I order by phone?

Normally there's no problem, but we prefer 'hard' orders (it's quicker
and easier). We can't accept orders for individual programs, GIF files,
PC files, Tracker tunes etc. by phone, it takes too long and it's too
easy to make mistakes.

The minimum order value for telephone orders is 5.


 9.  Can I send my order by email?

Yes, but email is not secure, so it's probably not a good idea to send a
credit card number, although I've never heard of anyone in the UK having
problems. If you want to order lots of individual files you could email
the order and then phone with your card details.

If you do include a card number in an email I reserve the right to
refuse to accept your order, especially if you are not known to us, as
the lack of security works both ways.

If you intend to order regularly by email you could first send a SIGNED
note with your credit card details and authorising APDL to debit your
card. You can then refer to this in your email order so you don't need
to include your card number where it might be read by anyone.


 10. Why is my address printed at the bottom of the order as well as at
     the top?

To avoid mistakes we cut out the name and address at the bottom of the
order and use it as a return label. If you use a textfile and alter it
before printing please DON'T delete the second address.

