TECHNICAL BULLETIN #26 - Rev 1.00 (7/31/96)

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TITLE   : Running 2.01 in Windows - Problems and Solutions
PRODUCT : PROCOMM PLUS 2.01 (DOS)
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PROCOMM PLUS version 2.01, a DOS communications program, works well under
Microsoft Windows, too.  But communications under Windows can be tricky.  Here
are solutions for common problems (including lost characters and download
errors) you might encounter while trying to communicate in the Windows
environment with PROCOMM PLUS version 2.01.

Before you begin, PROCOMM PLUS version 2.01 should be loaded and successfully
operating in the DOS environment.  In addition, you have installed an icon on
your desktop which uses the default PCPLUS.PIF file to load PROCOMM PLUS.

If you are having trouble communicating in Windows with PROCOMM PLUS,

* Complete the "PCPLUS.PIF File Changes" procedure appropriate for the Windows
  mode you are using and see if your problem disappears.  If it persists,

* Consult the "Potential Problems and Solutions" section.

PCPLUS.PIF FILE CHANGES
=======================

STANDARD MODE PCPLUS.PIF CHANGES
Edit the PCPLUS.PIF file to include the following change for users in
Standard Mode.

   1. After opening the PCPLUS.PIF file with the PIF Editor, select the
      "Close Window on Exit" option.
   2. Select the File menu option and Save the PCPLUS.PIF file.

386 ENHANCED MODE PCPLUS.PIF CHANGES
The PCPLUS.PIF file should be edited to include the following changes for
users in 386 Enhanced Mode.

1. After opening the PCPLUS.PIF file with the PIF Editor, select the
   Advanced pushbutton.

2. In the Display Options section, deselect the High Graphics option.

3. Select the Text option.

4. Select the Emulate Text Mode option.

5. Select the Retain Video Memory option.

6. Select OK, then select the File menu option and Save the PCPLUS.PIF file.


POTENTIAL PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
================================

SYMPTOM : SLOW DOWNLOADS IN THE BACKGROUND.
Windows in 386 Enhanced Mode determines how much time each DOS application
will be given in relation to the other DOS applications. Windows must also
allocate time to update information in each window.  If you aren't able to
increase performance with the following two suggestions, reduce the number
of DOS applications running concurrently in Windows.

SOLUTION: INCREASE BACKGROUND PRIORITY AND MINIMIZE PROGRAM.

PROCEDURE:
1. Open the PCPLUS.PIF file using the PIF Editor and select the Advanced
   pushbutton.

2. Increase the Background Priority to a value which is significantly larger
   than the Background Priority of your other DOS applications' PIF files.
   The range of values for the Background Priority is 0 to 10000.

3. Save the PCPLUS.PIF file.

4. If running PROCOMM PLUS in the background, click on the Control Menu Box
   (the "minus sign box" in the upper left corner of the window) and select
   Minimize.

SYMPTOM: DOWNLOADS RESULT IN MANY ERRORS OR CHARACTERS ARE LOST
         IN TERMINAL MODE.

Although error-correcting modems have reduced download errors
considerably, they cannot be responsible for the information once
it leaves the modem and enters the serial port.  Your PC and
software can still "lose" data and create errors during a
download.  The two primary sources of lost characters are 1)
exceeding the baud rate limitations of the serial port and 2)
Terminate and Stay Resident (TSR) programs which manipulate the
serial port and CPU in undesirable ways.

SOLUTION: USE THE CORRECT BAUD RATE; DISABLE WINDOWS CONTROL
          OF 16550 UART CHIP; TEST FOR AND REMOVE INTERFERING TSR'S.

PROCEDURE:
1. To see which kind of UART chip is in your serial port, exit Windows and
   run Microsoft Diagnostics from the Windows subdirectory by typing
   "\WINDOWS\MSD" and pressing <enter> at the DOS prompt.

2. Select the COM ports section.  Identify your port's UART under the
   appropriate COM port column in the field labeled "UART Chip Used."

3. Start PROCOMM PLUS and activate the Current Setup by pressing <ALT-P>
   from Terminal mode.

4. Adjust the Baud Rate to the appropriate speed if PROCOMM PLUS is set to a
   higher baud rate than your UART reliably supports. Save your Current
   Setup after making changes. Adjust your Dialing Directory entries to
   this baud rate if necessary.

5. To manually disable the Windows control of your 16550 UART, open the
   SYSTEM.INI file with a text editor like Windows Notepad.

6. Under the "[386 Enh]" section, look for the commands "COMxBuffer= 0" and
   "COMxFIFO=0", where x denotes your serial port. If you don't find these
   commands, add them, or adjust their arguments to "0" if they are set to
   different values.  For example, to disable Windows's control of the COM 2
   port, add  the commands "COM2Buffer=0" and "COM2FIFO=0" to the [386Enh]
   section.

7. To disable SMARTDrive's write-caching, edit your AUTOEXEC.BAT or
   CONFIG.SYS file, looking for the "SMARTDRV.EXE" command.

8. Add a space and a capital letter after the command to denote the drive(s)
   to which you do NOT want SMARTDrive to write-cache. Disable multiple
   drives by adding the appropriate drive letter identifiers in
   succession, separated by spaces.  For example, to disable
   write- caching on the C and D drives, change the command
   "C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE" to "C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE C D".

9. Refer to DATASTORM's "Identifying and Resolving TSR Conflicts" Technical
   Bulletin for details related to identifying and eliminating other TSR
   conflicts.

SYMPTOM: PORT LOCKS UP USING HOST MODE'S SHELL FEATURE.
When your PC boots, it records the port addresses of each of your COM
ports in memory.  If you have not installed your serial ports
sequentially (e.g., you have COM1 followed by COM3), your PC may
not properly record your port addresses.  This can result in a
communications failure when someone calls into your PC and uses
PROCOMM PLUS's Host mode shell-to-DOS feature.

SOLUTION: ALIGN COM PORT ADDRESSES.
Add DATASTORM's COMPORTS.COM program to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. It is
available in the file COMPRT.EXE from the Utiliites Library in the
Quarterdeck BBS. Procedure:

1. Download COMPRT.EXE and copy it to the root directory of your boot drive.

2. At the DOS prompt, type "COMPRT" and press <enter>.  The
   file will self-extract into the COMPORTS.COM and
   README.DOC files.

3. Use an editor to add "COMPORTS.COM" to your AUTOEXEC.BAT
   file and save it, then reboot your PC.

SYMPTOM: TEXT AND COLOR ABNORMALITIES.
Some video cards need to be reset when the Windows video driver switches the
card from graphic to text mode. If you experience text and color
abnormalities such as "washed-out" or garbled text and abnormal colors,
reset the video card using one of the following methods.

SOLUTION: Change the Video Startup Mode.

PROCEDURE:
1. Activate the Setup Utility by pressing <ALT-S> from Terminal mode and
   choose Display/Sound Options.

2. Type "I" to select the Video startup mode option.

3. Press the spacebar until the "25 x 80" option is selected and press
   <enter>.

4. Press the Escape key until PROCOMM PLUS prompts you "Make Changes
   Permanent? (Y/N) Yes."  Press <ENTER> and the change will be saved.

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