DSKLOG.BA for the Tandy PDD and POWR-DOS by Acroatix
     
     Since I received my copy of POWR-DOS I have been busy converting some
     former RAM based programs to use the expanded capabilities offered by
     POWR-DOS. One of the most useful conversions is to alter the fine disk
     log program on the SIG to operate from the disk rather than from RAM.
     With this modification there is no need to load the DIRLST file to RAM
     or to save it out to disk after running the program and updating it.
     These functions are performed automatically and make the program much
     more useful.
     
     The changes to the program execution are listed as follows:
     
     - An LFILES V command is issued at the start of the program to insure
     the that the POWR-DOS hooks are active. If POWR-DOS is not installed
     the program will break with an error. I have not trapped the program
     at this point to an error routine but this would be easy to modify
     yourself.
     
     - The program will pause and prompt for the insertion of the data
     disk. Put the disk with the DIRLST.DO file that you wish to update in
     the drive and hit ENTER. The file will be loaded automatically.
       If the DIRLST.DO file is not on the disk the program will proceed
     with an empty file listing.
     
     - The default for autowrite has been set to off since this slows the
     program too much after each update and is not necessary. You can
     change it by going to (O)PTS if you wish.
       The (W)RITE command can be used manually to write the DIRLST.DO file
     to the disk in the drive when you wish.
     
     - There is a new (R)EAD command in the menu that can be used to load
     new DIRLST files from other disks for updating. This is a convenient
     feature since you will probably have more than one DIRLST file. It can
     also be neat to have a separate DIRLST.DO on each disk. This is a
     handy way to create a note file on each individual disk about the disk
     contents. The file can then simply be read directly from text or from
     the disk itself using the D-MENU program.
     
     - You will be prompted at appropriate times to insert the correct disk
     in the drive. This is done to prevent writing DIRLST.DO files to disks
     that you are simply logging, as I did numerous times after the initial
     modification I made to the program.
       When you exit the program the DIRLST file will be written out and
     you will be returned to DMENU.BA if it is present in RAM or to the
     M100 main menu.
     
     - A big bonus is the increase of file size to 8K max from the original
     4K. This is possible because the program is now disk based and the
     data is not stored twice in memory.
















     >>IMPORTANT<<
     
     There is one bug that is not caused by the modifications and causes
     problems with any version of this program. If you log a disk with no
     files you will get an error 5 when trying to write the file. The zero
     parameter in the file length seems to give the program real problems.
     The simplest solution is not to log empty disks. If you aren't sure
     just check the disk with the (D)IR function before logging it.
     
     If you make the mistake of logging an empty disk immediately write the
     DIRLST file. The file will be written even though the error will break
     the program. The new disk listing will be at the end of the file and
     you can then go to TEXT and edit the empty disk listing out. The
     program will then load and work fine again with the edited file.
     
     I have not altered the program to trap out this problem since it
     hasn't bothered me much. One solution would be to do a directory check
     before accepting a disk name when using the (L)OG command. Trap back
     out to the program menu if no files are present. This will slow you
     down a bit but some may find it useful.
     
     SUMMARY
     =======
     
     POWR-DOS is a terrific utility and turns the M100/PDD into a far more
     useful combination. Since using the programs that I have modified I
     find it hard to beleive that I ever used those RAM based files,
     especially with a cassette recorder! The disk access is a bit slow but
     a small price to pay for the tremendous increase in convenience. I
     find the speed to be about the same as an unmodified ATARI drive and
     far faster than any COMMODORE drive, both of which also use serial
     access and sequential files. I also notice that my M100 seems to keep
     a lot more free memory around all of the tim.e now. Quite a difference
     from before.
     
     I am currently working on modifying SXM.BA and a couple of others. I
     encourage everyone to modify any programs they Euse and post them up to
     the SIG if possible.
     
     There are a lot of old TANDY programs for the M100 that are being
     virtually given away at some of the stores. I obtained three packages
     for $10.00 the other day. Some of these programs were real kludges as
     RAM based files but are remarkably useful when run from the disk. Two
     of these that I have already converted are PERSONAL FINANCE and
     EXECUTIVE CALENDAR. I found them useless and cumbersome in their old
     format but fine and useful programs when modified. I cannot post these
     to the SIG due to the [C] but if you send me a proof of purchase (like
     the cassette) with a disk and a mailer I will be happy to send you a
     copy.
     
     For more information on these and other modifications leave a message
     to:
     













     RONNIE RICHE
     70337,3727