oo82162A.news.txt This file describes enhancements to the "oo82162A Printer Simulator" since first publish. The fact that an enhancement is described here must not be construed as a commitment to also supply it or soemthing adequate in future. The enhancements are subject to change without notice, including complete withdrawal. Sometimes things just don't pan out. This file is written bottom-up. The latest items are first. Refer also to the description of oo82162A REXX in oo82162A.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2021-11-01 7th revision published Code Page The 'append text' symbol of the HP41, '7F'x = 127d, aka "lazy T", is now printed correctly. For this the code page of a receiving 82240B is switched for that single code point only. Remains to test if other receivers or the escape mode of the 82162A are jeopardized. Adjustment Detection of "launched by VilMA" adjusted so it will remain task of VilMA to start a controller. User Comfort In a virtual talk-only, listen-only setup the sequence of starting the simulated devices should now be irrelevant. Code Page The printer comes with two character sets, ASCII used in Escape Mode and an Alternate Set used in Eight-Bit Mode. Complete transliteration to the sets available in 82240B is not possible. I changed now within ASCII conversion the CR (which implies LF) to LF on the IR printer (what also implicates CR). The Alternate Set transliteration remains untouched, so Mu [mju] is still available there. Features The printer offers two options for special instructions, Eight-Bit Mode or Escape Mode. Only the later has a parse mode where long lines are split on word boundaries. oo82162A also includes this capability now. Virtual IL The role model may be set for Active-Listener operation when it is turned on. The same is now possible with this simulation. To do so add for start-up (in a command window or other means) the option 'LON' without quotes. Who wants this operation mode persistent may set in the INI file: "lonop = 'LON'" (without the double quotes). ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020-11-02 6th version published Bug fix A misunderstanding led to a wrong setting. Now corrected PRPLOT prints plots again as desired. Virtual IL The HPIL messages DCL and SDC will reset the printer to the power on state. So CLRLOOP and CLRDEV are meaningful also for oo82162A now. Virtual IL LPD issued by PWRDN acts now just so as described in HP82162A Usr Mnl. To enable this Menu/File offers two additional items, On and Standby (Off omitted, in lieu of it use Exit). When marked Standby use PWRDN to set the device to standby mode. To indicate this the displayed revision date is replaced by STANDBY. By the nature of this mode it is instantaneously reset when V41 is enabled to send auto-IDY frames. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020-10-05 5th version published Interpret Data For decades I was annoyed when printing programs containing "synthetics" like RCL M or VIEW IND N showed as RCL [ and VIEW IND \. SKWID solved that in X-IL ROM. Now oo82162A also changes arguments like [, \, ], ^, _, and "'" to M, N, O, P, Q, and R respectively. As output is interpreted it may transliterate too much by mistake. Therefore a new option toggles this feature. User Comfort Switching back to V41 and its printer from an application using most or all of the screen meant up to now selecting V41 and the IR printer simulation, at least its 'Graphic' window, often also the 'Printer' window as only this has the controls, and at most oo82162A too for some reason. Now only oo82162A needs to be selected, it will bring up all others -- except for minimized windows or this new and still experimental feature is disabled completely in the option menu. Formatting Right justified mode does not shift by single colums any more. Analyses of role model's output also from an HP42S revealed some jitter of the rhs printing edge. Formatting Double wide mode printed some graphic at times, fixed. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020-02-15 4th version published Bar Code Printing of bar code is now possible. No idea how close it is compared with the role model. At least a "software-defined wand" is able to decode it. Setup Option In INI is defined if at start of oo82162A also V41 is to be started or not. V41 opens (nowadays) the state file in use when canceld. The today's change opts to override this V41 automatism. VilMA When invoked from the 'Virtual IL Manager' oo82162A will not start V41. Which controller to run remains task of VilMA. User Comfort If oo82162A started the IR printer simulator it was also canceled at shut down. Up to now this was done by TASKKILL which opened for a fraction of a second a command window, and - more important - the canceled HP82240A/B got no chance to save changed settings. Now oo82162A sends the syscmd 'Cancel' and the IR printer quits silently. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020-01-11 3rd version published Dialog Position The position of the dialog window is now saved in the registry for to set its location in next run. The setting in the INI file is overridden with the position saved in the registry. User Comfort Now start of oo82162A will also launch V41 if requested in INI file. But in case V41 is already running no additional instance will be started, independent of its LOD file's designation. Note: Ending oo82162A may end the IR printer simulation but will not end V41, since the emulator could still be useful w/o printer. Dialog Position The position on the screen at program start may be set in the INI file now. Interpret Data In trace mode every now and then there are too many blank lines before a LBL. By interpreting the data this is "balanced" to one line only, a discernible enhancement of the output. I renamed this menu item to 'Balance Blank Lines'. Now it may be toggled in Trace mode only to make it obvious when this option will be effective. User Comfort Even other receivers are possible I use oo82162A almost exclusively with the HP82240B simulator. Now oo82162A will start this simulator if it is not yet running and in that case also close it when ending. 7-bit Mode is now operational. The only transliteration in this mode is for bytes 0..31 and 127, they are replaced by blanks. Note: the 7-bit mode ignores the 8th bit, in fact the bytes above 127 (7Fx) are "folded down". A received byte C6x is forwarded as 46x. REXX UI Split of output sourced from pst.1 to .8 from pst.9. While the first group is rather trace related, pst.9 messages are information, warnings, errors. These are now shown as dialog window. Drawback - the user must acknowledge it to continue operation. Advantage - the huge "trace console" is dropped and shows from now on only the special stamp sized dialog. To avoid the need to prefix oo82162A by rexxhide.exe, the program suffix is changed from '.RX' to '.RXH'. Note: This suffix bindings are set at installation of REXX, so they must be adjusted accordingly for oo82162A. Those shown above are valid on my PC. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2018-12-30 2nd version published Auto-IDY While detecting auto-IDY frames changing SRQ bit and/or Parallel Poll data will restart the sequence even IDY frame identification is based on bits C2 and C1 only. Auto-IDY PRT and ADV buttons are enabled only when auto-IDY is detected. Otherwise they stay disabled. This may be taken as a 'loop safe and sound' indicator. Starting oo82162A before V41 will typically enable the two buttons about 0.2 seconds after V41 with option Auto-IDY enabled is up and running. In contrast, V41 started before oo82162A will not enable the buttons as the virtual IL is not connected. An OFF-ON sequence will cure it (assuming the HPIL module is part of the setup). IL2IR.MOD Some indispensable hardware was missing. Disabled ADV The issue of a disabled ADV button solved by some kind of timeout, simulator-like. Formatting Corrected a minor glitch in double wide printing. Not yet tested mingling of normal and double wide on the same line. Auto-IDY Next release of V41 will probably offer auto-IDY frames. This way oo82162A has the chance to inform the controler about PRT or ADV button pressed. The two buttons are now ready for operation. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2018-11-04 1st version published