Eclipse d1.0f7
8th November 1992

Freeware

The Eclipse system is a 'host' bulletin board system which allows people to ring up on the phone and control your computer. Sounds pretty scary hey? Ahhh, but you have total control of this process via the programs that you write.

Eclipse is primarily a shell of device drivers and Prodos calls which surrounds the very powerful, yet easy to use, Eclipse Programming Language.

What is better about Eclipse compared to other BBS software packages? Well that's what we want you to tell us.

After you've read this file, may we suggest you read the Eclipse Manual and the EPL reference.

This release of Eclipse is a preliminary release aimed at getting user feedback, and for beta testing. The entire package is FREEWARE. This means that you are FREE to distribute this WARE, for FREE, as long as you leave all contents intact and you are aWARE that, we, the authors, retain copyright on the product.

NB: Future releases may not be freeware. They will probably become GuiltyWare (i.e. you feel so guilty for using such a fantastic product without paying for it, so you send us lots and lots of money.....).

We realise that the current form of the sample system which we provide is probably less than seriously usable but we never intended it to be. Instead, we are concentrating on delivering the most flexible environment in which YOU can do whatever you wish to do.

The Eclipse system includes a system reference, a Language Reference, comprehensive syntax diagrams for the language, an error Quick Reference, a Technical Reference, and a very simple sample BBS (to get you going).

Archive contents:

CHANGES.S Our change control

PRESS.RELEASE The standard blurb

READ.ME This file

ECLIPSE.PARMS Configuration file

ECLIPSE.LOAD System loader

ECLIPSE.BOOT Loading routines

ECLIPSE.MAIN Main memory image

ECLIPSE.LC0 Aux Lang Bank 0 image

ECLIPSE.LC1 Aux Lang Bank 1 image

LOGON.EPL Sample system startup module

MAIN.EPL Sample system menu module

MSG.EPL Sample system message module

LINE.TE.EPL Sample system text editor module

LIBRARY.EPL Sample system library module

CABINET.EPL Sample system filing cabinet module

NEW.USERS Welcome file for new users

MSGS Sample system messages file } Created by

MSGS.NDX Message file index } the system

USER.LOG System logfile } on first

USER.STATS User password file } run through

ECLIPSE.MANUAL System reference

ECLIPSE.TECHREF Technical reference

ECLIPSE.ERRORS Language error reference

EPL.REFERENCE Language reference

EPL.SYNTAX Language syntax diagrams

REGISTER.ME BBS Registration form

ECLIPSE/TXTDOCS: (For //e owners without extended RAM :-)

ECLIPSE.MANUAL System reference

ECLIPSE.TECH.1 Technical reference

ECLIPSE.TECH.2 Technical reference

ECLIPSE.ERRORS Language error reference

EPL.REFERENCE.1 Language reference

EPL.REFERENCE.2 Language reference

EPL.REFERENCE.3 Language reference

EPL.SYNTAX Language syntax diagrams

REGISTER.ME BBS Registration form

PLAYSOUND.DOC Documentation for user module

PLAYSOUND.USR GS only AEMP sound player

PLAYSOUND.USR.S Merlin source for sound player

SAMPLE.SOUND Sound for use with PLAYSOUND

SZ.USR Zmodem send module

WINDOWS.DOC Documentation for user module

WINDOWS.USR USeR module

XMODEM.DOC Documentation for user module

XRECEIVE.USR Xmodem receive module

XSEND.USR Xmodem send module

ZMODEM.DOC Documentation for user module

GS.CDR GS clock driver

NSC.CDR No Slot Clock clock driver

NULL.CDR No clock in system driver

TC.CDR Thunderclock clock driver

GSGPI.MDR GS port modem driver (DCD on GPI)

GSHSKI.MDR GS port modem driver (DCD on HSKI)

GSHISPEED.MDR GS port modem driver (see manual)

GSSMARTGPI.MDR GS port modem driver (see manual)

GSSMARTHSKI.MDR GS port modem driver (see manual)

NULL.MDR Null modem driver

SSCDIRECT.MDR SSC modem driver

SSCHISPEED.MDR SSC modem driver

SSCSMART.MDR SSC modem driver

NULL.PDR Null printer driver

PFP.PDR PFP printer driver

PFP.SDR PFP screen driver

SHR.SDR GS Super Hires screen driver

SHR.SDR.DOC Documentation for the SHR driver

TEXT.SDR Text screen driver

SPEDIT GS editor for EPL source files

SPEDIT.HELP Documentation for SPEDIT

The sample system as it stands will only execute properly on my system. There are a few things you'll have to change to get it going on yours. Things to look out for are the system parameters which are set up in ECLIPSE.PARMS.

The Pathname for Eclipse drivers may have to be changed. You should specify an actual modem driver for your system, because the NULL modem driver will hang at the initialisation stage with the Sample System.

Details on changing the ECLIPSE.PARMS file can be found in the ECLIPSE.MANUAL in the DOCS directory.

LOGON.EPL is set up for a HAYES compatible modem at 2400bps, so you may wish to fiddle with the modem initialisation strings inside LOGON.EPL as well.

The drivers are documented fully in the ECLIPSE.TECHREF manual, but they may be a little hard to fathom. If you are having troubles, please ask us.

Yes, even now, we are continuing to work on Eclipse. Specifically we are:

- writing our own systems for the Apple // users of Sydney, Australia.

- writing a //e version of the Spedit utility.

It's taken us since January 1990 to write Eclipse.

Please let us know what you think of Eclipse. We'd like YOU to know what we're working on and hopefully YOU'LL give us some support.

The various addresses that are listed at the end of the Eclipse Manual are now out of date.

Regards,

Andrew Roughan