NewsReady/SA Installation Procedures for Windows95

Congratulations on your purchase of NewsReady. While we are here 24 hours a day to serve you, it is in your interest to schedule the bulk of your installation during the day or early evening, as oppose to 2AM Saturday night. We operate a skeleton crew at night. For this reason if you are planning to do a first time install late at night, call ahead. This allows us to extra staff

our department so other customers are not inconvenienced.

Computer and operating system recommendations

Hardware Installation Steps

Installing software for multi-tasking in Windows95

Upgrading from previous versions:

If you are already a NewsReady user, DO NOT use this document for upgrading to the latest version, however you may want to review the latest computer and operating recommendations.

Setting up for Windows95 in the future:.

If you've been running in DOS and change your mind later to run from Windows95, which is on your computer or on a different partition, or you install Windows95 later, you do not need to re-install NewsReady. Instead, just follow the steps listed under Creating and Icon (shortcut) on your desktop which follows in this handout.

Computer Requirements Before you install READ AGAIN.

NewsReady can run from DOS version 3.3 or later, or Windows95. You must run NewsReady from DOS on older computers like 286, 386, and 486 machines with at least 2MB of RAM which are generally dedicated just for NewsReady, because these machines are too slow to run Windows95. Newer 100Mhz or faster 586/686 Pentium machines with 16-32MB of RAM which come preloaded with Windows95 can run NewsReady from either Windows95 or DOS, which ever you prefer.

Redundancy for customers who will run NewsReady from Windows95:

Despite the large increase of productivity and "friendliness" Windows95 brings when it's working, Windows95 is not as simple and stable as DOS, and over several years of use, you will encounter several maintenance issues that occur when Windows95 needs servicing. Servicing Windows95 can take time you don't have when problems occur, even with our expertise. In fact, most problems often lead to complete re-installation from scratch. Anytime you add hardware or software to Windows95 or even reboot it, you run the risk of being down for this kind of maintenance. Why? The old DOS operating system actually required less than a dozen systems files to operate correctly. Windows95 uses hundreds if not thousands of critical files. DOS used two configuration files called AUTOEXEC and CONFIG which rarely consisted of more than 12 lines. Windows95 uses several configuration files that have thousands and even tens of thousands of lines. Like the world we live in, Windows95 has become very complex.

How to combine the benefits of Win95 with the old fashion sturdiness of DOS:

For customers who wish to run in Windows95, there is a way to make a computer give you the choice of booting old, faithful DOS anytime Windows95 gives you problems. The 3rd party product PartitionMagic 3.0 lets you partition a hard-drive so that it has both Windows95 and an old version of DOS for rainy days. If your Windows95 operating system ever blows up, and you have neither the time or expertise to fix it on the spot, you can reboot the computer and get back into NewsReady from DOS until you have time to deal with Windows95. For those of you who come into the newsroom at 4:30am, discover a problem, and want it "fixed" by 4:45am with one phone call, this is the only way to do it. Let your computer person and us worry about Windows after your shift ends. We have included a handout on how to do this. We sell Partition Magic 3.0, or you can buy it at your local store for around $100.

True DOS, vs MS-DOS mode, vs running in an MS-DOS window:

If you want to run from true DOS on a newer Pentium computer that came with Windows95, you will require actual DOS installation disks and/or Partition Magic. "Exiting or restarting in MS-DOS "Mode" in Windows95 will not work as it is no longer true DOS. In 1996 Microsoft made changes that made exiting into MS-DOS mode a farce, The good news is that running from an MS-DOS window remains compatible and better than ever. When you run NewsReady from an MS-DOS window, it means a DPMI DOS product like NewsReady runs just like a Windows program. As a DOS program running in a window, you can scale us for either full screen operation (i.e the Windows desktop temporarily disappears, or as a partial window to leave room for other screens like Netscape, e-mail etc.

For customers who want to run under Windows 95:

The same requirements for NewsReady in DOS apply for Windows95 with the following exceptions:

CPU/RAM

A 586/Pentium 100Mhz or faster with 16MB of RAM is required. 32MB is a lot better. Anything slower will have problems running Windows95 fast enough which will cause all sorts of problems.

COM ports

Since Windows uses a mouse and a modem for internet access, you may have fewer available COM ports and IRQ channels than you require. Most customers with more than one wire service will require an add-on COM card, such as our 4 port COM card.

No Need to Dedicate

Good news, you unlike a stand-alone computer running true DOS, don't have to dedicate the computer just for us. Unlike a DOS computer, running from Windows95 allows you to run other software like Netscape, E-mail, Ms-Word etc. at the same time, so long as 1) They do not try to use the COM ports used for your wire services. 2) They do not force you to exit and run in MS-DOS mode, which will shut down Windows and us. 3) They do not cause Windows to lock up. All Programs in Windows95 work two ways, they work from a "window" which can be full or partial screen, or they work in a full screen without any border showing. However in both cases Windows and NewsReady is still running even when you don't see it. If you can hit ALT-TAB and Windows pops back up, you are fine.

Windows95 will generally make you reboot the computer any time you install new software (not us) or any new hardware. Keep in mind that anytime you reboot, Windows takes a good minute or two to come back up and you will likely miss news during this time. Therefore, schedule these types of expansions at non-peak times.

NewsReady has a big brother coming and it's called NewsReady32:

After December 1, 1997, WireReady NSI will be also selling NewsReady32 which is a true 32 bit mouse-driven GUI product that only runs from Win95 or NT with a minimum of 32MB of RAM. NewsReady32 will be available at a special price for existing NewsReady customers.

However, we will be selling, supporting and upgrading the regular version of NewsReady for many years to come for customers who want to run a simpler, less expensive package on either DOS or Windows95, so there is no need to buy the 32 bit product unless you want a fancier, more powerful system. Both NewsReady and NewsReady32 can run at the same time too.

Installing software for Windows95

1) Here's how to install the software. To do this, left click on the Start button on the bottom left of your screen.

2) Highlight Programs by dragging the mouse pointer up to Programs. This will open another menu.

3) Then highlight MS-DOS Prompt and left click.

4) This will bring you to a MS-DOS prompt.

A) Insert the Plus Master Install#1 or WireReady/640.#1 disk in the A: or B: drive. Type A: and press ENTER to access your drive. When there is an A: prompt, then you can type SETUP and press ENTER. (or type B: ...etc. for B: drive)

B) It will start with the copyright screen. It will automatically advance to the next screen or you can press any key. Next a screen will come up with a box in the center of the screen that looks like this:

ENTER INSTALLATION PATH: C:\WIRE. We recommend that you

press ENTER to accept this default.

C) Next there will be a MAIN MENU displayed. Press ENTER when your highlight bar is over INSTALL WIREREADY. It will automatically start copying files and walk you thru the installation.

5) Once you have installed our software, you will be returned to a DOS prompt. Type EXIT and press enter to return to your Windows95 desktop.

Creating an Icon (shortcut) on your Desktop

Once you have installed the software we must create an icon which will appear on your Windows95 desktop. This will allow you to click on the icon we create to start the software.

1) From the desktop right click. This will bring up a menu.

2) Highlight New by placing the mouse pointer over it. This will bring up another menu.

3) Highlight Shortcut and left click.

4) It will bring up a screen asking you to type in the command line. Type in the following: C:\WIRE\WR.BAT

If you are using a drive other than C: then put in the correct drive letter. When done press enter or left click Next.

5) Then it will ask you to type in a name for the shortcut. This is the name that the icon will have on your desktop. Although it can be whatever you like, we recommend typing in NewsReady. Press enter or left click Next when done.

6) It will then ask you to select an icon. Select whatever icon you wish it to appear as on your desktop (there is a satellite available if you wish). Left click Finish when your done. The icon will appear on the desktop.

Configuring the ICON you made to run our software for maximum performance

Before running your system we must make some configuration changes. Right click on the icon you created for your system (the icon located on your desktop). Then left click on properties and make the following changes (left click on the different tabs on the menu, such as font, program, etc) Unless specified otherwise, all settings are the same for all programs:

Program

You don't need to click on Program or make any changes here.

Font

- Right click Both Font Types.

- For size, choose 6x8 for running in a small window, 8x12 for a medium window and 8x16 for running in a full screen.

Memory

- Conventional Memory should be set to auto.

- Expanded Memory should be set to None.

- Extended/XMS Memory should be: 4096 if running NewsReady, and 16384 ir running any combination of READY products including RadioReady.

- MS-DOS Protected Mode should be 4096 if running NewsReady, and 16384 if running any combination of READY products, including RadioReady. Setting up too much memory can actually slow the system down.

Screen

- Usage should be set to Window. This lets us run as a small window on top of the desktop. When running NewsReady later, you can hit ALT-ENTER to switch between a full screen and small window view. Initial Size should be Default.

- Also click on Display Toolbar and Restore Settings on Startup.

- Do NOT click on either option under Performance.

When we say do not click on, we mean there should be no "x" in the box next to the option. If there is already an "x" in the box, you may have to click on it to make the "x" go away.

Misc.

- Foreground can be set to allow screen saver if you wish.

- Background, Always suspend should always be blank.

If this is checked, we WILL NOT CAPTURE!

- Idle Sensitivity should be set to all the way low, if NewsReady is most important to you.

- Fast Pasting should not be checked.

- Termination should be set to Warn if Active.

- Mouse,- Quick Edit should be checked.

If this is checked, you can use the mouse to do simple cut and pasting when editing in NewsReady! You highlight something, click on the COPY button on the toolbar, put

the cursor where you want to copy to (with the arrow keys on the keyboard) and then click on the PASTE button.

Exclusive should not be checked.

- All Windows Shortcut keys should be checked.

When done left click OK and re-start the program.