17.HELP section                     
                               
17.0 Overview                       
                               
This section is designed to assist users in diagnosing problems that they may have in setting up PC-PLOT-IV. The sections below contain the answers to the most commonly asked questions about PC-PLOT-IV. The design guidelines required for operation of PC-PLOT-IV on non-IBM computers are also included. 
                               
17.1 User technical support                   
                               
Most problems users experience with PC-PLOT-IV fall into several broad categories. PC-PLOT-IV contains enough diagnostic features so that most difficulties can be resolved by isolating the general class of problem, finding the discussion of the problem area below, and making the appropriate changes in hardware, setup features, or host settings. 
                               
If you are having difficulty in setting up or using PC-PLOT-IV, please follow the following three steps: 
                               
      l. Read manual section concerning area of problem and also refer to expanded discussions of typical user problems in the HELP section below. The answers to the most frequently asked questions are contained in the HELP section.           
                               
      2. Call our technical support line; 614-882-4786, 9-12 AM, 1-5 PM Eastern time. Be prepared to give the serial number of your disk. You must have registered your copy of PC-PLOT-IV to receive detailed technical support. If we do not have a registration card on file, the technical support will be very minimal.         
                               
        Our program is NOT copy protected and registration of users for technical support is our only way of combatting use of pirated copies of PC-PLOT-IV.     
                               
      3. If your problem is specific to your site and we are unable to diagnose it over the phone, we may ask you to save a picture file on a diskette so that we can inspect the data that your host computer is sending.      
                               
17.2 Typical user problems                   

17.201 Nothing is on screen 		                
                               
    This problem description fits several types of setup errors which are commonly made. 
                             
    In order for PC-PLOT-IV to operate, several specific conditions must be met:   
                               
      A properly configured RS-232 cable               
      Properly configured serial channel board or internal modem 
Proper serial communications selections from menu 		      
                               
    If any of the above conditions are not met, PC-PLOT-IV will not be able to 
communicate with your host computer. If you have run another communications program on your computer, you know that the cable is correct. 
                 
    Characters typed are not put on screen     
                 
If the characters sent by the host computer appear on the screen but the characters typed from the keyboard do not, you will need to select local echo ON in the setup menu (ALT-S). You can temporarily select local echo on by depressing ALT E. If local echo is needed, set it ON in the ALT-S menu. 
                 
      Absolutely nothing happens       
                 
If you are using a smartmodem, type in the command AT<cr> (upper case only). The modem should echo the AT characters and respond with an 'OK' to indicate that it understood the attention command. If the modem returns the message 'ERROR', you have selected an illegal selection of data and parity bits. 
                 
If you have a modem with lights and the TX and RX lights flash when you press a key but nothing appears on the screen, your channel number is selected correctly but the interrupt configuration of the board is incorrect. 
                 
If you have a modem with lights or an RS-232 analyzer and nothing happens on the TX or RX lines when you depress a key, your channel selection is incorrect or the cable is incorrect. 
                 
It is important to note that even though some other communication package will work on your hardware configured as you have it, PC-PLOT-IV may not if the interrupts are not enabled. 
                 
       COMTEST         
                 
The IBM Personal Computer is a very powerful, flexible device. Part of its flexibility is due its open architecture which allows boards from different manufacturers to be added into the system. 
                 
There is a certain amount of confusion that can arise however from a system that allows third-party accessories to be added. Each manufacturer uses a different method for setting up their hardware; some use jumper blocks, some use dip switches, and some use software that must be run in order to configure the added hardware. 
                 
There are also some manufacturers that did not follow the suggested design guidelines for an add-in board. IBM published a set of specifications for the serial channels in the PC which are supported in the ROM BIOS. Some manufacturers have designed their hardware so that it is possible to set up their serial channel hardware in a configuration that is not supported by the ROM BIOS. 
                 
Additionally, some software vendors (like MicroStuff-Crosstalk) did not use the same nomenclature for communications ports as is defined internally by the ROM BIOS. These inconsistencies lead to problems in implementing communications software on the IBM PC. 
                 
ComTest is a program that will look in the system memory to determine what communication channels that the ROM BIOS has determined are present and then using those communications channel addresses determines if there are interrupts enabled for the hardware. 
                 
  PC-PLOT-IV is a high performance communications package which will run at 
data rates up to 9600 baud. Operation at speeds above 1200 baud requires the use of interrupts in order to receive all of the characters sent by the host. 
                           
One of the largest causes for calls to MicroPlot Technical Support involves the setting up of the communications channels and the users inability to receive any data from their host or modem. The problem is usually that the users hardware is not set up in one of the standard modes acceptable to the IBM ROM BIOS software. 
                           
          Using ComTest           
                           
ComTest requires no setup in order to use. It is a program that is run once to determine the hardware configuration of your machine and then using the information gained, either change the setup of your hardware or change the setup of PC-PLOT in order to utilize your present hardware setup. 
                           
To run ComTest, insert the master PC-PLOT-IV disk in drive A: and enter the following command: 
                           
  C>A:COMTEST<cr>                       
                           
  A full screen of diagnostic information will be printed. For the purposes of testing communications, you will be interested in the data printed on the center left.     
                           
    COM 1 at 3F8 installed   TEST1 Interrupt 4 enabled         
                           
    COM 2 at 2F8 installed   TEST2 Interrupt 3 enabled         
                           
  The display shown above is for an IBM PC which has two serial ports which are both configured properly.   
                           
  If your machine has only one serial port, the second message would read:       
                           
    COM 2 not present in system               
                           
  If one of the communications channels is present but the interrupts are not enabled the message will read:   
                           
    COM 1 at 3F8 installed                 
    No interrupts enabled-ERROR             
                           
  OR                             COM 2 at 2F8 installed                 
    No interrupts enabled-ERROR             
                           
        Single Serial Port         
                           
A single serial port will be either at address 3F8 or 2F8. It does not matter which one is selected. The IBM ROM BIOS looks first for a serial port at 3F8. If one is not found there, it looks at 2F8. If one is found there, it is assigned by the ROM BIOS to be COM 1 independent of the address selected. 
                           
The only legal interrupt definition for an IBM PC/XT/AT with a single serial port is interrupt 4.   Thus the correct message for a single serial port is as follows: 
      COM 1 at 3F8 installed   TEST1 
Interrupt 4 enabled 		        
                     
      COM 2 not present in system             
                     
   OR   COM 1 at 2F8 installed   TEST1 
Interrupt 4 enabled 		        
                     
      COM 2 not present in system             
                     
If the message indicates that interrupt 3 is enabled for COM 1, the hardware is set up wrong and should be changed. The method of changing the interrupt selection on your COM channel will be found in your manual for the hardware. 
                     
Usually, the interrupt selection follows the selection of the communications channel address (3F8 or 2F8). Usually a setting of 2F8 is referred to as COM 2 and 3F8 is referred to as COM 1. All you may have to do is change the selection of the communications channel in order to get the both the address and the interrupt setting correct. 
                     
It is important to note that it is not possible to have COM 2 in a system that only has one serial port. The IBM ROM BIOS will automatically assign whatever hardware is present (whether at 2F8 or 3F8) to be COM 1. 
                     
        Two Serial Ports in System       
                     
When there are two serial ports in a system, there is only one correct display. The IBM ROM BIOS looks for communications hardware at address 3F8 and assigns that hardware to be COM 1. Likewise, hardware at 2F8 is assigned to be COM 2. The ROM BIOS does not attempt to test the validity of status of interrupts. 
                     
  The correct display for two serial channels is:           
                     
      COM 1 at 3F8 installed   TEST1 
Interrupt 4 enabled 		        
                     
      COM 2 at 2F8 installed   TEST2 
Interrupt 3 enabled 		        
                     
If the interrupt designations are reversed or both serial channels show the same interrupt, the configuration of the hardware is wrong and must be changed. Refer to your hardware manual for your serial ports in order to determine how to change them to the standard configuration. 
                     
    But I don't want to open my computer   
                     
There is one configuration that you should try with PC-PLOT before you open your computer. If the serial channel that you want to use shows up on the display but has the wrong interrupt number, you should set the computer type in the ALT-S setup menu of PC-PLOT to Reverse PC/XT. 
     
Exception to operation of COMTEST 		    
                     
There is one exception to the operation of COMTEST. If you are using a PC AT with the serial/parallel card for one of your communications channels, the message 'No interrupts enabled-ERROR' will appear because the AT serial board does NOT implement the loop-through function that COMTEST uses to verify interrupts. Using one of these cards, you will have to rely on the address for the serial card only. 
   
  Technical Details of ComTest       
           
On powering up your IBM PC, the code in the ROM BIOS looks to see what hardware is in your machine. If a serial communications port is found in that search, the address(es) are placed in the system area of the memory for other programs to use. Specifically, the address for COM 1 is found at location 0000:0400 (1 word) and the address for COM 2 is found in the next word at 0000:0402. 
           
ComTest looks at the system memory to determine if the ROM BIOS found a serial port. If there is an address for a device in the system memory, ComTest then sets it up using a ROM BIOS function call to Interrupt 14h to 4800 baud, 8 data bits, and 1 stop bit and enables the loop-back mode which causes any data sent to the serial port to be routed back into the input. 
           
A short message (TESTx where x=1 or 2) is sent to the serial port. If the interrupt service routine in ComTest receives the message back correctly, it is printed on the screen and the interrupt number which received the message is printed on the following line. If the message is not received within a short time period, ComTest assumes that interrupts are not enabled and prints the error message. 
           
17.202 Pictures drawn on the screen are wrapped around  
           
If graphics images drawn on the screen appear to be too large and wrap around, you have made an error in setting up the terminal emulation type. 
           
It is important to note that using mainframe programs such as SAS or ISSCO DISSPLA, color plots are scaled for a 640 x 480 screen while black and white plots are scaled for a 1024 x 768 screen. There is a selection option in the ALT-S setup menu which sets the screen for either Tektronix 4010 (1024 x 768) or Tektronix 4027 (640 x 480). 
           
If you display a monochrome picture scaled at 1024 x 768 on the Tektronix 4027 scaled screen, it will wrap around the sides and be too tall. If you draw a color picture on the Tektronix 4010 scaled screen, the picture will be drawn in the lower left corner and color commands (!COL etc) will appear on the plot. 
           
Check the ALT-O setup menu to be certain that you have not changed the default windows from 0,1023,0,779 for 4105 and 0,639,0,479 for 4027 (PC-PLOT-IV + only). 
           
17.203 Autodial problems        
           
Problems with the autodial feature usually involve misconceptions concerning the handling of the dialing commands. PC-PLOT-IV is configured to operate with a Hayes Smartmodem 300, 1200 or 1200B. There are also several compatible modems which will also work. 
           
In addition, you can change the dialing commands using the ALT-V screen to those required by non-compatible modems. You will have to work out what the commands are for your modem since we do not have documentation on all modems. 
           
If you are dialing a simple number, you need only enter the number. PC-PLOT-IV will append the leading command characters ATDT for tone dialing. If you need to use pulse (rotary dial), you will need to change the dialing string in the ALT-V screen to ATDP. 
           
                 
  9„2811111               
                 
When you select the item corresponding to this telephone number, the screen will clear, ATDT9„2811111 will appear at the top of the screen, you will then hear the dial tone, dialing tones, ringing, and host connect.   
                 
There is some confusion over the different characters used for delays in the smartmodem and the character used for delays in the optional logon sequence in PC-PLOT-IV. The basic reason for the difference is that a comma is often a legal character in a logon string and cannot be used to represent a delay character.   
                 
17.204 VT-100 mode problems           
                 
VT-100 mode problems usually involve either the use of the cursor keys or function key array when running a text editor such as KED or EDT.   
                 
Depending on your operating environment, you may have to tell your host that your terminal type is a VT-100 with an explicit SET TERM/VT100 command. After you are running the text editor, you may have to enter the command CHANGE following the command asterisk (*) to change into full screen mode.   
                 
If you can verify that your host thinks that the terminal type is a VT-100 with a SHOW TERMINAL or similar command, and the cursor and function keys still do not function correctly, you may have the selection of data bits and parity incorrect.   
                 
Most hosts require a total of 8 data bits to be sent in a data byte plus one stop bit. There are only 3 legal combinations which yield 8 data bits. They are:   
                 
  7 data bits, odd parity 
7 data bits, even parity 
8 data bits, no parity 		            
       
If individual letter/number keys work when pressed but the cursor keys or function key array does not work, the problem is usually an incorrect setting of parity. In most cases, a DEC VAX system will require a selection of 7 bits, odd parity to work correctly. 

17.205 How do I get colored graphs ? 

PC-PLOT-IV+ emulates a Tektronix 4105 color terminal so nothing extra is required to add color to your plots if your host software will generate colors. 

      
   
     
                 
PC-PLOT-IV basically emulates a monochrome terminal in Tektronix 4010/14 mode. Several things must be present for you to get colored images on your screen. PC-PLOT-IV utilizes the color select command from the Tektronix Model 4027 terminal to change colors. Your host-based graphics software must send graphics sequences (move & draw) in the form of Tektronix 4010 commands and 4027 color select commands only.   
                 
Certain versions of ISSCO and SAS graphics products will generated the required command sequences if the terminal type is specified to be a 4027.   
                 
If you are going to use color, define a separate terminal setup for color. To get color, you will need to specify a screen mode which will display colors. You will need to   
  select the terminal emulation setting which includes 4027 commands. You will have to specify to your host software that the terminal type is 4027. 
                           
  You should also note that even though you specify Tektronix 4027 color numbers, the IBM C/G board does not support all of the colors. For each palette setting, the IBM board will only display 3 colors plus black. The following chart indicates the correspondence between the 4027 color number selected and the color seen on the screen. 
                           
    A test picture, COLORSYLT is provided to demonstrate color modes.     
                           
  PC-PLOT-IV Plus (optional) also can display color pictures if your host computer sends color select commands for the Tektronix 4105 terminal. 
                           
  4027 Color 
  IBM pal 1 
  IBM pal 2 
  IBM EGA 
     
  Co 
  Black 
  Black 
  Black 
     
  Cl 
  White 
  Yellow 
  White 
     
  C2 
  Cyan 
  Red 
  Red 
     
  C3 
  Magenta 
  Green 
  Yellow 
     
  C4 
  Black 
  Black 
Blue       
  C5 
  White 
  Yellow 
  Green 
     
  C6 
  Cyan 
  Red 
  Cyan 
     
  C7 
  Magenta 
  Green 
  Magenta 
     
  C8 
  Black 
  Black 
  Black 
     
                           
  17.206 Computer hangs up              
                           
  PC-PLOT-IV is a thoroughly tested program and has no known modes in which it quits operating. Under certain circumstances however, the computer may not operate, operate properly, or may intermittently misbehave. 
                           
  The culprit is usually a utility program which is loaded when the computer is started. Programs which redefine the keyboard such as ProKey, some poorly written print spoolers, some electronic disk programs, and some POP-UP programs (not Sidekick-it is OK) will cause erratic and unpredictable operation of PC-PLOT-IV. 
                           
  If you have erratic operation, restart your computer without any of the extra programs to see if operation is correct without them. In most cases, we recommend that PC-PLOT-IV be run by itself in your machine. 
                           
  17.207 Graphics input mode problems           
                           
  Some users report that GIN mode does not appear to work properly with their microcomputer hardware or host system. Since we have exhaustively tested GIN mode in many different host and microcomputer environments, most of the reported problems will turn out to be problems with the setup of PC-PLOT. 
                           
  For GIN mode to work correctly, several setup parameters in PC-PLOT need to be set correctly. If they are set incorrectly, entering GIN mode can seem to cause PC-PLOT to 'hang up', or extra garbage characters can appear on the screen. This technical note 
  will describe the interaction between the host computer and PC-PLOT while using GIN mode. 
                           
    The two main setup parameters which affect GIN mode operation are:   
                           
      Host echo GIN                   
      GIN terminating character             
                           
The following section will describe the operation of GIN mode and the meaning of these setup parameters. 
             
GIN_ mode operation 		              
                                   
GIN mode is a method used by a Tektronix terminal (and its emulation, PC-PLOT) to report the position of a tracking cursor to the host computer. To utilize interactive GIN mode, the host computer turns on the tracking cursor (a small + in. PC-PLOT) and waits for a report. The user of the terminal utilizes cursor keys or a mouse to move the tracking cursor on the screen until it is in the desired position and then reports the position to the host by depressing an alpha or numeric key or depressing a button on the mouse. A Tektronix terminal (and PC-PLOT) sends a 6 or 7 byte report string to the host which is formatted as follows: 
                                   
  Mode 3 invoked by: ESC SUB (lb hex, la hex-from host)           
                                   
  Characters returned:                           
                                   
    byte 1 x 0 b b b b b b key that was pressed 
byte 2 x 0 1 x9 x8 x7 x6 x5 hi x 		                
    byte 3 x 0 1 x4 x3 x2 xl x0 lo x 
byte 4 x 0 1 y9 y8 y7 y6 y5 hi y 
byte 5 x 0 1 y4 y3 y2 yl y0 lo y 
byte 6 x 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 <cr> 		                    
    byte 7 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 <EOT> (optional)                   
                                   
    Byte 1 is either a key that was pressed on the keyboard or a pre-programmed character sent by pressing the mouse button. The mouse button characters are programmed using the ALT-V setup menu.     
                                   
A Tektronix terminal (and PC-PLOT) enters bypass mode during a cursor position report so that any characters sent for the report are not put on the screen. In bypass mode, any characters received by PC-PLOT are ignored. Bypass mode is ended as soon as PC-PLOT detects the final character in the report sequence. 
                                   
  Thus, each cursor report sequence proceeds as follows:             
                                   
      Host request                         
      User positions cursor 
User reports position 
PC-PLOT enters bypass mode until report sent 		        
                                   
        Problems associated with GIN mode      
                                   
Three types of problems can occur when using GIN mode. The report of the cursor position to the host can appear on the screen as a series of several 'garbage' characters or PC-PLOT will appear to 'hang up' and not respond to any further characters. 
                                   
If the cursor report appears on the screen as garbage characters, your host system echos the cursor report back to PC-PLOT and you have selected 'Host echo GIN-NO' in the ALT-S setup menu. Changing the setup to YES will correct the problem. 
                                   
If PC-PLOT appears to 'hang up' after the first cursor position report, you have selected 'Host echo GIN-YES' in the ALT-S setup menu and PC-PLOT is waiting for the echo of the cursor report which will never come. Changing the selection to NO will correct this problem in 99% of the cases. 
                   
  There is another option in a Tektronix terminal which is used VERY infrequently. The normal cursor position report consists of 6 bytes as shown above. In some cases, the host software is set up to require a 7th character to terminate the sequence. The option for the 7th character is set using the GIN Terminate character in the ALT-S menu. In 99% of the systems, the GIN terminate character is <cr>. In a very small number of systems, <cr><eot> is used. A third option which is defined for the Tektronix terminal but never used is <none> terminating character. 
                             
  A third problem with GIN mode usage manifests itself in several ways. Either the GIN mode cursor doesn't come on at all or position reports are garbled or incomplete. Some of the same symptoms listed above may also be present. Some computer systems are very sensitive to the format of the data sent by PC-PLOT under certain conditions. In most cases, a computer system which is set up to use 7 bits, even parity, 1 stop bit ( 7 E 1 will appear to work correctly if a setting of 7 0 1 or even 8 N 1 is used until a function is used which sends out a string of characters rather than a character at a time from the keyboard. 
                             
  This problem may cause the VT-100 cursor keys and function key array to work erratically and may also cause GIN mode to malfunction. The solution is to check with the operator of your host computer system and verify exactly what data format is programmed into the remote ports. Most DEC VAX systems seem to be programmed for 7 0 1. The next most common setting is 7 E 1, and the least common is 8 N 1. 
                             
          Problem resolution               
                             
      To resolve a GIN mode problem, first determine which type of problem you have:   
                             
        1. Extra garbage characters on the screen           
        2. PC-PLOT 'hangs up' and won't accept any input     
                             
      Extra garbage characters on the screen is resolved by changing Host echo GIN to YES.
                             
      The second problem is resolved by trying the following steps:       
                             
        1. Set Host echo GIN to NO                 
        2. Check system data format (data bits, parity) 
3. Try Gin terminate character <cr><eot> 		        
                             
  If all else fails, we will attempt to resolve GIN mode problems on an individual basis. The only option that we have after you have tried all of the problem resolution steps above is to obtain access to your computer system for one test session. We will call your host system if it is equipped with a 300/1200 baud dial-up modem and attempt to determine the correct settings for PC-PLOT to use with your system. 
 
17.208 Characters overlap on graphics screen		            
                             
  PC-PLOT-IV most closely emulates a Tektronix Model 4010 graphics terminal. The 4010 terminal will display 35 rows of 72 characters. Due to the limited graphics resolution of the IBM color/graphics adapter, PC-PLOT can only display 33 rows of 90 characters. 
                             
  If your software places each line of text in a label using a graphics 'move to' rather than a <cr><lf> and each succeeding row of text is placed as close together as possible, adjacent lines of text may overlap. This problem is not able to be remedied. If your system assumes a terminal type of 4014 rather than 4010, there may be an additional problem with text depending on your host software. The 4014 terminal has additional commands which allow very small characters to be drawn. The 4010 terminal has a screen resolution of 4096 x 4096 and can draw a character in a 16 x 16 block on that screen. 
Small characters for a 4014 terminal will overlap on the IBM 640 x 200 screen and there is no way to rectify the problem other than specifying a different character size. 
   
17.209 Screen dump doesn't work  
   
If your printer prints a few alpha characters and then runs out pages of blank paper in response to a shft-printscreen, you have selected the wrong printer in the ALT-S setup menu. 
   
If your printer is an Okidata, and does not do a screendump properly, change the printer type to Epson and try again since some Okidata printers emulate an Epson or IBM printer. 
   
If the screendump puts the correct image on the printer, but it is stretched or squished, please realize that we cannot do anything about it. 
   
A screendump routine takes individual pixels from the screen and plots them in a fixed position on the printer. There are a fixed number of pixels in a line and a fixed number of lines on the screen. Since the print pitch (distance between printed dots on your paper) is different for different printers, the same picture may not appear the same on two different printers. 
   
Also, if you are using a Hercules graphics board, you must realize that the aspect ratio of the IBM graphics card is (640 x 200) 4:3. The aspect ratio of the Hercules graphics board (720 x 348) is 4:2. With a different aspect ratio, the shape factor of a plot will not be maintained from the screen to the printer. 
   
In MicroPlot's screenprint drivers, we have adjusted the print pitch as much as we can by selecting double print density etc. to make the image as correct as possible but we are unable to scale the data so that it is absolutely correct using a screenprint function.
   
If more correct aspect ratios are desired, you should use PrintPlot, a MicroPlot product that produces a high resolution image on your dot matrix printer independent of your graphics board. It plots an image in a 128k region of memory as if it were a 1024 x 1024 graphics screen and transfers that image directly to the printer minimizing aspect ratio problems associated with the graphics board. The aspect ratio is also adjustable in both the x and y directions. 
   
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