From: sip1@ellis.uchicago.edu (Timothy F. Sipples)
Subject: Re: Interesting questions concering the WPS. 
Reply-To: sip1@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: Dept. of Econ., Univ. of Chicago
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 23:47:20 GMT

In article <1992Sep2.121648.990@softserv.zdv.uni-tuebingen.de> affie@earley.sns.neuphilologie.uni-tuebingen.de (Ralf "Affie" Hauser) writes:
>(For my person I am still waiting for the ultimate file commander under OS/2...)

Have a look at some of the offerings available via anonymous ftp from
ftp-os2.nmsu.edu.  There are a good half dozen file managers, if
that's what you are after.  The WPS excels at object management,
broadly, rather than specifically file management.

>	<> Sometimes when I open up the drive object (e.g. C:) all directories 
>		containing subdirectories have a plus sign to indicate that fact.
>		Clicking on this plus sign opens the underlying tree structure.
>	   But "othertimes" these indicators do not appear.
>	   This behaving is not deterministic. Is it a bug or can it be controlled
>	   somehow? Can anybody tell me how?!

It is a bug, it is known, and the present workaround is just to close
the window and reopen it until the plus marks appear.

>	<> Try opening a diskette with a write-protcetion on it by opening the
>		drive's object! the window does not open and after a few attempts
>		the system crashes!!! No warning, no message box!
>	   I assume that the WPS wanted to create extended attributes 
>		("EADATA.SF") on the disk and couldn't. But instead of giving up
>		this ridiculous plan it kills the os.
>	   This behaving is not acceptable.
>	   I wonder whether anybody has ever used the WPS for diskette operations.

This problem may be addressed by the floppy diskette patch (available
via anonymous ftp from ftp-os2.nmsu.edu).  I have not personally
observed the problem.

Incidently, bugs may be reported to IBM using the os2prob.txt form,
available via anonymous ftp from ftp-os2.nmsu.edu.  I've found them to
be quite helpful.

>	<> If I use the WPS for file operations I don't want to have the
>		symbol-view but the detail-view. It is not a problem to tell the
>		WPS my intention so far. But then all subdirectories opened
>		automatically use the symbol-view again and again.
>	   Is there any way to tell the drive object to open all directories
>	   (or folders or however they call it) in a specific view and to save
>	   this as a default?

Apparently not, and it is a medium sized omission, certainly.  This
setting is only individually setable, meaning you have to change the
property per folder/drive.

>And a few other questions concerning several OS/2 apps:
> o  EPM editor:
>	<> I could not make the EPM editor display a preview of my files.
>		Each time I select this function (FILE -> PRINT -> PREVIEW)
>		the page being displayed is white. Nothing else.
>	   Has that something todo with the fact that I have installed ~150
>	   ATM fonts. (I have heard a rumour that the editor is not capable of
>	   handling this amount of different fonts...).

Bingo.  I believe README mentions this.  EPM has a ceiling of 99
typefaces.  (Incidently, I get pedantic on this point.  You really
mean typefaces, not fonts.  Just like you really mean bits per second,
not baud.  Of course, who has the time to say "bits per second"?  :-))

Note that the EPM developers are rather proud of their child, and you
can bet a fix will be available in the first CSD.  (In fact, the EPM
that ships with TCP/IP 1.2.1 for OS/2 is a slightly later version, but
I'm not sure whether it corrects the problem.)

> o  Clipboard:
>	<> I want to have my Clipboard coming up in a non-public state.
>		Using the public Clipboard within WINOS2 causes a noticable
>		delay on my system (486/33, 16MB) of about 1 second each time
>		I cut and paste in my word-processor. (Yes, I still (have to) use
>		my favorite word-processor under (^!$#%*@) Windows...).
>	   Does anybody know how to make this public clipboard as default.

I thought you just select it from within Win-OS/2 and it sticks.  Is
that not correct?

-- 
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