From: vporguen@unlinfo.unl.edu (victor porguen)
Newsgroups: comp.archives.msdos.d
Subject: Re: Telix v3.20
Date: 26 Dec 1992 05:20:16 GMT
Organization: University of Nebraska--Lincoln	
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: unlinfo.unl.edu

Professor Salmi advises using his POPSCReen and PUSHSCReen utilities 
from a batch file to get rid of the new Telix's nag screens. This 
is based on an incomplete understanding of how the Telix program 
displays its screen nagging.  Telix.exe doesn't return control to 
DOS until after several seconds after the closing screen has been 
displayed.  Using Timo Salmi's utilities will not get rid of the 
nag screen because, while Telix.exe displays its closing nag screen, 
neither DOS nor Timo's utilities can have any control over the 
display.  The batch file he suggests is not useful. 

The CLOSING nag screen cannot be gotten rid of except by patching
the executable on disk (arguably unethical, possibly illegal?) or 
by the use of "memory patching", to fool the program into thinking 
that the display delay time has elapsed, a more difficult technique.

The OPENING nag screen of Telix can be gotten rid of in at least two
simple ways I know of:

Method 1. The method described by Daniel Miller -using a small,
          fake script file such as INIT.SLT- works very well.
          In fact, =any= input to the Telix program after it has
          started will obliterate the opening nag screen, including 
          any keypress by the user. This opens the way to:
          
Method 2. Use the PC Magazine utility KEY-FAKE.COM (Ch. Petzold,
          1985!) to stuff the keyboard buffer with an Enter 
          keystroke.  Some programs check and/or clear the keyboard 
          buffer on startup; KEY-FAKE overcomes this via its "0" 
          parameter, which tells the calling program that the 
          keyboard buffer is already empty, while in reality it is 
          not!  Method 2 works with Telix like a charm (commandline: 
          `key-fake 0 13')

Telix v3.2 is full of other "unregistered" indicia.  For example, on 
startup the program displays the word "Unregistered" together with 
the Copyright notice.  Also, while in terminal mode and with the 
status line displayed, there is the standard "Press Alt-Z for Help" 
message at the left. Now, if you press Ctrl-M, this message changes 
to the word "Unregistered".  The HostPlus script also continuously 
displays the word "UNREGISTERED" on its `Waiting for a Call' Menu; 
and even sends an `Unregistered' string out to callers! 

Overkill, in my opinion.

These strings are feebly hidden with some incompetent `encryption' at 
various places within the body of the Telix executable, and of the 
compiled HOSTPLUS script.  Overwriting these scrambled strings with 
hex 00s makes them go away permanently. (And so does registering, 
of course... ;-)

There is a more serious, real crippling in Telix v3.20 shareware: 
the Script-Learning function is disabled.  All you get when you 
press Alt-9 is a message saying that `this function is available in 
registered versions only'.  That's too bad - it's the =one feature= 
I would have most liked to test and compare to Qmodem's Script Learn.
It's probably not very good, otherwise they wouldn't have hidden it.

The new HOSTPLUS.SLC script file cannot be renamed! If you rename 
it, its utilities can no longer find it, but the error messages are 
misleading, telling you instead that it's the HOSTPLUS.CFG 
configuration file that's missing, even if the .CFG it's in the same 
directory... etc., etc.

All in all, Telix v3.20 has got plenty of crippling, restrictive and  
nagging screens, messages and devices.  Personally, I approve of the 
idea behind shareware marketing, and I register/buy those programs 
which I use regularly, but I =really don't like= to be subjected to 
these obnoxious "incentives" during the process of trying the 
program out.  

For this reason, I will not try or use Telix.  I like many of its 
features and the HostPlus is probably quite nice, but I won't run it 
for a 30-day trial with all the damn nag screens, etc. continuously 
popping at me, so I just slipped it into the wastebasket with a sigh.

-------------
P.S. an undocumented but interesting Diagnostics function 
     becomes activated when you press Alt-7 while in Terminal Mode.

Newsgroups: comp.archives.msdos.d