      Buddy Version 3 Change Summary
      ------------------------------

Contents:

      A.  Multiple Macros
          A.1  Feature Description
          A.2  Macro Feature Operation Summary
          A.3  Macro EXM Settings Summary
      B.  Significant Feature Enhancements
      C.  Minor Changes
      D.  DOS-only Version
      E.  Bug Repairs
      F.  Distribution Files

The major area of enhancement in this Buddy update has been to the macro
file logic.  Dozens of minor improvements have been made, too.


A. Multiple Macros:
-------------------

At any time, you can easily command Buddy to load and scan any one of 36
different macro files.  This gives you instant access to 360 macros.  As
in version 2, you can also specify a different macro file for each
application and Buddy will automatically switch to the proper file when
necessary.


A.1  Feature Description:
-------------------------

The multiple macro feature is enabled using the "Macro Files" checkbox
on the Default Directories screen of the Buddy EXM.  A single letter
code can be specified for each application that designates the first
letter of the macro file associated with that application.

1.  When you change macro files, Buddy will scan and retain the first
seven characters (or the first word) of the description field of the
macro.  When you push the Fn key, Buddy will display the macro labels
above the 10 macro keys and display the first letter of the currently-
loaded macro file just to the left of the F1 key label.  Buddy displays
the macro labels corresponding to the active application, if they are
known, which may not be the labels of the currently-loaded macro file.
Three sets of macro labels are saved (instead of just one as in version
2) for three different macro files.  If the labels are unknown either
because (1) the macro file has not been scanned, (2) the labels have
been displaced by a more-recent macro file, or (3) particular macros
have not been defined, will display numbers ("1" through "10").  Buddy
makes a label using the first word of the macro description field, if
specified, or otherwise the first few characters of the macro itself.
An EXM setting will cause a default label to be generated instead of
using macro text with curly braces.

2.  When you push a macro key (e.g., Fn-F3), the proper macro file will
be loaded (if necessary) and the labels saved, pushing out one of the
older sets on a FIFO basis.  Buddy will also automatically switch macro
files when you record a macro (e.g., Fn-SHIFT-F3), if appropriate (the
macro file feature is enabled and not temporarily inhibited).

3.  To specify that there is no particular macro file for a certain
application, put a blank in the letter designation box for that
application.  If such an application is active, the macro file will not
be changed when you push a macro key.  (This is a slight change from
version 2 where the special character was a space.)

4.  At startup, Buddy automatically loads, reads, and saves the macro
labels of up to three macro files whose designations in the Buddy EXM
are set to upper-case letters (e.g., 'M' instead of 'm' for the Memo
application).  Next, Buddy loads the macro file starting with '@' (e.g.,
"@BOOT.MAC") if that feature is enabled and if such a file exists.
Finally, Buddy runs the macro named "@boot" of the last loaded macro
file, if such a label exists.  If the macro name is "@boot+", macro
chaining occurs (see below).  Note that the character case is important
in the macro name (that is, "@Boot" will not work).  You can use this
feature to automatically open your favorite application or change the
machine's configuration when you reboot.  Also, remember that no Buddy
features can be invoked from a macro, so you should record the @boot
macro with Buddy turned off.

5.  Macro chaining: After executing a macro, Buddy will automatically
chain to the next macro if the macro label ends with a plus sign ('+').
Chaining will continue until a macro not having a label ending with a
plus sign or macro F10 or has been executed.  A macro label consisting
of only a plus sign is sufficient to cause chaining.

6.  &More: The letters corresponding to the three known sets of macro
labels will be shown in the lower right corner.  For example, "M P @"
means Buddy knows the labels for "m---.mac", "p---.mac", and
"@boot.mac".  ("---" means anything.)  Also, the next file to be dumped
will be "@boot.mac" because it's last on the list.

7.  Fn-\  (backslash) prepares Buddy to perform a macro file load
operation.  If the next character is another backslash, then Buddy will
load and scan the macro file designated for the active application.
(This is useful if Buddy does not know the labels and you've forgotten
which macro key runs which macro.)  However, if the next character is a
letter or a numeral, Buddy will attempt to load and scan the macro file
whose name starts with that character (and temporarily inhibit further
automatic loading, see below).  This feature operates even if the "Macro
Files" checkbox is off, thus allowing you to change to another macro
file on command even when Buddy is not doing it automatically.  When you
push Fn, the first letter of the currently-loaded macro file is
displayed to the left of the F1 label.

To permit you to load an arbitrary macro file and invoke a macro therein
if you have the "Macro Files" checkbox on, Buddy will temporarily
inhibit automatic loads after you manually load a macro file (e.g., by
entering "Fn-\v" to load VIC.MAC).  Automatic operation will be restored
when you push Fn-\ again (even Fn-\-ESC) or activate the EXM.

Invoking a macro will not change the temporary inhibit state.

When automatic operation is either temporarily inhibited or permanently
disabled, the macro file letter shown to the left of the F1 key label
will be in lower case.  An upper-case letter indicates the currently
loaded macro file AND that the macro file designated for the current
application will be loaded automatically, if necessary, if you push a
macro key.


A.2  Macro Feature Operation Summary:
-------------------------------------

                Temporary
   Keystroke     inhibit      Keystroke action
   ---------    ---------     ---------------------------------------
   Fn-\\        turn off      Load and scan the proper macro file for
                                the current app
   Fn-\x        turn on       Load and scan macro file X---.MAC
                                ('x' is a letter or numeral)
   Fn-\ESC      turn off      No other action
   BUDDY.EXM    turn off      Start EXM
   Fn-Fx        no change     Execute macro ("Fx" is F1 to F10)
   Fn-SFx       no change     Record macro


  Macro File    Temporary
   checkbox      inhibit      Letter       Macro key labels
  ----------   ------------   ----------   ---------------------------
     off       (don't care)   lower case   Shown if know, else numbers
     on           off         upper case   Shown if know, else numbers
     on           on          lower case   Shown if know, else numbers


   Letter        Action when a macro key is pushed (before execution)
   ----------    ----------------------------------------------------
   lower case    No change to the macro file
   upper case    Load the proper macro file (if not already loaded)


A.3  Macro EXM Settings Summary:
--------------------------------

There are two checkboxes that control startup behavior:

      "MF" = checkbox "Macro Files (1st ltr)"
      "@B" = checkbox "@boot.mac at startup"

      MF    @B    Startup action
      ---   ---   ------------------------------------------------------
      off   off   Do not scan any macro files.  Whatever file is already
                     loaded remains loaded.
      off   on    Load the file @BOOT.MAC and read the labels therefrom.
      on    off   Scan the labels of the currently loaded macro file
                     plus the macro files having upper-case letter
                     designations, and leave the last such file loaded.
                     It only makes sense to have three or fewer upper-
                     case letter designations.
      on    on    Scan the labels of the currently loaded macro file
                     plus the macro files having upper-case letter
                     designations, then load @BOOT.MAC and read the
                     labels therefrom.  It only makes sense to have two
                     or fewer upper-case letter designations.

In the last three cases, after the last file has been loaded, the first
macro named "@boot", if one exists, is invoked.



B. Significant Feature Enhancements:
------------------------------------

1.  &More: The battery information is shown on the icon view screen.
The plus and minus keys will change the serial port state, and Fn-PLUS
and Fn-MINUS will change the battery timeout value, as in Filer.

2.  WorldTime: When you change local cities, Buddy will force an update
of the ENV time zone information (by starting and quitting the EXM).
This cures the problem some users have had whereby the new time zone
would not be used after a reboot.  That would happen if the ENV was not
rewritten between changing the time zone and rebooting.

3.  WorldTime: An indicator on the great circle display lets you know
which of the two endpoint selections (dot or comma) is active on the
numeric keypad (used to move the endpoint), and where that endpoint is
located on the map.  In the lower left corner of the display, a letter
'C' indicates that the comma-key endpoint is active, while a letter 'D'
indicates that the dot-key endpoint active.  The arrow to the left or
right of that character points in the longitudinal direction of the
active endpoint with respect to the other endpoint as shown on the map.

4.  Unloading in DOS: The command "BUDDY -u" (or "BUDDY /u") will cause
the active invocation of Buddy, if any, to unload (if sysmgr is not
running).

5.  Filer (200LX only): Buddy looks for C:/_DAT/FILER.INI once at
startup.  If it exists, the initial action for d-ENTER (used to view a
file and then launch an application according to the file's extension)
is to pass the ENTER key to Filer (thus invoking the action specified by
FILER.INI, if any).  If no action is taken, then a DOS program or built-
in application is launched according to the extension listing in the
Filer Settings of the Buddy EXM.



C. Minor Changes:
-----------------

1.  Calc: 'i' and 'o' are surrogates for '(' and ')', respectively.
(This is helpful for algebraic mode.)

2.  Calc: The shortcut keys (s-d-r-p-y-i-o-q) are active in all sub-
applications except Solver.

3.  Calc: If you toggle out of Scientific, Engineering, or All format to
fixed point format using the "MENU =" feature, Buddy will toggle back to
that original format from fixed point when using "MENU =" again.  (It
used to toggle only to Engineering format.)  In effect, Buddy remembers
your floating point preference.

4.  Filer: In split view, TAB toggles the cursor between the left and
right sides.

5.  WorldTime: If started via &More, go directly to the map view with
the overlay.

6.  WorldTime: The location of the equator is shown on the overlay.

7.  WorldTime: The default solar eclipse data has been updated to
February 26, 1998 16:00 GMT.  This will be converted to your local time
zone and displayed you enter the manual time/date mode (by pushing the
left or right arrow keys).  After the March 1998, the August 11, 1999
solar eclipse data will be used, instead.

8.  WorldTime: The great circle endpoints are saved in the ENV so you
can change them and they'll stick across reboots (assuming you at least
open and close the EXM between changing and rebooting).

9.  Appt: In the date field, 't' means "today" (similar to 'n' for
"noon").

10.  Appt: When viewing an appointment, F2 ("add") will reset the
SmartCaps state.

11.  Todo: A new checkbox in the EXM enables '+' and '-' to change the
date by a week on the Todo main screen.  Otherwise, '-' will toggle the
todo status.   (Those keys still move by weeks the main Appt view).

12.  Memo:  An new checkbox in the EXM enables the Memo Goto feature
whereby pushing MEMO while Memo is active will call up the Goto screen.
This feature does not operate if "swap blues with shifted-symbols" is on
in Memo.

13.  EXM:  On the main screen, the L/R arrow keys move through all
choices.

14.  Filer: When Lite Sleep is disabled, the indicator is shown in
reverse video.

15.  In File Open or File Save windows, the '-' (minus) key can be used
in a file name.  Previously the minus key rotated through the file key
sets, but that caused a problem with file names containing a dash.  I
figure the plus key is sufficient for rotating the key sets since there
are only three sets.

16.  Editing: If text is highlighted, '.' (dot) will perform a CUT and
'=' (equal sign) will perform a COPY operation.  Thus, when text is
highlighted, you don't need to push the Fn key prior to the DOT or EQUAL
keys to perform a cut or copy.

17.  There's a new checkbox on the Other Settings screen that enables
Buddy to remove the slashes in zeros.  Some people like the slashes, and
I offered a patch in the version 2 FAQ that would disable that feature.
I don't like patches.

18.  The timers for Fn-F (power-off and force password) and Fn-q (quiet
mode) are no longer forced to expire at midnight.

19.  SmartCaps: If "dot after white space is on," d-gray will be
inhibited after white-space dot.  Use this feature to type numbers
containing double digits.

20.  The DOS program BUDUMP.EXE will print out the current values of
your Buddy settings.  Use this to make a hard copy of your settings.
Type "BUDUMP -h" for help.  This program is not included in the standard
ZIP file, but it is available on the Buddy diskettes or from the Buddy
Web site, www.buddy.com.



D. DOS-only Version:
--------------------

The DOS-only version will operate only for registered users.

Buddy.EXM is the same in both cases; only the .COM files are different.
Buddy EXM will display "DOS-only" on its main screen if the DOS-only
version is loaded.

      DOS features:
      -------------

1.  (unchanged from standard version) CTRL-MINUS (disable Buddy), CTRL-
PLUS (enable Buddy).

2.  (unchanged) SmartCaps, d-letter, d-gray.  You must still enable
these features by checking the corresponding "DOS" boxes in those three
feature sections of the Buddy EXM.

3.  (unchanged) Fn-S, Fn-L, Fn-G toggle SmartCaps, d-letter, and d-gray
on/off (unless preceded by MENU).

4.  (unchanged) d-backslash.

5.  (unchanged) Fn-C (cursor), Fn-Q (quiet), Fn-W (noisy), ALT-PLUS
(serial port on), ALT-MINUS (serial port lock), MENU-dot ("exit"), SHIFT-
MENU-DEL (unload Buddy).

6.  (unchanged) The battery usage timer is updated.

7.  (new) Push CTRL-PLUS (if Buddy is already enabled) to see a printout
of the battery values, serial port status, and "Q" state.

      Sysmgr applications:
      --------------------

1.  In any application, whether it is a built-in or add-in, pushing CTRL-
PLUS will globally enable SmartCaps, d-letter, and d-gray, according to
the corresponding "Sysmgr" boxes that are checked in those three feature
sections of the Buddy EXM.  (If you are running the full-featured
version, then those boxes are called "Add-ins".)  The keys Fn-S, Fn-G,
and Fn-L toggle the corresponding features on and off, same as before.
If you push any blue key or the MENU key, these three features are
globally disabled.

2.  d-backslash is always active (whereby "\\" is changed to ':'), if
enabled by the setting in the EXM.



E. Bug Repairs:
---------------

1.  d-gray is disabled in the Appt Leadtime field, the Appt Goto field,
the Todo Priority field, and all application password fields.

2.  When the blue-key timer (the tornado) times out, a DEL will do a
delete, not a backspace.

3.  &More: (200LX bug) MENU AT will properly show "Buddy" on F8 key.

4.  EXM:  MENU fx exits (was MENU fe).

5.  Calc List Stat: Hot keys now inactive in MENU File Copy.

6.  Calc: "MENU cdy" no longer beeps.

7.  File keys: A directory name that is longer than six characters will
no longer be used as a file-key label, overriding the file name.

8.  Filer: The timeout value can no longer be accidentally reduced past
zero, thus wrapping around to a large positive number.  Also, if the
timeout value is greater than 1638 seconds, Buddy displays the correct
value.  The minimum value is now 20 seconds.

9.  WorldTime: The automatic time zone update works on the 200LX.

10.  Startup: Trailing spaces on the Buddy command line, if any, are
ignored.  Before, trailing spaces prevented the HLP and OWN files from
being found.

11.  Startup: Specifying that Fn-Q (quiet mode) default to on at startup
now works.

12.  If you terminate sysmgr when there's a dirty file loaded in Memo,
Buddy will no longer get confused, partially unload, and later get stuck
in memory while you decide whether or not to save the file (unless you
push "Cancel" instead of yes or no -- so don't do that).

13.  Password: Fixed the inadvertent rescramble after ack-ing an alarm
when password is required.  Also fixed the rescramble after ack-ing a
200LX daily greeting.  A side effect is that when in DOS, after entering
your password, the blue-keys appear to be inoperative -- they don't work
until you hit some regular key.


===== EOF =====

