Below is a list of the main Screen Font Editor features, as well as general overviews of the product itself. To choose a help topic, follow the corresponding link.
If you use characters from the WordPerfect character sets, you probably have noticed that not all characters can be displayed in WordPerfect text screens. This is because monitors and graphics cards have a limit to the number of different characters they can display at one time in a text screen. Usually, the limit is well short of the 1500+ WordPerfect characters. Screen Font Editor helps you work with some of your display limitations. You can use Screen Font Editor to perform the following functions: Select the characters you want to display in WordPerfect text screens; Edit the character you decide to display. For Example, if you frequently use a symbol that normally is undisplayable, you can use the Screen Font Editor to select it so that it will display. Also, if you don't like the way the character displays, you can change its appearance. Instructions for selecting and editing the characters are included in the Context-sensitive Help screens that are available through the Help Menu, and throughout Screen Font Editor, by pressing F3.
As you use the Screen Font Editor, understand that the way a character displays on a text screen has no effect on the way the character is displayed on graphics screens or is printed. Also, changes made with the Screen Font Editor only affect the way characters are displayed in WordPerfect; they do not affect the way characters are displayed in DOS or any other applications you may have.
This is the first screen that is displayed when you enter Screen Font Editor. It displays one of the WP character sets. Press PgUp or PgDn to display the character set that contains the character you want to add. Move the cursor to the character, then press Enter to select it. This will take you to a second screen, the Select Screen Position screen. This screen displays the second 256 characters which will be displayed with the .FRS file you are editing. The cursor moves to the first empty space. Press Enter to add the character to the .FRS file. If there isn't an empty space available, the cursor will move to the first used character position in the file. If this isn't a character you want to replace, move the cursor to one you want to overwrite before you press Enter.
Underneath the Select WP Character screen boxes are three information lines. The first line displays the WP character, character set number and position, in brackets. The character name is displayed to the right. The second line displays, on the left, how the character will be viewed in the WP text screen and, on the right, the screen position of the character in the .FRS file. The third line displays the names of the actual .WCL library, on the left, and actual .FRS file being accessed, on the right.
When you press Enter to select a character from the Select WP Charcter screen, you are taken to a second screen, the Select Screen Position screen. This screen displays the second 256 characters which will be displayed with the .FRS file you are editing. The cursor moves to the first empty space. Press Enter to add the character to the .FRS file. If there isn't an empty space available, the cursor will move to the first used character position in the file. If this isn't a character you want to replace, move the cursor to one you want to overwrite before you press Enter.
Underneath the Select Screen Position screen boxes are three information lines. The first, or"WP characters using screen position" line displays the .FRS screen position number for the space you are looking at. The second line displays the list of characters which are currently using the .FRS screen position. For example, if the screen position space is blank, the second line displays a "None". If the screen position space is being used, the second line displays the character set number and position in brackets with the character name displayed to the right. If more than one character is using the screen position, that information is displayed as well. The third line is the "Select screen position for" line and it displays the WP character which you are selecting a screen position for, its character set number and position, in brakets. The character name is displayed to the right.
Screen Font Editor automatically retrieves a default .FRS file to be modified based on your particular configuration. The name of this file is displayed on the Select WP Character Screen and the Advanced Options Screen. To modify a different .FRS file, press Retrieve (Shift-F10) and select a specified type of .FRS file, or select Other and enter a .FRS filename of your own to be retrieved.
To save the changes you make to the .FRS file you must save the file. To do so, press Exit (F7), type Y, then enter the filename to exit the Screen Font Editor and save the .FRS file. When you exit and choose to save an .FRS file, Screen Font Editor automatically brings up a default .FRS filename, based upon your particular configuration. If this is the file you want to save, press Enter, then type Y. You can enter a full path name for your .FRS file if you wish to save the file out to a directory other than your default Screen Font Editor directory. When Screen Font Editor saves a .FRS file, it also creates a companion .CHM file. When saving, both the .FRS and the .CHM files are saved to your default, or specified directory. See Basic Files Used by SFE and WP in the Help Menu.
If you wish to restore your .FRS file to its original state, you must delete the .FRS and .CHM file for your particular setup. Delete the two files (e.g., VGA512.FRS, VGA512.CHM) at DOS. Then copy a new .FRS file into your Screen Font Editor directory. A new .CHM file is automatically created by Screen Font Editor when you edit the .FRS file. If you wish to restore your VGABASE.FRS or EGABASE.FRS files back to their original state, you must delete them as well. They do not, however, have a corresponding .CHM file that needs to be deleted. Note: VGABASE.FRS and EGABASE.FRS are created by Screen Font Editor when you edit one of the first 256 characters in an EGA or VGA .FRS file.
For EGA, VGA and Hercules monitors, the Setup key in WordPerfect lists options for displaying an additional 256 characters or displaying the base 256 characters with a different attribute. Bitmap data, or description of the characters, are stored in .FRS files. (HRF6.FRS, HRF12.FRS, EGA512.FRS, EGAUND.FRS, EGAITAL.FRS, EGASMC.FRS, VGA512.FRS, VGAUND.FRS, VGAITAL.FRS, VGASMC.FRS).
When a 512-character .FRS is used, WordPerfect looks at .CHM files for information about which screen positions (2nd 256 only) are used by which WordPerfect characters (EGA512.CHM, VGA512.CHM, HRF6.CHM).
Information for all WordPerfect characters are stored in .WCL files (VGA.WCL, EGA.WCL, HRF.WCL). These files are for Screen Font Editor's use only and are not used in WordPerfect.
For EGA/VGA monitors, if you modify one of the first 256 characters, Screen Font Editor will save the bitmap data in VGABASE.FRS or EGABASE.FRS. To use this font in WordPerfect, you will need to select the base font text driver in WP's Setup (WP 5.1 only).
This screen displays two character boxes. The box on the right contains the .FRS displayable characters. A heading at the top of the right character box specifies what particular screen font you are working in (either VGA, EGA, or Hercules). The box on the left contains a WordPerfect character set as it will display in a WordPerfect text screen. A heading at the top of the left character box specifies the character set. In the Advanced Options Screen, the Character Set box and the Screen Font box are presented side by side so that editing changes can be made (only characters which have been assigned a .FRS screen positions can be edited). Use Tab to move between the left and right boxes and Exit (F7) to return to the main Screen Font Editor screen. The bottom of the Advanced Options Screen displays a number of options. For more information on Edit, Delete, and Use Screen Position see Help Menu.
As you move the cursor through the characters in either box of the Advanced Options screen, you may notice that the opposite box is changing screens. When you are in the left Character Set box, the right Screen Font box shows you where the character is located in the .FRS file (first or second 256), if it has been selected. When you are in the right Screen Font Box, the left Character Set box shows the WP character the .FRS screen position is assigned to.
Characters on either side of the Advanced Options screen may be edited. If the Character Set character does not have a screen position, it may not be edited until a screen position is assigned to it. Characters edited on one side will modify the characters on the other side. To edit, move the cursor to a character and select Edit (1). Two boxes will appear; one that is for editing and one to use as a reference. Use the suggested cursor movement combinations to edit the character. Cancel (F1) will restore the character to its original state. Save the file to keep your changes.
Dot, Erase and Move are modes which determine what will happen as you use the cursor keys. Insert toggles between Dot and Move modes. Home, PgUp, End, PgDn move the cursor diagonally. Toggle clears a dot if it is set, or sets it if it is clear. Asterisk (*) sets a dot. Period (.) sets a dot and moves right. Delete clears a dot. Space clears the dot and moves the cursor right. Backspace moves the cursor left. Screen Up and Screen Down ("+" and "-" on numeric key pad) moves the cursor to the top/bottom row. "[" and "]" moves the cursor to the first/last column on a row. The "+", "-", "[", "]" keys reset the cursor mode back to Move. Ctrl-End, Ctrl-PgDn delete to the end of the row/cell. Shift-Arrow keys move the character one dot in the direction of the arrow, but columns or rows shifted out of a cell will be lost. However, Cancel (F1) restores the character as it was before any editing was done.
This option deletes a character from either box in the Advanced Options screen. Highlight the character you want to delete and select Delete (2). You can re-select a deleted .FRS character with the Select option in the Select WP Character Screen. You can also re-select an .FRS character with the Use Screen Position option, if you deleted the character while in the Character Set box. Only characters with an .FRS screen position may be deleted.
The Delete option functions somewhat differently when you are in the Character Set box versus the Screen Font box. When you delete a character while you are in the Character Set box, it deletes the .FRS screen position pointer from the .CHM file. When you delete a character while you are in the Screen Font box, it removes all characters, and their pointers, which may be mapped to that .FRS screen position. Screen Font Editor has a limitation of 300 character pointers in the .CHM file. This means that only 300 individual character set characters may be mapped to the 256 screen positions in the .FRS file. If you want to remove a single character from a .FRS screen position, delete while in the Character Set box. This lets you remove a particular character from a .FRS screen position that is being used by other characters, without deleting the other characters. If you wish to remove all characters mapped to a .FRS screen position, delete while in the Screen Font box.
This option (in Advanced Options) lets you assign several characters to a single displayable character . This way, two or three characters can Use (or share) one .FRS screen position, saving space. To have a character use (or share) a screen position move the cursor to the character in the left Character Set box, then select Use Screen Position (3). The cursor highlights a position in the right Screen Font box. Move the cursor to the character position you wish to use, then choose Select (1). Note: All characters sharing a screen position, will display as one character. In choosing characters to share a screen position, you should select those which closely resemble each other.
Screen Font Editor has a limitation of 300 character pointers in the .CHM file. This means that only 300 individual character set characters may be mapped to the 256 screen positions in the .FRS file. This places a limitation on the number of characters that can Use a Screen Position. This means you may need to delete characters from screen positions to free up .CHM character pointers, if you reach the limit of 300. If you want to remove a single character from a .FRS screen position, Delete while in the Character Set box. This lets you remove a particular character pointer from a .FRS screen position that is being used by other characters, without deleting the other characters. If you wish to remove all characters mapped to a .FRS screen position, Delete while in the Screen Font box.
The Screen Font Operations key (Ctrl-F8) only functions when the cursor is positioned on the .FRS file side (right) of the screen. The operations are performed on each character in the .FRS file that is currently displayed (1st or 2nd 256 characters). There is no backup made of the screen font. Once the function is performed, you can undo a operation by: exiting Screen Font Editor without saving; by copying the characters in from a library; or by manually editing the characters.
Create a "mask" of dots for every character in the currently displayed 256 characters. For example, creating a underline mask would underline all 256 characters. The Toggle, Dot, Erase, and Move options function the same as they do in the Edit box. The Type option displays a submenu that lets you determine what the dots in the mask do when they are combined with the characters. After creating the mask with the cursor-key combinations, select Perform Action (1).
You can shift, or move, each of the currently displayed 256 characters up, down, left or right by a certain number of dots. Columns or rows shifted out of the cell will be lost. After selecting the direction (Shift Type) and the number of dots to be shifted (Shift Count), select Perform Shift (3).
VGA.WCL, EGA.WCL, and HRF.WCL are a collection of characters representing each character in the WordPerfect character sets. Character libraries are divided into a number of WordPerfect character sets. Characters from a particluar character set are displayed on the Select WP Character screen. The "WP Character" in "[]", under the Character Set box, shows what the character representing the WordPerfect character the cursor is or looks like. The "Displayed as" character is from the .FRS file and show how the character displays in WordPerfect. The "Library" displays which .WCL file you are using.
The select option on the Select WP Character screen transfers a WP character from the character library to the .FRS file. For Hercules files, a character will be copied for each attribute. You can copy all the characters in a WP character set to the .FRS file by freeing up screen positions in the .FRS file. This may be done by pressing Delete, Ctrl-End, or Ctrl-Page-Down, when in the right Screen Font box of the Advanced Options. A character set may then be selected using the Library Transfer key (Ctrl-F5). You can copy characters from libraries of a different type (EGA, VGA, Hercules) than the type of your FRS file, but VGA characters are 16 bytes high whereas EGA and Hercules are only 14 bytes. Information is chopped off or padded at the bottom of each character.
| Key | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Tab | Change windows | Switches between the character set side and screen map side and between editing the character and the character set or screen map. |
| Shft-Tab | Change windows | Exit back to 1st screen from advanced options. |
| F1 | Cancel | Restores character to what it was before any editing was done. |
| Shft-F3 | Switch | Switches between reference and edit characters. |
| F3 | Help | Help. |
| Ctrl-F5 | Library Transfer | Copy characters to and from the WordPerfect Character Libraries (.WCL). |
| F7 | Exit | Exit sub-menus and SFE from 1st screen. |
| Home-F7 | Exit | Exit SFE from screens other than 1st screen. |
| Ctrl-F8 | Font Operations | Operations (e.g. shift character, set dots) done for each character in a screen font. Available only when positioned on screen side. |
| F10 | Save | Save all files that were modified. |
| Shft-F10 | Retrieve | Retrieve a .FRS file (and corresponding .CHM file). |
| Ctrl-Home | Go To | Go to a character in the WPCorp character set or to a screen position. |