============================================================================= AST RESEARCH, INC. SOFTWARE BULLETIN #0004H 05-03-90 ============================================================================= AST-3780 SOFTWARE RELEASE 5.20 Production Release 5.20 Available May, 1990 Part Number: 910288-001 5.25 inch diskette 910288-031 3.50 inch diskette Includes all problem fixes and enhancements of all previous versions, plus the following: PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - The diagnostic program normally performed by pressing the "F4" key while in IP mode would consistently fail when the 3780 software was installed on an IBM PS/2 Model 30-286. (PR#A01086) - In CMDP mode while receiving a file, the 3780 software would add a linefeed character after each carriage return. (PR#A01087) - The 3780 IP program would not recognize any configuration data file except for EMDAT.PRM. If a different file name was used, IP would generate the error message "ERROR ON FILE EMDAT.PRM EXECUTION ABORTED". (PR#A01091) - When running the CMDP portion of the 3780 program on an IBM PS/2 Model 80, the "Y" parameter would not function. The system would lock up when the "Y" parameter was encountered in the command file of CMDP. (PR#A62006) - The 3780 software (either IP or CMDP) would not operate in an IBM PS/2 Model 70. When attempting to execute the 3780 software, it would generate a message to the effect that "a micro channel system must be used with this software". (PR#A62009) - When using CMDP in an IBM PS/2 system, in a leased line environment, if the "X" command was used after a "T" command in the command file, the system would hang. (PR#A62011) ENHANCEMENTS: - The same software can now be used in conjunction with either the CC-432 standard bus card or the CC-432A micro-channel adapter. Previously, each adapter had its own version of 3780 software. - Increased the size of the value for "Gross receive time-out" parameter in the 3780 configuration program from four to five digits. (PR#A01083) - Two new features have been added to the CMDP portion of 3780: 1. CMDP will now read a parameter from the configuration file to determine how much time to wait in between files during reception of multiple files. 2. It is now possible to receive multiple files to a printer by preceding the "P" command with an exclamation point. Production Release 5.01 Available October, 1988 Part Number: 900028-001 5.25 inch diskette 900028-031 3.50 inch diskette PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - When using interactive mode (IP) to transmit multiple files to the host, a protocol error would occur. The host would NAK the transmission after the 205th record. (PR#A01040) - Receiving data in interactive (IP) mode from IBM host causes "PARAMETER ERROR". (PR#A01042) - When using CMDP (batch) mode to receive large text files from the host, the AST-3780 product will eventually cause the host to drop the line by sending "NAK" characters at some point after reception of files has started. (PR#A01043) - AST-3780 had performed a "stack switch" during a hardware interrupt incorrectly. (PR#A01053) - The record count displayed by AST-3780 always exceeded the actual number sent or received by one. (PR#A01054) - Inability of CMDP (batch) mode to transmit a single record. (PR#A01057) - Ability to receive multiple files in CMDP (batch) mode. This now works even if there is a time delay between the host's transmission of files. (PR#A01069) - Problem with CMDP (batch) mode successfully transmitting a file to a host. During transmission CMDP would generate a "CMDP 5" error message and drop the line. (PR#A01068) - During the downloading of a file from the host, the 3780 software is truncating the last 30 bytes from a 110 byte record (80 bytes are received by the PC). (PR#A01102) ENHANCEMENTS: - Ability to set "Receive Timeout" parameter to "0", to allow 3780 to stay at "pending" state, awaiting host action. (PR#A01061 and PR#A01071) Production Release 5.0 Available March, 1988 Part Number: 900028-001 Emulator Disk PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - Using CMDP, a carriage return linefeed character is incorrectly attached to the beginning of an ".exe" type file when being downloaded from the mainframe. IP and other 3780 emulators do not have this problem. (PR#01032) - Receiving to the disk or printer, using CMDP. After the receive session has started, if the user presses a key, 3780 will add "A:/COMMAND.COM C:/CMDP.EXE to the contents of the file being received. If a key is not depressed, this problem does not occur. (PR#01036) - When sending data files using the CMDP mode (80 Characters followed by a carriage return) in either transmit or receive mode, the user is losing whole block boundaries (i.e., 512K blocks). (PR#01041) - Customer is unable to establish communication with a Nixdorff data collection device (which emulates an IBM 3780 RJE workstation). (PR#01044) - Unable to transfer/receive multiple files using the exclamation point character while in CMDP mode. (PR#01045) ENHANCEMENTS: - New user friendly configuration program. - User accessible translation tables - EBCDIC to ASCII and ASCII to EBCDIC. - Transmit and receive timeout functions added in CMDP mode. - A trace function has been added. - A "hot key" feature has been added in IP mode. - Added "forced stopped transmitting" feature. - Support of "wild card" transmit function. - An auto-receive function has been implemented in CMDP mode. - Disk full feature supported in both IP and CMDP modes. Maintenance Release 4.85 Available January, 1987 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - Using CMDP with a batch file, when the disk becomes full, the user is unable to replace the disk and continue receiving. (PR#01031) - CMDP.11 "NO ACTIVITY TIME OUT PERIOD HAS ELAPSED" fails to execute properly when a "P" or a "T" command is in process. (PR#01030) - IP.EXE cannot transmit files with record counts greater than 65,536. This is a limitation of the BASIC COMPILER. Customer is satisfied with using CMDP with the new record/line counter feature enhancement. (PR#01035) ENHANCEMENTS: - Display the receiving and transmitting record/line number in CMDP mode. - After the transmitting side bids the line for ten times and no response is received, CMDP displays the Retry error message and exits. COMMENTS: - None Maintenance Release 4.82 Available October, 1986 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - In the Transparent Mode, deblock with translate does not work correctly after the first file is transferred. (PR#01029) COMMENTS: - Part two (2) of PR#01024 (see 4.81 below), could not be fixed due to limitations of the I.B.M. basic compiler. Maintenance Release 4.81 Available October, 1986 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - Problems with DESQview: (1) If another software application is printing, and a window is opened to run AST-3780, the printer will be re-initialized when IP.EXE is executed. (2) The AST-3780 intercepts the PC Timer interrupt, and does not do a forward call, that would allow the vector that was there previously to be executed. (PR#01024) - The following sequence of events causes the package to fail: "ESC/ DATA IRS ESC/ IRS ESC/ DATA". Two characters from one line are appended onto the next line. (PR#01025) - When "DSR" is lost during transmission, sometimes CMDP's error level checking will not work. (PR#01026) - The "SET LINE FEATURE" in CMDP does not work. (PR#01027) ENHANCEMENTS: - There is a new Automatic Receive Feature in CMDP Mode. Production Release 4.8 Available June, 1986 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - When CMDP processes the Y batch command it would exit to DOS with the DTR signal set low instead of high. (PR#01014) - Under CMDP, when the statement "if errorlevel = 4 goto LABEL" was encountered, the branch to LABEL would occur whether there was an error or not. (PR#01015) - If the disk became full when receiving a file, the emulator would not generate a CMDP 7 error. It would continue receiving the file and terminate with CMDP 0. (PR#01017) - When a CMDP batch file containing two (T)ransmit commands separated by a (R)eceive command was executed from the hard disk of an AT, the second (T)ransmit command would be skipped. (PR#01018) - The "A" command in CMDP would cause the "DSR signal from DCE not seen at line 1" error to occur. (PR#01020) - The "L" command, log to disk, would create a log file but would not write any data into it. (PR#01021) ENHANCEMENTS: None Production Release 4.6 Available August, 1985 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - CMDP would attempt to send more than the allowed 63 spaces per IGS sequence when space compression was enabled. - When receiving a file to a disk that became full, one record of data would be lost upon insertion of another disk. - If a file were sent to the host by IP and CMDP, the files would have a slightly different size at the host. - Problems related to punch device selection when interfacing with POWER were fixed. - The emulator would not wait two seconds before sending a WACK in response to an ENQ from the host. - When printing transparent data, part of a block containing more than 132 characters would be dropped. - TTDs (temporary text delays) received at certain times would confuse the emulator and cause it to fail to respond to the host. - The IP program would not handle records greater than 254 bytes long. - An 8DH was generated for a CR instead of a 0DH when an ESC M (carriage return no line feed) control character was detected in print data. ENHANCEMENTS: - Operator Abort (F10) support was added to CMDP. - Automatic selection of I/O addressing for the CC-432 card was added. Maintenance Release 4.55 Available June, 1985 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - Under CMDP, the "no activity" timer was unreliable. - An ACK1 instead of an ACK0 would be sent in response to a host's line bid under certain conditions. - Extra CR/LFs were generated at the ETB of print data blocks. ENCHANCEMENTS: None Maintenance Release 4.53 Available February, 1985 PROBLEMS RESOLVED: - In 3780 mode with the DEBLOCK parameter set on, transparent data transfers would occasionally yield 96 byte block sizes instead of 80 bytes. - Extra carriage return line feed characters were generated at IRS or NL characters (record separators) during host controlled deblocking operations. - The emulator would abort if a device selection code was received in non-transparent mode prior to receiving transparent data. - Under CMDP the "T" transmit batch command wouldn't drop back to DOS when the DSR modem signal was lost. - When the host sent an EOT in response to a WACK from the emulator, the emulator would get confused and respond with the ACK for the previous message - not the current one. - Under IP, the receive buffers would fill and WACKs would constantly be sent to the host when an RVI was received because no indication was given to the user that a manual receive device selection was required. - The emulator would not function on leased lines with a constant carrier. ENHANCEMENTS: None Production Release 4.50 Available September, 1984 Initial release of AST's 3780 emulation package.