Compaq DECwindows Motif
for OpenVMS
Release Notes


Previous Contents Index

2.5.1.4.3 Error Messages

This section describes messages associated with the CDA Pack and Unpack applications.

FILESPEC, Missing filespec: file-name

Severity: Informational
Explanation: The Pack application cannot locate an external file included as an external reference in the .DDIF or .DTIF file or in one of the files referenced in the .DDIF or .DTIF file.
NOOUTFIL, No output file was created.

Severity: Warning
Explanation: The Pack application cannot find external references in the .DDIF or .DTIF document to be packed, and you did not specify the /ALWAYS_ENCODE qualifier.
OUTFILE, Output file created: file-name

Severity: Informational
Source: CDA_UNPACK
Explanation: The Unpack application created the specified file while unpacking a file created by the Pack application.

2.5.1.5 Paper Size Button Renamed

V1.2

In the CDA Viewer, the name of the Paper Size button in the Open dialog box was changed to Display Options. However, the function invoked by the button was not changed.

2.5.1.6 New CDA Viewer Error Message

V1.2

The CDA Viewer issues the following message if it is unable to create the application context:

DRMCTXFAIL, DVR could not create application context, aborting

Level: Error
Explanation: The CDA Viewer ends because an attempt to create the application context using the Resource Manager failed, which is usually caused by insufficient memory.
User Action: Reduce the system load and start the application again.

2.5.2 Problems and Restrictions

The following notes describe known problems and restrictions that currently exist with either the CDA Run-Time Services or the CDA Viewer application.

2.5.2.1 Support for Display PostScript Removed

V1.2--6

With the removal of the support for Display PostScript from the current version of DECwindows Motif, CDA no longer supports the display of PostScript source. The PostScript option has been removed from the CDA Viewer. If you attempt to view a PostScript file from the character cell interface CDA viewer, the viewer displays the following message:


%CDA-E-UNSUPFMT, unsupported document format. 

There is no workaround.

2.6 Clock

This section contains release notes pertaining to the Clock application.

2.6.1 Changes and Enhancements

The following notes describe changes and enhancements made to the Clock application.

2.6.1.1 DECsound Alarm Capability

V1.2

The Clock application includes an alarm feature that can be used if your system supports DECsound. On systems without sound capabilities, you can select only the keyboard bell. When you choose Alarm from the Options menu, a pop-up window appears. This pop-up window allows you to set the alarm time, choose the sound to be played, and indicate an alarm message. To see if your system supports this feature, invoke one of the sounds located in the DECW$EXAMPLES directory (for example, BELLS.AUD).

2.6.2 Corrections

The following notes describe the resolution of problems with the Clock application that previously resulted in an error or required a workaround.

2.6.2.1 DECW$CLOCK.EXE Process Increments Correctly

V1.2--6

The Clock application now consistently increments hour and minute values correctly. Previously, the DECW$CLOCK.EXE process generated two timer queue entries (XtTimeout) at the end of each 61-minute period to increment both the minute and hour values. Due to scheduling issues, these duplicate entries sometimes resulted in a time loss. The expiration value for XtTimeout has been adjusted to eliminate this problem.

2.7 DECterm

This section contains information about the DECterm application.

2.7.1 Changes and Enhancements

The following notes describe recent changes and enhancements made to the DECterm application.

2.7.1.1 Improved Batch Scrolling

V1.2--6

The overall performance of batch scrolling has been improved allowing you to moving through long files or multiscreen output quicker and easier. Now when you change the value of the Batch Scroll Lines option in the Display Options dialog box, the resulting display performance is visibly quicker.

2.7.1.2 New Default Font Sizes

V1.2--4

In previous releases, the default DECterm font size for the "big" and "little" fonts were chosen by point size. This depended on whether 75 or 100 dpi fonts were installed first in the font path. Starting with DECwindows Motif Version 1.2--4 for OpenVMS, DECterm chooses its default fonts by pixel size. The following table shows the two behaviors.
  Prior Releases   Since Version 1.2--4
Default Font Size (in pixels) 100 751   100 75
Big font 25 18   18 18
Little font 18 14   14 14


175 dpi fonts or 100 dpi fonts on a 15-inch monitor

In addition, on 100-dpi displays DECterm now uses the big font by default. This results in DECterm using the same font size (18 pixels) on 100-dpi displays as it did in prior releases. On displays that are less than 325 mm wide, DECterm also now uses a bigger default font.

Follow these steps to use the same font as in previous releases (14 pixels):

  1. From the Options menu, select the Window... item.
  2. Choose Little Font. Click on Apply.
  3. If the new default font is too small, click on the Big Font button and change the pixel size in the Other text entry field from 18 to 25.

2.7.1.3 DECterm Resource File Name

V1.2--4

In this release, the locale of the display is used to create the file name of the DECterm resource file. For example, if the locale is set to "ja_JP", then the default resource file name becomes DECW$TERMINAL_DEFAULT_JA_JP.DAT.

However, DECterm continues to use the old resource file name until the user selects Save Options at least once in the particular locale. The default resource file name for DECterm continues to be DECW$TERMINAL_DEFAULT.DAT if the locale:

2.7.1.4 Escape Sequences

V1.2--3

The DECterm application supports all ReGIS input cursors:

For a shape other than the diamond cursor when n is equal to 1, define the logical name DECW$TERM_REGIS_CURSOR as one of the numbers defined in the SYS$LIBRARY:DECW$CURSOR file.

V1.2

The following escape sequences are supported by DECterm:

See Section 4.4.1.1, ReGIS Input Cursors for additional information about escape sequences in DECwindows Motif software. See Chapter 4 for details and restrictions on the use of these sequences.

2.7.1.5 Scrolling Through the Keyboard

V1.2--3

You can scroll through the keyboard by pressing the Ctrl key and arrow keys or by pressing the Prev or Next key on the editing keypad.

2.7.1.6 Reporting the DECterm Window Size

V1.2--3

When you enable the Show Feedback option in the Workspace Options dialog box of the Window Manager and you resize a DECterm window, the size of the window is reported in characters instead of pixels.

2.7.1.7 Resizing the Terminal

V1.2--3

If you maximize the DECterm window when you enable the Auto Resize Terminal window option, the window is expanded to its nearest cell boundary; the window does not necessarily occupy the entire screen. The Restore options continue to function appropriately.

2.7.1.8 Timeout for Displaying the Copyright Notice

V1.2--3

If keyboard or mouse activity does not take place for 10 seconds after the copyright notice is displayed on the terminal, the notice disappears from the DECterm screen.

2.7.2 Corrections

The following notes describe the resolution of problems with the DECterm application that previously resulted in an error or required a workaround.

2.7.2.1 Can Specify Non-Standard Font Sets

V1.2--6

In the Window Options dialog box, you can now specify a subset of the standard font set listed for Big Font, Little Font, and Standard German Font.

For example, select Little Font and click Other. In the text entry box, replace the standard size and display options with alternate values from the current font set, as follows:

For additional information about specifying fonts, see Section 2.7.3.4. For information regarding the fonts available on your system, contact your system manager.

2.7.2.2 Device Output Files Used by Multiple DECterm Windows Updated Correctly

V1.2--6

Redirecting the printer or window output of multiple DECterm windows to the same device file now produces separate versions of the file---one for each DECterm session. Previously, when performing an OPEN/READ INPUT command on this device file, an error occured, and after closing the file, only one version was created for all open sessions.

2.7.2.3 Print Operations That Exceed Quota Generate a Warning Message

V1.2--6

DECterm print operations that exceed the available disk quota now generate following warning message:


write to printer failed, write returned -1 

2.7.2.4 Button and Menubar Background Colors Set Properly (New Desktop Only)

V1.2--6

The colors of the DECterm cascade buttons and menubar items are now consistent with other desktop applications when you use the Style Manager to activate the More Colors for Desktop option.

2.7.3 Problems and Restrictions

The following notes describe the known problems and restrictions that currently exist with the DECterm application.

2.7.3.1 Maximum Number of DECterm Windows

V1.2--4

A DECterm controller can create a maximum of 23 DECterm windows. This occurs because DECterm needs an event flag for each terminal window to use. There are 23 event flags that DECterm can use. (Event flag 0 and event flags 24--32 are not available for DECterm to use.)

If you need more than 23 DECterm windows, then you must create a new controller. To create a new controller, enter the following command:


$ MCR DECW$TERMINAL

Note that the window from which this command is executed cannot be used for anything else because this command does not return until the last DECterm window is closed. After starting the controller with this method, the user can create another 23 DECterm windows with the DCL command CREATE/TERMINAL.

2.7.3.2 Changing the Auto Repeat Setting

V1.2--3

You cannot change the Auto Repeat setting in the DECterm Keyboard Options dialog box. Instead, change the setting in the Keyboard dialog box in the Session Manager.

2.7.3.3 Positioning DECterm Windows

V1.2--3

If the resource Mwm*clientAutoPlace is set to True, DECterm windows are not displayed where the DECW$TERMINAL.x and DECW$TERMINAL.y resources are specified. As a workaround, set this resource to False and restart MWM.

2.7.3.4 User Font Selection

V1.2

DECterm allows you to select available fonts from the Options/Window dialog box. A different font can be selected to replace the default Big Font, default Little Font, or default German Standard Font.

In the Options/Window dialog box, you can select the default font or enter the name of a font into a text field and select that font. When the Big Font, Little Font, or German Standard Font is selected and the Other toggle button for the font is selected, DECterm attempts to locate and use the font name supplied in the adjacent text field. For information on font naming conventions or fonts available on your system, consult your system manager.

Note

Not all fonts work properly with DECterm. DECterm emulates a character-cell terminal, and, therefore, expects the fonts to be monospaced (each glyph occupies the same number of pixels). Proportional fonts can be chosen, but they produce unpredictable results.

Furthermore, DECterm fonts are supplied in families of 26 related fonts, including variations for bold, double-width, double-width/double-height, normal, and condensed characters. Also, DECterm fonts include special characters, such as the Line Drawing and the DIGITAL Technical character sets. A DECterm font family is identified by the font naming convention.

Use of fonts that do not have all the related font family variations, fonts that do not have the needed special characters, or font families that do not adhere to the DECterm font family naming conventions, may not result in an optimal display or otherwise perform as expected.

On OpenVMS systems, Version 6.1 or higher, the VT330 font has been made available. The VT330 font is based on the 10x20 font used in the VT330 and VT340 terminals. Use this font on a system where they are available by entering the following font-name strings in the font-name text field:


 
    -DEC-VT330-*-*-*--20-*-*-*-c-*-*-* 
 

2.7.3.5 Local Echo

V1.2

DECterm supports a local echo mode. In the Options/General dialog box, select Local Echo, which causes all character sequences generated locally to be echoed on the display and passed to the remote host. This feature is useful when connected to a host that does not echo typed characters.

2.7.3.6 Answerback Message

V1.2

A user interface is available to enter answerback messages. This answerback message field is for compatibility with Compaq terminals.

The answerback field is a buffer that contains up to thirty characters. The answerback field in earlier Compaq terminals contained a message used to identify itself to the host system. For DECterm windows, the answerback field can be used to store a sequence of characters that you can use for any repetitive purpose.

A field is provided in the Options/General dialog box to enter answerback text. Click on the answerback field and enter your text. To enter control characters, encode the control character as a two-digit hex ASCII code, preceded by a number sign (#).

For example, when you enter #0D in the answerback field, DECterm responds with a carriage return.

If two consecutive number sign characters are entered (##), a single number sign is transmitted.

If anything other than a valid two-digit hex code or another number sign is detected after an initial number sign, the number sign is treated as a normal text character. Refer to any ASCII table for a complete list of characters.

The answerback text can also be concealed. When the Conceal Answerback button is enabled, the answerback message is concealed. To deselect the Conceal Answerback button, click on the answerback text field, which erases the previous answerback message.

2.7.3.7 Seven-Bit Printer Support

V1.2

When the 7-Bit Printer button is selected in the Options/Printer dialog box, DECterm modifies printed text to be compatible with printers that do not support 8-bit characters. This includes modifying control sequence introducer (CSI) strings to use the format Escape-Left Bracket rather than the single 8-bit CSI character.

When the 8-Bit Printer button is selected, DECterm allows the use of 8-bit characters when printing. This mode can cause problems for older printers if they can not interpret 8-bit characters.

The default is 8-Bit.

2.7.3.8 Printing to an Attached Printer

V1.1

Printing to a port device requires you to have read and write privileges on that port. You cannot print by allocating the device, since the controller requires access to the device. Instead, set the device to WORLD:RW.

For example, to use the printer port on a VAX 3100 system, enter the following command from a privileged account or include the command in the system startup file:


$ SET PROTECTION=WORLD:RW TTA3:/DEVICE

2.7.3.9 DECterm Graphics

V1.1

The following information is specific to DECterm graphics:

2.7.3.10 DECterm Resource Usage

V1.1

You cannot create more terminal windows than your system resources and quotas allow. If you have insufficient resources, a dialog box is displayed with a message indicating that no additional DECterm windows can be created.

To reduce the memory requirement of each DECterm window and create additional terminal windows, decrease the number of Record Lines Off Top in the Display dialog box and decrease the number of columns for each DECterm window.

Once the resource limit is reached, log out of all DECterm windows that are running on the host system before you increase the number of terminal windows.

2.7.3.11 Diagnostic Crash File and Messages

V1.1

DECterm produces a diagnostic file when a status code of fatal is returned. The DECTERM_ERROR.LOG file is produced in the login directory when the DECterm application exits abnormally. If you have a problem with the DECterm application, submit a copy of this log file to your Compaq service representative. However, under certain circumstances, a log file is generated even when no problem is encountered. Therefore, the appearance of a log file as an isolated event should not be cause for a problem report.

You can enable additional levels of diagnostic messages by defining either a logical name or a symbol named DECTERM_DIAG. When defined, enhanced diagnostics are displayed by the DECterm images. Use this mode only for diagnosing problems; it causes Session Manager message windows to be generated for each new DECterm created from the Session Manager.

DECterm diagnostics can be captured in a file by defining the logical name DECW$TERMINAL_OUTPUT to point to a file.

2.7.3.12 VT330 and VT340 Terminal Emulation

V1.0

DECterm incorporates some of the features of the VT330- and VT340-series video terminals, such as ReGIS and Sixel graphics. DECterm does not provide complete VT330 and VT340 terminal emulation.

The following restrictions apply to DECterm:


Previous Next Contents Index