Working in Windows    \|/    by Greg Law
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"Microsoft updates free to download"

                      UPDATES TO WINDOWS AND WORD

   Microsoft recently released two new updates for Windows 3.10 and Word 
for Windows 6.0. The updates are freely available on the Microsoft 
Download Service (206-936-6735), CompuServe and via the Internet at 
ftp.microsoft.com.

   The Windows 3.11 update is distributed in the form of a self-extracting 
file (WWO981.EXE in Section 10, Windows 3.1 Appnotes). It consists of a 
new 386-enhanced mode kernel (KRLN386.EXE), graphics-device interface 
(GDI.EXE) and user interface (USER.EXE). It also includes updated dynamic-
link libraries for common dialogs (COMMDLG.DLL), an updated universal 
printer driver (UNIDRV.DLL), and an updated PostScript driver (PSCRIPT. 
DRV). No information is included explaining what's new in the update of 
what problems, if any, the update is supposed to resolve. Once the update 
is installed, the only noticeable difference is that the About dialog box 
in Program Manager and File Manager now report Windows Version 3.11.

   The Word for Windows 6.0a update is also distributed in a self-
extracting file (WORD6OA.EXE) and includes no details about what has been 
fixed or improved. One noticeable difference is that the update includes 
VSHARE.386, a 386-enhanced mode version of SHARE.EXE, that seems to 
resolve a lot of the file-sharing problems I've been having.

   As you are probably aware, Word for Windows 6.0 requires SHARE.EXE be 
loaded in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file or it refuses to run. The problem here is 
that SHARE.EXE implements file locking by default, so you can't have two 
copies of the same file open even if neither application can write to the 
file.

   For example, I use the SAM Amateur Callsign Database with three 
applications -- none of which write to the database files. The first 
application is JNOS, a full-service packet-radio BBS based on         
TCP/IP, that allows users to look up the name and address of an FCC-issued 
callsign. The second application is HyperLog, which I use to log all 
stations I contact by radio. When I enter a callsign into HyperLog, it 
enters the name and address from the database and lets me know if I've 
worked that station previously.

   The third application is the software included with the SAM Amateur 
Callsign Database, which allows me to browse the database by callsign or 
by name, or to generate reports listing all amateurs in a particular city 
or state. This is often useful if I don't know the exact callsign or know 
only the person's name or location -- for example if I want to look up an 
old friend that I haven't seen in years.

   The problem is that SHARE.EXE won't let me use the database with more 
than one application at a time, which isn't acceptable. On the other hand, 
I can run all three applications simultaneously with VSHARE.386 installed 
in the SYSTEM.INI file (device=vshare.386 in the [386Enh] section).

   If you install SHARE.EXE in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, be absolutely 
certain it is loaded before any other memory-resident utilities -- an 
exception is that it can (and perhaps should) be loaded after your disk 
cache. I mistakenly loaded SHARE after Norton's SmartCan and got some 
spectacular results. The system was working fine when suddenly Norton 
SmartCan reported the unerase database was locked, Word for Windows 6.0 
reported the document I was working on was locked, and Norton Commander 
reported a sharing violation when I tried to delete a file.

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               Computers are Greg Law's hobby as well as his
            vocation, and he enjoys programming on all types.
            In addition to his duties on PC-Link (username 
            PC GREG), he can be contacted on Delphi, username
            GREGL, or via the Internet at gregl@delphi.com.

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