geoSpecific
by Bruce Thomas

What is the most useful program for GEOS?  That is a question that will have many answers depending on each persons' individual skills and talents.  Artists would respond by saying geoPaint or geoCanvas.  Writers would tell you geoWrite. Many others would answer geoPublish.

What finally convinced me  to start using GEOS was geoPublish. With its' page layout and graphics power, and the ability to access a Laser Printer, it finally moved the C-64 into the BIG leagues.  When you are holding a 'Publish document in your hands that has come from a PostScript Printer, you can't tell how inexpensive the computer was that designed it.  In spite of my love for geoPublish, I would answer the above question by stating "all of the programs".

When GeoWorks (formerly Berkeley Softworks) created GEOS they were very wise in making it an open system.  Technical information was made available to the users allowing them to create programs to fill their needs and expand the system.  This is one of the reasons GEOS has enjoyed such success.  When users can develop programs like GeoPrint, GeoWizard or geoFax, everyone benefits.  If we had to wait for Berkeley to develop all of the programs available for GEOS, we wouldn't be able to do many of the things we can today, and the costs would have been much higher.

I have read many letters in various publications requesting a method of creating a landscape printout of geoCalc data.  While the usual answer says it is not possible, we will discuss how to do just that this time around.

When I first started doing this I used a program called ROTPAGES that appeared on one of the GeoVision disks.  I was able to save text scraps from 'Calc and import them into geoWrite for formatting.  After setting the tabs for the columns I would use Paint Pages (you all know how to use this, right?) to send my document to a 'Paint file and then I'd use ROTPAGES to rotate the image onto the printer.  Now, even though this program would sequentially print all the PAGE xx files you had on disk it had a very serious flaw.  It would only print 4 inches of the 'Paint files width.  To print any size of a 'Calc sheet sideways required a lot  of text scraps, 'Write pages and time.  Luckily for us, more creative programmers have come to the rescue.

Spike Dethman is one of those programmers and he has created GEOS DISK ONE, a collection of fine shareware programs that allow GEOS users to do things previously not possible.  The disk contains 11 programs and DA's and 7 new Input Drivers for Koala Pads and Mouse/Joystick/Koala in Port #2.  Included are GeoPack V2.1 for converting and LYNXing GEOS files (I use this on my geoSpecific articles and pictures prior to e-mailing them to Bryan), a very quick and handy envelope addresser, a Koala picture converter and a couple of fun screen saver DA's.  All but the Input Drivers support the 64 and  the 128 and most work in 80 column mode as well.  Click Pix, which lets you turn your masterpieces into self contained viewer files, and Paint Rotate, which lets you rotate, mirror or invert your pictures in 5 ways very easily, are two handy 'Paint utilities.  Paint Rotate is the program that will help us to print our GeoCalc files in Landscape mode.

For demonstration purposes, copy geoCalc, the New Car sample file from the geoCalc disk, geoWrite, geoPaint, Paint Pages and Paint Rotate to your REU or work disk.  Double Click on New Cars and now, once you are in 'Calc, make a text scrap.  Hi-Light all the cells from A1 to F23 and select Copy Text Scrap from the Options menu and then Quit geoCalc.  On the DeskTop, select the GEOS menu and change your printer driver to the Paint Pages driver.  There are many DA's that allow you to do this - I use Change Printer by Arthur J. Dahm III and then I can change printer drivers whenever I want (or whenever I forget to do it on the DeskTOP).

Open geoWrite and create a file called ROTATEST.  If you have 'Write V2.1 go to the options menu and select Make Full Page Wide.  Set your Left Margin and Paragraph Indent at the left edge of the screen and make tabs at the 1 7/10, 2 9/10, 4, 5 1/10 and 6 1/2 inch marks  (in 'Write 2.0 or earlier set tabs at 2 3/10, 3 2/10, 4, 4 8/10 & 5 8/10).  From the Edit menu Paste Text to add our 'Calc data to the page.  In V2.0 you will have to split the column headings so that they fit over the columns. Select Print from the file menu and a geoPaint file called PAGE 1 will be created on your disk.  Quit 'Write and, from the GEOS menu on the Desktop, select your usual printer driver again.

Start up Paint Rotate and choose the PAGE 1 file and then enter TEST as the name for the new file that will be created.  The best option to choose next is the 1/4 turn counter-clockwise option.  This is a time consuming process which can take up to 6 minutes to complete the task (1.5 minutes with my Turbomaster - probably 20 seconds with a SuperCPU).  Once done, all you have to do is open your TEST file with GeoPaint and print it.  By choosing the 1/4 turn counter-clockwise option the top of your file is on the left side of the page and the print head will not have to move all the way across while printing - saving some time for you.

Careful pre-planning in GeoCalc is important with this task.  GeoWrite will only let you position 8 tabs on the ruler so the most 'Calc columns you'd be able to print this way would be 9 - A to I (one on left margin and 8 at tab stops).  In my tests I have been able to get up to 58 rows to print sideways using BSW 9 point font (only the top 80 cardlines of the 'Paint image are rotated).  This allows for a fair sized spreadsheet to be printed.  If you plan your 'Calc layout right you could do 9 more columns on the next page and so on.

This process is much quicker than what I used to do with ROTPAGES but it still requires a lot of work. Once more, we are rescued by a creative GEOS programmer who will save us lots of time and trouble.

I have previously passed along the info about Spike's disk and landscape printing in a letter to Willis Patten's GEOS Publication.  A user in San Jose CA., Frank McKee, responded via Internet that there are customized Paint Drivers on Genie that will work with geoCalc.  These files, Frank tells me, were patched by the ultimate GEOS programmer, Jim Collette.  Paint Pages+ (#9709) and Paint Overlay+ (#9710), allow you to bypass the time-consuming tab method described above and directly print your 'Calc data to 'Paint files including the cell grid lines.  The New Car file can now be printed sideways in 5 easy steps: Choose Paint Pages+, Print 'Calc file (setting start and end cells in the regular 'Calc print DB), open Paint Rotate and create newfile  using 1/4 turn counter-clockwise, choose normal printer driver, open 'Paint and print newfile  to paper in Landscape mode.  The only way this could be easier is if some genius were to program Paint Rotate to be a printer driver supporting all applications.

As you can see, this process involves quite a few GEOS applications to accomplish one job.  That is why I say "the most useful GEOS program is all of them".  With the Paint Rotate program you can get sideways printouts from virtually any GEOS application, limited only by your imagination and willingness to spend a little time getting things right.

GEOS DISK ONE is available directly from Spike Dethman   831 Mercer St.  Atlanta, GA  30312  for $9.95 US (I just received my copy in early Nov. '95) or, I am told, as an arc file on Genie (file # 15772) and I've also seen it at FTP sites on the Internet (sdethman1.arc).  The files are all well implemented and perform useful tasks.  No matter where you get them from, and you should  get them, don't hesitate to send Spike the low fee he is requesting.  A better deal would be hard to find.

GEOS Publication is a monthly input journal available from Willis C. Patten  7969 Woodcrest Drive  Louisville Kentucky 40219-3859 for $14 US per year. The interesting twist to GP is that readers ask questions via letters and other readers answer them in letters and mini-articles of interest. Some very knowledgeable GEOS Users subscribe to, and participate in, GEOS Publication.  Expect a slightly higher rate if you're not in the States.

I can be contacted on-line via e-mail at: rbthomas@edmc.net or you can snail mail your GEOS questions to me in care of The Gatekeeper.

Until next time, enGEOy your Commodore!! 