WSSFill for OS/2 version 1.02
Copyright 1998 by Robert W. Babcock and WSS Division of DDC
Fully-functional shareware, ASP author member
Intro
WSSFill is a tool for copying files from hard disk to floppy while
minimizing wasted disk space. Long file names are preserved by storing
the original name in the .LONGNAME extended attribute (all other
extended attributes are deliberately discarded). If you drag a file
with a .LONGNAME extended attribute back to an HPFS disk, the long name
is restored. The WPS will also preserve long names this way, but IBM
does not supply a command line copy command which does this.
The intended use of WSSFill is for archiving downloaded files. Since
you might want to do something with the files besides copy them to
floppies, WSSFill will optionally move files to another directory after
the copy to separate them from files which have not yet been archived.
Installation
The WSSFill distribution ZIP file includes an authentication check. If
you unpack it with PKUNZIP, you should see the message:
Authentic files Verified! # RLQ256
Software by WSS Division of DDC
Other unpackers, such as InfoZip, may ignore the authentication information.
Install.cmd is a simple installation script. It prompts for an
installation directory, creates the directory if necessary, copies in the
necessary files, and creates an icon on the desktop.
Manual installation
The only files needed for operation are wssfill.exe and touch.exe (used
to set timestamp of copied files; see GNU files below). Touch.exe may be
installed in the same directory as wssfill.exe or anywhere on the path.
WSSFill takes 4 optional command line arguments:
- Source directory
Files to be copied/moved are in this directory. Default C:\Download
- Wild card
Mask for file selection. Default *.zip
- Target directory
Where files are copied. Default A:\
- Move-to directory
Where to move files after copy. Default \Download\Onfloppy
Usage
WSSFill uses the DIR command to make a sorted list of files. It then
starts from the top of this list and makes tentative selections of files to
be copied. Most likely, the first pass through the list will not yield a set
of files which will exactly fill the target disk. To reduce the wasted
space, an iterative procedure is used, dropping files from the bottom of the
list of selections and adding files further down in the complete list until a
set of files is found which exactly fills the disk or until all possible
combinations have been tried. In practice, this algorithm usually works
well, but there is no guarantee that it will terminate in any reasonable
length of time. The Accept button, which is only enabled during the search
for a best-fit, terminates the search and uses best the set of files found up
to that point.
Generally, the above algorithm works best if files are sorted by size,
largest first. But, other considerations may mandate using a different
sort. For example, you might sort by date, oldest first, to get old files
out of your download directory. Sorting alphabetically might tend to put
related files on the same floppy.
Files which have long names cannot simply be copied to a FAT-formatted
disk. For such files, WSSFill generates abbreviated names. The original
name is preserved in the .LONGNAME extended attribute. Thus, you will see
the long names if you look at the floppy with a WPS tool such as the drives
folder. (OS/2 stores the extended attributes in a hidden file with blanks in
the name called "EA DATA. SF". WSSFill accounts for the changing size of
this file when calculating the disk space used.) You can change the short
names to something more meaningful before the copy.
Having copied some files to floppy, you need to keep track of the fact
that these files have been archived, but you may still want to leave them on
your hard disk. To accomodate this need, WSSFill will move the copied files
to another subdirectory on the same disk if you check the Move files after
copying checkbox.
If you are archiving to floppies, you probably want to assign unique
volume labels to distinguish the disks. If you check Auto-label, WSSFill
will assign sequential volume labels to the disks it writes. (Volume labels
do not use any file space.) When you check Auto-label, a dialog box allows
selecting the text part of the label, the number of digits in the numeric
part of the label, the starting sequence number, and whether the text or the
number comes first. The default labels are DISK-001, DISK-002,...
Safety considerations
WSSFill takes precautions to avoid losing data. It does not delete files
after copying, and it will not copy a file over another file of the same
name. If it detects an anomalous condition, it displays a message and
quits.
System requirements
WSSFill was developed on a Warp 4 system. It works with either classic
Rexx or Object Rexx (Rexx support must be installed). It will probably work
with Warp 3, and maybe earlier versions of OS/2, but it has not been tested
in those environments. While I use the word "floppy" when talking about the
target disk, any FAT-formatted media should work. (WSSFill will create and
delete a small test file to determine the allocation unit size on anything
other than a 1.2 or 1.44 MB disk.)
Licensing
WSSFill is shareware. If you continue to use it after an evaluation
period of 60 days, you must register it. The single-user registration fee is
$7.50 (US funds drawn on a US bank or Mastercard or Visa). You may deduct
20% for 10 or more licenses, 40% for 50 or more licenses, or 60% for 100 or
more licenses. An order form is included in file
WSSF-ORD.HTM. It is formatted to be viewed and
printed by a web browser such as Netscape or Web Explorer. Licenses are on a
per-user or per-machine basis at your choice.
Distribution restrictions
The only restriction on the distribution of WSSFill is that the package
must be distributed in its entirety without modifying any of the included
files. (Repackaging with a different archiver is allowed.) Specifically
allowed are inclusion in Internet file archives, CD-ROM or DVD-ROM file
collections and BBS file libraries.
Contact info
Robert W. Babcock
WSS Division of DDC
4 Reeves Road (16 Sweeney Ridge after about Jan 22, 1999)
Bedford, MA 01730
781-275-1183
wssddc@gis.net
http://www.gis.net/~wssddc/links/otherware.html
GNU files
The WSSFill distribution package includes touch.exe which is part of the
GNU file utils. The license for touch.exe is described in file COPYING. See
the WSSFill order form or online help if you would like to obtain the
complete GNU file utils package from the web, or at cost from WSS-DDC.
Touch.exe performs a minor function (setting the timestamp of copied files);
its inclusion does not effect the cost of registering WSSFill.
DrDialog
WSSFill is written using DrDialog, a graphical interface to Rexx, which is
IBM EWS (Employee Written Software) by David C. Morrill. WSSFILL.RES is
included in the distribution package. This is the WSSFill source code, and
you can modify it for your own use using DrDialog. Modified versions of
WSSFill may not be distributed without permission from WSS-DDC. Note that
while WSSFill supports Object Rexx, DrDialog itself needs a small patch to
make DrsAide work.
Update history
1.02 - 12/4/98
- Install script was looking for wssfill.ord but actual file name is
wssf-ord.htm. No changes to program other than updating version number.
- Minor updates to documentation.
1.01 - 9/21/98
- An attempt to move files to a non-existent directory would rename the
first file to the specified directory name.
- Accepting defaults for auto-label yielded 100DISK- as the first label.
- Response to Quit was slow when copying files.
- Packaging error; touch.exe was missing from 1.0 distribution.