Reply to note from Harry Binswanger <hb@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 08:37:04 -0800 > Or: 1. create a directory (named, e.g., Xy), 2. copy all files > to it. The rest is frills. Not quite. Kari's right that hard-coded paths in SETTINGS.DFL have to be dealt with. I've been saying for years that a path-blind setup is the way to go. From time to time I've posted a file called PORTABLE.INT, a STARTUP.INT template for Xy4 that accomplishes this. Rather than post it again, I thought that this time I'd provide a proof of concept -- a fully functional Xy4 installation that can be launched from any directory, located anywhere on your disk, without modification. Here it is. To try it (Windows only), point your browser here: http://www.serve.com/ammaze/xfer/xy4.exe Save the file (xy4.exe) to any directory -- NOT your regular Xy4 directory; create a new directory for this purpose. Let me make it clear that XY4.EXE is NOT an installation or setup program; it's a self-extracting archive of basic Xy4 program files. After you've downloaded it, open a command session (CMD) and navigate to your chosen directory. At the command prompt, issue XY4.EXE to unpack the archive (a one-time operation). Now command EDITOR to launch XyWrite. Done. The README, which is automatically CAlled at startup, describes the setup -- minimal, but still highly functional. You get two printer files (plain-vanilla Ascii and Postscript), the Jumbo U2 (note that the <F9> key launches both native XyWrite commands and U2 routines), the STACK.PM command history utility, and -- an extra added bonus -- a game of Tetris that can be launched from the CMline. Other than the modification to <F9>, the keyboard file is the factory-issued XY4.KBD. You wouldn't have to do much to turn this into your familiar Xy4 setup. Swap in your usual KBD file, SETTINGS.DFL (be sure to delete or comment out lines containing hard-coded paths!), printer file, and U2 file if you've customized it (edit STARTUP.INT accordingly); add subdirectories \BTFONTS and \FILTERS if you need scalable Speedo fonts and conversion filters -- and you're home. The point of this demo is this: You do NOT need a setup or install utility to move XyWrite to a new computer. All you need is to configure STARTUP.INT and SETTINGS.DFL for portability, so that all hard-coded paths can be eliminated from SETTINGS.DFL. Once you have that, you can simply copy your XyWrite program files to any directory on any machine, and you're ready to roll. Give it a try. If I've left out anything essential, let me know. -- Carl Distefano cld@xxxxxxxxxx