0% found this document useful (0 votes)
83 views11 pages

ChiWriter Tutorial

The document provides instructions on how to use the CHIWRITER text editor software. It details cursor movement, text insertion, font changes, adding and removing superscript and subscript rows, synchronized and unsynchronized row editing, word wrapping, paragraph formatting, and changing margins and spacing. The tutorial contains many examples to demonstrate the various features.

Uploaded by

Tom Ron
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0% found this document useful (0 votes)
83 views11 pages

ChiWriter Tutorial

The document provides instructions on how to use the CHIWRITER text editor software. It details cursor movement, text insertion, font changes, adding and removing superscript and subscript rows, synchronized and unsynchronized row editing, word wrapping, paragraph formatting, and changing margins and spacing. The tutorial contains many examples to demonstrate the various features.

Uploaded by

Tom Ron
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 11

CHIWRITER TUTORIAL

 Copyright Horstmann Software Design Corporation 1986..1988.


All Rights Reserved.

1. Cursor Movement

The Cursor keys [Left], [Right], [Up] and [Down] in the cursor
keypad move the cursor one unit in the desired direction. [PgUp]
and [PgDn] scroll one screen up and down, [Ctrl-Home] and
[Ctrl-End] move to the beginning and end of the document.
[Ctrl-Left] and [Ctrl-Right] move a word left or right. [Home] and
[End] move to the left and right screen margin, with intermediate
stops at the first or last letter of the current line (since those
are the spots at which you are most likely to continue editing).
Try them now and remember to hit [Ctrl-Home] to return here!

Use [PgDn] in the following to page through this tutorial! If you


want to quit the tutorial, hit [Ctrl-End] for directions.

To move the cursor to the next or previous occurrence of a


character, hit [Grey +] or [Grey -], followed by that character.
For example, [Grey +]a moves the cursor to the next a in any font,
[Grey -] [F3]b moves to the previous Italic b (since, as you will
see later, [F3] is the font key for the Italic font). We call this
the quick search feature. Try it out now!

[Grey +] [Return] moves to the next hard return (i.e. to the end
of the paragraph), and [Grey -] [PgUp] moves backwards to the top
of the page.

Hitting the quick search key twice (e.g. [Grey +][Grey +]) repeats
the last search.

Use [Ctrl-G] to go to a certain page. You will be prompted for a


page number.

2. Inserting Text

To insert text, move the cursor anywhere on the screen and start
typing. Use the [Backspace] key to delete the character before the
cursor, the [Del] key to delete the character under the cursor.
[Ins] toggles between “Insert mode” and “Overwrite mode”. (Check
the status line for an INS indicator which is present in insert
mode and missing in overwrite mode). Move the cursor to the * on
the next line and type your name!
*

3. Font Change

Up to twenty fonts are available to you. Among them are:

F1: Standard F3: Italic F4: Bold

1
F7: Greek (abGD) F8: Linedraw (Lm) F9: Math I (d<:)

To change the font, hit the desired function key on the left of
the keyboard twice. Note that the indicator F1:STANDARD in the
status line changes to display the name and number of the new
font. Move the cursor behind the next * and type your name in
Italics and Greek! Switch back to font 1 when you are done.
*
If you hit the function key just once, only the next character is
taken from the new font and the editor reverts to the old font.
This is very useful for typing scientific text which frequently
requires typing just one character in a special font.
For example, consider the following sentence:
Let 0 < e < 1 be a real number.
The e is typed as [F7]e and the < as [F9]<. Afterwards, the
program automatically reverts to font 1. Reproduce the sentence
below!
*
With symbolic fonts like Greek and Math I it is not easy to
remember which key encodes which symbol. Hitting a font key and
then [Alt-H] (“Help”) displays a keyboard chart on the screen,
showing the location of all symbols on the keyboard. You can cycle
through the charts of various fonts by hitting the appropriate
font keys, or insert a character by hitting the associated key, or
just hit [Esc] to return to your document. Hit [F7][Alt-H] to see
the keyboard assignment for the Greek font!

4. The Anatomy of a Line

Each document consists of a sequence of lines. Each line ends in a


marker which is displayed at the right of the screen. There are
two types of markers:
A hollow soft return marker ------------L
A solid hard return marker ------------L
Notice that different lines can have different thicknesses,
depending on the number of super- and subscript levels in it. For
example, the following line has 4 superscripts and 2 subscripts:
of superscripts
levels
A Line can have several and subscripts.
The dashes in the return marker column indicate the sizes of the
lines. Even single-spaced lines can hold one superscript level
which overlaps with the previous line.

5. Super- and Subscripts

Move the cursor to the next * and type H [Ctrl-PgDn] 2 [Ctrl-PgUp]


O.
*
Subscripts and superscripts can be inserted in any line. The
return marker at the end of every line is at the “base level” of
the line. The [Ctrl-PgUp] and [Ctrl-PgDn] keys move the cursor one

2
level up or down (rather than one line at a time). At the top or
bottom of the line, a super- or subscript row is automatically
added.

6. Adding and Zapping Rows

If you type a formula or a table, you will need several levels of


superscripts and subscripts. When the cursor reaches the top or
bottom of a line, a [Ctrl-PgUp] and [Ctrl-PgDn] automatically
insert a blank row. If you want to insert a row in the middle of a
line, use [Ctrl-A] (“Add”). The row is added below the cursor.
Move the cursor onto the next * and add a few levels with
[Ctrl-PgUp], [Ctrl-PgDn] and [Ctrl-A].
*
Note that the section headings in this tutorial are surrounded by
blank superscript and subscript rows. This was done with
[Ctrl-A] as well.

To remove a level, move the cursor into it and hit [Ctrl-Z]


(“Zap”).Move the cursor into the formula below, move the cursor to
different levels with [Ctrl-PgUp] and [Ctrl-PgDn] and zap rows to
your heart’s content. Then delete the entire line by hitting
[Ctrl-Backspace].

(-i)n pi ix cos f
Jn(x) = ------------------------------ cos nf df
p j e
0

Before writing a formula, table or diagram, most people prefer to


first create a large number of super- and subscript levels to
obtain a large working area. Unused rows can later be removed with
[Ctrl-Z].

7. Synchronized and Unsynchronized Rows

If you remember your junior high school algebra, you will notice
that the following formula should have a “2a” in the denominator,
not a “23a”. Make sure that insert mode is on. Move the cursor
into the formula. Move the cursor onto the 3 and hit [Del] to
delete it.
#__ _ _ _ _ _2_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ +
-b + e b -4ac
x1,2 = _______________
23a

That didn’t work, did it? The [Del] operation deleted the contents
of all columns. Let’s try this again. Move the cursor into the
next formula and hit the [Grey *] key. Notice that the SYN
indicator in the status line disappeared and the cursor changed
shape. Move the cursor onto the 3 and hit [Del].

NOTE: To move the cursor "on" to the 3 (for unsynchronized mode)


the cursor must be slightly beneath the 3 - not on the top half.

3
#__ _ _ _ _ _2_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ +
-b + e b -4ac
x1,2 = _______________
23a

The SYN stands for “synchronized”. In synchronized mode,


insertions and deletions affect the entire line, in unsynchronized
mode they affect only the current row. Go back to the formula
above, move the cursor before the 2 in the denominator and insert
a few spaces to center the denominator. Hit [Grey *] again to
reactivate synchronized mode.

In unsynchronized mode, the cursor keys are “slowed down”: The


[Up] and [Down] keys move the cursor a row at a time but do not
insert blank rows, and the [PgUp] and [PgDn] keys move a line at a
time. (The other cursor keys are unchanged). You should use
unsynchronized mode only for editing formulas and diagrams.

Did you notice that the cursor is half the usual size in
unsynchronized mode? If the cursor is strangely small and slow,
you are in unsynch mode, and you should hit [Grey *] before
editing regular text.

Here is an exercise in editing formulas: Duplicate the formula


n 2 n(n+1)(2n+1)
S k = ____________
k=1 6
(The S is [F9] S, all others are in font 1.) Move the cursor
behind the next * and turn insert and synchronization mode off.
Insert a few levels above and below the base row, and write the
formula.
*

8. Word Wrap and Formatting

If you type text, don’t use the [Return] key to end a line. When
you go past the right margin, the last word will be moved
automatically on a new line. The old line is terminated by a soft
return. If justification mode is on (JST in the status line), the
old line is automatically right justified. Use [Ctrl-J] to toggle
justification mode if you prefer a ragged right margin. At the end
of every paragraph, you should use the [Return] key to insert a
hard return. (In unsynchronized mode, word wrap is turned off,
which is just as well since you probably don’t want your formulas
to get wrapped around several lines.)
To format a paragraph, move the cursor into its first line. and
hit [Ctrl-F]. If justification mode is on, the editor produces a
flush right margin by inserting soft spaces (the ones that don’t
look like small dots), otherwise a ragged right margin. The
formatting stops at the next hard return. Move the cursor to the
next * and follow the instructions above it!

Write a sentence that is longer than one line to see the word wrap.
Then move the cursor to the first word of this paragraph and hit
[Ctrl-F]!

4
*

If you want hyphenation during formatting, set the hyphen


threshold with the "Layout hYphen" command to, say, 10. That way,
if a line would contain more than 10 soft spaces, you are prompted
to insert a hyphen. This feature is especially useful for
languages with long words, e.g. German.

9. Changing the Margins, Tab Stops and Spacing.

[Ctrl-[], [Ctrl-]] change the left and right margin to the cursor
column. [Ctrl-T] toggles the tab stop at the cursor column, i.e.
creates a tab stop if there was none before and removes it
otherwise. There is a margin and tab stop indicator in the status
line. The maximum right margin is 78. Try out [Ctrl-[], [Ctrl-]]
and [Ctrl-T]! Observe the effect on the status line! Be sure to
reset the left margin to 1 and the right margin to 66 when you are
done.

10. Pagination

The program automatically computes page breaks. You may have


noticed some of them in this tutorial already--they show up as
dotted lines across the screen. If you want to force a page break
(e.g. at the end of a chapter), hit [Ctrl-B] (“Break Page”).
Hitting [Ctrl-B] again removes the page break. Move the cursor to
the next * and hit [Ctrl-B]. Hit [Ctrl-B] again to remove the page
break!
*
Note that the hard page breaks inserted by you show up as solid
lines across the screen whereas the soft page breaks created by
the computer are dotted.
Sometimes you need to inhibit a page break at a certain
location, e.g. directly after a section heading. [Ctrl-I] toggles
the line containing the cursor in and out of “Inhibit page break”
mode. When in “Inhibit page break” mode, a page break will never
be placed below it by the pagination routine. This mode is
indicated by a dotted separator dash below the return marker. Try
it out: Move the cursor just above a (dotted) soft page break and
hit [Ctrl-I]. The page break will move one line up.

11. Splitting and Merging Lines. Deleting Lines. Centering Lines

To split a line in two, move the cursor at the desired location


and enter a hard return with the [Return] key. To merge two
successive lines, move the cursor to the last column (use the
[End] key a few times!), and delete the marker using the [Del]
key. Move the cursor to the next * and hit [Return]. Then delete
the newly created hard return!

Split this line * and merge it back together!

Hitting [Ctrl-Backspace] deletes the line containing the cursor.


Hitting [Ctrl-C] centers it between the margins. Hitting [Ctrl-M]

5
moves it to the right margin.
Delete me by hitting [Ctrl-Backspace]!

Center me by hitting [Ctrl-C]!

Move me to the right by hitting [Ctrl-M]!

12. The Menu

Most of the commands you have used so far were entered as


[Ctrl-...] key combinations. This is fast and convenient for
frequently used commands, and we have tried to use logical key
assignments (like [Ctrl-F] for format, [Ctrl-W] to delete a word
etc.) Other commands are accessible through the menu on the bottom
of the screen, and some of the control key commands can also be
accessed through the menu (in case you forgot the control key).
There are two ways to call a menu command.
Method 1. Hit [Esc]. Then a "highlight bar" appears in the
menu. It can be moved with the [Left] and [Right] arrow keys. To
select an option, either move the highlight bar on it and ht
[Return], or enter the first Capital letter in the option name.
Method 2. Hit [Alt] and the first Capital letter in the
option name.

Most menus branch off to submenus, and you can select sub-options
by the same method. Once you are inside the menu, hitting [Esc]
gets you back into edit mode. You can browse through the menu
to find out what options are available and hit [Esc] at any time
without having to select anything.

The [Up] and [Down] key are for browsing: [Down] gets one level
deeper (just as [Return]), but it never accepts a command at a
“leaf” of the menu tree. [Up] undoes the last selection and moves
one level further back to the “root” of the menu tree. (Computer
trees are funny--the root is on top and the leaves are on the
bottom.)

When you highlight a menu branch, the branches emanating from it


are displayed in the line below the menu. If you are at a leaf, an
explanation of the command is displayed instead. (Some commands
offer you a list of choices that look like a continuation of the
menu, but they aren’t. If a choice list appears, you are already
executing a command. The [Up] key doesn’t go back into the menu.
Use [Esc] to cancel the command.)

To get on-line help on a command, move the highlight bar on it and


hit [Alt-H].

Try it out! Hit [Esc] L to see the options in the Layout menu.
Browse through the sub-options. Try out the on-line help! Hit
[Esc] when you are done.

When you are more experienced, you can turn the menu off. That
gives you 5 additional rows of screen “real estate” and makes the
program run a little quicker. (When you hit [Esc], the menu
temporarily pops back onto the screen.)

6
13. Highlighting

For certain ChiWriter commands, you have to specify a block of


text by highlighting it. To highlight a block, move the cursor to
the beginning of it and mark it by hitting [Alt-M]. Then move the
cursor to the other end. The text between the marked position and
the cursor is highlighted.
Note that the menu on the bottom of the screen has changed.
The options available to you now include cutting out the
highlighted text or changing its font or spacing. To change the
font of each character in the highlighted area from any font to
any other font, select [Alt-F] (“Font change”), and use the font
keys to specify the change from which font to which font. (If you
want to change from any font to the new font, use [Return]). Move
the cursor to the next * and follow the instructions.
* Hit [Alt-M], move the cursor to the end of this block and
change all Italic characters in this sentence to Bold: Select
[Alt-F] and specify from [F3] to [F4].

If you ever invoke highlighting by accident, select [Alt-E] or


[Esc] E (“End”) to cancel it.

14. Cut and Paste

To delete a block of text, move the cursor to the beginning and


mark it by hitting [Alt-M]. Then move the cursor to the end of the
text and hit [Alt-C] (“Cut”). The highlighted area is cut out and
placed into a buffer. To insert the buffer contents anywhere into
the text, move the cursor to the insert location and hit [Ctrl-P]
(“Paste”). If you want to copy a block into the buffer without
deleting it, highlight it and hit [Alt-D] (“Duplicate”). Cut out
the first part of the sentence below and paste it behind the
second part!

* Mark here and cut until here * and paste here:

Keep in mind that the paste command is [Ctrl-P]. [Alt-P] selects


the Print menu option. You can also execute the paste command from
the Screen menu option ([Alt-S] P), but it takes an additional
keystroke.

If you cut and paste in unsynchronized mode, you don’t highlight a


linear sequence of text, but a rectangular area. This is useful
for moving parts around in a formula or diagram.

When pasting the rectangular area (still in unsynch mode), its top
left corner gets pasted at the cursor position. However, it
would be pretty difficult to correctly position the rectangle
without seeing its contents. Therefore, after hitting [Ctrl-P],
the area to be pasted is tentatively displayed on the screen, and
you can position it using the cursor keys. The text in the
background shines through the area image, sometimes creating
interesting interference patterns. To drop the area, hit [Return],
and the image is superimposed on the existing text. (As usual,
[Esc] cancels the command.)

7
Try it out in the following formula: Hit [Grey *] to get into
unsynchronized mode and highlight the eixcosf. Cut it out and
paste it 2 rows higher up! Hit [Grey *] again when you are done!

(-i)n pi
Jn(x) = ------------------------------
p j eix cos f cos nf df
0

15. Search and Replace

To search for a phrase in the document, hit [Ctrl-S] and enter the
search pattern. Hit [Return] to start the search. Hit [Esc] to
cancel the command if you change your mind. [Ctrl-L] repeats the
last search. Try it out: Move the cursor here * and hit
[Ctrl-S]the[Return] to move the cursor to the next the. Hit
[Ctrl-L] to repeat the last search and find subsequent thes.
To search for a phrase and replace it with another one, use
the [Ctrl-R] command and enter search pattern and replacement text
when prompted. You can change fonts in the pattern and the
replacement text by using the [F..] keys.
The search command [Ctrl-S] has toggles for case insensitive
and font insensitive matching. That means, you can make "this"
match "This" and "this". Also, the search and the
search-and-replace commands look for the search string in the
footnotes as it scans through the document.

16. Spell Checking

To start the spell checker, hit [Alt-C][Alt-C] (menu option


"spellChk Check spelling". The spell checker loads a dictionary
and then highlights suspect words. You can pick one of the
suggested replacements by selecting it with the cursor keys and
hitting [Return].
Or, you can ignore the word this time only. Next time it is
encountered it is flagged again.
Or, you can accept the word as is, and the spell checker
won’t complain when it sees the word again.
Or, you can write the word to an auxiliary dictionary. That
automatically accepts it as well. Read the manual for details on
auxiliary dictionary management.
Or, you can cancel the spell checker and fix the word by
hand.

To cancel the spell checker while it is busy, hit [Esc].

* Try it out now. Move the cursor on the beginning of this line
and hit [Alt-C][Alt-C]. Here we misspelled a word on purpuse. Fix
it. Hit [Esc] to stop further checking.

17. The FULL Indicator

The file you are editing is stored in the computer memory. You
should save it occasionally, especially if you have problems with

8
the electrical power. Also, since the memory size is limited, you
should take care that your file fits inside. If you run out of
memory, the editor will refuse to execute any more commands that
require memory. You can, of course, still save your document.
However, it is a good idea to inspect the FULL indicator in
the status line periodically. If it is in the 90% range, look for
a good point to break up the current document into two parts.
Check the FULL indicator now!

18. Key Sequences

Sequences of keystrokes can be stored, given a name and replayed


later by ChiWriter. To define a key sequence, hit [Ctrl-D] and
enter a name. Then enter the keystrokes. To end the definition,
hit [Ctrl-D] again.
Let us define a key sequence that replays your name. Move the
cursor onto the next *. Hit [Ctrl-D]. Let us call the sequence ME.
Hit ME [Return] and type Harry Hacker or whatever your name is and
end the definition with [Ctrl-D].
*
Did you note that during the definition of the key sequence the
status line contained an indicator DF? To replay a key
sequence, hit [Ctrl-K], enter the name of the sequence and hit
[Return]. Hit [Ctrl-K] ME [Return] to replay your name. Now you
can insert your name hundreds of times into a document with just a
few keystrokes.

For up to 36 key sequences, there is a further shortcut. You can


select [Alt-0] ... [Alt-9] as well as [Alt-A] ... [Alt-Z] as names
when defining a sequence, and then replay by hitting that key
again (without hitting [Ctrl-K]).

When you leave ChiWriter, your key sequences are lost. If you want
to save them, use the "Environ Key seq Save" menu option.

If you hit [Ctrl-K] or [Ctrl-D] by accident, hit [Esc] to cancel


the command.

ChiWriter comes supplied with a number of useful key sequences for


mathematics:

# # $ $
[1 3 [2 | [3 | ]1 $4 ]2 | ]3
Square brackets # | |
3 4 |
3 4
& & * *
(1 7 (2 | (3 || )1 8* )2 | )3
Parentheses & |
7 8 |
7 8
( )
( & | ) * |
Braces {1 { {2 { {3 { }1 } }2 } }3 }
9 7 | 0 8 |
9 0

9
a__ _ +
Summation signs SUM1 st SUM2 a+ SUM3 c
b= b-- - =
i
Integral signs INT1 ij INT2 | OINT ikj
j 5------------------------------------------6
5------------6 /
Square roots ROOT1 r ROOT2 r

Try it out: Move the cursor to the next * and type [Ctrl-K] ROOT2
[Return]! Hit [Ctrl-K] {1 [Return]!

*
Another set of convenient key sequences centers a formula and
prepares an equation number behind it. EQU1 ... EQU4 perform this
task, leaving 1 ... 4 characters for the number. For example,
center the following equation and give it the number 123 by typing
[Ctrl-K]EQU3[Return]123!

(-i)n ip ix cos f
Jn(x) = ------------------------------ cos nf df
p j e
0

19. Line and Box Drawing

ChiWriter has an automated line/box mode that makes drawing lines, {__________________}
Q++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++E
arrows [------------------------------L and Z++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++C
boxes a snap. Here is how to do it: Move the
cursor to the top left corner of the box or end point of a line.
(You may need to use [Ctrl-PgUp/Dn] or use [Grey *] to switch to
unsynch.) Then hit [Ctrl-X]. Move the cursor to the other corner.
You’ll see the box or line expanding. Hit [>] to toggle arrow tips
on/off or hit [-] to cycle between solid [------------], double :++++++++++++", thick
;============’ or dotted {____________} line styles.

Draw an arrow from here to here! Box me in!

Like this: Q++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++E


~ ~
Draw an arrow from here [------------------------------------------L to here! ~ Box me in! ~
Z++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++C

20. How to Print. Headers and Footers. Print Options

To print a document, select "Print" from the menu, turn your


printer on and select "Go". You can hit any key to stop the
printout. Try it out now! Hit [Esc] P G.

There are three print qualities: Draft, Letter quality and


Special. The draft mode is intended for fast printing with little
regard for beauty. Letter quality is best for presentable output,
but it can be very slow if your printer doesn’t have a built-in
letter quality font. For those printers, a special mode is
supplied which prints an “emphasized” draft font.

10
There are three pitches: Pica (10 pitch), Elite (12 pitch)
and proportional. Not all printers support all combinations of
pitches and print qualities.
Different headers and footers can be selected for even and
odd pages and the first nine pages of any document. For example,
you may want to have page numbers in the left corner on even
pages and in the right corner on odd pages, except on page 1. Edit
the headers and footers through the “Layout” menu. To suppress
page numbers, select “Delete Footer Default”.
Look at the “Print Options” menu to print out part of a
document.

21. Reading Documents

To read a document from disk, select “Read Document” from the


menu. You will be presented with a list of ChiWriter files on the
disk, and the first name is highlighted. The [Up], [Down], [Left]
and [Right] arrow keys move the highlight bar. [Return] accepts a
selection. If the file you want is not listed, enter its name
manually. (The name you enter can contain drive or path
specifiers.). Hitting [Esc] cancels the disk command. Select [Esc]
R D, confirm that you want to abandon the current document and
reload the TUTORIAL.CHI file by moving the highlight bar onto it
and hitting [Return]. Then scroll back to this section!

22. Writing Documents

We include this section for completeness. You should not save this
tutorial file since you probably made some changes to it that
shouldn’t be preserved for posterity. However, usually you do want
to save your document on disk. Select the “Write Document” option
from the menu, and your document will be saved on disk. (The old
version will be renamed with the extension .BAK) Again, do not
save this document now.

23. How To Quit

To end the edit session, hit [Alt-Q] (“Quit”). If you made no


changes to the document since it was last saved, ChiWriter
terminates and you return to DOS. If you did make changes that are
not saved on disk, you will be asked to confirm whether you want
to abandon the current document before leaving ChiWriter. Since
you do not want to save the changes you just made to this
tutorial, hit [Esc] Q Y to quit.

11

You might also like