CONTENTS:

1. Welcome & What's been happening
2. Our shareware recommendations for the Month
3. Web Sites of Interest
4. Shareware review of the Month
5. Book review of the Month

1. WELCOME & WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING

Hello Subscribers!

Yet another busy month for the team here at Aquarian Technologies. We have a couple of products coming out of beta, two new products unveiled and more on the way are all serving to keep us working flat chat to keep up.

A bit about our new products this month:

ClipMagic - ClipMagic is an information manager which provides extended clipboard capabilities to save all clips for later use. A major shortfall in Windows is that the clipboard can only store one item at a time, each item obliterating the last. ClipMagic stores clips in a convenient categorised format with information about the window the clip came from, the URL if it came from a web page and the time and type of clip.

More Info : Download Now 

Enriva Voyager (now know as Magellan Explorer) - The Ultimate Explorer replacement, seamlessly handles Zip and RAR files (also handles ARJ and LHA archives too!), FTP connections and more. Colour it anyway you like you: don't have to settle for the windows standard when you break the shackles of its under-powered Explorer file manager...

More Info : Download Now

Snippets the free format text database has been updated to version 1.51. Existing users can download the latest release for FREE from here:

More Info : Download Now

Cygnus the fastest hex editor on the market has been updated to version 1.51. Existing users can download the latest release for FREE from here:

More Info : Download Now 

Now, on with the show and happy Sharewaring...

Regards,

Tim Jones
Aquarian Technologies

2. OUR SHAREWARE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE MONTH

BrainWave Generator
Is a brain stimulation application that generates audible frequencies with binaural beats. BrainWave Generator works on Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 and you can use it while doing other work on your computer. You must have a stereo-capable sound card installed on your system.
http://www.saunalahti.fi/~noromaas/bwgen   [Thanks to BillD]

Tips and Tricks Files
Browse all the tips files in this archive for some well known--and  some not so well known--tips and tricks covering Windows 95, DOS 7.x  and all the incarnations of Windows 95 after the initial 7/95 release.
http://www.pcworld.com/cgi-bin/shareware?ID=5202 [Thanks to BrianS]

File Viewer
This excellent Australian developed file viewer is the Windows equivalent of the old DOS LIST program, and more! It allows you to view files in text or hex mode, with lots of options to make it work the way you would like; check it out soon.
http://www.fileviewer.com

3. WEB SITES OF INTEREST

"Euro" font
With the move in Europe to the Euro if you need to be able to display that currency symbol you'll need to update your fonts (unless you have Win98 which already has it in it). More information on this is available from here:
http://www.microsoft.com/typography/faq/faq12.htm

More Y2K
Following on from our mention last month a reader sent us this link. It has a lot of information ranging from "doomsayer" predictions to "No Problems". Anyone wanting more information can't go past stopping here for a look see. [Thanks to DavidH]
http://www.garynorth.com/y2k/search_.cfm#Choices

Following on from last months history of pencils some related information...

Postal History
http://www.findpostalhistory.com/useful.htm

4. SHAREWARE REVIEW OF THE MONTH

File Splitting Utilities by Frank Schuffelen

Recently I downloaded three categories of programs via the Internet, Disk Cataloging, Screen Printing and File Splitting Programs. For this article I will discuss my testing of File Splitting Programs. I had downloaded 34 programs in total, and wanted to see which one represented the best value for money.

When I started, I knew that I needed a program to split files. The reason for this is that whenever you have a file which is too large to fit on a 3.5" floppy disk, you need to split that file into two or more. My criteria were that it had to work under Windows 95, be reasonably simple to use, include the merging routine with the split files, and not cost too much. I chose a test file, TestFile004M.fs, which was exactly 4Mb. Here is what I found.

The first nine programs tested could be accessed by right-clicking on the desired file in Explorer. All the remaining tested programs did not have this feature. Because of the large number of programs and the consequent large amount of time already spent installing all of them (monitoring each installation, so they could correctly be removed later) and testing the first nine, I decided to speed up the testing process somewhat after that. At this stage I had already invested some 10 hours or so, and I could think of better ways to spend a long weekend. So, I decided that after the first nine, each would have to meet stricter criteria, else would simply not be tested. These criteria included that the program should not be needed on the receiving computer, unless it was free; and that some form of error checking should be included. As well as this, it had to run from Windows 95 (not from within a DOS session) and handle long file names.

1 SpPro142.zip, Split's Pro v1.42.
There was no reference to registration, so it was assumed to be free. There was no text file allowing one to see what the program could do. After installation, I called up Split from a right-click in Explorer, which is very useful. However, there were no help screens. Files were not automatically copied onto floppies, and it was not immediately clear what to do once they were copied. It would write direct to floppies if chosen, but then left one with no idea what to do next. Due to its lack of instructions, and the fact that the same program was needed on both computers, testing was discontinued. Having previously used PC Magazine's Slice, it was felt that this program could have been easier to use. Not recommended.

2 Slicer.zip, v4.98.100. Freeware.
This program appeared to work well. It was selected by right-clicking on the desired file within Explorer, then selecting Slicer. The program itself was not needed to merge the files onto another PC. It cleaned up behind itself, meaning that the output files were erased after a successful merge. However, having looked at the batch file, which was stored on the last floppy disk, it appeared that if the batch file was run direct from the floppy, and the other files had not been copied onto the source yet, the batch file would get deleted and thus the process would not complete. This needed to be tested. However, as long as all files had been copied into the source folder, it should work ok.

I had a problem reading the first floppy disk, which then aborted the process. The suspect disk was then replaced. This program could not handle long file names in Windows 95. The batch file had no full-stop in front of the bat extension, thus making TestFile004M.fs as TESTFI~1bat, which should really have read TestFile004M.bat. The data files had the same problem, but the copy command within the batch file would restore them correctly, except the output file would have been called TESTFI~1.FS, which was not what was expected. Not recommended.

3 FSplit14.zip. File Split v1.41. Registration US$10.
When testing, I used the Split File option from Explorer's context menu. The only choices were which folders to split from, split to and what size in Kb. No optimal sizes for floppies were shown. I selected 1430k. Next I clicked on the Help button, but the program could not find the help file, FSPLIT.HLP. I selected A:\ as the destination folder. It created A:\TestFile004M.CA1. It kept going forever, presumably had a full disk, but I was not advised. No error messages were shown, although it appeared to be still writing. The disk access light was extinguished after about one minute of writing. I had to select Cancel to abort the process. The only clue I had, having tried again with a size of 1400K, was that the percentage read 98% on the 1430k run, whereas on the second run this was 100%. So, presumably unless you have 100% displayed, it will not work. It successfully wrote the floppy disks, but the program needed to be installed on the receiving computer as well. Because of the various problems, and the fact that the program also needed to be installed on the receiving computer, it was not recommended.

4 Split.zip. Split File Shell Extension v2.1b. Freeware.
The program was accessed by a right-click from Explorer, and choosing Split This File. Selectable options included: Change output folder to be different from the input file's folder name; Include no header, to make it compatible with DOS copy; Automatic merging (creates EXE file); Output file in DOS 8.3 format; Provide repairing space of x clusters on the disk; Change the default extension type (probably for compatibility with earlier versions). I chose Automatic merging and selected a repairing space of 1 cluster. It took 2 minutes 26 seconds to create three output files and copy them onto three floppy disks.

For merging, I simply double-clicked on A:\TestFile004m.fs.1.exe. After a few seconds this brought up a menu asking if I wanted to restore the file. When I clicked the appropriate button, it then asked me which drive and folder I wanted to restore to. This looked very impressive. I selected the appropriate folder, and the restore operation started. When the first disk was finished, I was asked to insert the second disk. I deliberately inserted the third disk to see if it would accept this. It would not continue until the correct disk was inserted. So far, this was the best program I had seen, and it was totally free as well! My CRC checking program advised me that the size and CRC of the merged file were correct, even though the date and time had been set to the copy date and time, which is quite acceptable.

Merging the file took 2 minutes 45 seconds. Next, I wanted to change just the last character in the file on the third disk, to see if this would be picked up as an error and corrected. It was neither spotted, nor corrected. In spite of not spotting the introduced error, it was rated the best so far! From here, testing would be somewhat easier and faster, as each subsequent program was now being compared with this one.

5 Split95.zip, Splitit95 v1.0. Freeware.
After installation, a right-click on the desired file from Explorer, then selecting Split it, brought up the program. This one really looked good too. Selectable options included: 4 floppy disk sizes plus custom size; Select the number of parts to be split into; Split so that each file takes a selectable time at a selectable baud rate for including in e-mails; CRC32 error checking; Sending files to the recycle bin after a successful merge; Preserving the file extension during the splitting process; Maximisation of memory usage for increased speed; Enabling as a shell extension.

According to the included text file, files up to 2Gb in size can be split, though this was not tested. When I selected the file to be split, I attempted to split it directly to A:, which was not acceptable. So I had to split them to one of the folders on the hard disk drive first, then copy them. Although this program was needed on both computers, it was still recommended, as it had more features than any of the other programs so far, especially the CRC32 error checking. Splitting and copying the test file took 2 minutes 17 seconds. Merging the files took 2 minutes 25 seconds. Once again I changed the last character in the last file, to test if the CRC checking would pick it up. It sure did. In other words, I was unable to merge the files unless there were no errors in the file.

My number one choice at this stage, because of the security of the CRC error checking, in spite of the fact that the program had to be installed on both computers.

6 Axman220.zip, v2.20. Registration US$10.
After installation, the program was again called up by right-clicking on Explorer, then selecting SendTo, Axman. I was promptly reminded that I only had 30 days to use the software, at which time it would need to be registered. Selectable options included: Span disks; Fixed size of x bytes; Predefined, such as 1.44Mb floppy, 100Mb Zip disk or 1Gb Jaz disk; Prompt to format each disk; Include Axman Restore; Remove original after splitting; Include Checksum; Split to non-Axman format (presumably for manual restoring using the DOS copy command); Verify option.

Splitting the file directly onto three floppies took 2 minutes and 21 seconds. As I had selected the options to include Axman Restore, the program was not needed on the other computer. On the other computer, I double-clicked on AxManRestore.exe on the last floppy copied. Restoring was straight-forward and took 2 minutes and 47 seconds. Next, I wanted to test changing the last character again and seeing if it would handle this correctly. It spotted an error as expected, which was excellent.

Other features, which had not been tested, included fitting as much as possible onto any floppy, i.e. even if there were already other files, it would fit whatever it could. Also, using Non-AxMan format Unix users should be able to restore using the cat command.

At this stage, Axman was my number 1 choice, Splitit95 number 2, and Split File Shell Extension number 3.

7 Ffws2000.zip, File Fission Wizard Shareware Version 2.0. Registration US$18.75
This program could only be used to split a maximum of 12 files, before it had to be registered. After installation, it could be called up from within Explorer, selecting SendTo; File Fission Wizard Shareware Version 2.0. The only options available were to go to hard disk, any other drive including the floppy, or custom. Compared to previous programs tested, this one was the dearest, yet it was very short on features. I deliberately left the floppy out of the drive and got the following error message: Error 68, Device Unavailable. Sorry, this file cannot be split. Not very elegant, but at least it was self-explanatory. As this program did not appear to match some of the previous ones, no further testing was done.

8 RZSplt16.zip, RZSplit 97, version 1.6. Registration US$12.
After installation, this program could be run by right-clicking on the desired file in Explorer, then selecting Send To RZ Split. You could choose from several standard split sizes, including 1.44Mb and 100Mb, as well as defining a custom size. This one was a bit different, in that you could also zip a file as well as splitting it. When I selected two out of three files, the program decided to do all three anyway, which was a bit of a surprise. After compressing for around 45 seconds, I got an error message saying that the file was too small to be split. When I acknowledged the error message, the file was about 1,100 k long. Both files were 4Mb each, making a total of just over 8Mb. Compression obviously reduced them to less than 1.44Mb, which was a considerable amount of compression. I confirmed this compression by manually compressed the files.

Next I decided to add another file, and tried to use the zip option again. Same problem still. So I merged two identical files, creating one 8Mb file. I then tried to split a total of 6 files, totalling just over 24Mb. I directed the output to be written to the hard disk instead of the floppies. To zip the files took 2 minutes 23 seconds, then splitting added another three seconds. The new zipped file would have been split across 4 floppies, rather than across 17 floppies, which was of course pretty impressive. The total time for writing the compressed split file to four floppies would have taken around 3 minutes 20 seconds, making a total of around 5 minutes 43 seconds. Had I not chosen the zip option, I estimate that the process would have taken around 14 minutes. So, even though the compression took a while, it still saved a considerable amount of time compared with just splitting without compressing.

Next, I simply split the file without using the zip option. It took 2 minutes and 10 seconds to create the three floppies. I then noticed that there was no program included to extract the files on the other computer. So, I ran it again, this time selecting the option Raw Split. At the end of writing the third floppy disk, it showed which batch file to run off the floppy to merge the files on the other computer. This process took 2 minutes and 11 seconds. Next, I copied the files onto the other computer, which took 2 minutes and 24 seconds. I then ran the batch file to merge the three files. This took another 3 seconds, making the total merge process last 2 minutes and 27 seconds.

At this stage, I would have ranked this program first, especially considering the time and disks saved by optionally zipping files. However, using the Raw Split method, files were simply added together, without any error checking.

9 Vss97gd1.zip or Wtudio97.zip or M5vss98.zip.
Visual Split Studio Gold, registration US$20. I had installed all of these, which appeared to be different versions of the same program, but using different names, by the same author. Having right-clicked on the desired file from within Explorer, I selected Send To; Span to Floppy (A). This then presented a screen saying I could use it another 34 times. After accepting, I was presented with a dialog box, which read: Usage: MSPAN [file to span] [target drive and folder] [buffer size, in kB] [Remote Unit: yes/no] [ session name [optional - informational]]. Example: Mspan c:\myfile.zip a:\backups 8192 yes "My Span Session".

This was hardly what I would class as a Windows 95 program, rather a DOS program disguised as a Windows 95 program. Although the instructions were clear enough, this program was considered to be a DOS program, was the dearest of the programs looked at so far, and did not appear to have any of the features of some of the others. It was thus not tested any further, considering other programs already tested appeared to be better Windows 95 programs.

10 MCopy.exe, Advanced Copy v2.0. Registration US$15.
Having installed the program, selected a file, then configuring the program, I looked at the help screen. These were not your typical Windows help screens, rather a succession of different text screens, giving some help. One of the screens showed: To unite a splitted file without using Advanced Copy, first change the directory to the place where the split disks are. Then for every split disk, type "unite" from the command line. After the last disk, type "bind" to finish remote uniting. Firstly, "splitted file" is terrible English. More importantly, this is yet another example of a program which is partly Windows 95, partly DOS command line. Not tested, as it did not comply with my requirements.

11 Esplit.exe, ESplit v1.5. Freeware.
According to the instructions, this is the last free release of this product, and product registration is voluntary and free, but is required to get technical support. Not tested, as not all criteria were met.

12 301ffc95.zip. Fast File Cracker v3.0. Registration US$20.
Although this program did not meet all my criteria (it had to be installed on both computers), it had some interesting features. It could both compress and password protect split files. Splitting without compression took 2 minutes and 12 seconds. Splitting several files totalling 24Mb was not possible, it would only split one file. So I tested splitting and compressing one 8Mb file, which took 1 minute and 36 seconds to create two floppy disks. To merge the files and uncompress them on a different drive on the same computer took 1 minute and 11 seconds.

I then modified the second part, changing one character in the file. After saving the file, I started to merge it. The process claimed to be completed at 61%, but did not indicate any problem. The file was now larger than the original as well as having a totally different CRC. Based on this information, the program failed unfortunately.

13 APackMk1.zip, Packager, Mark 1. Registration US$20 or US$30 for commercial use.
This program had a nice feature (not in the shareware version though), being a Repair Mode for corrupted archives. This seemed like an excellent idea, but of course could not be tested. It also had a facility for creating self-extracting archives, again, a feature which was not implemented in the shareware version. As this shareware version did not meet some of the requirements, it was not tested further. It could be worthwhile considering though, as the features referred to above appeared to be very handy.

14 SPro.zip, Splitter Pro, v1.5a, US$10.
Unfortunately this author would only accept cheques or money orders, making this program a far more expensive and difficult proposition for Australians. The program lacked some of the desired features, so was not tested.

15 Pt10295.zip, Part-it, v1.02. Registration US$19.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

16 Splitty.zip, Splitty v1.5. Registration US$10.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

17 SpltW310.zip, SplitWin v3.10, AUS$15.
The shareware version did not meet all my criteria, so it was not tested. An annoying feature of this program when exiting was that there were four buttons, asking if you would register, titled: Yes; May Be, Forget about it; I will think about it. Selecting any except Yes simply did not allow you to exit. Personally I found this rather childish. If I liked the program, and intended to use it on a regular basis, I would register it, without having to be reminded. Why not just make it work for 30 days and then stop it working, similar to what many other shareware authors are doing these days. Shame about this program, it was Australian, and I would have liked to have recommended it, but unfortunately there were better programs around for my liking.

18 Ws1132.zip, WinSplit32 v1.1.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

19 ZSplit, v1.6.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

20 E-Z Split.zip, v0.5. Registration US$10.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

21 EZ-Split, v2.06. Registration US$25.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

22 FSplit101.zip, File Split v1.01.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

23 Okeeko10.zip, Okeeko v1.0. Registrations US$10.
This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

24 PSplit97.zip, PSplit 97. Registration US$5.
No details, the zip file only contained an exe file. Would have been nice to have seen a text file to see what the program offered. This program did not satisfy all my criteria, so was not tested.

25 Split0.zip, Split v1.00. Registration US$10.
Again, no details, just exe files inside of a zip archive. This program had password encryption, but not in the shareware version, so it was not tested.

26 Split11.zip, Split v1.1.
This program has to run from a DOS box, so was not tested.

Of 34 files which were downloaded, some were not tested, because of later versions included: FSplit13.zip, M5vss98.zip, Slice300.zip, WSplitSi and Wtudio97.zip. Other programs which were not tested, because of corrupt files included: MSpt9517.zip, Shredder.zip, SplitApp.exe.

Summary

Of all the programs tested, three stood out as clearly being a better value than the others. These were Axman, Splitit95 and RZSplit.

AxMan costs US$10. Could be accessed from within Explorer using a right-click; had error checking; merge program was copied with the data files; wrote to partially filled floppies; had a verify option; could be used under Unix.

Splitit95. Although this program was freeware, it had some of the better features. These included access from within Explorer using a right-click; CRC32 error checking; nominated time and baud rates for e-mails (not tested); could handle files up to 2Gb (not tested). I did not like the fact that I had to manually copy all files to the floppy disk, and that the program was needed on both computers. But, after all, the program was free, and thus excellent value.

RZSplit cost US$12. This program had some excellent features. These included right-click access from within Explorer, then Send To; error checking, compressing or zipping the file(s), making it considerably faster than other programs. Its drawbacks were that the program was needed on both PCs for error checking, meaning that if you wanted to give the data files to another person, that person would technically speaking also have to register the program in order to do error checking. If error checking was not needed, the data files could simply be copied along with a batch file to merge them on the other PC, but errors would not be detected. Had it not been for these, the program would have clearly rated first.

Other programs, which were not quite as good as the above, included:

Fast File Cracker cost US$20. It could both compress and password protect split files. It was very fast, but unfortunately did not detect an error deliberately introduced by me, causing the copy of the file to be totally useless. If this problem could be fixed, it would be ranked first.

Split. Freeware. It could be accessed from within Explorer using a right-click; had auto merge. It had no error checking, nor any form of compressing, but was free.

Packager cost either US$20 for private use or US$30 for commercial use. Its repair mode for corrupted archives seemed handy but was not included in the shareware version, so could not be tested. Same for creating self-extracting archives.

Finally, bear in mind that ZipMagic, WinZip and PKZip for Windows allow you to "span" compressed files onto floppies and have a built-in error checking facility. If you have a registered version of anyone of these (my favourite is ZipMagic, and I have also registered WinZip some time ago) you will probably not need a separate file splitting program. Now, why didn't I think of that before spending some sixteen hours or so downloading, installing, testing and writing this article, when I could have used one of my existing archive programs all along?

Well, I can't answer that last one, but, thanks for your efforts Frank they may just save readers some time in locating a product to fill just that need.

Note: Aquarian Technologies can also provide WinZip Site Licenses in Australia, contact us for details and pricing.

5. BOOK REVIEW OF THE MONTH

Handbook for the Soul
Edited by Richard Carlson and Benjamin Shield
Or get it as an Audio Tape

I'm sure you've all heard the term "get a life", I know I have only too often :-) This book can help you along that path. It is a collection of writings from some of the best known deep thinkers of our time describes the need to take care of that part of our being that really needs nourishment, the soul, the real life element. You need peace and time to get close to your soul, but, if these writings are anything to go by it will be a most rewarding experience indeed.

This is not a religious book, although several of the writers mention their own beliefs. It is more about how to achieve a balance in your life. Each of the writers describes how they go about achieving that balance - nourishing their own soul life in the process. Deep and meaningful stuff, something that I can only aspire to at this stage, but, at least I'm taking the first steps...

From the foreword: "The twentieth century has been dominated by a worldview that glorifies a mechanistic, rationalistic focus at the expense of the inner life". This books starts us on a journey to understanding what that means on a very humanistic level, and how we as individuals can change to make a difference, not just for ourselves, but for others as well.

Not a book everyone will be interested in, but, it does make you think... More details here