@database ARCHandler
@$VER: ARCHandler.guide 37.40 (6.7.94)
@(C) Rafael D'Halleweyn
@author Rafael D'Halleweyn
@index index
@node main "ARCHandler 1.0a"
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@{b}ARCHandler 1.0a@{ub}
================
ARCHandler is Copyright � 1994 Rafael D'Halleweyn.
All rights reserved.
@{" Disclaimer " link disclaimer}
@{" Shareware Notice " link shareware}
@{" Introduction " link introduction}
@{" Requirements " link requirements}
@{" Starting " link starting}
@{" Using " link using}
@{" Technical Information " link techno}
@{" History " link history}
@{" The author " link author}
When I'm sad she comes to me
with a thousand smiles
she gives to me free
It's alright, it's alright she says,
Take anything you want from me,
anything.
Jimi Hendrix
@endnode
@node disclaimer "ARCHandler: Disclaimer"
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@next shareware
@{b}@{u}Disclaimer@{ub}@{uu}
With this document I make no warranties or representations, either
expressed or implied, with respect to the program described herein. The
program and the information presented herein is being supplied on an `as
is' basis and is expressly subject to change without notice. The entire
risk as to the use of the program and the information presented is assumed
by the user. In no event will I be liable for direct, indirect, incidental,
or consequential damages resulting from any claim arising out of the use of
the program or the information presented herein, even if I have been
advised of the possibilities of such damages.
@endnode
@node shareware "ARCHandler: Shareware Notice"
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@next introduction
@{b}@{u}ARCHandler is Shareware@{ub}@{uu}
This package is released as shareware. This means you can copy it freely as
long as you don't ask any money for it, except perhaps a nominal fee for
copying. If you like and use this package on a regular base, you should
send @{"me" link author} a contribution of 500 BEF or USD 15. Send money by International
Money Order, EuroCheck (in BEF!) or Cash.
The package is Copyright � Rafael D'Halleweyn, All Rights Reserved. The
author reserves the right to change the status of this package whenever he
finds it appropriate.
This package should not be spread in any other form than an LhA (or
equivalent) archive and all parts of it should be spread together. The
package may not be altered in any way and cannot be used for commercial
purposes without the prior written permission of the author. The archive
should contain the following files:
ARCHandler (dir)
C (dir)
FlushARC
MountListEntry
L (dir)
arc-handler
S (dir)
MountList-header
WhichLhA
ARC
ARC.info
ARCHandler.guide
ARCHandler.guide.info
Install
Install.info
ReadmeQuick
ReadmeQuick.info
ARCHandler.info
The installation-script (`Install') and the extra commands it uses
(`MountListEntry') are also copyrighted and can't be used in any other
project/archive without the prior written permission of the author.
@endnode
@node introduction "ARCHandler: Introduction"
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@next requirements
@{b}@{u}Introduction to the ARCHandler@{ub}@{uu}
@{"Archives" link archive} (such as @{"LhA" link lha} , Zip, Zoo, Tar, ...) are very easy to store and
move large amounts of files. However, if you wish to use the files
contained in the archive you always have to extract the files first.
Secondly, to easily browse through the archive, you have to extract the
whole archive.
Wouldn't it be easier if you could treat archives just like directories:
move to a directory, look which files are in the directory and possibly use
one of those files.
I have already heard a lot of suggestions in this direction, so the idea is
neither mine nor is it original. But I've never seen an implementation, so
I tried to make my own and this is the result.
Currently the ARCHandler only supports @{"lha" link lha}-archives.
@endnode
@node archive "What is an archive?"
@prev archive
@next archive
In this text the word @{i}archive @{ui}is used to indicated a group of files, that
are stored in one big file, possibly also containing the file-structure of
the original (directories) and maybe using compression to store the files.
@{i}Archives @{ui}are mainly used to move large amounts of data from one computer to
another (via disk/modem/ftp/...). @{i}Archives @{ui}are also an easy way to store
that data.
The ARCHandler currently only supports @{"lha" link lha}-archives.
@endnode
@node lha "What is an lha-archive?"
@prev lha
@next lha
LhA is probably the most widely used archiver on the Amiga. It uses the
Lempel-Ziv-Huffman (LZH) compression scheme to reduce archive size. Several
other LZH-archives exist for the Amiga (LhArcA, LhArc, LZ, LhEx, ...) and
for UNIX and MS-DOS machines.
@endnode
@node requirements "ARCHandler: Requirements"
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@next starting
@{b}@{u}Requirements to use the ARCHandler@{ub}@{uu}
ARCHandler currently requires an Amiga running Workbench/Kickstart 2.04 or
higher. You also need the LhA command (� Stefan Boberg), both the
registered and evaluation version should work.
ARCHandler currently also needs the PIPE-device. If you didn't change your
Workbench-partition after Workbench-installation this should be no problem
(otherwise you might want to add a `Mount PIPE:' to your User-Startup).
To test the handler, a few lha-archives can also be very handy :).
@endnode
@node starting "ARCHandler: Starting"
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@next using
@{b}@{u}Starting the ARCHandler@{ub}@{uu}
To be able to use the ARCHandler you should install it first. If you double
click the `Install'-icon, the handler will be installed for you (the
installation requires the Commodore Installer, � Commodore). If you only
want to test the handler, double click the `ARC'-icon and a disk-icon
should appear on the Workbench-window named `Archives'.
Once installed, you'll have to start the handler. If you've selected the
`Always mount ARC: on start-up?'-option during the installation, the
handler will be started after each reset. If you did not use this option,
you'll have to start it manually:
�under Workbench 2.1 or higher the easiest way is to double-click the
`ARC'-icon in the `Storage/DOSDrivers'-drawer of your Workbench
partition (or disk);
�if you are using Workbench 2.04 or higher you can (also) start the
handler by entering the following command in a Shell:
@{i}Mount ARC: @{ui}
If everything was installed correctly, a disk-icon should appear on the
Workbench-window named `Archives' (or the name you selected during
installation).
@endnode
@node using "ARCHandler: Using"
@next techno
@prev starting
@{b}@{u}Using the ARCHandler@{ub}@{uu}
Once the ARCHandler is started, you should be able to use it as any-other
AmigaDOS-device.
The root-directory of the device contains all the volumes that AmigaDOS
knows of (it even contains the ARC-volume, you can use this to access an
archive in an archive). Just enter one of those volumes and you'll see all
the files and directories that are on that volume. You're able to use any
of these files the same way as on the normal volume, read a text, execute a
program (only read operations are supported in this version).
When you come across an lha-archive you'll notice that the handler tells
you that it is a directory. When you enter the archive you'll see all the
files and directories that reside in the archive. These files can be used
as normal files, you can read texts or execute the programs. Currently the
handler doesn't support writing to files in an archive.
@endnode
@node techno "ARCHandler: Technical Info"
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@{b}@{u}Some technical background@{ub}@{uu}
@{" Startup-arguments " link startup}
@{" Workbench icons " link icons}
@{" Archive-file-lists " link filelists}
@{" FlushARC command " link flusharc}
@{" Packet types " link packets}
@endnode
@node startup "ARCHandler: Startup-arguments"
@prev startup
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@toc techno
@{b}Startup-arguments@{ub}
The ARCHandler uses the `Startup'-field of a MountList/DOSDriver to let the
user pass some important information. The string in the `Startup'-field is
parsed with ReadArgs(). The string should always have double-quotes around
it and you should only use single-quotes (') in the string. Currently the
arc-handler recognizes the following arguments:
@{" NAME " link namearg}
@{" LHA " link lhaarg}
@{" TEMPDIR " link tempdirarg}
@{" BUFFERS " link buffersarg}
@{" DISKICON " link diskiconarg}
@{" DRAWERICON " link drawericonarg}
@{" NOEXTCHECK " link noextcheckarg}
The template of the `Startup'-field is:
@{i}NAME/K,LHA/K,TEMPDIR/K,BUFFERS/K/N,DISKICON/K,DRAWERICON/K,NOEXTCHECK/S @{ui}
Example:
Startup ="LHA=Work:C/LhA DISKICON='Work:Extra Icons/ARCDisk.info'"
NOTE: The `Install' script adds a `Startup' tool type to the
`ARC'-dosdriver-icon. So, if you want to change the `Startup'-field,
you should change the tool type (use the `Icons/Information...' menu
item of the Workbench)!
@endnode
@node namearg "ARCHandler: NAME argument"
@prev namearg
@next lhaarg
@toc startup
@{u}NAME@{uu}
The NAME argument in the `Startup'-field of a MountList/DOSDriver is used
to specify the name of the volume. You can specify any name you want, if
you want to use spaces in the name surround the name with single-quotes.
The default name is `Archives'.
@endnode
@node lhaarg "ARCHandler: LHA argument"
@prev namearg
@next tempdirarg
@toc startup
@{u}LHA@{uu}
The LHA argument in the `Startup'-field of a MountList/DOSDriver is used to
specify the place of the `LhA'-command. You should specify the full path
(including device/volume/assign). If the path contains spaces you should
surround the name with single-quotes. The default is `C:LhA'.
@endnode
@node tempdirarg "ARCHandler: TEMPDIR argument"
@prev lhaarg
@next buffersarg
@toc startup
@{u}TEMPDIR@{uu}
The TEMPDIR argument in the `Startup'-field of a MountList/DOSDriver
specifies a directory where the ARCHandler can create its temporary files.
All the files that the handler extracts from archives are placed in this
directory. This directory should be large enough to hold all those files.
You should specify the full path (including device/volume/assign). If the
path contains spaces you should surround the path with single-quotes. The
default is `T:'.
Special note about MultiUser: don't use a directory on a muFS-partition as
the directory for temporary files!
@endnode
@node buffersarg "ARCHandler: BUFFERS argument"
@prev tempdirarg
@next diskiconarg
@toc startup
@{u}BUFFERS@{uu}
The BUFFERS argument in the `Startup'-field of a MountList/DOSDriver
indicates the number of unused @{"archive-file-lists" link filelists} that the ARCHandler
keeps in memory. This argument should be a number. The default number is
two and should probably not be changed.
@endnode
@node diskiconarg "ARCHandler: DISKICON argument"
@prev buffersarg
@next drawericonarg
@toc startup
@{u}DISKICON@{uu}
With the DISKICON argument you can specify the name of the icon that the
volume should use as its disk-icon. This is the icon that appears in the
Workbench window. This arguments defaults to `DEVS:ARCDisk_info'.
Special note about MultiUser: don't place the disk-icon on a muFS-
partition!
@endnode
@node drawericonarg "ARCHandler: DRAWERICON argument"
@prev diskiconarg
@next noextcheckarg
@toc startup
@{u}DRAWERICON@{uu}
With the DRAWERICON argument you can specify the name of the icon that will
be used for the archives that are represented as directories. This argument
defaults to `DEVS:ARCDrawer_info'.
@endnode
@node noextcheckarg "ARCHandler: NOEXTCHECK argument"
@prev drawericonarg
@next noextcheckarg
@toc startup
@{u}NOEXTCHECK@{uu}
ARCHandler recognizes lha-archives by looking at the contents of the file.
Normally, the handler will only open (and thus recognize) files with a name
ending in `.lha' or `.lzh'.
When you specify the NOEXTCHECK argument the handler will open all the
files and it will also recognize archives with a filename not ending in
`.lha' or `.lzh'. However, this will take much longer to scan directories,
so by default the option is off (the argument is a switch, if you use the
argument in the `Startup'-field, the option is enabled).
@endnode
@node icons "ARCHandler: Workbench icons"
@prev startup
@next filelists
@toc techno
@{b}Workbench icons@{ub}
To be able to easily access the ARCHandler through the Workbench, the
handler adds extra icons:
-In the root of the ARCHandler volume there is a disk-icon
(Disk.info). This icon is currently the only file that can be
written to. (see also @{"DISKICON" link diskiconarg})
-In the root of the volume there are also drawer-icons for the
other volumes. These icons are created from the original disk-icon
on that volume (if non disk-icon exists on a certain volume the
default disk-icon will be used). You can't write to these icons.
-For all the archives the handler recognizes a drawer-icon is
added. These icons are also write protected. (see also
@{"DRAWERICON" link drawericonarg})
@endnode
@node filelists "ARCHandler: Archive-file-lists"
@prev icons
@next flusharc
@toc techno
@{b}Archive-file-lists@{ub}
ARCHandler keeps a certain amount of unused archive-file-lists (a list of
all the files and directories in an archive) in memory (@{"BUFFERS" link buffersarg}). This has
the advantage that the handler won't have to re-list the archive on every
access. This results in a faster response.
This also has a small side-effect, the handler keeps a lock on all archives
whose archive-file-list is still in memory. The handler uses a simple LRU
(least-recently-used) replacement rule to select the archive-file-list that
will be freed when another archive-file-list is no longer used. As a result
the archive-file-list-lock won't be released until enough other archives
are used.
If, at a certain moment, you want to free all unused archive-lists and
locks you can use the @{"FlushARC" link flusharc} command.
@endnode
@node flusharc "ARCHandler: FlushARC"
@prev filelists
@next packets
@toc techno
@{b}FlushARC command@{ub}
You can use the FlushARC-command if you want to free all unused
@{"archive-file-lists" link filelists} and archive-locks. The FlushARC command has the
following template:
@{i}FlushARC DEVICE @{ui}
The DEVICE argument defaults to `ARC:'. The DEVICE argument should be the
name of the device, not the name of the volume.
To flush the device named `ARC2:' use:
@{i}FlushARC ARC2: @{ui}
@endnode
@node packets "ARCHandler: Packet types"
@prev flusharc
@next packets
@toc techno
@{b}Unsupported packets@{ub}
This is a list of the packets types that the handler currently doesn't
support:
These actions will be supported in a future writable version:
ACTION_CREATE_DIR
ACTION_DELETE_OBJECT
ACTION_RENAME_OBJECT
ACTION_SET_COMMENT
ACTION_SET_DATE
ACTION_SET_FILE_SIZE
ACTION_SET_PROTECT
These two actions don't need to be implemented because the
dos.library emulates them by using ACTION_EXAMINE_OBJECT and
ACTION_EXAMINE_NEXT:
ACTION_EXAMINE_ALL
ACTION_EXAMINE_ALL_END
actions that may be implemented, if needed:
ACTION_ADD_NOTIFY
ACTION_CHANGE_MODE
ACTION_COPY_DIR_FH
ACTION_EXAMINE_FH
ACTION_FH_FROM_LOCK
ACTION_FREE_RECORD
ACTION_LOCK_RECORD
ACTION_MAKE_LINK
ACTION_PARENT_FH
ACTION_READ_LINK
ACTION_REMOVE_NOTIFY
ACTION_RENAME_DISK
ACTION_SET_OWNER
Actions that won't be implemented:
ACTION_FORMAT
ACTION_FLUSH
ACTION_MORE_CACHE
ACTION_INHIBIT
ACTION_WRITE_PROTECT
@{b}Packets ARCHandler needs@{ub}
This is the minimal list of packets that an underlying FileSystem should
support, if you want to use it through the ARCHandler:
ACTION_COPY_DIR
ACTION_END
ACTION_EXAMINE_NEXT
ACTION_EXAMINE_OBJECT
ACTION_FINDINPUT
ACTION_FREE_LOCK
ACTION_LOCATE_OBJECT
ACTION_PARENT
ACTION_READ
ACTION_SEEK
@endnode
@node history "ARCHandler: History"
@prev techno
@next author
@{b}@{u}History of the ARCHandler@{ub}@{uu}
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
�release 1.0 [37.129 (12.7.94)]
-First release.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
�release 1.0a [37.131 (14.7.94)]
-Volumes that have the same name as a device couldn't be used
through the handler (reported by Erik Bergen).
-Removed a nasty Enforcer hit.
-Made some changes to the installation script.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
�future release
-Support for 2.0-packets.
-Fully writable filesystem, with the ability to create/change
files in archives.
-Support for more archive types (zip/zoo/tar/...).
-Support for packed files (XPK/PowerPacker/Imploder/...).
These are just some of the features I @{i}might @{ui} add to a future
release. I don't guarantee that either of these features will ever
be implemented (but I hope they will). If you've got any good ideas
for a future release let @{"me" link author} know.
@endnode
@node author "About the Author"
@prev history
@next author
ARCHandler was written by @{b}Rafael D'Halleweyn@{ub}.
If you have any questions, remarks, suggestions or bug reports please let
me know. You can contact me via normal mail:
Rafael D'Halleweyn
Perckhoevelaan 17
B-2610 Antwerpen
BELGIUM
Or you can try to reach me via EMail, you can reach me at:
amiga@suntew.ruca.ua.ac.be
(but this is not my own account). I will try to read my mail there during
July, August and September. From October you'll be able to reach me at:
Rafael.DHalleweyn@rug.ac.be
(this is my own account).
[if you only have fido-access you should send a message to
UUCP (2:29/777.0) and the first line of the message should
read `To: <fill in email address>', the second line should be
empty]
I'd like to thank Nico Fran�ois, Johan Billing, Per-Anders Josefsson,
Stefan Zeiger, Tom De Voeght and Peter Stuer for �eta-testing. I'd also
like to thank David Larsson for the excellent KingCON. These seven persons
shouldn't try to send me the shareware fee, because then I'll have to send
it back :-).
ARCHandler is Copyright � Rafael D'Halleweyn. All Rights Reserved.
@endnode
@node index "ARCHandler: Index"
@prev index
@next index
@{b}Index@{ub}
@{"archive" link archive}
@{"author" link author}
@{"BUFFERS" link buffersarg}
@{"Disclaimer" link disclaimer}
@{"DISKICON" link diskiconarg}
@{"DRAWERICON" link drawericonarg}
@{"filelists" link filelists}
@{"FlushARC" link flusharc}
@{"history" link history}
@{"icons" link icons}
@{"Introduction" link introduction}
@{"LhA" link lha}
@{"LHA arguments" link lhaarg}
@{"NAME" link namearg}
@{"NOEXTCHECKARG" link noextcheckarg}
@{"packets" link packets}
@{"Requirements" link requirements}
@{"Shareware" link shareware}
@{"Starting" link starting}
@{"Startup-field" link startup}
@{"Technical Information" link techno}
@{"TEMP" link tempdirarg
@{"Using" link using}
@{"Workbench icons" link icons}
@endnode