AIDE release notes ================== MicroProcessor Engineering 133 Hill Lane Southampton SO15 5AF England tel: +44 (0)23 8063 1441 fax: +44 (0)23 8033 9691 net: mpe@mpeforth.com tech-support@mpeforth.com web: www.mpeforth.com Remember to use the right click menus. 7.02 5 November 2021 ===================== Corrected use of "" in source code. Replaced by C". Added window placement error checking. Must still add data check. 6.88 19 September 2016 ======================= Changed Richedit clear operation. Changed the base VFX Forth to limit line lengths in RichEdit controls to 1024 characters and to respond to character 13. 6.84 27 July 2016 =================== Enhanced file name parsing in the INCLUDE handler to special case drive letters and absolute paths that start with '\'. If you are having problems with the target version of INCLUDE a debug option is available. Run Utilities -> Forth Console In the Forth console that appears, type 1 to DebugInclude? to enable debugging information. When you next INCLUDE a file a tedious set of message boxes will appear. They may help you to determine what has gone wrong. You can always capture these and send the images or text to MPE - it may help. In IDE -> External Tools, the Prev and Next buttons perform an "Apply" operation before moving to the prev/next item. Enhanced the Tool Capture and PowerTerm context menus. Improved font colour selection handling. Overhauled Ctrl-V and Shift-Insert key handling in Tool Capture, ForthEd2 and PowerTerm windows. Rewrote the Save/Load INI file entries. The INI file is now saved when AIDE shuts down and after all other INI file operations are complete. Similarly, the new INI file selection is made as part of the startup process before any windows have been launched. 6.82 31 March 2016 =================== If LOCATE has been set up in the IDE menu "Configure Edit/Locate ...", a target error during an INCLUDE served by AIDE will cause the file and line to be displayed. The IDE has two new entries. "Save INI file as ..." saves a copy of the INI file. You choose the file name and directory. "Load INI file from ..." causes the given INI file to be copied to the current INI file when AIDE is next restarted. You choose the file name and directory. You have to close and rerun AIDE for the new settings to be used. 6.81 5 January 2016 ==================== We now use the Windows power down message to force AIDE to exit. This ensures that the configuration is correctly saved. It also avoids problems with some USB serial drivers that do not handle powerdown properly. 6.80 6 December 2015 ===================== Refactored shutdown code to avoid a crash with Windows 10. 6.73 2 December 2014 ===================== Fixed some issues that caused target LOCATE to ForthEd2 to fail. 6.72 10 November 2014 ====================== If the baud rate is 9600 baud or less, the Lite version of AIDE PowerTerm will insert inter-character and inter-line delays. In a later version these will be configurable from the PowerTerm configuration dialog. 6.69 30 July 2014 ================== Normalised directory separators in VIEW-FILE. Changed focus setting when console 0 is selected for PowerTerm. Interlocked comms task close operations. Improved USB device removal detection. 6.64 12 May 2014 ================= Enhanced serial line performance. Reduced overheads in PowerTerm Comms task. Corrected the command line switch -ini-exec (must be lower case) to use the default INI file in the same directory as aide.exe. This is useful when you want multiple copies of AIDE with separate INI files. Increased the PowerTerm window and serial input buffers to 2 Mb. Increased the size of the Tool Capture window input buffer to 1 Mb. The tools band in the main toolbar is maximised at start up. Added auxiliary displays to PowerTerm. These are cursor- addressable windows (old-fashioned VDUs) which allow the comms link to be split into several channels each using a single terminal. See the AIDE manual for more details. 6.50 2 April 2014 ================== Gave all the PowerTerm message boxes an owning window in an attempt to make them more visible on crowded screens. We appear to have fixed the backspace problem in PowerTerm. 6.48 4 February 2014 ===================== Added the command line switch -ini-exec (must be lower case) to use the default INI file in the same directory as aide.exe. This is useful when you want multiple copies of AIDE with separate INI files. Updated timer resolution handling. Updated timing in Comms task to improve backspace handling. Updated the PowerTerm port selection dialog to list the COM ports and their "friendly names". 6.44 6 January 2014 ==================== Produced a "lite" build of Aide which takes its INI file from the AIDE executable's directory. This option is not compliant to the normal Windows rules, and so we now keep the AIDE INI file in a different directory for Lite versions of the cross compilers. Modified the PowerTerm configuration dialog. Serial ports are now enumerated and selected from a ComboBox. Retested on Windows XP. Finally fixed the redraw of the active window title bar. It's a kluge but it seems to work. 6.26 4 October 2013 ==================== The key to send time and date in PowerTerm is now ^K. The previously used ^D is now reserved for upcoming cursor control actions. Improved configuration save at program exit. Improved focus selection when switching between windows. Overhauled the keyboard and button handling in PowerTerm. 6.25 29 August 2013 ==================== If there are no font settings in the INI file, a default font is used. This change improves upgrades between AIDE versions. 6.24 8 August 2013 =================== Provided a View menu which allows the child windows (Tool capture, ForthEd2, PowerTerm) to be laid out in various ways. Fixed a bug in the main window sizing code. Improved highlighting of the active window title bar. Overhauled the window selection behaviour by adding a tab control bar below the tool bar. Selecting one of the tabs brings the associated window to the front. Improved the serial line performance with USB and virtualisation. 6.06 6 June 2013 ================= Improved file name handling in LOCATE from external compiler. Added debug option in Edit/Locate configuration. Fixed PowerTerm font selection. 6.04 21 January 2013 ===================== The open/close state of the ForthEd2 and PowerTerm windows is preserved between sessions. 6.02 1 November 2012 ===================== Changed the AIDE structure to three conventional child windows. This reduces problems with ForthEd2, which is an MDI application. AIDE source code is now available on the same terms as the cross compiler source code. Fixed some file load problems in ForthEd2. Removed the Help toolbar. 5.11 17 September 2012 ======================= Corrected macro display bug. The AIDE INI file is now: %AppLocal%\MPE\Aide\Aide.ini If this file does not exist, the directories are created and the file copied from the directory containing Aide.exe. This change reduces problems with Vista and Windows 7. Added a BMP file to LCD converter to the Utilities menu. This is used to create LCD images in the native format of the LCD. If you need additional LCD formats, contact MPE. The AIDE source code is available with the developer version of the cross compilers after a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) has been signed. Updated serial driver. Right-click menus are provided for each tool. ForthEd has been replaced with ForthEd2, which is part of AIDE itself and is not a plug-in. PowerTerm is now part of AIDE itself, and is not a plug-in. The plug-in mechanism has been removed. 4.40 26 June 2011 ================== Provided DTR/RTS setting in PowerTerm. See powertrm.txt for full details. 4.33 27 May 2011 ================= Fixed quotes conversion bug in editor name handling. Improved scroll-wheel behaviour in text windows. 4.27 14 February 2011 ===================== The performance of the tool capture window is significantly improved. 4.26 18 November 2010 ===================== By default, the tool capture window is cleared before captured applications are run. The default can be changed for each tool using IDE -> External Tools. 4.22 12 July 2010 ================= The font and colours for the capture window can be set in the IDE menu. Updated the captured console handler for Windows 7. Windows 9x operating systems are no longer officially supported by MPE. 4.16 23 March 2010 ================== Fixed obscure start up problem in XP-SP3. Minor improvement to captured console handler. Rebuilt on VFX Forth v4.41 build 3063. 4.14 19 August 2009 =================== Improved text buffer handling in the tool capture window and PowerTerm to reduce backspace problems. Rebuilt on VFX Forth v4.4 build 2904. 4.11 14 January 2009 ==================== Added a Forth console in the Utilities menu. Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 2702 to fix Vista problems in the tool capture window. 4.10 22 August 2008 =================== Rebuilt on latest VFX Forth v4.2 and converted to use the new INI file mechanism, which much improves start up and shutdown times. Reduced the memory footprint. 4.03 3 March 2008 ================= Overhauled the external tool configuration dialog and external tool launcher. To avoid problems with spaces in file/path names, the name of the program has been separated from the command line tail. If you are upgrading from a previous version of AIDE which did not have the “Command Tail” entry, you will have to update your configurations manually. Don't forget to press “Save” for each one. Where you previously had a “Command Line” entry: c:\buildkit.dev\software\compiler\xmsp430.exe /ide /pauseoff split this into the two entries “Program/File” and “Command tail” c:\buildkit.dev\software\compiler\xmsp430.exe /ide /pauseoff If you are also upgrading to a version 7 Forth cross compiler, the Command Tail entry should be changed to: -ide /ide /pauseoff where the -ide switch causes the VFX Forth host to configure itself for AIDE, and the /ide switch causes the cross compiler to use AIDE to launch the editor for LOCATE commands. The OK and APPLY buttons have been renamed EXIT and SAVE to reduce confusion. You must use the SAVE button to save a configuration. Just pressing EXIT will not save the configuration. There are now PREV and NEXT buttons to step through the external tools. Minor performance tweaks. 3.22 14 Jan 2008 ================ Editor path names containing spaces must be entered surrounded by quotes in the IDE->Configure dialog box. We have worked around some problems with the Windows API when saving these path names. When entering the locate command string in this dialog you must put quotes around the %f% macro in order to handle filenames containg spaces. If you do this, you must also specify the line macro %l% to prevent Windows from removing the quote marks. The following (for UltraEdit) works: "%f%" -l%l% but "%f%" will eventually fail. Rebuilt on latest VFX Forth build 2546. 3.20 25 June 2007 ================= PowerTerm: The default directory used for source files has been separated from that used for binary files (Xmodem transfers). This change makes life easier when compiling code on target systems and when using the JTAG Widget. 3.12 8 May 2006 =============== Corrected release note display. Powerterm: Added time and date output to set real-time clocks. The output is triggered by ^D in the PowerTerm window, in the form: n to DOW sec min hr day mon yr SetTime&Date 3.10 30 Jan 2006 ================ Rebuilt on VFX Forth v3.9 build 2011 and converted to use its new facilities. 3.00 10 Nov 2005 ================ Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 1939. Updated PowerTerm to support XMODEM-1k transfers and CRC checking. The defaults can be set in the PowerTerm -> Configure Console Window sheet. Updated ForthEd to support large files, status indication, and prompt before closing changed files. 2.600 14 Feb 2005 ================= Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 1837. Updated Powerterm to handle any serial port, including USB adaptors. 2.520 3 August 2004 =================== Modified the main message loop to prevent CPU hogging under some versions of Windows 2000 and XP. Rebuilt on VFX Forth for Windows build 1690. 2.510 18 May 2004 ================= The Explorer button is renamed Browse and is now configurable. By default the command line remains "explorer.exe". To browse a specific directory, change the command line to: explorer.exe MyDirectoryPath Future versions of the cross compiler installers will set this directory to the main installation directory. Revamped I/O for captured apps to improve responsiveness. Revampled close handling to show that AIDE is doing something. Writing INI files is very slow under W2000/XP. 2.500 4 May 2004 ================ Revamped the serial setup for Windows XP. This appears to improve performance. However, the Windows serial drivers are notoriously unpredictable. If PowerTerm becomes unreliable after your PC has been running for some time, just try rebooting! Added Xmodem 128 byte block transfers to PowerTerm, and added toolbar buttons for Xmodem receive and transmit. 2.410 29 March 2004 =================== Fixed interlock problem in PowerTerm when closing the comms port. When a toolbar button or the close button is pressed, AIDE now attempts to close the captured application. This means that you can rerun an application and close AIDE without first having to close a captured application. Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 1389. Inhibited attempt to load the VFX Forth support DLL which may cause problems if earlier versions of VFX Forth are installed. 2.400 8 December 2003 ===================== Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 1370. You can now specifiy a data file with an association as a command for External Tools. This greatly simplifies adding PDF or HTML files to the help menu. 2.300 28 April 2003 =================== Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 1090, which fixes the CPU hogging problems of previous AIDE versions. Added configurable locate/edit facility on IDE -> Configure. Fixed tool delete problem. 2.201 5 August 2001 =================== Rebuilt on VFX Forth build 685. 2.200 24 August 2000 ==================== Added a Utilities menu with access to the calculator, an ASCII chart. and going online. Added an "email MPE" selection to the Help menu. When a captured tool is launched, the capture window receives the focus. When a word is LOCATEd, the capture window receives the focus. The tool capture close box now performs a minimise, which is compatible with the new behaviour of the ForthEd and PowerTerm plug-ins. Corrected code causing CPU hogging under some W98s, WNT and W2000. Fixed nastiness caused by Bill changing the rules in later versions of NT and in W2000. 2.100 13 Jan 2000 ===== Fixed problems with running additional programs while a captured app. was running. In particular this version allows Umbilical Forth users to run downloaders other than the XC6 built-in downloader. Updated remote commands for latest host. 2.000 ===== Disregard any notes on previous versions (or at least treat them as suspect). From here on out AIDE is a new version. 1.008 ===== Added macro expansion to bitmap file names. 1.007 ===== Added VIEW-FILE command used by LOCATE in the cross compiler. This command is usually sent to the command channel, and is redirected to the ForthEd plug-in. VIEW-FILE Changed INI file name to AIDE.INI. 1.005 ===== Rebuilt using new VFX Allowed addition of tools to help menu Added command channel on STDERR Added new source file RCOMMAND.FTH to hold "remote" commands (IE Forth words which can be executed by a tool via STD_ERR) Please note that commands cannot take or return parameters. This is fixed so that the stack depth will never change during execution. Commands which require parameters should have a parsing action (using WORD or PARSE) and must be sent as a single line. Made use of command channel configurable in the external tools dialog. When the act on command button is set then commands from STDERR are executed, when clear STDERR is treated in the same manner as STDOUT. Added 1st remote command SAY-THANKS which popups up a dialog saying cheers when invoked. 1.003 ===== Stopped the re-ordering of the tool list bar and menu whenever a tool has been edited. (It used to move to the end of the list!) Appeared to have fixed the NULL Bitmap problem when adding new tools! Due to a change in VFX you can now PASTE text to the tool capture window with Ctrl-V Added "browse" button for command line to tool (makes initial installation more friendly!)