Kretland

VGRAPH 3.0 - before you start the program

 1. The choice of the graphics mode

As there has been a significant development of graphics cards since VGRAPH was created, the program is likely to be unable to recognize a particular graphics card correctly. In such a case you need to make the editor choose the VESA Standard mode by starting it with the parameter:

vg.exe /t

When the Graphics Card Choice window shows up, choose VESA Standard. There is a chance then, although there is no guarantee, that the program will correctly recognize higher graphics modes, in particular the 256-colour ones. It should definitely be able to recognize 16-colour modes of up to 800x600 pixel resolution. Note that VGRAPH does not control the refresh rate of the monitor, so sometimes flicker may occur. The picture below shows the splash screen of the editor with the graphics card choice window.

 2. Problems with the mouse

While starting the VGRAPH program from the Windows system there may be problems with cooperation of the editor with the mouse driver controlled by the system. The cursor will then move not smoothly pixel by pixel, but "jump" e.g. every 8 pixels. The problem can be solved by starting the editor with the parameter:

vg.exe /mx - where x is a number, e.g.. vg.exe /m3

The parameter x should be selected in a way that will ensure a smooth movement of the cursor. You need to adjust the parameter only once - it will then be saved in the configuration file of the program ("vg.stp") and will be applied automatically whenever the program is started. Usually it is enough to test the "x" values within the range 1-3.

 3. Polish diacritics

While editing texts you need to use the combination of "left Alt" and "letter" keys to introduce Polish diacritics.

 4. Text editor

The inbuilt text editor of the VGRAPH program has not been finished or even fully tested. As a result, not all the options in its menu work. You can use it to edit, save and read texts, but you cannot import them to the VGRAPH pictures, which was possible in the 2.1 version of the program. In version 3.0 it is not possible, because, due to considerable extension of the text editor options, the file saving format has changed. That is why, after starting the "Text import" option from the "Texts" part of the main menu, you will see the announcement: "Opcja nie zaimplementowana" (i.e. "The option has not been implemented").

 5. Speed of the graphic functions

It turns out that the graphic functions of the VGRAPH program started directly under the DOS system on a computer with a 486 DX2 80 processor worked several times as fast as on a modern computer! Refreshing the edited text on that old equipment was even up to 5 times faster. Of course, the drawing speed depends probably on the model of the graphics card used. It may also be influenced by the Windows XP operating system.

 6. Problems with resident programs

Some resident programs installed under the Windows system can temporarily block applications working under DOS. This applies in particular to the ZoneAlarm program. The blocking shows as total freezing of a DOS application for several seconds, temporary blocking of the mouse cursor movement etc. After a while everything goes back to normal and the program works correctly until another blocking incident. The problem concerns not only the VGRAPH editor, but all the programs working under DOS. Obviously, switching off ZoneAlarm eliminates the problem, but you should not do it rashly, for the program plays an important role in the system. It is possible that the "blocking" problem does not appear on all computers.

 7. Problems with printing

The VGRAPH editor has worked with numerous types of printers (all the drivers have been included in the program file). However, for obvious reasons the printers had to be connected to the seldom used today LPT port. Starting the printing process makes the program connect directly to hardware, which the Windows system may not accept and, consequently, may close down the VGRAPH program. This is why it is advisable not to use the option of printing from the editor level unless it is into the disk file. In such a case there should not be any problems with the Windows system. The option of printing into the disk file is chosen in a similar way as in the 2.1 version of the program, so you can use the manual.