Setting Up Pocket DOS
Pocket DOS Setup Tasks
Registering Changing Menu Turning Speaker On,
Turn Off Screen Scrolling Setting Screen Size Setting up to Print
Overview of Menus:
On the Allegro CX, there is a single-line menu with a WIndows Logo (Start button) in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen. This is followed by several F1, F2, .... buttons, then by several other symbols; and finally at the bottom right-hand corner of the screen, a '_' symbol and an 'x' symbol. The 'x' is for shutting down Pocket DOS. The '_' is for going back to the Windows CE.Net menu screen without first exiting Pocket DOS. On the Allegro CX, the menu bar can be turned on or off.
On all other handheld units, the menu bar is definable and may consist of 1 or 2 lines. On the Allegro MX, most users prefer a single-line menu similar to that shown on the Allegro CX. Other users like to have all of the menu items displayed. Normally, Settings, Help, and a reddish circle are shown on one line, and a scroll bar is shown above it. The first line can be turned on or off. The Settings button is similar to the WIndows Logo symbol in terms of what can be done. You will have to use one of these two methods to do all of the setup tasks we discuss below.
Normally, you don't have to do this function since it has already been done for you. On the Allegro CX, select Start then from the popup window, select Help, and then Register. Type in the unlock code and click unlock.
On all menus with a Settings and Help icon displayed, select Help, and then Register Pocket DOS, and then type in the unlock code and click unlock.
Note: Normally, you have to click unlock twice for it to work. If the system does not unlock, review the other help topics for the one specifically dealing with Registering Pocket DOS.
The menu that you see at the bottom of all Windows Mobile Device Pocket DOS screens is modifiable to some extent. The format can be changed, but you cannot delete it or redisplay it. On Windows CE.Net handheld units (only the Allegro CX), can you remove the menu all together. We won't treat the Windows CX since the menu style is essentially fixed.
Click the Start or Settings button and select Display from the Popup list. Then click the Display Menu button to toggle between the two display formats. See which you prefer. Repeat the process if you want to change it back. Note: You can also turn on an on-screen keyboard if you wish; but if you have an Allegro CX, Allegro MX, or Trimble Ranger, you don't need an on-screen keyboard and it just gets in the way. On other handheld units that have only a numeric keyboard, it is better to turn on and off the popup keyboard when you need it rather than hard set it on the screen. After setting the display option(s), click the 'x' in the top right-hand corner to save the new setting.
Select the Start or Settings button to get the popup window showing you the options. After it is shown, select System, then when the next page is displayed, there are several tabs at the bottom of the page and one has to do with Speaker. Select that one. Then there will be a single check box which is either checked or not checked. You are advised that checking the box turns on or off the speaker. Normally, you will want the speaker on, so that the beeper will be heard when a log is entered, a board has been graded, or a tree entered. It is just a confirmation, but it is normally desired. After setting the option, click the 'x' in the top right-hand corner to save the new setting.
Turning Off Screen Scrolling/Cursor Following:
On most of our 2009 and later systems, the cursor following option is set automatically by the batch file that runs the system. If you find that the top line of the screen is consistently not being displayed and that there is a blinking cursor shown at the bottom left of the screen, it is likely that the cursor following option is turned on. We don't want it on since line 16 is where we place the cursor so that it doesn't blink at you when the system is awaiting for you to perform some action.
To change the current setting for screen scrolling if it is necessary, first select Start or Settings; and then from the popup window, select Display. There will be 5 or so tabs displayed across the top of the page. The one we are interested in is way to the right. It will have a label called Cursor. Click on this tab. A single check box with a message to the right is shown. Read what the message says, and set the check box accordingly. We do not want cursor following, so set the check box accordingly. Note: Clicking in the box turns the check box on or off.
On most of our 2009 and later systems, the screen character size is set automatically by the batch file that runs the system. All of our applications use 15 line screens and 20 columns. The default Pocket DOS size is 25 lines and 80 columns. If you see really little letters, type in GO and press Enter. If this doesn't show you larger characters, then follow the steps below.
Click Start or Settings to bring up the popup window. Then select Display. Then from the many tabs, select the rightmost tab which deals with character size. Then click the second box on the screen, so that you can enter your own screen settings. If the box is not checked, you cannot make any changes. Once the box is checked, enter 20 in the entry specifying the number of columns and 15 in the one dealing with the number of rows. After the settings have been made, click the 'x in the top right of the screen to save the settings. The characters should now be larger.
Setting Up the System to Print to a Printer:
If you are using a portable printer (Canon BJC 80 or Epson LX 300 Plus or Okidata 184 or 284) or some similar parallel or serial printer, you will need to set it up before you can make use of it. We are going to assume that you have the proper cables and the print speeds, if variable (serial printers only) have already been set.
First select Start or Settings and from the popup window select Printer. There are a series of screens which you will scroll through on which to make changes.
Screen # 1: The first screen is just an introduction, and there is no change needed to be made. Simply click Next.
Screen # 2: This screen asks you which type of printer to print out results to. Serial/parallel is the default and will have a small black dot in a circle at the top left of the screen. We don't have any users using infrared printers any longer, so don't select that option. You may have a unit set up to print to a file, but that is rare and we are still testing this option. Typically, you don't need to change anything if you are using an older serial or parallel printer. Simply click Next.
Screen # 3: On the third screen, you are asked for the port to use. On the Allegro CX, select COM2. On the Trimble Ranger 300X, the Trimble Nomad 800B/900G, and the Nautiz X7, select COM1. On the Nautiz X5, you will also use COM1; but since we don't have any users printing directly to an older printer with this model, the procedure cannot be documented for sure. There also has been no testing with the Natuiz X3 as of the posting of this information; that unit has yet to be released. Therefore, make sure that COM1 or COM2 is set based on your handheld unit.
Screen # 4: This screen is where most of the changes are made. Typically all of our systems are set to 9600 baud, but some customers use 19,200 and others 57,600. All of these are valid settings and are available. 19,200 is the default setting for a brand new Epson LX 300 Plus printer; and if you just took it out of the box and didn't change anything, you could use this setting. If you get garbled output (not just no output) that looks like hieroglyphics, then the print speed is not right. Simply start up the printer setting option again, and change the speed until the output is readable. Other than the baud rate which is set on the top line, the only other setting is the flow control which is set on the bottom line. We want this to be set to xOn-xOff. The default value is None. The flow control is how the handheld unit communicates with the printer, and it tells the handheld to stop sending information while the printer is trying to print out what it already has in its available memory. If the setting is not set properly, it is likely that you will loose lines on a multiple-page printout. The other 2 settings are 8 bit words and 1 stop bit. These are system defaults and don't need to be changed. After all settings have been made select Next.
Screen # 5: The last page doesn't make any difference, as far as I can tell. The system will always save your settings for you so you don't have to click this option. It will simply unset it when you exit. Now click the Apply, or Save, or 'X' button to save all of your settings.
Note: If you said to print to a file instead of to a printer, then the 3rd screen is not the com port to use but the name and a location of the file to print to. Normally, leave the name the same as that shown since we will have set this name up for you along with the destination. The print to a file option is only used with PocketBoy printing to a Bluetooth printer. The use of this type of printing is not covered here in the Pocket DOS setup tasks.