Vidicode Argus Basic Programmers Reference Manual

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
48
  
CONNECT    connect to remote modem 
CONNECT is identical to the modem command O (ATO).  The modem will take the line, wait for an incoming carrier and try 
to connect to it.  The connection will only be established, when the configuration of the relevant S-registers matches the 
remote carrier. 
 
The ON CONNECT event can be used to detect a successful connection.  This can also be determined by reading DCD#3 
on exit of the CONNECT command. 
 
The system variable RESULT can be read on exit to determine the status of the modem (NO CARRIER, CONNECT). 
Examples: 
CONNECT
HOOK OFF : WAIT 20 : IF FREQ > 500 CONNECT
Syntax: 
CONNECT
See also: 
ANSWER, HANGUP
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
49
  
COPY    copy files 
This command is used to copy one file on the disk to another file.  The new file is identical to the original one.  Using 
wildcards (* or ?) is not possible. 
Examples: 
COPY MYPROG , MYPROG.BAK
COPY MYPROG TO MYPROG.BAK
Syntax: 
COPY (FILE|!) [string] (TO|,) (FILE|!) [string]
See also: 
LOAD, SAVE, SEND, RECEIVE, DIR
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
50
  
CTS    Clear To Send 
CTS is one of the hardware handshaking signals defined in the RS232 standard, and each serial port on the modem is 
capable of controlling a CTS signal as an output. 
 
CTS is a signal provided by modems and other DCEs, to inform the terminal (DTE) that it is ready to accept data for 
transmission.  It is used in conjunction with another signal, RTS (Ready To Send) as part of the RS232 handshaking 
sequence. 
 
When the CTS signal is taken low by the modem, a terminal or computer must respond by stopping further transmission of 
data until CTS goes high again.  If the terminal does not respond, transmitted characters may be lost. 
 
After the HANDSHAKE CTS command has been issued, the modem will respond correctly to RTS and control CTS 
automatically. 
 
The CTS function is used to read or set the value of the CTS signal on the currently selected output port.  When the CTS line 
is high, the CTS function will return the value 1; if it is low, the value 0 will be returned.  If no port is specified, the output port 
defined by the last used OPORT command is assumed when writing (setting); and the last used IPORT is used when 
reading. 
 
If the modem is unable to handle any more incoming characters because its input buffer is nearly full, it will request the 
sending device to wait by taking its CTS output low.  This feature can be switched on or off with the HANDSHAKE 
command. 
 
The modem also supports software handshaking using the XON/XOFF protocol.  Refer to the commands XOFF, XON, and 
HANDSHAKE for more information. 
Examples: 
X=CTS
SWITCH(1)=CTS#1
PRINT CTS#2
IF CTS PRINT READY
CTS ON
CTS OFF
Syntax: 
[num-var] = CTS ( #[port] )
CTS (#[port])=[numeric 0...1]
CTS ON/OFF
See also: 
HANDSHAKE, XOFF, XON, RTS
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
51
  
DATA    define constant data 
The DATA command is used to store numeric and string constants within a program.  Such values may be read one or more 
times using the READ command. 
 
DATA commands may appear anywhere in the program, but must be the first and only command appearing on a line.  As 
many data items as will fit on a line may be included, with individual data items being separated by commas. 
 
The following example contains 5 items (3 numbers and two strings): 
70 DATA 5, 10, 50, Apple, Orange
Where a program contains more than one DATA command, they should be thought of as comprising a single continuous list 
of data items; i.e. having read the last item of data on a particular line, the next READ command will take the first item of 
data from the next DATA command in the program. 
 
To include leading spaces within a string it must be enclosed in double quotes: 
50 DATA  This string contains leading spaces
As the comma is used as a separator in DATA commands, you may only include a comma as an item of data by enclosing it 
within double quotes: 
60 DATA ,?,,,/
To include a double quote mark in a DATA command you must use four sets: 
80 DATA 
90 READ x$
After line 90 has been executed x$ will have the value  
Examples: 
DATA 1,2,3,5,7,11,13,17,19
DATA Peter,15, Clare,12, Robert,13, James,18, Alison,15
Syntax: 
DATA [string] | [integer](,...)
See also: 
READ, RESTORE
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
52
  
DATE$    read system date 
DATE$ is used to read the date from the internal clock/calendar, and format it into a text string in the form DD-MM-YY.  
When I wrote this text on the 23rd of July 1990, PRINT DATE$ reported 23-07-90. 
 
The date can also be obtained in integer format by using the individual functions DAY, DDAY, MONTH and YEAR. 
 
DATE$ can also be used to change the system date. 
Examples: 
D$(I)=DATE$
Today$=DATE$
PRINT DATE$
DATE$ = 23-07-90
Syntax: 
[string-var] = DATE$
DATE$ = [string]
See also: 
CLOCK$, TIME$, DAY, DDAY, MONTH, HOUR, MIN, SEC, YEAR
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
53
  
DAY    read/set day of week 
DAY is used to read or set the day of week on the internal clock/calendar. 
 
When reading it returns an integer from 1 to 7, day 1 being Sunday.  Similarly, when setting the day of week, the day number 
from 1 to 7 must be specified.  An incorrect value will cause the current setting to remain unchanged. 
Examples: 
DAY=5
IF DAY=1 THEN Day$=Sunday
PRINT DAY
Syntax: 
DAY = [integer 1..7]
[num-var] = DAY
See also: 
DATE$, DDAY, MONTH, YEAR
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
54
  
DCD    Data Carrier Detect 
DCD is the RS232 signal used by modems to indicate that a connection has been established with a remote system.  It is 
activated by the modem when a connection occurs, and is normally used as an output from the modem.  However within the 
BASIC environment, it can also be used to read the connect status of modem port #3. 
 
With port #1 or #2 the DCD command is used by the modem to control or read the status of the DCD line on the specified 
port.  If no port is specified, the default port defined by OPORT will be assumed.  The DCD signals of port 1 and port 2 are 
connected via hardware; thus DCD signals on both ports will influence each other, and it is impossible to set them separately. 
 
With port #3 it is only possible to read the status.  For example, the following command causes program execution to jump to 
the label %Connect2 if the DCD input on port 2 is active: 
IF DCD#3 GOTO %Connect2
However, in order to detect incoming calls correctly using the DCD function, a program must continuously check the 
appropriate DCD signal in a loop, until its status changes from FALSE to TRUE.  This is because a single DCD call gives 
only a momentary reading of DCD status.  For this reason it is more efficient to use the ON CONNECT and ON HANGUP 
event handlers to achieve the same result. 
 
It is sometimes necessary to control the use of DCD as an output from the modem - for example, where you have protected 
entry to your host computer by using auto-dial back from your modem.  In this case, you would tell the computer that a 
connection has been established only after the user has been correctly identified and authorized to proceed.  Before that you 
would keep DCD low, and your computer would not know that any communication was already going on.  To keep DCD low 
on the ports while your modem is connected, AT&C has to be set first, and afterwards DCD has to be enabled by your 
program: 
DCD=1orDCDON    will activate DCD 
DCD=0orDCDOFF  will clear DCD 
Examples: 
IF DCD#3 GOTO %Connection
PRINT DCD#3
DCD=1
DCD OFF
Syntax: 
[num-var] = DCD(#[port])
DCD = [integer 0..1]
DCD ON/OFF
See also: 
DSR, ON CONNECT, ON HANGUP
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
55
  
DDAY    read/set day in month 
DDAY is used to read or set the day within the month for the internal clock/calendar.  When reading it returns an integer from 
1 to 31.  Similarly when setting, the day number from 1 to 31 must be specified; an incorrect value will cause the current 
setting to remain unchanged. 
Examples: 
DDAY=15
IF (DDAY=1 OR DDAY=21 OR DDAY=31) Suffix=st
PRINT DDAY
Syntax: 
DDAY = [integer 1..31]
[num-var] = DDAY
See also: 
DATE$, DDAY, MONTH, YEAR
  
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
56
  
DELETE / DEL    delete program lines/files 
The DELETE command, in its various forms, is used to delete lines from a program and to delete files from the disk filing 
system. 
Deleting program lines 
DELETE may be followed by two line numbers which define the range of lines to be removed.  The command: 
DELETE 50,100 or DELETE 50 TO 100
will remove all program lines from 50 to 100 (inclusive). 
 
If the first parameter is omitted all lines from the start of the program to the specified last line will be deleted: 
DELETE ,50
To delete a single line, just type the line number followed by [Return]. 
 
Labels can be used to specify the range in place of line numbers: 
DELETE %Dial, %Dialend
Deleting files from the RAM-, FLASH- or Hard-disk 
DELETE can also be used to remove files from the disk filing system.  In this case the command is followed by !,FILE 
and/or a string. 
 
To delete the program TEST.PROG you could alternatively use the following: 
DELETE !TEST.PROG
DELETE TEST.PROG
DELETE FILE TEST.PROG
F$=TEST.PROG : DELETE F$
To delete multiple files the * may be used as a wildcard character.  Note however, that unread files will not be deleted by 
this form of the command, and a report will be printed of the number of files deleted and unread.  For example, if there were 
7 files with the suffix  MSG , two of which were unread, the command: 
DELETE *.MSG
would result in the following report: 
2 Unread
5 Deleted
To delete unread messages the DELETE command must be followed by ,U : 
DELETE *.MESS,U
After deleting files, the system variable MATCH holds the number of deleted files. 
Examples: 
DEL 10,200
DELETE %Search, 500
DEL *.JOHN 
						

							ARGUS Programmable Modem 
BASIC Programmers Reference Manual 
© 1990 - 1997 Vidicode Datacommunicatie BV 
57
  
DELETE *.ANN,U
Syntax: 
 Program lines: 
DELETE [line-num | label] TO|, [line-num | label]
  RAM-, FLASH - or Hard-disk files: 
DELETE (!/FILE) [string] ( ,U )
See also: 
MATCH