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{{DISPLAYTITLE:Frequently Asked Questions}}
 
{{DISPLAYTITLE:Frequently Asked Questions}}
  
Here are some questions that are frequently asked about vEdit in general, specifically about EBCDIC and our services.
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Here are some questions that are frequently asked about vEdit in general, specifically about EBCDIC and our services..
  
  

Revision as of 21:06, 6 March 2017


Here are some questions that are frequently asked about vEdit in general, specifically about EBCDIC and our services..


General Product Questions

What is the largest file vEdit can edit?

vEdit Pro has no upper limit and can edit 100+ Gigabyte files.

Standard vEdit can edit any text, data, binary, etc files up to two (2) Gigabytes (2000 Megabytes) in size. To edit files larger than this, vEdit can be used to split the file into smaller parts, e.g., 1-Gigabyte parts, which can then be edited. After editing, the Windows "copy" command can be used to concatenate the parts back into one file


How do I try vEdit?

vEdit offers a 30 day trail! Try vEdit >>


How do I install vEdit?

We offer guides on how to install vEdit on a Windows PC and a USB Flash Drive:


How do I get the Serial-Registration number for the latest version of vEdit?

Please contact us directly to verify your eligibility. If eligible, we will email you a new Serial-Registration number. For versions older than 5.21, you can request the password by contacting us.


vEdit Print Questions

How do I print in WYSIWYG (e.g., Hex, as displayed on the screen)?

Set CONFIG > Preferences > Printer > Print mode to 0=Win. Printing is then in the same mode as the display mode for the current window. The online help for the configuration box describes the print mode in more detail.

Since lines displayed in hex are three times as long as regular lines, they typically are truncated at the right side of the printed page. One solution to this is to set CONFIG, Preferences, Printer then Right margin to the number of characters per printed line, typically "80" or "96".


How can vEdit print in landscape mode?

Press Ctrl-P to get the print dialog box. Then select Properties from which you can select Landscape mode.

For vEdit only: While in vEdit set CONFIG > Preferences > Printer > Paper orientation to "2=Landscape".. Printing is then in Landscape mode until changed again, or after vEdit is closed. If CONFIG, Auto-save config is checked, then the change also becomes "permanent" for each subsequent vEdit run. Otherwise, to make this printing option "permanent", click CONFIG then Save config.

EBCDIC Converter Questions

Can I automatically convert an EBCDIC file, e.g., from a batch file?

Yes, the following command will convert a simple EBCDIC file, which already has a Carriage-Return / Line-Feed at the end of each line/record, into an ASCII file.


-c"Translate_Block(0,File_Size,REVERSE) XALL" file.ebc -a file.asc


In this command, 'file.ebc' is the original EBCDIC file and 'file.asc' is the name of the resulting ASCII file.


How do I convert an EBCDIC file into ASCII?

Simple EBCDIC files, without packed numeric fields, can be converted to ASCII using standard vEdit.

  1. Open the EBCDIC file as a normal file - unreadable.
  2. Press Alt-D (hot-key for view > toggle display mode) several times to put vEdit into EBCDIC mode - The file should now be readable.
  3. Select BLOCK > Select all or press Ctrl-A to highlight the entire file.
  4. Select BLOCK > BLOCK Edit/translate > Translate from EBCDIC. If you pressed Alt-D above, press it one more time to put vEdit back into normal ASCII mode. The file should now be readable.

If the EBCDIC file already had a Carriage-Return / Line-Feed at the end of each line/record, you are done and can now save the file.

If not you must determine the record length for the EBCDIC file and set CONFIG > File handling > File type to the correct record length. You might be given the record length, or you can experiment. When it is correct, the fields on each line will be lined up on the screen.

  1. Set CONFIG > File handling > File type to the correct record length.
  2. Select BLOCK > Select all or press Ctrl-A to highlight the entire file.
  3. Select BLOCK > Convert newlines > CONVERT macro.
  4. In the Convert macro, enter "7" to convert from fixed-length records to "Newlines".
  5. Select "DOS" to create a Windows/DOS compatible text file.
  6. Save the file.
EBCDIC files with packed numeric fields require purchasing one of the specialized conversion packages


Technical Support Questions

Can I automatically convert a UNIX file to Window/DOS, e.g., from a batch file?

Yes. You can convert a UNIX file with just Line-Feed characters to a Windows/DOS file with Carriage-Return and Line-Feed characters by selecting BLOCK, Convert newlines then UNIX to DOS.

You can automate the conversion with the command:


vpw -n3 -x convert.vdm filename


where 'filename' is the name of the file to be converted. The "-n3" is a special code to the convert.vdm macro which tells it to automatically perform the third item in its menu, i.e., "[3] UNIX to DOS LF to CR+LF".

Similarly "-n1" can be used to convert a file from Window/DOS to UNIX. The comments at the beginning of convert.vdm describe how to also convert between fixed-length records and "Newlines".


How can I change the number of recently opened files in the FILE menu?

Beginning with vEdit 5.15 for Windows, the number of MRU files listed in the File menu can be changed by editing the value "MaxMRU" in the VEDIT.INI file.


Adding "Open with VEDIT" to my right-click context menu does not seem to work correctly, how do I configure this?

Beginning with VEDIT 6.10, "Open with VEDIT" works correctly with Windows XP/7/8/8.1/10.

"Open with VEDIT" can be enabled / disabled by selecting CONFIG then Associate file types within vEdit.


How can I edit files larger than two (2) Gigabytes, or split a huge file into smaller parts in Standard vEdit?

  1. Run the Splitter macro by selecting MISC, More macros and then Splitter.
  2. At the prompt, enter the name of the file to be split, then the file will be split by creating files with filenames extensions.
  3. Enter the desired size of the split parts (The default size is one (1) Megabyte).
  4. Each split file can then be opened for editing; you can edit up to 100 files at once.
  5. Once finished you can open all the files as one by using the Windows Copy command. The command is used to concatenate the file back into one file.

For example:


copy /b part.001+part.002+part.003+part.004 bigfile.ful

How do I save just blocks of larger files / split a file into two or more parts?

This is very easy to do by simply highlighting a block and selecting FILE then </kbd>Save block as</kbd> to write the block to a file.

For example:

  1. Move the cursor to the first character of the block.
  2. Press F9 to begin highlighting.
  3. Move the cursor, with whatever method you like, e.g., with GOTO then Line #, to the character just past the end of the block.
    • Optionally, press F9 to mark the end of the block.
  4. Select FILE then </kbd>Save block as</kbd> and enter the desired filename.

For editing large blocks, it is better to use F9 than the mouse.

Also, the function MISC, More macros and then Splitter can split a file.


Why do I get the message "In Browse-Mode or File is Read-only"?

A file is opened in Read-only mode (also called Browse-only mode) if its attributes are set to:

  • Read-only
  • If [ ]Browse-only was selected in the File-open dialog box
  • If the file is on a write-protected removable disk
  • If the file is already open in another program, or
  • If vEdit was invoked with the "-b" invocation option

if you did not manually select [ ] Browse-only or FILE then Browse mode, then the operating system is preventing vEdit from making changes to the file. You will have to determine why the file is write-protected (you cannot force vEdit to edit).

For instance, a local file on your computer has the "Read-only" attribute set (This can be checked and disabled with Explorer); a network file may already be opened by another user, or; you may not have "write" access to the file.


Why do I get the message "Overwrite-only Mode"?

vEdit typically opens database files with fixed-length records and binary files which, by default, are set to "Overwrite-only" mode. This is a safety precaution because these files tend to become corrupted if characters are deleted or inserted (causing the file size to change from a typical length of 64).

Therefore, when CONFIG, File handling, then File type is set to "8" or greater (specifying fixed-length records), Overwrite-only mode is enabled by default.

You can easily turn off Overwrite-only mode by setting CONFIG, Preferences, File handling then Overwrite-only mode to "0".

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