Common FAQ

This page contains FAQ's that are common to all versions of Ability and Ability Plus. You should return to the page specific to your version after looking at this page:

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Cannot see graphs on screen
  2. Cannot get the £ sign on screen
  3. How do I copy a file to a floppy disk?
  4. My file's to big to fit on a floppy - how do I back it up?
  5. "SHARE.EXE required for network Ability" message
  6. Year 2000 - any problems [Answer :- No!]
  7. Cannot open a database file
  8. Can't run Ability with Novell network
  9. Can't see the <..> directory on a netware drive

1. Cannot see graphs on screen

[Applies to: Ability Plus 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0]

Ability runs in two screen modes, Text and Graphics. To see graphs and text attributes (bold, italic and underline) you must run Ability in Graphics mode. Select F2-Ability-Devices and pick graphics at the Screen Mode field. Once selected, you can leave Ability permanantly in Graphics Mode.

2. Cannot get the £ sign on screen

[Applies to: Ability Plus 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0]

This is a DOS problem - go to the DOS prompt (leave Ability altogether) and try typing a £ sign: you won't get it. You need to tell your PC that you're in the UK by running a keyboard driver. How you do this depends on your version of DOS/Windows as follows:

  • Windows 95

    The default Windows 95 setup still doesn't choose the correct keyboard for DOS programs on non-US installations. To do this, click the Start button and then select Run. Type in SYSEDIT at the Open prompt. A series of Windows will be displayed - click on the one titled AUTOEXEC.BAT. Make sure all these lines are present:

    MODE CON CODEPAGE PREPARE=((850) C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\EGA.CPI)
    MODE CON CODEPAGE SELECT=850
    C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\KEYB UK,,C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\KEYBOARD.SYS

    Next, click on the one titled CONFIG.SYS. Make sure all these lines are present:

    DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\DISPLAY.SYS CON=(EGA,,1)
    COUNTRY=044,850,C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\COUNTRY.SYS

    Close Sysedit by selecting File/Exit from the menus.
  • DOS 6.xx, 5.xx

    Edit the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and add a new line:

    C:\DOS\KEYB UK,,C:\DOS\KEYBOARD.SYS

    Note that this assumes your MS-DOS is installed in the directory C:\DOS. To edit your AUTOEXEC file, type the following command at the DOS prompt:

    EDIT C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT

    Make the changes and save by selecting ALT-F and then Exit. Select "Yes" when prompted.
  • DOS 4.xx

    Get an earlier/later DOS version or struggle through with the DOS manual!
  • DOS 3.1, 3.2

    Edit the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and add a new line:

    C:\DOS\KEYBUK

    If you haven't got a text editor you're familiar with, use EDLIN, instructions to which you'll need to reference in your DOS manual.

3. How do I copy a file to a floppy disk?

[Applies to: Ability Plus 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0]

All file operations in Ability are carried out at the Library Screen. Put the cursor over the file you want to copy and select F2-File-Copy. You will be prompted for the new name. Enter the following:

A:MYFILE

Substitute the name of your file for "myfile" above. You can check the file has copied correctly by pointing at the [A:] symbol in the files column and pressing Enter. This changes the active drive to A:. You should now be able to load and use the file as though it were on the hard disk.

Common problems:

"Sorry I can't copy this"
a) Check you've enough disk space on A: drive to fit the file you want to copy
b) Check the cursor is over the file you want to copy (and not, say, a directory)
c) Check the write protect tab is not set on the floppy disk
d) Check you've used a colon (:) and not a semi-colon (;) at the file name prompt
e) A file of the that name may already exist - choose a new name
f) Check a floppy disk is actually in the drive (silly, but it happens regularly!)

"Couldn't copy master form"
A master form file (xpf) of the same name already exists on the floppy disk. This can happen when an original database is copied to the floppy followed by a sorted file. In this case it can be safely ignored. If the file on the floppy is an old one, you must erase it and recopy from the hard disk. Better still, get a new floppy disk.

4. My file's to big to fit on a floppy - how do I back it up?

[Applies to: all versions]

There are three main choices: (i) buy a hardware solution to back up your hard disk (e.g. a tape drive, a DAT drive, a writeable CD drive); (ii) use a file compression utility like PKZIP; (iii) use the DOS backup (or the Windows Backup utility).

We're deliberately not going to give more help here - your data is probably too important not to seek the advice of a professional (e.g. a local dealer) or a specialist manufacturer.

5. "SHARE.EXE required for network Ability" message

[Applies to: Ability Plus 2.0 and 3.0]

In a network or multi-tasking environment Ability requires SHARE, a DOS utility, to function safely with opening and closing files. You can type SHARE at the DOS prompt to load this utility, or, better, add SHARE to your AUTOEXEC.BAT so that it runs every time you start your PC. Depending on your operating system, follow the instructions below - and don't forget to reboot/restart your PC after making any changes.

  • Windows 95

    SHARE is not required for Windows 95 (and is in any case not available with Windows 95 OSR2).

    Note: If you have Ability Plus 2.0, there was an error in the way SHARE is detected - please download the update AB220 to fix this problem.
  • DOS 6.xx, 5.xx

    Edit the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and add a new line:

    C:\DOS\SHARE.EXE

    Note that this assumes your MS-DOS is installed in the directory C:\DOS. To edit your AUTOEXEC file, type the following command at the DOS prompt:

    EDIT C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT

    Make the changes and save by selecting ALT-F and then Exit. Select "Yes" when prompted.
  • DOS 4.xx and earlier

    Edit the AUTOEXEC.BAT file and add a new line:

    C:\DOS\SHARE.EXE

    Unless you've got your own text editor, you'll need to use the one supplies with DOS, called EDLIN - please refer to your DOS manual for instructions on how to use EDLIN.

7. Cannot open a database file

[Applies to: Ability 1.2, Ability Plus 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0]

Possible error message:

a) "Couldn't load the master form file named XXXX"
b) "I can't access the database file"
c) "Invalid master form"

All these messages are caused by either missing, renamed or corrupted files, and usually happens after some "tidying-up" has been attempted at the DOS prompt. It helps to understand how an Ability database works: each database consists of a pair of files, a master form or XPF file, which contains the screen layout information and field names and the data file or XDB, which contains only the data itself. In addition, if a database is sorted, or copied, it can share a master form with the original.

Here's the most common ways problems arise and their solution:

The XPF file is deleted or renamed - usually at the DOS prompt when "housekeeping" is taking place. Results in error a). Solution: try to find the correct XPF file from a backup set, failing that, run the RBXPF utility.

The XDB file is renamed or copied at the DOS prompt, resulting in error b). Solution: rename it back to its original name, using DOS and not F2/File/Rename from Library Screen.

The XPF file is lost and the wrong XPF file is copied to the old name when in DOS, resulting in error c). Solution: try to find the correct XPF file from a backup set, failing that, run the RBXPF utility.

At DOS, an "unused" XDB file is deleted and then error b) occurs on trying to open the "real" database. This can happen when a file is sorted and then the original is deleted. Solution: try to find a backup of the original. If you've not saved any work to disk since deleting the original, you may be able to recover the file using DOS command UNDELETE (DOS 5.0 and above only) or a utility like Norton Commander.

8. Can't run Ability with Novell network

[Applies to: Ability 1.2 and Ability Plus 1.0]

Sympton - Ability fails to load when Novell network drivers are present. This can be a problem with any program that has overlays built with plink86.

Solution - download NETFIX.EXE and run it against the Ability EXE file. For example:

NETFIX APLUS.EXE for Ability Plus 1.0
NETFIX A.EXE for Ability 1.2

9. Can't see the <..> directory on a Netware drive

[Applies to: Ability 1.2 and Ability Plus 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 in conjuction with Netware 3.01 or later]

Sympton - on Library screen, the <..> indicating the directory above the current one is not displayed.

Cause - this is the default behaviour of Novel Netware and is common to any MS-DOS based program.

Solution - get the network administrator to add the following line to the beggining of the NET.CFG file:

SHOW  DOTS=ON