Commands Line (View, Enter, Change..) not visible

[arie515]

Hi,
I have a basic XP + Alpha4V8 installation

Regularly, Alpha opens a 25x80 screen (25 lines)
Lately it opens 22x80 screen . Only shows 22 lines. So the whole command line is missing (View, Enter, Change, Browse etc...)

I experimented with different XP screen resolutions and Alpha fonts. Ho help, so I assume that's not the cause.

Any other ideas ?

[Tom Cone Jr]

Running full screen or windowed?

[arie515]

Either one, same problem

[BillA]

I also use XP w/ A4V8, but have not experienced the trouble you are having.
My Command Line is A4.exe-k (-k is no mouse switch)
I also run it maximized.
I have checked no other options under Windoze Properties (left click over A4 icon).

When A4 appears on your screen, try Alt/Enter and see what that does.
Other than that, I'm no help.

[arie515]

Bill, thanks for advise, unfortunately did not help.
A4.exe -k - same result. Alt/Enter makes it full screen, but still 80x22 lines, bottom 3 lines missing.

Any other ideas would be appreciated, really do not want to scrap the application after 20 years and teach the users something different !

[Tom Cone Jr]

Arie,

What's changed on your system / network ?

[Tom Cone Jr]

Arie,

Is this happening only in your custom form layouts? i.e. if you open the default layout to view records in a database (from the main menu) is the display correct?

[arie515]

It happens in both custom forms / browse tables and default.
Even on Main screen.
Bottom 3 lines should be:
View, change, enter or delete records
F1Help AltF1Quick record AltF2Quick play AltF3Script menu AltF9DOS access
Well, I'm simply missing those bottom 3 lines altogether, the window is opening in 80x23 instead of 80x25 mode.

So I assume it's somewhere on a system level.
This happened after XP crashed. Tried re installing both XP and Alpha, no help.

Any other ideas ? Have it ever happened to someone ?

[arie515]

See bellow how my main screen looks like, bottom 3 lines are simply missing.

Current database : Q:INVTRY Records in database : 3029
Primary index : Part number short (no hiphens, dots etc)

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

Alpha Four Main Menu

►View/enter records Database/set design

Print Layouts

Search/sort lists Applications

Indexes/ranges Utilities

Global update/delete Other

Choose database/set Quit

[Tom Cone Jr]

Happening on all machines, or only one?

[arie515]

I have 10 Windows XP machines running in a virtual box on Windows 7/64 server.
Machines are running using Oracle Virtual box.
This set up allowed me to have 1 computer for 10 remote users, instead of having 10 individual computers.
Setup worked fine for few weeks.

The Virtual XP crashed few days ago (all of them), and since than all of them open Alpha in this weird way, just 23 lines.
Restarted both the XP and the server, did not help.

[Tom Cone Jr]

Can't help further. I thought you had a basic XP setup on your machine, per post #1 in this thread.

You might contact the folks at Oracle for help. Perhaps there's a setting in the virtual box that has changed.

[arie515]

FIX FOUND !!!

Very weird fix found.
Instead of starting Alpha through a4.exe or through the regular batch file, I started it with A4V8.EXE followed by same commad switches.

Opened the full 80x25 screen.
Very weird, but I will take it.
Arie

[Tom Cone Jr]

Arie, that's very good news. Please post the sequence here, it may help other travelers who visit this message thread later on. Thanks.

[arie515]

The new start command is:
C:\ALPHA4V8\a4v8.exe "Path of the start set" -D="Path of the scripts folder"