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| DOOR32 Revision 1 Specifications Updated: Feb 23rd, 2001 |
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What is Door32?
---------------
Door32 is a standard text-based drop file designed to take advantage of
32-bit operating systems. Supporting handle inheritance, it will allow
for doors to work under multiple platforms and over both serial and
socket (telnet) connections.
Programming Door32 Doors
------------------------
There are several freeware door libraries which support Door32 although
most if not all of them are for Pascal at this time. These libraries are
able to compile doors for DOS, Windows, OS/2, and Linux.
I personally suggest the D32 library which is freeware and comes with
source code. It can compile doors for DOS, Windows, OS/2 and Linux using
various Pascal compilers. There are other great door libraries as well,
so give them all a try!
Testing Door32 Support in BBS Software
--------------------------------------
Included in the Door32 specification archive is a Win32 executable by the
name of SAMPLE.EXE. This is a very simple Door32 compatible door compiled
with the Pascal library mentioned above. BBS authors may find this
program useful for testing their Door32 support.
Notes about Door32 Programming
------------------------------
At this point, there seems to be two things which need to be kept
in mind when doing Door32 programming:
1. Under Linux or any operating system with case sensitive file names,
the Door32 drop file (DOOR32.SYS) will be created with all lower
cased lettering. IE: door32.sys
2. There appears to be a bug in the Win32 programming API (ie, a bug in
Windows) which prevents Door32 programs from running from a batch
file. This means that the doors have to be executed directly from
the software. Instead of running MYDOOR.BAT which eventually
executes MYDOOR.EXE, you must run MYDOOR.EXE directly. This problem
has said to have been fixed in Windows NT, but still exists under
the Windows 9x platforms.
What does this mean to BBS authors? Not much.
What does this mean to DOOR authors? Maybe some changes...
Because Door32 doors must be executed directly, there is a good
chance that the current directory will NOT be the directory that
your door executable is stored. When porting an old DOS door,
the door might assume that the system is in the same directory
as the .EXE when loading data files. Because of this, it is
recommended that you have your Door switch to the directory where
the door .EXE is located, or read that directory and use it when
accessing door related files. In Pascal, this is a sample of
getting the directory where the door .EXE is found:
Function ProgPath : String;
Var
Dir : DirStr;
Name : NameStr;
Ext : ExtStr;
Begin
FSplit (ParamStr(0), Dir, Name, Ext);
ProgPath := Dir + '\';
End;
The above example will return the path where your door is located.
Some door libraries might already switch to the directory of the
executable, so you may not have to worry about it.
The DOOR32.SYS Drop file
------------------------
Below is the final Revision 1 version of DOOR32.SYS. It is a straight
DOS-style text file in all lower cased letters under operating systems
with case sensitive file systems:
[cut here]-------------------------------------------------------------------
0 Line 1 : Comm type (0=local, 1=serial, 2=telnet)
0 Line 2 : Comm or socket handle
38400 Line 3 : Baud rate
Mystic 1.07 Line 4 : BBSID (software name and version)
1 Line 5 : User record position (1-based)
James Coyle Line 6 : User's real name
g00r00 Line 7 : User's handle/alias
255 Line 8 : User's security level
58 Line 9 : User's time left (in minutes)
1 Line 10: Emulation *See Below
1 Line 11: Current node number
[cut here]-------------------------------------------------------------------
* The following are values we've predefined for the emulation:
0 = Ascii
1 = Ansi
2 = Avatar
3 = RIP
4 = Max Graphics
Avatar, RIP, and Max Graphics all have ANSI fallback support, so most door
libraries that don't support those emulations can just use ANSI if emulation
2, 3, or 4 is encountered.
Conclusion
----------
Thats it for the Revision 1 specifications of DOOR32.SYS. You can find the
latest information at the official Door32 web page:
http://www.mysticbbs.com/door32
You can e-mail mysticbbs@geocities.com for any questions or suggestions
relating to Door32 or post a message in the FidoNet DOORGAMES echo