Using Interactive TPWB V.2.2 and man pages for ESIX, some TIPS.

[Chin Fang]

I have Interactive TPWB v.2.2 (a unlimited version, costed me $260) running
on my 20Mhz 386 box without any problem.  You only need to put a dummy
file, tu.name, in /usr/options.  You can put anything in tu.name.  It 
only serves as a intallation hook.  Otherwise installpkg won't install
the TPWB from Interactive for you.  You also need to get jetscript or
some troff to postscript converters from uunet.uu.net
comp.sources.unix subdir to handle your printing needs if you use
either HP LaserJet or any Postscript printers.  If you are unlucky
like me who stuck with a Panasonic KXP-1124, get a nroff Epson driver
from uunet.uu.net too.  There is a will, there is a way.

As to g++, gas, libg++, you can ftp them from ypig.stanford.edu.  The
owner of this Gateway 20000, Ross Biro of our Math Department, is a 
VERY capable UNIX and programming expert. (Math Dept? Where are the CS
guys?)

Regarding the man program, catman, and man pages.  Here is what I
would do to get them set up for your ESIX: (I already did)

You can either ftp the man program plus src from ypig, but Ross 
mercilessly hacked it to use groff.  That's no problem.  I changed
it back to nroff -man in the two sprintf statements in the src.
In addition, changed uncompress < *.Z to zcat *. This is FASTER!  
Trivial hack, that is.   If you don't have nroff, get one from 
uunet.uu.net comp.sources.unix dir.  Get a master index from there
too, using a text editor or browser like less, you can find more than
one programs for formating man pages just like nroff -man. xfmt is one
of them and I used it before.  It's OK.  Then, you can download 
man pages from these BSD archives like gatekeeper.dec.com and 
wipe out your disk space really fast.  So be sure to compress them 
using the compress/uncompress/zcat stuff and man.

I also wrote a catman work-alike using cd, find, zcat and Bourne
shell.  But I tell you, it is NOT faster than the man program even
without the need to reformat the man pages.  So the man program
is the way to go for ESIX.

Yes, such on-line man pages are not OFFICIAL. Well, it's free, right?

Here is a little thing that I discovered not long ago.  ESIX Rev D
didn't come with zcat. That's an oversight of these ESIX boys.  
compress/uncompress/zcat actually are a beast of three faces.  
uncompress and zcat are created using ln command.  Do a ls -l
in your /usr/bin you will see what I meant. So just ln zcat to
compress, you get zcat too.  No need to redirect and is faster.
I learned about this from reading the Makefile of GNU compress.
So now I use GNU compress/uncompress/zcat and junked ESIX' originals.
No problems so far.  

Hope the info helps to anyone who is thinking about using Interactive
TPWB and setting up a on-line manual system for his/her ESIX box.

Regards.

Chin Fang
Mechanical Engineering Department
Stanford University
fangchin at portia.stanford.edu