ProBoard allows you to change the text and the color for every prompt in the system to create a custom “look and feel” for your BBS. ProBoard also allows you to display your system prompts to users in several different languages.

Language files end with the file extension “.PBL” and are stored in your ProBoard system directory (usually C:\PB). You can create and install up to 30 different language files at any one time.

To create a different language file, first you must select one to work with as a model. You then copy the model to a language file with a new name. Refer to the following example:

 COPY ENGLISH.PBL STARTREK.PBL

This would create a new language file called “STARTREK.PBL” from the “ENGLISH.PBL” file (supplied with ProBoard). All of the system prompts in “STARTREK.PBL” would at this point be exactly the same as the ones in ENGLISH.PBL.

You should then start up PROCFG.EXE and select “Language Editor” (Shift+F5). A window will be displayed showing the currently installed languages. Position the highlight on STARTREK (notice that the name in the right column still says “English”) and press <ENTER> to begin working with it.

You will now see a full screen window with all of the prompts for your new STARTREK language file. Note on the top line the following options:

Alt-D

Restores the default prompt for the system prompt you are currently positioned on. So if you change the “Please enter your first and last name” prompt to read “Enter your name”, and then decide you liked the default prompt better, press Alt-D while positioned on the “Enter your name” prompt and the default prompt will be restored. The default prompt is always displayed on the bottom line of the Language Editor.

Alt-P

Opens the “Language Properties” dialog. This is where you define the properties for this language file. You'll notice the description for the STARTREK language file still says ENGLISH in the description. This needs to be changed to STARTREK so your users can select the new language, otherwise they will have two ENGLISH languages to choose from.

Alt-S

Opens the “Search” dialog. Enter a text string to search for in the language and ProBoard will move to the first prompt in the language file that matches. To repeat the search, in the prompts for the next occurrence of the text string you entered, press <Alt-N>. This allows you to easily search your entire language file for specified text, making changes to the prompts as the text is found.

A description of the fields in the “Language Properties” dialog is as follows:

Description

his is the name your users will see when choosing from language files they have access to.

Available

Whether this language is available to callers with the proper security level.

Level

The minimum security level required to select this language file.

Flags

The security flags needed in a users record to be able to select this language file.

Menu Path

The full path to your language specific menus. If specified ProBoard will look for language specific menus in this path when users select this language. If left blank, ProBoard will display the menus in the path specified in PROCFG, Options, Paths, Menus.

Text Path

The full path to your language specific text files. If specified ProBoard will display language specific versions of your A?? text files if you create them. RIP files need to be in one common directory (in other words, ProBoard does not support RIP language specific text files at this time. If left blank, ProBoard will display the textfiles in the path specified in PROCFG, Options, Paths, Textfiles.

Questionnaire Path

The full path to your language specific questionnaire files. If specified ProBoard will use language specific versions of your questionnaires if you create them. If left blank, ProBoard will look for questionnaire files (files with the .Q-A file extension) in the ProBoard System Directory.

Once you are positioned on a prompt that you want to change, press <ENTER> to invoke the “Edit Language String” dialog. Each language string can be up to eight lines long. The color for each string is fully configurable (just like in the menu editor). You can insert the following control codes in your language string.

@a<file>@

Shows <file>.ANS/ASC/AVT (depending on the user's terminal setting). You can put this code anywhere in the prompt. (Example: “@aP_ENTER@” displays P_ENTER.A??)

@p<file>@

Runs <file>.PEX when this prompt is displayed. Parameters are allowed (seperated by spaces). You can put this control code anywhere in the prompt.

 (Example:  "@pTEST 2@" will run TEST.PEX with the parameter 2)

^

Toggles the highlight color on/off. The actual highlight color can be changed by selecting the “Highlight” option in the Language String editor.

\\

Single Backspace.

\^

Generates a caret (the ^ character).

\<B><F>

Set background color to <B> and foreground color to <F>. The color has to be entered as one hex character (0-9,A-F).

The colors are:

   0 - Black
   1 - Blue
   2 - Green
   3 - Cyan
   4 - Red
   5 - Magenta
   6 - Yellow
   7 - White (Grey)
   8 - Bright Black
   9 - Bright Blue
   A - Bright Green
   B - Bright Cyan
   C - Bright Red
   D - Bright Magenta
   E - Bright Yellow
   F - Bright White (Grey)
   

For the background color, bright colors are not available. When you use 8-F for the background color, the color will have the blinking attribute.

Other color codes you can use are:

   \HR    -> Bright red
   \HG    -> Bright green
   \HY    -> Bright yellow
   \HB    -> Bright blue
   \HP    -> Bright purple
   \HC    -> Bright cyan
   \HW    -> Bright white
   \LR    -> Dark red
   \LG    -> Dark green
   \LY    -> Dark yellow
   \LB    -> Dark blue
   \LP    -> Dark purple
   \LC    -> Dark cyan
   \LW    -> Dark white
   

Some examples:

   \0F   Bright white on black
   \1B   Bright cyan on blue
   \8E   Bright yellow (blinking)
   \70   Reverse (black on grey)
   \LC   Dark cyan on black

A description of the fields in the Language String dialog is as follows:

String #1 - String #8

The actual text that will be displayed to your users. Some prompts can be quite simple to understand (refer to Prompt #7) and some can seem quite difficult at first (refer to Prompt #207) with many options needing to be passed to the prompt, as well as hotkey values. A careful study of the default prompts, and how they display will help you to gain a better idea of how they work.

Hotkeys

The hotkeys needed for the prompt. If you study Prompt #207 you will see the hotkeys defined are “SCRDILAE”. If you look at the text strings for this same prompt, you will see why these hotkeys are needed. Be sure to specify the correct number and order of hotkeys for each prompt (if applicable). Any prompt which does not use hotkeys will have “n/a” displayed in the hotkey field and you will not be able to enter anything into the hotkey field.

Color

Allows you to define a color for the prompt text displayed to your users. Press <ENTER> to select the color you want to use for your prompt text.

Highlight

Allows you to define a color for the highlight. Remember, highlight is toggled on/off with the ^ character.

Prompt Color

Allows you to select a color for the users reply to this prompt. For example, if your prompt reads “Enter your first AND last name” and this color is set to cyan, when a user types their name, what they type will be displayed in cyan (or whatever color you select here).

The Language Editor will allow you to see what your prompts will look like when a user sees them without showing you the control codes. Move the highlight thru the language editor until you are close to, but not on, Prompt #191. You will notice it displays “(DUPLICATE- DELETED”) and the word “DELETED” is flashing. Now move the highlight selector to prompt #191 and press <ENTER>. You will now see the prompt with the control codes that make it flash, etc.