

                     Fonix TESTCOM FIPP Test Program                
                     10/10/10 -med 

        Use TESTCOM.EXE for Windows. TESTCOM requires FRYECOM.DLL to be 
        loaded in the Windows System32 directory, or in the directory in 
        which TESTCOM is located. 
        (TESTCOM will not run under Windows 3.xx.)

        The TEST program is provided as a way to test the communications 
        between a Frye Instrument and a PC runing the Windows operating 
        system. To see the available commands enter the command "H" at 
        the command prompt.  

        For more information on the commands available and their use with 
        specific Frye instruments, refer to the Fryers and FIPP 
        documents, and the related manual for your instrument which 
        can be found in the Fonix Programming Technical Support package.

        Note that the TEST program is designed for use with all possible 
        modes of operation. Some of the commands listed in the TEST 
        program may not be available on all instruments or in a specific 
        mode on the instrument. On newer instruments, the TEST program 
        may not directly have available all commands that can be 
        performed. The "B"uild command can be used to create a command 
        that is not specifically supported by the test program. Refer to 
        the appendix of the instrument being tested for the list of 
        available commands and modes of operation.

        The TEST program is provided only as a means of testing the 
        operation of the communications link, no attempt has been 
        made to insure that it will work flawlessly in all situations. In 
        fact, entering other than a numeric value at the prompt will 
        cause the program to generate an error.

        Requirements:

        The TestCom program requires an IBM PC or compatible computer running 
        Windows 95 or better. You will also need a serial port on the computer.  

        To run the test program from Win95/98/NT/ME/2K/XP/Vista/Win7:

        1. Insure that the FRYECOM.DLL driver is located in the Windows 
           directory, or in the same directory where the TESTCOM.EXE 
           program is located.
        2. From Windows, use the Windows Explorer to find and run the
           TESTCOM.EXE program. Alternately, you can drag a copy of the 
           TESTCOM icon to a folder or the desktop if you want to place it 
           in a location that is easier to find. Double click on the 
           TESTCOM icon to start the program.
        3. If everything is setup properly, a window should appear and 
           you should see the TEST command prompt in it.

        TestCom defaults to searching for the Com port. If you are using 
        multiple attached instruments, you may need to specify the Com port
        being used. In this case, you can use the "C" command to 
        select the comport you are using. 

        If you find that the port selected was incorrect, or you don't 
        know for sure which port is in use, either use the FCHECK program 
        to determine the correct COM port, or you can use the "C"omPort
        command to change the selected COM port while TEST is running. 

        To see if the instrument is communicating, enter the command 
        number 28. This should respond with the instrument 
        identification and software version of the instrument and the 
        Fryers driver being used.

        Note: the first time you use the command, it may take a few seconds 
        to find the attached instrument. Once found, the TestCom program 
        will remember where it was and start the search from that location
        next time. If you change the com port the instrument is attached to,
        the first time you use the TestCom program may take a few seconds
        again to find the new location.

        At this point you may enter any command to tell the instrument to 
        perform an operation.  To get a list of the available commands 
        enter "H".  To exit the program enter "Q", or press "Escape". 
        Remember, not all commands will work in all modes of operation or 
        on all instruments.  


        Using the TEST program:

        Some test commands are machine specific. If the instrument does 
        not support the command, you will get an error message. The TEST 
        program is self-adapting to the instrument. Some commands will 
        operate slightly differently on different instruments. Normally 
        the TEST program will try to automatically adapt itself where 
        this is required by running the Version command (28) to determine 
        the instrument it is connected to.

        The "V"erify flag controls the error checking. Verify On (true) 
        is the standard operating default.  When Verify is On, each 
        command operation will be followed up with a Command Status check 
        on the instrument to verify that the command was processed 
        correctly. 

        In the case where a new command has been added that is not yet 
        supported by the existing command set in the TEST program, 
        the "B"uild command provides a mechanism to build a command from 
        scratch.

        Commands that receive large data sets will write the data to an 
        ASCII text file. Each data point will be in absolute integer form 
        with one data point per line. Any existing file by the same name 
        will be overwritten. This is only true of known large data sets.
        Commands initiated by the build command function will only be 
        displayed on the screen. 

        The current commands that create large data files are:

          Command           file
        Get Curve       - CURVE?.DAT  : ? = curve number used
        Get Blob        - BLOB.DAT
        Get Probe Curve - PCURVE.DAT


        Commands which send large data sets expect the data to be 
        available in a ASCII text file. These files must consist of the 
        required data in ASCII form, one line per data point. The data 
        must be in absolute integer form (no decimal points).

        The current commands that expect data files are:

          Command         file
        Set Curve       - CURVE?.DAT     : ? = curve number used
        Set Phase       - PHASE.DAT
        Set Spectrum    - SPECTRUM.DAT

        These files must exist for the Set command to function.
        Sample data files are provided for reference purposes.

        The Label commands 6 and 66 will request the label be entered 
        from the keyboard and provide a simple editor to allow you to 
        enter the label data. 


        Command Line Parameters:
        
        You can control the startup behavior of Test 32 with command line
        options. 

        Example: TESTCOM A C2 B57600
      
        In this example, the Autobaud feature will be turned off.
        (You must provide a valid baudrate if you turn off this feature.)


        Bnnn: Starting baudrate
         Normally Test Com will automatically seek out the baudrate of the 
         attached instrument. TestCom will remember the last baudrate it
         used and store that information in the registry. This way it
         can use the stored baudrate as the starting baudrate the next time
         it is used which can reduce the startup search time. 
         If you wish to override the startup baudrate, you can specify
         the baudrate with the 'B' command line option. 

        A: Inhibit Autobaud feature
         Normally TestCom will automatically detect the baudrate of the 
         attached Fonix instrument. It is remotely possible that this can 
         cause trouble. You can turn this feature off by using the 'A' 
         option in the command line. If you turn off the Autobaud feature,
         you must also provide a valid baudrate. If you do not provide
         a valid baudrate, the Autobaud feature will be automatically
         turned back on. 

        C: ComPort Selection
         Normally TestCom will automatically seek out the comport being used.
         TestCom will remember the last comport it used and store that 
         information in the registry. This way it can use the stored comport
         as the starting comport the next time it is used which can reduce 
         the startup search time. If you wish to override the comport 
         selection, you can specify the comport with the 'C' command line 
         option. If you use the 'C' command line option, it will override
         the registry comport selection and no search is done.
         If the selected comport is not valid, an error will occur. 
         You can also change this option within TestCom by
         using the 'C' cmd at the command prompt. The start of each
         command prompt will display 'Cn' or 'Kn' where the 'n' is the
         comport being used and the 'C' or 'K' indicates the Keep-Alive 
         status (see 'K' option below). 
         
        K+/K-: Set/Disable Keep Alive Selection
         The initial operation of the TestCom program is to turn off the
         comport use after each command. This allows other programs to be 
         able to use to comport without having to shut down the TestCom
         program. The side effect of this is that the TestCom program 
         must re-aquire the comport at the start of each command it sends.
         This can take anywhere from 0.25 seconds up to several seconds. 
         (Once the port has been aquired initially, reaquiring the port 
         usally take about 0.25 seconds.)
         You can force TestCom to keep the comport alive by using the 'K+'
         command, or force it to disable the keep-live feature by using
         the 'K-' command line option parameter. 
         Whatever the keep-alive state is set to, TestCom will remember 
         that state the next time it starts up by reading it from the 
         registry. You can also change this option within TestCom by
         using the 'K' cmd at the command prompt.
         If Keep-Alive is enabled, you will see (Kn) at the start of each 
         command prompt. If Keep-Alive is disabled, you will see (Cn) 
         at the start of the command prompt. The 'n' value is the 
         comport taht is being used.

        N+/N-: Set/Disable Show Integers
         Normally TestCom will show and store all data as unsigned 16 bit 
         words. You can change this to be 16 bit integers with the 'N+/N-'
         command line option. 'N+' will display signed integers, 'N-' will 
         display unsigned words. 
         Whatever the Show Integers state is set to, TestCom will remember 
         that state the next time it starts up by reading it from the 
         registry. You can also change this option within TestCom by
         using the 'N' cmd at the command prompt.
          
        L+/L-: Set/Disable Comma Delimiters
         Normally TestCom will show and store all data separated with spaces. 
         You can change this to have the numbers separated with commas with 
         the 'L+/L-' command line option. 'L-' will select space delimiters, 
         'L+' will select comma delimiters. 
         Whatever the delimiter state is set to, TestCom will remember 
         that state the next time it starts up by reading it from the 
         registry. You can also change this option within TestCom by
         using the 'L' cmd at the command prompt.

        V+/V-: Set/Disable Command Verify
         Normally TestCom will automatically call the command verify 
         after each command (see FIPP command 33).
         You can change this to not call the command verify with the 'V+/V-' 
         command line option. 'V-' will turn off the verify feature, 
         'V+' will turn it on. 
         Whatever the verify state is set to, TestCom will remember 
         that state the next time it starts up by reading it from the 
         registry. You can also change this option within TestCom by
         using the 'V' cmd at the command prompt.

        T: No-Poll Timeout
         Normally TestCom will automatically manage the No-Poll timeouts 
         for commands that require extra time beyond the default 5 seconds.
         For some commands, there may be a need to extend the no-poll 
         timeout period. You can change the default no-poll timeout 
         with the 'Tnnn' command line option, where 'nnn' is the timeout 
         period in milliseconds. Setting the timeout to zero will restore
         the default timeout period of five seconds. The modified timeout
         period is active for as long as the TestCom program is open. 
         The period is not stored in the registry. This is on purpose as
         an bad timeout value can cause communication problems, so the
         easiest way to recover is to restart the program. 
         Normally you should not need to override the no-poll timeout period.      


        Source Code:

        The source code for the TEST program can be found in the 
        TESTCOM.ZIP file in the Fonix Programming Technical Support package.

        Note: This program is for testing hearing aid analyzers. To test 
        the operation of an audiometer, see the ATEST program in the Fonix
        Programming Technical Support package.

        -------------------------------------------------------------
        History:      01/04/89 med - original program
                      06/29/89 med - expanded menu
                      05/07/90 med - misc description cleanup 
                      01/20/92 med - added new commands to test
                      10/19/92 med - Windows version
                      12/17/92 med - moved windows code to archive
                      10/04/93 med - added FP40 functionality
                                      renamed to TEST (was TEST65)
                      09/27/94 med - added new supported fipp cmds
                      05/01/97 med - added fryers V5.0 support
                      01/08/02 med - revised 16 bit documentation
                      10/10/10 med - rewrote program for 32bit Windows
                                      using FryeCom.DLL interface



