Microsoft Knowledge Base

The information in this article applies to:

• Microsoft MS-DOS operating system versions 5.x, 6.0, 6.2, 6.21

Microsoft has an Application Note titled "FIXSHIFT.COM for QBasic" (PD0415) that contains FIXSHIFT.COM, a program that corrects a keyboard problem occurring in QBasic on certain computers (Compaq, Tandy, Toshiba, and others) that have an older ROM BIOS. The keyboard problem occurs on these systems if their keyboards include a cursor pad that is separate from the numeric keypad. On this type of system, the keyboard may not perform the proper cursor movements within QBasic when the NUM LOCK key is turned on. FixShift corrects this problem by remapping the cursor keypad so that the arrow keys will function properly.

You can obtain this Application Note from the following sources:

You can obtain this Application Note from the following sources:

• Microsoft's World Wide Web Site on the Internet
• The Internet (Microsoft anonymous ftp server)
• Microsoft Download Service (MSDL)
• Microsoft Product Support Services

  Microsoft(R) Product Support Services Application Note (Text File)
                    PD0415: FIXSHIFT.COM FOR QBASIC

                                                  Revision Date: 10/93
                                                       1 Disk Included

|INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS DOCUMENT AND ANY SOFTWARE THAT MAY     |
|ACCOMPANY THIS DOCUMENT (collectively referred to as an Application |
| Note) IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER     |
| EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED     |
| WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND/OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR      |
| PURPOSE. The user assumes the entire risk as to the accuracy and   |
| the use of this Application Note. This Application Note may be     |
| copied and distributed subject to the following conditions:  1) All|
| text must be copied without modification and all pages must be     |
| included;  2) If software is included, all files on the disk(s)    |
| must be copied without modification (the MS-DOS utility diskcopy is|
| appropriate for this purpose);  3) All components of this          |
| Application Note must be distributed together;  and  4) This       |
| Application Note may not be distributed for profit.                |
|                                                                    |
| Copyright (C) 1991-1993 Microsoft Corporation.  All Rights Reserved|
| Microsoft and MS-DOS are registered trademarks and QBasic and      |
| Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.                   |
| COMPAQ is a registered trademark of Compaq Computer Corporation.   |
| Toshiba is a registered trademark of Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba.     |
| Tandy is a registered trademark of Tandy Corporation.              |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------|

Introduction

The disk provided with this Application Note contains FIXSHIFT.COM (FixShift), a program that corrects a keyboard problem occurring in Microsoft QBasic on certain computers (COMPAQ(R), Tandy(R), Toshiba(R), and others) that have an earlier ROM BIOS. The keyboard problem occurs on these systems if their keyboards include a cursor pad that is separate from the numeric keypad. On this type of system, the keyboard may not perform the proper cursor movements within QBasic when the NUM LOCK key is turned on. FixShift corrects this problem by remapping the cursor keypad so that the arrow keys will function properly.

The FixShift program included with this Application Note is the same program that is provided with other software packages, such as Microsoft C or Microsoft Pascal. FixShift requires about 450 bytes of memory and should not have any effect on other software programs that you have installed on your system.

To Install FIXSHIFT.COM

1. Insert the enclosed PD0415 disk in your floppy disk drive.

2. At the MS-DOS command prompt, type the following and press ENTER

         copy <drive>:\fixshift.com <destination
   

   where <drive> is the floppy disk drive containing the PD0415 disk and <destination> is the drive and directory where your QBasic programs currently reside. For example, if your QBasic programs are located in the DOS directory on drive C and the PD0415 disk is in drive A, type the following command:

         copy a:\fixshift.com c:\dos
   

3. Prior to starting QBasic, start FixShift by typing the following at the MS-DOS command prompt and pressing ENTER:

         fixshift
   

   FixShift then displays the following message:

         Microsoft  (R) FixShift Version 1.0
         Copyright  (C) Microsoft Corp. 1987.  All rights reserved.
   

         Testing keyboard.
   

         Press the separate down arrow key (not on numeric keypad).
            Press Esc to exit.
   
      After you press the DOWN ARROW key, if FixShift does not detect a
      problem in your computer's ROM BIOS, FixShift does not install and
      displays the following message instead:
   
         FixShift is not required.
   
       NOTE: Sometimes FixShift does not detect a problem in the ROM BIOS
       when a problem actually exists. In this case, FixShift must be
       forced to install (see the "To force FixShift to install" section
       below).
   
      If the FixShift program detects that your computer's ROM BIOS does
      have the problem, FixShift prompts you through the appropriate
      actions to complete the installation. It then displays a message
      indicating that FixShift has been installed. FixShift remains in
      memory while you use QBasic.
   
   

To Force FixShift to Install

Type the following command at the MS-DOS command prompt and press ENTER:

   fixshift /i

TO OBTAIN THIS APPLICATION NOTE

You can find PD0415.EXE, a self-extracting file, on the following services:

• Microsoft's World Wide Web Site on the Internet

        On the www.microsoft.com home page, click the Support icon.
        Click Knowledge Base, and select the product.
        Enter kbfile PD0415.EXE, and click GO!
        Open the article, and click the button to download the file.
  

• Internet (anonymous FTP)

        ftp ftp.microsoft.com
        Change to the Softlib/Mslfiles folder.
        Get PD0415.EXE
  

• Microsoft Download Service (MSDL)

        Dial (425) 936-6735 to connect to MSDL
        Download PD0415.EXE
  

   ARTICLE-ID: Q119591
   TITLE     : How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online
               Services