Reflow 1.0 build: 9639 released: 2012-05-21 compiled with: Java 1.8.0_131 Jet jet12.0-pro-x86/1.8.0_131 Reflows a text file so all lines are about the same length.. Copyright: (c) 2012-2017 Canadian Mind Products. Java application. Download from: http://mindprod.com/products2.html#REFLOW ---- Notes: You must install the Java JRE to use this program. See http://mindprod.com/jgloss/jgloss/jre.html This program can only be used from the command prompt, (or via an command line style icon shortcut) e.g. under Windows command.exe or JPSoft tcmd.exe, formerly called the DOS box. Just clicking the programs in a directory listing will not do anything useful. Just typing the program names at the command prompt will not either. This program requires a manual install! See below. This program works with vanilla text files, (e.g. ASCII files or UTF-8 Unicode files). You will need a text editor to create and view them, not a word processor. e.g. notepad, Visual Slick Edit or other suitable text editor http://mindprod.com/jgloss/editor.html. You must use a monospaced font http://mindprod.com/jgloss/monospacedfonts.html (aka fixed pitch, aka programmer font) to view your files, or they won't look properly aligned. I put out an avalanche of free software into the world, and submit PAD files to hundreds of distribution sites, but I rarely hear back from anyone. What's happening? Does it all just work fine? It is so complicated nobody can figure out how to use it and they give up on it? It is it useful? Since everyone has the source, do people just fix the programs to their liking themselves? Did you have trouble installing? Do I presume you know too much? I would be happy to hear from you about your experiences, positive or negative and your requests for improvements. A one-line email to roedy@mindprod.com would be great. ===> Free <=== Full source included. You may even include the source code, modified or unmodified in free/commercial open source/proprietary programs that you write and distribute. May be used freely for any purpose but military. For more details on this restriction, see http://mindprod.com/contact/nonmil.html If you include any Canadian Mind Products code in your own applications, your app too must be labelled non-military use only. http://mindprod.com/contact/nonmil.html All Java jars and source code are included. If you need the class files or Javadoc, you will have to build them yourself. To streamline the zip downloads, class files and Javadoc have been removed. ---- Prerequisites: This program runs under any OS that supports Java, (e.g.W2K/XP/W2003/Vista/W2008/W7-32/W7-64/W8-32/W8-64/Linux/LinuxARM/LinuxX86 /LinuxX64/Ubuntu/Solaris/SolarisSPARC/SolarisSPARC64/SolarisX86/SolarisX64/OSX/AIX...) so long as you have <><> Java version 1.8 <><> or later installed (32-bit or 64-bit Java). See http://mindprod.com/jgloss/installingjava.html for details. ---- Installing on a PC: Download source and compiled jar files to run on your own machine as an application. First install a recent Java JDK or JVM. See http://mindprod.com/jgloss/installingjava.html. To install, extract the zip download with WinZip (or similar unzip utility) into any directory you please, often J:\ -- ticking off the use folder names option. To run as an application, type: java.exe %JAVA_OPTIONS -ea -jar J:\com\mindprod\reflow\reflow.jar {put any parms here} adjusting as necessary to account for where the jar file is. ---- Installing on a MacIntosh: Use Safari to download source and compiled jar files to run on your own machine as an application. Safari will automatically unpack the zip into ~/Downloads (version 10.5) [or on the Desktop (version 10.4 and earlier)]. First install a recent Java JDK or JVM. See http://mindprod.com/jgloss/installingjava.html. You may optionally move the download tree to a permanent home. I don't have a MacIntosh, just a PC, so I can't test my Java programs for Mac compatibility. In theory they should work without problems, but in practice that does not always happen. If you have problems please, let me know, preferably with screenshots and complete verbatim error messages. To run as an application, without parameters, just double click the jar file. To run as an application with parameters, in bash shell type: open Terminal.app cd ~/Desktop java.exe -ea -jar com/mindprod/reflow/reflow.jar {put any parms here} adjusting as necessary to account for where the jar file is. ---- Rebuilding: The zip already contains the necessary jar files, so unless you modify the program, there is no need to recompile the source or rebuild the jar. Configure.java basedir="E:/" in rebuild.xml to the drive where your files are. Use ANT and rebuild.xml, not build.xml, to recompile and recreate the jar. ---- Use: Reflow will reflow lines in a text file roughly the same length. It removes excess whitespace from all lines. You can use it several ways: java.exe -jar reflow.jar somefile.txt will reflow somefile.txt so that all lines are about 60 characters long, with a blank line between paragraphs (text originally separated by one or more blank lines.) java.exe -jar reflow.jar somefile.txt 100 will reflow somefile.txt so that all lines are about 100 charecters long. java.exe -jar reflow.jar somefile.txt nowrap will reflow somefile.txt so that all paragraphs each fit on a single line without breaks. This is a useful for for pasting into web forms where you might comment on news stories. If you have the *.jar extension set up you can abbreviate that to: reflow.jar somefile.txt nowrap If you have Jet installed, you can compile the jar so that you can abbreviate further to: reflow somefile.txt nowrap The output replaces the text in the input file. Be careful not to use it on anything but txt and html files. The parallel line icon represents before and after Reflow adjusts line lengths and removed great chunks of white space. ---- Version History: 1.0 2012-05-21 initial version. -30-