FIX: PWB 1.0 menukey Switch Resets to ALT Shelling Out to MS-DOS

 Last reviewed: September 11, 1997
Article ID: Q63267
1.00 MS-DOS kbtool kbbuglist kbfixlist

The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Programmer's Workbench for MS-DOS, version 1.0
  • Microsoft Programmer's Workbench for OS/2, version 1.0

SYMPTOMS

If the "menukey" switch in the MS-DOS version of the Programmer's Workbench (PWB) version 1.0 is set to anything other than ALT (which is the default), it will be redefined to the ALT key after shelling out to DOS. Thus, the menukey switch will lose its assignment any time you choose Compile, Run Program, Debug Program, or DOS Shell.

RESOLUTION

To work around this problem, you can use the Restart command to invoke a macro that redefines the menukey to the desired value each time you return from a DOS SHELL command, which will then keep ALT from activating the menu. For example, to cause F9 to always be reset as the only menukey, put the following line in the PWB tagged section of the TOOLS.INI file: 

   restart:= arg "menukey:F9" assign
Since the Restart command, if it exists in TOOLS.INI, is invoked automatically when returning from a SHELL command, this method guarantees that the key assignment will always remain consistent.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in PWB version 1.0. This problem was corrected in PWB version 1.1.

MORE INFORMATION

The menukey switch determines which keystroke activates the PWB main menu bar. The ALT key is normally used for this, but menukey can be redefined to any keystroke. For example, menukey is automatically defined to F9 if you choose Brief Editor emulation when installing the Programmer's WorkBench.

Whenever you invoke any function (such as Build) that goes out to DOS for execution and then returns, the menukey switch is reset to ALT, so that both ALT AND the user-defined keystroke invoke the menu.

Additional reference words: 1.00 buglist1.00 fixlist1.10
KBCategory: kbtool kbbuglist kbfixlist
KBSubcategory: PWBIss
Keywords : kb16bitonly
Solution Type : kbfix

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Last reviewed: September 11, 1997
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