     (Version 3.2 - May 2000)
     
                             Welcome to NEC4WIN95VM
                             ----------------------
     
     -----------------
     TABLE OF CONTENTS
     -----------------
     1. Introduction
     2. New Features
     3. Installation / Uninstall
     4. How to get Help
     
     ===============
     1. INTRODUCTION
     ===============
     
     This Virtual Memory version allows you to simulate projects with
     as many segments or wires you need by using the Windows Virtual
     Memory mechanism.
     
     NEC4WIN95VM is a 32 bits application based on a Mininec3 engine. It
     runs on Windows 95, 98, Windows NT, and new Win2000.
     
     A Pentium with 32 Mb of RAM is the minimum recommended. To run large
     projects a Pentium III with at least 64 Mb of RAM is recommended.
     
     In virtual memory the disk is used as an external memory system
     and when real RAM is not enough, swapping on disk will simulate
     RAM. The more free disk you have on your system disk the more
     virtual memory you can use. Keep your system disk clean by
     frequently emptying your system and Email trash, Compacting Email
     folders and running Disk defragmentation.
     
     CAR144.n4w a project simulating an antenna on a compact car wire
     frame is included to demonstrate the virtual memory capability.
     This project runs on a Pentium 300 MHz in 1 min. 47 seconds
     (compute impedance).
     
     ----------------------------
     2. New features in Version 3
     -----------------------------
     1. Near Field graphic display
     2. Loop Correction switch
     3. Auto-Segmentation on new projects
     4. ICEPAC model 13 file generation
     5. Smith Chart for Impedance Plot
     6. Frequency dialog in Plot impedance
     7. Most Recently Used file list in "File"
     8. Corrected bugs
     
     1. Near Field 3D view
     ---------------------
     
     Previous versions used the old Mininec3 method of entering Near Field
     parameters as Start, Step increment and Number of steps for X, Y and Z
     to compute near field over a region, and using meters only.
     
     In NEC4WIN95VM v3 you enter the parameters as Initial XYZ, Step and
     Final XYZ in the Units you are currently using. To display the Near
     Field around an antenna centered at the origin in a 20 by 20 by 20
     meters cube in 2 meters increments you will enter:
     
       -10 2 10 for X
       -10 2 10 for Y
         0 2 20 for Z (since there are no negative heights)
     
     The Near Field 3D view will show slices of the near field for each
     selected height. You can increment and decrement the height by using
     the up-down control at the top center. You can also select Log, Linear
     of Percent view. Most of all, you can ROTATE the 3D view by moving the
     mouse while keeping the CTRL key depressed (or pressed!)
     
     The new OCX used does not display true surfaces and we used the 3D
     colored bars representation. For each X, Y and Z, the size of the Bar
     represents the Near Field. You can click on an individual bar and read
     the Near Field value in the small window at the top left.
     
     2. Loop correction switch
     -------------------------
     The loop switch in "Options" introduces a correction to the basic
     Mininec3 algorithms on which the program is based. Quad simulated on
     Mininec3 always resonated too high in frequency due to the "corner
     problem" (see Quad tutorial in Help). Impedances were also incorrect
     in most cases.
     
     When Loop Correction is ON a special series of algorithms will detect
     loops and modify the basic algorithms to minimize the corner problem.
     This is done without any increase of segmentation and based on a 20 to
     24 segments/wave.
     
     This means that YOU DO NOT NEED TO PUT dozens of segments per side, or
     add segment tapering as recommended with standard Mininec3. On a
     normal quad, 6 segments per side should produce best results and run
     at higher speeds.
     
     It is highly recommended to enter loop wires in the logical connected
     sequence with X, Y, Z coordinates in logical order. This means that
     end coordinate of one wire is the start of next wire. This is a
     standard Mininec3 recommendation anyway.
     
     Keeping the switch ON should change nothing in the final impedance and
     resonance on non-looped antennas, but loop correction algorithms add a
     large section of code and it is not recommended to keep the Loop
     Correction switch on.
     
     Tests and comparisons with NEC2 are in the Help file in the new
     Tutorial section under "Quad example: NEC2 project". These tests
     conducted by us and a number of Beta testers show that results are
     very close to NEC2 in most cases.
     
     3. Auto-Segmentation on New Projects
     ------------------------------------
     Many beginners put too many segments in short sections and do not
     respect the maximum ratio of 2 between segments at connections or the
     10 segments per half wavelength minimum.
     
     Auto-segmentation is a transparent feature that will compute the wire
     size in real time and put the appropriate number of segments for the
     working frequency. This will work only on NEW Projects.
     
     You can force your own segmentation by entering a value in the segment
     column.
     
     
     4. ICEPAC model 13 file generation
     ----------------------------------
     ICECAP stands for Ionospheric Communications Enhanced Profile Analysis
     and Circuit Prediction Program. It is an enhancement to IONCAP
     designed by the Institute for Telecommunications Sciences (ITS) at the
     National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).
     
     ITS renamed the new model ICEPAC to indicate the inclusion of the ICED
     (Ionospheric Conductivity and Electron Density) profile model. This
     new model now replaces IONCAP as one of the best unclassified HF
     propagation prediction model available to the public. It is free and
     can be downloaded from:
     http://elbert.its.bldrdoc.gov/pc_hf/hfwin32.html
     
     The package contains a dozen programs all related to propagation
     analysis and antennas: ICEPAC for path prediction, ICEAREA for
     coverage analysis, HFANT to display and analyze antennas patterns,
     plus half a dozen other programs like VOACAP, VOAAREA which are
     variations of IONCAP designed and used by The Voice Of America.
     
     This propagation prediction program uses different antenna models to
     predict path and coverage in HF bands. Model 13 is a special format
     file with the 360 degrees pattern of the antenna that can be used by
     ICEPAC and all related programs found in the ITS package.
     
     5. Smith Chart
     --------------
     The Smith Chart Button or Menu will plot the impedance on a Smith
     Chart using the current project impedance as Z0. You are prompted for
     a High, Low frequency range and a step frequency, and NEC4WIN95 will
     generate all data then display the Chart.
     
     Use Right Click to Print or Change Z0.
     
     The data displayed in the Smith Chart are generated in ASCII in
     FPLOTZ.DAT as a series of lines with:
      Frequency Real  Imaginary  etc...
     
     Ex:
     
     1.000  0.2238522  -9213.449
     6.000  8.638516  -1307.529
     11.000  34.9118  -376.3062
     16.000  105.1691  208.7812
     21.000  361.9733  945.6402
     26.000  2910.744  2202.796
     31.000  839.0303  -1956.458
     
     6. Frequency range in Plot Impedance
     ------------------------------------
     You can now change the Frequency sweep range from inside the Plot
     Impedance window by clicking on the RIGHT MOUSE Button.
     
     7. Most Recently Used file list
     -------------------------------
     In Files, the 5 last opened files are listed and can be opened in one
     click.
     
     8. Corrected bugs in 3.2
     ---------------------------
     1. Double plot in SWR, Impedance etc.
     2. Values changing when cycling UNITS in spreadsheet
     3. Taper problems in previous versions
     4. On loading very large projects Geometry error caused by too
        much text in    main window. Text is reset and loading
        continues now.
     5. In Wire grid typing very large values triggers and "Out of
        memory" caused by Autosegmentation creating too many pulses
        and arrays that will not fit anymore in RAM in one piece.
     6. Plotting Gain, F/B and leaving window opened then plotting something
        else plotted earlier demand.
     7. Printing of 3D Near Field maximized was not full window
     8. Changing ground parameters didn't activate the File > Save menu.
     
     ===============
     3. INSTALLATION
     ===============
     
     From CD
     -------
     
     If you have CD Auto insert notification ON, the installation
     program will start automatically when you insert the CD. Read the
     text in the scrolling window. Click on the NEC4WIN95VM button and
     follow the instructions.
     
     If Auto Insert Notification for the CD is OFF, open Explorer and
     Right Click on the NEC4WIN95VM CD, then Click on "AutoPlay" to
     launch the CD.
     
     You can also go to the NEC4WIN95VM directory and click on
     SETUP.EXE to start the installation
     
     The CD contains additional directories:
     
     1. Acroread contains Acrobat Reader version 3 zipped
     2. Doc contains a PDF manual for NEC4WIN95 / NEC4WIN95VM
     3. FAQ is a copy of our frequently asked questions web page
     4. Library contains Vb5rtsp3.exe in case your DLLs are not up to
        date.
     
     
     From ZIP
     --------
     
     If you use WinZip, double click on the ZIP. WinZip will open it
     and display the files contained in the distribution ZIP. Double
     click on SETUP in the WinZip Window. The installation will start.
     
     You can also Unzip the files into a temporary directory and click
     on SETUP to install then delete the files/temporary directory.
     
     ZIP Upgrade
     -----------
     
     Zip upgrades contain only the new files and do not have in
     general an installation program. Unzip into your current
     directory, register any DLL/OCX to install as explained in
     attached instructions.
     
     IMPORTANT
     ---------
     
     NEC4WIN95VM contains a context sensitive help activated by F1 or
     by HELP. When you do not know what a menu item does, or what
     buttons do Press F1.
     
     UNINSTALL
     ---------
     
     Uninstall by going to Setup, Control Panel >Install/Uninstall
     software and double clicking on NEC4WIN95VM.
     
     Answer "NO" to "remove shared .." The four OCX used by
     NEC4WIN95VM can be used by other programs in your system and this
     even if Windows tells you the contrary. The OCX used by
     NEC4WIN95VM are:

     THREED32.OCX, COMCTL32.OCX, COMCT232.OCX, COMDLG32.OCX, GRID32.OCX
     and MSCHART.OCX
     
     Some files like logs, plot data etc.. created by NEC4WIN95VM may
     prevent Uninstall from removing the directory automatically.
     Delete manually.
     
     ==================
     4. HOW TO GET HELP
     ==================
     
     The "manual" is provided in electronic form in the Help file. You
     should read the section "Crash Course in modeling" if you never
     used a modeling program before. The Step-by-Step Tutorial section
     is also a must read for beginners and experts to learn how
     NEC4WIN95VM works.
     
     F1 is the context sensitive Help. Pressing F1 anywhere in the
     program will bring a Help related to the window or dialog where
     you pressed this key.
     
     1. Electronic mail
     
     You can get support by sending Email. We will answer in the same
     day generally and this is our preferred support method. Describe
     as precisely as possible the problem, how we can reproduce it,
     attach a project causing the problem if necessary. Describe also
     what type of computer and Operating system you are using and any
     other pertinent information.
     
     Our Internet address is:  support@orionmicro.com
     
     2. Web
     
     Our Homepage:  http://www.orionmicro.com
     
     There is a FAQ on our Web site. Check if your problem is not
     already described in the FAQ.
     
     3. Phone        Call (514) 626 5002
     
     
     
     ====================================================
     Limitations and problems caused by large projects
     ----------------------------------------------------
     
     NEC4WIN95VM is based on the Mininec III engine. Some of the
     Mininec limitations like 256 segments have been bypassed but
     other still apply:
     
     -  Mininec has problem with low wires parallel or close to the
        ground.
     -  Mininec has also problems with sharp corners and will make
        loops and quad antennas resonate higher than expected.
     -  Mininec will compute impedance using a Perfect Ground.
     
     You should also remember that Resolution time for a project does
     not increase linearly but exponentially. If a model has N
     segments, computation time is on the order of N^3 (N power 3).
     This means that to compute impedance:
     
     -  If Project 1 with N segments takes      1 minute.
     -  Project 2 with 2N (twice) will take     (2*N)^3 or 8 minutes.
     -  A 3N segments project will take(3*N)^3 or 27 minutes.
     
     So increasing the number of segments should be done only when
     necessary and the more segments you use the longer it will take
     to get a solution.
     
     Optimizing large projects is another problem. In NEC4WIN95VM all
     dimensions, loads and sources are variables. This means 6
     variables by wire, 3 for each load, and 2 for each source. Use
     locks to limit the optimizer load, optimize X, Y and Z
     separately.
     
     The recommendation is to use as few segments as possible. Most of
     the time 10 segments by half wave are more than enough and you
     should reduce that even further on short segments.
     
     NEC4WIN95VM is very CPU intensive and should be run alone if
     possible to prevent slowdown by other tasks. Degradation of
     performance can be dramatic if you are running another large
     program that uses Virtual Memory. When programs "fight" for
     memory they will swap the competitor out when taking control.
     This creates unnecessary swapping in and out of RAM to disk and
     speed will be greatly reduced.
     
     
     
     ====================================================
     NEC4WIN95VM Copyright ¸ 1997-2000 ORION Microsystems
     Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Inc.
     
     
