After you unzip the self-extracting file to either a diskette or hard drive, you will have the following four files:

Comtest.exe

a Win32 application for testing serial port communication between two computers

Comtest.ini

a configuration file that is read by comtext.exe when it starts

Sim.text

a simulated transcript for testing purposes

Readme.html

this readme file

Comtest.exe

The program can transmit and receive data using the selected serial port. As the program transmits a file or receives data, the text is displayed on the console window. If the program is transmitting to a LiveNote system, the text will be displayed as if a court reporter were sending a realtime feed.

You must connect the two computers with a send/receive cable, a null modem cable or a serial Laplink cable.

Comtest.exe reads the configuration parameters you have set from the comtest.ini initialization file when it starts up. Comtest.ini must be in the same folder as Comtest.exe.

Comtest.ini

This file contains the following information:

[ComPort]
Port=COM1
BaudRate=2400
DataBits=8
StopBits=1
Parity=none
DtrControl=enable
RtsControl=enable
OutxCtsFlow=0
OutxDsrFlow=0
[Settings]
CATSystem=Simulation
TimeStep=100
BlockSize=10
File=Sim.txt
Mode=Receive

You can change the following settings:

Parameter

 Valid values
Port:

COM1, COM2, … , COM9

BaudRate:

1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200

CATSystem:

Simulation, CaseView

Mode:

Transmit, Receive
Because Comtest.exe is mainly used to determine if the Com port on the receiving computer is working, this setting will usually be Transmit.

File

Name of the text file you want to transmit. If the file is not in the same folder as Comtest.exe, you must include the full path for the file.

LiveNote setup

  1. In LiveNote, click Realtime on the Options menu. The Realtime Options dialog box appears.
  2. Click Serial in the Current License list.
  3. Click the appropriate setting in the CAT system list. If in Comtest.ini you set CATSystem to:

    4. The baud rate for both XEC-2001 and CaseView is 2400; do not change this setting.

Sending computer setup

Open Windows Explorer and browse to the location containing Comtest.exe. Double click on Comtest.exe to begin the realtime feed.