Softlib - Revision history

Dan Tobias: /* Sample files */

2020-02-12T00:05:02Z

‎Sample files

Dan Tobias: /* Version 5.0+ header addendum */

2017-01-24T03:46:46Z

‎Version 5.0+ header addendum

Dan Tobias: /* File header */

2013-12-28T23:22:01Z

‎File header

Dan Tobias: /* Version 3.0+ header addendum */

2013-12-28T23:16:24Z

‎Version 3.0+ header addendum

Dan Tobias: /* Version 3.0+ header addendum */

2013-12-28T23:13:57Z

‎Version 3.0+ header addendum

Dan Tobias at 23:09, 28 December 2013

2013-12-28T23:09:05Z

Dan Tobias at 17:48, 23 April 2013

2013-04-23T17:48:49Z

Dan Tobias: /* Format */

2013-01-11T01:51:24Z

‎Format

Dan Tobias: Archiving

2012-11-30T23:18:05Z

Archiving

Dan Tobias: /* Format */

2012-11-29T16:56:35Z

‎Format

@@ Line 134: / Line 134: @@
 == Sample files ==
-* [http://www.dan.info/sampledata/TEST.SLB Sample Softlib file]
+* [https://www.dan.info/sampledata/TEST.SLB Sample Softlib file]
 [[Category:Softdisk]]

@@ Line 83: / Line 83: @@
 ==== Version 5.0+ header addendum ====
-Byte 323-401: Comment line 1
+Byte 333-401: Comment line 1
 Byte 402: node1 (not sure what this meant)

@@ Line 103: / Line 103: @@
 Byte 24-27: Original length as unsigned long
-Byte 28-29: Compression type (short integer): 0=stored with no compression, 1=LZW, 2=LZH
+Byte 28-29: Compression type (short integer): 0=stored with no compression, 1=[[LZW]], 2=[[LZH]]
 In versions 3.0 and up was added:

@@ Line 75: / Line 75: @@
 Byte 327: endstrn (not sure what this meant)
-Byte 328: srcused (not sure what this meant)
+Byte 328: srcused (not sure what this meant; maybe indicating that there is an embedded marketing source/origin code that could differ depending on where the copy was distributed)
 Byte 329-332: splitsize (size of each part of split archive)

@@ Line 51: / Line 51: @@
 Bytes 198-210: Name of documentation file
-Bytes 211-220: Copyright year (null-terminated string) (why they need 10 digits for that I'm not sure)
+Bytes 211-220: Copyright year (null-terminated string) (why they need 10 digits for that I'm not sure; probably to have multiple years like 1991-1998)
 Bytes 221-260: Copyright company name

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 |extensions={{ext|slb}}
 }}
+'''[[Softlib]]''' was a compression/archiving program used by Softdisk Publishing in the 1990s as a container format for their programs and data, but not actually released directly as a published program. Some game data files used in the Gamer's Edge product were compressed this way (with the decompression algorithm built into the game program itself), and various self-extracting installers for Softdisk products used the Softlib format for their compressed data.
 '''Softlib''' was a compression/archiving program used by Softdisk Publishing in the 1990s as a container format for their programs and data, but not actually released directly as a published program. Some game data files used in the Gamer's Edge product were compressed this way (with the decompression algorithm built into the game program itself), and various self-extracting installers for Softdisk products used the Softlib format for their compressed data.
 Standalone archived files in this format might have a .SLB extension (or might not; Softlib didn't enforce particular file naming conventions), but the self-extracting version (as a .EXE file) was more commonly encountered. One distinctive feature of Softlib-archived self-installers is that when you execute them from the DOS command line with the parameter /VER added, they display version information including the version of Softlib that was used to create the archive.
@@ Line 10: / Line 9: @@
 == Format ==
-If the file is a self-extracting archive, you first need to skip the executable code; this is done by reading the first six bytes of the file, bytes 0 through 5, and then treating bytes 2 and 3 as an unsigned integer (call it a), and bytes 4 and 5 as another unsigned integer (call it b), and calculating a + 512*(b-1) (this may require use of a long integer variable). The result is the byte offset where the file data starts.
+If the file is a self-extracting archive, you first need to skip the executable code; this is done by reading the first six bytes of the file, bytes 0 through 5, and then treating bytes 2 and 3 as a [[Endianness|little-endian]] unsigned integer (call it a), and bytes 4 and 5 as another unsigned integer (call it b), and calculating a + 512*(b-1) (this may require use of a long integer variable). The result is the byte offset where the file data starts.
 The data is structured like this:

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:48, 23 April 2013
Line 136:		Line 136:
	== Sample files ==		== Sample files ==
	* [http://www.dan.info/sampledata/TEST.SLB Sample Softlib file]		* [http://www.dan.info/sampledata/TEST.SLB Sample Softlib file]
		+
		+	[[Category:Softdisk]]

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 Bytes 0-3: The capital letters SLIB. This identifies the file as a Softlib archive.
-Bytes 4-5: Major version number of Softlib needed to extract file (unsigned integer, little-endian)
+Bytes 4-5: Major version number of Softlib needed to extract file (unsigned integer, [[Endianness|little-endian]])
 Bytes 6-7: Number of files in archive (unsigned integer)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{FormatInfo
-|subcat=Compression
+|subcat=Archiving
 |extensions={{ext|slb}}
 }}

@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 The data is structured like this:
 Bytes 0-3: The capital letters SLIB. This identifies the file as a Softlib archive.
@@ Line 21: / Line 23: @@
 (In versions prior to 3.0, this is the end of the header, and individual files proceed starting in the next byte. In later versions, the header continues:)
 Bytes 8-14: Version of Softlib used to create archive (not necessarily same as version needed to extract it), expressed as a null-terminated string
@@ Line 77: / Line 81: @@
 (in versions prior to 5.0, this is the end of the header, but in later versions it continues:)
 Byte 323-401: Comment line 1
@@ Line 87: / Line 93: @@
 Then, after the headers above, there follow the files of the archive, one after another, each with this file header:
 Byte 0-15: Filename (may not be null terminated if all 16 characters are used)
@@ Line 99: / Line 107: @@
 In versions 3.0 and up was added:
 Byte 30-33: File time (long)
@@ Line 113: / Line 123: @@
 In versions 6.0 and up was added:
 Byte 69-81: Sub-subdirectory name (string)
 Byte 82-91: Extra bytes for future use
 Then followed the (compressed or not) file data, with "CUNK" used as a delimiter for chunks at some points.