
Using Multiple Profiles of Pirch with a single EXE file

 Let us say that you had 2 different people using Pirch on  the same computer but with 
different personalities or perhaps of different genders. For this reason the hugs, etc. 
and other things would be different for each gender. Or let us say you are an op on a channel 
and want to use one set of popups while you are there and don't want to go to the problem of 
changing all of the events that may greet people in a channel upon entering each time you 
go from your OP channel to a recreational channel. The question is how can I do this without 
having 2 complete sets of Pirch, including the help and pil files, etc.

You do it by moving certain pointers out of the Pirchutl.ini file located in your Windows 
Folder (Directory) and putting them in what is typically called the Pirch32.ini or Pirch.ini 
file for 32 and 16 bit Pirch respectively. The section to be deleted from the Pirchutil.ini 
file and moved will look like this:

[Popups]
servpop=C:\Pirch\servpop.irc
popups=C:\Pirch\popups.irc
chanpop=C:\Pirch\chanpop.irc
msgpop=C:\Pirch\msgpop.irc

Those of you using  Version 0.87 will not have the last item: msgpop=C:\Pirch\msgpop.irc

To edit the files mentioned the use of Notepad.exe is recommended. No, I demand you use it.
Do not use anything else. Others will cause errors.

Before we go any further. If you cannot find your Pirchutl.ini file or cannot open it once 
you find it then stop here. You will not be able to do what is outlined below until you have 
learned how to do those thing and are comfortable doing it on your own. For that reason I will 
not tell you how to do that. I am not being mean, evil or nasty. I would rather have you mad 
at me for not telling you something than mad at me because I told you how to do something 
that was beyond you at this point and it caused you to fail.

For the sake of  discussion let us say we are going to be Ops and Nops. We will create 
Sub-directories for the above files called Ops and Nops. Into these Sub-directories place 
all of the files that will be different. Depending, of course, upon which profile you want 
to be using, in the separate Sub-directories. This may include an aliases.paf file and 
an events.ini file also.

For the sake of this example each of the Sub-directories will include the following:
aliases.paf
events.ini
servpop.irc
popups.irc
chanpop.irc
msgpop.irc (not in version 0.87)

I will change the name of the Pirch32.ini or Pirch.ini file, as the case may be, to Ops.ini 
and Nops.ini. The affected sections of each file will look like this:

Ops.ini:

[Main]
Aliases=C:\Pirch\Ops\aliases.paf
Events=C:\Pirch\Ops\events ini

[Popups]
servpop=C:\Pirch\Ops\servpop.irc
popups=C:\Pirch\Ops\popups.irc
chanpop=C:\Pirch\Ops\chanpop.irc
msgpop=C:\Pirch\Ops\msgpop.irc (not in Version 0.87)

Nops.ini

[Main]
Aliases=C:\Pirch\Nops\aliases.paf
Events=C:\Pirch\Nops\events ini

[Popups]
servpop=C:\Pirch\Nops\servpop.irc
popups=C:\Pirch\Nops\popups.irc
chanpop=C:\Pirch\Nops\chanpop.irc
msgpop=C:\Pirch\Nops\msgpop.irc (not in Version 0.87)

ALL OTHER PARTS OF THE INI FILES WILL REMAIN THE SAME. Do I need to repeat that.? Of course 
if you want any other part of the ini file to be changed you would have to change that also. 
The beauty of this though is to keep it simple and only change those parts that are effected 
by the profile.

For instance, the DCC Get or Send Path or the Sound Path may be different. If they are then 
the different INI files should show that.. If not can leave them the same as they were. Both 
of the INI files should be in your main Pirch Directory.

NOTE: If this is going to work then you cannot have it so that when you start Pirch it 
automatically connects to a server and runs. If you have it that way it will start up an 
INI file. If that is not the one you want you will then have to disconnect so that you can 
load the one you want. Of course, if you use one Profile 90% of the time this will be no 
inconvenience.

Now we are ready to start. We have Pirch running and click on the Login menu item. We 
then click on the Load Profile bar. When the dialog box open select either Ops or Nops, 
then select Open. When the dialog box closes that profile is loaded. It may include as 
many other items as we may desire as well as the differences in the irc, events.ini and 
aliases.paf files as we desire. We then click on Connect and we are connected using the 
desired profile. We smile. I have just now spent 2 hours as an Op and I can now to go off 
to #WavAddiction and collect some waves. I part that channel and at the Server Window I 
disconnect and then select Login. I then select Load Profile, select Nops and then select 
Connect. Walla (or eureka, your choice), I am now connected using my Nops profile with all 
the fun popups and events. Just that quick and easy I have two profiles I can now use.

Questions: 

1. When I try to use one of my Profiles I get an error that says something like " Cannot 
Create Server Window". Then I get 2 or 3 notices of Access violations. I clear them 
but it just sits there and does nothing. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1. Answer: That is caused by putting the wrong, a non existent or misspelled directory\file 
name in the INI file. Your Directory is Pirch and the information is wrong. Some examples:

a) The INI file says: C:\Pitch\Ops\ servpop.irc: Here the directory should read Pirch not Pitch
b) The INI file says: C:\Pirch\Ops\ servpop.ini: Here the ending on the file should be irc 
                                                 not ini
c) The INI file says: C:\Pirch\Ops\ servpop:     Here the ending (irc) was left off
d) The INI file says: C:\Pirch\ servpop.irc      Here the Sub-Directory was not included      

All of these will cause that error

So when you get that error make certain the path is correct. The number of Access Violations 
you get will exactly match the number of errors you made.

2. No Aliases or events are loaded when I am connected using one profile (or either).

2. Answer: that is because you left them off as a reference in the appropriate section of 
the INI file. You can have Pirch start up without them loaded. The absence of a path to one 
of these files will not cause the type of error discussed in # 1. You just will not have 
anything. Go back and put the paths to the events and alias in the file.

3. No matter which Profile I load  I end up with all the same popups, events and aliases, 
or mine are all jumbled up. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3. Answer: Remember each INI file must specify the location of the files you want to use. 
If in copying the information from one to the other you did not change the path to the 
correct location then you will have them all the same, or worse yet jumbled up. Be certain 
the path is correct. Remember Servpop.irc can be changed to be ServOps.irc or ServNops.irc 
if it will help you put them in the right place.

4. Can I be on one Server using one Profile and on a secons Server using a different Profile 
at the same Time?

4. Answer Yes, since Pirch allows for the connection to more than one connection it is easy 
to do that. You simply have to load the other profile before connecting. Remeber the rules
that Servers and Networks have about cloning though. :)


5. I have no idea how to find my Pirchutl.ini or the Pirch32.ini or Pirch.ini Files and 
make the changes you discussed. Is there another way of doing it.

5. Answer. Not really because some editing of the Pirchutl.ini file must be done to point 
to some generic alias, event and irc files and unless you are somewhat knowledgeable you 
will not be able to do that.

6. I used Word for Windows to do the editing and it saved all the files as Doc files or 
as text files but with a lot of extra stuff and now Pirch will not run. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6. If you are going to edit these files I highly recommend that you only use Notepad.exe. 
If you use another program they may add additional formatting which changes the file and makes
 it inoperable. Pirch will function consistently with those file being in the text format. 
Another format either will not work or will not work optimally.

7. Can I have more than just 2 profiles. 

7. Answer Yes, you can have as many as you are able to create and your Hard Drive can handle.

8. I have a question and it is not listed here. Can I get it answered

8. Answer. Yes, come to one of the Pirch channels and ask the question. Remember a few things
a) Be a little patient. There were others there before you asking questions and the Ops try 
their best to give everyone the attention they need but they are human just like you.
b) Ask in the Open Channel. If you go private then you take the Op away from everyone else. 
You also may choose an Op that has expertise but not with your question. You then waste that 
person's and your time. Also there may be someone else there with the same question. The Op 
would then have to repeat the procedure of getting and giving the answer a second time. 
You have wasted an asset if you do that by making it work harder than necessary.
c) Read the Help files and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
d) Do not come to the channel expecting a tutorial to walk you through this. The Ops do not 
have the time to do that. This is a Tutorial. If you cannot do the basic using this leave 
it alone until you learn more.
e) The particular Op that is there may not be able to help you. You may be proficient in 
what you do but not have expertise in all aspects of what you do or everytime you do it.
You make bake a cake that falls every once in a while, or have to let the car down and jack 
it up again to change that tire. The Ops are the same as you, human, and not expert in 
every aspect or everything. You may have to come back

February 12, 1997 






