SPF/PC

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

PC-based text editor imitating mainframe ISPF

title: "SPF/PC" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["windows-text-editors"] description: "PC-based text editor imitating mainframe ISPF" topic_path: "technology/operating-systems" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SPF/PC" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary PC-based text editor imitating mainframe ISPF ::

SPF/PC is an MS-DOS-based text editor and file manager designed to have an interface that was familiar to those using mainframe SPF and ISPF.{{cite news |newspaper=Computerworld |title=Editing with SPF/PC |quote=SPC/PC uses .. extended or expanded memory |date=September 19, 1988}}

Later Microsoft Windows-based versions were named SPF/SE and SPF/SE 365.{{cite web |title=SPF/SE 365 |url=https://www.commandtechnology.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180410040057/http://www.commandtechnology.com/|archive-date=2018-04-10|access-date=2022-11-02}} A version for OS/2 named SPF/2 was also offered. SPF/SE and SPF/SE 365 were released as freeware in 2022 after the death of Tim Tetiva, the author of SPF/PC and SPF/SE.

Overview

SPF/PC{{cite magazine |magazine=PC Magazine |date=February 5, 1985 |page=270 |title=SPF/PC can use Extended Memory}} was introduced by and successors sold by Command Technology Corporation. Similar to IBM's mainframe based ISPF and is able to edit ASCII and EBCDIC text file as a complete integrated applications development environment (IDE). Typically used for editing source code, invoking compilers, linkers, and debuggers, in a variety of programming languages, such as COBOL, Fortran, and C++.

64-bit Windows can't run SPF/PC (Will run under DOSBox), but it can still be used on 32-bit Windows (e.g. Windows XP or Windows 7 in XP Mode).{{cite web |date=July 16, 2020 |url=https://kc.mcafee.com/corporate/index?page=content&id=KB75366 |quote=Background information: ntvdm.exe NTVDM can run at startup. SPF-PC A 16-bit DOS application based on the mainframe editor ISPF editor. |title=SPF-PC1 DOS application started through the Windows ntvdm}}

Features

  • Auto source code backup
  • Auto save during edit
  • Background/Foreground compiler and utility support
  • Edit small or large files (up to 1Gig)
  • Edit ASCII and EBCDIC text files
  • Command Line Interface (CLI)
  • File browser with keyword colorization
  • File manager
  • File conversion utilities
  • COBOL source code support
  • Hex editor
  • IBM (3270) and PC command keys
  • IBM ISPF Style Panels
  • Keyboard equivalents provided for all mouse operations
  • Language line numbering support
  • Language profile support
  • Line, column and bounds oriented copy, cut, data shift, find, paste, sort with picture strings
  • Line lengths (records) up to 64,000 characters in fixed or variable formats
  • Line exclude, change, find, flip, locate, not-exclude
  • Merge error files created by compilers into source code as notes (type of comment)
  • Multilevel Undo and Redo
  • Multiple sequential complex command execution - repeatable with exclude and not-exclude abilities
  • Print file, screen or highlighted text
  • Simple and advanced text/file find/replace (search through thousands of files for text)
  • Sort file lists and text/data
  • Sort A-Z, Z-A, bounding by columns, line labels etc.
  • Split screen (horizontal and vertical)
  • File and Directory comparison
  • Support for DOS/Windows/Linux/Unix EOL and EOF markers
  • User enhancements - add, create, modify dialogs, functions, menus and screens
  • User definable fonts
  • User definable editor color schemes including several 3270 schemes
  • User definable file profiles including EOL, EOF, Line Length etc.
  • User definable cursor, half page and page scrolling
  • User switchable editor line numbers or not
  • User definable keyboard and keyboard macros
  • User modifiable help system

Macro/Scripting Language

SPF/SE 365 uses a C like macro/scripting language.

All versions of SPF have the ability to call any interpreter (PHP, BASIC, Powershell, etc.) from within the editor allowing text processing and OS command calls. SPF/SE does not have the REXX interface that SPF/PC had.

References

References

  1. (2022-05-26). "SPF/2".
  2. Michael Knigge. (2022-11-02). "SPF-Editor (formerly known as SPF/SE)".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

windows-text-editors