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Annotation of os2sdk/os2doc/progsel.txt, revision 1.1

1.1     ! root        1: 
        !             2: 
        !             3:                         PROGRAM SELECTOR
        !             4: 
        !             5:         The program selector allows users to select activities to
        !             6:         start in new screen groups and to switch among existing screen
        !             7:         groups.  Information about the name, location, and parameters
        !             8:         for frequently used programs can be saved by the program selector.
        !             9:         These programs can then be run simply by selecting them from a
        !            10:         list.
        !            11: 
        !            12:         The main program selector display consists of three
        !            13:         main areas:
        !            14: 
        !            15:             1)  Start list:     A list of program selections that can be
        !            16:                                 started in a new screen group.  The user
        !            17:                                 can start any of these by simply making a
        !            18:                                 choice from the menu.  One option always
        !            19:                                 available is to start an OS/2 Command Line
        !            20:                                 in a new screen group.  This provides the
        !            21:                                 ususal DOS style interface.
        !            22: 
        !            23:             2)  Switch list:    A list of all currently active screen groups.
        !            24:                                 The user can switch to a screen group by
        !            25:                                 making a choice in the menu.
        !            26: 
        !            27:             3)  Update Popdown Menu:
        !            28:                                 Choices are to add, delete, or change the
        !            29:                                 entries on the start list, or to update the
        !            30:                                 switch list to remove any screen groups that
        !            31:                                 have terminated.  Information about programs
        !            32:                                 that can be started is maintined in files that
        !            33:                                 allow changes to the start list to be permanent.
        !            34: 
        !            35: 
        !            36: 
        !            37:         CONTEXT SENSITIVE HELP
        !            38: 
        !            39:         The Program Selector provides popup windows with scrollable help
        !            40:         text for every operation the Program Selector is capable of carrying
        !            41:         out. This means that no matter what you may be trying to do within
        !            42:         the Program Selector, you may press the F1 key for help that is
        !            43:         appropriate for the context. Once you have the help popup displayed,
        !            44:         you may access additional help information by pressing any of the
        !            45:         keys displayed at the bottom of the popup window.
        !            46: 
        !            47:         In the upper right-hand corner of the popup window you will see the
        !            48:         word "more" and one or two arrows just to the right. These arrows and
        !            49:         the word "more" indicate that there is additional text either above or
        !            50:         below the current window. This text may be viewed by pressing the
        !            51:         up or down arrow keys until the cursor bar is at an upper or lower
        !            52:         boundary at which point the text will scroll up or down if there is
        !            53:         any undisplayed information.
        !            54: 
        !            55:         Normally to exit a help popup you would press the escape key, but
        !            56:         under certain circumstances it is convenient to be able to leave the
        !            57:         text displayed while carrying out some associated operation. To
        !            58:         do this, press alt+F6. This will cause an exit from the help window
        !            59:         and a return to the field for which help was invoked without erasing
        !            60:         the help text. To return to the help window, press the alt+F6 key
        !            61:         combination again. If you do not wish to return to the help window,
        !            62:         but simply want to erase it from the display, press the escape key.
        !            63: 
        !            64:         There is a special help display called "index" which can be accessed
        !            65:         from almost any help popup by pressing the F5 key. A new popup will
        !            66:         appear with a list of topics for which help is available. To cause
        !            67:         the corresponding help popup to be displayed, move the selection bar
        !            68:         over the topic for which you need help, and then press the SPACE BAR.
        !            69:         The corresponding help popup will then be displayed.
        !            70: 
        !            71: 
        !            72: 
        !            73:         UPDATE POPDOWN MENU
        !            74: 
        !            75:         The update popdown menu allows the user to make additions, deletions,
        !            76:         and changes to the list of programs that can be started using the
        !            77:         program selector start list.  The list of programs is maintained in two
        !            78:         files, Shell11f.aii and Shell11f.aif, so any changes made to the list
        !            79:         are saved.  The update popdown also allows the user to refresh the
        !            80:         switch list to reflect changes caused by the termination of running
        !            81:         programs.
        !            82: 
        !            83:                         * Program Information *
        !            84: 
        !            85:         The following information must be supplied for a new entry on the list:
        !            86: 
        !            87:             TITLE       The text that the user will see in the start list.
        !            88:                         e.g.  New account listing
        !            89: 
        !            90:             PATH        The full path specification and program name of the
        !            91:                         executable program to use when the entry is selected.
        !            92:                         e.g.  c:\usr\bin\acctpgms\newinfo.exe
        !            93: 
        !            94:             PARAMETERS  Parameters to pass to the program when it is selected
        !            95:                         to run.  There are 2 possible parameter list types.
        !            96: 
        !            97:                             1)  Actual parameter list that will always
        !            98:                                 be supplied when the program is chosen.  This
        !            99:                                 may be blank if no parameters are required.
        !           100:                                 e.g. newaccts.dat 1297
        !           101: 
        !           102:                             2)  The character '?' in the first position of the
        !           103:                                 parameter string indicating that the user
        !           104:                                 should be queried for parameter values when
        !           105:                                 the program is selected.
        !           106:                                 e.g. ?
        !           107: 
        !           108: 
        !           109:             Examples:
        !           110: 
        !           111:                 In the following, the first line is a comment that would mot
        !           112:                 be typed when adding a program.  The following 3 lines contain
        !           113:                 strings that could be typed in the title, path, and parameters
        !           114:                 sections of the add display when adding a program.
        !           115: 
        !           116:                 /* run an editor and ask for the file name */
        !           117:                 document preparation
        !           118:                 d:\usr\accts\editor.exe
        !           119:                 ?
        !           120: 
        !           121:                 /* run a program that processes the file newacts.dat */
        !           122:                 list new accounts
        !           123:                 c:\usr\bin\list_act.exe
        !           124:                 d:\data\daily\newacts.dat
        !           125: 
        !           126:                 /* program with no parameters */
        !           127:                 picture painter
        !           128:                 d:\usr\games\display.exe
        !           129: 
        !           130:                 /* batch file */
        !           131:                 accounts data listing
        !           132:                 c:\os2\cmd.exe
        !           133:                 /k d:\data\daily\list.cmd
        !           134: 
        !           135: 
        !           136:                 * Invoking the Update Popdown Menu *
        !           137: 
        !           138:         The Update Popdown Menu is invoked by striking the F10 key
        !           139:         followed by striking the ENTER key.  The user is then given
        !           140:         a choice of activities to perform and is guided through data
        !           141:         entry for the activity chosen.  Options are:
        !           142: 
        !           143:                 Add a program:          Add a new program to the list.
        !           144: 
        !           145:                 Delete a program:       Delete a program from the list
        !           146: 
        !           147:                 Change a program:       Change the information for a program.
        !           148: 
        !           149:                 Refresh:                Update the switch list to reflect
        !           150:                                         program terminations.
        !           151: 
        !           152: 
        !           153: 
        !           154:                 * Shell11f.aii Shell11f.aif information files *
        !           155: 
        !           156:         The information for programs in the start list is kept in the
        !           157:         Shell11f.aii and Shell11f.aif files.  These files should never be
        !           158:         edited by the user.  They should only be changed using the update
        !           159:         popdown menu.  The program selector will attempt to restore damaged
        !           160:         files, but if you add a large number of programs to the start list,
        !           161:         it may be wise to save a copy of your shell11f.aii and shell11f.aif
        !           162:         as backups.
        !           163: 
        !           164: 
        !           165:         EDITING KEYS
        !           166: 
        !           167:         When the "Add a Program Title" or "Change Program Information"
        !           168:         options are selected from the update pulldown window, a window will
        !           169:         be displayed with three fields. These fields are the program title
        !           170:         field, the path field, and the parameters field. Note that the
        !           171:         second and third fields are actually 64 character in length. Only
        !           172:         30 characters may be viewed at one time, so these two fields may
        !           173:         be scrolled left or right. See the list below for editing key
        !           174:         definitions.
        !           175: 
        !           176:                 Up arrow                -       Previous field
        !           177:                 Down arrow              -       Next field
        !           178:                 Left arrow              -       Cursor left one character
        !           179:                 Right arrow             -       Cursor right one character
        !           180:                 Control+Left arrow      -       Beginning of field
        !           181:                 Control+Right arrow     -       End of data in field.
        !           182:                 Home                    -       Beginning of fields window
        !           183:                 End                     -       End of fields window
        !           184:                 Ins                     -       Begin/end insert mode (toggle)
        !           185:                 Del                     -       Delete the char under cursor
        !           186:                 Control+Home            -       First field in window
        !           187:                 Control+End             -       Last field in window
        !           188:                 Alt+F7                  -       Erase to end of field
        !           189:                 F1                      -       Help for this field
        !           190: 
        !           191: 
        !           192: 
        !           193:         INSTALLING THE PROGRAM SELECTOR
        !           194: 
        !           195:         The program selector consists of 4 files:
        !           196:             shell.exe, shell.lib, shell11f.aii, and shell11f.aif.
        !           197: 
        !           198:         These files must all be placed in the same directory (any directory
        !           199:         you chose).  If you have a previous version of the Microsoft
        !           200:         base shell, it has the same name, shell.exe, so you may want to
        !           201:         save the base shell under a different name, if you intend to use it
        !           202:         again in the future.
        !           203: 
        !           204:         Put the entire drive:path\shell.exe specification for shell.exe in the
        !           205:         protshell line of the config.sys file on your boot directory.
        !           206:         For example, here is a config.sys file that has the shell
        !           207:         in c:\os2 and calls c:\os2\initenv.cmd for every new protected screen
        !           208:         group:
        !           209: 
        !           210:                 buffers=50
        !           211:                 shell=c:\os2\command.com /p
        !           212:                 rmsize=350
        !           213:                 protshell=c:\os2\shell.exe c:\os2\cmd.exe /k c:\os2\initenv
        !           214:                 memman=swap
        !           215:                 swappath=c:\tmp
        !           216:                 iopl=yes
        !           217:                 libpath=c:\os2;c:\os2\lib;.
        !           218: 
        !           219: 
        !           220:         VIDEO ADAPTORS
        !           221: 
        !           222:         If you are using a Compaq VDU display adaptor, a Compaq III portable,
        !           223:         or composite video adaptor, you may want to use the "/m" option in
        !           224:         the protshell line of your config.sys file. With some adaptors
        !           225:         there may be insufficient contrast between the foreground and back-
        !           226:         ground colors. To remedy this you may add a "/m" to the end of the
        !           227:         protshell line. For example:
        !           228: 
        !           229: 
        !           230:         protshell=c:\os2\shell.exe c:\os2\cmd.exe /k c:\os2\initenv /m
        !           231: 
        !           232:         Note: DO NOT use this option if you have a normal EGA, CGA or
        !           233:               MONOCHROME adaptor.
        !           234: 
        !           235: 
        !           236: 
        !           237: 
        !           238: 
        !           239: Mouse Interface.
        !           240: 
        !           241: 
        !           242: When the mouse cursor is over an active field, it will no longer be
        !           243: transparent magenta, but becomes a white and magenta dot pattern.
        !           244: 
        !           245: Lists and help text can be auto-scrolled by placing the mouse cursor
        !           246: over a scroll arrow and holding button one down.
        !           247: 
        !           248: A single button press outside of a help panel will cause an escape.
        !           249: A double button press inside a help panel will also cause an escape
        !           250: unless the mouse is over a selection list. Only one help panel has
        !           251: a selection list - "index".
        !           252: 
        !           253: Double presses within half a second are required to make a selection in
        !           254: all list but the update popdown. In that case a release of button one
        !           255: makes a selection.
        !           256: 
        !           257: If you drag into the update popdown and drag out without releasing
        !           258: button one, the popdown will disappear.
        !           259: 
        !           260: Any keys listed in the "keys box" at the bottom of a panel, or the
        !           261: "F1=Help" and "Update" fields on the main panel may be activated by
        !           262: placing the mouse cursor over the field and pressing and releasing.
        !           263: The "Update" is an exception in that a press will cause the menu
        !           264: to popdown.
        !           265: 
        !           266: 
        !           267: Please report any anomalies to Microsoft.
        !           268: 
        !           269: Thanks
        !           270: 
        !           271: 
        !           272: 
        !           273: 

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