SuperPreview - Copyright (c) 1993 BitBank Software Inc. written by Larry Bank About SuperPreview 1.5 ---------------------- I wrote SuperPreview as an outlet for my fax/document imaging experience starting in March of 1992. I have since created a 16-bit OS/2 1.x & Win 3.x version as well as a 32-bit OS/2 2.x & Win32S version. The 32-bit versions support full color, the 16-bit versions support only bi-level images. The reason I started with bi-level image support is because of some very fast routines I created for uncompressing/compressing and displaying bi-level images. The images are stored in memory in a compact run-length format and this allows gigantic images to be viewed without using much system memory and allows dynamic scaling without loss of performance; you will notice how fast images load and display. I am currently pursuing marketing of this product through various channels with additional features such as TWAIN scanner support and full color. I currently license a function library of imaging routines as well as modified versions of the viewer. If you have an interest in using SuperPreview or its functions in your own program, please contact me by email on CompuServe. I wanted to use a freeware version as a way to get feedback from users on various features, as well as let the OS/2 community have a fast, free image viewing tool. Please send me email through Compuserve (71552,1407) as to what features you would like to see added/removed as well as your overall impression of the application. This program is freeware, not shareware. There is no registration; you are free to use it for your own personal use without charge, but you may not sell it or include it with a commercial product without permission from me. Performance & Compatibility --------------------------- This 16-bit OS/2 app has been tested on OS/2 1.3 on a PS/2 Mod 60 80286 machine as well as 386 & 486 machines running OS/2 2.1. As far as 32-bit versus 16-bit performance, most of the app is written in highly optimized assembly language and there is no noticeable difference between 16 and 32-bit code. Using 386 specific features in the 16-bit code only simplifies the code a litte, it does not speed it up significantly. Notes on using SuperPreview --------------------------- Context sensitive help is available for all menu items by pressing F1. The only point that needs clarification is the use of the mouse. When opening a document, the first page is opened and displayed so that the entire document fits in the viewing window, or the width of the image is fitted to the width of the window. To zoom into an area of interest: 1a) Press and hold the left mouse button and drag a box around the area of interest. 1b) Release the left mouse button. The selection rectangle will remain on the screen. You may copy the selected area to the OS/2 clipboard, or zoom in to the selected area by pressing the right mouse button. 2) A single click of the right mouse button will zoom in to 100% view (one document pixel = one screen pixel) at the spot clicked over if at other than 100%, or will zoom back out to full page view if already at 100% view. 3) Double-click and release the left mouse button, this will turn the mouse pointer into a hand to allow real-time dragging of the current view. This feature is only enabled when the image is scaled larger than the window in both dimensions. Supported File Formats ---------------------- TIFF +- All bi-level compression types (single and multi-strip, Intel format) OS/2 1.2 BMP Win 3.X BMP PCX DCX + WinFax QuickLinks II + BitFax + FAXIT IBM PSEG3820* IBM IOCA G4* Fixes and Improvements to version 1.4 ------------------------------------- 1) OS/2 BMP load fixed. 2) WinFax load fixed. 3) Batch Convert & Print dialog exiting traps fixed. 4) TIFF images with >512 strips now supported. 5) TIFF images with missing strip row count now supported. a) Added Preferences dialog box b) Added zoom in & out options c) Added copy and paste icons d) Added contrast control on scaled view e) Added default view (fit-win or fit-width) f) Improved useability of icon bar and menu items g) Added crop function. Fixes and Improvements to version 1.5 ------------------------------------- 1) INI file no longer gets written to more than one place. 2) Help file will get loaded even if SPVIEW is run from a different path. 3) TIFF resolution unit of centimeters now supported properly. 4) View indicator buttons fixed. 5) All dialog boxes centered and tested on VGA & XGA. 6) Zooming in and out now keeps the image centered. a) Added Limited (partially working) IOCA G4 support for reading. b) Added mouse drag option to move the image in both directions without using the scroll bars. c) Capture the top window or the entire screen into a bitmap. Known Problems -------------- 1) Print functionality is currently under development. 2) Screen captures and clipboard bitmaps are flattened to bi-level, future versions will have dithering support. 3) Deskew function is currently under development. 4) IOCA file load is only partially working, only supports G4 compression * IBM & OS/2 are trademarks of International Business Machines Corp. + Indicates a format which supports multiple pages