ConText

       A 'word processing' Desk Accessory
                         Version 1.3
       Copyright: ©1990 Michael J. Conrad

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Introduction

ConText is a text editor in a desk accessory.  It’s compact size, superior windowing, speed, and its ease of text manipulation make it the obvious choice above all other DA-based general text editors.  A unique feature is the ability to set the document's signature; this saves the file as though it was written on the word processor of your choice.  Since ConText is a DA you can use it in conjunction with your favorite word processor, to cut and paste, just as you might use DeskPaint™ with say SuperPaint™.  ConText now supports the use of the extended keyboard's arrow keys as well as the special characters in your favorite fonts.

Shareware

ConText is shareware, it is distributed on the MacHonor system.  After you use ConText for a reasonable trial period, send $8 (U.S.) to the address below.  Please support shareware; you can't get much cheaper than eight bills.

                                          Michael Conrad
                                          955 Escalon Ave. #505
                                          Sunnyvale, CA  94086

Commercial distribution of ConText is not authorized without the expressed written consent of the author.  You may however distribute ConText among your friends or through user's groups or information services as long as you make no changes to the "About" box or the software in general, and you include this document.

Using ConText

Menu Commands:

The "New," "Open," "Save," "Save As," "Insert," "Revert" and "Print" menu items work in the same way they do in all standard Macintosh applications, so they won't be discussed here.

Utilities Menu

The "Find and Replace" feature also works in the same way as in all standard Macintosh word processors.

The "Remove CR’s" and "Add CR’s" menu items will remove or add carriage returns to the document.  This is a very useful feature when translating documents from other computer systems.

"Select All" does just that…

"Transform Quotes" will turn all open and closed (single or double) quotes into the desired quote style.  That is, it will transform "dumb" quotes into "smart" quotes, or "smart" quotes into "dumb" ones.

Document Information

 This command will present you with a dialog which lists the following information:

1. The number of lines of text

2. The approximate number of words

3. The number of characters in document

Preferences

 This is where you set your preferences for ConText.

• "Open To Full Screen"— If this check box is set, every time you open ConText, the document window will be made the size of the screen; this is useful with full-page displays.  If this check box is unchecked, you retain the current window.

• "Save Current Window Position As Default" - When this check box is selected and “Open To Full Window” is not checked, the current window position will be saved and be used as the default position.  You can re-position the window by moving it, and then selecting the "Save Window Position As Default" check box and pressing the "OK" button.

• "Open Dialog At Startup"— If this check box is selected, the standard file dialog box will be presented to you automatically any time you open the DA.  This option can be duplicated by holding the Shift key down while you select ConText from the Apple menu.

• "Save Current Font & Size As Default" — If this check box is selected, then the current font and size will be saved to the preferences file; they will be the active font and size at program launch.

• "Tab spaces"— In this edit box you enter how many spaces you want your tabs to be.

• "Document Signature"— This is where you enter what signature you want your document saved under.  For example, you could set it to ‘MSWD’ so when you double click on the file, MS Word™ will launch and load the file.  The default setting is 'TEXT'.  ConText will work with most text documents.

• You can save all changes to the preferences file located in the system folder by simply pressing ‘OK’.

Version History

Version 1.0

—The original draft of ConText.

Version 1.1

—Documentation completely re-written.

—Arrow keys along with special character keys now work.

—Fixed bug which caused a bomb when another DA was opened. 

—Made the preferences dialog easier to understand.

Version 1.2

—New Save and Revert warning dialogs which comply better with

   Apple's user interface guidelines.

—All warning and error dialogs now centered.

—Included "Transform Quotes" feature.
  —Fixed insertion point bug associated with selecting "New" from 
     the menu.

Version 1.3

  —New window creation code for larger displays.
  —Completely rewritten printing code.
  —Now has printing in progress dialog.
  —Redesigned all standard dialogs.
  —Page Setup is now a seperate menu item.
  —Other minor code maintenance.

"Thank you" to all those who have written me with suggestions, comments and bug reports.  I’ve tried very hard to incorporate all your suggestions and exterminate the bugs.

If you have any comments or suggestions, you can send them to the address above or to me at any of the information service addresses listed below:

                                       CIS: [73457,426]
                                       AOL: MichaelC50
                                       GEnie: M.CONRAD1
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     This documentation was designed, edited and packaged by:

                                    "PC" Ed Cooper

                                      1134 N. 59th Dr.
                                      Phoenix, AZ  85043
                                        (602) 278-3105

                                          AOL — EdC29