Selecting Schemes

The Kaleidoscope control panel is not intended to be your primary method of switching schemes. To activate a scheme, just open it by double-clicking its icon in the Finder. We recommend putting your scheme folder (or an alias to it) in the Apple Menu Items folder so you can choose schemes quickly right from the Apple Menu. This gives you easier access to your schemes and much more flexibility than the old control panel scheme list ever could. If you insist on switching schemes from the control panel, either push the Select Scheme... button and choose a scheme from the Open dialog box or drag a scheme to the Kaleidoscope control panel window.

Scheme Settings Pane

Alternate Checkboxes
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses a different check mark in its check boxes. Most schemes normally use a check mark, but provide a cross or “x” as an alternative.

WindowShade Sounds
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses the sounds provided by the scheme when collapsing or expanding windows instead of Kaleidoscope’s usual sounds. This box is disabled if the scheme does not include these custom sounds. In order to use these sounds, you must turn on the “Use WindowShade Sounds” check box in the General Options pane.

Finder Icons
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses the Finder icons (the folders, trash can, and generic document and application icons) provided by the scheme. If you do not like the scheme’s icons, uncheck this box and Kaleidoscope uses the standard Mac OS 8 icons instead. This box is disabled if the scheme does not include Finder icons.

Finder Colors
Under Mac OS 8, Kaleidoscope can patch the text colors and background colors or patterns for Finder windows. When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses the Finder colors provided by the scheme. This box is disabled if you are using System 7 or if the scheme does not have custom Finder colors. In order to use the scheme's Mac OS 8 Finder colors, you first must uncheck the “Finder Background” box in the General Options pane.

Arrow Cursor
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses the arrow cursor provided by the scheme. This box is disabled if the scheme does not include a custom arrow cursor.

Desktop Pattern
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope uses the desktop pattern provided by the scheme. This box is disabled if the scheme does not include a custom desktop pattern. If you have a desktop picture, it draws on top of the desktop pattern.

Accent Color
Use this popup menu to select the accent color that Kaleidoscope uses for selected menu items, progress bars, and scroll bar thumbs. Accent colors are available only in certain schemes such as Apple platinum, and this popup is disabled if the scheme does not offer accent colors.

About This Scheme
Push this button to bring up a box giving additional information about the current scheme and its author. This button is disabled if the scheme does not include an about box.

General Options Pane

Finder Background
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope sets the background color of Finder windows to the color shown in the swatch to the right. To set this background color, just click the swatch. If you want to use the Mac OS 8 Finder colors specified by the scheme, you must uncheck this box and check the “Finder Colors” box in the Scheme Settings pane.

Use Label Color
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope sets the background color of Finder windows to the label color of the enclosing folder. When this box is not checked, Kaleidoscope uses the window color shown in the swatch above for all Finder windows. Kaleidoscope does not currently support this feature under Mac OS 8, but it should return in a later version.

Spinning/Finder Zoom Rectangles
When this box is checked, the Finder draws a zoom rectangle animation whenever you open or close a window or application, or when you move an icon with the Snap to Grid option set. Under System 7 or Mac OS 8.5 and later, these rectangles rotate a quarter turn. 

Faster Zoom Rectangles
When this box is checked, the zoom rectangle animation draws as fast as possible. When this box is not checked, the zoom rectangle animation takes approximately 1/6 of a second.

Scroll Bars have Double Arrows
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope puts arrows pointing both directions at each end of the scroll bar. This duplicates the main functionality of the DoubleScroll control panel. If a scroll bar is not large enough to draw the double arrows, Kaleidoscope uses single arrows instead.

Use WindowShade Sounds
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope makes sounds whenever a window is collapsed or expanded using the WindowShade widget at the right of the title bar. This setting overrides the “Play sound when collapsing windows” check box in the Mac OS 8 Appearance Control Panel. You can choose between Kaleidoscope's usual sounds and custom sounds provided by the scheme using the “WindowShade Sounds” check box in the Scheme Settings Pane.

Substitute System Font
When this box is checked, Kaleidoscope replaces the system font with the font and size selected in the popup menus below. The system font is used in menus, window titles, dialog boxes, and buttons.

System Font popup menu
Use this popup menu to select the system font used in menus, window titles, dialog boxes, and buttons. To set the font used inside Finder windows, use the Views control panel under System 7, or the Finder Preferences... box under Mac OS 8.

System Font Size popup menu
Use this popup menu to select the size of the system font used in menus, window titles, dialog boxes, and buttons. To set the size of the font used inside Finder windows, use the Views control panel under System 7 or the Finder Preferences... box under Mac OS 8.