Alessandro Levi Montalcini
C.so Re Umberto 10
10121 Torino
Italy
e-mail: LMontalcini@pmn.it
anonymous ftp: //ftp.alpcom.it/software/mac/LMontalcini

SimpleText Color Menu 1.3.3 docs - November 1994

• Introduction
◊  SimpleText Color Menu is a free drag & drop utility that installs an extra cool Color menu and an extra useful Goodies menu inside Apple’s SimpleText text editor (versions 1.1 and 1.1.1 only). If you don’t have a copy of the SimpleText 1.1 or 1.1.1 application, then you’ll have to find one. This shouldn’t be too hard since SimpleText ships with all the new Macs. You may also download it from Apple’s own FTP and Gopher sites if you’ve got an Internet access (this is one path to it: //ftp.support.apple.com/pub/Apple SW Updates/Macintosh/
Supplemental System Software/Text to Speech Software/SimpleText (1.1).hqx).

• Compatibility notes
◊  Because of the new compression method used in SimpleText 1.1.1, system 7.5 or later is required by the installer in order to install the extra menus in SimpleText 1.1.1. After the menus have been installed, however, you may use SimpleText 1.1.1 on older systems as well.
◊  SimpleText Color menu 1.0, 1.1 and 1.2 used an MBDF resource to add their extra code to SimpleText, but many menu-related control panels and extensions had trouble with this approach. Jim Walker was kind enough to modify his excellent OtherMenu extension for Color Menu compatibility, but I got more crash reports from people using ClickChange, A La Carte and other common control panels. Versions 1.3 and later don't use the MBDF resource any more, so all these problems should be definitely fixed.

• Version history
◊  1.3.3 - Cleaned up the code and added online documentation.
◊  1.3.2 - Fixed an incompatibility with the Control Strip (and possibly other extensions that install floating windows). Thanks to Larry Rosenthal for his detailed crash report.
◊  1.3.1 - Updated the Color Menu installer to work with SimpleText 1.1.1 (this was a lot harder than expected, since the code in SimpleText 1.1.1 requires a new 'dcmp' 3 resource decompressor that’s not available under System 7.1.2 and earlier; I had to write a specific utility to make the installer’s resource map support compressed resources).
◊  1.3 - Changed the MBDF resource to a jump table patch to solve all incompatibilities.
◊  1.2 - Added a Find command and a Windows submenu; SimpleText Color Menu should now be more compatible with menu-related extensions and control panels.
◊  1.1 - Added a new Goodies menu that lets you change SimpleText’s default font and style.
◊  1.0 - First public release.

• Distribution
◊  SimpleText Color Menu is ©1994 Alessandro Levi Montalcini. It can be freely distributed as long as it is not modified and there’s no charge for it, but it may not be included in any commercial package without my consent.
◊  You may find the latest version of all my shareware programs by anonymous ftp to ftp.alpcom.it, inside the /software/mac/LMontalcini directory. The complete ShareDisk package, which contains all my stuff and can be registered at a very low price, is also available there.
◊  All online services and bulletin boards may make it available to their users at no charge other than the normal connection fees.
◊  All non-profit user groups may distribute it at no charge.
◊  All magazines may publish it on floppy disk without asking me first, as long as I get a copy of the issue containing my software.
◊  All CD-ROM shareware collections and CD-ROM magazines may include it without my prior consent, as long as I get either a copy of the CD-ROM or an offer to buy the CD-ROM at a discounted price.
◊  All redistribution companies such as Educorp may distribute it, as long as I get a copy of each media containing my software and a catalog of the company’s offerings (where applicable).

• Disclaimer
◊  SimpleText Color Menu shouldn’t cause any damage, but you’re using it at your own risk. As an independent software developer, I can make no warranties whatsoever on it.