Finder Info is an easy to use Macintosh application for modifying a document's Finder information (type, creator and Finder flags). If you don't understand what this information is, then Finder Info probably isn't for you. On the other hand, if you are acquainted with this information, then you will like Finder Info as it offers an easy way to change any file's Finder information.
This program is Freeware. It may be distributed freely, but only in its original form, and it must be accompanied by the original documentation. No modification of the software or the documentation is permitted. This software may not be sold by itself or as part of another package, and no commercial distribution of this software is permitted without the express, prior written consent of the author.
Finder Info was developed using Symantec's THINK C 5.0.
Compatibility
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Finder Info should be compatible with all members of the Macintosh family and System 4.1 and higher. It has been tested on a wide variety of Macintosh platforms, running both System 6 and System 7.
ATTENTION AUTODOUBLER USERS: Finder Info is unable to change the type and creator of an AutoDoubler compressed file and will notify you when it appears that such an event has occurred. This is a documented problem with AutoDoubler and is in Salient's hands. If you have DiskDoubler, the solution is to simply expand the target file. If you do not have DiskDoubler, you must duplicate the file, make the changes to the duplicate and then replace the original file with the duplicate. Hopefully Salient will remedy this in a future release of AutoDoubler.
Using Finder Info
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To change a file's Finder information, simply launch Finder Info as you would any other application. When the Standard File dialog box appears, select the file you wish to examine. Pressing 'Cancel' will quit Finder Info. Pressing 'Open' will display the main dialog box and the selected file's Finder information. Under System 7, you may also drag a file's icon onto Finder Info's icon to display its Finder information.
You can change the file's name, type and creator by entering the correct information in the corresponding field. Remember that filenames are limited to 31 characters and type and creator signatures must have exactly four characters. If you try to save a field that contains too many (or too few) characters, Finder Info will display an alert reminding you of the length requirements and abort the save.
If you don't know the correct type and creator for a particular type of file, you can press the 'Get From File╔' button and select an instance of that file type from the Standard File dialog box. Finder Info will enter the selected file's type and creator into the corresponding fields in the main dialog box (no other information is changed). For example, assume you have a TeachText text file and you want to change its creator to Microsoft Word. If you cannot recall Word's creator code, you can use the 'Get From File╔' button to select any Word document (or Word itself) to load the correct creator. Notice that the present version of Finder Info will change the type of the current file to that of the selected file. As a result, you will probably have to change the current file's type back to its original value.
You can also lock or unlock the file by clicking on the check box to the left of the filename. If you attempt to rename a locked file, Finder Info will ask you if you wish to temporarily unlock the file to rename it.
Below the filename is the creation date and time of the file as well as the date and time of its last modification. You cannot use Finder Info to change this information.
You can also change the Finder flags by clicking on the corresponding check boxes at the bottom of the dialog box. NOTE: Changing the Finder flags can be very dangerous! DO NOT MODIFY THE FINDER FLAGS UNLESS YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY SURE OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND ARE AWARE OF THE CONSEQUENCES!
Pressing the 'Done' button will modify the file's Finder information to that which is displayed in the dialog box and then quit. Pressing the 'Revert' button will allow you to abandon any changes you have made and reload the file's original Finder information (after the program verifies that you really wanted to do this). Pressing 'Close' will abandon all changes you have made and quit (after you verify that this is what you had in mind).
If you have made changes to the file, pressing either the Return or Enter key is equivalent to pressing the 'Done' button. If no changes have been made to the file, pressing Return or Enter is the same as pressing the 'Close' button. Pressing either escape or command-period is always equivalent to pressing 'Close'.
Future Plans
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I plan to continue to support and upgrade Finder Info to match my needs as well as yours. Development of the next version is already nearing beta-testing and should be released fairly soon. This release will include many unique features which help to make it one of the best programs of its type.
Contacting the Author
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If you have any comments on Finder Info (bug reports, suggestions, donations, etc.), I definitely want you to send them to me. I encourage each and every one of you to send me your comments and opinions concerning this program. While e-mail is the preferred means of communication, I will do my best to respond to all correspondence I receive (though it may not be immediate). Once I get your address, I will do my best to keep you up to date on Finder Info's status and bring any upgrades to your attention.
Adam R. Talcott
Box Number 169
ECE Department
University of California
Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9560
Internet: talcott@grape.ucsb.edu
Limitation of Warranties and Liability
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NO WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IS GIVEN WITH RESPECT TO THIS SOFTWARE, ITS QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO ITS QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE IS WITH THE USER.
In no event will the author, or anyone else involved in the preparation or distribution of this software, be liable for direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages resulting from any defect in the software or instructions, even if the author has been advised of the possibility of such damages. In particular, they shall have no liability for any program or data which is lost or damaged.
Version History
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1.1.1 (10/06/92)
Fixed problem in handling drag-and-drop of multiple files.
1.1 (09/05/92)
Includes drag-and-drop launching under System 7 as well as System 6 and System 7 Finder flags.
1.0.1 (03/10/92)
Fixed some bugs in consistency checking in the main window.
