Thank you for taking the trouble to try this module out. We hope you like it.
Note: this file is formatted and is best read with SimpleText and not TeachText.
Note: this file is not read-only so that you can easily copy the text if you want to. For example, you can copy the email addresses and URLs. Please don't modify this file or distribute modified versions.
Note: you should scroll up and down a pageful at a time so that the pictures will appear properly. If the pictures don't appear, you can make them appear by scrolling up a page and then back down a page.
This software is copyrighted material and therefore you are not allowed to modify this software or its documentation in any way, shape or form, nor can you sell it for your own profit. You may only charge a reasonable fee for the cost of distributing it. See the Distribution section below for information about how and on what Control Strip Menu may be distributed.
Contents
The documentation for Control Strip Menu now comes in 3 files. Their contents are:
1. Read me first
What's new?
New features of version 2.1
New features of version 2.0
What is it? - description, features, requirements and compatibilty notes
Description
Features
Hardware and software requirements
Compatibility
Installation and setup
Simple installation/setup
Tips
Setup for power users
Instructions
A. Clicking Instructions
i. General Instructions
ii. Specific Instructions
B. Drag and Drop Instructions
C. General Instructions
2. Changing settings
Opening the preferences dialog
General instructions for the preferences dialog
Instructions for each specific pane and the displayed options
Icons pane
Clicking pane
Dragging pane
Items Folder pane
Font pane
Styles pane
Register pane
3. Other stuff
Cost/fee and registration
Desktop Mac users, read this!
About control strip modules
Version history (notes by Vincent)
Future version features
Distribution
Contacting the authors
Other software by Vincent
Other software by Ammon
Disclaimer
Cost/fee and registration
Control Strip Menu 2.0 and later is now released as shareware. You can freely copy the unregistered version of the software and try it out before you pay anything. If you decide to continue using this software after 30 days, you are obliged to register it by sending in the registration form and registration fee. The current registration fee is only US$10. See below for the upgrade policy.
Note that this version is fully functional - there are no locked out or missing functions. After 30 days, Control Strip Menu will remind you that you need to register it whenever you start up your Mac.
Offer: registrations are offered in exchange for translations into other languages. Contact Vincent for information about this - see Contacting the authors below for the address. You will need an e-mail address if you want to do a translation.
How to register: you can pay by check, credit card, or money order to name a few methods. Details are displayed when you open the registration form dialog.
To register Control Strip Menu, open the preferences dialog and click on the "Fill in registration form…" button. This will take you to the registration form dialog. Fill in the dialog and then print out or save your registration form. Send it and the fee to the address shown on the form. Thank you for taking the time and effort to register this software.
When the registration fee is received and you are registered, you will be sent the necessary registration information (preferably be e-mail).
Upgrade policy: minor upgrades (eg, version 1.5 to 1.6) are free. Major upgrades (eg, 1.6 to 2.0) may have a small fee involved to upgrade - the details will be included in the upgrade's Read Me.
Desktop Mac users, read this!
The Control Strip (versions 1.0 and 1.1) usually only works on PowerBooks. However, there are several alternative ways to get control strip modules to work on a desktop Mac. One is an alternative module utility such as Extensions Strip or Desktop Strip. Extensions Strip is the recommended utility for Control Strip Menu. It has lots of extra features and is PowerPC native! See Other software by Ammon below for details on how to get it.
Another other way is to use the patcher that is available. It makes Apple's Control Strip functional on desktop Macs. This patcher is written by Robert Mah, and you can probably find it in wherever you got this utility. I believe that the latest version is 2.0. Note, however, that use of this patcher is not sanctioned in any way by Apple.
If you can use ResEdit, you can also patch Apple's Control Strip yourself. Delete the 'sdev', -4064 resource in the Control Strip control panel (v1.0 and v1.1 only). Of course, you should edit a copy of the control panel in case anything goes wrong...
!! Stop Press !! Stop Press !! Stop Press !!
Apple have released a new version of the Control Strip with their new PCI PowerMacs and this version WORKS ON DESKTOP MACS! Hopefully it will be rolled into the System 7.5 Update 2.0 release.
!! Stop Press !! Stop Press !! Stop Press !!
About control strip modules
The Control Strip control panel is a control panel from Apple that installs a small floating window on your desktop. It currently functions only on PowerBooks but see Desktop Mac users, read this! above to get around this limitation.
On this floating window are various control strip modules. Modules are basically small programs that you install into the "Control Strip Modules" folder inside your System folder and which then appear on the Control Strip. They can tell you useful (and sometimes not so useful*) information and they can do handy things. They usually don't patch your system so you won't usually encounter extension conflicts or crashes because of them. (And yes, Control Strip Menu does not patch anything.) There are modules that can change monitor bit depth (Monitor Bitdepth), tell you the time (Infinity Clock), let you switch applications with a single click (Process Switch), tell you how much free memory each application has (FreeMem), and there's even one to play your audio CDs! (Audio Strip GH) Very cool! Almost all of these are freeware.
* the thermometer strip for PowerBook Duos comes to mind but that's my opinion :-)
Version history (notes by Vincent)
1.0 — Released Jan 16, 1995. First release.
1.0.1 — Released Feb 10, 1995. Now displays items beginning with a "-". Should have fixed a bug that caused the first item's sub-menu not to appear.
2.0 — Released August 25, 1995. Added support for different fonts and font sizes and the ability to change the displayed messages. Can now display the items in the Items folder as icons on the strip. What happens when you click on an icon in the strip can be changed. Supports the Finder's color labels on files and folders. Can draw large icons and vertical icons. Added drag and drop support - this was done in collaboration with Ammon Skidmore of Skidperfect Software.
2.0.1 — Released Sep 9, 1995. Fixed a few minor bugs in the registration form dialog, the menu display routines, and the move items routine (it now actually copies items). Modified the balloon help feature to display the item's name when the mouse is over it.
2.0.2 — Released Sep 10, 1995. Fixed a crashing bug which occurred on non drag-and-drop systems.
2.1 — Released Sep 20, 1995. Added "Sticky menus". Added support for multiple strips. Added much better preferences dialog. Fixed known outstanding bugs.
Future version features
Planned: keyboard navigation of popup menus.
If you have an idea for a feature you'd like to see, why not write and let us know about it? Most of the improvements came about from feedback from users.
Distribution
Control Strip Menu may be distributed freely but it must be distributed in its entirety, that is, with this Read Me, and neither the module nor this Read Me may be modified in any way, shape or form. It can be put on disks and CD-ROMs. We (Ammon and Vincent) would appreciate a copy each of any such disks or CD-ROMs so that we know what it is being distributed on. Thank you.
We also ask that you contact us about the latest version so that only that version is distributed.
The latest version is always available at this internet World Wide Web location:
http://www.usyd.edu.au/~victort/homepage.html
Contacting the authors
Please, if you have a problem with this module, read this document first to see if the answer is already here! This will save both you and us a lot of time and trouble. Thank you for your help on this matter.
Otherwise, if you have comments, gripes, if you found something missing or something not clearly explained, or whatever... write to us and let us know your thoughts about this software. We're always happy to answer your enquiry and improve this software.
To send snail mail to Vincent: comments, problems (no personal ones please), postcard(s), money (thank you for registering!), or CD-ROMs (thank you!) can be sent to:
Vincent Tan
42 Waratah Avenue
Randwick NSW 2031
Australia
To send e-mail to Vincent, send it to either of these (internet) addresses:
mailto:victort@extro.ucc.su.oz.au
mailto:VincentTan@kagi.com - the mailer daemon here will re-route it the first address
Note that there is a T after "victor". Since this is Victor's address and not mine, please put "Control Strip Menu" or "CSM" in the Subject line so that you don't make him read unnecessary mail. Thank you.
To send e-mail to Ammon, send it to this (internet) addresses:
mailto:ammon@cs.byu.edu
Other software by Vincent
• Jigsaw. It's a cool shareware program that lets you play jigsaw puzzles on your Mac and has many options and features to keep you engrossed for hours. It's certainly better than the one you get with System 7.5 - "You call that a puzzle?" :-) It's currently available in English, Dutch, and German versions. (If you want to translate it, I can give you a registration for your efforts.) The latest version is 2.1•. A starter picture is included. Jigsaw can open PICTs, JPEGs, GIFs, and several other formats.
• AddJFIFcomment. Allows you to add a comment to a JPEG/JFIF picture file. Freeware.
• ResComparePatcher. Source code that allows you to create a ResCompare patcher that can patch fat [68k & PowerPC] applications. Freeware.
On the internet, you can obtain the latest versions of these titles by using an ftp client to get them from:
The WWW site also has software by Vic on it, as well as useful links.
Other software by Ammon
Ammon writes lots of software for the public and for his small company, Skidperfect Software, currently located in Alpine Utah. He's the author of Extensions Strip and he's also written many utilities, including eight (as of this writing) Control Strip Modules. You can find software that he's written at these internet sites:
http://bert.cs.byu.edu/~ammon/ammon.html - for Ammon's home page
http://www.shore.net/~chanson - for Skidperfect's home page
ftp://ftp.shore.net/members/chanson - anon ftp site for the newest software
As of this writing (Sep 1995), Extensions Strip is still in beta testing. Be assured that it will be released soon and it will kick some fine ass (if you'll pardon my saying so).
Disclaimer
I hate these. Anyway, it's the usual stuff:
Use at your own risk. The authors accepts no liability for any damage caused. All other copyrights are held by their respective owners. Etc, etc, etc.
'Told you I hate them.
Aren't you glad I don't bore you with a License Agreement? :-)
