This document tells you how to run the Tools Plus tutorials. The objectives of these tutorials are to:
• show you how easy it is to learn and use Tools Plus
• show you how small and simple an application written
with Tools Plus can be
• provide a step-by-step example of how to start writing an
application with Tools Plus
• show you how to implement certain features using Tools Plus
All the features you see in these tutorials are also demonstrated in our demo application. However, for those who feel the demo application is “too much too soon,” these tutorials also strip away lots of comments and source code that does not apply to the items being demonstrated.
THESE TUTORIALS ARE NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR READING THE USER MANUAL.
Setting Up a Tutorial Environment
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Inside the “Tutorials” folder you will find several dark blue folders appropriately named “…Tutorial.µ” (the name starts with a specific compiler, like “CW Pascal (PPC) Tutorial.µ”).
1) Identify the dark blue folder that matches the compiler on which
you will be running the Tutorials.
2) Install Tools Plus in that folder. For installation instructions,
see the “Installing Tools Plus” chapter of the user manual. In
summary, you need to drag a copy of the following Tools Plus
files into your dark blue “…Tutorial.µ” folder:
ToolsPlus.Lib (All users. You may have several libraries,
like THINK Pascal’s ToolsPlus.Lib1, 2, etc.)
ToolsPlus.c (C programmers only)
ToolsPlus.h (C programmers only)
ToolsPlus.p (Pascal programmers only)
You now have an environment set up to run the tutorials.
Each dark blue Tutorial folder contains a project file named
“Tutorial.π”. You will use this project to run each of the
tutorials, one at a time.
Running a Specific Tutorial
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At the bottom of the “Tutorials” folder you will find several green folders. Each green folder contains all the components you need for one tutorial for both C and Pascal programmers (regardless of the compiler you are using). Please follow these instructions:
1) Read the “About…” document inside the green folder. It
describes the tutorial and gives you special instructions or
information that is specific to that tutorial.
2) Copy the following files from the green folder into the dark blue
“…Tutorial.µ” folder you have set up for your compiler:
Tutorial.c (C programmers only)
Tutorial.p (Pascal programmers only)
Tutorial.π.rsrc (All programmers)
The .rsrc file contains special resources needed for the tutorial.
Not all tutorials have special resources. There is no harm in
copying all the files to your dark blue folder.
3) In your dark blue folder (the one you set up for your compiler),
double click the “Tutorial.π” project to start the tutorial.
4) If the source code file does not open automatically when your
project opens, double-click the “Tutorial.c” or “Tutorial.p” file
in your project.
5) Examine the source code in the tutorial application and get
familiar with it.
6) Run the tutorial, or build an application and run it as a stand-
alone (double-clickable) app.
Comments on the Source Code
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The tutorials’ source code is written in such a way that you can easily cut out the comments and use the relevant code in your own applications, or to use the tutorial as a starting point.
For this reason, you will notice that the source code does not look as “tidy” as in the Tools Plus demo application.
Also, the majority of the commentary about a tutorial can be found in the accompanying “About…” file. This is help make the source code as simple and uncluttered as possible.
