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Text File | 1990-05-31 | 12KB | 274 lines

Star Trek Menu version 1.0 Program by: Rory Glasgow Design by: Russell Boyd copyright (C) 1990 by Rory Glasgow This version of STMENU is intended for DOS versions 3.3 and higher. If you have difficulty using STMENU (if it doesn't return to the menu after you exit a selected program), then download STMENU2.ZIP. STMENU2 is designed for earlier versions of DOS that do not have the features that this version of STMENU utilizes. Description Star Trek Menu is a sort of "theme menu". It is similar in looks and operation to other hard drive menus out there in the BBS community, but is smaller and faster than most. The big thing that sets Star Trek Menu apart from others is that it is styled after the computer interface displays in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Yes, there is finally a menu for the hard-core Trekkie!! Not only does Star Trek Menu (STMENU) resemble the computer consoles in looks, but it also has nifty sound effects (that may be toggled off for you late-night computer users). STMENU is designed to run on a hard drive system, and REQUIRES some type of color video adapter (such as CGA, EGA, or VGA). Registration STMENU is distributed as SHAREWARE. This means that if you find STMENU of use and wish to keep on using it, you must register it with the author. Registration entitles you to free upgrades in the future. No future versions of STMENU will appear, except to those who register. New versions will include greater access to DOS from within the menu, special utilities (like a built in text editor and calculator), more more sound effects, and bug fixes (if any). Registration is $15. Send your address and a check or money order to: Rory Glasgow Rt 4 Box 2104 Meadow Ln Porter, TX 77365 Whenever an update occurs (about every 1 1/2 to 2 months), you will receive a new copy in the mail. Source code is available by request to registered users. Star Trek Menu may be distributed freely as long as no fee is charged for its use or distribution, and as long as the contents of the original archive are not modified in any way. Disclaimer This program is provided AS IS without any warranty, expressed or implied. The author will assume no liability for damages either from the direct use of this product or as a consequence of the use of this product. Installation The file INSTALLS.EXE handles all of the setup and installation for STMENU. You MUST use INSTALLS, as it creates certain files that are not in the archive. Place the contents of the STMENU archive into a directory on your hard drive (or on a floppy drive), and execute INSTALLS. INSTALLS will present a menu with the following options: 1. Install STMENU 2. Modify STMENU's batch file 3. Quit Option 1 activates the installation process. You will have to provide the following information: * The drive on which STMENU will reside. * The directory in which STMENU will reside. * The drive you want STMENU to exit to when you exit to the DOS prompt. Option 2 allows you to add in additional commands to the batch file that activates STMENU. This batch file is really the heart of STMENU--it runs the menu program, then runs whatever selections you choose from the menu. Some people may wish to load certain programs before the menu is loaded. An example might be an EGA/VGA video font (which some programs crash, so the font must be reloaded after running those programs). After selecting 2, nine blank lines will appear on the screen. The first line will be highlighted. You can enter commands for the batch file here. For example, you may enter the following: C:\UTIL\S.COM ECHO Here we go again! call phaser.bat Note that any time you want to call another batch file (as in PHASER.BAT, in the example), you MUST use the CALL command. If you don't do this, STMENU will not be loaded. All commands that you enter in this simple editor will be run before the menu is loaded. This includes when you've exited from a program that you selected from the menu. Editor commands: TAB advances you to the next line. ENTER exits the editor and returns you to the menu. The file STM.BAT loads STMENU and is also responsible for loading programs that you select from the menu. STM.BAT must always reside in the same directory as STMENU. You may want to add this directory to your DOS path so that you may execute STM.BAT from any other directory; however, there is another alternative, as described below. Instant Access Key The program INSTALLI.EXE will set up your system to be able to load STMENU in a single keypress from the DOS prompt. This feature requires that you have ANSI.SYS or a compatible program installed in your CONFIG.SYS. It will check to see if you have a copy installed. If you do not, INSTALLI will install a copy for you (make sure that you have a copy on floppy disk first, though). After INSTALLI has either confirmed that you have ANSI.SYS installed or has installed it, it will ask you which function key you want to use for loading STMENU. You may choose from F5 through F10. INSTALLI will then make a small modification to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file (and your PROMPT command, if you have one). Reboot your machine, and from that point on you will be able to load STMENU from the DOS prompt by pressing the selected function key. This feature does not affect the operation of that key in programs. Using Star Trek Menu STMENU uses a fairly common method of dividing programs into categories. Two columns appear on the screen: the left column is lettered from A though M, and the right is numbered from 1 through 13. The left column represents program categories, or "pages". The right column represents the actual programs, or "entries". A page might be something like "Drawing Programs", and an entry might be something like "PC Paintbrush". Pages and Entries both appear in light blue. Those pages and entries that are currently selected are highlighted in white. Those that are empty are marked with small yellow blocks. Menu commands: F1 -- Help. Displays commands. F5 -- Edit a page. F6 -- Edit an entry. F9 -- Set standby time. F10 -- Toggle sound on/off. PgUp -- move up one page. PgDn -- move down one page. up arrow -- move up one entry. down arrow -- move down one entry. ENTER -- execute an entry. A through M -- move to the selected page. 1 through 13 -- execute the selected entry. Editing Pages: When you run STMENU for the first time, you will see a page called "Change this" and an entry with the same same under that page. This is done because STMENU does not like to have all blank pages, or all entries blank under a page. You can change this page to your liking by pressing F5. After you press F5, you will be prompted for the page you want to edit. Enter that page letter, and that page's name (if there is one), will appear in yellow on a blue background. Enter the new name (or change the old name) for that page and press ENTER. If you want to delete a page, enter an asterisk (*) at the leftmost position of that page's name. That page, AND ALL ENTRIES UNDER THAT PAGE, will be replaced by the yellow blocks. If you are creating a brand new page, you will be forced to make at least one entry under that page. Editing entries is described below. STMENU will skip over pages that do not have entries. If you create a page with no entries, you will have to re-edit the page with the F5 command. Editing Entries: The F6 key will allow you to edit an entry under the current page. If you were creating a new page with the F5 command, you will be forced into this mode without having to press F6. Enter the number of the entry you wish to edit, and that entry will be highlighted. Enter the description of the program that that entry will represent. The description does not have to reflect the file name in any manner; simply use whatever description is best for you. Press ENTER to finish editing the description. Your cursor will appear in a bar at the top of the screen. This is where you enter the drive, path, and name of the program or batch file for the entry that you are editing. You must enter the full pathname of the program unless that directory and drive exist in your DOS path. For example: c:\dos\bats\startrek When you've finished entering the path and name of the program, press ENTER. STMENU will ask if this file is a batch file. If it is, hit Y; otherwise, STMENU will assume that it is not. It is very important that you answer this question correctly as STMENU will not function properly if it tries to run a batch file that it thinks is a COM or EXE file. You may change an entry at any time with F6. Standby Time: STMENU has a built-in screen saver that it will activate if there has been no keypresses within a certain amount of time. You can set this time by hitting F9 and entering a value from 0 to 9 minutes. If you enter 0, STMENU will not blank the screen. This feature ONLY functions inside of STMENU. Toggle Sound On/Off Sound effects can be turned on and off by pressing F10. Once you turn sounds off, they will remain off at all times in the future until you hit F10 again. TREKGIF.ZIP The archive TREKGIF.ZIP contains drawings of various ships from both Star Trek series' and the movies in GIF format. These were originally drawn in 320x200 resolution in 16 colors using Deluxe Paint I. Enjoy!