RISC User in a Nutshell ======================= Welcome to RISC User in a Nutshell! This CD-ROM is intended for use on a RISC OS computer, although certain items will be accessible to users of other systems, and the HTML front-end has been designed to be as platform-independent as possible. If you are using this CD on a non-RISC OS system, then start by accessing the index.htm file (at the root level of the CD) using your favourite frames- and tables-capable Web browser. Assuming you are using this CD on a RISC OS computer, you should double-click on the "!Nutshell" application to begin browsing. This is very important, as it sets up various components to make all the special features of the CD work correctly. Please read this! ----------------- Note that it may be necessary to install some extra software on your machine before the CD can be used correctly. The most important item is CDFix, which is needed by RISC OS 3, and if you do not have this installed on your system already, a reminder will appear when you try to run the Nutshell application. CDFix can be found in the Install directory on this CD, along with a troubleshooting guide aimed mainly at users of RISC OS 3. There is further, extensive troubleshooting information in the Help section of the HTML front-end. Please be sure to read both the ReadMe file in the Install directory and the Help page in the HTML front-end before requesting technical support. This CD has been tested very extensively, but there are various problems with RISC OS 3 (rather than with this CD) which may cause minor problems for the unwary. (RISC OS 4 users should not encounter any problems.) ImageFS ------- Users of Alternative Publishing's ImageFS may find that boxes containing text are displayed in place of images in the HTML front-end. As a temporary solution, choose the "Quit>Whole filing system" option from the ImageFS icon bar menu. A full explanation and solution to the problem is given in the HTML front-end's Help section. The Nutshell application ------------------------ Have no fear about running the Nutshell application; it won't blow up your system or upset any configuration settings! In fact, if you just wish to explore the CD's contents directly, without using the HTML front-end that has been provided, merely opening the root directory on the CD will set things up sufficiently to allow you to open the Zip archives and view Ovation Pro files etc. without having to run the front-end as such. Owners of early machines or very slow CD drives may prefer to explore the CD in this way. However, users of faster and more recent RISC OS machines are recommended to use the front-end, as it has been organised in as helpful a way as possible, and contains lots of information that you'll miss if exploring the CD 'by hand'. For those who are interested, here's a run-down of what the Nutshell application actually does: 1. It looks for SparkFS. If SparkFS has been seen by your system, your copy will be run; otherwise a special limited read-only version will be launched from the CD. SparkFS is needed to access the archived material on the CD. It is the only filing system-based archive utility which can read multi-platform Zip files, as used on this CD-ROM. 2. It checks for Ovation Pro. If Ovation Pro is already known to your system, then nothing further is done; if not, a demonstration copy is booted, and this will be used to view any Ovation Pro files you run from the CD. Ovation Pro is needed to view many of the magazine files, books and manuals on the CD. 3. It checks for Ovation (original version). If it is known to the system, no further action is taken; if not, appropriate variables are set up so that Ovation files will be handled by Ovation Pro (either the full copy or the demo version on the CD; whichever has been found in step 2). 4. It checks for an appropriate Web browser. If a suitable one is known to your system, it will be loaded; if not, a special local- disc browser, WebsterLT, will be run from the CD. In detail, this is what happens: (a) Nutshell checks to see if Fresco, Oregano, Browse or WebsterXL is already running, in that order. If one is, then it will be used to view the CD. (b) If no browser is running, then Nutshell finds out if the system knows where to locate Fresco, Oregano, Browse or WebsterXL, and then runs one (in that order of preference). (c) If it can't find any of the above browsers, Nutshell will launch a special, customised version of WebsterLT which is supplied on the CD. This is a local-file browser which will run everything on the CD but which will not connect to the Internet. The RISC User in a Nutshell CD front-end makes use of special protocols, unique to RISC OS, that allow filer windows to be opened and programs (in archives, if an archive filing system such as SparkFS is loaded) to be run just by clicking links in Web pages. Only the above-listed browsers are able to support these special protocols, which is why the Nutshell application tries so hard to find one of them. As a final point, the special protocols used on the Nutshell CD (to do fancy things like running programs and covering your desktop backdrop with pictures of magazine covers) are made possible through use of a small program called NutServe. This background utility starts up when needed and quits again after around five minutes of inactivity. Its operation is normally invisible to the user, but there may be a short delay while it starts up when you first click on a special link (or if you have not clicked on such a link for several minutes and the program has timed out and quit). A start-up delay should not normally be detectable on any but the slowest CD-ROM drives. Richard Hallas Editor, RISC User volumes 9-11 Compiler, RISC User in a Nutshell