Copyright: Copyright ® 1995 Oakley Data Services


Contents_
ODS CD Browser

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Welcome to the ODS CD Browser

The ODS CD browser is designed to make it easy for you to navigate around the CD and find the programs that interest you. You can see descriptions and screenshots, and in most cases try the programs out direct from the CD. And when you have found what you are looking for a single button click will install the program straight onto your PC. You can also uninstall the program in the majority of cases.

There is "tool-tips" style help for each button and control that the browser has. Rest the mouse pointer over an area of interest and an explanation of what it does and how to use it will appear.

For more details, click on the relevant option below:-

Menu Commands

To Licence the ODS CD Browser

This software is supplied as is without warranty or representation either express or implied with respect to the program or its documentation including their quality, performance, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose.

In no event will Oakley Data Services or any of its agents or assigns, or any organization distributing the ODS CD Browser on its behalf be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of the use of, or inability to use the program.

All trademarks are acknowledged.


Menu Commands

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Click on the menu required.

File Menu

Edit Menu

View Menu

Action Menu

Options Menu

Help Menu

''Note that not all the menu items are always present. Some can be selectively disabled by the CD designer.


File Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Printer Setup

Allows the user to configure his printer.

Print

Prints the currently displayed inormation, either the text or the screenshot.

Exit

Terminates the ODS CD Browser program


Edit Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Copy

Copies the currently displayed text or screenshot to the Windows clipboard.


View Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Selected Product

Switches the display to "Detail Mode" showing details of the product currently highlighted in the list displayed in "Contents Mode". Double-Clicking on the product you require, or pressing the "View" button have exactly the same effect.

Next in Sequence

Shows the details for the product after the one currently highlighted in the list displayed in "Contents Mode". This works whether you are in Contents Mode or  in Detail Mode, but is more useful from Detail Mode. A good way to use the ODS CD Browser is to create a list of products you are interested in using the category and keyword selection controls, and then browse through them using the Next/Previous controls.

Previous in Sequence

Shows the details for the product before the one currently highlighted in the list displayed in "Contents Mode". This works whether you are in Contents Mode or  in Detail Mode, as above.

Full Screen Screenshot

This option is only available when you have an image displayed Detail Mode. It displays the image "full screen". Clicking on the image has the same effect. To return to normal mode simply click on the full screen image.


Action Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Run From CD

This option causes the currently selected product to be run direct from the CD, without installing to the PC first. If the product cannot run direct from CD but must be installed first then this option will not be available. The ODS CD Browser will minimize once the other program has started, and re-appear when it terminates.

Install to PC

This option causes the currently selected product to be installed on your PC. The installation routine used is the one supplied with the product, and there are many different flavors. Most ask a number of fairly obvious questions such as where you want the product installed and so on. The ODS CD Browser will minimize once the installation routine has started, and will re-appear when it terminates.

Uninstall from PC

This option causes the currently selected product to be removed from your PC. The uninstallation routine used is the one supplied with the product, and there are many different flavors. Most ask a number of fairly obvious questions such as where the product installed was originally installed, whether you want the Program Manager Group removed and so on. The ODS CD Browser will minimize once the uninstallation routine has started, and will re-appear when it terminates.

Copy Distribution ZIP File

This option will make a copy of the product in a standard ZIP file and ask you where you would like it copied. This is most useful for BBS Sysops, Shareware Disk Vendors etc.


Options Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Default Content List Font

Allows the user to specify the font used for the list of contents.

Default Proportional Font

Allows the user to specify the default proportional font used in product descriptions etc. if it is not otherwise specified in the HTML.

Default Fixed Font

Allows the user to specify the default fixed font used in product descriptions etc. if it is not otherwise specified in the HTML.

Define Web Browser

Allows you to specify a Web browser you would like to use to link to external sites. If you don't specify anything then the program associated with the .HTM file extension is used.

Background Music Off

Allows the user to turn off the background music. (If there is no background music provided by the CD designer this menu option will not be present).


Help Menu

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Note that not all these menu items are always present. Some can be selectively disabled by the CD designer.

Help Contents

Jumps to the Contents page of this Help File.

How to use Help

Jumps to a tutorial on how to use the Windows Help system.

Context Help

Allows the user to point at items on the interface and receive a short tutorial on their use.

Order Form

Causes a jump to Context Id 100 in the Help File, where the CD compiler may have included an order form.

About

Displays the ODS CD Browser's copyright notice and release details.

Licensing this CD Browser

Jumps to details of how to licence the ODS CD Browser for use on CDs you produce yourself.


To Licence the ODS CD Browser

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

You can licence this CD Browser to use on CD's you produce yourself. We charge royalties per CD pressed, and as part of the license (unless otherwise agreed) you commit to provide us with copies of invoices from the CD pressing company detailing quantities produced, and authorise us (in writing) to approach any CD pressing company you use to provide us with details of production quantities on request.

Note that we always require an advance, usually sufficient to cover the royalties for the first 50,000 CDs pressed.

For more information please contact:-

In the UK, Europe and other non-North American countries:-

•	Oakley Data Services
Lion Buildings,
Uttoxeter,
Staffs ST14 8HZ
United Kingdom

•	E-Mail info@smartcode.com

In the U.S.A. and North America

•	Insight Software Solutions
P.O. Box 354,
Bountiful, UT 84011-0354
U.S.A.

•	E-Mail info@wintools.com

We would prefer contact by e-mail in the first instance.


Considerations for 256 color machines

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

If you intend the CD to be runnable on a 256 color system without horrible color shifts you need to be careful about the graphics you use. The basic rule is

all graphics must use the same palette

This includes adverts, the canvas and logo down the left of the screen and any screenshots or other bitmaps you include with the products. (You can specify canvas, logo etc. images in both 'hi' and 'lo' color format, and only the 'lo' color versions will be used on 256 color systems.)

The easiest way to meet the requirement is to use Paintshop Pro, PhotoShop or similar and decrease the color depth of any graphics to 256, always use the same palette, and make sure it includes the standard system colors.

Don't be fooled if an image already has a color depth of 256 - that may not be good enough, because it may be using an inappropriate palette. Increase the color depth to 24bit color, and then reduce it again to 256 colors using the common palette.


Contents
ODS CD Browser

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Welcome to the ODS CD Browser

This is a special version of the help file that normally accompanies the product, with an additional section,

How to construct a CD using the ODS CD Browser

that doesn't usually appear in the shipping version and that the CD purchaser therefore never sees. If you click on the jump it will take you to a section that describes how you would put together a CD of your own. You can actually construct a test CD using this demo version, but of course you cannot ship it without first

licensing a copy

from us or one of our agents.

There is an additional version of this Help File in the distribution without these details of how to construct a CD, named dist.hlp. You will probably want to rename that to ODSCD.HLP and distribute that rather than this Help file.

The ODS CD browser is designed to make it easy for you to navigate around the CD and find the programs that interest you. You can see descriptions and screenshots, and in most cases try the programs out direct from the CD. And when you have found what you are looking for a single button click will install the program straight onto your PC. You can also uninstall the program in the majority of cases.

There is "tool-tips" style help for each button and control that the browser has. Rest the mouse pointer over an area of interest and an explanation of what it does and how to use it will appear.

For more details, click on the relevant option below:-

Menu Commands

To Licence the ODS CD Browser

This software is supplied as is without warranty or representation either express or implied with respect to the program or its documentation including their quality, performance, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose.

In no event will Oakley Data Services or any of its agents or assigns, or any organization distributing the ODS CD Browser on its behalf be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of the use of, or inability to use the program.

All trademarks are acknowledged.


How to construct a CD using the ODS CD Browser
How to construct a CD

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Overview

Constructing a CD is not complicated, all that is required is to get all the files in the right places, with the correct content in each file.

To help you ensure you have covered all the steps required we have included a

simple checklist

you can work to.

There are three basic types of files that dictate the layout of the CD and where the ODS CD Browser should look for screenshots, videos, descriptions etc., that you have to prepare. There are then a number of ancillary files such as Icons, screenshots, product descriptions and so on that you need to supply for each product that you put on the CD. The three "layout" files, each with an extension of SCD, which are created or modified using a text editor such as Notepad, are:-

The odscd.scd file

The products.scd file(s)

The .scd files for the individual products

Icons

Icons for each product must also be present in the directory which contains the products.scd file. (This common location is for speed, so that the ODS CD browser doesn't have to read lots of files to determine the location of Icons. The Icons are also not read until they are needed by the product appearing in the list box to allow for a quick start of the program even on a CD with hundreds of products, and the icons are cached for quick re-display).

The icons should be in standard Icon files (.ico), named with the product's "Name Key" (see the description of the products.scd file for details of the "Name Key").

Banner Adverts

If enabled with the Adverts=1 line in the ODSCD.SCD file then rotating banner adverts can be displayed at the bottom of the CD browser. For more information, see the

Enabling Banner Adverts

topic. If you don't want banner adverts then remove the Adverts=1 line from the ODSCD.SCD file.

Bitmaps

Usually used for screenshots, these should be in standard Windows Bitmap format. RLE compressed files are supported. Screenshots larger than the end-users display capability will automatically shrink to fit, but this does cause some loss of resolution, so in general consider the possibility of some users having a 640*480 screen and provide screenshots appropriately.

Videos

Videos can be played inside the browser simply by referencing them in an individual product's .scd file, but note that the user can set his system such that videos always play full-screen, and we don't know a way to override that.

HTML Files

These files need to be created in standard HTML, with a few of restrictions.

•	Only standard HTML is supported, not some of the more esoteric Netscape extensions (although tables are supported).

•	You can include http:// style and ftp:// style and mailto: style links and the CD Browser will attempt to determine the user's Web browser and start that with the link as a parameter.

•	Individual lines in the HTML files are restricted to 255 characters. This should not present a problem as the text is reformatted anyway and newlines are dropped. If you require a new paragraph you should use the standard <P> HTML tag.

•	Inline GIFs are not supported, because that would require a Patent license from UNISYS (blame them, not us!). You can convert GIFs to BMP or JPG or PNG format though, those formats are supported.

Plain Text Files

Can simply be referenced by an individual product's .scd file and will display in the browser. Useful for manufacturers "readme" type files. There is a limit of 32K though.

Some useful shortcuts for CD compilers

We have implemented a number of "hidden" keystrokes that make it much quicker to build a CD, that can only be used by the CD complier and not the end-user. We have also provided a consistency checking mechanism to help you ensure that you have all the right files in all the right places (once you've put the 45th product on it's easy to accidentally delete an important file somewhere, believe us!). For details, refer to the:-

Hidden Keystrokes

topic.

What other files are needed

The ODSCD.EXE program, the ODSCD.HLP file and the ILIB31HT.DLL files are needed in the highest level directory in addition to the files described above.

In addition the unique CDL1X.DLL file that you will receive when you license the CD Browser should also be placed in the highest level directory - this prevents the browser from issuing the "unlicensed" message at start-up and adds your details as licensee to the about box.

It might also be an idea to consider including an autorun.inf file which will allow any CD to autorun on Windows 95. All that is required in the file (which must be in the CD's root directory) is:-

[autorun]
open=odscd.exe

Beware of early versions of MSCDEX

There appears to be a bug in versions of MSCDEX before V2.23 that in conjunction with some versions of EASY-CD software (and maybe others) can result in the creation of an unusable CD. If files in the root directory are constructed on a Win95 system, and have lower case letters in their file name, and the CD is mastered using some versions of EASY-CD, those files can be inaccessible on a Win3.x system with a version of MSCDEX prior to V2.23. It will work fine on systems with V2.23 of MSCDEX or on Win95/NT systems.

There are two solutions. Either make sure all the files in the root directory have all upper-case letters in their file names (if you do a DIR in a DOS box on Win95 the names at the right should be all uppercase - you can rename them from th DOS box so they are). Or make sure all your users have the latest version of MSCDEX. (You could maybe put it on the CD if Microsoft will let you - not so silly as it sounds because the problem only affects the root directory so the user will still be able to copy it to his system with DOS and you will have done him a favor!).


simple checklist
Checklist

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Actions Required.

1 	Put a copy of the ODSCD.EXE, ODSCD.HLP and ILIB31HT.DLL files in the root directory of the CD. (or in an empty directory on your hard drive if you are experimenting). If you have a licensed copy don't forget the CDL1X.DLL file. (Note that you can rename the ODSCD.EXE program to whatever suits you - maybe "GO.EXE" or similar if using it for a cover CD).

2 	Determine how many "subsections" the CD will have and what the title will be. Construct a ODSCD.SCD file to reflect those decisions and put it in the same directory as the ODSCD.EXE file. Complete the rest of the ODSCD.SCD file with details such as the caption the CD is to have, colors and graphics required etc.

3 	Put startup splash screen, canvas and logo bitmaps, legal HTML etc. in the locations specified by the entries in the [General] section of the ODSCD.SCD file.

4 	For each product subsection, create the appropriate directory (named in the ODSCD.SCD file) as a subdirectory of the location of the ODSCD.EXE file.

5 	Pop an autorun.inf file in the same directory as ODSCD.EXE if you want this to be an autorun CD on Win95.

6 	In each subsection directory create a products.scd file which lists the products on this branch of the CD structure.

7 	For each product listed in the products.scd file create an individual SCD file which contains details of the locations of installers, uninstallers, screenshots, descriptions videos etc. Put these in the same directory as the products.scd file.

8 	Create an Icon for each product, and put them in the same directory as the products.scd file.

9 	For each product create the description files, screenshot files, video files etc. and pop them in the correct locations as dictated by the individual SCD file for the product.

10 	Put a distribution .ZIP file in the appropriate place as specified by the individual .SCD file if you intend to use one.

11 	Put the product itself in the correct location, with the installer and uninstaller and the file used to run the program from the CD in the correct places as described in the individual .SCD file.

For more information on:-

The ODSCD.SCD file

The PRODUCTS.SCD file

The individual product .SCD files

Click on the appropriate jump.

Hints and Tips.

•	There are lots of ways you can lay the CD's directory structure out, and as long as the .SCD files reflect that structure everything should work fine, but as a starting point you could do worse than mimic the layout we have used on this demo.

•	Beware that if you attempt to run a program from the ODSCD browser as though it was on a CD, but is actually on your hard disk, the program might create some files that you will end up shipping that you would rather not. Some programs write .ini files back to the directory they run from if they can, but are smart enough to realise if they are on CD and don't. Be careful you don't ship some initialization data from your system that won't work on somebody elses!


The odscd.scd file

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

This file lives in the same directory as the ODSCD.EXE program itself. This will usually be the root directory of the CD, but it doesn't have to be, the ODSCD browser will work quite happily from a subdirectory as all file references are relative to the location of the ODSCD.EXE program file.

This is the main control file for the CD. The basic function of this file is to tell the program where to find all the other control files, provide details of changeable information like the caption required on the Browser Window, to specify the subdirectories which contain the products, to provide translation pointers for non-English use, and to specify other variables like sounds, colors, default tab text etc.

The odscd.scd file has the structure of an .INI file (which is what it really is). Take a look at the ODSCD.SCD file used for this demo to get a feel for the requirements and perhaps to copy as a starting point for your own CD. The ODSCD.SCD file has several sections. All except the [Languages] section must be present and correctly completed:-

The [General] Section

The [Graphics] Section

The [Colors] Section

The [Languages] Section

The [Directories] Section


The General Section
The [General] Section

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The [General] Section

Caption=

Specifies the caption that will appear as the title of the browser window.

LogoLink=

Specifying an Internet URL here causes the "logo" (specified in the Graphics" section) to become "live". If the end user clicks on it then the user's Web Browser would be launched to surf to the URL specified (or in fact it could be a mailto: or even an ftp: link).

Sizeable=

Setting this to 0 prevents the user from resizing the browser. It runs at a size just smaller than a 640*480 screen. (We don't like it, but somebody wanted it!).

ButtonStyle=

Allows the specification of two different styles of buttons, either the "bitmapped buttons" (style 0, the default), or plain colored buttons (style 1). The color of the plain buttons is specified in the [Colors] section of the ODSCD.SCD file.

CollectionCopyright=

Allows you to specify the line to appear on the "About" box. This is usually used to assert copyright over the product compilation, rather than over the individual products on the CD. For example "Collection Copyright ©1997 by Oakley Data Services" or similar.

Legal=

The Legal= line allows you to point at some HTML that the user must acknowledge before proceeding. This is usually used for a legal "disclaimer of responsibility" etc.

OrderMenu=

Specifying OrderMenu=1 causes the appearance of an "Order Form" command on the Help menu, which links to context Id 100 in the Help file. Obviously you have to construct your own Help File for this to be of any use. If you set this value to 0 then the "Order Form" menu item does not appear.

DefaultTabCount=

Specifies the number of "tabs" that each product will have, unless a different value is specified in the individual .scd file for that particular product.

DefaultTab1= DefaultTab2= etc.

These lines (you need as many as the number specified by the "DefaultTabCount" value) specify the text to appear on the tabs at the bottom of the descriptive window for the product (for example "Description", "Screen Shot" etc.). You can override these by specifying different values in the individual .scd file for a particular product.

HelpPhone=

Specifies the top line of text to appear in the dialog box when the user presses the "Need Help" button.

HelpEmail=

Specifies the bottom line of text to appear in the dialog box when the user presses the "Need Help" button. If you leave both this and the HelpPhone= line out then the "Need Help" button disappears from the interface.

Adverts=

Setting this to 1 specifies that rotating "banner adverts" (much like those on a Web page) will appear at the bottom of the interface. See the separate section

enabling banner adverts

for full details of how to provide banner adverts, and the requirements for the individual images.

Menu=

Setting this item to 0 removes the menu from the interface. The default is 1 (We didn't like this either, and you lose some functionality, but.....).

Intro=

Specifies a midi file (.mid) or wave file (*.wav) to play while the splash screen is up. If you don't want introductory music then leave this line out.

BackGround=

Specifies a midi file (*.mid) that will play in the background as the CD Browser is active. It suspends if the CD Browser is minimized and restarts once it regains the focus. If you don't want background music then leave this file out.

DefaultFont=

Allows you to specify the proportional font used by any HTML pages you use in individual product descriptions. The default is "Times New Roman". Be careful to ensure that any font you specify is actually available on the users system. If not, unwanted substitutions can occur by the Windows Truetype Rasterizer.

DefaultFixedFont=

Allows you to specify the fixed pitch font used by any HTML pages you use in individual product descriptions. The default is "Courier New". Be careful to ensure that any font you specify is actually available on the users system. If not, unwanted substitutions can occur by the Windows Truetype Rasterizer.

DefaultContentFont=

Allows you to specify the font used by the content list. The default is "Arial". Be careful to ensure that any font you specify is actually available on the users system. If not, unwanted substitutions can occur by the Windows Truetype Rasterizer.

OpenFolder=

Specifies the Icon file to use for the "Open Folder" representation in the product list. If not specified an internal representation (a yellow folder with a - sign) is used.

ClosedFolder=

Specifies the Icon file to use for the "Closed Folder" representation in the product list. If not specified an internal representation (a yellow folder with a + sign) is used.


Enabling Banner Adverts

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The CD browser supports "Banner Adverts", much like the advertising banners on Internet Web sites. They appear at the bottom of the browser, and rotate at a speed specified by you. They can be linked to a product on the CD, and when the user clicks on the banner advert the browser jumps to display that product.

Banner adverts must be bitmaps, 460*55 pixels in size, and you will probably want to make them 256 color to support users on hardware wth restricted grpahics capability without horrible color clashes. (See the section

considerations for 256 color machines

for more information).

The adverts are controlled by a seperate file, called advlist.scd, which must be in the same directory as the CD Browser program. The file must contain one line for each advert (although lines without a numeric first character are treated as comments),. Each line has three fields, and looks like:-

10^s\online\aol\aolban.bmp^aol
10^s\online\zdnet\zdnetban.bmp^zdnet
10^s\online\zdnews\zdnwsban.bmp^zdnews
10^s\subs\subs\subs.bmp^subs

The first field specifies the number of seconds the advert will display (although advert display can in some circumstances be temporarily suspended, such as when a video is playing). The second field specifies the location of the bitmap, and the third field the "Key Name" of the associated product.

When the user clicks on the banner the "key name" is used to switch to the associated product and the first tab is automatically displayed.

(Note that because of this technique, having two products with the same "Key Name" in different products.scd files will give unpredictabale results and is not supported).


The Graphics Section
The [Graphics] Section

The [Graphics] Section

The [Graphics] section lists the graphics that the browser will use both as a splash screen and while it is running. There is the ability to specify different graphics for low and hi color systems, by appending the characters "lo" or "hi" to the keywords. See the topic

considerations for 256 color machines

for a discussion of what you need to think about to support machines with restricted color capabilites.

Splash=

Specifies the "splash screen" that appears when the browser starts. This is a bitmap, size is up to you (but be aware that some people will be running on 640*480 systems). As no other part of the program is displaying graphics at this time you can usually get away with supplying a single 24bit color graphic and allowing a 256 color user's system to dither it.

IntroAVI=

Specifies an AVI (video) to play at program-start instead of the splash screen. Note that people using Windows 3.x will need a copy of Video for Windows to see this (alhough the vast majority will have it). You will probably want to remove the Splash= line if you use an introductory AVI.

Canvas=

Specifies the "background" that appears at the left side of the browser. It is 150 pixels wide, although if you supply a larger one it won't matter, it will just be clipped. You can make it as deep as you want to to accomodate the browser being resized by the user. You may need to supply both lo and hi color variants (CanvasLo= and CanvasHi= lines instead of just Canvas=), unless you are happy with a lo color graphic on hi color machines.

Logo=

Specifies the graphic that sits on the canvas. Size is 128 pixels wide and up to 280 pixels high. You can supply a shorter one if you wish, and the FormColor will show through.

Content=

Specifies a graphic to use at the top of the "Contents" list in place of the simple word "Contents" and the SmartCD logo. The graphic needs to be 38 pixels high, and sufficiently wide to accomodate the largest the user is likely to stretch it to.

Support=

Specifies a graphic to use instead of the dialog box that appears when the user presses the "getting support" button.

(The following example is again taken from a UK Ziff-Davis Computer Gaming World CD). (Note a line starting with a semi-colon ; is a comment).

[Graphics]
Splash=CGWSPL.BMP

;Graphics for 256 Color Systems
LogoLo=CGWLOGO.BMP
ContentLo=CGWCONT.BMP
SupportLo=CGWHELP.BMP

;Graphics for Hi Color Systems
LogoHi=CGWLOGOH.BMP
ContentHi=CGWCONTH.BMP
SupportHi=CGWHELPH.BMP


The Colors section
The [Colors] Section

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The [Colors] Section

The [Colors] section allows you to specify the colors you want the browser to use. Creatively used this can have a major impact on the "mood" of the CD, dark and sombre maybe for a games CD, or light and airy for a CD full of children's games? Colors are specified by their RGB content, either in decimal or hexadecimal form (hexadecimal is probably  easier - use constructs like TabBackGroundColor=0xC0C0C0).

To accomodate both 256 color systems and hi-color systems you can specify different color values which the browser will automatically select depending on the capabilities of the sytem on which it finds itself running. The logic used is that for each color element the browser appends the characters "hi" if it finds itself running on a hi-color system, or "lo" if it finds itself running on a 256 color system and attempts to use that as the key to determine the color value. If it fails to find that entry then it uses the entry without the appended character. (The example at the bottom, taken from a UK Ziff-Davis Computer Gaming World CD will hopefully make that clear!). See the topic

considerations for 256 color machines

for things you need to think about if you want to support systems with reduced color capabilities.

FormColor=

Specifies the background color of the form.

ContentTextColor=

Specifies the color of the text of an unselected item in the list of products.

SelectedContentTextColor=

Specifies the color of the text of a selected item in the list of products.

SelectBarColor=

Specifies the color of the background of a selected item in the list of products.

BarColor=

Specifies the color of the background of an unselected item in the list of products.

ButtonColor=

Specifies the color of the background of a button. Note this only applies to "Type 1" buttons (specified with ButtonStyle=1 in the [General] section).

ButtonTextColor=

Specifies the color of the text of a button. Note this only applies to "Type 1" buttons (specified with ButtonStyle=1 in the [General] section).

TabBackgroundColor=

Specifies the color of background of the tabs. (The depression they "sit" in).

TabSelColor=

Specifies the color of an unselected Tab.

TabUnselColor=

Specifies the color of a selected Tab.

DefaultDocumentTextColor=

Specifies the default text color used by HTML documents if not overridden by specifications in the HTML itself.

DefaultDocumentBackgroundColor=

Specifies the default background color used by HTML documents if not overridden by specifications in the HTML itself.

ProdNameColor=

Specifies the color used to draw the name of the product at the top of the description window (where screenshots, HTML etc. appear). This is used if you don't supply a custom graphic for the "Contents" header.

(The following is an example from a UK Ziff-Davis Computer Gaming World CD).

[Colors]
;Universal Colors First
FormColor=0
ButtonTextColor=16777215
DefaultDocumentTextColor=16777215
DefaultDocumentBackgroundColor=0
ContentTextColor=16777215
SelectedContentTextColor=16777215
BarColor=0
TabBackGroundColor=0

;Now colors for 256 color systems
ButtonColorLo=255
SelectBarColorLo=255

;Now colors for Hi color systems
ButtonColorHi=207
SelectBarColorHi=207


The Languages Section
The [Languages] Section

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The [Languages] Section

The [Languages] section details what files contain the translation strings for the country that the browser finds itself running in. If you are not interested in translating the menu and button texts then just leave this section out completely.

The general format of the [Languages] section is:-

[Languages]
33=French
49=German
0=French

For each country code (the number on the left of the = sign), you give it the name of another file that details the translation strings. 0 means "use this if I can't find anything more specific", so if you always want your CD to show Czech even if it runs in the UK specify it as 0=Czech for example.

This might seem to be too many steps, but it does allow people to build CDs that change language depending on which country they are running in.

The program adds the extension .scd to the string to form a filename that contains the translation strings, so in this case if running in France (country 33) it will then look for a "french.scd" file which contains the translations. In the example it would therefore use the French translation file everywhere except in Germany (country 49) where it would look for a "german.scd" file.

If for some reason the program cannot figure out which translation file to use in a particular territory or cannot find the translation file then it reverts to English.

Click below for detals of the

Translation File Format


Translation File Format

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The format of a translation file is as below (remember you can have multiple translation files to support a multi-language CD). It is basically a form of an ini file. You should be able to just cut and paste from below to give you a starter translation file. In this example we have mostly just added an "@" sign to the start of every string. The & becomes the menu "hot-key" - be careful not to duplicate hot-keys.

[Translations]

Menu.File=@&File
Menu.File.PrinterSetup=@Printer &Setup
Menu.File.Print=@&Print
Menu.File.Exit=@E&xit

Menu.Edit=@&Edit
Menu.Edit.Copy=@&Copy

Menu.View=@&View
Menu.View.SelectedProduct=@&Selected Product
Menu.View.Next=@&Next In Sequence
Menu.View.Previous=@&Previous In Sequence
Menu.View.FullScreen=@&Full Screen Screenshot

Menu.Action=@&Action
Menu.Action.Run=@&Run From CD
Menu.Action.Install=@&Install to PC
Menu.Action.CopyZip=@Copy Distribution &Zip File

Menu.Options=@&Options
Menu.Options.ContentFont=@Default &Content List Font
Menu.Options.PropFont=@Default &Proportional Font
Menu.Options.FixFont=@Default &Fixed Font
Menu.Options.WebBrowser=@Define &Web Browser
Menu.Options.Music=@&Background Music

Menu.Help=@&Help
Menu.Help.Contents=@Help Contents...
Menu.Help.HelpOnHelp=@How To Use Help
Menu.Help.OrderForm=@&Order Form...
Menu.Help.About=@&About...
Menu.Help.Licensing=@&Licensing this CD Browser...

Button.Support.Caption=@Aid
Button.Support.Left=2
Button.Support.Width=64
Button.View.Caption=@View
Button.Exit.Caption=@Exit
Button.Contents.Caption=@Contents
Button.Run.Caption=@Run
Button.Install.Caption=@Install
Button.Prev.Caption=@Prev
Button.Next.Caption=@Next
Button.Print.Caption=@Print [Translations]

Menu.File=@&File
Menu.File.PrinterSetup=@Printer &Setup
Menu.File.Print=@&Print
Menu.File.Exit=@E&xit

Menu.Edit=@&Edit
Menu.Edit.Copy=@&Copy

Menu.View=@&View
Menu.View.SelectedProduct=@&Selected Product
Menu.View.Next=@&Next In Sequence
Menu.View.Previous=@&Previous In Sequence
Menu.View.FullScreen=@&Full Screen Screenshot

Menu.Action=@&Action
Menu.Action.Run=@&Run From CD
Menu.Action.Install=@&Install to PC
Menu.Action.CopyZip=@Copy Distribution &Zip File

Menu.Options=@&Options
Menu.Options.ContentFont=@Default &Content List Font
Menu.Options.PropFont=@Default &Proportional Font
Menu.Options.FixFont=@Default &Fixed Font
Menu.Options.WebBrowser=@Define &Web Browser
Menu.Options.Music=@&Background Music

Menu.Help=@&Help
Menu.Help.Contents=@Help Contents...
Menu.Help.HelpOnHelp=@How To Use Help
Menu.Help.OrderForm=@&Order Form...
Menu.Help.About=@&About...
Menu.Help.Licensing=@&Licensing this CD Browser...

Button.Support.Caption=@Aid
Button.Support.Left=2
Button.Support.Width=64
Button.View.Caption=@View
Button.Exit.Caption=@Exit
Button.Contents.Caption=@Contents
Button.Run.Caption=@Run
Button.Install.Caption=@Install
Button.Prev.Caption=@Prev
Button.Next.Caption=@Next
Button.Print.Caption=@Print

Note you can fiddle with the width and position of the buttons, which may be necessary for long words in your language.  (We have only shown this in the case of the "Support" button but you can do it with all the buttons.)

Also note that if you enable translation you lose the "context help" (tiny button on the left) because that is very difficult to translate on the fly.

The left position and width of the buttons in the built-in English Language version are as follows:-

Support =  36,133

View = 156,77
Exit = 540,69

Contents = 152,77
Run= 232,53
Install= 288,65
Prev = 436,57
Next = 496,57
Print = 556,53


The Directories section
The [Directories] Section

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The [Directories] Section

The [Directories] section lists the sub-directories (beneath the directory that the odscd.exe program is in) which contain products to be displayed in the CD Browser's content list. Each sub-directory is searched for a products.scd file, which contains a list of the products. The section consists of one or more lines of the form

dirname=description

where the text to the left of the = sign specifies the name of a subdirectory. The text to the right of the = sign is not directly used by the OSDCD program and can contain anything the CD Designer wishes (perhaps a piece of descriptive text) but cannot be blank.

Note that you can have multiple subdirectories - useful if you are gathering material from different sources, or if different people (perhaps sub-editors on a magazine) are responsible for various parts of the content. This design allows each part to be produced and tested separately before finally pulling everything together for the production CD.

For example the following might be an appropriate [Directories] section for a CD which was to contain demos, games and music

[Directories]
demos=some commercial demos
games=games
music=musical content

Note that the order you put the directories is important - it dictates in part the sequence of products on the CD. If you have more than one directory the contents of the multiple products.scd files are simply concatenated in the order you specify them in the [Directories] section. Click below for more information on the format of the

products.scd file


The products.scd file

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

The products.scd file(s) contain a single record (maximum 255 bytes long) for each product in the particular subsection of the CD. Each record has 5 fields, separated by the ^ character. Note that any line that does not start with a numeral is considered to be a comment and ignored. Below is an example of the record for SmartDoc 95 V2.0 from this demo.

1^smtdoc20^04/09/1995^SmartDoc 95 V2.0^Windows Help File Printer

The fields have the following meanings

1 	The first field gives the "level" that the product or header will appear in the outline.  This line can either signify an actual product, or it can identify a "folder". If the line immediately following has a higher number in field 1 then this line signifies a"folder", otherwise it signifies a product.

2 	The second field gives the "name key" for the particular product. This name key is used when searching for the individual product's .scd file, and also to locate the product's Icon. Only products, and not folders have individual .scd files and icons. The name of the individual product .scd file is formed by appending the extension .scd to the "name key", and the file is expected to be in the same directory as the products.scd file. Similarly the icon file name is formed by appending the extension .ico to the "name key", and the icon file is expected to be in the same directory as the products.scd file.

3 	The third field is a no-longer used "date" field, but it must be present. The date you put in here does not matter, but it must be in dd/mm/yyyy format. Just  use 01/01/1995

4 	The fourth field gives the name of the product or folder, as it will appear in the main list box just to the right of the icon, immediately above....

5 	The fifth field gives a short description of the product which will appear underneath the name of the product in the main list box.

As many of these records can be included in the products.scd file as required.

Remember you can have multiple products.scd files in different directories (they are specified in the [Directories] section of the ODSCD.SCD file), and they are simply concatenated together and read as one when the CD starts up.


The .scd files for the individual products

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

Each product has an individual .scd file. The name is constructed from the "key name" from the product's record in the

products.scd file

with the extension .scd appended.

The individual product's .scd file has the form of an INI file (which is what it really is). There is only one section, [Details]. A typical file looks something like:-

[Details]
PreInstallMsg=Optional Preinstallation Message
Install=smtdoc20\product\install.exe
Run=smtdoc20\product\smartdoc.exe
Zip=smtdoc20\smtdoc20.zip
Tab1Data=smtdoc20\smtdoc20.htm
Tab2Data=smtdoc20\smtdoc20.bmp
Tab3Data=stdreq.htm
Tab4Data=publishr.htm

The following are the possible entries in this file (note that all file references are relative to the location of the products.scd file that pointed to this file, unless special modifiers (detailed at the bottom) are used to force the browser to treat them as relative to the root of the CD):-

TabCount=

Specifies the number of Tabs this product is to have. If not specified, the DefaultTabCount specified in the odscd.scd file is used.

Tab1=  Tab2=  etc.

These lines (you need as many as the number specified by the "TabCount" value) specify the text to appear on the tabs at the bottom of the descriptive window for the product (for example "Description", "Screen Shot" etc.). If not specified then the defaults from the ODSCD.SCD file are used instead.

Tab1Data=  Tab2Data=  etc.

These lines (you need as many as the number specified by the "TabCount" value) specify the files that contain the data to display in the Browser. The currently supported file types are .htm, .avi, .bmp or .txt

You can assign these in any combination to the tabs. The level of HTML support is effectively HTML level 3 with the exception of frames (tables are supported). Inline GIFs are not supported, because they would require a patent license from UNISYS (blame them, not us!). Inline JPEG's, Bitmaps and PNG's are supported.

PreInstallMsg=

Specifies a message that will be issued after the user presses the Install button, immediately before the Install program is executed. Can be useful for giving pasword or other details etc.

PreRunMsg=

Specifies a message that will be issued after the Run button is pressed, immediately before the Run program is executed.

Install16= and/or Install32= and/or Install=

Specifies the program that the browser is to execute when the user presses the "Install" button. The browser will determine the type of operating system it is running on (either 16 or 32 bit) and execute the file detailed on the Install16 or Install32 line as appropriate. If it can't find the appropriate line for the type of operating system then it uses the Install= line if it is present. (You would therefore use the plain Install= line if the same installer was used for all operating systems). If the CD Browser cannot locate an appropriate installer then the Install= button will be disabled. (For example, if a product is 32bit only, and you code only an Install32= line, then the Install button will be disabled on 16 bit systems.

InstallAction=

The normal action when the user presses the "Install" button is to execute the program specified on the appropriate "Install" line. However some products come with a .inf file which the user normally "right-clicks" on and he then selects the "Install" option on the resultant pop-up menu. If you want products like this to install when the user presses the "Install" button on the browser then specify InstallAction=Install and point the Install32= line to the .inf file

(Technically, the parameter specified on the InstallAction= line is used as the "action" in a call to ShellExecute, so there could possibly be other uses for this).

Run16= and/or Run32= and/or Run=

Similar to the Install= buttons, these specify the program to run when the user presses the Run button. This obviously only applies to programs that can run direct from the CD.

You can also specify something like file:filename.htm here - instead of executing a program it will execute the user's Web browser and load the specified file into it.

Zip=

Specifies the products "distribution Zip file". If present then the "Extract Zip File" menu item is enabled. This is intended for people distributing shareware to disk vendors etc. Leave the line out if you don't want to distribute the products "distribution Zip".

NoBounce=

Set this to 1 if you want the CD Browser to remain minimized even if it detects that the program it started has completed (it normally pops back up when an installer finishes for example). Sometimes Installers run as "two-parters", the first part unpacks some secondary program, starts it and then terminates. This can cause the CD Browser to pop back up in the middle of an install, which can be a little disconcerting for the user.

HideProductName=

Set this to 1 and the product name and icon will not appear above the window for this product. This can be useful for videos which can look better if nothing distracts the eye.

UseWinExec=

The CD Browser usually starts Installers etc. with a call to the Windows API function "ShellExecute". This can sometimes fail, particularly with batch files that requires parameters. Set this to 1 and it will use the alternative WinExec call, which seems to be more reliable with batch files. (we're not sure why!).

Canvas=

You can use this to specify a different "canvas" to be displayed on the left side of the browser when this product is selected. When you deselect the product the canvas will return to that specified in the odscd.scd file.

Logo=

You can use this to specify a different "logo" to be displayed on the left side of the browser when this product is selected. When you deselect the product the logo will return to that specified in the odscd.scd file.

LogoLink=

Use this to override any LogoLink specified in the main ODSCD.SCD file for this product only. Using this you can get different products with different Logos to hotlink to different Web sites.

What if I don't want file references to be relative?

Some software is badly behaved and thinks it has a right to live on a CD all by itself, and insists on being in the root directory of the CD. This is usually software from large companies who really ought to know better! In this case you can specify that the references to files on the Install= and Run= lines are relative to the root of the CD by coding two exclamation marks (!!) at the start of the file reference. For example, assuming the CD was inserted in the user's "E" drive the line

Install=!!\install.exe

would actually translate to execute the e:\install.exe file

What about passing parameters to the installer?

You can pass parameters to programs specified on the Install= or Run= lines by simply coding them after a single space following the program.

 If you need to pass the drive letter as part of the parameter (some installers, particularly crummy old DOS batch files, want to know where the CD is) you can do so by putting a ¬ as part of the parameter - it will be replaced by the drive letter the CD Browser is running from.

 If you need to pass the "home directory" (the directory that the CD browser is running from) you can use the ^ character. For example the line

Run=fmail\product\powerpnt\pptview.exe ^S\online\fmail\product\powerpnt\fm.ppt

was used on a Ziff Davis Cover CD to execute the PowerPoint viewer in the fmail\product\powerpnt subdirectory from the location of the individual .scd file, passing it as a parameter the full path of the location of the subdirectory s\online\fmail\product\powerpnt\fm.ppt from the program directory.


Hidden Keystrokes

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

A number of "hidden" keystrokes are available. To activate them you must have the lines:-

[ODSCD]
HiddenKeys=1

in your WIN.INI file. (This is to prevent users from "stumbling across them" by accident). The keystrokes are:-

Ctrl+H

This allows you to define your favorite HTML editor (for use by other hidden keystrokes).

Ctrl+E

The action of this keystroke depends on what you are looking at when you press it.

If you are looking at the contents list, and an item in the list has the focus, then it will edit the corresponding individual .scd file using NotePad.

If you are looking at a tab for an individual product, and the tab contains a bitmap it will fire up your default bitmap editor. If you are looking at some HTML then it will fire up the HTML editor you defined with Ctrl+H (above).

Ctrl+R

If you are looking at some HTML then it will reload it from disk (presumably after you have edited it with Ctrl+E). You can also cause bitmaps and HTML to reload by going "out" of the display to the content list and coming back in again.

Ctrl+X

Export. This runs through all the products on the CD and extracts all descriptions that are in HTML form and outputs them to a file in plain-text.

Ctrl+C

Consistency Check. It's vital that you use this - it's very easy to miss or forget something, particularly if you get distracted. This command causes the browser to go through every individual .scd file for every product and check that all the files that are referenced acually exist. You can watch it as it goes through, and you get a message for every file that is missing, or a "Consistency Check OK" message if everything seems to be there.


Order Form

Copyright © 1995 Oakley Data Services.
Internet http://www.smartcode.com or info@smartcode.com

This page could contain an order form if you developed your own Help File to accompany your CD. It has a context_id of 100 which matches the context_id that will be requested by the Order Form option in the Help Menu if you have enabled it.