Overview

InstaFiles is multitasking management software that works as your desktop assistant.

•	It helps you easily find and work with all of the open documents, including files, web pages, and folders.

•	It displays a thumbnail image for each active document. This allows you to see the window you want and bring it forward with a single click.

•	It lets you group documents into Projects. This allows you to quickly open all documents related to a project with a single click.

Notice at the bottom of the screen are two tabs:

•	Document Tab displays a thumbnail of all documents that are open and not associated with an open project.

•	Project Tab displays a thumbnail of all documents that are associated with the opened project.

Take a few moments and walk through a quick tour of the application.


Creating a New Project

When you first launch InstaFiles, the Project tab opens with a new untitled project.  To create a new project, you must first move at least one document into the project folder. You can then save the project with a filename that you specify.

Next Step:  Show me how to add a document to the project.


Adding Documents to the Project

You can add multiple documents of different application types to a project.  For example, if you are working on a project that requires two Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and one Microsoft Word document, you can move each of these documents to the project folder when the files are open, and you see the thumbnail of the documents on the InstaFiles desktop.

To add documents to a project:

1	Right-click a thumbnail of the document you want to move into the project folder.

2	Click Move to Project.

Next Step:  Show me how to save the project.


Moving Between Documents

When you first launch InstaFiles, thumbnails of all open documents are displayed on the Documents tab.  As you open and close documents, the thumbnails are updated. You can choose to have two additional tabs view the thumbnails for Web browsers and other applications. Up to 30 thumbnails can be displayed on a tab.

To move between documents:

While viewing the InstaFiles desktop, click the thumbnail of the file you want to access.  Alternately, you can right-click the InstaFiles icon in the system tray and select a document.

Next Step:  Show me how to create a project.


Saving the Project
Saving the Project:

To save the project:

1	On the File menu, click Save. The Save Project As dialog box displays.

2	In the Save Project As field, enter a name for the project.

3	Click Save.

Next Step:  Show me how to close the project.


Closing the Project

To close an opened project:

1	Click New Project.   If the opened project has not been saved, a dialog box prompts if you want to save the changes.

2	Click Yes.

Final Step: Show me the right-click options.


Using the Right-Click Options

When you right-click a thumbnail of an open document, a pop-up menu displays the following options:

•	Update Image

•	Move to Project

•	Move to Front

•	Move to End

•	Move to Others

•	Move to Web Browsers

•	Keep this View

•	Do Not Show

To open a shortcut menu:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select an option from the list.


Update Image

The Update Image option refreshes the thumbnail image of a single document.  To update all images, use the Update Image icon on the toolbar.

To update an image using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Update Image.


Move to Project

The Move to Project option moves a single document from the Documents, Web Browsers, or Others tabs to the Project tab.  You can also move a document to a project using the To Project icon on the toolbar.

To move a document to the Project tab using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to Project.


Move to Document

The Move to Document option moves a single document from the Project, Web Browsers, and Others tabs to the Documents tab.   You can also move a document from the Project tab to the Document tab with the From Project icon on the toolbar.

To move a file to the Document tab using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to Document.


Move to Others

The Move to Others option moves a single document from the Project, Web Browsers, or Documents tabs to the Others tab.

To move a document to the Others tab using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to Others.


Move, To Web Browsers;Web Browsers, Move to
Move to Web Browsers

The Move to Web Browsers option moves a single document from the Documents, Project, or Others tabs to the Web Browsers tab.

To move a document to the Web Browsers tab using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to Web Browsers.


Move to Front

The Move to Front option changes the order of the thumbnails on the tab folders, by moving the selected document to the beginning of the list of documents.

To move a document to the front of the list using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to Front.


Move to End

The Move to End option changes the order of the thumbnails on the tab folders, by moving the selected document to the end of the list of documents.

To move a document to the end of the list using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Move to End.


Keep This View

The Keep This View option disables a thumbnail from updating when the document is updated.

To keep this view using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Keep This View. The option becomes checked on the menu.

3	To deselect this option, repeat the procedure and the option becomes unchecked.


Do Not Show

The Do Not Show option hides a thumbnail view. Use the Undo Hide option on the View menu to redisplay the thumbnail.

To hide a thumbnail using the right-click option:

1	Move the mouse over a thumbnail and click the right mouse button.

2	Select Do Not Show.


File Menu

You can use either of these methods to choose a command from the File menu.

To use a mouse:

•	Click File, and then click the command you want to use.

To use the Alt key on your keyboard:

•	Each menu contains an underlined letter. Hold down the Alt key while you press the underlined character. For example, to open the File menu, press Alt+F.

Related Topics:

New Project

Open Project

Save Project

Save Project As

Exit


New Project

The New Project option clears the Project tab of any documents and creates a new unnamed project.  If an opened project has changes to be saved, a dialog box prompts to save those changes first.

To create a new project:

•	On the File Menu, choose New Project, or

•	On the keyboard, enter Ctrl+N, or

•	On the toolbar, click the New Project icon.


Open Project

The Open Project option opens a project that has already been created and saved.

To open a project:

1	On the File Menu, choose Open Project.

2	On the Open Project dialog box, double-click the project you want to open in the Projects window.  The name of the documents pointing to that project display in the Project Files window.

3	Click Open Project.


Delete Project

The Open Project dialog box has an option to delete a project that has been created and saved. The documents pointing to the project are not deleted; only the project file is deleted.

To delete a project:

1	On the File Menu, choose Open Project.

2	On the Open Project dialog box, double-click the project you want to delete in the Projects window.  The name of the documents pointing to that project display in the Project Files window.

3	Click Delete Project.


Save Project

The Save Project option saves the links to the documents on the Project tab as a new project with a name that you specify.  The documents are not saved with this option; only the project is saved.

To save a project:

1	On the File Menu, choose Save Project.

2	On the Save Project As dialog box, enter a name up to 25 alphanumeric characters to describe the project

3	Click Save Project.


Save Project As

The Save Project As option saves a project with a new name that you specify.

To save a project with a new name:

1	On the File Menu, choose Save Project As.

2	On the Save Project As dialog box, enter a name up to 25 alphanumeric characters to describe the project

3	Click Save Project.


Exit

To exit InstaFiles choose:

•	On the File menu, choose Exit, or

•	On the keyboard, type Ctl+Q


View Menu

You can use either of these methods to choose a command from the View menu.

To use a mouse:

•	Click View, and then click the command you want to use.

To use the Alt key on your keyboard:

•	Each menu contains an underlined letter. Hold down the Alt key while you press the underlined character. For example, to open the Update All Images, press Alt+U.

Related Topics:

Update All Images

Image Update Frequency

Do Not Display Folders

2 Tabs / 4 Tabs

Text Labels in Toolbar

Undo Hide


Update All Images;Images, Update All
Update All Images

The Update All Images option refreshes the thumbnails of all documents with a single click.  To update individual images, use the Update Image icon on the toolbar, or the right-click option.

To update all images:

•	On the View menu, choose Update All Images, or

•	Click the Update Image icon on the toolbar and select All.


Image Update Frequencey
Image Update Frequency

Thumbnail images automatically update to show changes to the document as you work.  The Image Update Frequency option allows you to choose one of the following options:

•	Frequent Image Updates

•	Minimal Image Updates

•	No Auto Image Updates

To set the image update frequency:

•	On the Settings menu, choose Image Update Frequency and then select one of the update options.


Do Not Display Folders

InstaFiles allows you to choose whether or not to display thumbnails for folders that are open.  The default setting does not show folders.

To display folders:

•	On the View menu, choose Do Not Display Folders.  The option is unchecked to show that it is enabled.

•	To disable the folders from displaying, choose the Do Not Display Folders option again.


2 Tabs / 4 Tabs

InstaFiles allows you to choose how many tabs you want to display the thumbnails associated with the documents you have open.  The default configuration is two tabs: Documents and Projects.  You can choose to have two additional tabs: Web Browsers and Others. When four tabs are selected, thumbnails for applications like Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator display on the Web Browser tab instead of the Documents tab. Applications that have a single file, like Notepad, WinZip, or Telnet are displayed on the Others tab.

To switch from two tabs to four tabs:

•	On the View menu, choose 4 Tabs.

To switch from four tabs to two tabs:

•	On the View menu, choose 2 Tabs.


Text Labels in Toolbar

InstaFiles allows you to configure the toolbar icons to display with or without the text labels. The Text Labels in Toolbar option is a toggle that disables/enables this feature.

To View the Text Labels on the toolbar icons:

•	On the View menu, choose Text Labels in Toolbar.  The option is checked to show that it is enabled.

•	To disable the text labels, choose the Text Labels in Toolbar option again.


Undo Hide

The Undo Hide option is grayed out until a thumbnail has been hidden with the Do Not Show option.  Once a thumbnail has been hidden, you can redisplay it with the Undo Hide option.

To redisplay a hidden thumbnail:

•	On the View menu, choose Undo Hide.  All hidden thumbnails redisplay.


Settings Menu

You can use either of these methods to choose a command from the Settings menu.

To use a mouse:

•	Click Settings, and then click the command you want to use.

To use the Alt key on your keyboard:

•	Each menu contains an underlined letter. Hold down the Alt key while you press the underlined character. For example, to open Archive on Double Click, press Alt+D.

Related Topics:

Activate on Double Click

Do Not Load Images on Start Up


Activate on Double Click

InstaFiles allows you to choose whether to activate a window with a single click or a double click on the thumbnail.  The default setting is a single click.

To activate a window with a double click:

•	On the Settings menu, choose Activate on Double Click.  The option is checked to show that it is enabled.

•	To disable this feature and activate with a single click, choose the Activate on Double Click option again.


Do Not Load Images on Start Up

When you first launch InstaFiles, the thumbnails for all open documents are automatically displayed.  InstaFiles allows you to disable the feature so that only document icons are displayed upon the launch of the application. The icons are then replaced by thumbnails as documents are updated.

To stop images from loading on start up:

•	On the Settings menu, choose Do Not Load Images on Start Up.  The option is checked to show that it is enabled.

•	To disable this feature, choose the Do Not Load Images on Start Up option again.


Toolbar

The toolbar provides quick access to frequently used menu commands.  The default setting shows the toolbar icon and text labels for each command.  You can turn Text Labels in Toolbar on and off with the View menu option.

New Project
Open Project
Save Project
Update Image
To Project
From Project
Refresh Project
System Tray Icon


New Project

The New Project option clears the Project tab of any documents and creates a new unnamed project.  If an opened project has changes to be saved, a dialog box prompts to save those changes first.

To create a new project:

On the toolbar, click the New Project icon.


Open Project

The Open Project icon lets you open a project that has already been created and saved.

To open a project:

1	On the toolbar, click the Open Project icon.

2	On the Open Project dialog box, double-click the project you want to open in the Projects window.  The name of the documents pointing to that project appear in the Project Files window.

3	Click Open Project.


Save Project

The Save Project icon lets you save the links to the documents on the Project tab as a new project with a name that you specify.  The documents are not saved with this option; only the project is saved.

To save a project:

1	On the toolbar, click the Save Project icon

2	On the Save Project As dialog box, enter a name up to 25 alphanumeric characters to describe the project

3	Click Save Project.


Update Image

The Update Image icon refreshes all or selected documents with a single click.

To update all images:

1	On the toolbar, click the Update Image icon.  A drop-down box displays All and a list of open documents.

2	Click All.

To update selected images:

1	On the toolbar, click the Update Image icon.  A drop-down box displays All and a list of open documents.

2	Click the document you want to update.


To Project

The To Project icon moves selected documents from the Documents, Web Browsers, or Others tabs to the Project tab.

To move a document to a project:

1	On the toolbar, click the To Project icon. A drop-down box displays a list of open documents in the Documents, Web Browsers, and Others tabs.

2	Click the document you want to move to the Project tab.

Related Topics:

Changing between 2 Tabs / 4 Tabs


From Project

The From Project icon moves selected documents from the open project to the Documents, Web Browsers, or Others tabs.

To move a document to a project:

1	On the toolbar, click the From Project icon. A drop-down box displays a list of documents in the open project.	.

2	Click the document you want to move out of the project.


Refresh Project

The Refresh Project option verifies if any thumbnails are missing from the Project tab.  If a thumbnail is missing, it is moved back into the project.

To refresh a project:

•	On the toolbar, click the Refresh Project icon.


System Tray Icon

The InstaFiles icon in the System Tray provides a quick drop-down list of all open documents.

The System Tray is on the bottom of the screen to the right of the Task Bar.  The InstaFiles icon will be near the clock.

To select a document from the system tray icon:

1	Right-click the InstaFiles icon in the system tray. A list of open documents appears.

2	Select the document you want to bring forward.