PowerMenu Documentation

PowerMenu 1.51 Readme (23 November 2002)

By Thong Nguyen (Tum)

    tum@veridicus.com
    http://tummy.veridicus.com
    http://www.veridicus.com/tummy/programming/powermenu

Introduction

PowerMenu adds some new useful extensions to the window (aka system) menu of application windows.

The current extensions include:

Priority	Changes the priority of the window's parent process
Transparency	Changes the transparency level of the window (Windows 2K/XP only)
Always On Top	Makes the window sit on top of other windows even if it doesn't have focus.
Minimize To Tray	Remove the window from the task-list and places the window's on the system tray.

You can find out about new versions from here: http://www.veridicus.com/tummy/programming/powermenu.

Webmasters - can you email me and let me know if you're mirroring PowerMenu so I can notify you when there's a new version. Thanks.

Installation

Download and then unzip the archive into any directory you wish (I recommend C:\Program Files\PowerMenu)
Double click on PowerMenu.exe to run PowerMenu.
If you want, create a shortcut to PowerMenu and put it in your Startup folder so PowerMenu starts up automatically.
Enjoy :).

Uninstalling

Simple delete the installation directory. PowerMenu doesn't place files or settings anywhere else.

Command Line Options

You can supply command line options to PowerMenu to perform additional tasks.

The command line options can be specified in a windows shortcut by appending the options to the target field
of the shortcut. You can find the target field in the shortcut tab of the shortcut's properties page. A shortcut's
shortcut's property page can be accessed by right clicking on the shortcut and selecting properties.

An example target for a shortcut that will start PowerMenu without it showing itself on the system tray could look
like this:

"C:\Program Files\PowerMenu\PowerMenu.exe" -hideself on

Options

-quiet

When used, PowerMenu will not display any message boxes.

-close

Tells PowerMenu to exit and release all windows that are minimized to the tray.

-about

Shows the about box.

-help

Shows this readme.

-hideself [on | off]

Tells PowerMenu whether or not to display an icon of it self on the system tray.

Example:

PowerMenu -hideself on

Tells PowerMenu to not show itself on the system tray.

-minimized [on | off] title

Minimize or unmiminize the window with the title "title" to the system tray. PowerMenu must already be running.

Example:

PowerMenu -minimized on "Notepad"

This will make all windows with the word "Notepad" in its title minimize to the system tray.

-topmost [on | off | toggle] title

Make a window "always on top". PowerMenu must already be running.

PowerMenu -topmost on "Notepad"

Example:

This will make all windows with the word "Notepad" in its title appear on top of other windows.

-transparency name level

Sets the transparency level of a window. PowerMenu must already be running.

PowerMenu -transparency "Notepad" 50

This will make the all windows with the word "Notepad" in its title be 50% transparent.

-enable [priority | transparency | alwaysontop | minimizetotray]

Enables a PowerMenu extension. Every application window's system menu will have an extra menu item for each enabled extension. By default, PowerMenu starts up with all extensions enabled.

Examples:

PowerMenu -enable priority

Enables the priority menu and adds it to every application's system menu.

-disable [priority | transparency | alwaysontop | minimizetotray]

Disables a PowerMenu extension. Every application window's system menu will have an extra menu item for each enabled extension. By default, PowerMenu starts up with all extensions enabled.

Examples:

PowerMenu -disable priority

Disables the priority menu and removes it from every application's system menu.

Release history

Version	Date	Comments
1.5.1	23 November 2002	Fixed some documentation mistakes. Changed contact email address. This will be the last 1.x release before PowerMenu2.
1.5.0	05 Aug 2001	Removed command line options (visible, invisible, hide, toggleontop). Added command line options (selfhidden, hidden, topmost).
1.4.5	27 May 2001	Fixed some Windows 95 related bugs. Added new command line options (enable, disable, visible, invisible). Removed command line option hidden (use visible/invisible instead).
1.4.0	25 May 2001	Fixed ghost PowerMenu window appearing when left clicking on tray icon. Added new command line options (hide, unhide, transparency, quiet, toggleontop).
1.3.1	20 May 2001	Fixed multiple priority menus appearing in Windows 95 (I think).
1.3.0	?? ??? 2001	Released to the public after two years of no development ...oops :).

License

PowerMenu is free software. If you want to use PowerMenu, you must accept the following:

You choose to use PowerMenu at your own risk.
You can not hold me liable for anything it may do to your system (or life).
You may not resell PowerMenu for profit.
You may redistribute PowerMenu, but only in its entirety.

Donations

If you'd like to make a donation, please visit the PowerMenu website. http://www.veridicus.com/tummy/programming/powermenu.

Thanks :-)