Inside Multimedia 1994 April

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NeoBook (TM) Electronic Publisher Version 1.1 ------------ User's Guide ------------ NeoBook opens a new publishing medium. Most of today's computer systems contain color, sound, and graphical capabilities - the tools for new ways of communicating ideas. As the price of diskettes has dropped and with the ever wider use of networks, computer-based communications have become cost-competitive with traditional publishing forms. And, though the computer book or magazine is not ready to completely replace printed books and magazines (you might find one of today's computers unwieldy while sitting in the garden or in a favorite chair), electronic publications offer possibilities not provided by traditional print media, such as sound, color, page linking, pop-up images and text, and instant access to related information. And electronic publications may be shipped using lightweight, compact, reusable, inexpensive diskettes, which are not as readily discarded by the reader or even distributed via modem over ordinary telephone lines. Possibilities for NeoBook applications include brochures, newsletters, catalogs, interactive books and magazines, educational materials, sales tracts or speakers' aides, etc. Hardware requirements --------------------- To use NeoBook, you will need the following: - IBM PC, XT, AT, PS/2 or 100% compatible computer - EGA, VGA or compatible graphics card and monitor - 640K minimum RAM - A hard disk - MS-DOS, PC-DOS or DR-DOS 3.1 or higher version - Microsoft, Logitech or compatible mouse - Sound Blaster compatible audio card (optional NeoBook Pro only.) Starting NeoBook ---------------- For the steps below, we assume that you have already installed NeoBook in the directory C:\NEOBOOK, which is the default directory used by the install program. If you installed NeoBook into a different directory, then substitute that name for C:\NEOBOOK below. 1.) In order for your mouse to work within NeoBook, your mouse driver (usually MOUSE.COM) must be loaded before accessing NeoBook. Please refer to your mouse's user manual for more information regarding configuring your mouse. 2.) From the DOS prompt (C:\), type CD\NEOBOOK and press Enter. This will place you in the NeoBook directory. 3.) Now type NEOBOOK and press Enter. If you wish to make changes to NeoBook's configuration, you may change the settings by selecting SET PREFERENCES from the OPTIONS menu. Operating NeoBook ----------------- In this section, we will take a look at the function of various parts of the NeoBook menu. Users who are familiar with graphical interfaces may wish to skip this section and proceed directly to the description of Menu Functions which follows. When you activate NeoBook, you will be presented with the program's main screen, which contains menu buttons along the top and a box holding various tool icons. --- Keyboard Shortcuts --- Note that many commands have one letter in their description underlined. To select these commands, you simply hold down the ALT key while typing the letter corresponding to the command you wish to activate. On the menu, some commands have their keyboard shortcuts listed to the right of the description line. You may also move between items in dialog boxes by using the TAB key to move between options. A highlight, appearing as a moving box, surrounds the current item. Once the command you wish to use has been highlighted, press the SPACE bar to select or activate. At other times, you may need to select an item from a list. You may use the ARROW, PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN keys to scroll through the list. Once an item is highlighted, press the ENTER key to select that item. --- Mouse Operation --- Using the mouse requires that you load Microsoft or Logitech compatible mouse driver software before starting NeoBook. If a mouse is present, a small mouse pointer (arrow) will appear on your screen. Simply move the pointer to the desired command or option and click the left mouse button to select or activate. --- Screen Features --- NeoBook's menus contain several types of controls used to select, enable or deactivate various features. - Command Buttons: These are buttons which activate commands or bring up submenus. To select a command option, either click the button with a mouse or hold down the Alt key and press the underlined letter in the title of the desired command. - Check Box: These controls appear as small boxes. Activate/deactivate the option by holding down the ALT key and pressing the underlined letter, or by clicking inside the box with a mouse. A check mark will appear to show that the corresponding option has been selected. - Drop Down List: Lists are used to allow you to choose from a large group of options, such as a list of file names or colors. Items which contain lists have a small, downward pointing arrow button to the right of the description. The list may be displayed by clicking on the small arrow with your mouse, or, from the keyboard, either highlighting the item using the TAB key and pressing the SPACE bar or by simultaneously pressing the ALT key and the underlined letter in the option title. The item inside the red box represents the currently active item on the list. From the keyboard, use the UP/DOWN arrow keys, the PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN keys, and the HOME and END keys to move the selector highlight to the desired item, then press ENTER to choose it. You may also use the mouse to scroll through the list and select an item. Clicking the scroll bar to the right of the list will move the window one item at a time. Clicking and dragging the Scroll button up or down allows you to scroll quickly through the list. You may also scroll one page at a time by clicking the shaded area between the arrow buttons and the scroll button. - Error Message: At times, you may be presented with an error message, requiring that you merely acknowledge its existence by pressing ENTER or clicking the mouse. - Text Box: Text boxes are used to enter information such as file names, time intervals, etc. If the menu or dialog box contains more than one text box, press the TAB key to move to the one you want. If you have a mouse, click the desired text field. - Radio Pushbutton: These appear as diamond shaped depressions next to a description of the option. This type of button is always found in groups. Select the option in the group that you want to use. Only one radio button per group may be selected at a time. Select the desired option by holding down the ALT key and pressing the button's underlined letter or by clicking the item with the mouse. The button will turn red (darkened on monochrome displays) to show that the option is activated. - Page Control: Use the page control to move between pages within your publication. The center icon jumps to the Master Page. The arrow pointing right goes to the next page, while the arrow pointing to the left goes to the previous page. The arrow with a bar on the right jumps to the last page, while the arrow and bar on the left jumps to the first page. - Nudge Control: The nudge control is used to move the selected item(s) one pixel at a time. Click on the side of the control pointing in the direction the item(s) are to be moved. Hold down the Shift key to move the selected items continuously. - Title Bar: The title bar lists the contents of the dialog box. You may use your mouse to move the entire box to a new location by clicking on the title bar and dragging to a new location. Menu Commands ------------- The Menu Bar lies along the top of the screen and contains a row of menu buttons (described below), the Page Control buttons, and a Counter which tells you the current page number and the total number of pages in the publication. --- The File Button Menu --- Options under this command are used to load and save publications, to access the DOS operating system, and to exit NeoBook. - New: Use this option to load a fresh publication containing no text or other elements. - Open: If you have saved previous NeoBook presentations, you may load one of these using the OPEN option. The dialog below will appear to allow you to select the file name corresponding to the desired publication. NOTE: If the desired publication file is in a drive or directory other than the current drive/directory, you may select a new drive using the DRIVES drop-down list. Directories may be selected from the DIRECTORIES box. Simply click on any subdirectory listed to go to that directory. Clicking on the folder icon which is followed by a backslash (\) will take you to the drive's root directory. Clicking on the folder icon which is followed by two periods (..) will take you to the previous directory in the tree from which the current directory has branched. See your DOS documentation for additional information on directory trees. You may also use the Search command button to find a specific file. Simply type in the name of the file to look for, or use the DOS wild-card characters if you only know part of the file name. - Save: This option saves the storyboard with all changes you have made during your current session. If you have not named your presentation, you will be prompted to supply a name. - Save As: If you wish to save a new or make a copy of an existing publication, use this option to supply a new name. The new file name may contain up to eight valid DOS characters (valid DOS characters include A-Z, 0-9, _, ^, $, ~, !, #, %, &, -, {}, (), @, ', ` with no spaces, commas, periods or backslashes in the name). NeoBook will assign a three letter extension PUB to your publication filename. If you wish to store the file on a different drive or directory, precede the filename with the correct drive and path (or select using the drop down list button). - DOS Shell: If you would like to briefly jump to DOS, without leaving NeoBook, you may use the DOS Shell option to run your DOS program(s). To return to NeoBook, simply type "EXIT" at the DOS command prompt. This will save you a bit of time reloading your publication when you briefly need access to DOS in order to run another application, erase or rename a file, etc. ***Remember, you must type "EXIT" to return to NeoBook *** - Exit: To leave NeoBook, select this option. --- The Edit Menu Button --- The options under this command button allow you to create and modify graphics files, and to copy, remove and select items already included. - Undo: Select this option to "undo" the last command. Some commands, however, cannot be undone, these include: adding, deleting and moving pages; palette modifications; Preferences; and events that occur in other programs. The Undo command can use a lot of memory, so in low memory situations you may want to disable the Undo function by selecting Preferences/Miscellaneous in the Options menu. - Cut: Use this option to remove the currently selected item(s) to NeoBook's clipboard. From the clipboard, you may Paste the item(s) to a new location or onto a different page. - Copy: This option will copy the currently selected (highlighted) item(s) onto the clipboard without removing them from the current location. Use the Paste command to place copies of the objects. - Paste: This option places the item(s) currently on the clipboard (see Cut and Copy) onto the current page. Selecting this option alone will place the item(s) in the center of the current page. Pressing the CTRL key while using Paste will place the item(s) at the same coordinates occupied before being placed on the clipboard. - Delete: This option eliminates the selected item(s) without placing them onto the clipboard. Use Delete when you wish to erase items and preserve the last item Cut or Copied to the clipboard. - Select All: Use this option to select all elements on the current page. - Create/Edit Article: When placing a text frame using the Article tool, you are given the option of choosing an existing ASCII text file. After selecting a text frame, you may use this option to edit an existing file, using your favorite word processor. If no item is selected, this option allows you to create a new file. The word processor which you will be using must have first been linked to NeoBook by selecting its DOS command file using the Options/Set Preferences/Miscellaneous. Note: You should be sure to save the text in ASCII or DOS Text format. Your word processor's documentation contains instructions on how to do this. - Create/Edit Image: When placing an image frame using the Picture tool, you are given the option of choosing an existing PCX or GIF format image file. After selecting any image frame, you may use this option to edit an existing picture, using your favorite paint program. If a graphic frame is not selected, this option allows you to create a new file. The paint program which you will be using must have first been linked to NeoBook by selecting its DOS command file using the Options/Set Preferences/Miscellaneous. Note: If necessary, you should convert your picture so that it contains a maximum of 2, 16 or 256 colors before saving it. This will save space on your disk and will allow the widest number of readers to view the image. Also to save space, you may wish to reduce the scale (size) of the picture to approximately match the size which will be displayed in your publication. Most paint and image editing programs will allow you to easily make these adjustment. You should be sure to save your picture in either a PCX or GIF format. Your paint program's documentation should contain instructions on how to do this. - Create/Edit Sound File: When placing a button using the Button tool, you are given the option of choosing an existing audio files for playback on a Sound Blaster compatible sound card (VOC format files) or on the PC's built-in speaker (SNG format files). After selecting a button which has been set up to play a sound file, you may use this option to edit a sound file to be attached to this button, using your favorite audio software. If a button containing audio has not been selected, this command will allow you to create a file. The sound software which you will be using must have first been linked to NeoBook by selecting its DOS command file using the Options/Set Preferences/Miscellaneous. For playback on Sound Blaster compatible systems, the software must be capable of writing a VOC (voice) format file. SNG format files may be edited using any word processor which is capable of saving an ASCII (DOS text) format text file. - Adjust Object: This command allows you to modify the location (X,Y) and size (W,H) of a selected object. If multiple objects are selected, then only the X and Y coordinates may be changed. You may also invoke the Adjust Object command by holding down the Control key and clicking the right mouse button on an object. - Edit Object: Use this option to change the file assignment and other attributes attached to a Button, Article frame or Picture frame. Mouse shortcut: click on an object using the right mouse button to edit the object's attributes. --- Arrange Menu Button --- Commands under this button allow you to control selected objects or groups of objects. You may select an object by clicking on it with a mouse, whereupon it will be surrounded by black boxes located at each control point. Select multiple objects by either dragging the mouse to surround the objects you wish to select, or by holding down the SHIFT key while clicking once on each of the desired elements. Clicking a second time on any object while holding down the SHIFT will deselect that item. - Bring to Front: This command places the selected element(s) on top of all other objects in the current page. - Send to Back: This command places the selected element(s) in back of all other objects in the current page. - Align: When more than one object has been selected, you may use this command to align all the selected objects to the top, bottom, left right or center of the page. Clicking on the Relative check box will align all selected objects to that object closest to the axis which has been selected (e.g., selecting a Left axis will align all selected objects to the object farthest to the left). Leaving Relative unchecked will cause objects to align to the page itself. - Group: This command will group all selected objects so that they can be moved, cut, copied or deleted as a single element. - Ungroup: This command breaks apart grouped objects. --- The Page Menu Button --- The options under this command button are used to set parameters for the page(s) onto which you place the elements making up your publication. - Goto: Selecting this option brings up a dialog which allows you to jump to any page in your publication. This is particularly useful for publications having many pages it is often easier to use the Page Control icon buttons to move one or two pages or to go to the first or last page. If the Display Thumbnails box is checked, a much reduced picture of each page in the publication will be displayed. Simply click on the page to which you desire to go. - Goto Master Page: Use this option to switch to the Master Page which contains buttons and other objects which are to be displayed on most pages. The center button on the Page Control icon buttons will also take you to the Master Page. - Insert: This function will allow you to insert one or more new pages into the publication, either following or preceding the current page. - Delete: This function deletes the current page. You may also insert and delete pages using the Page Layout command. - Attributes: Selecting Attributes will bring up the dialog illustrated below. Use the Solid Color palette to select a solid color background for the page. If you prefer to use a PCX or GIF format image as a background, you may type in the name of the file to use as Wallpaper (or click on the arrow to the right to browse through your files to select an image). Checking the Show Items from Master Page box will place the buttons and other objects which were set up on the Master Page into the current page. Finally, you may use Copy to All Pages to place the attributes you have selected for this page onto every page in the publication. NOTE: Images which are smaller than the screen size will be tiled to fill the screen. This can produce an interesting, patterned backdrop using only a small image file. - Show Master Items: Selecting this options toggles use of command buttons and other objects from the Master Page. If this menu item is checked, the objects on the Master Page will be displayed on the current page of the publication. --- The Book Menu Button --- The commands under this button control the overall settings for each publication. - Page Layout: This option controls the layout of your publication. You may reorder the pages within the publication by clicking on the page to be moved and dragging it to a new location. Use the Insert command button to add new pages and the Delete command button to delete the selected page. The Copy command will insert a copy of the selected page immediately following that page. Checking the Show Thumbnails box will display miniatures of the pages which make up your publication. - Set Palette: You may adjust the individual colors in the currently loaded palette using this command. Slider bars for Red, Green, Blue and Brightness may be adjusted to mix a new color. Since the RGB color model used to produce colored light on a computer screen differs somewhat from other methods of mixing colors, you may get unexpected results at first. The following settings may be used to obtain commonly used colors: Red = Red to right, other bars to left Green = Green to right, other bars to left Blue = Blue to right, other bars to left Yellow = Red and Green to right, Blue to left Magenta = Blue and Red to right, Green to left Cyan = Green and Blue to right, Red to left White = All bars to right Black = All bars to left - Book Setup: This menu selection allows you to set several options for the final publication. Screen Size allows you to produce a publication which will be displayed on computers which use a different resolution (e.g., you may prefer to work on an 800x600 display, but most of your readers will be using 640x480 VGA displays. Thus you would select a 640x480 resolution here). Check the Allow ESC key to exit box if you wish your readers to be able to exit the compiled publication by using the ESC key. To allow your audience to use the PC's cursor keys to change pages, place a check in the Allow Page Up/Page Down/Home/End keys box. The Author field may be used to identify the person who created the publication. - Archive: With the variety of file types and locations which may be imported to build your publication, it may be difficult to recall the names of all these files and where they are stored. If you wish to copy all the files used to create your publication for backup or other purposes, this function will make a copy of all these files onto a diskette or other drive. - File List: This menu item is used to print a list of all files used in the currently loaded publication. - Run: Use this command to run your electronic publication. This will allow you to see how the buttons work, preview audio, etc. - Compile: Once you are satisfied with your publication, you will want to compile it so that it may be distributed to others or transported for use on another computer. The compiled program will even work on computers which do not have NeoBook installed. You will be asked for a name for the executable (EXE) command file which will be produced. The file name may contain up to eight valid DOS characters (valid DOS characters include A-Z, 0-9, "_" (underscore) with no spaces, commas, periods or backslashes in the name). NeoBook will assign a three letter extension "EXE" to your compiled publication filename. If you wish to store the file on a different drive or directory, precede the filename with the correct drive and path (or select using the drop down list button). --- The Options Menu Button --- Settings controlling how certain NeoBook features will work are set using the options under this button. - Show Grid: Selection of this menu item toggles display of the grid. Grid Spacing is controlled using the Set Grid function. - Snap to Grid: When this menu item is checked, objects which are moved or drawn onto the publication's work space will snap to the nearest grid point. This is useful for lining up several items exactly. Use the Set Grid function to control the spacing. -Show Mouse Position: This command displays a small movable window that shows the current mouse position relative the page size. When adding or sizing objects the windows displays the width and height of the object. To turn off the Mouse Coordinates, select the Show Mouse Position command again. - Set Grid: You may set the grid in one pixel increments, both horizontally and vertically. A Pixel is a single dot on the screen. - Set Preferences: NeoBook allows you to change the following default settings: - Video Display: The Working Video Mode drop down list will allow you to specify the screen resolution you wish to use when creating new publications. This does not need to be the same as the mode used for the slide show. You may always create new publications in another mode by setting the Video Mode. Note that the selections you will find on the Working Video Mode drop down list represent only those modes available for your monitor and video card which are supported by NeoBook. - Directories: The Text Editor field is used to tell NeoBook the location of and command for your ASCII text editor or word processor. If you cannot recall the location or command, clicking on the arrow to the right of the field will allow you to search through your DOS directories. The program you specify here will be used to create and edit articles for the publication. The Text Editor used should be able to write to an ASCII (DOS text) file. The Image Editor field is used to tell NeoBook the location and command for the paint program or image editor you wish to use to create and edit the pictures used in your publications. If you cannot recall the location and command, clicking on the arrow to the right of the field will allow you to browse through your DOS directories. The Image Editor which you specify should be capable of saving images in 2, 16 or 256 colors and in the PCX or GIF file format(s). The Sound Editor field is used in NeoBook Professional to specify the command and location for the editor which you will use to create audio for use in your publications. If you cannot recall the location and command, clicking on the arrow to the right of the field will allow you to search through your DOS directories. The editor selected should be capable of saving audio in the VOC file format (for playback on Sound Blaster compatible hardware) and/or as ASCII text (for playback of SNG format files using the PC's built-in speaker). The Font Directory field is used to specify where on your computer the font files are stored. Leaving this field blank assumes that all fonts which you intend to use are stored in the same directory as NeoBook. NeoBook can use fonts in the GFT format (the same as for the GEM screen font format). The Temp Directory is where NeoBook will store temporary files while it is operating. You may designate any valid directory on your system, or you may check the box below to allow NeoBook to use the directory which DOS uses to write temporary files. Miscellaneous: Swap Left and Right Mouse Buttons allows you to use the right mouse button instead of the left to select and drag items. Left handed and ambidextrous persons may find operating NeoBook with the mouse buttons switched to be more intuitive. This feature is on when this box is checked. Create Backup Files will, if checked, enable you to recover a publication file if the last saved version has been corrupted or contains unwanted edits. If this feature is enabled, NeoBook will make a backup file (having the .BAK extension instead of .PUB) which contains any previously saved version of your presentation. If you wish to make changes to an existing publication which you may wish to use in the future, use the Save As function to assign a new name to your edited version. Text and image files modified by other programs are not affected by this option. Beep When Error Occurs audibly alerts you to errors and invalid actions when this box is checked. Memory: NeoBook will attempt to use all the free Memory which is available in your system. If for some reason you need to keep NeoBook from accessing one of the types of memory available on your system, you may do so by de-selecting the corresponding box. Note, however, that it is strongly recommended that you NOT limit NeoBook's access to memory. Doing this may slow down your system while working in NeoBook. In any case, NeoBook needs some memory you should not uncheck all the Memory boxes. --- The Help Button --- Use the options under the Help button to obtain information about NeoBook and your system. - Help: You are currently viewing the Help text. - View README.DOC file: Selecting this option will display the README.DOC file. This document may contain late breaking information concerning the program which was inserted after the manual went to press. - System Info: This option brings up a dialog which shows some of the equipment which NeoBook found attached to your computer. Included are the video card type, video card chip set, available video memory, sound card, and your monitor type. - About NeoBook: This final option contains copyright and other data concerning NeoBook. The Tool Palette ---------------- The Tool Palette is a bar containing icons (small pictures) representing how each tool functions. Initially, the palette is located on the left side of the screen, but may be repositioned by clicking on the title bar and dragging the palette to a new location. A button at the bottom of the bar (labeled Palette) is used to expand the palette to display additional options, or to collapse the palette to display just the main icons. --- The Selector Tool --- The Selector tool is used to choose, resize, and move items which have been placed onto a page. Using commands from the menu, selected items may also be deleted, copied, etc. Using this tool, click once on an item to select it (black boxes will appear at the item's control points to indicate the item is currently selected). You may select a group of items by either dragging the mouse around the items, or by holding down the shift key while clicking on individual items. The selected item may be resized by dragging one of the control points (black boxes surrounding the selected item). A dotted frame appears around the object, which is dragged until it reaches the desired size. You may edit attributes attached to the selected object by clicking on the right mouse button, or by choosing Edit/Edit Object from the menu. If the object selected contains a picture, article or audio, you may edit these files by choosing the corresponding command from the Edit menu. Finally, the colors, line style and font for the selected item may be set using the controls contained on the expanded portion of the palette. --- The Article Tool --- Use this tool to position the text of your articles onto the page. After selecting the tool, use the mouse to drag a frame which will contain the text. Once the frame has been drawn, you will be prompted for the name of the ASCII format text file to place into the frame. Use the button to the right of the input field to search for the file if you cannot recall its name or location on your computer. If you have specified a word processor or text editor using the Options/Directories menu command, you may select an Article frame and then choose Edit Article from the Edit menu. This will load your word processor or text editor along with the selected article, without leaving NeoBook. Once you have placed an Article, you may change the options for frame by either choosing Edit Object from the Edit menu, or by simply clicking on the object using the right mouse button. This will allow you to specify whether to wrap the text to fit within the frame, as well as where to locate the scroll bars if the text extends beyond the borders of the frame. --- The Button Tool --- Use the Button tool to place buttons to allow your reader to page through your publication, play audio files (NeoBook Professional only), bring up messages, etc. To create a button, simply drag the Button tool to create a button the size and shape desired. Color, font and line width for the button are set using the controls in the expanded Tool Palette. Invisible buttons may be created by not typing in a button tile, setting the color to Hollow, and setting the Line Width to None. After you have drawn your button, a dialog will appear which will allow you to place text onto the button. This dialog also prompts you to choose one of the commands described below. - Alert Box: When a button containing this command is pressed, a box will be displayed containing the message which you specify. Use this box to provide the reader with information or instructions. - Balloon: This command causes a comic book-style speech balloon to appear when the button is pressed. This balloon disappears once the mouse button is released. One use for this feature would be to place invisible buttons containing dialog over the mouths of characters in a picture (this would allow those without sound equipment to read what is spoken by the characters). - DOSCommand: (NeoBook Pro Only) This command allows you to execute external DOS programs and commands. This command allows you to run DOS commands and programs from within a compiled publication. To create a DOSCommand, select "DOSCommand" from the list of button actions when defining a button object. You will then be prompted to select a program from a list of files on your hard drive. After you done that, the action field line will look something like this: DOSCommand "C:\DOS\MEM.EXE" "Text" The first parameter, contained within the first set of quotes, is the location and name of the program you selected. If the program requires any parameters you may type them inside the first set of quotes. For example, passing a /C parameter to the program would look like: DOSCommand "C:\DOS\MEM.EXE /C" "Text" You may have noticed a second parameter "Text" that was automatically added to the command. This parameter tells NeoBook that the MEM.EXE program may modify the screen and require a redraw upon its completion. Almost all programs will require this parameter. The exception would be a program that definitely does not modify the screen. For example, if a program mearly played a sound clip it would be distracting an unnecessary to clear and redraw the screen. The screen could continue to display your publication giving the impression that the program was running from within NeoBook. For this type of program you may want to try changing the "Text" parameter to "Graphics". For example: DOSCommand "C:\VOCPLAY.EXE C:\BIRDS.VOC" "Graphics" NOTE: If you use the "Graphics" option with an ill behaved program the screen may not redraw correctly or at all. It is also possible that some programs may not run from within another program. Some care needs to be taken when using the DOSCommand action with compiled publications. For instance, the programs that you execute with this command will NOT be compiled into your publication. The Archive and File List commands will also NOT handle external programs. If you intend to run external programs then you will need to include them when you distribute your publications. Make sure that you are not violating any copyright or license agreements by distributing those programs. Most companies have distribution agreements for their products so be sure to get permission from publisher/owner of the software before you start sending out diskettes. - Exit: Clicking on a button which contains the Exit command will terminate running the publication. If the reader is running a Compiled publication, control will be returned to the operating system. If you are previewing the publication using the Book/Run menu selection, you will be returned to NeoBook's editing mode. - GotoPage: Use this command to allow the reader to jump to a particular article or section. - GotoFirstPage: Pressing a button containing this command will skip to the publication's first page. - GotoLastPage: Pressing a button containing this command will skip to the publication's last page. - GotoPrevPage: Pressing a button containing this command will turn to the page immediately preceding the current page in the publication, e.g., if the reader presses this button while on page 8, NeoBook turn to page 7. Note: if the reader is on page 1, this command will have no effect. - GotoNextPage: Pressing a button containing this command will turn to the page immediately following the current page in the publication, e.g., if the reader presses this button while on page 4, NeoBook will turn to page 5. Note: if the reader is on the publication's last page, this command will have no effect.. - ImageWindow: Selecting this command will prompt you for the name of a PCX or GIF format file and a title to be placed above the image. When the button is pressed, the image will be loaded into a window. The reader may then resize the window using the control in the lower right corner of the frame. The window may be moved by dragging the scroll bar. The reader may use the buttons on the upper right portion of the frame to close, move or switch to another window. This feature may be used to bring up diagrams or other images relating to other information on the page. - PlaySoundFile: (NeoBook Pro Only) This command will play either a VOC or SNG format sound file. VOC format files will play on those computers which contain Sound Blaster compatible audio cards. SNG format files will play on most IBM compatible personal computers. Use this feature to play music, narration or sound effects using VOC format files. SNG format files are limited to music and sound effects. - PrintTextFile: You may use this command to allow the reader to send an ASCII text file to be to his/her printer. After drawing this button, you will be prompted to specify the name of the text file to be printed. - PlayTone: Buttons containing this command will play a single note when pressed. You may specify a number from 1 to 37268 to select the note. - PopupImage: This command will cause an image to appear on the screen. Clicking a second time will cause the image to disappear. You will be prompted to specify the image when you draw the button. - ReturntoPage: Pressing a button containing this command will turn back to the last page viewed by the reader. - SoundBuzzer: Buttons containing this command sound a low beep when pressed. A use for this would be to place an invisible or patterned button containing this command over buttons from the Master Page which you do not wish the reader to use. NOTE: You may add additional commands by entering a tilde (~) and manually typing one of the above commands. - The Picture Tool - Use this tool to place graphic images onto the page. After selecting the tool, use the mouse to drag a frame which will contain the image. Once the frame has been drawn, you will be prompted for the name of the PCX or GIF format image file to place into the frame. Use the button to the right of the input field to search for the file if you cannot recall its name or location on your computer. Once you have placed a Picture, you may change the options for frame by either choosing Edit Object from the Edit menu, or by simply clicking on the object using the right mouse button. This will allow you to specify whether to size the picture to fit within the frame, or if the text extends beyond the borders of the frame where to locate scroll bars to allow the reader to view the entire picture. --- The Rectangle Tool --- This tool is used to draw squares and rectangles onto the page. Simply select the Rectangle tool and drag out the shape to the desired size (use the Options/Snap to Grid function to draw an object of a specific size). The color inside the object is determined by the currently selected Fill Color (on the expanded Tool Palette). The color and line style may be changed after the object is drawn by simply selecting the rectangle with the Selector tool and clicking on a new Fill Color, Pattern, Line Color and Line Style. The object may also be moved or resized using the Selector tool. Objects may also be stacked using the Arrange menu functions. NOTE: To draw rounded rectangles, hold down the Control key while creating the rectangle. Holding down the Shift key will make perfect squares. --- The Ellipse Tool --- This tool is used to draw circles and ovals onto the page. Simply select the Ellipse tool and drag out the shape to the desired size (use the Options/Snap to Grid function to draw a perfect circle). The color inside the object is determined by the currently selected Fill Color (on the expanded Tool Palette). The color and line style may be changed after the object is drawn by simply selecting the rectangle with the Selector tool and clicking on a new Fill Color, Pattern, Line Color and Line Style. The ellipse may be moved or resized using the Selector tool. You may also stack objects using the Arrange menu functions. NOTE: Hold down the Shift key to draw round circles. --- The Line Tool --- This tool is used to lines onto the page. Simply select the Line tool and drag out the Line to the desired size (enable the Options/Snap to Grid function to keep lines perfectly horizontal or vertical). The thickness, color and style of the Line is determined by the currently selected Line Color, Line Thickness and Line Style (on the expanded Tool Palette). Color, thickness and line style may be changed after the object is drawn by simply selecting the line with the Selector tool and clicking on a new Line Color, Line Thickness and Line Style. The object may be moved or resized using the selector tool. You may also stack objects using the Arrange menu functions. NOTE: Hold down the Shift key to draw straight lines. --- The Title Tool --- Use this tool to place titles and other short text onto the page. After selecting the tool, click on the location where you wish the text to start. A dialog will appear to receive your text. After you have entered the Title, you may move the text using the Selector tool. The font style and color may be changed using functions contained in the expanded Tool Palette. Use the tilde (~) character to force a line break in the title. The control on the right side of the dialog will allow you to center the text, align to the left or align on the right side. Clicking on the Insert Code button will place a code (i.e., [P]) into the text which will automatically insert the page number for the current page at that location. Using the Master Page --------------------- The Master Page is used to set up buttons and other items which will be used on all, or most of the other pages in your publication. Placing elements on the Master Page will not only save you time by automatically recreating them for each page, but will also unify your publication and make it look more professional. To go to the Master Page, use the Page/Goto Master Page menu selection, or simply click on the Master Page icon in the center of the Page Control bar. Following are some of the more common items which you may wish to include on the Master Page of your publications. - Page Turning Buttons: The most common command buttons which you will use on the Master Page, are buttons which the reader will use to page through your document. Set up these buttons using the GotoPage, GotoFirstPage, GotoLastPage, GotoPrevPage, GotoNextPage and ReturntoPage commands. At the minimum, the reader must be provided with some means of going to another page or exiting the publication. - Contents or Index: In longer publications and publications containing varied subject matter, your reader may find it useful to be provided with a table of contents or index (complete with buttons to jump to pages containing certain material). If you will be providing a list of content, rather than placing the list on the Master Page itself, in most cases you will only want to include a small button set up to jump directly to a page (using the GotoPage command) which contains the Contents or Index. - Help: Your reader might appreciate a screen which gives some basic instructions as to how to use your publication. Here you would explain any symbols or special buttons you have created. - Exit: In many instances, you will want to give the reader an easy way to exit the publication by placing a button which contains the Exit command on each page. Alternatively, you may set up the publication to use the ESC key to exit. - Page Number: Placing the Page Number (type using the Title tool) on the Master Page can ensure that the number will appear in the same location on each page. - Graphic Elements: Placing a logo, ruling lines, or other graphical elements on the Master Page can help visually unify your publication. Your reader will find it easier to follow your publication if he or she does not have to relearn each page. Ghosting Unusable Buttons ------------------------- When you place page turning buttons onto the Master Page, there are times when a button may appear on a page where it serves no function. For instance, if you placed a button which says "Go to Table of Contents" onto the Master Page, this button will be of no use when the reader is actually in the Table of Contents. To eliminate the possibility of confusing the reader, it should be made obvious to the reader that these buttons are not functional on a particular page. One way to do this is to completely or partially obscure the text or the entire button. Do this by going to the page where the button would be useless and superimposing a rectangle (or another button) over the non-functional button, or just that button's text. You might want to use a Pattern instead of a solid Fill so as to let the button show through a dark colored pattern will dim the button and a light colored pattern will cause it to fade. Image Considerations -------------------- The Color Palette: When creating and choosing images take into consideration that NeoBook will attempt to match colors present in each image you place in your publication with a similar shade in the currently loaded palette. Usually, this NeoBook will do a good job in matching colors, however in some instances, you may wish to either adjust the colors in the image itself (using a paint program) or load a different color palette into the publication. The closer the colors contained in the publication color palette and the colors contained in the images, the more exactly the images will reproduce. If you have, or are using a paint program such as NeoPaint, you should find it easy to compare the colors contained in the palettes attached to various images. To load a different color palette for the publication, select Set Palette from the Book menu. Instead of manually altering each color in the current color palette, you may use the Load Palette button to import a completely different color palette. You are allowed to choose a previously stored color palette (PAL files). If you wish to exactly match the shades in a particular image file, you may import the color palette from that picture by choosing the GIF or PCX file format buttons and then selecting the name of that image. Image Size: You will not be able to display whole images which are larger than the size of the monitor on which the publication is run. Larger images will be cropped to fit the frame, which may cut out information important to your publication. You may include scroll bars to allow the reader to access areas lying outside the frame, or you may tell NeoBook to shrink the picture to fit the frame. If an image is much larger than the frame, however, you may be needlessly wasting disk space in including a large image, when the image could be scaled down to the size of the frame. Also, the larger the image, the longer it will take to draw the page onto the screen. The size of the screen and of images is measured in pixel units. Any good paint program, such as NeoPaint, will allow you to scale down larger drawings to a size which will fit into frames. Image Color: Standard VGA video cards support 2 and 16 colors at up to 640x480 resolution, and 256 colors at 320x200. NeoBook supports SuperVGA resolutions for most graphics cards. SuperVGA allows 256 colors to be displayed at 640x480, 800x600 and 1024x768 resolutions. If your computer does not contain a VGA or supported SuperVGA card and monitor, you may still import images containing 256 colors, but these will be displayed using either 2 or 16 colors. If you move your publication onto a system which can support 256 colors in NeoBook, you may then view the publication with all colors displayed. Sometimes the results obtained when converting a 256 color image to 2 or 16 colors will be less than satisfactory. If a monochrome or 16 color system is to be used to display the final publication, you may wish to use a paint or image editing program to restore detail, correct colors or generally spruce up reduced color image(s). You might consider using the gray scale 16 color palette, which will usually work very well with almost any images you import. Copying the Publication ----------------------- Compiled publications: The method of copying your publication for use on another system is to use NeoBook's Compile option. This will turn your publication into a self-contained computer program which may be easily transferred to other systems. A computer running the compiled publication does not need to have NeoBook on the system for the publication to be displayed. When composing a publication for use on another computer, you should keep in mind that the resulting program must be transferred from your system to the other system. Usually this is accomplished by copying the compiled program onto a diskette. However, since even compressed graphical images and sound files take up a great deal of disk space, it is possible to produce a publication that is larger than most common diskettes can handle. The suggestions below can help you design publications which use disk space more efficiently. Use smaller images. Rather than using different full screen size image backgrounds for each page, you may often be able to obtain the same effect by beginning with a single background and then "layering" smaller images over this background to give the impression of multiple slides. This usually has the added advantage of unifying the look of your publication. Sample files included on your NeoBook diskettes were produced using this technique. Use images containing fewer colors. If you can use two or sixteen color resolution images in places, these will take up less room on your disk. Again, a good paint program will allow you to convert an image to a resolution which has fewer colors in its palette. This often can be done without noticeably affecting the quality of the image. - Re-use the same image. This is particularly effective for backgrounds and logos. - Place titles and graphic elements which are used on all pages onto the Master Page. - Tile very small images for background wallpaper using the Page/Attributes button. This can produce particularly attractive backgrounds using images containing natural or textured patterns. - When recording a sound clip, use a lower Sampling Rate. While doing this may produce some sound distortion, a lower setting will also produce a smaller audio file. - Use GIF format files instead of PCX files for your images. GIF files are heavily compressed and thus require less disk space. They do, however, take slightly longer to load than do PCX files. - Try to limit the number of fonts used in your publication. Using only two or three fonts will reduce the file size of your compiled application and improve performance. If your publication turns out to be extremely large, and there is no way to reduce its size, some options you might consider to move your program to another system might include: - Use SNG format files rather than VOC format wherever possible. While VOC files are much higher quality, and are the only way to play back speech, they also take up much more disk space. In addition, SNG format files will play on almost any PC, while the VOC files will only play if an audio card is present on the system. - Transfer the compiled publication program via network, modem, Laplink, or another communications device, rather than using a diskette. - Use a higher capacity disk drive. If you are producing shows for computers with 1.2MB or 1.44MB diskette drives, consider adding one of these inexpensive peripherals to the system on which you produce publications. Other floppy disk, optical, CD-R and removable hard drive technologies are readily available for transferring extremely large files. - Use PKZIP or another file compression utility to further reduce the size of your publication EXE file. Although some file compression utilities do not need to be decompressed, most require that you decompress the file once it has been transferred to another computer. - Use the DOS BACKUP or a similar utility to move a large file onto multiple diskettes. See your DOS or utility documentation for instructions on how to accomplish this. - Break your publication into smaller parts. You may then compile the sections individually, then link these by using a DOS batch file (see your DOS documentation) to call up each individual compiled section you create. Be sure to use an "ECHO OFF" statement at the beginning of the batch file to prevent the DOS prompt from interrupting the publication. This method has the disadvantage of being a bit slower, and of not allowing paging between EXE files. It is, however, quite serviceable when you absolutely must transfer a very large publication and cannot use any of the other suggestions listed above. Production Considerations ------------------------- - Very large sound files may be too large to play on systems with limited RAM. NeoBook contains a module which transparently creates more room for the sound file to play. If you are distributing publications which contain large audio files, you should also include a copy of the file "SPLAY.EXE" along with your compiled publication file. This file will be found in the same directory as NeoBook. - Again, for best results, images should be the same size, or smaller than, the frame used to contain them in the final publication. A standard VGA monitor can display at 640x 480 or 320x200 pixels, and an EGA display measures 640x350 pixels. Super VGA display systems can produce images at 800x600 and/or 1024x768 in addition to standard VGA resolutions. - Most paint, scanning utilities and image editing programs can produce excellent PCX pictures you may wish to include in your NeoBook publications. A vast array of other PCX images are available from catalogs, electronic bulletin boards, etc. If you don't have a scanner, most typesetting service bureaus are able to scan your photographs into a computer image for a small charge (you should specify the disk format your computer uses and, if necessary, have them reduce the image to a size, in pixels, which will fit on your screen). Command Line Options -------------------- Following are options which may be typed after the "NEOBOOK" command when starting the program. You may use more than one option in the command line. Some of these options will be of interest primarily to network or systems administrators. If you will be using a command line option on a regular basis, you should include the command and option(s) in a batch file and run the batch file to start NeoBook. See your DOS documentation for information on creating batch files. /V = Use this option to obtain SuperVGA or 256 color resolutions if you have a video card which contains VESA support, but which is not directly recognized by NeoBook. This option may also be used by your readers by typing it after the command for the compiled publication. Usage: NEOBOOK /V /E = This option loads NeoBook's program overlay into EMS memory. This may improve program speed on some systems. Usage: NEOBOOK /E /Sx = This may be used to create and access individual Set Up file for different users. The Set Up file contains information on program configuration and preferences. Follow the "/S" with the path and name for this file. Usage: NEOBOOK /Sc:\news\cindy.set /Fx = This option resets the buffer size used for fonts. Setting to a higher value may allow some systems to display larger font sizes. The "x" should contain a value between 5000 and 50,000. Usage: NEOBOOK /F25000 /D = Use the /D option to disable the DOS Shell selection on the File menu. Usage: NEOBOOK /D /P = This option disables access to the Set Preferences selection in the Options menu, thus preventing the user from changing the set up. Usage: NEOBOOK /P /T = Use this option to disable the Create/Edit Article function on the Edit menu. This prevents the user from using an outside text editor. Usage: NEOBOOK /T /I = This option disables access to the Create/Edit Image selection in the Edit menu. This will prevent the user from using an outside image editor within NeoBook. Usage: NEOBOOK /I /O = For NeoBook Professional, using this option will disable the Create/Edit Sound File in the Edit menu. This prevents the user from using an outside program to create or edit sound files from within NeoBook Professional. Usage: NEOBOOK /O /B = If NeoBook Professional has difficulty in identifying the audio card due to an interrupt conflict, using this option will prevent NeoBook Professional from checking to see if a sound card is present on the system. This option may also be used by readers of your on the compiled publication file. Usage: NEOBOOK /B /A = This option prevents NeoBook Professional from attempting to initialize a sound card or the PC's internal speaker. Usage: NEOBOOK /A PC Internal Speaker Sound ------------------------- NeoBook Professional allows you to play sounds through the internal speaker which is built in to all IBM compatible PC systems. Thus, sound produced for this device should play on nearly every PC system made. However, unlike audio cards, the internal speaker is limited as to the range and quality of sound that it can produce. When you Define Button attributes, both the Play Tone and Play Sound File (SNG) options will play sound through the PC internal speaker. To create a button, either labeled or invisible, for your sound clip, first choose the Button tool and drag it over the area on which the user must click to play the sound. Next, choose either Play Tone or Play Sound File from the Define Button dialog. --- Selecting a Play Tone sound --- Use this selection to place a button which plays a single note when pressed. An example of how this could be used is to construct a small keyboard consisting of buttons which the user could play by selecting with the mouse. NeoBook can play a range of 12 notes in 10 octaves. Therefore, you may specify a numeric value from 1 to 32768 for each Play Tone button you create. --- Creating Speaker SNG Sound Files --- The Play Sound File option in the Build Button dialog allows you to play two different audio file formats. Choose the SNG format to play files through the PC's internal speaker. The other file type is the VOC (voice) format which requires that a Sound Blaster compatible audio card be present in order to produce music or narration. SNG format sound files may be created or edited using any ASCII text editor. The text file consists of a string of music notes and commands, which are defined below. - Tempo: Specify the tempo for your piece by typing a "T" followed by a number to represent the number of quarter notes in a minute. You may use numbers which range from 30 to 255. The default tempo is 120 quarter notes per minute. E.g., "T62" - Octave: To set the octave, type a capital "O" (not a zero) followed by a number representing the octave for following notes. Since a range of ten octaves may be played through the internal speaker, this number should be between 0 (zero) and 9 (nine), e.g., "O3" - Length: Specify note length by typing an "L" followed by a number between 1 and 64. A "L1" represents a whole note, a "L2" would be a half note, a "L4" would be a quarter note and so on, through "L64," which would play as a sixty-fourth note. All notes which follow will play at this length, until you type a new "L" and number, or until you use one of the other commands below which affect note length. The length may also be specified by typing the number immediately after the note. E.g., "E33" is the same as typing "L33E" Following a note with a "." (period) causes that note only to play 3/2 its originally specified length. Typing the letters "MS" will cause each note to play 3/4 (staccato) of the length set by the "L" command above. Typing the letters "MN" plays each note 7/8 of the length specified by "L." Typing "ML" returns to playing each note the full length specified by "L." - Note Played: Type the letter corresponding to the note(s) you wish to be played. Use "ABCDEFG." Sharps may be specified by adding either a "+" or "#" after the note. Flats are specified by using a "-" (dash) following the note. E.g., "C#" and "C+" are both C-sharp, and "D-" is a D-flat. - Pause: Type a "P" followed by a number which specifies the length (in milliseconds) of the pause. E.g., "P40" Article Text Options -------------------- When creating an article using your text editor, there are several formatting codes you may wish to use. These may be inserted into the text using the "^" (caret) character (not the CTRL key + B, but the actual "^" character). The formatted text will display in your publication. - Bold: Use "^B" at the start of the portion which is to display as bold text. To turn bold off, place a "^b" at the end of the section of text which is to be bold. - Underline: Use "^U" at the start of the portion which is to display as underlined text. To turn the underscore off, place a "^u" at the end of the section of text which is to be underlined. - Reverse Video: Use "^R" at the start of the portion which is to display as reversed text. To return the text to normal, place a "^r" at the end of the section of text which is to be reversed. - Tab: To tab text, insert a "^T" followed immediately by a number. The number should represent the number of spaces from the left margin. The size of spaces displayed will equal the width of the M character in the font selected within NeoBook. Follow the "^T" and the number with a space before continuing with the text. - Centering: If the center code is included on a line along with other codes listed above, the "^C" should be the innermost code. - Caret Symbol: If you need to display the caret character in the text of your article, type two carets not separated by a space. * More detailed information is available in our printed manual available to registered users. * (C)1993 NeoSoft Corp. 354 NE Greenwood Avenue, Suite 108 Bend, Oregon 97701-4631 U.S.A. Voice: (503) 389-5489 Fax: (503) 388-8221 BBS: (503) 383-7195 All Rights Reserved.