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┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│F(ile) M(anager)/2 copyright (c) 1993-95 by M. Kimes (Bare Bones Software)│
│ All Rights Reserved │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ READ.ME file -- read before installing │
│ See end of document for contact info and license details │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
File Manager/2 (FM/2) is a shareware OS/2 2.1+ PM 32-bit
file/directory/archive maintenance utility (a sort of super-Drives
object, something midway between the Drives objects and a more
traditional file manager) with plenty of bells, whistles and utilities,
drag and drop, context menus, toolbars and accelerator keys. If you
know how to use OS/2, you already know how to use most of FM/2. You can
easily glean the rest from the extensive online help.
This document explains how to install FM/2, including upgrading from
previous versions. It explains command line syntaxes and how to get the
program(s) running. The online help tells you how to actually use FM/2.
A separate document (history.txt) lists changes for this version.
Another (register.txt) tells you how to register FM/2. If you're
interested, there're well over 110 printed pages of documentation in
this package, counting only this file and the online help -- did I write
all that?
FM/2 2.21 installation instructions:
===================================
1. Unpack the FM2*.ZIP archive in a private directory (UNZIP.EXE
works nicely). FM/2 2.x requires its own home directory (FAT or
HPFS, doesn't matter). I recommend that it _not_ be your old FM/2
1.x directory (and don't delete the old 1.x version until after
you install, so the install program can migrate some of your old
settings and registration first). If upgrading from 2.x, just
unpack the files in the FM/2 2.x directory and go (you might want
to skip ARCHIVER.BB2 if you've customized it).
2. Run the provided INSTALL.CMD (a simple REXX program) in that
directory to build a folder and program objects and migrate some
old INI information. Rerun INSTALL.CMD if you later move the FM/2
directory. (If you later decide to remove FM/2, run UNINSTAL.CMD
in the FM/2 2.x directory and follow simple directions. Both
installation and deinstallation are no-brainers. UNINSTAL will
help you quickly and easily remove all traces of FM/2 from your
system if you don't like it for some reason. All OS/2 programs
should be so nice.)
3. Run it. Have fun. Full help is available from within the
program. If you're unfamiliar with OS/2's WPS, please take the
time to run the OS/2 Tutorial before attempting to use FM/2, as
FM/2 uses many of the same conventions.
Starting FM/2:
=============
If you start File Manager/2 (filename FM3.EXE) with no command line
arguments, it opens the Drive Tree window but no directory windows
(unless the "Save state of dir windows" toggle is checked -- see online
help).
File Manager/2 optionally accepts names of directories on the command
line; it'll open a directory window for each one. Hint: If you often
do different specific things with FM/2, you might set up a WPS object
customized to start up ideally for each activity. For example, if you
wanted to maintain your BBS areas, you might have one object like:
"FM3.EXE D:\BBSDIR D:\BBSDIR\MAILIN", and if you also like to use FM/2
to set icons on files, you might have another object like: "FM3.EXE
E:\MYICONS D:\NEWFILES".
You can exclude drives on the command line by prefacing the drive letter
with "/", and there can be more than one drive letter behind the "/"
(i.e. "FM3.EXE /BH" to exclude both drives B: and H:). Hint: Many
people like to use /B to exclude "phantom" drive B: if they have a
single-floppy system.
If you place the argument "+" on the command line, FM/2 will log, to
FM2.LOG, delete, rename, move and copy operations that are performed by
drag-and-drop or with the menus.
The command line argument "-" causes FM/2 to ignore, not load or save,
the previous state of directory windows (see the "Save state of dir
windows" toggle under Config Menu->Toggles in the online help) for that
invocation.
Installation notes:
==================
Please read the following sections in the online help when you start
FM/2 for the first time: "How to use FM/2's Help," "Terminology" and
"General Help," then "Hints." The rest you can browse as you get
time/feel the need; for instance, if you want to know what a toggle
does, read the help under Settings notebook->Toggles page.
If you prefer hardcopy help, print this file, run FM/2, press CTRL+F1,
click the "Print" button at the bottom of the help window that appears
and then print both the "Contents" and "All sections" (keep an eye on
the printer around page 100 of "All sections" as the Help Manager will
begin printing its own help then -- you may want to abort printing at
that point). Advanced and/or curious users may also want to print
FM3TOOLS.DAT and ARCHIVER.BB2. Be sure you have plenty of paper and ink
handy -- the package is well documented. You'll probably also want a
three-ring binder and hole punch to get it bound, as staples aren't
going through that puppy.
You may want to either move ARCHIVER.BB2 (the data file containing
information about archiver programs and archive files) to a directory in
your PATH= statement or erase this one if you've customized an old one.
FM/2 can still find, use and maintain ARCHIVER.BB2 on the PATH; it
doesn't have to be in FM/2's directory (this allows it to be used by
other programs as well, like XGroup, XBBS/2, LA, AV, etc.). Remember,
FM/2 needs OS/2, not DOS, archivers.
I've separated many of the standalone utilities that I used to include
with FM/2 into another archive (FM2UTILS.ZIP). Since I update the
utilties far less frequently than FM/2 itself, this allows you to
download less and still keep up to date. To get the maximum use out of
FM/2, you should pick up the package. If you can't find it where you
found this archive, bug your sysop to pick it up.
Bonus programs:
--------------
You'll note the extra objects that the Install program creates in the
File Manager/2 folder. FM/2 is modular, so that you can get directly to
some of its components without running the entire ball of wax. This may
allow you to enhance the behavior of some of your other applications in
the WPS tradition. You don't _have_ to keep these around, of course --
FM/2 itself contains all their functionality.
Archive Viewer/2: Intended for drag-and-drop operation (or WPS
association) with WPS objects or other
applications. Drag an archive onto it, drop it,
get an archive listing box. FM/2's installation
program sets up some associations between archive
files and this program by file extension (run
INSTALL with "NOASSOC" as an argument if you don't
want them). Filename AV2.EXE.
SysIcon: Intended to let you change a system pointer by
dragging an icon/pointer file (*.ICO or *.PTR)
onto it, then picking the pointer to replace. You
can reset a pointer by starting it without
arguments. Filename DOICON.EXE.
EA Viewer: Drag a file system object onto it and it'll show
you the object's extended attributes. Filename
EAS.EXE.
INI Viewer: Drag an .INI file onto it and it'll show you its
contents. Filename INI.EXE.
Bookshelf Viewer: Shows all .INF files in a listbox and lets you
pick the one(s) you want to view. If you give any
command line argument, the .HLP files on the HELP
path will be shown instead (the Helpfile Viewer
object calls VIEWINFS.EXE with "dummy" for an
argument, for example). Filename VIEWINFS.EXE.
Process Killer: Lets you kill off renegade processes. An English
version of PSTAT.EXE must be on your PATH.
Filename KILLPROC.EXE.
Undeleter: Lets you undelete files (via interface with
UNDELETE.COM). Drag a file system object onto it
and it'll let you undelete files for that drive.
Filename UNDEL.EXE.
Visual Tree: Opens a Drive Tree window (like the WPS Drives
object with more horsepower). Filename VTREE.EXE.
Visual Directory: Opens a Directory Container window; drag a file
system object onto it and this will open its
directory (like a WPS directory Folder with more
horsepower). Filename VDIR.EXE.
Collector: Opens a Collector window. Filename VCOLLECT.EXE.
FM/2's install creates FM2.CMD and AV2.CMD files for you. You can copy
these files to a directory listed on your PATH (see SET PATH= in
CONFIG.SYS) and use it to run FM/2 and/or AV2.CMD from any OS/2 command
line, if desired. A quick copy and text editor modification will let
you build similar command files for the other utility .EXEs, too.
Additional documentation:
========================
Register.txt: How to register FM/2.
Associat.txt: Some association recommendations
FM/2 isn't free, it's shareware:
===============================
To register FM/2, fill out REGISTER.TXT and send to the mailing address
listed in it, together with the purchase price (commercial users,
there's a 5% discount for each ten commercial licenses, up to one
hundred licenses, where the price flattens, so you get a total 50%
discount on each license for one hundred or more licenses in one order
-- see REGISTER.TXT for a table). Registration gets rid of the initial
about box and closing screen, eases your conscience and makes the world
safe for truth, justice, the democratic way and further FM/2 updates,
not necessarily in that order.
Registrations are good for one year or one full version change (i.e.
2.00 -> 3.01), whichever comes first. Versions before a full version
change stay registered forever. Considering the price, the program and
the upgrade policy, I don't think you can beat FM/2 with a stick. But
then, I'm a prejudiced jerk.
(Someone asked me why registrations are cheaper for personal use than
for commercial use. I thought it was obvious, but I guess it's not. I
feel that individual, private use of software should be cheaper than
use in an environment where it's contributing to making money. I feel
that much software is already priced far too high for individual,
private users as it is, and therefore I give individual, private users
a 50% break. It just seems fair to me, and I've got to live with
myself.)
If you have a CIS address, _be sure_ to fill it in on REGISTER.TXT.
You'll get your registration information much more quickly that way. You
can also register online via Compuserve's Shareware Registration service
(GO SWREG) and is #2859 for personal registrations, #4228 for commercial
-- warning: the price is a bit higher to give CIS a cut (CIS will show
it to you first). Support is currently being provided in the CIS OS/2
Shareware forum (GO OS2SHARE) and regular updates are posted there.
Speaking of updates, I tend to put them up _very_ regularly
(incrementing the version number by .01 each time). I'm one of those
fellows who likes to always have some new software to play with, so I
figure others might, too. Besides, it's fun.
Technical stuff:
===============
There are some limitations to FM/2, imposed by OS/2 2.1's current 16-bit
subsystems (hopefully OS/2 3.0 will remove some or all of these). It's
possible to overload PM's resources and crash OS/2. For instance, if I
Collect all the files on all my drives, totaling over 9000 files, PM
will cease up; for another, trying to list a directory containing
hundreds of large icons will cause OS/2 to hang (in FM/2 _or_ a WPS
folder!). Listbox limitations are more obvious -- a listbox under OS/2
2.1 cannot contain more than 64k of information (less some system
overhead). Containers are better, but even they have their
(undocumented) limits (about 320k as nearly as I can tell, though there
seems to be a random element involved). There also seems to be a bug in
WinLoadFileIcon when called repeatedly (around 512 times in quick
succession, though why "quick succession" seems to be required I don't
know, and the size of the icons loaded may also be involved).
If you receive a message box telling you that PM is out of resources,
you've slammed head-on into an OS/2 limitation (you won't always be
notified -- the result is sometimes just an unexplained system lockup).
The good news is that, as OS/2 is improved, these limitations should
vanish without changes to FM/2. The bad news is that there's no way
around them, that I know of, at the present time (though again I
emphasize that OS/2 3.0 is just over the horizon and may cure some or
all of the problems) except to avoid situations where they occur.
+----------------------------------------+
| IMPORTANT! Read before distributing! |
+----------------------------------------+
Simple license statement:
========================
You are granted a license to try this shareware program (FM/2) for up to
thirty (30) days, after which you must register or discontinue its use.
Permission is granted to redistribute the unaltered shareware archive
for a reasonable (read nominal, small) copying charge (FM/2 may
specifically not be packaged with a commercial book without requesting
and obtaining permission (common courtesy -- remember, "copyright" means
literally "the right to control who copies the material"). If you write
a review on FM/2, I'd certainly appreciate a courtesy copy of the
review.). All rights are reserved by the author. That's me.
There is NO warranty. Support is NOT guaranteed to unregistered users.
Contact info:
============
Mark Kimes (CIS 74601,1327; Fidonet#1:380/16.0; (318)222-3455 data)