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- WHATSNEW.TXT: New WinU Features
-
- WinU Version 3.2, released March 5, 1997
-
- Systemwide Time Limits: previously, desk-access time limits were
- independent. Now you can have a single time-limit setting which controls
- all desks. In this mode, switching to another desk does not reset the time
- limit. It continues to count down.
-
- Added an option to the new Systemwide Time Limits: when you return to the
- default desk, you can have the time set to "no time left". Since this is
- systemwide, there will be no time left on any other desk, either.
-
- This will primarily be useful when combined with the new Remote Time
- Manager companion program, which lets the administrator, at another station
- on the network, remotely logoff the user, or reset the current time limits,
- or shut down the remote computer.
-
- With these two options, a station can sit with zero time until a patron
- arrives. Then its time limit can be remotely set, letting the patron use
- the computer.
-
- The Remote Time Manager can add more time on the fly from a remote
- location; the user does not have to log off first. Or if necessary to
- handle certain kinds of situations, it can force a logoff or reboot at any
- point, remotely from the administration area.
-
- When exiting with a Shutdown or Exit desktop button, WinU warns if there
- are any running programs that will be terminated on exit.
-
- WinU now uses a much more reliable method to shut down Dial-Up Networking,
- if a DUN-using app exits or is forcibly terminated. To set up the new
- method, use the Advanced dialog to give the name of the DUN shortcut to be
- closed. If no other currently- running program uses DUN, the connection
- will be closed.
-
- You can now simultaneously run more than one program that uses Dial-Up
- Networking. WinU will terminate Dial-Up Networking when the last DUN-using
- app closes or is forcibly terminated.
-
- WinU no longer requires that Dial-Up Networking be installed. Previously,
- this had been necessary even on computers that had no modem.
-
- You can now set the amount of space between desktop buttons. Vertical and
- horizantal space can be controlled independently.
-
- You can set some number of blank button rows to leave empty at the top of
- the button-display area. The first actual button is displayed just below
- this empty space.
-
- Button text color and font can be changed.
-
- If desired, the first 35 buttons can have letter/number hotkeys.
-
- Tiled and actual-size bitmaps can be used in a "top-half" display.
-
- Dynamic remote update now tested/performed at shutdown and when changing
- desks, in addition to startup.
-
- Mouse and keyboard activity monitors now work more reliably, and have
- more options. They can now oversee more types of activities,
- including Explorer features such as Find, Go To, and Map. They also now
- monitor and disable the new keys found on the Windows 95 keyboard.
-
- File deletion and right mouse button context menus now disabled in more
- kinds of windows, including Microsoft Office open and save-as dialogs.
- This makes files even harder to delete without authorization. The
- enhancement also makes it quite difficult to delete directories (folders).
-
- Explorer's "find" dialogs are disabled under WinU, to prevent using the
- feature as a backdoor way of finding and launching unauthorized programs.
-
- File deletion and right mouse button context menus can now be disabled
- in Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer if desired.
-
- Mouse and keyboard activity monitors can be individually controlled. This
- is useful when using a computer, or specific software, that does not like
- other applications performing such monitoring.
-
- Can now set number of seconds until password screen vanishes.
-
- The "kill companion app" feature has been enhanced. The name of the
- companion app to kill can now be specified with wildcards. The first
- matching window will be terminated.
-
- Added a Kiosk Mode option to control whether navigation buttons (DeskLink,
- PrevDesk, Exit, and Shutdown) continue to work in a timed-out or
- blocked-out desk.
-
- Renamed tab: Appearance And Sound is now the Interface tab. As before, it
- has sections on the setup password, kiosk mode, and status bar. There is
- also a new Systemwide Time Limits section.
-
- You can now use restart control with any button. Previously, you could
- only do this with program buttons.
-
- Clone Setup Builder password field now shows asterisks.
-
- Fixed bug: Clone Setup Builder was including some computer-specific
- information unsuitable for transferring.
-
- Fixed bug: when copying desks, some settings were not being copied.
-
- Fixed bug: the Advanced dialog's Warning Screen and Warning Sound
- checkboxes were not being reinitialized correctly.
-
- The text of password fields in administration screens can be hidden.
-
- New "soft close" feature provides a way to forcibly terminate programs that
- must first perform internal tasks before closing.
-
- If a program's Warning Time is set to 0, no warning message will be given,
- even if a forced-termination time is in effect. Previously, if a
- forced-termination time was given, the warning was mandatory.
-
- An audio Warning Time message can be given, as well as (or instead of) the
- previous display-screen warning message. Program-time and desk- time
- warnings can be different sounds.
-
- If any currently-running program is set so the program-time Warning Message
- should not be displayed, and if the desk is close to running out of time,
- the desk-time Warning Message will not be displayed. (However, any Warning
- Sound will be played at the warning time.)
-
- If WinU terminates abnormally, or when running MS-DOS Mode programs, the
- PrevDesk list is saved, and is restored when WinU returns.
-
- WinU Clone Setup Builder can now operate in Super Security mode.
-
- Installing the clone data can now change the security level of the
- pre-existing WinU setup. Previously, the clone setup had to specify the
- same security level as the existing system.
-
- At startup, WinU clears any usage counts in the license meter file which
- reference this computer. This allows for recovery from any abnormal
- termination.
-
- Desk-click dialogs are now allowed in Setup mode, even if they have been
- turned off by the kiosk-mode switch. This provides an easy way to log off
- a desk when setting up the kiosk mode restrictions.
-
- Passwords in the remote password file can now optionally be encrypted.
-
- Restart control can now be used with DeskLink, PrevDesk, Exit, and Shutdown
- buttons.
-
- If desired, clone data files can now be in the WinU home directory.
-
- When entering a desk, first button is now selected by default.
-
- Fixed bug: on dynamic update, clone data was overwriting the target
- computer's name.
-
- Fixed bug: in Super Security mode, WinU was not always correctly tracking
- programs launched from Startup.
-
-
- WinU Version 3.1, released December 2, 1996
-
- License meter management, dynamic configuration update, disables the Common
- Dialog delete key and right-click context menus, strengthened "third-party
- window" processing, button label text no longer required, added the
- PrevDesk button type, wallpaper bitmap can be displayed at actual size, can
- tile the background bitmap, loop the desk logon sound, new interface for
- the Clone Setup Builder, more elements now encrypted, password dialog times
- out in 30 seconds, can deny use of the boot-time startup menu, enhanced
- remote password options, added minutes per logon cumulative time test,
- optional case-insensitive passwords.
-
-
- WinU Version 3.0, released September 16, 1996
-
- Easier system administration, especially when managing a number of WinU
- machines on a network: clone-able buttons, desks, or entire installations,
- centrally managed password and timeout control, more detailed event
- logging, built-in usage reports and graphs. Inactivity timout. Cleaner
- tabbed-dialog interface. Status bar. More flexible visual interface
- options (wallpaper, button styles, show/hide the menu and status bar).
- Attach sound to WinU events. New navigation elements: DeskLink, Exit, and
- Shutdown buttons. Button options to AutoRun a program at desk logon, keep
- program running until desk logoff, and allow a program to continue to run
- after exiting from the desk it was started from. Can now run Shortcuts,
- including shortcuts to printers, Dial-Up Networking, or other Win95
- components. Ultra-robust Kiosk Mode for the most demanding public-access
- situations. Built-in Explorer window for when you need access to the full
- computer (with password control of course). Much better when tracking
- modem-using apps. Blockout periods: times when nothing on that desk will
- run (for example "Every Tuesday 9 pm to 11 pm" or "Every weekday 7:30 pm to
- 8:30 pm"). Can disable CD-ROM autorun. QuickNotes, so you can attach a
- little message to a logfile record when exiting a program (perhaps for
- billing purposes). And the proverbial Much More.
-
-
- WinU Version 2.0, released January 31, 1996
-
- Numerous new features including Super Security mode, multiple desktops,
- Administration Maintenance mode, settable background color, keyboard
- control, highlighted focus button, right-click Properties screens for
- buttons and desktops, can run multiple programs concurrently, per-button
- password protection, improved Help system, more.
-
-
- WinU Version 1.0, released August 24, 1995
-
- Initial release, on the same day that Windows 95 was released.
-
-