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└────┘└────┘└────┘└────┘└────┘
IconDOS: DOS Program Launcher
ver. 1.0
Copyright 1993, EFD Systems
All Rights Reserved
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└────┘
"Elvis for DOS"
IconDOS is a trademark of EFD Systems.
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
T A B L E of C O N T E N T S
Elvis is Dead but DOS ain't ----------------------------------------- 3
Standard Equipment -------------------------------------------------- 4
Startup and Test Drive ---------------------------------------------- 5
Under the Hood ------------------------------------------------------ 6
Behind the Wheel ---------------------------------------------------- 8
Driving and Maintenance Tips ---------------------------------------- 10
Mail Order ---------------------------------------------------------- 11
Maintenance Log ----------------------------------------------------- 12
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Elvis is Dead but DOS ain't
Contrary to recent reports, Elvis is dead, DOS is alive and well. However, a
little of the King's flare and pizazz wouldn't hurt the reputation of DOS at
all. IconDOS is just the ticket to add a little "Elvis" to a boring and
cantankerous DOS system. With IconDOS you can "launch" any of your existing DOS
applications from a graphical icon-based desktop that is similiar to Program
Manager in Windows. The IconDOS desktop works equally well either with or
without a mouse. Memory, your most precious DOS resource, is handled with the
utmost efficiency. All of your existing applications are guaranteed to run
exactly as they always have because IconDOS requires no resident memory (none,
zero, nada) while a launched application is running. And yes, all of you
glitter rock fans will be tickled pink to know that IconDOS comes with over 100
pre-drawn icons and WALLPAPER to tastefully decorate your desktop! With the
included graphic editor, you can make your own icons and wallpaper.
IconDOS provides for a virtually unlimited number of icon menu items. Each menu
can contain up to 32767 icons spread across multiple pages. Each icon can
either launch an application or invoke a submenu which can in turn invoke
another submenu and so on. Clock, calendar and screen saver are built-in. A
VGA display is REQUIRED. A MicroSoft compatible mouse is required to setup,
edit and configure icons, menus and wallpaper.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Standard Equipment
The shareware version of IconDOS includes the following standard equipment.
ICONDOS.EXE - Desktop program launcher.
ICONEDIT.EXE - Graphics editor. Edits icon graphics, titles, command strings.
ICONDOS.DOC, ICONEDIT.DOC - Documentation for ICONDOS and ICONEDIT.
RUN.BAT - Batch file which works with IconDOS.EXE to actually launch
applications. This one batch file can be easily configured to run all of
your existing applications. Comments in the file itself show you how.
DEMO.MNU, SUBDEMO.MNU - Example icon menu with an example sub-menu. This menu
doesn't run anything. It simply prints a short message identifying each icon.
PAPER.ICN - Wallpaper file. IconDOS chooses a wallpaper at random from this
file. 20 pre-drawn wallpapers are provided. You can draw your own.
ICON.LBR - Icon libraries. ICONEDIT.EXE can be used to copy these icons to your
own menu files (see ICONEDIT.DOC for details).
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Startup and Test Drive
Before you can use IconDOS, you must install it on your hard drive. Installation
is very easy. Simply make a new directory and copy all of the IconDOS files to
it. If you insist, a batch file called INSTALL.BAT has been provided which will
do this for you. Change to the drive and directory where the IconDOS files are
located and type:
INSTALL drivepath Example: INSTALL C:\MENU
All menu and wallpaper files should always be maintained in the given directory.
Otherwise, IconDOS may have trouble finding files when needed.
After installation, you can take ICONDOS for a test drive. Change to the
drive and directory where the installation was made and type:
ICONDOS DEMO
Try selecting a few icons using either the mouse or the ENTER key. A short
message is displayed after each selection to identify the selected icon and to
show that the menu is working.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Under the Hood
Before you can configure IconDOS to fit your needs, you need an understanding of
how IconDOS works (i.e. you need to look "under the hood").
An IconDOS menu is simply a file containing a collection of icons. Each icon
has a title (2-lines, 10 chars. each) and a command string (14 chars. max.).
ICONEDIT.EXE is used to assemble and edit the icon file (see ICONEDIT.DOC). Icon
graphics can be either hand drawn or copied from the supplied icon library
(again, ICONEDIT.DOC explains how). The desktop menu program, ICONDOS.EXE,
simply displays the icons from the menu file against a wallpaper backdrop and
allows the user to make a selection. Once an icon is selected, the associated
command string is examined to determine whether it is the name of a submenu or a
DOS command string. In the latter case, the string is passed to DOS and IconDOS
ends. DOS picks up at this point and runs the command string. Very simple
except for one minor problem --- 14 characters is a very limited command string.
The solution is to use the command string to call a batch file. Individual batch
files can be setup for each icon; however, a more efficient approach is to setup
one batch file to run a number of applications. The provided example menu,
DEMO.MNU, demonstrates this latter technique. Every icon in DEMO.MNU calls
RUN.BAT but with a unique parameter. RUN.BAT uses this parameter to select and
execute the proper command set for the icon. Comments in RUN.BAT show how to
modify this example batch file to run your own applications.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Under the Hood (cont'd)
From the above discussion, it should be obvious that IconDOS, stripped of all
the superfluous details, is simply a graphical front-end to a batch file. Some
may be disappointed by this realization but it is a simple fact that there is no
safer or more efficient way to execute a series of DOS commands than a batch
file. Adding commands to the included batch file template, RUN.BAT, to run your
own applications is about as easy as configuring most of the available
alternative memory-resident (read potentially troublesome) menu systems.
With an understanding of IconDOS's operation, configuration is a 2 step process:
1) Setup an icon menu file using ICONEDIT.EXE. Detailed instructions are
provided in ICONEDIT.DOC. DEMO.MNU is an example.
2) Build a batch file to actually run the DOS command strings needed for each
icon. RUN.BAT can be used as a template. RUN.BAT also illustrates the
commands needed to re-enter IconDOS after running an application.
For those who have batch phobia, I suggest reading "Supercharging MS-DOS" by Van
Wolverton. Time spent learning simple batch programming with this book will be
re-paid many times over with increased DOS productivity.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Behind the Wheel
Once IconDOS has been setup and configured, is very simple and intuitative to
use. It can be driven equally well from either keyboard or mouse.
Keyboard
Use the arrow keys to move the icon title highlight. Press Enter to perform the
action associated with the highlighted icon, either launch a program or load a
submenu. Page Up/Page Down moves to the previous/next page if the menu has
multiple pages. ESC exits IconDOS and returns to the DOS prompt.
Mouse
To initiate a menu selection, simply click once (double click not required as in
Windows) on the appropriate icon. Buttons in the upper right of screen provide
mouse paging for multi-page menus. The button in the upper left of the
screen exits IconDOS and returns to the DOS prompt.
That's all there is to it! Simple, efficient, practical and fun.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Behind the Wheel (cont'd)
IconDOS vs. Windows Program Manager
IconDOS attempts to provide some of the look, feel and essential utility of
Windows Program Manager in a neat, efficient DOS menu system but it is far from
a Program Manager "clone". Compared to Program Manager, IconDOS is much less
"dynamic" which makes it easier to configure and use (have you ever tried to
setup your own program group in Program Manager?). In particular, experienced
Window's users will note the following differences:
- The IconDOS desktop always uses the full screen and cannot be re-sized.
- Icons are always arranged automatically and cannot be moved.
- The screen saver is pre-set to clear the screen after 4 minutes of mouse and
keyboard in-activity and cannot be adjusted.
- The DOS date and time are always displayed at the bottom of the screen and
cannot be turned off.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Driving and Maintenance Tips
IconDOS and IconEDIT work together to provide all of the features needed to
setup and maintain a modern, efficient and fun DOS based menu system. Almost
any needed configuration and maintenance operation can be performed in some way
although it may not always be entirely obvious how to do it. If you need help,
be sure to check the "How-To" section of ICONEDIT.DOC for answers to some of the
most common questions. If you cannot find the answer to your question there,
write to the address shown at the end of this file. CompuServe users can write
to CIS: 72627,3026. CompuServe is the preferred support channel and will
definitely result in a quicker response. We definitely want to learn of any
problems with IconDOS and we will do our best to provide a resolution.
IconDOS does not provide a DOS shell function. In our opinion, a shell is
redundant and unnecessary since it is just as easy to exit to DOS and re-enter
IconDOS as needed. To make the process as convenient as possible, setup a batch
file called MENU.BAT which starts IconDOS and loads your menu. Place this batch
file somewhere inside your DOS path. Now exit IconDOS as needed and type "MENU"
to re-enter. This is just as convenient and sensible as invoking some sort of
shell and typing "EXIT" to re-enter the menu.
IconDOS can be run from outside the IconDOS directory by using the full path for
both IconDOS and menu like this: C:\MENU\ICONDOS C:\MENU\DEMO
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Mail Order
To use this software beyond the trial period requires the purchase of a license.
A license can only be purchased by direct mail order from the author (just like
in the old days with the Sears catalog). See ORDER.FRM or send a check or money
order for $25 US to:
EFD Systems
304 Smokerise Circle SE
Marietta, GA 30067 CIS:72627,3026
As a minimum, licensed users will receive the following:
- The lastest licensed version of IconDOS.
- A library of at least 200 "best of Windows" icons and new wallpaper.
- A utility to display 16 color PCX files and capture icons from the screen.
Provides an indirect but workable path to convert Window's icons to IconDOS.
The icon library was converted from public domain Windows icons in this way.
- Information on upgrades and additional utilities not offered as shareware.
Registered users can upgrade to any later version for a $5 S & H fee.
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Maintenance Log
1.0 - 1/8/93 (the King's birthday) Original release.
--- COMING SOON ---
Security --- application, submenu and DOS access passwords. Custom keystroke to
end screen saver.
Direct conversion of Windows icons. This is entirely possible from a technical
perspective but developments in this area will depend upon registrations and
user demand.
*** End of Book ***