OS/2 Shareware BBS: 18 REXX/18-REXX.zip/MDSK14.ZIP/MakeDesk.txt

Text File | 1993-02-10 | 13KB | 349 lines

MakeDesk v1.30 - Copyright 1993, Matthew Palcic
All rights reserved.  Distributed as Freeware.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to MakeDesk.  This product grew out of the need to provide a
means to consistently create desktop configurations.

After making several OS/2 installations, each desktop was just a little
bit different. It wasn't worth the hassle to make them all identical by
changing the settings of each object.  Questions ran through my mind.
What happens when we have 100 OS/2 machines and each configuration is
just a little bit different?  What happens when we realize we need to
make a change to the settings for Paradox 4.0 on every machine that runs
it?  Who's going to run around and change them?  Who will accurately
adjust the settings for objects on a new OS/2 installation?  Have fun
pulling your hair out as you play a lot of sneaker net or just say
"forget it" altogether.

If you are using a machine at home those questions might not bother you.
But what happens when technical support tells you to do a Ctrl-Alt-F1 to
"restore" your default CONFIG.SYS, OS2.INI, OS2SYS.INI?  You lose all of
your customizations made to your desktop since installation.  What
happens if your system bombs so bad you have to reinstall?  What happens
if you are running a beta copy of OS/2 and have to reformat to apply the
beta?  Have fun recreating your desktop each time.

MakeDesk allows you to easily manipulate desktop objects through the use
of object definition (.DEF) files.  This includes creating, replacing
and updating objects such as programs, folders, shadows, etc.  With
MakeDesk you can easily associate the correct icons with your program
objects every time and adjust DOS Settings for each DOS box using simple
SET commands. You can also consistently create object definitions for
all major applications used throughout your corporation.  Additionally,
you'll save yourself hours of fiddling with settings each time you lose
your desktop.

As much as I like the Workplace Shell, it's not perfect.  If I install
OS/2 and spend a fair amount of time customizing it, what guarantee do I
have that it will not get corrupted?  Unfortunately, I have none. After
losing too many customizations, I wrote MakeDesk.

MakeDesk is a powerful REXX script that provides a simple definition
language for creating objects for the Workplace Shell.  The REXX
component of OS/2 2.0 must be installed for this script to operate.

Create a .DEF file with the object definitions you require.  Then run
MakeDesk, passing your .DEF file as a parameter.


Program command line parameters:
------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Syntax:
    MakeDesk [/a,/d] deffile

  Parameters:
    /a        process all objects in definition file without prompts
    /d        disable ANSI colorization of display
    deffile   Definition (.DEF) file to process

Parameters in brackets are optional.  Parameters separated by commas can
be combined.  Parameters separated by a '|' are mutually exclusive.
Example: MakeDesk /a /d mydesk.def

Running MakeDesk without any arguments will display a list of parameters
so you won't have to refer to the documentation if you forget what your
options are.




Structure of a .DEF file:
------------------------------------------------------------------------

.DEF files consist of the following three commands and five subcommands:

  Commands:
    '*'        - Comment
    'Title'    - Declare an object block
    'Define'   - Create a user-defined variable

  Subcommands:
    '*'        - Comment
    'Class'    - Declare the object class (i.e. WPFolder)
    'Location' - Specifies where the object will live
    'ObjectID' - Creates a handle for the object
    'Setup'    - Set processing mode for the object

  All text after a 'Title' declaration and up to the next blank line
  (and not considered a subcommand) is processed as a Setup String.




  * (Comment)
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Comments outside 'Title' blocks (command form) are displayed as they
  are read from the .DEF file.  Comments inside 'Title' blocks
  (subcommand form) are not displayed and are simply ignored.

  Examples:

    *Win-OS/2 object
    *Required to run Quattro Pro

  This command/subcommand is not required.




  Title
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  The title of the object is the name that will appear on the desktop.
  To force a title to span multiple lines, use the '^' symbol before
  each word that should be placed on the next line.  For instance,
  'Windows^Apps' would use two lines.  If you use more than two lines,
  you must separate the lines with a line-feed character.  See the
  Define command for information on the ~LF~ variable.  The Title
  command starts an object 'Title' block, which processes only
  subcommands until the next blank line or the end of the file is
  reached.

  Examples:

    Title Win-OS/2 3.1^Full Screen
    Title Win-OS/2 3.1~LF~Full Screen~LF~256 Colors

  This command is required.




  Define
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  'Define' is a slick way to create variables that you'll use throughout
  an object definition file.  Typical use is for a directory name that
  may change later, or for a folder ID you might reference in several
  object definitions. The format is flexible, but you should try to
  adopt a convention and stick with it.  Use symbols you won't be using
  as title text or setup strings.  I use the '~' character on both ends
  of my define names.  You can use any characters, or none at all as
  long as you use a unique identifier. For example:

      Define ~MYVAR~ Something
      Define $MYVAR Something else
      Define MYVAR Something different

  Just be sure you use variable names you won't have to use as actual
  text in your .DEF file.  A variable like STARTUP should be something
  like $STARTUP$ instead.  In the first example above, anywhere in my
  .DEF file that I use the variable ~MYVAR~, MakeDesk will substitute
  the value 'Something' in its place.  Just think of it as a flexible
  substitution feature that can save you from having to change the name
  of a directory that you use in four or five object definitions.  I
  list my 'Define' statements at the top of the file so that I can find
  them easily.

  Define variables can not contain other symbols.

      Define ~OtherVAR~ SomeText~MYVAR~SomeText     <-- INVALID!

  The above example is invalid because the ~MYVAR~ symbol won't be
  substituted.  In other words, variables are only substituted one level
  deep.

  Example:

    Define ~CMDS~ D:\Cmds

  Note:  MakeDesk provides one predefined variable: ~LF~.  This variable
         is used as a line-feed character to separate lines in a Title
         declaration.  ~LF~ is also used to separate device driver lines
         in the "SET DOS_DEVICE=..." DOS setting.  Example:

           SET DOS_DEVICE=DRIVER1.SYS~LF~DRIVER2.SYS

  This command is not required.




  Class
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Workplace Shell uses classes to determine the type of object you are
  creating.  Folders, shadows, etc. are all examples of different kinds
  of classes.  Folders use the WPFolder class.  Other applications may
  add new class types to your system.  MakeDesk should be fully capable
  of creating objects using new class types.  The method used to create
  the objects shouldn't be dependent on building only 'stock' Workplace
  objects.  MakeDesk also supports any object classes installed. For a
  complete list of 'stock' object classes supported by OS/2 and their
  associated setup strings, see the CrtObj.txt file.

  Example:

    Class WPShadow

  This subcommand is required.




  Location
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Objects have to live in a folder.  That folder can be the desktop, a
  folder off the desktop, or some other directory on your system.
  Locations are built one of two ways.  The first is simple; you use the
  name of the directory in which you want to place the object:

      Location C:\OS2\MDOS

  The other method uses a "handle" to a folder.  You must know this
  "handle" name ahead of time and already have it assigned.  You use the
  name inside a pair of '< >' brackets:

      Location <WP_DESKTOP>

  For a list of 'stock' folder handles provided by the Workplace Shell
  consult the CrtObj.txt file.  You can create your own handles, such as
  <WORK_FOLDER>.  These handles can be used later to modify the settings
  of the object.  See the description of ObjectID for more information
  on handles.  You can't use a <OBJ_HANDLE> type of location unless the
  folder was created using that handle.  Creating a folder using a
  folder template will result in no handle name.

  Example:

    Location <WP_OS2SYS>

  This subcommand is required.




  ObjectID
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Although you don't need to use handles for folders, you should use
  handles for program objects or any other objects you create.  If you
  create a Win-OS/2 3.1 object called <WF_WIN31> you can later update
  the settings for that object by referring to <WF_WIN31>.  These
  ObjectID handles must be unique for each object.

  Suppose you create your <WF_WIN31> object with a location of
  <WP_DESKTOP>. You later drag it into your Command Prompts folder.
  Will MakeDesk get confused if you try to update the object?  No.  The
  Workplace Shell is aware of every object's location change. This
  allows you to make changes to an object without having to remember
  where you moved it.  This is particularly useful since locations
  referencing the desktop can result in pathnames like
  "C:\OS!2 2.0 Desktop\System\Command Prompts".
  Using a handle allows you to refer to the Command Prompts folder as
  <WP_PROMPTS>.  Obviously the latter method is easier, and is
  independent of where you move an object or folder.

  I recommend assigning a handle to every object you define, including
  folders.  This makes it easier to access folders and any other objects
  even if they've been moved.  Otherwise, an object's location (i.e.,
  C:\OS2\MDOS) must be updated in your .DEF file each time you change
  its folder's location.  With a handle, you don't need to be concerned
  with whether or not objects have been moved.  Use folder handles as
  locations rather than directory names.  Assign unique handles to
  everything.

  Example:

    ObjectID <WF_NOTES>

  This subcommand is not required.




  Setup
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  The Setup command declares the type of object creation method.  The
  parameters are:

    Fail      - If an object exists with this handle, do nothing.
    Replace   - If an object exists with this handle, replace it.
    Update    - If an object exists with this handle, change it.

  Example:

    Setup Replace

  This subcommand is not required.




  Setup String
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Setup Strings are documented in the CrtObj.txt file. These strings
  customize the settings of an object including the "DOS settings" for a
  DOS program object.  MakeDesk supports more than one setup string per
  line by using a ';' between each string.  Breaking up the lines makes
  the settings more readable.

  Example:

    EXENAME=C:\UTILS\TEST.EXE;STARTUPDIR=C:\TEMP
    SET DOS_BACKGROUND=1

  Setup strings are not required.




Complete Example: PKUNZIP.DEF
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Define ~CMDS~ C:\Cmds
Define ~ICONS~ C:\Icons

Title     PKUnzip
Class     WPProgram
Location  <WP_DESKTOP>
ObjectID  <PKUNZIP>
Setup     Update
EXENAME=~CMDS~\PKUNZIP.BAT
PARAMETERS=-d -n %* [Extract to which directory?]
PROGTYPE=WINDOWEDVDM
ICONFILE=~ICONS~\UNZIP.ICO
NOAUTOCLOSE=YES
SET DOS_BACKGROUND_EXECUTION=0

------------------------------------------------------------------------

User assumes all risk by using this product.  Matthew Palcic holds no
warranty or guarantee that this program will not cause side effects or
crashes.  Use it at your own risk. MakeDesk only uses documented system
calls to process desktop objects.  If your system gets corrupted, don't
blame me.  Chances are that OS/2 bugs caused it.

**

I have developed a process for installing OS/2, the service pack, the
NetWare requester, and desktop setups from a Novell NetWare file server
requiring only a few diskettes at each station. Inquiries regarding this
process can be directed to:

  Personal Computer Systems
  5450 Olive Road
  Dayton, OH  45426

  513-837-8486, 9am-8pm M-F
  513-837-8286, Fax