The four arrow keys on the keyboard can be used to navigate through the list of topics because they duplicate the functions of the four navigation buttons and menu items. The arrow keys work as follows:
Left Arrow: Moves to the first topic in the list.
Right Arrow: Moves to the last topic in the list.
Up Arrow: Moves to the previous topic in the list.
Down Arrow: Moves to the next topic in the list.
Topic Text Scrolling
The Up and Down arrow keys on the keyboard can also be used to scroll the topic text window. Holding down the Command (‚åò) key and pressing the Down arrow key will scroll the topic text downwards. Holding down the Command key and pressing the Up arrow key will scroll the topic text upwards.
By using the arrow keys on the keyboard, and making appropriate use of the Command key, you will be able to navigate through the topics, and read them without having to use the mouse at all.
Automatic Searching
Holding the Command (‚åò) key down, and double-clicking on any word in the topic text area will initate a search for that word. That is, double-clicking on a word (remember to hold the Command key down) is the equivalent of using the 'Find' menu item or button.
Holding down both the Option and Command (‚åò) keys while double-clicking on a 4th Dimension command will initate a search for that word. That is, double-clicking on a command (holding down Option & Command) will search for that command.
Note that this short cut will not work for 4th Dimension commands that are part of code examples. In such examples, the commands do not have the internal format to enable this type of shortcut—this is so that you can copy and paste these examples into your 4th Dimension procecedures with the knowledge that they are syntactically correct.
Buttons
‘?’: This button displays the Help information you are currently reading.
‘Find’: Allows you to specify some criteria to search for. A dialog box will be displayed in which you can type the word or phrase you wish to find. Note that it is the text in the main window that is searched, not the list of topics at the left of the window.
Click the 'Find' button to perform the search - the process will begin with the first topic in the list. The first topic to contain the word of phrase will be displayed. If no topic is found then Commander will Beep, and you will remain in the topic you were previously viewing.
‘Find Again’: The 'Find Again' button will allow you to find other topics containing the same word/phrase. The process will begin with the current topic, and will continue until another topic has been found, or until all the topics in the list have been searched.
‘First’: Takes you to the first topic in the list.
‘Prev’: Moves you to the previous topic in the list.
‘Next’: Takes you to the Next topic in the list.
‘Last’: Moves you to the last topic in the list.
Command Set Pop-up Menu
The Command Set pop-up menu (bottom left of Commander window) allows you to select which Command Set file will be displayed in the Commander window. Note that to be available for use, all Command Set files must be located in the Commander folder.
If you are using a large number (greater than 5-6) of Command Sets, you may need to increase the memory pertition of Commander (by using the Get Info window in the Finder). Without the extra memory allocation you may find that the 'Find' command is un-useable. In addition, the use of a large number of Comand Set files may mean that there is insufficient memory for graphics to be displayed.
This demo version of Commander only allows you to use at most, two external Command Set files.
Menu Items
File Menu
‘Open Window’: This menu item shows the Commander window if you have previously closed (hidden) it.
‘Close Window’: This will hide the Commander window if you wish to temporarily hide it from view.
‘Auto Hide List’: You can have the 'Auto Hide List' toggle turned on or off. When it is on a small check mark (√) will be next to the word ‘Auto’ in the menu.
If ‘Auto Hide List’ is on, when you send Commander into the background (by bringing another application to the front), the Commander window will be automatically hidden. This means there will be less clutter on your Macintosh's screen.
When you bring Commander to the front again, the window will be automatically shown again.
‘Quit’: This menu item will Quit Commander , and return you to the Finder.
Edit Menu
Most of the Edit Menu menu items have no meaning while you are viewing the various topics. However, you are able to Copy all or parts of any of the topics to the Clipboard.
If you wish to copy all of the text from the current topic, you can use the Select All menu item prior to using the Copy menu item.
Navigate Menu
Most of the menu items in this menu are identical to the appropriate buttons in the topic window. See the appropriate descriptions above.
‘Go Back’: using this menu item will allow you to move back (sequentially) through the last dozen topics you viewed.
Creating Command Set Files
Commander ships with an additional application program called ‘Notebook Maker’. This program allows you create stand-alone applications similar to Commander, and also enables you to create your own, new Command Set files for Commander.
Refer to the built-in documentation within ‘Notebook Maker’ for detailed instructions on how to create your own Command Set files.
Please note that this functionality is included within a second application (rather than as part of Commander itself) in order to ensure that the memory requirements of Commander are kept to a bare minimum.
As of this version of Commander, Command Set files must reside in the same folder as the Commander application. A future version may allow you to collect all the Command Sets into another folder.
