Auto Fade is a screen saver designed especially for the Hermes BBS. It is an external so it actually runs inside of Hermes. It can be configured to blank the screen, draw lines when no one is online or display the name, node and current board action of those online. It also underlines the name of any caller requesting a chat. Auto Fade works under both Systems 6 and 7 and works with multiple monitors. Auto Fade preceeded the built-in screen saver and I think it is far superior. It is definitely more stable than the built-in one.
Installing it.
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Auto Fade includes both user and sysop externals. To use it simply drag it into the externals folder and restart Hermes.
Setting it up.
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All customizing of Auto Fade is done from the sysop external (in fact, entering from the external menu doesn't do much at all). From the sysop external (the system preferences item under the sysop menu) you can customize Auto Fade to suit your needs.
Toggling the 'On/Off' option will turn Auto Fade on and off (it will not be called in the idle loop which is where all the action takes place) without having to remove it from the externals folder.
Choosing the 'Auto-sleep' option will set Auto Fade to automatically hide the screen after a certain period of inactivity. This inactivity period can be set in the edit text item in the 'Auto-sleep option. Activity is defined as mouse movements or a user being online locally (from the keyboard). NOTE--If you change either of these values you must 1) restart Hermes *OR* 2) run the user external from the external menu *OR* 3) invoke the screen saver briefly (by moving the pointer to the 'sleep' corner).
'Display options' will determine what Auto Fade does when the screen is blanked. 'Fade to black' will do just that, the screen will go completely blank. 'Lines when no one's on' will display a "Flying Line" type graphic when no on is logged on to the BBS. 'Show who is online' will display the name and node of all current users on the BBS. I originally made these optional because I was afraid they would slow down the BBS, but in my experience (which is only on a two line board) it makes little difference.
Setting the 'Use sysop hours' means that Auto Fade with ignore your settings during those hours when you are unavailable and simply blank the screen. This is useful if you sleep in the same room as your BBS.
You can also set the font size that Auto Fade uses when displaying users by choosing either 12 or 18 point type.
Running it.
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Using Auto Fade is much like using any other screen saver. If you use the auto-sleep option Auto Fade will automatically hide the screen once the board has been idle for the set period of time. Moving the mouse will 'wake up' Auto Fade. If you would like to hide the screen immediately, place the pointer in the upper left hand corner. If you would like Auto Fade to not hide the screen, you can place the pointer in the upper right hand corner.
Limitations, problems etc
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Auto Fade does differ from other screen savers. It is acting as part of an application, not a system extension. This means that it will be a little slower when reacting to events. In particular if you type really slowly in another application, it may miss some of the key presses and go to sleep. This is unlikely unless you have the auto-sleep time set really low.
Future features
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I am thinking about including the following but would like to hear other ideas.
--maybe have other patterns displayed, but I don't want to get carried away.
--display other information about callers (SL, time left)
--allow the 'sleep' and 'no sleep' corners to be moved (if anyone really needs this in the meantime I can compile a special version-just let me know)
The plea.
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Auto Fade is SHAREWARE. I think this is a really useful product. I am more than willing to support it but new versions are of course dependent on interest and interest is dependent on feedback and the best feedback is registration. I have written a few shareware applications and it is getting discouraging, not to mention financially hard, to justify all the time. If you use it please register your copy. I feel that shareware has fallen into the same trap as the commercial system it is supposed to be an alternative to. Authors ask for such large fees because so few people actually send them in. This in turn causes fewer people to send them in, which makes authors feel they need to ask for more, which…you get the picture. I have intentionally made the price so reasonable you don't have any excuse not to pay the shareware fee. If you don't think the external is worth $10 then DON'T USE IT.
Registration info
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To register send $10, *and* the registration form below (the form does make things easier) to Chris Owen, PO Box 1471, Garden City, KS 67846 (before August 1994 you can send it to me at 27 Bishop St #2R, New Haven CT 06511 for faster registration). The fee will also cover future versions as they come out.
If you have any questions or comments about Auto Fade, I would appreciate hearing them. I can be reached on Olympus or at the addresses below.
Chris Owen (#681, I think)
owen-christopher@yale.edu <-- I prefer this address
Mulligan's Valley ("official" support board) 203-772-4485 (2400)
