Extensions Manager and EM Extension are free software and can be distributed freely by individuals. For Commercial distribution or bulletin board distribution please contact Apple Software Licensing.
EM is distributed "As is" and unsupported by Apple. Please don't call Apple for technical support.
Extensions Manager allows you turn "off" or "on" the code that executes at startup in certain "extension documents" such as Control Panels, Chooser devices and INITs (known before as startup documents). It also allows you to choose which font files should be opened under System 7.1 EM is also PowerBook aware, a couple of features are specially useful to PowerBook users.
With System 7.x there are a few folders where system extensions can be located, therefore the old style "INIT Managers" do not work well.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••• FEATURES •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Extensions Manager is made with System 7.0 in mind. The main features of Extensions Manager are:
1) System 7.1 folder structure aware. Still compatible with system 6.0.x 2)*PowerBook aware, a special option automatically enables or disables
a network set based on the network availability. Another option
brings up EM at startup every time if you want to.
3)*You can add and remove your own file types. This is very useful for
adding other file types which you consider extend your system
such as debuggers, startup applications and aliases.
4)*Extension sets. Extension sets allow you to quickly enable or disable
a collection of extensions for which you have given a name. Sets consist
of a name and a number of file types. Therefore the name of an extension
can be changed without having to recreate a set and without worrying about
the location of an extension.
5)*The Startup Items and Fonts folder are now included in EM. The standard
alias type for applications has also been included so you can prevent
applications from starting automatically whenever you want to. 6) Context sensitive help in all dialogs. (aka Balloon Help) 7) Icons do not get lost when disabling a system extension. 8) Updated as necessary. (while makes sense)
9) System 4.2 to 7.1 compatibility
CURRENT VERSION ====> 2.0.1
•• What is NEW in 2.0
1) Finally, use an international routine for sorting the extension names. 2) Show folder names in the extension list for reference.
3) When a duplicate file is found, give the option to delete the unwanted
target file.
4) Include the Fonts folder from 7.1
5) Allow for keyboard selection of extension names. When you type a key, EM finds the first extension that starts with that letter. If you type the key again EM skips to next folder and finds the first file or folder name that begins with that letter and so on...
6) Two new options specially useful for PowerBook users:
a) Give the option to always come up at startup.
b) Optionally enable or disable a set called "Network" based on
the state of the network. When this option is enabled and the network
is available, enable those extensions in the set. If the network is
not available then EM disables those extensions. You must first create
a set called "Network" for this function to work.
• 2.0.1
Fixed a bug where some items in the "Network" set would not be enabled/ disabled.
Open the Extensions Manager and you will see a list of your system extensions. Highlited extensions are enabled. Before each set of extensions you will find the name of the main folder where they belong in bold-italics, this items is just for reference and cannot be selected. To enable an extension click on its name so it becomes highlited, to disable an extension click on its name so it shows unhilighted.
A popup menu allows to save the currently highlited set of extensions as a set. This menu also allows you to enable, disable and delete sets.
To customize the file types EM designates as extensions first click in the "Options..." button.
• Options... Dialog
The "Configure" button in the Options dialog shows you two lists of file types. The first one is designate as files which require an INIT resource in order to be recognized as an extension. The other list contains the file types for files which are considered an extension without the need for an INIT resource to be present in them. In this list you can add aliases, debuggers, etc.
Another option in this dialog is to have EM always come up automatically, this may be useful for PowerBook users. The last option is to automatically enable or disable a set called "Network" based on the state of the network at the time your Mac is starting. First disable all extensions, then select the extensions you want to be part of the "Network" set and from the pop-up menu select "Create Set...". Type in the name "Network". Now you have a "Network" set. Click Revert on the EM Control Panel so that you do not change your existing configuration after you close EM. Then click on the button called "Options" and check the option for the network set.
• More... Dialog
When you click on the "More..." button, you get to see a description of what EM does and you get access the recover extensions option:
The "Recover Extensions" button in the version dialog scans for extensions disabled by old style "INIT" Managers. The old style INIT Managers used to change the file type of an extension so it would not be recognized as an extension anymore. Many times people would give someone a copy of an extension that had been disabled by this method and the result is confusion and frustration because the file does nothing for the new user. The recovering process consists of changing the file type of modified extensions to its original state.
• Enabling Extensions at Startup
To enable or disable extensions at startup simply keep the space bar down while your computer is starting. Extensions Manager will show its window an allow you to enable and disable extensions before the start process continues. If you need to restart your computer because some extension or debugger loaded already, keep the command key down while closing the EM window. This function only works when EM is invoked at Startup. Optionally you have EM come up every time automatically by selecting the appropriate option under the Options dialog.
This release includes an extension called "EM Extension". Its purpose is to provide an early way to provide you with the extension enabling/disabling aid. This was done because under system 7.x the Extensions Folder is scanned first, then the Control Panels folder and finally the System Folder. Since Extensions Manager is a Control Panel by the time it gets executed many extensions have already been loaded. EM Extension simply calls Extensions Manager earlier in the boot process when the space bar is held down. EM Extension is useful only if you are using System 7.x
