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Cream of the Crop 21
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Cream of the Crop 21 (Terry Blount) (October 1996).iso
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┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│F(ile) M(anager)/2 copyright (c) 1993-96 by M. Kimes (Barebones Software)│
│ All Rights Reserved │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ READ.ME file -- read before installing │
│ See end of document for contact info and license details │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
File Manager/2 (FM/2) is a shareware OS/2 3.0 (Warp)+ PM 32-bit
file/directory/archive maintenance utility (a sort of super-Drives
object, something midway between the Drives objects and a more
traditional file manager) with plenty of bells, whistles and utilities,
drag and drop, context menus, toolbars and accelerator keys. If you
know how to use OS/2, you already know how to use most of FM/2. You can
easily glean the rest from the extensive online help, including
tutorials.
This document explains how to install FM/2, including upgrading from
previous versions. It explains command line syntaxes and how to get the
program(s) running. The online help tells you how to actually use FM/2.
A separate document (history.txt) lists changes for this version.
Another (register.txt) tells you how to register FM/2. If you're
interested, there're well over 110 printed pages of documentation in
this package, counting only this file and the online help -- did I write
all that?
The license agreement and author contact info is at the bottom of the
file.
FM/2 2.x installation instructions:
==================================
1. Unpack the FM2*.ZIP archive in a private directory (UNZIP.EXE
works nicely). FM/2 2.x requires its own home directory (FAT or
HPFS, doesn't matter). I recommend that it _not_ be your old FM/2
1.x directory (and don't delete the old 1.x version until after
you install, so the install program can migrate some of your old
settings and registration first). If upgrading from 2.x, just
unpack the files in the FM/2 2.x directory and go (you might want
to skip ARCHIVER.BB2 if you've customized it). Note: don't
attempt to unpack using FM/2 into the directory in which FM/2 is
already running -- OS/2 locks in-use files and the upgrade won't
be completed properly; not all files will be unpacked.
2. Run the provided INSTALL.CMD (a simple REXX program) in that
directory to build a folder and program objects and migrate some
old INI information. Rerun INSTALL.CMD if you later move the FM/2
directory. (If you later decide to remove FM/2, run UNINSTAL.CMD
in the FM/2 2.x directory and follow simple directions. Both
installation and deinstallation are no-brainers. UNINSTAL will
help you quickly and easily remove all traces of FM/2 from your
system if you don't like it for some reason. All OS/2 programs
should be so nice.) INSTALL sets up some associations for you
unless you give it /NOASSOC as an argument (INSTALL /? for help).
3. Run it -- double-click the "FM/2" or "FM/2 Lite" object in the
File Manager/2 folder. Have fun. Full help is available from
within the program. If you're unfamiliar with OS/2's WPS, please
take the time to run the OS/2 Tutorial before attempting to use
FM/2, as FM/2 uses many of the same conventions. It'll save you
time in the long run.
4. If you'd like to review all the documentation on FM/2 before
running it, you can. Unpack SEEHELP.EXE and FM3.HLP from the
archive, then type SEEHELP FM3.HLP.
Starting FM/2:
=============
If you start File Manager/2 (filename FM3.EXE) with no command line
arguments, it opens the Drive Tree window but no directory windows
(unless the "Save state of dir windows" toggle is checked -- see online
help).
File Manager/2 optionally accepts names of directories on the command
line; it'll open a directory window for each one. Hint: If you often
do different specific things with FM/2, you might set up a WPS object
customized to start up ideally for each activity. For example, if you
wanted to maintain your BBS areas, you might have one object like:
"FM3.EXE D:\BBSDIR D:\BBSDIR\MAILIN D:\BBSDIR\MAILOUT", and if you also
like to use FM/2 to set icons on files, you might have another object
like: "FM3.EXE E:\MYICONS D:\NEWFILES". The State userlist can also be
used for this within FM/2 itself -- see online help.
You can exclude drives on the command line by prefacing the drive letter
with "/", and there can be more than one drive letter behind the "/"
(i.e. "FM3.EXE /BH" to exclude both drives B: and H:). Hint: Many
people like to use /B to exclude "phantom" drive B: if they have a
single-floppy system. Similarly, you can cause drives NOT to be
prescanned by the Drive Tree by prefacing the drive letter with ";",
drives NOT to load icons for objects by prefacing the drive letter with
",", drives NOT to load subjects for objects by prefacing the drive
letter with "`" and drives NOT to load longnames for objects by
prefacing the drive letter with "'". This can be handy if you have a
very slow drive like a CD-ROM or Zip drive. FM/2 Lite recognizes
these switches, too. See also the Drive Flags dialog in FM/2.
If you place the argument "+" (alone) on the command line, FM/2 will
log, to FM2.LOG, delete, rename, move and copy operations that are
performed by drag-and-drop or with the menus. FM/2 Lite recognizes this
switch, too.
The command line argument "-" (alone) causes FM/2 to ignore, not load or
save, the previous state of directory windows (see the "Save state of
dir windows" toggle under Config Menu->Toggles in the online help) for
that invocation.
You can specify the name of an alternate INI file with "-<inifilename>"
-- for example, "FM3.EXE -C:\FM2\MYINI.INI".
Installation notes:
==================
Please read the following sections in the online help when you start
FM/2 for the first time: "How to use FM/2's Help," "Terminology" and
"General Help," then "Hints." The rest you can browse as you get
time/feel the need; for instance, if you want to know what a toggle
does, read the help under Settings notebook for that page (each
Settings notebook page has its own Help button).
If you prefer hardcopy help, print this file, run FM/2, press Ctrl + F1,
click the "Print" button at the bottom of the help window that appears
and then print both the "Contents" and "All sections" (keep an eye on
the printer, after page 100 of "All sections" as the Help Manager will
begin printing its own help then -- you may want to abort printing at
that point). Advanced and/or curious users may also want to print
FM3TOOLS.DAT and ARCHIVER.BB2. Be sure you have plenty of paper and ink
handy -- the package is well documented. You'll probably also want a
three-ring binder and hole punch to get it bound, as staples aren't
going through that puppy. You can, of course, print only the sections
that are of particular interest to you.
You may want to either move ARCHIVER.BB2 (the data file containing
information about archiver programs and archive files) to a directory in
your PATH= statement or erase this one if you've customized an old one.
FM/2 can still find, use and maintain ARCHIVER.BB2 on the PATH; it
doesn't have to be in FM/2's directory (this allows it to be used by
other programs as well, like XGroup, XBBS/2, LA, AV, ZTreeBold, etc.).
Remember, FM/2 works best with OS/2, not DOS, archivers.
If FM/2 refuses to run, the most likely culprit is CONFIG.SYS. Your
LIBPATH statement should contain "." or ".\" (shorthand for "the default
directory"), as in: LIBPATH=.;C:\OS2\DLL;C:\OS2\MDOS;<etc.> This is
the default OS/2 installation, but a few folks, or programs they've
installed, have changed it.
I've separated many of the standalone utilities that I used to include
with FM/2 into another archive (FM2UTILS.ZIP, or FM2