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M e n u M a s t e r 2.12 Menuing System for IBM-PC Computer and Compatibles by John Franck 1200 Jefferson Davis Rd. Martinsville, Va. 24112 (703) 632-3845 CompuServe 70077,3453 BBS Support 703-632-2079 This is an abbreviated version of the Owner's Manual for persons evaluating Menu Master for their own use. Not all of the features are documented here. Registered Users (those who pay the modest registration fee of $30) will receive the official Program Disk, printed manual, and will be entitled to free upgrades, telephone support, information on program "secrets" and other such benefits. John Franck February 4, 1987 INTRODUCTION -------------- I used to spend a great deal of time working with new PC users, trying to get them comfortable with MS-DOS, the IBM-PC's operating system. Learning to use word processing, database, or spreadsheet software is tough enough for newcomers to PC's without the added burden of remembering all those DOS commands. Most of the PC's at the office were of the hard disk variety. Since the software programs and files were on the hard disk, I wrote a Menu Utility program to help people negotiate their way around the computer. In the mornings when they turned on their computer, they would automatically see a menu from which they could run Lotus 123, copy some disks, dial Dow Jones for their favorite stock quotes, do a little Word Processing, etc., etc. - all without having to remember or type any commands. Their response was gratifying, to say the least! The program later evolved into Menu Master. Menu Master allows any computer user to create customized menus that can be a "Control Center" for running application programs and frequently used DOS routines. For new users it saves a lot of frustration. For the more experienced it saves a lot of time. Applications can be run at the touch of a single key instead of typing in commands. No more forgetting commands or DOS directory names - all these are entered one time only and Menu Master remembers the commands for you. It will free you from the burden of remembering and typing those complicated commands and will let you concentrate on getting your work done. MAJOR FEATURES -------------- - Simple to Learn, Easy and Fast to use - Enter Menu Settings directly from program, without the need for text editor - Clear, clean and attractive screen layouts - Ability to "chain" multiple menus together - Up to 24 Menu Items with user-defined Menu Prompts, Passwords, Directory Paths, and Command Settings - Up to 7 Command Lines per Menu Item - Customize the Screen Colors and Individual Menu Prompt Colors - Personalized Menu Title with your Own or Company name - Customize On-Screen User Notes - Optional Date and Time Display - Clock chimes softly on the hour. - Menu Screen Blanks after 3 minutes to prevent Screen Burn-in. - System Password with extensive protection flexibility GETTING STARTED --------------- In order for MENU MASTER to work properly, the following 2 files must reside in the same sub-directory of your Hard Disk: MENU.BAT - Program Initiation File MMPRG.EXE - MENU MASTER Program The program also self-generates a file in the same sub-directory called MMSTR.STG which contains all of the Menu Settings that you will enter. (If you ever want to delete all of your Settings, you can easily do it by deleting the MMSTR.STG file.) Once the files MENU.BAT and MMPRG.EXE have been copied onto the Hard Disk, you can run Menu Master by simply typing in the word "MENU" at the C> prompt. The following screen will appear (fig. 1): (Figure 1) ============================================================== = = = = = M e n u M a s t e r = = = = Version 2.12 = = February 4, 1987 = = (C) Copyright 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987 by John Franck = = = = If you find this program useful to you, = = a payment of $30 per system is requested. = = = = John Franck = = 1200 Jefferson Davis Rd. = = Martinsville, Va. 24112 = = = = Please copy this program and share it with others. = = = ============================================================== Press any key to continue ... This TITLE SCREEN appears only once per day, so as to not interfere with MENU MASTER's ease-of-use. (There's a secret way to permanently bypass this screen for registered users only.) Just press any key to continue... The next screen, MAIN MENU (fig. 2), is the one you will normally see when using MENU MASTER. It is from this screen that you select your Applications at the touch of a single key. (Figure 2) ============================================================= = = = 05-16-1985 M e n u M a s t e r 8:06:10 am = = = ============================================================= = = = A - G - = = = = B - H - = = = = C - I - = = = = D - J - = = = = E - K - = = = = F - L - = = = ============================================================= = = = ESC = DOS ALT-letter = Modify F10 = Colors = = = ============================================================= C:\ * Unregistered Copy * About the MAIN MENU: The MAIN MENU displays the current Date and also provides a digital Clock. The Clock chimes softly every hour as long as the menu is active. Up to 24 Menu Selections can be entered into MENU MASTER, with their prompts appearing on this screen. Although only 12 selections appear in the illustration (fig. 2), 2 additional columns of 6 may be added. (The procedure for adding columns is discussed later in the section "Modifying System Settings".) Your Menu Selections can be individually Password Protected. If a selection is protected, the user is prompted to enter the password before running the selection. Whenever you finish running a program, MENU MASTER returns you to this screen so you can quickly move on to something else. To prevent "Screen Burn-in", the screen will go blank after about 3 minutes of no activity. The Time will continue to be displayed and updated. To re-display the screen, simply press any key. The current Drive and Directory are displayed at the lower left of the screen. The message "* Unregistered Copy *" will appear at the bottom of the screen if you have not yet registered your copy of Menu Master. ENTERING MENU SETTINGS ---------------------- To enter, modify or examine menu settings, hold down the "ALT" key and press the letter of the item you wish to select. For example, let's enter a menu setting for Formatting Floppy Disks. This will allow you to have a permanent menu selection for formatting disks at the touch of a single key from MENU MASTER's Main Menu. In our example, we'll assume the following: - We want "Format a Disk" to appear as Menu Item A on the Main Menu - This Menu Item is to be password protected using "ROSEBUD" as the password. - The DOS FORMAT Command is located on a sub-directory entitled DOS (C:\DOS). - The DOS Format Command, "FORMAT A:", will format a disk located in Drive A. To enter these settings in Menu Item A, hold down the ALT key and press "A". press ALT-A The MODIFY Screen will appear as shown in Fig. 3: (Figure 3) ============================================================ = = = Menu Prompt : _ = = Password : = = Directory Path : C:\ = = Command Line 1 : = = 2 : = = 3 : = = 4 : = = 5 : = = 6 : = = 7 : = = = = RETURN = Accept Del = Delete ESC = Escape = = = ============================================================ This MODIFY screen is used to enter new or to modify existing menu settings. You also can use it to examine settings which have already been entered. There are 4 fields to enter for the "Format a Disk" menu setting example. Enter them now as illustrated in Fig. 4. (Figure 4) ============================================================ = = = Menu Prompt : Format a Disk = = Password : ROSEBUD = = Directory Path : C:\DOS = = Command Line 1 : FORMAT A: = = 2 : = = 3 : = = 4 : = = 5 : = = 6 : = = 7 : _ = = = = RETURN = Accept Del = Delete ESC = Escape = = = ============================================================ In our example (fig. 4), the Menu Prompt setting is what you will see next to the letter "A" on the Main Menu screen. This can be anything you like describing what the selection does. The maximum length of Menu Prompts is 60 characters, but this depends on how many columns of menu selections you have. (We'll discuss how to change the number of columns later.) Menu Master will automatically fill in the Directory Path setting with the current drive and directory. This field will only need changing if your application resides on a drive or sub-directory other than the Current Directory (C:\). In the illustration, the FORMAT.COM file is on the subdirectory called C:\DOS, so we added "DOS" to this field. (Refer to your DOS manual if you need information on Directory Paths.) The Command "FORMAT A:" is the DOS command that will format a disk in Drive A. Commands can be up to 60 characters in length. You will notice that we did not enter anything for the 2nd thru the 7th Command settings. Just leave them blank if you don't need the extra commands. Menu Master will run every command that it finds in Commands 1-7. If you use Batch Files for a series of commands, using Menu Master's 7 settings can be a much better alternative. Keep pressing RETURN or TAB to skip through the rest of the command settings. After the 7th Command field, your settings will be saved and you will return to the Main Menu screen again. The menu prompt, "Format a Disk", will appear next to Menu Item A on the Main Menu as shown in Figure 5. (Figure 5) ============================================================= = = = 05-16-1985 M e n u M a s t e r 8:06:10 am = = = ============================================================= = = = A - Format a Disk G - = = = = B - H - = = = = C - I - = = = = D - J - = = = = E - K - = = = = F - L - = = = ============================================================= = = = ESC = DOS ALT-letter = Modify F10 = Colors = = = ============================================================= You can now "Format a Disk" by pressing the letter "A". Because you entered a password setting, you'll be prompted to give the password before you're able to run the selection in A. When prompted for the password, enter "ROSEBUD" (the password you gave to A) and you will immediately escape from Menu Master and can Format the Disk. Try this example on your computer now or enter another setting of your own. You may have to change the Directory Path to the proper setting for your particular computer setup, depending on what directory contains FORMAT.COM. Note: All passwords in Menu Master are "case sensitive". This means that the user must enter the password EXACTLY. Upper/lower case letters and spaces ARE significant. CHANGING OR DELETING MENU SETTINGS ---------------------------------- To change or delete settings, go from the Main Menu to the Modify screen by pressing ALT and the letter you wish to modify. The existing settings will be shown. You can edit settings by using the Backspace or Delete keys and then re-typing what you want. Press RETURN or TAB to skip down to the next fields. After the 7th field, your changes will be saved and you'll return to the Main Menu again. To leave the Modify Screen without saving any changes, simply press the ESC key at any time. CHANGING THE DISPLAY COLORS --------------------------- By pressing F10 from the Main Menu, you'll activate the Color Experimentation Window. Using this feature, you can try out various color combinations to suit your own tastes. The window displays a representation of the current Foreground, Background, and Menu Border colors. By pressing the Left or Right cursor keys, you can see up to 16 different Foreground (text) colors. Up or Down cursor keys will display the 8 possible Background colors. Page Up or Page Down will display the 16 Menu Border colors. When you find the combination you like, just press RETURN to save the color settings and return to the Main Menu. If you don't want to save the color settings, press ESC and you'll see the Main Menu with the old colors. Menu Prompts and the Menu Title can be given individual colors of their own by using the Color Over-ride feature. To do this, go to the Modify Screen of the menu item whose prompt you wish to Color by pressing ALT-Letter from the Main Menu. Then, simply enter the 2-digit color number you want, enclosed by brackets [], immediately after the Menu Prompt setting. For example, in the "Format a Disk" setting described earlier, you would enter the Menu Prompt as follows to color the prompt Blue: Menu Prompt : Format a Disk[01] You can use the Color Experimentation Window as a reference for color numbers. The numbers are displayed there in addition to the actual colors. For further reference, a list of valid color numbers follows: 00 Black 04 Red 08 Gray 12 Lt Red 01 Blue 05 Magenta 09 Lt Blue 13 Lt Magenta 02 Green 06 Brown 10 Lt Green 14 Yellow 03 Cyan 07 White 11 Lt Cyan 15 Super White Notes: The color number entered in brackets, [], MUST be a 2-digit number. Also, if you enter a number that is the same color as the screen Background, the Prompt will become invisible. By adding 16 to the color number, you can make the prompt blink. For instance, [17] will display a blinking Blue prompt. MODIFYING SYSTEM SETTINGS ------------------------- There are a variety of System Settings that can be changed to further personalize and protect your Menu Master setup. To display the SYSTEM SETTINGS screen, press ALT-Z. Press ALT-Z You'll be asked to enter the System Password. Menu Master has a default System Password of "MMSTR". Enter the password "MMSTR" (upper case) when prompted. You'll see the following display (fig. 6): (Figure 6) ============================================================== = SYSTEM SETTINGS: = = = = = = Menu Title : M e n u M a s t e r_ = = System Password : MMSTR = = Registration Code : = = = = PROTECT - ESC to DOS : N = = Menu Settings : N = = Screen Colors : N = = On-Screen Notes : Y = = = = OPTIONS - Blank the Screen : N = = Hide Date & Time : N = = = = # of Selection Columns (1-4) : 2 = = = = = = RETURN = Accept DEL = Delete ESC = No Change = ============================================================== Here's a description of all the System Setting Options (from fig. 6): - The Menu Title can be changed to anything you like, up to 58 characters. Use the Backspace or Delete Keys to edit the title and press RETURN or TAB to skip down to the next field. - The default System Password is MMSTR (case sensitive). This password can (and should) be changed to anything you like up to 15 characters. BE SURE TO WRITE DOWN YOUR SYSTEM PASSWORD and hide it away somewhere. You won't be able to modify System Settings without it. - The Registration Code is a special code you will receive when you register your copy of Menu Master. Entering the Registration Code will disable the annoying Title Screen that keeps asking for the modest registration fee. It will also disable the * Unregistered Copy * message that continually haunts the bottom of your menus. - You can password protect 4 different activities with the System Password, in addition to protecting access to the System Settings screen. By placing a "Y" next to any of the activities listed, protection is enabled and the user will be asked for the System Password when he tries to do the activity. "ESC to DOS" protection is a way to prevent unauthorized users from having access to DOS. "Menu Settings" protection will keep unauthorized users from seeing or altering your Menu Settings. "Screen Colors" protection will keep unauthorized users from tampering with the Main Menu's screen colors. "On-Screen Notes" is a facility that lets you write up to 3 lines of notes in the bottom rectangle of the Main Menu screen. This feature can be useful if you have special instructions that need to be seen by your users. The default for this setting is "Y" (enabled). - Two other Options can be set at the System Settings screen: After several minutes of inactivity, Menu Master will blank its screen to prevent screen burn-in. Normally, the blank screen will continue displaying "Menu Master 2.12" and the Time. Placing a "Y" next to the "Blank the Screen" option will COMPLETELY blank the screen, and "Menu Master" and Time will not be displayed. The default setting is "N". "Hide Date & Time" will remove the date and time display from the Main Menu Screen. The default setting is "N". - " # of Selection Columns (1-4)" allows you to change the number of available menu selections. Each column contains 6 selections, so you can increase the number in multiples of 6. The default is 2 columns, or 12 selections. Menu Master ALWAYS remembers the settings for 24 selections, regardless of whether or not they are available for use. Menu Prompts can be up to 60 characters, but if more than 1 column of selections is displayed, not all of the 60 characters will be visible. The following table lists the Menu Prompt lengths that will be displayed: Active Characters # Columns Selections Displayed 1 6 60 2 12 30 3 18 18 4 24 12 Note: You can "hide" menu selections by reducing the number of columns. If the selections are not visible on the Main Menu, they will not operate. However, the settings for hidden selections are still saved. Increasing the number of active menu selection columns will re-activate the hidden selections. After the number of columns is selected, the System Settings are saved and you'll return to the Main Menu. ON-SCREEN NOTES --------------- As previously mentioned, On-Screen Notes is a facility that lets you write up to 3 lines of notes in the bottom rectangle of the Main Menu screen. This feature can be useful if you have special instructions that need to be seen by users. To activate On-Screen Notes, press ALT-Y. Press ALT-Y After entering the System Password (if protected), you'll see a cursor appear in the Main Menu's lower rectangle. Type up to 75 characters per line, using the Backspace and Delete keys to edit if needed (similar to entering Menu Settings). You will notice the 2nd note line already contains the default Main Menu instructions, "ESC=Return to DOS ALT-Letter=Modify...etc." This line can also be modified. If you delete the 2nd line and try to leave it blank, the default will re-appear. To keep it from re-appearing, enter at least a blank space character (space bar) on the line. MULTIPLE MENUS -------------- What if several people use the same PC, but each one wants his own menu? Or what if you want to set up a sub-menu for all of your utility programs? No problem! You can link Multiple Menus with Menu Master. The procedure for doing this is documented in the "official" Owner's Manual you will receive after registering your copy of Menu Master. BATCH FILES ----------- Currently, Menu Master supports a maximum of 7 commands for a single Menu Item (in addition to the Directory Path setting). Having this many available commands per setting should normally keep you from having to create any Batch Files. If you have used batch files much in the past, you'll really appreciate this feature! For routines longer than 7 commands, a Batch File can be created using DOS's EDLIN utility or a Text Processor. See your DOS manual for more instructions on Batch Files. Use Menu Master to execute your Batch File by placing the Batch Filename (without the .BAT suffix) in your command setting. Note: Batch Files sometimes prevent you from returning to Menu Master after the file is executed. Be sure to include the command "MENU" as the last command in your Batch File so that it will return you to Menu Master. You can run Menu Master automatically whenever you turn on your computer by including the command "MENU" as the last item in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Your DOS Manual has a section which covers the AUTOEXEC file. Menu Master's Program Intitiation File, MENU.BAT, is a very simple batch file that initiates the program's batch sequence. If ever misplaced or altered by mistake, the MENU.BAT file can be re- created as follows: ECHO OFF CLS MMPRG RUN INFORMATION ON DISTRIBUTION AND UPGRADES ---------------------------------------- Menu Master is distributed under the consideration that people enjoy sharing software with each other. It takes some experimenting with software to see if it fits your own work environment and it's really not fair to have to pay for something before you know it works for you. You are encouraged to give a copy of Menu Master and its documentation to anyone you like. You must tell the person to whom you give the copy that this is a User-Supported program and urge them to promote the spirit of what that means. For those of you evaluating Menu Master for the first time, please feel free to call me if you have any questions or suggestions. Evaluate the program at your own pace. If you decide it doesn't suit you needs, erase the disk, or better still, give it away to someone else. If you find Menu Master useful and intend to keep it for your own use, you must register your copy within 45 days after receiving it. To register, fill out the Registration Form and send it along with a $30 check, payable to John Franck. Those who register will receive a Program Disk containing the latest version of Menu Master and a nicely printed manual. They also will be notified by mail as newer versions are released and can obtain a free upgrade by sending in a blank disk - quite a deal for just 30 bucks ! Corporations, schools, or any other groups are required to register copies of the program for each computer system using Menu Master. Discount rates are available for registering multiple copies. Please be sure to provide a name of an individual who is your corporate or group contact for support and upgrade purposes. For those of you who participate in the User-Supported concept and send in the few bucks to authors who work so hard for you - THANK YOU! The rest of you who continue using User-Supported programs without "bucking up" (and you know who you are), well... shame on you! I plan to continue upgrading and improving Menu Master, especially since so many of you have thrilled me with your honesty by sending in the modest registration fee. I've received good ideas from many of you that I plan to include in later versions. In summary, Menu Master is just a plain and simple good deal! The User-Supported concept lets you decide for yourself whether the program is suitable for your use. It also allows me to keep distribution and advertising costs to a minimum and share these savings with you in the form of a very low price. For only $30, you get an original Program Disk, printed manual, and most importantly - peace of mind ! In addition, you can get the latest developments or upgrades sent to you FREE of charge. Thanks, John Franck INVOICE ------- For those of you who need an invoice for Tax or Accounting purposes, the following Invoice can be used. It is not necessary to return this invoice with your registration form. You may retain this copy for your own records. For your information, applicable Federal and State taxes are paid on any proceeds from Menu Master registration fees. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- INVOICE M e n u M a s t e r 2.12 Custom Menu Software (C) 1987 by John Franck Date: ____________ INVOICE # 45231 Remit to: John Franck 1200 Jefferson Davis Rd. Martinsville, Va. 24112 Unit Extended Item Qty Price Price ---------------------------- ----- ----- -------- Menu Master Software Version 2.12 Registration Fee _____ 30.00 ________ Add 4.5% State Sales Tax Virginia Residents Only ________ Total Amount ________ Make Check payable to: John Franck ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- REGISTRATION FORM ----------------- M e n u M a s t e r 2.12 Custom Menu Software (C) 1987 by John Franck I'm honest! I have looked Menu Master over and have decided to keep it as part of my PC software library. Please register my copy. My check for $30 per system using Menu Master is enclosed. I understand that registration entitles me to the latest Program Disk and documentation, free upgrades of Menu Master, telephone support, program "secrets", and other such benefits. Name _________________________________________________________ Street or PO Box _____________________________________________ City ____________________________ State ________ Zip _________ Version Number _________ Where did you obtain your copy of Menu Master ? ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ You should have 3 files on your disk: MMSTR.DOC, MENU.BAT, and MMPRG.EXE. Are they all there ? ___________ Any special needs, comments or ideas for improvements ? ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Name of Contact Person (for Corporations, schools, etc.): ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Send this Registration Form with payment to: John Franck 1200 Jefferson Davis Rd. Martinsville, Va. 24112