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*** DropIt! v0.98 (August, 8th 1994) *** *** by Jean-Yves Oberlé *** 0.Summary 1.Introduction 2.Installation 2.1.Installation by Installer 2.2.Installation by IconX 3.Directions for use 3.1.First contact with DropIt! 3.2.Setting of DropIt! preferences 3.2.1.Setting of DropIt! own preferences 3.2.2.Setting of files preferences 3.2.3.Other gadgets 4.Errors 4.1.Errors occurring while DropIt! is starting 4.2.Errors occurring while DropIt! is running 5.History 6.Copyright 1.Introduction DropIt! has been written in order to make the "exploration" of the public domain disks easier. More often than not, those disks contain numerous files which examination needs the use of quite a lot of dif- ferent utilities (ILBM reader, text viewer, archive utility, ...). DropIt! enables you to do this automatically. To this end, it opens when it is started an icon on the Workbench screen on which you can put another icon. The type of the file is then recognized automatically and the associated program (chosen by the user) started (an ILBM reader for an image for instance). DropIt! can only be run under Kickstart v2.04 (or higher). It needs the whatis library (in the LIBS: directory) and the DropIt!Handler fi- le (in the L: directory) (these two files are copied by the installa- tion scripts). 2.Installation The installation can be done by Installer or by IconX. 2.1.Installation by Installer You must have the Commodore Installer program. If so, just click twice on the "Install.installer" icon. The installation script will act as described below : 1) a DropIt! directory is created; 2) the DropIt! file is copied into this directory; 3) the DropIt! handler is copied into the L: directory; 4) the whatis library is copied into the LIBS: directory; 5) the Utilities directory is created and the utilities Decrunch, PlaySample, ShowILBM, and ShowText are copied into it (you can have a look at documentations of these programs to learn more about them). The powerpacker library is also copied into the LIBS: directory (it is used by Decrunch); 6) the Icons directory is created and some icons useful to DropIt! are copied into it; 7) the DropIt! preferences file is created in the ENV: and ENVARC: directories; 8) The Examples directory is created and some files (sounds, pic- tures and texts) are copied into it. They enable you to test DropIt! quickly; 9) the Docs directory is created and the documentations of the following programs are copied into it : DropIt!, Decrunch, PlaySample, ShowILBM and ShowText. If 'Intermediate User' or 'Expert User' installation mode is chosen, the user will be asked to confirm the 5, 6, 8 and 9 actions. If 'Expert User' installation mode is chosen, the user will be able to choose another destination directory (DropIt! by default in the other modes). In the case of the 'Novice User' mode, the user is never asked for any confirmation. 2.2.Installation by IconX You should use this installation if you don't have Installer. The script is started by clicking twice on the "Install.iconx" icon. It acts as described above. 3.Directions for use 3.1.First contact with DropIt! Once DropIt! is installed, you just have to click twice on its icon to launch it (of course, it can also be started by using the Shell). DropIt! then opens an icon on the Workbench screen. Dragging and drop- ping another icon on it will lead DropIt! to start the associated pro- gram (an ILBM reader for an image for instance). This program can of course be defined by the user. If you have installed the four little utilities (Decrunch, PlaySam- ple, ShowILBM and ShowText), you can test DropIt! now. Just drop the icons from the Examples directory on the DropIt! icon and look at the result (or listen to it). You would probably like to use more powerful utilities (Mostra for example). To do this, you'll have to learn how to set DropIt! prefe- rences. 3.2.Setting of DropIt! preferences Setting of DropIt! preferences is done through clicking twice on its icon. DropIt! thus opens a window like the following one : -------------------------------------------------------------------- |O| Preferences : DropIt! |O|O| -------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Language Icon type Icon image | | | | x English o Window - ------------------------- | | o Français x Icon Name |O| | | | - ------------------------- | | ----- ---- -------- | | X | 0 | Y | 0 | | Test | | | ----- ---- -------- | | Files | | Types | | ---------------- - --------------------------- | | | Volume |O| Description | | | | | Assign |O| --------------------------- | | | Dir |O| - ------------------------- | | | Exe | | Program |O| | | | | Pure Exe | | - ------------------------- | | | PP40 Exe | | - ----------- ------ | | | PP30 Exe | | Start from |O| Workbench | Stack | 4096| | | | PP Exe | | - ----------- ------ | | |*Script |-| --------------------------- | | |*Text |-| Command | | | | ---------------- - --------------------------- | | -------- | | | Remove | | | -------- | | -------- --------- -------- -------- | | | Save | | Use | | Quit | | Cancel | | | -------- --------- -------- -------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- This window enables you to define two kinds of settings : setting of DropIt! own preferences and setting of files preferences. 3.2.1 Setting of DropIt! own preferences Several settings are available. The Language gadget enables you to choose the DropIt! language. For the moment, only English and French are available. If the locale li- brary is present, DropIt! will set the language by itself. The Icon type gadget makes it possible for you to choose between the opening of a window or of an icon at DropIt! start. The main differen- ce is, from the user point of view, the absence of a name under the window. So the user can put it in the bottom right corner of the Work- bench screen in order to make easier the quick drop of icons on it. The Name gadget enables you to replace the default icon image by your own image. You must give the access path to an ILBM file. If pos- sible, this image should be compatible with the Workbench screen dis- play mode. If it is not the case, the image will be displayed all the same. But its shape and its colors might change (in the case of a HAM picture for instance). Thanks to the X and Y gadgets, you can give the abscissa and the or- dinate of the DropIt! icon provided that its type is window. Finally, the Test gadget enables you to have a look at a new icon. Clicking on this gadget leads DropIt! to open a new icon taking the type (Icon type gadget), the picture (Name gadget) and the position in the case of a window (X and Y gadgets) into account. This icon can of course be moved to assign a new position to it. Clicking twice on it will close the icon. If the type window has been chosen, the new posi- tion is written in the X and Y gadgets. 3.2.2.Setting of files preferences This paragraph describes how to define the programs that will be started according to the type of the icon dropped on the DropIt! icon. First, the type of file must be chosen in the Types gadget list. When this is done, the type name appears in the Description gadget. Then, you have to choose the program associated with this type by giving its access path in the Program gadget. The Start from gadget makes it possible to decide whether DropIt! should imitate the Workbench or the CLI to start the program. In the second case, if the program generates some text output, DropIt! will open a window where it will be displayed. This window will not be clo- sed automatically. This has to be done by the user. The Stack gadget enables you, as you would have guessed it, to defi- ne the size of the stack for the program. The size should never be less than 4000 bytes. If you give a smaller size than the one indica- ted by the .info icon file (if it exists), DropIt! will choose this last value to avoid a program crash. Thanks to the Command gadget, you can define the command line used to start the program from the CLI. This line must not include the pro- gram name. On the other hand, it could include (only once) the key- word <file name>. This key-word will be replaced by the file name (in- cluding the access-path) when the program is started. Let's take an example to understand better how to associate a pro- gram with a type. We would like Virus_Checker to scan executable files dropped on the DropIt! icon. We first have to choose the right type. This is done by clicking on the Exe type in the Types gadget list. This type appears immediately in the Description gadget. In the Program gadget, we indicate the access path to Virus_Checker: Hard Disk:Utilities/Virus_Checker We want the program to be started from the CLI. So we have to click once on the Start from gadget. For the stack size, we should at least indicate 4096 in the Stack gadget. In the Command gadget, we write : -q <file name> (the -q option tells Virus_Checker to exit after having scanned the file). Finally, we click on the Use gadget to tell DropIt! to take our new preferences into account. If we now put the SYS:System/Format icon on the DropIt! icon, the generated command line will be : "Hard Disk:Utilities/Virus_Checker" -q "SYS:System/Format". Virus_Checker will thus examine the Format file. A star will appear in front of the Exe type. This means that this type has been taken into account by DropIt!. When you enter a string in the Program, Command or Name gadgets, you must always end with a carriage return. Otherwise, the new string might not be taken into account by DropIt!. 3.2.3. Other gadgets The DropIt! window contains five other gadgets that have not been described yet. The first of them is Remove. It deletes the link between a type and its associated program. You just have to choose the type and to click on the gadget. The Description, Program, Start from, Stack and Command gadgets will not be affected. Only the star in front of the type will disappear. This enables you to recover datas after an accidental remo- ve. You just have to select the Program gadget (for instance) and press the enter key. The Save gadget makes it possible for you to record the preferences. The new preferences are immediately taken into account. A click on the Use gadget records temporarily the preferences (until the next reset of your Amiga). The new preferences are immediately ta- ken into account. A click on the Quit gadget leads DropIt! to exit. No record is done. Finally, the Cancel gadget enables you to close the preferences win- dow. No record is done. The DropIt! icon remains on the Workbench screen. You should notice that when the preferences window is open, the DropIt! icon remains active. You can still go on dropping icons on it. That's also true when the second icon is open (the one opened by the Test gadget). If a project file which type is unknown (or has not been associated with a program) is dropped on the DropIt! icon, DropIt! will try to start the icon default tool. 4.Errors Errors can occur while DropIt! is starting or running. 4.1.Errors occurring while DropIt! is starting When an error occurs while DropIt! is starting, the following messa- ges may appear : "Can't open intuition library v37" : The intuition library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open dos library v37" : The dos library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open graphics library v37" : The graphics library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open workbench library v37" : The workbench library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open iffparse library v37" : The iffparse library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Workbench version (at least 2.04). "Can't open gadtools library v37" : The gadtools library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open asl library v37" : The asl library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Workbench version (at least 2.04). "Can't open icon library v37" : The icon library version 37 (or higher) is not available. You should use a more recent Kickstart version (at least 2.04). "Can't open whatis library v3" : The whatis library version 3 (or higher) is not available. Check if this library is in the LIBS: directory. If that is the case, you should try to get a more recent version. "Out of memory" : DropIt! needs more memory. Try to free some by closing some appli- cations or windows and start DropIt! again. "Cannot allocate a signal" : No more signals are available. If DropIt! has been started from the CLI, try to start it from the Workbench. "No notification available" : The filesystem managing the ENV: directory doesn't allow notifica- tion. Assign ENV: to a directory on the ram disk. "No information on Workbench screen" : DropIt! can't get information on the Workbench screen because the- re isn't enough memory. Try to free some. "Cannot start handler" : DropIt! cannot load and start its handler. Check if the handler (DropIt!Handler) is in the L: directory. "Cannot create an icon" : DropIt! cannot open an icon on the Workbench screen. Check if the Workbench has been loaded (by looking for icons on its screen). If that is the case, there's probably not enough memory available. Try to free some. "Cannot open a window" : DropIt! cannot open a window on the Workbench screen. Check if the Workbench has been loaded (by looking for icons on its screen). If that is the case, there's probably not enough memory available. Try to free some. "Type of screen not handled" : DropIt! cannot open icons on Dual-playfield, HAM or Extra Half Brite screens. 4.2 Errors occurring while DropIt! is running These errors simply lead DropIt! to flash the screen. They may be caused by : - a lack of memory, - an unknown type of file dropped on the DropIt! icon, - the impossibility to save the preferences, - ... 5.History 08.08.94 : first released version (0.98) of DropIt! 6.Copyright DropIt! is a freeware. This means that it is copyright by Jean-Yves Oberlé but it may be freely distributed provided that : - all the files described in the ReadMe file are included in the distribution; - no file is modified; - it is not sold at a too high price (not more than the media, the duplicate and the postage cost for a disk distribution for ins- tance). The author reserves the right to prohibit anybody that does not res- pect the above rules from distributing his programs. No guarantee of any kind is given that the programs are reliable. The author cannot be made responsible for any damage which is caused by the use of his programs. For any suggestions, bug reports, ... you can write to the author : Jean-Yves Oberlé 14, rue Christine de Saxe 67170 Brumath France