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MENUBAR Toolbar Program Users Manual Release 1.1 (Shareware Version) May 10, 1992 Copyright (c) 1992 by MRL 1200 Stonehurst Huntsville, Alabama 35801 All Rights Reserved This file provides the information needed to utilize the shareware distribution version of the MENUBAR program. MENUBAR is a copyrighted product of MRL and all rights are reserved. Any and all usage must be in accordance with terms discussed in Section III of this documentation. No usage other than for evaluation is permitted without registration. User feedback including comments/questions is welcome. Please address your comments to MRL via Compuserve electronic mail at user id [73637,737] or via mail to 1200 Stonehurst, Huntsville, AL., 35801. Restrictions and Warranties The software described herein is furnished under a license agreement. The software may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of the applicable agreement. The purchaser may make one copy of the software for backup purposes. Unregistered copies of MENUBAR are for evaluation purposes only, and may be distributed through normal shareware channels. Please distribute these evaluation copies to other bulletin boards and users. MENUBAR may be uploaded to and downloaded from commercial systems such as CompuServe, the Source, and BIX, as long as there is no charge for the product itself. Those copying, sharing, and/or electronically transmitting this product are required not to delete or modify the copyright notice and restrictive notices from the program or documentation. Any distribution of MENUBAR must include all files contained in the packed format. Commercial vendors and distributors of "public domain" or user-supported software libraries may distribute copies of MENUBAR unless notified by MRL to cease such distribution of the product. Only nominal fees associated with copying and handling (not to exceed $5 US) may be charged by anyone providing unregistered copies. MENUBAR may not be utilized or distributed as a promotion for any commercial venture. Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of MRL. To use MENUBAR, you need the following: IBM PC (or compatible)-286 with 1 Mbyte. Microsoft Windows (version 3.1 or later) MS-DOS/PC-DOS (version 3.0 or a later version as required by your version of Microsoft Windows) Use of this product for over 30 days constitutes your acceptance of this agreement and subjects you to its contents. EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN PART III OF THIS MANUAL, MRL DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE PRODUCT. SHOULD THE PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, THE PURCHASER ASSUMES THE RISK OF PAYING THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION AND ANY INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT WILL MRL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION AND THE LIKE) ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR THE INABILITY TO USE THIS PRODUCT. I. CONCEPT MENUBAR may be utilized with Microsoft Windows to customize the user environment by addition of menubars (or toolbars) that specify a user selected icon/bitmap or text and associate this with executable programs. MENUBAR provides a capability to define toolbar controls that augment existing execution methods or create a complete desktop environment based on the users own preferences. II. Installation/Execution of MENUBAR This section describes the various options relative to installing MENUBAR as well the command line functions. Installation (Section 1.0) describes the initial setup process to configure MENUBAR either as a user program or a program manager replacement shell. The command line options(Section 2.0) describe the process for creation, execution and editing of menubars. Detailed dialogue options (Section 3.0) for creation and editing of menubars are described, with the additional sections describing font selection options (Section 4.0) and mouse/key usage (Section 5.0). 1.0 Installation Options MENUBAR may be installed as a normal program or as a replacement for program manager. 1.1 Normal Installation Normal installation is accomplished by dearchiving the disk contents into a DOS directory. The Directory should be added to the default path if execution is to be done from other directories. The directory will contain the MENUBAR program (menubar.exe), sample menubars (*.mbr), and sample icons (*.ico) as well as documentation files. 1.2 Program Manager Shell Replacement Option. MENUBAR may be utilized as a replacement for the Windows Program Manager if desired. This requires editing of the Windows "system.ini" file. Be sure to create a backup of this file before changing any portions of it. Edit it to replace the "shell=" parameter within the [boot] section. The recommend changes are: 1) Change the existing "shell=" line to "shellold=" 2) Add a line of the form "shell=menubar.exe" (Note: Specify the full filename of the MENUBAR directory if the directory is not in the default path) This will initiate Windows execution using the MENUBAR program as shell and a default menubar-MAIN.MBR. A default is provided, which may be edited or replaced. Removing MENUBAR as the Windows shell can be accomplished by changing the shellold= and the shell= lines. CAUTION: Terminating the shell menubar (main.mbr) will terminate all programs immediately. Insure that updates have been saved prior to termination. 1.3 Additional Program Shell Options When using MENUBAR as a program shell, the user may specify other actions including starting multiple menubars, running or loading programs. These options are accomplished by specifications in the menubar initialization file. This file (menubar.ini) must be located in the Windows directory. It can be created with any edit program that stores standard text. The file must contain [menubar] as the first line and any of the following entries as the remaining lines. 1.3.1 File The "FILE=xxx" line allows for changing the default menubar file (main.mbr). "xxx" is the new menubar file. 1.3.2 Menubars The "MENUBARS=xxx" line specifies additional menubars to initialize. Multiple menubar file names may be specified separated by a semicolon(;). For example, the line: "menubars=appl1;appl2;time" will execute the specified menubars. 1.3.3 Run The "RUN=xxx" line specifies DOS programs to be executed. Multiple program file names (and parameters) may be specified separated by a semicolon(;). For example,the line: "run=notepad.exe read.me;clock.exe" will execute the specified programs, displaying the clock and read.me files. 1.3.4 Load The "LOAD=xxx" line specifies MSDOS programs to be executed and displayed in a minimized state. Multiple program file names (and parameters) may be specified separated by a semicolon(;). For example, the line: "load=winfile" will execute the Windows file manager displayed as an icon. 2.0 MENUBAR Command line options This section discusses the options available by specification of command line parameters upon execution of the MENUBAR program. 2.1 Execution of an existing menubar definition. The user may execute an existing menubar definition by providing the definition name as the first parameter of the command line. Note that each menubar definition is stored as a separate DOS file. The command to execute an existing definition is "MENUBAR xxx", where "xxx" is the menubar definition name. "xxx" must conform to the filename portion of the DOS naming conventions. If the user does not specify the DOS filename extension, MENUBAR utilizes the extension ".mbr". 2.2 Creating a new menu definition. The user creates a new definition file by entering the MENUBAR command without any parameters. A Message Box will confirm that this was the intended action, and a data dialogue will be provided for entry of the definition name. The detailed definition dialogues (see Section 3.0) are displayed for specification of the characteristics. 2.3. Editing an existing definition The user may edit an existing definition by specifying the "-E" parameter followed by the definition name. For example, "MENUBAR -E menu1" would edit the menu1.mbr file in the current directory. The detailed dialogues (see section 3.0) are displayed to allow for changing the current characteristics. 3.0 Detailed dialogues This Section describes dialogues for definition of the menubar. The Menubar dialogue provides for specification of all parameters and selection of individual command sets. The Command Set dialogue allows for specification of the bitmap/icon file, the command, associated parameters, and text. The File Open dialogue allows for selection of a file via browsing. 3.1 Menubar dialogue The fields on this dialogue allow for definition of a menubar. They include window position, size, title bar and execution options. Individual commands activate the command set dialogue to operate on command sets. The following represent logical groups of dialogue entries. 3.1.1 Command Set The Command Set list box displays the currently defined command sets. Each set is described in terms of the bitmap/icon file name, followed by the command file and parameters, and any text. Individual actions against command sets are shown at the bottom of the list box and discussed below. 3.1.1.1 ADD command The ADD button activates the command set dialogue to create a new command entry following the currently selected entry in the list box. 3.1.1.2 MODIFY command The MODIFY button activates the command set dialogue to modify the currently selected entry in the list box. 3.1.1.3 DELETE command The DELETE button deletes the currently selected entry in the list box. 3.1.2 Caption The CAPTION edit box allows for entry of text to be placed at the top of the menubar as a caption. This creates a title bar for the MENUBAR window. 3.1.3 Menubar Characteristics This section defines the menubar window level parameters. 3.1.3.1 Row Entry to the ROW edit box is the row location in pixels of the upper left hand corner of the menubar. 3.1.3.2 Column Entry to the COLUMN edit box is the column location in pixels of the upper left hand corner of the menubar. 3.1.3.3 Number of boxes per rows The boxes per row edit box is the number of command boxes to place on each row. This is a required field. A scroll bar is created when the number of commands exceed the number of command boxes (rows times columns). 3.1.3.4 Number of boxes per columns The boxes per column edit box is the number of command boxes to place on each column. This is a required field. A scroll bar is created when the number of commands exceed the number of command boxes (rows times columns). 3.1.3.5 Border Selection of the BORDER button specifies that the menubar has a border. 3.1.3.6 Maximize Box Selection of the Maximize Box button creates a maximize box as part of the title bar. This creates a title bar for the MENUBAR window. 3.1.3.7 Minimize Box Selection of the Minimize Box button creates a minimize box as part of the title bar. This creates a title bar for the MENUBAR window. 3.1.3.8 Reverse Scrollbar Selection of the Reverse Scrollbar button reverses the type of scroll bar (horizontal or vertical) generated when the number of command sets exceeds the number of boxes. 3.1.3.7 System Menu Selection of the System Menu button creates a system menu as part of the title bar. This creates a title bar for the MENUBAR window. 3.1.3.8 Iconic Selection of the ICONIC button minimizes the menubar upon execution. 3.1.4 Box Characteristics This set of characteristics describes the individual command boxes. 3.1.4.1 Height Entry to the HEIGHT edit box is the height in pixels of each command box. Bitmaps are sized within this box. Icons are truncated if the size is insufficient. The default for this field is 32. 3.1.4.2 Width The WIDTH edit box is the width in pixels of each command set box. Bitmaps are sized within this box. Icons are truncated if the size is insufficient. The default for this field is 32. 3.1.4.3 Border The BORDER edit box is the width in pixels of the border around the bitmap/icon in each command set box. Text from the command box may extend into this area. 3.1.4.4 Double Click Selection of the Double Click button requires the user to double click to execute the commands. A single click then may be utilized to select the command. This reduces the possibility of inadvertently executing a command. 3.1.4.5 Shading The SHADING set of group boxes allows for selection of command box visual effects. The default for this option is NORMAL shading. The user may select additional options for RECESSED or 3-D effects. The recessed option slightly reduces the text display area. 3.1.5 Action After Command The ACTION set of group boxes allow for selection of an action to be taken when the user executes a command. No action is required, but options allow for minimizing the menubar or termination of the MENUBAR program. 3.1.6 Program Termination Commands The following commands provide for terminating MENUBAR in edit or create mode. 3.1.6.1 CANCEL command The CANCEL button exits the edit/create processing without changing the definition. 3.1.6.2 OK command The OK button exits the edit/create processing after changing the definition. 3.2 Command Set dialogue The Command Set dialogue contains fields to modify/create an individual command set consisting of a bitmap/icon file, a command file, set of parameters and optional text. Select buttons are provided to utilize the Windows standard file open dialogues for selecting the files. Each command set is displayed within an individual command box. 3.2.1 Bitmap/Icon file Entry to the BITMAP/ICON edit box specifies the graphic file name to be displayed as the graphic within the command box. This may be standard Windows icon (.ICO) or bitmap (.BMP) files. The BROWSE button may be utilized to display the file selection dialogue for specifying the filename. This field is optional. 3.2.2 Command Entry to the COMMAND edit box specifies the program (or MENUBAR function) to be executed by selection of the command box. This may be any executable file that may be run under Windows. The BROWSE button may be utilized to display the file selection dialogue for specifying the filename. This field is required. Usage of additional MENUBAR features allow for selection of predefined actions. These actions are specified by entry of "$xxx" in this field and results in processing as described in the following sections. 3.2.2.1 EXIT The $EXIT option terminates the MENUBAR program upon execution. 3.2.2.2 LOAD The $LOAD option allows for specification of one or more programs to be run upon execution. Individual programs are separated by a semicolon (;) and parameters are allowed. Each program is executed displayed as an icon. 3.2.2.3 MENUBARS The $menubars option allows for specification of one or more menubars to be loaded upon execution. Menubars are separated by a semicolon (;) character. 3.2.2.4 PROGRAMS The $PROGRAMS option allows for specification of one or more programs to be run upon execution. Programs are separated by a semicolon (;) character and may contain parameters. 3.2.2.5 RUN The $RUN option allows for execution of any program from a file selection dialogue displayed upon execution. Parameters may be specified by the parameter entry. 3.2.2.6 WEXIT The $WEXIT option terminates Windows upon execution. The user should insure all work is saved prior to executing this command. 3.2.3 Parameters Entry to the PARAMETERS edit box is for specification of the parameters associated with the command to be executed. Specification of a "$" as the first character of the parameter allows the user to input the value upon execution. Characters following the "$" are displayed to the user before input. 3.2.4 Text The TEXT edit box identifies a text string for display. The field is optional. Usage of additional MENUBAR features allows for selection of predefined menubars. These menubars are specified by entry of "$xxx" in this field and results in display of a menubar as described in the following sections. 3.2.4.1 DATE The $DATE option displays a command box containing the current date in a MM:DD YYYY (month,day,year) format. 3.2.4.1 TIME The $TIME option displays a command box containing the current time in a HH:MM:SS (hours,minutes,seconds) format. 3.2.4.2 TIME1 The $TIME1 option displays a command box containing the current time in a HH:MM (hours,minutes) format. 3.2.5 Browse The BROWSE button is utilized to display the file selection dialogue for specifying a filename. 3.3 File Select Dialogue The File Select dialogue allows for selection of a file by browsing through directories and/or specified portions of the filename. A set of default extensions is provided for each type of file. 4.0 Font Options MENUBAR attempts to select a small font that is readable at multiple screen resolutions. The user may override this default font to generate unique settings for his monitor and usage. The parameters "fontheight", "fontwidth" and "fontfacename" (font height, width and facename) are provided to change the font characteristics. To determine the available font options on your system, run the Windows Control program and select fonts. To change the default values, create (or update) the MENUBAR initialization file (menubar.ini) in the default Windows directory. The first line of the file should be [menubar] with the remaining lines of the form "xxx=dddd", where "xxx" is one of the parameters and "yyy" is the value. 5.0 Mouse/key Usage If a title bar exists, the mouse may be utilized to execute system menu commands, minimize or maximize the menubar window, temporarily reposition the menubar, or close the menubar. Regardless of whether a title bar is present, the following mouse actions are supported. When the mouse (left button) is clicked one of the following occurs: 1) Clicking a command box either selects the command or executes the command depending on whether the double- click parameter is set for the menubar. 2) Clicking the menubar border (not title bar) or clicking with the SHIFT key depressed closes the menubar. 3) Clicking with the CONTROL key depressed minimizes the menubar. If the bar is minimized, a double click restores it to the original position. Dragging with the mouse accomplishes two functions: 1) Dragging with the shift key depressed from within the menubar window will position the menubar to the release point. The user will be prompted to save the file upon MENUBAR termination. Note that menubars with title bars may be moved by dragging the title bar, however the save prompt will not be displayed. 2) Execution of a program can be accomplished by dragging a file from the file manager and dropping it on a command box. The file is a parameter to the program. If the number of command sets exceeds the number of display boxes, a scroll bar is displayed that utilizes the mouse to position the display. Alternately, the keyboard may be utilized for selection and execution of commands. The ARROW keys are utilized to select individual command sets. Entry of a SPACEBAR or ENTER key executes the selected command. The ESCAPE key terminates MENUBAR. III. REGISTRATION AND LICENSE FEES MENUBAR must be registered if utilized for other than evaluation purposes for a period not to exceed thirty (30) days. A separate copy is required for each PC utilized. The file menubar.frm provides a sample form to be printed and included with payment or send your name, company, and address to MRL, 1200 Stonehurst Drive, Huntsville, Al, 35801. Registration using VISA/MC may also be accomplished by transmitting this form using Compuserve electronic mail to MRL at user id [73637,737]. Registration provides you with a version that includes the following: - No startup messages - Hardcopy users documentation - 90 day free consultation support - Mailing list distribution of upgrades and new products 1. Registration Costs Current rates for prepaid orders (in US dollars) are as follows: $24.95 Single user registration/license fee. $1.00 Additional cost for 3.5 disk. $5.00 Per Order Shipping and Handling fee. $10.00 Purchase Order Handling (under $100.). Subject to company approval. Residents of Alabama and the city of Huntsville must add appropriate Sales Tax. The scheduled rates and charges are current as of the date of this manual. All fees and charges are subject to change without notice. Multiple Purchase registrations are available pursuant to the following schedules. Total Copies Registered (on one order) Percent Discount ------------ ------------ 1 to 5 0% 6 to 9 15% 10 to 99 30% 100 to 499 40% 500 to 999 50% 1000 or more 60% Site licenses that allow for usage at a single physical address with authorization to reproduce disks/documentation are available for 50% of the maximum above cost for each range. For example, a site license for 99 users or less would be $865.26 (24.95 less 30 percent) less 50 percent. Minimum number of users for a site license is nine ($95.49). For over 1000 users, price is determined by total number of users at the site. As stated herein, there are no warranties whatsoever associated with the MENUBAR software product, and MRL is not responsible for its performance. You are the sole judge of the product's effectiveness and suitability for your particular purposes, and are given an opportunity to evaluate same via shareware distribution. We can only accept drafts, checks, international money orders or travelers checks payable in U. S. dollars drawn on U.S. banks. Registration can also be paid by credit card, Visa or Master Card. Registered users will be notified when updates and new products are available. Anyone wishing to offer advice and suggestions is most welcome to do so. Questions, errors, and suggestions for product improvements are welcome, either mail these to MRL, 1200 Stonehurst Drive, Huntsville, AL, 35801 or transmit them via Compuserve electronic mail to MRL at User id 73637,737. Compuserve electronic mail is the quickest method of receiving a response. Be sure to include: - The version of the copy of MENUBAR that you are using. - DOS and Windows versions that you are using; - hardware configuration (model, memory size, printer, etc.) - Windows or standard DOS applications that you may be running or have loaded under Windows at the same time.