LOODLE‚Ñ¢ has been designed to be as easy to use as possible. Over time a number of user suggested features have been built into LOODLE‚Ñ¢ but the essential operation of the program is still very simple.
What you do:
Put a 3.5 inch floppy into the disk drive.
What LOODLE‚Ñ¢ does:
Everything else.
Basically that’s it. LOODLE™ will automatically prepare a label for printing with the disk’s title at the top and a list of all the files and folders that are on the disk under that. If you keep feeding disks into the slots, LOODLE™ will keep them all in memory as a long list, and you can move back and forth along the list to edit or change the labels. You can add graphics to the design, if you wish. You can change fonts and border patterns. You can choose to omit certain types of information. You can set up the labels anyway you wish, but LOODLE™ does all the measuring and figuring for you.
The other thing that LOODLE‚Ñ¢ does is prepare a TEXT listing of your disks. After you have fed in all the disks you can prepare a file catalog of all the information on the disks and use your favorite word processor to edit and compile sorted lists of what files you've put on which floppy disks. Or you can import them into LoodleList for an online searchable listing.
To help you use some of LOODLE™’s advanced features, here is an instruction manual for each of the menu commands.
Menu Commands:
••• FILE
⌥ Open…
This will open a file of labels created by LOODLE‚Ñ¢. Only one file can be open at a time. A file is a linked list of each disk fed in to LOODLE‚Ñ¢ along with all the files on them, and all the formating information you specify. When you choose Print, all the labels on the list are printed. Files that were created with earlier versions of Loodle starting with 4.0 will automatically be altered into 5.2 types when you save them.
‚å• New
This will close any open file, erase all accumulated disk data, and begin a new empty file.
‚å• Save
Saves the accumulated data into a special data file for later re-use.
⌥ Save As…
Same as every other save as you’ve ever seen.
⌥ Save Catalog…
This will save all the disk data as a TEXT file which you can open with your word processing program. You can then print it out, so you’ll have a quick reference of what files are on which disks. First you’ll be presented with a dialog that lets you choose to have the list prepared either (1) as an alphabetical list of all the files, along with the disks that they are on, or (2) as a list of all the disks, with the files and folders sorted under each disk title. You also get to choose the word processor that will be started when you double click the file: MS Word (MSWD), MacWrite (MACA) or TeachText (ttxt), but the files can be opened by any word processor for the Mac. You can use LoodleList to import catalog files created with the 2nd option (by disks), for an easily searched online database catalog of all your stored files.
⌥ Page Setup…
Does what this one always does.
‚å• Print
Ditto.
••• EDIT
Cut, Copy, Paste and Clear do what they always do... BUT only on graphic elements, specifically PICT type data. You can Cut, Copy, and Paste PICTs from the scrapbook or from graphics programs such as MacDraw, MacPaint, etc. and paste them onto your labels. Pictures will be centered near the top of the label, and the lists of files will be arranged underneath. If you hold down the option key while selecting this menu, it will allow you to Cut, Copy, Paste and Clear the background graphic (see below).
About Graphics...
The size of the picture you can paste in is limited by (a) the size of the label you’re using, and (b) the size taken up by comments. This means: for 6 to a page forms, the space is 2 9/16th inches wide, and max 1 5/8ths inches tall (a one line comment will take up about 7/32 inch at the bottom, and a two line comment will take about 7/16ths inches (depending on the font used). The 9 to a page labels have a space the same height but only 2 5/16ths inches wide using the wider printing option or 2 inches wide otherwise. The graphic is centered at the top of this space and cropped to fit. The list of file names will be squeezed into any space left over. That means if you have a very large graphic, few or no file names will be listed!
At this juncture only PICT type graphics can be used. These are graphics such as you get from MacDraw and MacPaint. It also includes the high res (300 dpi) bitMaps from Canvas, etc. It does NOT include postscript graphics such as produced by Illustrator or Freehand.
••• LABELS
‚å• Label Inserted Disks
When this is checked, each disk that is inserted will automatically be included on the list of files to be printed. That's the way most people use LOODLE‚Ñ¢. If it is not checked then a label will appear on the screen, but it is not linked to the list, but it will be deleted when the next disk is inserted, and it won't be printed when you select print.
‚å• Add To List
This is to add a disk to the list when you've inserted it without selecting Label Inserted Disks first.
‚å• Delete from List
This is to delete a disk from the list so it won't be printed. Useful if you pop in an unlabeled disk and find that it’s one you don’t want a label for.
‚å• Go First, Go Last, Go Next, Go Back
Used to move back and forth along the list of labels you have created.
••• FORMAT
⌥ Form Layout —> 9 per page / 6 per page / 12 per page / Single
Choose which of the four paper formats you will be using.
⌥ Design…
This will bring up a dialog box that will allow you to set several options about the way a label looks. You choose fonts for the title and for the listing of files. You choose the pattern to be used for the border, or choose to turn off the border altogether. You choose to have those choices apply only to the disk currently on the screen (and to all subsequent disks) or to all the disks currently in the list. Then you choose a minimum font size to determine just how small to allow the print to be in the listing of files (we recommend no smaller than 6 points). The program always prefers 12 points but it selects a smaller size if there is too much printing to fit on the label at the larger size. You may choose a fixed font size instead, so all the labels will have a uniform look, or so that a size which is the best looking one for the font will always be used. Finally you can choose to have the title centered on the label (the prefered way) or left justified.
‚å• Icon >
This allows you to choose an ICON to put on the label and to select it’s position on the label. You may pop a disk in the slot after you choose this to pick an icon off of it, and that disk will not be linked to the list of labels. You can then eject it with the Eject menu choice.
⌥ Edge…
You can have the label name printed on the edge either upside down (so it will be readable while it is in the slot) or right side up (for easier reading in a file cabinet).
⌥ Filters…
You may select the type of files to be listed: Either folders or files or both or neither! You can eliminate system files and invisible and desktop files, or leave them in. You can also have Loodle list the contents of any archive files made by Stuffit or Compactor.
⌥ Rename Label…
Allows you to rename the label with a new title. Note: you rename the Label not the actual disk!
⌥ Comment…
Adds a one or two line comment of your choosing at the bottom of the label. If you hold down the option key while selecting the menu for this, you can enter a “background” comment that will appear on all the labels. If you add a comment to an individual label in the usual way, it will appear instead of the background comment on that individual label. If you erase it, the background comment will replace it.
⌥ Multiples…
Allows you to make as may copies as you wish of a given label without having to feed the same disk in time and again.
••• OPTIONS
‚å• Print Position >
Two choices here: (1) Adjust the position of the printing (Page Position) to correct for any slight misalignments in the printer. (2) Adjust the starting position (Label Position) for printing the first label in the list, so you can take advantage of partly used sheets of label forms.
⌥ Preferences…
Choose to either receive or silence warnings to save files when closing a changed list or to save settings when closing the program.
‚å• Save Present Settings
Saves the present settings for LOODLE‚Ñ¢ including the 6/9 choice, the fonts, borders, etc.
‚å• Eject disk
Kicks disks out of the floppy drives.
‚å• Help!
On line help.
About Background Graphics...
If you hold down the option key while selecting the Help or the Option menus, you will be able to cut and paste Graphics or Icons which will be placed into the background of all the labels in the list. That way a single graphic element is used in the design of all the labels. You may wish to have your own logo appear on all the disks you label for example. This way you won't have to separately paste a graphic onto each label. It saves memory space too, if you care. You can paste a separate graphic onto a single label in the usual way, and it will conceal the background graphic. If you then delete the separate graphic, the background graphic will reappear. The same trick works for Icons and Comments, too!
