This version of EnterAct is free. Use EnterAct until other editors catch up, then throw it away. While EnterAct is a copyrighted work, please feel free to give this version to any and sundry, post it or put it on a CD, just don't charge for EnterAct itself.
CodeWarrior users please note:
• EnterAct is CW7 compatible, but as of this writing you must turn off "Use Modification Date Caching", under the Extras Prefs, to avoid getting extra recompiles of source files under some circumstances. We're working on it....
• And Metrowerks supplies a few third-party source files with nested comment starts (of the form "/*.../*...*/"); the quick fix is to deselect the the option "Detect nested comments" in EnterAct's Options… dialog. A better fix is to remove the few nested comment starts and leave the checking enabled. These are not in toolbox headers, and you will probably not run into them.
TCL users please note: the file "TCL #includes.cpp" contains some unparseable junk (quite deliberate) and EnterAct can't quite handle it yet, so please omit this file from your dictionary by holding down the<Command> key and clicking next to its file name in your project window. A dash '-' will appear next to the name, and it will be skipped.
Really really quick start:
• install EnterAct (put EnterAct and the Drag_on Modules folder next to your compiler)
• start EnterAct (wait a moment while it builds your activity log), cancel the first dialog, make a project with the second dialog that appears. The next and last dialog asks you to select a <system> folder--cancel if you have placed EnterAct next to the compiler that applies for your project, otherwise pick an appropriate folder (MPW, CW, Symantec)
• add a bunch of C/C++ files to your project with '“Add Files...” or “Add All In Folder...”, add toolbox files too if you like with "Add Mac Headers" (commands are under the EnterAct menu). Note that things work best if you include definitions for all the names in your source code, especially toolbox terms but also PowerPlant or TCL, and ANSI headers.
• select Update Dictionary
• open the AutoLook window
• open a source file, preferably one you're working on or want to understand
• select or click after any term of interest (function, variable, datatype, macro etc), or type it -- watch the definition or prototype (and often suppporting definitions) appear in the AutoLook window, even for local variables
• If you don't think AutoLook will make coding and understanding code easier for you after a few minutes of playing with it, then EnterAct isn't for you.
• If you think AutoLook is a real help, please read the manual -- you'll find EnterAct is a full-featured editor, and then some.
• "EnterAct in brief" provides a summary of EnterAct's best features.
To install EnterAct, see “Installing EnterAct/tt”, on the same disk where you found this file.
(If this is an upgrade, PLEASE switch to “If this is an upgrade (3.x)…” for a summary of new features, especially concerning AutoLook - NOTE you should rebuild your dictionaries, as explained there.)
The “hAWK User’s Manual” and “Read Resource Manual” contain complete instructions for using these Drag_on Modules. Both are thorough descriptions, not “man page” summaries. Read Resource will take about 5 minutes to learn. hAWK will take an hour or two of reading the manual and trying out the supplied programs to break the ice. Writing your own programs will take a bit more effort, but you should find it’s well worth it. The many supplied hAWK programs are summarized in the hAWK manual, with complete instructions for running at the top of each program file. Most of them are fairly sizeable as hAWK programs go, and solve serious problems while illustrating basic and advanced hAWK programming techniques and the wide range of jobs that hAWK can tackle. A couple are just for fun. Most of your own programs will be much smaller, knocked off in a few minutes to carry out some tedious task in a faster, more enjoyable, and more reliable way than repeating the same commands over and over.
All of the documents and manuals supplied with EnterAct are plain TEXT documents, viewable with any editor (except the readme/install's), but the “EnterAct 3 Manual” and the “hAWK User’s Manual” both contain illustrations which only EnterAct will display. For on–line reference, add the manuals to your project for quick access, using the “Add Files...” or “Add All In Folder...” command. They will be listed in the rightmost pane of your project window, and available by double–clicking on the manual name there.
The file “EnterAct memory needs” will help you determine how much memory to allocate for EnterAct. The rule of thumb is 800K for basic operations plus 120% of header file sizes plus about 16% of source file sizes (sizes being for the data forks rather than the disk space used). “EnterAct memory needs” also contains tables showing how much memory is required for the various toolbox headers (an amount which can be quite large—avoiding toolbox headers that aren’t needed is highly recommended). A partition of 3 Meg will handle most
projects, and 4 Meg will handle just about anything.
“Minimal App7” is a very small application that does absolutely nothing —except call Drag_on Modules. It is intended to demonstrate how easy it is to add the basic ability to call Drag_on Modules to your application, and you’ll find the complete little THINK C project and source for it as well. If you’re interested in adding the ability to call Drag_on Modules to one of your own applications, start by looking at Minimal App7.
Also included are source code and “hollowed out” projects for hAWK(MW), Read Resource(THINK), and Minimal App7(THINK). Come back to these later, when you’re in a mood to explore the inner workings.
After installing what you want:
• Double-click on EnterAct 3; cancel the first dialog that appears (asking you to open an existing project) and enter the name of your first project (“test” perhaps) in the second dialog.
• Use the "Add Files..." command to add the "EnterAct 3 Manual" to your project.
• For a very quick start, add and refer to "EnterAct in brief".
• The “Whirlwind tour” in the EnterAct manual hits all the highlights, and won’t take that long to run through. The “Lookup” chapter is also strongly recommended.
(• For the adventurous—add a bunch of files to your project (especially with “Add All in Folder…”), pick “Update Dictionary”, and then open a source file you wish to explore. Select “AutoLook” from the EnterAct menu (it explains itself). Double–click on any terms you wish to see definitions for, and definitions will appear in the AutoLook window. To see more lasting definitions, click at the end of the term and press the <Enter> key, and a separate lookup window will appear. Use <Shift><Enter> to look up class members.)
• Add the “hAWK User’s Manual” to your project with “Add Files…” when you feel like giving hAWK a try. Ditto Read Resource. Full instructions are in the disk manuals.
• If you'd like to use EnterAct as a replacement for the THINK Project Manager's internal editor, please see Appendix 4 in the EnterAct manual.
There's a lot of new, powerful stuff here. But there aren’t that many new things to learn, and all of the features provided in EnterAct are designed to be useful on a regular basis, with most “kitchen sink” odd jobs relegated to hAWK. Keep in mind that virtually all of EnterAct’s abilities are designed to work with “first—draft” code, and that lookup is available even if you’ve forgotten the correct spelling of a term (you just have to be “distinctively close”). So all the power will be there when you need it most.
Spend a few hours learning to use EnterAct, and it will pay off.
