Welcome to the MegaSearch CD-ROM search and retrieval program. This software is specifically designed to allow you to easily search through the massive amount of information available on the CD-ROM disk. D
This help window may be scrolled by using the ARROW KEYS. In addition to the arrow keys, MegaSearch makes extensive use of the TAB and SHIFT-TAB keys to move between fields in input screens. This help file contains context sensitive help links. For further information on using the keyboard, please select Keyboard
Basics.
Menus may be selected by using Alt-Z where Z is the first letter of the menu you wish to select. For example, ALT-S would select the Search
Menu. The
menu is access by pressing Alt-Space. Z
Alt-X may be used to exit the program. Further help is available on the following menus:
menu - Program information
Search - Search operations
Tools - Various tools & utilities
Window - Window options
Options - Options & configuration menu
Press ESC to put this help screen away.
Keyboard Basics
MegaSearch uses an interface that is similar to many GUI (Graphical User Interfaces) that are currently on the market. Most operations can be performed with either the keyboard or the mouse.
Common keys: V
TAB Move forward among several fields
SHIFT-TAB Move backward among several fields
ARROW KEYS Move up and down in list boxes, scroll and move windows
SPACE When a button is hilited, select the operation tied to
that button.
ENTER Usually selects the default operation of the window
(i.e. "OK")
Using menus:
Menus may be selected by using Alt-Z where Z is the first letter of
the menu you wish to select. For example, ALT-S would select the
Search
Menu. The
menu is access by pressing
Alt-Space.
Short-cut keys:
On certain buttons, one of the letters will be hilited. Pressing
ALT-Z (where Z is the hilited letter) is a shortcut to that
button. For example, pressing ALT-O will usually select the
"OK" button.
The help system:
The help system is available at most times by pressing the F1
key or by clicking on the word help on the status line at the
bottom of the screen.
Mouse operation: &
The mouse system is designed to be as intuitive as possible. Move
the mouse to the desired location, click once to select (i.e.
hilite) the option. In most listings, clicking twice will cause
an operation to be performed. (i.e. double clicking on a text
file will display that file)
PARENT: Root
(Info) menu
(Alt-Spacebar)
The Info menu appears on the far left of the menu bar and is represented by the
symbol. (
When you pull down the
menu, you see S
About
Disclaimer
Shareware
Hints
License
Agreement
Software
Catalog
PARENT: Root
Software
This option will display information about current interface software which is included with CD-ROM discs.
PARENT:
Menu
Catalog
This option will display a catalog of discs that were available at the release time of this version of MegaSearch.
PARENT:
Menu
About
When you choose the About command from the
(System) menu, a dialog box appears, showing copyright and version information. G
To close the box, press Esc, Space, or Enter, or click the OK button.
PARENT:
Menu
License
MegaDOOR, MegaSearch (DOS + Windows), MegaTERM, MSETUP, MegaINSTALL, and MegaFILE are Copyright (C) 1991-1992 by SB Development. t
The right to use and/or distribute any of the above mentioned products is granted if the conditions below are met. S
1. The software may only be used on Profit Press or SB Development label CD-ROMS.
2. The software may not be represented as a product of any person or business entity other than Profit Press or SB Development.
3. The floppy disk based support software and it's updates may not be distributed for more than $5.00 per disk plus exact shipping. u
4. SB Development support disks included with any CD-ROM must be given to the purchaser as a bundle free of charge. o
5. If updates are available for distribution from a BBS or other online service no access fee may be charged.
6. Any sysop or other online service manager is granted the right to restrict the use of MegaDOOR and MegaTERM to specific users.
7. None of the software or support files may be disassembled or modified. This includes, but is not limited to, modifying SB Development software to work with CD-ROM products not published by Profit Press or SB Development. f
8. All other rights reserved, including the right to change the above license agreement at any time.
PARENT:
Menu
File viewer
A file viewer views the contents of a text file. You can use the arrow keys to move about in the file.
Up Move up one line
Down Move down one line
Right Move right one column
Left Move left one column
PgUp Move one page up
PgDn Move one page down
Home View right most column of the file
End View left most column of the file
Ctrl-PgUp View top of file
Ctrl-PgDn View bottom of file.
Ctrl-L or F9 Search for next occurrance.
Ctrl-S or F8 Search for string.
Note: If you have entered the file viewer from the HyperSearch search algorythm, then control-L will locate the search words that are present in the document. (If you have entered from the Browse Files, Locate, or Desc-Search options, then you must use control-S to locate the words)
PARENT: Action
Window
(Alt-W)
The Window menu contains commands to close, move and perform other window-management commands.
Most of the windows in this program have all the standard window elements, including scroll bars, a close box, and zoom icons. >
For more about windows and their elements, refer to windows. :
Window-management commands
Size/Move Zoom
Tile Cascade
Next List
Close
PARENT: Root
Window
List
(Alt-0)
The list windows command will list all of the current windows that are open. You can click on one of the windows and use the change command to change to another window if you wish.
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Size/Move
(Ctrl-F5)
Choose this command to change the size or position of the active window.
Size
If you press Shift while you use the arrow keys, you can change the size of the active window. Once you've adjusted its size or position, press Enter. Q
If a window has a Resize corner, you can drag that corner to resize the window.
Move
When you choose Window
Size/Move, the active window moves in response to the arrow keys. Once you've moved the window to where you want it, press Enter. F
You can also move a window by dragging its title bar with the mouse.
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Zoom
(F5)
Choose Zoom to resize the active window to the maximum size. If the window is already zoomed, you can choose this command to restore it to its previous size. {
You can also double-click anywhere on the window's title bar (except where an icon appears) to zoom or unzoom the window.
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Tile
Choose Window
Tile to tile all file viewers on the desktop. L
Tiled Windows
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Cascade
Choose Window
Cascade to stack all file viewers on the desktop. A
Cascaded Windows
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Next
Choose Next to cycle forwards through the windows on the desktop.
PARENT: Window
Menu
Window
Close
(Alt-F3)
Choose Close to close the active window. O
You can also click the Close box in the upper right corner to close a window.
PARENT: Window
Menu
Options (Alt-O)
The Options menu contains commands that let you change color and mouse default settings as well as perform other assorted functions. <
The following options are available from the options menu: u
Video
Mode - Set the video display mode
Color - Color customization
Mouse - Mouse buttons & Click speed
CDRom - CDROM drive letter setup
Paths - Paths/Directories
Extern - External programs
Viewer - Gif viewer
Prefs - Preferences
Status - Program Status
Save - Save options to disk
Load - Load options from disk
PARENT: Root
Options
Video...
The video mode configuration allows you to select the video mode that MegaSearch will operate in. If you have a VGA or EGA, then you may select the 50 line modes which offer more room to display data.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Mouse...
The Mouse command brings up the Mouse
Options dialog box, where you can set various options that control how your mouse works, including: R
how fast a double-click is
which mouse button (right or left) is
active
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Colors...
The Colors item brings up the Colors
dialog box, where you can customize the colors of the display.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Help on the Mouse Options dialog box
This dialog box consists of one check box, one slider bar, and the standard buttons OK and Cancel.
Mouse Double Click
Slow Medium Fast
The Mouse Double Click slider bar adjusts the double-click speed of your mouse. ^
[X] Reverse Mouse Buttons
Reverse Mouse Buttons makes the right mouse button take on the normal functions of the left--and vice versa.
PARENT: Mouse
Optiopns
PARENT: Mouse
Options
Help on the Colors dialog box
The Colors dialog box consists of two list boxes, a text display area, the standard OK, Cancel, and Help buttons, and one of the following:
On color and black-and-white systems, it
also contains two color palettes.
On monochrome systems, it contains a set
of radio buttons instead of the palettes.
This dialog box is where you can change the colors of different parts of this program.
Group
Desktop
Menus
Dialogs/Calc
Puzzle
Calendar
Ascii table
The Group list box contains the names of the different regions of the program that you can customize. L
Item
Color
When you select a group from the Group list, the Item list box displays the names of the different views in that region.
Foreground
Background
On color and black-and-white systems, you use the Foreground and Background palettes to modify colors.
Colors
) Mono low
( ) Mono high
( ) Mono underscore
( ) Mono inverse
On monochrome systems, you use the Colors set of radio buttons systems to modify the character attributes. Q
Text Text Text
Text Text Text
On all systems, the display text (above the Help button) shows the current color or attribute settings. a
Changes do not take effect on the desktop until you close the Colors dialog box by choosing OK.
PARENT: Colors
Options
CD-Rom..
A seperate copy of MegaSearch must be installed for each CD-ROM disc that you wish to use MegaSearch with. You may do this using the INSTALL utility that is included on all of our recent CD-ROM discs.
PARENT: Options
Menu
CD-Rom
The CD-ROM customization dialog box allows you to set what DRIVE LETTER your CD-ROM is attached to. This parameter is essential for the operation of MegaSearch.
The CD-ROM drive letter is usually specified in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, when the program MSCDEX.EXE is loaded. The line usually looks something like the following: "MSCDEX /L:D /D:MSCD000". The drive letter is specified by the /L: parameter. In this example, it was D:.
To select your CD-ROM drive letter, simply move the pointer to the entry corresponding to the letter of your CD-ROM drive. If you have a mouse, then this is easily accomplished by pointing and clicking. With the keyboard, you may need to use the TAB and ARROW keys to navigate around.
PARENT: Root
Options
Paths...
The Path setup currently only allows you to specify the COPY PATH. This is where MegaSearch will copy files from the CD-ROM. On your first activation of MegaSearch, the directory will be defaulted to the directory where you loaded MegaSearch from.
It is usually beneficial to set up an alternate directory as soon as possible to avoid confusing copied files with the MegaSearch data files.
You may specify any valid directory name for this option. (Note: Please make sure the directory physically exists - MegaSearch will not create it for you)
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Term Stats
This window will display some information about the current MegaTerm communication parameters and terminal status.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
External
This dialog box is where you may specify what options MegaSearch will use for it's Action
Button (The button that says PlayVoc, View, etc) you may specify whatever external programs you wish to launch for the specified file types.
With MegaSearch version 3.50 and above, the GIF viewer configuration has been moved into a seperate screen under Options-Gif
Viewer.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Gif Viewer
With MegaSearch versions 3.50 and greater, a GIF image viewer has been incorporated directly into MegaSearch, making it unnecessary to use an external program such as VPIC.
The Options: Gif Viewer configuration screen will allow you to select what video adapter the GIF viewer should use and what modes will be active. H
The internal gif viewer adds a few special capabilities when viewing catalog GIFs (files named _CATxxxx.GIF, primarily include with the new MegaA/V disc). If you view a catalog gif, then MegaSearch will display the catalog gif and enter a "visual menu" system. You may move a hilited box with either the mouse or arrow keys and select a gif with the enter key or by double-clicking with the mouse. The best way to understand this feature is to try it out. (Note: These special feautures are only available with MegaSearch's internal gif viewer, not an external program such as VPIC)
To setup the internal viewer:
1) Press the AUTO button at the bottom of the dialog box. This
will instruct MegaSearch to make a "best guess" at which video
adapter you have.
2) If MegaSearch was unable to detect your graphics adapter, then
you can either select it yourself from the listed choices, or
you will need to set up an external viewer. (See below)
3) If you were successful in selecting the proper video adapter,
then you should select the MODES button at the bottom of
the screen and verify that all of the listed modes are
available.
To setup an external viewer: E
1) In the video adapter selection box, select "External Program".
2) Enter the path and name of your external viewer program
into the selection line entitled "External .GIF viewer".
Note: With an external viewer, MegaSearch's special catalog gif
viewing feature will be disabled.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Modes
This dialog box allows you to select the video modes which are available with your video adapter. MegaSearch usually assumes that all video modes are available for your adapter which may not be true if your adapter has less than one megabyte of memory. 6
Also, you may choose whether or not you wish manual gif resolution selection. By default, MegaSearch will automatically choose the best resolution that an image will fit in. However, if for example, you wished to display all images in 1024x768 regardless of their size, then you could enable the manual mode.
PARENT: Gif
Viewer
Options
Prefs...
The preferences screen allows you to configure MegaSearch to your specific wishes. Many options are presented here. The best thing to do is simply experiment with them until you have a setup that is to your liking.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Status..
The status screen is something that we initially through in for our own debugging purposes, but we decided to leave it in for curious users to examine. The data presented is mostly technical parameters, but if you are familiar with modern software design, you may find them somewhat interesting.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Save....
The Save Options command will save your current options profile to disk into the file MEGASRCH.CFG. Then, the next time you load MegaSearch, all of your options will be exactly as you left them.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Options
Load....
The Load Options command will load any options previously saved using the Save Options command.
PARENT: Options
Menu
Search Menu
The Search Menu contains various options for searching the MegaROM-1 file catalog. To search, you may use one of the three following methods:
The List Files Menu includes the main options for using MegaSearch. Here you may view the file catalog through the use of four different methods: L
1) Use the special Hyper
Search algorythm to search for a specific string. <
2) Use the File
Find command to perform a wildcard search. J
3) Use the File
Description
Search command to search for a string in the
description index.
Also available are two maintenance options:
4) Drop
Dos: shell to Dos.
5) Quit: Quit MegaSearch. P
More help on the options is available my clicking on the specific option name.
PARENT: Root
File Find
The locate command will allow you to search by WILDCARD. A wildcard is a special search string that is used a lot in the MS-DOS/PC-DOS environment. Please check your DOS manual if you need more information on wildcard specifiers.
Once you have selected the locate command, a box will appear and ask you for your wildcard specifier. Type the specifier now and MegaSearch will scan the catalog for references to that wildcard. p
If some references were found, then the browse
window will change to display the references that were located.
PARENT: Search
Menu
File Description Search
The description search option will scan the MegaSearch file catalog for a specific string. Although the Hyper
Search proprietary search algorythm is usually better, you may wish to use Desc Search when you want to specify a sub-string (i.e. part of a word, but not the whole word). For example, searching for "Inst" would locate files with the words "Install", "Installation", "Installed", etc) p
If some references were found, then the browse
window will change to display the references that were located.
PARENT: Search
Menu
Browse Catalog
If you just wish to "look around" the file catalog, you may use the browse option to examine the various directories. The Browse option works like a traditional catalog browse - you select a directory and MegaSearch will bring up a listing of the files within that directory. w
There is always one browse window displayed on MegaSearch's screen at any one time. It may be partially hidden in the background, but it is there. Except for the HyperSearch search option, this window will always reflect the current directory listing or search results. In addition, you can create multiple browse windows by using the Add
Browse option from the tools menu.
When a browse window is opened, MegaSearch will immediately bring up the PickDir dialog box which will ask you which directory you wish to view.
After you have selected a directory, MegaSearch will display a listing of the files in that directory. On most directories, the listing will be quite large, composing several screens of file entries. You may make use of the vertical scroll bar (located at the right side of the screen) to navigate through the listing. With a mouse, simply click in the appropriate place on the scroll bar to scroll the display. If you are using a keyboard, then the UP/DOWN/PGUP/PGDN keys will perform the proper action.
On the display, one line will be "hilighted". This line is the selection bar. The majority of the Browse options deal with the file entry which is currently selected.
Across the bottom of the browse display is a series of buttons. Each of these buttons performs a specific function. These functions are listed below:
Chdir - Change Directory
Info - Display info on current file
Mark - Mark current entry for copying
Copy - Copy marked files
Date - Toggle Date Field
Action - Action button (ZipView,PlayMod,etc...)
Also, do note that several options under the Tools
Menu affect operation of the browse window.
PARENT: Search
Menu
Tools
The tools menu includes several tools which are usable under the browse window.
Sort - Specify sort order
Mark
All - Mark all files on screen
Virus - Display Virus-Scan report
Export - Export browse listing to file
Add
Browse - Add another browse window to desktop
PARENT: Root
Mark All
The mark all command will mark all of the files in the current directory that you are in. Selecting Mark All again will un-mark all of those files.
PARENT: Tool
Menu
Add Browse
The add browse command will allow you to add an additional browse
window to the desktop. You can have several browse windows open at one time and toggle between them using the various window
options.
PARENT: Tool
Menu
Action
The action button is a special button which will perform different tasks depending on what file you have selected. F
For text files, the action button will usually invoke a file
viewer.
MegaSearch includes the capability to launch external programs to view .GIF images, play .VOC music files, etc. These viewers may be set up by using the Options:External Progs option on the pull-down menu.
To link an external program to a desired file type, enter the file name (including path) of the program into one of the fields on the screen. For example, if you were using the popular VPIC viewer and it was located in your C:\UTIL directory, then you would enter "C:\UTIL\VPIC" in the space marked PCX/MAC viewer. You may also include command line parameters when you specify the filename. For example, "C:\UTIL\VPIC /A" would cause VPIC to load in it's automatic mode. z
After testing a variety of ShareWare and Public Domain viewer utilities, we recommend you may wish to try the following: _
This option will export the current browse listing to a disk file. It is useful if you wish to generate a file listing for a friend, print out a file listing, etc.
Note: This option only exports MARKED files. If you wish to export the entire directory, then please use the mark all option.
PARENT: Tool
Menu
Toggle Date
Having the browse screen display the Filename, Date, Size, and Description will sometimes run a little too long for the computer screen, causing the description field to be prematurely "chopped off". {
The toggle-date option is included as a quick way to display the full description by temporarily removing the date field.
PARENT: Browse
Change Dir
The CHDIR button will bring up the PickDir dialog box which will ask you which directory you wish to change to.
PARENT: Browse
Catalog
Change Dir
The Chdir dialog box is presented in a method similar to a normal DOS directory display. |
Directory Name
The Directory Name input box displays the full path to the current directory which you have selected.
Directory Tree
Root
ARC_LBR
BBS
MAGAZINE
The Directory Tree list box enables you to navigate directories by using the selecting bar and pressing Enter.
If you're using the keyboard, press Enter to make the selected directory be the current directory, then choose OK or press Esc to exit the dialog box. +
[Copy ]
The copy button will copy the files from the CD-ROM disc to your hard drive. +
[Chdir ]
The Chdir button changes the current directory once you've selected or typed in a directory name. +
[Unpack]
If the file you have selected is a ZIP file, then this button will unpack it to your hard drive.
PARENT: Root
Pick Dir
This dialog box is where you can change to a different directory. w
The dialog box consists of two scrolling boxes which allows you to precisely select which directory you wish to view.
The first box is the MAIN category box. In MegaSearch, files are categorized in a Main:Subcategory system. The MAIN category is a general category which contains a listing of sub-categories. The MAIN category box is show below:
Group
Utilities
Communication
BBS Software
Business
Graphics
Sound & Music
By selecting one of these main categories, the sub-category box will change to show the categories contained within the main category. (For example, selecting "BBS SOFTWARE" would display RBBS-PC, FIDO, OPUS, etc). The sub-category box is shown below: L
Item
RBBS-PC
FIDO
By using these two scrolling boxes, you can precisely choose which directory you wish to view. There are three buttons available: Help, Ok, and Cancel. The Cancel button will abort the change directory operation and leave you in the directory you started in. The OK button will change to the directory you have specified, and the HELP button will display this help screen.
PARENT: Chdir
Option
Sort
The sort option allows you to select the sorting order that will be used in the file listing. There are three orders available:
1) Alphabetical - Sort alphabetically by file name
2) File Size - Sort by file sizes
3) Date - Sort by file creation date
In addition to these three basic orders, you may select whether the display is ascending or descending.
PARENT: Tool
Menu
Info
The Info display will show some information about the currently selected file. This information includes some basic data which we have accumulated in the process of creating the disk. This includes the full description of the file, size & date, number of internal archive files files present, uncompressed size, etc.
PARENT: Browse
Mark
The Mark option allows you to Mark or Unmark a file. Marking a file will tag the file for later copying. This allows you to copy an entire group of files in just a few easy steps.
PARENT: Browse
ZipView
The majority of the files on the MegaRom disk is store in an "Archived" or "Compressed" format. The compression methods used allow several files to be grouped into a large archive file.
The ZipView option will allow you to view the files contained within these archives. When you select ZipView (on a .ZIP file), MegaSearch will display a listing of the names, dates, and sizes of all the files contained within the archive.
PARENT: Browse
Virus
In the process of compiling the MegaRom disk, all files were virus scanned automatically. These scan reports were accumulated and added to the index so they may be viewed at your convenience. If you are not sure about the safety aof a file, then you may use the virus report option to gain a little more information.
NOTE: The virus scan data is only provided for some insight into a file's safety. Viruses and Trojans can still "slip through" the automatic virus scanning procedure.
PARENT: Tool
Menu
Copy
The copy option will copy any marked files from the CD-ROM drive to your hard drive.
PARENT: Browse
Drop To Dos
Drop To Dos will temporarilly shell from the MegaSearch to DOS so you can perform whatever DOS functions are necessary. When you are finished in DOS, type "exit" and you will be returned to MegaSearch.
PARENT: Search
Menu
Quit Program
The Quit option will quit MegaSearch completely and return you to DOS.
PARENT: Search
Menu
Disclaimer
Much of the information on the CD-ROM disk was compiled automatically from various shareware and freeware sources. Although we have tried to be as thorough as possible and to comply with the various authors' wishes as best as possible, we may have made a few errors in the compilation. As the software on this disk came from reputable shareware sources, we will not be held responsible for the contents of any file contained within this disk. $
Press ESC to put this screen away.
PARENT:
Menu
ShareWare
Attention MegaSearch users:
Much of the software on this CD-ROM is designated as some form of "Shareware." Shareware software is not free. Shareware is a try-before-you-buy method of software distribution. Please read the individual author's comments on the registration of his or her product. If you use a Shareware product you should pay for it - just like commercial software. Shareware authors rely on your good will and honesty.
Some software, however, is designated "Public domain" or "freeware." Such software usually will not require any registration. If a registration is required it is usually just a post card to the author - to let him or her know that you like and use the product. 0
Enjoy the disk - and please support Shareware. $
Press ESC to put this screen away.
PARENT:
Menu
Hints
1: Copy 0CDINDEX.DAT, 0CDSORT.DAT, and 0CDDIR.DAT
The three files listed above (in the \00INDEX directory) are used extensively by MegaSearch. If you copy these three files to your hard drive, then operation will be speeded up incredibly.
Simply copy them to the current directory where you run MegaSearch from. The DOS commands would look something like the following: ^
"Copy P:\00INDEX\0CDINDEX.DAT"
"Copy P:\00INDEX\0CDSORT.DAT"
"Copy P:\00INDEX\0CDDIR.DAT"
The next time MegaSearch is loaded, the copies of the files on your hard drive will be used instead of their CD-ROM counterparts. This will speed up the BROWSE command massively as well as have some effect on the search command.
A fourth file (0HYPERIN.DEX) is also present, but since the file is nearly 20 megs in size, you may wish to pass that one up! (However, if you have the disk space....) {
Also, a fifth file (0HYPCACH.DAT) is included on recent CD-ROM discs. Copying this file will speed up load time slightly.
2: Notice the *.BBS files
In the \00INDEX directory on the disc, as well as in each of the other subdirectories, we have a series of .BBS files - these files are used by many bbs programs, CD-ROM doors, etc. IF you have a program that needs them, that's where they are! -
3: The "Action"
Button on the browse screen
The "Browse files" screen has a special button that can perform different tasks based on the currently selected file. This button has been termed the action
button. (For more info, please see the action
button help)
The programs that are called up by the action button can be changed from within the Options:Paths setup screen. If, for example, you wish to use MODPLAY instead of TRAK (trakblaster) for listening to mod files, you could change the program name.
4: MegaWin
If you use Microsoft Windows, then we suggest that you try using MegaSearch for Windows (MegaWin). MegaWin uses the advanced capabilties of the Windows environment to make the interface even easier to use.
PARENT:
Menu
Hyper Search
The Hyper Search algorythm is a powerful tool capable of helping you locate specific references easily. In the automatic compilation of the MegaRom disk, we "indexed" approximately 300 megs of program documentation, readme files, and miscellaneous text from the archives. MegaSearch's HyperSearch option has the capability to instantly locate a search phrase anywhere within this 300 megs of data.
For example, suppose you wanted a listing of programs that contained references to both "Rock" and "Music". You could instruct HyperSearch to search for any files which contains these two words. For more information on choosing search criteria, please see Search
Criteria. 0
Using HyperSearch involves these simple steps:
1) Set your Search
Criteria =
2) Allow MegaSearch a brief pause to locate the references. ;
3) View the available selections using the browse
window. 7
4) Optionally Copy a desired file to your hard drive.
PARENT: Search
Menu
Setting Search Criteria
Once you have selected Search, you will be prompted for what "Search Criteria" you wish to use. The Search Criteria is simply an expression containing the word(s) you wish to search for.
The Search Criteria dialog box includes a line to specify this phrase, two check boxes to specify how you wish to search, and a few buttons to activate your choices. W
The input line (designated "Search Phrase") is where you will type in the word or word(s) that you wish to search for. The phrase that you must type may be composed of a single word or several word tied together by various "operators". The current operators are "and" and "or". The usage of the search function is best explained by examples:
"Telephone" 6
Find all references containing the word "Telephone".
"Scott Baker" D
Find all references containing both the words "Scott" and "Baker".
"Modem and Baud" B
Find all references containing both the words "Modem" and "Baud"
"(Floppy or Hard) and Drive" X
Find all references containing EITHER "floppy" or "hard", but also containing "drive".
Please note, YOU MUST USE WHOLE WORDS. The search function will not take partial strings. For example, searching for "Telephone" is ok, but searching for "Teleph" is not.
Below the input line are two options: "File Descriptions" and "Internal Text Files". These two check boxes control where the search takes place. Normally, you will wish to leave both enabled unless you have a special purpose which requires disabling one of the other.
Enabling "File Descriptions" will cause the search function to search our catalog of 50-character file descriptions for the search phrases.
Enabling "Internal Text Files" will cause the search function to search the indexed 300 megs of internal program documentation and readme files.
Present at the bottom of the dialog box are two buttons, "Ok" and "Cancel". "Ok" will continue with the search option while "Cancel" will abort and return to the main menu.
PARENT: Hyper
Search
Nothing Found
MegaSearch did not uncover any references to the search criteria that you have set. This could be due to many different conditions. The specific error which caused the problem will be displayed.
PARENT: None
A Brief Pause
After you have inputted search criteria, MegaSearch will pause briefly while the various references are loading into the computer's memory. F
Under most conditions, you will then be brought to the file listing.
However, sometimes a search string is not specific enough and many, many references will be located. If 100 or more references are brought up, then a dialog box will ask you what action you wish to take. There are three choices available:
1) First 100
By selecting this choice, MegaSearch will display the first 100 references that were located.
2) All xxxx
By selection this choice, MegaSearch will display all of the references that were located. Although the MegaSearch algorythm is very quick, it can become "bogged down" with a lengthly list and this may cause the routine to slow down.
3) Abort
This choice will abort the search operation. You may then use a new search phrase if you wish. For example, if you had been searching for information on Intel Modems, and you used "Modem" as a search string, then you may wish to try "Modem and Intel" which would return fewer references.
PARENT: Hyper
Search
No Offline!
This feature is unavailable in the Offline version of MegaSearch. Certain features of MegaSearch are only available when the actual CD-ROM disk is present. (For example, the Hyper Search feature is unavailable because it requires a 20 meg data file which is only available on the CD-ROM disk) &
(.txt)