CD School House 9/CD School House 9.0 - Wayzata Technology (1994).iso/pc/dos/teachaid/neobookp/nb2.cmp/NEOBOOK.DOC

Text File | 1994-03-03 | 64KB | 1,836 lines

              NeoBook (TM)
          Electronic Publisher
              Version 1.2

------------
User's Guide
------------

NeoBook opens a new publishing medium. Most
of today's computer systems contain color,
sound, and graphical capabilities - the
tools for new ways of communicating ideas.

As the price of diskettes has dropped and
with the ever wider use of networks,
computer-based communications have become
cost-competitive with traditional
publishing forms. And, though the computer
book or magazine is not ready to completely
replace printed books and magazines (you
might find one of today's computers
unwieldy while sitting in the garden or in
a favorite chair), electronic publications
offer possibilities not provided by
traditional print media, such as sound,
color, page linking, pop-up images and
text, and instant access to related
information. And electronic publications
may be shipped using lightweight, compact,
reusable, inexpensive diskettes, which are
not as readily discarded by the reader or
even distributed via modem over ordinary
telephone lines. Possibilities for NeoBook
applications include brochures,
newsletters, catalogs, interactive books
and magazines, educational materials, sales
tracts or speakers' aides, etc.

Hardware requirements
---------------------

To use NeoBook, you will need the
following:

- IBM PC, XT, AT, PS/2 or 100% compatible
computer
- EGA, VGA or compatible graphics card and
monitor
- 640K minimum RAM
- A hard disk
- MS-DOS, PC-DOS or DR-DOS 3.1 or higher
version
- Microsoft, Logitech or compatible mouse
- Sound Blaster compatible audio card
(optional NeoBook Pro only.)

Starting NeoBook
----------------

For the steps below, we assume that you
have already installed NeoBook in the
directory C:\NEOBOOK, which is the default
directory used by the install program. If
you installed NeoBook into a different
directory, then substitute that name for
C:\NEOBOOK below.

1.) In order for your mouse to work within
NeoBook, your mouse driver (usually
MOUSE.COM) must be loaded before accessing
NeoBook. Please refer to your mouse's user
manual for more information regarding
configuring your mouse.

2.) From the DOS prompt (C:\), type
CD\NEOBOOK and press Enter. This will place
you in the NeoBook directory.

3.) Now type NEOBOOK and press Enter.

If you wish to make changes to NeoBook's
configuration, you may change the settings
by selecting SET PREFERENCES from the
OPTIONS menu.


Operating NeoBook
-----------------

In this section, we will take a look at the
function of various parts of the NeoBook
menu. Users who are familiar with graphical
interfaces may wish to skip this section
and proceed directly to the description of
Menu Functions which follows.

When you activate NeoBook, you will be
presented with the program's main screen,
which contains menu buttons along the top
and a box holding various tool icons.

--- Keyboard Shortcuts ---

Note that many commands have one letter in
their description underlined. To select
these commands, you simply hold down the
ALT key while typing the letter
corresponding to the command you wish to
activate. On the menu, some commands have
their keyboard shortcuts listed to the
right of the description line. You may also
move between items in dialog boxes by using
the TAB key to move between options. A
highlight, appearing as a moving box,
surrounds the current item. Once the
command you wish to use has been
highlighted, press the SPACE bar to select
or activate.

At other times, you may need to select an
item from a list. You may use the ARROW,
PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN keys to scroll
through the list. Once an item is
highlighted, press the ENTER key to select
that item.

--- Mouse Operation ---

Using the mouse requires that you load
Microsoft or Logitech compatible mouse
driver software before starting NeoBook. If
a mouse is present, a small mouse pointer
(arrow) will appear on your screen. Simply
move the pointer to the desired command or
option and click the left mouse button to
select or activate.

--- Screen Features ---

NeoBook's menus contain several types of
controls used to select, enable or
deactivate various features.

- Command Buttons: These are buttons which
activate commands or bring up submenus. To
select a command option, either click the
button with a mouse or hold down the Alt
key and press the underlined letter in the
title of the desired command.

- Check Box: These controls appear as small
boxes. Activate/deactivate the option by
holding down the ALT key and pressing the
underlined letter, or by clicking inside
the box with a mouse. A check mark will
appear to show that the corresponding
option has been selected.

- Drop Down List: Lists are used to allow
you to choose from a large group of
options, such as a list of file names or
colors. Items which contain lists have a
small, downward pointing arrow button to
the right of the description. The list may
be displayed by clicking on the small arrow
with your mouse, or, from the keyboard,
either highlighting the item using the TAB
key and pressing the SPACE bar or by
simultaneously pressing the ALT key and the
underlined letter in the option title. The
item inside the red box represents the
currently active item on the list. From the
keyboard, use the UP/DOWN arrow keys, the
PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN keys, and the HOME and
END keys to move the selector highlight to
the desired item, then press ENTER to
choose it. You may also use the mouse to
scroll through the list and select an item.
Clicking the scroll bar to the right of the
list will move the window one item at a
time. Clicking and dragging the Scroll
button up or down allows you to scroll
quickly through the list. You may also
scroll one page at a time by clicking the
shaded area between the arrow buttons and
the scroll button.

- Error Message: At times, you may be
presented with an error message, requiring
that you merely acknowledge its existence
by pressing ENTER or clicking the mouse.

- Text Box: Text boxes are used to enter
information such as file names, time
intervals, etc. If the menu or dialog box
contains more than one text box, press the
TAB key to move to the one you want. If you
have a mouse, click the desired text field.

- Radio Pushbutton: These appear as diamond
shaped depressions next to a description of
the option. This type of button is always
found in groups. Select the option in the
group that you want to use. Only one radio
button per group may be selected at a time.
Select the desired option by holding down
the ALT key and pressing the button's
underlined letter or by clicking the item
with the mouse. The button will turn red
(darkened on monochrome displays) to show
that the option is activated.

- Page Control: Use the page control to
move between pages within your publication.
The center icon jumps to the Master Page.
The arrow pointing right goes to the next
page, while the arrow pointing to the left
goes to the previous page. The arrow with a
bar on the right jumps to the last page,
while the arrow and bar on the left jumps
to the first page.

- Nudge Control: The nudge control is used
to move the selected item(s) one pixel at a
time. Click on the side of the control
pointing in the direction the item(s) are
to be moved. Hold down the Shift key to move
the selected items continuously.

- Title Bar: The title bar lists the
contents of the dialog box. You may use
your mouse to move the entire box to a new
location by clicking on the title bar and
dragging to a new location.

Menu Commands
-------------

The Menu Bar lies along the top of the
screen and contains a row of menu buttons
(described below), the Page Control
buttons, and a Counter which tells you the
current page number and the total number of
pages in the publication.


--- The File Button Menu ---

Options under this command are used to load
and save publications, to access the DOS
operating system, and to exit NeoBook.

- New: Use this option to load a fresh
publication containing no text or other
elements.

- Open: If you have saved previous NeoBook
presentations, you may load one of these
using the OPEN option. The dialog below
will appear to allow you to select the file
name corresponding to the desired
publication.
NOTE: If the desired publication file is in
a drive or directory other than the current
drive/directory, you may select a new drive
using the DRIVES drop-down list.
Directories may be selected from the
DIRECTORIES box. Simply click on any
subdirectory listed to go to that
directory. Clicking on the folder icon
which is followed by a backslash (\) will
take you to the drive's root directory.
Clicking on the folder icon which is
followed by two periods (..) will take you
to the previous directory in the tree from
which the current directory has branched.
See your DOS documentation for additional
information on directory trees. You may
also use the Search command button to find
a specific file. Simply type in the name of
the file to look for, or use the DOS
wild-card characters if you only know part
of the file name.

- Save: This option saves the storyboard
with all changes you have made during your
current session. If you have not named your
presentation, you will be prompted to
supply a name.

- Save As: If you wish to save a new or
make a copy of an existing publication, use
this option to supply a new name. The new
file name may contain up to eight valid DOS
characters (valid DOS characters include
A-Z, 0-9, _, ^, $, ~, !, #, %, &, -, {}, (),
@, ', ` with no spaces, commas, periods or
backslashes in the name). NeoBook will
assign a three letter extension PUB to your
publication filename. If you wish to store
the file on a different drive or directory,
precede the filename with the correct drive
and path (or select using the drop down
list button). - DOS Shell: If you would
like to briefly jump to DOS, without
leaving NeoBook, you may use the DOS Shell
option to run your DOS program(s). To
return to NeoBook, simply type "EXIT" at
the DOS command prompt. This will save you
a bit of time reloading your publication
when you briefly need access to DOS in
order to run another application, erase or
rename a file, etc. ***Remember, you must
type "EXIT" to return to NeoBook ***

- Exit: To leave NeoBook, select this
option.

--- The Edit Menu Button ---

The options under this command button allow
you to create and modify graphics files,
and to copy, remove and select items
already included.

- Undo: Select this option to "undo" the
last command. Some commands, however, cannot
be undone, these include: adding, deleting
and moving pages; palette modifications;
Preferences; and events that occur in other
programs. The Undo command can use a lot of
memory, so in low memory situations you may
want to disable the Undo function by selecting
Preferences/Miscellaneous in the Options menu.

- Cut: Use this option to remove the
currently selected item(s) to NeoBook's
clipboard. From the clipboard, you may
Paste the item(s) to a new location or onto
a different page.

- Copy: This option will copy the currently
selected (highlighted) item(s) onto the
clipboard without removing them from the
current location. Use the Paste command to
place copies of the objects.

- Paste: This option places the item(s)
currently on the clipboard (see Cut and
Copy) onto the current page. Selecting this
option alone will place the item(s) in the
center of the current page. Pressing the
CTRL key while using Paste will place the
item(s) at the same coordinates occupied
before being placed on the clipboard.

- Delete: This option eliminates the
selected item(s) without placing them onto
the clipboard. Use Delete when you wish to
erase items and preserve the last item Cut
or Copied to the clipboard.

- Select All: Use this option to select all
elements on the current page.

- Create/Edit Article: When placing a text
frame using the Article tool, you are given
the option of choosing an existing ASCII
text file. After selecting a text frame,
you may use this option to edit an existing
file, using your favorite word processor.
If no item is selected, this option allows
you to create a new file. The word
processor which you will be using must have
first been linked to NeoBook by selecting
its DOS command file using the Options/Set
Preferences/Miscellaneous. Note: You should
be sure to save the text in ASCII or DOS
Text format. Your word processor's
documentation contains instructions on how
to do this.

- Create/Edit Image: When placing an image
frame using the Picture tool, you are given
the option of choosing an existing PCX or
GIF format image file. After selecting any
image frame, you may use this option to
edit an existing picture, using your
favorite paint program. If a graphic frame
is not selected, this option allows you to
create a new file. The paint program which
you will be using must have first been
linked to NeoBook by selecting its DOS
command file using the Options/Set
Preferences/Miscellaneous. Note: If
necessary, you should convert your picture
so that it contains a maximum of 2, 16 or
256 colors before saving it. This will save
space on your disk and will allow the
widest number of readers to view the image.
Also to save space, you may wish to reduce
the scale (size) of the picture to
approximately match the size which will be
displayed in your publication. Most paint
and image editing programs will allow you
to easily make these adjustment. You should
be sure to save your picture in either a
PCX or GIF format. Your paint program's
documentation should contain instructions
on how to do this.

- Create/Edit Sound File: When placing a
button using the Button tool, you are given
the option of choosing an existing audio
files for playback on a Sound Blaster
compatible sound card (VOC format files) or
on the PC's built-in speaker (SNG format
files). After selecting a button which has
been set up to play a sound file, you may
use this option to edit a sound file to be
attached to this button, using your
favorite audio software. If a button
containing audio has not been selected,
this command will allow you to create a
file.

The sound software which you will be using
must have first been linked to NeoBook by
selecting its DOS command file using the
Options/Set Preferences/Miscellaneous. For
playback on Sound Blaster compatible
systems, the software must be capable of
writing a VOC (voice) format file. SNG
format files may be edited using any word
processor which is capable of saving an
ASCII (DOS text) format text file.

- Adjust Object: This command allows you
to modify the location (X,Y) and size (W,H)
of a selected object. If multiple objects
are selected, then only the X and Y
coordinates may be changed. You may also
invoke the Adjust Object command by holding
down the Control key and clicking the right
mouse button on an object.

- Edit Object: Use this option to change
the file assignment and other attributes
attached to a Button, Article frame or
Picture frame. Mouse shortcut: click on an
object using the right mouse button to edit
the object's attributes.

--- Arrange Menu Button ---

Commands under this button allow you to
control selected objects or groups of
objects. You may select an object by
clicking on it with a mouse, whereupon it
will be surrounded by black boxes located
at each control point. Select multiple
objects by either dragging the mouse to
surround the objects you wish to select, or
by holding down the SHIFT key while
clicking once on each of the desired
elements. Clicking a second time on any
object while holding down the SHIFT will
deselect that item.

- Bring to Front: This command places the
selected element(s) on top of all other
objects in the current page.

- Send to Back: This command places the
selected element(s) in back of all other
objects in the current page.

- Align: When more than one object has been
selected, you may use this command to align
all the selected objects to the top,
bottom, left right or center of the page.
Clicking on the Relative check box will
align all selected objects to that object
closest to the axis which has been selected
(e.g., selecting a Left axis will align all
selected objects to the object farthest to
the left). Leaving Relative unchecked will
cause objects to align to the page itself.

- Group: This command will group all
selected objects so that they can be moved,
cut, copied or deleted as a single element.

- Ungroup: This command breaks apart
grouped objects.

--- The Page Menu Button ---

The options under this command button are
used to set parameters for the page(s) onto
which you place the elements making up your
publication.

- Goto: Selecting this option brings up a
dialog which allows you to jump to any page
in your publication. This is particularly
useful for publications having many pages
it is often easier to use the Page Control
icon buttons to move one or two pages or to
go to the first or last page. If the
Display Thumbnails box is checked, a much
reduced picture of each page in the
publication will be displayed. Simply click
on the page to which you desire to go.

- Goto Master Page: Use this option to
switch to the Master Page which contains
buttons and other objects which are to be
displayed on most pages. The center button
on the Page Control icon buttons will also
take you to the Master Page.

- Insert: This function will allow you to
insert one or more new pages into the
publication, either following or preceding
the current page.

- Delete: This function deletes the current
page. You may also insert and delete pages
using the Page Layout command.

- Attributes: Selecting Attributes will
bring up the dialog illustrated below. Use
the Solid Color palette to select a solid
color background for the page. If you
prefer to use a PCX or GIF format image as
a background, you may type in the name of
the file to use as Wallpaper (or click on
the arrow to the right to browse through
your files to select an image). Checking
the Show Items from Master Page box will
place the buttons and other objects which
were set up on the Master Page into the
current page. Finally, you may use Copy to
All Pages to place the attributes you have
selected for this page onto every page in
the publication.

NOTE: Images which are smaller than the
screen size will be tiled to fill the
screen. This can produce an interesting,
patterned backdrop using only a small image
file.

- Show Master Items: Selecting this options
toggles use of command buttons and other
objects from the Master Page. If this menu
item is checked, the objects on the Master
Page will be displayed on the current page
of the publication.

--- The Book Menu Button ---

The commands under this button control the
overall settings for each publication.

- Page Layout: This option controls the
layout of your publication. You may reorder
the pages within the publication by
clicking on the page to be moved and
dragging it to a new location. Use the
Insert command button to add new pages and
the Delete command button to delete the
selected page. The Copy command will insert
a copy of the selected page immediately
following that page. Checking the Show
Thumbnails box will display miniatures of
the pages which make up your publication.

- Set Palette: You may adjust the
individual colors in the currently loaded
palette using this command. Slider bars for
Red, Green, Blue and Brightness may be
adjusted to mix a new color. Since the RGB
color model used to produce colored light
on a computer screen differs somewhat from
other methods of mixing colors, you may get
unexpected results at first. The following
settings may be used to obtain commonly
used colors:

Red = Red to right, other bars to left
Green = Green to right, other bars to left
Blue = Blue to right, other bars to left
Yellow = Red and Green to right, Blue to
left
Magenta = Blue and Red to right, Green to
left
Cyan = Green and Blue to right, Red to left
White = All bars to right
Black = All bars to left

- Book Setup: This menu selection allows
you to set several options for the final
publication. Screen Size allows you to
produce a publication which will be
displayed on computers which use a
different resolution (e.g., you may prefer
to work on an 800x600 display, but most of
your readers will be using 640x480 VGA
displays. Thus you would select a 640x480
resolution here). Check the Allow ESC key
to exit box if you wish your readers to be
able to exit the compiled publication by
using the ESC key. To allow your audience
to use the PC's cursor keys to change
pages, place a check in the Allow Page
Up/Page Down/Home/End keys box. To allow
keyboard users to access your publication's
buttons and windows, check the Allow Tab/
Enter to Activate Buttons box. The Author
field may be used to identify the person
who created the publication.

- Archive: With the variety of file types
and locations which may be imported to
build your publication, it may be difficult
to recall the names of all these files and
where they are stored. If you wish to copy
all the files used to create your
publication for backup or other purposes,
this function will make a copy of all these
files onto a diskette or other drive.

- File List: This menu item is used to
print a list of all files used in the
currently loaded publication.

- Run: Use this command to run your
electronic publication. This will allow you
to see how the buttons work, preview audio,
etc.

- Compile: Once you are satisfied with your
publication, you will want to compile it so
that it may be distributed to others or
transported for use on another computer.
The compiled program will even work on
computers which do not have NeoBook
installed. You will be asked for a name for
the executable (EXE) command file which
will be produced. The file name may contain
up to eight valid DOS characters (valid DOS
characters include A-Z, 0-9, "_"
(underscore) with no spaces, commas,
periods or backslashes in the name).
NeoBook will assign a three letter
extension "EXE" to your compiled
publication filename. If you wish to store
the file on a different drive or directory,
precede the filename with the correct drive
and path (or select using the drop down
list button).

--- The Options Menu Button ---

Settings controlling how certain NeoBook
features will work are set using the
options under this button.

- Show Grid: Selection of this menu item
toggles display of the grid. Grid Spacing
is controlled using the Set Grid function.

- Snap to Grid: When this menu item is
checked, objects which are moved or drawn
onto the publication's work space will snap
to the nearest grid point. This is useful
for lining up several items exactly. Use
the Set Grid function to control the
spacing.

-Show Mouse Position: This command displays
a small movable window that shows the
current mouse position relative the page
size. When adding or sizing objects the
windows displays the width and height of
the object. To turn off the Mouse
Coordinates, select the Show Mouse Position
command again.

- Set Grid: You may set the grid in one
pixel increments, both horizontally and
vertically. A Pixel is a single dot on the
screen.

- Set Preferences: NeoBook allows you to
change the following default settings:

- Video Display: The Working Video Mode
drop down list will allow you to specify
the screen resolution you wish to use when
creating new publications. This does not
need to be the same as the mode used for
the slide show. You may always create new
publications in another mode by setting the
Video Mode. Note that the selections you
will find on the Working Video Mode drop
down list represent only those modes
available for your monitor and video card
which are supported by NeoBook.

- Directories: The Text Editor field is
used to tell NeoBook the location of and
command for your ASCII text editor or word
processor. If you cannot recall the
location or command, clicking on the arrow
to the right of the field will allow you to
search through your DOS directories. The
program you specify here will be used to
create and edit articles for the
publication. The Text Editor used should be
able to write to an ASCII (DOS text) file.

The Image Editor field is used to tell
NeoBook the location and command for the
paint program or image editor you wish to
use to create and edit the pictures used in
your publications. If you cannot recall the
location and command, clicking on the arrow
to the right of the field will allow you to
browse through your DOS directories. The
Image Editor which you specify should be
capable of saving images in 2, 16 or 256
colors and in the PCX or GIF file
format(s).

The Sound Editor field is used in NeoBook
Professional to specify the command and
location for the editor which you will use
to create audio for use in your
publications. If you cannot recall the
location and command, clicking on the arrow
to the right of the field will allow you to
search through your DOS directories. The
editor selected should be capable of saving
audio in the VOC file format (for playback
on Sound Blaster compatible hardware)
and/or as ASCII text (for playback of SNG
format files using the PC's built-in
speaker).

The Font Directory field is used to specify
where on your computer the font files are
stored. Leaving this field blank assumes
that all fonts which you intend to use are
stored in the same directory as NeoBook.
NeoBook can use fonts in the GFT format
(the same as for the GEM screen font
format). The Temp Directory is where
NeoBook will store temporary files while it
is operating. You may designate any valid
directory on your system, or you may check
the box below to allow NeoBook to use the
directory which DOS uses to write temporary
files.

Miscellaneous: Swap Left and Right Mouse
Buttons allows you to use the right mouse
button instead of the left to select and
drag items. Left handed and ambidextrous
persons may find operating NeoBook with the
mouse buttons switched to be more
intuitive. This feature is on when this box
is checked. Create Backup Files will, if
checked, enable you to recover a
publication file if the last saved version
has been corrupted or contains unwanted
edits. If this feature is enabled, NeoBook
will make a backup file (having the .BAK
extension instead of .PUB) which contains
any previously saved version of your
presentation. If you wish to make changes
to an existing publication which you may
wish to use in the future, use the Save As
function to assign a new name to your
edited version. Text and image files
modified by other programs are not affected
by this option. Beep When Error Occurs
audibly alerts you to errors and invalid
actions when this box is checked. Memory:
NeoBook will attempt to use all the free
Memory which is available in your system.
If for some reason you need to keep NeoBook
from accessing one of the types of memory
available on your system, you may do so by
de-selecting the corresponding box. Note,
however, that it is strongly recommended
that you NOT limit NeoBook's access to
memory. Doing this may slow down your
system while working in NeoBook. In any
case, NeoBook needs some memory you should
not uncheck all the Memory boxes.

--- The Help Button ---

Use the options under the Help button to
obtain information about NeoBook and your
system.

- Help: You are currently viewing the Help
text.

- View README.DOC file: Selecting this
option will display the README.DOC file.
This document may contain late breaking
information concerning the program which
was inserted after the manual went to
press.

- System Info: This option brings up a
dialog which shows some of the equipment
which NeoBook found attached to your
computer. Included are the video card type,
video card chip set, available video
memory, sound card, and your monitor type.

- About NeoBook: This final option contains
copyright and other data concerning
NeoBook.

The Tool Palette
----------------

The Tool Palette is a bar containing icons
(small pictures) representing how each tool
functions. Initially, the palette is
located on the left side of the screen, but
may be repositioned by clicking on the
title bar and dragging the palette to a new
location. A button at the bottom of the bar
(labeled Palette) is used to expand the
palette to display additional options, or
to collapse the palette to display just the
main icons.

--- The Selector Tool ---

The Selector tool is used to choose,
resize, and move items which have been
placed onto a page. Using commands from the
menu, selected items may also be deleted,
copied, etc. Using this tool, click once on
an item to select it (black boxes will
appear at the item's control points to
indicate the item is currently selected).
You may select a group of items by either
dragging the mouse around the items, or by
holding down the shift key while clicking
on individual items. The selected item may
be resized by dragging one of the control
points (black boxes surrounding the
selected item). A dotted frame appears
around the object, which is dragged until
it reaches the desired size. You may edit
attributes attached to the selected object
by clicking on the right mouse button, or
by choosing Edit/Edit Object from the menu.
If the object selected contains a picture,
article or audio, you may edit these files
by choosing the corresponding command from
the Edit menu. Finally, the colors, line
style and font for the selected item may be
set using the controls contained on the
expanded portion of the palette.

--- The Article Tool ---

Use this tool to position the text of your
articles onto the page. After selecting the
tool, use the mouse to drag a frame which
will contain the text. Once the frame has
been drawn, you will be prompted for the
name of the ASCII format text file to place
into the frame. Use the button to the right
of the input field to search for the file
if you cannot recall its name or location
on your computer. If you have specified a
word processor or text editor using the
Options/Directories menu command, you may
select an Article frame and then choose
Edit Article from the Edit menu. This will
load your word processor or text editor
along with the selected article, without
leaving NeoBook. Once you have placed an
Article, you may change the options for
frame by either choosing Edit Object from
the Edit menu, or by simply clicking on the
object using the right mouse button. This
will allow you to specify whether to wrap
the text to fit within the frame, as well
as where to locate the scroll bars if the
text extends beyond the borders of the
frame.

--- The Button Tool ---

Use the Button tool to place buttons to
allow your reader to page through your
publication, play audio files (NeoBook
Professional only), bring up messages, etc.
To create a button, simply drag the Button
tool to create a button the size and shape
desired. Color, font and line width for the
button are set using the controls in the
expanded Tool Palette. Invisible buttons
may be created by not typing in a button
tile, setting the color to Hollow, and
setting the Line Width to None. After you
have drawn your button, a dialog will
appear which will allow you to place text
onto the button. This dialog also prompts
you to choose one of the commands described
below.

- Alert Box: When a button containing this
command is pressed, a box will be displayed
containing the message which you specify.
Use this box to provide the reader with
information or instructions.

- Balloon: This command causes a comic
book-style speech balloon to appear when
the button is pressed. This balloon
disappears once the mouse button is
released. One use for this feature would be
to place invisible buttons containing
dialog over the mouths of characters in a
picture (this would allow those without
sound equipment to read what is spoken by
the characters).

- DOSCommand: (NeoBook Pro Only) This
command allows you to execute external DOS
programs and commands. This command allows
you to run DOS commands and programs from
within a compiled publication. To create a
DOSCommand, select "DOSCommand" from the
list of button actions when defining a
button object. You will then be prompted to
select a program from a list of files on
your hard drive. After you done that, the
action field line will look something like
this:

DOSCommand "C:\DOS\MEM.EXE" "Text"

The first parameter, contained within the
first set of quotes, is the location and
name of the program you selected. If the
program requires any parameters you may
type them inside the first set of quotes.
For example, passing a /C parameter to the
program would look like:

DOSCommand "C:\DOS\MEM.EXE /C" "Text"

You may have noticed a second parameter
"Text" that was automatically added to the
command. This parameter tells NeoBook that
the MEM.EXE program may modify the screen
and require a redraw upon its completion.
Almost all programs will require this
parameter. The exception would be a
program that definitely does not modify
the screen. For example, if a program
mearly played a sound clip it would be
distracting an unnecessary to clear and
redraw the screen. The screen could
continue to display your publication
giving the impression that the program
was running from within NeoBook. For this
type of program you may want to try
changing the "Text" parameter to
"Graphics". For example:

DOSCommand "C:\VOCPLAY.EXE C:\BIRDS.VOC"
"Graphics"

When using the "Graphics" option with
programs that modify the screen you may need
to force NeoBook the redraw its screen after
running the program. To do this add the word
"Redraw" to the "Graphics" option. For
example:

DosCommand "C:\MYPROG.EXE" "Graphics+Redraw"

NOTE: If you use the "Graphics" option with
an ill behaved program the screen may not
redraw correctly or at all. It is also
possible that some programs may not run from
within another program.

Some care needs to be taken when using the
DOSCommand action with compiled
publications. For instance, the programs
that you execute with this command will NOT
be compiled into your publication. The
Archive and File List commands will also NOT
handle external programs.

If you intend to run external programs then
you will need to include them when you
distribute your publications. You may need
to remove the path from the program name
since users may run your publication from
different drives and directories.

ALSO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE NOT VIOLATING
ANY COPYRIGHT OR LICENSE AGREEMENTS BY
DISTRIBUTING THOSE PROGRAMS. Most companies
have distribution agreements for their
products so be sure to get permission from
publisher/owner of the software before you
start sending out diskettes.

- Exit: Clicking on a button which contains
the Exit command will terminate running the
publication. If the reader is running a
Compiled publication, control will be
returned to the operating system. If you
are previewing the publication using the
Book/Run menu selection, you will be
returned to NeoBook's editing mode.

- GotoPage: Use this command to allow the
reader to jump to a particular article or
section.

- GotoFirstPage: Pressing a button
containing this command will skip to the
publication's first page.

- GotoLastPage: Pressing a button
containing this command will skip to the
publication's last page.

- GotoPrevPage: Pressing a button
containing this command will turn to the
page immediately preceding the current page
in the publication, e.g., if the reader
presses this button while on page 8,
NeoBook turn to page 7. Note: if the reader
is on page 1, this command will have no
effect.

- GotoNextPage: Pressing a button
containing this command will turn to the
page immediately following the current page
in the publication, e.g., if the reader
presses this button while on page 4,
NeoBook will turn to page 5. Note: if the
reader is on the publication's last page,
this command will have no effect..

- ImageWindow: Selecting this command will
prompt you for the name of a PCX or GIF
format file and a title to be placed above
the image. When the button is pressed, the
image will be loaded into a window. The
reader may then resize the window using the
control in the lower right corner of the
frame. The window may be moved by dragging
the scroll bar. The reader may use the
buttons on the upper right portion of the
frame to close, move or switch to another
window. This feature may be used to bring
up diagrams or other images relating to
other information on the page.

- PlaySoundFile: (NeoBook Pro Only) This
command will play either a VOC or SNG
format sound file. VOC format files will
play on
those computers which contain Sound Blaster
compatible audio cards. SNG format files
will play on most IBM compatible personal
computers. Use this feature to play music,
narration or sound effects using VOC format
files. SNG format files are limited to
music and sound effects.

- PrintTextFile: You may use this command
to allow the reader to send an ASCII text
file to be to his/her printer. After
drawing this button, you will be prompted
to specify the name of the text file to be
printed.

- PlayTone: Buttons containing this command
will play a single note when pressed. You
may specify a number from 1 to 37268 to
select the note.

- PopupImage: This command will cause an
image to appear on the screen. Clicking a
second time will cause the image to
disappear. You will be prompted to specify
the image when you draw the button.

- ReturntoPage: Pressing a button
containing this command will turn back to
the last page viewed by the reader.

- SoundBuzzer: Buttons containing this
command sound a low beep when pressed. A
use for this would be to place an invisible
or patterned button containing this command
over buttons from the Master Page which you
do not wish the reader to use.

NOTE: You may add additional commands by
entering a tilde (~) and manually typing
one of the above commands.

- The Picture Tool -

Use this tool to place graphic images onto
the page. After selecting the tool, use the
mouse to drag a frame which will contain
the image. Once the frame has been drawn,
you will be prompted for the name of the
PCX or GIF format image file to place into
the frame. Use the button to the right of
the input field to search for the file if
you cannot recall its name or location on
your computer. Once you have placed a
Picture, you may change the options for
frame by either choosing Edit Object from
the Edit menu, or by simply clicking on the
object using the right mouse button. This
will allow you to specify whether to size
the picture to fit within the frame, or if
the text extends beyond the borders of the
frame where to locate scroll bars to allow
the reader to view the entire picture.

--- The Rectangle Tool ---

This tool is used to draw squares and
rectangles onto the page. Simply select the
Rectangle tool and drag out the shape to
the desired size (use the Options/Snap to
Grid function to draw an object of a
specific size). The color inside the object
is determined by the currently selected
Fill Color (on the expanded Tool Palette).
The color and line style may be changed
after the object is drawn by simply
selecting the rectangle with the Selector
tool and clicking on a new Fill Color,
Pattern, Line Color and Line Style. The
object may also be moved or resized using
the Selector tool. Objects may also be
stacked using the Arrange menu functions.

NOTE: To draw rounded rectangles, hold down
the Control key while creating the
rectangle. Holding down the Shift key will
make perfect squares.

--- The Ellipse Tool ---

This tool is used to draw circles and ovals
onto the page. Simply select the Ellipse
tool and drag out the shape to the desired
size (use the Options/Snap to Grid function
to draw a perfect circle). The color inside
the object is determined by the currently
selected Fill Color (on the expanded Tool
Palette). The color and line style may be
changed after the object is drawn by simply
selecting the rectangle with the Selector
tool and clicking on a new Fill Color,
Pattern, Line Color and Line Style. The
ellipse may be moved or resized using the
Selector tool. You may also stack objects
using the Arrange menu functions.

NOTE: Hold down the Shift key to draw
round circles.

--- The Line Tool ---

This tool is used to lines onto the page.
Simply select the Line tool and drag out
the Line to the desired size (enable the
Options/Snap to Grid function to keep lines
perfectly horizontal or vertical). The
thickness, color and style of the Line is
determined by the currently selected Line
Color, Line Thickness and Line Style (on
the expanded Tool Palette). Color,
thickness and line style may be changed
after the object is drawn by simply
selecting the line with the Selector tool
and clicking on a new Line Color, Line
Thickness and Line Style. The object may be
moved or resized using the selector tool.
You may also stack objects using the
Arrange menu functions.

NOTE: Hold down the Shift key to draw
straight lines.

--- The Title Tool ---

Use this tool to place titles and other
short text onto the page. After selecting
the tool, click on the location where you
wish the text to start. A dialog will
appear to receive your text. After you have
entered the Title, you may move the text
using the Selector tool. The font style and
color may be changed using functions
contained in the expanded Tool Palette. Use
the tilde (~) character to force a line
break in the title. The control on the
right side of the dialog will allow you to
center the text, align to the left or align
on the right side. Clicking on the Insert
Code button will place a code (i.e., [P])
into the text which will automatically
insert the page number for the current page
at that location.

Using the Master Page
---------------------

The Master Page is used to set up buttons
and other items which will be used on all,
or most of the other pages in your
publication. Placing elements on the Master
Page will not only save you time by
automatically recreating them for each
page, but will also unify your publication
and make it look more professional. To go
to the Master Page, use the Page/Goto
Master Page menu selection, or simply click
on the Master Page icon in the center of
the Page Control bar. Following are some of
the more common items which you may wish to
include on the Master Page of your
publications.

- Page Turning Buttons: The most common
command buttons which you will use on the
Master Page, are buttons which the reader
will use to page through your document. Set
up these buttons using the GotoPage,
GotoFirstPage, GotoLastPage, GotoPrevPage,
GotoNextPage and ReturntoPage commands. At
the minimum, the reader must be provided
with some means of going to another page or
exiting the publication.

- Contents or Index: In longer publications
and publications containing varied subject
matter, your reader may find it useful to
be provided with a table of contents or
index (complete with buttons to jump to
pages containing certain material). If you
will be providing a list of content, rather
than placing the list on the Master Page
itself, in most cases you will only want to
include a small button set up to jump
directly to a page (using the GotoPage
command) which contains the Contents or
Index.

- Help: Your reader might appreciate a
screen which gives some basic instructions
as to how to use your publication. Here you
would explain any symbols or special
buttons you have created.

- Exit: In many instances, you will want to
give the reader an easy way to exit the
publication by placing a button which
contains the Exit command on each page.
Alternatively, you may set up the
publication to use the ESC key to exit.

- Page Number: Placing the Page Number
(type using the Title tool) on the Master
Page can ensure that the number will appear
in the same location on each page.

- Graphic Elements: Placing a logo, ruling
lines, or other graphical elements on the
Master Page can help visually unify your
publication. Your reader will find it
easier to follow your publication if he or
she does not have to relearn each page.

Ghosting Unusable Buttons
-------------------------

When you place page turning buttons onto
the Master Page, there are times when a
button may appear on a page where it serves
no function. For instance, if you placed a
button which says "Go to Table of Contents"
onto the Master Page, this button will be
of no use when the reader is actually in
the Table of Contents. To eliminate the
possibility of confusing the reader, it
should be made obvious to the reader that
these buttons are not functional on a
particular page. One way to do this is to
completely or partially obscure the text or
the entire button. Do this by going to the
page where the button would be useless and
superimposing a rectangle (or another
button) over the non-functional button, or
just that button's text. You might want to
use a Pattern instead of a solid Fill so as
to let the button show through a dark
colored pattern will dim the button and a
light colored pattern will cause it to
fade.

Image Considerations
--------------------

The Color Palette: When creating and
choosing images take into consideration
that NeoBook will attempt to match colors
present in each image you place in your
publication with a similar shade in the
currently loaded palette. Usually, this
NeoBook will do a good job in matching
colors, however in some instances, you may
wish to either adjust the colors in the
image itself (using a paint program) or
load a different color palette into the
publication. The closer the colors
contained in the publication color palette
and the colors contained in the images, the
more exactly the images will reproduce. If
you have, or are using a paint program such
as NeoPaint, you should find it easy to
compare the colors contained in the
palettes attached to various images.

To load a different color palette for the
publication, select Set Palette from the
Book menu. Instead of manually altering
each color in the current color palette,
you may use the Load Palette button to
import a completely different color
palette. You are allowed to choose a
previously stored color palette (PAL
files). If you wish to exactly match the
shades in a particular image file, you may
import the color palette from that picture
by choosing the GIF or PCX file format
buttons and then selecting the name of that
image.

Image Size: You will not be able to display
whole images which are larger than the size
of the monitor on which the publication is
run. Larger images will be cropped to fit
the frame, which may cut out information
important to your publication. You may
include scroll bars to allow the reader to
access areas lying outside the frame, or
you may tell NeoBook to shrink the picture
to fit the frame. If an image is much
larger than the frame, however, you may be
needlessly wasting disk space in including
a large image, when the image could be
scaled down to the size of the frame. Also,
the larger the image, the longer it will
take to draw the page onto the screen. The
size of the screen and of images is
measured in pixel units. Any good paint
program, such as NeoPaint, will allow you
to scale down larger drawings to a size
which will fit into frames.

Image Color: Standard VGA video cards
support 2 and 16 colors at up to 640x480
resolution, and 256 colors at 320x200.
NeoBook supports SuperVGA resolutions for
most graphics cards. SuperVGA allows 256
colors to be displayed at 640x480, 800x600
and 1024x768 resolutions.

If your computer does not contain a VGA or
supported SuperVGA card and monitor, you
may still import images containing 256
colors, but these will be displayed using
either 2 or 16 colors. If you move your
publication onto a system which can support
256 colors in NeoBook, you may then view
the publication with all colors displayed.
Sometimes the results obtained when
converting a 256 color image to 2 or 16
colors will be less than satisfactory. If a
monochrome or 16 color system is to be used
to display the final publication, you may
wish to use a paint or image editing
program to restore detail, correct colors
or generally spruce up reduced color
image(s). You might consider using the gray
scale 16 color palette, which will usually
work very well with almost any images you
import.

Copying the Publication
-----------------------

Compiled publications: The method of
copying your publication for use on another
system is to use NeoBook's Compile option.
This will turn your publication into a
self-contained computer program which may
be easily transferred to other systems. A
computer running the compiled publication
does not need to have NeoBook on the system
for the publication to be displayed.

When composing a publication for use on
another computer, you should keep in mind
that the resulting program must be
transferred from your system to the other
system. Usually this is accomplished by
copying the compiled program onto a
diskette. However, since even compressed
graphical images and sound files take up a
great deal of disk space, it is possible to
produce a publication that is larger than
most common diskettes can handle. The
suggestions below can help you design
publications which use disk space more
efficiently.

Use smaller images. Rather than using
different full screen size image
backgrounds for each page, you may often be
able to obtain the same effect by beginning
with a single background and then
"layering" smaller images over this
background to give the impression of
multiple slides. This usually has the added
advantage of unifying the look of your
publication. Sample files included on your
NeoBook diskettes were produced using this
technique.

Use images containing fewer colors. If you
can use two or sixteen color resolution
images in places, these will take up less
room on your disk. Again, a good paint
program will allow you to convert an image
to a resolution which has fewer colors in
its palette. This often can be done without
noticeably affecting the quality of the
image.

- Re-use the same image. This is
particularly effective for backgrounds and
logos.
- Place titles and graphic elements which
are used on all pages onto the Master Page.
- Tile very small images for background
wallpaper using the Page/Attributes button.
This can produce particularly attractive
backgrounds using images containing natural
or textured patterns.
- When recording a sound clip, use a lower
Sampling Rate. While doing this may produce
some sound distortion, a lower setting will
also produce a smaller audio file.
- Use GIF format files instead of PCX files
for your images. GIF files are heavily
compressed and thus require less disk space.
They do, however, take slightly longer to
load than do PCX files.
- Try to limit the number of fonts used in
your publication. Using only two or three
fonts will reduce the file size of your
compiled application and improve
performance.

If your publication turns out to be
extremely large, and there is no way to
reduce its size, some options you might
consider to move your program to another
system might include:

- Use SNG format files rather than VOC
format wherever possible. While VOC files
are much higher quality, and are the only
way to play back speech, they also take up
much more disk space. In addition, SNG
format files will play on almost any PC,
while the VOC files will only play if an
audio card is present on the system.
- Transfer the compiled publication program
via network, modem, Laplink, or another
communications device, rather than using a
diskette.
- Use a higher capacity disk drive. If you
are producing shows for computers with
1.2MB or 1.44MB diskette drives, consider
adding one of these inexpensive peripherals
to the system on which you produce
publications. Other floppy disk, optical,
CD-R and removable hard drive technologies
are readily available for transferring
extremely large files.
- Use PKZIP or another file compression
utility to further reduce the size of your
publication EXE file. Although some file
compression utilities do not need to be
decompressed, most require that you
decompress the file once it has been
transferred to another computer.
- Use the DOS BACKUP or a similar utility
to move a large file onto multiple
diskettes. See your DOS or utility
documentation for instructions on how to
accomplish this.
- Break your publication into smaller
parts. You may then compile the sections
individually, then link these by using a
DOS batch file (see your DOS documentation)
to call up each individual compiled section
you create. Be sure to use an "ECHO OFF"
statement at the beginning of the batch
file to prevent the DOS prompt from
interrupting the publication. This method
has the disadvantage of being a bit slower,
and of not allowing paging between EXE
files. It is, however, quite serviceable
when you absolutely must transfer a very
large publication and cannot use any of the
other suggestions listed above.

Production Considerations
-------------------------

- Very large sound files may be too large
to play on systems with limited RAM.
NeoBook contains a module which
transparently creates more room for the
sound file to play. If you are distributing
publications which contain large audio
files, you should also include a copy of
the file "SPLAY.EXE" along with your
compiled publication file. This file will
be found in the same directory as NeoBook.

- Again, for best results, images should be
the same size, or smaller than, the frame
used to contain them in the final
publication. A standard VGA monitor can
display at 640x 480 or 320x200 pixels, and
an EGA display measures 640x350 pixels.
Super VGA display systems can produce
images at 800x600 and/or 1024x768 in
addition to standard VGA resolutions.

- Most paint, scanning utilities and image
editing programs can produce excellent PCX
pictures you may wish to include in your
NeoBook publications. A vast array of other
PCX images are available from catalogs,
electronic bulletin boards, etc. If you
don't have a scanner, most typesetting
service bureaus are able to scan your
photographs into a computer image for a
small charge (you should specify the disk
format your computer uses and, if
necessary, have them reduce the image to a
size, in pixels, which will fit on your
screen).

Command Line Options
--------------------

Following are options which may be typed
after the "NEOBOOK" command when starting
the program. You may use more than one
option in the command line. Some of these
options will be of interest primarily to
network or systems administrators. If you
will be using a command line option on a
regular basis, you should include the
command and option(s) in a batch file and
run the batch file to start NeoBook. See
your DOS documentation for information on
creating batch files.

/E = This option loads NeoBook's program
overlay into EMS memory. This may improve
program speed on some systems. Usage:
NEOBOOK /E

/Sx = This may be used to create and access
individual Set Up file for different users.
The Set Up file contains information on
program configuration and preferences.
Follow the "/S" with the path and name for
this file. Usage: NEOBOOK
/Sc:\news\cindy.set

/Fx = This option resets the buffer size
used for fonts. Setting to a higher value
may allow some systems to display larger
font sizes. The "x" should contain a value
between 5000 and 50,000. Usage: NEOBOOK
/F25000

/D = Use the /D option to disable the DOS
Shell selection on the File menu. Usage:
NEOBOOK /D

/P = This option disables access to the Set
Preferences selection in the Options menu,
thus preventing the user from changing the
set up. Usage: NEOBOOK /P

/T = Use this option to disable the
Create/Edit Article function on the Edit
menu. This prevents the user from using an
outside text editor. Usage: NEOBOOK /T

/I = This option disables access to the
Create/Edit Image selection in the Edit
menu. This will prevent the user from using
an outside image editor within NeoBook.
Usage: NEOBOOK /I

/O = For NeoBook Professional, using this
option will disable the Create/Edit Sound
File in the Edit menu. This prevents the
user from using an outside program to
create or edit sound files from within
NeoBook Professional. Usage: NEOBOOK /O

/B = If NeoBook Professional has difficulty
in identifying the audio card due to an
interrupt conflict, using this option will
prevent NeoBook Professional from checking
to see if a sound card is present on the
system. This option may also be used by
readers of your on the compiled publication
file. Usage: NEOBOOK /B

/A = This option prevents NeoBook
Professional from attempting to initialize
a sound card or the PC's internal speaker.
Usage: NEOBOOK /A

PC Internal Speaker Sound
-------------------------

NeoBook Professional allows you to play
sounds through the internal speaker which
is built in to all IBM compatible PC
systems. Thus, sound produced for this
device should play on nearly every PC
system made. However, unlike audio cards,
the internal speaker is limited as to the
range and quality of sound that it can
produce. When you Define Button attributes,
both the Play Tone and Play Sound File
(SNG) options will play sound through the
PC internal speaker.

To create a button, either labeled or
invisible, for your sound clip, first
choose the Button tool and drag it over the
area on which the user must click to play
the sound. Next, choose either Play Tone or
Play Sound File from the Define Button
dialog.

--- Selecting a Play Tone sound ---

Use this selection to place a button which
plays a single note when pressed. An
example of how this could be used is to
construct a small keyboard consisting of
buttons which the user could play by
selecting with the mouse. NeoBook can play
a range of 12 notes in 10 octaves.
Therefore, you may specify a numeric value
from 1 to 32768 for each Play Tone button
you create.

--- Creating Speaker SNG Sound Files ---

The Play Sound File option in the Build
Button dialog allows you to play two
different audio file formats. Choose the
SNG format to play files through the PC's
internal speaker. The other file type is
the VOC (voice) format which requires that
a Sound Blaster compatible audio card be
present in order to produce music or
narration. SNG format sound files may be
created or edited using any ASCII text
editor. The text file consists of a string
of music notes and commands, which are
defined below.

- Tempo: Specify the tempo for your piece
by typing a "T" followed by a number to
represent the number of quarter notes in a
minute. You may use numbers which range
from 30 to 255. The default tempo is 120
quarter notes per minute. E.g., "T62"

- Octave: To set the octave, type a capital
"O" (not a zero) followed by a number
representing the octave for following
notes. Since a range of ten octaves may be
played through the internal speaker, this
number should be between 0 (zero) and 9
(nine), e.g., "O3"

- Length: Specify note length by typing an
"L" followed by a number between 1 and 64.
A "L1" represents a whole note, a "L2"
would be a half note, a "L4" would be a
quarter note and so on, through "L64,"
which would play as a sixty-fourth note.
All notes which follow will play at this
length, until you type a new "L" and
number, or until you use one of the other
commands below which affect note length.
The length may also be specified by typing
the number immediately after the note.
E.g., "E33" is the same as typing "L33E"
Following a note with a "." (period) causes
that note only to play 3/2 its originally
specified length. Typing the letters "MS"
will cause each note to play 3/4 (staccato)
of the length set by the "L" command above.
Typing the letters "MN" plays each note 7/8
of the length specified by "L." Typing "ML"
returns to playing each note the full
length specified by "L."

- Note Played: Type the letter
corresponding to the note(s) you wish to be
played. Use "ABCDEFG." Sharps may be
specified by adding either a "+" or "#"
after the note. Flats are specified by
using a "-" (dash) following the note.
E.g., "C#" and "C+" are both C-sharp, and
"D-" is a D-flat.

- Pause: Type a "P" followed by a number
which specifies the length (in
milliseconds) of the pause. E.g., "P40"

Article Text Options --------------------

When creating an article using your text
editor, there are several formatting codes
you may wish to use. These may be inserted
into the text using the "^" (caret) character
(not the CTRL key + B, but the actual "^"
character). The formatted text will display
in your publication.

- Bold: Use "^B" at the start of the portion
which is to display as bold text. To turn
bold off, place a "^b" at the end of the
section of text which is to be bold.

- Underline: Use "^U" at the start of the
portion which is to display as underlined
text. To turn the underscore off, place a
"^u" at the end of the section of text which
is to be underlined.

- Reverse Video: Use "^R" at the start of the
portion which is to display as reversed
text. To return the text to normal, place a
"^r" at the end of the section of text which
is to be reversed.

- Tab: To tab text, insert a "^T" followed
immediately by a number. The number should
represent the number of spaces from the
left margin. The size of spaces displayed
will equal the width of the M character in
the font selected within NeoBook. Follow
the "^T" and the number with a space before
continuing with the text.

- Centering: If the center code is included
on a line along with other codes listed
above, the "^C" should be the innermost code.

- Caret Symbol: If you need to display the
caret character in the text of your
article, type two carets not separated by a
space.


* More detailed information is available in
our printed manual available to registered
users. *


(C)1993-1994 NeoSoft Corp.
354 NE Greenwood Avenue, Suite 108
Bend, Oregon 97701-4631
U.S.A.

Voice: [phone]
Fax:   [phone]
BBS:   [phone]

All Rights Reserved.