Copyright: © 2000-2002 by H+H Software GmbH
Citation: © 2000-2002 by H+H Software GmbH


Overview
 – Overview

The Management program is the main program in Virtual CD. In addition to giving you access to basic functions for inserting, ejecting and creating virtual CDs, the Management program also lets you sort your virtual CDs by categories and gives you a general overview of all your CD-ROM drives (both physical and virtual drives) at a glance.

The Management program is divided into three panes:

•	Drive view, on the left: Shows the virtual drives.

•	Image view, upper right: Shows the virtual CDs detected by the Virtual CD program.

•	Detail view, lower right: Shows the contents of a virtual CD.

You can activate commands through the toolbar or through the menus in the Virtual CD Management program. Some commands can also be activated using hotkeys.


Drive View
 – Drive View

On the CD Management page of the Settings dialog, you can define whether the Drive View is shown in Classic mode (showing only virtual drives) or in Hi-tech mode (with full Virtual CD functionality).

Here you can compare the two Drive View modes:

Depending which mode you select, the Drive View shows some or all of the following:

•	Virtual drives: List of all available virtual CD drives.

•	CD drives: List of all available physical CD drives.

•	Virtual CDs/DVDs: Virtual CDs sorted by category.

•	CD overview: Overview of all virtual CDs, independent of category.

•	Virtual CD Online: Direct access to on-line information all about Virtual CD.

If there is a CD in a virtual drive, you can remove it by selecting the Eject command. If a virtual CD is selected in the image view, you can load it in the selected virtual drive by selecting the Insert command.

Right-click on any symbol to open a shortcut menu relating to that element:

Shortcut menu for the 'Virtual CD drives' folder:

Eject all virtual CDs	Ejects all virtual CDs from all virtual drives
Drive editor	Starts the Drive editor for changing the number of virtual CD drives

Shortcut menu for a virtual CD drive:

Insert	Loads the selected virtual CD in the virtual drive
Eject	Removes the selected virtual CD from the virtual drive
Explorer	Opens an Explorer window showing the contents of the virtual CD.
Create virtual CD	Starts the Image Wizard for creating a virtual CD.
Drive editor	Starts the Drive editor for changing the number of virtual CD drives
	Before you can use virtual CDs as source CDs, you need to activate the corresponding option on the Creating Virtual CDs page of the Settings dialog.
	Virtual CDs with sound files (i.e., analog as opposed to digital music files) cannot be used as source CDs.

Shortcut menu for the 'CD drives' folder:

Eject all CDs	Ejects all physical CDs.

Shortcut menu for a CD drive:

Eject	Ejects the CD from the drive.
Explorer	Opens an Explorer window showing the contents of the CD.
Create Virtual CD	Starts the Image Wizard for creating a virtual CD.
Properties	Shows the properties of the CD drive.

Shortcut menu for the 'Virtual CDs/DVDs' folder

New folder	Creates a new folder.
Separated view	Shows the local and network CDs in separate folders.

Shortcut menu for a subfolder in the 'Virtual CDs/DVDs' folder:

Delete	Deletes the selected folder.
New folder	Creates a new folder.
Rename	Lets you rename the selected folder.


CD View
 – CD View

The CD View, or Image View, shows all of the virtual CDs registered in the Virtual CD Management program. If a virtual CD is not registered, this simply means it has been removed from the program but not necessarily deleted from your hard disk. You can add existing virtual CDs to the Management program (i.e., register them) at any time.

On the Global page of the Settings dialog, you can define whether the CD View shows an overview of all virtual CDs together, or shows the CDs as they are sorted into their various categories.

You can load the selected virtual CD in the selected drive using the Insert command. If there already is a virtual CD in the selected drive, you can remove it using the Eject command.

On the CD Management page of the Settings dialog, you can configure what happens when you double-click on a virtual CD here. Either:

•	the virtual CD is automatically inserted in its default drive, or

•	the properties dialog of the virtual CD is opened for editing.

Right-click on a virtual CD for a shortcut menu containing the following commands:

Insert	Inserts the selected virtual CD in the virtual drive.
Eject	Ejects the virtual CD from the virtual drive.
Delete	Deletes a virtual CD or a folder.
New folder	Creates a new folder.
Rename	Lets you rename the selected folder.
Edit	Starts the Editor and loads the selected virtual CD for editing.
Large symbols	Shows large symbols in the CD View
Small symbols	Shows small symbols in the CD View
List	Shows the CD View as a list
Details	Shows the CD View as a list with detailed information.
Properties	Shows the properties of the virtual CD


Detail View
 – Detail View

The Detail View shows the contents of the selected virtual CD in the CD View. This may include data tracks, music tracks, or both. You can start an individual file in the virtual CD by double-clicking on it or using the Open command. The file is opened with the program defined for its file type in the Explorer. If no program is defined for a given file type, the operating system's "Open With" dialog is opened and lets you choose a program for the unknown file type.

	The Open command extracts only the selected file. For example, you can view a text file in a text editor. You cannot edit the file, however, if it is part of a virtual CD container.
	Files that contain references to other files, as HTML files often do, for example, are not complete when viewed in an editor, because the files referred to (usually pictures or tables) are not extracted.

Use the Extract command to store a file in a separate location. This command opens the standard Windows Save as... dialog.

	You can extract only one file at a time. You cannot extract folders or sound files.

If the selected virtual CD is a multisession CD, as is the case for example if the virtual CD has been modified with the Editor, the Detail View shows the individual sessions.

	The last session in the Detail View is always the most recent session. When a multisession virtual CD is inserted in a virtual drive, Windows shows the data contained in the most recent session.
Right-click on an entry for a shortcut menu containing the following commands:

Properties	Shows the properties of an entry.
Open	Extracts the file and opens the program corresponding to the file type.
Extract	Extracts a file and lets you store it in another location.


Toolbar
 – Toolbar

The main commands for virtual CD management are available in the toolbar.

Network mode	Toggles the network mode between 'central' and 'normal'.
Insert	Inserts the selected virtual CD in the virtual drive.
Eject	Ejects the virtual CD from the virtual drive.
Search	Searches your system for existing virtual CDs.
Delete	Deletes a virtual CD or a folder.
New folder	Creates a new folder.
Up	Go up one folder level.
Create virtual CD	Starts the Image Wizard for creating a virtual CD.
Editor	Starts the Editor for creating or editing a virtual CD
View	Opens a menu with the following items: Large symbols – Shows large symbols in the CD View Small symbols – Shows small symbols in the CD View List - Shows the CD View as a list Details -  Shows the CD View as a list with detailed information
Help	Starts the Virtual CD Help program
	The button for toggling the network mode is available only if the required helper program is installed and a global configuration path is configured on the Network page of the Virtual CD Settings dialog.


Menus
 – Menus

All commands for virtual CD management can be activated through the menus.

File Menu

License monitor	Starts the Virtual CD v4 License monitor, to show the number of currently active VCD v4 user licenses.
Exit	Closes the Virtual CD Management program
	The "License monitor" menu item is available only in the network version of Virtual CD v4.

Edit Menu

Insert	Inserts the selected virtual CD in the virtual drive.
Eject	Ejects the virtual CD from the virtual drive.
Open	Extracts the file and opens the program corresponding to the file type.
Extract	Extracts a file and lets you store it in another location.
Find...	Searches your system for existing virtual CDs.
Add...	Lets you add existing virtual CDs.
Delete	Deletes a virtual CD or a folder.
New folder	Creates a new folder.
Create virtual CD	Starts the Image Wizard for creating a virtual CD.
Editor	Starts the Editor for creating a virtual CD.
Drive Editor	Starts the Drive Editor for changing the virtual drives.
Properties	Opens a dialog showing the properties of the selected element.

View Menu

Status bar	Shows or hides the status bar.
Separated view	Shows the local and network CDs in separate folders.
Detail view	Shows or hides the Detail View, which displays virtual CD contents.
Large symbols	Shows large symbols in the CD View.
Small symbols	Shows small symbols in the CD View.
List	Shows the CD View as a list.
Details	Shows the CD View as a list with detailed information.
Virtual CD Settings	Opens the CD Management page of the Settings dialog.
Refresh	Re-reads all data and updates the View accordingly.

Toolbar Submenu

Toolbar	Shows or hides the toolbar.
Tool button texts	Shows or hides the explanatory texts under the toolbar buttons.

CDDB Menu

Registration...	Opens a dialog for changing the CDDB registration.
About...	Shows information about CDDB.
Options...	Opens a dialog for configuring CDDB options.
Music Browser...	Opens the CDDB Music Browser.

Help Menu

Help	Opens the Help program.
Licensing...	Opens a window for entering your license code to register your Virtual CD user license.
Virtual CD Online	Starts the default browser and opens a page with links to other Virtual CD pages.
About	Shows information about the program.


Image File Properties
 – Image File Properties

In this dialog, you can view and edit specific information about a virtual CD image file, or container. This dialog has 4 pages: General, Comment, Statistics and Category.


General Page
 – General Page

The General page of the Image File Properties dialog lets you edit the properties of a virtual CD.

•	Description: This is the internal name of the virtual CD, shown when the CD is displayed in Virtual CD programs.

•	Start program and Working directory: You can define a start program for any virtual CD, which is then started automatically whenever that virtual CD is inserted in a virtual drive. Under "Working directory", enter the path in which the start program runs.

•	CD label: The CD label is the designation displayed next to the drive letter when the virtual CD is shown in your Windows Explorer. The CD label can have up to 16 characters and can include letters, numbers, spaces and hyphens ('dash' or minus sign). Some CDs come with labels that are longer than 16 characters, but we do not recommend entering more than 16 characters when you define a CD label yourself.

	If you change the label of a software CD, there is a chance that the CD application will be unable to find the CD at runtime, and thus won't work. This is why the field for entering a label cannot be edited—unless you change the corresponding setting on the Creating Virtual CDs page of the Settings dialog.
•	Default drive: This is either a drive you defined or the first drive used with the virtual CD.

•	Hotkey: You can define a key combination, or 'hotkey', for automatically inserting the CD without running a Virtual CD program. If a start program has been defined for the CD, this is also started automatically.

•	Eject on exit: If you do not select this option, the CD is automatically inserted into the last virtual drive it used whenever the computer is restarted or you log onto the network again.

	It is especially important to activate this last option if your virtual CDs are stored on a network. If the virtual CD is left in the virtual drive when you log out, then it is inserted again automatically when you log on again and its start program runs automatically, even if you don't start a Virtual CD program.

Click on the Create shortcut button to make a desktop shortcut to the virtual CD. The shortcut uses the Virtual CD command line program to insert the virtual CD.

	The "Create shortcut" option is especially handy, for example, if you have virtual CDs that you use on a daily basis.

Click on the Change password button to open a dialog for changing the password to the virtual CD.

	Virtual CD properties cannot be edited while the CD is in a virtual drive.


Comment Page
 – Comment Page

You can add a Comment of up to 2047 characters to the file properties, if desired; for example, to describe the virtual CD

	As with other virtual CD file properties, the comment cannot be edited while the CD is in a virtual drive.


Statistics Page
 – Statistics Page

The Statistics page shows statistics on the virtual CD.


Category Page
 – Category Page

The list on the Category page shows all of the folders that the virtual CD is currently assigned to.


File Information Page
 – File Information Page

The File Information page shows the properties of the file selected in the Detail View. The information includes file type, path, size and date.

	Because the file information refers to a container, the Path indicates the label of the source CD rather than a drive.


Deleting a Container
 – Deleting a Container

When you select the Delete option, you can either delete the container (and thus the virtual CD) from your hard disk completely, or simply remove its symbol from your Virtual CD Management program display. In the latter case, the container still exists on your computer and can be added to your Virtual CD program again at any time. This can be useful, for example, if you only want to display the virtual CDs that are most often used at a given time.

If you wish to delete the virtual CD from your hard disk, you have to select the option Delete the virtual CD from the hard disk to do so. You are prompted to confirm this choice before the container is deleted. If you do not select this option before clicking on "OK", then the virtual CD is simply not shown in the Management program, but is still stored on your hard disk.

If more than one virtual CD is selected, you can choose the Yes, delete all option to delete all of the selected virtual CDs at one time.

	When you physically delete a container from your hard disk, this includes the audio tracks and the symbol file. If a folder was created automatically for the virtual CD in question, however, the folder remains on your hard disk.


Deleting a Folder
 – Deleting a Folder

When you delete a folder from the Management program, you need to decide what should happen to the virtual CDs stored in it. The dialog box offers you the following choices:

•	Move them to the root directory: The virtual CDs are moved to the root directory and only the selected folder is deleted.

•	Exclude the CDs from the CD Management program (don't delete folder): The virtual CDs are no longer shown in the Management program, but the CDs and folder remain, both unaltered, on the hard disk.

•	Delete the virtual CDs and the folder from the hard disk entirely: The folder and all virtual CDs in it are removed from the hard disk.


Searching for Existing Virtual CDs
 – Searching for Existing Virtual CDs

The Find Existing Virtual CDs dialog lets you search your system for the following types of container files:

•	Virtual CD v4 files (*.vc4)

•	Virtual CD v1/v2/v3 files (*.fcd)

•	ISO files (*.iso)

Select the desired path for the search and click on Start searching. All container files found are listed; you can select the files for the virtual CDs you would like to add to your Virtual CD Management program.

	The .fcd and .iso files have to be converted to the Virtual CD v4 format before they can be used with the new program version.

Select the option Copy the image files before converting them if you want to save the original files.


Warning before File Conversion
 – Warning: If you wish to continue using these files...

This warning is shown only if you did not select the option to Copy the image files before converting them in the Find Existing Virtual CDs dialog. This gives you another chance to make backup copies of the files before conversion.

	Keep in mind that there is no way to undo the file conversion. If you do not save copies of the original files, they will no longer exist in the original format on your hard disk.


Converting Container Files
 – Converting Container Files

The Conversion dialog shows the progress of the file conversion operation. Once the conversion is completed, the virtual CD is automatically added to your Management program.

	The converted file is stored in the same directory in which the original file is located.


Changing a Password
 – Changing a Password

You can assign a password to prevent unauthorized use of a given virtual CD. Once a password is assigned, the password is required before the virtual CD can be inserted or ejected, or its properties edited. When you assign a password, you have to enter it twice to make sure it is entered correctly. We recommend using a password that is not too easy to guess. The longer the password, the more secure it is; combinations of numbers and letters are also more secure than simple words. The password is case sensitive (capitals are distinguished from lower-case letters), and can have up to 15 characters.

	The password merely protects the CD from unauthorized access; the virtual CD data itself is not encrypted.
	To remove a password, activate the "Change Password" function and delete all input from both password input fields.


Drive Properties
 – Drive Properties

This dialog shows information about a physical CD-ROM drive, and which types of data it can read.


Licensing
 – Licensing

Once you install Virtual CD, it runs in demo mode. You can use all of the program functions in demo mode, for up to 30 days. When you purchase Virtual CD v4, you receive a license code. Enter this code under "Licensing" to register your Virtual CD v4 license for unlimited use of the full program functionality.


Copying
 – Copying

When you use 'drag-and-drop' to move virtual CDs between the local and network views, you might need to copy the corresponding image files to another directory as well. For example, if you copy a CD from the local view to the network view, make sure the image files belonging to that CD are stored on a shared drive (copy them if necessary) so that the virtual CD is actually accessible to all users. When you copy a CD from the network view to a local view, however, you do not necessarily have to copy the image files to the machine in question (as long as the files are accessible to that user).