Smart Scroll for Netscape, Emailer, Eudora, ClarisWorks, Word, and many more!
⌐1996-99 Marc Moini, all rights reserved
version 3.5, 99.01.16
Extreme summary
1. Drop Smart Scroll in the Control Panels folder, restart. You'll get:
2. Proportional scrollbar thumbs show how much of a document is displayed in a window.
3. Live Scrolling updates the display as you drag the scrollbar thumb.
4. check the web page at www.marcmoini.com for the latest version.
Overview
Smart Scroll enhances regular scroll bars so they show how much of a document is displayed in a window. The indicator thumb in scroll bars becomes proportional : If a window is displaying half of a document, the thumb will be half the scrollbar size.
This gives you an idea of how large the document is, without having to scroll the window to find out. Try it for yourself, it speeds browsing the Net or going through your email, for example.
Smart Scroll also adds Live Scrolling, which updates the display as you drag the scrollbar thumb. Just release the thumb when you see the part of the document you want: no more guessing where you'll end up!
All scrollbars benefit from these improvements, even those hidden in Open and Save dialogs. After a few days of Smart Scroll, going back to regular scroll feels like something is missing !
Mac OS 8.5 provides applications with the possibility of getting proportional thumbs and live scrolling, but applications will need to be updated to take advantage of these features . Among applications included with Mac OS 8.5, so far only the Finder uses these features.
Smart Scroll provides these enhancements for "the rest of apps", without updating applications! (Netscape, Emailer, Eudora, ClarisWorks, Word, etc)
Installation
1 Put Smart Scroll in your Control Panels folder, by dragging its icon and releasing it over your System Folder.
2 Smart Scroll will be active after you Restart.
System 7.x or Mac OS 8.x required, on a color-capable Macintosh.
Using Smart Scroll
After restarting, you may enter your preferences in the control panel.
Smart Scroll works automatically to calculate the size of the thumb relative to the size of the document and the window it's displayed in. Some information from applications is needed for these calculations.
Smart Scroll retrieves this information from its data file after it's been saved once. The first time though, it might need a little help:
When Smart Scroll encounters a scrollbar it doesn't know, it displays an 'X' over the thumb. Just click page up or page down (the gray scrollbar areas either side of the thumb).
This is only needed once for most applications, and Smart Scroll comes with presets for a number of popular applications.
To disable Proportional Thumbs or Live Scrolling for selected applications, ╘Add╒ the applications to the Exclusions List, then click under 'no Prop. Thumbs' or 'no Live Scrolling' and an x will appear to show the feature is disabled for that application.
Constraints
Some applications use scrollbars that are all different from one another, and sometimes even change along with the document. You'll see the 'X' reappear from time to time: it'll go away when you click the page up or page down areas in the scroll bar or press the page up/page down keys.
If the 'X' is still there after you clicked, move to the start or end of the document and try again: some applications only give Smart Scroll the info it needs when scrolling from either end of a scrollbar. Also, the document has to be larger than the window, so resizing the window down (just once) before clicking might help.
Compatibility
A lot of time goes into making Smart Scroll work as intended with as many other programs as possible. Please send me a short e-mail if you have a problem and I'll try to fix it.
Shareware Notice
Smart Scroll is shareware. You may evaluate it freely for up to 12 days, then to continue using it you are expected to pay a $12 registration fee. Registration is handled by the Kagi Shareware service. You may register on-line with a credit card at :
http://order.kagi.com/?MM&S
(or without the &S if your browser doesn't support secure connections)
Or use the attached Register application to register by e-mail (send to shareware@Kagi.com) or by fax with a credit card, or through postal mail. Please run the application for more information (and turn on Balloon Help!). If you received Smart Scroll without the Register application, please download the complete package.
After you register, Kagi will send you a receipt and a code to disable the registration reminders. Please remember to include your e-mail address (or postal address, but it takes much longer) so Kagi knows where to send the code! If you don't receive your code within a week, let me know by sending an email to Marc@Kagi.com.
A person or family using the program on several computers need only pay for one copy. Site licenses are available. The Kagi Shareware address and fax number are for registrations only, please.
Please distribute Smart Scroll as a complete package, with this document and the Register application. It is OK to upload the unmodified package to BBSs, the Internet and online services, and to put it on a CD-ROM provided Smart Scroll is not sold.
Acknowledgments
Many thanks to Jens Alfke, Bill Goodman, Greg Landweber, Vils Legrand, Peter Lewis, Christopher Li, Fl.M, James Marr, Marc Menschenfreund, Alessandro Levi Montalcini, Mark Nagata, Hans E. Omli, Arlo Rose, Mark Shirley and Niklas Wolkert!
Translations: Deutsch by Christoph Berger, Espaûol by Mark Shirley, Italiano by Anna & Nicolas Juvin-Piron and Federico Minghetti.
Disclaimer
The author makes no warranties, either express or implied, regarding the fitness of Smart Scroll for any particular purpose. Use Smart Scroll at your own risk. The author claims no liability for data loss or any other problems caused directly or indirectly by Smart Scroll.
Other programs by the author
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Custom/TearOff Menus lets you tear-off any menu and float it above the desktop for quick and easy access at any time (this is a feature Apple reportedly plans for Mac OS X, but you can have it now!). Build your own menus from items in any menu. Rename any item ! Choose your own Font, Size and colors for the menus and the menu bar. Pop-Up the menu bar under the mouse : fast access to menus with less mouse travel! Download from www.marcmoini.com
Version History
Download the latest version from www.marcmoini.com or an Info-Mac mirror or the MIT HyperArchive at http://hyperarchive.lcs.mit.edu/HyperArchive.html. Also available on the MacOS forum (control panels) on CompuServe, and the Mac Utilities forum on AOL.
3.5 (99-01-16)
Ñ Supports Mac OS 8.5 and 8.5.1
Ñ Added choice of scrollbar arrow style
Ñ pageUp and pageDown keys are now recognized
Ñ Added support for Eudora Pro 4.02 and 4.1
Ñ Fixed long-standing bug which would sometimes cause a crash at shutdown (thanks, Dave Warker! http://www.waterw.com/~davew)
Ñ Misc. changes and fixes
3.2 (98.02.24)
Ñ Supports Mac OS 8.1
Ñ Supports Appearance 1.0.2
Ñ Significant improvement in ability to remember proportion info: click to make X go away, proportions are remembered for more apps.
Ñ Compatible with the latest DoubleScroll (2.2 preview 6)
Ñ Fixed (with help from Jim Stoneburner) a bug that would crash Communicator╒s preferences window on some systems.
Ñ Fixed thumb tracking bug in Netscape and apps using PowerPlant
Ñ Added support for Quark XPress (tested with 4.0 and 3.32). Tip: Turn off XPress╒s own live scrolling, hold down the Option key and drag window contents instead of using scrollbars.
Ñ Added support for Adobe Photoshop (tested with 2.5 and 4.0)
Ñ Added support for Claris Organizer 2 (tested with 2.01)
Ñ Most apps which have their own implementation of Live Scrolling do not have to be Excluded anymore.
Ñ Holding down Option key allows adding any file to the Exclusions list.
Ñ Misc. changes and fixes
3.1 (97.11.25)
Ñ Added support for ClarisWorks 4 and 5.
Ñ Added support for Netscape Navigator╒s own live scrolling
Ñ Added support for CodeWarrior╒s own live scrolling (tested up to Pro1)
Ñ Bug fix: Live Scrolling can now be turned off
Ñ Bug fix: Exlusions List is now preserved after Restart
Ñ Misc. changes and fixes
3.0 (97.09.17)
Ñ Supports Mac OS 8
Ñ New Control Panel (with advice and ideas from Arlo Rose: Thanks!)
Ñ New ╘Appearance╒ thumb style
Ñ Improved guessing of thumb proportions for many apps (thanks to Jens Alfke!)
Ñ Added support for Netscape (note: turn off Netscape╒s own Active Scrolling)
Ñ Added support for Eudora
Ñ Added support for CodeWarrior
Ñ Misc. changes and fixes (thanks to Mark Nagata!)
Ñ Fixed click-on-thumb bug in some list views when running alongside Kaleidoscope
Ñ New ╘Exclude Applications╒ feature
2.03 (97.03.15)
Ñ Communicates with Kaleidoscope 1.5 http://www.seagull.net/kaleidoscope/k15.html
Ñ Registered users no longer need to re-enter their registration info when updating
Ñ Display of number of days used is now correct
Ñ Fixed bug with AfterDark on/off switch
Ñ Fixed bug where the thumbs couldn't be dragged to the end of the scrollbar on some machines
Ñ misc. changes and fixes
2.02 (97.01.01)
Ñ Compatible with Kaleidoscope 1.01
2.01 (96.11.26)
Ñ Added Live Scrolling (original idea by Ken McLeod: Thanks!)
Ñ Any number of scrollbars (memory allowing) can now be proportional in the same application/process (versus only the 20 most recently used)
Ñ Application Programming Interface added so developers can make their software take advantage of proportional scrollbars, and to make Smart Scroll work as nicely as possible with these programs.
Ñ New control panel user interface and icon (with great help from Hans E. Omli: Thanks!)
Ñ Now also in German, French, Italian and Spanish.
Ñ No longer crashes when closing the ╘nag╒ windoid with WindowShade running.
Ñ Scrollbar thumb is now correct size in Tex-Edit Plus documents longer than 4000 lines.
Ñ New double-grip thumb
Ñ Compatible with Kaleidoscope 1.0
Ñ Startup icon control (on request)
1.1 (96.08.19)
Ñ Removed 'Page' number feature
Ñ Added choice of plain or striped thumbs
Ñ Switched from '?' to 'X' displayed over thumbs to indicate it's not proportional. If you'd prefer something else, please let me know!
Ñ Name changed to Smart Scroll from Smart Scrolls (Please delete old Smart Scrolls prefs file)
Ñ No need anymore to turn off and reinstall if registering after the end of the demo period
Ñ thumb outline now appears when dragging thumb on PowerMacs running 7.5.3
Ñ Fixed zero divide error with some applications using panes
