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Text File | 1996-09-18 | 45.8 KB | 1,050 lines

The Little Green Selector ------------------------- Shareware by Charles F. Johnson Copyright 1989, 1990 Little Green Footballs Software All Rights Reserved. Version 1.8A Release Date: October 11, 1990 The Little Green Selector is a complete replacement for the dreaded GEM item selector. Once it's installed, all programs that call the GEM item selector will end up using the vastly improved Little Green Selector instead. You can install it at bootup time by placing it in an AUTO folder, or run it from the desktop at any time after bootup. The Little Green Selector (henceforth referred to as LGSELECT) optimizes the process of selecting files, with unique features that make this easier than ever before. And starting with version 1.3, the Little Green Selector has a special "communications pipeline" with CodeHead Software's MaxiFile desk accessory that allows you to copy, move, delete, and rename files and folders, format disks, create new folders, show or print files, and much more (in a window showing up to 80 files at once)...any time you use the file selector! ***************************************************************** * * * If you've already received an earlier version of the * * Little Green Selector, and are familiar with its basic * * operation, you may want to skip ahead to the section titled * * "New Stuff" at the end of this document. This is where the * * new features (and/or bug fixes) of each revision are * * explained. * * * ***************************************************************** Shareware - a concept before its time? -------------------------------------- The Little Green Selector is being distributed as "shareware." This means that you're free to give copies of it to friends, to upload it to bulletin board services, etc., as long as both LGSELECT.PRG and this document (LGSELECT.TXT) are included and neither file is altered in ANY WAY. In addition, this program and the accompanying text file may not be included with any commercial package, or sold in any form without written permission from Charles F. Johnson. If you use and enjoy this program, you are expected to pay for it just as you would be expected to pay for a commercial program. The only difference between a shareware product and a "commercial" product is the means of distribution; the shareware method gives you, the user, all the benefits since you get to "try before you buy." The shareware registration fee for the Little Green Selector is only $15.00, so it's pretty painless to become a registered user of the Little Green Selector. If you do find LGSELECT useful, please send a check or money order for $15.00 to: Charles F. Johnson (LG Selector) P.O. Box 1250 Pacific Palisades, CA 90272 If you'd like to me to acknowledge that I've received your shareware payment, please include a self-addressed stamped envelope. If you also include a disk with your SASE (with enough postage), I'll fill it with the latest versions of all my Little Green Footballs shareware programs and send it back to you. I've released two previous programs as shareware (ARC Shell and Desk Manager), and I'll be honest with you - the response has been less than overwhelming. And I've been pretty lucky; I've spoken to other shareware authors about this, and most of their experiences have been even more dismal than mine. Programs don't come into existence spontaneously - the people who design them spend many many hours thinking about, planning, testing, and revising their work (not to mention the years spent refining techniques and learning to use the tools). It takes a leap of faith for programmers to release the fruits of their labor into free distribution, relying on the "honor system" to see some reward for their creations. I know it takes a little extra effort to write out a check and drop it in the mail, but the fact is that only you, the user, can make the 'shareware' idea work. If you'd like to see more programs distributed as shareware, you have to do your best to support the programs you use. (By the way, I want to say a sincere "thank you" to everyone who has contributed for ARC Shell, Desk Manager, the Little Green Selector, and/or PinHead, lest you think I've forgotten. I haven't, and your contributions are very much appreciated.) Anyway...end of sermon. On with the show. Installing LGSELECT. -------------------- LGSELECT is very simple to install. You can either run it from the desktop by double-clicking on its icon or filename, or place it in an AUTO folder so that it installs automatically at bootup time. To install LGSELECT automatically, just copy it into a folder named AUTO on your boot disk. If you don't already have an AUTO folder, you can create one from the GEM desktop by using the 'New Folder' option in the 'File' drop-down menu. If you do already use an AUTO folder with several programs in it, LGSELECT can simply be copied into the existing folder. After placing LGSELECT.PRG in your AUTO folder, reboot your computer. During the bootup process, you'll see a message from LGSELECT, and it will be automatically installed. (NOTE: LGSELECT can run at any point during the AUTO programs; however, there may be some improperly written AUTO programs that need to run before or after LGSELECT. If you have a conflict, you should begin by removing everything from your AUTO folder except LGSELECT, then start adding the other programs one at a time until you find the source of the trouble. Often, you can fix incompatibilities simply by changing the order that you copy programs into the AUTO folder. Remember that AUTO programs run in the order in which they appear in a disk's directory [not alphabetically, nor by time/date stamp] -- if you're not sure about the order, you can use LGSELECT's 'No Sort' feature [see below] to show the true arrangement.) If you run LGSELECT from the desktop, a GEM alert box will appear. You can click on the button labeled 'Install' to make LGSELECT resident, or on 'Cancel' if you change your mind. Using LGSELECT. --------------- In addition to the extra features it provides, LGSELECT incorporates all of the functions of the standard GEM item selector and has a similar interface; so if you know how to use the GEM selector you should have no trouble getting accustomed to LGSELECT. For this reason, I'm going to assume in the following discussion that you already know how to perform basic operations with the GEM selector. (If you're unsure about how to operate the GEM item selector, please refer to your ST owner's manual.) LGSELECT uses both mouse buttons. In many cases, an option will behave differently depending on which mouse button you use when you select it; so it's a good idea to read this documentation through before using LGSELECT so you won't be surprised. To get your first look at LGSELECT, run some program that uses the item selector. When LGSELECT appears, the first thing you'll notice is that it's larger than the GEM item selector. The GEM selector only shows you 9 files at once; LGSELECT displays 16, so you can see more of a directory at a glance. You'll also notice that there are quite a few more controls and buttons in the LGSELECT dialog box; I'll explain the use of those controls now. The Drive Buttons. ------------------ On the right side of the box underneath the 'OK' and 'CANCEL' buttons are 16 drive buttons labeled A through P. To change to a new drive with LGSELECT, all you have to do is click on one of the drive buttons; no more editing the directory line! Only active drives are selectable - drives that don't exist on your system are shown as "disabled". When you change to a different drive by clicking one of these buttons, LGSELECT will determine the current directory for that drive and display its contents. The drive buttons are also used to display the amount of free space (in bytes) remaining on a disk. There are two ways to show a disk's free space - you can either double-click the drive button (with the left mouse button), or single-click it with the right mouse button. After a short delay to read the information from the disk, an alert box will appear showing the number of bytes left. Another important feature of the drive buttons - you can force a "media changed" status on any drive by holding down Alternate, Control, or either Shift key while you click on the drive's button. This is very useful for people with removable media (like the Syquest drives or the Konica 10M floppy) that sometimes don't properly respond when you change the disk (or cartridge). It's also handy for those who have floppy drives that don't always recognize when you change a disk. This "force media change" feature also has another important beneficial side effect; it "flushes" the folder count for the selected drive. This can be helpful in avoiding the so-called "40 folder bug" which lives in TOS 1.0 and 1.2. The Sort Buttons. ----------------- Under the drive buttons are the buttons that represent the different sorting options that LGSELECT offers. You can choose to sort the displayed files by Name, Extension, Size or Date, or you can display them unsorted if you wish. To select a new sorting method, just click on its button and the files in the current directory will be resorted and redisplayed in the new order. The Info Button. ---------------- Click on the button labeled 'Info' to show the version number of LGSELECT. *.* (Show All Files) -------------------- Click on the button labeled '*.*' to show all files in the current directory. When you select this button, the current directory search specification will be copied into the button, and the search spec will be changed to '*.*'. You can return to the original search spec simply by clicking the button again. The Paths Button. ----------------- The button labeled 'Paths' gives you access to one of LGSELECT's nicest features. Click on 'Paths' and a dialog box appears, showing 18 blank lines and a list of 20 default extensions, as well as several buttons for additional options. In the Paths box, you can set up as many as 18 default paths; clicking on any path will instantly set it as the current directory, and return you to the main LGSELECT box. (This can make navigating on a hard disk very simple!) To install paths into the list, simply hold down Alternate, Control or either Shift key while you click on the 'Paths' button in the main LGSELECT box. The current directory will be copied into the first empty slot in the path list. The 'Paths' dialog box itself will not appear when you're installing paths, so that you can quickly set up a group of different paths. If you use up all 18 slots and try to install another path, an alert box will appear; at this point you can either 'Cancel' installing the path or 'Replace' the last (18th) entry in the list with the current directory. If you click on 'Paths' without holding down Alt, Ctrl, or Shift, the 'Paths' dialog box appears. You can instantly set the current directory to any path in the list by clicking on it with the left mouse button. This will return you to the main LGSELECT box, and the files in the new path will be displayed. You can delete any single path from the list by clicking on it with the right mouse button. An alert box will appear, asking you to confirm the delete. At the bottom left of the 'Paths' box is a list of 20 extensions (or file "types") which can be edited with the keyboard. Use the up and down arrows to move the cursor through the list, and Esc to clear an extension. When you click on one of the extensions with the left mouse button, the directory line in the main LGSELECT box is changed to the new extension. This lets you easily display only certain types of files. When LGSELECT is first installed, the extensions are preset to a group of common file types. You can change this default set of extensions by editing them, and then using the 'Save' command (see below). At the bottom right of the 'Paths' box is a group of buttons with some further options: 'Show Hidden Files' -- when this button is selected (highlighted), LGSELECT will show files which are marked as "hidden" or "system" files. When hidden files appear in the file box they will be shown as disabled text, but they are still selectable. 'Save' -- click on this button to save the current list of paths and extensions directly into the LGSELECT program file itself, so that the next time you boot up, your paths and extensions will already be set. In order for this feature to work, LGSELECT.PRG must be in the same drive and directory as when you originally ran it, and you must not rename the program! 'Clear' -- this option clears the entire list of paths so you can start again with a blank slate if you wish. An alert box will appear, asking you to confirm the 'Clear' operation. 'FILENAME.EXT' -- this button will always show the search specification that was passed to LGSELECT by the calling program, regardless of whether you modify it in the main LGSELECT box or not. This lets you quickly return to the original search spec. 'Exit' -- returns to the main LGSELECT box. File Display Options. --------------------- OK, back to the main LGSELECT box. At the bottom of the file box is a box displaying the total number of files in the current directory that match the search specification, bordered by two buttons containing left and right arrows. If you click with the left mouse button on either arrow, you can flip the file display to show the last modification time and date of the files, or their size. If you click with the right mouse button on either arrow, you will return instantly to the name display. You don't have to be showing names to select files; all functions are still active no matter which display option is selected. The 'Date' display includes the day of the week that the file was last modified, and the 'Time' display is shown in am/pm format. The Close Box. -------------- In the GEM item selector, the function of the close box (located at the upper left of the file box) is to back out one level at a time from the current subdirectory. If you single- click the LGSELECT close box with the left mouse button, it behaves the same way. However, if you double-click the close box, or click on it with the right mouse button, you will instantly back out all the way to the root directory of the current drive. This is very handy for people with hard drives containing lots of nested subdirectories. The 'Directory' Line. --------------------- It should be a rare occasion that you'll need to edit the LGSELECT 'Directory' line manually, since you can select a different drive simply by clicking its button. However, if you do wish to edit the 'Directory' line, you can do so by moving the text cursor to the line (by clicking on the 'Directory' line once with the left mouse button, or by typing the down arrow), making your changes, and pressing Return. If the 'Directory' line has been changed when Return is pressed, the new directory will be set. (The GEM selector simply exits any time you hit Return. Ouch.) Another feature of the LGSELECT 'Directory' line is that you can back out to any level in the current path simply by clicking the right mouse button on the subdirectory you wish to return to. For example, if your current 'Directory' line reads: C:\UTILITY\ARC\ARCFILES\TEMP\*.* you can back out to: C:\UTILITY\*.* simply by right-clicking on the word UTILITY. (You can also double-click the left mouse button on the 'Directory' line to back out to a certain level.) The Up and Down Buttons. ------------------------ If you click with the right mouse button on the up or down arrows, you will jump instantly to the beginning or the end of the current directory listing. Clicking with the left button scrolls up and down through the list of files, just as with the GEM selector...but *much* faster. Selecting a File. ----------------- In the standard GEM selector, there are two ways to select a file from the list and exit the selector. You can click on it once with the left mouse button, and click the 'OK' button; or you can double-click it with the left mouse button. LGSELECT also lets you select a file and immediately exit by single-clicking it with the right mouse button. Passing a Title to LGSELECT. ---------------------------- This information is primarily of interest to programmers; if you don't care about passing a programmer-defined title to LGSELECT, you can skip to the next section. Programmers can pass LGSELECT two 12-character title strings, which will be displayed in the box in the upper right; this lets you tell the user the purpose of the file selector. The code to do this can be written in a way that is "transparent" to the system. In other words, if LGSELECT is present, your title appears; if not, the normal GEM selector works as usual. To pass the title strings in assembly language, the following code will do the job: move #90,contrl ; Set up contrl array move #0,contrl+2 move #2,contrl+4 move #4,contrl+6 ; This parameter differs from ; standard fsel_input call move #0,contrl+8 move.l #directory,addrin ; Address of directory line move.l #filename,addrin+4 ; Address of filename line move.l #title1,addrin+8 ; First 12-character title string move.l #title2,addrin+12 ; Second title string bsr aes ; Call the AES I'd recommend that if C programmers are interested in using the title string functions of LGSELECT, it would be a good idea to code the call to fsel_input with in-line assembly. Otherwise, you'll have to alter your compiler's bindings for fsel_input. Just for your information, all CodeHead Software products are written to take advantage of LGSELECT's title line feature, as is my earlier shareware release, ARC Shell. Miscellaneous. -------------- The Little Green Selector will read a maximum of 300 filenames from a directory. (Since the GEM desktop itself can only show 256 files in a single directory, this seemed like a reasonable limit.) If your current directory is too long to fit in the LGSELECT 'Directory' line, no harm will result; the GEM selector just crashes. If you're using TOS 1.0, be careful not to type an underline character in the 'Directory' line -- a bug in TOS 1.0's 'form_do' routine will cause the system to crash if you do. (Unfortunately, there's nothing LGSELECT can do to fix this bug.) Normally GEM steals all keypresses during the drawing of a dialog box, but LGSELECT uses some special tricks to allow you to "type ahead" while the dialog box is being drawn, or while a directory is being read. --------- New Stuff --------- ************************ VERSION 1.2 ***************************** The big new feature in version 1.2 is keyboard control of almost all options of LGSELECT. Here's how the keyboard is used with LGSELECT 1.2: In the main LGSELECT box ------------------------ Alternate A through P Select current drive. Control up/down arrows Scroll up or down through the list of files. Control left/right arrows Display size, time, and date. Shift up/down arrows Page up or down through the list of files. Clr Home Jump to the top of the file list. Shift Clr Home Jump to the bottom of the file list. Insert Select the *.* button. Help Enter the "Paths" dialog box. Control Backspace Back out one level in the current directory. Alternate Backspace Back out to the root directory of the current drive. F1 through F5 Select sort option. Return Exit LGSELECT, and accept choice (if any). Equivalent to clicking on the 'OK' button. Alternate Return Equivalent to clicking on the (or Undo) 'Cancel' button. Alternate ? Display version number, author, and shareware message. Shift 0 through + (On numeric keypad) Select the first through sixteenth entry in the list of files. If the entry is a folder, open it. F10 Call MultiFile (version 1.2 or higher). In the 'Paths' box ------------------ F1 through Shift F8 Select new path for LGSELECT. (The paths are now labeled with their respective function keys.) ************************ VERSION 1.3 ***************************** Communication with MultiFile. ----------------------------- LGSELECT 1.3 has several new features, among them the ability to "call" CodeHead Software's MultiFile accessory (included on the CodeHead Utilities disk), so you can perform file operations (copy, move, delete, rename, etc.), format disks, show or print files, and all that kinda good stuff any time you're using the file selector. This feature requires you to have version 1.2 (or later) of MultiFile installed as a desk accessory; otherwise the "MultiFile" button will be disabled. (MultiFile can be installed either as an ordinary desk accessory, or loaded into CodeHead Software's MultiDesk; it will work either way.) To call MultiFile, just click on the button labeled "MultiFile" in the lower right of the LGSELECT main box, or type the F10 function key. The full-screen MultiFile dialog box will appear, showing all the files in the current LGSELECT directory. If there is a file selected in LGSELECT when you call MultiFile, it will be selected in the MultiFile box as well. Up to 80 files can be displayed at once in the MultiFile dialog, and you can mark them individually or in groups for file operations. (See your CodeHead Utilities manual for full details on the operation of MultiFile.) Selected File Size Display. --------------------------- When you select a file in LGSELECT 1.3, its size is displayed at the bottom of the file box, where the number of files is normally shown. Any action which causes that filename to be de-selected (e.g. scrolling up/down, clicking on a blank line, etc.) will also cause the display to revert to the number of files in the current directory. Two New Features in the Paths Box. ---------------------------------- GET PATHS --------- The button labeled "GET PATHS" controls what happens when you click on one of LGSELECT's drive buttons to change to a new drive. When this button is NOT selected, LGSELECT will always set the path to the root directory of the new drive when you click on a drive button. If the "GET PATHS" button is selected, LGSELECT will determine the current path of the new drive (GEMDOS maintains a record of the last accessed paths on each connected drive), and set the directory line to display the files in that path instead of the root directory. Try it both ways, and see which one you prefer. (NOTE: If you're using a floppy system it usually won't make a difference which way this button is set.) FLUSH ----- The button labeled "FLUSH" lets you clear the "folder count" for all connected drives, or just for a hard disk if you prefer. This feature is included to help alleviate a problem in TOS 1.0 and 1.2, which can cause crashes if you access too many folders (subdirectories) in a single continuous session at the computer. When you click on "FLUSH" an alert box will apear, asking if you want to flush the folder count for "All" drives (which includes drives A and B), or just active drives with the letters C through P. Click on your choice, or "Cancel" to forget the whole thing. I recommend that you don't use the FLUSH button until you've been operating your computer for a while after booting up. If you FLUSH too soon after booting, your number of folders used may actually increase instead of decreasing. This happens because LGSELECT's FLUSH operation goes through and accesses all connected drives to flush the folder count for each one. If, in the course of your computer session, you haven't yet accessed a particular drive, FLUSHing that drive may result in an increased folder count. It all depends on how many folders you've opened or accessed in one session. If you have a hard disk, I strongly recommend that you use Atari's FOLDRXXX.PRG to increase the number of folders your system can access in one session. FOLDRXXX.PRG is available on the major information services like GEnie, Compuserve, and Delphi, and probably also through most user groups and private bulletin boards. (NOTE: There is also a public domain program from Atari called DIRSLEFT.PRG that will show you the number of "folder slots" left in your system.) More Information Saved. ----------------------- When you choose the "Save" option in the LGSELECT "Paths" box, the status of the "SHOW HIDDEN" and "GET PATHS" buttons is now saved along with the paths and extensions. The current sort option is also saved, so that LGSELECT will always come up with your preferred settings. (See above in the section titled "The Paths Button" for more details.) ************************ VERSION 1.4 ***************************** Fast File Search Feature! ------------------------- Version 1.4 of the Little Green Selector adds a file search feature that can very quickly search all the partitions of a hard drive for a file or files, with optional wildcard matching. To use the file search feature, just type in the name of the file for which you wish to search on the "Selection" line. If you wish, you may use the wildcards '*' and '?' to find all files that match a certain specification. The '*' character means "match all characters up to the extension, or the end of the string." The '?' character means "match any one character in this position." To start searching, click on the small button labelled "FIND" in the lower right corner of the "Selection" box. If drive "C:" is active on your system an alert box will appear, asking you whether you'd like to search only the current directory, or every drive from C: to P:. Click on "All" if you'd like to search through every partition on your hard disk, or "Current" to limit the search to LGSELECT's current directory. If you don't have a drive "C:" connected to your system, the search will begin immediately when you click on the "FIND" button, and will be limited to the current directory. If a file is found which matches the search criteria, the directory in which it's located will be shown on the LGSELECT "Directory" line, and you will be given the choice to either "Set" the LGSELECT path to the one containing the matching file, keep searching for other matching files ("Next"), or "Cancel" the search operation and return to the directory from which you started. While a search is in progress, you can abort it at any time by holding down the Alternate key. NOTE: The LGSELECT file search feature performs an automatic "flush" operation after searching each drive, when you choose to search "All" partitions; this should prevent the "40-folder bug" from ever occurring when searching a large hard drive with many folders. (See the section titled "FLUSH" above for more details.) Another interesting note: for the sake of speed, the file search routine in LGSELECT uses its own wildcard matching algorithms instead of the built-in TOS wildcard features. Along with the automatic "flush" feature, this makes LGSELECT's file search both faster and safer than most other file search programs. Disk Information Expanded. -------------------------- When you right-click (or double-click) on a drive button, version 1.4 of LGSELECT will now show more information than previous versions did. You will see the total number of folders and files, the number of bytes used and the number of free bytes left on the disk. ************************ VERSION 1.6 ***************************** LGSELECT Can Now Be Repositioned! --------------------------------- LGSELECT 1.6 allows you to specify where on the screen you'd like it to appear, simpy by dragging it to the new location. (This is especially handy for those lucky users with "big screen" monitors.) To move LGSELECT, just click on the shaded area above the filename window (the area that corresponds to the 'move bar' on an ordinary desktop window) and hold down the mouse button. An outline of the LGSELECT box will appear, which you can drag to the new location. When you've positioned the box where you want it, let go of the mouse button and the LGSELECT box will be redrawn at its new spot. You can center the LGSELECT dialog box on screen at any time by holding down the Alternate key while you click on the LGSELECT move bar. When you save your LGSELECT configuration (with the 'Save' button in the 'Paths' box) the new screen position will also be saved, so that LGSELECT will always come up in your chosen location when you boot your computer. LGSELECT maintains separate screen locations for color and monochrome, which makes things easy for people with two monitors. NOTE: The old screen images of the LGSELECT box will not be "cleaned up" right away when it is repositioned. However, "redraw messages" are sent to the current application and when you exit LGSELECT, properly written GEM programs should redraw their screens correctly. The next time LGSELECT appears it will show up cleanly in the new location. Preset Paths Revamped. ---------------------- The handling of the 18 paths available in the 'Paths' box has been altered quite a bit. There is no longer any need to be in the 'Paths' box to select one of the 18 preset paths; you can type the function key for any path (F1 through Shift-F8) whenever you're in the main LGSELECT box and instantly set the selector to display the files in that path. The method of installing paths in the list has also been improved. The old way still works; if you hold Alternate, Control, or either Shift key while clicking the 'Paths' button, the current path will be inserted in the first blank spot in the path list. In version 1.6, however, you may also install paths in the list by entering the 'Paths' box and clicking on the function key numbers at the left of the box. The current LGSELECT path will be inserted at the spot you choose. This means that you are no longer limited to installing paths in the first available blank slot; you can arrange them to suit your needs. Also, when you delete a path from the list (by clicking on the path with the right mouse button), the paths after it are no longer pulled up to fill the blank slot. In earlier versions of LGSELECT, the F10 key was used to call MultiFile or MaxiFile. This will still work, if you leave the path line corresponding to function key F10 blank. Otherwise, you can call MaxiFile (or MultiFile) with the Shift F10 key combination. LDW Power Incompatibility Fixed. -------------------------------- The LDW Power spreadsheet program uses a technique which was formerly incompatible with LGSELECT's right button "quick selection" feature. LDW Power translates every press of the right mouse button into a press of the Return key, which caused earlier versions of LGSELECT to exit without selecting a file. I found a way around this incompatibility in version 1.6, and the right mouse button will now work normally in LGSELECT when you use it with LDW Power. Sort the Extension List. ------------------------ The list of extensions (in the 'Paths' box) may now be sorted alphabetically, to help you quickly spot a particular file type you wish to use. To do this, click on the button labeled 'SORT EXTS' in the 'Paths' box. (This button was formerly labeled 'GET PATHS' [see above]. The 'GET PATHS' function is removed in version 1.6, since most of the time it seemed to be more of a hindrance than a help.) Support for fsel_exinput. ------------------------- TOS 1.4 (AKA "Rainbow TOS") has a new call which allows programmers to pass the file selector a title string, which displays at the top of the built-in GEM selector. LGSELECT 1.6 now supports this new call; the title string will be displayed in place of the word 'Directory' in the LGSELECT directory line. Keyboard Commands for Sorting Changed. -------------------------------------- Since the function keys are now used to select one of the 18 preset paths, the keyboard commands for the 'Sort' options have been changed. They are now: Alternate 1 - Sort by Name Alternate 2 - Sort by Extension Alternate 3 - Sort by Size Alternate 4 - Sort by Date Alternate 5 - No Sort There is also a new key command to call up LGSELECT's 'file search' function (equivalent to clicking on the 'FIND' button) - hold down Alternate and type the period (".") key. ************************ VERSION 1.6b **************************** Position Save Fixed. -------------------- Version 1.6 of LGSELECT had a bug in the config save feature that would cause you to lose your saved position (see above, "LGSELECT Can Be Repositioned") if you had dragged the selector box all the way out to the edges of the screen. This is fixed in version 1.6b. LDW Power Incompatibility Really Fixed. (Honest.) -------------------------------------------------- I know. The right-button quick-select feature of LGSELECT 1.6 was supposed to be compatible with LDW Power spreadsheet. Well, it wasn't, unless you had version 1.0 of LDW Power. Oops. It's fixed now. I promise. New Quick Extension Selection Feature. -------------------------------------- Version 1.6b of LGSELECT now lets you quickly select an extension, without having to enter it into your set of 20 editable extensions. To do this, just single-click on any file in the selector box with the LEFT mouse button, then click on the filename in LGSELECT's "Selection" line with the RIGHT mouse button. The extension of the file you select will be entered into the LGSELECT "Directory" line as the new search template. Enter Any ASCII Character On the Selection Line. ------------------------------------------------ In the LGSELECT 1.6b "Paths" box, there is now a new button labeled "CHARS". If this button is selected, LGSELECT will let you type any ASCII character on the "Selection" line. (We use this at CodeHead when we want to create a file called G+PLUS, for instance.) CAUTION: using certain characters in filenames may make the GEM desktop very unhappy, and may even mark your file as deleted! If you don't know what you're doing, you probably shouldn't fool around with this feature. ************************ VERSION 1.6c **************************** Hidden Files Bug Fixed. ----------------------- Version 1.6c of LGSELECT fixes a problem with the 'Show Hidden' function. In earlier versions, hidden files would sometimes be displayed regardless of whether the 'Show Hidden' button was selected or not. (This happened if certain other file attributes were set in addition to the 'hidden' attribute.) Thanks to Carl Koop for pointing this one out. ************************ VERSION 1.7 ***************************** Compatible With MIDI Programs At Last ------------------------------------- LGSELECT 1.7 fixes a long-standing incompatibility between poor, beleaguered Little Greenie and some MIDI sequencer programs. One specific program that used to be incompatible with Little Greenie is Master Tracks Pro from Passport; it works fine now. (I won't even get into the issue of whose fault this was, except to say it wasn't mine!) <grin> Macintosh-Like Arrow Icons -------------------------- Just for the sheer heck of it, LGSELECT 1.7 now has arrow icons that look and act very much like the "scroll arrows" in the Macintosh file selector. Folder Information ------------------ If you right-click on any folder in the LGSELECT file window, version 1.7 will now show you an "information display" for that folder, which includes the number of nested folders ("subdirectories"), the total number of files contained within, and the number of bytes that these files occupy. The box which shows this information also has a button labeled "Open"; if you click on this button, the folder will be opened. (Of course, Charles. We know that.) Guide Numbers ------------- LGSELECT 1.7 now lets you display a column of "guide numbers" to the left of the file/folder names in the selection window. If you hold either shift key and type the number next to a filename, that file will be selected and its name will be copied to LGSELECT's "Selection" line. If you hold shift and type the number corresponding to a folder, that folder will be opened. (Note: the number keys must be typed on the numeric keypad -- not on the top row of the main keyboard.) There is a new button in LGSELECT's 'Paths' box that lets you turn the guide numbers on or off, in case you don't like them cluttering up your selection window. The setting of this button is saved when you save Little Greenie's configuration. Fill Pattern On/Off ------------------- Another new button in LGSELECT's 'Paths' box lets you turn the background fill pattern in the main dialog box on or off. This is for those among you who just hate any hint of color or pattern in your file selector. <grin> And Last But Not Least...A Bug Fix ---------------------------------- Version 1.7 also fixes a bug that has been in all previous versions of LGSELECT. Previously, if you typed something like "*.*" on the "Directory" line (omitting the drive letter), LGSELECT would obnoxiously crash on you. Oops. This bug is fixed now. Thanks to everyone who reported it to me. ************************ VERSION 1.8 ***************************** Key Commands Compatible With CodeKeys ------------------------------------- Version 1.8 of LGSELECT uses a new method of reading its key commands that is now compatible with CodeHead Software's new product, CodeKeys. Previous versions could be controlled from CodeKeys only by recording mouse clicks. For more information about CodeKeys (known around CodeHeadQuarters as the "Ultimate Macro Tool"), contact CodeHead Software at (213) 386-3735. TT and ISAC Compatibility ------------------------- LGSELECT 1.8 is now 100% compatible with the Atari TT030 computer, and with the ISAC large screen monitor. Nothing Else New! ----------------- I wish I had a long list of amazing new features to report, but that's it for this release. Til next time, brush behind your ears, don't let the bedbugs bite, and never take a wooden nickel from a sow's ear. ************************ VERSION 1.8A **************************** Little Greenie vs. Aladdin ST ----------------------------- One day a little birdie landed on my shoulder and whispered in my ear, "Yea verily, for Aladdin ST shall appear, and when he does, the <expletive deleted> is gonna hit the fan." Aladdin ST is the new "navigator" program for the GEnie information service. It automates the process of logging on, downloading new messages and Email and new file listings, and then lets you read this stuff and compose replies while offline. A big time-and-money saver. If you use GEnie, you're gonna like it. HOWEVER....if, while running Aladdin, you use the Little Green Selector's 'FIND' feature or its 'FLUSH' feature, Aladdin will get very very unhappy. The problem lies in LGS's use of the Atari-documented "force media change" procedure. As explained above, LGS uses this procedure to "flush" the folder count for each drive after searching it, to avoid the "40-folder" bug. And it does indeed work for that purpose. The trouble is, the "force media change" procedure also has some other undocumented side effects. For one, it closes any and all open files. And since Aladdin leaves tons of files open while it operates, this means that it will suddenly, with no warning, find itself trying to access files that are no longer open. Big time bad news. Another effect is that this procedure resets the "current directory" to the root; so if a program is relying on the current directory to be unchanged, using LGS's 'FIND' or 'FLUSH' feature (or holding Alt, Shift or Control while clicking a drive letter) will throw a very unwelcome monkey wrench into the works. Note that Aladdin is the first program in which I've seen these problems crop up, but it's certainly not impossible for other programs to run into these unwanted side effects of the "force media change" procedure too. So, along comes version 1.8A of the Little Green Selector. This version now keeps track of an application's file accesses, and if you choose to 'FIND' a file (or files) it will tell you that files are open and give you the option of cancelling or continuing the search. If you choose to continue a search while files are open, LGS will bypass the "force media change" routine during the search. (See note below.) If no files are open, and it's safe to force a media change, LGS 1.8A will now also reset the current drive and current path afterwards. Please NOTE: if you choose to continue with a search operation even though LGS cannot force a media change, you _may_ run into the dreaded "40-folder" bug. To avoid this, make sure to use the FOLDRXXX program (available on online services or from Atari) to increase the size of your internal directory buffers. Remember that if you search a large hard disk for a file, LGS has to access each and every folder in every partition during the search! (If you use an ICD hard disk host adaptor, you may also set the ICD software to increase your folder buffers without using FOLDRXXX.) And they all lived happily ever after. ********************************************************** * * * Designed and developed by Charles F. Johnson. * * * * The Little Green Selector and this document are * * Copyright 1989, 1990 Little Green Footballs Software. * * All Rights Reserved. * * * * Please support shareware authors! * * * * (Note: A very early version of this program * * originally appeared in STart magazine, under the * * name "STart Selector.") * * * **********************************************************