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TINY ELVIS FOR WINDOWS Freeware Version 1.02 - August 20, 1994 AUTHOR'S MESSAGE TO USERS ------------------------- To everyone who took the time to download, beg, borrow, or steal a copy of Tiny Elvis version 1.00 and/or 1.01... my sincere thanks. I'm grateful that Tiny Elvis has earned a place on your Windows desktop, and hope you enjoy the program as much as I did developing it. Special thanks to those of you kind enough to contact me via CompuServe e-mail. I have enjoyed hearing from each of you, and have welcomed your comments and suggestions. No doubt many of you are taking some grim satisfaction in the fact that your fine suggestions have kept my nose to the "Elvis" grindstone a little longer. Anyway, here's the result. Enjoy. As always, you are welcome to contact me via CompuServe e-mail with any questions or comments about this program. My CompuServe address is 70661,3235. VERSION NOTES ------------- Version 1.02 is an interim release upgrade to the original Tiny Elvis for Windows program. All of the functionality of version 1.01 is present in this update -- PLUS the following changes have been implemented: 1. Tiny E's audio playback routines have been streamlined. The program now plays its companion .WAV files in the same manner regardless of whether the host system is equipped with dedicated audio hardware (i.e., a sound card) or is using a PC speaker driver. Users are NOT required to add a special command line switch for enabling specific audio playback modes. 2. Additional "Icon Settings" options have been implemented. Users can now configure Tiny E's icon to behave like any other program icon (i.e., stay out of the way), pop to the top of any other programs when the animation sequence is triggered (and go back where it belongs afterward), or stay on top at all times. 3. An additional "Play Goodbye on Program Close" option has been implemented. Plays a designated "goodbye" .WAV file when the program is closed. 4. Support for additional companion .WAV files has been implemented. Users are no longer restricted to the nine default .WAV files that come with the program. Version 1.02 will scan and use up to 40 different .WAV files. Full documentation is provided with the program. INTRODUCTION ------------ For good or ill, Tiny Elvis for Windows was inspired by the character "Tiny Elvis" who has appeared periodically in airings of NBC's Saturday Night Live. For those of you unfamiliar with the television incarnation of Tiny Elvis, he's a miniature Elvis who likes to ride around town in his car. His chums (cronies? lackeys?) do the driving while he sits on the dashboard, admiring the passing scenery. Tiny E kills time by commenting on the objects around him, invariably describing them as "huge." The result: Humor! Now, Tiny Elvis comes to your PC! This Tiny Elvis will lounge around your Windows desktop as an iconized application, replete in white jump suit and blue suede shoes. From time to time, he'll pop to his feet and offer some running commentary on your "huge" icons, windows, cursors, etc. He will accompany his comments with broad gestures, followed by some trademark heavy-hitting, Vegas-style posturing. Users may adjust the interval between Tiny Elvis' comments in a dialog box accessed via the system menu. The interval setting is saved in the TNYELVIS.INI file, which is stored in your default Windows directory (e.g., C:\WINDOWS). NOTE: Don't worry, Tiny Elvis doesn't meddle with your WIN.INI or SYSTEM.INI files, or place any other files in your Windows directory (or anywhere else, for that matter). The program might be silly, but it minds its own business. An extra command ("Make Tiny Elvis Talk Now") in the system menu allows users to force Tiny Elvis into action instantly, without waiting for the interval to expire. Best of all, Tiny Elvis is freeware! It is distributed free of charge to the public domain. As such, the program is not intended for sale, resale, purchase, or for-profit distribution in the shareware or retail marketplace. In other words, you can give it away, but you shouldn't sell it! If Tiny Elvis for Windows amuses you, drop me a line on CompuServe (my address is 70661,3235). If it fails to amuse you, well hey, at least the price was right... PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS -------------------- Tiny Elvis for Windows requires Microsoft Windows version 3.1 or later. For best results, run Tiny Elvis on a 386SX-16 or faster PC. Animation effects will be somewhat smoother when an Windows- accelerated video card/driver combination is used. The program's waveform audio features require a Windows compatible sound card (AdLib, Roland, SoundBlaster, etc.) or other audio hardware, correctly installed and configured for use by Windows. NOTE: The program will work with an installed PC speaker driver in lieu of dedicated audio hardware. Speaker drivers for Windows are fairly commonplace, and are available for download on many information services and BBS systems. All applicable waveform audio driver sets must be installed and correctly configured. You can test your hardware/driver configuration by running the Windows "Media Player" accessory. If your hardware and device drivers are correctly installed and configured, you should be able to load and play the file .WAV file format supported by this application. Although Tiny Elvis can be run from a floppy disk, we strongly recommend its installation to a hard disk. As such, you should have enough free hard disk space for all of Tiny Elvis' program and support files. There are no known minimum memory requirements or video mode (resolution or color depth) requirements. PROGRAM FILES ------------- The Tiny Elvis package is comprised of the following files: TNYELVIS.EXE The executable program file TNYELVIS.HLP The help system file TWAV_**.WAV Nine waveform audio files used for Tiny Elvis' default spoken comments. These files are divided into two sets, A and B. TGOODBYE.WAV Single waveform audio file used for the program's "goodbye" feature. All waveform audio files were recorded as 8-bit, mono, at a sampling rate of 11.025 kHz, and should play acceptably via any Windows-compatible audio hardware and/or audio driver sets. QUICK AND DIRTY SETUP --------------------- 1. Simply create a directory anywhere on an available physical or logical hard drive on your system (e.g., C:\ELVIS). 2. Copy the Tiny Elvis program files to this directory (or move the original .ZIP file to this directory and "un-zip"). See the "Program Files" section above for a full list of the files. If you are a user of a previous version of Tiny Elvis, you may safely overwrite all of your older files with the new versions. 3. You may run Tiny Elvis directly from Windows File Manager or comparable alternative shell by "run"-ning the TNYELVIS.EXE file. 4. Of course, you can also assign one of the many icons in TNYELVIS.EXE to a Program Manager group and run it from there as well. 5. Tiny Elvis is pre-set with a default interval of 1 minute. If you're in a hurry to see him in action, select the system menu "Make Tiny Elvis Talk Now" command. 6. If you have any questions about program features, please turn your attention to the Tiny Elvis help file, which is accessed via the system menu "Help" command. USING TINY ELVIS ---------------- 1. Getting Started ------------------ Strictly speaking, there's very little that goes into "using" Tiny Elvis. He just lays there at the bottom of your Windows desktop (yes, you can move him) and watches the world pass by. The interval between his animation sequences is pre-set to a default value of 1 minute. You can easily change this value by opening the Configuration dialog, which is accessed via the system menu "Configuration..." command. Several interval settings are available, ranging from 1 to 60 minutes. If the Configuration dialog is closed via the "OK" pushbutton control, any new selection is placed into effect. NOTE: If you're in a hurry to see Tiny Elvis swing into action, and don't feel like waiting until the interval has elapsed, select the system menu "Make Tiny Elvis Talk Now" command. 2. .WAV File Overview --------------------- Two sets of waveform audio (.WAV) files are accessed by the program and played in conjunction with Tiny E's speech routines. One file is drawn at random from the "A" set (e.g., TWAV_A1.WAV) and played near the beginning of each Tiny E animation sequence. Another file is drawn at random from the "B" set (e.g., TWAV_B1.WAV) and played near the conclusion of each Tiny E animation sequence. Nine default .WAV files are included with the program. Six of these belong to the "A" set: TWAV_A1.WAV, TWAV_A2.WAV, TWAV_A3.WAV TWAV_A4.WAV, TWAV_A5.WAV, TWAV_A6.WAV Three belong to the "B" set: TWAV_B1.WAV, TWAV_B2.WAV, TWAV_B3.WAV NOTE: All .WAV files from both sets must be present in the default Tiny Elvis directory (i.e., the directory containing the TNYELVIS.EXE file). * FOR INSTRUCTIONS ON REPLACING THE ORIGINAL .WAV FILES WITH FILES OF YOUR OWN, PLEASE REFER TO APPENDIX A. * FOR INSTRUCTIONS ON AUGMENTING THE ORIGINAL .WAV FILES WITH ADDITIONAL FILES, PLEASE REFER TO APPENDIX B. NOTE: Summary information on available .WAV files is provided in the Tiny Elvis Configuration dialog. CONFIGURATION SETTINGS ---------------------- The Configuration dialog box provides users with a collection of controls for enabling and adjusting a number of program features: 1. Elvis Interval ----------------- This group box contains sixteen radiobutton controls used for selecting the length of time between Tiny Elvis performances. 2. Icon Settings ---------------- This group box contains three radiobutton controls used for selecting the visibility and behavior of the program icon. The "Normal" option configures the program icon to behave like any other minimized program, even when an animation sequence is in progress. If the Tiny Elvis icon is covered by another application, it will remain covered. The "Pop to Top" option configures the program icon to move atop any other active windows during its animation sequences. If the Tiny Elvis icon is covered by another application, it will pop to the top for its animation sequence, and then return to its prior z-order position when finished. The "Always on Top" option configures the program icon to remain atop any other active windows at all times. 3. Display Interval Countdown ----------------------------- This checkbox control enables/disables the optional display (in minutes and seconds) of the interval time remaining until the next Tiny Elvis performance. The time display is added to the Tiny Elvis caption. 4. Play Goodbye on Program Close -------------------------------- This checkbox control enables/disables an optional feature for playing the TGOODBYE.WAV file when Tiny Elvis is closed. NOTE: Any changes to configuration settings are placed into effect when the Configuration dialog box is closed via the "OK" pushbutton. The interval timer is always paused while the Configuration dialog is open. The timer is reset to zero if the dialog is closed via the "OK" pushbutton; the timer is resumed from its previous position if the dialog is closed via the "CANCEL" pushbutton. NOTE: Summary information on available .WAV files is provided in the Tiny Elvis Configuration dialog. DISPLAY INTERVAL COUNTDOWN CAUTIONARY NOTE ------------------------------------------ When the "Display Interval Countdown" feature is enabled, the caption text is updated approximately once every second. This updating will defeat most Windows screen savers (i.e., prevent them from blanking the screen) if the Tiny Elvis icon has the input focus. If you are using a Windows screen saver, we DO NOT recommend running Tiny Elvis for prolonged periods of time with this feature enabled. RUN-TIME HELP ------------- Full run-time help via the Windows Help system is supplied with Tiny Elvis, and is accessed via the system menu "Help" command. APPENDIX A REPLACING THE WAVEFORM AUDIO FILES WITH SOME OF YOUR OWN -------------------------------------------------------- A.1 Overview ------------ After using Tiny Elvis for a while, you may wish to replace one or more of the waveform audio files with some of your own. The program is actually designed to make this as easy as possible. You can replace one file, a few files, or all files. Just to be on the safe side, though, it's always a good idea to keep the original files backed up on a floppy disk, in case you wish to replace your replacements (!) later on. Tiny E will handle any type of Windows-compatible .WAV file you might choose to record. Remember, this is more a function of your installed waveform audio drivers than anything in the program itself. A.2 Playback Protocol --------------------- Tiny E's waveform playback routines are set to occur at two specific trigger points in the program's animation sequences. Each of these two trigger points has its own corresponding set of .WAV files. The .WAV files used in conjunction with the first trigger point are drawn from the "A" set; the files used in conjunction with the second point are drawn from the "B" set. Each sequence begins with Tiny E jumping to his feet, at which point he will "speak" a randomly-selected .WAV file from the "A" set. When playback of this file has completed, the figure will make his first broad hand gesture (arms stretching wide), which is accompanied by a randomly-selected file from the "B" set. He will then wait until the "B" file has finished before executing the remainder of his posturing sequence and returning to his default reclining position. For planning your own .WAV files, all "A" files should have something to do with an initial observation; all "B" files should be some sort of secondary or concluding comment. A.3 File Sizes/Formats ---------------------- Replacement .WAV files need not match the file size of the original files. All things being equal, however, they should be kept as short as possible. Replacement .WAV files need not match the bit format (8 or 16 bit), channel format (mono or stereo), or sampling rates of the original files. However, users should bear two things in mind: 1. .WAV files recorded in stereo and/or at sampling rates of 11 kHz of higher can become very large. If disk space is at a premium, you may wish to avoid recording and using higher-fidelity .WAV files. 2. .WAV files recorded at very low and very high sampling rates may not be compatible with all Windows audio drivers. If you plan to use your recorded files on other machines, you may wish to record at "standard" sampling rates of 11.025 kHz or 22.050 kHz. A.4 Filename Conventions ------------------------ Tiny Elvis accesses its companion .WAV files via filename strings that are hard-coded into the program. As a result, all .WAV files used by Tiny Elvis must follow a fairly strict filename convention: All filenames in the "A" set must exactly match those of that set's original six files. All filenames in the "B" set must exactly match those of that set's original three files. Reminder: All .WAV files from both sets must be present in the default Tiny Elvis directory (i.e., the directory containing the TNYELVIS.EXE file). APPENDIX B AUGMENTING THE WAVEFORM AUDIO FILES WITH ADDITIONAL FILES --------------------------------------------------------- B.1 Overview ------------ Users caught up in the excitement of recording their own .WAV files for use with previous versions of Tiny Elvis have bemoaned the limitations on accessible files. For these users, the limit of six "A" set files and three "B" set files is too restrictive. Okay, fine. Starting with version 1.02, Tiny E can access up to 20 different .WAV files in each set (40 in all). All you have to do is record the new files, make sure they are given filenames that Tiny Elvis will recognize (subject to the "Filename Conventions" notation below), and move them into the default Tiny Elvis directory. When run, the program automatically scans all valid .WAV files in its default directory. Consecutive files (from 1 to 20) in both set "A" and set "B", starting with TWAV_A1.WAV and TWAV_B1.WAV, are considered valid (please see the Filename Conventions section below). The program will provide summary information on accessible .WAV files in the Configuration dialog box. If you have questions about Tiny Elvis' playback protocol or specific .WAV file formats supported by the program, please refer to the Appendix topic "Replacing the Default .WAV Files". B.2 Filename Conventions ------------------------ Every time Tiny Elvis is run, the program scans its default directory for 40 specific .WAV files. The number of files the program actually uses depends entirely on the files that it can verify when first run. You do not need to have all 40 .WAV files for Tiny Elvis to run. Strictly speaking, you don't even have to have all nine of the default .WAV files; the program will work with as few as 2 .WAV files (TWAV_A1.WAV and TWAV_B1.WAV). What IS important is that the files be correctly named. The program will scan for, and accept, set "A" files with the following filenames (scanned in the order 1-20): TWAV_A1.WAV, TWAV_A2.WAV, TWAV_A3.WAV, TWAV_A4.WAV, TWAV_A5.WAV, TWAV_A6.WAV, TWAV_A7.WAV, TWAV_A8.WAV, TWAV_A9.WAV, TWAV_A10.WAV, TWAV_A11.WAV, TWAV_A12.WAV, TWAV_A13.WAV, TWAV_A14.WAV, TWAV_A15.WAV, TWAV_A16.WAV, TWAV_A17.WAV, TWAV_A18.WAV, TWAV_A19.WAV, TWAV_A20.WAV. The program will scan for, and accept, set "B" files with the following filenames (scanned in the order 1-20): TWAV_B1.WAV, TWAV_B2.WAV, TWAV_B3.WAV, TWAV_B4.WAV, TWAV_B5.WAV, TWAV_B6.WAV, TWAV_B7.WAV, TWAV_B8.WAV, TWAV_B9.WAV, TWAV_B10.WAV, TWAV_B11.WAV, TWAV_B12.WAV, TWAV_B13.WAV, TWAV_B14.WAV, TWAV_B15.WAV, TWAV_B16.WAV, TWAV_B17.WAV, TWAV_B18.WAV, TWAV_B19.WAV, TWAV_B20.WAV. IMPORTANT: The program will only make use of consecutive .WAV files verified, starting with TWAV_A1.WAV and TWAV_B1.WAV. The scanning process for each set stops as soon as it encounters a missing file; only those files verified up to that point are used. For example, if you have prepared ten .WAV files for set "A", but the file TWAV_A7.WAV is not found when Tiny Elvis is run, only files TWAV_A1.WAV through TWAV_A6.WAV will be accessed during animation sequences. NOTE: Summary information on available .WAV files is provided in the Tiny Elvis Configuration dialog. APPENDIX C LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES ------------------------ This program (Tiny Elvis for Windows) is hereby contributed "as is" to the public domain. The program, including its companion waveform audio and documentation files, is distributed as freeware. As such, it is not intended for sale, resale, purchase, or for-profit distribution in the shareware or retail marketplace. Users are free to install and run the program on any system or systems they wish (subject only to the program's hardware requirements). Users are also free to copy and re-distribute the original files in any manner of via any channel available to them (i.e., network, BBS, electronic information service, etc.). Users doing so must distribute only the original files (preferably in their original compressed format). When so distributed, it is the distributor's responsibility to ensure that the program files have been kept in their original state and format, and have not been altered, edited, disassembled, or recompiled in any way. That said, please do not disassemble the original executable or edit any of its embedded resources (well, okay, on second thought -- if you're really in DIRE need of a few Elvis icons, go ahead and extract a few, just leave everything else alone). Before release, this software was tested on a variety of hardware configurations, under the most rigorous test conditions possible. The author therefore warrants that the software will perform in substantial compliance with the specifications set forth in this text, provided that the software is used only on the computer hardware and operating system(s) for which it was designed. The author makes no other warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this software, including its quality or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will the author, or Pegasus Development, be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages arising from the use of or the inability to use this software, even if the author has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Neither the author nor Pegasus Development is responsible for any costs including, but not limited to, those incurred as a result of lost profits or revenues, loss of time or use of the software, loss of data, the cost of recovering software or data, the cost of substitute software, claims by third parties, or similar costs. So there. ________ Tiny Elvis for Windows 1.02 Freeware for the Public Domain "Software that promises nothing -- And Delivers!" by Matthew T. Smith CIS 70661,3235 PEGASUS DEVELOPMENT 11900 Grant Place St. Louis, Missouri. 63131 Users interested in information about our line of "real" applications software are invited to contact us at the above address, or by telephone at (314) 965-5630. "Microsoft" and "Windows" are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective corporations and are hereby acknowledged. EASTER EGG: If you've actually read the documentation through this far, you deserve a reward. 1. Open the "About Tiny Elvis" dialog box. 2. Move the cursor over the Elvis icon at the top of the dialog box. 3. Double-click your left mouse button. The easter egg dialog text is drawn from a random collection, and will not be the same every time. And the skies will not be cloudy all day.