The first thing you need to know is how to see the rest of this article, so let's see how you can do just that.
What is a Window?
As you read this, you will notice that the text is in a bordered area separate from everything else--this area is called the ╥Document Window.╙
On the right edge of the window are Up and Down arrows, separated by a gray area that has a white box in it. That box is called the ╥Thumb,╙ and tells you the position of the document in the window. For example, if the Thumb were at the extreme top, next to the Up Arrow, you would be viewing the top of the article. To page the text up or down, simply move your Mouse Pointer (that floating arrow) into the gray area above or below the thumb and click the Mouse Button. Click below the Thumb now, so you may read more.
To move the text up or down by lines, move the Mouse Pointer (referred to as ╥mouse╙ hereafter) onto either the Up or the Down Arrow on the right edge of the text window and click the mouse button on your mouse (hereafter, ╥click the mouse╙).
The only other attribute of this window that needs an explanation is the Close Box in the upper left corner. Clicking the mouse while the pointer is in this area closes the text window and returns you to the Main Menu.
The Human Interface
Softdisk G-S was designed with strict attention to Apple's Human Interface guidelines to make its operation as friendly and recognizable as possible. If you know how to use programs in the desktop environment, you know how to use Softdisk G-S. If not, read on and we will shed some light on the subject. If some of the terms send you for a loop, not to worry, at the end of this article is a list of IIgs terms and definitions. If you are new to the IIgs, please have a peek at the glossary of terms; you may find it useful. The only shorthand you need to know right away is that the Open-Apple Key is often referred to by the abbreviation ╥apple.╙
Main Menu
The Main Menu is where most of the contents of Softdisk G-S can be selected. Simply move the mouse to the picture that represents the item of your choice and click the mouse. If it is an article or feature, Softdisk G-S will display a window containing the article. If it is a program, clip art or a font, a Dialog Box will appear asking if you want to read the documentation, run the program, view the clip art or font, or cancel this operation; click the mouse in the ╥icon╙ corresponding to your choice.
The Menus
The one thing about all IIgs desktop programs that is most recognizable is the menu system. Every well-thought-out program on the IIgs uses this type of menu structure (except for some arcade games where the whole screen is used), giving the user a knowledge of how to use a program without ever having seen it! For our purposes the menus are laid out as such:
Apple File Edit Articles Features
There are certain standards in motion when these menus appear, for example, opening the Apple menu (moving the mouse to the multi-colored Apple logo, pressing and holding the mouse down) will reveal the About box, and a list of active New Desk Accessories (NDAs). If the program has any help associated with it, it is usually found below the About entry and above the NDA list.
The File Menu is where you will usually find the New, Open, Close, Save, Save As, Page Setup, Print, Print Articles, Print Features and Quit menu items. For Softdisk G-S, you will find File Installer, the printer selections and Quit. Print Articles and Print Features are the only options not found in most programs: they will allow you to print out all the articles or all the features at once.
Opening the Edit menu will reveal Undo, Cut, Copy, Paste, and Clear. This menu is provided in case an NDA supports the option of moving information onto the clipboard for pasting into a document from another application. Since Softdisk G-S doesn't support all these items they are grayed out, or unselectable because they have no use at this time. In addition, the Softdisk and Features menus are your two paths to any section of Softdisk G-S.
Next to most of the menu items you may have noticed an Apple symbol followed by a character; this is called the keyboard shortcut. There are many standard shortcuts: apple-C should always be Copy, apple-X should be Cut, apple-V should be Paste, apple-? Help, and apple-Q Quit to name a few. We say ╥should be╙ because the programmer has control over these and may change them to anything at all, no matter how wrong it is. It's best to scan the menus to be sure the standards have been followed, just in case. These shortcuts are provided as a quicker alternative to the menus and, as time goes on, you will find yourself using them more and more. Trust us, you will!
Copying Files
Selecting the File Installer function will launch Apple's Installer program with all the items available to be duplicated in the left-most box. To duplicate a file, or set of files, select the destination disk in the right-most box and click the INSTALL button. The only special requirements the Installer has is that the Softdisk G-S volume (disk) name be the same as it was when you first got it. If you copied Softdisk G-S onto your hard drive or changed the disk name, Installer will no longer work.
Glossary of Terms
ASCII: Acronym for American Standard Code for Information Interchange (pronounced ╥ASK-ee╙). A standard that assigns a unique binary number to each text character and control character. ASCII code is used for representing text inside a computer and for transmitting text between computers.
BASIC: Acronym for Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code; a high-level programming language designed to be easy to learn. Two versions of BASIC are available from Apple Computer for use with all Apple II-family systems: AppleSoft BASIC and Integer BASIC.
Binary: Characterized by having two different components or by having only two alternatives or values available; sometimes used synonymously with binary system.
Binary System: A number system that uses only 0 and 1 as digits. Because computers can keep track of only two states (on and off), engineers code data in terms of 0s and 1s. The binary system is often used in computers because the values of 0 and 1 can easily be represented in a variety of ways, such as the presence or absence of current, positive or negative voltage, or a black or white dot on the display screen. A single binary digit -- a 0 or a 1 -- is called a bit.
Bit: A contraction of binary digit. The smallest unit of information that a computer can hold.
Button: A selectable area on the screen used to pass information back to the computer. If a button has a double outline (two circles) frame, it is the default choice and ╥Return╙ can be used to select it.
CDA: Classic Desk Accessory. Desk Accessories that are available at any time. A CDA list is available by pressing control-apple-esc at the same time.
Close Box: Small box in the upper left-hand corner of a document window. Clicking it will close the window.
Desktop: In terms of your IIgs the desktop is a metaphor for the screen. That is to say, the screen is like your desktop; the open document windows are like sheets of paper, the items in the menus are the actions you may take, and so on. In terms of software, when a program uses a menu bar, document windows, dialog boxes, etc. it is said to be a desktop application.
Dialog Box: The computer's way of requesting information or issuing a warning about a potentially dangerous situation.
Drag (ing): To position the mouse on something, press and hold the mouse button, move the mouse and release the button. When you release the button, you either confirm a selection or move an object to a new location.
Font: A complete set of characters in one design, size and style. In traditional typography usage, font may be restricted to a particular size and style or may comprise multiple sizes, or multiple sizes and styles, of a typeface.
Highlight: To make something visually distinct. For example, when you select a block of text using a word processor, the selected word is highlighted -- it appears as light letters on a dark background, rather than dark on light. Highlighting is accomplished by inverting the display.
Icon: An images that graphically represents an object, a concept or a message.
Keyboard Shortcuts: Any character used with the apple key to speed the process of menu selections. The actual shortcut keys are listed next to their corresponding choices in the menus.
Menu Bar: The list of menu titles at the top of a desktop-style program.
Mouse Button: The button on the mouse.
Mouse Pointer: The floating cursor (usually an arrow) used to point at items.
NDA: New Desk Accessory. Available only when you are in IIgs desktop program. An NDA list is available under the Apple Menu.
Scroll Bar: The Thumb and arrow boxes on the right side of a window.
Size Box: A box in the lower-right corner of some active windows. Dragging the size box resizes the window.
Thumb: The box in between the Up and Down Arrows on the right edge of a document window that denotes the position of the document in the window.
Up and Down Arrow Boxes: Found on the right edge of a document window and are used to move up or down by single lines of text.
Zoom Box: A small box with a smaller box enclosed in it found on the right side of the title bar of some windows. Clicking the zoom box expands the window to its maximum size; clicking it again returns the window to its previous size.
