Freedom 2 Preview

Kev Beardsworth previews Freedom 2, the Rolls Royce of file
selectors on any platform?...

Freedom 2.
Notice the file and control panel selectors and the 3D
look given to the Atari General CPX

Freedom 2, implies version 2, which it is, but it has another
meaning. Freedom 2 now performs two distinctly separate functions,
a file selector and Xcontrol replacement. In addition to cosmetic
enhancements to CPXs (Control Panel eXtensions) Freedom 2
introduces a new eCPX (Extended Control Panel eXtension) standard
along with a sporty new look and configuration eCPX.

I can already hear people muttering 'Jack of all trades' to which
I respond with one word: Memory. On average, after comparing
Freedom 2 with Freedom v1.15 and Xcontrol there's a saving of
around 30Kb (58Kb compared with Zcontrol and 34Kb with COPS).

Like other XControl replacements, Freedom 2 can open as many CPX's
as required, all in separate windows and all multitasking.
However, in addition Freedom 2 offers eCPX's which, unlike CPXs,
are not restricted to Xcontrol sized windows - instead of
squeezing features into multi-page CPXs a single window eCPX could
be programmed instead.

Selecting any CPX then left clicking on the info icon displays
options not found in other Xcontrol replacements. An auto-start
option opens the e/CPX window after Freedom 2 has finished loading
and another option stores the window position and re-displays it
at the same position. If you like the 3D look you can even force
CPXs to be displayed in 3D, which works most of the time but can
be toggled off for individual CPXs, if you encounter any display
problems. Finally the individual CPX flags such as the archive and
read only bits can be set as desired.

Like the COPS Xcontrol replacement, Freedom 2, used together with
a suitable replacement desktop, can run e/CPX's and e/CPZ's by
double clicking on them - without opening the Freedom 2 window.
Unlike COPS the selected control panel runs immediately without
reloading other installed control panels again.

Four eCPX's are supplied with Freedom 2 (there are others in the
pipeline); Modificaution, Trbubble, Freedom 2 Config and
Windscreen.

Modificaution

Modificaution is a MOD player supplied in two versions. One
version supports the Digital Signal Processor (DSP) chip only
available in Falcon machines and the other version is designed for
owners of STe machines.

Trbubble

Trbubble provides a help system similar to the bubble help found
on the Mac and under Windows95. Holding the mouse pointer down
over buttons and icons in supporting applications displays a
speech bubble along with a brief description of the selected item.
Details (currently only in German) are included so programmers can
implement bubble help inside their own programs.

Windscreen

This nifty eCPX adds fully configurable real-time window actions
to your system, similar to those provided by Win Commander and
WinX. Re-sizing and moving windows using the right mouse button is
performed in real time and the action is silky smooth - more
smoothly than either WinX or Win Commander in my judgement.

Freedom 2 Config

Freedom 2 can be configured without getting your hands dirty
inside a text editor which eliminates the worst limitation in
Freedom v1.x. Every aspect of Freedom 2 can be configured from
this neat, well laid out eCPX split into sections:

General

Settings that affect the whole program. Options include how alerts
are displayed, how drag and scroll actions behave along with
options to decide how Freedom should behave when it's in the
background.

Freedom

Set whether folders should be opened with a single or double
click, whether a single right click simulates scrolling, a double
left click or shift left click. Set how the cursor reacts when it
gets to the end of a list, should it wrap back to the top or
simply stop? There's even an option to set the height of popups
relative to the screen height.

Looks and more looks

These two sections determine the look and feel. Set the colours,
the format used to cut filenames and paths to the Clipboard, which
side the window scroller appears, which way round the OK and
Cancel buttons appear and so on - you can even 3D each individual
filename if you like!

Paths

This section sets the default paths, masks and defines sort
priorities. Up to forty functions key short cuts can be configured
and they're easy to define - a popup containing every available
option is displayed.

Lists

Set how Freedom reacts to programs calling the file selector. Some
older programs still have problems with Freedom or other aspects
of modern Atari systems. Options to ignore Freedom and call
the system selector or call Freedom modally or non-modally are
available.

Freedom 2 is one helluva update! A look at the options in the
configuration eCPX should be enough to convince most people to
upgrade. I once described Freedom as the Rolls Royce of file
selectors, Freedom 2 doubly deserves the accolade - unfortunately
at œ32, with registration via InterActive, it now has a price tag
to match! Existing users can upgrade for œ21 so why not check out
the demo version and decide for yourself...