HotWire! v2.3 By Charles F. Johnson & John Eidsvoog *** DEMO VERSION *** Copyright 1989, 1990 CodeHead Software All Rights Reserved. Demo Documentation by Charles F. Johnson Revised: Friday, June 22, 1990 ****************************************** * * * This demo program and the accompanying * * text file may be freely distributed as * * long as both files are included, and * * neither file is modified in any way * * whatsoever. * * * ****************************************** Everything Changes ------------------ This is the second demonstration version of HotWire; the first version was derived from HotWire 1.0, and there have been some big (you might say "huge") improvements since then. A partial list of the new stuff is included below, under the title "New Features in Version 2.3." We've supplied a program called DEMOSTRT.PRG with this new version of the HotWire demo, which allows you to quickly and painlessly install the demo on any drive. Also included are several example menu files (HOT files) to be used with the HotWire demo; DEMOSTRT.PRG will automatically configure the demo to find and use these HOT files. If you just can't wait to get a look at the HotWire demo, run DEMOSTRT.PRG, sit back, and prepare to be amazed; then, after you've played with the demo, come back and read the rest of this document to find out more about HotWire. Included Files: --------------- HOT_DEMO.PRG The HotWire demo program file. May be installed in an AUTO folder, or run from the desktop. HOT_DEMO.TXT The file you're reading now. DEMOSTRT.PRG A quick installation program to set up the HotWire demo. ARCSHELL.HOT An example menu file for the demo. This one demonstrates HotWire's "programmable command line" feature that lets you build your own customized shells. GAMES.HOT An example menu file, demonstrating a possible arrangement for a "games" menu. HOTWIRE0.HOT The default menu for the HotWire demo. HOTWIRE1.HOT An example menu file, just for fun. MULTDESK.HOT An example menu file, demonstrating how to build a "shell" for MultiDesk, letting you run any desk accessory as if it were a program. (MultiDesk is required to use this menu.) UTILITY.HOT An example menu file, demonstrating a possible arrangement for a "utilities" menu. What is this thing? ------------------- At CodeHead Software, we're obsessed with finding ways to extend the limits of the ST's operating system. HotWire carries on in the tradition of G+PLUS and MultiDesk, by adding new features to the ST desktop. It functions as a sort of "command center" to allow you to quickly and easily run the programs you use, simply by typing a "hot" key. Imagine typing F and running Flash...or typing P and running Timeworks Desktop Publisher...all without opening a single window or wading through level after level of folders. And YOU tell HotWire which "hot" keys to use for which programs, with an ultra-friendly, intuitive GEM interface. If you're using floppy disks, you can simply insert a disk and hit a single key to start up any application...no more opening windows and double-clicking files. We've tested HotWire with a LOT of programs, and so far it has been compatible with every single one of them...even the ones that other shells can't run! For example, HotWire is fully compatible with Easy Draw and OUTPRINT, CAD 3D 2.0, Timeworks Swiftcalc (and GRAPH.PRG), Base Two, and just about everything else. Here's a list of features: o Run any ST program instantly simply by pressing a "hot" key from the ST desktop, or from the HotWire Menu! o Summon up the HotWire Menu instantly (whenever you're on the GEM desktop) with a keypress or a button click! o Auto-Start any ST program at bootup! o Hard disk users: no more slogging through folder after folder to run your favorite programs. Launch any program instantly with a single keypress, no matter where it resides! o Floppy disk users: just pop your program disk in the drive and hit a key! No more waiting for the desktop to open a window. o Choose from among over 400 possible "hot" key combinations! o The HotWire Menu displays up to 54 programs at once, with graphic representations of their associated "hot" keys! Each program can have a 20-character "title" (not just a filename). o Lists of programs can be loaded and saved, either with the file selector or with a single keypress! o An intuitive, aesthetically appealing GEM interface lets you easily customize the HotWire Menu to your own preferences. o Unique "work file" command line features make HotWire an excellent shell for developers working in C or assembly language. (In fact, HotWire was used along with Atari's MAD MAC assembler to develop itself!) o Runs either from your AUTO folder or from the desktop (it's NOT a desk accessory), and can either be installed as a resident program, or run like any other ST application! o If you have CodeHead Software's MultiDesk (which lets you load an unlimited number of desk accessories at any time) HotWire lets you use any of the accessories loaded into MultiDesk, without exiting the HotWire Menu! You must have MultiDesk version 1.8 or higher for this feature to be active. o Written entirely in assembly language. Uses only 40K of your precious memory. o Fixes the GEM desktop's "Install Application" feature, so that documents don't have to be in the same directory with their related applications! (No more editing the DESKTOP.INF file, or programs that can't find their resource files...) o Works properly with applications that communicate with desk accessories via the AES event system. (For example, Cyber Control with CAD 3D, Art Gallery or DEGAS Elite Fast Loader with DEGAS Elite, etc.) o Applications that are run through HotWire behave exactly as they do when run from the GEM desktop! No mysterious glitches, or unexpected results. NEW FEATURES IN VERSION 2.3 --------------------------- o HotWire 2.3 now sports a GEM menu bar, with access to all HotWire commands, and all of your GEM desk accessories. You may continue to use the HotWire menu even while an accessory is open! o If you own our MultiDesk accessory loader/unloader (version 2.0 or greater) you can install MultiDesk "setup" files in the HotWire menu, and load or unload groups of accessories with a single keypress or button click! o Block save, load, and delete functions make it simple to delete a block of menu entries, or transport entries to another menu. o Menus can be "nested"...in other words, one of the entries in your menu can load another menu. This lets you have an _unlimited_ number of menus, for every program in your ST library. o You can chain groups of programs so that they run one after another, and even create loops. This is very handy if you find yourself switching among several programs frequently. o Now features password protection, to restrict unauthorized access to certain programs or data files. o The most compatible corner clock in existence! User-configurable clock options include 24- or 12-hour time, Caps Lock display, the ability to show the seconds ticking or not, as you prefer. Clock can be turned off and on or toggled between the date and time with a special key combination, at ANY time in ANY program. o A "ledger" function records the start, end, and elapsed time of every program you run. Very useful for people who do work for hire! o Up to 16 ALARMS can be set to go off daily, weekly, or monthly. Alarms will ring in any program, GEM or TOS, and your message will be printed at the top of the screen (no matter what you're doing). A "snooze" feature lets you tell HotWire to ring the alarm again, at any interval you choose. o A unique and powerful interface with our MaxiFile program/accessory lets you instantly summon MaxiFile, with a keypress or mouse click. Run MaxiFile as a program and it retains all its settings each time you run it...just as if it were a desk accessory, but without using any permanent memory! o And much, much more! How do it know? --------------- Since this is a demonstration version of HotWire, we aren't going to spell out every detail of its use in this text file. It would be a pretty lengthy text file if we did...and besides, Larry Herzberg and I spent several weeks writing all that stuff into the HotWire manual. Larry is responsible for another CodeHead product called MIDIMAX, an amazing real-time MIDI performance tool ... but that's another story. (And another demo. Look for the MIDIMAX demo on all the major information services, or at a store or BBS near you.) In any case, here's the short course in how to HotWire your ST. Ignition -------- First, you should know that HotWire can run in one of two ways -- as a "resident" program that sits in the background waiting for you to awaken it with a keypress, or as a normal, one-shot ST application that is wiped out of memory when you exit. Installing HotWire as a Resident GEM program -------------------------------------------- There are two ways to "install" HotWire as a resident GEM program. You can install it automatically when you boot your ST by putting it into a folder called AUTO on your boot disk. If you don't already have an AUTO folder on your boot disk, you can create one by using the desktop's "New Folder" option (see your ST users' manual for more details). When the HotWire demo is installed from an AUTO folder, it will pause when it first runs and ask you to press a key before continuing. We also take this opportunity to remind you of the key combination used to open the HotWire Menu from the GEM desktop (see below). And by the way, this "pause and wait for keypress" routine is not in the release version of HotWire. After the bootup process is complete, HotWire will automatically display the HotWire Menu. (The release version of HotWire also lets you auto-run any ST program at this point.) The other way to install the HotWire demo as a resident GEM program is to double-click the file called HOT_DEMO.PRG from the desktop, and when the demo program runs, click on the button labeled "Install." When you double-click HOT_DEMO.PRG from the desktop, the program waits for about three seconds for you to select one of the buttons -- "Run," "Install," or "Cancel" -- then automatically selects "Run" as the default. So if you wish to "install" the HotWire demo this way, make sure to click the "Install" button before the three second timeout expires! When HotWire is resident, it remains in your computer's memory until you reboot. Any data you've entered into the HotWire Menu will remain intact even if you exit HotWire. *** IMPORTANT! *** To open the HotWire Menu when it is "installed" as a resident GEM program, hold down the RIGHT Shift key and type the Help key, or quickly press and release the RIGHT mouse button. You must be at the GEM desktop to open the HotWire Menu. "Running" HotWire ----------------- If you double-click HOT_DEMO.PRG from the desktop, and either click the button labeled "Run" or wait for the three-second timeout to expire, HotWire will run like any other ST program, and not take up any permanent memory. When you exit HotWire after "running" it, all data you've entered into the Menu will be lost. This feature gives you full access to the HotWire Menu of 54 programs even if you're running some other shell program...just "Run" HotWire as if it were a normal program. (Normality, what a concept.) The HotWire Menu ---------------- When the HotWire demo first runs, you'll see a box full of dotted lines (54 of them to be precise) with a row of icons at the bottom. To install a program into the Menu, click with the left mouse button on any of the empty slots. (You can only install a total of eight programs in the demo version of HotWire.) A file selector will appear. Locate and select the program file you wish to install in that slot. After choosing the program file, the Options Box will appear, to let you set various parameters for this program -- such as whether the program needs a command line, whether it runs as a GEM or TOS application, etc. The blank line at the top of the box is waiting for you to type in a "title" for this program. The "title" can be up 20 characters long; if you leave this line blank when you exit the Options Box (by clicking OK) the filename will be entered in the HotWire Menu in lieu of a title. The Options Box is also where you enter the "hot" key combination you wish to assign to this program. Just type in a character from A to Z in the box provided, and select the combination of "shift" keys (Left Shift, Right Shift, Control, and Alternate) by clicking on the appropriate buttons. You may also right-click on the hot key box, then simply type the key combination you wish to use. Once you've installed programs into the HotWire Menu, you can run any one of them simply by single-clicking on its "title" with the Left mouse button, or by typing the "hot" key combination you've assigned to it. If you want to change the parameters for a program, single-click its title with the Right mouse button. -------------------------------------------------------------------- The "hot" key you've assigned to a program is not only active when you're looking at the HotWire Menu -- it's active any time you're on the GEM desktop. You can run any program in the HotWire Menu simply by typing its "hot" key even if the HotWire Menu is not open. -------------------------------------------------------------------- The Wrap-Up ----------- Well, that's about all the documentation you get with the demo version; from here you're on your own. There are a LOT of features included that haven't been mentioned; play around with the demo and you should be able to find a few of them. (Remember that the ST mouse has TWO buttons...) Some itty-bitty, not-too-important features (like, oh, the ability to save a menu file, and the HotWire configuration) are entirely omitted from the demo version, and it also has a time limit; so you may find it difficult to use for any serious work. Also, as mentioned above, only eight programs can be installed during each run of the program. What can I say? It is, after all, a free demo version. But it should be enough for you to get a taste of how easy HotWire can make things for you. Of course, the release version (the one you have to buy) has a complete manual explaining all the ins and outs of HotWiring an ST, along with explicit information for developers and others who wish to explore some of HotWire's more advanced uses. (Like "work files" and "variable command line parameters"...) And all the features missing from the demo are, of course, in the release version. HotWire will change, simplify, and streamline your relationship with your computer. (It has certainly improved our productivity here at CodeHeadQuarters.) It's simply the fastest, easiest, and most powerful way to run programs on the Atari ST. If you're wasting a lot of time getting from one program to another, HotWire is for you! Ordering Information -------------------- HotWire is currently available for $39.95. To order the latest version of HotWire or any CodeHead Software product, call us at (213) 386-5735 during business hours (PST). Our FAX number is (213) 386-5789. We accept most major credit cards. HotWire is also sold in a "bundled" package with MaxiFile (the most powerful disk and file maintenance tool for the ST), as HotWire Plus. The retail price of the HotWire Plus package is $59.95 ... you save $15.00 off the cost of buying each program separately! If you don't want to order by phone, you can send a check or money order for the amount indicated plus $2.00 shipping (Canada $3, Europe $5). California residents please add 6.5% sales tax. CodeHead Software P.O. Box 74090 Los Angeles, CA 90004 Enjoy the HotWire demo! - Charles F. Johnson, John Eidsvoog - CodeHead Software - June 22, 1990