💾 Archived View for mirrors.apple2.org.za › archive › ground.icaen.uiowa.edu › upl1997 › Aug97 › Lau… captured on 2023-01-29 at 11:05:31.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
+ Documentation for Launch Pad Control Panel (CDev) v1.2
+ Distribution:
This product is classified "Jesus-A-ware". It is the equivalent of FreeWare.
It is distributed the same as God's Love. That means it's free to anyone
who'll accept it. It will be given to anyone, regardless of who or what
you are, or have been. It's not where you've been, but where you're going!
Everyone is free to use the "JesusAware" name. Spreading the Gospel message
through Software. This product is free. Give it to everyone, even if
they don't have a computer! This work is a labor of love for my Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ!
Just as Jesus sets you on the right path, this Control Panel will do the same
for your GS/OS applications.
America Online: DAVE L32
GEnie: D.LEFFLER
Snail Mail: Dave Leffler
14 I Cape Drive
Fort Walton Beach, FL 32548
+ What it does:
Here is a Control Panel NDA Device (CDev) that allows you to configure GS/OS
applications so the data file location, key translation, and the TransWarp GS
or ZipGS speed will be set each time that application is launched. Are you
tired of hunting for your data files every time you launch an application and
you know the files are always in the same directory? They sure don't move on
their own! Do you own some games that require the Fast (2.8 Mhz) speed to
run? You stand no chance of even getting past the first level unless you
change the speed before you begin? Or maybe you need to use the Option key
for commands in some utility program, but your Desktop Publisher likes the
Option key for typing in symbols. This utility is for you! It doesn't matter
which GS/OS based program launcher you use (ProSel 16, Finder, Wings, etc..),
Launch Pad will work for you.
+ How to Install:
Copy the file "Launch.CDev" to the "CDEVS" folder found in the "SYSTEM" folder
of your boot disk. You MUST do this with the Finder or another GS/OS compat-
ible utility program or it will not copy correctly. It is an extended file.
The NEXT time you open the Control Panel NDA, you'll see the "Launch Pad"
icon. You do not have to reboot your computer to start configuring
applications! You DON'T even have to reboot it to get the effects of LaunchPad
Whenever you select the Launch Pad Control Panel, it checks to see if it has
already been installed, and if not it will install itself. I've also included
a Permanent Initialization file version of Launch Pad. YOU DO NOT NEED AND
SHOULDN'T EVEN INSTALL THE INIT FILE UNLESS YOU READ THE TECHNICAL INFORMATION
BELOW.
+ How to Use it:
Couldn't be simpler! Once you've installed the Control Panel and rebooted or
selected it from the Control Panel NDA, use is completely transparent. EVERY
time you launch a GS/OS application it will be checked for configuration data.
If the data is available, the data file prefixes and speed are set appropriatly.
If it's not configured, nothing changes. The current speed and data file
prefixes are saved so they may be restored when you return to the launching
program. If you "leap" from a launching program to another launching program,
no sweat! Your current settings are saved up to FIVE deep. This means you can
boot into the Finder, Open ProSel 16, Run Wings, Launch the Launcher, Cruise
into JumpStart, and then Hop into HyperCard IIGS. As you quit from each
progressive application launcher, the previous speed and data file prefixes will
be restored. If you exceed the limit of FIVE, no sweat, your settings will not
be saved, but the original FIVE will still be there when you eventually get back
to them. Because of a bug in the ZipGS (or the software examples I have), I
can't reliably read the current speed of a ZipGS. Until this can be fixed in
a future version, whenever you quit an application, the ZipGS will be set back
to 100% speed.
This Control Panel will be invaluable to the hard disk user and could possibly
find a use for the multi-floppy user.
+ How to Configure Programs:
As with any utility, PLEASE ONLY USE A COPY of the applications you are
configuring, just in case something should go wrong (see quirk note about TML
Pascal II).
This is where the Control Panel NDA comes in. Bring it up and select the
Launch Pad Icon. To select a program for configuration, click in the
"Program:" button (or press the return key). You'll be presented the faithful
File Dialog which will list every GS/OS application. Select the application
you wish to configure. If the application is not already an extended file
(contains resources), you'll be presented a message telling you such and asking
whether you wish to continue with the configuration. Configuring an
application will make it an EXTENDED file. This will not cause a problem, but
you will be unable to use a ProDOS 8 utility like Copy II Plus to work (copy,
delete, etc...) on that file. You should then see the program's name, it's
current speed setting, keyboard setting, and two data location settings.
Needless to say, if the speed is set to default, the speed of the Accelerator
will not change when launching the application. The other speeds in the PopUp
menu should be self-explanatory. The two data prefixes will initially be set to
"Default", meaning that the prefixes will not be set when the application is
launched. Pretty cryptic, huh? The "Keyboard" setting is what adjust the
Translation and can be set to either of the two current translations or
default.
To select the Launching Speed, just use the PopUp menu. To select a Key
Translation, use the Keyboard PopUp menu. Just like the Alphabet CDev.
The "Data File Location (8)" button allows you to store the Prefix #8 setting.
This is the primary prefix used by most programs to find their data files.
When you click in this button (or press the "8" key) you'll be presented with
the file dialog again. Move to the directory you want and select a file
within that directory. Sorry, there must be at least one file (non-folder) in
the directory for it to be selected. Your new data location will then be
displayed in the Control Panel directly below the button you just pressed.
This is all programs like AppleWorks GS will require.
Some programs are tempermental and will not recognize just Prefix #8, so you
must sometimes set the "Secondary Location (0)" by clicking in that button (or
pressing the "0" key). You'll then see a dialog warning you that some
applications may not run if this prefix is changed, because they wrongly use
Prefix #0 for their program files (they should use Prefix #1). If the
application doesn't work after you set this, you could remove it later. If you
decide to continue, you'll see the good old file dialog again and must select a
file in the data location, probably the same as the one you set #8 to above.
GraphicWriter III will require that you set the Secondary location. The best
solution is by trial and error. Set the Data Location, run the program. Try
to load a data file. If you are not immediately in the directory you want
(more than likly it'll be the program's directory), set the Secondary Location.
The application is now fully configured. The information is updated
immediately. You may change the speed setting, translations or data locations
as you please or select another program to configure. If you decide that the
configuration is not needed, or the application will not run correctly, you may
remove the configuration, by clicking the Remove Launch Settings button (or
press the "R" key). You'll see the file dialog and when you select your file,
the data will be removed painlessly. Because of the way the Control Panel
works, it is possible to select an application that has not been configured.
You will still get the "Extended File" warning. If you get this warning,
there is no way that file could have any configuration data on it. But, if
you insist on selecting it, it will be converted to an extended file.
PLEASE Configure your "Start" program. GS/OS "Quits" to it when you are
booting your computer. If you have some standard settings you like, place
them on your startup program.
+ Quirks/Bugs
PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS CONTROL PANEL WITH ANYTHING EARLIER THAN IIGS SYSTEM
v5.04! That's because earler versions of IIGS System software don't have a
truly working resource manager (it's actually been know to work against some).
This utility won't work from a ProDOS 8 launcher. This is because of the way
the patch works.
Because the ZipGS doesn't report its current speed reliably (you may have
noticed the ZipGS CDev has a problem also), whenever you quit an application,
the ZipGS is set back to 100% speed.
As noted above, some programs will not work if the Secondary Location is set to
something other than the program's location. Tonight's Sky GS v2.0 is an
example.
TML Pascal II v1.1 has a corrupted Resource Fork. I've fixed this on my copy,
by DeRezing the thing, then recompiling it. If you attempt to configure it,
it'll never work again, pull your old copy out. Nothing like corrupting a
corrupted resource fork!
Design Master does not use a standard resource fork. I don't believe you can
damage it, but it will be useless to configure it. Each and every time you try
to configure it, you'll get the "Extended File" message, the current
configuration will be there, but it is not used.
When you launch with an Init or NDA program launcher (RunQ, TransProg, etc...)
Your current settings are not saved because the new program is launched without
requesting a return to the current program. (I'm guessing here!) You may have
to experiment. Based on what I've heard about System 6, this type of program
launcher will take you from say the Finder to your launched program, but when
you quit, you'll go back to the plain vanilla launcher of System 6.
IF you hear a SysBeep as you're launching a program, please note which launcher
you are using, the program you are launching, and the operating system version
you are using. This information will be important to me, some sort of error
(non-fatal) has occured.
America Online GS can not have it's data path set up since it doesn't follow
the normal desktop or GS/OS protocol. It uses Prefix #1 to determine it's work
area and I can't change that with this utility and still be able to let it
launch programs.
+ Technical Information:
When the Control Panel is booted (you see the icon on the boot screen), an
initialization program is permanently loaded that patches the GS/OS calling
locations and also installs a notification routine to ensure they remain patched
(Launching ProDOS 8 has a nasty habit of removing the patch). This program is
the guts of LaunchPad. The largest part of the Control Panel is the
configuration program. At 15K, I don't consider it large. It is possible to
use the Launch Pad Initialization file, that would only be about 2.5K. I'm
personnaly against any multi-file program, now that the IIGS has Resources
available. Too much stuff to worry about getting in the right place. However,
if you have already configured all your applications, the only part of the
Control Panel you'll be using is the initialization code. If you feel the 10K
space saving is worth it to you AND you have already configured all your
applications, place the "Launch.Init" file in the "System.Setup" folder in the
"System" folder of your boot disk. You should remove the "Launch.CDev" file.
If you are lazy, no big worry. If the Init file finds that the Control Panel
has already patched GS/OS, the init file will unload, thus not taking up any
more memory or any more time than it took to load the init file. But Why Do
It? Please only use one or the other!
Launch Pad alters the application being configured by first converting it to an
extended file if it doesn't already have a resource fork. This process cannot
be reversed. Next it adds one resource for each of the four pieces of data
(Speed, Translation, Prefix #8, Prefix #0). Speed and Translation are only
two bytes long and each of the prefixes is four bytes plus the length of the
complete full pathname of the file you selected (I use the path handle returned
by the SFGetFile for the resource). If it finds a configuration resource on an
application that isn't the correct size, it assumes that application is using
the same Resource type and ID and leaves it along. All of the four resources
can be removed if the "Remove" command is taken.
+ Look for the source code somewhere nearby. It's in ORCA/C v1.3 with
APW v1.1 Rez files. The initialization file and it's loading routine are
written in ORCA/M Assembler for speed. Most of the resources were designed
with Genesys with some help by Design Master.
This program contains material from the ORCA/C
Run-Time Libraries, copyright 1987-1989
by Byte Works, Inc. Used with permission
+ Future Additions:
You've got me! Any ideas for what other settings could be manipulated for the
launched application? Please write me, I love to solve programming problems.
After all, Bruce Shanker is the reason for adding the Translation setting in
v1.1. George Wilde is the main help for getting source code to work with the
ZipGS in v1.2. Thanks!
+ Revisions:
v1.0b
- Initial Release. Contains some additional code to sound the SysBeep if
an error occurs while launching an application. These errors should not
be fatal.
v1.1
- Added ability to set key translation since some programs like to use the
Option key for commands and others like to use it for symbols in typing.
Thanks to Bruce Shanker for the idea.
v1.2
- Updated CDev to meet requirements for IIGS System 6 Control Panels.
- Cleaned up patch routine to work with other utilities that patch GS/OS/P16
and also allows for GS/OS/P16 calls in emulation mode. This also allows the
CDev to install itself WITHOUT rebooting.
- Changed Vector connector to a GS/OS Notify routine. Now also restores the
settings after quiting back from a ProDOS 8 program.
- Added support for ZipGS, thanks to George Wilde for the source code sample