Intro

This README file should accompany Version 3.0 of INTRO, (INTRO.ZIP) Program Description Intro can be configured to display a picture file / files and play a sound whenever you switch your Psion on. The way in which the pictures are displayed is configurable to a certain extent, as is the time for which a picture is displayed and sound volume if applicable. Installation After you have unzipped Intro.zip (which you have 'cos you're reading this), copy the required files into the directories listed below. You need to create a PIC and WVE directory from the root directory on your default disk. From the system screen, use Install to navigate to the main program file and press enter. Intro will appear in your system screen, to run it press enter. The menu The menu is divided into 4 parts; Image, Audio, Config and Program. The first part allows you to load a Psion .PIC file and display it on the screen as you wish. You may also specify a directory on any disk which is to be used as a source for cyclic file selection while the program is running, and browse a directory for pictures. The second part of the menu is the same as the first part, except that it is used to specify sound files. The third part of the menu is intended to help you save time. You may save the present settings for use later on, (except cyclic mode) restore settings, and enter debug mode. The program behaves differently in debug mode, and this is only useful if you suspect an error and want to know more about what is going on. The last part of the menu allows you to run the program, exit, and register it with the author. You are invited to familiarise yourself with the program before registering. Selecting a Picture To get the bitmap you wish to use, select Browse from the Image menu. Using the left and right arrow keys, navigate to your chosen directory and set up the rest of the dialog. You can jump straight to a file using the J key in this dialog. The way that pictures are displayed can be configured in more detail using the Define selection from the same menu. An explanation of the different selectable options is given below. * Clear Screen: If you choose "No", the screen will not be cleared before the bitmap is loaded. If loading the first one, the screen will be black. * Orientation: "Tiled" will fill the screen with repetitions of a picture, starting in the top left corner. (assuming the picture is smaller than the screen) "Centered" will position the picture in the centre of the screen. This is useful for pictures which are larger than the screen since the most interesting bit is usually in the centre. * Planes loaded: Psion pictures are often made up of two parts, a grey plane and a black one. This lets you choose which one is to be loaded, or both if applicable. * Pixel mode: Choose if your picture is to Replace, Clear, or Invert the one below. Invert can produce some good results if the screen clear is set to "No" and this is your first bitmap. * Time displayed: Choose the time that the picture will be displayed for when the program is running. Please note that if the picture file you have specified does not match the entered specification (or is a non-Psion format) the program may select another picture which does match you specification, or display a blank screen. When using "Browse" mode (pictures or sounds) and you have seen / heard the one you want, press the Esc key. The file's reference will be stored, and the program will enter Static Picture Mode or Static Sound Mode, depending on the type of file specified. Static Picture Mode Every time it is switched on, the Psion will display the chosen picture in the specified way. The picture file will only need be present in this mode when it is first chosen. For example, if you want to use pictures from 3Fax, you only need to have the unit attached when loading the picture, not while the program is running. (not for Cyclic Mode) Static Sound Mode Every time it is switched on, the Psion will play the specified sound file at the chosen volume. Cyclic Picture Mode When switched on for the first time while running Intro, the chosen picture will be displayed. Subsequent switch-ons will result in another bitmap (conforming to the chosen specifications) being displayed from the chosen directory. Please note that this bitmap is loaded when the program goes into background mode after displaying the last one, so allow at least a few seconds before switching off. Cyclic/Static Sound Modes. As above, but uses sounds instead of pictures. The only settings to configure here are the file / directory name, and the volume. Need I say more? Save / Restore Configuration. Saving the configuration will write information to the INTRO.INI file in the \DAT directory. This file can be edited with the built in Data app by pressing TAB under the Data icon and selecting the file. (I'm not really sure why you'd want to do this, but I thought it'd be a nice touch anyway) Deleting this file will not have any effect on Intro, but only do it whilst the program is not running. Please note that the Save option only saves references to files rather than the actual files themselves. This means that if you have put a lot of pictures on the screen, only the reference for the last one will be saved. If you wish to save the actual screen contents, select Save All. This will write the whole screen to the file SAVED.PIC in the \PIC directory on the internal drive. If this file already exists, it will be overwritten! You can restore the configuration either on startup by pressing R, or by selecting Restore from the Config menu. If the config file contains references to a file which no longer exists, an error will occur, and the settings file (INTRO.INI) will be deleted. At the moment it is only possible to save in Static Mode. Hence if you are using Cyclic mode and save the settings, the program will be in Static mode when they are restored. Debug Mode This is something which I needed whilst writing the program and decided to leave in case it's of some use to the end user. If this mode is toggled to ON in the initial dialogue, Intro will behave differently whilst running. When (V)iewing the configuration, the first two screens contain information which is written to INTRO.INI. Subsequent screen/s give information as to internal processes. If you (R)estart the program, all the internal variables are reset. You shouldn't need to use Debug Mode unless something strange happens. Run Running the program will send it to the background until the Psion is switched on. It will then move to the foreground and "strutt its stuff" as specified. If you want to turn your Psion on without activating Intro (in case you've got a sensitive picture and you mother is watching, or you're in a meeting and don't want the sound) then hold the PSION key whilst pressing ON, keeping the key depressed for a few seconds afterwards. Known Bugs * Sometimes Intro refuses to come to the foreground after a while if the display time is set to "Keypress". I'm not sure why this is, and it's hard to nail it because it's so intermittent. If it is a problem, you can always set Display Time to 5 seconds, and press a key when you want the picture to go away. * Cyclic Picture and / or Cyclic Sound modes scan the specified directories before the program is run, storing the names of 50 files. If the names of these files change while Intro is running, an error may occur. To fix this, return to Intro and re-select the directories to refresh the file names stored. * Intro may be delayed if Update Lists = Auto in the system screen, and also if certain other programs are running. Programs known to affect Intro's response are Geoclock and JBActive (in foreground only) * If only sound is selected, Intro will not come into the foreground, and hence will not respond to the menu key. Choose "Exit Application" (DEL) from the system screen. * Intro can sometimes run out of memory when it is being used to browse files a lot. This is only a minor drawback, since the program basically does what it's supposed to, but the issue will be addressed in the future. If you find anything else wrong then please contact me, although I'm pretty confident it'll be allright. Registering Please feel free to use this program for a period of 30 days after receiving it. If you find it of some use then please register it with the author using one of the following two methods: Online: on CompuServe, use GO SWREG in conjunction with ID 14231. The fee for this service is 10.00 American Dollars, and you should receive your registration code as soon as I get notified of your contribution. Off-line: Send 5.00 UK Pounds to the following address: 36 Denman Drive Ashford Middlesex TW14 2AS United Kingdom Also please include your land or e-mail address as well as your full name so that I can send you the correct registration code. This method may take a little longer due to obvious reasons. Registration will remove the messages stating that the program is not registered, and display your name on starting the program. By registering you accept that the program conforms to your needs as evaluated in the 30 day "free" period. File Placement The files found in INTRO.ZIP should be copied to the following directories on your Psion or SSD. Intro.opa -> \APP directory (essential) Intro.pic -> \OPD directory (optional, recommended) Readme.txt -> \WRD directory (optional, recommended) Intro may be redistributed in its unregistered, unmodified state providing it is accompanied by all of the above files (plus HAYMNTNE.ZIP), also unmodified. Registered users will receive notification of updates to the program and requests for changes will be taken more seriously. If for some reason I'm no longer on-line, I can't accept responsibility for not replying to your messages.