Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!solo.csci.unt.edu!vaxb.acs.unt.edu!vaxb.acs.unt.edu!news From: wright@etsuv2.etsu.edu (BRIAN WRIGHT) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc Subject: Re: KS2.0 release Message-ID: <1991Jun1.223919.47217@vaxb.acs.unt.edu> Date: 2 Jun 91 02:45:45 GMT Reply-To: wright@etsuv2.etsu.edu Organization: East Texas State University Lines: 111 Nntp-Posting-Host: etsuv2.etsu.edu In article , arctngnt@amiganet.chi.il.us (Bowie J Poag) writes... > >2.0 roms will be released in 3rd quater, aye? That's a good question that only Commodore can answer. >You forgot to add on a +2 months to that.. I wouldnt be surprised if I waited >until late December or early '92 till I saw the final burnins. > >As for current Workbench, I have Version 37_47...Cosmetically, its great. >Though I DO have a few unexplained gurus, and a few minor gripings. > >For example: When I use JrCOmm 1.01, And the screen flashes (for beeps) it >sometimes leaves the Workbench screen is like a freeze-frame. It screws up the >color pallete, for instance, leaving my Workbench screen a lovely puke yellow >instead of returning back to marble-blue theway I like it.. JrComm doesn't like 2.0 too much. I prefer VLT for VT100 connection, that's just personal preference. It is completely 2.0 compatible, though (VLT, that is.) >The font editor on the Extras disk chops off pieces of the icon if you >arrow-click their position to move out of the screen, and back into view. Font editor? I think you mean Icon editor. Font editors don't normally save and load icons. The icon editor program has always done this. Of course, if you have the icon visible you can just drag and drop the icon over the window and it will replace it with the current icon that you are editing so that if you have accidentally trashed the imagery with arrows, you can easily replace it. Also, as far as I know, 2.0 doesn't have a font editor, yet. I am still waiting for it. >The workbench itself. Everytime I load it, I remove the Workbench Backdrop.. >(Up in the menu).. The backdrop itself is essentially useless, since there are >utilities for workbench scrolling on the disk (for having super-bitmap >workbenches, and stuff..) ...Super-bitmap Workbench screens also look better >than a Backdrop, plus theyre faster... There is a pref called WBConfig that allows you to either put the WB into Backdrop ON or OFF mode as you specify on bootup. >Would be cool if the "loadwb" command could have some subcommands to it, so >instead of just "loadwb" yu could have "loadwb nobackdrop" instead, to >automatically cancel the creation of a backdrop. Or perhaps just enter it as a >Parameter setting, if you want a Backdrop on or off during bootup. Not necessary, see above. >Easier access to adding commands to the Tools menu of Workbench. Ive got quite >a list of things id like to chuck in there, and there is no Utility to do this >from inside Workbench, OR on the Extras disk.. So ive resorted to scanning my >local BBS'es for utility programs that let you add selection to the Tools >menu.. So far, these programs have been poorly made, and badly documented. Get Stefan Becker's Toolmanager 1.3. It will allow you to add tools to the Tools menu via a text config file. It is neither poorly documented, nor poorly made. Check out ab20 or your local BBS for this program. >Make 2.0 a modifyablee wonderland. Make a whole load of commands in the >Workbench menu. Toolmanager does just this. If you need a power menu with icons you can get AmiDock that will give you a NeXT style Dock on your Workbench or Default screen. 2.0 is VERY congifurable. With all the preferences programs included you can change LOADS of things about the Workbench. Also, the CX programs that are now coming out at some very interesting things to the OS. >The Macintosh has D/A Mover..Where you can access programs anywhere by opening >a menu.. Would be cool if you could teach Workbench to lookfor a specific >directory on adisk like "stuff"....Whatever program you copied into the >"stuff" directory would appear in a menu from the Workbench screen, or >anywhere else for that matter. The only problem with this suggestion is that this drawer might get very cluttered with all different types of programs. Think about this. You might add a Word Processor, a Paint program, A Comm program, etc etc. It's kinda useless to have them on two places on your disk just to have the entry in your Tools menu. Just use a text based config file that you can edit to allow entries into your Tools menu like ToolManager does. As for M*C's font/DA mover idea. No, this won't work on the Amiga. With programs like ClickDOS, Diskmaster, and CLImate etc etc, you can move things around with MUCH more ease than Font/DA mover ever could. As for the comparison between the DA on the M*C and the Tools menu entry on the Amiga, there is none. The Tools menu under 2.0 holds much MORE flexibility than the D/A menu ever can. ToolManager let's you add and remove entries on the fly just by dropping an Icon in TM's appicon that it places on WB. You don't increase the size of ANYTHING by placing an entry into ToolManager. The Tool entry is only a pointer to a place where your program actually is. This contrasts the D/A in that the D/A is a type of program that resides within the system file increasing the size of that file. Only certain files are D/As where ANYTHING can be an entry in the Tool menu. >Just some ideas. > >And remember, when finalizing the 2.04 roms. ALWAYS make room for Jell-O >Arc I won't go into the 'only A3000 owners or developers should have 2.0' speil, but if you are an A2000 or A500 owner running 2.0 it would be nice if you at least you had a full release version of it. This makes 2.0 look like it's missing things, when in reality you are missing things from the version you have (WBConfig for example). ToolManager (as far as I know) is not being distributed on the OS disks, but is very easy to get ahold of. -------------------------------------------------------------- Brian Wright wright%etsuvax2@ricevm1.rice.edu or wright@etsuvax2.bitnet -------------------------------------------------------------- Standard Disclaimer... not my words and all that jazz.