Chapter 3: Getting Started

This section discusses the basic operations required to run BackWeb on your computer.

Customizing BackWeb

Starting a BackWeb Session

Once BackWeb is downloaded and installed on your PC, it automatically runs at system startup. The BackWeb icon appears on the right hand side of the taskbar (notification area).

You do not need to open the BackWeb window to activate BackWeb. Once BackWeb is running and the BackWeb icon appears in the taskbar, BackWeb will automatically download and/or display InfoPaks according to its current configuration. You need to open the window only to change your BackWeb configuration, add/delete channels or play InfoPaks manually.

Opening the BackWeb Window

Double click the BackWeb icon to open the BackWeb window.

The BackWeb window consists of four parts:

Channel Selector area

Channel Info area

InfoPak List

The BackWeb logo

Undisplayed Graphic

The BackWeb Window

The BackWeb window is used to monitor and control the operation of BackWeb.

The Channel Selector Area

The Channel Selector area displays a list of all the channels to which you are registered and a button enabling you to add a channel to the list. The last item in the Channel Selector area is “View All InfoPaks”, which displays all InfoPaks in the InfoPak List. Selecting a channel causes the InfoPak List to display the list of InfoPaks for this channel.

To the left of the channel may be one of the following symbols:

x The channel is currently not receiving new InfoPaks.

>> The current download is from this channel.

The Channel Info Area

The Channel Info Area displays the logo, Web page and status of the selected channel.

Undisplayed Graphic

You can click the following hot spots in the Channel Info Area:

Click the Web page to access the selected channel’s web page.

Click the CHANNEL OPTIONS button to specify the channel properties that most suit your needs in terms of connection to the Internet, display on your screen, and storage on your hard disk.

Click the DELETE CHANNEL button to remove the channel from your channel list.

The InfoPak List

The InfoPak List displays a list of all the InfoPaks that have been downloaded and currently reside on your computer. The InfoPaks displayed are from the selected channel in the Channel Selector area or from all of the channels if “View All InfoPaks” is selected. The display is organized in columns containing the properties of the InfoPak.

To the left of the InfoPak may be the >> symbol, indicating that the InfoPak is active.

The BackWeb Logo

Click the BackWeb logo to access BackWeb’s home page in the World Wide Web.

Drop-Down Menus

BackWeb provides the following drop-down menus from the menu bar:

File. Provides access to the BackWeb home page, allows you to view download status, allows you to shut down BackWeb and close the BackWeb window.

Preferences. Allows you to start and stop the auto-player, suspend downloading of InfoPaks and define the setup parameters for BackWeb.

Channel. Enables you to register to channels by specifying their address or using the Channel Directory, open a channel's Web page, enable or disable or delete a channel, or view its properties.

InfoPak. Enables you to replay the previously played InfoPak, play or stop playing a selected InfoPak, remove the current BackWeb wallpaper, save, delete and view the properties of an InfoPak.

Help. Provides access to Help information and allows you to quickly set up BackWeb.

Pop-Up Menus (Right-Click Menus)

Pop-up menus can be accessed by positioning the cursor on an object and clicking on the right mouse button. These objects include the BackWeb icon in the taskbar, a channel or InfoPak in the BackWeb window, and an InfoFlash being played. Pop-up menus include common, frequently used commands specific to the object being clicked on.

The Status Bar

The Status Bar of the BackWeb window displays a short help about the selected command.

Customizing BackWeb

When using BackWeb, there are several questions that you should address. What is the maximum amount of disk space you would like to allocate for InfoPaks? Do you want BackWeb to change your own background wallpaper automatically? Do you want to receive audio InfoPaks?

These and other questions can be determined by using the BackWeb window to:

Add channels and delete them.

Enable and disable interaction with channels.

Set up channel properties, such as display types and disk space.

Monitor and control downloading of InfoPaks.

Control various InfoPak parameters, such as automatic playing.

Play InfoPaks manually, stop running InfoPaks and mark InfoPaks as “keep” to disable the automatic delete.

Delete InfoPaks.

Suspend BackWeb activities (download and automatic playing).

Connection Settings

To define the connection communication settings, choose Global Options from the Preferences menu. Click the Connection tab and a dialog box will appear.

In the dialog box there are three communications parameters that you can set:

Internet Connection. Select either a Permanent (Local Area Network) or Dial-up modem connection to indicate the type of Internet connection you use.

Clicking the Advanced button displays the Advanced Settings dialog box.

The Advanced Settings dialog box allow you to choose between the following:

BackWeb selects the UDP port automatically.

You can define the UDP port that the client will use when communicating with the BackWeb channels. This option is provided for the user whose network contains a Firewall. In this case, choose a port and ask your system administrator to configure the Firewall to allow UDP communication to the chosen port number.

Dial-Up Schedule. If you use a dial-up connection, you may select either to use your existing dial-up times to download InfoPaks, or specify a dial-up schedule especially for BackWeb. Press the Dial-Up Schedule button to specify a dial up schedule. The BackWeb Dial-Up Times dialog box will appear.

Define a dial-up schedule by checking the connection days and specifying hours when BackWeb should automatically initiate an Internet connection. BackWeb allows you to enter a Name for your connection which you may decide to name after your Internet Service Provider, for example, UUNET.

The following options are available:

Setting up a new connection.

Using an existing connection (chosen from the list of connections in the Connection Name field).

Modifying an existing connection using the Properties and User buttons.

Setting redial parameters using the Redial button.

For more information on defining and modifying dial-up connections, refer to your Windows 95 or Windows NT documentation.

Network Priority. This option allows you to change the priority of BackWeb in relation to other networking applications. BackWeb can be set to give higher priority to other networking applications, utilizing the network when it is free, so as not to interfere with the processing of other network applications. When using the network normally, BackWeb assigns itself the same priority as other network applications.

Storage

To control the amount of disk space used for storing InfoPaks on your hard disk, choose Global Options from the Preferences menu. Click the Storage tab and a dialog box will appear.

In the dialog box, specify how many MB of disk space you wish to allocate for the InfoPaks received from each channel. This amount can be changed at any time for any channel using the Properties item in the Channel menu.

The total disk space allowed for all of the channels is automatically calculated and displayed.

Changing the amount of disk space will affect existing channels if they are configured to use the default disk quota.

InfoFlashes & Audio

To control the display frequency of InfoFlash and audio message InfoPaks, select Global Options from the Preferences menu. Click the InfoFlashes & Audio tab and a dialog box will appear.

In the dialog box the following settings can be customized:

Automatic Playing - Specify if you would like to play InfoFlashes and/or audio messages automatically.

Playing Frequency

Specify the minimum time interval (in minutes) between InfoFlashes or audio messages. An InfoFlash or audio message will not be automatically played until the specified time has elapsed.

Specify the time interval (in seconds) that the keyboard and mouse have to be idle before an InfoFlash or audio message is played.

Sound - If checked, BackWeb enables sound in InfoFlashes. If unchecked, InfoFlashes play silently, and automatic playing is disabled for audio messages.

Screen Savers

To control the interaction with screen saver InfoPaks, select Global Options from the Preferences menu. Click the Screen Savers tab and a dialog box will appear.

Use the dialog box to customize the following screen saver options:

Automatic Playing. Check to use BackWeb screen savers in place of your system screen savers.

Interaction. With conventional screen savers, a mouse movement or click causes the screen saver to disappear, enabling you to continue working. BackWeb supports this option, but you may, if you prefer, allow mouse interaction with screen saver InfoPaks.

Pressing F1 in the BackWeb screen saver terminates the screen saver without terminating the InfoPak; this allows you to interact with the InfoPak even if you selected the “Exit the screen saver” option.

If you set up your system to request a password before exiting the screen saver, pressing the F1 key is the only way to interact with the screen saver InfoPak, because mouse movements will terminate the screen saver and display the password pop-up window regardless of the setting in “Interaction”.

Sound. Enable or disable sound in screen savers.

Wallpapers

To control wallpaper InfoPaks, select Global Options from the Preferences menu. Click the Wallpapers tab and a dialog box will appear.

Use the dialog box to customize the following wallpaper options:

Replacement Policy. Specify if you want the wallpaper to be replaced automatically by BackWeb and how often it should be replaced.

Idle Time. Specify how long the keyboard and mouse have to be idle for the wallpaper to be replaced.

Adding a Channel

There are several ways to add a channel:

At the channel provider’s Web site (recommended).

Directly through the BackWeb Window by specifying an IP address or host name of a BackWeb server on the Internet.

For your convenience, BackWeb provides an updated list of channels by accessing the BackWeb channel directory list which is maintained at the BackWeb Web site at www.backweb.com. From this list you can directly access the channel’s Web site and subscribe from there.

These options are discussed in more detail in Chapter 4.

Controlling & Interacting With InfoPaks

The BackWeb window allows you to do the following:

Control various InfoPak parameters, such as the frequency with which InfoFlashes are displayed. Refer to Customizing BackWeb earlier in this chapter.

Play specified InfoPaks.

Stop or pause the currently running InfoFlash or audio message.

Delete InfoPaks or mark them as “keep”.

View more information on InfoPaks.

These options are discussed in Chapter 5.

Closing the BackWeb Window

To close the BackWeb window, choose Close Window from the File menu or click the Close button on the BackWeb window.

Viewing Download Status

You can view the status of downloads in progress by selecting Download Status from the File menu. The Downloads In Progress window will display, with the following information about the InfoPaks being downloaded:

The InfoPak’s Channel name.

InfoPak name and type.

The percentage of the InfoPak already downloaded.

Total size of the InfoPak.

Download start time.

You can abort the downloading process by pressing the ABORT DOWNLOAD hot spot at the bottom.

A message informing you of BackWeb network usage appears at the bottom right of the window. Possible status messages are:

Set to Full Speed. BackWeb is set in the Global Options to utilize the network normally (this means other network applications may be slowed down).

Not Downloading. There is no download activity.

None. The Polite Agent detected network activity and stopped BackWeb’s network utilization.

Reduced Speed. The Polite Agent detected a momentary lull in network activity and utilizes the bandwidth to download InfoPaks.

Full Speed. The Polite Agent detected no network activity and is downloading InfoPaks utilizing full bandwidth.

Suspending & Resuming Downloading

Suspending downloading of InfoPaks allows you to pause the downloading of InfoPaks without actually disabling BackWeb for the current session. While downloading is suspended no downloading of updated InfoPaks takes place. The BackWeb icon center changes to black in the taskbar notification area.

To suspend the downloading of InfoPaks, choose Suspend Downloading from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.

To restart downloading, choose Resume Downloading from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.

Stopping & Restarting the Auto-Player

The BackWeb auto-player can be stopped and restarted to allow you to suspend the viewing of InfoPaks temporarily. Downloading of InfoPaks continues even when the auto-player is stopped, but no InfoPaks appear on your screen. A crossed-out BackWeb icon appears in the taskbar notification area.

To stop the auto-player, choose Stop Auto-Player from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.

To restart the auto-player, choose Start Auto-Player from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.

While the auto-player is stopped you can manually play InfoPaks.

Shutting Down & Restarting BackWeb

Shutting down BackWeb disables the BackWeb agent from running on your computer for the current session. When shut down, the BackWeb icon disappears from the taskbar notification area, no InfoPaks appear on your screen, and no downloading of InfoPaks takes place.

To shut down BackWeb, choose Shutdown from the File menu. Click OK to confirm BackWeb shutdown.

To restart BackWeb:

1. Click the Start button in the taskbar.

2. In the Start menu, choose Programs.

3. In the submenu that appears, choose BackWeb.

4. In the BackWeb submenu, choose BackWeb.

Uninstalling BackWeb

To uninstall BackWeb:

1. Click the Start button in the taskbar.

2. In the Start menu, choose Settings.
3. Click the Control Panel.

4. Click the Add/Remove Programs.

5. Choose BackWeb from the list.

6. Click on the Add/Remove button to uninstall BackWeb.

	Channel Selector area
	Channel Info area
	InfoPak List
	The BackWeb logo

	x The channel is currently not receiving new InfoPaks.
	>> The current download is from this channel.

	Click the Web page to access the selected channel’s web page.
	Click the CHANNEL OPTIONS button to specify the channel properties that most suit your needs in terms of connection to the Internet, display on your screen, and storage on your hard disk.
	Click the DELETE CHANNEL button to remove the channel from your channel list.

	File. Provides access to the BackWeb home page, allows you to view download status, allows you to shut down BackWeb and close the BackWeb window.
	Preferences. Allows you to start and stop the auto-player, suspend downloading of InfoPaks and define the setup parameters for BackWeb.
	Channel. Enables you to register to channels by specifying their address or using the Channel Directory, open a channel's Web page, enable or disable or delete a channel, or view its properties.
	InfoPak. Enables you to replay the previously played InfoPak, play or stop playing a selected InfoPak, remove the current BackWeb wallpaper, save, delete and view the properties of an InfoPak.
	Help. Provides access to Help information and allows you to quickly set up BackWeb.

	Add channels and delete them.
	Enable and disable interaction with channels.
	Set up channel properties, such as display types and disk space.
	Monitor and control downloading of InfoPaks.
	Control various InfoPak parameters, such as automatic playing.
	Play InfoPaks manually, stop running InfoPaks and mark InfoPaks as “keep” to disable the automatic delete.
	Delete InfoPaks.
	Suspend BackWeb activities (download and automatic playing).

	Internet Connection. Select either a Permanent (Local Area Network) or Dial-up modem connection to indicate the type of Internet connection you use.
	Clicking the Advanced button displays the Advanced Settings dialog box.
	The Advanced Settings dialog box allow you to choose between the following:
	BackWeb selects the UDP port automatically.
	You can define the UDP port that the client will use when communicating with the BackWeb channels. This option is provided for the user whose network contains a Firewall. In this case, choose a port and ask your system administrator to configure the Firewall to allow UDP communication to the chosen port number.
	Dial-Up Schedule. If you use a dial-up connection, you may select either to use your existing dial-up times to download InfoPaks, or specify a dial-up schedule especially for BackWeb. Press the Dial-Up Schedule button to specify a dial up schedule. The BackWeb Dial-Up Times dialog box will appear.
	Define a dial-up schedule by checking the connection days and specifying hours when BackWeb should automatically initiate an Internet connection. BackWeb allows you to enter a Name for your connection which you may decide to name after your Internet Service Provider, for example, UUNET.
	The following options are available:
	Setting up a new connection.
	Using an existing connection (chosen from the list of connections in the Connection Name field).
	Modifying an existing connection using the Properties and User buttons.
	Setting redial parameters using the Redial button.
	For more information on defining and modifying dial-up connections, refer to your Windows 95 or Windows NT documentation.
	Network Priority. This option allows you to change the priority of BackWeb in relation to other networking applications. BackWeb can be set to give higher priority to other networking applications, utilizing the network when it is free, so as not to interfere with the processing of other network applications. When using the network normally, BackWeb assigns itself the same priority as other network applications.

	Automatic Playing - Specify if you would like to play InfoFlashes and/or audio messages automatically.
	Playing Frequency
	Specify the minimum time interval (in minutes) between InfoFlashes or audio messages. An InfoFlash or audio message will not be automatically played until the specified time has elapsed.
	Specify the time interval (in seconds) that the keyboard and mouse have to be idle before an InfoFlash or audio message is played.
	Sound - If checked, BackWeb enables sound in InfoFlashes. If unchecked, InfoFlashes play silently, and automatic playing is disabled for audio messages.

	Automatic Playing. Check to use BackWeb screen savers in place of your system screen savers.
	Interaction. With conventional screen savers, a mouse movement or click causes the screen saver to disappear, enabling you to continue working. BackWeb supports this option, but you may, if you prefer, allow mouse interaction with screen saver InfoPaks.
	Pressing F1 in the BackWeb screen saver terminates the screen saver without terminating the InfoPak; this allows you to interact with the InfoPak even if you selected the “Exit the screen saver” option.

	Replacement Policy. Specify if you want the wallpaper to be replaced automatically by BackWeb and how often it should be replaced.
	Idle Time. Specify how long the keyboard and mouse have to be idle for the wallpaper to be replaced.

	At the channel provider’s Web site (recommended).
	Directly through the BackWeb Window by specifying an IP address or host name of a BackWeb server on the Internet.

	Control various InfoPak parameters, such as the frequency with which InfoFlashes are displayed. Refer to Customizing BackWeb earlier in this chapter.
	Play specified InfoPaks.
	Stop or pause the currently running InfoFlash or audio message.
	Delete InfoPaks or mark them as “keep”.
	View more information on InfoPaks.

	The InfoPak’s Channel name.
	InfoPak name and type.
	The percentage of the InfoPak already downloaded.
	Total size of the InfoPak.
	Download start time.

	Set to Full Speed. BackWeb is set in the Global Options to utilize the network normally (this means other network applications may be slowed down).
	Not Downloading. There is no download activity.
	None. The Polite Agent detected network activity and stopped BackWeb’s network utilization.
	Reduced Speed. The Polite Agent detected a momentary lull in network activity and utilizes the bandwidth to download InfoPaks.
	Full Speed. The Polite Agent detected no network activity and is downloading InfoPaks utilizing full bandwidth.

	To suspend the downloading of InfoPaks, choose Suspend Downloading from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.
	To restart downloading, choose Resume Downloading from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.

	To stop the auto-player, choose Stop Auto-Player from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.
	To restart the auto-player, choose Start Auto-Player from the Preferences menu or from the BackWeb icon’s pop-up menu.
	While the auto-player is stopped you can manually play InfoPaks.

	To shut down BackWeb, choose Shutdown from the File menu. Click OK to confirm BackWeb shutdown.
	To restart BackWeb:
	1. Click the Start button in the taskbar.
	2. In the Start menu, choose Programs.
	3. In the submenu that appears, choose BackWeb.
	4. In the BackWeb submenu, choose BackWeb.

1.	Click the Start button in the taskbar.
2.	In the Start menu, choose Settings.
3.	Click the Control Panel.
4.	Click the Add/Remove Programs.
5.	Choose BackWeb from the list.
6.	Click on the Add/Remove button to uninstall BackWeb.