OtherMenu is an extension that creates a system-wide hierarchical menu somewhat similar to the Apple menu. It can be used for launching applications and documents, restart and shut down, various file management functions, and executing FKEYs. It requires System 7. OtherMenu takes up a minimum of about 14K of system memory, but uses more depending on the length of the menu and the number of submenus.
The first time you start your Mac with OtherMenu installed, OtherMenu creates a folder named OtherMenu Folder inside your System Folder. You will see a menu whose title is a round icon to the left of the help menu. Initially, the menu will contain only one item, “About OtherMenu…”, which can be used to read this documentation.
Operation
Release the mouse button over any menu item. Applications, documents, control panels and desk accessories are launched. Folders are opened in Finder. FKEYs and OtherMenu externals are executed.
Configuration
The contents of OtherMenu’s menu is determined by the contents of the OtherMenu Folder, just as the contents of the Apple menu is determined by the contents of the Apple Menu Items folder. All files and aliases placed in the OtherMenu Folder become OtherMenu menu items. And unlike the Apple menu, you can put in folders, and aliases of folders and volumes, to create submenus up to 5 levels deep.
You can modify the order of menu items by adding special characters to the beginnings of their names. The first ordinary character in the Macintosh character set, the space, is particularly useful. I also like ◊, or shift-option-v, which comes very late in the order. Do not begin a file name with a period. To make a dividing line in the menu, create a folder with any name ending in “-***”.
OtherMenu’s menu will appear just as the contents of the OtherMenu Folder appear in “Name” view in Finder, alphabetically, by level. For example, if the contents of the OtherMenu Folder look like this,
then the menu will look like this:
If you select “About OtherMenu” with the shift key held down, you will see a dialog that controls several settings. The Startup Icon checkbox determines whether OtherMenu displays an icon during the startup process. The “Size of menu cache” control determines how many submenus will be cached; higher values get you speedier response at the expense of some system memory. Changes in the cache setting only take effect at startup time. The remaining controls affect the behavior of submenus, and they affect all software, not just OtherMenu. The “appearance delay” allows you to drag down a menu without submenus appearing and disappearing as you go past them, and the “drag delay” allows you to drag diagonally from a menu item to an item on a submenu without the submenu disappearing too quickly. These delays are the same parameters affected by Carlos Weber’s MenuTuner control panel, but OtherMenu maintains the new values actively instead of changing the standard values in PRAM. The numbers are in units of 1/60 seconds. Note that since the changes take effect immediately, you can try them out on the menu before dismissing the dialog.
OtherMenu Externals
OtherMenu has code modules, similar to FKEYs, of file type '*Cmd', '*CMD', or '*Sub'. They use system memory and can be placed in the menu and executed with less overhead than applications. '*Sub's have their own submenus, while the other types do not. You need not install the full set of externals. If you hold the shift key while selecting an external, it will display an About box, which can allow for adjustment of settings, or might just show the version number. If you are a programmer, you can write your own externals. Sample code is available as a separate “OtherMenu Developer Kit” from some of the same sources as OtherMenu, such as CompuServe, America Online, and bigbird.csd.scarolina.edu.
About FKEYs
An FKEY is a small program without a full user interface that performs a simple task and quits. When you press command-shift-3 to take a screen snapshot, you are executing an FKEY installed in the System file. You can place FKEY files, and aliases to FKEY files, in the OtherMenu Folder, and use the menu to execute them. Such files should have file type 'FKEY', and contain exactly one resource of type 'FKEY', plus possibly resources of other types.
Modal Dialogs
Usually, you don't have much freedom of action when the front window is a modal dialog. You know, the kind of window that has a border like this:
You can’t switch to another application, and you can’t even switch to another window within the same application. Yet, you can use OtherMenu to execute externals and FKEYs while a modal dialog is showing. This freedom entails some risk, because the programmers who wrote your applications and other extensions probably didn’t anticipate that you could do such a thing. In fact my own programs Open-wide and Dialog View were only recently made compatible with showing a directory dialog on top of another directory dialog.
Directory Dialogs
Directory dialogs (Open and Save dialogs) are a special kind of modal dialog, and as such the previous section applies to them. However, OtherMenu has another use within these dialogs: You can use OtherMenu to select a folder to be displayed in the directory dialog. In the case of Open dialogs, you can select a file (other than an external or FKEY) to make that file become selected in the Open dialog. If OtherMenu fails to select the file you asked it to select, it will beep. This can happen if you select a file that is not the right type for that Open dialog, or if the folder contains many files that start with the same letter. The “rebound” feature in Super Boomerang or similar utilities may interfere with file selection, but not folder selection.
Tips For Running OtherMenu
In some cases, there may not be enough room on the menu bar for all of an application’s menus plus the system menus. OtherMenu will be the first to disappear. You may want to use a utility such as MICN or Cram Bar (freeware) or Menuette (shareware) to lessen menu-bar crowding.
OtherMenu launches files other than applications, desk accessories, FKEYs, and OtherMenu externals by telling Finder to open the file. When this happens, Finder will momentarily come to the foreground. If there is not enough memory to open the file, Finder will display an alert box telling you about the problem.
Many of the functions of OtherMenu and its externals require that Finder be running. OtherMenu can launch applications (including Finder itself), but not documents, when Finder is not running.
Before you ask: No, you can’t assign keyboard equivalents to items in OtherMenu’s menu, even with QuicKeys.
Shareware Fee
The shareware registration fee for OtherMenu is US$10 per copy. An individual with several computers need only pay for one copy. Please pay by personal check, international postal money order, or cash in U.S. funds, sent to the address listed below. (I understand that it is illegal to mail cash in some countries, but not in the U.S.) When you register, tell me your e-mail address if you have one.
James W. Walker
3200 Heyward Street
Columbia, SC 29205
CompuServe users can register online. GO SWREG; the ID is 1208.
I do not claim that I can or will enforce the shareware fee. But the more payments I receive, the more likely I am to make further enhancements to OtherMenu. If you have any feature requests, I will be much more likely to listen to you if you have paid.
For a separate fee of US $5, registered users may request a disk containing the latest version of the OtherMenu software. Rumor has it that future Macs may be able to read 720K disks but not 800K disks, so you’d better tell me what kind of disk you need.
Distribution
OtherMenu may not be sold or offered for sale, or included with another software product offered for sale, except with the express written permission of the author. The author’s failure to give permission promptly should not be taken as consent. Companies that distribute public domain/freeware/shareware software for profit are expressly prohibited from distributing OtherMenu. This restriction does not apply to bulletin boards, commercial on-line services such as America Online, CompuServe and GEnie, and nonprofit Macintosh user groups which hold regularly scheduled public meetings.
No warranty
OtherMenu uses some undocumented techniques. Use it at your own risk.
Author’s address
I can be reached by e-mail at the following addresses. For a regular mail address, see the Shareware section above.
CompuServe: 76367,2271
America Online: JWWalker
Internet: walkerj@math.scarolina.edu
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Susan Lesch for helpful feedback, testing, and user interface assistance during the development of OtherMenu, and to Leonard Rosenthol for programming tips and assistance with some externals.
