ScreenView CGI allows you to view your server's screen from any computer on the Internet.
ScreenView CGI comes in two versions, 68k and PPC, and will run on any Macintosh running System 7.5 or later. Choose the version appropriate for your Macintosh.
QuickTime 2.0 or later is required, the CGI will still launch but the screenshot will not be taken if QuickTime is not installed.
Ideas For Use
• Webmasters can use ScreenView CGI to monitor their server activity from afar.
• Those of you with personal servers can use ScreenView CGI to show others how your server is set up.
• ScreenView CGI can be used to troubleshoot server problems from a distance.
• ScreenView CGI can be used to stream screenshots from one machine to another when called repeatedly.
• ScreenView CGI can be used to maintain daily screenshot logs of server activity and server load by capturing status screens.
Instructions
Place the ScreenView CGI in your CGI directory (or anywhere else you would like it placed). You can trigger it with the following HTML:
After clicking on the link the CGI will be launched by your web server, take a screenshot, save it as a JPG file (named screen.jpg) in the same folder as itself, and return the URL of the JPG.
If you want to add password protection to this CGI (a good idea, otherwise everyone can potentially look at your server!) you should make use of the password and realms features of your web server.
ScreenView CGI can use a lot of memory...actually...QuickTime can. The 2MB partition that it ships with should work on most monitors at 8-bits using a Normal to High image quality setting (see below). If you run your server monitor at a higher bit-depth (or have a LARGE monitor) you may need to give the application more memory. If the CGI seems to be running but no image is produced, this is most-likely the problem. TripleSoft Inc. recommends you run your server monitor at no more than 8-bit color for best results.
ScreenView CGI creates JPEG pictures at the same bit-depth of the monitor. You can select the image quality from the Image Quality popup menu in the main control window. The higher the quality, the more memory the program requires.
The response type popup menu allows you to select how ScreenView CGI returns the picture to your server and ultimately your browser. Selecting Redirect uses the standard redirection method. Selecting IMG SRC returns the URL of the JPG file itself as part of a new page. Selected META Refresh is uses Netscape's refresh option to return the image. META Refresh is the best option if you are using Netscape as your browser. The others can sometimes confuse the browser because even though the JPG file itself has changed some browsers REFUSE to reload it…even after pressing theie reload button. Go figure. TripleSoft Inc. recommends using Netscape and setting this option to META Refresh. Try holding the option key while clicking the Reload button in Netscape to flush the cache for that page and reload the image no matter what.
The Automatically quit x seconds after handling an AppleEvent option in the main ScreenView CGI window allows you to set an auto-quit timer. When this checkbox is checked, after the CGI fully handles an AppleEvent from your server, it will begin to count down. If the specified time passes and no other AppleEvents are received, the CGI will quit. If another AppleEvent is received, the counter will reset. The default value is enabled with a 15 second timeout. It is our thought that this CGI will be used sparingly by system administrators who simply want to check the status of their machines every so often, therefore a 15 second timeout is probably adequate for most users. You can adjust this timeout to anything you wish or disable it altogether, in which case, the program will never quit unless you select Quit from the File menu.
Changes to preferences take effect the next time the CGI is launched. Therefore, you must manually quit the CGI after making changes to the preferences.
Clicking on the "moon around the earth" icon in the controls window will force the CGI to take a screenshot. Using this, you can experiment with quality and memory settings without involving your server.
If you hear a "beep" during the picture taking process it means a problem occurred and a picture was not taken. This is most likely caused by lack of memory. Future versions may contain a log file option.
Version History
ScreenView 1.0b1 • 7-AUG-96
- Initial Public Release
Shareware
ScreenView CGI is $15 shareware. If you use it for more than 7 days please remit payment to TripleSoft Inc. All registered users will receive a free update to the final version 1.0 when it is released. Updates can always be found on the TripleSoft Inc. web site at <http://www.triplesoft.com/>
TripleSoft Inc.
P.O. Box 30774
Raleigh, NC 27622
(919) 872-0916 voice/fax
http://www.triplesoft.com/
screenview@triplesoft.com
Bugs?
If you find what you think might be a bug please submit a bug report to screenview@triplesoft.com. Include the version of ScreenView CGI, the make and model of your Macintosh, the system version, server make and version, list of other programs (server and CGIs) running on the machine, list of system extensions and control panels, amount of memory in the Macintosh, and any other pertinent information you can think of. If we can reproduce it, we will do our best to fix it.
Legal
ScreenView CGI (the program) is provided AS-IS with no warranty expressed or implied. You use it entirely at your own risk. TripleSoft Inc., its officers and employees will not be held responsible for any damage caused directly or indirectly by this software. If you do not agree to this you should not execute the program on any computer(s).
