Greg's Browser requires System 7 and Color QuickDraw. If you aren't sure whether your Mac meets these requirements, just double click on the Browser icon. If the Browser doesn't support your Mac, it will bring up a dialog box saying so and exit gracefully.
SETUP:
You can put the Browser anywhere you want on your hard disk. Although the Browser is implemented as a control panel, it does not need to patch the system or load any code at startup, and so there is no reason to put it in your "Control Panels" folder. For convenience, you might want to put the Browser (or an alias to it) in your "Startup Items" or "Apple Menu Items" folders or on your desktop.
Think of the Browser as a single-window mini-application that runs within the Finder. As such, you launch the Browser as normal by double clicking its icon (or selecting "Open" from the "File" menu or choosing the Browser in your Apple menu), and you exit the Browser by clicking its close box (or selecting "Close" from the "File" menu).
SELECTING FILES:
To select a file or folder, just click once on its name in the file lists. If you select a folder, the Browser will display its contents in the file list immediately to the right, sliding all the file lists to the left to make room if necessary. You can select multiple files at once by holding down <shift> while clicking. At the bottom left of the window, the Browser displays the full-size icon, name, and "kind" of your current selection. Please note that this full-size icon is much more than just an aesthetic feature; read the "Bookmarks" section below to see what you can do with it.
Double clicking on an entry in the file list will open the selected files or folders just as if you were in the Finder. If you hold down <option> while double clicking, the Browser will do a "Get Info..." on the selected files, and if you hold down <control> while double clicking, the Browser will highlight the selected files in the Finder (opening the window containing them if it is not already open).
To move back up through the folder hierarchy, click on the title box above one of the file lists. If you click and release quickly, the file lists will slide to the right one position. If you hold the mouse down, a menu will pop up letting you choose how far you want to move up the folder structure. When you release the mouse, the Browser will slide the file lists right repeatedly until it displays the folder you selected.
BOOKMARKS:
The row of icons at the top of the window and the trash icon at the lower right act as "bookmarks", letting you jump quickly to a file or folder that you use frequently. To add a new bookmark, drag the large icon from the lower left of the window and drop it on one of the empty positions at the top. You can move or delete a bookmark (except the Desktop and Trash bookmarks) by dragging it to a new position or away from the top row.
If you click once on a bookmark, the Browser will jump to the corresponding position in the file lists. If you double click a Bookmark, the Browser will open the bookmark file as if you had double clicked it in the Finder. Note that double clicking will also jump to the bookmark position in the file lists (since to click twice, you must first click once).
If you hold down <command> while clicking a bookmark, the Browser will open the bookmark file without changing the file lists. Similarly, <option>-clicking a bookmark will do a "Get Info...", and <control>-clicking will highlight the bookmark file in the Finder (opening the window containing it if it is not already open), both without changing the file lists.
If you drag the large icon from the lower left of the window and drop it onto a folder bookmark, the Browser will move the selected files into that folder. In particular, this lets you move files to the trash. If you hold down <option> while dragging, the Browser will copy the files instead, just like in the Finder. The only exception is if you hold down <option> while dragging files to the trash, in which case the files will be moved, NOT copied.
Similarly, if you drag and drop the large icon onto an application bookmark, the Browser will open the selected files using that application. In particular, you can install bookmarks for various drag and drop mini-applications such as "Stuffit Expander", AppleScript™ Droplets, or the many applications that let you change the file type, creator, and Finder flags.
USING THE KEYBOARD:
Most of the functions of the Browser are available via the keyboard. You can jump quickly to a file in the active file list by typing the first few letters of its name, and you can move around the file lists using the four arrow keys. You can also use the scrolling keys on the extended keyboard, and those of us without extended keyboards can use the numeric keypad instead (2, 4, 6, 8 duplicate the arrow keys, while 1, 7, 9, 3 are <Home>, <End>, <PgUp>, and <PgDn>). For compatibility with dialog boxes, pressing <tab> and <shift>-<tab> are the same as pressing the right and left arrows respectively. Pressing <esc> or <clear> will slide the file lists right by one position, pressing <delete> will move the selected files to the trash, and pressing <return> will open the selected files. If you hold down <option> or <control> while pressing <return>, the Browser will do a "Get Info..." on the selected files or highlight the selected files in the Finder respectively.
RESIZING THE WINDOW:
If you click on the grow box in the lower right corner of the Browser window, you can drag the dotted outline to resize the window both vertically and horizontally. At its smallest size, the Browser has three file lists, each displaying only four files. At its largest, the Browser can display four file lists (taking up the whole width of the standard 13" or 14" monitor) each containing as many files as the size of your screen permits. Please note that if you want to extend the Browser window to show four file lists, you must resize it as
wide as possible; otherwise, it will automatically snap back to three file lists.
PREFERENCES:
⁄ Show Invisible Files
When this box is checked, the Browser will show files that have their invisible bit set. Such files, which include desktop databases, custom folder icons, and the famed "AppleShare PDS", do not appear in Finder windows. Note that you cannot move, copy, or trash these files.
⁄ Confirm <delete> Key
When this box is checked, the Browser will put up a caution alert whenever you hit the <delete> key to move a folder to the trash. This is in case you press <delete> by accident. Although such mistakes can easily be undone by dragging the files out of the trash, it can be disconcerting to have your files magically disappear from their folder.
⁄ Slide Right Automatically
As you know, if you click on a folder in the right-most file list, all the file lists will slide left to make room for the subfolder. If you check this box, then the Browser will behave similarly when you click on a file in the left-most file list, sliding all the file lists right to make room for the parent folder. Some people prefer this as an alternative to clicking on a folder title box to move up through the folder heirarchy, while others find it confusing.
⁄ Display Splash Screen
When this box is checked, the Brower will put up its about box for two seconds when you launch it. This is as close as I get to the proverbial "Annoying Shareware Message".
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTONS:
Q: Could you put in a quick way to open the Browser, such as a menu bar icon or hot key?
A: No, since I do not want to patch the system or run in the background. However, if you use the shareware control panel "AppDock", it will open the Browser automatically if you hold down the option key while clicking on the AppDock tile in the dock. Another solution is to put the Browser (or an alias) in your Apple Menu Items folder.
Q: Can I change the font used in the Browser window?
A: Yes. The Browser uses the same font that the Finder uses in its windows and on the desktop. You can change this font with the "Views" control panel.
Q: Those mini-icons are great! Can I design my own?
A: If you ask, I'll e-mail you a mini-icon editor that you can use with ResEdit. Send me your mini-masterpieces, and I'll put them in the Browser if I like them.
SHAREWARE:
Greg's Browser is shareware; it is NOT free. If you use it regularly for more than two weeks, you should complete the enclosed registration form and send it to me with your payment of US$10 or UK£6. You can also register online using CompuServe (in which case CompuServe gets 15% of the fee) by typing "GO SWREG". The registration ID for Greg's Browser is 1304.
I understand if you have trouble converting foreign currencies, are an impoverished student, or have trouble dealing with your company's bureaucracy, and if that is the case, then just try your best. From my previous experiences, I estimate that about 1 in 20 people registers the shareware that (s)he uses regularly, perhaps much less, so if you have ever wanted to rise above the rest of humanity, here is your chance!
I do not send out announcements of new versions, nor will I send you a floppy disk with the latest update. Please do not give me a disk and then complain when I do not respond. Sorry to sound so mean, but I'm a D.Phil. student in mathematics, not a software publisher. Although it does not seem like a big deal to mail a postcard or copy a floppy disk, it becomes a pain to have to do so for several people every day, particularly when I'm preparing for exams or writing a thesis. Also, the time I spend trying to run a business detracts from the time I spend programming.
On the other hand, I respond to nearly all e-mail, and I will e-mail a copy of the latest version in stuffit/binhex format to anybody who e-mails me a request. Unfortunately, the file is too big for the America Online/Internet e-mail gateway (I am told that the AOL gateway may now split large files, but I have not yet tried it).
Please note that although I plan to release new versions with significant enhancements and will attempt to fix problems that are brought to my attention, there is no guarantee that I will continue to support this product indefinitely. You should register because you think the copy currently sitting on your hard drive is worth the money, not in the expectation that I will fix the bug that is annoying you. If you have a complaint about this version, or worry that it might not support System 7.6.4 with QuickStep, AppleSeed, A.R.G.H., and PowerLunch, please do not register until I have addressed your concerns. In the interim, you can always drop me a note telling me what those concerns are and letting me know that you care.
DISTRIBUTION:
This software may be distributed via the InterNet archives, online services such as CompuServe, America Online, or AppleLink, user groups, BBSs, and informal transfers between friends. Any other means of distribution, such as including it on a CD-ROM, bundling it with a book or magazine, or selling it as a commercial shareware/public domain software distributer, requires the written consent of the author. Whenever this software is distributed, it must be distributed unaltered and as a complete package, including the registration form and this documentation file in full. Charges for distributing this software must not exceed a reasonable downloading cost or the price of the medium on which it is distributed.
DISCLAIMER:
Use this software, Greg's Browser, at your own risk. The author, Gregory D. Landweber, makes no claims as to the fitness of this software for any particular purpose other than taking up about 100k on your hard disk. The author's liability in case of damages caused by use or misuse of this software is limited to one tall glass of freshly pressed melon nectar, or the cash equivalent thereof. Don't sue!
