Copyright: Winview compiled by Neville White


Contents for Winview Help

Winview is a file viewer and launcher which shows all of the files on a disk that match a given file specification. It effectively "flattens" the directory structure for viewing purposes, which means that it is very useful for detecting duplicates of files in different directories (or drives), and cleaning up a redundant files

Changing the file specification

Copy to Clipboard

Deleting Files

Editing Files

Finding Files

Launching Files

Logging a Disk

Preferences

Changing the font

Views

Keyboard shortcuts

Limitations in the current edition

Features of version 1.1

Registration Details

Thanks to


Changing the file specification

You can use the tab keys to move the cursor to the file specification box in the top left hand corner of the screen. You must then change the specification as you wish, and press enter or tab in order to process the new file specification.

The '*' wild card may be used, but there is a limit to the valid formats which can be accepted. These are:

*.*

*.ext

name.*

nam*.*


Changing the Font

The font which Winview uses to display information in the view window may be changed by selecting the Set Font option from the Options menu. This provides a dialogue box which lists all of the fonts available on the system.

If you intend to use the Hex display option, you should choose a fixed pitch font rather than a proportional font. Proportional fonts will not produce properly spaced columns on the display.


Copy to Clipboard

This can be used to copy a selected portion of the text in the view window into the clipboard. You can select the text by dragging with the mouse or by using the keyboard. There will be no effect if you have not selected any text.

The keyboard shortcut  Ctrl+C or Ctrl+Ins can be used instead of the menu to copy the selection to the clipboard.


Deleting Files

This option can be selected from the File menu in order to delete the currently selected file from the hard disk. Normally a message will be sent asking you to confirm that you want to delete the highlighted file, but this message can be turned off from the Preferences menu option.

The keyboard shortcut  Ctrl+D can be used instead of the menu to delete the selected file.


Editing Files

Winview does not allow direct editing of files that are shown in the view window, but it is easy to launch your preferred editor with the currently highlighted file as the data file it will use. The default editor is Windows Write, as this is commonly available on all Windows installations.

The editor which is to be used may be changed to Notepad or an editor of your choice from the Preferences menu. Please note that it is the responsibility of the editor invoked to handle the file which is passed to it. Bear this in mind when choosing your editor!

The keyboard shortcut  Ctrl+E can be used instead of the menu to invoke the editor


Finding Files

It is easy to locate files using Winview. Simply type the file name (or fragment of the file name) in the filespec box and press enter. All of the files on the logged drive(s) that match the file specification will be displayed in the list box. As you highlight each file, the status bar shows the size, date and path to the highlighted file and it's contents is displayed in the view window.


Launching Files

If an executable file is highlighted a double click with the left mouse button or press of the enter key will launch the program.

If the highlighted file is associated with a particular program then the same actions will launch the associated program with the highlighted file as it's data file.

If there is no association a simple message will inform the user of this fact. Associations may be set up from the File Manager or by editing the 'associations' section of your win.ini file (although in the latter case you will need to restart windows for it to take effect).


Limitations in the current edition

List box limited to about 5400 files at the moment; due to the segmented architecture of 16 bit windows. I am working on a fix that will increase this limit somewhat.


Logging a Disk

In order to display the contents of a disk, Winview must first log that disk. When the program is launched it takes the drive that it is launched from as the default drive to be logged.

Winview will be happy to log floppy drives, network drives or CD-ROM drives (although in the latter case it is very likely that the current maximum of about 5400 files will be exceeded).

When you use the option from the File menu to log a drive you can choose to replace the current file list or to add the information to the current file list. Any number of drives may be logged, although the current maximum number of files cannot be exceeded. The system will not warn you if you attempt to log more files than there is space for, it will just stop adding files when it reaches it's limit.

The keyboard shortcut  Ctrl+L can be used instead of the menu to log a disk


Preferences

There is a dialogue box called by Set Preferences from the Options menu that can be used to specify the default editor for Winview, and whether confirmation is required for deletion of files. This information is stored in a winview.ini file in the windows directory.


Views

The default view that is available is simple text. This is fine for displaying plain text files but is no use for showing the contents of wordprocessing, spreadsheet or other files that contain formatting information. If a file is longer than 8k, then only the first 8k will be shown, along with a message suggesting that you launch an editor in order to look at the whole file.

The Detailed View option filters the file and transforms non-printable characters that would otherwise prevent the display from working into '.' characters. This will allow you to see what textual information is present in most files.

A Hex View is also available, which shows the first 1k of a file in hex format. This can be interesting for examining bitmaps and program files.


version
Features of Version 1.1

This is a maintenance release that fixes the following problems:

The data and time of the current file should now be correctly shown at the bottom right hand side of the status line.

Long path names on the status line are less likely to be truncated

The hex display should fit on a standard VGA screen (640 x 480) better.


thanks
Thanks to

The following people have proved invaluable in beta testing the program and suggesting extra functionality:

Richard Jablonski

Alan Clifton

Andrew Page

Additional thanks to everyone who has registered ; you are the people that make the shareware principle work, and I salute you!


Richard Jablonski, Martin Greggor, Nigel Blackett, Daystar, Guy Sargeant


Keyboard Shortcuts

Ctrl+C	copy selected area to clipboard

Ctrl+D	delete currently highlighted file

Ctrl+E	Launch editor and load currently highlighted file into it

Ctrl+L	Log a disk drive

Tab	move between areas of the screen

Enter	when in file specification, it activates the specification

when in list box, it launches the highlighted file


an .exe, .com, .bat or .pif file


e.g. .bmp files are associated with paintbrush


Registration Details

WINVIEW

 Copyright © 1993 by Neville White.

 All rights reserved.

 SOFTWARE REGISTRATION

 Winview is not public domain software, nor is it free software.

Non-registered users are granted a limited license to use Winview on a 30-day trial basis for the purpose of determining  whether Winview is suitable for their needs.  If you wish to use Winview after the initial 30-day trial, please register.  The use of unregistered copies of Winview, outside of the initial 30-day trial, by any person, or business is prohibited.

No one may modify or patch the Winview executable files in any way,  including but not limited to decompiling, disassembling, or otherwise reverse engineering the program.

Please copy and distribute Winview for the trial use of others, subject to the above

 limitations, and also the following:

Winview must be distributed in unmodified form, complete with all additional files, comprising

winview.exe

winview.hlp

winview.txt

TO REGISTER

Please send a cheque or postal order for £10 (along with your name and address) to

Neville White

40 Willow Garth Avenue

Whinmoor

Leeds

LS14 2DY

The benefits of registering are:

1.	Free upgrades to next version of Winview

2.	Fixing of bugs in Winview

3.	Deep satisfaction that you are supporting the shareware principle

4.	Inclusion in the list of registerees in this help file (unless you ask otherwise)