Copyright: Copyright (c) 1995 by Dale Nurden


Contents
InfoBar v1.1	Contents

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

Welcome to InfoBar.  Please take a glance over the copyright and disclaimer messages before you get started.

About InfoBar

About the Author

Development History

Using InfoBar

Options

Format Codes

Copyright

Disclaimer

If you like InfoBar, please send me a postcard with your comments and suggestions.  It's a great ego boost for me, inspires me to continue development of InfoBar, and really impresses my friends.


About InfoBar

InfoBar v1.1	About InfoBar

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

InfoBar is a simple tool for Windows which conveniently and continuously displays useful information about the system, such as the time, date, memory and free resources.  InfoBar's display is completely customizable, from the information it reports to the appearance it takes on the screen.

There are plenty of tools available which will tell you all the information that InfoBar does and more, but I wasn't happy with the way they did it.  They either weren't customizable enough for my liking, or they presented the information in ways I didn't particularly fancy, (such as in the title bar of a window).  I quite liked the idea of being able to see all the information I wanted instantly, without having to search the screen to find it, hence came the idea for an InfoBar.

Some other programs are capable of reporting a lot more than just the free memory and resources but, frankly, I don't really need anything else.  If there is something that you would really like to see on your InfoBar, tell me about it and we'll see what can be done for the next version.  My intention was not to write another MSD or SysInfo or Checkit - those programs do a pretty fine job themselves.

InfoBar was created with Microsoft Visual Basic 3.0 Professional, on a Cyrix 486DX2-66 computer with 21MB RAM and a few other nice goodies I've picked up along the way.  It has only been tested under Windows 3.1, without any problems.  If you can get it to work under Windows 3.0, well done.  If it works under Windows 95, that's a bonus.  This help file was authored with WordPerfect for Windows 5.1, on the same computer.


About the Author

InfoBar v1.1	About the Author

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

InfoBar was written by Dale Nurden (me).  I am a South African, which is why the spelling in this help file and in the program may look a little funny.  If it really bugs you, I could probably be persuaded to change it for you, especially if you send me a postcard.

If you need to contact me for any reason (comments, bug reports, insults, etc), here's how to do it:

Internet Email:

dalen@goofy.iafrica.com

dalen@connx.vironix.co.za

WWW Home Page:

http://goofy.iafrica.com/~dalen

Snail mail: (this is where to send the postcard)

Dale Nurden

14 Willow Crescent

Pinetown

3610

South Africa

BBS: (this is a subscription BBS, so you might have a little trouble with it)

Connectix BBS, Westville, South Africa

+27-31-2669992, 28800-N81

UserID: Tech (no, I don't run it, I'm just a hardened user)

Or telnet to connx.vironix.co.za


Dale Nurden


Development History
InfoBar v1.1	Development History

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

v1.1 - September 1995

*	The InfoBar's width can be adjusted, and it can be attached to either side of the screen.

*	Width and height specifications are given as a percentage of the width and height of the screen.

*	Positions of text in the format string are given as a percentage of the InfoBar's width.

*	Adjusted the double-click routine to make the InfoBar hide a little quicker.

*	Some menu options were added or reworded.

*	Changed the "Options" panel layout a little.

v1.0 - September 1995

*	Original release.

*	Reports system time and date; free memory in global heap; and free system, user and GDI resources.

*	Information display is completely customizable.

*	Display colours and fonts are customizable.

*	InfoBar hides for a couple of seconds when the left mouse button is double-clicked or the middle button clicked on it.

*	The InfoBar can be set to always stay on top of other windows.


Copyright

InfoBar is Freeware.  That means it is provided to you free of charge for your unlimited use.  You may freely redistribute InfoBar by any means and at any time, subject to the following conditions:

*	You may not derive any financial gain from such redistribution, except to offset the cost of duplication and media.

*	All the files in the original distribution package, as listed in README.TXT, are included, in their original, unmodified form.

*	The author remains the sole copyright holder on InfoBar and its source code.  This excludes modules, libraries and those parts of the source code which are already owned by other copyright holders, and which are used with their permission or in accordance with their license agreement.


Disclaimer

InfoBar is provided as is, with no guarantees whatsoever.  There is no deliberately destructive code, but I will not take responsibility for any damage or loss arising from the use of, misuse of, or inability to use InfoBar.

Don't worry, all Freeware and Shareware authors say things like that.  It's just because of our over-enthusiastic legal systems.  I've been using InfoBar without any sign of trouble.  If I can trust it, so can you.


Using InfoBar
InfoBar v1.1	Using InfoBar

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

Infobar creates a solid bar (called the InfoBar) across part of the screen, and reports various system information on this bar.  What actually appears on the InfoBar, and what it looks like, is completely configurable in the program Options panel.  The Infobar can also be moved from its default position at the top of the screen to the bottom, and can be attached to either side of the screen.  The InfoBar is automatically refreshed about once every second.  Sometimes the interval may be slightly longer and sometimes slightly shorter, depending on the system load.

Since the InfoBar obscures whatever is beneath it (especially when it has been set as the topmost window), a double-click of the left mouse button will cause it to hide for a few seconds before reappearing.  If your mouse has three buttons then you can also use the middle button for the same effect.

A right mouse click on the InfoBar will pop up the program menu, from which any one of a number of options may be selected.  Pressing the Alt-Space key combination has the same effect.

Options	Opens the Options panel, from where the InfoBar can be customized.  Options set on the Options panel are saved and restored from one session to the next.

Topmost Window	When this option is checked, the InfoBar will always appear on top of other applications' windows.  Setting this option here is only effective for the current session - the next time you start InfoBar, it will be restored to the default value.  You can set the default value on the Options panel.

Top / Bottom	Moves the InfoBar to the top or bottom of the screen.  Only one of these two options will be visible at any time.  Setting this option here is only effective for the current session - the next time you start InfoBar, it will be restored to the default position.  You can set the default position on the Options panel.

Left / Right	Moves the InfoBar to the left or right hand side of the screen.  Only one of these two options will be visible at any time.  Setting this option here is only effective for the current session - the next time you start InfoBar, it will be restored to the default position.  You can set the default position on the Options panel.

Close	Closes the InfoBar program.

Help	Displays the Contents page of this help file.

About InfoBar	Displays an information panel about InfoBar, on which is reported the current version number and a copyright message.

A left mouse click on the InfoBar has no effect, except to make it the active window on the screen.


Options
InfoBar v1.1	Options

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

The Options panel allows you to customize InfoBar to your specific needs and preferences.  A number of controls are provided to perform this customization:

Format	The format string determines which information is reported and how and where it is displayed on the InfoBar.  The format string consists of normal text and format codes which will be replaced with the appropriate information.

Size	This option controls the height of the InfoBar.  When unchecked, the InfoBar defaults to a size of 4% of the height of the screen. By checking this option, you can specify a value from 0 to 1000, representing a percentage of the screen height, multiplied by 10.  (For example, 123 represents 12.3%.)

Width	This option sets the width of the InfoBar on the screen.  When unchecked, the InfoBar defaults to the full width of the screen.  By checking this option, you can specify a value from 0 to 1000, representing a percentage of the screen width, multiplied by 10.  (For example, 987 represents 98.7%.)

Topmost Window	When this option is checked, the InfoBar will always appear on top of other applications' windows.  The value of this option is saved and restored from one session to the next and is used as the default value.  The corresponding "Topmost Window" option on the program menu sets the value for the current session only.

Top / Bottom	This option determines whether the InfoBar will appear at the top or the bottom of the screen.  The value is saved and restored from one session to the next and is used as the default position.  The corresponding "Top" and "Bottom" options on the program menu set the position for the current session only.

Left / Right	This option determines whether the InfoBar will appear on the left or the right hand side of the screen.  The value is saved and restored from one session to the next and is used as the default position.  The corresponding "Left" and "Right" options on the program menu set the position for the current session only.

Font	This command button calls the font selection common dialog to set the text font which InfoBar will use.  InfoBar can use any alphanumeric font installed on the system, and will use the font size and attributes you set.  Symbol fonts, such as WingDings, cannot be used.

Foreground	This command button calls the colour selection common dialog to set the colour of the text which appears on the InfoBar.

Background	This command button calls the colour selection common dialog to set the background colour of the InfoBar.


Format Codes
InfoBar v1.1	Format Codes

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

Format codes consist of a preceding % character, a code character, and optional parameters which are code-dependant.  Any extra characters which do not form part of a format code will be treated as literals and displayed as they appear.  Format codes are not case sensitive.

%%	Displays a single % character.

%Pn	Sets the horizontal position to (n/10)% of the InfoBar's width, where n is an integer from 0 to 1000.

%T"fff"	Displays the current system time and/or date.  fff is any valid time/date format string.

%Mu"fff"	Displays the amount of free memory in the global heap.  The unit of measurement is specified with the u parameter, which should be one of:

B - Bytes

K - Kilobytes (divide by 1024)

M - Megabytes (divide by 1048576)

fff is any valid numerical format string.

%S	Displays the percentage of remaining system resources.

%U	Displays the percentage of remaining user resources.

%G	Displays the percentage of remaining GDI resources.

%R	Displays the percentage of remaining resources.  This will be the smallest of the values which would have been displayed by the %S, %U and %G codes.


Time/Date Format String
InfoBar v1.1	Time/Date Format String

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

Any time/date format string accepted by Visual Basic's Format$ function is valid.

General Formats

The following general formats are recognised:

General Date	General date and time.

Short Date	Short date, as defined in the Control Panel's International section (default: "m/d/yy").

Medium Date	Same as above, but with the month abbreviation spelled out.

Long Date	Long date, as defined in the Control Panel's International section (default: "mmmm dd, yyyy").

Short Time	Time in 24 hour format (eg: 17:45).

Medium Time	Time in 12 hour format (eg: 5:45 PM).

Long Time	Long time, as defined in the Control Panel's International section (default: "h:mm:ss").

c	Same as "ddddd ttttt" (see below).

Date Formats

You can build your own date format using the following characters:

d	Day [1..31].

dd	Day [01..31].

ddd	Day of week [Sun.Sat].

dddd	Day of week [Sunday..Saturday].

ddddd	Same as "Short Date" (see above).

dddddd	Same as "Long Date" (see above).

w	Day of week [1..7].

ww	Week of year [1..53].

m	Month [1..12] (except when immediately following "h" or "hh").

mm	Month [01..12] (except when immediately following "h" or "hh").

mmm	Month [Jan..Dec].

mmmm	Month [January..December].

q	Quarter [1..4].

y	Day of year [1..366].

yy	Year [00..99].

yyyy	Year [100..9999].

/	Date separator, as defined in the Control Panel's International section.

Time Formats

You can build your own time format using the following characters:

h	Hour [0.23].

hh	Hour [00.23].

m	Minute [0..59] (only if immediately following "h" or "hh").

mm	Minute [00..59] (only if immediately following "h" or "hh").

n	Minute [0..59].

nn	Minute [00..59].

s	Second [0..59].

ss	Second [00..59].

ttttt	Same as "Long Time" (see above).

AM/PM	Use 12 hour clock and display AM or PM.

am/pm	Use 12 hour clock and display am or pm.

A/P	Use 12 hour clock and display A or P.

a/p	Use 12 hour clock and display a or p.

AMPM	Use 12 hour clock and the s1159 and s2359 entries in WIN.INI.

:	Time separator, as defined in the Control Panel's International section.

Special Characters

The following additional characters are available for special purposes:

\	Displays the next character as is.

"text"	Displays text as is.

- + $ ( ) space	Displayed as literal characters.


Numeric Format String
InfoBar v1.1	Numerical Format String

Copyright ©1995 by Dale Nurden

Any numerical format string accepted by Visual Basic's Format$ function is valid.  If two formats are specified (separated with a semicolon), the first applies to positive and zero values and the second to negative values.  If three are specified, the first applies to positives, the second to negatives and the third to zeros.  If four are specified, the same applies but the fourth applies to null values.

General Formats

The following general formats are recognised:

General Number	Displays as is.

Currency	Displays with thousands separator and two decimal places.  Negatives are displayed enclosed in parentheses.

Fixed	Displays with two decimal places.

Standard	Displays with thousands separator and two decimal places.

Scientific	Uses scientific notation.

Yes/No	Displays "No" if 0, otherwise "Yes".

True/False	Displays "False" if 0, otherwise "True".

On/Off	Displays "Off" if 0, otherwise "On".

Numeric Formats

You can build your own numerical format using the following characters:

(null string)	No formatting.  Displayed as is.

0	Digit placeholder.  Displays a digit or pads with a 0.

#	Digit placeholder.  Displays a digit or nothing.

.	Decimal placeholder, as defined in the Control Panel's International section.  Determines how many digits will appear on either side of the decimal separator, when used with 0 or #.

,	Thousands separator, as defined in the Control Panel's International section.  When this symbol appears between two digit placeholders (0 or #) the number is formatted with thousands separators.  Two of these symbols adjacent to each other, or a single symbol to the left of the decimal separator, cause the number to be divided by 1000 before being displayed.

%	Percentage placeholder.  The number is multiplied by 100 before being displayed, and the % symbol appears in the corresponding position.

E+ E- e+ e-	Scientific notation.

Special Characters

The following additional characters are available for special purposes:

\	Displays the next character as is.

"text"	Displays text as is.

- + $ ( ) space	Displayed as literal characters.