Copyright: Unregistered evaluation copy of HELLLP!


Font F/X Help yesyesyesyesfont2


Table of Contents

General

Select Font(s)

Color

Program

Char(acter)

Config(uration)

Compatibility

Hints

Help

Registration


Help file produced by  HELLLP!, a product of Guy Software, on 12/11/94 for Unregistered User.

The above table of contents will be automatically completed and will also provide an excellent cross-reference for context strings and topic titles.  You may leave it as your main table of contents for your help file, or you may create your own and cause it to be displayed instead by using the I button on the toolbar.  This page will not be displayed as a topic.  It is given a context string of _._ and a HelpContextID property of 32517, but these are not presented for jump selection.

HINT:  If you do not wish some of your topics to appear in the table of contents as displayed to your users (you may want them ONLY as PopUps), move the lines with their titles and contexts to below this point.  If you do this remember to move the whole line, not part.  As an alternative, you may wish to set up your own table of contents, see Help under The Structure of a Help File.


General

Font F/X was designed to make choosing fonts for an application a little easier. It gives the user the opportunity to see how a font looks at different point sizes, to compare different fonts at a given point size, and to see how a font will look at an angle other than horizontal. It allows the user to make these selections in any color your system will display and it will serve as a front end for your favorite font installation program as well as the Windows CharMap application.

Disclaimer

Bear Steel and the author David W. Palmer will accept no responsibility for damages resulting from the use of Font F/X. They make no warranty or representation, either expressed or implied, as to the merchantability or fitness of the program for a particular purpose. All risk associated with the use of the program is assumed by the user.

Copyright

Font F/X version 1.0, Copyright  1994 Bear Steel , ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Contacting the Author

The author, David W. Palmer, may be contacted at

CIS	72732,1556

AOL	DPALMER769

Trademarks

Any registered trademarks used in this help file or in the associated program are the property of their respective owners.


Select Font(s)

This menu item brings up a dialog which allows the user to select the TrueType font and the font characteristics displayed in the main window as well as how the fonts are displayed.

Select Font(s)

This list box allows the user to select which font or fonts are displayed in the main window. Only one font may be selected in single font and circle modes. Up to 25 may be selected in comparison mode. The number of fonts actually displayed in comparison mode varies depending on point size.

NOTE: If for some reason the font that was saved in the .ini file cannot be found among the list of active fonts, a message will be displayed indicating this fact. Nothing is really wrong, but the program doesnt know which font to display. After the user selects a font, operation will return to normal.

Special Effects

Bold, Italic, Strikethru, and Underline are standard effects that may be added to TrueType fonts. These may be selected singly or in combination and they may be used in any of the display modes.

Circle Location

The starting point for the circle mode, radial font display. Top refers to the upper left hand corner of the display (90 degree display). Center starts the radial display at the left center (180 degree display). Bottom refers to the lower left corner of the display (90 degree display).

Mode: Single Font

The main display will show the single selected font at point sizes ranging from 8 to 40 with the special effects selected (the larger point sizes will be clipped on most displays). This is similar to a font sample sheet. The text displayed may be changed using the Config(uration) menu selection. Point size and circle location selections are disabled.

Mode: Comparison

The main display is a comparison of up to 25 selected fonts with the selected effects at the point size selected. This allows the user to choose the font that looks the best at a given point size or against a given Color background. Circle location is disabled.

Mode: Circular

The main display is a 15 degree, radial starburst of the single selected font, with the selected special effects, at the selected point size, starting at the location selected in Circle Location. This mode allows the user to select fonts that display well at other than the standard quadrature angles.

Point Size

A number only text box that allows the user to set/adjust the vertical size of the displayed font(s) in the circle and comparison modes. A font size may be entered in the box or the size may be adjusted using the arrows. The top arrow increases the point size by 2. The bottom arrow reduces the point size by 2. The range of selection is 8 to 40 points.


Color

The Color dialog allows the user to change the color attributes of the text displayed.

Mode

Foreground mode changes the text color. Displayable foreground colors are limited by Windows to twenty under most circumstances. The displayable colors are selectable using the Windows Control Panel Color application. Dithered or mixed colors will probably not be displayable in the foreground.

Background mode changes the display background color. The full range of colors available on your system should be displayable here.

Primary Color Buttons ( Black, Maroon, etc.)

These buttons allow the user to instantly select the 16 primary colors. The RGB values for these colors are also displayed in the Red, Green, and Blue text boxes.

Red, Green, and Blue

These number only text boxes allow the user to adjust/edit the foreground and background colors. A single mouse click in one of these boxes positions the cursor for editing. A double mouse click selects the text in the box. A single click on a left arrow reduces the associated number by 5. A single click on a right arrow increases the associated number by 5. Holding the left mouse button down on either arrow changes the associated color value at a rate of about 50 counts per second.

Text Color

The text color box previews the changes made to the foreground and background colors. The colors displayed in this box depend on the capability of your display card and display drivers. Refer to the Compatibility section for further information.


Config(uration)

The Config(uration) menu selection allows the user to change the text that is displayed in the font samples. It also allows the user to setup which program will be called by the Program main menu selection.

String

The character string displayed in all font samples. Any valid string may be used (text, numeric, symbol, etc.) up to 128 characters.

The default value for the string is the upper and lower case alphabet.

Program

The application that is run when Program is selected from the main menu. Any valid Windows executable program may be used. The string is limited to 80 characters. The path may be excluded if the program exists within DOS path.

The default value for the Program is CONTROL.EXE FONTS which calls the Windows Control Panel font installation and removal program.

Save Color and Font on Exit?

If the user wishes to save the current font and color configuration when the program exits, Yes should be selected. The color and font selections are not affected by a Reset or a Save and the .ini file is only changed when the program exits.

Default state:

Foreground	Black

Background	White

Font	Arial

Save on Exit?	Yes

Save

The users selections for String and Program are stored in the .ini file so they will be available for all future operations. Confirmation is required before the save operation is actually performed.

Reset

The String and Program selections are returned to their default values (see above). This change is not saved in the .ini file. Save should be used if a permanent change is desired.

OK

The users selections for String and Program are enabled for the remainder of this instance of the program. Save should be used if a permanent change is desired.

Cancel

The users changes are deleted. String and Program are returned to their previous values.


Program

This menu selection runs another Windows executable program. The program to be run is entered in the Program section of the Config. dialog.. Confirmation is required prior to program execution.

WARNING :  It is possible to launch more than one instance of the user defined program. A Windows General Protection Fault will result if the programs change the system font resources simultaneously. Most programs that change system resources will not allow multiple instances to exist, but be careful, programs that will allow multiple instances DO exist.

Note:   If the launched program remains in memory and focus returns to Font F/X, it is possible that the list of fonts displayed in the Select Font(s) list will be inaccurate. It may be necessary to re-start Font F/X to get the list back in sync. with the system.


Compatibility

The two main compatibility issues for Font F/X are palette size and polygon fill capability. A palette size of less than 256 reduces the display to the primary colors and polygon fill limitations disable the preview capability of the Color dialog.

The numbers displayed are from the Windows GetDeviceCaps function and they can be translated using a help screen for that function.

The final line of the Compatibility dialog shows the conclusions reached by the program. The display will show FULL COMPATIBILITY, POLYGON FILL LIMITATION, or PALETTE SIZE LIMITATION.

Display resolution is also a compatibility issue. A resolution of 640x480 will display primary color combinations perfectly, but may wash out the text if the background becomes too complex. A screen resolution of 800x600 or better is recommended for full compatibility.

NOTE:   Full compatibility still does not mean that your system will preview all possible color combinations. There may be some combinations that are too complex to display in a small area with a text overlay (at least by the method used in this program). Try RGB(23,99,244) as a background, if the preview displays this combination, it will probably display anything.


Char(acter)

The Char(acter) menu selection shells to the Windows Character Map application, CHARMAP.EXE which must reside somewhere within the DOS path for successful execution. Verification is required prior to execution. Multiple instances of the Character Map may be run simultaneously, although this may use up system resources.


Hints

If you need to add just one or two fonts and have changed the configuration for the user defined program away from the default CONTROL.EXE FONTS, use the reset button followed by the OK button. This will change the program back to the default state for the remainder of this instance, but the normal string will be restored when the program is executed again. The Windows Control Panel Fonts application is the fastest way Ive found to add just one or two fonts.

Multiple copies of the Windows Character Map application running side by side allow the user to do a character by character comparison of the fonts displayed. Click on the characters for a better look.

Bold and italic effects can cause problems when a document is printed. Windows will create synthetic bold and italic typefaces for display purposes, but may not create the same typefaces for printing purposes. Be sure that a bold or italic typeface really exists before using it in a document. Control.exe fonts displays a complete list of all typefaces that are active. the Font Dlg section of the Help menu selection will also notify the user if a synthetic typeface is being used.


Help

About

Shows version and Copyright information about Font F/X.

Color Dlg

Brings up a Windows common color dialog that does not affect any of the program color settings (or system settings), but is useful for determining what system palette colors are available. The color block shows what the RGB value will look like in the background. The solid block shows what the RGB value will look like in the foreground. The initial color settings are random.

Font Dlg

Brings up a Windows common font dialog that does not affect any of the program font selections (or system settings), but is useful in determining the exact nature of a font. Watch the text under the font preview box for information about possible printing problems with the selected font combination.

Help

Displays this help file.

Compatibility

See the Compatiblity section of this help file.

Registration

See the Registration section of this help file.


Registration

Font F/X is shareware. Shareware allows the user to try a program for a period of time to determine its usefulness, compatibility, etc. before making the decision to register the program and continue to use it or to stop using the program altogether.

Registration entitles the user to a copy of the most current version of the program, a registration number which eliminates all the Registration requests that show up in the unregistered version of the program (this number will also be valid for all future versions), technical support, and a chance to make suggestions about changes/upgrades to the program.


Unregistered Message

This Help file was produced by an unregistered demonstration copy of the HELLLP! file authoring system.

HELLLP! is a user-friendly system to aid in the production of Windows help files. It requires Microsoft Word for Windows version 2.0 or higher.

HELLLP! is available as shareware from the Microsoft Word for Windows forum on Compuserve as the file HELLLP.EXE.  The author and copyright owner may be contacted at Compuserve ID 71750,1036.