Index

The following Help Topics are available:

Commands

The Toolbar Window

Shortcuts

Registration Information

Acknowledgments

Technical Support BBS


Commands

Main Window

Icon Window

For Help on Help, Press F1


Open command

The Open command will open up the library whose name is currently highlighted in the folder window.


Close command

The Close command will close the library whose name is currently highlighted in the folder window.   The window displaying this library's icons will close, and any changes made to the library will be saved to disk.


Close All command

The Close All command will close all currently open libraries, saving any changes made to disk.


New Library command

The New Library command allows you to create a new library.  You will be presented with a dialog box in which you enter the name of the library to be created.  Optionally, you can specify the actual filename that the library will be saved as.  If you don't specify a filename, The Icon Librarian will create a unique name for the file based upon the library name you specified.


Edit Library command

The Edit Library command allows you to change the name and the color of the library that is currently highlighted in the main folder window.  A shortcut to this command is to double-click the right mouse button on the folder icon that you wish to edit.


Delete Library command

The Delete Library command allows you to delete the library that is currently highlighted in the main folder window.  Be careful with this command, as it will physically delete the library file from disk!   It is recommended that you always keep the Preferences / Library / Confirm Deletes option on.


Library

A library is a physical grouping of icons.  Each library is represented by a folder icon in The Icon Librarian's main window.   Each library is saved to disk in its own file (.TIL extension).


Library preferences

Confirm Deletes

Open Window Upon Creation

Color of New Folders


Confirm Deletes

If this option is selected, you will be prompted for confirmation before the selected library is deleted.   Since deleting a library will also delete all of the icons in that library, it is highly recommended that you keep this option checked.


Open Window Upon Creation

If this option is selected, any library that you create with the File / New Library command will automatically be opened.


Color of New Folders

This option allows you to specify the default color that you would like to use when creating new libraries with the File / New Library command.


Icon preferences

Confirm Deletes

Display While Importing

Icon Spacing


Confirm Icon Deletes

If this option is selected, you will be prompted for confirmation before the icon you have dragged to the trashcan is deleted.


Display While Importing

If this option is selected, each imported icon will immediately be displayed in its library window.   If you are importing a large number of icons, turning this option off will speed up the process since the imported icons won't be displayed until the entire process is completed.


Icon Spacing

This option allows you to specify either Standard or Expanded icon spacing.


Tile windows

The Tile command will arrange all open Icon Librarian windows.  The main folder window will be placed at the top of the screen and all open library windows will be spaced evenly in the remaining screen space.


Cascade windows

The Cascade command will arrange all open Icon Librarian windows.  The main folder window will be placed at the top of the screen and all open library windows will be cascaded downward from the center of the screen.


Import Icons

The Import Icons function is the mechanism you use to bring existing icons on your system into an Icon Librarian library.   The Icon Librarian can import icons from icon files (.ico), executable files (.exe), dynamic link libraries (.dll), Norton Icon Libraries (.nil), and PC Tools for Windows Icon Libraries (.icl).  When you select this function, you will be presented with a standard "file open" dialog where you select the file(s) that contain the icons you want to import.


Capture Icon

The Capture Icon function allows you to capture any image on the screen into an icon.  After selecting this option, the cursor will change into a 32 x 32 pixel square, and the area that you drag this cursor over will be enlarged and displayed in the icon window.   After you have positioned the cursor over the area of the screen that you want to capture, press the left mouse button to capture the image.  Pressing the right mouse button will abort the capture process.


Close and Use as Template

The Close and Use as Template function is primarily designed for people who tend to only work with one open icon library at a time.   Choosing this option will close the icon window and set the default window position of all of the closed libraries to the screen position and size of this window.


Remove Duplicates

The Remove Duplicates function goes through the icon library and removes exact duplicates that exist.


The Toolbar
The Toolbar Window

The Toolbar window, which is always present on the screen, is only active when an icon library is open.  The toolbar contains a text clipboard, image clipboard, icon editor, diskette, question mark, and trashcan.   You use these tools by dragging an icon from an open icon window and dropping it onto one of these toolbar tools.   The tools perform the following functions:

Dropping an icon on the text clipboard writes the icon to a unique filename in your \ICONLIB\IN_USE\ directory, and then copies the name of the file to the clipboard.

Dropping an icon on the image clipboard copies the image of the icon to the clipboard.

Dropping an icon on the icon editor will run your icon editor so that you can modify the icon.  The Icon Librarian will be disabled until you exit the icon editor.

Dropping an icon on the diskette allows you to save the icon to disk as a standard .ICO file.  You will be prompted for a name to use for the file.

Dropping an icon on the question mark will display information about both the icon you dropped and the library in which this icon resides.

Dropping an icon on the trashcan will delete that icon from the library.


Dragging

To Drag an icon, press and hold down the left mouse button while the arrow cursor is over an icon.  Then, move the mouse while still holding down the left mouse button and the cursor will change into a "drag cursor".


Shortcuts

Dragging multiple icons

Importing icons with File Manager

Rearranging folders and icons

Quick edit of a folder name

Moving icons between libraries

Making a copy of an icon


Dragging multiple icons

To drag multiple icons, hold down the Shift key while clicking on each icon you want to mark.  After marking all of the icons you wish to move, drag  any one of the marked icons and all other marked icons will follow.


Importing Icons with File Manager

The Icon Librarian supports the new "Drag and Drop" feature of Windows 3.1.  Because of this, you can open both the File Manager and The Icon Librarian, and then drag a filename from the File Manager and drop it on an open icon library window to extract the icons from that file.


Rearranging Folders and Icons

You can rearrange both folder icons in the main window and icons in a library window by dragging and dropping them in a new position in the same window.


Quick Edit of a Folder Name

To quickly change the name and/or color of a folder, double click the right mouse button on the folder you wish to edit.


Moving Icons Between Libraries

There are two ways to move icons between libraries.  The first is to open both the source and the target libraries, and then drag an icon from one window to the other.  Using the second method, you can drop an icon from an open library window onto a closed folder icon and the icon will be placed at the end of the target library.


Making a copy of an icon

To make a copy of an icon, hold down the Control key before you drop the icon into the target window.


Registration Information

The Icon Librarian is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation.   Feel free to share it with your  friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system.  The essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal  computer users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products.

If you find this program useful and continue to use it after a reasonable trial period, you must make a registration payment of $15 to Keith Ledbetter.   The $15 registration fee will license one copy for use on any one computer at any one time.

You are encouraged to pass a copy of The Icon Librarian along to your friends for evaluation.  One easy way to do this is by placing the program on your favorite Bulletin Board systems.   Please encourage users to register their copy if  they find the program useful to them.   When you register your copy of The Icon Librarian, you will receive the following:

-	the latest version of the program.

-	a "brand" program that will place your name into all future versions of the program.

-	over 1,000 high-quality public domain icons picked by the author.

As always, thank you for your continued support of my shareware products!

Keith Ledbetter


Technical Support BBS

You can download all of my programs from the Blue Ridge Express BBS in Richmond, VA.  This is the official technical support board for all of my software, and there's a special "Keith Ledbetter" message section where you can quickly get your questions answered.  Once you log on, just do a "J KEITHL"  to join my sub-board.   First-time callers have access to both my message area and all of my download files.  Please note that you must do a "J MAIN" command before downloading any files.

The Blue Ridge Express is a first-class BBS, with 30 phone lines; no need to worry about getting a busy signal!  The numbers are as follows:

2400 baud. . . . .804-790-1675

9600 baud. . . . .804-790-9600


Specify Icon Editor

The Specify Icon Editor option is where you tell The Icon Librarian the name of the icon editor that you want to use to edit icons.  Any Windows icon editor may be used, as long as the editor allows the passing of a filename to it on its command line.


Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments

All successful computer programs require the talent of individuals who love to try to break things (we like to call them beta testers), and The Icon Librarian is no exception.  I would like to thank the following people for offering their time to help in testing this product:

Chris King, Russell Mueller, Hal Hudler, Linnie Martin, MaryAnn Schwartz, M.K. Clapper, Dan Gobich, and Paul Park.   Thanks!


Beta Tester

Term for an individual who enjoys testing early releases of software, squashing program bugs, and driving software developers crazy by continually saying "if there was just this one more really neat feature..."


Main Window

File menu

Open

Close

Close All

New Library

Edit Library

Delete Library

Preferences menu

Specify Icon Editor

Library preferences

Icon preferences

Window menu

Tile windows

Cascade windows


Icon Window

Options menu

Import Icons

Capture Icon

Remove Duplicates

Close and Use as Template