Copyright: AutoWallpaper Copyright ®1993 by Ronald K Logan


      AutoWallpaper Help Index

An automated Wallpaper management system which allows easy changing of the Windows desktop wallpaper by both manual and automatic means.

If you need to learn how to use the Help system, press F1 or select Using Help from the Help menu.

Starting AutoWallpaper

Menu Commands

Manually Changing your Wallpaper

Opening the Icon

Browse

Drag and Drop

Randomize

Automatically Changing your Wallpaper

AutoChange

Turning AutoChange On/Off

Setting the Time Interval

Additional Information:

Registering your Copy of AutoWallpaper

Warranty, Copyright and License Agreement


Turning AutoChange On/Off

To turn the  function on or off, the user must select the Settings... item from the System Menu.  This will bring up the Setting Dialog.

Once the dialog box has been shown, the user can select either the On or Off radio buttons in the AutoChange group of controls to activate or deactivate this option.


Setting the AutoChange Interval

The Time Interval for the AutoChange function determines how long AutoWallpaper waits before it automatically changes the wallpaper.

This time can be specified in minutes, hours or (if you really like keeping the same wallpaper for a LONG time) days.

Simply select the edit control labled Time to Change: and type in the appropriate time.

Selecting the units is as simple as clicking on the little arrow to the right of the units indicator.  This will drop down a list of possible choices.  The user can then select the desired units.  The user has a choice of time intervals from one minute to 65535 minutes (a little over 45 days).


Automatic Wallpaper Change
Automatic Wallpaper Change (AutoChange)

This option allows for an automated change of the desktop wallpaper after a specified period has elapsed.  The user can activate or deactivate this option via the Settings dialog reached through the Settings... item on AutoWallpaper's System Menu.

The time interval is also set through the Settings dialog, and can be anywhere from one to 65535 minutes-- which is a little over forty-five days.

At the end of the specified time interval, the wallpaper is randomly chosen from among any other .BMP files in the same directory as the current wallpaper bitmap, in the same manner as if the user had selected Randomize from AutoWallpaper's System Menu.


Manual Change -- Browse
Manual Wallpaper Change -- Browse

The Browse button on the Settings dialog allows the user to browse through the directory structure to choose a specific bitmap as the new wallpaper.

The dialog box employed to do so should be familiar to the user, since it is a standard Windows dialog box.  The box should only be used to select a file with a .BMP extension; any other extension will be ignored.


Manual Change -- Randomize
Manual Wallpaper Change -- Randomize

Selecting any button labeled Randomize will cause a new bitmap to be randomly chosen as the current wallpaper.  The new bitmap will be chosen from the same directory as the the current wallpaper bitmap.

If no wallpaper is currently being displayed, this option will not work; the user will have to either use the Browse button on the Settings dialog box, or Drag-and-Drop a bitmap file from the File Manager to AutoWallpaper's icon.


Manual Change -- Drag and Drop
Manual Wallpaper Change -- Drag and Drop

AutoWallpaper supports the Drag-and-Drop client interface for Windows applications.  Any file selected from the File Manager (or any other Drag-and-Drop server) can be "dropped" onto AutoWallpaper's icon, and if it is a bitmap with a .BMP extension, it will automatically become the new desktop wallpaper.


Manual Change -- "Opening" the Icon
Manual Wallpaper Change -- Opening the Icon

Any action on the AutoWallpaper icon that would normally result in the opening of the "window" will result in a random change of wallpaper in the same manner as choosing a Randomize button.

Actions such as:

(1) double clicking on the icon,

(2) selecting "AutoWallpaper" from a "Switch to" command, or

(3) pressing ENTER when the icon is selected

are examples of such an attempted "opening."


Registration Information
Registering Your Copy of AutoWallpaper

AutoWallpaper is NOT a "free" program! It is SHAREWARE, which means that if you use if for a period exceeding thirty days, you are OBLIGATED to register it with the author.

To register this copy of AutoWallpaper, send fifteen dollars (US$15) to:

Ronald K Logan

Attn: AutoWallpaper

1316 38th Street

Sacramento, CA  95816

Please include your name, address, disk size and version number so we can send you a newer version when and if it becomes available.

The author can also be reached for comments, complaints and suggestions by Internet e-mail at:

71562.1111@compuserve.com

If you should encounter any bugs, please notify the author at the same address, and the author will make every effort to fix the bug, if possible, and send you a corrected version.

Shareware provides unique benefits to the user.  It allows the user to "test drive" the software to first see if it fullfills her needs, and and also tends to be less expensive than "off-the-shelf" software of comparable quality.  Please register the shareware you use, as it provides the authors with the funds and incentive needed to continue producing quality software at such reasonable cost.


Warranty, Copyright and License Agreement

Copyright Notice

 AutoWallpaper and its documentation are Copyright (c)1993 by Ronald K Logan.  No part of AutoWallpaper may be copied in part of in whole, except as provided in the License Agreement below.

License Agreement

AutoWallpaper is NOT free software.  The user is granted by the author a limited license to copy and distribute AutoWallpaper in whole and unaltered for the purpose of allowing others an opportunity for a trial use of the application.  ALL PARTS of AutoWallpaper will be distributed together, including the executable, it's associated Help file, and any other documentation included herein.

If the user is satisfied with the performance of AutoWallpaper after the thirty-day trial period, she is OBLIGATED to register it with the author.  Registration information is available in the Help file from the Registration Information selection in the main index.

Warranty and Disclaimer

The author makes no warranty, either express or implied, as to the quality and/or performance of this program.

IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR OF THIS SOFTWARE BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OF, OR THE INABILTY TO USE THIS PROGRAM; INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, OR OTHER PECUNIARY LOSSES.


Menu Commands
AutoWallpaper System Menu Commands

The System Menu for AutoWallpaper has been modified to contain the following items:

Randomize

Settings...

Save Setup

About...

Help


Menu Item Randomize

Seleting this menu item will change the wallpaper to a randomly selected bitmap from the same directory as the current one.

Also see Randomize.


Menu Item Settings

Seleting this menu item will pop up the Settings dialog box from which the user can:

(1) Turn AutoChange on or off,

(2) Set the AutoChange time interval,

(3) Randomize the wallpaper,

(4) Browse for a new bitmap, or

(5) get help.


Menu Item Save Setup

Seleting this menu item will save the current setup in the Windows WIN.INI file.  The saved setup will be reinstated when AutoWallpaper is run again at some future time.


Menu Item About

Seleting this menu item will pop up the "About" dialog box which displays the copyright notice, the author's name, and the fact that this program is Shareware, NOT FREE.  It also directs the user to this help file for information about registering this copy.


Menu Item Help

Seleting this menu item will display this help file.

Apparently you've already discovered this.

: - )


Starting AutoWallpaper

AutoWallpaper can be run like any other Windows application.  Simply double click on AUTOWALL.EXE from the File Manager, double click on the AutoWallpaper icon in the Program Manager, or type in the full path to AUTOWALL.EXE after selecting the File-Run menu option from the Program Manager.

The simplest way to run AutoWallpaper is to place it in the Startup group of the Program Manager-- that way it is automatically started every time Windows is run.

How you run AutoWallpaper affects how it initially behaves.  If you run it will the display flag "Normal," AutoWallpaper will automatically change the wallpaper randomly on startup.  But if you run it "Minimized" or "Iconified," the wallpaper will initially remain the same.


Wallpaper is a bitmapped image in the Windows bitmap format which is either "tiled" or "centered" over the desktop area.  The image then becomes the "background" of the desktop screen, over which all windows and icons are displayed.  Users can change the Wallpaper to suit their individual tastes and reflect some aspect of their personality to others.

Or just for a little amusement.