WALLPAPER CAROUSEL HELP INDEX
HELP INDEX

WHAT IS WALLPAPER CAROUSEL?

REGISTERING WALLPAPER CAROUSEL

USING WALLPAPER CAROUSEL

STARTING WALLPAPER CAROUSEL

Creating Your Own Wallpapers

Wallpaper Groups

Adding Files

The Control Panel

The Enabled Checkbox

The Slide Show Checkbox

The Update Win.INI Checkbox

The Interval Field

The Wallpaper File Attributes Group

The Current Group

The Edit Groups Button

The File Listbox

The Tiled/Centered Radio Buttons

The Make Wallpaper Button

The Delete Wallpaper Button

The OK Button

The Cancel Button

The Register Button

Other Allison Software Products


WHAT IS WALLPAPER CAROUSEL
WHAT IS WALLPAPER CAROUSEL?

Wallpaper Carousel is a utility which enables you to change your Windows Wallpaper pattern when you start Windows and at intervals you specify during your Windows session. Wallpaper Carousel  bypasses the Windows Desktop and gives you direct control over your current wallpaper by dragging and dropping a bitmap or .RLE wallpaper file onto the Wallpaper Carousel desktop icon.

You can group your wallpapers together to match your moods; maybe you are in the mood for portraits, or landscapes or maybe seascapes. You can create each of these groups, as well as any others you desire and then assign wallpaper files to them. You can even assign the same wallpaper to multiple groups!

Once you have assigned a wallpaper to a group, Wallpaper Carousel  enables you to select independent tiling options for the wallpaper. These settings can be changed at will, either through the Control Panel, or by editing the "CAROUSEL.INI" initialization file.


Registering Wallpaper Carousel

Wallpaper Carousel is distributed as shareware, not freeware. While it is possible to make effective use of this software without registering it, you really shouldn't!

Why register? Why ask why?

By using this product, you are benefiting from the creative and technical labors of others. You have the benefits provided by this product, without having to build it yourself.

When you register, the developers and distributors of this software get to benefit as well; you get the peace of mind which goes with doing the right thing. Using this software without registering it is tantamount to shoplifting.

Registration and support for Wallpaper Carousel is handled by CTech Software. To register this product, please send a check for $25.00  made payable to CTech Software. The address is:

CTech Software

3730 NE Hyak

Bremerton, WA  98310

For VISA and MasterCard orders, please call (602) 698-7754.

The $25.00 registration fee includes shipping & handling plus any applicable taxes. When you register, you will be given the key to unlock your software. Wallpaper Carousel comes fully functional, but when unlocked, the registration screen which is normally displayed at startup will be disabled.

In addition, when you register you will receive a disk containing the latest release of Wallpaper Carousel as well as a printed manual. And as a special bonus, you will receive a copy of WinSort, a Windows utility for sorting text files up to 2,147,483,647 bytes long ABSOLUTELY FREE!

Registered users also receive special pricing on future upgrades, and discounts on other Allison Software products.

Thank you for using and registering Wallpaper Carousel. You can send any comments you have on this product to the address listed above. Your comments are appreciated.


USING WALLPAPER CAROUSEL

All of Wallpaper Carousel's  activities are accessed through the use of a single Control Panel. From this panel you can change current wallpaper group and wallpaper, enable and disable the automatic wallpaper changer, edit the individual group and wallpaper parameters, delete wallpapers and specify whether or not to keep your Windows initialization file, Win.INI, informed as to your current wallpaper.

Adding files is performed through the use of the Windows File Manager's (or an equivalent) drag and drop capability introduced in Windows Version 3.1.


STARTING WALLPAPER CAROUSEL

Wallpaper Carousel is intended as a utility much like a screen saver -- it should be loaded at initialization and should continue to run throughout your Windows session.

You can load Wallpaper Carousel by adding it to your "STARTUP" group as per the instructions in your Windows 3.1 users' manual under the section titled "To create a program item..."

Each time you start Wallpaper Carousel it will load it's initialization file containing the group definitions and their lists of files. The first time you load Wallpaper Carousel, a default group is created and all the .BMP files in your Windows directory are added to it.


Creating Your Own Wallpapers

When you started Wallpaper Carousel the first time it loaded the standard Windows wallpaper files into the Default group (provided they still reside in the Windows directory.) That's great, but what if you want more?

Windows allows you to use ANY bitmap (.BMP) or Windows Run-Length Encoded (.RLE) graphics file as a wallpaper. If your display device can show it, Windows allows it. The Desktop Control Panel makes it very hard to select them unless they are in the Windows directory though.

You can use any commercially available .BMP file, files you download from BBSs' or services like CompuServe and Prodigy, or files you create yourself using paint programs like Windows' own PaintBrush. A favorite trick is to scan political cartoons into the computer and convert them to monochrome .BMP files!

To create your own wallpaper:

1. Paint the wallpaper using your paint program.

2. Save it as either a bitmap (.BMP) or Windows Run-Length Encoded (.RLE) file.

3. Add the file to Wallpaper Carousel using the normal Adding files procedures.


WALLPAPER GROUPS

Wallpaper Groups give you the ability to select wallpapers based on similar subjects, attributes (such as screen resolution or number of colors) or any other characteristic you care to use. You can create as many groups as you want and select from them at will.

For instance, you can create the groups "Landscapes", "Seascapes" and "Portraits". When you are in the mood for the ocean, select "Seascapes" as the Current Group. All further wallpapers will be selected from that group. When you are in the mood for the people, select "Portraits" as the Current Group and all further wallpapers will be selected from that group.

You can also create groups based on screen resolution and/or colors. You don't want 256-color pictures being displayed if your are in a standard VGA (16 color) mode. So create a group which contains only 16 color bitmaps. Whenever you go into a standard VGA mode, select this as the current group, and you won't have funky-looking pink people looking at you!

Make groups based on any categories that make sense to you. That's the whole point.

Wallpapers may exist in more than one group. Each will retain it's own Tiled/Centered value.

NOTE: No file actions taken by the Wallpaper Carousel affect the file itself, only the Wallpaper Carousel entry for that file.


The CURRENT GROUP

The current group is simply the group to which all file activities apply. You use Drag 'n Drop operations to add files to the current group. The current group is the one displayed in the Control Panel current group listbox. Timed wallpaper changes, wallpaper adds and deletes all apply to the current group. The File List Box displays the files contained in the current group.


EDITING GROUPS

Before you can use groups, you must create them. Upon initialization, Wallpaper Carousel  creates the "Default" group and adds to it all the ".BMP" files it finds in the Windows directory. You must create any other groups you will want to use.

To Add or Delete groups, from the Control Panel click the "Edit Groups" button. A small dialog box will appear. This is the main editing dialog for the wallpaper groups.

To DELETE a group, select the group you want to delete from the list box by clicking it once. Then click the "Delete" key.

BE SURE YOU REALLY WANT TO DELETE THE GROUP!!!

Wallpaper Carousel will ask for confirmation. once you say yes, the group AND ALL IT'S WALLPAPERS will be deleted from the list in memory.

To ADD a group, click the "Add" key. An input dialog will appear. Type in the name of the new group and click OK. (Click "Cancel" if you messed up!) Again a confirmation box will appear asking you to check your spelling. Click "Yes". (Clicking "No" brings you back to the Add/Delete dialog box. The new group will appear in the list.

Once you are done, Click "OK" to return to the main control panel. The groups you deleted will no longer appear in the main list of groups, the ones you added will appear there.

If you get cold feet after adding or deleting the groups, click the "Cancel Changes" button on the main control panel. The groups and their files will be refreshed from the last-saved setup and your changes will be lost (or your mistakes will be corrected, depending on your point of view!) To save the changes to disk, click the "OK" button.


ADDING FILES

Adding files is performed through the use of the Windows File Manager's Drag 'n Drop capability. This is how it's done:

First, start the Wallpaper Carousel. It will appear at the bottom of your Windows desktop as an icon.

Next, if the File Manager isn't already running, start it.

Next, select all the files in a directory that you want included as wallpapers. Full directions on the selection of multiple files can be found in Chapter 4 of your Windows 3.1 manual, starting on page 91. Briefly, however, you can click on any filename, then, by holding down the shift key as you click on another, all the files between the two will be selected. Or you can hold down the control key (Ctrl) and select the second file without selecting the ones in between. Use of the shift and control keys together will enable you to select multiple ranges of files. Play around with it -- you'll figure it out.

Once you have selected the files you want, PRESS  AND HOLD the left mouse button on any one of the files you want to add. While holding down the button, drag the mouse pointer down and over the Wallpaper Carousel icon.  The cursor will change to a [image]  signifying "you can't drop it here," then to a [image] signifying "OK, drop it."  Release the mouse button.

A dialog box will appear telling you the group that the files will be added to. Files are ALWAYS added to the current group. If the listed group is incorrect, follow the instructions on the dialog box. You will be able to select the proper group (or even create it if necessary) an then continue with the next step.

Each selected file will be tested for the correct extension type, ".BMP" or ".RLE". As each file is passed, the current list of wallpapers will be searched for a match.  If no match is found, the file will be added to the list and you will be asked if the file should be tiled. If you say no, it will be centered.

If the file is found in the list, you will be asked if you want to use the file as your new wallpaper. If you say Yes, the wallpaper will be changed using the tiling status currently listed for the file. If you say no, Wallpaper Carousel continues with the next file in the list.

NOTE: No file actions taken by the Wallpaper Carousel affect the file itself, only the Wallpaper Carousel entry for that file.


THE CONTROL PANEL

The Control Panel is Wallpaper Carousel's mechanism for making all modifications to the program's elements, aside from adding files.

From this panel you can change current wallpapers, enable and disable the automatic wallpaper changer, edit the individual wallpaper parameters, delete wallpapers and specify whether or not to keep your Windows initialization file, Win.INI, informed as to your current wallpaper.


The ENABLED Checkbox

The ENABLED Checkbox gives you control over whether or not Wallpaper Carousel will change your wallpaper upon initialization and at regular intervals. The two states are:

Leaving the ENABLED Checkbox CHECKED turns the carousel on. Upon initialization, and at the interval specified in the interval window, Wallpaper Carousel will randomly change your current wallpaper to on in its current list.

Leaving the ENABLED Checkbox UNCHECKED turns the carousel off.  Wallpaper Carousel will not change you current wallpaper as long as this Checkbox is unchecked.


The UPDATE WIN.INI Checkbox

You have the choice as to whether of not Wallpaper Carousel updates the "Wallpaper=" parameter in your Win.INI file. It is not particularly important whether you do or not -- Wallpaper Carousel will directly manage your wallpaper files for you regardless.

The only reason in particular for NOT updating Win.INI is that any wallpaper listed in the Win.INI file will be drawn on screen as soon as Windows loads. Then when Wallpaper Carousel loads, it will change that wallpaper. This slows down the initialization process (especially if you are using large wallpaper files, such as 256 color 800 by 600 pixel images). It also causes an annoying screen change. Therefore, set this parameter off, and change the wallpaper parameter in your Windows Desktop to (None). The choice, however, is yours.

Leaving the UPDATE WIN.INI Checkbox CHECKED turns the option On. The Win.INI file will be updated each time a wallpaper changes.

Leaving the UPDATE WIN.INI Checkbox UNCHECKED turns the option Off. The Win.INI file will not be updated.


The INTERVAL Field

The INTERVAL field allows you to specify what time period should elapse between changing wallpaper images. Times from 0 to 999 minutes may be set, however, wallpapers can only be changed at intervals of 1 to 999 minutes. Zero disables the timed changes.

NOTE: You can retain the wallpaper change at startup and disable the timed changes by leaving Wallpaper Carousel enabled but setting the change interval to zero (0).

You can either type the interval number into the field directly, or you may use the scrollbar positioned directly to the field's left to raise the number (use the up arrow) or lower the number (use the down arrow) one step at a time. Clicking and holding on the scrollbar will continuously roll the interval value up or down until you release the mouse button or the 0 to 999 limits are reached.


The WALLPAPER FILE ATTRIBUTES GROUP

The WALLPAPER FILE ATTRIBUTES GROUP gives you access to the list of files you have added to the system. The DELETE WALLPAPER and MAKE WALLPAPER functions act on the file listed in the static portion of the wallpaper listbox. The TILED and CENTERED radio buttons reflect the tiling status of the filed named in the static portion of the listbox.


The File Listbox

The File Listbox contains the list of all the files assigned to the Current Group. Any file actions you take will apply to the file whose name appears in the text (top) section of the listbox. In addition, when you first raise the Control Panel, the file listed here is the currently displayed wallpaper.

To select a file for deletion, modification of the tiling attribute, or to make it the new wallpaper;

Click on the button located directly to the right of the filename box. This will lower the list of filenames.

If the file you want is not visible but a scrollbar is located next to the list of files, scroll the list until the file you want is visible.

Click on the filename. It will appear in the filename box, and the radio buttons will change to reflect the proper setting for that file.

NOTE: No file actions taken by the Wallpaper Carousel affect the file itself, only the Wallpaper Carousel entry for that file.


The TILED/CENTERED Radio Buttons

The TILED and CENTERED radio buttons allow you to see and change the tiling setting for the file listed in the filename box. To change the setting, first select the file you want to adjust using the procedure outlined in the section "The File Listbox."

Once you have selected the file, you can click on either button to change the tiling setting. The status change will be recorded in the "Carousel.INI" file once you click the OK button.


The MAKE WALLPAPER Button

The MAKE WALLPAPER button tells Windows to use the file currently named in the filename box as the current wallpaper. The timed wallpaper change event will be reset to the listed interval. In other words, pressing MAKE WALLPAPER button is like the automatic wallpaper change event, only you get to pick the time and the wallpaper.


The DELETE WALLPAPER Button

The DELETE WALLPAPER button deletes the file currently named in the filename box from the list of activated wallpapers. When you click the OK button , the file will be removed from the "Carousel.INI" file. Clicking the CANCEL button will recover the filename from the "Carousel.INI" file.

NOTE: Deleting a wallpaper file does NOT delete the file itself, only the Wallpaper Carousel entry for that file.


The OK Button

The OK button closes the control panel and sets all changes by writing them to the "Carousel.INI" file. After this, deleted files will have to be reinserted using the drag and drop method described in the section "Adding Files," and other changes become fixed. Of course you can continue to update and modify the parameters.


The CANCEL Button
The CANCEL CHANGES Button

The CANCEL CHANGES button closes the control panel and cancels all changes by re-reading the existing "Carousel.INI" file. After this, any changes you have made will be lost.


The Slide Show Checkbox

The Slide Show checkbox puts Wallpaper Carousel in a fast-paced change cycle. When the Slide Show checkbox is checked ON, wallpaper changes will occur every 5 seconds. This way you can scan your wallpapers rapidly.

Setting the Slide Show ON does not affect your current interval setting. As soon as you switch the Slide Show OFF, normal wallpaper changes will resume.


The Register Button

When you are ready to register Wallpaper Carousel, you can either do it when you start the program, or you can access the registration screens by clicking the Register button.

When you click the Register button, the registration notice will come up. Click the "Register now" button. A small dialog box will appear into which you must type the registration key. The registration key must be entered in UPPERCASE letters. (The registration algorithm is case-sensitive.)

If you entered the registration key correctly, a message thanking you for registering will be displayed, and when you start Wallpaper Carousel in the future, the registration notice, as well as the register button,  will not appear.

If you entered the registration key incorrectly, a message stating so will appear. You can go ahead and use the program, but when you start Wallpaper Carousel in the future, the registration notice, as well as the register button,  will still be enabled. You can try again to register the product.


OTHER ALLISON SOFTWARE PRODUCTS

WinSort.   WinSort is a file sorting utility which enables you to sort any fixed record and field length file up to  2,147,483,647 bytes long, with record lengths up to 65,000 bytes. Any number of sort fields can be specified, in any order, and each can be defined as ascending or descending, independently of the others. WinSort will use as much memory as possible, reducing to a minimum the amount of disk space required for work files.


Windows Wallpaper

The Windows Wallpaper is the picture, such as "Castle.BMP" ( [image]) which is displayed on your Windows desktop under your Program Manager window and the windows for the other programs you have running. This picture is defined in your Windows Control Panel under the Desktop icon.


Drag 'n Drop

Drag 'n Drop is Windows' method of applying data files to programs which accept Drag 'n Drop commands. Windows' Notepad, the Print Manager and Windows' Write are examples of programs which are Drag 'n Drop "aware". So is Wallpaper Carousel.

To Drag 'n Drop a file into Wallpaper Carousel click on the file in the Windows File Manager (or equivalent). While holding down the mouse button, drag the file on top of the Wallpaper Carousel program icon, then release the button. That's all there is to it! For full instructions on the  procedure, see your Windows Users Guide.


Tiled Vs Centered Wallpapers

When a wallpaper is centered, a single copy is displayed in the center of your desktop -without necessarily filling the screen. To get a small wallpaper (such as the BRICK or CASTLE wallpapers) to fill the screen, they can be tiled.

When the wallpaper is tiled, an image is first placed in the upper left hand corner of the desktop. Additional copies are then repeated to the right and down, as many as are needed to fill the desktop.


Deleting the last group

You can't! When only one group exists, the "Delete" button disappears so you cannot delete the final group. When you add another group, the "Delete" button will reappear.