Scriptlauncher

ScriptLauncher is a very configurable program launcher which allows you to
create one or more windows of buttons which can run AmigaDOS programs and
scripts. Each button in each window is associated with a script that can do
anything AmigaDOS commands allow.

See below for what's new in version 1.2 of ScriptLauncher.

You can change just about every aspect of each window and its buttons,
including:

  -  The number of rows, columns, & orientation of buttons
  -  The sizes of the buttons (all buttons of a window are the same size)
  -  Each button's colors or gradients
  -  Each button's label
  -  Each button's frame type, square or rounded
  -  The fonts used for button labels
  -  The AmigaDOS script that the button runs
  -  The public screen the windows appear on
  -  Each window's position on the screen
  -  Margins between and around the buttons
  -  Each window's background color

ScriptLauncher uses a text configuration file to specify these parameters.

You can also set up multiple pages of buttons for each window. You can move from
one page to another, and you can set up a button to jump to a specific page.

ScriptLauncher requires at least update #1 of OS4.0 and is a native PPC
program. It has no requirements beyond what is included in the basic OS.

Before running ScriptLauncher, you must construct a configuration file
for it, which describes the layout and contents of the buttons it will
create in its windows.

ScriptLauncher installation is as simple as copying the executable
to whatever drawer you want it in, such as C: or WBStartup.

ScriptLauncher comes with a small sample configuration file that you can
use as a base for creating your own file from. I also (hopefully) have set
it up so that it will run "out of the box" on OS4 systems if you just want
try it out first. The sample file has comments in it so you can follow what
the various commands are for.

ScriptLauncher is freely distributable, and is (c) Joe Howard. It must
be distributed unchanged and complete with its documentation file.
ScriptLauncher is distributed as-is, without warranty of any kind. You are
not allowed to make any profit if you redistribute ScriptLauncher.

NEW IN VERSION 1.1 OF SCRIPTLAUNCHER

  -  ScriptLauncher can now have multiple windows of buttons open at once.
     The windows can either open when ScriptLauncher starts or be opened
     later via the =OPENWIN script command. Each window can have its own
     attributes such as position, button size, and layout. Scripts can also
     close windows via the =CLOSEWIN script command.

  -  ScriptLauncher allows you to use multiple fonts for button labels.
     The font is normally associated with the button type, but can be
     overridden for each individual button.

  -  The button's label color can also be overridden for each individual
     button.

  -  You can now insert lines in a script when shift-clicking the script's
     button. Examples of how to insert lines at various points are in the
     ScriptLauncher.guide file.

  -  You can use the special keywords LEFT, RIGHT, CENTER (or CENTRE), TOP,
     and BOTTOM to specify a window's position.

NEW IN VERSION 1.1A OF SCRIPTLAUNCHER

  -  ScriptLauncher will now work correctly under OS4 Final. Previous versions
     produced a Grim Reaper when you exited the program.

NEW IN VERSION 1.2 OF SCRIPTLAUNCHER

  -  A second menu called "Button functions" has been added. This menu allows
     you to perform certain functions with a button such as viewing or copying
     the script associated with it, and replacing a button's script. The tool
     used for viewing a script can be specified via the -VIEWER command.

  -  When you shift-click a button to modify the button's script lines, you can
     also modify the output window specification for the button. This includes
     adding or deleting the output specification as well as changing its values.

  -  A new script command, =REOPEN, and the 'ALL' option for the =CLOSEWIN
     command were added. They can be used in conjunction with each other to
create
     a minimizing or 'iconify' function for ScriptLauncher. See the example in
     the =CLOSEWIN command documentation, as well as in the sample configuration
     file in the archive.

  -  You can now select the type of button frames or borders with the -BFRAME
     command. The options are 'SQUARE' to produce square frames as in past
versions,
     and 'ROUNDED' to produce rounded frames. The -BFRAME option can be
specified
     for each window, so one window can have square buttons whereas another can
     have rounded ones. The -BFRAME option is "inherited" from the previous
window
     if it is not specified for a new window. In addition, you can override an
     individual button's frame type with the optional FRAME keyword of the
-BUTTON
     command, allowing you to mix border types in a single window.

  -  Buttons may now be filled with either solid colors or a gradient fill.
     Gradients are defined with the -GRADIENT command in a manner similar to
     colors. Both are useable in the definition of a button type. You can also
     have a single gradient cover a group of buttons which are all of the same
type,
     by means of the GRADGROUP option of the -TYPE command. Gradients (for
individual
     buttons) can also be mirrored horizontally or vertically. The window
background
     fill can now also be a gradient rather than a solid color.

  -  In addition, you can define a button type to create 'clear' buttons, which
     do not have any fill color of their own. They are filled with the window's
     background color or gradient.

  -  Text areas have also been added, which allow placing of text in a button
window.
     They share most of the same attributes as regular buttons, but they don't
     have frames or borders and don't have a runnable script associated with
them.

  -  Button windows can be set up without the usual title bar via the NOTITLEBAR
     option of the -WTITLE commmand.

  -  A new menu item Open configuration allows you to open a different
configuration
     file.

  -  ScriptLauncher now (finally) has an ARexx port so that ARexx programs can
     talk to it.

  -  ScriptLauncher will now remember the last position of each window and
reopen
     it at the same position. Previous versions did this only for the script
     override window.

  -  When you shift-click a button to override its script, ScriptLauncher will
now
     correctly block input from all windows other than the override window. Up
to
     now it would only block input from the window whose button was being
overridden.

  -  ScriptLauncher will now acquire pens only for -COLORs that are used
somewhere
     in the configuration file. In previous releases, it would acquire pens for
all
     colors before it knew which colors were referred to, so if you had a lot of
     'spare' colors defined but not used, pens were wasted.

  -  Syntax error messages and other fatal error messages are now displayed
using
     EasyRequestArgs() rather than a window on Workbench. So much easier to do,
     and it looks better too.

  -  The sample configuration file that comes with ScriptLauncher has been
     extensively reworked and enlarged to include examples of many of the new
     features listed above. Note: Buttons labeled "Sample Button", "Sample
Group"
     or the like have an empty script associated with them: they don't do
     anything when clicked, and are there just for visual illustration. Buttons
     labeled "Click Here" open up AmigaDOS information requesters that describe
     various features.

  -  Fixed a serious bug involving the use of the =CLOSEWIN script command and
     script override activated by shift-clicking a button. The combination of
these
     two things could lock up ScriptLauncher or possibly the whole Amiga system.

  -  Under the right circumstances, the =PAGE command could produce a Grim
Reaper.
     This too has been fixed.

  -  Fixed a subtle bug in the calculation of total space required for all
     literals. This may have caused an overwrite of some other task's memory,
     although it never happened on my system.

  -  This version should be compatible with configuration files from previous
versions.