tomczak@harvard.ARPA (Bill Tomczak) (09/11/85)
28-Aug-85 13:28:05-PDT,4388;000000000005 Return-Path: <@CISL-SERVICE-MULTICS.ARPA:Platt.CP6@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA> Received: from CISL-SERVICE-MULTICS.ARPA by SUMEX-AIM.ARPA with TCP; Wed 28 Aug 85 13:27:20-PDT Received: FROM HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA BY CISL-SERVICE-MULTICS.ARPA WITH dial; 28 AUG 1985 16:21:47 EDT Sender: Platt@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA Date: Wed, 28 Aug 85 13:18 MST From: <@CISL-SERVICE-MULTICS.ARPA:Dave-Platt@LADC> Subject: WayStation - another mini-finder To: INFO-Mac@SUMEX-AIM.ARPA Message-ID: <850828201815.317609@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA> This posting contains "WayStation", a public-domain minifinder. WayStation permits you to quickly launch any of up to 24 different applica- tions; the applications don't all have to be on the same disk (WayStation apparently records the name/disk information in its own data fork). In this version, you can only launch applications; launching of documents is promised for a future release. WayStation has an automatic one-minute screen-saver feature; click the mouse or strike any key to refresh the screen (this feature apparently isn't aware of desk accessories such as MockWrite, and tends to blank the screen suddenly if you're using such accessories from within WayStation). It's possible to make WayStation your default Finder (useful especially if you don't have a ramdisk). To do this cleanly (that is, to be able to get back to the standard Apple finder if you need to) you'll need to muck around a bit with the file names and attributes. Copy a System and a Finder onto a new disk. Select the Finder, and pull down "Duplicate" from the File menu. Rename the "Copy of Finder" file "Apple Finder". Toss the Finder in the trash. Copy WayStation onto this disk, and change its name to Finder. Use Set File 2.0 (or FEDIT) to change the type of the "Apple Finder" file from FNDR to APPL, and turn off the System bit. Copy any other applications that you want to use onto this new disk. Shut down, and reboot from the new disk. When WayStation opens its window, pull down "Add applications" from the File menu (or use command-A). Select "Apple Finder" and each of the other applications that you want to be able to launch; then Cancel. You can also select applications on other disks; they will be dimmed in the WayStation display whenever the disk they're on is not in one of the drives. In order to use WayStation from a ramdisk such as the public domain RamStart version, you need to perform some additional fiddling in order to make sure that WayStation is aware of the applications on the ramdisk. The following explanation assumes that you use RamStart as your startup application, and that you have stored RamStart in a folder on your startup disk that also includes copies of the System, the Apple finder (renamed & reattributed as suggested above), WayStation (named Finder), and any other applications that you want to run from your ramdisk. 1) Boot from your startup disk. RamStart will run, create the ramdisk, copy the files from your startup folder, eject the startup disk, and exit to the WayStation "Finder" on the ramdisk. 2) Push the "Other" button in the WayStation menu. When the file selection box appears, reinsert the original startup disk; select "Finder" from that disk. 3) The WayStation "finder" on the ramdisk will transfer control to the WayStation "finder" on the startup disk. 4) Pull down "Add applications" from the File menu (command-A). Push the "Drive" button to select the ramdisk. Select from the ramdisk all of the applications that you're going to want to run, including the Apple Finder; then Cancel. You may also, if you wish, insert one or more applications from other disks. 5) Once all applications have been selected, pull down "Shut down" from the Special menu. WayStation will write the complete list of applications out to your startup disk, eject the disk, and reboot. 6) Reinsert the startup disk. RamStart will run, copy your startup folder (including the WayStation finder and its list of applications) to the ramdisk, eject the startup disk, and exit to WayStation. The WayStation menu will list all of the applications that you selected in step (4). You can now launch any of them (VERY fast) or exit back to the Apple finder. [Archived as [SUMEX]<INFO-MAC>UTILITY-WAYSTATION.HQX. --RMA]