[comp.sys.mac.system] Help balloon in the Finder for my own app

bdugan@teri.bio.uci.edu (Bill Dugan) (04/06/91)

In System 7.0b4's Finder, when help balloons are turned on and you point
at the TeachText application, a balloon comes up specific to TeachText,
saying "This is a simple application that you can use to read a document...."
etc.  I haven't seen how to make a balloon like this for my own application
in BalloonWriter, nor in any resource in the TeachText app.  I'd assume
the Finder looks in some resource within TeachText to get it, though granted,
it might be hardcoded into "Finder Help" and only meant for that app
(though I'd hope not).

Has anyone done this?

bill

smoke@well.sf.ca.us (Nicholas Jackiw) (04/08/91)

In article <27FCD7B6.11348@orion.oac.uci.edu> bdugan@teri.bio.uci.edu (Bill Dugan) writes:
>
>[Finder presents TeachText application balloon.]
>I haven't seen how to make a balloon like this for my own application
>
>Has anyone done this?

Well, the folks who wrote TeachText obviously have.  If you have 7.0b4,
check out Inside Mac#VI, Chapter 11.  In brief you add a resource to your
application,

resource 'hfdr' (-5696) {HelpMgrVersion, hmDefaultOptions, 0,0,
    {HelpType  {Argument}}};

where
HelpType=
HMStringItem (Argument=Pascal string)
HMPicItem (Argument=PICT ResId}
HMStringResItem (Argument=STR# ResId)
HMTEResItem (Argument=TEXT&styl res id)
HMSTRResItem (Argument=STR res id)

There are some more which I forget.  You'll have to root around in Types.r
or Balloons.p to find the actual values of these constants.

-- 
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Nicholas Jackiw                Smoke@well.sf.ca.us | Jackiw@cs.swarthmore.edu
Key Curriculum Press, Inc.     Applelink: D3970    | (415) 548-2304
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