HyperGEM User Guide : HyperGEM Contents: 1. Introduction. 2. Getting Started. 3. Window Handling. 4. Desk Menu. 5. File Menu. 6. Window Menu. 7. The Button Events. 8. Appendix. 1. INTRODUCTION. HyperGEM is a hierarchical database. It will run on any Atari ST in High Resolution 640 by 400. The minimum memory requirements are 1 meg machines due to the memory requirements in converting colour pictures into their monochrome equivalents. It is designed to allow you to structure information in a logical way. Data is arranged in a series of 'Windows', which contain either Text or Graphics. Areas of the Windows are designated as 'Buttons', which when clicked on with the mouse pointer, bring up further windows. In this way, a branching tree of windows is formed. This technique lends itself to many uses: Referencing Information, Diagnostic Systems, Expert Systems, and even Teaching programs. 2. GETTING STARTED. To start the program, double click on the file 'HYPERGEM.PRG', which will load and display a 'HyperGEM Initialising' message and then a GEM Menu Bar. The menu options are discussed later, but for an example, move the mouse pointer up to the 'File' heading, and click on 'Load HyperSystem' option. When the file selection box appears, select the file 'DEMO.HYP' and once the demo system has loaded, move the pointer up to the 'File' heading, and click on 'Run HyperSystem'. A Graphic Window will appear with a button labelled 'Contents', a click within this button will make another window appear, and so on. To go back a window, click on the close window box at the top left hand corner of each window. 3. WINDOW HANDLING. By clicking on the close window icon in the top left of each window, you can go back to the parent of each window, unless you are at the root window. By clicking and holding the resize window icon at the bottom right of the window, you can resize the window. By clicking on full window icon at the top right of the window you can open the current window to its full size, clicking on the icon again will restore the window to its previous size. The contents of every window may be scrolled by dragging the scroll bar within its box or by clicking above and below a slider box, or by clicking on the window arrow icons. The slider bars are positioned on the right middle and bottom middle of a window. If there are any buttons on the window, they will be displayed as lines on text windows or boxes with text contained within them. By clicking on a newly drawn button, a dialog box will appear allowing the user to select what type of event will be linked to it. 4. DESK MENU. Under the desk menu is the choice 'Information on HyperGEM', which displays the version and author details. Also under this menu is any desk accessories you may have installed. All these function as normal. 5. THE FILE MENU. The file menu provides the user with five important HyperSystem operations and these are the following : 5.1 Generate HyperSystem. 5.2 Run HyperSystem. 5.3 Load HyperSystem. 5.4 Save HyperSystem. 5.5 Quit Program. 5.1 GENERATE HYPERSYSTEM. Clicking on the 'Generate HyperSystem' option removes any existing HyperSystem from memory and allows the user to start a new HyperSystem. After a few seconds the user is given the option of loading a graphic or loading a text file which will be used as the first (node) window. 5.2 RUN HYPERSYSTEM. Clicking on the 'Run HyperSystem' option will execute the loaded or the generated HyperSystem from the (root) first window. 5.3 LOAD HYPERSYSTEM. Clicking on the 'Load HyperSystem' option brings up a file selector box. Choosing a system will load it, erasing the system currently in memory. 5.4 SAVE HYPERSYSTEM. Clicking on the 'Save HyperSystem' option will bring up a file selection box. This will allow the user to select an existing HyperSystem which will be updated and the old version will be renamed to '.BAK'. Or it will allow the user to type in a new filename with which the current HyperSystem will be saved under. 5.5 QUIT PROGRAM. Clicking on the 'Quit Program' option will allow the user to quit the program and return to the desktop. If the HyperSystem has been added to or some windows removed and these alterations have not been saved then the user is given the option to save his work before the system closes down completely. 6. THE WINDOW MENU. The window menu provides the user with three important HyperSystem button operations and these are the following : 6.1 Add Button. 6.2 Modify Button. 6.3 Erase Button. 6.1 ADD BUTTON. When you select this option, and the current window is a graphic window, a dialog box will appear allowing the user to type in a name for the button. By clicking and holding with the left hand button you may position the button in the window. When you select this option, and the current window is a text window, use the pointer to draw a button onto the window, by clicking and holding with the left hand button on the top left hand corner of the button, and releasing on the bottom right. 6.2 MODIFY BUTTON. If you misplace a button, or you edit the text and the button is no longer in the correct position, this option allows you to relocate it. Click on the button you wish to replace, which will then disappear, then draw a new button on in the normal way (see Add Button). All connections and other buttons remain intact. 6.3 ERASE BUTTON. Clicking on the button you wish to delete, this option allows you to remove a button. But be warned this option also removes all windows linked to this button, so use this option with some caution. 7. THE BUTTON EVENTS. Once a button is pressed one of the following events can occur :- 7.1 A Graphic file will be displayed. 7.2 A Text file will be displayed in the Editor. 7.3 A Digital Sound Sample file will be played. 7.1 GRAPHIC FILES. Graphics importation, the program will allow the importation of the following graphic formats available on the Atari ST: PI1 Degas Elite Low Resolution Uncompressed. PC1 Degas Elite Low Resolution Compressed. PI3 Degas Elite High Resolution Uncompressed. PC3 Degas Elite High Resolution Compressed. TN1 Tiny Low Resolution Compressed. TN3 Tiny High Resolution Compressed. IMG GEM Image High Resolution Compressed. The program will automatically convert colour images into their monochrome equivalents. The loaded graphic will be allowed to be scrolled within the window using slider bars and window arrow buttons. 7.2 TEXT FILES. The program supports the following text file formats and identifies them automatically from their file extensions. ASC ASCII Text Files. THE TEXT EDITOR. The Text Editor allows you to add and delete text, just like any other text editor. The keys which are operational, apart from the ordinary character keys are: BACKSPACE Delete the character behind the cursor. DELETE Delete the current character. INSERT Change to INSERT or OVERWRITE mode. RETURN Perform a carriage return. ESCAPE Save the current edited file. CURSOR KEYS Work as usual. 7.3 DIGITAL SOUND SAMPLE FILES. Sample importation of the most widely available sample formats available on the Atari ST. The following file formats are supported: DVSM Atari Falcon Format. SND Sun, Mac, NeXT. WAVE IBM PC & Compatiables. AVR Many Atari ST/Falcon programs. 8. APPENDIX. HyperGEM was written in GFA Basic over a period of about three months, and then compiled with the GFA Basic Compiler v3.6e. The program is designed to be foolproof - but there actually is not such a thing and so problems can arise. I hope I have included enough options, and documented them well enough to rectify any problems, if there are any serious bugs or improvements you you feel should be added to the program, then feel free to contact me at the following address : Timothy Raine, 33 Thornville Road, Hartlepool, Cleveland. TS26 8EW This program will continue to be improved and upgraded. The next version will be written in Lattice C which handles data structures more flexibly the only restriction in Lattice C will be available memory.