I N F O R M A N T
Version 1.00
By James Straub
Mailing address:
James Straub
PO Box 85
Nesconset, NY 11767.
Electronic-mailing address:
InterNet: jsstraub@ic.sunysb.edu
Informant, (c) Copyright 1992 James S. Straub.
What is Informant?
------------------
Informant is a MS-Windows performance meter that displays the load on your
system by way of a 3D-graph. It's crammed with features and is simple to
use. This document is meant to provide you with an understanding of some
of the key concepts behind Informant. Since Informant is so easy to use,
I will just cover how to get it up and running along with some things that
might not be completely intuitive.
Getting it running
------------------s
There are many ways to get informant running:
Putting informant in Program Manager
1. Select a program group where you would like to place Informant.
2. Select "File" from the Program Manager menu.
3. Now choose "New..."
4. When the dialog box comes up select "OK" to create a new program
item.
5. Now you should see the "Program Item Properties" dialog box.
6. Fill in the information such as:
Description: Informant
Command Line: INFORM.EXE
Working Directory: DRIVE:\PATH (i.e: C:\WINDOWS)
7. Once you're done, select "OK."
8. Now you're all set! Just double click on the icon!
9. If you want Informant to run when you enter Windows just drag
the icon into the "Startup" program group.
What it displays
----------------
Informant displays, in graph form, the amount of work your computer is
doing. When you see the graph go up, your computer is working hard to do
something. You will notice that when your computer is sluggish the graph
will climb. Below is a simple explanation:
High load: This is when your computer is doing something which causes
it to feel sluggish. For example: you save a file, calculate
something in a spread sheet program or print a document like
this one.
Low load: When your computer is running at this level, it is very
responsive to your commands.
Why use Informant
-----------------
Informant can be useful in a lot of ways. Informant allows you to monitor
exactly how hard your computer is working. This can be helpful for
evaluating programs and how much load they put on the system. For example:
If you run Terminal, you will notice a fairly high load. Given this
information, you may decide not to print a document because it could take
longer than without Terminal running. Besides, Informant is nice to look at!
Things to know
--------------
Changing the window style (with and without borders/title)
Beside selecting what you want in the configuration dialog box
you can:
- Press the "ESC" key to cycle through the different window styles.
- Double click with the left mouse button on the graph to cycle
through the different window styles.
Getting the configuration box
Beside selecting "Preferences..." from the system menu you can also
double click with the right mouse button on the graph to get the
configuration dialog box. This is handy when you have the window
title off.
Moving the window
Informant can be moved simply by holding the mouse anywhere on the
graph and dragging it to the desired position.
Registering
-----------
This program is POSTCARD-WARE. Yup, that's right you gotta send me a
postcard (or a letter or even e-mail) to the address above. I have spent a
lot of time on this program and I would really like to know whether people
enjoy using it. Even if you don't like what I've done, let me know why.
Version history
---------------
* Version 1.00 (BETA 1)
The first public release to get ideas and comments.
* Version 1.00 (BETA 2)
Many people sent me feedback (only e-mail though) about what they
wanted Informant to have. This version includes most of their
suggestions and desires, as well as some bug fixes and a few ideas
I had.
Bugs that were fixed:
- Informant couldn't be restored from an icon when put on
the load line.
- When minimized, if you dragged the icon you got a blank
cursor.
- Stopped dialogs from maxing out the graph. (Except for
the color selection box, sorry...)
New Features:
- Changed the logo screen (nicer picture).
- Allowed the user to stop the logo from coming up at
startup.
- Added a completely new look to the dialog boxes.
- Added the ability to calibrate the graph to the speed of
the computer.
- Improved overall accuracy.
- Improved the efficiency of graphing.
- Window position is saved when program is closed (if you
what it to be).
- Added some sample colors in the select colors dialog box.
- Added another window style "No caption and no borders."
- Update color changes to the graph from inside the config
box.
- When moving the window, you can see it literally move with
the mouse. (Instead of moving the frame around, you
actually move the window around.) Nothing earth shattering
but kinda neat. Thanks goes out to my boss for
implementing this first in one of his programs.
* Version 1.00 (the real thing)
Since I only have one more semester of school, I better hit the
books a little more, not to mention work more (Chistmas is coming).
So, in other words, I have to finish this thing!
Bugs that were fixed:
- Lotus Notes doesn't seem to like informant. (I heard
this but could not reproduce it) I think I solved the
problem, though.
Changes:
- Some features that were grayed out in the dialog boxes
were removed due to the amount of work I have in school.
*Version 1.00a (the real real thing)
Oops! I made a very little change to the code before releasing it.
("Why bother testing, It's such a small change." WRONG!)
Bugs that were fixed:
- Fixed a bug that caused the calibration dialog box from comming up.
Changes:
- none
To those of you who sent me mail
--------------------------------
Thank you VERY much for your feedback. All or your letters were so nice, I
saved them with my code. I hope I satisfied your desires in this release.
If I didn't, I'm sorry, maybe if school lets up I'll add some more features.
Legal stuff
-----------
Here comes the wonderful "cover my butt" sentence: No guarantee is made,
expressed or implied, pertaining to the use, misuse, or any problems caused
by this program. Please know, that this program has been tested on MANY
computers and never has caused any problems.
Bug reports!
------------
Just because I have decided to finish this program doesn't mean I'm just
going to drop it! Maintaining a program is a very important thing. If you
find a bug (of any degree!) PLEASE let me know as soon as possible, and I
will fix it!
THANK YOU FOR USING INFORMANT!