HELP WINDOWS 83/08/03
WINDOWS
INTRODUCTION
Windows are areas on the screen in which you can read or edit text or
execute programs. Each window is a separate computing environment.
You can have many different windows on the screen at one time. You can
move windows on your screen, change a window's size and shape, stack,
shuffle, and overlap windows.
PADS
A pad holds the information displayed through a window. You can move a pad
beneath a window. To move a pad up, down, right, or left, use the predefined
boxed-arrow keys. To move the cursor to the top of the current pad, press
CTRL/T. Press CTRL/B to position the cursor at the bottom of the pad.
CREATING WINDOWS AND PADS
Press <EDIT> or <READ> to open a window to a file. Use <READ> to view an
existing file, and use <EDIT> to create a new file or to change the contents
of an existing one. The full pathname of the file you are viewing appears
in the window legend at the top border of the window.
Pressing the <EDIT> key causes the cursor to move to the Display Manager
input window, next to the Command prompt. Type the name of the file you
wish to create and press <RETURN>. The DM creates an empty edit pad and
window in which you can work. To edit an old file, type the name
of the file and press <RETURN>. The DM displays a copy of the file.
To close an edit pad and its window, and save the new text, press CTRL/Y.
To discard changes made to a file, press CTRL/N. When you press CTRL/N,
the following message appears:
File modified. OK to quit?
Type Y to quit. Type N to resume editing.
Pressing the <READ> key causes the cursor to move to the Display Manager
input window, next to the Command prompt. Type the pathname of the file you
wish to read and press <RETURN>. The specified file must exist. If it does
not, the system responds: "File not found". When a file is found, the DM
copies the file into a READ-ONLY pad for viewing. You cannot edit text
displayed in a READ pad. To change a READ pad to an EDIT pad,
press CTRL/M. Type CTRL/N to close a READ pad and its window.
(You can create a new Shell process, along with a pad and window, by pressing
the <SHELL> key. The cursor appears in the new window beside the "$" prompt.
Use the appropriate Shell commands to execute the programs you need. Type
CTRL/Z to close the pad. Type CTRL/N to erase the pad and window.)
CHANGING WINDOW SIZE
You can change the size of a window by using the <MARK> and <GROW> keys or
<MARK> and CTRL/G. To grow or shrink a window, first mark the edge or corner
you want to move. Position the cursor at the specified edge or corner and
press <MARK>. Move the cursor to the desired new location and press <GROW>
or CTRL/G. The marked edge or corner moves to the new cursor position, and
the window grows or shrinks accordingly.
PUSHING OR POPPING A WINDOW
You can display windows that are partially or completely hidden by other
windows on your screen. Place the cursor in the specified partially hidden
window. Press <POP> or CTRL/P. The window appears on the top of the pile.
To display a completely hidden window, press <POP> or CTRL/P until the window
appears in view. Pressing <POP> or CTRL/P when the cursor rests in a
completely visible window pushes that window to the bottom of the stack.
DEFINING POINTS AND REGIONS
Some DM commands require that you point with the cursor or define a region
on the screen. To point, simply move the cursor to the desired place.
For example, to point to a window, place the cursor anywhere inside the window.
To declare a region (the area between two points), point the cursor to the
start of the region and press <MARK>. Then, point to the end of the region
and issue the DM command.
DEFINING WINDOW BOUNDARIES
When a window's size or position on the screen is changed in any way, the
Display Manager determines the new boundaries of the window using calculations
based on a pair of points on the screen. Normally, the points are chosen
based on predetermined defaults. You may, however, specify the new location
for a window using the procedure described in "Defining Points and Regions"
immediately prior to creating the window. You may also provide absolute
point coordinates as arguments to the window creation commands instead of
using the <MARK> and point procedure. See the window creation command HELP
files and the "DOMAIN System Command Reference Manual" for more information.