Is cloning dead? As a recent article at Mac OS Rumors suggests, Apple may be looking at getting back into the clone business. Taking any Apple rumor with a grain of salt, this does nonetheless open a whole new can of worms and speculation.

First, who would want to become a Mac OS clone maker? With the previous cloning debacle still fresh in everyone’s minds, any new company thinking of becoming Mac OS computer manufacturers would have to think twice. And then think again. Steve Jobs has a well-documented history of hating the idea of Mac clones. It does, after all, take money directly out of Apple’s pocket (or so the saying goes). And now that Apple has again returned to profitability, would the powers-that-be want to take this sort of risk?

Looking at it from Apple’s point of view is almost impossible with Steve Jobs at the helm. He changes his mind, it seems, as often as I change my socks. His temper and mood changes are the stuff of legend (and some great columns from Susan Howerter!) Would Steve seriously consider this a viable option? What would Apple have to gain from such a move? A look at Cloning history reveals that it would most likely cost Apple some business, though in today’s Macintosh market of increasing market share (thanks largely to both the iMac and a renewed advertising plan headed by Chiat-Day) perhaps Apple can now support more competition.

One of the areas Apple wanted the clones to build a customer base was in the home market. It is obvious that this would no longer be needed with Apple’s own iMac sales, continuing popularity of the product, and super strong advertising. Rather than build that market, companies like Power Computing went after Apple’s bread and butter sales, the professional and high-end systems. Power Computing not only did well by selling to that market, they really beat the living daylights out of Apple while doing so. Superior products, more options, bring the latest technologies to market far faster than Apple could hope to compete with, Power Computing was long on its way to winning almost all of Apple’s high-end users.

UMAX, on the other hand, did a fine job of attracting the home user. Problem was, however, that rather than grow the market (i.e., get new users rather than existing Mac users) UMAX simply sold and marketed their products to the installed user base. Not good for Apple, and it really did limit those who would buy from UMAX. And like Power Computing, UMAX did not really advertise outside established Mac publications. And let’s not forget Motorola, who tried to do a little of what both UMAX and Power Computing was doing, but never really seemed to catch on.

Here we are again, more than a year after Steve killed the clones, talking about the same old thing. Will clones return? If so, which companies would be willing to take that risk? Certainly not Power Computing, nor I think Motorola. UMAX, perhaps, though I tend to doubt it. So, really, we would be looking at a new influx of companies making a move on Apple. Perhaps a Dell (Not!) or a Gateway, creating a new generation of Macintosh clones. While either of these companies already have the infrastructures to support a Mac cloning business, I seriously do not think either would want to deal with a Steve Jobs run Apple.

But let’s assume for a moment that Apple does, indeed, open up the clones again. What market share does Apple hope these companies would open up for them? Again, Apple has the home market well underway with the iMac, and an upcoming take-it-anywhere product still under development and top secret. So that market is dead for any prospective clone maker.

Apple has not had a great recent history with high-end machines as of late. In fact, many of the graphic professionals I have talked with are somewhat upset with Apple’s current offerings. They want more options, something Apple seems to have no plans of offering. “At least six PCI slots or more!” cries the graphic professional. “Upgradable motherboards” they scream. “A G3, G4 multi-processor system!” is also heard in the wind. And the word from Apple? Not anytime soon, and don’t hold your breath.

But does Apple want to open this market to another Macintosh computer vendor? No way. There is too much money to be made there, with systems selling for $3,500 and up. That is simply too much revenue Apple does not want to part with. It is also one of the main reasons Apple killed the clones the first time around. Just ask Power Computing…

So where would a new breed of clone manufactures fit into the overall Macintosh market? Would any be willing to compete with Apple’s iMac success? Would they dare risk the ire of Steve Jobs by moving on the professional market? How many companies would want to take the chance of ramping up production costs only to have wishy-washy Apple decision-makers pull the rug out from under them in a year’s time if Apple hit hard times again? Very few, if any, I would think.

Of course, I don’t run Apple. Nor do I see the “Big Picture.” And with the recent success Apple has had as of late, I doubt anyone can predict what they have up their sleeves next (including any of the rumors sites). But a new Mac clone venture is still something worth pondering. Something I think most Mac users would initially think to be a great idea. (More choices and better prices for us!) But in the overall scheme of things, is this a wise more for Apple, and a good thing for the end user?

Your thoughts are welcomed.

Tim Robertson
publisher@mymac.com

A funny thing happened to me on a recent visit to CompUSA. There were hardly any customers in the store on this particular early Friday morning, and not many salesmen either. With most of the computers shut down, the store was actually quiet. I had free rein of the Mac aisles, and I intended to look at everything. Of course, not owning an iMac personally, I also wanted to spend some quality time on the display unit.

After five minutes of clicking this and that, I met another customer looking for someone who could answer some Mac questions. Being something of an expert on the subject, I asked if I could help. I spend the next forty-five minutes answering all her questions, giving her some basic tips on maintenance, etc. She was a very nice lady, but what struck me was the fact that she decided on the iMac purchase because her past computer was an old LCII. She said she knew how to operate the Mac, and wanted to stick with it. However, she really did not have what I call “The Basics” down very well. She had never rebuilt her desktop. She did not know what a clean install was. She had no real understanding of some of the most basic advantages of the Mac, what she could really do with it, and how to keep everything in tip-top shape.

One very nice lady, however, does not a new column warrant. But after she left, another customer came in and started asking me questions. He had heard me talking to the previous customer, knew I was not a CompUSA employee, and wanted some “real” advice on what he should buy. Forty-five minutes later, I was convinced that perhaps one of the new features of My Mac should be a column dedicated to not just new users, but those who have had a Mac for years but have either forgotten some of the basic functions or didn’t know them to begin with. Thus, starting this issue, I have created Back 2 Basics, where I hope I can answer any questions you may have, share with you in a non-technical way some of the things you should be going with your Mac, and anything else that may come to mind.

Rebuilding the desktop
What is the desktop? Everyone know that is the “Main Screen” of your Mac. So how to you rebuild the desktop? Actually, you don’t. The desktop referred to here is actually the “Desktop File” There is a lot of information stored here, like which icon pictures and stuff, and you need to make your Mac clean that file up every now and then. Once a month would be a good schedule to do this.

How do you do it? Very easy. First, restart your Mac (or the next time you turn it on). Then, simply hold down the “Option” and the “Command” keys as the Mac starts up. Depending on how long your Mac takes to start up, this could take a few moments. Don’t let them go until you see a message that reads “Are you sure you want to rebuild the desktop on hard drive” You will then click “OK”. Be sure to wait for it to get done before doing anything else, and what ever you do, don’t hit the cancel button once it starts.

When I have explained how to do this to people in the past, I have had a few clients ask “I don’t think my computer has a Command key. I can’t see one” The command key is actually the key right next to the Option key. It has an Apple logo on it.

RAM, MB, and the confusion
One of the most confusing things for new Mac users is to determine the difference between RAM and hard drive space. Which is understandable. When you open a window, it may say “1.5 GB available” but when you try and start another program, the Mac says “Not enough memory available, try quitting such-and-such” Wait, didn’t you think you had more memory available?

The truth is, these are two totally different things. You have RAM, which stands for “Random Access Memory” RAM is how much memory you have available to operate your programs in. If you select “About This Computer” from the Apple menu, you will see how much memory your Mac has. For instance, a brand new iMac has 32MB of RAM, but has a 4GB hard drive. So, how much memory do you have? 32 MB.

What does MB stand for?
MB in this case stands for “Megabytes” If you are talking about memory, you refer to the amount of memory you have in Megabytes. “Hey, Tim, how much Megabytes does your Mac have?” In my case, I would answer “I have 128 Megabytes in my Mac” When you see the initials MB in a article such as this one, you may read 32MB, but in your head, you should hear “32 Megabytes”

With all new computers shipping with at least a 2GB hard drive, some of the confusion of the past has been solved. One computer I once purchased had a 40MB hard drive with 10MB of memory, or RAM. Here people would get confused about the difference between the two MB’s. Since you already know what MB stands for when we are talking about memory, or RAM, your next question should be what does MB mean when referred to as storage, or hard drive space?

MB still stands for Megabytes. How much Megabytes does your hard drive hold? In many cases, it holds so many Megabytes that rather than refer to it as “I have a 1024MB hard drive,” we now use “I have a 1GB hard drive. GB stands for Gigabyte. Each GB is equal to 1024MB. So if you have a 4GB hard drive, such as the one that comes standard on the iMac, you actually have 4096MB. Pretty impressive, no?

A Zip drive, those popular disks everyone seems to have, can hold almost 100MB of data. To put that in perspective, a floppy disk can only hold only 1.44MB of data. Not much, really. An Imation SuperDisk USB disk can hold 120MB of information. Again, not a lot when you compare it to a 4GB hard drive, but it is superb for backing up small applications, saved email, documents you created, and anything else you would hate to lose if your hard drive went bad.

That’s it for this month! I hope you found some use for the information provided here, and if you have any suggestions, be sure to let me know! We really do want to help those still somewhat new on the Mac more comfortable with your machine. The Mac is the easiest computer ever made, but that doesn’t mean you can be an expert right off the bat! We weren’t!

Tim Robertson
publisher@mymac.com

Gridz
Company: Green Dragon Creations
Estimated Price: $34.99
http://www2.greendragon.com/gdc
http://www.gridz.com

The gaming world is a rare place to find an innovative and
“new” concept. Really! The just-released Unreal is a Doom game. Myth is Warcraft on steroids. Diablo is Dungeons and Dragons. Starcraft is the space Warcraft (which I am eagerly awaiting!). And the list goes on. When a truly “new” game comes out, there are usually imitators released within a short time. So when a game comes along with originality, exciting game play, great graphics, and an addictive quality, I sit up and notice. Ladies and gentlemen, Gridz is just such a game.

I first heard of Gridz from a very short review on a Mac gaming web page. It sounded somewhat interesting, so I dropped Green Dragon Creations, the makers of Gridz, a email asking for a review copy. When it arrived, and I looked at the screen shots, I was less than thrilled. It looked a little hokey, and perhaps a little difficult. Not qualities I admire in a game, but I wanted to give it a shot anyway. Three days and six hours of game play later, I’m a believer.

At first glance, Gridz doesn’t seem like it could be such a great game, much less addictive. Even so, it’s very difficult to describe game play to anyone who hasn’t played the game, a little like trying to describe to someone who has never seen an automobile how driving a sports car is different from driving a minivan. But the difference between Gridz and most other games are really that far apart. While many of today’s games go to great lengths to make their games “realistic”, Gridz does not. And it works because of that.

In Gridz, you are a spinning head-factory-robot sort of thing.
What this does, really, is crank out a number of “Nodes” and
little robots. The object of the game is to vanquish your
opponent by activating your Nodes while preventing him from doing the same, or destroying his Nodes whenever he makes them. Sounds really simple, but it is much harder, and easier, than that.

You start out the game with one active “Grid”. You control movement around the playing field by using four keyboard keys (which you can set) that moves left, right, up, and down. The playing field is all black with green squares. You must place your Nodes in four corners of each square, though you can place a Node only next to another Node. You cannot simply place them anywhere you wish. You place your Node by using your mouse to move the cursor to a square, select a corner, and click the mouse button. The Node, however, is not activated until you activate it. When all four corners of a square has an activated Node on it, the square turns into your color, and you own that part of the board. Bad guys cannot enter your squares, nor can you enter theirs. Are you with me so far?

Okay, now for the confusing part. From what I can figure out, your spinning-head-factory robot guy creates your ToolBots, the worker robots who do all the work for you. He also creates the Nodes that you have to place on the board. However, when the game starts, he has to expend energy to create things. Thus he may be able only to create one ToolBot and ten Nodes. When you have activated a grid, it adds more power to your spinning-head-factory robot guy. (Don’t you just love these technical terms?) With more power, he can create more ToolBots and Nodes more quickly.

Still with me? I hope so, because I feel that I
may have lost even myself at this point.
However, we are now getting to the really fun
part of Gridz!

Activating a Node is done by a ToolBot. There
are three different types of ToolBots: Builders,
Strikers, and Hackers. There are five different
ToolBots for each of these categories. During
game play, your object (besides getting rid of the other players and owning the game board–called NetSpace) is to collect Tokens. These Tokens are scattered across the board, and are inside some of the Grids. If you have an activated grid with a token in it when the game is over, you can use that grid to “Buy” new ToolBots. Each ToolBot has special abilities you will come to know after hours of game play. So as the game progresses, level after level, your arsenal of ToolBots become much more effective. Of course, the same is true of your opponents.

Each ToolBot has its own function. A Builder is a defenseless little guy who does nothing but activate your Nodes. A level one builder is pretty stupid, and will miss inactivated Nodes quite often. They also has a tendency to wander about aimlessly, making them easy prey for the enemy. A first level Builder kind of rolls around the board slowly, while a level five actually flies (making him much harder to kill). A level five can activate three times the number of Nodes than a level one, and he hardly ever misses any Nodes in his work.

The Workers, however, are in peril. The next class of ToolBots are the Strikers. These nasty guys go around destroying any opposing ToolBots they can find. That is their whole job function. A level one Striker can kill any Builder (if he can catch it) but a level one Striker is no match for a level five. In fact, a level five Striker (called the Boss) goes around converting any ToolBots he finds to his army. For example, if a red Boss runs across a green Builder, he will lash out with his whip, changing the green builder into a red one. Instant ToolBot for you! The reverse is also true, and I’ve lost many idiot level one builders to an opposing Boss.

The last of the ToolBots are the Hackers. These are perhaps the most important of the ToolBots, as the hackers’ mission is to seek out destroy the enemy Strikers. But they, too, are in some danger from the opposing Strikers, and an enemy Boss can even turn your own hackers against you! You cannot win without hackers, as the main objective is to knock out (or hack away) one of the Nodes around an enemy spinning-head-factory robot guy. If one of the Nodes around a spinning-head-factory robot guy falls, that color (or enemy) is deleted, and all his active Grids are cleared out. In other words, ripe for the taking!

Oh, and by the way, you really have very limited control of your ToolBots. After your let them loose, they go where they want, pretty much do what they want, and get destroyed quite often because they are quite stupid. (Which all combine to make this game so great!) You can give them a few commands, like “Stop” or “Work”, but that’s pretty much it.

Still with me after all that? Thinking this game may be a little too confusing for you? Yeah, I thought that once myself, but I quickly learned differently. Gridz is an addictive, very entertaining game that I know you will enjoy. It’s fun just watching other people play Gridz!

Playing against the computer will become too easy for you after three hours or so of game play, though with version 1.2, Green Dragon Creations has added some needed features such as smart enemies, timed nodes (that disappear if you do not activate them quickly enough), and hacker blips. However, the great part of Gridz is its multi-player mode! Yes, you can play Gridz over the Internet for some very intense and fun games! The multi-player options work great, though finding other people to play you may be a bit of a problem. You can check in with the Gridz web page for notices from other players looking for you, or check out the Worlds Without Borders http://worldwithoutborders.com chat page for Gridz games. I have even found some people ready-to-play on America Online.

Conclusions
Gridz is a really great game. I can honestly say that this game is well worth the asking price of $34.99. Actually, for this game, that price is CHEAP! While I received my copy free for review, had I seen or played the game beforehand, I would have gladly forked over the cash for it–it’s that good. The only negative thing I can say is that the one player mode is a bit too easy after you’ve played it a few times. This can be true of most of the popular games out there, and I’m sure Green Dragon Creations is hard at working on the next, more challenging version of Gridz.

Buy this game. You will love it.

System Requirements: PowerPC or 33MHz 68040, MacOS 7.5.1, 16MB of RAM (24MB Recommended), CD-ROM drive, 640×480, 256 colors

MacMice Rating: 4.5

Tim Robertson
publisher@mymac.com

Websites mentioned:
http://www2.greendragon.com/gdc
http://www.gridz.com
http://www.worldwithoutborders.com

Mariner Write 2.0.4a
Company: Mariner Software Inc
Estimated Price: $69.95
(Shrink wrapped box, includes diskettes and
printed documentation)
$49.95 Online Purchase
$29.95 upgrade
http://www.marinersoft.com

When I first reviewed Mariner Write Version 1.3.1 back in the November, 1996 issue, I had many good things to report on the software. Almost two years later, Mariner Software Inc. has updated the program to version 2.0.4a, adding more options and updates to the program. In a Mac world dominated, it seems, with programs such as Microsoft’s Word 98 and ClarisWorks, can this program hope to compete? Depending on your needs, the answer is both yes and no.

The Good
Mariner Write 2.0.4a is a very nice word processing program. If you are simply looking for a program to type letters in, without all the advanced features of a Microsoft Word 98, Mariner Write is for you. The program takes less than 3MB of memory, and less than 4MB of hard drive space. Very small and very fast. Nice features in today’s market of bloat-ware programs that offer everything under the sun, plus the kitchen sink!

Layout
The layout of Mariner Write is very similar to other word processors. In fact, the tool bar at the top of the screen is very much Word 5.1″ish” All the standard commands are found in either the menu bar, or at the top of each document window.

Mariner Write takes advantage of a well put together Apple Guide that will guide even the novice computer user on the right track of creating professional looking documents. Many programs do not take advantage of this feature of the Mac OS, and it’s nice to see a company so embrace core Mac technologies.

Also included with the $69.95 mailed version is a very handy printed manual. Rather than simply provide a few helpful hints on how to use the program, the manual actually explains how to really use all the features of Mariner Write. You can also download the manual from Mariner Software’s website. I only wish more companies would provide such service to its customers!

Key Commands
A really nice feature I found particularly useful of Mariner Write is the ability to choose your own custom key configurations. This is handy if you are use to using another word processing program that used different key commands than the default settings in Mariner Write. You simply use a pop-up menu under preferences, and follow the directions. Reading the steps to do this in the manual and Apple Guide actually takes longer than simply doing it the first time unaided. Mariner Write, however, uses most of the standard key commands set found in most programs, but this is a nice added feature, and worthy of note.

Style, baby!
Like any good word processor, you can use style sheets in Mariner Write 2.0.4. While Mariner Software does not include any style sheets of their own, you can import them via a simple menu. Style sheets will save you a lot of time down the road when you find yourself creating document after document using the same style and format.

Graphic Touch
Mariner Write is a very nice program for creating documents with graphics. While the program can only open GIF, ESP, JPEG and PICT formatted graphics, the program does a marvelous job of handling them within your document. You can either wrap your text around imported or pasted graphics, or leave the graphic in-line with the sentence. Sure, there are only four graphics types Mariner Write can read, but for most home users, these are the graphic formats you will use 95% percent of the time.

Table Settings
Yes, you can use tables in Mariner Write. This is an important feature in any word processor, and Mariner Write does an adequate job of creating tables. Merge cells, split tables, resize cells, and more are all good, needed options. However, if you want to give your cell a different color than the rest of your document, you’re out of luck.

The Bad

Did I spell this Write?
The spell checker in Mariner Write is also adequate, though I did find the program less robust here than in higher-priced word processors. Spell checkers are very important, but I found the dictionary included with Mariner Write somewhat limited, and its interface lacking in some inportant ways. Spell checking is an area in which I feel all word processors should really excel, or at least the ones I plan on using on a daily basis.

In the above picture, you can see I forgot to place a period after the word “sentence”, and I left out a space before the word “Sure”. While both Word 98 and ClarisWorks 5.0 figured out that the replacement should have been “sentence. Sure”, Mariner Write did not. Yes, I can type in the correction myself, but I shouldn’t have to.

You are also able to select different dictionaries, though I could not find even one dictionary from another word program that it could read or use. The ability to create your own personal dictionary is there, but life is way too short. Mariner Write simply needs much more work on their spell checking module to be make it truly useful.

HTML?
Sorry, no. You cannot save your work in Mariner Write is HTML format. Today’s computer world is closely allied with the web, and web page creation is now being performed by everyone from ten year old children to eighty year old retirees. Anyone looking to do any work on the Web must be able to use a sophisticated word processor that is able to save work in HTML format. However, if you’re looking to buy a program to type up your web page text into, Mariner Write is not for you.

Knock-Knock
Other people will send you files. It’s one of the reasons the Internet was created: to share information. ClarisWorks and Word are by far the most commonly used programs Mac people use. With any word processor you plan on purchasing, you must take into consideration its ability to work with foreign files. You want to be able to read what all your friends and co-workers are sending you, right?

The Test
I put Mariner Write to the test, using two files I had handy on my hard drive. The first was a file created in Microsoft Word 98 (part of the Microsoft Office 98 suite). The file consisted of 21 pages of nothing but text–no tables, no graphics, and the only formatting was paragraph indentations. Mariner Write opened the file, but turned it into 180 pages of gibberish. Totally unreadable. However, I gave Mariner Write the benefit of the doubt here, as Word 98 is a brand new program, and I really did not expect it to translate the document very well, though I was expecting some of the text to come through readable.

For my next test, I opened a ClarisWorks 4.0.4 document. This file was originally 12 pages long, consisting of colored and formatted text. ClarisWorks 4.0.4 has been on the market for quite some time, and has only recently been replaced with a version 5. So I was expecting Mariner Write to do a better job than it did with the Word 98 file. When I opened the ClarisWorks 12 page file, Mariner Write now displayed 1,002 pages of useless text. Not one word was readable in the file. To make sure neither of these documents was somehow damaged, I opened the files in their respected programs and found no problems.

Finally, just for kicks, I used the freeware BBEdit Lite (version 4.0.1) from Bare Bones Software to open the same two files. BBEdit lite is not really a word processor, but rather a text editor. I use it all the time to open saved email files, as well as web pages saved as text.

When I opened the Word 98 file, BBEdit Lite did show much gibberish. However, not all the text was there in readable form. Simply selecting and deleting the gibberish text produced a very usable file. The same was less true with the formatted ClarisWorks 4.0v4 text file, and with a little work, I was able to retrieve all but about 5% of the original text.

Mariner Write did, however, open up every SimpleText file I threw at it. It also had no problem opening any file which was “saved as text,” including those created in both Word 98 and ClarisWorks.

Conclusions
While it may not really be fair to pit Mariner Write against either Word 98 or ClarisWorks, these are options you need to look at when deciding on a word processor. If you are not looking to spend a lot of money, have very little memory and hard disk space, Mariner Write may be right up your alley. While I found the program very elegant for what it can do, I’m a little disappointed with its ability (or lack thereof) to open other files. The lack of HTML support will also discourage many potential buyers.

If you are a serious writer, I would recommend you look towards purchasing Microsoft Office 98 or the less expensive, but highly-rated, Nisus Writer. (See the June 1996 issue of My Mac for a review of Nisus Writer 5.0.4.) If your Mac came with ClarisWorks version 4.0 or higher, there is no sense in getting Mariner Write Mariner Write 2.0.4a. True, ClarisWorks also has a difficult time opening a Word 98 file, and in fact version 4.0v4 crashed my computer when I tried, but it has all the important features (and a few more) that Mariner Write has except for the smaller memory and hard drive space requirements.

Overall, Mariner Write is a competent and efficient tool, but with a limited feature set compared to the “complete” products that have evolved from its competition. However, not everyone requires some of the very specialized features of the larger applications. Perhaps it’s target audience might best be seen as PowerBook users with smaller hard drives or limited RAM, or casual word processor users who don’t anticipate a need for HTML conversion. For these people especially, Mariner Write should serve very well.

Note: If you’re looking for something to open a file sent to you from a friend, and nothing else will do it, go download the free BBEdit Lite from BareBones Software. http://www.barebones.com.

MacMice Rating: 3

Tim Robertson
publisher@mymac.com

Websites mentioned:
http://www.marinersoft.com
http://www.barebones.com

Halloween is just around the corner! Pumpkins, black cats, spiders, trick or treating… great stuff! The leaves turning brilliant oranges, reds, and yellows. The wind blowing through the trees, rattling the branches like bones. It’s time to watch reruns of all your scary favorites: Halloween, Halloween 2, Halloween H2O (okay, that one is still at the theater, but you can always see it twice!). Let’s not forget the all-time scariest movie of all: The Exorcist. Make sure you have someone you trust holding your hand while watching that one.

What else can you do to get in the mood? Read some of Stephen King’s most frightening novels: Salem’s Lot, The Tommyknockers, It, The Stand. Or, if you prefer, go to his early short story collections such as Skeleton Crew.

Before I go into Helpful Hints, I wanted to write about an experience I’m having with AOL. A couple of months ago AOL sent out an offer for its new long distance service… 9¢ a minute! Not too shabby. So, I signed up. In the offer I received via snail mail, it said go to keyword LDJULY to get the details. I thought, “No problem. I’ll sign up right now and print off the details tomorrow.”

The next day, when I was online, I typed in the keyword. It found nothing. I tried this for a couple of weeks. Nothing. I finally emailed Steve Case, President of AOL. I got a form email back. I eventually received an email from the long distance group letting me know the service has been activated. I emailed back explaining my situation. Long story short, I have not been able to get the details about the service.

Do I truly think I’m going to get the shaft? No. Especially with the problems AOL had not too long ago with line access, I think they will want to stay on the straight and narrow. And yes, I should have checked it out before I signed up. Even so, that does not change the fact AOL should have corrected this problem. If I couldn’t locate the information, how many others had the same issue? This is simply poor customer service.

Helpful Hints

HH#58: The MacAuthority– This is a neat little website I found. It covers, of course, Macintosh news. You can even sign up for email messages, all absolutely free! It’s related to a printed newsletter by the same name, The MacAuthority. It’s a great newsletter, costing about $40.00/year. Well worth the money. It gives you helpful hints, things to watch out for, things you might want to research more. It’s very informative. The website is http://www.cobb.com/tma

HH#59: How to Open a file, folder, or application– This is actually something I covered when I first started writing for My Mac. However, one of my readers, Buzz Buzzell, suggested might be good to cover again. It’s very basic, but very necessary when working on your computer.

Macs use double-clicks on the mouse to open pretty much anything. If you happen to double-click on a particular item that only needs one click, it’s no problem. It doesn’t affect the file/application/folder in any way. There are utilities you can purchase to reduce all your mouse clicks to one, if you prefer to work that way. We won’t cover that here.

Okay, I have to make an assumption: you know how to open your hard drive and how to open and use your browser, whatever it is. Essentially, the same principles apply to opening everything else.

Another way of opening something on your hard drive is to use the Open command. Simply click once on the item you want to open. Then, go under File at the top of the screen, drag down to the Open command and you’re all set! Or, you can use the keyboard shortcut, Command-O. Same results. Your file/folder/application will open for you.

Another way to open a file is to click, hold the file, and drag it to its application file. (The application which created the particular file you are looking to open.)

Another neat function our Macs have is opening unknown text files. For example, you have a read me file and you’re not sure what program created it. Simply click and hold that file, then drag it to your word processing application icon. Nine times out of ten, that will open the document. It could have been created in SimpleText, MS Word, TeachText, WordPerfect, or something else entirely! Fortunately, most word processing programs have reached the point where they will open a document created by another program. You may lose some of the text characteristics, but you should be able to read it.

Thanx to Buzz Buzzell for the topic suggestion!

The MacBug Tale: Check out The Conflict List, http://www.quillserv.com/www/c3/c3.html Take care of those bugs before they take care of you!

Internet Site of the Month: http://www.amazon.com.

This is probably the most advertised website in the world next to Yahoo!. I visited it for the first time last week and was I impressed. Why? I was looking for some oddball books. Hey, I love reading and I have eclectic tastes. What can I say? Plus, I’ve had a hard time finding easily accessible DVD suppliers. Amazon.com provides both and more! All on-line. Easy to search. Easy to buy. Quick delivery and easy on the pocketbook. If you haven’t already, take a look. You’ll like it. (I was especially pleased with the fast delivery. I received both my orders in less than a week!)

Have a happy and safe (and scary!) Halloween! ;­)

Barbara Bell
pr@mymac.com

Websites mentioned:
http://www.cobb.com/tma
http://www.quillserv.com/www/c3/c3.html
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/mymacmagazin
http://www.amazon.com

Finds using globals in scripts

Hello again. I think this month we’re going to flatten out the learning curve just a bit, for both our sakes. There isn’t enough time, space (or knowledge) for me to be writing a manual here, and I’d rather write about tips to actually do things. Not to worry, I’ve got lots to keep us busy.

Here are some tricks with Finds, especially how to use relationships and globals to do “find-like” operations.

One simple scripting technique with Finds is to isolate the current record, in the case where many are showing. There are two ways to that. The first uses the Find and Omit steps in a simple script:

Find All (shows all records)
Omit (omits the record you’re looking at, just like clicking the Omit box manually)
Find Omitted (finds only that record)

It’s useful in Preview -> then Printing scripts, as Preview Mode always takes you to the first record of the found set. These lines in a print script allow you to print just the one record you’re looking at in Browse mode, or have found with a Find script.

The second method, using Relationships, is a bit more complex, but can be customized to do more than one record. It requires the creation of a global field.
Record ID g (Global, type text)

You should also have a Record ID field, serial number (text), auto-entered for each new record. If not, define one. (You can use the Replace, by Serial Number command to serialize an existing database file; look in the earlier articles.) Also, create a self-relationship (same file) with the Record ID global field on the left and the Record ID field on the right. Name it something like Self\Record ID g.* Now all you need are simple steps in any script to save that Record’s serial number and return to it:

Set Field ["Record ID g," "Record ID"]
Exit Record, Request
Comment ["You can go do other things here; the next step returns."]
Go To Related Record [Show, "Self\Record ID g"]

So far so good. But what if you want to be able to return to more than one record? An elaboration of this method will do this. You need a new layout. Put only the Record ID field on it. That’s all. Create another layout. Put the Record ID g field on it, in the body. It could have other fields. Neither of these needs to show on the Layout Menu (though I usually leave all layouts visible while I’m developing, at least till I’m sure they work).

The script works by using an undocumented but real ability of FileMaker to treat multiple entries separated by paragraph returns as if they were separate entries. It vastly extends the power of relationships, as you’ll see.

The script is fairly simple.
Freeze window
Comment ["Looks better and saves time."]
Go to Layout ["Record ID"]
Copy All Records
Comment ["This will copy all the IDs in the found set of records."]
Go to Layout ["Record ID g"]
Set Field ["Record ID g," """"]
Comment ["This initializes (clears) the global. Good idea."]
Paste [Select, No style,"Record ID g"]
Comment ["This pastes ALL the found ID's into the global field, separated by paragraph returns."]

At this point you can go off and do other things, many of which would normally lose that found set. There’s no limit to what you can do, as long as you don’t reset the Record ID g field. The same single step at the end of the script or attached to a button will bring back the former found set of records.** Go to Related Record [Show, "Self\Record ID g"] You would also want a step somewhere to go to the right layout (otherwise you’d still be on the Record ID g layout).

You can remove the Comment steps. There is a limit to how many record IDs you can paste into a text field, but it’s pretty high, 64,000K, including paragraph characters.

The idea of using a global to temporarily hold the value of a regular field is one you’ll use many, many times. In fact, the steps:

Set Field ["Fieldx g,""""]
Comment ["Makes sure it's empty"]
Set Field ["Fieldx g," "Fieldx"]
Comment ["Do anything else here, including Enter Find Mode"]
Set Field ["Fieldx," Fieldx g"]

Should be used in most cases instead of Copy/Paste. It’s faster, it doesn’t use the clipboard, and it’s safer, as Copy/Paste requires that the fields be on the present layout. You can have several Set Fields filling different fields in one script operation, whereas the clipboard is limited to one thing at a time; ergo only one Paste from the clipboard after entering Find Mode. Some exceptions are Date and Time fields, which are finicky using Set Field; the Paste Result or even Paste Literal must sometimes be used.

A Global ID field mirroring an ID field is also an easy way to present choices from a few values. You can allow a choice in a global field in Browse mode without changing any data in the records, such as using the field itself would do.

Create a global field mimicking the original (i.e, if Fieldx ID, then Fieldx ID g). Then, in layout mode, format the global field to be radio buttons, using the “values from a field” choice. Specify the original Fieldx ID field; show also the field’s associated name field so the choices are recognizable (the ID alone isn’t).
Stretch out a box on the layout for as many ID’s as you have (they can form columns). It’s not real pretty, as the ID numbers show (unless you do something to hide them), but it’s highly functional.

Choose one, then hit a Go to Related Record scripted button (Fieldx ID g::Fieldx ID), and you’ll be instantly transported to those records. You could also use a pop-up menu if you have a lot of names. You can even use checkboxes (or the shift key w/radio buttons) to choose multiple values, using the previously mentioned ability (multiple choices being automatically separated by paragraph returns).

Another amazing use is to put such a global field above a portal whose relationship is based on it, e.g., Job ID g::Job ID. This could be a self-relationship in the same file or in a different file with that same ID field. Then, as you click on different buttons all the records in the portal will change immediately to reflect the new ID choice. More on Portals later. Please note that due to the non-indexable problem you can begin a relationship with a global, but not end it with one (example: global field on the left side, OK, but global field on the right side, No Way).

Well, as usual I went off on a tangent (albeit an interesting one), ignoring the increasing incline of the learning curve. Hopefully I’ll be more fun next month.

*BTW, you may find my naming techniques strange; but one thing I can tell you for certain, you will need to come up with a scheme that makes sense to you. It is important that you can recognize fields and scripts by their names.

I like to name similar fields with similar beginnings, so that they sort alphabetically together (scripts and relationships must be sorted manually, so it doesn’t matter). Scripts that make a call to (or are called from) another file are also labelled with arrows (–> or <–) and the abbreviated file name, so I know where they are coming from or going to. It also makes them easier to separate from in-file scripts.

Oh yeah, I use the “\” sometimes to separate names. You can’t use a “/” in field names, but the “\” is fine. If I want words to be visually apart, such as “JobID g,” then I use an option-space before the “g.” It really sets it off, but still allows you to double-click it as one word to put into calculations. [Note: It's just a regular space here because DOCMaker, which My Mac is written in, can't deal with option-spaces.]

One of the greatest strengths of FileMaker, as opposed to others, is that it allows you to change the names of fields, layouts, scripts and relationships, readjusting them for you throughout all the related files. One thing it does not do is readjust changed file names. This means that if you change them it will break the relationships (which must then be manually reestablished).

**Globals have different characteristics on networked databases. It should still work on each local machine’s file, at least until you quit. I know little about networking.

Fenton Jones

Fenton Jones is a FileMaker database designer and consultant, based in San Diego, CA. FileMaker is a cross-platform rapid-development tool for affordable relational databases. If you have need of a FileMaker Pro expert, please be sure to visit his home page at http://www.fentonjones.com

Once upon a time, there was an insanely great computer company. It was great because it used technology intelligently to leapfrog the then current computer operating system which was called SOS. This upstart company introduced a user interface that made it easy for anyone to relate to a computer. Now a typical user could approach his machine with anticipation rather then trepidation. It was point and click easy. No longer would the computer system dictate to the user. No longer would users be required to insert arcane commands. No more orange screen or green screen with text. Now the user was in charge. The future for the fledgling company seemed secure. The year was 1984.

One of the original three wise men to bring this novice company and its new computer to the world was named Stevie Wonder. He was young, brash and not too patient with people who did not share his vision. He was a dynamo and a top notch salesman. He named the company Applesauce and the new, easy-to-use computer he called Delicious after the famous apple variety. Devotees of the new computer however, quickly chose to call it the Deli, liking its extensive range to that of the neighborhood delicatessen rather than the fruit. The Deli offered a world at your doorstep that was rich, diverse, exotic, and interesting.

The whimsical computer name, however, drew ridicule from the SOS camp. Naming a computer after a type of fruit was unheard of and considered frivolous. To launch his ingenious computer, Stevie Wonder approved a hard hitting commercial spoofing blue monolithic MBI. The commercial aired on Super Bowl Sunday and the computer world would never be the same.

The established computer universe thought the little company was insane to introduce this toy. In many ways, they were right. A toy was something a child could use but the difference with this new marvel was that a child would have no trouble to unleash the power that it promised. It was an insanely great concept… and it worked!

However, Stevie Wonder alienated as many as he attracted to this new platform. His outspoken attacks on the establishment were not looked on with any humour. After all, there was nothing humourous about SOS. To accomplish anything on that system meant sweat-of-your-brow determination. It was a throw back to the New England puritan immigrants who firmly believed in no gain without pain. Lets call this the Mayflower syndrome.

This Mayflower syndrome was not the only reason that hindered the rise of the Deli but it had a great deal to do with acceptance of the new toy. Although many flocked to Applesauce, this watershed in computer and interface design lagged behind the established text-only SOS. Eventually Stevie Wonder became less wonderful to many of his admirers and ultimately he was forced to resign from the very company he had helped to establish. Ironically this pioneer of the toy was kicked out of his company in one of the many power play games Wall Street loves so much. After all, this was not about superior systems; it was about money! Stevie Wonder was gone. What would become of Applesauce and the Delicious?

In the corporate world, a widget is a widget. Stevie Wonder knew this and so did his CEO John Skull, who had been recruited from a soft drink company. When Stevie left, Skull remained behind. Selling sugared water and selling computers isn’t that different, is it? Its all a matter of taste, vigor and pep, si? But John Skull, after almost 10 years could not get it right and resigned. Perhaps computers required more attention than adding extra sugar to the water, no?

In the interval, another computer pioneer, Geeker Gates, head of Softco, had led his SOS system along the path of success under the nose of big blue MBI. But he had seen the vision. He commanded that SOS replicate the Delicious interface as quickly as possible. Never innovate when you can imitate, he pontificated. After years of false starts and mediocre upgrades, the new system called Panes finally developed into a usable system. Not a good system or as easy a system, but one SOS users could migrate to. Panes was still built on the SOS foundation and continued to have many of its quirks but it simulated the Delicious and the new Panes users considered it good enough. Many still remained loyal to SOS (the Mayflower syndrome). Many gladly switched, only to encounter more pain–the transfer was not without problems. Even so, Softco sales of their Panes OS increased.

Geeker Gates became the richest man in the world. His rise to the financial top and the success of his company, Softco was chronicled in his book, “The Road I Look Back On”, published by MS Press. In one revealing chapter, he fondly recalled the many hours spent by the log fire (it was cold in Red Mountain, Washington) while he hand wrote his struggles. No one could accuse him of having his work ghostwritten. He had the stacks of lined letter size sheets in his shaky scrawl in the Softco archives. The archives location is in the basement of the small 5 room bungalow he grew up in.

During this transition of SOS to Panes, Applesauce was slowly losing market share. The Delicious system, although superior and still well ahead of the Panes system in usability, was not advancing as it should. Internal squabbles at Applesauce and multiple changes of CEOs led to mediocre products and the future looked clouded indeed. The hyena press lost no time in declaring the once proud company, beleaguered, stumbling, embattled, doomed, and finally, dead.

Apparently, these journalists all attended the same correspondence school where vocabulary and insight was limited. They all seemed to turn a blind eye to the startling report in 1998 that the top selling Panes computer company, Compact, had lost more money in one quarter ($3.4 billion) than Applesauce had lost in their 2 year slide (2.8 billion). Where were the journalists? Where were the Wall Street gurus? Certainly not hanging crêpe on Compact, the queen of PCs. It doesn’t take a digital genius to see that takeovers can lead to folly and that some segments of the press were biased.

The late 1990s also ushered in change at Applesauce. Suddenly, in a fast swivel hip play, reminiscent of a Super Bowl end-run, the previous CEO was out and Stevie Wonder was back in. But it was all acting. He wasn’t the real CEO; he was only making the decisions until a permanent CEO could be found. Perhaps it would be sometime in the new millennium. In the interim, he refocused and rebuilt the company. He introduced new products and set in motion Delicious next OS. It was music to Applesauce supporters’ ears and they rated his efforts with a X (10).

One of his new products was a new all in one computer for the “Me” generation. He named it the meMic. The name was a word play on the computer’s ability to mimic the more powerful top of the line models and still offer compact simplicity, and state of the art industrial design, all wrapped in an attractive low price.

In one short year, Applesauce’s stock had risen to landmark heights, the newest power models of the Deli were selling briskly and the meMic models sold off the shelves as quickly as they were received. The dead computer company would not roll over. It was very much alive and gave every indication that it would have a long and prosperous life. And, as they say, they all lived happily ever after.

Disclaimer: Any similarity of characters and/or situations to actual people/events is: a coincidence; unintentional; intentional; a misunderstanding; a gross misconduct by the author; grounds for impeachment; none of the above.

Please choose one of the seven responses above or add in your own. Send your choice to: •Ralph J. Luciani• ralph@mymac.comMy Mac readers who reply may receive a complimentary version of SOS 2000 (code name Titanic). Vote tabulations will be posted in a future issue.

Ralph J. Luciani
ralph@mymac.com