This is the documentation for InfView.


Copyright (C) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 Salvador Eduardo Tropea


This documentation may be freely distributed, provided this copyright notice
is left intact on all copies.

INFVIEW
*******

Use the cursor arrows to move the cursor over the link (yellow words) that
you want and press <ENTER>.


Press <F5> to use all the available screen.


  Table of Contents
  *****************

1 Features and motivation
2 How to use InfView
  2.1 Jumping to any file or node
  2.2 Jumping to any node in the current file
  2.3 Control dialog
  2.4 Bookmarks dialog
  2.5 Configuration dialog
  2.6 Searching
3 Compressed files
4 About the Author
5 Greetings

1 Features and motivation
*************************

First time I used the info viewer from GNU I really hated it. I don't doubt
that info is a powerful browser, but isn't so easy to use. The interface is
unclear and isn't intuitive at all.


My first solution was to create a converter to translate the info files to the
Norton Guides format. The program can be found in SimTelnet, but the problem
is that this format have some limitations and you need a browser for it.
Even when there are shareware browsers that's a problem.


So my next attempt was to make a browser like the one used by the Turbo Vision
library. And the result was InfView. InfView provides a very easy to use
interface without loosing power.


The main features of InfView are:


   * Free cursor movement with the keyboard arrows, page-up, etc.

   * Mouse support.

   * Highlighted cross references.

   * Hide of the `*Note' and other confusing things of the info format.

   * Previous, Next and Up node support.

   * History support.

   * Incremental search just typing the first letters of the cross reference.

   * The same for the whole nodes list.

   * Support for compressed info files. See compressed files (Chapter 3).

   * Search in the current node, the whole file or all the files.

   * Bookmarks.

   * History of the last 40 nodes visited.

   * Dialog to browse the files on disk.

   * and more

2 How to use InfView
********************

Available Keys:


   * Arrows
     - Action: Moves the cursor. Holding shift selects the text.


   * Page Up
     - Action: Previous page of the topic. Holding shift selects the text.


   * Page Down
     - Action: Next page of the topic. Holding shift selects the text.


   * Home
     - Action: Move cursor to the first column. Holding shift selects the
     text.


   * End
     - Action: Move cursor to the last character in the line. Holding shift
     selects the text.


   * Ctrl+Right arrow
     - Action: Next word. Holding shift selects the text.


   * Ctrl+Left arrow
     - Action: Previous word. Holding shift selects the text.


   * Tab
     - Action: Move to the next link (from the cursor position).


   * Shift+Tab
     - Action: Move to the previous link (from the cursor position).


   * Alt+F1
     - Action: Go to the last viewed topic.


   * Ctrl+s
     - Action: Search (Searching).


   * Ctrl+l
     - Action: Repeat the last search.


   * Alt+F10
     - Action: InfView control (Control dialog). dialog window.


   * Ctrl+p
     - Action: Go to the "previous" link.


   * Ctrl+n
     - Action: Go to the "next" link.


   * Ctrl+u
     - Action: Go to the "up" link.


   * Ctrl+t
     - Action: Go to the "top" link.


   * Ctrl+d
     - Action: Go to the directory.


   * Ctrl+h
     - Action: This help.


   * Ctrl+g
     - Action: GoTo (Jumping to any file or node).


   * Ctrl+o
     - Action: Jump to node (Jumping to any node in the current file).


   * Alt+b
     - Action: Goes to the Bookmarks (Bookmarks dialog). dialog.


   * Ctrl+f
     - Action: Goes to the Configuration (Configuration dialog). dialog.


   * Alt+i
     - Action: Copies the include name to the clipboard (for the libc help).


   * 1-9
     - Action: Take the link 1 to 9.


   * 0
     - Action: Take the last link available in that topic.


   * a-z A-Z
     - Action: Select the next link that starts with this letter. The editor
     uses an incremental search so you can type various letters until you
     reach the desired item





2.1 Jumping to any file or node
===============================

Go To Window:


You must enter the exact name of the topic that you want in the following
format:


     (file)node

For example: `(libc)printf' will go to the printf help.

2.2 Jumping to any node in the current file
===========================================

This option will show you a window with all the nodes available in the
current help file. You'll be able to select any of them and pressing <ENTER>
you'll jump to that node.


The names are alphabetically sorted and pressing the first letters of the
name of the node you'll be guided to the desired node.


2.3 Control dialog
==================

This dialog controls the navigation in InfView. The dialog contains the
following buttons:


   * Next
     - Action: Moves to the next node in the help


   * Previous
     - Action: Moves to the previous node in the help


   * Up
     - Action: Moves one node up in the help's hierarchy


   * Prev. Hist.
     - Action: Goes to the previously visited node


   * Nodes List
     - Action: Shows a list of all the nodes to choose one


   * Bookmarks
     - Action: Goes to the Bookmarks (Bookmarks dialog). dialog


   * Configuration
     - Action: Goes to the Configuration (Configuration dialog). dialog


   * Open Info
     - Action: Opens a dialog to browse the disk and choose any file to load


   * Hide
     - Action: Hides the control dialog





Additionally the dialog contains a list with the last 40 nodes visited, you
can choose any of them with the mouse of the cursors.


2.4 Bookmarks dialog
====================

This dialog allows to save the names of the nodes that you use frequently. You
can save as many node positions as you want and they will be restored next
time you run the editor. The marks can be deleted from this window too.

2.5 Configuration dialog
========================

This dialog configures how InfView shows the text in screen.


Currently there are two settings:


  1. Hide '*Note' word: It hides the note tag used make makeinfo to indicate a
     cross reference.

  2. Hide real link name: It makes visible only the comment about the node
     and no the real name of the node.

By default both are enabled and gives a cleaner text.

2.6 Searching
=============

InfView have various search options, these options are grouped in two
sections. The first indicates how the search will be make:


   * Case sensitive: Makes the search sensitive to the upper/lower case
     characters.

   * Whole words only: Force to match only if the whole word matchs.

The second indicates where to search:


   * In current topic: Only in the text of the current node.

   * In the file: In all the nodes of the current help file.

   * In all files: In all the files located in the INFO directory.

3 Compressed files
******************

InfView supports compressed info files. For that they must have one of the
following extentions `igz', `gz', `info.gz' or `inz'.  Additionally they must
be compressed with GNU's gzip and gzip must be installed in your system and
in your search path.


Compressing the files under Linux or Windows 95 (with LFN=Y) is relative easy
because you only need to compress the files and they will have the `gz'
extention added. Under plain DOS is a little  harder because a file called
`file.i10' will become `file.i1z' and will have the same name as a compressed
file that had the following name `file.i1'. To fix that you must first rename
the files to have the following format: `file.nn'.  Then you must edit the
first file to fix the `Indirect' table to reflect the changes.


4 About the Author
******************

InfView was made by Salvador Eduardo Tropea (SET), with the help of Robert
Hhne.


     E-Mail: Salvador Eduardo Tropea <salvador@inti.gov.ar>
     
     Telephone: (+5411) 4759-0013
     Postal Address:
     Salvador E. Tropea
     Curapalige 2124
     (1678) Caseros - 3 de Febrero
     Prov: Buenos Aires
     Argentina


5 Greetings
***********

   * To all the people who have contributed with DJGPP and GNU projects.

   * Specially to:
        * DJ Delorie       (DJGPP's motor).

        * Robert Hhne     (RHIDE).

        * Eli Zaretskii    (FAQ's maintainer and djgpp patchman).

        * Charles Sandsman (CWSDPMI's author).

        * Laszlo Molnar    (UPX's author sorry ML for the reverse order ;-).

        * Marek Habersack  (don't worry the position was random).

   * To all the people of DJGPP's list.

