You can customize many features of the InfoExplorer program to suit your style and needs. To do this, you set InfoExplorer defaults and preferences. For example, you can determine which information bases to use and which printer to use as the default. You can also specify your preferences for such things as the number of history events to track and the type of print output.
The primary differences between defaults and preferences are that most defaults are initiated by the program at startup and that different defaults can be specified for different libraries, but preferences apply to all libraries. When you change some defaults, such as the navigation article, you must exit and then restart. Defaults like print command take effect when they are saved. When you set preferences, all changes take place immediately.
The following sections describe customizing the InfoExplorer ASCII Interface:
With the InfoExplorer program, you can set many defaults. These are the settings that the InfoExplorer program uses at startup. You can select Defaults under Options in the InfoExplorer pull-down menu to set defaults for:
By system default, the InfoExplorer program initially displays the Topic & Task Index as the primary navigation article. You can change this default to the navigation article that best suits your purposes. Then, at startup, the InfoExplorer program automatically displays the new default navigation article.
For procedural information, see Setting Defaults (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
You may want a trainee to follow a specific path while using the InfoExplorer program, or you may want to retrace your path from a previous session. To handle this, you can designate a specific history file as the default history file. Then, when you use the .History option, the default history file leads you or a trainee down the designated path.
You can also designate a bookmarks file or notes file as the default bookmarks or notes file and then follow those specific paths in subsequent sessions.
For procedural information, see Setting Defaults (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
When you create a note in the hypertext documentation, the editor screen is initially blank. You can type the note into the blank screen. To use a specific form when writing notes, you can specify a note template. If you have built and saved many note templates, you can designate one of them as the default. Then, when you use the Note option, the InfoExplorer program displays the default note template.
For procedural information, see Setting Defaults (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
By default, when you search with the InfoExplorer program, the search includes the information bases loaded with the program. However, it is not always necessary to include every information base in your search. To make your searches more efficient, you can specify which information bases to search during current and future sessions. You can also easily reset the information base selection to its original form (system default) so the information bases loaded with the program are again included in the search.
For procedural information, see Setting Defaults (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
Some printers are better suited for either simple or pretty print. In the InfoExplorer program, you can designate a default printer for the different types of print: simple or pretty. The Pretty Print option may use the troff program to convert a document to output for a phototypesetter. When you issue a print command for a screen, the printer you have designated automatically receives that particular command. If you don't specify a print queue, the default is to use the first queue specified in your /etc/qconfig file.
For example, if you have designated printer daves3812 as the printer and if your preference has been set for pretty print, when you choose the Print option, the print job is automatically sent to that printer.
Note: The troff document-formatting program must be installed on your system before you can use the pretty print option.
For procedural information, see Setting Defaults (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
With the InfoExplorer program, you can set many preferences. You use the Preferences option in the info pull-down menu to set preferences for:
A history list can range in size from 0 (zero) to 1000 events. The system default for the history list size is 100 events. You can change the default size to fit your particular situation. You can then apply the changes to the current session only or save them for current and future sessions.
For procedural information, see Setting Preferences (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
There are several notes editors available in the InfoExplorer ASCII interface, including INed and vi. The system default notes editor is vi. If you prefer to use INed or another editor to write your notes, you can change the default. You can then apply the changes to the current session only or save them for current and future sessions.
For procedural information, see Setting Preferences (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.
There are two types of print output available in the InfoExplorer ASCII Interface: simple and pretty. The system default for print output is simple print, which does not support highlighting or font differences. If you prefer to use pretty print, you can change the default.
Note: The troff document-formatting program must be installed on your system before you can use the pretty print feature. The troff program converts a document to output for a phototypesetter.
You can then apply the changes to the current session only or to current and future sessions.
For procedural information, see Setting Preferences (InfoExplorer ASCII) in the InfoExplorer online help.