The AppleWorks InitPack:2016 is a collection of (6) new 'Inits' for use with AppleWorks 5.1 on the Apple II series of computers.
1. WPStatus24 - (I.WPSTATUS24)
2. DBStatus - (I.DBSTATUS)
3. SSStatus - (I.SSSTATUS)
4. ShowPath - (I.SHOWPATH)
5. MaxDesk - (I.MAXDESK)
6. FinderLaunch - (I.FINDERLAUNCH)
Randy Brandt, a co-author of the AppleWorks program, introduced the
concept of AppleWorks Inits in 1991 as an easy-to-use method of
enhancing AppleWorks in any of the following (3) ways:
or,
Considering that it has been over 15 years since any new inits have been publicly released for AppleWorks, it would seem that an InitPack is long overdue.
I have included heavily commented source code in both Merlin and .pdf formats that should allow those so inclined to write their own inits for AppleWorks.
Anyway, these (6) new Inits fall under the first (2) categories of types of inits listed above, and either add new features to AppleWorks, or correct a longstanding issue, as follows:
The WPStatus24 Init adds (2) new features to the AppleWorks 5.1 Word Processor:
A 'New' or 'Changed' File is indicated by the appearance of the
Mousetext Black Diamond Character (◆) in place of the normal Colon
Character (:) after the word 'File' on the top line of the Display.
and,
In reference to the screen shot above, the file 'TimeOut Huddle' contains a total of 130 lines.
The total number of lines is dynamically updated and displayed on the top line as lines are either added or deleted from the document. This provides a convenient indicator of not only the length of the document, but also by comparing with the current line number displayed on the bottom line, an indicator of how far into the document the current line is.
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for WPStatus24
The DBStatus Init adds a real time file status indicator to the Data Base REVIEW/ADD/CHANGE Window.
A 'New' or 'Changed' File is indicated by the appearance of the Mousetext Black Diamond Character (◆) in place of the normal Colon Character (:) after the word 'File' on the top line of the Display.
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for DBStatus
The SSStatus Init adds a real time file status indicator to the Spreadsheet REVIEW/ADD/CHANGE Window.
A 'New' or 'Changed' File is indicated by the appearance of the Mousetext Black Diamond Character (◆) in place of the normal Colon Character (:) after the word 'File' on the top line of the Display.
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for SSStatus
The ShowPath Init displays the current ProDOS pathname in the REVIEW/ADD/CHANGE screens of all (3) AppleWorks modules.
In reference to the screen shot above, the pathname '/TIMEOUT.CENT.O5/' is shown on the bottom line of the display in the space normally used by the 'Type entry or use OA commands' phrase.
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for ShowPath
When quitting AppleWorks running under ProDOS 8 on the Apple IIGS, the MaxDesk Init properly disposes of the memory allocated by the Apple IIGS Memory Manager to the AppleWorks Desktop so that restarting AppleWorks in a single session does not result in a diminished Desktop size (an approximately 230kB reduction).
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for MaxDesk
The FinderLaunch Init prevents a crash to the Monitor when AppleWorks is re-launched from the GS/OS Finder after previously launching and quitting in a single session.
While not all IIGS users suffer a crash upon re-launch from the Finder, those who have multiple ongoing interrupt processes (e.g. Twilight II, AppleTalk, UltraMacros) often do. This Init incorporates into AppleWorks the same technique used by the late Glen Bredon in his PS.16.TO.8 from ProSEL 16 when launching ProDOS 8 programs from GS/OS.
View/Download .pdf of Merlin Source Code for FinderLaunch
Inits are easy to install as they simply are copied into the AW.INITS subdirectory within the main AppleWorks directory. The init will always run when AppleWorks is launched, provided that you have activated the InitManager (option 5) in the AppleWorks 'Standard Settings' menu.
To uninstall an init, merely delete it from the AW.INITS subdirectory and restart AppleWorks. That's all.
Do not be concerned about the presence on an init designed to correct an issue specific to the Apple IIGS computer if you are instead using an Apple IIe or IIc, or are running under Deja IIx on the Mac. The inits are intelligent enough to determine both the AppleWorks version # and also the machine on which they are running. If the specific requirements for an init are not met, the primary working code in the init is skipped by AppleWorks.
If you have any questions about any of this, or suggestions for improvements, please post them in comp.sys.apple2 with the subject 'AppleWorks InitPack'. This will allow for idea exchange and improvements.
First Public Releases - December 20, 2015
1. WPStatus24 - (I.WPSTATUS24) [Version 2.4]
2. DBStatus - (I.DBSTATUS) [Version 2.3]
3. SSStatus - (I.SSSTATUS) [Version 2.3]
4. ShowPath - (I.SHOWPATH) [Version 1.0]
5. MaxDesk - (I.MAXDESK) [Version 1.0]
6. FinderLaunch - (I.FINDERLAUNCH) [Version 1.0]
I have toyed with several ideas, but I anticipate releasing an Init for the Word Processor that will allow proper loading of 'TEXT' files with Unix (LF only) line enders. It is currently written in the form of a TimeOut application, but I think using an Init will be a more elegant solution. We'll see.
If there is something that you would like to see, please either pass it on, or perhaps write it yourself and share it.
When Randy Brandt introduced the concept of inits, his JEM Software offered for sale an 'Init Manager Developers Kit' for $75.00. Unfortunately, I never envisioned at the time becoming as enamored with AppleWorks as I eventually did, and so never ordered his Kit, nor have I known anyone who had.
As a result of my inaction, I must express my thanks to Ewen Wannop and his excellent desktop disassembly program 'BrkDown', for providing me with a powerful and yet easy to use tool to document the inner workings of the AppleWorks Init Manager, Patch Manager and of several init files. Armed with that knowledge, I was prepared to write these Inits which I hope you find as useful as I do.
This download consists of an archived (ShrinkIt) '.shk' file.
The '.shk' will contain not only the (6) new AppleWorks Inits, but also a 'ReadMe' file and the assembler source code for those inits in Merlin format.