UFO: Chapter 4
UFO's OS/2 Warp Information Resources |
---|
How do you make your OS/2 WARP's WPS (workplace shell) stand out from others? |
Customize it !! |
| ||
- by Jeff Jackowski |
Detail discussion of the OS/2 WARP workplace shell | |
- by Chris Wenham, OS2 e-Zine! Vol 1 no 5 |
Gadgets to beautify WPS and boost productivity. | |
- by Chris Wenham, OS2 e-Zine! Vol 1 no 5 |
Steps to turn WPS into an ultimate desktop | |
- by Jim Little, OS2 e-Zine! Vol 1 no 5 |
Good article on customizing WPS | |
- by Larry Bouthillier, OS2 e-Zine! Vol 1 no 5 |
Informative reading on WPS | |
- by Rollin White |
A good page to give you a head start in customizing your WPS | |
David Campbell |
A series of articles dedicated to explaining the operation and use of the WPS | |
By Bill Schindler and Esther Schindler, PC Magazine, 30th July 1997 |
Navigating your way through OS/2's object-oriented interface |
A Step-By-Step Guide To Building A Customized Workplace Shell
The following guide is written with OS/2 WARP 4.0 in mind. (but should also work with OS/2 WARP 3.0)
Step 1: BACKUP, BACKUP and BACKUP |
Before you start, MAKE A BACKUP first!!! Here are some programs to do that for you. Robosave (freeware) is a tool which allows you to quickly and easily back up the OS/2 2.x Desktop. In addition you can save a limited number of user- specified files. Workplace Shell Backup Utility (shareware) allows you to create backups of the files, directories and related information that control the appearance and function of your OS/2 desktop. The associated restore process is very fast and easy to use. The following steps could make unreversible changes to your WPS system files and you might not be able to boot into the WPS if you are not careful. So BACKUP just in case. |
Step 2: Change the default screen resolution |
The default screen resolution after the OS/2 installation is 640 x 480 x 256 colours (i.e. if you have a VGA card and colour monitor). In a multitasking OS like OS/2 WARP, such a low resolution just doesn't cut it. Go for at least 800 x 600 x 256 colours. If you have a fast CPU and graphics card, enough RAM and at least a 17 inch monitor, consider going for at least 1024 x 768 x 16 bit colours. A resolution like this can make the most out of photorealistic wallpapers and will also give you more screen space to work with your various software applications. |
Step 3: Change the default background wallpaper |
David Barnes' Warped Gallery Be sure to check out the following files for OS/2 WARP at hobbes
|
Step 4: Change the default background of the windows folder |
Getting the ultimate wallpaper for your WPS is not enough! You will need to change the default windows background of all windows folder to give a different look. (Try to do that with Windows 95 and NT <grin>). Download now a 1.4 Mb collection of wallpaper images in 256 color GIF file format, or if you prefer, an 1.8 Mb archived collection containing 16.7 million color BMP files for use as background wallpaper. Here is an excellent guide to changing the folder background - extracted from the file OS2looks.zip in hobbes and written by Terry Lin Creating Beautiful Lists |
Step 5: Change the default colours of the workplace shell |
Deciding the colours of the WPS is one of the most important factors to building a great desktop. You can use many of the themes that come with OS/2; but if you are willing to spend a little time experimenting with different colour palettes, the end results may make your efforts worth your while. Try not to choose a colour that is too bright, or a colour that is too dull and dark. The only tip I can offer is: use your artistic minds and experiment! Look at the screenshots in chapter 1 to get some ideas.
"You'd be surprised what you can do with just a few color changes. In many cases you won't even need a bitmapped background, just a soothing dark purple, blue, red or green. I don't like grey backgrounds myself, they're drab and unexciting. With OS/2 you have the power to change the colors of each folder individually or system-wide in one big gulp but I tried to pick a different color for each folder. Color-coding helps identify in a flash which ones I have open. Here's my folder scheme: You'll notice I picked mostly dark colors, I find this easier on the eye. Bright colors, when used for backgrounds, glare too much. Warp provides a scheme palette for editing all the colors of the WPS in one place, plus it allows you to edit some elements that can't be changed by the regular drag-and-drop methods of the color and font palettes." |
Step 6: Change the default icons of the workplace shell |
Icons are a way of life in the WPS! You click on icons to launch your software, and perform all the tasks in OS/2. Therfore, it is only natural that you customize the icons to make them stand out and attractive. Of course, the first thing you need is to get new icons first. Here are some of the icons library that you can download from the net. To manage all these number of icons, you will need some sort of icons manager to keep track of them. Here are 2 icons related apps to get you started. IconEase (shareware) is a 32 bit Presentation Manager application that allows you to efficiently collect, manage and use icons to change the appearance of your OS/2 2.x and above desktop. If you are running OS/2 3.0 or better, IconEase can use DSOM to communicate directly with the Workplace Shell. You can download the extra icons for IconEase (abt 3.9 Mb) here. Icon Heaven (shareware) is an OS/2 Workplace shell enhancement that enables the user to assign icons to objects using simple drag & drop. Sample icon libraries included. New release adds Warp support for animated icons, icon extraction and fixes problems with empty icons. If you like, you can also download the extra icons for Icon Heaven here. Please note that this file is abt 5Mb in size. If you are not interested in both IconEase and Icon Heaven but want to get those nifty icons, get this file which is essentially the same as the Icon Heaven edition but is in the usual .ICO format (abt 5.2 Mb). And if this is not enough, get this file (abt 1.3 Mb) too. If you really love icons that much, then I guess you will want to get this file (abt 720K) too. Not sure how to change that icons in OS/2? Ron Mirasol has a step-by-step guide for you. 3D Icons are available now: Get those Animated Icons for OS/2 now! Here is a collection of folder icons for OS/2. TIP: COOL STUFF: Now that you have downloaded the ultimate icons for your WPS, don't forget that you can also change the colours of those icon titles so that they stand out or blend in with the background of your desktop or window. You can even make the icon titles invisible. |
Step 7: Change the default fonts of the workplace shell |
OS/2 has some built-in fonts which you can use..but if you are looking for something more, have a look first at hobbes' archive of OS/2 TrueType fonts and OS/2 Type 1 fonts Here is an excellent guide to changing the system fonts - extracted from the file OS2looks.zip in hobbes and written by Terry Lin "You're probbaly sick of System Proportional being everywhere in dialog boxes and help windows. And you've probably noticed that you can't change it through the font palette or scheme palette. The reason is that '10.System Proportional' is set in your OS2.INI file as being the default sytsem font. You can modify that however with the following REXX program: |
Step 8: Change the default mouse cursor |
To compliment all the fancy icons you have now given to WPS, consider giving your mouse cursor a new look by changing the cursor styles. To do this, you will need the help of third party add-ons for the WPS. Here are some programs to do just that. Software that make your mouse dance! Animated Mouse Pointer(freeware) by Christian Langanke. This is by far my favourite! Now you can also use all the Pointers.zip (freeware) - author unknown Animouse (shareware) is an add-on for OS/2 Warp that adds a bit of style to your boring old mouse pointer by changing it from a single pointer into an animation composed of a series of pointers. Here are some cursor modules for Animouse (modules are compatible with Animated mouse cursor too). Here is a transparent mouse pointer for Warp WarpWait (freeware) is a utility that changes the default OS/2 wait clock to an animated warp-logo or a user defined icon animation. Here are some links to get that ultimate cursor for OS/2 |
Step 9: Add a screensaver to workplace shell |
When you are away from your computer for any length of time, consider using a screensaver to TIP Deskpic (freeware) - even has animated desktop modules! ScreenSaver (shareware) is an easy-to-use 32-bit screen saver for OS/2 2.x and above, with password protection, DPMS monitor support, DOS and Win-OS/2 fullscreen support, Sound support, module building toolkit, more than 50 modules included. Download new modules for ScreenSaver here. Blanker (Screen Blanker) (shareware) is a multimedia screen saver for OS/2 with lots of functions: Go to Blanker's homepage. Cyno's BlankIt! (shareware) EscapeGL (commercial) utilizes OS/2 Warp 4.0's support of OpenGL for true 3D screen saver modules. Escape GL now has unlimited 3D model support utilizing the very popular 3D Virtual Reality Modelling Language. Fully-compliant VRML 1.0 models may be viewed and animated as a screen saver for Warp 4.0 systems. Of course there are other good screensavers for OS/2...take a look here |
Step 10: Change the default OS/2 WARP bootup and shutdown logos. |
Why settle for the standard bootup and shutdown logos? After a while, they can be boring to look at! Also, have a look at the boot logos for OS/2 Warp available at hobbes. |
Step 11: Change the default sound schemes in OS/2 WARP |
OS/2 WARP comes with some default sound schemes. Like the default bootup and shutdown logos, they can get boring quickly. Changing the sound schemes will give your WPS a new experience to navigate, and a good opportunity to impress your colleages or friends. How to Create and Use Custom Sound Schemes in Warp? Read Ron Mirasol's step-by-step guide Here are some theme files to get you started. You will need a sound scheme editor to use these files. |
Step 12: Enhance the functions of the workplace shell |
When you have performed all the above enhancements to the WPS, it is time to enhance the functions of the WPS itself. Here are some good programs to get you started: WPS replacement shell
Virutal desktop WPS enhancement Desktop Wizard (freeware) is a interesting desktop enhancement that adds ZIP features to the WPS. Here is a screenshot of this utility. Warp Enhancer (freeware) is an exciting new tool designed to add much of the functionality every user wants but IBM did not include with OS/2. Go to the author's homepage now. NFNF is a 32bit WPS add on for OS/2 Warp. NFNF adds extra functionality to the OS/2 Workplace Shell and makes many things easier to do. [[[DragText]] (shareware) gives OS/2 Warp drag-and-drop text. Read the review of DragText by Martin S. Hanoian. X-it (shareware) provides a one button click to many desktop operations, such as closing a window, displaying a task list, VIO, single and multiline edit field cut-and-paste, and a unique title bar roll-up function. Go to the CodeSmith Software's X-it homepage now. There is also a screenshot of X-it here. X-File, (shareware) "The Open File Dialog Fixer", is a desktop enhancer which adds major enhancements to the standard OS/2 microscopic "open/save as" file dialog. Go to the CodeSmith Software's X-File homepage now. Also look at FM/2 Taskbar (shareware) a small utility program that works in conjunction with the WPS window list, program objects and launchpad to control what's running on your system and where it runs. Look at the screenshot of FM/2 Taskbar now. Taskbox (shareware) gives a bar of running programs/open windows (includes win'95-type start menu) Taskbar (shareware) allows quick switching among multiple running apps. Current running apps are listed in a popup button bar that is activated by moving the mouse cursor to a user selectable edge of the screen. Also has a hotkey facility similar to the Windows Alt-Tab feature. Read the review of Taskbar by David Gaskill. FileBar (shareware) is a menubar for your desktop. Spanning across the top or bottom of your desktop, FileBar is designed to give you quick and easy access to your most used applications, whether they are DOS, Windows or OS/2! Read the review of Filebar by Trevor Smith and another review by Chris Wenham here. WarpBar (freeware) is a handy system information display that runs in a compact strip, and is good at showing all the vital statistices of the computer at a glance. Read OS/2 e-Zine! review here. Dialog Enhancer (shareware) is set to make major improvements into the look and feel of the OS/2 Warp's WPS. WPS cosmetics CandyBarZ (shareware) gives OS/2 WARP a gradient-filled titlebar. Both active and inactive colors are supported, and CandyBarZ will not muck up your titlebar text colors or fonts. Read the review of CandyBarz here and look at the screenshot here. CHG_CTLS (freeware) is a program that replace default OS/2 window controls. NewLook (freeware) changes WARP default icons & window controls. TransWarp PlusPak (freeware) is a desktop enhancer for OS/2 Warp 4.0. It currently includes mini-schemes to enhance the desktop. A must have! Read the review of TransWarp PlusPak by Thom Davis. WPS tools ScreenSpace is a small desktop utility to make windows autohide and more ExDesk (freeware) extend functions of OS/2 desktop object. Program Creator (freeware) create program objects by dragging files and folders on the creator icon. Saves the trouble of using the migration program or typing in the program's path and name to program template. SwapMonitor (shareware) is a utility that displays the size of OS/2's swap file in a small window and shows other useful information such as: A clock. Free space on all drives. Percentage of used space. Disk size. Volume label. File System. The number of threads and processes currently running. Highly customizable. Winkey (freeware) is an OS/2 base device driver that maps the left and right Win95 keys on those newer Win95 style keyboards to display the task list (same as Ctrl+Esc) and the menu key to switch tasks (same as Alt+Esc). PMCalc (shareware) is a calculator with scientific and programmer functions, calculating with variables, Regression, easy transfer to/from the clipboard, detailed error messages, online help. XFolder (freeware) is a replacement class for the WPFolder class of OS/2's Workplace Shell, which will add entries to all of your WPS folders' context menus, whose contents you can define yourself by putting regular WPS objects in a special XFolder configuration folder. Anything placed in this folder will immediately appear in the context menus of all folders. Look at the screenshot now. Folder (freeware) is a dialog box that helps create new folder on desktop Float (freeware) is a simple utility to keep windows floating on top of others in the WPS |
Step 13: Get a commercial utility to spice up your desktop - Get Object Desktop |
This is debatable. If you are happy with the enhancements the above freeware and shareware do to your WPS, then do save yourself some bucks and don't get Object Desktop. But if money is no objection, I would highly recommend the use of Object desktop (available from Stardock). Read about the Object Desktop v1.5 review in OS/2 e-Zine! by Christopher B. Wright. Here is the Object Desktop Pro v1.5 review in OS/2 e-Zine! by Alex Bradley. The Pros and Cons of Object Desktop Amongst the many enhancements to OS/2, Object Desktop adds native ZIP, LHA, ZOO and ARC archives support to the WPS. Even though archives are special compressed file objects, they behave very much like OS/2 folders. You can store objects in an archive by dragging and dropping, and you can view the contents of an archive by double-clicking it. Enable the Rollup button Enable the window drag mode Replace scrollbar buttons Replace Frame Controls Enable the Close button on all windows. |
Step 14: Just for fun |
Magnify (freeware) is a PM desktop magnifier for reading the 'finest' print. Operates at the click of the mouse. FClock (freeware) is a PM digital clock with perpetual calendar. Stardate/2 (freeware) is a PM Stardate Clock for OS/2 Warp PMWorld (freeware) enables up to 8 Analogue Clocks to be displayed, each showing the current time for a selected location any where in the world. The program also marks the position of the selected locations on a world map drawn by the program. PMGlobe (freeware) is a program which displays the Earth as a globe using OS/2 Presentation Manager. Additional options add shading to the globe for a three-dimensional effect, and let you measure and track distances between two points on the globe. World Clock (shareware) is a multi-city time display clock for OS/2 Warp. World Clock displays one to twenty-four clocks. Choose from over 550 cities or build you own city list. ExCal (freeware) is a PM Calendar program Xeyes (freeware) shows a pair of eyes that follow your mouse cursor. Behold is another X Eye-like program with a more realistic eyeball Hot Scroll (freeware) is an utility that can put the Scroll Lock key to some practical use, and does a fairly decent job of emulating the IntelliMouse's nifty scroll wheel. Read the review of Hot Scroll here. Lens (freeware) let you move your mouse pointer around the screen, enlarging the area your pointer is over. Read the review of Lens here. PMView (shareware) is the award winning file viewer program. It is also great for screen capture too! Perfect if you want to submit your OS/2 screenshot to me. |
Step 15: Visit other sites |
Congratulations !!! You have just created your very own ULTIMATE WPS !!! |