New release, v. 3.55

The new features are outlined below, but first I want to tell you that I am particularly interested in getting some feedback on this version because, before adding the new features, I undertook a major tidying up of the DrWimp library coding. When a program is continually developed, it is probably inevitable that things get a little untidy in places. So I thought it was time to do a 'spring clean' and went through the listing:

• making sure all routines have only one exit point;
• checking local and global variables;
• reducing duplicated code, etc.

I also changed the menu creation routines to use indirected text in all cases - it actually makes the coding simpler.

All these changes should be completely transparent to you, the user, but it is potentially an error prone exercise and I am a bit edgy, despite the fact that the two dozen example applications in the package all checked out OK.

So, please upgrade some of your old applications to give the new version a good workout - and please let me know if you find anything untoward.

After doing the above, the main new features added are:

• the memory space needed to hold the indirected data for window/icon template loading is now measured and set aside automatically. You no longer have to estimate this on initialisation.
• applications now respond to the iconiser protocol in a customised way, which you can further alter, of course;
• any wimp messages received, but not used in the DrWimp library, can now be passed on for your use, if you wish;
• individual menu items can be given coloured text;
• an extra option is given to find the caret position within the text of a writable icon.

Some minor bugs in the optional utilities !Fabricate, !CodeTemps and !Linker have also been fixed.

Further, the value of the icon handle passed in the parameters of FNuser_loaddata has been made consistent. The change doesn't affect cases where you drag a file to load it, but it does affect cases where you double-click a file to load it. In these latter cases, the icon handle value passed is now always -1. (Previously, it was -1 in some cases and 0 in other cases (!). I hadn't noticed this difference until Harriet Bazley kindly pointed it out.)

Upgrading an existing application from v3.54 is very simple and only involves adding two new user functions and deleting one parameter from your (single) call to FNwimp_initialise.

!Linker

!CodeTemps

Waving the flag

An ideal place for telling them is at the start of your documentation. How about:

"Authored by <yourname> using the Dr Wimp freeware package."

If you've found Dr Wimp useful then others might also - and what better recommendation?

(Please don't forget that you can't use Dr Wimp for commercial gain without a specific licence.)

Demonstration/Talk

If your group would like something similar - then please contact me. It is free and I am prepared to travel an hour or so's drive from Heathrow (and, as you can see, my watch runs slowly!).