In order to use this help file you must be able to operate the SCROLLBARS. These are to the right and below the area containing this text. To move through the text press and hold down the left mouse button while the pointer is over the rectangular area at the centre of the scrollbar. Moving the mouse ( with the button still pressed ) will move the rectangle and scroll through the text.
The rectangular area at the top of the main window containing the words "Quit", "Commands" and "Help" is a MENUBAR. The words it contains are the names of pulldown menus. To see the menus move the pointer along the menubar while holding down the left mouse button. As the pointer passes over each word in the menubar a menu will appear. To select an item from a menu move the pointer down the menu until it is over the item you require and then release the mouse button. Some menu items produce submenus. These items have a small right pointing arrow on them. The submenu will appear when the pointer is over the item. Some other windows which this program creates also have menubars. The menus attached to menubars are called PULLDOWN MENUS.
This program uses FORM-FILLING DIALOGUES to obtain information from you about what you want to do. To see one of these dialogues select the item "Read" from the "Commands" menu on the menubar. A window will appear ( you may have to position it - this depends on the settings of your window manager ). The "Spectrum Reading Dialogue" is used to read a set of X and Y values ( a SPECTRUM ) from a file. The basic principle is that you provide a value for each item in the form and then operate a button which carries out what you want to do. For example the Spectrum Reading Dialogue has a "Read" BUTTON. You provide values by typing into a TEXT AREA ( the recessed area to the right of "Read spectrum from file named:" is a text area ) or by selecting an item from an OPTION MENU or RADIO BOX ( the object to the right of " and is of type:" is a radio box ). You can move from item to item by using the TAB key or by moving the pointer onto an item and clicking the left mouse button. Each dialogue has its own help. The help for the Spectrum Reading Dialogue also contains some more general information.
BUTTONS are usually operated by pressing and releasing the left mouse button while the pointer is over them. If a button has a bright HIGHLIGHT rectangle around it then it can be operated by pressing the SPACE key.
TEXT AREAS accept typed input. You can type into a text area when it has a flashing I-shaped cursor. Use the delete or backspace key to delete. Text areas also understand a restricted set of simple Emacs commands:
Cntrl-e move to end of text
Cntrl-a move to beginning of text
Cntrl-b move back one character
Cntrl-f move forward one character
Cntrl-k delete from present position to end of line
Some text areas will accept only restricted types of input, for example integers or floating point numbers.
An OPTION MENU looks like a button with a small rectangle near its right edge. Press and hold down the left mouse button on an option menu to display the available options. Move the pointer to the option you want and release the mouse button.
Option menus can also be operated from the keyboard when they appear in form-filling dialogues. If the option menu has a bright HIGHLIGHT rectangle around it then pressing the SPACE key will make the available options visible. You can select an option by using the up and down arrow keys to move through the menu and then pressing SPACE or RETURN again.
A radio box looks like a row of buttons and is used for making a choice among a few alternatives. ( If there are many alternatives then an Option Menu will probably be used instead ). The buttons in a Radio Box are operated in the same way as PUSH BUTTONS. However the button last operated keeps its "pressed in" appearance. Only one button at a time is allowed to be pressed in. This is the chosen value.
Instructions for a short example session are available. Use the left mouse button to obtain the Help menu from the main menubar and select the Example item.