OptionSoft Utilities Version 5.0
Copyright© 2000 by Jim Moore, Options Computer Software.
All Rights Reserved.

	OptionSoft Utilities ReadMe File: 

	SHAREWARE VERSION NOTICE:  This software will operate normally for a period of 30 (thirty) days from the initial installation.  This software will NOT FUNCTION after that time without a registration code.

  Thank you for trying the OptionSoft Utilities. The programs included are a perfect asset to just about any computing task or project. The whole package is small, but the programs included are powerful tools for everyday home and office work.

	System Requirements:

  To install the OptionSoft Utilities, you should have at least Windows 95 OSR1 with Internet Explorer 4.0 SP1(or greater) with the desktop update installed, or Windows 98 (first or second edition).  The installation only requires 1.5 MB of disk space.  

	To install:

  Double click the Setup.exe file in the setup disk or folder.  The setup program will guide you through the rest of the installation. You may uninstall the utilities by clicking the "Uninstall" menu item in the OptionSoft Utilities program group.

	To UnInstall the OptionSoft Utilities:

  To uninstall the OptionSoft utilities simply click the "Uninstall" menu item in the OptionSoft Utilities program group.  

  WARNING! If you use the uninstall program, all of the personalized settings pertaining to the OptionSoft Utilities will be deleted. In addition, any files you may have created with the WinXComp  program will be indecipherable by any current windows programs. Any files created with the WinCode utility can still be decoded with the "decode.exe" command prompt uility.  It is therefore recommended that you download the command prompt utilites from our web site and keep them in a separate location from the installation folder where the OptionSoft Utilities reside. We may introduce a command prompt utility that reads .gcf files sometime in the future.

	IMPORTANT NOTE:  All of the utilities will work in Windows 95 Operating System Release 1 except the Iconnect utility.  Although for the best functionality, it is highly recommended that the Windows Desktop update be installed.  This is part of the Internet Explorer 4.01 SP1 package available from Microsoft at http://www.microsoft.com

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	Program Descriptions: 
  (more detailed descriptions of the command line utilities can be found in the "osucmdut.txt" file, and help using the windows programs can be found in the osu50hlp.hlp file, or online at http://www.optionscomputer.com/support/index.html)

calc.exe - a small windows based calculator with a ten number constant memory and comments.

compact.exe - a single file compression command line utility. The program produces a cabinet* with a single file inside.

DateCalc.exe - a windows based  program that calculates the difference between two dates.

decode.exe - the command line utility that decodes files that were encoded with encode.exe.

DelRecnt.exe - a windows based program that clears the recent documents menu.

Dir2Cab.exe - a windows based program that creates a cabinet* of compressed files from all files in a directory. You can call this from the command line to create a cabinet of any directory.

DISKUTIL.EXE - a command line floppy disk utility.

Drives.exe - a windows based program that shows all the available drives and their capacities and free space.

Drives95.exe - same as above for Windows 95 machines.  "Drives.exe" may give an error message under Windows 95, if so, use "Drives95.exe."

encode.exe - a file encryption command line utility that uses three phases of encryption and passwords up to 26 characters.

Exe2Tray.exe - a windows based program that will minimize many windows executables to the system tray instead of the task bar.

expfile.exe - a command line utility that expands a file that was compressed with "compact.exe."

filedt.exe - a command line utility that changes a file's (or multiple files) date and time (creation time and modification time) to one you specify.

Floppy.exe - a windows based floppy disk utility that will format, copy, wipe, create an image and restore an image of a floppy disk.

getascii.exe - a command line program that will extract standard ascii text from any file. (great for old mail databases)

IConnect.exe - connect to the internet and reduces the connection dialog to the system tray. (For use in Windows 95 with IE4 or better)

NCOPY.EXE - like xcopy32, this command line utility will copy or update newer files to another directory or series of subdirectories.

NotClock.exe "Notify Clock" is a  windows clock, calendar and scheduler program with popup message windows you can pre-set for any day, hour, and minute.

RENALL.EXE -a command line program that renames all the files in a directory from their sorted alphabetical names to a numbered sequence of filenames. Be careful with this one! Never use this utility in you Windows or System directory.

sinecosn.scr - a great windows screen saver!

SysCtrl.exe - Shutdown, restart or log off windows.

TextEdit.exe - a windows based program that works like the standard text editor, but with more features, including the toolbar and status bar.

Timer.exe - a small windows timer that you can use to track your time, or set like an alarm clock to pop up a message window with a pre-defined message.

WINCODE.EXE - a windows file encoder / decoder.  Encrypts files with three levels of coding and uses password protection up to 26 characters.  DON'T FORGET YOUR PASSWORD!, there is no way to decode your file without it. The files produced by this utility are compatible with the command line utilities "encode" and "decode."

WINXCOMP.EXE - a windows compression/decompression utility that creates or expands "GCF" compressed files.  A GCF is a "Grouped Compressed File" which is a non-standard archive format.

XDEL.EXE - like xcopy, but in reverse!  It deletes files you specify from base directory and all it's subdirectories.  Unlike Deltree, it leaves the directory structure intact. Be careful with this one! Never use the "*.*" wildcard string or you may delete something important.

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"Microsoft", "Internet Explorer" and "Windows 95"/98 are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation (R).

* - Cabinet compression is licensed by Microsoft(R) for the use of manipulating and/or creating cabinets files (*.cab) in their standard cabinet format.

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