A Menu File can be selected for Loading into the Control Panel in two ways.
A Menu File name can be manually entered into the Control Panel by entering its name into the Load Menu: line followed by a return to echo the file name down to the Save To: line. It is a good idea at this time to modify the Save To file name if the original file is not be be overwritten.
If a Menu Files includes an application extension, the extension must be included when entering the file name in the Load Menu: line. The extension will be stripped off and just the file name returned when the Menu File is loaded.
Selection Through A Menu Search
The Find Menu button in the Control Panel provides a method to search for available menus of a particular application and from the returned list to select one menu to be entered into the Load Menu: line. Clicking the Find Menu button brings up the menu:
The selection of menus is determined by the menu option settings
The first line of the menu specifies the directory to be searched. The search directory is set to the Current working directory whenever the Find Menu is first opened. Several predefined directories can be selected using the button to the right of the Search Path entry line. The predefined directory options include:
Current
This is the current working directory.
Default
This is set to the directory $UDFTOOL_HOME/MenuFiles. This is the preferred directory for system-wide menu files.
User Set
This clears the Search Directory: entry line and allows the user to manually enter a search directory.
Home
This is set to the directory $UDFTOOL_HOME/GMenu/Templates. This directory contains the new or empty menu file definitions for all of the UDF applications supported through the Find Menu feature.
User DefN
This indicated a user defined search directory. There may be several such options differentiated by N which begins at 1 and increases sequentially.
When a Search Directory is selected the selection is automatically echoed down to the Save Directory option unless the Search Directory is selected to be the Home directory in which case the Save Directory is set to be the Current Working Directory. The latter prevents a filled menu being accidently overwriting the empty application menu. With the exception of the User Set Directory option, the menu blocks any manual changes to the Search Directory.
The second line of the Find Menu specifies the directory that all menus created through the Control Panel are to be saved in. In general this is the same directory which is being searched. The searched directory is always echoed to the Save Path option when it is selected. If the Save Path Option is to be changed it is best not to change it until a menu to load has been selected.
The same predefined directories available for the Search Path option are available for the Save Path option with the exception of Home. The same restrictions which apply to the Search Path option apply to the Save Path option.
Menu Type selects the application for which Menu Files should be searched. Menu files will be listed only if they contain the extension associated with the specified Menu Type. The options are listed in the following table together with the menu extension.
| MENU TYPE OPTIONS | |
|---|---|
| Option | File Extension |
| UDFplot | .uplt |
| ADump | .admp |
| UdfCdf | .u2c |
| Neu2Ion | .n2i |
| Any | [all files returned] |
Once the Search Path and the Menu Type have been established the search can be made by clicking the Find button in the upper right-hand corner of the menu. All located files are output in the list box in the center of the menu.
To select a menu, highlight it by clicking on it in the list box. This does two things. First, it copies the selected menu name to the Load Menu and to the Save To fields in the Control Panel. Second, it displays any comment fields it finds in the selected menu in the two entry boxes at the bottom of the Find Menu window.
Note: Neither the menu extension (if it has one) nor the full menu path are copied to the Control Panel fields. These are handled internally. Also selecting a menu does not load the menu but sets it up to be loaded.
Once a menu has been selected the Save Path should be changed if it is to be different from that of the selected menu. At the same time the Save To file name in the Control Panel should be modified if the original file is not be be overwritten.