The copy & paste feature is really nice, but one thing that is even nicer is the fact that when you do a cut/copy & paste operation from one infobase to another infobase, most of the Folio codes come along with it! Jump links, levels, paragraph styles, highlighters, images, etc. (yes, even with the Collectors Library!) The only thing that doesn't come across are jump destinations. Just in case you hadn't tried it already, I though you might like to know this.

          I was looking at the files on the CL95 CD, and realized that the file needed to enable the spell checking feature of the Folio software was sitting right there! All you have to do is copy the folioenu.lex file from the CD to the directory you installed Bviews.exe. (for some reason, the CL install program doesn't copy that file over) That's it! Now, when you open an infobase, the Spelling on the Edit menu works! That's all you have to do!

          Shadow files serve 3 main reasons:

1. It allows a person to "edit" the infobase without really changing the original .nfo file.
    
2. Multiple users can share the same .nfo file, while having an individualized "copy" of the infobase with their changes/additions, but it won't effect anyone elses.
    
3. If the files are going to be stored on a CD, then changes to the infobase can be made and saved in the shadow file on the hard drive, allowing the infobase to be edited.

          Remember, to create a shadow file, just open the infobase that you want to shadow, and go File | New and choose Shadow File in the File type box.  Then name the file to what you want.  That will create the shadow file.  Then hit Save to save the file to your hard drive.

          Links between infobases is actually pretty easy. There is only one more step to it than a regular link. First off, both the infobase you are making the link in, and the infobase you are linking to have to be open. Also, I'm assuming that there is a jump destination already existing that you want to link to. Then, when you highlight the text and go Customize|Jump Link (ctrl-j), click on the button "Infobase". It will bring up a box with a list of .nfo files that are currently open. Double-click on the infobase that has the destination and then find and double click on the destination itself. That's it!

          One word of caution: If you give these two infobases to someone, the first time they follow one of the inter-infobase links, it will bring up the "open" box. Just find the infobase that you are jumping to, and Folio will remember from then on which infobase it will jump to.

          This is controlled by one of 3 .ini files in the windows directory. Folio keeps a list of which infobases (by their titles) you have opened, and where they are on the hard drive. The .ini files are called lname.ini or gname.ini and another one I forgot. One is for locations on a network, one is for locations of infobases on your local hard drive, and I forgot what the other one was. So, even if you move those two files on your hard drive, then it will ask you to "open" the destination file again to readjust the link in the lname.ini. (this happens with the conference infobase and the index infobase)

          There are several neat features that can be utilized with the .ini files.  First off, since you can specify which .ini file you want to load, you can have an .ini file for viewing, for example, while having another .ini file for editing.  That lets you have completely different button bars, menu options, and files open on startup.  You can even specify multiple .nfo or .sdw files to be opened upon startup.

          You can specify which menu style you want from the preferences box.  In the top right corner, there are 3 radio buttons.  Just click on the one you want.  Different menu styles won't show the edit menu or the layout menu.

          If you want to just double click on the files in Explorer, copy the .ini file (editing or views or whatever you are using) that you want as "default" to the windows directory as views.ini. If an .ini file is not specified, Views will look for one in the windows directory. Then, whenever you double click on a .nfo/.sdw file, it will run Bviews with the .ini file you want, not the default one.

          Popup notes are great, but they don't offer formatting options – or do they? Inside of a popup box, you can still right-click and get to the formatting options through the right-click options, which let's you do everthing except highlighters and other, more advanced stuff.

          If you are going to be doing a lot of importing/exporting, and you don't want to pay $1,000 for the filters in the infobase production kit, you might want to consider buying one of Bookcraft's programs (under the "Gospel Works" title) ($25-40) that are built around the Folio engine. They include many import/export filters, such as Word, Wordperfect and Folio Flat File (fff).

          It took me a while to figure out the tabs in views. If you want to set one, enter its position in inches, click any other options, and then click "Set". I hope that helps. New discovery! If you want to put a tab that is dynamic to the right side of the Views window (so as you move the edge of the window left or right and the text moves with it) put the Tab set: as RIGHT and click on the "Right" radio button for alignment. Then click the set button and its done.

          If you have any questions, please don't ask me.  If you aren't willing to play around and learn it for yourself, then don't. If you have other questions, check the other .nfo files on your CD. It has some good help infobases that explains many times more than this page ever will.  If you know about something that I haven't covered here, I'd love to hear about it.

          For official documentation on how to do stuff with the views software, look for the file called foliohlp.nfo. It has a lot of information in it about using the software.