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wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #1 Posted by Damir on 7 June 2012, 3:34 a.m.

Option -Stay on top- in wp34s emulator in near future? Tnx,Damir

      
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #2 Posted by Walter B on 7 June 2012, 5:56 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Damir

Quote:
Option -Stay on top-
?? :-?
            
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #3 Posted by Damir on 7 June 2012, 6:17 a.m.,
in response to message #2 by Walter B

Not to minimize.

                  
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #4 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 9:27 a.m.,
in response to message #3 by Damir

I assume you guys are talking about the emulator staying on top even when other windows are focused or opened later. It's the Z-order in Windows programming where the top one has Z=0. A messagebox has Z=0 within its parent window's frame. Pop-up windows often try to maintain Z=0.

Am I correct?

Chris

Edited: 7 June 2012, 9:30 a.m.

                        
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #5 Posted by Marcus von Cube, Germany on 7 June 2012, 9:42 a.m.,
in response to message #4 by Chris Tvergard

That's exactly the option I never use in any software. These windows tend to obscure just the part of the active application I need to see or to use.

Just get yourself a screen large enough and arrange the windows side by side.

                              
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #6 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 9:59 a.m.,
in response to message #5 by Marcus von Cube, Germany

Or, place an option in the user's emulator menu to choose the stay-on-top option.

I would like such an option.

Marcus, did you develop the emulator? If so, can't you simply place a Z-order handle value of 0 in the LostFocusEvent?

Chris

Edited: 7 June 2012, 10:08 a.m.

                                    
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #7 Posted by Marcus von Cube, Germany on 7 June 2012, 10:12 a.m.,
in response to message #6 by Chris Tvergard

I sort of developed the original Windows emulator. All the GUI stuff is code I found in the SDK (MFC code) which I only half way understand. I have no plans to add any features to it. Maybe Pascal will do it for his Qt based emulators.

                                          
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #8 Posted by pascal_meheut on 7 June 2012, 11:28 a.m.,
in response to message #7 by Marcus von Cube, Germany

Quote:
I sort of developed the original Windows emulator. All the GUI stuff is code I found in the SDK (MFC code) which I only half way understand. I have no plans to add any features to it. Maybe Pascal will do it for his Qt based emulators.

I do plan on adding it soon because I'm not a big fan of this functionnality but mainly because time is scarce and adding a full debugger, an iOS version & fully supporting flashing from OSX & Linux seem much more important.

                              
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #9 Posted by Bart (UK) on 7 June 2012, 10:03 a.m.,
in response to message #5 by Marcus von Cube, Germany

Quote:
That's exactly the option I never use in any software. These windows tend to obscure just the part of the active application I need to see or to use.
I completely agree with you, however, each to his own and others prefer it different. An option for such on the emulator would would be happyness for both types of users?
Quote:
Just get yourself a screen large enough and arrange the windows side by side.
What, just go out and buy a new screen? Or a new laptop if I need portability?

Oh, I get it - not just any cheap old big screen monitor, but a quality German built one. Help Germany support the EU and all that ;-)
                                    
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #10 Posted by Marcus von Cube, Germany on 7 June 2012, 10:13 a.m.,
in response to message #9 by Bart (UK)

Mine are all Apples: U.S. design, built in China. ;-)

                                    
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #11 Posted by Walter B on 7 June 2012, 10:15 a.m.,
in response to message #9 by Bart (UK)

Quote:

What, just go out and buy a new screen? Or a new laptop if I need portability?
Oh, I get it - not just any cheap old big screen monitor, but a quality German built one. Help Germany support the EU and all that ;-)

Good idea, but AFAIK Germany doesn't build any monitors anymore - that industry went to the Far East :-/

Anyway, what's so difficult in clicking on the respective symbol on the task line?

                                          
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #12 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 10:27 a.m.,
in response to message #11 by Walter B

Man you guys are nationalistic this AM. What happened to Love Thy Neighbor?

Walter, the Z=0 has its advantages, better than hitting the focus icon on the taskbar in terms of speed and preserving your line-of-thought (I postulate).

Chris

Edited: 7 June 2012, 10:32 a.m.

                                                
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #13 Posted by fhub on 7 June 2012, 10:37 a.m.,
in response to message #12 by Chris Tvergard

Chris, there are Windows tools available which can make every running program 'stay-on-the-top', so I also don't see any need for this 'feature'(?) in the WP34s emulator.

Franz

                                                      
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #14 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 10:46 a.m.,
in response to message #13 by fhub

Franz,

Thanks for your response. If you use procedure calls to maintain the Z=0 not only intra window but also extra window it will show a delay most likely, not to forget that you may have a problem with messagebox windows' properties intra window both competing for Z=0. I smell a window "hang" situation sneaking up on you in which case you may have to kill the thread via the Ctrl-Alt-Del config - if you can even get that window up.

Chris

                                                
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #15 Posted by Bart (UK) on 7 June 2012, 10:41 a.m.,
in response to message #12 by Chris Tvergard

Quote:
What happened to Love Thy Neighbor?
But I do love my neighbour, especially his pretty wife ;-)
                                          
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #16 Posted by Bart (UK) on 7 June 2012, 10:35 a.m.,
in response to message #11 by Walter B

Quote:
... that industry went to the Far East :-/
That is true for most mass produced electronics these days.

Quote:
Anyway, what's so difficult in clicking on the respective symbol on the task line?
We might get finger cramp from moving the mouse up & down so often :-). Although I agree with you I can see merit for always on top in a situation where you may want to copy & paste numbers often between the emulator and another program.
                                                
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #17 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 10:38 a.m.,
in response to message #16 by Bart (UK)

Bart,

Not to forget entering keypad numbers based upon some other program's output. Happyness?

Chris

                                                      
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #18 Posted by Bart (UK) on 7 June 2012, 11:11 a.m.,
in response to message #17 by Chris Tvergard

Oh, I am happy. I actually have 2 screens on my PC, so I can have the emulator open on one and my focus program on the other. I just don't assume everyone to be that lucky :-).

Edit: If I had the ability I would program in such an option for the emulator, unfortunately my abilities are limited to mostly IF/FOR/While kind of stuff in VBA/Excell :-(

Edited: 7 June 2012, 11:14 a.m.

                                                            
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #19 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 11:30 a.m.,
in response to message #18 by Bart (UK)

Bart,

Do you Brits spell "happyness" and not "happiness"? Just wondering.

Chris

                                                                  
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #20 Posted by Bart (UK) on 7 June 2012, 11:45 a.m.,
in response to message #19 by Chris Tvergard

Officially "happiness", but whatever my fingers make of it actually. Probably because I originally thought "that would make both users happy" and changed my mind along the way.

                                                                        
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #21 Posted by Walter B on 7 June 2012, 1:12 p.m.,
in response to message #20 by Bart (UK)

From My Fair Lady: "Why can't the English, oh, why can't the English learn to sp"...ell? ;-)

      
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion (my idea: use activaid)
Message #22 Posted by Alex S on 7 June 2012, 3:02 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by Damir

Hi Damir,

you could give activaid a chance: http://www.heise.de/download/activaid.html

It is installable in english as well and contains a hotkey to make every window stay on top by pressing Windows-Shift-Home simultaneously.

It has also many other features worth exploring.

Best regards, Alex

      
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #23 Posted by Paul Dale on 7 June 2012, 3:40 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by Damir

Get a real 34S and glue it to your screen. Hook up the USB power and you're done :-)

- Pauli

            
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #24 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 4:12 p.m.,
in response to message #23 by Paul Dale

Geentlemen, gentlemen,

Hold your horses! The original question about an on-top feature is correct and relevant. It's those programmer's who are too lazy to make it appear in the menu because they don't want it there because they don't need it there. And this is not a market driven enterprise thus likely reducing the dy/dx(dx/dt) of the evolutionary process.

Chris

Edited: 7 June 2012, 5:44 p.m. after one or more responses were posted

                  
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #25 Posted by Paul Dale on 7 June 2012, 4:31 p.m.,
in response to message #24 by Chris Tvergard

I was jesting of course, if it wasn't apparent.

Of course this is a legitimate feature to ask about.

Marcus has explained why he hasn't and likely won't implement it. I'm certainly not going to do so for much the same reasons -- I've no idea how the windowing bits of the emulator work and plan to keep it that way.

Pascal might get motivated for his emulators or someone can submit a patch that provides the desired functionality.

- Pauli

                        
Re: wp34s Emulator suggestion
Message #26 Posted by Chris Tvergard on 7 June 2012, 5:02 p.m.,
in response to message #25 by Paul Dale

Pauli,

You are sure up and early, my computer clock shows your time as 6:59 AM, tomorrow, i.e. Friday. I'm still in the old world of Thursday.

No offense taken, I knew you were joking, of course. Appreciate your feedback, though.

Is there any way you, or Bart perhaps, can send Walter a real British Empire Butler's hat, like the one in 007's Goldfinger, so he and I can agree on the English wording some more when he wears it? It seems like my seal skin hat with beaver trim and baby walruss laces has lost its magic powers.

Chris

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