D&Do v. 1.0   Prev   Next   Top


Introduction

D&Do provides a GUI-based drag and drop, and system clipboard services to non-GUI and non-interactive command line programs and scripts. Through these services, it increases the usability of command line programs in a window-based desktop environment and increases the user's productivity. For example, with D&Do you can reduce the amount of typing (and related errors) and you can even bridge between non-integrated desktop applications by making the clipboard more intelligent. Note: GUI means Graphical User Interface. Note: A script is also a program but it requires a script executor program. In this document, the term "program" means also "script" wherever such distinction is not required.

Here is a screenshot of D&Do at start (freeware version)

The registered version is identical to the freeware version with the following exceptions:

Once a configuration file known as a metascript is loaded, D&Do associates itself with a specific program. That metascript provides a mapping of each argument of the program with either a drop object or the system clipboard. A trigger from D&Do (usually a click from the mouse cursor) activates the program that might do some IO of its own and writes messages at its normal output, then ends its activity with an exit code. D&Do collects the normal output and may redirect it to the system clipboard that will be available for other desktop applications. It also collects the exit-code that it uses for generating a feedback message on its status line. See the figure below:

 With D&Do:

D&Do does much more:

D&Do is a time-saver. With it, you can save at least 15 minutes a day, every day, per person, for accomplishing your computer-based tasks while reducing human errors. Think about it. You save money and you can deliver faster and more reliably. In a corporate environment, multiply this by the number of employees using a computer: secretaries Web designers, sales persons, CAD users, accountants and even your busy computer-savvy programmers.

D&Do solution is based from the following observations:

Even for the most trivial operations, you can save time. Here are two such examples:

 

Example 1: A subdirectory creator example

You may want, for example, to create many subdirectories under the same directory, based from some text in a document. You may do it manually and it is straightforward. Here is an example in a Microsoft's Windows environment (In Windows, a "directory" is called "folder"; in this document, both terms are synonymous).

First solution; the traditional method:

Second solution; the more efficient D&Do method (assuming that D&Do is already loaded with the proper metascript):

Comparison

Naturally, if you create a few directories in a month, you do not save much. If you have to do it regularly, for hundreds of subdirectories, the second solution is worth the consideration.

With the first method, you do five or six steps for each new subdirectory. You might have to go through step 6, which is time-consuming, since you might have to edit manually and to make some on-the-spot decisions. With the second method, three steps (1, 2 and 4) are done once and only two steps (3A and 3B) are repeated for each subdirectory. Take note that there is no text editing with the second method; this is done automatically through a loaded metascript. Compare the two methods and count the seconds. This is the type of saving D&Do can offer, even for such trivial task. There are certainly many types of your peculiar repetitive tasks that you have to do but, that you find that there should be a better solution, such as the simple example that is described above.

The second solution offers that very important but hidden advantage. The related program may validate the statement, removing invalid characters such as "\" and "*". With the first method, you get an annoying popup dialog, if such characters are found; you have to click on the dialog then, redo Ctrl-V and edit the subdirectory name by hand. No such event will ever occur with the second (D&Do) solution.

As you gain experience, D&Do will become as utilitarian as your flat blade screwdriver or your eraser.

NOTE: A more detailed version of this example (with more explanations) is described in the Illustrated Step by Step Usage Example sub-section.

 

Example 2: A file name generator that follows a convention using a dragged text fragment:

A simple peculiar repetitive task that is probably executed by most users of the Internet is to save a Web page into a local file. In a Windows environment, it involves typing a meaningful name into the File name field of the "Save As" dialog box. The default name is often not the one that you will agree to use; it can be too long, it can contain unwanted characters and/or it can even have the wrong title. As a policy, you may even not want to have spaces within a file name. You have to edit it manually: removing some words, shortening long words, changing some characters, etc. Such task can easily be scripted. You save about 10 to 20 seconds, each time, but if you have to do it 100 times in a day, you save about half an hour. In a production environment, such as in an office, this represents recurrent money savings. Using a proper script (an easy-to-do program) and D&Do, you just drag a segment of a text from the Web page that represents the proper title, then drop it into the target area of D&Do. That will update the clipboard content with the proper title. With D&Do, the use of the "Save As" dialog box is more efficient; you just paste the already corrected clipboard text into the File name field. This is an example of to "bridge between non-integrated desktop applications".

NOTE: A more detailed version of this example (with more explanations) is described in the Illustrated Step by Step Usage Example sub-section.

 

Conclusions

These above examples demonstrate that:

 


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Copyright(c) 2003-2004 Marcel St-Amant