WiseApp

WiseApp.exe must reside in the \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager directory and you must invoke the program from the \TVoice directory.

WiseApp works with the file \TVoice\Config\program.lis to generate all of the control files that would make an application "deployable" under eCS.

There are two ways of using WiseApp:

(a) Simple Applications

A simple application is one consisting of only one exe file, does no WPS class registrations, and makes zero entries in your config.sys. If you can run the program's exe file without any installation procedure, and the program would run right away without the need to reboot the machine, then you are running a simple application.

An example of a simple application would be the HALITE program that comes with the OS/2 Bonus Pak. We will use that program to show you how to use the WiseApp program.

To make Halite deployable by WiseMachine, drag the file halite.exe and drop it onto, for example, the Custom App folder. You will see the following screen:

Name:

Name of the program which is assumed to be the same as the name of the main directory for this program.

Server:

If the program is stored in an application server on the network, this would the name of that server. For local installations, use the name MyServer.

Description:

A brief description about this program.

Exe Path:

The path name of the main exe file. Do not include drive letter.

Start From:

The name of the start directory. Do not include drive letter.

Parent:

Name of the parent folder.

ICON:

Filename for the *.ICO resource file to represent this program. This file must reside in \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager \Name where Name is the name of this program specified above.

If possible, WiseApp will automatically extract this file from the exe file you specified.

Desktop:

If this program creates desktop objects, AND/OR needs to perform any other tasks not covered by the rest of the items on this list (such as making entries to OS2.INI, OS2SYS.INI, and so forth), enter the name of the Rexx program to use, and make sure the None checkbox stays unchecked. This file must reside in the \TVoice\WiseProg \DeskTop directory and must have the nameCreateName.cmd where Name is the name of the program.

There is also a corresponding Rexx script for deinstalling the package from the system (\TVoice\Wiseprog\Desktop \RemoveName.cmd).

Config.sys:

If this program makes modifications to the target machine's config.sys file, enter the name of a file containing Rexx script stubs for making such modifications. The name of the file is normally Name.CFG and must reside in the \TVoice \WiseProg\WiseManager\Name directory.

Create:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. It would have created the file \TVoice\WiseProg \WiseManager \Name\Create.cmd.

For local booted stations, check None.


StartupCMD:

If this program makes modifications to the target machine's startup.cmd file, enter the name of a file containing Rexx script stubs for making such modifications. The name of the file is normally Name.STR and must reside in the \TVoice \WiseProg\WiseManager\Name directory.

Note that this is NOT the script for modifying the target station's startup FOLDER which would be handled by the Desktop script described above.

Use WiseCfg:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Use WiseData:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Use WiseLog:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Use WiseWork:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Use INI File:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Use INI Files:

This option is useful only for remote boot workstations. Do not check this option for local booted stations.

Add

When you have finished filling in all of the options, click Add to place an entry about this program in the \TVoice \Config\program.lis file.

The WiseApp program will automatically generates the following files (and directories) base on your selections:

\TVoice\WiseProg\Name
\TVoice\WiseProg\WiseManager\Name

\TVoice\WiseProg\DeskTop\CreateName.cmd
\TVoice\WiseProg\DeskTop\RemoveName.cmd
\TVoice\WiseProg\WiseManager\Name\Name.ico
\TVoice\WiseProg\WiseManager\Name\Name.cfg
\TVoice\WiseProg\WiseManager\Name\Name.str
\TVoice\WiseProg\WiseManager\Name\create.cmd

Cancel

Cancel and close the setting window.



(b) WPS Aware Applications

WPS aware applications can be quite complex to make deployable. Fortunately, the Object Package component of the Stardock Object Desktop program greatly simplifies this task. To make a WPS aware applicaiton deployable with WiseMachine, follow the instructions at http://www.touchvoicecorp.com/ecsadopt.html on how to use the Object Package to generate the files needed by WiseApp. You should end up with a Rexx file, and a sub-directory for the particular program you wish to make deployable. For some simple program, this sub-directory might be empty.

From WiseApp, rather than doing the drag-n-drop action described above for simple application, right click on a main folder (to indicate that you are adding an application in that group), or an empty space on the Application Deployment Console (indicating that you are adding a group and an application) and select Add.

From the Application Setting window that follows, ignore EXEPath and StartFrom and fill in the rest of the entries as described above for simple applications. When finished, click Add.

From the Application Deployment Console, click on the "+" to the left of the folder you selected to expand that branch. You should see an entry for the newly created application. You won't see an picture for the application because the corresponding ICO file does not exist yet.

Right click at the newly created application, and you will see the pop up menu similar to the one in the following table.

Change:

Bring up the application settin gwindow in change mode.

Delete:

Remove this application from \TVoice\Config\Program.lis (the files associated with this application is not deleted from the hard disk).

Config.sys:

If enabled, this application makes modifications to the station's config.sys.

If you click this selection, WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager\Name\Name.cfg where Name is the name of the program.

Create:

If enabled, this application needs working areas to be created (this applies ONLY to remote booted stations).

If you click this selection, WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager\Name\create.cmd where Name is the name of the program.

Desktop:

If enabled, this application executes a Rexx program when the application is "deployed" to the station which, among other things, makes modifications to the desktop of the target station.

If you click this selection, WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog\DeskTop \CreateName.cmd where Name is the name of the program.

FitSection:

If enabled, this application makes entry to the station's FIT table (this applies ONLY to remote booted stations). If you click this selection, WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager\Name\name.fit where Name is the name of the program.

Remove:

If enabled, this application utilizes a Rexx program which, when executed from WiseMachine, would remove the application from the desktop of the target station and whatever it's necessary to make the application unusable (like removing entries from the OS2.INI file). The files for the applicaiton IS NOT REMOVED from the hard disk of the target station.


If you click "Remove", WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog \DeskTop\RemoveName.cmd where Name is the name of the program.

Startup:

If enabled, this application makes modifications to the station's startup.cmd. If you click this selection, WiseApp will bring up the system editor to let you examine or modify the Rexx script stub located at \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager \Name\Name.str where Name is the name of the program.

Again, this file has nothing to do with the target station's startup folder. That's handled by the CreateName.cmd desktop Rexx script.

Reference:

See separate discussion below.

WiseProg:

(Apply only to remote booted stations).

Reference:

When you click on Reference, a sub-menu pops up. The first three items of the sub-menu: ReadME, EditREXX, and Execute - all have to do with remote boot workstations. DO NOT choose these options if you are working with locally booted stations.

OD Rexx is the function that will convert an Object Package created Rexx script for deploying this application to a station (either remote booted, or locally booted) from WiseMachine or it's network enabled big brother WiseManager. If you select this option, you will be prompted for the two items generated by Object Package - the name of the Rexx cmd file and the name of the sub-directory created by Object Pcakge.

Note that the standard OS/2 file selection dialog for selecting a directory requries that the "*.*" be replaced by a file name or else the dialog won't accept it. To use the "Subdirectory created by Object Package" dialog properly, double click one of the files in the subdirectory created by Object Package. If that directory happens to be empty, just type a dummy name to replace the "*.*" string. WiseApp will confirm afterwards to make sure that the name of the sub-directory is correct.
*

After that, you will see the convertion screen like the one to the right of this table.

The top half of the window displays the original Rexx script as created by Object Package.

The bottom half of the window displays the converted Rexx script in a format suitable for WiseMachine.

When possible, WiseApp will try to determine the object ID of the main folder for this application and place that in the "Main Folder" field. Likewise, it will try to determine the object ID of the main program for this application and place that in the "Main Program" data field. If you see <NONE> displayed, you might have to manually hunt down the corresponding object ID and enter them yourself.

The "Change all" and "to" field are there in case you need to make a simple global change to the converted script. For more elaborate changes, you will need to touch up the script via a system editor

Click "Save" to save the converted script. You will see a confirmation screen notifying you that "this script existed already, are you sure you want to replace it". When you add a new application, WiseApp created a default script for you. Since you are converting from Object Package, it is okay to replace the default script with this coverted script.


Note that WiseApp will also make a copy of ALL of the files in the sub-directory created by Object Package and place them in a sub-directory of the same name under \TVoice\Wiseprog \WiseManager\Name.

With a small number of packages, there are drive letter information embedded within the files in the sub-directory created by Object Package. They would have to be processed by the CreateName.cmd script to reflect the proper deployment drive letter.

It is not possible for the convertion program to be 100% effective all the time. You need to manually examine the script created by the conversion program to make sure that all drive letters has been "virtualized" and that the program will indeed do the proper things to make this application deployable. When in doubt, examine some of the existing scripts in the \TVoice\WiseProg\Desktop directory to see how things are done for other packages - one that you're very familiar with, perhaps.

The conversion is performed by the program \TVoice\Wiseprog\WiseManager \ConvertODRexx.cmd. You may have to modify this program if there are Object Package generated statements this conversion does not understand.