PC Access for Windows Reference Guide

for PC Access for Windows 4.30.158

Terminal Window: Resizing

The Terminal window is resizable on most computer displays. However, unlike most resizable windows the Terminal window can only be one of a finite set of sizes after you have specified a number of Text Lines on the MLS Setup window (Options tab). This is because the Terminal window displays text using a set of fixed-width (not proportional) fonts from the MFM.FON file in your PC Access executable directory. MFM.FON contains a few fonts, and these determine all the Terminal window size possibilities for your computer display. This behavior is similar to the MS-DOS Prompt window built into Windows; it also displays text with fixed-with fonts with a given number of text lines, and thus it has a finite number of possible window sizes.

You can resize the Terminal window in the usual ways once you have it open:

· You can move the mouse pointer over an edge or corner of the window until it turns into a double-headed arrow. Press and hold down the left mouse button while you drag the window outline to a new size; then release the mouse button. When you do, the Terminal window will snap to the nearest allowable size in the direction of the size change you specified.

· Press Alt-space on your keyboard while the Terminal window is the current window. This pulls down a system menu from the upper-left corner of the window. You may also pull down the system menu by clicking on the small icon at the extreme upper-left corner of the Terminal window with your mouse. From the system menu you may select Size and then press the arrow keys on your keyboard to change the size of the window outline. Press the Enter key to select your size change. When you do, the Terminal window will snap to the nearest allowable size in the direction of the size change you specified.

· You may click the mouse on the maximize button in the upper-right corner of the Terminal window. This causes the window to become as large as it can be on your display.

Sometimes when you attempt to resize the Terminal window by one of the above methods, its size does not change. When this happens, most likely the Terminal window has already reached the most extreme size it can assume in the direction of the change you selected, given your Text Lines setting and your display resolution. If you are having trouble fitting the Terminal window on a low-resolution display, consider checking the Hide Toolbar or Hide Speed Buttons items on the View Menu.

If you are trying to make the Terminal window as large as possible, pull down the system menu by pressing the Alt-space on your keyboard while the Terminal window is the current window. If the Maximize menu item is gray, the Terminal window is at its maximum size on your display already.

PC Access stores the Terminal window size on a per-agent basis, with each agent's previous Terminal window size in the PCAWIN.AGT file. If you set up multiple Phone Book entries, resizing the Terminal window for one will affect the others. The Terminal window corresponding to each Phone Book entry will have the same width you most recently selected for any of them. The heights of the Terminal windows can vary if you selected a different number of Text Lines for each one. The Terminal window widths do not vary because the Terminal window is always 80 columns wide.

If you want to experiment with the Terminal window size, you may find it more convenient to open the Terminal window corresponding to a Phone Book entry having a Direct Connection Method on the Phone Book Setup window (General tab). Click the Phone Book button on the Main Menu window to see if you already have any entries with the word "Playback" in their Service Names. If you do, then you can highlight one of them and click the Dial button on the Phone Book Select window to open the corresponding Terminal window without actually dialing your MLS. Otherwise you may want to try temporarily setting your Connection Method to Direct on the MLS Setup window (General tab) before you click the Call MLS button on the Main Menu window.

If PC Access does not save your Terminal window size and restore it automatically the next time you open the Terminal window, you may need to check your Windows Display Adapter Properties. PC Access may not save the Terminal window size unless you have Small Fonts selected in your Windows Display Adapter Properties. (This appears to be due to a bug in Windows rather than in PC Access.) In Windows 95 you may correct your Display Adapter Properties like this:

· Click Start | Settings | Control Panel | Display.

· In the Display Adapter Properties window change the Font Settings to Small Fonts and click Apply.

In Windows 98 you may correct your Display Adapter Properties like this:

· Click Click Start | Settings | Control Panel | Display.

· In the Display Adapter Properties window click the Settings tab and click Advanced. In the Advanced Properties window, General tab select Small Fonts and click Apply.

Depending on the type of display adapter you have, Windows may require you to restart Windows for your changes to take effect.

This topic is new for PC Access 4.30 (Monday, January 24, 1999).

Last modification date: Friday, January 17, 2003 00:58:56