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                            No Frills Timer 1.5
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Copyright 1997,1998
Nicholas Maher
nick.maher@iname.com
http://homepages.tig.com.au/~nickm

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1. Overview
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No Frills Timer keeps track of the amount of time you spend connected
to the Internet. It is designed to be small, fast, and reasonably easy
to use. 

Here's a quick overview on how to get NFT up and running. Copy nft.exe
to a directory of your choice, and run it. Minimize it, and it will
disappear until you connect to the Internet. When NFT detects a net
connection, it will record the time connected, and display this in a
small floating window. This display can be toggled between the connect
time for this session, or the total overall time including all your
previous sessions. By default, NFT will start automatically when
Windows does, but this can be disabled if necessary. Here are a few
more features:

  o  Stores total time connected and total number of calls.
  o  Total time can be reset automatically (daily, weekly or monthly)
  o  Supports up to 32 simultaneous connections.
  o  Records all timing information to a log file.
  o  Warns when your total time exceeds a specified amount.

Most importantly, NFT is small. The executable is about 40k, and that
is the only file you need. I've seen timers that check in at way over
2 meg, including all their runtime libraries. To me, this seems a bit
excessive. The way I see it, a timer should run unobtrusively in the
background, and should consume as few system resources as possible.


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2.  Menu Items
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2.1. File / Exit
----------------

This will shut down NFT. Note that when NFT is not running it will not
record timing information. Using this menu command is different to
clicking on the close box, which will only hide or minimize NFT.


2.2. Connection / New
---------------------

Adds a new connection. This step is not normally necessary, since NFT
will add connections automatically when it detects them. However, it
may sometimes be useful to add a connection in advance.


2.3. Connection / Reset
-----------------------

Resets timing information for the selected connection. The Total Calls
and Total Time fields will both be reset. (Their old values will be
saved in the log file.)


2.4. Connection / Delete
------------------------

Deletes the connection and all its timing information.


2.5. Connection / Properties
-----------------------------

Allows you to edit properties for the selected connection.

The Time page allows you to modify the total time for a connection, as
well as the maximum time. You can also configure warnings for when the
total time exceeds the maximum. Note that you can't edit the total time
for a connection while you're connected.

The Resets page allows you to configure automatic resets for a
particular connection. This means that the Total Time and Total Calls
fields can be automatically reset at a specific time on a daily,
weekly, or monthly basis.


2.6. View / Fields
------------------

Toggles the display of the following fields:

  o  Current Time    The current connect time
  o  Total Time      The total connect time since the last reset
  o  Remaining Time  The remaining time for this connection 
  o  Total Calls     The number of calls since the last reset
  o  Last Reset      The time of the last reset for this connection
  o  Next Reset      The time of the next automatic reset


2.7. View / Floating Timer
--------------------------

Toggles the display of the floating timer window. When connected, this
window will display the name of the connection, and the connect time.

If you have more than one simultaneous connection, clicking on the
connection name in the floating window will cycle through all active
connections. 

Clicking on the time will cause it to toggle between the various
timing modes:

  o  Current Time       (C)
  o  Total Time         (T)
  o  Remaining Time     (R)

The letter that appears in brackets after the time indicates the
active mode. (C) = Current, (T) = Total, (R) = Remaining.

Note that you cannot select Remaining Time when there is no maximum
time defined for the connection. To set a maximum time, use the
connection properties page.

Right-clicking on the floating timer will display a popup menu,
enabling you to hide the floating window, restore the main window, or
exit NFT.

2.8. View / Log File
--------------------

Displays the NFT logfile.


2.9. Options / Hide When Minimized
----------------------------------

If this option is enabled, NFT will appear as a small icon in the
system tray, rather than a normal minimized window. Double clicking on
this icon will restore NFT. Right clicking on it will produce a popup
menu, enabling you to restore NFT, or terminate it.


2.10. Options / Launch On Startup
--------------------------------

If this option is enabled, NFT will start automatically when Windows
does. 


2.11. Options / Auto Floating Timer
-----------------------------------

It this option is enabled, the floating timer will automatically
appear when a connection is established, and disappear when the last
connection is closed.


2.12. Options / Log File Settings
---------------------------------

Displays the Log File Settings dialog, allowing you to configure which
events are logged by NFT. By default, all connects, disconnects, and
resets are logged.


2.13. Options / Use System Colours
----------------------------------

Toggles the colour scheme between NFT colours and standard windows
colours.


2.14. Help / Read Me
--------------------

Displays this file.


2.15. Help / About
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Displays version and registration information, and allows you to
register the program.


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3. Troubleshooting
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If NFT starts with an error message saying that the RASAPI32 DLL is
missing, it probably means that dialup networking has not been
installed. Ensure that dialup networking has been installed correctly
before running NFT again.

Be careful with setting your system date into the future. This will
cause automatic resets to occur early. (I've accidently done this 
myself a few times when testing NFT with future dates!)

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4. Changes
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Changes in 1.1:

 o  Fixed bug where main window was occasionally vanishing
 o  Fixed bug with timer starting before connection on some systems
 o  Fixed round off problem when calculating time for log file
 o  Added the option to use default system colours
 o  30 days registration limit now starts again with each new release

Changes in 1.2:

 o  Fixed: Logfile path was not being saved
 o  Fixed: Floating timer position was not always saved
 o  Connection name in the floating timer is now optional
 o  Gave the floating timer a new look
 o  It is now possible to edit a connection's total time
 o  Added a maximum time for each connection, and optional warnings
 o  Added connection property pages
 o  Added a reminder dialog for registration

Changes in 1.3:

 o  Fixed: Floating timer was sometimes disappearing
 o  Fixed: Now looks for nft.txt in the same directory as nft.exe
 o  Registry accesses have been optimized. 

Changes in 1.4:

 o  Added a 'Log File' option to the view menu
 o  Fixed: The resets property page failed to appear with old
    versions of comctl32.dll
 o  Fixed: Sorting the connections in the main window caused
    incorrect properties to be displayed
 o  Fixed up window position sanity checking

Changes in 1.5:

 o  Added remaining time option


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5. Registration
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No Frills Timer is a shareware program. You are free to evaluate it
for 30 days, however after that time it will stop working, and you
must register if you wish to continue using it. Note that the
shareware version is fully functional - no features have been
disabled.

To register, send ten US Dollars, or the equivalent in your local
currency, to the following address:

Nicholas Maher
32 Dandarbong Ave,
Bangor
NSW 2234
Australia

* IMPORTANT: I can't accept non-Australian cheques, because they cost
* me too much to convert. Australian cheques or money orders in
* Australian funds are not a problem. 

Please include your name and email address. You will receive a
registration key by email, which will work only under your name. Once
your receive this key, select About from the help menu, and click on
the Register button. Enter your name and key, and your copy of NFT
will become registered. This key will also work for any future
releases of NFT.

Make sure you print your name and email address clearly!

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6. Disclaimer and other stuff
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This software is provided on an as-is basis. The author takes no
responsibility for any damages or data loss incurred by using this
software. No warranty is provided with this program, so use it at your
own risk.

Well, that's about it. If you find any bugs or have any suggestions,
please let me know. This documentation is quite sparse, because I
think most of the features in NFT should be fairly self explanatory.
But if that's not the case, please tell me.

Hope you enjoy No Frills Timer!

Nick Maher
February 1998

