ElemPack - Periodic Table of Elements


Before you keep reading, make sure you have Word Wrap on.
In NotePad, go to Edit and make sure Word Wrap is checked.
If not, check it.


Disclaimer: The author shall not hold responsibility for any loss of data caused by the misuse of this computer program.  However, users are encouraged to report all bugs and/or mistakes that they may find.


What this file contains:
I. Introduction
II. Files
III. Installation
IV. Distribution
V. Known bugs & incompatibilities
VI. Contact


Announcements:
    July 20 - ElemPack v1.0 released


I. Introduction

    Welcome to ElemPack!  This is the first release of this program.  This file will help you setup and get ElemPack running on your computer.  This version is v1.0.


What is ElemPack?

    ElemPack is a package that can run and edit the Periodic Table of Elements, Mendelev's fine creation.  ElemPack uses an original file type, Element Maker Files (EMF).  The package  contains two programs: Element Viewer and Element Maker.  Element Maker can edit existing EMF files and create new ones, and Element Viewer can run them.

    Element Maker is probably not the thing most people would want to play with, since it takes quite a long time to form a new table from scratch.  However, it is quite easy to edit an existing EMF file or add comments.  The comments field is a great way to make a research project, since you can type any interesting thing that you may find. Element Maker does not take command-line arguments.

    Element Viewer is the main program of the package.  It does nothing but play back files that Element Maker created.  As you may imagine, this package comes with a default EMF file.  To make any of your creations start as the default file, rename it DEFAULT.EMF and put it in the same directory as the Element Viewer.  Element Viewer also takes command-line arguments, so you can associate EMF files to Element Viewer.


What do I need to run ElemPack?

ElemPack does not require a front-end technology at all.  These little things are all it requires:

    Windows 95 or any other 32-bit Windows operating system
    A Microsoft-Compatible Mouse
    8MB of memory and 1MB of free space
    Resolution of 1024 x 768 is recommended
    256 Colors or better


II. Files

ElemPack.zip should contain these files:

-> ElemView.exe  Element Viewer
-> ElemMake.exe  Element Maker
-> DEFAULT.EMF   The default EMF file
-> ElemMake.zip  VB4.0 Source code for Element Maker
    ->frmTable.frm
    ->frmProperties.frm
    ->frmDescription.frm
    ->frmToolBox.frx
    ->modElemMaker.bas
    ->frmToolBox.frm
    ->frmTable.frx
    ->Snow.ico
    ->frmProperties.frx
    ->frmDescription.frx
    ->ElemMake.vbp

-> ElemView.zip  VB4.0 Source code for Element Viewer
    ->frmAbout.frx
    ->frmTable.frm
    ->frmDescription.frm
    ->modElemMaker.bas
    ->frmAbout.frm
    ->frmTable.frx
    ->Snow.ico
    ->frmDescription.frx
    ->ElemView.vbp

-> ElemOCX.zip   VB4.0 Runtime libraries required
    ->COMDLG32.OCX
    ->COMDLG32.OCA
    ->RICHTX32.OCX
    ->RICHTX32.OCA


III. Installation

You will need a ZIP archive extractor, such as WiZ, WinZip or PkUnZip.  Extract all the files to any directory, such as C:\Program Files\ElemPack.  Use Windows Explorer to find ElemPack and run ElemView.exe.  If that does not work, you may be missing run-time libraries.

You need Microsoft Visual Basic 4.0 (Yes, I know VB4.0 is old) runtime libraries to run this program.  To get them, try one of the links below.

ftp://ftp.cdrom.com/pub/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/micro/pc/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://ftp.peachnet.edu/pub/mirrors/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://ftp.simtel.net/pub/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://sunsite.anu.edu.au/pub/pc/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://ftp.eunet.cz/pub/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip
ftp://sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/packages/simtelnet/win95/dll/vb40032a.zip

After that, if it still doesn't work, open ElemOCX.zip inside the archive and put all four files in your Windows system32 drive, which might be either C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32, D:\WINNT\SYSTEM32, or maybe C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM if you cannot find C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32.

If it still does not work, contact me.


IV. Distribution

ElemPack is in the distributed in the public domain.  You are free to distribute and use the source code and the application freely as you wish, although I would appreciate it if you give credit.  However, it is not okay to sell the original or the modified version in any way without notifying me.  Even if you decide to use a major portion of my source code, I believe that conscience have the desired effect.


V. Known bugs & incompatibilities

The computer I used to program ElemPack is as follows:
(This is what Control Panel said)

System:
Microsoft Windows NT
4.00. 1381.
IE 4.0 4.72.3110.8 (although I use Netscape)

Computer:
x86 Family 5 Model 2 Stepping 12 (literally Pentium 166mHz)
AT/AT COMPATIBLE (means I don't have an XT)
64,948 KB RAM (64MB of RAM)

Since a lot of people do not use Windows NT, I would not be surprised that Windows 95/98 might not work exactly the same way.  Please report incompatibilities to me.  As of now, there are no known bugs.


VI. Contact

If you enjoy this program, contact me at the e-mail address below.  Also, donations will be appreciated, but not required.  Also, remember to give thanks to Simtel.Net and Download.com for their great services.

Paul H. Ryu <paulhryu@falcon.cc.ukans.edu>