| Overview | Use StartGen to organize the URL's you use frequently into a compact start page that you store on your local hard disk and make the default page that loads automatically when you start your browser. You can then easily return to this page at any time by clicking your browser's Home button. |
| Windows Clipboard | It is essential that you learn how to use the Windows clipboard if you want to make the smartest use of StartGen's features. To copy text to the clipboard, drag select it with the mouse and press Ctrl-C (hold down the 'Ctrl' key and press the 'C' key). To paste information from the clipboard click the mouse once on the location to receive the data and press Ctrl-V. You can also use the right-mouse button to display a popup menu for copying and pasting information to and from the clipboard. If you have any questions about this, ask someone to show you since it only takes a second, and this knowledge will be useful when working with other software as well. |
| Upgrading from previous versions | You can install StartGen in the same directory as the previous version. After doing so, select the "Import Links from StartGen Database" option from the file menu to import links from the previous version one category at a time. Search forms must be imported one at a time via the "Add form wizard". |
| Main Form | The left side lists subjects within each category. When you select a category from this list, the right half of the screen shows all of the links in that category organized by subject. When you click on a subject on the left side of the screen, the right side lists only the links within that subject. The most convenient way to rearrange Categories, subjects and links is to drag and drop them within these lists. You cannnot drag things between the left and right lists. Use the category/subject list on the left to rearrange categories and subjects, and the list on the right to rearrange links. To drag an item from one subject to another, select the category in which it belongs so that the right side lists all the links for that category. |
| Shortcut | Adding a StartGen shortcut to your Desktop or Program Manager can save much time. The more convenient it is to load a program, the more likely you are to use it. Click here for instructions on how to do this. |
| AutoGenerate | StartGen rebuilds your start page every time you make a change. On slower computers there may be a noticeable delay. You can turn off 'AutoGenerate' by selecting the 'Tools AutoGenerate' menu option. |
| Popup Menus | You can right click on the categories, subjects and items to display popup menus. |
| Rearranging | You can change the order of categories, subjects and items by dragging and dropping within each list. |
| + | The + symbol to the left of an item signifies a multiple-URL link. |
| * | * signifies a search form link. |
| Clock | The upper right corner of the toolbar contains a clock icon that can be used as a timer. Select the duration in the dropdown list next to the clock, click the clock button once to start the timer. StartGen will beep after the specified number of minutes have passed. |
| Moving between pages | If you move an item, subject or category to a different startpage, the target page will be regenerated the next time you select it from the dropdown. If you exit StartGen before doing this, you can refresh the page by editing any item and clicking OK w/o making any changes. Any change to the page will also trigger an update. |
| Toggling Between Windows | If StartGen beeps at you when you switch back to it after using another Windows application, it's probably because you have a StartGen dialog form open. Pressing Alt-Tab once will display the dialog if this is the reason StartGen isn't responding. If you toggle to other apps and then bck to SG via the Windows taskbar, you need to select the icon for the dialog form that is open if there is one, otherwise it will appear as though SG is locked up. This doesn't happen when you use the Alt-Tab key to toggle between applications. |