tkREM's Graphical User Interface



Entering Regular Expressions

Where do the regular expressions appear in the interface? Below is the regexp entry widget which is used to build the regular expression.

The black square around the entry indicates it is active and accepting input. At the cursor position, you can either type text in from the keyboard, or use the MC buttons described below to enter your regular expression.

Wizard Help

The next part of the interface is the Wizard Help. The annoying little yellow label widget provides a short help message describing what the mouse is directly over.

In the example above, the help message is describing what will happend when the user presses a button. Notice as you move the mouse around in the application, the Wizard Help messages always gives a description of what the mouse is pointing to. Unlike Bubble/Popup Help, which follow the mouse and annoys everyone, Wizard Help provides a clean interface to reminder type help messages. Being fixed in the interface allows both new, and old, users alike easy access to helpful messages.

The Toolbar

The Toolbar provides quick access to application specific functions. The buttons from left to right are

    
Copy the tkREM Regexp to the X selection.

    
Clear the tkREM Regexp entry.

    
Read through tkREM HTML help.

    
Close window and exit tkREM.

After the exit button, there are 6 buttons which allow you to change the application's current mode. The current mode is indicated by a depressed button, illustrated below.

The default mode is grep. Try pressing on the other mode buttons if you haven't already. Notice the interface changes depending on which mode you are in.

Meta-Character Buttons

Now on to the heart of the application. The remaining part of the interface is a grid of buttons with labels on them. Notice as you move the mouse around, notice the Wizard Help messages describes the rules, and usage, of the regular expression meta-character. Simply press any of the MC buttons and the meta-character will be inserted into the Regexp entry widget. Below is a row of MC buttons.

Any of the MC buttons, which appear below the Toolbar, will insert meta-characters into the Regexp entry widget.