[MWForum]impt Pro and publishing info; open 2 copies of MW

[Wendy Petti]

NEWS FLASH!!!

I have just learned from Shawn of LCSI that they have released an
updated version of MW Pro which incorporates the new code for
publishing projects on the Web and restores the functionality of the
MW Help files with the newest versions of Internet Explorer.  I
suggest you contact Shawn -- shawn@lcsi.ca -- to requst an updated
version of MW Pro.  (It is also possible to download patches for
your older version of MW Pro from their website.)

Now here are my replies to Cam's 2 questions:

1) > even though these projects are created in 2.05 on the
> Mac...it sounds like I should export them, and then use
> Microworlds Pro (Windows version) to publish them....?

You do need to export the Mac project to the PC version, but you do
NOT need MW Pro to publish these projects.  In fact, I never use MW
2.05 OR MW Pro to generate the web page and code needed.  Really,
all the information you need to know about publishing MW projects on
the web you will find on the www.microworlds.com website.  The
information has recently changed!!!! and it is a very important
change.  It is necessary to use new code for projects to be viewable
with the most current versions of Internet Explorer.  You will find
this code on the site.

Visit
http://www.microworlds.com/library/post.html
and read that page, then click on the link to your platform at the
bottom of the page for details of how to publish your projects.

2) > one of my frustrations with MW 2.05 is that you can't
> have two files open at the same time....so "toggling" is
> not going to work....

You can certainly open more than one copy of MW 2.05 and/or more
than one copy of MW Pro (on the same platform) at the same time!!  I
often have 3 copies of the same version of MW open at the same time.
Just don't open so many that you crash your computer.  Here's how:

It is true that you cannot open multiple copies from the File menu;
when you go to open another project, your current project closes.
Instead, regardless of the method used to open your first project,
you need to open the folder holding your projects and double-click
on a second project icon.  This second project will open just fine
and you can toggle between the two.

There are easier ways to import a custom selection of shapes with MW
Pro so that you don't have to individually copy and paste them and
you don't have to import the entire collection.  This information
comes from the MW Pro Help menu, under "Importing Shapes":
***
You can import shapes from Shapes files (.SHP) or MicroWorlds
projects with the menu item, Import Shapes.

Choose Import from the File menu and select Shapes. There are many
shapes files to choose from. You can also select a MicroWorlds
project from which to import shapes. [Wendy's note:  In the Import
dialog box, you need to switch from "shapes" to "projects" for the
file type in order to view your MW projects in the file list and
then select the project from which you wish to import shapes.]
Importing shapes allows you to:

Add shapes to your project.
Replace the existing shapes.

The Shapes File is displayed on the left and the shapes from the
Current Project are displayed on the right. To copy a shape into the
Current Project:

Select a shape in the Shapes File.
Select a shape in the Current File. Select an "empty" shape if you
do not want to replace a shape.
Click on the arrow to transfer the shape.
To transfer a group of shapes:

Use Shift-click or Ctrl-click to select the shapes in the Shapes
file on the left.
Use Ctrl-click to select the same number of empty shapes in the
Current Project.
Click on the arrow. The shapes that have been selected in the
Current Project will be replaced by the shapes selected in the File.
When transferring a group of shapes, you can also select the shape
position in the Current Project, where the transfer will start. Make
sure there are the same number of consecutive empty shapes available
in the Current Project. From that position, the shapes in the
Current Project will be overwritten by the shapes selected in the
File.

Another method for importing shapes consists of using the Windows
Clipboard.

Copy some graphics from any application.
Switch to MicroWorlds.
Open the Graphics Tab area.
Click on an empty shape where you want to paste the graphics.
Right-click on this shape and select Paste.
In addition, you can also use the "drag and drop" functionality to
import shapes directly into the Graphics Tab area.
***

(This is Wendy again):

I just tried using the above "import" information and was able to
import any selection of shapes I wanted from a MW 2.0_ project into
a MW Pro project all in one operation.  I hope this information will
make your future shape-transferring tasks less frustrating!!

Wendy