Change log

Legend : * = Vdesk , + = BTEWin


 10/8/2006 Vdesk 2.69 & BTEWin 3.12

+ Added the following command: 'Errorcontrol'.
* Added an option to create a topmost window that will cover the desktop when pressing WIN+F12.
- Minor changes/fixes.


 30/5/2006 Vdesk 2.68 & BTEWin 3.11

+ Added the following variable function: '@GETLINKPATH[]'.
+ Added the following variable: '_MAINDIR'
+ The keyboard accelerator for the 'Find text' option was missing; now it's fixed.
+ Added one new example.
- Minor changes.


 17/5/2006 Vdesk 2.68 & BTEWin 3.10

+ Added a 'Find text' menu option (also available on the toolbar).
+ Fixed a cosmetic problem with the 'Step' command.
+ Size optimizations.
- Minor fixes.


 30/4/2006 Vdesk 2.68 & BTEWin 3.09

+ Different packers can now be embedded when building standalone executables.
+ Added the following commands: 'Packer', 'Installdirtitle' and 'Installdirok'.
+ Added the following variable function: '@INSTALLDIR[]'.
+ Added the following variable: '_PROGRAMFILES'.
- Added a 7-Zip gui unpacker to the distribution (7zUnp.exe), which is more suitable than 7za.exe for installers; a new example that illustrates its use has been included.
- FileTool: an editor for the configuration file has been added.


 14/4/2006 Vdesk 2.68 & BTEWin 3.08

+ Added the following commands: 'Quoting' and 'Alertboxfont'.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@LTRIM[]', '@LTRIMS[]', '@RTRIM[]', '@RTRIMS[]', and '@FOLDERSIZE[]'.
- FileTool: the menu bitmap is now stored externally.
- FileTool: SFV files can now be created and verified (certain variants may not be supported).
- Switched from UPX to aPLib/LZMA based Pacckman (http://packman.cjb.net).
- Minor fixes.


 28/1/2006 Vdesk 2.68 & BTEWin 3.07

* Minor fixes.


 15/1/2006 Vdesk 2.67 & BTEWin 3.07

+ Added the following variable functions: '@LPAD[]' and '@RPAD[]'.
+ Added the following variables: '_STARTUPDIRALL', '_PROGRAMSDIRALL', '_STARTMENUDIRALL', '_DESKTOPDIRALL', '_SENDTODIR', '_FAVORITESDIRALL' and '_FAVORITESDIR'.
+ Added the following commands: 'WSHExtract', 'Daemonlibrary' and 'Freedaemon'.
+ The 'Make executable' context menu option is now available for more filetypes: '*.vbs', '*.vbe', '*.js' and '*.jse'.
+ Added several new options to deal with VBScript and JScript files in standalone executables.
- FileTool: added conversion capabilities ffor more archive types (supported by WinRAR).
- Minor fixes.


19/11/2005 Vdesk 2.66 & BTEWin 3.06

- Support for Daemon Tools 4.0.
- x64-based versions of Windows are now offficially supported by the FileTool shell extension.


29/10/2005 Vdesk 2.65 & BTEWin 3.05

+ Added the following commands: 'IDECDS' (Not available in standalone executables), 'Transparency', and 'SetPriority'.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@DEC[]' and '@HEX[]', that are more convenient for everyday use than '@CONVERT[]'.
+ Fixed the documentation for the 'Createlink' command (The 'A=...' subscript command was not described).
* Added an option to use the CTRL+SHIFT key combination for hotkeys.
- Minor changes to the installer and the FiileTool shell extension.
- Minor fixes.


14/8/2005 Vdesk 2.65 & BTEWin 3.04

+ Added the following commands: 'Contxtclr' and 'Consize'.
+ The syntax of the '@BROWSEFOLDER[]' variable function has changed to define an initial folder (optional).
- FileTool: Added menu entries for encodingg and decoding 'Monkey's Audio (APE)' files.
- Minor fixes.


 1/7/2005 Vdesk 2.65 & BTEWin 3.03

+ Added the following variable functions: '@SHA1[]', '@SHA256[]', '@INDEXL[]' and '@INDEXR[]'.
* The 'Options' dialog has been arranged in a different way.
* Added an option to hide the desktop at program startup.
* Minor changes.
- FileTool: Beta XP-64 support.
- FileTool: all the possible combinations tto convert between 'Zip', '7Zip' and 'Rar' archives have been added. Note that 'Zip' and '7Zip' are supported by default because '7za.exe' is supplied, but 'WinRAR' must be installed for 'Rar' support.
- FileTool: added a new 'Batch Rename ...' item to the menu.
- FileTool: added a new 'Verify MD5 Checksuums' item to the menu.
- FileTool: added a new 'Create MD5 Checksuums' item to the menu.
- FileTool: note that if you have made any custom changes to the 'FileTool.ini', 'DriveMenu.bte' or 'DTFTMenu.bte' files, you should make a backup of the modified files before installing; otherwise the changes will be lost.
- The well known 'LAME' MP3 encoder (http://www.mp3dev.org) is now included in the distribution. The component is disabled by default in the installer.


17/5/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.01

+ Added a new command: 'Parentwindow'.
+ Added a new variable function: '@BINSEARCH[]'.
+ The following bitwise operators: '<<', '>>', 'AND', 'XOR', and 'OR' are now supported by the '@EVAL[]' variable function.
- FileTool: fixed a minor problem that coulld cause wrong icons to be displayed on the context menu in certain conditions.
- FileTool: errors are now reported when moounting images with Daemon Tools (see DTFTMenu.bte and DriveMenu.bte).
- Minor improvements.


31/3/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.00 Final

+ Added a new command: 'Waittimer'.
+ Updated the 'Copy' command with a new optional '/A' switch.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@HEXCHAR[]', '@BINREAD[]' and '@NFSUM[]'.
+ Added a new internal variable: '_OSVERSION'.
+ When building executables, all embedded data that was previously stored without compression is now packed with a built in encoder.
+ Fixed a problem that happened when standalone executables were executed from removable media and the media was removed while running.
* Minor changes.


28/2/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.00 RC4

+ Added a toolbar button to change the messages' window font. The change is persistent, but it does not affect standalone executables which will always use the default font at startup.
- Minor fixes.


20/2/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.00 RC3

+ Added the following commands: 'Iff', 'Else' and 'Endiff'.
+ Some examples have been rewritten to use 'Iff'.
- Minor fixes.


17/2/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.00 RC2

+ Now the default font for the messages window is 'Courier New'.
+ Added the following commands: 'Centerwindow', 'Setfont' and 'Settabsize'.
+ Start menu entries are now created only for the current user even if the installation package is run with administrative privileges.
- FileTool: The 'Copy To...' entry wouldn'tt copy root folders, now it's fixed (see the FileTool.ini file).
- Other minor changes and fixes.


13/2/2005 Vdesk 2.64 & BTEWin 3.00 RC1

+ The messages window now has a toolbar for easier use. Note that if step by step execution is turned on, it can only be turned off again using a script command or through the tray icon's menu (except when using the internal command prompt).
+ Added an internal command prompt that can be accessed by using the --prompt command line switch.
+ Several commands specific to be used with the internal command prompt have been added: 'Dir', 'Help' and 'Alias'.
+ Added the following commands: 'Skip', 'Hideconsole', 'Showconsole', 'Activateconsole', 'Expansion', 'Logfile', 'Logfileoff', 'Messageboxtimer', 'Messageslimit' and 'MixerSet'.
+ Added alternative short names for these commands: 'Chdir'->'Cd', 'Mkdir'->'Md', and 'Rmdir'->'Rd'.
+ Updated the 'For' command with a new optional '/A' switch.
+ The 'Chdir'/'Cd' command now supports wildcards.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@DRIVELETTER[]', '@CHARHEX[]', '@FILESIZE[]' and '@MIXERGET[]'.
+ Added a new inject (i=...) option to the 'Patch' command.
+ A default limit of 100000 lines has been set for the messages window; this limit can be easily changed or removed using the 'Messageslimit' command. This has been done to avoid an excessive memory consumption when the number of items in the list gets too high.
+ The limits for internal variables have been increased to 256 characters for variable names and a maximum of 1024 variables.
+ Gosub calls can now be nested up to 1024 levels of depth, instead of the previous 256.
+ The range of values for the '@RANDOM[]' variable function has been increased. Previously it was quite limited.
+ IMPORTANT: Several variable functions returned 'ERROR' upon failure. Now they will return an empty string in that condition/s.
+ The documentation has been improved by adding a frame at the bottom of the manual that contains a list of all commands, variables and variable functions sorted alphabetically. Note that it is collapsed by default, so it must be resized to be used.
+ Added a slightly modified copy of the IconPro application to provide enhanced functionality for extracting and editing icons when building executables.
+ Several cosmetic fixes.
* Now a timed (15 sec.) confirmation dialog is displayed by default before switching video modes. It can be disabled in the 'Custom Modes' dialog.
* Fixed a problem with the recent images menu: old entries remained and only the first one was updated if the list was full.
- FileTool: New options to allow custom mennus for drives have been added. As an example, a script that adds 'Load' and 'Eject' functions for all CD/DVD drives and several options to mount and unmount images with Daemon Tools virtual drives has been included. Its name is 'DriveMenu.bte'.
- FileTool: The 'Del_n' entries are no longger necessary and have been removed.
- FileTool: Fixed a possible problem that ccould happen with multiple users logged on the same system.
- The help files are now distributed in chmm format.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


8/1/2005 Vdesk 2.62 & BTEWin 2.63

+ Support for embedding compressed data into standalone executables has been added with the help of 7-Zip's standalone command line packer (7za.exe).
+ Added the 'ListMenu' command.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@ADAPTERIP[]', '@PIDFROMNAME[]' and '@NAMEFROMPID[]'.
+ If an unsupported or invalid icon file was opened when building a standalone executable, the icon that was displayed on the dialog was not always the one that got used.
+ The '@GETFILENAME[]' variable function could crash if the supplied argument was not a path.
+ The output of the %@BROWSEFOLDER[] variable function now doesn't have a trailing '\'.
+ Added an option to remember the version data when building executables.
* The 'Custom Modes' dialog has been completely redesigned, now there aren't any pre-made modes to choose from and it's possible to add any values, although I've provided a selection in the form of combo boxes.
- FileTool: Version 1.27 adds a new CopyNamme/s item.
- FileTool: Added a new 'OnlyDirs' entry too exclude all files for a given item.
- FileTool: The FileTool.ini path is now suupplied as the second command line argument for the files in the Startup_n=... entries. This makes easier to place those files outside of the default directory.
- FileTool: The component's files are now iinstalled into the \FileTool subdirectory.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


16/11/2004 Vdesk 2.61 & BTEWin 2.60

+ Icons up to 48x48, 32 bit color depth are now supported for building executables. Please note that if an icon file contains more than one format only the first one will be shown, so it is advisable to remove all formats but the desired one from the icon file. For the maximum supported size this is mandatory.
+ Added the following commands: 'Browsefolderok'.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@MD5[]'.
+ Several examples have been revised and updated.
+ Fixed a duplicate expansion problem that showed up when using the --cmd/--cmdline command line switches.
+ Cosmetic improvements.
* The power down messages interval is now expressed in seconds and can be changed using the options dialog. The new setting is called 'Interval(NT)', with a default value of 10 seconds and a minimum of 1 second.
- FileTool: Folders can now be excluded usiing the 'NoDirs' entry.


3/11/2004 Vdesk 2.60 & BTEWin 2.59 R2

+ Added the 'ButtonMenu' command.
+ All dialogs (except the About box) now appear on the taskbar.
+ Several alternative command names that were already present in previous versions have been added to the documentation. These are : 'Closeall', 'Ren', 'Delete', 'Setenv' and 'Env'.
+ Some features that have already been available didn't get into the changelog; these changes are related to commands launched using @@; 'Waitforprogram@@', 'Wait@@' and 'Closeprochandle' were introduced as a result.
* Now the monitor power down messages are sent at regular intervals under Windows NT based operating systems, so pressing any keys or moving the mouse doesn't turn on the screen again. The default interval has been set to 10000 = 10 seconds, and can be changed by adding a 'PowerDownInterval' entry under the [General] section in the 'Vdesk.ini' file. The minimum value is 100 = 1/10 sec.
* Support for 'Icon Sets' has been added. See the options menu for more information.
* Added an option to remove the 'Exit' menu item in the tray icon's context menu.
* Fixed a minor group problem with 'AutoPlay for Cds and DVDs' in the options dialog.
* Minor cosmetic fixes.


12/10/2004 Vdesk 2.59 & BTEWin 2.58 R3

+ Now it is possible to use hexadecimal (with the '0x' prefix) values at many places where previously it was only possible to use decimal ones. Note that I didn't make further changes to keep backwards compatibility.
* Fixed a problem that might cause garbage text to appear in the options dialog in certain circumstances.
- Now the FileTool shell extension can be iinstalled without the 'atl.dll' file present and without installing any system updates in older windows setups.


28/9/2004 Vdesk 2.59 & BTEWin 2.58

+ Added the following commands: 'IsKeyDown', 'MoveOnReboot', 'FileFilter', 'Seticon', 'BrowseOK', 'SaveOK', 'LockFile' and 'Monitor'.
+ The full version resource can now be edited when building standalone executables.
+ Added some commands and variables (undocumented) for internal use with the 'FileTool' shell extension.
+ Fixed an evaluation problem with the 'While' command.
* Fixed a rare hang problem while switching desktops when certain applications are active.
* Now a refresh rate value of '0' is allowed in the 'Custom Modes' dialog. If the value is '0' the default refresh rate for the video mode will be used.
- The 'FileTool' shell extension has been ggreatly improved; both visually and functionally. Now it is almost fully scriptable and the support for Daemon Tools is now provided through a BTEWin batch file (DTFTMenu.bte).
- Replaced the explanatory comments in the 'FileTool.ini' file with a proper separated documentation.
- The installer now copies the BTEExec.exe file regardless of what components have been chosen, so the interdependent features of other components with BTEWin will work even if it is not fully installed.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


26/8/2004 Vdesk 2.58 & BTEWin 2.57

+ Added the following commands: 'Laststatus' and 'SetPESum'.
+ Added the following variables: '_LASTSTATUS'.
+ Added the following variable functions: '@CRC32[]'.
+ File description can now be edited when building standalone executables.
+ PE checksum is now correctly set for standalone executables.
+ Standalone executables now have only one visible icon.
+ Fixed a problem with the 'for' command that could cause the application to crash or behave abnormally.
+ Added some new examples.
+ Added the necessary code to enable Daemon Tools support for the 'FileTool' shell extension.
* Now all the orphan entries are removed when the 'Remove orphan entries' command from the 'Recent images' submenu is used.
* The last used directory behavior has changed.
- Introduced the 'FileTool' shell extensionn. It is customizable and supports Daemon Tools through BTEWin.
- The different programs that are included in the setup package can now be installed separately, but please note that certain interdependent features will not work unless a full setup is performed.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


10/1/2004 Vdesk 2.56 & BTEWin 2.54 R1

+ _MEMUSEDPERCENT variable added.
+ The _MEMAVAILPERCENT variable reported wrong values in previous versions; it has been fixed.
* The Vdesk menu now uses 256 color XP style icons. Additionally, the icons are now stored externally in the 'menu' directory, so it is possible to change the look of the application by replacing them.
- Minor fixes.


14/12/2003 Vdesk 2.55 & BTEWin 2.54

+ The public edition of BTEWin can now create standalone executables; but with a limitation: the executables will only run on the same computer where they were created. Please note that different Windows installations may be equivalent to different computers in this case.
+ The following commands have been removed from the public edition: Patchfile, Patchmem and Binwrite.
+ Added the following commands: 'Mutex', 'Setinival' and 'Setwavevolume'
+ Added the following variable functions: '@WINDOWPOS[]' and '@GETWAVEVOLUME[]'
* Shortcuts generated by the 'Create shortcut' dialog now use the 'Mutex' command. This means that the generated command lines are not backwards compatible with previous versions of BTEWin. This is because the 'if!(mutex)quit' line will cause the script to exit at that point if the command is not supported.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


5/10/2003 Vdesk 2.54 R1 & BTEWin 2.53

* An incorrection in a part of the Windows API documentation for the SystemParametersInfo function, saying that a variable of type BOOL should be used, when it should say DWORD, caused memory overwriting and a subsequent lockup in the 'BTEWin Wizard' dialog when certain actions were performed. Now it's fixed.


9/9/2003 Vdesk 2.54 & BTEWin 2.53

+ Added the following commands: 'Lockworkstation', 'Autoplay', 'Downloadurl', 'Pushdaemon', 'Popdaemon', 'Blockinput' and 'Screensaver'
+ Added the '_AUTOPLAY' variable.
+ '@GETFILENAME[]' variable function added.
+ Keystack has been greatly improved; new keys have been added, and the problems with non US keyboards should be gone. Holding down certain keys can now be simulated, too.
+ The method used for window activation has been improved and is now more reliable.
+ Implemented a workaround for an Explorer's bug under Win9x that affected the taskbar.
+ More detailed error reports for some commands.
* AutoPlay for Audio CDs can now be enabled/disabled.
* It is now possible to temporarily enable/disable the screensaver with Vdesk.
* Updated the Vdesk's 'Create shortcut' dialog for Daemon Tools to support Pushdaemon/Popdaemon.
- The SpyTool application has been introducced; it will make finding window properties much easier without having to use 3rd. party applications for that purpose.
- Other minor changes.


3/8/2003 Vdesk 2.53 & BTEWin 2.52

+ The context menu for BTEWin has been completely redesigned, now has a different style and supports accelerators among other new features.
+ The 'messages window' performance and looks have been improved, specially under Windows 9x .
+ The commands 'Powersuspend', 'Powerhibernate' and 'Autoscroll' are new for this version.
+ '@DRIVETYPE[]', '@UNIQUEFILE[]', '@SHORTNAME[]' and '@LONGNAME[]' variable functions added.
+ Added an ASCII table to the documentation.
* Vdesk's 'Create shortcut' dialog for Daemon Tools now automatically converts very long paths to its short form. This helps to maintain the total command line length under the limit while leaving some space for manual additions.
- Other cosmetic fixes.


11/7/2003 Vdesk 2.52 & BTEWin 2.51

+ '_ARGC' has been fixed to return useful values. Batch files that use this variable will probably need to be updated. One example for its use has been included.
+ Added '_MOUSEPOS' and '_CURSORPOS' internal variables.
+ Added '%@MOUSEPOS[]' variable function.
- The mousepos utility has been removed froom the package and substituted by a script that has been included in the examples (mousepos.bte).


6/7/2003 Vdesk 2.52 & BTEWin 2.50

+ 'Xcopy', 'Move' and 'Touch' commands added.
+ 'For' command added; it comes with a new set of variables ($w, $f, $n, $x, and $p).
+ '_LASTMESSAGE' variable added.
+ '@FILEATTRIBS[]' variable function added.
+ The 'If' and 'While' commands can now be called recursively without limitations.
+ Gosub calls can now be nested up to 256 levels of depth.
+ 'Deltree' now asks for confirmation unless the '/y' switch is used.
+ All error and warning messages are now shown through the messages window.
+ The tray icon and messages window are now available when using the '--cmd' / '--cmdline' switch.
+ The main executable (or any renamed variant) will no longer search for an homonym .bte file in its own directory. This has been accordingly removed from the manual.
+ 4 new example files have been added to show the use of the latest features.
+ The documentation has been revised.


31/5/2003 Vdesk 2.52 & BTEWin 2.47

+ The 'Textwrite' command has been introduced. It allows the writing of large amounts of text without using 'Writeline' multiple times.
+ The 'Copy' and 'Forcecopy' commands were broken since the last version. Now they are fixed.
+ '@REPLACE[]' could cause the program to enter an endless loop in certain situations. It has been fixed.
* The 'Mount' and 'Add image' dialogs in Vdesk can now be resized.


23/5/2003 Vdesk 2.51 & BTEWin 2.46

+ Several new commands have been added: 'Senddlgitemmessage', 'Setdlgitemtext', 'Keysend', 'Inputboxtitle', 'Selectionboxtitle' and 'Alertboxtitle'.
+ Fixed DDE support.
* In rare situations, moving a window from a non active desktop to the active one could make the window dissapear if the owner application was stuck. Now it's fixed.
* The 'Create shortcut' dialog for Daemon Tools now supports more functions. Anyway, remember that it merely creates a command line for BTEWin, so it can be easily edited manually.
* 'Unmount all drives' will not stop if an error is found. Vdesk now reports errors while unmounting.
- The spanish documentation will not be inccluded from now on.
- Other minor fixes and improvements.


14/3/2003 Vdesk 2.49 & BTEWin 2.41

+ The 'Inputboxok' and 'Selectionboxok' commands have been added.
+ Added the '@FEVAL[]' variable function that won't show an exponent regardless of the result's size.
+ Icons can now be automatically injected at build time; only 32x32, 16 colors icons are supported.
+ When using the '--cmdline' switch, part of the initialization code was skipped; this affected only certain commands that wouldn't always perform as expected. Now it's completely fixed.
+ Several scripts have been updated to exemplify the new commands.
- Support for the latest (upcoming) Daemon Tools versions.