
 = Alexis Stuff


INTRODUCTION

  
  This file contains some notes about the first testing and usage of Alexis
  which is an XML editor.


NOTES

  These notes were begun on the 3 june 2003, when Alexis went roughly into
  Alpha phase of developement.

  Alexis will should run on any 'Java capable' operating system, such as
  Microsoft Windows, Unix, Linux, and Apple Macintosh. However the notes
  which follow are extremely Microsoft centric, since this is the only
  system, so far, which I have used Alexis on. 

  Alexis is more of a 'software bundle' rather than a single program.
  It uses the Apache 'slide' webdav server, the Apache 'cocoon' document
  management system (for rendering into various formats), a java client
  based on the Sun Microsystems 'Netbeans' open source developement platform
  and a MySql database to store the Slide data.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR INSTALLING ALEXIS

  To install Alexis,
    Download the installer file from the Internet (I am not sure where yet)
    
    There is currently one at 
    -->>
    \\Lap\e\ouiji\Desktop\alexis_0_2.exe
    --<<
    But this wont be much good to anybody who doesn't have access to
    the Ametlla Laptops, which is everybody

  
  Often when you download a file from the Internet using a Web Browser 
  such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, when the 
  download is complete the Browser will give you a chance to execute the 
  file using a button labelled 'launch file' or something similar.

  Open a program like 'Windows Explorer' (if your operating system is a 
  version of Microsoft Windows) and double click on the file which you just downloaded,
  in whatever location which you saved it to on your hard disk. 

  When you first click on the file which you just downloaded, there will
  be a short delay of a few seconds while the Installer program gets going.

  The 'Setup' or 'Installer' program will begin and will ask you a 
  series of questions about the installation of the Alexis program. However
  you should not worry about the questions too much since most of the 
  'default setting' will be adequate to make the program work.

  The first screen of the Set-up program will advise you to close all currently
  open programs before proceeding. If you are feeling pedantic you can 
  follow this advice by clicking cancel in the Set-up program, then closing
  all currently open programs, and then double clicking on the down-loaded 
  file again.

  However if you are feeling lazy, you dont really have to close all currently
  open programs.

USING ALEXIS
  
  To edit a file using Alexis:

    Start Alexis by clicking on start --> Program --> Alexis XML Editor
    or by clicking on the Alexis icon which is on the Microsoft Windows Desktop

    Click on File --> Login on the Alexis menus.
    A box will appear which allows you to enter your username, password, and the 
    Server to connect to. These details are necessary because Alexis (almost always)
    is designed to be used as a 'distributed xml editor'. This means that the files
    which you are editing are not located on your computer, but on some remote 
    computer which is somewhere on the Internet.
    
    At the moment, in order to connect to a testing Server which contains files to
    edit, you can use the details
    -->>
      username = root
      password = root
      Server   = http://ella-associates.org:8080/slide/
    --<<
      
    If all goes well the Login Box, which you have just filled in, will disappear
    and on the left-hand side of the screen an icon and URL will appear which 
    should look approximately like this

    -->>
      WebDAV: http://ella-associates.org:8080/slide/ 
    --<<

    At the very left-hand-most side of this line is a small circle with a dot
    in it and a short line pointing to the right-hand-side. Click on this
    small circle and the short line will point downward. 

    There may now be a short delay, but a line containing the text 'files'
    or something similar will appear. 

    Each time that you click on the circle icon described above there may
    be a short delay before anything happens. This is because the program
    has to load the files from a Server on the Internet.

    To be brief: at the moment (3 june 2003) to edit some test documents,
    click on the circle icons for (in this order), 'files', 
    'documents', 'alexis-docs' and then choose which ever file you would
    like to edit. 

    Click on the name of the file, then right click and choose 'open' 
    from the menu which appears.
    
    In the right hand side of the window the tagged text should appear.
    
SOME PERFORMANCE OBSERVATIONS

  Start up time 18 seconds on 'my' computer. This is roughly 2000 vintage
  Toshiba laptop.

  If the Alexis program is currently installed, the installer does not
  work (3 june 2003)


QUESTIONS

  How do I insert tags into existing text?

  Do the 'source view' and the 'tag view' coincide? What I mean is, do
  they synchronize when a change in made to one?


  
  

