

                  SendToBack - Send windows to the back

                               Version 3.1




Contents

  1. Overview
  2. Installation
   2.1. Installing for the first time
   2.2. Upgrading from former versions
  3. Uninstallation
  4. Basic operation
  5. Options
  6. Compatibility
  7. Operation details
   7.1. Sending windows to the back
    7.1.1. Basic operation
    7.1.2. Right-clicks and system menus
   7.2. Bringing windows to the front
   7.3. Toggling the "always on top" state of windows
   7.4. Windows within windows
  8. Known limitations
  9. Copyright and distribution
 10. Disclaimer
 11. Contacting the author
 12. Homepage and downloading
 13. Version information
 14. Trademarks



1. Overview

Ever had a cluttered display, with some windows totally hidden under 
other ones? SendToBack is a small utility that will enable you to send 
any window to the back (or bottom) of the pile of windows on your 
desktop, allowing you to access windows that were under it. To send a 
window to the back, simply click the right or middle mouse button on its 
title bar, or use a hotkey of your choice. By successively sending 
windows to the back, you will be able to access all the windows on your 
desktop without having to minimize or close any of them.

Since version 3.0, SendToBack includes the possibility of using hotkeys 
to send windows to the back, to bring them to the front and to change 
their "always on top" status. The hotkeys can be any keys that the user 
chooses, possibly combined with the SHIFT, CTRL and/or ALT keys.

Other features:

- Choice of whether to use the middle mouse button or the right-
  hand one to send windows to the back.

- Ability to disable SendToBack's mouse and/or hotkey actions.

- Choice of whether to show an icon in the taskbar.

- Ability to save settings, if desired.

- SendToBack hides itself on startup, but its options window can be
  displayed when desired.

- SendToBack won't interfere with Xmouse, Winshade or other similar 
  utilities. In fact, SendToBack and Xmouse make a nice combination.



2. Installation

  2.1. Installing for the first time

To install, simply unzip the SENDBK31.ZIP file into a directory of your 
choice. This will place three files in that directory:

	SENDBK.EXE  - The executable program
	MOUSEBK.DLL - A dynamic link library needed by the program
	README.TXT  - This file

If you like SendToBack and want to use it permanently, you may want to 
place a shortcut to it in your StartUp directory, so that it starts 
automatically whenever you run Windows.



  2.2. Upgrading from former versions

To upgrade, unzip the SENDBK31.ZIP file into the directory where you had 
installed the previous version. You'll be asked whether to overwrite each 
of the three files mentioned above in Section 2.1. Always answer "y" (or 
the "yes" response of your unzipper). The new files will replace the old 
ones. You don't need to do anything further to use the program, but read 
the next paragraph!

When you upgrade, you may want to delete the SENDBK.INI file from your 
Windows directory, if it exists. This file keeps SendToBack's saved 
settings. The file's entries in versions 3.x are different from those of 
version 2.0. If the SENDBK.INI file from version 2.0 is not deleted, the 
old entries will remain, together with the new ones. This won't cause any 
harm, it will just take a little space. If in doubt whether you have a 
SENDBK.INI file with version 3.x settings only, you can always delete the 
file, and SendToBack will re-create it the next time you save your 
settings.



3. Uninstallation

To uninstall, delete the three files SENDBK.EXE, MOUSEBK.EXE and 
README.TXT. If you created a shortcut in the StartUp directory, delete 
it. Finally, look for a file named SENDBK.INI, in your Windows directory. 
If it exists, delete it too.



4. Basic operation

Start the SENDBK.EXE program. Then try right-clicking on the title bars 
of windows, to uncover the windows that are behind them.

SendToBack will start hidden, so you won't see any new window when you 
start it. In the default configuration, an icon will be displayed in the 
system tray area (near the clock, on the right-hand side of the taskbar).

To change SendToBack's options (e.g. to enable hotkeys), click the icon 
in the system tray area, or start SENDBK.EXE again. See the next section 
for an explanation of the various options available.

To stop the utility, open its options window by clicking on its icon in 
the system tray area or by starting SENDBK.EXE again, and click the 
"Remove" button.



5. Options

To set SendToBack's options, first open its options window, in one of two 
ways: either by left-clicking on its icon in the system tray area, or by 
starting SENDBK.EXE again. In the options window, you have the following 
options:


- Mouse

  - Right button: Right-clicking on a window's title bar will send that
    window to the back.

  - Middle button: Clicking with the middle button on a window's title 
    bar will send that window to the back. This option will only operate 
    if the windows mouse driver that is installed detects middle 
    button clicks. This option has the advantage of not interfering with 
    other actions triggered by right-clicks.

  - Mouse actions disabled: Check this box to disable SendToBack's mouse 
    actions.


- Hotkeys

  There are three rows in this section, one for each of the hotkey
  actions:

  - Send to back: Hotkey to be used to send windows to the back.

  - Bring to front: Hotkey to be used to bring windows to the front.

  - Always on top: Hotkey to be used to toggle a window between "always-
    on-top" and "non-always-on-top" states. 

  In each of the rows there are two controls:

  - White rectangle: This is where you can choose a hotkey to send 
    windows to the back. Left-click on the white rectangle and then press 
    the hotkey that you wish to use. You can choose virtually any key, 
    combined with SHIFT, CTRL and/or ALT as desired. Be careful, however, 
    not to choose any hotkey that already has another action defined in 
    Windows (e.g. ALT+F4). SendToBack doesn't check whether the key you 
    chose already has another action defined.

  - Disabled: Check this box to disable the corresponding hotkey.


- Tray icon: If checked, SendToBack's icon will be shown in the system 
  tray area. If unchecked, no icon will be shown. In the latter case, the 
  way to redisplay SendToBack's options window once it is hidden, is to 
  start SENDBK.EXE again.


There are three buttons in the dialog:

- OK: Sets the options that were selected, and hides the dialog window.

- Save options: The currently selected options are set, and are saved in
  the SENDBK.INI file in the Windows directory. The next time that 
  SendToBack is started these options will be set automatically.

- Remove: Stops SendToBack and removes it from memory.

If you click the close button (the one with an X, on the top-right corner 
of the options window) SendToBack will act as if you had pressed OK.


The default configuration of SendToBack is as follows:

  - Right-hand mouse button selected, with mouse actions enabled.

  - Tray icon displayed.

  - Hotkeys:

    - Send to back:   Ctrl+Alt+B, disabled
    - Bring to front: Ctrl+Alt+F, disabled
    - Always on top:  Ctrl+Alt+T, disabled

These are the options that SendToBack chooses when it is installed for 
the first time, and whenever it doesn't find a SENDBK.INI file with saved 
options in the Windows directory.



6. Compatibility

SendToBack was developed as a 32 bit Windows 95 utility. I have no 
possibility of testing it under Windows NT or Win32s. News from some 
users indicate that versions 1.0 and 2.0 operated under those systems, so 
version 3.1 should operate too.

I also haven't had the possibility of testing SendToBack under Windows 98 
yet, but I see no reason why it shouldn't operate under that system.

An user reported difficulties when using SendToBack together with 
Microsoft's IntelliMouse.

I would appreciate receiving news about the users' experience under these 
circumstances.



7. Operation details

  7.1. Sending windows to the back

    7.1.1. Basic operation

This utility sends a window to the back of the window pile when a right-
click (or middle-click, if that is selected) is made on the window's 
title bar, or when the corresponding hotkey is pressed. If the window 
that is sent to the back is an "always-on-top" one, it will be sent to 
the back of all other always-on-top windows, but will stay in front of 
normal (non-always-on-top) windows.

The operation of SendToBack depends slightly on whether a mouse click or 
a hotkey is used to send a window to the back. With a mouse click, the 
window that is sent to the back is the one whose title bar was clicked. 
With a hotkey, the window that is sent to the back is the so-called 
"foreground window". This is the window whose title bar is highlighted 
with a different color, and to which keyboard input is being directed at 
the moment. It may not be the window that is at the top of the window 
pile.



    7.1.2. Right-clicks and system menus

In Windows 95, the usual action triggered by right-clicking on the title 
bar of a window is to display the system menu. If the right mouse button 
is the option selected in SendToBack, the display of the menu will be 
inhibited, because it would be unpleasant to get the menu when sending a 
window to the back. The system menu will still be available by left-
clicking on the icon on the upper left corner of the window. If the 
middle mouse button option is chosen in SendToBack, the display of the 
menu won't be disturbed.

In some windows, the action triggered by right-clicking on the title bar 
may be different from what was indicated above, and/or there may be no 
icon on the upper left corner. If you can't obtain the desired action 
because SendToBack inhibits it, try right-clicking on the window border 
(where the cursor becomes a double arrow). In some cases, right-clicking 
on some places inside the window may also work (e.g. on buttons in 
toolbars). If necessary, SendToBack's mouse actions can be temporarily 
disabled to restore the normal right-clicking behavior (see the Options 
section above).



    7.1.2 The taskbar

The task bar is a special case. If the middle mouse button is selected in 
SendToBack, middle-clicking on the taskbar will send it to the back. But 
if the right-hand mouse button is selected, right-clicking on the taskbar 
will perform the normal action of displaying the taskbar's menu. This was 
done on purpose, as there seems to be no easy way of displaying that 
menu, other than right-clicking on the taskbar. This means that it won't 
be possible to send the taskbar to the back by means of a right-click. 
However, the "Send to back" hotkey will act on the taskbar as on any 
other window.

The taskbar is often set as "always on top", and if so it will only be 
sent to the back of other always-on-top windows. To send it to the back 
of all windows, one has to disable its always-on-top status, which can 
easily be done with SendToBack's "Always on top" hotkey.



7.2. Bringing windows to the front

The "Bring to front" hotkey will bring the "foreground window" (see 7.1.1 
above) to the front of other windows. If the window being brought to the 
front is not an "always on top" window, it will stay behind all such 
windows.



  7.3. Toggling the "always on top" state of windows

The "Always on top" hotkey will toggle the always-on-top state of the 
"foreground window" (see 7.1.1 above). If the window is being changed to 
always-on-top state, it will also be brought to the front of all other 
windows, as a visual clue of the hotkey's action. If the window is being 
changed to non-always-on-top, it will also be sent to the back of all 
other windows, as a visual clue.

Some applications (e.g. the taskbar) have the capability of being set as 
always-on-top by means of one of their menus or option windows. Usually 
these applications won't notice that SendToBack has changed their always-
on-top status, and thus may indicate that they are always-on-top when 
they are not, and vice-versa. I don't know of any application whose 
operation is impaired by this. 



  7.4. Windows within windows

Some applications (e.g. word processors) can have several document 
windows open at the same time, within the application's main window. In 
these cases, if SendToBack is running, sending a document window to the 
back with the mouse will send that window behind all other document 
windows within that application, but the application's main window won't 
be disturbed. To send the whole application to the back, click on the 
main window's title bar. Hotkeys will act on the application's main 
window. Some applications may behave differently from what is described 
here.



8. Known limitations

There are some known limitations in SendToBack:

In some rare cases, Windows generates a message indicating that a 
window's title bar has been clicked, when it has not. In such cases, the 
corresponding  window may be sent to the back. If that is not desired, 
SendToBack's mouse actions should be temporarily disabled.

Sometimes, when a window has been sent to the back, left-clicking inside 
the window will activate it, but won't bring it to the front. In such 
cases, left-clicking on the window's title bar or on its border will 
normally bring it to the front.



9. Copyright and distribution

This program's copyright belongs to Luis B. Almeida, 1996-1998. The 
program is freeware; it may be freely used, copied and distributed 
(except as noted below in the "Disclaimer" section) if:

- no cost is charged for it, except for the possible cost of the 
  distribution itself, and

- the three files SENDBK.EXE, MOUSEBK.DLL and README.TXT are included, 
  unmodified, in the copy or distribution.

It is therefore permitted to place the program in ftp sites and/or BBSs, 
as long as downloading from them is free of charge.

Copy, sale or distribution under any other conditions requires the 
previous consent of the author.



10. Disclaimer

The author of this program is not, by any means, an expert Windows 
programmer. It is possible that this program will behave differently from 
what is described here, and that it will interfere with the normal 
operation of other programs, although efforts have been made to minimize 
such possibilities.

The program shall be used at the user's own risk. The author of the 
program shall not be liable for any consequences, direct or indirect, of 
its use. If you don't agree with these conditions or if your local law is 
contrary to them, you are not allowed to use the program, and must remove 
it from your computer.



11. Contacting the author

I will be glad to receive comments, and even simple "hello" messages from 
users. Suggested improvements may be incorporated in future versions of 
the program, although I have little time available for working on such 
matters.

To contact me send e-mail to:

luis.almeida@inesc.pt



12. Homepage and downloading

SendToBack's homepage is at

      http://ilusion.inesc.pt/~lba/sendtoback.htm

The most recent version of SendToBack can be downloaded through the 
homepage, or from 

      ftp://aleph.inesc.pt/pub/lba/sendbk/SENDBK.ZIP

If you just want to check which is the most recent version, see the 
homepage or read the file

      ftp://aleph.inesc.pt/pub/lba/sendbk/00INDEX.TXT



13. Version information

Version 1.0:

- First version, relatively crude. Was named "Sendback".


Version 2.0:

- Added facilities for using the middle mouse button, showing an icon in 
  the system tray area, disabling the program and saving the user's 
  settings.

- The utility now hides itself on startup.

- Included instance checking. Starting a second instance of SendToBack 
  will now simply show the first instance's dialog window.

- Eliminated a bug that caused this utility to disable Xmouse, Winshade 
  and other similar utilities.

- Prevented SendToBack from sending the taskbar to the back.

- Changed the name from "Sendback" to "SendToBack".


Version 3.0:

- Added the capability to use hotkeys for sending windows to the back,
  bringing them to the front and toggling their always-on-top status.

- Changed the behavior of the close button (on the top-right corner of 
  the dialog window) from stopping the application to an equivalent of 
  pressing the OK button.

- Allowed the middle mouse button to send the taskbar to the back.

- Changed the behavior when sending always-on-top windows to the back:
  instead of not affecting them, they now are placed behind all
  other always-on-top windows, and in front of non-always-on-top windows.

- The format of some entries in SENDBK.INI has been changed, to account
  for the hotkey options. Old-format entries in SENDBK.INI, if existant,
  are ignored. 

- When the "Save" button is pressed, besides saving the newly selected
  options in SENDBK.INI, all these options are now also set active.

- Corrected bugs that prevented the tray icon from immediately 
  disappearing when the "Tray icon" option was unset or when the 
  application was stopped.


Version 3.1

- Corrected a bug, which appeared on version 3.0, and which made
  SendToBack hang the Windows system when one attempted to display the
  options window by running SENDBK.EXE again.



14. Trademarks

Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, Win32s and IntelliMouse are 
trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
