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General Questions | Top Q) What is iControl? A) iControl is a simple application that allows you to set virtually every icon in your System Folder with the single click of the mouse. In addition, its the easiest way to customize your trash can and default folder icons on the desktop. Q) Does it change the trash can? A) Yes! In fact, that was the main reason we created it. So many people wrote to us and asked us for a way to customize the trash can that we realized users were dying for great little application like iControl. Of course, iControl does a whole lot more than just this, but changing the trash is probably the feature it will be most recognized for. Q) How much does iControl cost? A) iControl is available for the Macintosh for $19.00. When you register you'll eliminate the startup delay function as well as be signed up to receive copies of the Iconfactory newsletter to keep up on the latest developments. Q) What are the system requirements to run iControl? A) iControl requires a Power PC Macintosh computer running Mac OS 8.5 or greater. Q) Is iControl fully compatible with Mac OS 9 ? A) Yes ! In fact iControl is Mac OS 9 "savvy" and has been designed to work with the multi-user aspect of OS 9, allowing every user of 9 to have their own set of icons. Q) Will iControl work with Mac OS X? A) Not currently. The current version does not support usage in Mac OS X. Because the use of icon services in Mac OS X is still in flux, its inclear yet if iControl will have the ability to function. In addition, the structure of the System Folder under X is very different from the current set-up. There is no Control Panels folder for example, so at least part of what the program does will have to change. Stay tuned folks. Q) Hey, iControl has an extension. Why would I use it over K2 ? A) The iControl Engine is actually a background only application and doesn't patch any traps or introduce any instability into your system folder. The reason it lives in the Extension folder is so that we can provide full compatibility with Mac OS 9 and because that is where background applications reside. In addition, iControl only changes icons, not entire appearances. Q) What icons will iControl *not* change? A) Currently, iControl will not change system-wide badges like the "alias" or "contextual" menu badges. Future revisions will allow you to change these badges as well as application specific icons like the docs, apps and prefs that are associated with a specific piece of software like Photoshop. Also, if you are running Kaleidoscope 2.2.3 or later, iControl will not change the Apple Menu icon. Q) What is an iPack? A) An iPack is the file that iControl outputs when you save your custom icon settings. It is similar to IconDropper packs and contains all of the icons that are currently set in the program when the save option is selected. iPacks can be uploaded to the internet or sent to friends that use iControl. Q) How do iPacks differ from IconDropper packs? A) They actually vary only slightly. They can even be put in your IconDropper packs folder and be read by IconDropper! This is a handy way to keep all your packs together in the same location. Q) Where do iPacks go on my Mac's hard drive? A) They can go anywhere you would like to put them, but if you are an IconDropper user, we recommend putting them in with the other packs you currently use. This consolidates them into a single, easy to remember directory. Using iControl | Top Q) How do I set a single icon? A) This is very easy to do. Simply double click the iControl application icon to launch the program. Next, scroll to the icon you wish to change in the running list (the trash can, default folder or whatever). In the desktop, find the icon you want to set the selected icon to and physically drag it into iControl's interface in the appropriate spot. The icon should change immediately to the new, custom setting. If you use IconDropper, you can also click on the "Packs" button at the bottom of the interface. This will bring up a list of your icon packs and using IconDragger 3.2.2, you can physically drag icons from your pack window right into iControl. Q) Customizing the entire System Folder A) You can customize every icon in the System Folder using one of two methods. The first is to manually drag in every icon you want to set one at a time until they are all set to your liking. The other, and quicker way is to simply double click on a preexisting iPack that contains the settings you would like to use. The program will ask you if you are sure you want to replace your icons and after you confirm the choice the entire System Folder will change all at once. Q) Resetting icons to their original appearance A) You can reset icons to their original appearance either individually or across the entire system. To clear a single, custom setting, launch iControl. Next, select the icon you want to revert to its original appearance and click on the "Restore Icon" button at the bottom of the interface. If you hold down the Option key, this button will change to "Restore All" and will revert all the icons to their original appearance. You can also select the same option from the file menu. Q) Saving iPacks A) Once you have all the icons customized to your liking, simply select "Save" from the file menu. Specify the directory and name for the iPack and click "okay". The iPack will be saved and is ready to e-mail, upload or tuck away for a rainy day. Tips & Tricks | Top Q) Creating the ultimate system replacement set A) One of the best parts of iControl is that you can assemble your favorite system replacement icons into a single, very cool iPack. Take the trash can from one set, the default folder icon from another and so on for every icon in the System Folder. Once these settings are saved as an iPack, you'll always have this "Master Replacement Pack" to refer back to and have fun with! Q) Handy command-key shortcuts A) Here are some handy command-key shortcuts to remember when using iControl: Command-O / Open an iPack Command-I / Visit the Iconfactory Option-Reset / Restore all original icons Command-Delete / Clear the current custom icon Common / Known Problems | Top Q) iControl won't launch A) iControl requires you to be using a PowerPC Macintosh computer running Mac OS 8.5 or later. If the program won't launch, check to make sure you are running one of the proper versions of the OS first. Q) I have the 1.0 release of iControl and am having problems using it with Mac OS 8.5/8.5.1. A) There was a bug in the original 1.0 release. This has been fixed now. If you're running 8.5 or 8.5.1 and experiencing problems, please download version 1.1.1 from the iControl homepage and see if this corrects the problems. If not, write to us and let us know. Thanks! Q) I have to wait every time I use it. A) iControl is shareware and has a delay function built into it as a way to remind you to register. Many hours of development and programming go into a product like iControl. By paying the registration fee, you're supporting our efforts to bring you cool icons and software in the future. Registering eliminates the delay function and qualifies you for a bunch of other cool stuff like the Iconfactory newsletter and special icon releases available only for registered users. Q) The choice to customize the trash can has dissapeared. A) This happens because you've used iControl for an extended amount of time without registering the software. Paying the shareware fee re-enables this feature and eliminates the start-up delay process. Support our efforts to bring you quality software and register your copy of iControl. Q) I'm getting memory errors. What's up? A) Some beta testers reported memory errors when loading in substantial numbers of modern icons. We've been unable to reproduce the problem consistently however. If the problem persists, write to us and let us know. Q) There is a delay when saving iPacks. What's up? A) There is an entire process of saving that is going on behind the scenes when you select "Save". This is normal and does take some time. This can be especially true if the iPack you are saving contains all modern or 32-bit icon resources. We will continue to optimize the code to make this process shorter in future versions. Q) My custom settings are not being applied. Why? A) The first thing to determine is if you are running another application (like Kaleidoscope) that can set icons in the finder. If you are running Kaleidoscope, then make sure the "Finder icons" check box is turned off in the KAL control panel. Both iControl and KAL cannot set icons at the same time... its one or the other. Q) I click on the packs button, but I can't drag in icons from my exsisting IconDropper packs. What gives? A) You could be using an older version of IconDragger. Make sure you are running version 3.2.2. Q) After changing a lot of icons with iControl, the icons on my desktop get corrupted. What's up? A) This bug occurs on some machines and indicates a problem with Icon Services. This problem is not serious, so you can restart your Mac and the icons will be restored. If all else fails, try rebuilding your desktop. Q) Possible Kaleidoscope conflicts? A) Improvements have been made regarding how Kaleidoscope 2.2.3 and iControl 1.1.1 interact with each other. Few problems should still exsist, but to be sure KAL and iControl don't conflict with each other, you need to make sure you have the "Finder Icons" option checked OFF in Kaleidoscope. If this option is on, both KAL and iControl will attempt to set system-wide icons and conflicts might emerge. Q) Why when I change schemes using Kaleidoscope do all my icons return to the original ones ? A) This problem as been fixed with the release of Kaleidoscope 2.2.3. If you are not running this version of KAL, we suggest you download the update. Q) Why after I run an installer do my icons slowly disappear ? A) Some installers quit all applications (including the background only iControl Engine). To solve this problem simply re-launch iControl. Q) How do I report a bug or submit a suggestion? A) Please send bug reports to us at webmaster@iconfactory.com or xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx as well as any suggestions for features you'd like to see in future versions of iControl. copyright©1999 The Iconfactory, all rights reserved |