Mouse Cursor Changer for Windows (TM) 3.0 --------------------------- (c) 1991, Farpoint Software "Permanently" changes the shape of the system default mouse cursor. This program may be run once, then erased from your hard disk to conserve space. The original cursor setup is preserved and may be restored later by running a batch file. Individual applications may change the shape of mouse cursor under Windows 3.0; however, the system default cursor is always the traditional right-handed arrow. It is possible for an application to use the debugging "hook" functions in Windows to effectively alter the system default cursor, but the disadvantages of this method are: (1) The "cursor changer" program must always be running, and (2) Microsoft doesn't recommend it. Farpoint Software's cursor changer works by creating a duplicate display driver file with the internally-coded cursor bitmap overwritten by the new user-selected bitmap (the hotspot is adjusted also). The SYSTEM.INI file is altered to use the new display driver. The original display driver is not touched, and the original SYSTEM.INI is renamed to SYSTEM.BAK. A batch file called RESETCSR.BAT will be created by the program. Running this batch file will restore the original SYSTEM.INI and delete the duplicate display driver. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Steps to set your cursor shape: (1) Create a directory on the hard disk. In this example, let's call the directory C:\MCURSOR. (2) Copy all the files in this archive into C:\MCURSOR. (3) From the Program Manager menu in Windows, select "File : Run". Enter C:\MCURSOR\CHOOSCUR as the command line. (4) A dialog box ("Directory Selection") will appear. Enter C:\MCURSOR and press the "Ok" button. (5) The main program window will appear, with a list box containing the names of all the cursor (*.CUR) files in the directory. As each selection is single-clicked, the mouse cursor will change to the shape contained in that file. At this point, the cursor has the currently selected shape only while it is within the CHOOSCUR main window. (6) Pick your preferred cursor. With this shape selected in the list box, select "File : Prepare batch file" from the menu. Two batch files will be created in the C:\MCURSOR directory. These files are named SETCSR.BAT and RESETCSR.BAT. (7) EXIT FROM WINDOWS. This is important. The next step will alter the Windows initialization file SYSTEM.INI. (8) Switch to default directory C:\MCURSOR. (9) Run SETCSR.BAT. This will create two new files. In the Windows system directory, NDISPLAY.DRV will be the new display driver. In the Windows directory, SYSTEM.BAK will be kept as a copy of the original SYSTEM.INI. Note that SETCSR.BAT makes use of the (included) programs NEWCSR.EXE and CHANGINI.EXE. (10) Start Windows. Your selected cursor should now be the default cursor. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ If you want to restore the original cursor shape: (1) EXIT FROM WINDOWS. Important. (2) Switch to default directory C:\MCURSOR. (3) Run RESETCSR.BAT. The original SYSTEM.INI will be restored from SYSTEM.BAK and NDISPLAY.DRV will be deleted. (4) Start Windows. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Note that you can erase everything in C:\MCURSOR once the change has been made. The only file needed to restore the original cursor is RESETCSR.BAT. However, this batch file is only a convenience; it only copies SYSTEM.BAK to SYSTEM.INI, then deletes SYSTEM.BAK and NDISPLAY.DRV. You can create your own cursor if you have "SDK Paint" from the Windows SDK or a similar cursor file generator. Cursor files must be 32 by 32 monochrome. CHOOSCUR will find and display all files in the specified directory that (a) have an extension of .CUR, and (b) contain one 32 by 32 monochrome bitmap. Don't forget to set the hotspot when making the cursor file. Note: SDK Paint seems to have the following bug: Occasionally, the cursor file will be saved with the size parameters set to 0,0 rather than 32,32. This will cause CHOOSCUR and NEWCSR to fail to recognize the cursor. The file can be fixed by simply loading it into SDK Paint and saving it again. This program has been found to work with all the display drivers normally supplied with Windows 3.0, and has also been tested with a few vendor-supplied display drivers. It performs its job by searching the display driver file for the bitmap pattern of the traditional arrow cursor. It is possible that there may be some vendor-supplied display drivers that do not use the exact bitmap that is normally found. In this case, NEWCSR will fail and an error message will be displayed during execution of the batch file. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Notes on a few of the cursor files: LEFTY: Same as the default cursor, only mirror-imaged. For left-handed people. INVERTER: A full-size block of reverse-screen-color with a small cross in the middle. JOKE: Looks the same as the default, but the hotspot is 32 pixels to the upper right of the point of the arrow. Very confusing. FINGER: A complete hand, actually. The most artistic of the lot. Even has a wristwatch. FINGER_L: The other hand. SKINNY: The one I personally use. There are a total of 25 cursors currently supplied with this package. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Mouse Cursor Changer is released as free software. It is, however, still copyrighted material. It may be freely copied and distributed, provided that ALL the files in the original archive are distributed together and that no fee is charged except for a disk duplication fee not to exceed $5. It may NOT be included as an item bundled with other software and/or hardware and sold for profit. The user of the Mouse Cursor Changer assumes all risk. The programs in this package are provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Although care has been taken to assure proper operation of these programs, it is always possible that bugs may exist. If you like (or dislike) this program, I would appreciate a note (or message on Compuserve) with your comments, and also suggestions and proposals for other freeware or shareware programs. If you would like the full source code for this package, it is available for $20. The mailing address is: Farpoint Software 2501 Afton Court League City, Texas 77573 Send Compuserve messages (e-mail) to Alan Jones [74030,554]. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Windows" is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.