User Interface
The workplace shell or 'WPS' is what makes OS/2 unique. This GUI is the reason why I still use eComStation. And now with WPS Wizard and Innotek font engine, the WPS allows the use of PNG image files for icons. The unique features of this icon engine are True alpha blending and transparency. And the Innotek font engine adds anti-aliasing. No more being the ugly duck, the outdated appearance of the WPS was always the first thing mentioned about OS/2. Here is a new look for eComStation.
Have you ever downloaded some MP3s that you are not sure about? Just double on the the icon and eCS will play your MP3, OGG, Flac, or WAV file, no need to open a specific player the WPS does it for you.! In the screen shot above it shows U2 playing with a status read out under the title. Need to convert a WAV file to OGG, just right click on the file and select convert to OGG. There are plenty of options under the 'start as' menu. An object can be assoicated with any number of different kind of programs.
The system menu concept is applied to zip/unzip files by Desktop Wizard a WPS enhancement that I have used over ten years now. Right click on a zip file and select the unzip option, Desktop wizard will then unpack the file, created a directory (name of zip file), and open the folder for you. I am a download junkie and a one click process for zip files saves me a huge amount of time.
Working with zip files is just easy in eCS......................
Working with CDs in eComStation is a 123 click process too. Audio/Data-CD-Creator helps you creating CDs with CDRecord/2 and cdrdao/2. It works also as a frontend for any grabber program. As a folder subclass it uses features of the WPS like Drag and Drop and context menus. Here is a list of some features.
- Full integration into the WPS
- Image creation
- On the fly writing
- Decoding of MP3 files
- Direct creation of audio CDs using MP3 files
- On the fly encoding of CD tracks to MP3 files
- Encoding of wave files to MP3 files
- On the fly encoding of CD tracks to MP3 files
- Tracktitle querying from FreeDB servers
Creating CDs from MP3 files
Open the CD-Writing Utilities folder and create a folder for your new CD by dragging a Create Audio-CD folder from the template to the desktop.
Open up the new folder and drag the MP3 songs that you want on your new CD. All new object are shadows, so you can delete the folder after the CD is burned. At the bottom of the folder it shows how much space is left on the CD, now just hit 'write' to burn your new music CD.
Creating CDs from ISO images
It is so easy to create a CD from an ISO image with ADC. Drag a folder to the desktop from the Create Data-CD template. Open the folder up and make sure write image option is checked, then browse to your ISO file location. Select, "Write CD" to burned your new CD.
Keep this folder around, then you have the perfect way to burn your ISO images. I see on the newsgroups all the time about how to burn ISO images, with ADC there should not be anymore command line questions about what switches do I use, with xyz program.
Ripping a CD with 123 clicks
Drag a new folder to the desktop from the Create Audio-CD template. Open up the Audio-CD folder and select grab button at the top of the folder. Make sure you select the songs that you want converted to MP3s. Then select "Grab to MP3" and then press "Encode" to grab your songs.
All these tasks are done through the WPS, no need for the 16
different programs that would be needed if these tasks were tried on a
different operating system. This should be included with eComStation,
it is the very reason why I love the WPS.
