9 Control Panel

This chapter provides an overview of the Control Panel's features and capabilities. For more detailed information on how to use this tool, choose Help: On Control Panel. You can print Help topics using the HyperHelp Viewer.

The Control Panel provides a central point for starting, stopping, and managing FUSE projects and tools. You can also use the Control Panel to tailor the FUSE user interface and operating environment. When you enter the fuse command at the shell prompt to start FUSE, the Control Panel appears first. (See Appendix Appendix D for options you can use with the fuse command.)

Figure Table 9-1 shows the Control Panel main window.

Figure 9-1: Control Panel Main Window

Key elements are the major window panes running from the top to the bottom of the window:

Current project: Displays the current project name.
Open projects list: Lists the open projects, that is, those immediately available for use. When clicked on, an open project becomes the current project.
Tools/project list: Lists the tools in each project, all of which typically share common project settings.
Information area: Displays information messages such as the FUSE version number and Quick Help on menu items when you press and hold MB1 on the item.

9.1 Summary of Features

The Control Panel can do the following:

Set project data that all tools in a project can inherit

Group tools being used together on a task in a project

Open, make current, and close projects

Start and stop tools

Iconify, deiconify, and raise tools or projects

Save and recall as a project a set of tools and their settings

Perform global customizations:
- Fonts, colors, environment variable definition
- Contents of Tools menu

Access online training and the Help library

9.2 Starting and Stopping FUSE Tools

See Section Section 2.3 for instructions on starting FUSE tools and see Section Section 2.5 for instructions on exiting from a FUSE tool.

9.3 Setting Up a Work Context with Projects

As you work on different applications or different aspects of the same application, you are likely to find it useful to create and then save your working context. Saving your working context means the ability to recall during a subsequent session the specific FUSE tools you are working with and their configurations. A consistent work context often implies invoking different tools with the same configuration, that is, with the same working directory and target executable. It is efficient to specify this information once for reuse by newly invoked tools. Defining and saving projects makes all this possible.

You can also work with projects on a temporary basis during the current session. If you do not save the project definition, your project information only exists during the current session. As you start and exit tools, they enter and exit the project.

FUSE tools start and run within the context of a project. Tools in the same project can interoperate with each other or operate independently. Tools in different projects cannot interoperate.

You can create and use as many projects as you need. Use a different project in the following situations:

You are working on different programs so that each program can have its own set of tools.
For example, you might want separate projects if you were working on two applications that communicate with each other and you are verifying that the messaging has been correctly specified. Then, all tools working on each application would be in a separate project.

You are working on different aspects of the same program so that you can focus a set of tools on one area and another set of tools on a different area.
For example, if you are working on communication within an application, it might be useful to create projects for major segments of the application that send or receive messages.

You are working on different versions of the same program so that each version can have its own set of tools.
For example, if you are working on communication within an application, it might be useful to create projects for major segments of the application that send or receive messages.

You are working on different versions of the same program so that each version can have its own set of tools.
For example, if you are improving program performance and you want to compare performance data from one version to another, you might want to have separate projects for the different versions. You can use different projects to develop code and test the results.

9.4 Creating and Maintaining Projects

When you are working with many FUSE tools, use projects to enable intertool communication and to set up a logical organization for working with several tools during one session. When you start FUSE, the Control Panel appears and provides a default project: Unnamed. The default project may be the only project that you need during your FUSE session. Projects delimit the interaction among tools. You can use this feature when you need to isolate one version of a program from another or when you want to work on unrelated programs at the same time.

9.4.1 Creating and Setting Up Projects

To create and set up a project:

Step	Action
1	Choose Projects: New from the Control Panel. The Project Manager dialog box, shown in Figure Figure 9-2, appears.
2	Enter or change settings that will apply to all tools started as part of this project. The following fields are available: Settings Category: The category of project settings you want to enter. Use General (the default). Project Name: A name for the project. Working Directory: An absolute pathname for the directory that FUSE tools use to look for files and to write out data files. Executable Target: A relative or absolute pathname for a target executable used by some tools, for example, the Debugger and the Profiler. If this pathname is relative, it will be resolved with respect to the working directory. Data Directory: In the case of the Profiler and Heap Analyzer, the place where you want these tools to store their output files. In the case of the Browser tools (Call Graph Browser, C++ Class Browser, and Cross-Referencer), the place where FUSE looks for the directory tree that contains the static analysis database and the static analysis data files. For all tools, the working directory is used if you don't enter a data directory. Source Directory List: A list of directories that several tools (Builder, Profiler, Heap Analyzer, Porting Assistant) use to look for source files if they are not found in the working directory first. New Source Directory: A field that lets you add additional source directories to the Source Directory List. (Use the Add button.)

Step

Action

Choose Projects: New from the Control Panel. The Project Manager dialog box, shown in Figure Figure 9-2, appears.

Enter or change settings that will apply to all tools started as part of this project. The following fields are available:

Settings Category: The category of project settings you want to enter. Use General (the default).

Project Name: A name for the project.

Working Directory: An absolute pathname for the directory that FUSE tools use to look for files and to write out data files.

Executable Target: A relative or absolute pathname for a target executable used by some tools, for example, the Debugger and the Profiler. If this pathname is relative, it will be resolved with respect to the working directory.

Data Directory: In the case of the Profiler and Heap Analyzer, the place where you want these tools to store their output files. In the case of the Browser tools (Call Graph Browser, C++ Class Browser, and Cross-Referencer), the place where FUSE looks for the directory tree that contains the static analysis database and the static analysis data files. For all tools, the working directory is used if you don't enter a data directory.

Source Directory List: A list of directories that several tools (Builder, Profiler, Heap Analyzer, Porting Assistant) use to look for source files if they are not found in the working directory first.

New Source Directory: A field that lets you add additional source directories to the Source Directory List. (Use the Add button.)

Figure 9-2: Project Manager Dialog Box

The project you create is automatically selected as the current project.

9.4.2 Opening and Selecting the Current Project

The names of projects you created during the current FUSE session are listed in the Control Panel. If you saved projects during another session, you can open the projects and then select an individual project to make it current. To open an existing project, choose Projects: Open... . To run a tool in a particular project, you must first select the project from the Control Panel display and then start the tool.

9.4.3 Deleting a Project

To delete a project:

Step	Action
1	Select the project you want to delete from the Control Panel display.
2	Choose Projects: Delete. FUSE asks you to confirm that you want to delete the project.
3	Click on OK in the message box to delete the project.

9.5 Saving and Recalling Projects

You can save project data from session to session and, by recalling saved projects, significantly reduce the time required to reestablish your work context. When you save a project, FUSE creates a project file (project_name.proj) for the session and stores the following information:

All entries made during the session in the Project Manager dialog box

Any tool-specific settings, for example, library names for the Code Manager

When you recall the project, the tools listed in the project file are automatically started and configured. You can begin working where you left off from your last session.

9.5.1 Saving a Project

To save a project configuration, choose Projects: Save As... in the Control Panel. FUSE displays the Save Project dialog box, shown in Figure Figure 9-3.

Figure 9-3: Save Project Dialog Box

By default, the configuration data is stored in a file named filename.proj in your working directory.

9.5.2 Recalling a Project

There are several ways you can recall project data:

When you start FUSE from any directory and you have saved a single project file in the directory, the project file is automatically loaded.

When you start FUSE, you can use the-proj option with thefuse command (see Section Section 2.1.1) to specify a particular project file.

After FUSE is running, choose Projects: Open from the Control Panel to invoke the Open Project dialog box if the project is not currently open.

You can browse directories by clicking on the Pick... button in the Open Project dialog box. A directory browser appears.

Use the Filter field, if needed, to list the directory or file you want. When the directory or file you want is listed in the dialog box, select it and click on OK.

9.6 Managing Projects and Tools

After you start a FUSE project, the Control Panel display area provides the current project name.

If you associate one or more tools with the project, the names of those tools are also displayed.

When you bring up a particular tool in a project more than once, the tool is given a number (unless it is a server tool, which is not numbered). For example, the first time you bring up the Builder in a project, the tool is called Builder. The second time you bring it up in the same project, it is called Builder-2. The numbers continue the same numbering scheme even if you delete the same tool. For example, even if you delete Builder-2 in the project, the next time you bring up the Builder in the same project, it is called Builder-3.

You can review the status of all active FUSE projects and associated tools and select projects and tools for a subsequent Control Panel action from the Actions menu.

9.6.1 Iconifying and Deiconifying Projects and Tools

You can iconify a project or individual tools to free up space on your display.

To iconify a project, first select the project in the display area and then choose Actions: Iconify. (The project must have at least one tool running in it to be iconified.) To deiconify it, select the project and then choose Actions: Deiconify.

When a project is iconified, all the tools in the project also become part of the icon, unless they are server tools. Server tools are iconified only as individual tool icons.

To iconify one or more tools that belong to the same project, first select the tools and then choose Actions: Iconify. This action iconifies every selected tool.

To select one or more tools that belong to the same project, use one of the following techniques:

To select one tool, click on it.

To select more than one tool, click Shift+MB1 on each one.

To select a group of tools that are listed together, move the pointer to the first tool, press and hold MB1, drag the pointer to the last tool you want to select, and release MB1.

To select all the tools in a project, select the project and then choose Select Members from the Actions menu.

Selecting a tool causes that tool's project to become the currently selected project.

To deselect one or more tools in the listing, press Shift+MB1 on each tool.

Double click on any tool to deiconify it.

9.6.2 Using the Pop-Up Menu

You can use a pop-up menu in the Control Panel display area to execute an action on selected tools. The pop-up menu contains a subset of items from the Control Panel Actions menu. To access the pop-up menu, press MB3 in the display area.

9.7 Modifying the Tools Menu

FUSE tools have a Tools menu from which you can invoke other FUSE tools. You can specify which tools you want to appear on these Tools menus by using the Control Panel. Choose Modify Tools Menu... from the Control Panel's Tools menu to display the Modify Tools Menu dialog box (shown in Figure Figure 9-4). The Modify Tools Menu dialog box lists the tools that currently appear on the Tools menus (Active Tools) and alternative tools that are also available but are currently inaccessible from the Tools menus (Inactive Tools).

Figure 9-4: Modify Tools Menu Dialog Box

To add a tool to the Tools menu:

Step	Action
1	Select the desired tool from the Inactive Tools list.
2	Click on the Add>> button. Your selection is added to the list of Active Tools and will now appear on the Tools menu.

Step

Action

Select the desired tool from the Inactive Tools list.

Click on the Add>> button.

Your selection is added to the list of Active Tools and will now appear on the Tools menu.

To remove a tool from the Tools menu:

Step	Action
1	Select the desired tool from the Active Tools list.
2	Click on the <<Remove button. Your selection is removed from the list of Active Tools and will not appear on the Tools menu.

Step

Action

Select the desired tool from the Active Tools list.

Click on the <<Remove button.

Your selection is removed from the list of Active Tools and will not appear on the Tools menu.

By default, the FUSE Editor is listed within the Active Tools. To switch to another editor, choose the one you want to use from the Inactive Tools list and click on the Add>> button. Note that to make a particular editor the default, you must remove all other editors from the Active Tools list.

9.8 Customizing the FUSE Environment

There are a number of options that you can change to customize your FUSE environment. Customizations can be specific to a tool or they can be global changes that affect all your FUSE tools.

9.8.1 Customizations That Affect Individual Tools

Each FUSE tool (including the Control Panel) has an Options menu that allows you to customize that tool. The customizations you perform affect future instances of only that tool; other FUSE tools are not affected.

Table Table 9-1 lists the customization options that are available from the Options menu on any FUSE tool.

Note

If you have the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) installed, the color and font customization options override your CDE default colors and fonts. For more information about customizing colors and fonts in a CDE environment, refer to the online Help.

Table 9-1: FUSE Tools Customization Options

Option Description

Colors

The colors for the tool's window foreground and background.

Fonts

The fonts used for text in the tool's display area.

Size and Position

The values used for the tool window's height, width, and position.

Application

The application options that you can customize are different for each tool, and some tools do not have any application resources that can be customized. See the online Help for information about the tool's Options menu.
The Control Panel has no customizable application resources.

Environment

The environment variables used by the tool for the current FUSE session. This information is not saved, nor can it be restored after you exit the FUSE session in which you set the environment variable.

Option	Description
Colors	The colors for the tool's window foreground and background.
Fonts	The fonts used for text in the tool's display area.
Size and Position	The values used for the tool window's height, width, and position.
Application	The application options that you can customize are different for each tool, and some tools do not have any application resources that can be customized. See the online Help for information about the tool's Options menu. The Control Panel has no customizable application resources.
Environment	The environment variables used by the tool for the current FUSE session. This information is not saved, nor can it be restored after you exit the FUSE session in which you set the environment variable.

For more information on customizing your environment using the Options menu, see the online Help.

After you customize a tool, choose Save Options from the tool's Options menu to save the changed options. The next time you start an instance of the tool, the new options are used.

Choose Restore Options from the tool's Options menu to use a set of options you previously saved.

9.8.2 Customizations That Affect All Tools

In addition to customizing individual tools, you can also perform customizations that apply to all FUSE tools. Global changes must be made from the Control Panel's Options menu.

Table Table 9-2 lists the global customization options that are available from the Control Panel's Options menu.

If you have the CDE installed, the color and font customization options override your CDE default colors and fonts. For more information about customizing colors and fonts in a CDE environment, refer to the online Help.

Table 9-2: Global Customization Options

Option Description

Global Colors

The colors for all tools' window foregrounds and backgrounds.

Global Fonts

The fonts used for text in all FUSE tools' display areas.

Global Environment

The environment variables for all FUSE tools for the duration of the FUSE session. (Environment variable definitions cannot be saved or restored after you end the FUSE session.)

Option	Description
Global Colors	The colors for all tools' window foregrounds and backgrounds.
Global Fonts	The fonts used for text in all FUSE tools' display areas.
Global Environment	The environment variables for all FUSE tools for the duration of the FUSE session. (Environment variable definitions cannot be saved or restored after you end the FUSE session.)

For more information on customizing your environment using the Control Panel's Options menu, see the online Help.

To save customized global options, choose Save Global Options from the Control Panel's Options menu. The saved global options take effect the next time you start a tool.

To use a set of global options you previously saved, choose Options menu: Restore Global Options from the Control Panel's Options menu.

Choose Restore System Options from the Control Panel's Options menu when you want to use the default options.

The user-customized options are saved in resource files stored in the $HOME/.fuse-defaults/locale directory. There is one resource file for each FUSE tool. The resources specific to Motif defined in your .Xdefaults file take precedence over the tool resource files; you cannot edit these files.

9.9 Training and Help Menus

Use the Training and Help menus in the Control Panel to learn how to use FUSE and get access to the online Help library. Section Section 2.6 provides more information on using the Training and Help menus.

The Training menu gives access to the following online information supplied with the DEC FUSE kit:

A table of contents of FUSE training modules (FUSE Tutorials)

An interactive overview of fundamental FUSE features (Getting Started With FUSE)

The Help menu gives access to the following online information:

License and ordering information for FUSE and supported compilers (Product Information)

A table of contents of programming tasks (On FUSE)

A list of topics on how to use the Control Panel (On Control Panel)

Detailed help about the Control Panel main window (On Context)

Detailed help about the Control Panel menus (On Menus)

Instructions on how to use the online help library (On Help)

Software version information (On Version)