Before submitting something, be sure to consider how useful
this will be for KEDIT users in general. If the macro is very
specialized for your own particular environment then it is
unlikely to appeal to a broad range of users. A complex
series of macros that redefine a large number of keys is
probably not going to appeal to many other users. We find
that the most useful macros are those that are very specific
in function and the user can quickly decide whether the
macro will be helpful or not.
A single submission should consist of a single file.
Combine any files having to do with a particular
submission into a single zip file. So you might have a
.TXT file that is the documentation, a .KML file and/or a
series of .KEX files, perhaps some toolbar bitmaps, a .KLD
file, etc. and these would all be in a single zip file.
If the macro consists of a single .KEX or .KML file then
zipping the file is optional. In this case you'll want to
have your documentation in the form of a comment block at
the top of the file. If the documentation is extensive
then it would probably be best to break it out into a
separate .TXT file and zip it with the macro file.
Try to avoid using names for your files that may conflict
with what a user already has in his/her macro directory.
There's no way to be sure what files are there but this is
a list of what may very well be there: PROFILE.KEX,
PROFILE.KML, WINPROF.KEX, WINPROF.KML, MACROS.KML. Avoid
using names that duplicate files that come on the KEDIT
distribution disks like the sample macros and KLD files and
,of course, anything already posted in the "User-Supplied"
page.
Avoid using any hardcoded paths in your macros. If you need
to use a specific path then we would suggest you have the
user add EDITV commands to their profile to set these. This allows
a user to download an updated version of a macro and not have
these paths wiped out.
If your macros need to access specific files then suggest to the user
that these files be placed in the \USER directory off of the main KEDIT
directory.
Be sure to include complete documentation on what the
macro(s) are intended to do and how to use them. We
really don't want to post macros, no matter how useful,
that have little or no documentation or comments and it's
left to the person downloading it to "figure it out".
Identify yourself as the author and include
your email address somewhere in the documentation.
When you have something ready that you'd like to post then
attach the file to an email addressed to
support@kedit.com.
Include a
short description (say 25 words or less) to use as the
descriptive title for it on the Web page. Please indicate
which versions of KEDIT that your macros will run under.
That is, "requires KEDIT for Windows 1.5" or "works with
KEDIT 5.0 or KEDIT for Windows 1.0 and higher". You don't
need to be more specific than this and you certainly don't
have to dig up old versions of KEDIT to see how far back
you can go before the macro won't work. You may have
noticed that all of the Mansfield Software Group macros on
the Web site require the latest versions of KEDIT though
they may work with earlier releases. We feel that it's
reasonable to assume that the user has the latest KEDIT.
As one final suggestion we would like to say that we'd
appreciate it if you didn't send a continual stream of
updates. We want to maintain the "User-Supplied"
section of the Web site with a modest amount of effort on
our part so we reserve the right to post contributions
according to our schedule. If you do have an update then
send the complete contribution as opposed to a single,
changed file from within a zip file.
Having said all of this we hope we haven't totally
discouraged you from submitting anything! We really do
appreciate our users wanting to share their macros.
Be organized
Avoid conflicts
Be portable
Complete, clear documentation is important
Give yourself credit!
Where do I direct my submission?
You're busy, we're busy