3. Menus

What follows is the explanation of the single menu entries:

• File
  • Open: A dialog is displayed where you can select the file you want to load. If it is no ChessTask file, nothing will happen. Otherwise, all current tasks are deleted and the file is read.
  • Add: Again, a file dialog is evoked. In contrast to "Open" this entry does not delete the current list of tasks, but "adds" the files data.
  • Save: A file dialog appears and you can select the directory and the filename for your new collection of tasks. As already mentioned in For the impatient you should use the extension `*.tsk' for all of your ChessTask files.
  • Delete all: Deletes all current tasks, so be careful with this one!
  • Quit: Exits the program.
• Edit
  • Set main title: A small window pops up and you can set the "main" title for the whole list of tasks. You do not have to provide a title here, but if you do, please regard the rules in Editing title, task and solution.
  • Restore task: This is sort of an "undo" function. If you "stepped" to a task and start to edit it---i.e. set new pieces onto the board or delete some, clear the board completely or "init" it, change title, task or solution---these changes are not accepted until one of the following tool buttons is selected: Insert Task, Copy Task, First Task, Back, Forward, Last Task. Before, you can select this menu entry and restore the original state of the task.
  • Generate titles: Starting at the current task, ChessTask automatically creates titles of the form "Task 1" for all following entries of the list.
• Import
  • FEN file: A file dialog appears where you can select the directory and filename of an existing FEN file. The stored positions are added to the current list of tasks. For further informations see also Import of FEN/EPD files.
  • EPD file: Again, you get a file dialog on the screen. This time, you can import an EPD file. Not only the contained positions are read, but also some of the EPD "commands" like "bm" (Best move) or "pm" (Predicted move) get interpreted and appear as solution of the task. For further informations see also Import of FEN/EPD files.
• Export
  • LaTeX file: A file dialog appears where you can select the directory and filename for the LaTeX file. Normally, TeX/LaTeX files get the extension `*.tex'. For further informations see also Export to LaTeX.
  • ChessCards file: Exports a special LaTeX input file. The tasks are arranged in a 2x4 grid on each page and after each page with tasks the solutions follow immediately. So if you print them doublesided and cut out the single cards you can train your chess everywhere. For more informations about the fixed format that is used see ChessCards files.
  • HTML files: Again, you get a file dialog on the screen. This time, you can only select the directory all HTML files are written to. Make sure that you have set the option "Levels to graphics directory" to the correct value as described in Export to HTML.
  • LaTeX directory: A file dialog appears and you can select the "source" directory that contains the ChessTask files you want to export. The extension `*.tsk' is mandatory, all other files are neglected! The "source" directory may include subdirectories, these are also scanned for `*.tsk' files. After choosing the "source" directory you get a small info dialog, telling you that you are about to select the "destination" directory now. If you confirm with "OK" another file dialog is shown and you can specify the directory where all the `*.tex' LaTeX files are put during the export. Having done this, a small dialog appears showing the progress of the export operation until it finishes. All LaTeX files are output with the settings from "Export"/"Options". For further informations see Directory tree export to HTML/LaTeX.
  • ChessCards directory: Just the same as for the "LaTeX directory" export, but the ChessCards format is used.
  • HTML directory: The single steps are also the same as for the "LaTeX directory" export, only that this menu entry generates HTML files. The HTML settings in "Export"/"Options" affect the output like they do for the export of a single file. The only exception from this rule is the option "Levels to graphics directory". For further informations see Directory tree export to HTML/LaTeX.
  • Copy LaTeX position: Here, no file is created. Instead, the current position on the board is copied to the application's clipboard, formatted as LaTeX input text. Afterwards you can paste the text into another program, e.g. an editor like ``gvim'' or ``ktexmaker2''. With this feature ChessTask can help you to edit board diagrams for a LaTeX file that deals with chess in general.
  • Copy HTML position: The same as for "Copy LaTeX position" holds, only this time HTML source text is generated. You can paste it directly into a HTML document that you are creating. The HTML code still needs the PNG graphics to work, so make sure that the option "Levels to graphics directory" is set to the correct value as described in Export to HTML and that a proper ``graphics'' directory exists.
  • Options: If not already opened, a window pops up where you can set some options for the LaTeX and HTML export. The LaTeX options (see Export to LaTeX) should be self-explanatory, the meanings of the HTML options are described in Export to HTML and Informator symbols.
• Info
  • About: Displays some general information about ChessTask.