JNC-Tools-Manager-Free
JNC Tools Free Manager
Menu Command
Version
1.0.7 - 12/25/2024
This plug-in is written in Vectorscript (Pascal) and can be used in any version of Vectorworks 2019 or newer on PC and 2021 on Mac.
Description
Used to manage the free JNC Tools plug-ins for Vectorworks. Allows for installation and updating of plug-ins, opening up Readme documents, and reading of Release Notes, Known Bugs, and active Feature Requests.
Instructions
- Run menu command.
- Select a plug-in from the List Browser window.
- Use the buttons at the bottom of the List Browser to Update / Install selected plug-in, View Readme of selected plug-in, and view the selected plug-in’s Release Notes, Known Bugs, or active Feature Requests.
- Press the Select Next Out of Date to cycle to the next plug-in with a new version available.
- Press the Update/Install All button to install all missing plug-ins and update all plug-ins that are out of date.
- If there is a newer version of this Manager, a message will alert the user when the menu command runs and the Update button will be active in the Manager Version box in the lower-left corner of the dialog box. Pressing the Update button will download the most current version.
- If the Manager or a plug-in has been updated, the user will be prompted to restart Vectorworks after closing the dialog.
Dialog Box Explanation
- Column listing the category of the Plug-in.
- Column listing the name of the Plug-in.
- Column listing the type of the Plug-in (Menu Command, Tool, or Plug-in Object).
- Column listing the date of the most current version of the Plug-in.
- Column listing the version number of the most current version of the Plug-in.
- Column listing the version number of the currently installed Plug-in.
- Column listing the current status of the Plug-in (Up to Date, Not Installed, New Version Available, or Restart Required).
- Plug-ins with newer versions available will be shown in Red.
- Plug-ins not currently installed will be shown in Gray.
- Plug-ins which have been updated will be shown in Green.
- The currently selected Plug-in will be highlighted in the List Browser. Only one plug-in may be selected at a time.
- Press the Update/Install button to update or install the currently selected Plug-in. This action cannot be undone.
- Press the View Readme button to open the README page for the currently selected plug-in on the system’s default Web Browser. If this button is disabled, a README page is not yet available for the selected plug-in. If no plug-ins are selected, the button will open the README page for the JNC Tools Free Manager.
- Press the GitHub Page button to open the GitHub page hosting the selected Plug-in on the system’s default Web Browser.
- Press the Select Next Out of Date button to highlight/select the next plug-in with a new version available. If all plug-ins are currently up to date, the system will beep.
- Press the Release Notes button to open a window displaying a detailed breakdown of every version of the selected Plug-in.
- Press the Known Bugs button to open a window displaying all currently known bugs with the selected Plug-in. If no known bugs exist, no window will be opened and the system will beep.
- Press the Feature Requests button to open a window displaying planned features for the selected Plug-in. If no features are currently planned for the Plug-in, no window will open and the system will beep.
- Press the Update/Install All button to install all Plug-ins marked “Not Installed” and to update all plug-ins marked “New Version Available”. This action cannot be undone.
- Manager Version Box containing information about the Manager. The box contains the current verion number and status, a button to display the Manager’s Release Notes, and a button to download an Update for the Manager. If the most current version of the Manager is already installed, the Update button will be disabled.
- Server Connection Box showing the connection to the GitHub page for the selected Plug-in. If the box contains a Red X, the Plug-in is either missing from the GitHub page or the internet has become disconnected since running the menu command. Press the Click to Retry button to attempt to reconnect to the page.
- Press Download Tool Set Icons to download a set of icon image files to use as Tool Set icons for Plug-in Objects to the User Folder. A separate dialog box will open showing the file location with an option to open in an Explorer or Finder window.
- Donation Box containing donation information. Press the Donate on PayPal button to open a webpage linked to the developer’s PayPal account in the system’s default Web Browser. Donations are not at all expected but are certainly appreciated.
- If a restart of Vectorworks is required, it will be shown here.
- Help Box, mousing over any dialog box element will display an explanation here.
- Press the Close button to close the dialog box.
Installation Instructions
There are two methods of installation, direct download of the plug-in or through the JNC Tools Free Manager Download Vectorworks file.
Direct Download:
- Download source plug-in
- Place downloaded file inside the Vectorworks User Folder within the Plug-ins directory
- Restart Vectorworks
JNC Tools Free Manager Download
- Download the installer Vectorworks File
- Open the downloaded Vectorworks file in the desired version of Vectorworks (2019 or newer for PC, 2021 or newer for Mac)
- Follow the instructions in the file
Adding the Plug-in to your Workspace
- Open the Workspace Editor by going to Tools - Workspaces - Edit Current Workspace
- Select the Menus tab
- In the box on the left, find and expand the JNC category
- In the box on the right, find a suitable menu to place the command in, such as Tools or Modify
- Click and drag the JNC Tools Free Manager command from the box on the left to the desired menu location in the box on the right
- Click OK to close the editor
Localization Instructions
The plug-in can be localized to your native language without having access to the source code. This can be achieved by following the instructions below:
- Open the Plug-in Manager by going to Tools - Plug-ins - Plug-in Manager
- Select the Third-party Plug-ins tab
- Select the JNC Tools Free Manager command
- Click the Customize button
- Select the Strings tab
- Double-click a category, such as Dialog Strings
- Select a string to edit and press the Edit button
- Write a new string and press the OK button until you are back to the Plug-in Manager
The categories for this plug-in are as follows:
- 3000 - Dialog Strings: These strings are used in the dialog box and can all freely be changed.
- 4000 - Dialog Help Strings: These strings are used in the Help Box at the bottom of the dialog box and can all freely be changed.
- 5000 - Status Strings: These strings are used to populate the Status column of the dialog box and can all be freely changed as long as the changes still accurately represent the original status.
- 6000 - Misc Strings: These strings serve multiple purposes in the code, but are mostly Alerts that appear in dialog boxes. Do not change 6000 or 6001, but all others can be changed.
- 7000 - Plug-in Directory: This string serves as the sub-directory of the User Folder/Plug-ins folder where any new plug-ins will be installed. By default, this will by User Folder/Plug-ins/JNC Tools/Free/. Any path can be specified as long as it uses “/” as a delimiter.
Release Notes
| Date | Version | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 11/23/2024 | 1.0.0 | Initial release |
| 11/23/2024 | 1.0.1 | Moved Update/Install All button to be more prominent |
| - | - | All Up to Date message will no longer appear when no plug-ins are installed |
| 11/24/2024 | 1.0.2 | Adjusted button placement and made Update/Install All larger |
| 11/27/2024 | 1.0.3 | Added Download Tools Set Icons button |
| - | - | Implemented progress dialog for Update/Install All |
| 11/28/2024 | 1.0.4 | Fixed a bug with Open File Location when downloading icons on Mac platforms |
| 12/23/2024 | 1.0.5 | Changed plug-in folder creation to category rather than Github directory |
| 12/24/2024 | 1.0.6 | Fixed bug with supplemental files when in subdirectory |
| 12/25/2024 | 1.0.7 | Fixed bug with VW Restart notice not tracking properly with resizable layout |
Known Bugs
No Known Bugs
Feature Requests
No current Feature Requests
License
Copyright (c) Jesse Cogswell (JNC Tools)
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person or organization obtaining a copy of this software (the “User”) and associated documentation files (the “Software”), to use, reproduce, distribute, execute, and transmit the Software.
The User is not permitted to modify or attempt to reverse engineer the source code. The User may localize the Software using approved methods from within the Vectorworks software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS OR ANYONE DISTRIBUTING THE SOFTWARE BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.