Path: news.uh.edu!barrett From: flam@netcom.com (James "Flam" Johnson) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.reviews Subject: REVIEW: Rush, release 2 Followup-To: comp.sys.amiga.applications Date: 23 May 1994 03:42:37 GMT Organization: The Amiga Online Review Column - ed. Daniel Barrett Lines: 183 Sender: amiga-reviews@math.uh.edu (comp.sys.amiga.reviews moderator) Distribution: world Message-ID: <2rp8nd$fg9@masala.cc.uh.edu> Reply-To: flam@netcom.com (James "Flam" Johnson) NNTP-Posting-Host: karazm.math.uh.edu Keywords: directory utility, disk, shareware Originator: barrett@karazm.math.uh.edu PRODUCT NAME Rush, release 2, version 37.5370 BRIEF DESCRIPTION Rush is a shareware directory utility. A demo version is available on the Aminet ftp sites in /pub/aminet/util/dir/RushDem2.lha. AUTHOR/COMPANY INFORMATION Name: Douglas Keller Address: 3A Hudson Harbour Drive Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 USA E-mail: dkeller@bix.com LIST PRICE Shareware: $25.00 (US) for the registered version. Upgrade from Directory Opus is $15.00 (US) if you send in the first page from a Directory Opus manual. There are two differences between the demo and registered versions. In the demo, the gadget assignments cannot be saved (although the preferences can be edited tediously by hand), and a naggy little requester pops up (forcing Rush to the front of the display) every now and then. The copyrighted demo version can be distributed like any shareware product. The registered version cannot be distributed (obviously). SPECIAL HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS HARDWARE None. SOFTWARE Requires AmigaDOS 2.0 or higher. COPY PROTECTION None. Installs on a hard disk. OVERVIEW Rush is a directory utility along the lines of Directory Opus and the MANY other PD and commercial directory utilities. It has a friendly and very configurable user interface with two directory list windows separated by a row of command buttons. The interface is configurable as to its screen mode (including all 2.04 and 3.0 modes), fonts (both for the list windows and buttons), and colors (up to 256 with AmigaDOS 3.0+). The buttons can be configured to do any command imaginable, including commands loaded from disk (such as AmigaDOS commands, Viewtek, ZGIF, etc.), ARexx commands, assignments to devices, or a host of standard internal commands (such as Copy). Rush handles archives in a unique way and can be configured to recognize any archive type. Similarly, files types can be recognized (e.g., JPEG graphics files), and double-clicking on a file can be configured to execute the appropriate command associated with the file (e.g., FastJPEG for viewing JPEG images: "c:FastJPEG %s".). It is pleasantly simple to 'teach' Rush to recognize file types via a sample of that file type. These features are packed into a program that when run takes up less than 180K of your vital memory. SPECIAL FEATURES AmigaGuide support: Rush has good documentation in AmigaGuide format that can be run from the program. Hold the mouse over a portion of the screen and press the HELP key, and documentation on that portion will be displayed (nifty). Archive Handling: As mentioned, Rush uniquely handles archives and can recognize ANY format. The commands for adding to, listing, and extracting can be configured for each archive type. A double-click can also cause any of these commands to be executed. Mouse clicks: The right and left (and center) mouse buttons can be configured to execute ANY internal command. I have configured my right button to execute the 'Parent' command. Sort Lists: The ListViews (scrolling lists) can be each configured to sort their contents several different ways: by name, date, size, forward (alphabetically), backward, directories first, directories last, etc. Wildcards: The program supports wildcards throughout. For example, you could select all the #?.mod files in a directory easily by entering the wildcard, and clicking "All". Keystrokes: All button commands can be (but don't HAVE to be) duplicated with keystrokes. There are several other good and unique features. Download the demo, and see for yourself. LIKES I have used many many many many directory utilities, including Directory Opus, Directory Master, MTool, Directory Works, and so on. I have always wanted a POWERFUL, configurable program that didn't take up half a megabyte of memory. I have finally found this in Rush. After messing with it for a week, I registered right away. Rush runs fully bug free for me so far, and it is supported by a good programmer who wrote the first version over three years ago and promises updates (via e-mail even). Although Rush isn't the most configurable directory utility I have ever seen, it skips all the really useless stuff and has ALL the options I have ever wanted. Other directory utilities have either left out at least one IMPORTANT option, or have been so big and kludgy that they aren't worth it. Finally, a program that really strikes the balance. SPEED... Rush is quick. It beats both Directory Opus and Directory Master 2 in reads, copies, and deletes, hands down, and Douglas promises to speed it up even more with caching in the future. Plus it is thoroughly tested with the developer debugging tools Mungwall and Enforcer. (There are no Enforcer hits.) I have been able to configure Rush to do several complex tasks such as play MPEGS, offering me a choice between greyscale and HAM8 modes on the fly, and simple things like uuencode/uudecode files. The demo version isn't horribly crippled, so I was able to enjoy the program before I bought it. This is wise in my opinion, since I will just toss a demo that is severely crippled or bothers me with 5 minute lockups or windows that never go away. :) DISLIKES AND SUGGESTIONS 1. Not font sensitive (yet). 2. Doesn't treat archives like directories (yet). 3. Menus aren't configurable (yet). These all are promised for future releases. COMPARISON TO OTHER SIMILAR PRODUCTS See the "LIKES" section, above. BUGS None found so far. CONCLUSIONS Good work Mr. Keller! Download the Rush2 demo, and give it a try. - James Johnson ('Flam') flam@netcom.com (feel free to write :) --- Daniel Barrett, Moderator, comp.sys.amiga.reviews Send reviews to: amiga-reviews-submissions@math.uh.edu Request information: amiga-reviews-requests@math.uh.edu Moderator mail: amiga-reviews@math.uh.edu Anonymous ftp site: math.uh.edu, in /pub/Amiga/comp.sys.amiga.reviews