Leigh Brasington's Netscape 4.0 Throbber Installation Page
[See also my Netscape 4.03 Throbber Tips and Tricks]
If you are using Netscape 4.0 
, I offer you
a batch file to make installing you new Throbber easier. You must first get the new
30m.bmp, 40m.bmp and 48m.bmp bitmaps in the correct location on your hard disk
(usually C:\Program Files\Netscape\Communicator\Program). I leave
that part for you to figure out, because if you can't handle doing that,
you probably can't handle what follows (even tho it is dirt simple).
Note this batch file only works "as is" if you have installed Netscape on
your C: drive in C:\Program Files\Netscape
- Create a new top level directory called THROB - i.e. mkdir C:\THROB (or use the Windows Explorer)
- Use your mouse to mark ALL the text between
the next 2 horizontal lines,
starting with "@echo off" and including ":dun"
- Click on Edit/Copy (or press Ctrl-C) to copy the marked text to the Clipboard
- Start NotePad (or your favorite Text editor)
- Paste the Clipboard text into Notepad by clicking Edit/Paste (or pressing Ctrl-V)
- Click File/SaveAs and save your new file to C:\THROB and name it ns40thrb.bat
- Exit NotePad
- Bring up the Run Box (click Start and Run) or a DOS prompt
- Type: c:\throb\ns40thrb [# frames] [URL] [logon name] and press the Enter key
where
- [# frames] is the number of frames in your new Throbber (you were
paying attention when you visited the
Throbbers! Web Site, weren't you?)
- [URL] is the URL of the site you wish to jump to when you click on your
new Throbber
- [logon name] is the Netscape logon name you chose when installing Netscape 4.0
Example: c:\throb\ns40thrb 13 http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/6774/ leighb
Now exit Netscape 4.0 and when you bring it back up, you should see you new
Throbber.
Notes:
- The file C:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\[logon name]\prefs.js is now marked
Read-Only (it has to be for your Throbber to live). If you want to change
your Netscape Preferences (Edit/Preferences),
- You must first run the batch file C:\THROB\PREFSRW.BAT
- Then click on Edit/Preferences in Netscape, make your changes and save them by clicking OK.
- Then run the batch file C:\THROB\PREFSRO.BAT
You can use Windows Explorer to run these batch files;
you can type the commands at a DOS prompt; you can run the from the Start/Run
Box - which ever suits your fancy (they take no arguments).
- If you get everything working and then later lose your throbber
(because you forgot to run C:\THROB\PREFSRO.BAT after making changes?),
you can simply rerun C:\THROB\PREFSRO.BAT or even rerun c:\throb\ns40thrb.bat
with the same arguments as before and your Throbber is back when you
restart Netscape.
The text to copy to the Clipboard begins below this line:
@echo off
echo Netscape 4.0 Throbber Installation Batch File
echo -
if x%3==x goto usage
if exist C:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js goto doit
echo C:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js does not exist!
echo Unable to automatically install throbber code in prefs file.
echo -
:usage
if x%1==x echo You should use the Start/Run Box or a DOS Box to run this Batch File.
if x%1==x echo -
echo Usage is %0 [# frames in throbber] [URL] [logon name]
echo -
echo Example:
echo %0 13 http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/6774/ leighb
echo -
echo Notes:
echo 1) You must first put your new throbber files in
echo - C:\Program Files\Netscape\Communicator\Program
echo -
echo 2) This batch file assumes you have installed Netscape 4.0 in
echo - C:\Program Files\Netscape
goto dun
:doit
cd C:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3
if not exist prefs.sav copy prefs.js prefs.sav
echo config("toolbar.logo.win_small_file", "30m.bmp");>throb.js
echo config("toolbar.logo.win_large_file", "48m.bmp");>>throb.js
echo config("toolbar.logo.frames", %1)>>throb.js
echo config("toolbar.logo.url", "%2");>>throb.js
if not exist c:\throb\*.* md c:\throb
echo attrib -R C:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js>c:\throb\prefsrw.bat
echo copy c:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js+c:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\throb.js c:\throb\temp.tmp>c:\throb\prefsro.bat
echo move c:\throb\temp.tmp c:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js>>c:\throb\prefsro.bat
echo attrib +R c:\Progra~1\Netscape\Users\%3\prefs.js>>c:\throb\prefsro.bat
call c:\throb\prefsrw.bat
call c:\throb\prefsro.bat
echo Now restart Netscape 4.0 and you should see your new throbber.
:dun
Back to Leigh's Throbber Page
This page hosted by
Leigh Brasington
/ 
/ Revised 20 June 03