Supervising the Network

6-3
Creating Menus
Creating, Converting, and Modifying Menu Files
Creating, Converting, and Modifying Menu Files
Menus create a simple front end to the users’ working environment. They
make it easy to access network resources by presenting a list of options
instead of requiring the user to enter cryptic DOS commands.
Menus can be shared by multiple users, requiring the creation of fewer
menus. Or, for the unique requirements of some users, custom menus can be
easily created as needed.
In NetWare 4™, NMENU.BAT replaces the MENU.EXE utility included in
earlier versions of NetWare. The NMENU files are easy to script, require
less memory, and run faster than did the old MENU utility files.
Existing menu files from earlier NetWare versions can be easily converted
for use by the newer NMENU program (see “Converting Old Menu Files” in
this chapter ). The NMENU utility works on all versions of NetWare 2,
NetWare 3™, and NetWare 4.
Because NMENU relies on special files to execute, (and those files that are
dependent upon a few special commands) this chapter focuses on use of the
scripting commands that make up a menu file.
This chapter is organized as follows:
• Guidelines for planning your menus are located in “Planning Your Menus” in this
chapter.
• Commands and their usage are explained in “Using the NMENU Commands” in
this chapter.
• Several example programs are given in “Creating a Menu File” in this chapter.
• Making menus available to users is explained in “Setting Up the User
Environment” in this chapter.
• Converting old menu files is explained in “Converting Old Menu Files” in this
chapter.