       

www.titlebar.net







Readme:

Tray Folder... formerly "My Tray Folder"

Trial Version


To install:
Uninstall any previous installations of the program. The information about uninstalling and reinstalling, located at the end of this Readme, may help you with this.
 
Decompress the downloaded .zip file to a folder on your hard drive. Run the "Setup" file located in the decompressed folder. A shortcut group for the program will be created in your Start Menu's programs list.

****There are several of Titlebar Software's freeware programs that are actually part of "Tray Folder". Titlebar Time, Titlebar Date, and Tray Date are all part of Tray Folder. If you have any of these on your computer, uninstall them. It will not hurt anything for them to be on your computer but if you have Tray Folder installed it is pointless to have them on your computer since they will just be clutter, taking up space, and will conflict with "Tray Folder"- if they are run at the same time as Tray Folder. If there are other users of your computer using these freeware programs it can remain on your computer but be sure the programs do not run at the same time as "Tray Folder". It certainly will not hurt anything if they are run at the same time but the programs are likely not to function properly.

Once the program is up and running it would be best to select, and then unselect, each of the options in the tray icon's right-click popup menu a-time-or-two before making your final selections. (This step is not absolutely necessary but whenever this is done during the first use of software it will likely result in the file system being kosher- more structured.)


IMPORTANT NOTE: BE SURE TO EXPERIMENT WITH THE "RECYCLER" SHORTCUT FOR A MOMENT OR TWO. THIS SHORTCUT IS LOCATED IN THE TRAY FOLDER SHORTCUT GROUP IN THE START MENUS PROGRAMS LIST.  Also, try the Run commands. There is more information below.






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To run the program:

To start "Tray Folder", use the shortcut in the Tray Folder shortcut group located in the Start Menu's Programs list. An icon displaying the date will be placed in your system tray, near the clock, whenever the program in running.

You may choose to start Tray Folder only when you need it or right-click on the tray icon and check "AutoStart" to start the "Tray Folder" when your computer starts -leave it unchecked if you prefer to start "Tray Folder" manually.



"Tray Folder" is not going to clutter up your tray with useless tray icons you do not want, do not need, and can't get rid of. The tray icon for Tray Folder serves several useful purposes. However, you do not necessarily have to have Tray Folder start when Windows starts. You can Start Tray Folder using the shortcut located in the Start Menu's Programs list or using the "Run" command ... "mtf" (without quotation marks". There is more information about the Run commands below in the "Run" Commands: section.



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To use the program:

Right-click on the tray icon (the icon displays the date), and the tray icon's right-click menu will open.
Click on "Tray Folder" to open your Tray Folder. If you like, you can select from various date and time formats and have the weekday, date, and time displayed in the active window's title bar. This feature is called "Title Bar Time" and is located in the tray icon's right-click menu,  

The Titlebar Time feature, if used, will sense a situation in which there will be a cluttered title bar if it is displayed and will not display the time and/or date in these situations. For instance, if the title bar is less than 450 pixels (about 5 inches) wide or if the title, usually the name of the folder or application, is longer than 40 characters the day/date/time will not display.






In the tray icon's right-click menu you will see a "Disable" entry. Click on Disable and the Tray Folder entry will be removed from the tray icon's right-click menu. To re-enable the tray icon use "Tray Icon Control" located in the "Options" or use the "tic" run command.



The ability to enable the tray icon can be password protected:

1. Open the Windows directory and locate the System32 folder. In the System32 folder, locate the "tic" executive file (no quotation marks).

2. Rename the tic executive file anything you want. The new name should, however, be something that you can easily enter as a run command.

The above renaming procedure can also be used with the "mtf" run command, used to start the tray folder program, and the "r2" run command that is used to hide and unhide the tray folder recycler as a system file.



To take further measures to increase your tray folder's security:

1. Open your tray folder and locate the tray folder "Options" in the "Tools" folder. In the "View Settings" section of the Tray Folder Options, check the top two selections. As a result, the tray icon will be disabled when the Tray Folder program starts and will be automatically disabled every 10 minutes if left enabled.

2. Click the "Hide MTF" button, located in the upper left hand corner of the Options window, in order to have your tray folder, located under your profile, hidden as a protected operating system file. 
 
See the "Options:" section below for more information. 






Send To- My Tray Folder:

There is a shortcut to your tray folder placed in your "SendTo" folder, a hidden folder under your profile. Right-click a file, or folder, and select "My Tray Folder" in the "Send To" listings and a COPY of the article will be placed in your tray folder.






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More Information:

Your "Tray Folder" will be created under your profile, on the computer, and the folder acquires your profile name. For instance, my personal tray folder is located at... C:\Documents and Settings\John\John's Tray Folder. My profile's name is "John". Put anything in your "Tray Folder" you want- shortcuts, files, or other folders. For example, if you have several shortcuts on your desktop you use once in a while but not really all that often- store them in your Tray Folder so they will be out of the way but still handy. You can create a "New Briefcase" in your Tray Folder. If you have stuff you want to hide, to some extent, store that stuff in your tray folder. The Icon was programmed to display the date in an effort to disguise the fact that it is actually a shortcut to your personal folder. If you often are working with a program and have to close, or minimize, that program to start another program or open a file, put a shortcut to the other program(s), or files, that you may need in your Tray Folder. Use your tray folder for a directory, if you like, and create a variety of new folders in your tray folder. If there are certain programs that you use on occasion and have to weed through the Start Menu's Programs list to find the shortcuts to these programs, create a folder in your Tray Folder and copy the shortcuts and paste them in the folder you have created for them.



 
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IMPORTANT: THE RECYCLER

 The "Recycler" hides a folder, in "Tray Folder", behind a Recycle Bin. The Recycler is located in the "Tools" folder. A shortcut to the "Recycler" is created in the Start Menu's Tray Folder shortcut group. There is also a "Run command" for the Recycler (read about the run commands below). Click on the "Recycler" shortcut and a message box will appear. This message box will tell you if your hidden folder has been "Protected" or "Unprotected". In the protected mode, your hidden folder appears to be a regular Recycle Bin. In the unprotected mode, a folder named "Recycle" is visible. Use this "Recycle" folder as private storage for your personal folders and files. The security level of the Recycler is in the medium range. For a high level of security use the "Encryptor" to encrypt files before placing them behind the "Recycler". You might also consider placing files, or folders, in a "zip file" and then password protecting the "zip file". Password protecting a zip file is a form of encryption and easy to do.    

BE SURE TO EXPERIMENT WITH THE "RECYCLER" FOR A MINUTE OR TWO. It is fairly easy to use.







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The "Encryptor":

In your Tray Folder "Tools" you will find a shortcut to the "Encryptor". The Encryptor is a file encryption utility that is a feature that comes with Tray Folder. You will be required to enter a password in order to encrypt or decrypt files. Once you have encrypted a file it will be ultimately impossible to open that file without first entering the password and decrypting the file using the Encryptor. Another version of the encryption method used, which is Rijndael encryption, uses a "secret key". The secret key is a string of characters such as "i=04Rip:}1k>td=!@4gu9N8DW;>%}zxB" that is created and used in the encryption process. In the version used, which is also Rijndael encryption, the password you create when encrypting a file serves essentially the same purpose as a secret key. In short, the password is the key.  

The Encryptor is fairly easy to use, unlike a lot of encryption programs.

The "Encryptor" will remove the original file, if you choose to do so. The original file will be shredded, renamed and removed. You will be given the opportunity to inspect the shredding of the original file before the file is renamed and removed. However, to be on the safe side, the original file should not be securely deleted until after the encrypted file has been checked to make sure it is accurate and a backup has been made. Verifying the accuracy of the encrypted files should surely be done when working with files that are important to the user. After you have checked the encrypted file and verified its accuracy, you will likely find it is easier to use "Secure Deletions" to remove the original. The "Secure Deletions" program is described in the next section. 

When determining your password, it is suggested that a short and simple password, that is easy to remember, is used... possibly your initials or the year you were born. However, a longer more complex password will result in a more complex encryption. A more complex password might be as simple as "abc123".

If you do not use the Encryptor, and the Encryptor shortcut ends up being clutter, you can delete, or move, the shortcut. The Encryptor executive file is located in the Program Files directory in the My Tray Folder2 folder.

The "Encrypted Files" and "Decrypted Files" folders are created when needed and located in the "File Encryption" folder. These Folders may be moved or deleted. They will be recreated when needed. Use the Recycler to store your encrypted files, if you like, and your encrypted files will be out of sight under very high security. Be sure to experiment with the Recycler if you haven't already. It is located in the "Tools" folder, found in your Tray Folder.

There is also a run command that can be used to control the Recycler's mode. The run command is...   r2.

For more information read the Encryptor Readme located in the Readme-z folder found Under the "Tray Folder" listing in your Start Menu's Programs list.







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"Secure Deletions":

"Secure Deletions" is a security tool that can be used to overwrite folders and files. It can also be used to overwrite the unused portion of the disk/drives. Security tools of this type are commonly called "shredders". Secure Deletions will encrypt, overwrite, rename, and permanently remove all files and subfolders located in a folder. All the files and folders located in the subfolders will also be encrypted, renamed, and overwritten - several times. The files and folders will be impossible to reconstruct. Several methods of encryption are used to accomplish this including a method known as "AES (Rijndael) secret key encryption". The "secret key" is a string of characters such as "i=04Rip:}1k>td=!@4gu9N8DW;>%}zxB" that is created and used in the encryption process. Titlebar Software changes this secret key about once a month. It is ultimately impossible to decrypt items encrypted using this method without the "key". When Titlebar Software changes this key, the old key is thereby destroyed. The older key is not saved. 

There is a "Secure Deletions" folder located in the "Shredder" folder. This folder appears to be a regular Recycle Bin- it's not. This folder can be hidden as a system file using the Tray Folder "Options". This folder is used for storage of files and folders that are to be securely removed. The Secure Deletions folder can be overwritten at the user's convenience. You will be able to retrieve items from this folder up until the time you overwrite the Secure Deletions folder. This process can be used to replace the "Recycle Bin" in regard to deleting files and folders. Using the Recycle Bin to remove items will not permanently remove the items- the items are fairly easy to recover using computer programs that are designed to accomplish the task. However, if the Secure Deletions folder is used, rather than the Recycle Bin, to remove unwanted files and folders the unwanted items will not be able to be recovered because they will no longer exist. They will have been destroyed.

However, even though the pertaining folders and files have been destroyed there may be some stray data, representing a security risk, remaining on the disk/drive. In order to negate this possibility the "Secure Deletions" program can be used to select a disk/drive and have the unused portion of that disk/drive overwritten using Microsoft's "cipher.exe". The cipher.exe is a Microsoft application which any user may use if they learn the DOS commands. It is included in the Windows operating system.

The "Secure Deletions" folder is an encrypted folder. The text in the folder's name is, as a result, green rather than black. The Secure Deletions folder can be overwritten at the user's convenience.


IMPORTANT NOTE: THE SECURE DELETIONS FOLDER THAT APPEARS TO BE A RECYCLE BIN IS NOT THE ACTUAL SECURE DELETIONS FOLDER. THE ACTUAL SECURE DELETIONS FOLDER IS LOCATED BEHIND THAT RECYCLE BIN. IF YOU PLACE ITEMS IN THAT RECYCLE BIN, INTENDING FOR THE ITEMS TO BE SECURELY REMOVED, THE ITEMS WILL NOT BE SECURELY DELETED AND WILL REMAIN VISIBLE IN THE RECYCLE BIN. YOU MUST USE THE SECURE DELETIONS PROGRAM NOT THAT RECYCLE BIN, TO SECURELY REMOVE FILE SYSTEM ITEMS.


AGAIN, YOU MUST USE THE SECURE DELETIONS PROGRAM, NOT THE "SECURE DELETIONS" FOLDER THAT APPEARS TO BE A RECYCLE BIN, TO SECURELY REMOVE FILE SYSTEM ITEMS.   


For more information, read the Secure Deletions Readme located in the Readme-z folder found in the "Tray Folder" listing in your Start Menu's Programs list.




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File Cabinet:

     
'File Cabinet' is a utility for hiding/protecting your personal folders and their contents. Use a test folder to experiment with and test the 'Lock' and 'Unlock' buttons. Your test folder can be locked in the File Cabinet using the 'Lock' button. Your folder, and its contents, will truly be inside the 'cabinet' folder. Use 'Unlock' to make the test folder visible once again.

You will be asked to name the folder being made visible whenever you Lock, or Unlock, a folder.

Right-click on the 'Cabinet' folder while you have a folder, containing several test items, locked in the Cabinet then select properties to look at the "Size'. The size of the Cabinet folder will confirm that the Cabinet contains your personal folder, and its contents.



  

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The "Reminder":

The Reminder feature has been added to Tray Folder for you to use to remind yourself to put the Recycler back in the protected mode, to disable the tray icon, or whatever else the user may need to be sure they remember to do. Just click on "Reminder" in the tray icon's right-click menu. Double-click on the reminder tray icon and you can adjust the flash interval and also write memos. This feature can be used for other reminders. For instance, Check for an updated version today. You do not have to do all that though- just click on Reminder and there will be a flashing tray icon created to remind you that your Recycler is unprotected- or whatever. You can have more than one reminder running at one time.



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The "Notifier":

There is also a "Notifier" feature that is accessible through the reminder. There is also a shortcut to "The Notifier" located in your Tray Folder "Tools". You can adjust the interval amount of time between the Notifier appearances. You can also adjust the amount of time it takes the Notifier to raise, the amount of time it remains up, and the amount of time it takes to lower itself till it disappears. Experiment with it for a couple of minutes and the functioning of the Notifier will be apparent to you. You can have a variety of Notifier messages running at one time.

When the Notifier window is up, hold your mouse over it and it will remain up till you remove your mouse from over it. 
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"Run" Commands:

There are three "Run commands" that can be used in the "Run" feature of the Start menu:

tic  ...type "tic", no quotation marks, into the "Run" textbox. If your tray icon is enabled, "tic" will disable it. If your tray icon is disabled, "tic" will enable it.



tic = Tray Icon Control


r2  ...type "r2", no quotation marks, into the "Run" textbox. Your Recycler's security mode will be cycled.

r2 = Recycler


mtf   ... type "mtf", no quotation marks, into the "Run" textbox. Starts Tray Folder.

mtf = My Tray Folder



The run commands are very convenient once you have learned them.

If your Start menu does not have the "Run" feature displayed, right-click on the Start button and open its properties then check the checkbox for "Display Run" or "Run Command" located under the advanced options. 


Suggestion: Move the shortcut group from the Start menu to you "Recycle" folder located in your personal tray folder. Keep the shortcut group because you will likely need the shortcuts from time-to-time. Once you have the shortcut group located in your "Recycler", use the run commands to control the tray folder program.



These run commands will also work with the "Command Prompt".
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Options:

The options give you control over the tray folder program and its features.

View Settings gives the user the ability to hide "Tray Folder" in the form of a "protected operating system file". This feature does not provide a high level of security- but some. "SuperHidden" is a term Microsoft has coined to refer to "Protected operating system files".

"Hide protected operating system files" MUST BE CHECKED FOR THIS FEATURE TO WORK. This is the recommended setting, by Microsoft, for this option. This setting is located under the view tab in Folder Options. If you have Tray Folder hidden as a system file, and, uncheck "Hide protected operating system files" you will then be able to see Tray Folder" in Windows Explorer.

An example of using "View Settings" follows:

1. Use the View Settings to hide Tray Folder as a system file by clicking the "Hide MTF" button. (MTF = My Tray Folder)
2. Use the "Hide protected operating system files" setting, located under the View tab in Folder Options, to control the visibility of "Tray Folder" or use the Tray Folder options to unhide the Tray Folder.

When the Tray Folder is "Supper Hidden" it is out of sight unless the "Hide protected operating system files" setting, located under the View tab in Folder Options, is unchecked so system files can be seen. System files are hidden by default in Windows operating systems.


The "Tray Icon Control", located in the Tray Folder Options, will enable, and disable, the ability to open your tray folder from the tray icon's right-click menu. While disabled "Tray Folder" will be removed from the right-click menu. The tray icon will continue to display the correct date while it is disabled and the other features will still be present in the right-click menu. Experiment with this control for a moment and you'll have it.

If "Start the program with the Tray Icon disabled" is checked, the Tray Folder selection and the disable selection will not be available in the right-click menu. The "Tray Icon Control" button or the "tic" run command will have to be used to enable the tray icon.

If "Auto protect the recycler and disable the tray icon every 10 minutes." is checked the "Recycler" will be placed in its protected mode- if it has been left in its unprotected mode. And, the tray icon will be disabled every 10 minutes. The "Hide protected operating system files (recommended)." setting under the "View" tab in "Folder Options" must be checked for this setting to work. If you have a file open, that is located in the "Recycle" folder, the "Recycler" feature will not automatically place the Recycle folder in the protected mode. This is for security reasons. If the program did close the file, in order for it to be protected, you would likely lose any changes you had made to the file. However, if the Recycle folder has simply been forgotten in its unprotected mode, and none of its files are open, it will be automatically placed in the protected mode. 

If "Hide the 'Recycler' when it is in the protected mode as a system file." is checked, the Recycler, in your tray folder will be hidden as a protected operating system file. The "Hide protected operating system files (recommended)." setting under the "View" tab in "Folder Options" must be checked for this setting to work. Look for "Folder Options" in the Control Panel or in the Tools menu of most any folder.

Hide the "Secure Deletions Recycler", located in the "Shredder" folder, as a system file - when checked will do just that. Once again, the "Hide protected operating system files (recommended)." setting under the "View" tab in "Folder Options" must be checked for this setting to work. The "Secure Deletions Recycler" contains the folders, and/or files, placed there by the user by use of the right-click/context menu item for "Secure Deletions". 

(For a high level of security try "Tray Folder 2" from...   www.titlebar.net)
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The "Backup" Feature:

In the "Options you will see a checkbox for enabling the use of the Backup feature. When this checkbox is checked, a shortcut to the Backup folder, located in the "Tools" folder, will be created in the "Send To" selections of the right-click/context menu. To experiment with this feature, right-click on a folder, or file, on you desktop and look among the possible selections listed in the "Send To" feature and locate "Backup". Click on Backup and a copy of your folder, or file, will be placed in Backup folder. As you are working on something, you can send a copy of it to your Backup folder in order to make incremental backups. Each time you send an item to the Backup folder, as long as the name has not been change, previous versions of the folder, or file, will be replaced with the newer version. If you want to keep the previous versions, right-click on them and select "Rename" in order to rename the previous version- or rename the newer version.

This is a very quick and easy method of making backup copies. It will only take a couple of mouse clicks and a few seconds. 

You can use the Backup folder for storage. If you want, create a New Briefcase in the Backup folder.

If you decide not to use the Backup feature and you uncheck the checkbox for using the Backup feature the Backup shortcut located in the "Send To" selections will be removed. However, for security reasons the Backup folder will not be removed. If you do want to remove the Backup folder, make sure any personal files and/or folders located in the Backup folder are moved and secure, then manually delete the Backup folder.
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Other Information:

The "Disable" selection in the tray icon's right-click menu will remove the ability to open Tray Folder using the tray icon. The tray icon can be re-enabled by using the Tray Icon control in the "Options" or the "tic" Run command.


****Your personal Tray Folder is created in...  C:\Documents and Settings     ...under your profile. For instance, my personal Tray Folder is located at     C:\Document's and Settings\John\John's Tray Folder.

In the tray icon's right-click menu you can select from various date and time formats and have the weekday, date, and time displayed in the active window's title bar if you like. You may also select "AutoStart" so the program will run automatically.

The Tray Folder" homepage is located at...

http://pages.suddenlink.net/titlebar/trayfolder/mytrayfolder.htm

Registered users are eligible to get updates- all updates. 



To uninstall:

In order not to destroy your personal files and folders, your personal Tray Folder will NOT be uninstalled when you uninstall the program. However, it would be best to play it safe and make a backup of your tray folder if you have placed some important data in your tray folder.


Once you have secured your personal tray folder, select "Tray Folder" on the Add or Remove Programs list, accessible though your Control Panel, and click on Remove.




To Reinstall:
Your personal Tray Folder will not be uninstalled when you uninstall the program. If you need a clean install, uninstall the program, move your personal tray folder from under your profile to a backup location, and reinstall the program. Use you backup copy of the older tray folder to organize your folders/files in the new tray folder under your profile and then delete the backup copy of your older tray folder.

If you use the Secure Deletions feature, it would be best to overwrite your Secure Deletions folder before you reinstall Tray Folder but not imperative.

   
If you need any more information, e-mail me at...     jharper124@titlebar.net
