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Custom Programs
David Marchak
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Creating a Desktop Icon

You see them every day -- those little pictures all over your computer screen. When you click (or double-click) on one of these icons, a program opens and you can start using it. You should have an icon for Paritek that you use when you want to run the program. If you don't already have an icon (or if it accidentally disappears), these instructions will create one.

Step-by-Step

There are different ways to create a desktop icon. This is the way I usually do it.
Make sure that all your programs are either closed or minimized.
Move your mouse cursor to an area of your desktop that does not have any other icons.
Right-click the mouse. This should open a small window with some options.
Point at New and wait until another window opens with more options.
Click on Shortcut.

This will open a new window asking you for a Command line. This is where you need indicate which program you want to run when the icon is clicked. If you know the name of the program and the folder where it is stored you can just type it in. However, if you need a little more help,

Click on Browse.

At this point, you will need to navigate through the folders on your computer. You will have to find the folder where the Paritek program was installed. Click on the drop down button to the right of the Look in prompt to see a list of drives. This is useful if Paritek is installed on a server or another computer on a network. Click on a folder icon to open a specific folder if the Paritek folder is part of that folder. Once you have found a folder named Paritek,

Click on the Paritek folder.

You should now see a list of programs and other files that make up Paritek. Look for a file named Paritek.exe that has a dark blue cross. Depending on the settings on your computer, the program may only be listed as Paritek (without the .exe). You will also see a file named Parback with a light blue cross. This is the Paritek data backup program and is not the program you want.

Click on the Paritek program.
Click on Open. This will return you to the command line window.
Click on Next.
Type in a name for the program (either Paritek or your parish name).
Click on Finish.

You should now have a new icon on your desktop that you can click (or double-click, depending on how your system is set up) when you want to run Paritek.

Shortcut Tricks

Now that you have a Paritek shortcut, you can do a few other things with it. To drag the icon to another part of your desktop, Click on the icon and hold the mouse button down. Move the mouse and the icon will start moving around your desktop. When the icon is where you want it, release the mouse button. You might want to drag the shortcut to your taskbar (at the bottom of your screen). Then you will be able to start Paritek even when other programs are covering your desktop.

If you Right-Click on the Paritek icon, you will have the option to Rename the icon. This is useful if the name is accidentally changed or if you just want to give the icon a different name. For example, if you record data for more than one church, you can rename each icon to their respective name.

Shortcut Properties

If you Right-Click on the icon, you will be presented with a list of options. At the bottom of the list is Properties. Click on Properties to view the Paritek Properties window.

You must be careful about modifying the Target and Start in options. These entries need to be exact in order for Paritek to run when you click on the Paritek icon. The values in these fields may be different depending on where Paritek is installed on your computer. You may want to write these values down in case you need to recreate your desktop icon later.

If you want to be able to run Paritek without clicking on the icon, you can specify a Shortcut key. For example, you could set this option to function key F8 and whenever you pressed F8, Paritek would start. There are certain conditions, so you might want to read the help screen first.

Another option you may want to use is the Change Icon button. When you click on that button, you will be presented with a series of icons to choose from. Paritek comes with two different cross icons (dark blue and light blue) along with several other icons that are used within the program. Highlight one of the icons and click OK twice to change the desktop icon.