
		    ==============================================
		    =  Motif-based Display Editor/Manager (MEDM) =
		    ==============================================


INTRODUCTION:

MEDM is a composite display editor and manager tool, which provides users
the ability to edit and execute displays from within a single program
context.  This saves system resources such as virtual memory, and
improves system throughput.

MEDM is implemented as a main control panel and several "palettes".

The main control panel groups functions according to large scale or
global actions: such as display file selection  (open, close, save, print),
edit/execute mode toggling, palette management, and global (and context
sensitive) help.

Three palettes are available:  Object, Resource, and Color.

The Object palette controls the edit functions of the display, including
a set of buttons which define what edit actions take place in a display.
These include select (the canonical upper-right-pointing arrow), and
the full suite of display element types.  

The Resource palette displays (and allows setting of) the current resources
for a selected object in a display.  This includes status information, such
as display type, along with the full set of parameters which apply to
the current object.  This palette is visible whenever an object is
selected in a display;  when multiple objects are selected, its contents
are not displayed.  Within the resource palette, "bundles" can be created
which are aggregations of resource values.  These bundles can be applied
by being dragged/dropped onto a (set of) selected object(s) to change their
resource values.

The Color palette displays the current colormap settings.  Color editing
is not supported at this time (at least partly to constrain color
selection in display design, to encourage visual consistency of displays).






Current Functionality Checklist (1 Sept. 1993)
==============================================

DM/EDD Display element types supported:

 Static/Dynamic types
 --------------------
 + rectangle
 + oval
 + arc
 + text
 + line
 + image (GIF)
 + polyline
 + polygon

 Monitor types
 -------------
 + meter
 + bar
 + indicator
 + text update
 + strip chart
 + cartesian plot

 Controller types
 ----------------
 + choice button
 + message button
 + menu
 + text entry
 + valuator
 + related display
 + shell command

and -

 + Composite (Group) (from Edit menu)


