                    MP3TAG FAR Plugin module Version 1.00 beta

Contents:

        1. About plugin.
        2. Installation.
        3. MP3 tags editing.
        4. Styles list.
        5. Adding MP3 tag info to description list file.
        6. Comments.
        7. Copyright.


        1. About plugin.

Each MP3 file can contain an internal info about sound track recorded in it.
This info is called MP3 tag. It consists of track name, artist name, and
the like. This plugin allows editing of MP3 tags and adding to description
list file information about MP3 file.


        2. Installation.

1. Create folder MP3TAG in FAR plugin folder. For example: 
C:\Far\Plugins\MP3TAG.
2. Copy all files from this archive to created folder.
3. Execute file MP3TAG.REG.
4. Restart FAR.
5. Check Options -> "Interface Settings" -> "History in dialog edit controls"
checkbox. Set it for more plugin functionality.


        3. MP3 tags editing.

Plugin works on selected files and, if there are no selected files, on the
current file. If two or more files are selected, they are edited in order 
their appearence in FAR panel.

Unobvious features:
- empty tags are skipped (tag with "Style" field only considered as empty)
- unmodified files are left highlighted;
- ending spaces in track, artist, album and comment fields are truncated;
- if any error occurs, editing is canceled;
- You can specify the name of style or its decimal code in the style field. 
In first case style must be contained in the style base, but it mayn't be 
in the style's edit history (because of FAR's history entry count 
restrictions).


        4. Styles list.

Styles list is a set of Windows Registry values in the plugin key MP3TAG\Styles,
for example: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Far\Plugins\MP3TAG\Styles.
Each style is the name of the value with the type REG_SZ. Its value is style 
code.
If you want to add a style, you may edit Windows Registry manually or modify 
MP3TAG.REG file and execute it.

MP3TAG.REG contents example:
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Far\Plugins\Mp3Tag\Styles]
"Hard Rock"="79"
"Rock & Roll"="78"
"Rave"="68"
"Jungle"="63"
"Punk"="43"
"House"="35"
"Classical"="32"
"Euro-Techno"="25"
"Soundtrack"="24"
"Industrial"="19"

When plugin starts, sixteen leading items of this list (such list)
are copied to the FAR's edit history key SavedDialogHistory\MP3_Style.
Unfortunally, there is no possibility to show a complete list of track 
styles in FAR's edit history list.
Note: styles included to the edit history list are leading sixteen values 
names of described above MP3TAG.REG's MP3TAG\Style key. If you want to change 
this order, just delete MP3TAG\Styles Registry key, then edit MP3TAG.REG 
file and execute it.


        5. Adding MP3 tag info to description list file.

This feature only works on selected (highlighted) files. You must specify
description list file name, MP3's description template and template for
MP3 files without tag in order to build list.

Here is the list of available template macros (case insensitive):
%T Track
%A Artist
%B Album
%Y Year
%C Comment
%% %

Example:
Filename: Files.Bbs
Template: %T: %A, "%B" (%C) [%Y]
No Tag:   (no description)

Created diescription list file Files.Bbs:
track01.mp3 Take On Me: A-ha, "The Hits Of A-ha" () []
track08.mp3 Hunting High And Low: A-ha, "The Hits Of A-ha" (remix) []
track09.mp3 (no description)
track10.mp3 (no description)
track12.mp3 Crying In The Rain: A-ha, "The Hits Of A-ha" () [198?]
track13.mp3 I Call Your Name: A-ha, "The Hits Of A-ha" () []
track16.mp3 The Sun Always Shines On TV: A-ha, "The Hits Of A-ha" () []

Note: if empty template is specified, filenames with no descriptions is placed 
in description list file.

Unobvious features:
- selected, but skipped files are left highlighted;
- if template contains a symbol after '%', both '%' and following symbol 
are skipped;                                
- only files with .mp3 extentions are allowed in this version.


        6. Comments.

- plugin was tested under NT4SP4, FAR 1.60;
- style selection in edit history is based on undocumented FAR features;
- questions, suggestions and bug reports are welcome at:
    2:5020/607.29@fidonet
    agord@usa.net;


        7. Copyright.

Great thanks to coauthor (Alexey Kardashevsky, 2:5020/607.5, alexhome@aha.ru)
for idea, comments, testing, writing russian help and some source code, to
Dmitry Konyshev (2:5020/607.33, daekon@aha.ru) for english version of
documentation, testing and his comments. Also my thanks to Peter Valach
(pvalach@yahoo.com) for complete version of MP3TAG.REG file and some other
people, who sent me tag's genre field description.

        MP3TAG FAR Plugin module Version 1.00 beta, FREEWARE (C) 
                                                   Alexander Gordeyev,
                                                   2:5020/607.29,
                                                   agord@usa.net
