to begin using BoxNT, you need to:
- download and install the boxnt software.
- sign up for a screenname in order to connect.
about boxnt
BoxNT is an application that appears to be a transparent rectangle on your screen that is supposed to represent a bulletin board. You can double click the Box and add notes, or bullets, to the bulletin board, or box. Other people that have BoxNT installed will see your bullets in their box, but only if they are in the same box as you. You can be in multiple boxes at once, and each has its own name. BoxNT is great for coordination in families and small companies.
how to join a box
After you sign in for the first time, you may not be in any boxes. If you are not in any boxes, you will see the
Enter a box button - click it. If you are already in a box, right click in blank space and then click
Join Another Box. In the
Enter Box dialog box, type the name and password of the Box you wish to join.
How to create a box
Creating a box is essentially the same process as joining a box. If you type a name for which no box exists, the Box will be created and you will have set the password. You may then invite others to your box. Those who do not know the password you set will not be able to join your box or see the bullets you post.
How to leave a box
View the Box you wish to leave. Right click in empty space, and then click
Leave Box.
About being in multiple boxes
You may only view one box at a time. You'll know what box you are looking at by it's name, which is displayed in the lower-right hand corner. If you are in multiple boxes and wish to view another box, click the name in the lower-right hand corner, or hold the 'a' key. Tabs will appear above, allowing you to another box to view. Click a box's tab, and you will see the bullets in that box. If someone adds or edits a bullet in a box to which you are joined but are not currently looking at, the tabs will appear and asterisks will show next to the name of the Box in which activity occurred.
How to add a bullet
Double click in blank space in the Box. Type a message where a textbox appears. Then, click in blank space again or hit the Enter key twice.
Whenever you add a bullet, the Box comes application comes to the front of everybody's screen, unless the Box already came to the front of their screen within the last 3 minutes. If you want to bring more attention to your bullets than this, then you can ring the bell. See
About ringing the bell.
How to edit a bullet
You may only edit your own bullets. Double click on the bullet to edit it. Then, click in blank space in the Box or hit the Enter key twice.
Whenever you edit a bullet, the Box comes application comes to the front of everybody's screen, unless the Box already came to the front of their screen within the last 3 minutes. If you want to bring more attention to your bullets than this, then you can ring the bell. See
About ringing the bell.
How to delete a bullet
Anyone can delete any bullets in their boxes. To delete a bullet, right click the bullet and click
Delete Bullet.
How to send an IM (instant message)
To send an IM, double click the name of the person to which you wish to send a message. You may only send a message to people in one of your boxes
that are online. In the window that appears, type a message in the blue textbox under the gray bar, and then press
Enter on the keyboard. There is no 'send' button. You can also right click on the Box and click "Send an IM...". If you double click on a bullet that you didn't write, an IM window will appear if they are still online.
How to clear IM history
In an IM window, right click in the black textbox (the IM history) and then click
Clear. This only clears the text on your screen. Additionally, IM logs are maintained online and cannot be cleared for security reasons.
IM logs
Note: IM logs are temporarily unavailable to BoxNT users. All IM and box/bullet history is stored online and cannot be deleted. Our staff will not read your conversations unless required for legal purposes. If you wish to use BoxNT to coordinate criminal activity, please don't get us involved. Use AIM instead.
About ringing the bell
You may ring the bell in a box by selecting the Box in which you wish to ring the bell (see
About being in multiple boxes), right clicking in the Box and then clicking
Ring Bell in Box.... This makes an obnoxious sound and brings the Box to the front of everyone's screen while flashing it red and white for a few seconds.
How to display the About dialog box
Right click the Box and click
Disconnect if you are connected. Then, right click the Box again and click
About. Your version of BoxNT is displayed here.
How to disconnect
Right click BoxNT and then click
Disconnect. Do not read the prompt that appears. Click Yes.
How to close BoxNT
It is recommended that you only hide BoxNT. To hide BoxNT, right click the Box and click
Ttyl To App (Put In Tray).
TTYL stands for
talk to you later. If you wish to disconnect and close out of the Box entirely, go to the Box and press Alt+F4. Pressing Alt+F4 will close any window that has focus. Alternatively, you can right click in the AA icon in the tray, and then click
Gtg To App.
How to change box colors and appearance
Right click BoxNT, and then click
Settings. Click the
Appearance tab.
How to and how not to start BoxNT with Windows
Right click BoxNT, and then click
Settings. Check or uncheck
Start automatically when I log on to Windows.
About
BoxNT was developed by Alexander Joseph Taylor of the alex's applications Corporation. He spent about 40 hours so far on the box, again. This box is newer and better than version 1, and it was written from scratch. It's a C#.net program, made in Visual Studio 2008. (Version 1 was Visual Basic, which is why he (I) had to start over.)