MouScroll - use your middle mouse button to scroll!

What is MouScroll?

MouScroll is a tool which allows scrolling (almost) any scrollable window just by holding down the middle mouse button anywhere on the window's surface and moving the mouse. The current version also includes FastAction™, which enables you to close a window with a simple double-click of the middle mouse button.

Agreement / Disclaimer

I think that small but useful utilities like this one should really be free. MouScroll is copyrighted, but you are encouraged to make copies for others as long as no fee is charged for it, the software is not altered, and MouScroll is not distributed as part of another system. In no event shall the author of MouScroll be liable for any damages whatsoever arising out of the use of or inability to use this free software.

If you don't agree to these terms, you are not allowed to use or distribute MouScroll!

Installation

To uninstall MouScroll: Exit the program, delete the program files, remove the Start Menu entry and delete MOUSCR.INI in your Windows directory. MouScroll does not write anything to the Registry (which it probably should do instead of cluttering your Windows directory with another INI file) or to your Windows System directory (which really no program should do).

How to use

To configure MouScroll, click its taskbar button. If you started MouScroll with the /HIDE parameter, just start it again to make it visible.

To scroll a window, move the mouse pointer anywhere on a scrollable window, hold down the mouse button you defined for scrolling and move the mouse in the direction to scroll.

To close a window, move the mouse pointer anywhere on the window and double-click the mouse button you defined for scrolling.

To quit MouScroll, right-click its taskbar button and choose Close. Or open the configuration dialog and choose Exit.

Known problems

Some applications (Winword and some others) do not use regular scrollable windows and don't react on MouScroll's 'faked' scroll messages.

Sometimes the timer-controlled scrolling continues after you release the mouse button. Just click it again to stop scrolling. (If you can help me with this, write me.)

Feedback

This program is dedicated to all programmers who write free programs, and to all users who like small, but useful utilities.

If you have any questions or suggestions, contact me:
Thomas Hattinger
Internet E-mail: that@chello.at
WWW: http://that.at/

Version

Current version: MouScroll 1.11, 2001-10-29

Version History

V0.50 (1996-09-16) - First experiments

V0.60 (1996-09-26) - Added config dialog, made Win16 version

V0.80 (1996-10-17) - Added timer scrolling mode

V0.90 (1996-11-11) - Made timer handling Win16 compatible

V0.91 (not released) - Added online help

V0.92 (not released) - Added /HIDE command line option

V0.93 (1997-02-07) - Added check for Winword's dialogs to prevent crashing

V0.94 (1997-04-06) - Added proper handling of scrollbar controls
MouScroll now works well with Winword dialog boxes.
Winword document windows still refuse to scroll. :-(
I experimented with emulating the scrollbar "thumb" instead of the scroll arrows to achieve smoother scrolling for some programs, but it didn't work right, so I had to remove it again.

V0.99 (1998-10-31) - Added FastClose™, Hide and Exit buttons
Converted Online Help to HTML
Updated e-mail and WWW links
Dropped support for Win16
Updated icon

V1.00 (1998-11-01) - Released V0.99 as Release Candidate 1
Made WWW address in dialog clickable

V1.01 (1998-11-14) - Enhanced FastClose to FastAction™
Increased timer speed

V1.02 (1999-02-10) - Act on WS_POPUP windows without system menu

V1.10 (1999-05-30) - Added AutoCopy feature

V1.11 (2001-10-29) - Fixed a minor bug, updated contact info


Configuration

The configuration dialog allows extensive customization of MouScroll to your personal preferences. To open the configuration dialog, click the MouScroll button in the taskbar. If you started MouScroll in hidden mode (with /HIDE), starting it again will make it visible.

Options:

Mouse button

Choose the mouse button you want to use for scrolling. If you only have a two-button mouse, you can use the right button to scroll.

Note: This will interfere with many applications' context menu handling and with the right-mouse-button-dragging, but it works well in the old Windows Help application, File Manager, Lotus Notes 3 and many other applications which don't use the right mouse button.

Scroll direction

Choose Normal to scroll in the direction you move the mouse.

Choose Inverted to move the window's contents in the direction you move the mouse. (I personally think this is more intuitive and, thus, this is the default.)

Control

Direct response means your mouse movement is directly translated to scrolling. If you stop moving the mouse, scrolling stops, too. This somehow works like dragging the scroll box in the scroll bars.

Timer controlled works with a timer, like clicking the scroll bar arrows. Scrolling will continue while you hold down the mouse button until you release it. If you move the mouse in another direction from the starting point while still holding down the 'scroll' button, the scrolling direction changes accordingly.

Tolerance

This is the number of pixels you can move the mouse with the 'scroll' button held down until scrolling begins. Choose or enter a smaller number for higher sensitivity.

In timer mode, the scrolling speed is calculated from this setting and from the distance you move the mouse away from the point where you pressed the 'scroll' button.

FastAction

Choose an action to perform when you double-click the 'scroll' button.

If you select the checkbox Copy window text to clipboard on single-click, the window text of the current control is copied to the clipboard if you click the 'scroll' button without moving the mouse. Note this does not work in all cases and only with standard Windows controls (technical: Everything that works with GetWindowText).

To save the settings:

Choose OK. All options are saved to the file MOUSCR.INI in your Windows directory.

To discard all changes:

Choose Cancel.

To hide the MouScroll taskbar button:

Choose Hide. Run the program again to unhide.

To quit the MouScroll program:

Choose Exit.