RegexMagic’s interface is completely modular. The application consists of nine panels. You can freely arrange all nine panels to best suit the way you like to work with RegexMagic. You can even hide the ones you don’t use.
You can activate each of the panels through the View menu, whether you closed the panel or not. You can access the View menu through the View toolbar button on the toolbar at the top. If you closed the Assistant panel, you can access its toolbar buttons, including the View menu, by right-clicking on the tab or caption of any of the panels in RegexMagic.
If you like to keep your hands on the keyboard, you can press Alt+1 through Alt+9 to move keyboard focus to each of the nine panels. If the panel wasn’t visible, it will be shown. The View menu reminds you of the number of each panel.
The default layout is optimized for a computer with a single monitor that has an average screen resolution. If your computer has a single large resolution monitor, you can make use of the additional space by docking side-by-side some of the panels that are tabbed by default. If your computer has more than one monitor, take advantage of both monitors by making one or more panels float. Then drag the floating panels off to the second monitor.
To move a panel, use the mouse to drag and drop its caption bar (for a panel docked to the side, or a floating panel) or its tab (for a tabbed panel). While you drag the panel, a thick gray rectangle moves around while you move the mouse. This rectangle indicates the position and size the panel will occupy if you were to release the mouse button.
To dock a panel to the side, move the mouse pointer near the edge while dragging the panel. You can dock panels to the side of the entire RegexMagic window. You can also dock panels to the side of other panels, and even to the side of a panel that is inside a tab. While dragging a panel, moving the mouse pointer a few pixels closer to or away from the edge of RegexMagic’s window makes the difference between docking the panel to the side of RegexMagic itself, or to the side of the panel that touches that edge of RegexMagic’s window.
To arrange two panels inside a tabbed container, drag one panel and move the mouse pointer to the center of the other panel. The gray rectangle’s shape will change slightly, showing an extension at the top that looks like an invisible tab.
To make a panel float freely, drag it away from RegexMagic or simply double-click its caption or tab. Floating a panel is very useful if your computer has more than one monitor. Move the floating panel to your second monitor to take full advantage of your multi-monitor system. If you drag a second panel onto the floating panel, you can dock both panels together in a single floating container. This way you can conveniently display several panels on the second monitor.
Show the RegexMagic Assistant. In the default view, the RegexMagic Assistant is visible along the right hand side of the RegexMagic window. The assistant displays helpful hints as well as error messages while you work with RegexMagic.
Show the Samples panel, where you provide sample text to base your regular expression on, and to set the regular expression against. In the default view, the Samples panel shares the top left tab with the Match and Action panels.
Show the Match panel, where you tell RegexMagic which parts of the text you want your regular expression to match, and what that text should look like or which patterns that text should fit. In the default view, the Match panel shares the top left tab with the Samples and Action panels. Depending on which panel you last used, that tab will say “Samples, Match” or “Samples, Action”. Click that tab, and then on the Match tab inside it, to activate the Match panel in the default layout.
Show the Action panel, where you tell RegexMagic which action you plan to take with your regular expression. You can collect parts of the text matched by the regular expression, or replace them with different parts or with new text. The settings on the Action panel determine the replacement text that is generated, if any. In the default view, the Action panel shares the top left tab with the Samples and Match panels. Depending on which panel you last used, that tab will say “Samples, Match” or “Samples, Action”. Click that tab, and then on the Action tab inside it, to activate the Action panel in the default layout.
Show the Regex panel, where you have RegexMagic generate your regular expression, according to your specifications on the Match and Action panels. In the default view, the Regex panel is docked together under a tab with the Use panel. Click the “Regex, Use” tab near the top of the RegexMagic window to activate the Regex panel.
Show the Use panel, where you can generate a source code snippet in your favorite programming language to perform a task of your choice with the regular expression generated by RegexMagic. In the default view, the Use panel is docked together under a tab with the Regex panel. Click the “Regex, Use” tab near the top of the RegexMagic window to activate the Use panel.
Show the Library panel, where you can store your RegexMagic formulas for later reuse. A RegexMagic formula consists of everything you specify on the Samples, Match, and Action panels. That is everything RegexMagic needs to generate your regular expression and replacement text. In the default view, you can access the Library panel by clicking on the Library tab near the top of the RegexMagic window.
Show the GREP panel, where you can search (and replace) through large numbers of files and folders using the regular expression that RegexMagic generated. In the default view, you can access the GREP panel by clicking on the GREP tab near the top of the RegexMagic window.
Show the Forum panel, where you can share your experiences with other RegexMagic users, and get help. In the default view, you can access the Forum panel by clicking on the Forum tab near the top of the RegexMagic window.
If you have a high resolution monitor, the icons on RegexMagic’s various toolbars may be too small to discern properly. Select Large Toolbar Icons in the View menu to make them 50% larger. Select the same command to restore the toolbar icons to their default size.
If you find RegexMagic’s looks a bit bland, select Office 2003 Display Style from the View menu to make RegexMagic mimic the looks of Microsoft Office 2003. This will make RegexMagic rather colorful. Select the item again to restore the default looks. On Windows XP, the default looks will use the Windows XP theme you selected in your computer’s display settings.
Use the Restore Default Layout item in the View menu to quickly reset the RegexMagic window to its default layout, with the Assistant docked to the right, and one row of tabs at the top. The first tab docks the Samples, Match, and Action panels. The second tab docks the Regex and Use panels. The other panels each have a tab of their own.
This layout keeps each panel sufficiently large to be workable on a computer with a single medium resolution monitor.
The side by side layout docks the Samples panel at the top, and the Regex and Assistant panels at the right hand side. These three panels are permanently visible. The other panels are arranged in a row of tabs below the Samples panel. The Match and Action panels are docked side by side under the first tab, while the other panels all have tabs of their own.
If you have a large resolution wide screen monitor, use this layout to work more comfortably by keeping the most commonly used panels permanently visible.
This option is only available if your computer has more than one monitor. Use this layout if your computer has two average resolution monitors to take advantage of the second monitor. RegexMagic’s main window has the Samples panel at the top, and the Regex and Assistant panels at the right hand side. These three panels are permanently visible. The Match and Action panels are tabbed together in the remaining corner.
The floating window on the second monitor shows one row of tabs. The first tab docks the Regex and Use panels together. The other panels each have a tab of their own. It arranges the Action, Library and Undo History panel in tabs, with the File Selector and Assistant docked to the left and the bottom.
This option is only available if your computer has more than one monitor. Use this layout if your computer has two high resolution wide screen monitors to put your computer’s screen size to maximum use. It arranges the Samples, Assistant, Match, and Action panels side by side in RegexMagic’s main window. Those four panels are permanently visible. The floating window on the second monitor has the Regex panel permanently visible in the top left corner. The bottom left corner has two tabs for the Use and GREP panels, and the right hand side has two tabs for the Library and Forum panels.