This is the PDS*BASE Data Base System  
to create relational data base files   
and programs.  This "Shareware" type   
software is Copyright 1987 by PRO DEV  
Software. If you find this program     
useful,  it is requested that you      
Send a registration of $40.00 USA to:  
                                       
   PRO DEV Software                    
   545 Grover Road                     
   Muskegon, Michigan 49442            
                                       
You will be placed on our mailing list 
for software update notices and        
notices of other PRO DEV Software.     
                                       
The next screen is the Help Menu.      
          Main Help Menu               
 A = Set Your Hardware Defaults        
 B = Define A New Data Base            
 C = Create Blank Data Base Files      
 D = Print Your Data Base Definition   
 E = Generate Posting Program          
 F = Generate Report Program           
 G = Generate Sort Program             
 H = Generate Utility Program-Fix Files
 I = Do Your Own Thing Programming     
 J = Load Existing Definition File     
 K = Modify Existing Definition File   
 L = Define Report Program             
 M = Modify Report Program             
 N = Print Instructions & Other Stuff  
                                       
           Create Sub-Menu             
                                       
After you have established the hardware
defaults with the Set-Up sub-menu, you 
are ready to define your data base.    
                                       
The "Define Data Base" sub-menu will   
allow you to define the file and field 
names in your data base. You can have  
from 1 up to 10 inter-related files in 
a data base. Each file can have up to  
40 fields. The PDS*BASE Data Base      
system will automatically create       
relationships between a file and 1 or  
more related files.                    
                                       
                                       
Highlight the "Define Data Base" sub-  
menu selection with the up or down     
arrow cursor keys and press Enter to   
select. You will then see the screen   
for defining the file and field names. 
                                       
The first thing you are asked, is to   
give your data base a name. This 8     
character name will have ".DEF" added  
as the file name extender. This file   
will contain all of the information    
about each file in your data base. If  
you have a single file data base, then 
it will contain the file name and field
information about that single file.    
                                       
You can have up to 10 stand-alone or   
inter-related files in a single        
definition. The term "inter-related"   
means a "Master" to "Detail" file type 
of relationship. Section 1.4 of the    
manual describes this hierarchal file  
structure in gory detail.              
                                       
Next, you fill in the name of each file
in your data base. The first file is   
always a "Master" file - it has one    
field used for quick random access. If 
there are "Detail" or transaction type 
files associated with the "Master" file
you enter the quantity of "Detail" type
files for this "Master" file. After the
number of the maximum possible records 
is entered for this file, you are asked
for the name and information about the 
next file.                             
                                       
To define the field information for a  
file, highlight the file name with the 
cursor keys and press F4. Fill in the  
information about each field. Press F3 
to return to the file name side of the 
screen, highlight the next file name   
with the cursor keys and press F4 to   
define the fields for the next file.   
                                       
Press F2 when you are finished defining
your data base. This will save the .DEF
file. Please note that all F key       
instructions are shown on the screen.  
                                       
The "Blank Data Base" sub-menu will    
create the blank data base files after 
you have defined your data base. It is 
necessary to create the blank files    
BEFORE they are used. This is to set up
the record pointers used to establish  
the automatic file relationships.      
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select. You    
will be asked several questions before 
the blank files are written to either  
the floppy disks or to your hard disk. 
                                       
The "Print Definition" sub-menu is so  
you can retain a printed copy of the   
data  base  that  you  have  defined.  
This printed record is necessary to    
allow you to Define Reports. The       
reports are defined by file and field  
numbers and the file and field numbers 
are shown on the printed definition.   
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select.        
                                       
The "Posting Program" sub-menu allows  
you to create a stand alone BASIC      
language program to add, modify or     
delete records in the data base files. 
The generated program can be run       
without the PDS*BASE System disk.      
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select.        
                                       
The "Sort Program" sub-menu is so you  
can generate a stand alone program to  
create special multi-field sorts for   
your report programs. The generated    
program is written in BASIC.           
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select.        
                                       
The "Do Your Own Thing" sub-menu will  
generate just the "front end" of a     
BASIC language program. You write the  
"main" part of the program. The front  
end contains all of the sub-routines   
that read and write the actual data    
base records. You should understand    
Section 7 of the manual before using   
this sub-menu.                         
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select.        
                                       
The "Utility Program" sub-menu creates 
a stand alone BASIC language program to
fix file pointer errors that may occur 
do to power outages, "cock-pit" errors,
etc. A seldom used powerful utility.   
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select.        
                                       
The unique feature of the PDS*BASE Data
Base system is that it writes BASIC    
language programs for you. These BASIC 
programs can then be run by someone who
does not have the PDS*BASE system disk.
           Modify Sub-Menu             
                                       
The "Load .DEF File" sub-menu selection
will allow you to load an existing data
base DEFinition file. All definition   
file names end with a ".DEF" extender. 
After you highlight this sub-menu with 
the cursor keys, press Enter to select.
                                       
Definition files are originally created
with the "Define Data Base" selection  
on the "Create" sub-menu.              
                                       
It is necessary to "Load .DEF File"    
before you can use the "Report" sub-   
menu, or use the "Create" sub-menu     
selections other than the "Define Data 
Base" selection, to generate programs  
or reprint the Definition File.        
                                       
The "Modify .DEF File" sub-menu will   
allow you to modify the files and      
fields in an existing Definition File. 
                                       
Highlight this sub-menu with the cursor
keys and press Enter to select. All of 
the existing .DEF file names are shown.
                                       
You use the cursor keys to highlight   
the desired Definition File name and   
then press Return (or Enter). The .DEF 
file is loaded and you see the "Define 
Data Base" screen for that definition. 
                                       
You can rename the Definition File,    
Data Base file names and modify fields.
If you are modifying the Definition    
File for a "live" data base that       
contains actual data, you will need a  
program on the disk that you will be   
sent when you register your copy of the
PDS*BASE Data Base system, to re-build 
or restructure your live file. Don't   
get mad at me if you didn't structure  
it right the first time. I need some-  
thing to get the "closet" users to send
the author money. You have a full      
manual and no features of this program 
are disabled in the unregistered copy. 
This is more than some Shareware data  
base systems. Please register. Thanks!!
         Reports Sub-Menu              
                                       
BEFORE you use this sub-menu, we have  
to know what data base Definition File 
should be used. If you have already    
been working on a Definition File, that
file is assumed. If you just started   
the PDSBASE.EXE program, select the    
"Load .DEF File" option on the "Modify"
sub-menu to load an existing Definition
File for a data base.                  
                                       
The "Define Report" sub-menu option is 
selected by highlighting the sub-menu  
with the cursor keys. Press Enter to   
allow you to define a new Report       
Definition File (these files have an   
.RDF file name extender). You will see 
the Report Definition screen.          
                                       
The first thing you do is to enter the 
optional report title. Then you will be
asked for the File and Field numbers   
for each column on the report. This is 
where you will need the printed data   
base definition file listing. If you   
can't locate the definition listing,   
print a new one with the "Create" sub- 
menu "Print Definition" option.        
                                       
The "Define Report" option keeps track 
of the columns used by each field. When
the default number of columns is       
reached, a second line of column head- 
ings will be started. Only 2 lines of  
column headings are allowed. If you    
plan to use compressed print or a wide 
carriage printer, you can change the   
default number of columns with the     
"Report" sub-menu option "Report Width 
In Cols.". You should do this BEFORE   
you attempt to define a report that    
will exceed 80 columns.                
                                       
Pressing the F2 key will save the      
Report Definition File.                
                                       
The "Modify Report" sub-menu will allow
you to redefine a Report Program. High-
light this sub-menu with the cursor    
keys and press Enter to select. You    
will be asked for the Report Definition
File name. The existing .RDF files are 
shown. You just highlight the desired  
file with the cursor keys and press    
Enter. You will see the Report         
Definition screen.                     
                                       
After you are done modifying the report
press F2 to save the .RDF file.        
                                       
The "Generate Report Prog." sub-menu   
option will create a stand alone BASIC 
language program to write your report. 
This BASIC program can be run without  
the PDS*BASE system disk. You need to  
own BASIC, BASICA or GWBASIC. Highlight
with the cursor keys and press Enter to
select. After you answer several       
questions, the BASIC program will be   
written to disk.                       
                                       
The "Pica/Compressed (P/C)" sub-menu   
option allows wider reports to be      
written. Check your printer manual for 
the number of columns in the compressed
print mode. It typically runs about 17 
characters to the inch as compared to  
10 characters to the inch for Pica.    
The "Report Width In Cols." sub-menu   
option allows you to specify the column
width for a report taking into account 
the Pica/Compressed setting and the    
physical width of the paper in the     
printer when the report is printed.    
                                       
The "Report Width In Cols." sub-menu is
selected by highlighting it with the   
cursor keys and pressing Enter. The    
default value is 80 columns for 8 1/2  
inch wide paper with the 10 characters 
per inch Pica type style.              
                                       
If you have specified Compressed print,
then you can print about 132 characters
on an 8 1/2 inch wide page. The 132    
assumes 17 characters per inch for     
compressed print. Check your printer   
manual for the CPI for your printer.   
                                       
If you have a wide carriage printer,   
you can get more width in characters   
depending on Pica or Compressed and the
width of the paper.                    
                                       
Be sure to specify the Report Width In 
Columns BEFORE you Define or Modify the
report program.                        
           Set-Up Sub-Menu             
                                       
Define your hardware defaults FIRST    
before you use the PDS*BASE Data Base  
system any further. Use the "Save New  
Set-Up Values" sub-menu option so you  
won't have to do this again.           
                                       
The "Color Graphics Adapter" sub-menu  
option allows you to let this program  
know if you have a Color Graphics      
Adapter (CGA) card. If you do, high-   
light this option, press Return to     
select the option and press the Y key. 
                                       
You may have a CGA card and a single   
color monitor - still press the Y key  
so this program will know how to show  
the cursor. If you have an EGA card,   
press the Y key.                       
                                       
If you do not have a CGA or EGA card,  
press the N key.                       
                                       
The "Color Monitor" sub-menu option    
allows you to indicate if you have a   
color monitor. Highlight this sub-menu 
option, press Return to select and     
press the Y key to indicate color. If  
you have a single color monitor (amber 
or green, etc.) press the N key.       
                                       
If you obtained this PDS*BASE disk from
someone else who had already set the   
default options, the following 3 option
values could show confusing defaults.  
You may wish to ERASE PDSBASE.CFG at   
the DOS prompt to delete the previous  
default configuration file.            
                                       
The "Drive A: Num of Bytes" sub-menu   
option is so this program knows what   
kind of disk drive you have. Highlight 
this sub-menu option with the cursor   
keys and press Return. Type in the     
number of bytes and press Return.      
                                       
If you don't know how many bytes your  
disk drive will contain, FORMAT a fresh
disk in that drive. Consult your DOS   
manual for how to format a disk. When  
the FORMAT program is finished, you    
will see the number of bytes free.     
                                       
The "Drive B: Num of Bytes" sub-menu   
option is so this program knows what   
kind of disk drive you have. Highlight 
this sub-menu option with the cursor   
keys and press Return. Type in the     
number of bytes and press Return.      
                                       
The "Is Hard Disk Present" sub-menu    
option will show a default of "Y" if   
you do have a hard disk (assuming that 
the PDSBASE.CFG file was created on    
your computer). You may wish to change 
the default to N if you are preparing  
data base systems to run on non-hard   
disk computers for someone else.       
                                       
To change the default, highlight the   
sub-menu option with the cursor keys   
and press Return to select this sub-   
menu option. Then press the Y or N key.
                                       
The "Printer Action Table" sub-menu    
option is so you can tell this program 
what printer you have. If you highlight
this sub-menu option with the cursor   
keys and press Return, you will see the
list of available .PAT files. Again,   
use the cursor keys to select your     
printer and then press Return.         
                                       
If you don't see your printer name, see
Appendix D of the PDS*BASE Instruction 
Manual for how you can create a new PAT
file for your printer. If you are      
creating BASIC programs for someone    
else, select the .PAT file for their   
printer. Be sure to select yours if you
are going to print the PDS*BASE Manual 
or BASIC Primer.                       
                                       
The "Work Files Drive & Path" sub-menu 
is selected by highlighting it with the
cursor keys and pressing Return.       
                                       
If you have a 2 floppy disk drive      
computer, type "B:\"  (without the     
quotes) and press Return. If you have a
hard disk, you may desire to have the  
data base, definition and BASIC program
files in a sub-directory different from
the DOS default sub-directory where the
PDS*BASE system files are located.     
                                       
Enter the full drive and path with a   
trailing back slash and press Return.  
                                       
The "Save New Set-Up Values" option    
is so you don't have to provide the    
options every time you run the PDSBASE 
program. After entering your defaults, 
highlight this sub-menu option with the
cursor keys and press Return, Then,    
press the Y key. The new defaults will 
be saved to a file named PDSBASE.CFG.  
                                       
This file is read by the PDSBASE.EXE   
program when it is run.                
            Tools Sub-Menu             
                                       
This sub-menu gives you several handy  
options to organize your disks and to  
print the PDS*BASE documentation. If   
you need to copy or move files while in
this program, I recommend that you     
obtain and register a copy of the      
Shareware "FileFriend" memory resident 
utility. Most Shareware distributors   
and many bulletin boards carry the     
ColePro FileFriend system.             
                                       
The "Disk Directory" sub-menu will show
you the names of the files on any drive
on your system. Highlight this sub-menu
with the cursor keys and press Return. 
You will be asked for the letter of the
desired drive. The current DOS default 
drive will be shown. Press Return for  
the default or press the desired drive 
letter key.                            
                                       
WARNING - This option works best if the
DOS COMMAND.COM file is present. If you
do not have a hard disk, try to have   
the COMMAND.COM file on the disk in    
drive A. Don't panic if you do not have
COMMAND.COM on the disk, the file names
may scroll off the screen if the quan- 
tity of files is large.                
                                       
The "Disk Free Space" sub-menu is handy
if you are planning to create a new    
data base or report definition file.   
You can highlight this selection with  
the cursor keys and press Return. If   
the number of bytes is low, you may    
wish to use another disk before you    
create a new file.                     
                                       
You will be asked for the letter of the
desired drive. The current DOS default 
drive will be shown. Press Return for  
the default or press the desired drive 
letter key to see the bytes free.      
                                       
The "Delete File" sub-menu option will 
be selected when you highlight the sub-
menu with the cursor keys and press    
Return. Type the full file name, with  
drive letter, colon (and path if the   
file is in another sub-directory) and  
press Enter. You will be asked to      
confirm the deletion.                  
                                       
The "Rename File" sub-menu option is   
selected by highlighting it with the   
cursor keys and pressing Return. Type  
the full file name, with drive letter, 
colon (and path if the file is in      
another sub-directory) and press Enter.
                                       
You will then be asked for the new file
name for the selected file.            
                                       
The "Print PDS Manual" sub-menu is     
selected by highlighting it with the   
cursor keys and pressing Return. This  
is better than using the DOS command   
COPY PDSBASE.DOC PRN as this sub-menu  
option adds 7 spaces as a left margin. 
If you have previously specified a     
default Printer Action Table that has a
Near Letter Quality value, you will be 
asked if you wish to print Near Letter 
Quality. Answer Y for NLQ. This slows  
down most printers, but you really     
should do the best job possible when   
printing my beautiful manual. (Don't   
get sick). Press N for draft quality.  
                                       
During the printing, you can press the 
Esc key to stop printing. You will want
to stop the printing after the first   
page is printed. This is the form that 
you will rapidly fill out, place in an 
envelope, along with a check for $40,  
address to Pro Dev Software and rush   
to the Post Office. After that, you can
start the printing again to print the  
remainder of the manual. (Don't forget 
the stamp on the envelope).            
                                       
The "Print BASIC Primer" sub-menu is   
selected by highlighting it with the   
cursor keys and pressing Enter. This   
is better than using the DOS command   
COPY PRIMER.DOC PRN as this sub-menu   
option adds 7 spaces as a left margin. 
                                       
If you have previously specified a     
default Printer Action Table that has a
Near Letter Quality value, you will be 
asked if you wish to print Near Letter 
Quality. Answer Y for NLQ. This slows  
down most printers, but you really     
should do the best job possible when   
printing my informative Primer. (Don't 
quit now). Press N for draft quality.  
                                       
The BASIC Primer is for those of you   
that wish to learn the basics of the   
BASIC language (pun intended). It takes
you from scratch and brings you up to  
everything you need to write your own  
"Main Programs" for the PDS*BASE Data  
Base System. This alone is worth the   
registration fee. Please register!!!!!!
                                       
During the printing, you can press the 
Esc key to stop printing.              
                                       
The "Print ASCII File" sub-menu (select
with cursor keys and press Enter) will 
allow you to print any ASCII or text   
type of file. You will be asked for the
full path and file name. If you wished 
to print (for example) a file you have 
created named TERRFIC.PDS on the B disk
drive, type B:TERRFIC.PDS and press    
Return. Press Esc to stop printing.    
             Quit Sub-Menu             
                                       
I don't know why you would wish to quit
this wonderful program and return to   
the DOS prompt, but I guess that you   
need to eat and do other IMPORTANT     
things. Fortunately, the first sub-menu
option is "No" so that you can think   
twice about leaving this masterpiece.  
                                       
Highlight "Yes" with the down arrow and
(sob) press Enter. Watch out - A big   
"Gotchya" is coming. You "closet" users
will be REMINDED that you really should
register your copy of the PDS*BASE Data
Base system (that means SEND ME MONEY).
When you register, I will tell you how 
to avoid the "Gotchya" screen.         
                                       
When you register, you will be sent the
latest version of the PDS*BASE system  
disks. As an incentive to register, the
registered programs do NOT require     
the random number on the opening       
copyright screens.  Further, you will  
be told the key sequence to skip the   
closing registration screen.           
                                       
This unusual data base system is rare  
in that it generates programs for you. 
It is also unusual in that it handles  
multi-file random access files.        
                                       
                                       
                                       
    If you haven't registered yet      
                                       
  ***** PLEASE REGISTER NOW !! *****   
       The Definition File Name        
                                       
Unlike many other data base systems,   
that keep the information about the    
fields in a file in the header record  
in each file, the PDS*BASE Data Base   
system keeps all file and field infor- 
mation in a Definition file; separate  
from each data file.                   
                                       
This is what gives you the power to    
automatically relate fields in one file
with records in another file. This     
DEFinition file will contain all of the
field and automatic file relationships 
for up to 10 related files. It may have
information on just one or two files if
you have only one or two files.        
                                       
Enter up to 8 characters (letters or   
numbers). The PDS*BASE system will add 
the DEF file name extender. Before you 
use any other characters for a file    
name than letters and/or numbers, check
your DOS manual for legal characters to
use in a file name. Weird charcaters   
can cause the dreaded illness of       
"Crash!". In other words, this program 
will die and you will see one of those 
cryptic error messages.                
                                       
If you are modifying a previous DEF    
file, you can give the Definition File 
a new name. This is if you got to this 
point when you used the "Modify" sub-  
menu selection to "Modify .DEF File"   
and you have selected an existing DEF  
file name.                             
You selected to Define a new data base 
DEFinition file, but you didn't define 
any file names or field information for
the DEFinition file. You can try again,
if you wish.                           
You entered a data file name on the    
left side if the Definition screen, but
you didn't define any fields for that  
file. Highlight that file name with the
up or down arrow and press F4 to fill  
in the information on the fields for   
that file.                             
You have been modifying a DEFinition   
file. You pressed F2 to save the       
reDEFinition. Since that DEFinition    
file name already exists on the disk,  
you were asked if you wished to over-  
write the existing file.               
                                       
You answered "N". Thus, you can now    
over type the present DEFinition file  
name with a different (new) name so    
that you will save the reDEFinition    
with the new name; thus, not over-     
writing the existing DEFinition file.  
You pressed Esc while on the file name 
side of the data base DEFinition       
screen. You may not wish to save this  
DEFinition or reDEFinition.            
                                       
If you actually wish to save the DEF   
file, answer Y. If you wish to further 
add to or modify the DEFinition, you   
can select the "Modify DEF File" sub-  
menu - thus, answer Y. If you really   
wish to dump your work on this         
DEFinition, then answer N.             
If you wish to save the DEFinition file
to a different disk, you can change    
disks now. BE SURE that the new disk is
already formatted or this program will 
crash.                                 
A DEFinition file with the same name   
already exists on the disk. If you     
answer Y, the previous version of the  
DEFinition file with this name will be 
overwritten.                           
                                       
If you answer N, you will be given an  
opportunity to change the name of the  
DEFinition file.                       
You really should print the Definition 
listing. This will give you a ready    
reference that you will need when you  
are defining a Report program. It will 
also give you warning messages if you  
have more than 3 files and/or more than
128 characters in any of your data base
files. The BASIC default is a maximum  
of 128 characters. This can easily be  
expanded if you follow the warning     
messages in this print out.  The DOS   
default for the number of files can    
also be changed.                       
You are about to have the PDS*BASE Data
Base system write a BASIC language     
program for you. It will be tailored to
the data base that you have defined.   
                                       
Use up to 8 letters and/or numbers to  
make up your program name. Consult your
DOS manual for legal file name         
characters. If you use bad characters, 
this program will CRASH!               
                                       
If you wish to reuse one of the BASIC  
program names that may be shown        
presently on the screen, use the cursor
keys to highlight the existing file    
name and press Enter. If you do reuse  
a name already on the disk, you will be
asked if you wish to over write the    
existing file by that name.            
You used a BASIC program file name that
is the same as a file already on the   
disk. Thus, you are bring asked if you 
wish to overwrite that existing file.  
                                       
If you answer Y, the old file will be  
replaced with the new BASIC program. If
you answer N, the program writing will 
be aborted so that you have a chance to
use a different file name.             
This program tried to find the file    
named DBMANAGE.SRC in the DOS default  
drive. You will have to end this       
program and at the DOS prompt, copy the
DBMANAGE.SRC file on to the disk. This 
file is on the PDS*BASE Data Base      
master disk when you received it.      
This program tried to find the file    
named DBSORT.SRC in the DOS default    
drive. You will have to end this       
program and at the DOS prompt, copy the
DBSORT.SRC file on to the disk. This   
file is on the PDS*BASE Data Base      
master disk when you received it.      
This program tried to find the file    
named DBOPSUB.SRC in the DOS default   
drive. You will have to end this       
program and at the DOS prompt, copy the
DBOPSUB.SRC file on to the disk. This  
file is on the PDS*BASE Data Base      
master disk when you received it.      
This program tried to find the file    
named DBUTIL01.SRC in the DOS default  
drive. You will have to end this       
program and at the DOS prompt, copy the
DBUTIL01.SRC file on to the disk. This 
file is on the PDS*BASE Data Base      
master disk when you received it.      
You have entered the DEFinition file   
name. If it is on a different disk, you
have a chance to change disks now.     
The requested DEFinition file was not  
found on disk. You either entered an   
incorrect file name, or the file is on 
a different disk. Try again.           
What can I say further?, You can only  
press P to indicate Pica (10 CPI) type 
or C for compressed type. Many printers
give you about 17 CPI for compressed.  
Check your printer manual for actual   
Characters Per Inch.                   
You are being asked for the Report     
Definition File name. All of the Report
Definition File names have an extender 
of ".RDF". This file contains all of   
the information that allows the        
PDS*BASE Data Base system to write a   
BASIC program to print reports from    
your data base files.                  
The requested Report Definition file   
was not found on the disk. You entered 
the name incorrectly, or the file is on
some other disk.                       
You just loaded an existing Report DEF.
File that has a different value for    
Pica/Compressed than the current       
default value in the "Reports" submenu.
The RDF file will be changed to the    
current sub-menu default unless you    
change the default to match the RDF    
file value.                            
You just loaded an existing Report DEF.
File that has a different value for    
Width In Cols. than the current default
value in the "Reports" submenu. The RDF
file will be changed to the current    
sub-menu default unless you change the 
default to match the RDF file value.   
You just pressed Esc to abort defining 
a Report. If you did that by accident, 
you can press Y to go back to defining 
the report.                            
The Report Definition File you are     
about to save has the same name as a   
file already on the disk. If you press 
Y, the existing file will then be      
overwritten be the file you are about  
to save. Press N to not save the RDF.  
The Printer Action Table (PAT) file    
could not be found on the disk. Check  
the "Defaults" sub-menu entry for the  
PAT file and see if it is correct or if
it is on the disk.                     
                                       
If you are creating a Report program   
that requires compressed print, the    
value used (of ASCII code 15) may not  
be correct for your printer.           
                                       
If you are about to print one of the   
PDS*BASE Data Base instruction manuals,
it will not be possible to use Near    
Letter Quality printing.               
Try to fix the problem indicated by the
error message.                         
Enter the name of the data file. Use up
to 8 letters or numbers. Check your DOS
manual for other legal characters for  
use in file names. A file name extender
of ".DAT" will automatically be added  
to the 8 character file name.          
                                       
If you are ready to define fields for  
this file, press the F4 key.           
                                       
If you wish to insert a file name,     
press F5. If you wish to delete a file,
press F7.                              
                                       
If you are finished defining this data 
base, press the F2 key. If you wish to 
abort without saving the definition,   
then press the Esc key.                
Hey!! - You just pressed F6 to insert  
this file. Then, you have the audacity 
to try to leave this field name blank. 
                                       
Either fill in the file name and later 
define some fields for this file, or   
press F7 to delete this file.          
You can't use the F6 key to insert a   
Detail file. Use the up arrow cursor   
key to place the cursor on the Master  
file name, press Enter to position     
over the Detail Quantity field. Then   
increase the Detail quantity. This will
automatically insert the Detail file.  
You have gone to a lot of work to      
define fields for this file. Answer Y  
if you really want to dump those fields
down the bit bucket.                   
It would really play havoc if I let you
get away with having 2 files in a data 
base with the same file name. Try again
You have just entered a Master file    
name. A Master file will be such that  
any record can almost instantly be     
accessed via one of the fields.        
                                       
On the other hand, a Detail file is not
a random access file. One or more      
records in a Detail file are connected 
via automatic file record number       
pointers with one record in the Detail 
file's associated Master file. Section 
1.4 of the manual describes this       
relationship.                          
                                       
It is possible to have up to 9 Detail  
files associated with one Master file  
as long as the total number of both    
Master and Detail files does not       
exceed 10. Enter the number of Detail  
files associated with THIS Master file.
                                       
If this is a "Stand-Alone" Master file,
press Enter to leave the quantity of   
associated Detail files for this Master
at zero.                               
If you had checked this handy HELP     
screen before entering the number of   
Detail files for this Master, you would
have known that the total of both types
of files can NOT exceed 10.            
To delete a Detail file, move the      
cursor over the Detail file name and   
press the F7 key. This will lower the  
quantity of Detail files for this      
Master file.                           
One of the unique features of the      
PDS*BASE Data Base is that you will    
never get a "Disk full" error message. 
This is accomplished by pre-setting the
maximum number of records that can ever
be in this data file. For a Master file
this fixed maximum quantity allows     
almost instant random access without   
the need for index files.              
                                       
I recommend that you estimate the      
maximum number of possible records that
will be placed in this file, and add   
about 20% for a safety factor.         
                                       
You MUST enter a quantity greater than 
zero. Try again . . .                  
I had to stop somewhere. I also wished 
to stay with Integer variaables to     
save memory. Actually, if you enter    
32000, it can be automatically raised  
to the next higher prime number of     
32003. Try a lower quantity of records.
The "Hashing" type of fast random      
access, without separate index files,  
works most efficiently if the maximum  
number of records is a prime number.   
Answer Y (or just press Enter) to round
up to the next higher prime number.    
You can't insert another file if the   
maximum number of both Detail and      
Master files would exceed 10.          
Records in Detail files are chained to 
records in an associated Master file.  
Thus, you can't have Detail files with-
out an associated Master file to chain 
to. Place the cursor on each Detail    
file name for this Master and press F7.
Enter a unique (for this file) name for
this field. Any character is OK; even  
blanks (hear that dBASE ?). These names
will appear on the screen of the       
generated BASIC programs, so make the  
name descriptive.                      
                                       
Press F3 when done defining fields to  
return to the file name side of the    
screen.                                
What more can I say?                   
What gives??? You just pressed F6 to   
insert this field and now you don't    
want to give it a name. If you can't   
think of a name for this field, press  
F8 to get rid of it. (Some people's    
kids!).                                
When you plan to input data for this   
field into the data file, how many     
characters will be required; how "wide"
should the field be? If this is to be a
numeric field that will have a decimal 
point, allow a space for that decimal. 
If it is a Date field, allow 8 spaces. 
The BASIC language limits you to 254   
characters in a STRING variable. If you
compile the generated BASIC program,   
the limit is much higher. However, I   
haven't seen a screen that shows more  
than 132 characters and 80 is standard.
Press the space bar to toggle between  
Required and Optional. You can also    
press either R or O.                   
                                       
If a field is Required, the generated  
BASIC program to post records to your  
data files, will "insist" that a value 
be entered. A random access search     
field MUST be required.                
Here is where you define what kind of  
data will be put in this field.        
                                       
   C = Character or Alpha/Numeric      
         No math will be performed     
         on this field.                
                                       
   I = Integer - Numeric - Whole       
         numbers only - no decimal     
                                       
   R = Real numbers (with decimal      
         point)                        
                                       
   D = Date MM-DD-YY format            
                                       
Press the space bar to toggle between  
types or press the letter of the type. 
BASIC eventually runs out of STRING    
space. I had to stop somewhere. Thus,  
you are limited to 40 fields per file. 
The PDS*BASE system will not worry     
about space on the disk if the files   
are going to be placed on a hard disk. 
However, if you are creating a system  
that is to run on floppy disks, the    
system will attempt to fit the data    
files on the available floppy disk     
drives if you answer N.                
You have indicated that you will be    
running your application on a hard disk
computer. However, you may have more   
than 32 megabytes (thus, partitions    
with drive letters other than "C") or  
you will be on a Local Area Network    
where you could have any drive letter  
from A to Z. Enter the drive letter.   
Wow! - You have a large number of files
where the files are spread over 2 or   
drives. This has exceeded the DOS limit
of 15 file buffers. You really should  
get a hard disk. They don't cost that  
much nowadays. Sorry . . .             
Wow! - You have exceeded the available 
disk drive capacity for the files you  
have specified. I suggest either you   
define smaller files or get a hard disk
drive. They don't cost that much now.  
You have a small system, file wise,    
where you may be able to fit the files 
and the generated programs all on a    
single drive. Thus, you may wish to    
enter "A" to run entirely on drive A:. 
This is just a copy of the actual .DEF 
file. You can get the same print out by
issuing the following at the DOS prompt
                                       
   COPY filename.DEF PRN               
It looks like you renamed a DEFinition 
file from the DOS prompt. The first    
line in the DEF file has the name of   
DEF file when it was first created. If 
You wish to reuse a DEF file with a new
name, use the "Modify .DEF File" sub-  
menu and let PDS*BASE do the work.     
WE are about to create the blank data  
files for your data base. If the files 
are being written to a floppy disk, be 
sure the disk(s) is already formatted. 
                                       
If the files already exist on either   
the floppy disk or your hard disk, the 
current data (if any) in these files   
WILL BE DESTROYED. You may wish to back
up the data files to another disk if   
this is the case. Esc = Abort operation
Just in case you are using a disk where
you have other files, I check for free 
space just before creating this file.  
Get the other files off this disk to   
have a successful data file creation.  
If you are just going to "look-at" data
in your custom main program, you don't 
want the generated program to contain  
the rather large sub-routines that     
create or modify records. Typically, a 
report type of program would not create
or modify records. Thus answer N.      
                                       
However, if your program will create or
modify records, answer Y.              
If you wish, a series of lines that are
DATA statements containing the field   
names can be included in your generated
program. If you desire this, answer Y. 
This is a rather important question if 
there is room for all of the files on 1
floppy disk or you are using a hard    
disk. You may wish to run the programs 
on various drives where you set the DOS
default drive prior to running the     
programs. If this is the case, you do  
not want the programs to look for the  
data base files in a fixed drive       
letter. If this is the case, Answer N. 
                                       
However, if your DOS default drive is  
A: or C:, etc., but the data files will
always be in drive B:, then you will   
answer Y. This may be required if you  
are on a Local Area Network and your   
programs are running from the DOS      
default of K: and you have linked drive
letter F: to the location on the LAN   
that contains your data files. These   
drive letters are just for example.    
Answering Y will add several lines of  
BASIC code to your generated program to
handle printing the date on each page. 
If you are printing to 11 inch paper,  
the default of 58 lines of printed info
is what I like. You may prefer more or 
less lines. If the paper is shorter,   
you will type in a smaller figure.     
Label stock would require 6 or 8 lines 
as an example.                         
Somebody or something has been messing 
with the SRC file that we are trying to
use. Check over your original disk to  
find a version of this SRC file that   
has "*31" as the last line. If you are 
"Registered" with PRO DEV Software, I  
will send you a new disk if you send me
the disk that I sent to you using a re-
usable disk mailer.                    
                                       
If you just got the PDS*BASE system    
disk from a distributor that includes  
this corrupted file, they should get   
you a good disk if they are worth      
anything. Of course, if you are a      
"closet" user that hasn't registered   
with me SEND ME MONEY and I will send  
you a good disk.  I have never issued a
corrupted disk to a distributor or to  
a user group, etc. PLEASE REGISTER !!  
While running the Create or Modify     
Report sub-menu, you modified the sort 
formula and created a BASIC syntax     
error. I suggest that you recheck your 
modification and, if necessary, consult
the BASIC Primer manual that is on the 
PDS*BASE Documentation disk.           
Enter the title to appear at the top of
your report when the generated report  
program is run. It will be centered.   
This is where you must have a printed  
copy of the data base DEFinition file. 
That print out has assigned a number to
each file and field in your data base. 
After you enter the file and field     
number for this report field, that     
field name will be shown on the screen 
just below where you type in the file  
and field numbers.                     
                                       
The first field on the report MUST be  
the random access search field from a  
Master file. If you have asked for     
several report fields from one file and
you are calling for a field from       
another Master file, you will be asked 
which previous report field will give  
the random access value to reach a     
record in this new Master file. Let me 
know if any other $40 data base system 
gives you this POWER!                  
                                       
If you ask for a file and field from a 
Detail file, it must be a Detail file  
associated with the Master that you    
have already used for previous fields  
on this report.                        
                                       
If you wish to insert a field, press   
F6. If you wish to delete a report     
field, press F8.                       
                                       
Press F2 (while on the File # question)
to indicate you are finished.          
What gives? - You just pressed F6 to   
insert a field, and now you don't want 
to enter a file number.                
Check your DEFinition print out. You   
just asked for a file number that is   
greater than the number of files in    
your data base.                        
Check your DEFinition print out. You   
just asked for a field number that is  
greater than the number of fields in   
the file you are on now.               
This Report Generator can handle only  
one Detail File associated with one    
Master File.  The structure of the     
generated program would have to be     
modified by you for more Detail Files. 
You must have changed your mind.       
You have called for a field in a Detail
file. However, the Master file for this
Detail file has not been used yet for  
any previous columns in this report.   
The ONLY way to get to a chain of      
Detail records is through a record in  
the Master file associated with the    
Detail file.                           
You have specified a Detail file field.
There may be more than one record in   
the Detail chain of records for the    
associated Master record. Do you wish  
to report on just the First or Last    
record in the chain, or All records in 
the chain.                             
                                       
You can toggle choices with the space  
bar (then Enter) or by pressing the F, 
L or A key.                            
You have up to 3 lines to enter a title
for this report column. The width of   
the column will be controlled by the   
width of the title that you enter now, 
or the width of the actual data field; 
which ever is greater. If you enter all
column headings with just 1 or 2 lines 
then only the space for 1 or 2 lines   
will be used on the report.            
You have filled the "Width In Col." as 
specified on the Report sub-menu. You  
already did that once and we wrapped   
the column headings to a second line.  
This program is not set up to wrap to a
third line. You may have to write your 
own main program for this complex a    
report.                                
The starting column was calculated for 
you based on one space after the last  
report field. You may wish more space. 
You may also wish to cause much more   
space as you wish to modify the gener- 
ated BASIC program to insert your own  
special field.                         
                                       
One use for a special field would be   
for calculated totals on several fields
in the report.                         
                                       
If you set the starting column number  
to 999, this will indicate that this   
is to be an INVISIBLE report field.    
                                       
An Invisible field is used to store    
it's value to "look up" the Master     
record for a later report field.       
You can now control the justification  
of the data as it is printed on the    
report. It can be Left, Right or Center
justified. Toggle the choices with the 
space bar (then Enter) or press the L, 
R or C key. (Try this in dBASE).       
You have stumbled across a real hum-   
dinger of a feature. If you know about 
the BASIC PRINT USING command, you will
recognize this window. Take a look in  
your BASIC manual to see how you can   
modify this window to print numbers    
with imbedded commas, decimals where   
you want them and leading dollar signs.
                                       
Some may scoff at my having a data base
system that runs in BASIC, but look at 
what I just gave to you. You can easily
control what your printed report looks 
like. ALL THIS AND MORE for only $40.  
I had to stop somewhere. Thus you are  
limited to 40 fields on your report.   
You can write your own main program to 
have more fields if you desire. Keep in
mind that most reports are supposed to 
be  easy to read. Even 40 fields could 
be mind-boggling (how's that for an    
excuse?)                               
If you are going to modify the sort    
formula, you should understand both the
BASIC language and have read-up on this
feature in Section 4.2 of the manual.  
                                       
By modifying the sort formula, you can 
sort on several fields at the same time
or sort on part of a field.            
                                       
You have attempted to modify the sort  
formula and you do not have the same   
quantity of left parenthesis as right. 
The Work File Drive is displayed. You  
can press Enter to select that drive.  
Or, you can enter any valid drive      
letter. A non-exsistant drive letter   
will cause unpredictable results.      
                                       
If you are familiar with the SHELL     
feature, I am going to try to use the  
DOS "DIR /W/P" command. To do this, I  
look in the DOS environment to see     
where COMMAND.COM was when you booted. 
Then I check to see if it is still     
there. If so, a secondary command pro- 
cessor is loaded so the DIR command can
be  SHELLed. This allows me to use the 
/P feature to cause a pause when the   
screen overflows with file names. If I 
can't locate COMMAND.COM I just use the
BASIC "FILES" command. If so, and you  
have a LOT of files, they may scroll   
off the screen.                        
You have been asked for the full name  
of the file. If the file is not in the 
DOS default drive (and path), include  
the drive letter, a colon (the path)   
and the full file name. For example:   
                                       
   B:FILENAME.EXT    or with path      
   C:\PDS\FILENAME.EXT                 
                                       
The second example is where the file is
in the PDS sub-directory.              
You specified a file, drive (and/or    
path) name that could not be found.    
You have a chance to change your mind  
in case you made a mistake.            
The original file name was found, now  
you need to enter the new name for that
file so that it can be renamed.        
The new file name already exists on the
disk. You will need to use a different 
new file name for the rename process.  
If your printer is not on, the program 
will probably crash. If you are on a   
Local Area Network and you forgot to   
LINK to a LAN printer, the results will
be unpredictable.                      
Put the PDS*BASE Documentation disk in 
drive A and try again.                 
       End Of Generated Program        
                                       
You are about to cause the PDSBASE     
system to write a BASIC language prog- 
ram for you.  When you RUN this program
and then the program ends, where do you
want to end up?                        
                                       
   M = RUN the menu program MENU.BAS   
       that will allow you to run other
       BASIC programs or return to the 
       DOS prompt.                     
                                       
   B = Return to the BASIC Ok prompt.  
       Then you will have to type      
       RUN"progname to run another     
       program or type SYSTEM to return
       to the DOS prompt.              
                                       
   D = Return to the DOS prompt.       
     Printing The PDS*BASE Manual      
                                       
You can print the Registration Form    
(PLEASE fill it out and send to PRO DEV
Software with check ASAP) and the      
TOTAL instruction manual by typing T.  
                                       
This will take some time. Or you may   
have been printing the entire manual   
and you pressed Esc to stop printing   
for some reason.  Thus, it is possible 
to print selected Sections.            
                                       
0 = Section 0 is the Table Of Contents.
                                       
1 through 8 are the 8 Sections of the  
  main part of the manual.  At least   
  print and read Sections 0 and 1 to   
  get an over-view of the PDS*BASE Data
  Base system.                         
                                       
A through F are the Appendices.        
                                       
I = The Index.                         
                                       
R = The Registration Form.  If you are 
    using the PDS*BASE system beyond   
    the evaluation stage, you must send
    PRO DEV Software the requested     
    registration fee for continued use.
You need to press Enter or T to print  
the entire manual.  Press 0, 1, 2, to 8
to print one of the 8 Sections.  Press 
A, B, to F to print an Appendix. Press 
I to print the Index. Press R to print 
the all important Registration Form.   
                                       
Since you have pressed an invalid      
choice, you are being returned to the  
TOOLS Sub-Menu.                        
This is a Master field that is either a
Real or Integer type.  You may have    
report or group totals on this field if
you answer Y.  Otherwise answer N.     
                                       
When you press F2 to save this report  
definition, you will be asked for the  
field for which to print group totals  
(each time the group value changes).   
For example, you have a Master file    
to keep track of your checks.  You have
a field for Account Number.  You will  
sort the report by Account Number and  
wish a Sub Total for each Account.     
                                       
Enter the File and Field number for the
Group Sub-Total field.  If you do not  
wish Group Sub-Totals, enter zero for  
the file number.  Then, you will only  
get a report total.                    
