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ABank Programming version 1.02 David Gaussinel © 1994 David Gaussinel Graphics Stéphane Anquetil English translation Christophe Carel 1. Introduction 5. Menus' description 1.1 Overview 5.1 Project 1.2 Greetings 5.2 Edition 5.3 Tools 2. General 5.4 Preferences 2.1 Warning 5.5 Accounts 2.2 Distribution 2.3 Copyrights 6. AGIP compatibility 3. How to install ABank ? 7. Bugs 4. Using ABank 8. Improvements 9. History 1. Introduction 1.1 Overview ABank is a domestic bank account software. The idea is simple. When you make an operation on your account, you signal it to the software which up- date permanently your account state. ABank can load simultaneously more than ten accounts, automatically sor- ting the operations, possessing a notepad, loads powerpacked files, makes graphical stats, printing with filter and is AGIP compatible. Domestic bank account softwares are very numerous, as much in the public domain as in the commercial domain. But when they aren't adapted from PC versions, they are often bad looking or let you make not many things. It is the reason I've never used until today this kind of programs. However, the using seemed interesting. To have the possibility to control your bank ac- count, knowing where the balance is in reality without phoning to a bank service, to see where I spent the most, ... Therefore, ABank has been written in the goal to success all of that. To allow the user to know everything, everyday, about its account, and by a pleasant way if it comes to that. 1.2 Greetings - François Lionet for Amos, Amos Pro, compilers ... for his sympathy when phoning. - Stéphane Anquetil, called Sada for his good drawings. - Arnaud Danassié for his fidelity, even if he must do his military service like me. - Guillaume Jay To not vex him about being forgotten, and to make him programming SERIOUSLY - Jean-Pierre Rivière To be the ant worker of Belier Production - And all others, members of Atacom, Buggs, Belier Production, Amitels' subscribers, and all others who make the Amiga a big family. 2. General 2.1 Warning In spite of numerous tests, I can't guarantee that ABank contains no er- rors. You use this program at your own risk. I won't be in charge if the use of ABank is responsible for any direct or indirect damages. 2.2 Distribution ABank is shareware. In this demo version, you can't enter more than 50 operations. To own the complete version of this product, you must send a contribution, at less than FF75 to the author : David Gaussinel 18 rue Fénelon 24200 Sarlat FRANCE Tel: 53.59.34.70 You will receive a key file that any version of ABank will recognize and which identify yourself as a registered user. From this date, you will may update ABank without going through the author, to get the last version. The ABank demo version, I mean the one without the key file ("key") is freely distributable. It may be distributed in a PD collection, on servers, networks. However, the cost to get the program mustn't exceed the expenses engaged. But the distribution of this program by a magazine on its cover- disk should be transmit to the author's agreement. 2.3 Copyrights ABank is copyrighted 1994 David Gaussinel. Amos Pro is copyrighted 1992 Europress Software Ltd. AGIP (Amos Global Interface Protocol) is copyrighted 1994 David Gaussinel. The PowerPacker.library is copyrighted Nico François. Amiga and Workbench are trademarks of Commodore Amiga Inc. All products or mentioned brands are registered by their respective owner. 3. How to install ABank ? To install ABank, first copy Amos and powerpacked libraries in your Libs: directory if it wasn't done before. You can assign ABank: in the directory where ABank is, if you want. Be- sides, take care to run ABank in his home directory. Anyway, from the Work- bench, it is automatically done. ABank must find the Datas directory in ABank: or in the current directo- ry. In this Datas directory, there is the default icon for accounts (Def- Icon.info) that you can modify if you want, and the BLogos and CLogos drawers which contain banks and accounts logos (in IFF format in 48*24 with 8 colors in Med-Res mode). Don't worry about this if you don't understand anything and double click on the ABank icon. 4. Using ABank Once ABank run, the main screen appears. If you aren't a registered user a request appears which tells you. Click on Continue and you are ready to use this program. At the right top corner, there is a deep gadget which lets you come back to the Workbench. To be back in ABank, you must press the keys Left Amiga + A (A as ABank). You can see on the screen many fields clearly delimited. At the top, th- ere are some informations about the current account, next to the balance, credits, debits... of your account. At the top, there are equally a set of gadgets, making the same effect than menus but being faster to use. Lastly, at the bottom, there is the list of done operations, with date, nature, item, debit/credit, and the potential validation of the bank. We will come back in detail to all of these notions through Menus' descrip- tion. 5. Menus' description 5.1 Project menu 5.1.1 Open new This option lets you, after confirmation, create a new account. The ac- count's edition panel will be displayed, allowing you to enter different in- formations asked. See the account's edition menu {5.2.5}. 5.1.2 Load ABank can load simultaneously different accounts. This option lets you load on the current account's behalf, another account from a disk. 5.1.3 Open and Load ABank can load simultaneously different accounts. This option lets you load a new account. The current account is already in memory and then acce- ssible from the Account menu. See Account menu {5.5}. 5.1.4 Save ABank will save your account as the name mentioned before when you loa- ded it. If ABank doesn't recognize this name, it will ask you a new name by a file request way. 5.1.5 Save as... ABank will save your account just after asking you a new name through a file request. 5.1.6 Close ABank will delete after confirmation the current account in memory. If there are other accounts opened, ABank 'll display another account, or else you 'll find a blank account. 5.1.7 User If you are a registered user, your names and address are displayed in this request, else the program tells you that you 're not registered, and then you 're using the demo version. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.1.8 About ... By this, the program's ID will be displayed, telling you the program's name, version, diffusion status, author's name. There are also two logos, one showing the AGIP compatibility and the other indicating that ABank was written in Amos. 5.1.9 Quit After confirmation, this option allows you to quit the program. 5.2 Edition menu 5.2.1 Add This option adds an operation to the others. A request appears, allow- ing you to enter the date (following the ddmm format), operation's nature, debit or credit, if the operation was validated or not by the bank (I mean if the bank's statement notifies it), and the choosen item. To modify an operation, just click on it. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.2.2 Delete To delete an operation, you must first active this option and then click on the operation desired. Don't forget desactivating this option once desi- red operations are deleted. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.2.3 Sort Normally, operations are sorted on each modification, but if you wish to make a sorting yourself, choose this option. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.2.4 Validate Next to credit/debit, a sign `\' is present, notifying the potential va- lidation by the bank. Just click on it to validate or unvalidate the opera- tion. This sub menu Validate has three options to go faster. All will validate all operations, None will unvalidate all operations and Reverse will inverse all operations (all validated won't be and vice-versa). 5.2.5 Account This option lets you configure your account. Three gagdets permit to enter the owner's name of the account, account's number and account's type. Those infos will be displayed soon on the main screen. ABank manages the account from a year (It's the reason dates are only displayed on the ddmm format). However, you can enter a start balance for the account. All operations will take in account what it has been at the beginning of the year, on the account. It's also from this that you enter the threshold. When a balance is in- ferior to this threshold, it will be written into a different color to warn you. You equally may choose in the list your bank's logo and another one for your account. You choose between two lists; bank logo and account logo by clicking on the cyclic gadget at the top of the list. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.2.6 Items Items of a budget let you sort your operations. Through this menu, you can modify the items' list (adding, deleting,...). The request explains itself. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.2.7 Notepad Notepad is... a notepad ! You may note inside whatever you feel and want. Also think to write your credit cards numbers for example or telephone num- ber of your bank, or ... The request explains itself. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.3 Tools menu 5.3.1 Stats This option lets you get a pie chart, describing your operations per item. A cyclic gadget lets you define if you want : credit or debit, and other selects either a month or all the year. Following this selection, propor- tions of each item are displayed with a legend next to the pie chart. A menu quickly selects a specific month. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.3.2 Annual balance A bar chart is displayed suggesting the distribution following monthes of debits and credits. You can see through this chart, what are the monthes where you have spent most, as an example. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.3.3 Print This option lets you print your account by making a filter. Effectively, you can choose to print only certain things. A first cyclic gadget lets you select only validated operations, unvalidated ones or both, indifferently. Another gadget lets you select operations of a particular month or of all the year. Lastly, a list lets you choose a particular item or all items without distinction. This option is also accessible from a gadget. 5.4 Preferences menu 5.4.1 Interlace screen When this option is active, the screen will be interlaced, meaning that height is doubled but unfortunately with an unpleasant flickered image if you don't possess a flicker fixer. In interlaced mode, the number of visible operations will be more than doubled. 5.4.2 Separate thousands If this option is active, numbers will be separated by a space between thousands, for a best reading. 5.4.3 Save icon If this option is active when an account is saved, an icon is also saved. 5.4.4 Configure This option calls the AGIP editor if AGIP has been already installed in your system. The AGIP editor (AGIP_Ed) lets you entirely define program's work environment (menus, pointers, appearance, tests,...). See AGIP {6} for more details. 5.5 Accounts menu ABank lets you have simultaneously in memory up to ten accounts. In this menu, there will be displayed : names of different accounts currently in memory; the current account is marked with a small sign. Then you can choose another account from this menu to make it the current account. 6. AGIP AGIP is a system enabling to entirely control a program's interface if it is compatible. AGIP is not supplied with ABank. You should find it easily in the public domain, else contact the author by sending a blank disk and a st- amped envelope with your address : David Gaussinel 18 rue Fénelon 24200 Sarlat FRANCE Tel: 53.59.34.70 If AGIP is already installed, just move the ABank.AGI module in AGIP:Mo- dules/ as explained in the AGIP documentation. It is not necessary to poss- ess AGIP to run this program but if AGIP is installed, you may modify the whole program's interface, I mean menus, texts, gadgets, appearance, inter- face's structures, and even the pointers. AGIP is freeware, meaning Amos Global Interface Protocol and is copyri- ghted 1994 David Gaussinel. If you have created a new interface, don't hesitate sending the module to the author. 7. Bugs Is a program without bugs realizable ? I don't think so. Therefore, if you find a bug (or many), write to the author, even if you're not a regist- ered user. 8. Improvements I will be very clear and rough, ABank won't be improved if no many users will register. Why continue to program a software if nobody wants to see improvements ? Therefore, if you want improvements, think to register your- self. Improvements may be added to ABank, such as : - Accounts exportation in Ascii - Accounts importation of other programs - other kinds of charts - charts exportation - cheque-books administration - An ARexx port But, as said before, all of this will happen only if you, user, wish it. 9. History ~ Version 1.0 (03.25.94) First version spread. Preceded by many alpha and beta versions. ~ Version 1.01 (06.14.94) Re-write of the code using the CRAFT © Black Legend Software & Solaris Software extension. Repaired error, when printing a whole account. When an account is loaded, it's now replaced at the same position it was when it was saved. Each account is saved, and then reloaded, with its own prefs. English version of ABank by Christophe Carel. ~ Version 1.02 (08.14.94) Repaired error in pie chart (a famous Illegal Function Call). The pie chart is most readable when several items used. Repaired error when several accounts were loaded, filename was always the filename of last file loaded. When adding an operation at the end of listing, operations slide down to show the last operation entered. Printing has been entirely corrected, especially in the presentation, but be careful : printing is made by the command Type in C: or resident.