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Software Vault: The Gold Collection
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Software Vault - The Gold Collection (American Databankers) (1993).ISO
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cdr05
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scbase30.zip
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SCANBASE.DOC
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1993-07-01
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SCANBASE
Version 3.0
(SCANBASE.DOC)
ScanBase is a Windows program that enhances the use
of your scanner radio. The problem with most scanners is
that once you've entered all your active frequencies it
is very difficult to remember what each one is. This is
especially true of the newer scanners that can hold
hundreds of frequencies. Well, ScanBase will remember
everything you need to know for up to 500 channels on your
scanner. ScanBase will also maintain up to 8 databases
for a grand total of 4000 frequencies! Besides keeping a
description for each frequency ScanBase will help you
figure out which channels are active and will also keep
track of which channels you've got locked out.
IMPORTANT - If you have already been using an earlier
version of ScanBase be sure to read the UPGRADE.DOC file
included in SCBASE3.ZIP.
GETTING STARTED -
ScanBase uses SCANBASE.DAT and SCANBASE.BNK to hold
the information for the default database (Database 1).
If you want to view the sample database you will need to
copy these two files to your Windows directory along with
the program file SCANBASE.EXE. If these files are not
available ScanBase will create new, blank files.
ScanBase is a Visual Basic program. To run ScanBase
you will need a copy of VBRUN200.DLL in your Windows
system directory. VBRUN200.DLL is a MicroSoft run-time file.
It is freely distributed and can be obtained from many computer
bulletin boards (including Compuserve).
Once you have ScanBase installed on your computer you
can run it just like any other Windows program. The first
time you run it you will see the sample data from my own
scanner. The sample database has information in the first 5
banks. It is a good idea to play around with the sample data
before spending the necessary time to enter your scanner
information. Feel free to experiment. None of the changes
you make will be final unless you select SAVE DATABASE or
turn on AUTOSAVE (more about that later). Selecting UNDO
from the EDIT menu will undo any changes since the last save.
All of the frequency and descriptive information can
be directly edited by clicking on any text box and entering
information in the normal manner. The tab key will move you
from one box to the next, or you can just use the mouse to
select any text box at random. The rest of the documentation
includes specific information on each of the options and
controls.
MULTIPLE DATABASES-
The dropdown list box in the upper left corner will allow
you to load any of the 8 available databases. If the database
you select does not already exist a new database will be
created. Each database uses about 50 kilobytes of disk space.
Any changes to a database can be lost when changing
databases unless SAVE DATABASE is selected from the FILE menu
before changing databases. Changes to the database will be
saved automatically if AUTOSAVE is turned on.
INDICATOR LIGHTS-
The red and green lights on the left side of the
screen provide a quick indication of which channels you are
actually using. By default both lights are off. If you
have entered the frequency information and then get a hit on
a particular channel pressing the counter button on the
right side will increment the hit count by one and turn on
the green light. If you decide to put a channel on lockout
(skip) you can turn on the red light by clicking on it. A
subsequent hit on the same channel will turn the light from
red to green. If you want to turn either light on or off
manually you can just click on the light.
COUNTERS-
The counters along the right edge of the screen are
used to keep track of the hits on each frequency. As you
listen to your scanner you can press the appropriate counter
each time you hear something interesting. A short period of
scoring hits will soon show which of your frequencies are
really active and which ones you might want to think about
replacing. Remember, you aren't going to get any hits on a
frequency that you've got locked out.
BANK BUTTONS-
The row of numbered buttons below the descriptions is
used to instantly change from one bank to another. ScanBase
stores 50 banks of 10 channels each, for a total of 500 channels
for each of the 8 databases.
CLEAR BANKS-
CLEAR BANKS is used to clear frequency information,
descriptions, and reset the counters to zero. CLEAR BANKS
will allow you to choose to clear the entire database or just
one bank at a time. If you want to clear just one bank use the
numbered bank button to select the bank first and then select
CLEAR BANKS from the FILE menu. If you make a mistake you can
select UNDO from the EDIT menu to get the information back,
provided you haven't already saved the changes (by using
SAVE DATABASE or having AUTOSAVE turned on).
RESET COUNTERS-
RESET COUNTERS is similar to CLEAR BANKS except that it
only changes the counters to zero, the frequency and description
information is left unchanged. Again, you can reset one
bank (select the bank first) or you can reset all channels in
the active database.
SAVE DATABASE-
SAVE DATABASE writes the database to disk. Once you
select SAVE DATABASE all changes are final. If you have
entered information you don't want to risk losing select
SAVE DATABASE. You should select SAVE DATABASE before
exiting the program to make sure your database stays current.
You should either turn on the AUTOSAVE option or use
SAVE DATABASE before changing databases if you don't want
to lose any recently entered information.
PRINT-
You can print the information for one bank or print the
entire database. As with RESET COUNTERS and CLEAR BANKS you
should select the bank number first if you want to print just
one bank. The current database will be saved before printing.
UNDO-
UNDO will bring the database back to the point it was at
the last time it was saved. If you have AUTOSAVE turned on
UNDO will take you back to the last save (sometime within
the last few minutes).
CUT-
Text can be selected from any text box by holding down
the left mouse button and dragging the cursor. Once text has
been selected it can be removed to the clipboard by selecting
CUT from the EDIT menu.
COPY-
COPY is the same as CUT except that it leaves the selected
text intact.
PASTE-
PASTE will restore text from the clipboard to the location
of the cursor. PASTE is not available until text has been put
on the clipboard using CUT or COPY.
SEARCH -
Most scanners include a search feature that allows you
to search through a range of frequencies looking for frequencies
you may not already know about. If you are using search mode
and don't know if the frequency you found is already in your
scanner you can select SEARCH from the EDIT menu to hunt through
the current database. SEARCH is also a quick way to locate a
frequency that you already know is in there somewhere.
AUTOSAVE-
If AUTOSAVE is selected from the options menu the current
database will automatically be saved every couple of minutes.
The time interval will vary depending on the speed of your
computer. When AUTOSAVE is on there will be a check mark next
to the AUTOSAVE option. Even with AUTOSAVE turned on you
should use SAVE DATABASE before exiting the program. The
AUTOSAVE setting will be saved and restored the next time you
run ScanBase (SCAN and TEXT COLOR settings are also saved). If
AUTOSAVE is on all information is saved when changing databases.
SCAN-
If SCAN is turned on you will see a scan across any
activated green lights. The SCAN option doesn't really do
anything, it just looks cool.
TEXT COLOR-
The TEXT COLOR option allows you to choose the color
used in the data entry fields. This is largely aesthetic,
but may improve the display on some laptops and monochrome
monitors.