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PUBLIC.TXT
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* * * My Little Realm, v2.0 * * *
- Public Library/sa -
____________________________________________________________________
General Information
____________________________________________________________________
Important
This is the Shareware version of Public Library. It is a
full-featured, fully functional program that maintains an Historical
file of a maximum of 50 records.
The Registered version will hold as many records in the Historical
file as will fit in your conventional RAM.
Thank you for trying Public Library!
______________________________________________________________________
Introduction.
This routine is really two programs in one. It keeps track of the
outstanding books, magazines, videos, etc., that you borrow from
your public library on the one hand, and it also maintains an
historical file of your borrowings so that you can see what you and
your realm members have been reading over the years.
The Historical Mode contains a powerful Search function that lets
you find records with specific information in a given field. For
example, if you wanted to see what one member of the realm has been
reading, simply invoke the Search function, select the Reader field
to search on, and then enter the reader's Quickey. Public Library
will display all of the works that that reader has borrowed over
the years. You can even print the results, if you like.
Public Library is a great way to keep track of research material,
too, especially for high school students who tend to be somewhat
less than organinzed. It also helps minimize the book and video
fines (in some areas 25 cents and a dollar, respectively) that can
add up so quickly.
To find out what you have outstanding at any point in time, just
run Public Library and press <2> in the Options Window. It's that
easy.
____________________________________________________________________
The Interface
Windows.
Public Library's screen consists of three types of windows: a
Working Window, a Viewing Window, and an Options Window. If you are
using a color monitor the Viewing Window is always green, the
Working Window red and the Options Window blue. Enter the pound
sign, <#>, in the Options Window to install the color mode.
You select processes (like adding a record) in the Options Window.
You create records in the Working Window, and you view your records
in the Viewing Window.
----------------------------
Extended processing options.
Several processing tasks, called extended processing options or
EPO's, are not listed in the Options Windows, because they are
functions that only occasionally need to be performed. EPO's are
used to "extend" a program's power and functionality.
To find out what EPO commands are employed by Public Library/sa,
enter <?> (the question mark) in the Options Window. The EPO's of
Public Library are defined at the end of this document.
----------------------------
Quickeys.
There are two types of Quickey lists in the Public Library Routine.
The first is for the names of the readers of your realm, or, more
precisely, for their initials. The second group of Quickeys is for
your libraries.
The Quickeys in Public Library/sa give you single key access to the
names of the readers in your realm and to the libraries you
frequent. Enter them once, and you'll never have to enter them
again. See the section "Extended Processing Options" for full
details.
____________________________________________________________________
Getting Started
Note: If you have a color monitor, press <#>, the pound sign, in
the Options Window to install the color mode.
The very first thing you'll want to do with Public Library is make
the program uniquely yours. To do that, you will have to enter the
names of the readers in your realm and libraries you visit. The
Change Quickeys function is invoked by the backslash key, <\>,
entered in the Options Window.
Public Library will first ask which Reader Quickey you want to
change. The reader entry can be up to three letters long; initials
are usually used. When you've entered all of your readers (you can
enter up to six), Public Library will ask for the names of the
libraries you visit. You can enter up to four, and they can be
up to ten characters in length.
Recommended reading: Please take a few moments to peruse this
document. While Public Library/sa is not difficult to learn, it
can do a great deal more than simply remind you which books are
out, who borrowed them, and when they're due.
____________________________________________________________________
Program Information
____________________________________________________________________
Options Window for the Outstanding (Books Due) mode.
_______________________________________
| |
| 1 Enter new books 4 Delete | \
| 2 Return books | \
| 3 Change/View Choice: _ | \
|_______________________________________| \
<enter>
Options Window for the Historical mode.
_______________________________________ /
| | /
| A View D Search | /
| B Sort E Delete | /
| C Print Choice: _ | /
|_______________________________________|
++ The Outstanding Mode ++
The Public Library works in two modes: Outstanding and Historical.
To switch between the two modes press <enter> in the Options Window.
You'll see the options in the Options Window change as shown above,
and the title box alternately displays "Outstanding Mode" and
"Historical Mode".
The first mode deals with the books that are currently due at your
libraries. In other words, if you've just taken a book out of one
of your local libraries or returned one, use the Outstanding Mode
to make or update the necessary records.
Note: Public Library always starts in the Outstanding mode.
The second mode is the Historical mode which maintains a list of
all of the works you've ever borrowed and returned. It is
described later in this document.
~ Field Definitions ~
- Title field (35, required).
Leading prepositions and articles should be placed at the end of the
title so that sorting takes place on the first key word.
Title: Tontine, The
____________________
- Author field (30 total, optional).
In the Public Library function, an author's name is entered in the
following manner:
Last: Costain
First: Thomas
M. I.: B
To skip the author entry entirely, press <enter> when the cursor is
in the first position on the Last name line. The First and M. I.
name lines can be skipped by pressing <enter>.
____________________
- Date field (required).
This field is constructed along the manner of the American date
format of mm/dd/yy.
Public Library will accept dates in the Public Library Routine that
are up to one year in the future (remember, these are due dates),
and it will accept records with dates from the current and previous
months, just in case you don't get the books logged promptly.
____________________
- Library Quickey field (single character entry, optional).
Only Quickeys are accepted in this field. You cannot manually enter
a library name. So if you want to enter a library name for a given
record you must do it using the Quickeys. To skip this field simply
press <enter>.
Public Library will display the libraries you listed in your library
Quickey file (up to four are allowed) in the box on the lower right
side of your screen.
____________________
- Reader Quickey field (3, optional).
Enter one of the six Quickeys in this field. The Reader Quickeys
are displayed in the box in the lower right part of your screen.
You don't have to use a Quickey, however. Any character string from
one to three letters long may be entered, but only letters may be
used. Numbers are recognized solely as Quickey entries, and only
<1> through <6> are accepted.
____________________
Echoic entries: Date, Library and Reader fields.
The Date, Library and Reader fields are echoic entries. That is to
say, once a record has been entered, each of these fields will echo
its previous value to the screen in subsequent records until you
alter its value or exit the Enter New Books function. If the echoed
value is the entry you want, just press <enter>.
For example, if you borrow six magazines from your local library and
all of them have the same due date, you only have to enter the date
for the first record. After that, Public Library will echo that
date and all you have to do is press <enter> to accept it. The same
procedure holds for the library and reader entries.
Should you wish to change an echoed value for the Reader or Library
entries, merely pretend it isn't there and enter what you would have
had the echo not been displayed. To change the Date echo, press the
<backspace> key. You can also backspace over the Reader and Library
echoes if you prefer.
______________________________________________________________________
Option # 2, returning your books.
At a glance, the Public Library's Return function can tell you:
the titles of the works currently on loan
the authors of each
the date each work is due
who borrowed said works, and
the library to which each must be returned
(should you frequent more than one library)
Public Library automatically displays your outstanding books in the
Viewing Window and asks for the record number of the book you have
returned. (The record numbers are displayed on the left side of the
Viewing Window.)
Enter the record number of each of the works you have returned, and
Public Library will highlight them. When you've highlighted all of
those returned, press <enter> without entering a record number.
If you've highlighted any of the works, Public Library will display
the following confirmation prompt:
____________________________________________
| |
| Press <enter> to confirm your returns. |
| Press <esc> to abort return function. |
| Press <backspace> to recheck returns. |
|____________________________________________|
You have three options here: Press <enter> to tell Public Library
to go ahead and update the books due file; press <esc> to leave the
Return function without updating the books due file; or press the
backspace key to go back to the beginning of the Return function
and make some last minute changes (like highlighting another record
or turning off a highlighted record).
Note: Public Library does not remove the records marked returned
from the Outstanding file and append them to the Historical file
until you exit the Public Library program. This means that if you
mark several works returned and then decide to view the Historical
file, you won't find your recently returned records at the end of
the file. All of the file I/O is performed when you exit the
program. Hence, the returned works can still be viewed by invoking
the Return function. On the next occasion you use Public Library,
you'll find those returned books in the Historical file.
___________________
You can use this function to view your books due file (properly
called the Outstanding file). If you have more than one screenful
of books, you can use the directional keys, <home>, <end>, <pageup>,
and <pagedown> to view the others. When you've finished, press
<esc>.
Note: If you are merely viewing your records, remember that you
should not highlight them in this function. If you do, they will be
considered "returned", and Public Library will display the
confirmation prompt shown above. If you should happen to forget,
simply press <esc> when the confirmation prompt is displayed and
Public Library will ignore your highlighted records and return to
the Options Window.
Important: You should ensure that all entries are correct while the
records are in the books due file. Once a record is marked
returned, it is moved to the Historical file and cannot be modified.
______________________________________________________________________
Option # 3, correcting and viewing records.
Public Library will want to know the record number. The record
numbers appear on the left side of the Viewing Window. To return to
the Options Window, press <enter> (without entering a record number)
or press <esc>.
After you enter a record number, it displays a sub-menu of the
fields that you can change in the Working Window and highlights the
record in the Viewing Window so you'll know which record's data
you're changing. Be sure you have the correct one. To turn off the
highlight (i.e., to avoid making changes to the highlighted record),
press <enter> (nothing else) or press <esc>.
When the sub-menu is displayed showing the six fields you can
change, select the appropriate field's hotkey, and Public Library
asks for the new field value. If you enter the wrong hotkey press
<esc> and Public Library will restore the original value.
If the menu number you chose was <6> (return status), you can undo
the change by simply entering <6> again. Since the return status is
either yes or no, all you do to change the status is to select menu
number <6>. The instant you select <6> the return status is changed
to the opposite value. To change it back, you simply press <6>
again.
This function is also handy if you simply want to peruse your books
due file. If you have more than a screenful, you can use the
scrolling keys to view those records not on screen.
Important: You should ensure that all entries are correct while the
records are in the books due file. Once a record is marked returned,
it is moved to the Historical file and cannot be modified.
______________________________________________________________________
Option # 4, deleting your records.
Public Library will ask for the record number of the entry you want
to delete. It will then highlight that record and ask you if you
are sure you want that record deleted. Verify the contents of the
record before you respond. If you respond <Y>, the record is
deleted. If you press <esc>, <N>, or <enter>, Public Library will
turn off the highlight.
After you respond yes or no, Public Library will again ask for the
record number of the next record you want to delete. Give it the
next record number if you want to delete another record or press
<esc> (or <enter> without entering a record number) to leave the
Delete function and return to the Options Window. If you delete the
last record in your books due file, you will automatically be
returned to the Options Window.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
++ The Historical Mode ++
When you press <enter> in the Options Window, Public Library
switches between the Outstanding mode and the Historical mode. If
Public Library is in the Outstanding Mode, simply press <enter> to
access your Historical file. Public Library displays "Historical
Mode" in the title box on the upper right of your screen.
The Historical mode of the Public Library Routine allows you a
unique perspective on your realm members' reading habits over the
years. There might also be times when you want to go back and
re-read an unusual work you had read years before but can't quite
recall the name of the work or the author.
The historical log also allows you to keep detailed records of your
research. And if friends ask what the children of the realm were
reading when they were such and such an age, you'll be able to look
up the answer quickly and easily using Public Library's Search
function.
Note: The records of the works declared returned in the
Outstanding Mode are added to the Historical file when you exit
the Public Library program. Public Library puts those returned
records at the end of the Historical file, maintaining a nearly
chronological account of your borrowings. This structure of the
Historical file is not altered by Public Library's Sort function.
______________________________________________________________________
Option <A>, viewing the historical records.
Use the directional keys, <home>, <end>, <pageup>, and <pagedown> to
browse. You can have Public Library highlight specific records by
entering the record numbers of those you want to focus on. To turn
off a record's highlight, reenter that record's record number.
To return to the Options Window, press <enter> (without entering a
record number) or press <esc>.
______________________________________________________________________
Option <B>, sorting the historical records.
You may sort by title, author or reader. If you wish to print your
records in a sorted order, run the sort first and then run the Print
function (option <C>).
______________________________________________________________________
Option <C>, printing the historical records.
Public Library prints the title, author, date (due), library, and
the reader. If you want your listing in a sorted order, run the
sort first, then invoke the Print function.
______________________________________________________________________
Option <D>, searching the historical records.
You can tell Public Library to search on any of four fields: the
Title field, the Author field, the Date field, or the Reader field.
Give Public Library the string (called a keyword) that you're
looking for, and it will search the specified field in every record
for any occurrence of the keyword.
Normally, Public Library deletes the external spaces surrounding a
keyword. For the Title and Author fields, however, you can include
a special delimiter, the backslash, to force Public Library to
include blank spaces when it conducts its search. As an example, if
you wanted to look at all of the volumes whose author was "Long",
you would enter:
\Long \
This type of keyword search would eliminate those authors with names
like Longacre or Longfellow.
Entering a date string is easy. You can search on a year or on a
specific month and year combined. Below are examples of valid date
entries for the year 1985.
1985
85
/85
If you want Public Library to restrict the search to a specific
month, enter:
7/85
07/85
Public Library ignores the day portion of the dates. If you
include the day portion of the date, i.e., if you enter 7/24/85 for
example, Public Library will use only the month and the year,
providing they are valid entries.
______________________________________________________________________
Option <E>, deleting the historical records.
This Delete function is a little different from the one in the
Outstanding mode. In the Outstanding mode, you delete one record at
a time. In the Historical mode, you select all of the records you
want to delete and then have Public Library delete them all at one
time. Confirmation is required before the deletions are performed.
Use the directional keys, <home>, <end>, <pageup>, and <pagedown>
to find the records you want to delete, and enter their record
numbers. Public Library will highlight your selections. After
you've highlighted all of the records you want to delete, press
<esc> or <enter> (without entering a record number).
If you've highlighted any records, Public Library will tell you how
many records you've marked for deletion and ask if you want the
deletions made. Respond <Y> to effect the deletions. Press <N>,
<enter>, or <esc> to abort the Delete function.
If you highlight a record and then change your mind, enter that
record number again, and Public Library will turn off the highlight.
Only highlighted records are deleted.
Special note: If you have sorted your records before running the
Delete function, Public Library will tell you that it will restore
the historical array to its original structure before it continues
with the Delete function. If you have more work to do using the
sorted structure, you might want to finish that work first before
you delete any records.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
Extended Processing Options.
EPO Definition
<\> Change the Quickeys. Both reader and library Quickeys are
changed by issuing this command.
Reader Quickeys can be three characters long.
Library Quickeys can be up to ten letters long.
- - - - - - - - -
<$> Print an order form for My Little Realm's Public Library.
- - - - - - - - -
<?> Display the EPO's for the Public Library Routine.
______________________________________________________________________
On reading . . .
Americans deny themselves a valuable resource when they ignore
their public libraries. A chance to read is a chance to explore
... the world around us, the world inside us. It enhances lives
by enlarging the worlds we perceive physically, spiritually,
metaphysically, and metaphorically.
Like looking through different lenses on a sophisticated camera,
reading allows you to view your world with whole new perspectives.
The works you read don't have to be revolutionary to make you
think. Nor do they have to be written by Nobel Prize winning
authors to have impact. And they certainly don't have to appear on
the best selling lists to entertain. But they do have to be read
to be enjoyed.
Do yourself a favor. Keep a library book around the realm, even
if you're not sure you'll have time to finish it. There's no rule
that says you have to read it cover to cover. And if, at a later
date, you decide you really do want to finish that book but you
can't recall the name of the author or the title, don't worry about
it ... My Little Realm's Public Library will remember for you.
______________________________________________________________________
+ The End +
______________________________________________________________________
(c) Copyright 1991 - 1992 John L. Salisbury
