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1993-12-24
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Pay Advice Analyser 4.00
Original idea... Robert Hart
Design... Richard Smedley
Andy Eskelson
Programming... Richard Smedley
Copyright (C) Richard Smedley 1993
All Rights Reserved
Freely distributable
INTRODUCTION
============
A friend of mine once explained to me about how much he hated having to
keep several old cardboard boxes in the bottom of his wardrobe, each of
which he was slowly-but-surely filling with the Pay Advice slips that he
receives in his wage packet.
He asked me if I knew of any way to transfer all his wage details onto his
trusty Amiga, thus allowing him to throw out his dusty collection of pay
slips and yet retain a permanent record of all his earnings. Much to his
disappointment, I explained to him that unless he wanted to try using a
spreadsheet then there wasn't really any realistic solution.
Sadly this idea just didn't work out. My friend had been thinking more
along the lines of a simple, easy-to-use database program on which he could
enter all his wage details without any awkward setting up or fiddling about.
After spending several sleepless nights sitting in front of the computer, I
triumphantly produced a solution...
WHY BOTHER USING THIS PROGRAM?
==============================
Actually, there are a number of reasons for keeping a record of your wage
details on your computer. The most obvious, of course, is that you'll
finally be able to throw out all your old pay slips and yet still retain a
permanent record of their contents.
More importantly than this, though, it is advisable to keep a regular check
on your wages and how much tax you're paying, to make sure that the tax man
or, worse still, your employer, isn't fiddling you. Of course it is still
possible to do this by sifting through boxes upon boxes of paperwork, but
it is by far easier, quicker, and more convenient to simply glance at a
column of numbers on your computer screen.
Additionally, even if you're only slightly curious about just how large a
slice of your hard earned cash ends up in the hands of the tax man, then
this in itself is a good reason for keeping a computerised record of your
wage details. It might surprise you to see just how all those "little"
deductions start piling up into something far more serious as you get
further into the year...
And, as an extra bonus, there is the added advantage that all your wage
details will be securely locked away on the computer where prying eyes and
inquisitive fingers can't get at them.
PAYING THE SHAREWARE FEE
========================
This program is shareware. If you like and/or use it, then please register
by sending FIVE (UK) POUNDS STERLING to this address:
Richard Smedley
257 Stoneyford Road
Sutton-In-Ashfield
Notts.
NG17 3GJ
England
Everybody who registers will receive a copy of the complete program with
the enabled "Save" functions...
HARD DRIVE INSTALLATION
=======================
To install this program on a hard drive, simply create a drawer entitled
"PayAdvice" (without the quotes!) in your boot partition, and then use the
mouse to drag the PayAdvice program icon into that drawer.
Next, load your s:Startup-Sequence (or s:User-startup if you're using
Kickstart 2.0 or greater) into a text editor and add the line:
Assign PayAdvice: SYS:PayAdvice
Finally, if you've saved any program and/or printer preferences from within
the Pay Advice program, then open the Shell window, insert your Pay Advice
disk into drive DF0 (the internal one) and type:
copy df0:s/payadvice#? to s:
And that's it - No additional files or libraries are required. But don't
forget to copy your saved data files into the PayAdvice drawer!
LOADING THE PROGRAM
===================
To load the program from Workbench, simply double-click on the Pay Advice
icon.
If you prefer using CLI, simply CD to the required device/directory, and
then type "PayAdvice" at the CLI prompt. Note, though, that this program
isn't self-detaching.
Whichever way you load the program, the Pay Advice screen will appear after
a brief pause.
A requester should appear in the middle of the screen, asking you whether
you want to create or load a file.
As with nearly all similar-looking buttons in the program, you can make
your choice by either using the mouse to press the appropriate on-screen
button, or, if you prefer, you can type the first letter of your selection
on the keyboard (which, in this case, would mean pressing "C" to choose
"Create" or "L" for "Load")
If you're using this program for the first time then you'll be needing to
create a new file, so choose "Create"...
CREATING A NEW FILE
===================
A large window will appear on the screen, containing three empty boxes
labelled:
Your name
Department
Your employers name & address
Move the mouse pointer over one of the boxes and press the left mouse
button. You'll see that the cursor has appeared in the appropriate box: Now
type in the required details and press the return key.
Don't worry if you make a mistake, because you can always re-click in any
of the boxes to edit its contents.
After you've entered everything, press the "Accept" button in the
bottom-right corner of the window.
A requester will now appear asking whether or not you use a clocking-on
system. If you do, select "Yes" and type your clock number in the box,
otherwise choose "No".
After a short pause, the main screen will appear...
THE MAIN SCREEN
===============
The main screen is split into three distinct sections: Down the left-hand
side of the screen, you'll see the current name of each category of your
wage file, and towards the right, filling most of the screen, is the area
where all your wage details will be displayed.
If you've just created a new file, then the chances are that the titles
shown on the left side of the screen won't actually correspond to the
details required for your wage packet. If this is the case, then you'll be
needing to change the titles: To do this, select "Edit titles" in the
"Prefs" pull down menu.
Finally, in a panel near the bottom of the screen, you will see a row of
five buttons, four of which have got arrows on them. These form the main
controls of the program, and are fully explained in the next two sections.
As you enter your wage details into this program, you'll see that it
displays a summary of each wage packet on the screen. The "current" pay
slip, that is to say the one on which all operations will be performed,
will always be highlighted using bold text.
ENTERING A PAY SLIP
===================
The "Edit" button, at the bottom of the main screen, is used for entering
and editing pay slips.
To enter a new pay slip, make sure that none of your current pay slips are
highlighted (displayed using bold text) on the main screen, and then press
the "Edit" button at the bottom of the screen, or if you prefer, hit the
return key on the keyboard.
A calendar will now appear, asking you to enter the date for the new pay
slip. Simply click on the appropriate on-screen buttons to change the date,
and then press the "Accept" button.
The edit window will now appear. You'll notice that the title "Gross pay"
has appeared, and just below that you'll see the name of your first
addition.
Towards the right of the screen, you should see something which looks like
a simplified calculator. Whenever this appears, it means that the program
wants you to enter a number. You can use the calculator with either the
keyboard or the mouse, whichever you prefer.
Enter the value of your first addition, and then press return/enter. The
number will now appear in the edit window.
One by one, this will be repeated for every addition and deduction to your
wages until everything has been entered, when your net pay will be
displayed. After a short pause you'll return to the main screen, where
you'll see that a summary of the new pay slip has been highlighted.
MOVING AROUND YOUR PAY SLIP FILE
================================
There are three main methods for moving back-and-forth through your pay
slip file:
1) The arrow buttons in the window at the bottom of the main screen:
Pressing the single-arrow buttons will move you through the file one
line at a time, and the double-arrow buttons move an entire screen at
a time.
2) If you prefer using the keyboard then the cursor keys will emulate the
arrow buttons at the bottom of the main screen: The left/right keys
acts the same as the single arrow buttons, moving one line at a time,
and the up/down keys do the same thing as pressing the double-arrow
buttons.
3) If there's a specific pay slip that you want to move to, and if you can
see that particular pay slip on the screen, then you can use the mouse
pointer to click directly on it, which will perform the equivalent of
highlighting it and pressing the "Edit" button.
Additionally, the "Move" pull down menu contains a number of options for
moving around your pay slip file...
EDITING A PAY SLIP
==================
Sooner or later, whether its because you've made a mistake or whatever,
you're going to want to edit one of your pay slips.
To do this, simply highlight the required pay slip using the arrow buttons,
and then press the "Edit" button (or the return key). Alternatively, if the
required pay slip is displayed on the screen, then you can click directly
on it (as detailed in the "Moving around your pay slip file" section).
The edit window will re-appear showing all the details for that particular
pay slip.
To change the value of one of the categories, all you have to do is move
the mouse pointer over whatever category you want to change and press the
left mouse button. The required category will be highlighted (in bold
text), and the calculator will appear for you to enter a new value.
You can change as many numbers as you wish, and then when you've finished
press the "OK" button to keep the changes, or "Cancel" to leave everything
as it was. Either way, you'll be returned to the main screen.
SAVING YOUR PAY SLIP FILE
=========================
Please note: THIS PROGRAM HAS HAD THE "SAVE" FUNCTIONS DISABLED. Although
it will appear to go through the motions of saving your pay slip file, it
won't actually record anything on disk. To obtain a version of this program
without this restriction, you'll have to pay the shareware fee, as detailed
elsewhere in these instructions...
Obviously, one way or another, you're going to need to save your pay slip
file onto disk. If you hold down the right mouse button, you'll notice a
number of menu's appear on the title bar. Move up to the "Files" menu and
select "Save as".
A file requester will appear for you to select the device, directory and
file name to save your file under. Press the "Save" button when you've
selected everything.
A window will now appear asking you to enter a password. Because all wage
details are highly confidential, this program saves its files using a
special encryption technique which makes it impossible to load a pay slip
file without first entering the correct password.
You can enter anything that you want for the password, up to ten characters
long, but remember that passwords ARE case sensitive and, if you forget
what your password is, then you've lost your pay slip file.
If you've already entered a password, say while you were loading your file,
or because you've already saved it once and are re-saving it for some
reason, then you can simply press return without typing anything to keep
the same password as before.
Your file will now be saved to disk.
CUSTOMIZING THE PROGRAM
=======================
If you hold down the right mouse button, you'll notice a menu entitled
"Prefs". By selecting one of the options available here, you can change the
way that certain parts of the program work and set it up to your own
personal liking.
The options available are "Program", "Printer" and "Edit titles".
The program and printer prefs windows work basically the same, with
rolo-style gadgets used for making your selections.
You'll see three buttons at the bottom of each of these windows:
USE Temporarily keep the current settings.
SAVE Save the current settings to disk.
CANCEL Leave everything as it was.
PROGRAM PREFERENCES
-------------------
The preferences window will appear, containing three gadgets:
CALCULATOR Lets you turn the calculator on/off. If you turn it off,
then the cursor will appear in the edit window for you to
type numbers from the keyboard. This can be much faster
and more convenient if you never intend to use the mouse
for operating the calculator.
CALENDAR Turns the calendar on/off. If you turn it off, then you can
choose whether you'd rather type dates using the DD/MM/YY
or MM/DD/YY format. Either way, you must use the slashes!
DEFAULT Most users of this program will probably load the same pay
FILE slip file every time they use this program. So, if you turn
this on, you can press the "Select" button and use the file
requester to choose a file to load automatically whenever
you use the program. You'll still need to type the password
in, but it'll save you from pressing "Load" and then going
through the file requester every time.
PRINTER PREFERENCES
-------------------
Modifications to the program now mean that, unless your printer requires a
form feed to be sent after every printed page, then you can completely
ignore this section... Otherwise, read on...
The preferences window will appear containing the following gadgets, all of
which must be correctly set IN ADDITION TO the standard Workbench printer
preferences.
LINES/PAGE Click in the box and type the maximum number of lines that
your printer can fit on a sheet of paper.
FORM FEED Some printers, mostly laser printers, need you to send a
form feed command after every sheet of paper. If your
printer needs a form feed command then turn this on, else
leave it off.
RE-DIRECT If you want to re-direct printer output to a file for some
OUTPUT reason, then turn this on and press the "Select" button to
bring a file requester up. All printer output will then be
sent to the required file instead.
CHANGING THE USER DEFINABLE CATEGORY TITLES
-------------------------------------------
All wage packets are made up from various additions and deductions to your
earnings, such as basic pay, overtime, and tax. But, despite this, it is
highly unlikely that any two people's wage packets will consist of exactly
the same combination of additions and deductions.
There are a total of ten user-definable categories available in this
program, which have been split equally into five additions and five
deductions.
When you first create a file, this program will assign the following titles
to each category:
ADDITIONS
Basic pay
Commission
Overtime
Special pay
(The fifth category is initially undefined)
DEDUCTIONS
National insurance
Pension
Tax
Union fees
Savings deduction
The other four categories, namely "Period ending", "Total gross", "Total
deductions" and "Net pay" are all automatically created and dealt with by
the program, so there's no need to worry about them.
If, by some chance, these default titles actually fit the categories on
your wage slip, then you can ignore the rest of this section and start
using the program straight away. It's more likely, though, that you'll be
needing to change these titles...
Select "Edit titles" from the "Prefs" pull down menu. You'll see a large
window appear in the centre of the screen, containing seperate sections for
additions and deductions. Each box in this window represents the title of
an individual category of your wages. The order, from top to bottom, in
which the titles appear in this window is the same as the order in which
they will appear on the main screen.
To change a title, move the mouse pointer over the required box and then
press the left mouse button. You'll see that the cursor has appeared in
that box. Use the delete key to erase the current title, and then type in a
new title of your own and press the return key.
If you make any mistakes, or if you change your mind, then you can re-click
in any of the boxes and edit their contents.
When you've finished, press the "Accept" button at the bottom of the window
to keep the new titles, or hit the "Cancel" button to leave them as they
were.
Either way, you'll return to the main screen, where the ammended titles
will be displayed in place of the previous ones.
You should realise, though, that whilst you can edit the titles and change
them around after you've created your file, actually changing the titles
won't have any affect on the contents of the categories themselves. So, for
example, if you changed your titles to move your second addition into
fourth place, and your fourth addition into second place, then only the
titles themselves would change: The actual information entered in your file
as the second addition would remain in that position even though the title
itself had moved.
To actually move the information itself you need to use the "Exchange"
function in the "Lines" pull down menu. Select this, and then click on the
two categories that you want to exchange places and press the "Accept"
button. All the information entered in those two categories will then swap
places with one another. You should remember, however, that selecting this
function won't have any affect on the titles themselves, that is to say
that it will only move the actual information within the file, and the
titles will remain as they were before the function was selected.
MENU FUNCTIONS
==============
Because this program has been specifically designed to be easy to use, most
of its functions don't really need a detailed description like those given
elsewhere in these instructions.
The remaining functions of this program have been broadly categorised into
six pull down menus:
PROGRAM
-------
ABOUT Displays information about the program and its authors.
ICONIFY Iconify's the program, shutting down the Pay Advice screen
to free up 80-90K graphics memory. If you select this, you
will be asked if you want to enter a password - The idea
here is as follows: Suppose you are using the program and
you have to leave the computer for some reason, but you
don't want anybody wondering in while you're gone and
going through your wage details. If you enter a password
then the program won't let you re-activate (or quit) it
from its iconified state without first re-entering that
password. Passwords can be up to ten characters long and
ARE case sensitive. Incidentally, if you don't want to use
a password then you can just press the return key without
typing anything.
QUIT Quit the program. Requesters will inform you if you have
any unsaved information in your file.
FILES
-----
LOAD Load a new file. Use the file requester to select the
appropriate file, and then enter the required password.
SAVE Save the current file with the program automatically using
the last file name and password used, thus saving you from
having to go through the file requester.
SAVE AS Saves your file, as already detailed.
SAVE ASCII Let's you save your pay slip file as a standard ASCII text
file, so that you can load it into a word processor and
re-arrange its layout before printing it. Remember, though,
that ASCII files aren't password protected, and they CAN'T
be loaded back into this program.
DELETE Use the file requester to erase a file from disk. Remember
that you can't undelete a file!
PRINTOUT Choose which categories you want to print, and then use the
calendar to enter the start and finishing dates for the
printout. Make sure that your printer is on line before
selecting this.
INFO Displays information about the current file.
Note, though, that the "Save" and "Save as" functions won't actually
record any information on disk. To obtain a copy of this program
without this restriction, you'll have to pay the shareware fee, as
detailed elsewhere in these instructions...
MOVE
----
TOP/FILE Moves up to the first line of the current file.
BOTTOM/FILE Move down to the last line of the current file.
GOTO % Type a number into the box, and then you'll be moved to
that percentage of the way down the file.
LINES
-----
INSERT Inserts a blank line at the current position, moving the
current line and everything below it down by one line, and
then brings up the edit window for you to enter a new pay
slip.
DELETE Erases the current line, moving everything below it up by
one line to fill the gap.
EXCHANGE This function is mainly intended for use with the "Edit
titles" function in the "Prefs" menu. If you've used the
"Edit titles" function to re-arrange your wage categories
into a different order within the program, then you'll
find that only the titles themselves have changed, and that
the actual information entered in those categories has
stayed in the same position as it was before. By selecting
this function, you can move the actual wage details in
your file from one place to another within the program
to make them correspond to the modified titles: Simply
click on the two categories that you want to change places
and then press the "Accept" button. Note, though, that you
can't exchange additions with deductions, or vice versa.
OTHER
-----
SEARCH Press the appropriate button to choose which category you
want to search, and then enter the required value. The
program will then search from the current line onwards and,
if it finds an entry for your value, will give you the
option of either stopping there or continuing the search.
TOTALS Enter the start and finishing dates, and then the program
will calculate and display the totals from between those
dates. If you click on the "Print" button, then a copy of
the totals window will be sent to the printer.
DATE ORDER Re-arrange the current file into date order. Be warned,
though, if you are working with a large file then this
might take a couple of minutes.
PREFS
-----
PROGRAM Edit program preferences, as already detailed.
PRINTER Edit printer preferences, as already detailed.
EDIT TITLES Edit the category titles, as already detailed.
INSTALLING YOUR PRINTER DRIVERS
===============================
If you're lucky enough to own a hard drive, or if you don't own a printer,
then you won't have to worry about this. Otherwise, read on...
Due to legal reasons, it is impossible for me to supply this disk with any
printer drivers or preference programs installed on it. Luckily, the
missing files will already be installed on the Workbench disks that came
with your Amiga, so only a small amount of setting up is required:
Please boot your computer using your standard Workbench disk, and then
double-click on the Shell icon. Now type the following, pressing the return
key after each line:
resident c:copy
makedir ram:printers
copy devs:printers/#? to ram:printers
Remove your Workbench disk, and put the Pay Advice disk into drive DF0 (the
internal one). Now type:
copy ram:printers/#? to df0:devs/printers
After the drive light goes out, remove the Pay Advice disk and put your
Workbench disk back into drive DF0. Type:
delete ram:printers all
makedir ram:prefs
copy SYS:pref#? all to ram:prefs
Again, wait for the drive light to go out, and then remove your Workbench
disk and put the Pay Advice disk back into drive DF0. Now type:
copy ram:prefs/#? all to df0:
After that's finished, re-boot your Amiga using your Pay Advice disk. When
you open the disk icon, you should see that the "Prefs" drawer has appeared
somewhere in the window that appears (you might need to use the scroll
gadgets to find it!) Open the Prefs drawer, double-click on the "Printer"
icon, and then set the preferences up just as you did on your Workbench
disk.
And that's it! I know that it sounds complicated here, but it really is
very simple, and you only have to do it once!
Don't forget to read the section about this programs internal preferences
system (as already detailed)...
ADDITIONAL NOTES
================
This program makes the assumption that time started on 1st January 1950,
and that it runs out on 31st December 2049. Somehow I can't see this
causing any problems because hardly anybody will want to catalogue any pay
slips that they might have lying around from before 1950, and, frankly, by
the year 2049 we'll all have upgraded to something a little more powerful
than the Amiga...
This program is unable to handle numbers any larger than nine characters in
length. To be honest, I don't think that anybody who has numbers longer
than nine characters on their pay slip will be actively involved in using
PD & shareware programs anyway, so I can't imagine this being a problem!
If you accidentally tell the program that you want to enter a new pay slip,
when in actual fact you didn't want to, then there is a way of cancelling
the input sequence. If you've got the calculator turned on (which it will
be by default) then all you have to do is hit the "C" button twice. If
you've turned the calculator off, then when prompted to enter a number you
should type "C" (without the quotes!) and press the return key. Either way,
the operation will be cancelled.
A word about memory: This program requires a huge chunk of unfragmented
memory in order to work correctly. It'll work OK on machines with 1 meg or
more, so if you have less than this then I'd recommend booting your
computer and running this program without loading anything else in between.
This should cure most problems.
File names... It is officially recommended that you start a new pay slip
file for each financial year, and that you save your files with names such
as "FredBloggs1994" for your 1994 records while working for Fred Bloggs (or
whatever). If you do insist on keeping inordinately long files, then this
program will handle files up to 250 pay slips long (if you get paid weekly,
then that's about FIVE YEARS worth!)
File compatibility: Sadly, it is no longer possible to keep this program
compatible with files created or saved using V1.27 of this program, but it
still works fine with files from V2.00 onwards. If you still need to use
files created on V1.27 of this program, then you'll need to convert them
into V2.00/V3.00 format. To do this, you'll need to have either the PD or
registered version of Pay Advice Analyser V3.00: Load your V1.27 file into
this and it'll automatically convert it into V2.00/V3.00 format, and then
all you have to do is save it again. You'll then be able to load it into
this program without any problems.
Please remember that there's no actual requirement for you to try and fill
every single category available in this program, so if you only need three
additions and four deductions then leave the other boxes blank! There are
two reasons for this:
1) Suppose, half way through the financial year, you decided to join a
union, or something else happened which meant having an extra addition
or deduction to your wages. If you left some of the categories blank,
then you could simply re-edit your titles to create a new category for
that extra addition or deduction.
2) Imagine if, now and again, you were to get an extra addition/deduction
to your wages, something which doesn't normally appear on your pay
slip. If you enter all your normal details and then re-edit the pay
slip, you'll find that you can click on those unused categories and put
numbers in them. So, by doing this, you could still include that extra
addition or deduction in your file.
THE TRADITIONAL JOKES
=====================
Well, the festive season is almost upon us once again, and I haven't
mentioned any of my favourite Christmas jokes yet...
1) What do you get if you cross a shark with a block of ice?
Frostbite!
2) What kind of parties do snowmen go to?
Snowballs!
3) What do you get if you cross an octopus with a turkey?
I don't know, but there's a leg for all the family!
4) What did Mrs Christmas say to Father Christmas?
"It looks like rain deer!"
5) Why didn't the skeleton go to the party?
Because he had no-body to go with!
Ha ha ha ha ha... Ahem...
Er, perhaps that's enough jokes for now...
VERSION HISTORY
===============
V1.27 Released 14th January 1993
The first public release of this program. After much consultation
with Andy Eskelson, the program has a half-decent user interface,
and, more importantly, it actually works...
V2.00 Released 19th July 1993
* A complete re-write of the user interface.
* Re-organised the pull down menu's into a sensible order.
* Added keyboard short-cuts for commonly used menu items.
* Completely re-wrote the LOAD and SAVE routines to incorporate
complete file encryption, instead of just partial encryption
as used in previous versions.
* Added a calendar, pre-set from the system clock, for entering
dates into the program.
* Incorporated a simple calculator for entering numbers.
* Improved number handling - Decimal places are automatically
checked, and all numbers are now right-justified.
* Wrote a "SAVE AS ASCII" function, enabling you to load your
Pay Advice files into a word processor or text editor to
re-arrange the layout before printing them.
* Modified the screen display, so now the program uses the entire
screen to display your file instead of just the bottom few
lines.
* Added a "DELETE FILE" function to the pull down menu's.
* Modified the colour palette: You can actually read the file
requesters now!
* The program will now warn you if you try to quit when there's
unsaved information in the current file.
* Added some new printer preferences routines and completely
re-wrote the printout function.
* Wrote a way, through the calculator, to cancel the input
sequence for entering a new pay slip (press "C" twice)
* Improved the screen update and button-handling routines.
* Plus numerous bug removals (too many to list!) and more...
V2.10 Released 5th August 1993 (EXCLUSIVE TO REGISTERED USERS)
* It turned out that my new printout routines had a slight bug
in them which affected the last page of a printout. Corrected.
* Added an ICONIFY routine.
* Plus a few minor enhancements and modifications here and
there...
V3.00 Released 11th October 1993
* Er, don't know how to say this, but the "DELETE FILE" function
never actually worked! Corrected this, plus a number of other
bugs.
* Looks like there was a problem with the "SAVE AS ASCII" routines
used in V2.10 - the columns of numbers didn't line up properly!
Corrected this as well.
* Incorporated some program preferences routines...
* User now has the option of whether or not to use the calculator.
* The calendar can now be disabled, and if so, the user can choose
whether to type dates using the DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY format.
* Added an option to automatically load a Pay Advice file by
default.
* Drastically improved the screen update speed.
* Completely re-wrote the "ARRANGE INTO DATE ORDER" function, so
now it'll re-arrange any size file in a couple of minutes or
so, instead of taking up to ten times longer than this! Also,
this routine will now automatically remove any blank lines from
the current file.
* Added some error handling routines - Now, if something goes
wrong, the program will tell you what happened instead of just
quitting with a meaningless error code.
* Wrote some nice single-button requesters, so you don't get any
more daft requesters appearing with two "Cancel" buttons beside
one another.
* When saving files, when asked to enter a password you can now
press return without typing anything to keep the last password
that you entered.
* If you've customized the file layout, the program will no longer
ask you to enter a number for any category which doesn't have a
name (you can still put numbers in these categories by editing
the pay slip in the usual manner)
* File loading and saving is now directed towards the AmigaDos path
PayAdvice: instead of the program guessing (often wrongly!) what
the current device and directory are likely to be.
* A minor cosmetic change: Designed a nice, 2.0-style icon to
replace the old Pay Advice program icon.
* Plus more...
V4.00 Released 24th December 1993
* A complete re-design of the GUI... The program now conforms far
more closely to the WB2-standard for user interfaces...
* The program now supports ten user-definable categories instead
of just six.
* Converted the Pay Advice doc file into AmigaGuide format.
* Incorporated a standard WB2 AmigaDos version string into the
program.
* Changed the main Pay Advice screen into a backdrop window, so
now you can't accidentally lose requesters and such behind the
main screen...
* Modified the error handling routines - Now, if something goes
wrong, the program will give you the option of attempting to
save the current file before quitting.
* To keep memory requirements down to a minimum, the maximum
number of pay slips allowed in each file has been lowered from
five hundred to two hundred and fifty (the extra categories
mean that you need more memory to store each individual pay
slip than in earlier versions)
* Modified the keyboard controls for moving through a pay slip
file: The left/right cursor keys now move you one line at a
time, and the up/down keys move you a screen at a time.
* Due to technical reasons, this program is no longer compatible
with files created/saved using V1.27 of this program - but it
still works fine with files saved from V2.00 onwards.
* Completely re-wrote the "SAVE AS ASCII" function, and removed the
"With grid" and "Without grid" options. You can now choose which
categories you want to save, and can also select the start and
finishing dates for the save...
* Unless your printer requires a form feed after every printed
page, then you can now completely ignore the section about
setting up the programs internal printer preferences.
* The program now displays the current file name on the title bar.
* Added a "Printout" option to the "DISPLAY TOTALS" function.
* Renamed the "SAVE" function to "SAVE AS", and added a new "SAVE"
menu function which lets you save the current file automatically
using the last file name and password used.
* When editing a pay slip with the calculator turned on, the
program will no longer remove the value from any category that
you select in the edit window - Instead the number will now
stay where it is and the calculator will appear with a blank
display.
* Removed the "Do you wish to modify the file format" requester
from the "Create a new file" routine, and replaced it with an
"EDIT TITLES" function in the "Prefs" menu. You can now change
the titles any time you want, and not just exclusively when
you're creating a new file...
* Added an "EXCHANGE" function to the "Lines" menu, which lets
you swap information between categories, mainly for use with
the "Edit titles" function.
* When creating a file, or modifying the user-definable category
titles, the program will no longer automatically erase the
current contents of a box when you click in it to edit its
contents.
* Added a "Cancel" button to the "SEARCH FILE" function.
* You can now cancel the input sequence for entering a new pay
slip even if you're not using the calculator: Type "C" (without
the quotes!) and press return when prompted to enter a number.
* It appears that the program would let you enter daft numbers
like "12.34.56" and actually accept them! Corrected this.
* Centred all the "Details for period ending..." titles in the
edit and totals windows.
* Modified the "INSERT LINE" function so that it'll automatically
bring up the edit window for you to enter a new pay slip.
* Drastically reduced the delay by which the edit window remains
on screen after entering a new pay slip.
* The "SEARCH FILE" function no longer stops at the first entry
that it finds - A requester will now appear telling you which
pay slip contains the required value and asking whether or not
you want to continue the search.
* Modified the "ICONIFY" routine to include a password option.
* The "PRINTOUT" routines will now let you specify exactly which
categories you want to print, and now includes an option to print
the totals for the selected categories...
* When you click on an entry to modify it when editing a pay slip,
simply pressing enter without typing a new number will no longer
clear the current value of that category.
* All main buttons in the program will now respond to keyboard
short-cuts, instead of just those on requesters...
* The Pay Advice preference files are now loaded and saved to
AmigaDos path "s:" instead of "SYS:s"
* Plus other minor enhancements...
DISCLAIMER
==========
This software is supplied "AS IS" without any warranty of any kind, either
expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties
of mechantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk as
to the results and performance of this software is assumed by the user.
Should the software prove defective, the user (and not the author or
anybody associated therewith) assume the entire cost of all necessary
servicing, repair or correction. Further, the author does not warrant,
guarantee or make any representations regarding the use of, or the results
of the use of, this software in terms of correctness, accuracy,
reliability, currentness, or otherwise; and you rely on this software and
the results entirely at your own risk. In no event will the author be
liable for direct, indirect, incidental or consequential damages resulting
from the use of this software even if advised of the possibility of such
damages.
The author reserves the right to make changes to this software at any time
without obligation to notify any person or entity of such revisions or
changes.
This program, and all associated software, files, programs and text, is the
exclusive copyright of Richard Smedley 1992, 1993, All Rights Reserved.
This "save disabled" version of this program may be freely distributed, in
its entire form only, providing all files remain intact and unmodified.
This disclaimer shall supersede any verbal or written statement to the
contrary.
Your use of this software indicates your acceptance of this disclaimer.
FINAL WORDS
===========
Well, I think that just about covers everything...
Always remember: Du musst Ambose oder Hammer sein.
Auf Wiedersehen,
Richard Smedley