Tech Arsenal 1/Tech Arsenal (Arsenal Computer).ISO/tek-09/bookguid.zip/BOOKS.ZIP/BOOK.DOC

Text File | 1992-11-12 | 39KB | 861 lines

                   B O O K   G U I D E   Release 1.0

    Sandd Software
    Book Guide
    PO Box 3587
    Reston, Virginia  22090
    Voice [phone]
    Fax [phone]

            Book Catalog Software
             Copyright 1992, Sandd Software
              Written by Bertrand LaMarche
               Only $30.00 + $4.00 Shipping

                    TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  1.0
What is Book Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  1.1
Program Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  1.2

SETTING UP BOOK GUIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2.0
Distribution Diskettes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.1
Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.2
Installing Book Guide  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.3
Using the Mouse Interface  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.3.1
Program Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4
Screen Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.1
Speaker Sound  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.2
DOS Version  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.3
Auto Save  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.4
Printer .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.5
Printer Port .  . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.6
VGA Support  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.7
Book Sort  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.4.8

FILES  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.0
Select Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.1
Specifying Directory Path Names  . . . . . . . . . . .
Verify Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.2
Modify Series  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.3
Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.4
Quit Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.5

USING BOOK GUIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  4.0
Adding Information to Your Data Base. . . . . . . .  .  4.1
Changing and Updating Information in Your Data Base. .  4.2
Finding Information in Your Data Base  . . . . . . . .  4.3
Books  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  A.
Book Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  B.
Authors  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  C.
Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  B.
Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  C.



REPORTS  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.0
Report Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1
Report Number  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.A
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.B
Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.C
Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.D
Select Books   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.E
Select Series  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.F
Heading .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.G
Print Page Number. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.H
Left Margin  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.I
Print Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .  5.1.J
Lines / Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.K
Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.L
Begin Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.M
Quit Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.1.N

MULTIMEDIA FILES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  6.0
Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  6.1
Multimedia Search. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  6.2
Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  7.0
Backups . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  7.1

  *** IMPORTANT WARRANTY INFORMATION ***
Sandd warrants the physical diskette(s) and physical documentation
provided with registered versions to be free of defects in materials
and workmanship for a period of ninety days from the date of order.
If Sandd receives notification within the warranty period of defects
in materials or workmanship, and such notification is determined by
Sandd to be correct, Sandd will replace the defective diskette(s) or
documentation.
  The entire and exclusive liability and remedy for breach of this
Limited Warranty shall be limited to replacement of defective
diskette(s) or documentation and shall not include or extend to any
claim for or right to recover any other damages, including but not
limited to, loss of profit, data, or use of the software, or special,
incidental, or consequential damages or other similar claims, even if
Sandd has been specifically advised of the possibility of such
damages.  In no event will Sandd Software's liability for any damages
to you or any other person ever exceed the lower of suggested list
price or actual price paid for the license to use the software,
regardless of any form of the claim.
  Sandd specifically disclaims all other warranties, expressed or
implied, including but not limited to, and implied warranty of
merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose.


1. INTRODUCTION

Book Guide is Sandd's program for Personal Computers (PCs) that
allows you to catalog your library.
  You can use Book Guide to create one or more relational data
bases that contain information about books, or series of books,
that you want to keep track of.  Book Guide lets you apply your
own extended comments about the books it contains, so you can be
as detailed as you like. Sandd has built great deal of flexibility
into the program that allows you to find your data
quickly.

Book Guide uses relational data bases that allow you to add,
update, and retrieve information.  Book Guide will manipulate
information from these data bases that you put into the program.
The information that you keep in these data bases is entirely
up to you, and you can change the information as often as you
like, and build reports for viewing on the screen or printing
on your printer.  With the purchase of Book Guide 3.1, Sandd
provides you a 3/12 or 5 1/4 inch diskette. These diskettes
contain the programs that set up, run, and maintain Book Guide.
You will use files stored on these diskettes to install Book Guide
on your personal computer (note that Sandd ships these files in a
compacted format; contained on the diskette is a program which will
install the files and then un-compress them).  We recommend, as
does anyone else who sells you software, that you make backup copies
of the files that we send you in case some disaster with your PC
causes a loss of files.

1.1 What Is Book Guide
Sandd developed Book Guide to enable you to keep track of the Books,
Authors and Editors you are interested in.  Book Guide's relational
data bases are interconnected, so after you enter information into
the "Book" data base, it's available to the other sections, too
(Authors and Editors). You don't have to build, say, a data base
containing information about Book Editors; the program will extract
the information about Editors from its relational data bases and
display it (or print it) at any time, for you.

Sandd's Book Guide is a PC based library that can catalog information
that relates book collecting and tracking. Data look-up is simple and
strait-forward.  Each record holds information about each book.

Sandd has also included this manual on-line with the Book Guide
program, so you can refer to it quickly and easily on your PC.

1.2 Program Support
If you need to contact Sandd regarding the program,
we can be contacted in the following ways.

FAX:      24 Hours                       [phone]
Voice:    Mondays and evenings           [phone]

Mail:     Sandd
          Book Guide
          PO Box 3587
          Reston, VA 22090

Email:    Prodigy User-ID  SVBH07B
          CIS User-ID 71160,3331


2.0 SETTING UP AND USING BOOK GUIDE

2.1 Distribution Diskettes
Book Guide from Sandd is distributed on 3-1/2 or 5-1/4 diskettes.  As
with any software you purchase, you should make backup copies of your
diskettes before you begin to work with Book Guide.  See your DOS
manual for instructions on how to make backup copies of diskettes.
If you are upgrading always back up your data files before installing
the newest version.

2.2 Files

The Installation diskette contains the following files:

∙ BOOK.LZH - the Book Guide program files

∙ INSTALL.EXE - install program you need to run

∙ LHA103.COM - part of the install program

∙ README.DOC - part of the install program

2.3 Installing Book Guide
On the disk labeled Book Guide Program, there is an install program.
Put this disk into your floppy drive and type "A:INSTALL".  Follow
the instructions to install Book guide onto your Personal Computer.
Type B:INSTALL if the program is being installed from your B:\
drive.

2.3.1 Using the Mouse Interface
If you have a mouse connected to your Personal Computer, you can
tell Book Guide to use it by starting the program with a parameter.
The parameter is the word "mouse".
∙ Type BOOK MOUSE to enable the mouse to run in the program.

Simply move the cursor around with the mouse to highlight the
selection you want, then press the left-hand mouse button to select
it.  If you press the right-hand mouse button, you back up, one
level at a time.  Whenever this document tells you to use the left
and right arrow keys to move your cursor, you can use the mouse
instead.  Just use the mouse to move the cursor around on the screen,
then click the left-hand mouse button to make your selection.  The
right-hand mouse button always exits you from the current Book Guide
panel.  Both buttons are equal to the page down key.

2.4 Program Settings
Once Book Guide has been installed onto your PC, take a few moments
and review the settings Book Guide uses.  Run Book Guide and select
SETTINGS from the FILES menu to view or change the settings.
"Settings" allow you to alter the configuration that Book Guide
uses.  Use the arrow keys to highlight "Settings" under the "FILES
MENU" and press <Enter>.  Book Guide displays a pop-up panel in the
center of your screen called "Configuration".  You can make the
following selections on the "Configuration" panel.  The following
is an explanation of options you can select.

2.4.1  Screen Display
AUTODETECT, COLOR, or MONOCHROME.  Normally you can leave this
set to autodetect, this will sense the type of monitor you have and
adjust the colors accordingly. If you are using a VGA White or a
Portable PC, you may want to experiment with the monochrome settings.
This setting may be easier to read.

2.4.2  Speaker Sound
This will control sounds from your internal PC speaker.  Book Guide
will produce clicks and other sounds when you navigate through Book
Guide.

2.4.3  DOS Version
Use the left and right arrow keys to let Book Guide know if the
DOS version you are running is prior to version 3.0 or after.

2.4.4  Auto Save
Use the left and right arrow keys to turn Auto Save on and off.
If you turn on Auto Save, Book Guide will automatically save
the changes you make to your Book library without prompting you.

2.4.5 Printer
select the type of printer you own.  Choose Laser Printer or Dot
Matrix printer.   If you have a laser printer then be sure to set
the Lines Per Page option to 60 lines when you print a report.

2.4.6  Printer Port
Select from LPT1, LPT2, or PRN.  If you have problems printing,
try changing this item to PRN.  This will allow DOS to handle all
printing requests.  This may be necessary if you are on a LAN or
otherwise have re-directed the printer output.

2.4.7  VGA Support
Enable or disable VGA support.  If this is active and you have
a VGA monitor, Book Guide will fade screens in and out.  There
are two speeds of fading, choose whichever you like.  If you are
running in a partition such as windows set this to off.

2.4.8  Book Number Sort
Use the right and left arrow keys to select the sort type.  Options
include Automatic/Standard.  If Automatic is selected then the
program will try to sort book numbers by Dewy Decimal.  If Standard
is selected then the program will do a standard sort by book number.
If you change this option then the database must be re-sorted for the
change to take effect.  Re-sort the data with the verify files
option.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Now that you have installed Book Guide onto your PC and have
set-up your system, you are ready to use the program!


3. FILES

Use the FILES PANEL to select your Book Data files and change
directory paths, make sure the your data files are not corrupted,
modify the series, change the program settings, and exit the program.

3.1 Select Files
Directory and file names
To access the Select Files panel, use the arrow keys to highlight the
FILES on the Main Panel.  The Select Files panel appears.  The Book
Path Directory is highlighted. To change the current directory path
press <Enter>.
  To add a new Book directory path, press the down arrow key
to highlight a blank line under the existing path and press the
<Spacebar>.  Type the path name for the new directory.  Make
sure that you start with the drive name (e.g., a:\pictures in our
example).  Book Guide will add the final "\" if you do not type
it.  Press <Tab> to highlight the blank line below "Multimedia Data
Path Directory".  Press the <Space bar>.  Enter the path name
of your multimedia files.  To select a directory highlight the
one you want and press <Enter>.  The selected (active) directory
where the program will find the files is the top item displayed.
Press <Esc> when you have finished selecting your file.

3.2 Verify Files
If you suspect that your directories have become corrupted back them
up first!  Next move the cursor to the "Verify Files" and press
<Enter>.  Book Guide displays the "VERIFY CATALOG DATA FILES" panel,
which gives you some reasons why catalogs can become corrupted.  If
you select a new sort method, from the settings menu then use this
option to rebuild the index files.  Choose to update and rebuild your
data or multimedia files.  Highlight your choice and press <Enter> to
begin.  After you see the message "Recovery Process Completed," note
if there were any errors.  If there are errors run verify again to
see if they were fixed in the first run.  Press <Escape> to return to
the Main Menu Panel.

3.3 Modify Series
Use the "Modify Series" selection to add/edit/delete a series name to
your Book series list.  For example, to add the series "History"
then move the cursor to a blank item and type in history.  Press
<Esc> and the program will ask if you wish to save this series.
Now when you add or edit a book the new series will be displayed
as one of your choice's for series.
  To add a series name, access the "Modify Series" panel.  The
Screen shows all 43 choices.  Use the arrow keys to move the
highlight to a blank area on the panel.  Type the name that you want
to use, then press the <Esc> key.  Book Guide will update its data
base so that it contains the new series.

3.5 Quit Program
Use the EXIT selection to leave the program.  Note that before you
turn off your PC, you should use the EXIT function to be certain that
the program saves any changes that you made to your data bases.
Don't just turn off your PC, you should always exit the current
program you are running before shutting your system down.


4.0  USING BOOK GUIDE

The following are some general rules to keep in mind when you are
using Book Guide.   Move to the next field on a panel by pressing the
down arrow key or the <Enter> key, and move to the previous field by
pressing the up arrow key.  Use of the <Spacebar>, <Insert>,
<Delete>, <PgUp> <PgDn> <Enter> and of course <Escape> are the main
control keys in the program.

If you want to erase characters in a field, you can just type over
the letters that already occupy the space. Be aware, however, that
any characters already in a field will stay in the field unless you
overtype them, with other characters or with spaces. Note that the
spacebar will delete characters after the cursor, and the backspace
key will delete characters before the cursor.  You'll get some
interesting results if the new information you are typing does not
completely cover the old data.

Along the top of this Entry Panel are five selections:

∙ FILES
∙ LIBRARY
∙ REPORTS
∙ MULTIMEDIA
∙ ORDER

Each of these selections is described in a separate section in this
document. Use the left and right arrow keys to change selections, and
the up and down arrow keys to highlight the choices in the pop-up
panels that appear below each selection.

4.1  Adding New Information to Your Data Base
Sandd's Book Guide allows you to make your data base as large as
your PC will allow.  You can include a great deal of information
about each Book.

You add new information to Book Guide from the "Books" selection on
the Main Panel under "Library".  Book Guide's relational data base
structure automatically keys the information you enter to the
appropriate places in its data base structure. Use the following
procedure to add information to Book Guide. When you are working with
Sandd's Book Guide, you can erase characters that you have typed by
using the backspace key, or use the left arrow key and overtype.  You
move to the next field blank by pressing the <Enter> key.

Under "Library" on the Main Menu, highlight "Books" and press the
<Enter> key.  There is a brief delay while the software loads.  In a
few seconds, the "Book Guide File Maintenance" panel appears.  Now
press the Insert key and Book Guide will add a new Book and let you
begin to edit it.

NOTE: You cannot type information into the fields that are
prepopulated.  Information is selected by using the <Spacebar> or the
right and left arrow keys.  To view all of the choice's at once
press <Enter> on the field.  Use the up and down arrow keys to select
your choice and press <Enter>, to abort press <Esc>.

Book Guide highlights the "Book Title" field. Type the name of the
Book.  Press <F5> to modify the sort title.  The sort title is
created automatically, but at times needs to be changes to reflect
your preference for sorting.

If you know the name of the Editor, type that name into the
highlighted field and press <Enter>.  If you don't know the Editor's
name, just press <Enter>.

Book Guide highlights the "Year" field.  Type the year in
which the Book was released and press <Enter>, or just press
<Enter> to leave the field blank.

Book Guide highlights the "Series" field.  This field is prepopulated
with a number of selections; you can see all the options by
repeatedly pressing the <Spacebar>.  Selections here are created from
the "Modify Series" Menu.  When Book Guide displays the selection
that you want, press <Enter>.  The following selections are available
when you first install the program.

Book Guide accepts your selection and highlights the
"Authors" field.  Type the names of the Authors who appear in
the Book, up to 20 characters and ten authors are allowed.
After you type each name, press the <Enter> key.  When you
have added all the names you want to, press the down arrow
or <enter> key to move to the next field.


The next two fields are for rating the book.  First select if the
book is Fiction or Non-Fiction.  Next there is a place to rate the
book with a star rating.  Both of these fields are pre-populated, use
the <Spacebar> to toggle each field.  Press the <Spacebar> repeatedly
until you see the rating you want to use for this book, then
press <Enter>.
 1/2
 *
 * 1/2
 **
 ** 1/2
 ***
 *** 1/2
 ****
 ****1/2
 *****

The number of pages in the book can be typed in by you.  Only numbers
are allowed in this field.   Press <Enter> to go to the Edition
field.

The edition of the book can be toggled with the <Spacebar>.  The
range is: 1st edition to the 99th edition.

To select the book format use the <Spacebar> key.  The following
selections are available.

Hard Cover
Paper Back
Library
Cassette
Magazine
Paper
Other

Type in the price (numbers only) into this field.  Next to the price
field is the condition field.  With this field you can toggle between
NEW to WORN with more choices in between.

The Reading field is unique in that is reveals the status of your
involvement with the book.  Choose between:

Finished reading this book
I want to read this book
Have not read this book

The book number is important in two ways.  First the book number is
used as a way to lookup your books (Sorting).  Second this can be
used to track if the book is in your personal library, since usually
only books you own would be assigned a book number.  You can input
letters or numbers in this field.  To use the book number with a
Dewy decimal sort use standard Dewy input.  If you want to use your
own cataloging system the program will still sort by book number.
You can use letters and numbers and dashes to distinguish your
catalog.
 In the settings part of the program you can choose the sort type.
Usually it can be left in the "Automatic" mode.  If automatic is
selected then the program will try to determine if the book number is
Dewy or standard and sort each differently.
The ISBN number (International Standard Book Number) has
room for the number assigned to the book.

Type in the publisher in the publisher field.

Book Guide highlights "Description". Add any description you want.
Be sure to press the <Enter> key at the end of each line.  Also, if
data already existed in this field, be careful when you are typing.
The new letters you type will overlay the existing characters; If
your new entry does not completely change the old, use the <Spacebar>
to erase the old characters, or you will end up with extraneous
characters in the field.

Book Guide highlights the bottom block on the screen, the
"Description" field in which you can enter your own description
(and opinion!) of the Book.  Type a brief description of the
Book.  You can type anything you want to, but be sure to press
the <Enter> key at the end of each line, since Book Guide does
not automatically wrap the text for you.

If what you want to type more than 7 lines, do not despair!
Sandd provides a facility that allows you to type up
to 800 lines in the Description field with the Extended
Description field.  If more than seven lines are in the record
than using the up and down arrow keys while viewing the data
will scroll the extended description in the seven line field.

Press the <TAB> key to start editing in ("Extended Description".
Book Guide then shows you the "Extended Description" panel.
Type to your heart's content, but remember that the text does
not wrap automatically; press the <Enter> key to begin each
new line.  The number of lines that you have typed appears in
the lower right-hand corner of the panel.

After you have made the changes, press <Esc>.  Book Guide opens a
panel on your screen that says "This Book has been modified, Save
changes?"  Press "Y" to alter your relational data base, or press "N"
to abort the procedure.  If autosave is on then changes are saved and
no prompt is given.

When you have finished entering the text, press <Esc>.  Book Guide
saves what you have typed (there is a short pause while the program
saves your changes), and returns to the book lookup screen.

Note that the Description section on the Book Data Base panel
shows only the first seven lines of the description if the
description contains more than seven lines.  Everything is still
there--press <TAB> to edit the entire description.  If you are
viewing a book the description will scroll by using the up and
down arrow keys.
4.2  Changing and Updating Information in Your Data Base
After you have typed information into Book Guide's relational
data base, you can, of course, go back and change any or all of
the information, or delete information that you have already entered.
Use the following procedure to make changes to the relational data
bases.

Use the left and right cursor keys to highlight "Books" under
"Library." Press the <Enter> key.

Book Guide displays the list of Books currently in its data base,
beginning with the letter "A" (or as close to the letter "A" as
it can get).  Move around in this list by using one or more of
the following methods.

Press the Spacebar and type Twain, Book Guide will search for
this book title.  You can also type a phrase or as little as
one letter.  Whatever you type will be highlit where it is in
the title.  Press <Ctrl> + L  to find the next occurrence of the
phrase you typed in the search string.

Use the left and right arrow keys to jump, one letter at a time,
either forward or backward in the alphabet.  Along the bottom of the
panel, from left to right, are the letters of the alphabet, with the
letter that begins the highlighted Book highlighted.

Press the first letter of the first word in the Book title to jump
to that letter.  For example, press "c" to jump to those books in
the data base whose first letter begins with "c".

Use the <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys to jump one screenfull of information
at a time.  Use the up and down arrow keys to move the cursor one
book title at a time.

When the cursor is highlighting the Book you want, press the <Enter>
key.  Book Guide will search its data base, then display the
information it has for the book you selected.  If more than three
authors are entered than the authors scroll.  To view more of the
description use the up and down arrow keys.

4.3 Finding Information in Your Data Base

While you are looking at the Main Panel, use the left or right cursor
keys to highlight "Library".  Book Guide automatically highlights
"Books". Press the <Enter> key.  Book Guide displays the "Book Guide
File Maintenance" screen, which contains an alphabetical list of the
Book titles currently in your data base.  Note the following features
of this screen.

In the center of the screen is the cursor bar, which highlights the
first Book in the list.  At the top of the screen, Book Guide shows
you information about the Book:

Below the list is a bar containing letters of the alphabet; the
highlighted letter is the first letter that appears in the book
title. At the bottom of the screen appears information about
navigating in the data base.  Use the <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys to
jump, one screen at a time, backward or forward in the data base.
The <Esc> key, as usual, backs you up one level, in this case back
to the Book Guide Main Menu screen.

The up arrow key moves the cursor up one selection on the screen.
The down arrow moves the cursor forward on the screen, or forward
to the next screen.

The left and right arrow keys jump the cursor from one letter of
the alphabet to the previous or the next letter.

When you press the <Enter> key, Book Guide displays the detailed
information that it has about the Book that is highlighted (the
information contained in the Book Data Base).  Use the list to locate
a particular Book in your data base, highlight the name with the
cursor bar, and press the <Enter> key.  Under the "Library" selection
at the top of the screen are the following selections.

∙ Books         - Books sorted by title
∙ Book Numbers  - Books sorted by book number
∙ Authors       - Alphabetical listing of all Authors and Editors
∙ Series        - Lists Books by a particular series
∙ Search        - Search the Book database

A. Books
Use the "Books" selection to find Books by title.  This is also where
you can add, change, or delete Books in the file.

B. Book Numbers
Use the "Book Number lookup" selection to find Books sorted by
number.  This is also where you can add, change, or delete books
in the file.

 C. Authors
Use the "Authors" selection to find the Authors and Editors that
the data base contains.  To access this portion of Book Guide's
data base, use the arrow keys to highlight "Library", then move to
the menu that displays "Authors" and press <Enter>.  Book Guide
displays a panel that contains up to three columns.

At the left side of the panel are the names, listed in alphabetical
order.  Near the center of the screen is the number of times that a
name appears in the relational data bases (as long as the number is
greater than one--this field is blank if the name appears only once).
In the third column is the name "Author" or "Editor or Both".

Use the up and down arrow keys to move the cursor bar forward (toward
the beginning of the alphabet) or backward (toward the end of the
alphabet).

Note the selections at the bottom of the screen.  They are the
same as those described above, and are for your convenience.

You can also use the <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys to jump, one screen at
a time, in either direction.  When you have highlighted the Author,
Editor you want, press the <Enter> key to see a screen containing
more details about the books that person is connected with.  This
screen shows the person's name in the upper right, and the book
titles.
in the center of the screen.  Use the cursor keys to highlight these
books and press <Enter> to view more information.  If the author
occurs only once in the database then the program shows the book
he/she has written.

D. Series
When you highlight "Series Lookup" and press <Enter>, Book Guide
shows a list of all series names under which the Books have been
entered.  Use the arrow keys to highlight the series you are
interested in, then press <Enter> to see the Books in the data base
that were entered with that series name.

If you press <Enter> while a Book name is highlighted, Book Guide
shows you the Book Data Base panel for that Book. If you have added
more Authors than the screen can show, Book Guide will match the
names from right to left, showing you all the names that appear in
the field.

E. Search Books
Use the "Search Books" selection to query your data base. When you
highlight "Search Books" and press <Enter>, Book Guide shows you the
"Search Book File" screen.  Each of the fields shown enables you to
limit the search.

Fill in as few or as many fields as you like and press the <F5> key
to begin the search.  Note that the larger your data base, the longer
the search will take. Press <Esc> to abort the search.

After Book Guide completes its search, it displays the "Book Guide
Search" screen, which contains the results of the search just made.
In the center of the screen is an alphabetical list of the Book
names.  The top portion of the screen shows some details about the
Book currently highlighted by the cursor.  The bottom of the screen
shows the keys to use to move around the "Book Guide Search" panel.

Press <Enter> to see details about the Book selected, or press <Esc>
to back out of the selection.  A pop-up panel appears on the screen,
containing the word "Searching".  Book Guide also displays the number
of hits made in the data base.  You can create a report from any
search.  After selecting the search criteria and then searching,
return to the "Report Generator" screen and select last search to
print.


5. REPORTS

Book Guide is capable of producing a number of reports, that you
can look at on your screen or print on your printer. Use the Reports
Generator selection to create and print reports about the information
you have in your catalogs.  We suggest that when you specify all the
report parameters that you want, you view the report on the screen
before you print it.  This can save paper, and can give you the
opportunity to ensure that the report is what you want.


5.1 Report Generator
Use the "Report Generator" selection to specify the parameters
that you want to use for your report.  When you highlight
"Report Generator" and press <Enter>, Book Guide displays a menu of
10 reports that you can customize or run.  Press <Esc> to view a
panel that allows you to specify various parameters that can narrow
the search and change the way the report prints on your printer.

5.1.A  Report Number
Press <Enter>.  Book Guide can save up to 10 unique report types.
Select the number you want to print or change.  Use the page up and
page down keys to change the report number.  With this feature you
can set up reports the way you like and they are saved to disk.  This
makes it easy to create your report at a later time since the report
format has been saved to disk.

5.1.B  Description
The report description is used for your reference to give the
different reports unique names.

5.1. C  Report Type
Highlight "Report Type" and press the return key. Book Guide will
display a panel on the right side of the screen that contains the
following selections.  Use the up and down arrow keys to select one
of the types, then press <Enter>.

TITLE
If you select "Title", the report that Book Guide provides will
be sorted by the Book title.

BOOK NUMBER
If you select "Book Number", Book Guide will create a report
sorted by ascending numbers which you have assigned to your books.

SERIES
If you select "Series", Book Guide will create a report sorted by
series.  This report is similar to catalogs used by book review
magazines.  Also, you may elect to print a Table of Contents and
Index with the series report.

LAST SEARCH
Book Guide remembers the parameters that you specified for the
last search you made, and uses them to make its current search.

5.1.D  Format
Use "Report Format" to tell Book Guide how you want to see the
report.  You have the following options.
∙ FULL DESCRIPTION
∙ SORT TITLE - YEAR - NUMBER
∙ TITLE - YEAR - NUMBER
∙ SORT TITLE - FORMATS
∙ SORT TITLE - PRICE - CONDITION

If you select "Full Description", Book Guide will print all the
information that it has in its data base.  All the reports are
shown below.  These five formats will print a single line per
Book, except the full description report.

5.1.E  Select Books
You can use this setting to tell Book Guide which Books to print.
All Books, only Books with numbers, or Books without numbers.
By using this feature, you can print only Books in your library,
these will have a number, so select Books with numbers only.

5.1.F  Select Series
You can use this feature to tell Book Guide which series to print.
You can select any or all series.  If the series has an astrix
next to it than it will be selected.

5.1.G  Heading
Whatever you enter in this area will be printed at the top of
each page printed.

5.1.H  Print Page Number
You can elect to print page numbers on each page or omit them.

5.1.I  Left Margin
You may set the number of characters as a left margin.  Set this
so the reports are aligned on the page to your liking.

5.1.J  Print Guide
This option only takes effect when you select a single line report.
You can turn on a guide which your eye can follow when reading across
the reports.

5.1.K  Lines / Page
You can select the number of lines per page you want your reports
to be printed.  Laser printers use 60 lines per inch and dot
matrix use 66 lines per inch.  If you want to print in laser book
format use about 40 lines per inch.

5.1.L  Output
You can select three ways to view or print the report you have
selected.

PRINTER
This is the normal report format which directs the report directly to
your printer.  This works for laser and dot matrix printers.

LASER 4 UP
If you have a laser printer, you can drastically reduce the number of
pages required to print the reports.  Select this to print 2 pages on
a single side of paper.  You will need to reload the paper when
asked, so the back side of the page can be printed.  The report now
folds neatly giving you a handy report similar to a book.

SCREEN
It is a good idea to view the way the report will look before you
actually print it.  Use this feature to view and scroll through the
report before you actually print it.  Once you are happy with the way
the report looks and you want to print it, select either PRINTER or
LASER 4 UP to get a printed report.

5.1.M  Begin Report
After you have filled in the fields discussed below, highlight
"Create Report" and press <Enter>. Book Guide will create the
report that you have asked for.

5.1.N Quit Reports
When you have finished generating, viewing, or printing the reports
you want, use the arrow keys to highlight "Quit Reports" and press
the <Enter> key.  Book Guide returns to the Main Menu.  The <Esc> key
also quits to the main menu.


6. MULTIMEDIA FILES

Multimedia files are pictures or digitized images, sound files, or
text files stored electronically.  If you have images associated with
your collections, or sound files, you can use Book Guide to display
or play them.

Use the cursor keys or mouse to highlight "Multimedia Files" and
press <Enter>.  Book Guide displays a list of the file names that
have the extension PCX,ROL,GIF,FLI.  You can select any of these
files for your computer.

6.1  Database
Use this area to add and modify the multimedia files.  This is where
you assign multimedia events to Books in your database.  To add a new
record press <Insert>.  From the Edit screen input the file you wish
to tag to a book record.  Use the function keys listed at the bottom
of the screen to help you paste the necessary information.

6.2 Multimedia Search
This will search your drive(s) for any multimedia files that may work
from inside the program.  This information is stored in the
multimedia file.  Book Guide displays a panel that allows you to
specify the drive where you have the files.  Type the drives you wish
to search and press <Enter>. Book Guide searches and catalogs all the
multimedia type files found on the drive(s).

7.0 Performance
There are a few way's to customize and enhance the performance of the
program.  Since this is a database program disk cache is the best
way to speed up the program.  If you have VGA then set VGA support
to quick or slow fades, this is easier on the eyes.

7.1 Backups
To perform a full backup of your data files copy all files with an
extension of .DAT to your backup disk.  From these files Book Guide
can recover your database with a simple rebuild.  We recommend that
you compress the .DAT files first and then store them.  A Dos example
COPY *.DAT A:\