Please take the time to read over the contents of this brief but informative introduction to Award. Many questions you might have or will have concerning all aspects of the use of Award are probably answered here. Award is easy enough to start using right away but it is suggested that in order to get the most out of all Award's features you really should take the time to look over this document.
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"A great little award maker that is made for the Mac community... please send me your rants, raves, suggestions or comments - I always look forward to hearing from folks."
-Steve DiRosa (author of Award)
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SHAREWARE NOTICE
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I don't like to make apologies but I feel that one is in order. Previous versions of Award have always been freeware and now I must ask a shareware fee for the use of this software. Many countless hours have gone into the creating, upgrading and refining of Award and I feel that a very modest $10.00 shareware is not too much to ask. Award is in no way "locked" or "disabled" software. All the features of Award 1.04 are enabled. I trust in the Mac community to support the shareware honor system. You will find Award in perfect working order and a pleasure to use.
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Please support Mac shareware and honor this modest request for without supporters like you - Mac shareware cannot go on. The income generated from this shareware offering will not only support future versions of Award and other software offerings but will give me a chance to purchase needed computing supplies for the kids I teach. (Yes, I am a full-time teacher and a graduate student). I do not work in a "wealthy" school district and my kids really do deserve better equipment and supplies. Those who need it most seem to get it the least and I intend to help do something about it. Help me to reach kids through the interest of computing. Not only will you be supporting the Mac shareware community but you'll be directly helping the educational environment of young students. My plea is genuine - those of you who know me realize that. So I ask again - send in your shareware fee and feel good about it !
When you send in your shareware fee you will be sent a disk that proudly displays on the "splash screen / About Award screen" that you are a registered user and a supporter of Shareware and the Mac community of shareware software !
Please include with your fee the address you want the registered copy of Award mailed to (on 800K disk).
For AOL members - I can send the registered version of Award to you via email as an attached file if you so choose.
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Make shareware fees of $10.00 payable to:
Steven DiRosa
Send your shareware fee (check or money order) to:
Steven DiRosa
Bandit Software
324 Barker Circle
West Chester, PA 19380
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Award is compatible with all Macs from the Plus on up to the new PowerPC Macs - black&white or color. Award needs at least System 6.0.3 to operate and is System 7 compatible (7.0, 7.0.1, 7.1). Award can be used with any monitor - even the 12 inch RGB LC monitors without any problem - Award even works on the ColorClassic 10 inch monitor. Award now supports Apple ImageWriter®, Apple StyleWriter®, Apple LaserWriter®. Award also prints without problems to almost any printer you can hook a Mac up to. Award is truly a fool-proof application and will work on virtually any Mac or Mac setup available to date.
Included in the - Award 1.04 SHAREWARE - folder should be:
1. This "read me" file entitled "all about Award"
2. The Award 1.04 application
3. The file entitled "Award_Help" (an "invisible" file that is only meant to be used internally by the Award application for its online Help system)
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Before we begin -
If you do use or download Award 1.04 - delete or "trash" any previous versions of Award from your hard drive - of course you can copy older versions to a floppy disk and run them from there - Award was meant to be small and able to be run from floppy disks anyway. There is a new icon set to Award so you may have to rebuild the desktop on your hard drive. (During a restart - press the <OPTION - COMMAND> keys and hold them down together until the rebuild desktop dialog box pops up - it's a good idea to do this rebuilding anyway as it keeps your Mac in "tip-top" shape !)
I *strongly* suggest you do not have multiple copies or multiple versions of Award "hanging out" on your hard-drive. Only have one copy of Award 1.04 (newest version) installed. If necessary - use and run other copies/versions from a floppy disk.
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Award v1.04 Brief Intro and Info
note: this read me is applicable to Award v1.03 and v1.04
*v1.04 is the latest release (see version history at end of this read me)
It is seriously suggested that the user read ALL of the following "read me" file in order to view ALL the info on Award and use the online help while in Award. In this way you'll be able to utilize Award to its fullest potential.
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Don't forget to use the online help (under the Apple Menu) after launching the application - it covers a lot of questions you might have and contains much information on many topics while you are using Award !
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Award 1.04 is a great, handy and very easy to use award or certificate maker. It takes up little memory (400 - 600K) and seems to be fairly popular. This version incorporates many bug-fixes and enhancements and is to be considered a significant update from versions 1.02 and 1.03. Previous users will also notice that I have put in new graphics for various award seals and other selectable graphic items. Award 1.04 now has a smoothly scrollable (yes... scroll arrows) document window (finally !) and supports even more printing devices. Award will even print to wide carraige and large-size document printers.
I am usually very modest - but this application is pretty darn good for a very affordable shareware offering. Trust me - you'll like it ! Previous users of Award will also notice that the icons of the Award application and the documents Award creates have changed. If you get a "generic" icon rebuild your desktop file by holding down both the <OPTION><COMMAND> keys at startup. After rebuilding, (which is probably a good idea anyway), the new icons will be visible. They should look like an old "scroll" or "Ye olde scroll document" I decided to do this in celebration of re-writing the window def's and supporting scrollable windows. I'm still working on auto-scrolling but... hey...cut me a break... this isn't my day job !
I suggest to users of Award 1.02,1.02b,1.02e or 1.03 - if you've been using these versions and enjoying them and find them useful - then try out Award 1.04. This new version has some new graphics added and now supports a scrollable document window (this was one of the top requests) and is now virtually problem free.
Award 1.04 is a b/w award maker which is fine by me since my printer only does b/w. It also keeps RAM overhead down to a minimum. I always remember that not everyone (including me) has tons of RAM and the latest equipment at their disposal. If you don't want to buy or launch a behemoth like PageMaker or QuarkExpress just to create and print out a simple award or certificate then this is for you !
Award 1.04 features user selectable borders, seals and font choice... all you need add is your imagination. There are also some basic drawing tools and objects are in PICT format and the fonts are not bitmapped so everything will print out at the highest resolution your printer can support, smoothly and cleanly. Award 1.04 supports TrueType and all versions of ATM (bug-free), and of course regular outline bitmapped fonts.
Enjoy and have fun !
Steve DiRosa
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I can be reached by email at:
AOL: SD Bandit
internet: sdbandit@aol.com
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Award v1.04 is basically an award creator but it can also be used as a very simple page layout application. There is online help available within the program, (under the Apple Menu), and most of the program will be easy to figure out since it merely a mix of various commands and boxes that most Mac users are already familiar with. The borders and other graphics I ported over from other freeware and public domain graphic collections and made them available for your certificates and award creations. The awards graphics are all object oriented so they print smoothly on all printers. Award v1.04 seems to work well on all Macs from the Mac Plus on up and is PowerMac [RISC] compatible. It will work on b/w or color Macs although really Award v1.02 was meant to be used as a simple b/w award maker and only supports b/w graphics. Depending on the response, future versions may make more use of color/grayscale and contain other enhancements.
Yes - there are commercial offerings that are many more times powerful than Award 1.04 but hey... this is also priced more than reasonably ($10) and you'll get personal help and support from me (if you need it). Besides, I needed to make an application like this when I wanted a fast way to make an award for one of my students or co-workers without launching a huge RAM hog page layout program or a word processing behemoth.
Award 1.04 only takes up about 600K of RAM, (it will run in as little as 384K), and it's pretty quick at what it was intended for. It is definitely advised that you read the online help once you've launched Award to see information on the specifics of the program - most of your questions will be taken care of within this online help section.
WARNING ---- Award 1.04 MUST REMAIN INSIDE THE "Award 1.04 SHAREWARE" folder or you will lose access to the online help while in the program. There is an "invisible" Award Help file in this folder. Award 1.04 and the Award Help file need to be in the same folder for the online "help system" to work. If you use Award outside of this folder - it will work - but no online help will be available. Documents created with Award can be saved and located anywhere on a floppy or hard-drive. Documents created with Award 1.04 are "double-clickable" (Award will launch)
In order to make using Award 1.04 as easy as possible I have taken the online help file and copied the file as text directly below.
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Award Help, Intro and Info
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Welcome to Award® 1.04 Using Award should be fairly intuitive. Most of the menus and tools are standard items you have probably seen in several other programs already. The interface is much like MacPaint® or MacDraw®. The graphics contained in Award and/or created within the application are "object oriented" and are not "bitmaps". For printing on a LaserWriter make sure to read the help section on "Printing" and "Page Setup".
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File Menu
• New
This will open a new empty Award window, providing there is no window currently open. Award 1.04 only supports one window at a time, (this cuts down on the amount of RAM that the program needs). Future versions may support more than one window.
• Open
This will open an award from an award document saved previously to disk.
• Save
This will save the current award document to any disk.
• Save as
This gives you the option of saving the current award under a new name.
• Close
This closes the current window. If you have not saved your work you will be presented with a SAVE dialog box at which time you can either choose to Save the award document or proceed without saving the award.
• Page Setup
This gives you the ability to set the printer options. Selecting between wide format and tall format is critical to the layout of your certificate. Most awards are printed in "landscape" orientation (sideways). If you decide to choose "portrait" orientation (upright) then you will have to keep track of the objects you have created. To ensure that the document window does not "hang over the edge" of a document, the window is automatically resized and the scrollbars are repositioned if necessary whenever the page layout is altered. Borders are also automatically adjusted within the program.
• Print
Prints the current award. High quality and standard quality are supported. Draft quality is not supported on any printer that has this option such as the ImageWriter® and StyleWriter®. Printing on a laser printer involves some special steps to take, so if you have a laser printer, be sure to read the “Laser Help” section in this help window.
• Quit
You figure this one out. Again, you will be prompted to save your work if you haven't already done so or you can bypass the "save" routine and just Quit without saving.
Edit Menu
• Undo
Undo is not supported in Award 1.04 (another RAM saver). It is only included for use in desk accessories concurrently opened that support it such as DeskPaint®, DeskDraw®, DeskWrite®, MiniWriter®DA and others.
• Cut
This will cut the selection from the window and place it in the clipboard. Although you can past in text and graphics from other programs, Award 1.02 does not allow you to cut a graphic from a certificate and paste it into another program... yet.
• Copy
This will place a copy of the item(s) or object(s) selected into the clipboard. See Cut, above.
• Paste
Paste does several things, depending on the circumstances. If you have cut or copied an object from within an award document, Paste will place a new object that is identical to the one cut or copied (a copy and then an immediate paste will cover the original object with the identical copy, covering the original completely). If you have cut text from another program (or desk accessory) paste will insert the contents of the clipboard into the currently active text box (if there is one active). If no text object is active, you will get a message telling you to create one before pasting.
• Clear
This will cut the object or objects selected from the window, but will not place it in the clipboard. It will be deleted from the page. Because of the lack of an undo option, this is a dangerous command. Please note: Using the CLEAR command is the only way for a selected object or objects to be deleted from the document window. Selecting an object and then pressing <Delete> key or <Backspace> key will NOT delete or remove an object. This is a designed safety feature. I hope it does not bother the user too much in ease and convenience of use but many younger people, (I hope), will also use this program and it takes more decisive thought and action to go up to the Edit Menu after selecting an object and with the mouse selecting "Clear" to delete anything.
Features Menu
• Select Border...
There are a total of twenty separate borders that you can choose from in Award 1.04 This menu selection will present you with a window that allows you to choose which border you want. There are two types of borders ("normal" and "topical") and you select between them by clicking on the two radio buttons at the extreme right and bottom of the window. The names of the borders will change depending on which set of borders you have selected. Ten borders are listed at the top right of the window, and clicking the mouse on any of them will immediately display a sample of the border in the area to the left of the buttons. There are also two check boxes labeled "Thin Line" and "Thick Line" that allow you enhance the border you have selected. Both of these boxes can be checked at the same time. To select a border for your document, simply experiment until you find a border you like, then click the "OK" button. After a few seconds the border you have chosen will be displayed in the main window. Borders cannot be selected like other objects, but they can be overwritten, so be careful. If you decide to get rid of a border, simply choose this menu option again and click on the "No Border" button. If you decide that the original border you had selected was best, simply click on the "Cancel" button and your document will remain as it was before you chose the menu option. Although Award 1.04 does not have an "undo" feature per se, the above mentioned tips should provide a sufficient work-around.
• Select Seal
I have provided a few "seals" for your awards. These are simply samples and you are encouraged to design your own seals in a graphics program and to paste your design into your documents. If you decide to use one of these, simply click the mouse on whichever seal you like and it will immediately be pasted into your document. For that real “official” look, take a trip to a gift shop and purchase some gold leaf envelope seals and attach them to the printed award.
• Reduced View...
Gives you a quick look at your entire document.
• Nudge (Right,Left,Up,or Down)
This will move all selected objects one pixel in the chosen direction. This is a great help in positioning your objects.
• Align Objects...
Speaking of aligning objects, Award 1.04 allows you to align objects in a variety of ways. The most important of these is the align to page options. This will allow you to quickly and easily center your text and graphics for better eye-appeal.
• Bring to Front/Send to Back
If one object completely covers another, these two menu choices will allow you to move or resize the object that is buried, then send it back under the first object when you are satisfied.
Lines Menu
This special menu allows you to control the type of lines you want. It works for the rectangle, oval, and line tools.
Arrow Tool
The arrow tool allows you to select, move, and resize objects.
Rectangle Tool
Selecting this tool changes the cursor to a "cross" while in the document window. To draw a rectangle click the mouse button once, holding the button down, then drag to the desired size. A rectangle will follow the mouse until you let up on the button. You cannot draw a rectangle (or any other shape) outside of the window area. Once a rectangle is drawn you can use the arrow tool to move or resize it. Moving rectangles (or any other object) is simple: Click the mouse inside the objects boundary rectangle, hold the mouse button down, and drag. A gray outline will follow the mouse to the edge of the window, but no furthur. Resizing rectangles is done by positioning the arrow cursor on the "handle" at the lower right corner of the object (this is the same for all objects except lines) clicking the mouse, and then dragging the mouse while the button is still down.
Oval Tool
Ovals are identical to rectangles except that the objects drawn are ovals, not rectangles. 'Nuff said here.
Text Tool
The large letter "A" indicates a text box. Text boxes are very flexible and can contain any font, style, or size variation you may want. (Each text object can only have one font, style or size.) The boxes are fully editable at all times. To create a text box simply select the tool and click the mouse wherever you want the text positioned on the screen. Each new text object will contain the currently selected font, style, and size characteristics, but you can change them at any time. Cutting, copying and pasting of text both within a box and between boxes is supported. You can move and resize text boxes in the same manner as rectangles.
Line Tool
Clicking on the Line tool allows you to draw a line from the place where you click the mouse to the place where you release the mouse button. Lines are slightly different from other objects. The "handle" for resizing is always at the "endpoint" of the line. You can stretch and rotate a line to any point you wish, as long as you don't go outside of the window.
Resizing
Each object on the screen can be resized. Rectangles, ovals, text boxes, and graphics pasted in all have a “resize handle” at the lower right corner of the object when selected. Using the arrow key, you can click and drag the mouse in this handle to size the object however you like. Lines have a resize handle also, but it is located at the “end” of the line, wherever that may be.
Limits
Award 1.04 can contain many separate objects within each created award you make. The absolute limit of items, both in the document and in the clipboard combined, is one thousand (1,000). I really can't see anyone making an award with this many objects but you can if you like ! Each text box can contain about 32,000 characters, and each PICT object (pasted in from outside) is restricted to the dimensions of the page. Objects that are dragged to an edge of an award document window will not induce automatic scrolling so when you come to the edge of the window and need to move an object lower or higher or sideways beyond the window size - drop the object and manually use the scroll bars to reposition your view on the award and then, (using the arrow tool), re-select that object and move it again to where you want it placed.
LaserWriter Help
Awards printed on the LaserWriter may take a little while to print if there are a lot of fonts in the award or many graphics. Laser output and StyleWriter® output (also probably HP DeskWriter), is not in alignment with ImageWriter output. A standard printout of a certificate on the LaserWriter et al will cut off a part of the border. To avoid this, print the certificate out at 95% or choose a reduced printing size.
Other Cool Things
You can make nice invitations simply by printing at 40%, 50%, or 60% reduction (50% seems to work best), then cutting out the re-sized result. On the LaserWriter you can use Award 1.04 to print the cover of a birthday card by flipping the printout horizontally or vertically, then printing out at 45% (or around there -- you may need to experiment). You can hold the shift, command, and question mark key down (simultaneously) to see how many objects are included in your document.
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Many people have said that they cannot "see" the whole award or certificate window on screen and must scroll around constantly to view the whole document. Well, the default award creation window that first opens works fine - as-is - with 9" screen Macs such as the MacPlus, SE, SE/30 and Mac Classics. If you happen to have a larger monitor such as a 13" or 14" or even larger then simply drag the window larger by click dragging at the bottom right of the window... much like you would any standard Mac Finder window. In this way you'll create a larger award window in which to work from. However Award 1.04 now supports scrollable windows (windows with scroll bars and scroll arrows) so navigating around your newly enlarged window should not be a problem any longer. By grabbing the top of the window (Title Bar) you can physically drag the window anywhere you want to. Yes - I know a "grow box" would be nice but unless there is a large outpouring of responses concerning this - I don't see the need. I'm a minimalist and don't really see the problem of manually dragging the window where you want and then dragging it larger or smaller to suit your tastes.
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Finally - I'd like to thank my brother Mike <at Stanford Univ.> and Phil Shapiro of Balloons Software™ for giving me support, help, bug comments and meaningful suggestions. Of course I also thank all the folks who have emailed me with ideas and suggestions, especially the members of America Online (AOL) who have emailed in to me. Thanks !
Not all graphics contained within Award 1.04 were personally drawn but were taken from various public domain graphic collections and made a part of the program's resources.
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Award 1.04 is shareware. Not only is honoring the shareware fee important but encouragement and feedback go a long way... if you liked Award or even if you hated it - let me know by dropping me a postcard or email. Of course any bug reports will be greatly appreciated - Steve D.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES IS THIS SOFTWARE TO BE CHARGED FOR BEYOND THE REQUESTED ORIGINAL SHAREWARE FEE. IF THIS SOFTWARE IS PART OF A "BUNDLE" THEN IT STILL WILL RETAIN ITS OWN ORIGINAL COPYRIGHT AND NOT BE UMBRELLA'd UNDER A BUNDLE COPYRIGHT.
ANY DISTRIBUTION OF THIS SOFTWARE WITHOUT THE AUTHOR'S PERMISSION SHALL BE TREATED AS A COPYRIGHT VIOLATION AND IS ILLEGAL (not to mention immoral). ANY ATTEMPT TO CHARGE MORE THAN THE REQUESTED SHAREWARE FEE WILL ALSO BE CONSIDERED ILLEGAL (not to mention _highly_ immoral).
Also - please review the copyright notice in the online "Help" within the Award program. (Award Help is located under the Apple Menu while using Award)
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Version History
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Award v1.0 - June 1, 1994
Award v1.01 - June 9, 1994 - NOT RELEASED
Award v1.02 - June 14, 1994
Award v1.02a - July 1, 1994 - NOT RELEASED
Award v1.02b - July 5, 1994 - maintenance release (minor bug fixes w/ printer def's)
Award v1.02c - July 6, 1994 - NOT RELEASED
Award v1.02d - July 7, 1994 - NOT RELEASED
Award v1.02e - July 30, 1994
Award v1.03 - August 9, 1994 - further enhancements - Shareware release début
Award v1.04 - August 23, 1994 - window enhancements - LaserWriter 8.1 support.
- versions 1.02,1.02b,1.02e and 1.03 contain many bug fixes, enhance the user window environment, and take care of incompatabilities with two DA products that use different clipboard activity. The DAs' are Curator®DA and MultiClip®DA/extension. No doubt this fix should improve compatability with others of this kind. Other fixes include better compatibility with older HP Print drivers and SuperSpool™ (an Imagewriter® spooler). It is recommended that this newer version (v1.04) be used and the older v1.0, v1.02, v1.02e and v1.03 be trashed. Essentially the interface is the same and only "behind the scenes" stuff has been changed to make Award work better. v1.04 now has smoother drag-bar and arrow-scrollable windows added (instead of the old hand drag window). Also, printing has been improved dramatically using a variety of printers and drivers. Hopefully in the near future I'll be able to incorporate 8 bit Gray-scale and [very hopefully] 8 bit color support. Of course this deviates from my basic philosophy that less is more but we'll see... Different versions of Award contain different graphic elements as far as seals, borders and other selectable attributes are concerned. This is a labor of love and certainly not one of great profit so I hope little by little I can advance the capabilities of this application/program without going hungry or homeless...
Stay tuned................ Steve D.
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User tips:
Many thanks to Phil Shapiro, Pres., Balloons Software, for these Award tips
Phil writes: "... thought you might like to see how Award prints to a large format printer. The [enclosed] hard copy was printed on the Canon® BJ-230 inkjet printer using the PowerPrint software/cable combination from GDT Softworks™ the Canon BJ-230 is a real interesting printer. It looks and works like a wide-carraige StyleWriter®, but it can print over 24 million dots on one 11 by 17 inch piece of paper."
"Meanwhile, here's some info about printing from Award to the Canon® BJ-230. The way the [enclosed] certificate was printed was to first choose landscape orientation from the Page Setup menu. Award is not aware of the hugely expanded size of the paper. But you can still print large size documents by printing at 132%. (135% is too big and 130% leaves too much room at the top and bottom of the page). The resulting oversized is quite attractive... "
Phil has also found that when printing out a certificate on a LaserWriter IINT that the bottom border gets cut off - printing at 90% solves the problem
Thanks again Phil for your generous tips !
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author's note: I would suppose that this afore-mentioned printing procedure/tip could be used for virtually any printer that can scale and print over-sized or large format documents... perhaps I'll get more info on this as time goes on.
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Here are some more tips from another helpful user VernM who emailed in a couple of GREAT tips on using Award -
Thanks Vern for your helpful "tips" !
And here is the tip mail as received from VernM...
"Neat little program !"
"Steve, here are some comments on the Award program."
• Don't use the Chooser to change printers while using the program, it doesn't recognize changes you make.
• If I try to print to my Brother HJ400 inkjet printer, I get a "not enough memory to print" message.
• If I try to print to my Imagewriter II using the GDT Softworks Betterwriters driver, the system goes into La-la land, nothing comes out of the printer, no matter how long you wait. The standard Apple Inage II and Laserwriter drivers appear to work without difficulty.
• Using the Move Behind works correctly but doesn't always updata the screen to reflect the positions of the objects. The award does seem to print correctly however.
• It really does need a screen auto scroll function. With little screens, you zoom in and out till your fingers get numb.
Vern Mastel
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Thanks again Vern for your very helpful tips and suggestions-
I'll try to work on these ASAP !
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Ashley from Arizona Macintosh Users Group (AMUG) writes that Award now works fine using a PowerMac 6100 without a hitch.
Thanks Ashley for letting me know about that !
Because of your reply I can now safely say that Award is PowerMac compatible.
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Thanks to Jennifer at Star System Enterprises for your interest, replies and input regarding Award !
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Thanks to all the folks at MacWarehouse® for their interest in Award and their desire to distribute this freeware application via their "Power Users Tool Kit" and their "MacWarehouse online" service. This company really does support the Mac community !
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And... (another mention)... thanks to my brother Mike for his help and suggestions and tireless bug testing of Award, (and all the other "stuff" I write too !)
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PPS. ( I always like to see what people are "up to" with Award and what they create with the program. If you really want to "WOW" me then send me some things you've created with Award to my postal address.)
I would like to thank ALL the people who have emailed me responses regarding Award. Thank you for your encouragement, ideas and suggestions.
ONE LAST NOTE: please if you have tips/suggestions on Award send them to my email address <sdbandit@aol.com> and I will incorporate these tips into this read me file. I really would appreciate this gesture. It's folks like you that make this all possible !
SUPPORT SHAREWARE ————— PLEASE SEND IN YOUR $10 FEE
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For any users who do not have access to internet email or are not AOL members then correspondence can be sent via U.S. Postal Mail to:
