The Business Master (4th Edition)

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PC TIMECHK Version 2.00 Requirements PC TIMECHK requires at a minimum an IBM compatible AT 286, 386, 486, PS/2 or better personal computer AND at least a version of DOS that is 3.2 or better. If your system does not meet these minimum requirements you may wish to upgrade before using PC TIMECHK. 7/93 -i- v2.01a COPYRIGHT INFORMATION TIMECHK.EXE, PC TIMECHK INSTALL.EXE and PC TIMECHK USER- LIST.EXE along with this documentation are published by Ken Mummery Software. All items are copyright (C) 1991- 1993 by Ken Mummery (a.k.a. Ken Mummery Software), 8968 Ellingham Street, San Diego, California 92129-2110, USA, (619) 538-1020. Reproduction of this manual may be done for single user personal use only. No commercial copy of this manual may be reproduced in whole or in part without express written consent from the publisher. ULCOLOR.LST is copyright (C) 1992 by MSI Founders (a.k.a. Maritime Software International). All rights reserved world wide. Acknowledgements To Bob Zale and Spectra Publishing for providing their excellent PowerBASIC 3.0 without which PC TIMECHK and its related programs would not exist. To my friend Richard Fothergill whose window routines, Power Windows PW200, (C) 1990, provided that professional touch. 7/93 -ii- v2.01a TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 PC TIMECHK 2.0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 ABOUT PC TIMECHK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 License Agreement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 License Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Default Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 The Help Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Help Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 CHAPTER 2 GETTING STARTED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Initial Checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Source Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Target Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Using A Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Updating AUTOEXEC.BAT File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Escape Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 File Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Establish Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Fee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Install Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Install Programs In General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 CHAPTER 3 GENERAL OPERATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Data File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Time Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Default Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Accepting Time & Date Shown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Setting Time & Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Setting Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Time Entry Error Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Setting Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Date Entry Error Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Thank You Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Corrected Date & Time Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Ending PC TIMECHK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 SPECIAL FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Self Terminating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Mouse Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Holidays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Special Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 7/93 -iii- v2.01a HELP, ADVISORY AND ERROR WINDOWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Help And Information Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Advisory Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Battery Advisor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Maximum Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 DOS Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 CHAPTER 4 PC TIMECHK USERLIST UTILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Help And Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Window Components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Color Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Quick Color Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Browse Color Listing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Creating Special Date (".DAT") File. . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Changing Special Date (".DAT") File. . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Selecting Another Special Date (".DAT") File . . . . . . . 24 Reviewing Special Date File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Reviewing Single Special Date Item . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Reviewing All Special Date Items . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 APPENDIX A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 It's About Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Keeping Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 It' All In A Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 APPENDIX B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Principal ASCII Characters Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 APPENDIX C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Colors That Make Your Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 APPENDIX D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Word Processing Commands Used In USERLIST. . . . . . . . . 37 7/93 -iv- v2.01a CHAPTER 1 - PC TIMECHK ABOUT PC TIMECHK PC TIMECHK 2.0 was developed because many of today's popular Personal Computers and software do not provide sufficient opportunity for you to see what date or time your PC has internally. PC TIMECHK 2.0 lets you see this all important information each time your PC is started, and allows you to "set" these functions. You can also run PC TIMECHK 2.0 anytime as long as PC TIMECHK 2.0's "TIMECHK" directory is included in your "Path" statement. In addition, PC TIMECHK 2.0 keeps you up to date on various holidays, special events or any personal dates you wish to enter. See ULSERLIST information for more details. Requirements PC TIMECHK 2.0 requires a minimum AT 286, 386, 486 or better type of IBM or compatible personal computer; Monochrome, Hercules, CGA, EGA, VGA, or Super VGA monitor; one 5¼" or 3½" floppy disk drive and at least 400K bytes of free hard disk space on your hard drive. PC TIMECHK 2.0 is fully functional with most Mouse drivers. DOS 3.2 or better. MS (or PC) DOS versions prior to 3.2 were unable to set and maintain the date and time. (Users of a DOS prior to 3.2 need to use the AT Setup Disk to change the Date and Time.) License Information This software is protected by both United States copyright law and international treaty provisions, and is the sole property of Ken Mummery (a.k.a. Ken Mummery Software). Ken Mummery grants the user the right to use PC TIMECHK 2.0 for a limited time without registration. Copies of the original, distribution diskette of PC TIMECHK 2.0 are permitted provided all original files remain intact and no alteration to their content is made. PC TIMECHK 2.0 is a Shareware product and is not free software. Continued use of PC TIMECHK 2.0 is considered acceptance of this software and your are expected to make a $15.00 US (cash, check or money order) donation to the author. Upon registration, you will receive a fully functional version of PC TIMECHK 2.1 and its documentation. In addition, you will receive, free of additional cost, all upgrades to the PC TIMECHK 2 series. See Order Form for details on registration and address, or contact Ken Mummery via CompuServe (73750,347) or call (619) 538-1020. 7/93 -1- v2.01a Warranty With respect to the physical diskette and documenta- tion received directly from Ken Mummery Software, Ken Mummery Software warrants the same to be free of any and all viruses, and to be free of defects in materials and workmanship for a period of 60 days from receipt. Ken Mummery Software specifically disclaims all other warranties, expressed or implied, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose with respect to defects in diskette and documentation, and the program license granted herein in particular, and without limiting operation of the program license with respect to any particular application, use, or purpose. In no event shall Ken Mummery Software be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential or other damages. Default Entries Each time you are asked to make a selection, the Default answer will be the capital letter of the two selections and both will be surrounded by parenthesis, e.g., ( Y / n ). In the example at left, the Default is the Y or "yes". Pressing <Enter> will accept the Default. If you are using a Mouse, click on either letter, or if you want to accept the Default, click on <Enter>. The Help Line PC TIMECHK 2.0, its INSTALL program and USERLIST.EXE utilize a standard Help Line found on many popular DOS programs. The Help Line can be found on line 24, next to the last line on your screen. When Special Keys are used to perform various functions within the software, they are "highlighted" on the Help Line in red and blue on color monitors, highlighted, bright on monochrome monitors, or visible on other monitors. The functions represented by these keys are only available when "turned on". All highlighted keys shown on the Help Line are available by pressing the corresponding key or by clicking the mouse on the Help Line key. Help Availability Whenever F1-Help is highlighted, context sensitive help is available to make your use of the program more 7/93 -2- v2.01a understanding. Some help screens may have more than one page and will be indicated by a "PgDown" and/or "PgDown / PgUp" shown on the bottom of the Help Window. Press the PgUp or PgDown key, or use your mouse by clicking on these key call outs, to move the help screens up or down. Press or click on <Esc> to clear the window. + + + 7/93 -3- v 2.0 CHAPTER 2 - GETTING STARTED Making Your Backup Copy It is always recommended that an archival copy of your new software be made and placed in a safe place in the event that your original diskette is lost or damaged. You are allowed to make archival copies of PC TIMECHK 2.0 for just this reason. The PC TIMECHK 2.0 diskette received has certain files that may not be copied by simply duplicating file by file using the DOS COPY command. This is not to say that PC TIMECHK is "copy protected", it just means that some files are read only or hidden. It's recommended that the DOS DISKCOPY be used to make your archival copy of PC TIMECHK, Version 2.0. To make a backup copy of PC TIMECHK 2.0, place the original PC TIMECHK 2.0 diskette in Drive A; and enter the DOS command DISKCOPY A: A:, and press <Enter>. You will be asked to insert the SOURCE Disk in Drive A:. (If you have two disk drives of the same type, use both drives to make the backup copy. Enter the command DISKCOPY A: B:.) Follow the instructions shown on the screen. Press any key to begin the copy process. When prompted, remove the SOURCE disk form Drive A: and replace it with a formatted TARGET diskette of the same size. Press any key when the TARGET diskette is ready in Drive A:. Repeat this process when requested. Upon completion of the DISKCOPY command, remove the TARGET disk, label it and place the original in a safe place. Use the copy for installation. Installation Installing PC TIMECHK 2.0 software is easy with PC TIMECHK 2.0's INSTALL Program, Ver 2.0. Please make certain that the INSTALL program is Version 2.0 and is specifically for PC TIMECHK version 2.0. Any other PC TIMECHK INSTALL.EXE program cannot install PC TIMECHK 2.0 correctly. Type INSTALL and hit <Enter>. Initial Checking You'll see a short message stating that INSTALL 2.0 is loading its files. INSTALL 2.0 checks the DOS version, then the CPU (Central Processing Unit, the 286, 386, e.g.) installed in your PC. Next, it tries 7/93 -4- v2.01a to locate any Mouse. If one is found, you'll see the message "Mouse Found". If no Mouse is found, "Mouse Not Found" will be seen. At this time you'll experience a short delay while INSTALL loads its Help files. If your PC is not of the AT style, i.e., 286, 386, 486 or PS/2 based personal computer, INSTALL 2.0 will display an Advisory Window, informing you that PC TIMECHK 2.0 should not be installed on your computer. Earlier models of the PC did not have an "on board" clock and calendar. If one was present, it was of the type that was located on an "add on" board from a third party manufacturer. These clocks and calendars are maintained by special software which vary with manufacturer. PC TIMECHK cannot permanently reset this type of clock. The same holds true with your DOS version. If INSTALL 2.0 determines that your DOS version is less than version 3.2, an Advisory Window will inform you that the current version of DOS will not affect changes to your PC's date and time. When the CMOS "on board" clock was first added to the AT, special software was again provided to the user for setting this clock and calendar. When DOS 3.2 was released, it contained the necessary software to maintain and set the CMOS clock. It is this software that PC TIMECHK 2.0 uses to reset your PC's clock and calendar. If your DOS version is less than 3.2, it is recommended that an upgrade copy of DOS be obtained. The current versions of PC-DOS and MS-DOS Version 6.0 and higher are strongly recommended since they also provide memory management not generally available in earlier versions. Please Note - You'll be asked four questions during the initial checking stage of the INSTALL program. They are Source and Target Drives?; do you have a mouse?; and do you wish INSTALL to update your AUTOEXEC.BAT? Source Drive Upon start up, INSTALL 2.0 knows the SOURCE Drive. If you wish to select another Source Drive, enter the drive letter, without the colon (:). You'll be asked to confirm your entry. Please keep in mind that regardless of your Source Drive, the "source" files will need to be located in the selected drive. Target Drive PC TIMECHK 2.0 and USERLIST.EXE can be installed on either your C: or D: drive. The default is C:. If drive C: is where you wish to install PC TIMECHK 2.0, 7/93 -5- v2.01a press <Enter> or click on <Enter> found on the Help Line. Using A Mouse If a Mouse was detected, during INSTALL start up, "Using A Mouse" will have a default answer of "Y". If you do not wish to use your mouse, place an N in this space, or click on the N shown on the Help Line. ADVISORY -- If you answer Yes to having a mouse and INSTALL did not detect one, you will receive a warning message that a mouse was not detected. You may wish to reconsider your answer. Follow the instructions shown with the warning message. Updating AUTOEXEC.BAT File PC TIMECHK's INSTALL can, if you so choose, modify your AUTOEXEC.BAT file in order for PC TIMECHK 2.0 to run automatically upon start up of your PC. You have the option to say no by placing an N as the answer to question. To select the yes answer, just press <Enter>, or click on the <Enter> found on the Help Line. INSTALL copies and renames the current batch file as AUTOEXEC.CHK. The original is then modified. INSTALL will add the \TIMECHK directory to the PATH statement. This directory is added to the PATH so your PC knows where to find PC TIMECHK 2.0 and the USERLIST program. The PATH statement is one of the environmental instructions that helps your PC operate efficiently. In addition to modifying the PC's PATH, INSTALL will add TIMECHK to the execution portion of the batch file. TIMECHK will be added to the batch file depending upon what you've told INSTALL in the initial settings. If a Mouse is found, TIMECHK will be placed after the Mouse call out in the batch file. If no Mouse is found, the TIMECHK call out will be entered after the path statement. If no path statement can be located, TIMECHK will be placed as the first item in your batch file. Under normal conditions, INSTALL will not place the TIMECHK execution statement after another executable software name. Information you should know about INSTALL's ability to change your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Too Large -- INSTALL will review the size of your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. If it finds that the file is longer than seventy lines, INSTALL will not add or 7/93 -6- v2.01a make any changes to this file. Batch files of this size are normally complicated and customized by the user. Only two changes are necessary in your batch file for PC TIMECHK 2.0 to run efficiently. Add TIMECHK to your PATH statement and TIMECHK as an executable item before any other file, with the exception to any memory or hard drive manager. For example; ECHO OFF PATH C:\;C:\DOS;C:\WINDOWS;C:\TIMECHK SHARE MOUSE /S TIMECHK.EXE WIN Not Found -- If INSTALL doesn't find an AUTOEXEC.BAT file, INSTALL will add one to your Root Directory. All PC's should have this very important file. The AUTOEXEC.BAT file, which means Autoexecute Batch File, sets your PC's environment, establishes what to run during start up and where to find files. The file which is added to your PC is shown below. ECHO OFF REM ********************************************** REM AUTOEXEC.BAT created by PC TIMECHK as a result REM of not finding one on your system. Please REM modify as necessary. REM See your DOS DOS manual for more information. REM ********************************************** PATH C:\;C:\DOS\C:\TIMECHK PROMPT=$T $D$_$P$G TIMECHK.EXE Escape <Esc> Key Anytime before files begin to be copied, you can press the <Esc> key and abort the installation, answering the Abort question with a Yes. You may also use the <Esc> key anytime the INSTALL program stops for an answer. CAUTION, if the files have been copied and the <Esc> key is pressed during any other operation and the Abort questions is answered with a Yes, all files will be erased and the subdirectories will be deleted. The current AUTOEXEC.BAT file is erased and the backup file (AUTOEXEC.CHK) is renamed and established as the PC's current batch file. 7/93 -7- v .20 File Check After all of the initial settings have been made and accepted, INSTALL looks at the Source diskette to make certain that all files necessary to install PC TIMECHK 2.0 correctly are found. If any critical files are not found, an error message will be presented. This error message will inform you of the missing file and what to do next. If all files are found, INSTALL will begin copying files to the Target drive. Establish Directories INSTALL looks at the Target drive to determine if PC TIMECHK 2.0 has been installed before. INSTALL will establish two directories on the Target drive. \TIMECHK is the parent directory and is placed directly beneath the root of the Target drive. \TCDATA directory is created and hangs under the \TIMECHK directory. All primary files (.EXE, .HLP, etc.)are copied to the \TIMECHK directory. The \TCDATA directory maintains the .ID and .DAT files. You'll see a message that the two directories have been created. If the necessary directories were established earlier, you will see a message that the directories have already been created. PC TIMECHK 2.0 Data File Check During the file copy routine, if INSTALL finds a PC TIMECHK ".DAT" (data) file in the \TIMECHK\TCDATA sub- directory, an INFORMATIONAL window will inform you that, "A TIMECHK.DAT file has been found on the Target Drive. Do you wish to Replace ( N / y )?". If you wish not to replace the file, press the <Enter> key or click on <Enter> found on the Help Line. Since the N is the capitalized letter, it is the default answer. Press the Y key will replace the current TIMECHK.DAT file. The file found on the Target drive is renamed using a special file extension name. The extions is determined by the current date. The first two characters are the current day, with the last character being the right most digit of the year. For example, a replaced TIMECHK data file renamed on the 21st of July 1992 will have an extension of ".212". Should a TIMECHK data file already exist with the day/year extension, an Error Message Window will ask what you wish to do. Follow the instructions contained in the Error Window. Keep in mind that there can be any number of .DAT files present on the \TCDATA sub directory. INSTALL will only inform you if it finds a file named the same as the one found on the Source drive. 7/93 -8- v2.01a AUTOEXEC.BAT File Already Modified An Advisory Window will open if INSTALL finds that the current AUTOEXEC.BAT file has already been modified for PC TIMECHK 2.0. Press the <Esc> key or click on <Esc> found on the Help Line. Registration Since PC TIMECHK 2.01a is a Shareware product, you are given the right to preview the software before you purchase. Continued use of TIMECHK 2.01a is your acceptance that you wish to register and receive free upgrades to the 2.0 TIMECHK series. To register PC TIMECHK as an individual non corporate user and receive the latest version, send a $15.00* cash dona- tion, check or money order, payable to Ken Mummery, payable on a US bank and in US funds to: PC TIMECHK REGISTRATION Ken Mummery Software 8968 Ellingham Street San Diego, CA 92129-2110 USA (619) 538-1020 * A $5.00 shipping fee is charged for overseas orders. Please indicate which diskette size you prefer, there is no extra charge for 3½ inch diskettes. For your convenience, an order form is included on the distri- bution diskette. See ORDER.FRM. You will receive upgrade diskette and instructions, a printed manual and registration number. Corporate and institutional users are to contact Ken Mummery through the above address or through Compu- Serve by sending a message to 73750,347 or call (619) 530-1020 for multiuser license or sight licensing agreement information. What's Next After all files have been copied, the necessary directories created, press the <Esc> key to end the installation process. Reboot your PC so the \TIMECHK directory will become a part of the PC environment. PC TIMECHK will run automatically. INSTALL Error Messages Although every attempt has been made to make INSTALL as error free as possible, their is always the possibility that an error may occur that will cause INSTALL to fail. Any error that causes INSTALL to halt its installation will be shown as an Error Number inside an Error Window. Follow the instructions shown in the error window. 7/93 -9- v2.01a There are a series of minor Error Messages that warn you of potential problems. For example, should you not have enough room on your Target Drive, you will see an Disk Full Error Message, and INSTALL will terminate operation. Though not likely to occur, should your Target (hard drive) become Write Protected (yes, it can happen), you will see an Error Message informing you of this fact. Correct the problem and continue with the installation. If you are unable to correct the Write Protection condition of your hard drive, you may wish to discontinue the INSTALL program and reset or turn off your system. Restarting your system my eliminate the condition. INSTALL Programs In General Install programs can be simple groups of instructions that just copy files on to a designated Target drive, or they can become very complex programs that protect your PC as well as copy and modify files. It's been said that many a Programmer has spent more time developing his or her install program than spent on the program being installed. Because PC TIMECHK's INSTALL program is reviewing, changing, moving and copying files onto your PC, the author has spent many hundreds of hours perfecting its installation program. This is done so your PC is setup correctly and protected from inadvertent erasures of important files. During the installation process, PC TIMECHK's INSTALL software works in only two places within your PC. The root directory is the first and is checked for the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. If it's found, it copies and renames it to AUTOEXEC.CHK. You can always reverse the process and place the original back into service. If the AUTOEXEC.BAT file has more than 70 lines of text, INSTALL informs you that it will not change the file. INSTALL does not look at the CONFIG.SYS file, nor does it make any modifications to it. What's generally found in the CONFIG.SYS file does not affect PC TIMECHK's operation. Should you have problems with the INSTALL program or have mouse problems, please contact Ken Mummery Software via the methods shown in "How to Contact Us". + + + 7/93 -10- v 2.0 CHAPTER 3 - OPERATING GENERAL OPERATION The operation of PC TIMECHK 2.0 is simple and straight forward. PC TIMECHK 2.0 executes automatically and displays the PC's current Date and Time. If the date or time are correct, press <Enter>, or click on <Enter> found on the Help Line to end PC TIMECHK 2.0 and allow your PC to continue its start up routine. See Getting Started for installation instructions. PC TIMECHK 2.0 provides the Day of the Week, Month, Day and Year as represented by the PC's internal calendar and clock. In addition, the next to last line is the Help Line. Like the INSTALL program, this line contains information on accessing the context sensitive Help, Holiday and Calendar information. If you are using a Mouse, you can click on any of the highlighted items found on the Help Line. Data File Upon start up, PC TIMECHK 2.0 loads the ".DAT" file called for in the TIMECHK.ID file. The ID file contains the version of PC TIMECHK and the particular data file needed. The loaded file name is shown on the far right of the last line. See Changing DATa File, below on how to change the ".DAT" file. DATa files are created, revised and reviewed using USERLIST. Information on USERLIST can be found in Chapter 4. Default Entries As in the INSTALL program, anytime you are requested to make an entry or answer a question, the default is shown as a capital letter (Y), and can be accepted automatically by pressing the <Enter> key, or clicking on <Enter> found on the Help Line. You can also hit the appropriate key to answer the question. Entries made through the keyboard are not case sensitive. In other words, entries can be made in lower or upper case letters. Each time you make a keyboard entry, you will be asked to verify your entry. This is done by way of the "Is entry correct?" window. Press <Enter>, or click on <Enter> shown on the Help Line, to accept your entry. Press N to reject your entry and you will be returned to the original entry request. 7/93 -11- v2.01a Time Formats Time is displayed in a twenty-four hour clock format and in the traditional a.m. and p.m. formats. The twenty-four hour clock format is shown since it is really the time used by your PC's internal clock. The traditional formats are also displayed as they are the more common and widely recognized usages of displaying time in a digital form. The traditional A.M. and P.M. format is used by PC TIMECHK 2.0 when correcting the PC's internal clock. (Please see Appendix A - It's About Time for more information on the history of time, and clocks.) Accepting Time and Date Shown If the time and date shown are correct, press <Enter> or click on the Help Line <Enter>, or press the <Y> key. PC TIMECHK 2.0 will terminate and return control to your PC. Setting Time and Date To reset the PC's internal clock and calendar, answer the "Is Above Information Correct? ( Y / n )" question, shown at the bottom of the Time and Date Window, as NO. Since the "n" is not the default shown in the "( Y / n )" box, you must hit the <N> key. Remember, your entry is not case sensitive. If you are using a Mouse, you can either click on the "n" in the "(Y / n)" box or on the "N=Set" shown in the Help Line at the bottom of the screen. Setting Time PC TIMECHK 2.0 will open the Set Time Window. Here you can enter a new time through the keyboard, or accept the time shown by hitting <Enter>, or by clicking on the Help Line <Enter>. To enter a new time, you must follow the format shown which consists of the Hour, followed by a colon (:), Minutes, followed by a colon (:) then Seconds. You may use the <Backspace> key to erase any entry you make. In order for PC TIMECHK 2.0 to calculate the correct 24 hour time for your PC, you must follow the seconds entry with either an "a" for A.M. or a "p" for P.M. Because you entered a new time through the keyboard, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will ask you if your entry is correct. Hitting or clicking on the <Enter> key will accept the default answer of yes (Y). Answering with an N will 7/93 -12- v2.01a clear your entry and replace it with the original time. Press <F1>, or click on the Help Line F1 should you need help when entering a new time. Time Entry Error Message Should you make a mistake while entering the new time, e.g., enter an hour as 25, minutes or seconds higher than 59, fail to enter the time of day indicator (A.M. or P.M.), use a time separator other than a colon (:) or hit or click on <Enter> before all entries are made, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will display an Error Message Window and highlight the offending entry or entries. Press <F1>, or click on the Help Line <F1> for information on the error message. To clear the Error Message, press or click on <Esc>. The original entry will be redisplayed with the cursor on Hours. Enter the correct time again. Setting Date Setting the date is very similar to that of entering a new time. Dates are entered in a the two digit Month, Day and four digit Year format, with each entry separated by either a dash (-) or forward slash (/). Please Note - Currently, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will not accept a period (.) as a date separator. Enter the correct date in this order, 05-14-1991. You may use the <Backspace> key to clear any incorrect entry made. Because you entered a new date, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will ask you to confirm your entry. Pressing or clicking the <Enter> key will accept the default answer of yes (Y). Answering with an N will clear your entry and replace it with the original date. Press or click on <F1> for help when entering a new date. Date Entry Error Message Should you make a mistake while entering the new date, e.g., invalid month, day or a year grater than 2099, date separator other than a dash (-) or forward slash (/) or hit or click on <Enter> before all entries are made, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will display an error message window and highlight the offending entry or entries. Press or click on <F1> for information on the error message. Hit or click on <Esc> to clear the Entry Error Window. The original entry will be redisplayed 7/93 -13- v2.01a with the cursor on month. Enter the correct date again. Thank You Window After you have entered a new time and date or accepted the current time and date, you will see a Thank You Window. This window informs you that your entries have been accepted and the appropriate changes have been made to your PC's internal clock and calendar. Corrected Date and Time Screen PC TIMECHK 2.0 will display the new date and time; PC's Date and Time have been reset. Are they now correct? (Y / n) If the new date and time are correct, press or click on <Enter> and PC TIMECHK 2.0 will terminate and clear the screen. If the new date or time are not correct, press or click on <N>, to repeat the time and date setting procedure. Ending PC TIMECHK To end PC TIMECHK 2.0, press the <Enter> key, or click on the right mouse button. SPECIAL FEATURES Self Terminating PC TIMECHK 2.0 will self terminate in approximately one minute after execution. This feature prevents PC TIMECHK 2.0 from keeping your PC from fully executing the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Without intervention, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will remain running for a maximum of 120 seconds. As PC TIMECHK 2.0 executes, it internally records the time it started. If not terminated through the use of <Enter>, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will run for one minute, then signal and display a 60 Second Countdown Bar. You will have one minute to make any changes to the date and time before PC TIMECHK 2.0 terminates. You may perform during this period all of the function, such as setting time or date, reviewing help screens, selecting a new ".DAT" file, reviewing and changing the calendar, etc. 7/3 -14- v2.01a Please Note - Should PC TIMECHK 2.0 execute during the period between :46 and :59 seconds, the 60 Second Countdown Bar will be activated at :45 seconds past the following minute. Mouse Support PC TIMECHK 2.0 will work with your mouse as long as the Mouse driver has been loaded, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will display a rectangular Mouse Cursor █ . All highlighted items on the Help Line can be activated by pressing the left mouse button. In most instances, the right mouse button acts as the <Esc> key. Use of the right mouse button is however limited to certain screens. Special Dates One of the unique features of PC TIMECHK 2.0 is the automatic display of Special Dates developed using PC TIMECHK'S USERLIST utility, or the standard list provided with PC TIMECHK 2.0. The name of the current Special Date data file is shown at the far right on the bottom line. To see a list of all current Special Dates, press or click on <F5>. Up to two Special Date Windows can be displayed on any one day. See Chapter 4 for creating, modifying and reviewing Special Dates with the USERLIST utility. Calendar PC TIMECHK 2.0 has a built in calendar that will display each month from the year 1980 up to the year 2099. To access the calendar, press or click on <F7>. Use the Up Arrow Key or the Down Arrow Key to move within the months of the year. Use the <PgUp> or <PgDn> keys to change the year displayed by the calendar. Press <Esc> key to clear the Calendar. Leap years are identified at the bottom of the Calendar. HELP, ADVISORY AND ERROR WINDOWS PC TIMECHK 2.0 has numerous Information, Advisory and Error Windows to help you use and understand PC TIMECHK 2.0 and your computer. Help/Information Windows PC TIMECHK 2.0 has several Help/Information windows that are context sensitive. That is, they are programmed to help or give you information based upon where you are within the program. Press or click on 7/93 -15- v2.01a <F1> any time while you are using PC TIMECHK 2.0 for Help or Information. Clear any window by pressing or clicking on <Esc>. Some Help/Information Windows have more than one screen. When you see <PgDn> and/or <PgUp> at the window bottom, press or click on the <PgDn> or <PgUp> to access the various screens. Advisory Windows From time to time you may see an Advisory Window displayed. PC TIMECHK 2.0 can help you with the operation of your PC. Battery Advisory Most all PC AT/286, 386, 486 or PS/2 and higher personal computers have an on board rechargeable or replaceable battery that maintains the PC's start up information as well as its clock/calendar. Upon start up, PC TIMECHK 2.0 checks the PC's date to see if it is grater than the original PC calendar date. If the date is 01-01-1980, you will see an Advisory Window on your screen informing you that there may be a problem with your PC's clock or CMOS Setup battery. Maximum Year Depending upon the manufacture date of your PC, the largest year that can be displayed by its calendar may be 2099. (The minimum year is 1980.) Because this date may vary, PC TIMECHK 2.0 will not allow a year to be entered that is larger than 2099. Should this date be resident within your PC and the clock reaches midnight, an Advisory Window informs you that the clock and calendar cannot continue. It's a safe bet that the year 2099 was entered in error. Correct the date and time to remove this condition. DOS Version MS-DOS and PC-DOS version 3.1 and older do not have the capability of permanently setting the PC/AT's CMOS clock and calendar. Special Set Up or Diagnostic Diskettes were needed to set these features. Beginning with DOS version 3.2, the clock/calendar update and set feature was added. 7/93 -16- v2.01a PC TIMECHK 2.0 reviews the DOS version during start up. If the DOS version is 3.1 or lower, a DOS Version Advisory Window will open. Pressing the <Esc> key will clear this Advisory Window and allow you to continue to run PC TIMECHK 2.0. However, date and time information entered through PC TIMECHK 2.0 will not be permanently maintained by your PC. Although it may appear that the date and time have been changed, only the SYSTEM time has been updated. Upon power off the SYSTEM clock is lost. At power up, the SYSTEM's clock is reset by the CMOS clock, which may be the incorrect time. It is recommended that a later version of DOS be obtained and installed. See the DOS manual for instructions on updating the DOS version. Error Messages PC TIMECHK 2.0 has several "Internal Checking" Error Messages. Should any of these messages appear on your screen, you are encouraged to contact Ken Mummery Software with a description of the error message, PC TIMECHK 2.0 version number and what you were attempting to do within PC TIMECHK 2.0. See How To Contact Us. + + + 7/93 -17- v2.01a CHAPTER 4 - UTILITIES PC TIMECHK'S USERLIST UTILITY PC TIMECHK's USERLIST utility was developed for the purpose of creating Special Date information windows for your PC TIMECHK 2.0. PC TIMECHK 2.0 uses a data or ".DAT" file for all Special Date windows. USERLIST gives you the ability to create, add to, delete from, review entry status or repeat Special Date window information for any day of the calendar year. USERLIST is quite simple to use. From the Main Menu you can choose from the drop-down menu any one of four selections. Then choose the operation you wish to perform. The following is a list of operations that can be performed within USERLIST. They are; + Update File + Add item to existing or new Special Date file. + Change or delete an existing Special Date in file. + Repeat or copy any Special Date in file. + Review File + Review any one or all Special Dates found in file. + New File + Create new Special Date file. + Save files and Exit USERLIST. Help And Information Anytime you need help with a function in USERLIST, press <F1>. USERLIST has a complete context sensitive help system available. Many of the Help screens are more than one page. Use the PgDn and/or PgUp keys to navigate within Help, same as in PC TIMECHK. Press the <Esc> key to leave Help. Window Components There are two Window Color charts that provide the full spectrum of computer colors for your Special Date Windows. Each Special Date window has two components. The window and text and its border and style. Window components have two color elements each, foreground and background. The main component of the window is its text. The text component has two colors, text or foreground color and the actual background behind the text. For example, you have white text on a blue background. Therefore, we'll 7/93 -18- v2.01a call the window color "white over blue". The border is also made up of two colors, foreground and background. A plain border, one without a design or character, will appear to have only one color, always the background. Borders with single or double line styles, for example, will show two colors. The lines appear as the foreground color with its background element. Color Elements As you have seen from the above explanation of Window Elements, each of the two main portions of the window can have their own color elements. Window colors are made by combining two colors, one as the foreground element, and the other being the background element, as in the example above, "white over blue". PC Colors are made from a basic 16 color set, which ranges from black (0) to light-white (15). Add the value of 16 to each color's numeric value, and each will blink, even black can blink. For example, add the value 16 to light-white (15 + 16 = 31) and you have blinking light-white, the top of the basic color scale. Some basic colors in the 16 color set are background only. Foreground light-yellow is brown when used as a background color. Foreground blue is a different blue when used as a background color. To make both foreground and background colors into a workable value, USERLIST combines both foreground, background and blinking colors into a 256 color set, 0 (black over black) to 255 (blinking light-white over white). To uncomplicated the color numerics and provide an easy way to select appealing window colors, USERLIST has incorporated two color charts. A quick select color chart and a browse color list. Note - A complete color listing, window color hints and how to create special window color effects is found in Appendix C. Quick Color Chart On the Help Line you'll see two keys for color, F3 and F7. F7 is used to access the Quick Color Chart. This chart opens as a window on either the left or right side of the screen. Whenever creating or changing a window or border color and you wish to review the available colors, press F7. 7/93 -19- v2.01a To select any of the first 128 color combinations, use the Arrow keys to navigate within the chart. Press the <Enter> key to select and use the desired color. The chart will automatically close and place the desired color combination number in the appropriate color entry. The Quick Color Chart is not available on monochrome systems, nor is it available when color numbers are not required. Browse Color Listing The second but nonautomatic color list is found by pressing the F3 key. This custom color listing provides the full 256 color combinations with actual colors and their numeric value. This list is arranged, from left to right, with the standard 128 color combinations, corresponding color numbers, color description, e.g., Blue / Red, their blinking equivalent number and the blinking color. Remember, only the foreground color will blink. Located in the top right of the first page, is a quick listing of the sixteen basic colors. Use the PgDn and PgUp keys to move the listing. When you have selected a color number for either a window or a border, press <Esc> to clear the list. Enter the chosen color number through the keyboard and hit <Enter>. A copy of the Browse Color Listing is found in Appendix C. Creating A New Special Date (".DAT") File You may select any item within USERLIST by either moving the cursor to the left, right, or up or down, or by pressing the key that represents the Highlighted First Letter from within the Main Menu. 1. Start USERLIST. 2. Select New File by moving the cursor to the menu item and hit <Enter>, or press the highlighted key, <N>. 3. Enter a file name in the ENTER NEW LIST NAME window. For example, BIRTHDAY, FAMILY, SPECDATS, etc. Hit <Enter> to accept your entry. The "Is Entry Correct?" window will open asking you to confirm your entry. Remember, the default entry is Yes. 7/93 -20- v2.01a Note - If you choose TIMECHK as your file name, you'll receive an error message informing you that TIMECHK already exists. Unless you wish to destroy the original TIMECHK.DAT distribution file, do not overwrite this file. Use DOS file name standards. In other words, no file name can be more than eight characters long and cannot contain spaces. 4. USERLIST will open the New user window and ask for the four character date. Enter any valid date from 0101 (January 1) to 1231 (December 31). Confirm your date entry by pressing <Enter> at the "Is Entry Correct?" window. Note - Dates will be check by USERLIST for correctness. Should you enter and confirm an invalid date, USERLIST will display an Error Message. Clear the message and re-enter your date. 5. Enter any information desired on the Information line. Up to 56 characters can be entered. Press <Enter> to accept your entry and confirm your entry. Special ASCII characters can also be entered. Press and hold down the <Alt> key and enter the 3-digit code that represents the special character you wish to place on the Information line. Release the <Alt> to "enter" the character on the line. For a complete list of the standard ASCII charac- ters, see your DOS manual. Note - Press the F1-Help key for a complete list of all word processing commands available when entering your "information line". A complete list of Word Processing Commands for the Information line are found in Appendix D. 6. Select a window color from one of the two color listings, F3 or F7. If you know the color number, enter the three-digit color number and press <Enter>. Please refer to the Quick Color Chart or Browse Color Listing described above, or refer to Appendix C. 7. Select a background color from one of the two color listings, F3 or F7. If you know the color number, enter the three digit color number and press <Enter>. 7/93 -21- v2.01a Please refer to the Quick Color Chart or Browse Color Listing described above or refer to Appendix C. 8. Select border style from the seven shown by the Border Style Window. Use the Up or Down Arrow keys and select by pressing <Enter>, or select by pressing the highlighted letter key shown on the Border Style Menu. 9. Your newly created Special Date Window will appear at the bottom for your review and acceptance. Follow the instructions shown by the following windows. If you wish to create more Special Date Windows, answer the question with a Y for Yes and repeat steps 1 through 9 for each Special Date Window desired. Only 100 new win- dows can be created in any one session. + + + Changing Special Date (".DAT") File You may select any item within USERLIST by either moving the cursor to the left, right, or up or down, or by pressing the key that represents the Highlighted First Letter from within the Main Menu. 1. Start USERLIST. 2. Select "Change/delete item on special date file" by moving the cursor to the menu item and hit <Enter>, or press the highlighted key, C. 3. If not already loaded, USERLIST will load the current ".DAT" file, then open the Update Window. The Update Window will provide a list of current Special Date items. For each item you will see; + 4-digit date + Information line + 3-digit Window color number + 3-digit Border color number + 1-digit Border style number Use the Up/Down Arrow, Home, End, PgUp/ PgDn keys to locate the Special Date you wish to change. Press <Enter> to select the item. 4. Select Change from the Change/Delete Menu. Use the Up/Dn Arrow keys to select and press <Enter>, or the highlighted letter of the menu item. 7/93 -22- v2.01a 5. Select the Special Date element you wish to change from the "Change What?" Menu. Use the Up/Dn Arrow keys to select and press <Enter>, or the highlighted letter of the menu item. 5A. Date - The Date Entry area will open. Press <Enter> to accept the current listed date. Otherwise, enter the new 4-digit date and press <Enter>. Confirm your entry by pressing <Enter>, or re-enter change by pressing the <N> Key. Selecting No will return you to the original entry. Remember, you can have up to two Special Date entries with the same date. A third entry will cause an Error Window to open. If you wish to overwrite one of the two existing date entries with a new date, you are required to select the Special Date, shown by the Error Window, you wish to delete. 5B. Information Line - The Information Line entry area will open. Press <Enter> to accept the current Information Line. Otherwise, make any changes you wish on this line. (See the Word Processing instructions in Appendix D.) When you have made the changed entry, press <Enter> to set your changes. Confirm you entry by pressing <Enter>, or re-enter your change by pressing the <N> Key. Selecting No will return you to the original entry. 5C. Window Color - The Window Color entry area will open. If you wish to reuse or accept the current color number, press <Enter>. Otherwise, use the F3 or F7 color charts or enter the 3- digit color number. Confirm your entry by pressing <Enter>, or re-enter your change by pressing the <N> Key. Selecting No will return you to the original entry. 5D. Border Color - The Border Color entry area will open. Press <Enter> if you wish to reuse or accept the current color number. Otherwise, use the F3 or F7 color charts or enter the 3-digit color number. Confirm your entry by pressing <Enter>, or re-enter your change by pressing the <N> Key. Selecting No will return you to the original entry. 5E. Border Style - Press <Enter> if you wish to reuse or accept the current border style. Otherwise, enter the new border style from the Border Style Window. Confirm your entry by pressing <Enter>, or re-enter your change by pressing the <N> Key. Selecting No will return you to the original entry. 7/93 -23- v2.01a 6. Your changed Special Date Window will appear at the bottom for your review and acceptance. Follow the instructions shown by the following windows. If you wish to change another Special Date Windows, answer the question with a Y or Yes and repeat steps 1 through 6 for each Special Date Window selected. + + + Selecting Another Special Date File From the Main menu, select New File, then from the drop-down menu move the cursor bar to Select another file. Two windows will open. One, providing the Current File name and the other a list of ".DAT" files currently found in the "\TIMECHK\TCDATA" subdirectory. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to move the courser bar to the file you wish to load. Press <Enter> to select the file. USERLIST will load the file. You may now add, change or review the file. Note - The last file loaded into USERLIST becomes the DATa file used by PC TIMECHK 2.0. Reviewing Special Date File With USERLIST running, select Review form the Main menu. If not already loaded, the current DATa file will be loaded. The Review Window will open and display the contents of the current DATa file. Review Of Single Special Date Item Using any of the cursor keys (Up/Dn Arrow, Home, End, PgUp/PgDn), move the cursor bar to the Special Date you wish to review. Press <Enter>. The Special Date Window will appear using its color, text and border style. Note - No changes to the Special Date can be made from this area of USERLIST. Review All Special Date Items To review the first Special Date item, press <Enter>. The first Special Date item in the current file will open for review. 7/93 -24- v2.01a To clear and review the next item, press <Enter>. Continue this action until all items have been reviewed and the "End of List" window opens. To end the review session at any time, press <Esc>. Note - No changes to the Special Date can be made from this USERLIST area. + + + 7/93 -25- v2.01a APPENDIX A It's About Time From earliest times, the location of the Sun in the sky has been used to establish a somewhat uniform time scale. From this came the need for keeping track of the number of times the Sun would rise and set, thus the Calendar. To divide the day into uniform parts was the task of the clock. Time derived form the position of the Sun in the sky is known as Apparent Solar Time. Because of the odd way in which the Earth orbits around the Sun and the inclination of the Earth's rotation on its axis, Apparent Soar Time is not an even time scale. These effects can, however, be calculated and corrections made to obtain a more correct time scale called Mean Solar Time. Universal Time (UTO) is the equivalent to Mean Solar Time at the Greenwich Meridian (Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT). Astronomers use a time standard which is taken from the apparent motion of the stars. This time standard is known as Sidereal Time. Ephemeris time is determined by the orbital motion of the Earth about the sun and is not affected by fluctuations in the Earth's rotation. Astronomical observations are used to determine Ephemeris Time to an accuracy of roughly 0.05 seconds over an average period of nine years. Small deviations in the Universal Time (UTO) can be traced to the wandering of the Earth's polar axis and other fluctuations of the Earth's rotation. When these effects are accounted for, two new, even more accurate time scales are formed, they are UT1 (Navigator's Time) and UT2. The invention of the quartz crystal oscillator and of the Atomic Clock makes possible the measurement of time and frequency more accurately than any other physical quantity. Thus, in addition to astronomical time scales, there are other time scales such as atomic time (AT), based on the microwave resonances of certain atoms in a magnetic field, which provide the most accurate and stable clocks known. Atomic time scales obtain by counting the cycles of an electromagnetic signal in resonance with cesium atoms have an accuracy of a few billionths of a second over a short intervals of a minute or less. Keeping Time The processes by which man has kept track of time have changed over the centuries. Man used the cycles of the 7/93 -26- v2.01a moon and the spot on the earth where the sun rose to tell him when to plant and when to celebrate. Over the centuries, he's sought ways of improving not only his knowledge of time but how to make his timekeeping methods more accurate. The Egyptians and the Babylonians used Sundials to establish defined periods during the day. The Egyptians developed and used the water clock in order to keep time during the night. Mechanical clocks came out of the middle ages where they continued to advance in accuracy and timekeeping methods. The first major clock construction advances came in the 14th century with the advent of the falling weight. The speed of a falling weight could be controlled by using an oscillating horizontal bar called a foliot. The foliot would stop the revolving wheel, which in turn stopped the falling weight. According to the Academic American Encyclopedia, the oldest existing European examples of the falling weight arrangement, known as the verge escapement, are found in the ornate clocks at Rouen, France built in 1379 and in Salisbury, England (1396). The Dutch scientist Christian Huygens introduced the Pendulum to the weight-driven clock and improved clock accuracy. The oscillations of the pendulum made certain that the escapement moved the gear wheels tooth by tooth, while the inertia of the escapement keep the pendulum moving. The use of the classical verge escapement in combination with a pendulum cased problems. In 1660, the Englishman Robert Hooke invented the anchor, or recoil escapement, which improved the functioning of the gear train. Still used in many clocks, this innovation also permitted the use of long pendulums having a period of one second. This then lead to the construction of wall clocks where the pendulum and weights were completely enclosed in a case. About 1715, George Graham introduced the Graham, or deadbeat escapement. Its purpose was to let the pendulum oscillate with as little interference as possible. It is still used in precision clocks today. By the end of the 15th century, the spring had replaced the weight in many clocks. This allowed them to be build small enough to be carried. Since the verge escapement mechanism can operate only with a constant force, it was necessary to compensate for the loss of power as the mainspring unwound. The stackfreed was an extra spring that worked against the motion when the watch was fully wound. This was later replaced by the fusee, in which the mainspring pulled a chain coiled around a conical drum or a set of pulleys of different diameters. The varying diameter of the fusee balanced the varying spring strength. 7/93 -27- v2.01a Navigation at sea in the 16th and 17th centuries created the demand for accurate timekeeping devices. Hooke realized that a spring would not be affected by a ship's motion as would a pendulum, but the available mainspring devices were not accurate enough until 1675 when Huygens introduced the balance wheel. The balance wheel is a thin spiral hairspring whose inner end was secured to the spindle of a rotatable balance and whose outer end was fixed to the case of the timepiece. This device stored or released energy during the rotation of the balance. John Harrison (1692-1776) built a Chronometer and his No. 4, which contained a balance spring made of a bimetallic strip to lessen temperature effects, was in error by only 54 seconds after a sea voyage of 256 days. The hairspring, balance wheel and mainspring, along with the anchor escapement make up the modern mechanical watch. In the 18th century, gear friction was reduced by making spindle bearings from jewels. This feature was incorporated in all modern watches. The principal of self-winding watches had been known for about two centuries. However, it was not put to use until the 1920s, about the time wrist watches were becoming popular. The battery powered watch was introduced in the 1950s. The modern electronic watch is driven by a quartz crystal, which is made to vibrate at its natural frequency using the piezoelectric effect. The latest digital quartz watches use numbers to indicate the time. These numbers are made by using LEDs (light emitting diodes) or LCD (liquid crystal display). Most watches today use the LCD number display system because of its low power drain and ease of reading. Today's modern electric clock uses a small electric motor that makes one revolution per minute, depending upon its gearing. One revolution is based on its power source, 50 or 60 Hertz per second. Electric clocks can run fast or slow based on the actual frequency being generated by the power company. If the power company is generating power at 62 Hertz, a clock (depending upon its accuracy) can run 2 seconds fast in any one minute. Likewise, should the power company slow down the number of Hertz generated in any one minute, the clock can run slow. The worlds most accurate clocks are the Atomic Clocks. These clocks measure time by the oscillations of Cesium, Nubidium, Hydrogen or other elements. In terms of accuracy, these clocks can have an error factor of just one second in many thousands or even millions of years. The United States, as well as many other countries, use these clocks to set "their" standard time. The US standard is set by the National Time and Frequency 7/93 -28- v2.01a Standards in Boulder, Colorado. This time is available to the general public via telephone, PC modem and short wave radio. Standard time can be heard on short wave at 2.5, 5.0, 10, 15 and 20 MHz, twenty-four hours daily from radio station WWVH and WWV. Telephone access to an accu- rate time standard is provided by most telephone companys. Check your local listings for the current number. It's All In A Day A Calendar is a system established by rules for defining a period of time; most commonly the solar year. It is divided into units, such as months and days. It is used to track religious and civil holidays, as well as to announce the seasons, moon cycles and other personal dates or achievements. The beginnings of the modern day calendar date back to 2000 BC, when stone alignments were used to determine the length of the solar year. This was accomplished by placing stones on the ground, for example, that aligned themselves from a fixed point to the point on the horizon at which the Sun rose each day. The calendar used today is the Gregorian calendar which was introduced in 1582. The Gregorian Year is close to that of the solar year (also known as the Tropical Year), or about 365.2422 Mean Solar Days. This allows for the seasons to begin and end on or about the same time each year. What is unique about the Gregorian calendar is that it is derived from ancient calendars using numerical rules which can be applied to any year. This makes it possible for calendar makers to prepare calendars years in advance, if necessary. The early calendars where most likely based on observations of the Moon. The Moon's phases occur over a very short period of time and could be easily studied by ancient man. Religious leaders declared a month to have begun when the first new crescent Moon was sighted. When the Moon could not be observed, the start and end of a month was determined through calculation. During each month, the Moon passes through four cycles or phases; crescent, half, full, last quarter. A new Moon is a day (night) when no Moon is seen. The period between a new Moon and a new Moon is called a Synodic Month. This period is equal to 29.53 days, thereby giving the calendar months with 29 or 30 days each. Twelve lunar months, which total 352.36 days is almost 11 days shorter than a modern Tropical Year. This made the lunar year unsuitable for agricultural purposes, since the lunar year was out of step with the Sun. Lunar-solar calendars were then formed by adding an additional (leap) month, but only when the observation of crops made it seem necessary. 7/93 -29- v2.01a The month was not always based on the phases of the Moon. The Mayan calendar divided the year into eighteen 20-day months, with a 5-day period at the end. Romans, during the late republic, used various lunar-solar calendars. These calendars were to be based on observation, but were really based on political considerations. It was Julius Caesar who recognized that the Roman calendar was in error and needed correction. Through the help of astronomer Sosigenes, the new calendar was devised. The year 46 BC was given 445 days to compensate for the previous calendar's error. Every year thereafter was given 365 days. Every fourth year, beginning in the year 45 BC, would have a leap year consisting of 366 days. It was determined that February, which had 28 days, would be given a twenty-ninth day. Although the leap year was not always uniformly applied to the Julius Caesar calendar, it was Augustus Caesar who corrected this inequity in AD 8. The Julian calendar rule created three leap years too many in every period of 385 years. This resulted in the actual occurrence of the equinoxes and solstices to move away from their actual or assigned calendar dates. Since the date of the spring equinox sets the date of Easter, the Catholic church and Pope Gregory XIII became concerned. With the help of astronomer Christopher Clavius (1537-1612), the church introduced the Gregorian calendar. To introduce the new calendar, Thursday, October 4, 1582 (Julian) was followed by Friday, October 15, 1582 (Gregorian). Leap years occurred in years that were exactly divisible by four. The years 1600, 1984 and 2000 are leap years, but the years 1800 and 1900 are not. (PC TIMECHK's leap year calculation is based on this principal. The year is divided by the modulus of 4. If the answer is 0, then the year is a leap year.) The Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar and is calculated without regard to the phases of the Moon. The Gregorian calendar does include rules for determining religious holidays which are based on the phases of the Sun and Moon. It's interesting to note that the Gregorian calendar was adopted immediately by Roman Catholic countries but other countries did not accept it until as late as 1927. Because of the many calendars used throughout the world, it's no wonder that the year began at different times. The Roman year began in March, with December being the "tenth" month. It wasn't until 153 BC that the year began in January, the same month that the Roman consuls took office (January 1). This "year beginning" principal was also used in the Julian and Gregorian calendars but it took time for this to become a standard. For example, England and its colonies used March 25 and the Julian reckoning until 1752 (the year they switched to the Gregorian calendar). The week began with the Babylonians who used a 7/93 -30- v2.01a non-astronomical, seven day interval for the week. This was adopted by the Jews and the seventh day, the Sabbath, was given a religious significance. The Romans associated a cycle of seven days with the Sun, Moon and the five known planets. Their names became attached to the days of the week. From the Roman culture, Sunday was named for dies solis, Sun's day; Monday from dies lunae, Moon's day, and Saturday from dies Saturni, Saturn's day. Tuesday from "Tiw's day", Wednesday from "Woden's day", Thursday from "Thor's day", and Friday "Frigg's day" are derived from the Germanic equivalents of Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus. In ancient calendars, years were generally numbered according to the year of a ruler's reign. About AD 525, a monk named Dionysius Exiguus suggested that years be counted form the birth of Christ, which was designated AD, anno Domini, "the year of the Lord". His proposal came to be adopted throughout the Christian wold during the next 500 years. The year before AD 1 is designated as 1 BC (before Christ). The first century of the Christian Era began in AD 1, the second in AD 101. The twenty-first will begin in 2001. The Hebrew Calendar in use today begins at the Creation, which is calculated to have occurred 3,760 years before the Christian era. The week consists of seven days, beginning with Saturday, the Sabbath; the year consists of 12 lunar months. They are; Tishri, Heshvan, Kislav, Tebet, Shebat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Ab, and Elul. These months are alternately 29 and 30 days long. Because a year is some eleven days longer than twelve lunar months, a thirteenth month, ve-Adar, is added seven times during every nineteen year cycle. Muslims begin their Islamic calendar at the day and year (July 16, 622, by the Gregorian calendar) when Muhammad 7/93 -31- v2.01a fled from Mecca to Medina. There are twelve lunar months of alternate 30 and 29 days, making the year 254 days long. Because of the shortness of the year, the months move backward through all the seasons, completing a cycle every thirty-two and one-half years. The months are; Muharram, Safar, Rabi I, Rabi II, Jumada I, Jumada II, Rajab, Shaban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Zulkadah, and Zulhijjah. -Bibliography: The Academic American Encyclopedia, online edition, Grolier Electronic Publishing, Danbury, CT., 1991. + + + 7/93 -32- v2.01a APPENDIX B Printable ASCII Character Set The American Standard Code for Character Information Inter- change chart provides the printable character set that can be used in USERLIST. The first 128 characters represent the upper and lower case alphabet, numbers, the standard key- board characters and control characters or codes used by all IBM compatible PCs. The next 128 characters may vary by the PC's internal Character Set, or by the application running at any one time. The second 128 (128-255) character set is a fair representation of what you will find. The first thirty- two characters are generally control characters and cannot be used or printed. See your DOS manual for a complete list of all ASCII Char- acters. Remember, the first 32 cannot be printed. + + + 7/93 -33- v2.01a APPENDIX C Colors That Make Your Day 000 BLACK /BLACK 128 001 BLACK /BLUE 129 002 BLACK /GREEN 130 003 BLACK /CYAN 131 004 BLACK /RED 132 005 BLACK /MAGENTA 133 006 BLACK /BROWN 134 007 BLACK /WHITE 135 008 BLACK /GRAY 136 009 BLACK /LT. BLUE 137 010 BLACK /LT. GREEN 138 011 BLACK /LT. CYAN 139 012 BLACK /LT. RED 140 013 BLACK /LT. MAGENTA 141 014 BLACK /LT. YELLOW 142 015 BLACK /LT. WHITE 143 016 BLUE /BLACK 144 017 BLUE /BLUE 145 018 BLUE /GREEN 146 019 BLUE /CYAN 147 020 BLUE /RED 148 021 BLUE /MAGENTA 149 022 BLUE /BROWN 150 023 BLUE /WHITE 151 024 BLUE /GRAY 152 025 BLUE /LT. BLUE 153 026 BLUE /LT. GREEN 154 027 BLUE /LT. CYAN 155 028 BLUE /LT. RED 156 029 BLUE /LT. MAGENTA 157 030 BLUE /LT. YELLOW 158 031 BLUE /LT. WHITE 159 032 GREEN /BLACK 160 033 GREEN /BLUE 161 034 GREEN /GREEN 162 035 GREEN /CYAN 163 036 GREEN /RED 164 037 GREEN /MAGENTA 165 038 GREEN /BROWN 166 039 GREEN /WHITE 167 040 GREEN /GRAY 168 041 GREEN /LT. BLUE 169 042 GREEN /LT. GREEN 170 043 GREEN /LT. CYAN 171 044 GREEN /LT. RED 172 045 GREEN /LT. MAGENTA 173 046 GREEN /LT. YELLOW 174 047 GREEN /LT. WHITE 175 048 CYAN /BLACK 176 049 CYAN /BLUE 177 050 CYAN /GREEN 178 051 CYAN /CYAN 179 052 CYAN /RED 180 7/93 -34- v2.01a 053 CYAN /MAGENTA 181 054 CYAN /BROWN 182 055 CYAN /WHITE 183 056 CYAN /GRAY 184 057 CYAN /LT. BLUE 185 058 CYAN /LT. GREEN 186 059 CYAN /LT. CYAN 187 060 CYAN /LT. RED 188 061 CYAN /LT. MAGENTA 189 062 CYAN /LT. YELLOW 190 063 CYAN /LT. WHITE 191 064 RED /BLACK 192 065 RED /BLUE 193 066 RED /GREEN 194 067 RED /CYAN 195 068 RED /RED 196 069 RED /MAGENTA 197 070 RED /BROWN 198 071 RED /WHITE 199 072 RED /GRAY 200 073 RED /LT. BLUE 201 074 RED /LT. GREEN 202 075 RED /LT. CYAN 203 076 RED /LT. RED 204 077 RED /LT. MAGENTA 205 078 RED /LT. YELLOW 206 079 RED /LT. WHITE 207 080 MAGENTA/BLACK 208 081 MAGENTA/BLUE 209 082 MAGENTA/GREEN 210 083 MAGENTA/CYAN 211 084 MAGENTA/RED 212 085 MAGENTA/MAGENTA 213 086 MAGENTA/BROWN 214 087 MAGENTA/WHITE 215 088 MAGENTA/GRAY 216 089 MAGENTA/LT. BLUE 217 090 MAGENTA/LT. GREEN 218 091 MAGENTA/LT. CYAN 219 092 MAGENTA/LT. RED 220 093 MAGENTA/LT. MAGENTA 221 094 MAGENTA/LT. YELLOW 222 095 MAGENTA/LT. WHITE 223 096 BROWN /BLACK 224 097 BROWN /BLUE 225 098 BROWN /GREEN 226 099 BROWN /CYAN 227 100 BROWN /RED 228 101 BROWN /MAGENTA 229 102 BROWN /BROWN 230 103 BROWN /WHITE 231 104 BROWN /GRAY 232 105 BROWN /LT. BLUE 233 106 BROWN /LT. GREEN 234 107 BROWN /LT. CYAN 235 108 BROWN /LT. RED 236 109 BROWN /LT. MAGENTA 237 7/93 -35- v2.01a 110 BROWN /LT. YELLOW 238 111 BROWN /LT. WHITE 239 112 WHITE /BLACK 240 113 WHITE /BLUE 241 114 WHITE /GREEN 242 115 WHITE /CYAN 243 116 WHITE /RED 244 117 WHITE /MAGENTA 245 118 WHITE /BROWN 246 119 WHITE /WHITE 247 120 WHITE /GRAY 248 121 WHITE /LT. BLUE 249 122 WHITE /LT. GREEN 250 123 WHITE /LT. CYAN 251 124 WHITE /LT. RED 252 125 WHITE /LT. MAGENTA 253 126 WHITE /LT. YELLOW 254 127 WHITE /LT. WHITE 255 Chart Copyright (C) 1992 by MSI Founders (a.k.a. Maritime Software International). All Rights Reserved World Wide. + + + 7/93 -36- v2.01a APPENDIX D Word Processing Commands Used In USERLIST Entering you information is like using a word processor. Certain key strokes are used to add, delete, change and over- write your text line. The following keys and key combinations are used by USERLIST; <Backspace> Key - USERLIST has a destructive backspace key. Use it to delete text ahead of and to the left of the cursor. <Ctrl>+<End> Key - Deletes all text from the cursor to the end of the line. <Delete> Key - Deletes text one character at a time at the cursor from the right of the cursor. <End> Key - Moves the cursor to the end of the text. <Enter> Key - Accepts entered text. <Home> Key - Moves the cursor to the start of the text line. <Insert> Key - Changes the size of the cursor to a full block and allows text to be inserted from the cursor to the right. <Left Arrow> Key - Moves the cursor to the left one space. <Right Arrow> Key- Move the cursor to the right one space. <Shift> and <Shift Lock> Key - Used to change from lower case to upper case. <Space Bar> - Used to place spaces into text. + + + 7/93 -37- v2.01a