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- >a3:" LESSON8 -- Concluding Suggestions
- >a6:" TRUE ASCII DATA FILES
- >a8:" We have seen how Perfect Calc spreadsheet files can be included
- >a9:" in documents and reports created by Perfect Writer. It so happens that
- >a10:" they can also be 'edited' by Perfect Writer, a feature made possible
- >a11:" because both programs utilize true ASCII characters (the industry
- >a12:" standard for text files).
- >a14:" This is an extremely important feature, for it may sometime
- >a15:" occur that a Perfect Calc data file will become 'damaged' . For
- >a16:" example, you may be attempting to save a Perfect Calc file to a disk
- >a17:" that does not have enough room to hold it, thereby causing a system
- >a18:" error. Thereafter any attempt to read even the original data file
- >a19:" produces an error message, such as "Bad File--Read Aborted" . Due to a
- >a20:" slight internal code irregularity caused by the write error, Perfect
- >a21:" Calc is now unable to interpret the file correctly.
- >a24:" When something like this happens, do not despair. The file is
- >a25:" not lost. Call the file into Perfect Writer and examine its lines for
- >a26:" the cause of the difficulty. Correct the error (usually one or more
- >a27:" extraneous command characters which Perfect Calc does not recognize)
- >a28:" and then transfer the file back to Perfect Calc, which should then be
- >a29:" able to read it normally.
- >a31:" Perfect Calc files will not appear in Perfect Writer as the
- >a32:" 'screen image' that you are used to. They will appear in the
- >a33:" form in which they are actually stored as a Perfect Calc data file.
- >a34:" Details for interpreting this format are provided in Appendix D of
- >a35:" the Perfect Calc User's Guide. Overall, it is an easy, convenient
- >a36:" feature you will come to appreciate very much!
- >a39:" USING PERFECT SPELLER WITH PERFECT CALC
- >a41:" In the same way, non-numeric data in Perfect Calc data files can
- >a42:" be verified for correctness using Perfect Speller ! Again, this is
- >a43:" possible because all Perfect Software programs utilize true ASCII
- >a44:" characters.
- >a46:" If you are uncertain of the spelling of any function names,
- >a47:" labels, or text which has been included in a Perfect Calc spreadsheet,
- >a48:" call the file into Perfect Writer and invoke the Perfect Speller option
- >a49:" as described in your Perfect Writer/Perfect Speller User's Guide.
- >a50:" Perfect Speller will check for misspelled words, ignoring any of
- >a51:" Perfect Calc's numbers, formulas, and special command characters
- >a52:" characters which may be imbedded in the file.
- >a54:" -- This is just one more refinement in a remarkable line of
- >a55:" products available only from Perfect Software !
- >a57:"
- >a58:" APPLICATION SPREADSHEET FILES
- >a60:" To get you started using Perfect Calc several pre-structured
- >a61:" spreadsheets have been provided. You might begin by examining these
- >a62:" and getting some ideas for what you want to do. You can modify and
- >a63:" change these to suit you particular needs. Remember, these application
- >a64:" files are for illustrative purposes only. Perfect Software will not
- >a65:" be able to help you with installing or customizing them.
- >a67:" BUILDING A FUNCTIONS LIBRARY
- >a69:" One of the major features of the 'Associate Files' command is
- >a70:" that it allows you to reference formulas in other spreadsheet buffers
- >a71:" and use the results in the currently displayed buffer. This feature
- >a72:" provides you with the capability of building a file with formulas
- >a73:" that you might use regularly and to name this file the 'functions
- >a74:" library'. To use this 'functions library' file all you need to do is
- >a75:" reference this file in your current buffer. Since the 'functions
- >a76:" library' is a standard spreadsheet file, you can easily add formulas
- >a77:" and functions as needed. It is possible to build function libraries
- >a78:" for any number of specialized applications. Thus, it is possible to
- >a79:" have a library of insurance functions, engineering functions, and so
- >a80:" on.
- >a82:" When building a functions library you will want to experiment with
- >a83:" creating a table of contents (with coordinate locations) for each of
- >a84:" the formulas and functions contained in the file.
- >a89:" And so we conclude our lessons on Perfect Calc. We regret that
- >a90:" time and space limitation did not allow us to cover every aspect of
- >a91:" the Perfect Calc system. However, we hope that you have gained more
- >a92:" than just a passing acquaintance with the power and versatility which
- >a93:" Perfect Calc brings to electronic spreadsheet calculating, and that
- >a94:" you are ready to begin making significant use of it in your business
- >a95:" or profession.
- >a97:" The Perfect Calc User's Guide covers all of the topics we have
- >a98:" mentioned here (plus a few others) in greater and more substantial
- >a99:" detail. It should certainly answer what remaining questions you may
- >a100:" have.
- >a102:" Beyond that, we fully expect that you, as a soon-to-be
- >a103:" 'expert' on Perfect Calc, will, before long, be showing US at Perfect
- >a104:" Software aspects and applications of the system that even WE didn't
- >a105:" know existed ! Let us hear from you. What you have to say is
- >a106:" important to us. After all, we are here to serve you.
- >a108:" END OF LESSON8
- >a1