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JCSM Shareware Collection 1997 February
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1996-09-25
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┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PNM.EXE (Personal Notes Manager) Version 3.1, as of September 25, 1996 │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The following files should be in this demo release.
PNM31D.EXE 09-25-96 3:10a (the PNM 3.1 DEMO program)
PNM.TXT 09-25-96 3:10a (documentation)
PNM.FRM 09-25-96 3:10a (order form)
Disclaimer
JZ Computer Services makes no warranty of any kind, either
express or implied, including but not limited to implied
warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular
purpose, with respect to this software and accompanying
documentation.
What is PNM?
------------
PNM stands for Personal Notes Manager. It is a program designed
to store all kinds of notes or information, provide fast ways of
finding a particular note or piece of information, and most
importantly, to keep all these notes private, by encrypting the
information entered.
Each note in a folder (or database) has an area for entering an
optional subject, keyword(s), and up to fifteen lines of text.
The date and time the note was first entered and when it was
last updated is automatically entered for each note. Each note
is displayed in its entirety on your screen. You can page up or
down thru all your notes, or search for a specific note by date
created, date updated, subject, keyword or any specific word in
the text area.
Most people use PNM like a diary, or personal notebook,
where they can write whatever personal notes they want, have
fast access to a particular note or piece of information, and
keep others out.
The folders (disk files with an extension of FLD) are where your
note information is kept. An index file (disk file with an
extension of IDX) is also kept for each folder. The index file
makes it possible for fast lookups by created or updated times,
subject or keyword. The information in both of these files is
encrypted. The PNM program with the correct password is the only
way you can view the notes you have entered. The folders (*.FLD
files) are the most important files, the indexes (*.IDX files)
can be rebuilt anytime in the program maintenance section.
What kinds of systems can PNM run on?
-------------------------------------
PNM should run on virtually any PC or compatible system under
most all versions of DOS/Windows/Windows 95. In most cases it
can run in as little as 384k of base memory.
Installing PNM on your PC
-------------------------
PNM requires no special directory or environment variables. Just
copy PNM to the directory of your choosing and you are ready to
go. Most people create a subdirectory called PNM, copy the PNM
program there, and create all the PNM folders there.
Distribution
------------
PNM (the demo version) is being distributed as shareware. It can
be freely distributed. It's only limitation from the registered
version is the number of notes that can be stored. The fully
registered version can store up to 30000 notes per folder, while
the demo version is limited to storing only 20 notes per folder.
Starting PNM
------------
Under most circumstances all you need do is to type in PNM and
press <ENTER> to start running the program.
One exception to starting PNM differently, is when you want to
configure the various PNM default options. This is done by
entering "PNM CFG". In this configuration part of the program
you can set things like, what the ENTER key would do if pressed
at various menu selections, whether insert is on or off by
default, whether wordwrap is on or off by default, and whether
to use or not use the split screen special effect at the
beginning and ending of the program.
Another exception on starting PNM differently is when PNM is
running on a notebook/laptop computer using a non-volor LCD
display. In this case you might want to enter "PNM LCD" or
"PNM BW" or "PNM MONO" to make the display more readable for
these non-color lcd displays.
Yet another exception to starting PNM differently is when you
wish to load PNM as a Terminate-Stay-Resident (TSR) program.
Then you would enter "PNM TSR". After the successful load of PNM
as a TSR, you would be able to run PNM from within many other
programs by entering the key combination <CTRL><ALT><N>. If you
load PNM as a TSR and wish to unload the TSR function, use the
"U" (Unload), rather than the "Q" (Quit) at the Main Menu.
One last way of starting PNM differently is when you wish access
folders created on a floppy or other drive letter. Then you
would enter "PNM drive:", replacing the word "drive" with the
appropriate drive letter.
From the PNM Main Menu you will have 4 choices.
A - to access an existing folder.
C - to create a new folder.
Q - to quit and return to DOS/WINDOWS
U - to quit and unload PNM as a TSR in memory.
To access a previously created folder, choose the "A" option.
To create a new folder choose the "C" option.
Either the "A" or the "C" option can be set as the default
if the <ENTER> key is pressed, by setting them accordingly
in the PNM configuration section described earlier.
To quit PNM and return to DOS or WINDOWS, or to quit and return
to the previously running program (if PNM was loaded as a TSR)
choose "Q".
If you had loaded PNM as a TSR and you want to quit the program
and unload the TSR function, use the "U" option to end the
program.
Access/Create a folder
----------------------
From the PNM Main Menu, if you choose "A" or "C" to access or
create a folder, the next screen will show the current directory
and allow you to use the <up>, <down>, and <ENTER> keys to
navigate to the directory where you want to access or create a
folder. Only those files with an extension of *.FLD will be
displayed.
┌─ If you chose "A" (ACCESS)
│
A│ This screen would present a list of all the folders in the
C│ current directory. Use your up/down arrow keys to select the
C│ folder to access. After you select the folder and press
E│ <ENTER>, you will be asked for the password. Enter the correct
S│ password (watch for upper and lower case differences). Asterisks
S│ will be displayed.
│
│ If you have entered the correct password you will then have
└─ have access to the notes within and taken to the Access Menu.
┌─ If you chose "C" (CREATE)
│
│ The next screen is where you actually give your folder a name
C│ and a password. The name can be any valid DOS name. The FLD
R│ extension will be added automatically. The password you enter
E│ can be up to 10 characters long. It can be any combination of
A│ upper or lower case keyboard characters. Remember this password
T│ EXACTLY as you entered it, especially as to which letters are
E│ upper and which are lower case. The password WILL be displayed
│ at this time so you can verify it is EXACTLY what you want it
│ to be. After entering the folder name and password, the password
│ display will change to "**********" while the folder is being
│ created.
│
└─ Once you create a folder you will be taken to the Access Menu.
From the Access Menu you will then have these 4 choices.
A - add a Note
F - find a Note
M - maintenance
C - close folder
Add a Note
----------
If you choose "A", to add a note, the next screen will ask for
where this new note information will come from. You can either
(C)opy this information from another folder (or the current
folder), or enter (N)ew text. Most of the time you will probably
be entering NEW text.
The "A" or Add a note option can be set as the default
if the <ENTER> key is pressed, by setting it accordingly
in the PNM configuration section described earlier.
┌─ If you select (C)opy from another folder, you would once again
│ be presented with a directory listing and allowed to navigate to
C│ another directory if needed, to choose the folder from where you
O│ want to copy a note(s) from. After selecting this other folder
P│ (or same folder), you will need to know the correct password to
Y│ it also. If entered correctly you will then be asked for which
│ note(s) to copy from this folder to your existing folder. The
│ range can be either forward or backward. Follow the prompts and
└─ the requested notes will be copied.
┌─ If you select (N)ew text, you would be taken to the screen where
│ you actually enter the note information. Pressing the <F1> key
N│ will show various editing keys that can be used. While entering
E│ note information you may enter a Subject, Keyword(s), and up to
W│ 15 lines of text. None of these lines of information are
│ mandatory. If you desire to enter keyword(s), each must be
│ seperated by at least 1 space. To save the note information you
└─ have entered, do an "<ALT-S>".
Either the "C" or the "N" option can be set as the default
if the <ENTER> key is pressed, by setting them accordingly
in the PNM configuration section described earlier.
<F1> editing keys used ...
<ALT-B> - Reformat paragraph. As you are entering text,
sometimes you go back and insert or delete words.
<ALT-B> will reformat till the first blank line it
encounters, to make a complete normal looking
paragraph (remove excessive blank spaces) of the words
that are left.
<ALT-C> - Copy current line. Makes a copy of the current line
and adds it as the next line.
<ALT-H> - Hack off remaining text on current line. Depending on
where you are on any given line, <ALT-H> will remove
the remaining characters on the current line if there
are any.
<ALT-R> - Restore current line to start of this edit. If you
have made several changes to the current line you wish
to undo, <ALT-R> will restore this line to what it was
when you first started editing this line.
<ALT-U> - Use subject/keywords last viewed. If you had just
entered or viewed a note, and you wish to add another
note with the same subject and keywords, <ALT-U> will
enter into the current note, those same subject and
keywords from that previously viewed note.
<ALT-W> - Toggle wordwrap on or off. When wordwrap is on, you
can type as in most wordprocessors and not worry about
reaching the end of the line cause the typing will
automatically continue to the next line.
<CTRL-N> - Insert a blank line. Inserts a blank line where you
are at, and moves all remaining lines down 1. The
bottom line if any will be removed.
<CTRL-Y> - Delete this line and pull lines up. Deletes the
current line and pulls all remaining lines up 1.
<HOME> - Go to beginning of current line. Positions cursor at
the beginning of current line.
<END> - Go to end of text on current line. Positions cursor 1
space past the last character on the current line.
<INS> - Toggles insert mode on/off. With insert mode on, all
characters typed will push any other characters on the
current line to the right. Once the end of the current
line is reached the characters will drop off.
<DEL> - Deletes current character. Delete current character
and pulls all remaining characters on the current line
to the left.
<PgUp> - Go to beginning of Subject line. Takes you to the
Subject line, first position.
<PgDn> - Go to beginning of 1st Text line. Takes you to the
Text area, first line, first position.
<TAB> - Go to next tab stop. Takes you to the next tab zone (8
positions each).
<SH-TAB> - Go to previous tab stop. Takes you to the previous tab
zone (8 positions each).
Finding a Specific Note
-----------------------
If you choose "F" from the Access Menu, to find a note, the next
screen will present you with 6 choices. You can choose to find a
specific note by searching for the date created or last updated,
a subject, a keyword, a specific note #, or a specific part of
the text in a note.
The "F" or Find a note option can be set as the default
if the <ENTER> key is pressed, by setting it accordingly
in the PNM configuration section described earlier.
If you select "C" or "U" to search for a note by the date it was
first created or last updated, you will be presented with a
screen where you can enter the date (mm-dd-yy) to search for.
This search uses the index file to quickly find those exact
notes.
If you select "S" to search for a note by a subject, or "K" to
search for a note by a keyword, you will be presented with a
screen to enter the subject or keyword to search for. This
search uses the index file to quickly find those exact notes.
If you select "N" for a specific note #, you will be taken to a
screen where you can enter the note # to go to. The default entry
will be the last note in the folder. You can enter any note #
from 1 thru this last note. This search uses direct record
access and will quickly go to the requested note #.
If you select "T" to search for specific text in a note, you
will be taken to a screen where you enter the text to search
for. After entering the text to search for, you will then be
asked whether to do the search starting at the (F)irst note of
the folder and proceeding to the Last note, or starting at the
(L)ast note of the folder and going to the First note. Choose
the direction for your search. This search must go thru each
note in your folder to find a note containing the text you are
searching for. Depending on the size of your folder and the
speed of your system, this search will be longer than those
searches that use the index file.
Either the "C", the "U", the "S" or the "K" option can be set as
the default if the <ENTER> key is pressed, by setting them
accordingly in the PNM configuration section described earlier.
If a note is found which matches the criteria you entered, it
will be displayed. Once displayed, depending on what you were
searching for (created or updated date, subject, keyword, note #
or text), some or all of the following options will be
available.
On all methods of search, one of your choices will be to use the
"PgDn" key to go to the next note in the desired sequence the
search was done by.
On all methods of search, another of your choices will be to use
the "PgUp" key to go to the previous note in the desired
sequence the search was done by.
On all methods of search, another of your choices will be to use
the "E" key to go into edit mode on the note displayed.
On all methods of search, another of your choices will be to use
the "D" key to mark the current note for DELETION. The note
index references will be deleted immediately, but until the
folder is packed, the note can be UNDELETED at a later time.
On all methods of search, another of your choices will be to use
the "P" key to print out the note information. If you choose
this option you can print out the (F)ull note information
(created and updated times, subject, keywords), or just the
(T)ext information only. After choosing "F" or "T" you will also
have a choice of printing this note information to your printer,
or to an ASCII disk file (for editing or including in some other
file). The default ASCII filename will be the current folder
name, plus the ASC extension. This can be changed to any valid
DOS filename.
If you search for a note by looking for specific text somewhere
in the text portion of the note, one of the options will be to
continue the (S)earch for other notes with this same specific
text in them. Press "S" to continue this type of search.
If you search for a note in note # order and the note displayed
is one previously marked for DELETION, you will be given an
option to (U)ndelete the note. If you press the "U" key all
created and updated times, subject and keyword(s) will be put
back in the index file and the note will be undeleted.
Maintenance
-----------
From the Maintenance Menu you will have these 4 choices.
1 - Pack Folder (remove DELETED notes)
2 - Copy notes to text file
3 - Change password
4 - Rebuild index file
Pack Folder
-----------
If you choose "1" to pack the current folder, you first will be
asked to confirm (Y/N) your desire to do this. If you answer
"Y" (yes), all notes marked for deletion will be permanently
removed from the folder.
Copy notes to text file
-----------------------
If you choose "2" to copy notes to a text file, you will be
asked for a starting note and an ending note to copy. This copy
can be done going forward or backward. After you choose the
starting and ending note, you will be asked to confirm (Y/N)
your desire to do this. If you answer "Y" (yes), all notes
within the specified range will be copied to a disk file with
the name of the current folder but with the .ASC extension. You
can override this default filename if you want by giving it
another name.
Change password
---------------
If you choose "3" to change the password on the current folder
you will be presented with an area to enter the new password.
The password will be displayed for you to verify this is the
exact mixture of upper and lower characters you want. Be very
careful and note this is the exact password you want. When you
press <ENTER> to begin the password change process, the password
displayed will change to "**********" while the entire folder is
rebuilt with the new password.
Rebuild index file
------------------
If you choose "4" to rebuild the index file on the current
folder, you first will be asked to confirm (Y/N) your desire to
do this. If you answer "Y" (yes), an index file will be created
or completely rebuilt from the notes in the current folder.
** FINAL NOTES **
-----------------
PNM is very simple to use and can be used for almost anything
you want to later remember, have fast access to, and want to
keep private. The most important things to remember are ...
(1) Your password whether uppercase, lowercase or combination of
upper or lower case characters is very important to remember
EXACTLY as entered. If you don't remember the EXACT way you
entered it you will not be able to get back in to the folder
after you close it.
(2) The <ESC> key will almost always take you back to the
previous screen.
(3) Please back up your folders regularly. System crashes,
viruses, etc. might not happen very often, but when they do
and you have no backup, you have nothing! The PNM program
(PNM.EXE) and the *.FLD files are the most important. The
*.IDX files can be rebuilt anytime in the maintenance
section of the program.
(4) Although the encryption algorithms used for safeguarding
your notes is adequate for most uses, there will always be
someone, somwhere that knows how to break in. Those people
are usually few and far apart, but be aware, nothing can
ever be 100% safe.
If you have any comments or suggestions for improvements or
new features to PNM, please let us know. If you desire a
custom version of PNM or any other program written, please
contact us for a price quote.
JZ Computer Services Email us at ...
P.O. Box 10625 jzapp@fullnet.net
Enid, OK. 73706