Shareware Overload/ShartewareOverload.cdr/busi/addman31.zip/ADDMAN31.DOC

Text File | 1989-08-23 | 20KB | 565 lines

                                ADDMAN V3.1


                              ADDress MANager


                             User Documentation





























   Prepared by:
   M.B Jackson                                                   August 1989





                              INDEX
                              =====




                1.0 ......... Shareware
                1.1 ......... Disclaimer

                2.0 ......... Introduction
                2.1 ......... Getting started
                2.2 ......... The Main Screen
                2.3 ......... The Main Menu
                2.4 ......... Help
                2.5 ......... Exiting the program

                3.0 ......... Creating a file
                3.1 ......... Adding records
                3.2 ......... The Address Record
                3.3 ......... Saving data to disk

                4.0 ......... Opening an existing file
                4.1 ......... Moving around the file
                4.2 ......... Editing a record
                4.3 ......... Deleting a record

                5.0 ......... Printing
                5.1 ......... Printing Labels - Current record
                5.2 ......... Printing Labels - Whole file
                5.3 ......... Printing Phone List
                5.4 ......... Printing a Report
                5.5 ......... The Printer Settings

                6.0 ......... Quick Reference



1.0  Shareware

     ADDMAN is brought to you as SHAREWARE. Please feel free to try it, and
     copy it for your friends. If you find it useful, you are asked to
     register as a user, and send the author a contribution of $15. A
     registration form is printed below. This will provide the author with
     the encouragement and incentive to maintain and improve ADDMAN, and
     develop more shareware programs.

1.1  DISCLAIMER

     The author claims no responsibility for any damage caused by the use
     of this program. The program is distributed 'as is' with no warranty
     expressed or implied. The author will not be responsible for any
     losses incurred by the use of this program.

 ___________________________________________________________________________

     ADDMAN Registration Form
     ------------------------

     Please enter your name and address below, and send $15 to:

        Michael B Jackson
        178 Little Marlow Rd,
        Marlow
        Bucks   SL7 1HX
        ENGLAND


        Name   _____________________________

        Street _____________________________

        City   _____________________________

        State  __   Zip _____

        EMAIL address  ______________________________________

        ADDMAN version  V____

        Where did you get ADDMAN from? ______________________

        Comments  ___________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________





2.0 Introduction

     ADDMAN is a program which makes it easy for you to manage databases of
     names and addresses for either personal or business use. Records are
     entered and updated through a very simple form-fill process, and once
     entered they are stored on disk. Sorting is available by Name or
     Company, and individual records can be easily be retrieved. Reports
     can be produced containing full name and address details, or simply
     names and phone numbers. Address labels or index cards can be printed
     either for individual records, or for the whole file.

     ADDMAN is designed to be easy to use, and experienced pc users may
     wish to skip this documentation and run the program by simply typing
     ADDMAN. Online help screens are available. For those who are not
     comfortable with 'diving in' the following should provide the overview
     needed.


2.1  Getting Started

     For hard disk users, I suggest that you create a subdirectory called
     ADDMAN and copy the ADDMAN.EXE program file into it. If you then run
     the program from within this directory, any address data files that
     you create will also be stored here.

     For floppy disk users, you may choose to store data files on the same
     disk that the program is stored on, or alternatively you may wish to
     use separate disks for program and data files.

     To start the program, type ADDMAN at the DOS prompt.

                         C:>ADDMAN

     This will inititiate the program, and display the Shareware
     information screen. Hit the ENTER key to clear this screen. The main
     screen will then be displayed.


2.2  The Main Screen

     The main screen comprises a menu selection area across the top of the
     screen, and an address window in the centre. The current address
     record is always displayed in this window. However, when you first
     enter this screen, no address file is active, and so there is no
     current record. Instead, a message reminds you to either open an
     existing address data file, or create a new one.




2.3  The Main Menu

     The main menu is displayed across the top of the screen and contains
     the following options:

        File   Sort   Record   Print   Help   Quit

     Menu selections are made by either:

        a) highlighting the desired option by use of the left and right
           cursor keys, and then hitting the ENTER key.

        b) simply typing the first letter of the option required eg H for
           Help, F for File etc.

     Selecting any of these menu options (except for Help) causes a
     sub-menu to 'pop up'. For example, if you select Quit, then a sub-menu
     appears asking 'are you sure?' with menu options Yes or No.

     Selection from the sub-menu is similar to the main menu - either
     highlight the required option with the up/down cursor keys and hit
     Enter, or simply key in the first letter of the option required.

     When in a sub-menu, hitting the Escape key will always take you back
     to the main screen.


2.4  Help

     Help can be obtained either by selecting the Help menu option from the
     main screen, or by hitting the F1 key at any stage. This will display
     a series of screens which describe the address record structure, and
     briefly what each menu option does.


2.5  Exiting the program

     This is simply achieved by selecting the Quit option from the main
     menu, and selecting Yes in the sub-menu which asks if you are sure you
     wish to leave the program.




3.0  Creating a file

     The first time you run ADDMAN you will want to create an address file.
     This is achieved using the menu option File Create. (ie the main menu
     option File, and sub-menu option Create)

     This will bring up a window which asks you to enter a name for the
     file. This is can be up to 8 characters long, and forms the Dos file
     name. All files are automatically given the Dos file extension AD3.

     Since you can use ADDMAN to manage any number of address files, try to
     use the 8 characters available to make as descriptive a name as
     possible.

     Example: To create an address list for your club newsletter.

                Select: File Create

                Enter:  CLUBNEWS

                Result: A new address file called CLUBNEWS.AD3 will be
                        created. At this stage it will contain no address
                        records.

     After creating a new file you are returned to the main menu screen,
     and the address window now shows the name of the current file, the
     number of records in the file and the current record number. Since the
     file has no records yet, these numbers are zero. Thus in the above
     example the address window will simply contain:

                File: CLUBNEWS.AD3  Record 0 of 0


3.1  Adding records

     The next step is to enter some address records into the empty file.
     This is achieved by selecting the Record Add menu options. This will
     cause a record entry window to appear. All you need to do is to enter
     the relevant information against each item.

     You will notice that as a convenience the first letter of most fields
     is converted to upper case for you automatically as you type.

     You can move around the record entry screen using cursor and tab keys.
     A number of other keys are set up to assist you with editing, and
     these can be displayed by simply hitting the F2 key. The most useful
     key is probably Backspace, which deletes the previous character.

     The record is entered by hitting the Enter key after entering the last
     field (Notes), or by hiting Control Enter at any stage. Either of
     these options will return you to the main screen.

     If you wish to abort an entry, simply hit the Escape key.



3.2  The Address Record

     The address record comprises the following fields:

        Field           Size/description         Example
        =====           ================         =======
        Title           Max 8  characters        Mr
        Initials        Max 6  characters        J.
        First Name      Max 20 characters        John
        Last Name       Max 20 characters        Doe
        Job Title       Max 30 characters        Manager
        Company         Max 30 characters        ABC Inc
        Street          Max 30 characters        1 Main Street
        City            Max 20 characters        Middletown
        State           2 character code         AB
        Zip Code        Max 10 characters        01234-9999
        Country         Max 15 characters        USA
        Phone           10 digits                [phone]
        Extension       4 digits                 4321
        Print Number    # labels to be printed   5
                        in a regular print run.
        Notes           Max 30 characters        A short note.


     Please note that you do not have to fill in all the fields in the
     address record. For example, you will probably not wish to enter Job
     Title or Company Name in an address list for home use. If you do use
     them, they will appear on printed reports or labels.

     Most of the fields are self explanatory. However, it is probably
     worth a more detailed description of the last two.

     Notes - this is simply a field for you to store a small comment as a
     reminder to yourself. The field can optionally be printed at the
     bottom of a label.

     Print Number - This number can be pre-set to determine the number of
     labels of this address to print. Print options which are described
     later in this documentation allow for label printing of a) any number
     of a single address, b) one of each address on file, c) the Print
     Number of each address on file.

     Why is this useful? Because it can become a chore continually changing
     print stock between labels and regular paper just to print a single
     label. If you know in advance that you will require a label of one
     address weekly, and another monthly, you can set the Print Numbers to
     4 and 1 respectively. Then if you perform a monthly label print run
     using option c), you can produce a month's stock of pre-printed labels
     in one go.




3.3  Saving data to disk

     Address records are witten to disk as you enter them. Thus there is no
     need to specifically save the data. However, you may have noticed that
     there is a menu option File Save which allows you to do just this.

     The reason for this is to allow you to save the data to file in the
     current screen sort order. As you add records they are appended to the
     end of the file. After entering a number of records you may wish to
     Sort them (see the Sort options later in the documentation) and then
     re-write the file to disk in this order. This means that when you
     come to open the file again in the future it will already be in the
     order you want.



4.0  Opening an existing file

     You have the option from the main menu to open an existing file. If
     you  already have a file open, this will be closed prior to opening a
     new file.

     To open an existing file select the menu option File Open. This will
     cause a window to appear which displays all the address files in the
     current directory (the directory from which you started the program).

     You select the file you wish to open by using the up/down cursor keys
     to highlight your choice and hitting the Enter key. As usual, the
     Escape key will return you to the main screen without opening a new
     file.

     After you hit enter, the program will read the file to create an
     index, and then return you to the main screen with the first record
     displayed in the address window.


4.1  Moving around the file

     The Current address record is always displayed in the address window.
     There are several ways of moving around the file to make a different
     record Current.

     The simplest uses the Page Up and Page Down keys. These respectively
     make the next and previous record current. The same can be achieved by
     using the menu options Record Next and Record Previous.

     You can move forward or backwards 10 records at a time using Control
     Page Up and Control Page Down.

     You can move to the first record by either hitting the Home key, or
     using the menu option Record First. Similarly, you can move to the
     last record with the End key, or menu option Record Last.

     The best way to find a particular record is by using the Record Search
     menu option. This opens up a window which asks you to enter the Last
     Name of the record you wish to find. You can enter just the first few
     letters of the name if you wish, and the program will find the first
     name which matches these. Assuming you have the file sorted in Name
     order, you can then simply move forward a record at a time to find
     the one you want.


4.2  Editing a record

     You can edit the Current record by selecting the Record Edit menu
     option. This will open up a window similar to that used to enter a
     record. You can then use the editing keys to make the changes or
     additions you wish. As when entering a record, you can enter the
     modified record either by hitting the Enter key after editing the
     last field, or by hitting Control Enter. Hitting Escape will return
     you to the main screen without making any changes.




4.3  Deleting a record

     Deleting a record is a two step process. First you must mark the
     record as inactive, then you must purge inactive records from the
     file.

     To mark the Current record as inactive, select the menu option Record
     Delete. This will cause a flashing note to be displayed with the
     current record indicating that it is now inactive. If you wish to
     restore the record, simply select the Record Delete option again, and
     the flashing note will disappear.

     To permanently remove the inactive records from the file, select the
     File Purge option. This will re-write all active records to disk in
     the current order.




5.0  Printing

     ADDMAN has options for printing reports or labels. The label printing
     option can also be used for creating index cards. All the options are
     accessed through the main menu option Print.

     Note that ADDMAN currently only supports label stationary with one
     label across the page.

     ADDMAN does not currently allow you to set the printer font style from
     within the program, so if you wish to change the font you must do this
     manually on the printer, or run you own printer setup program.


5.1  Printing Labels - Current record

     To print a label of the Current record, select the Print Current menu
     option. The program then checks to make sure your printer is online,
     and if not gives you a warning message. You are then asked to enter
     the number of labels you wish to print. Finally, you are presented
     with a window asking you for the following print setting information:

        The number of lines per label

        The column position for the left margin

        If you want to include the phone number in the label

        If you want to include the notes in the label

        The name style you wish to use

     There are three name styles available. These are :

        1) Title/ Initial/ Last Name         eg Mr J Doe
        2) Title/ First Name/ Last Name      eg Mr John Doe
        3) First Name/ Last Name             eg John Doe


5.2  Printing Labels - Whole file

     To print labels of all records on the file, select the Print All
     records menu option.

     You are then asked how many labels of each record to print. If you
     enter the value zero at this point, then the program will determine
     how many labels to print of a given record from the Print Number field
     value (see section 2.2).

     Finally you are asked for the print settings as in the single record
     option above.




5.3  Printing Phone List

     To print a report with one name per line showing the telephone number,
     select the menu option Print Phone. The only additional information
     you are asked for is the number of lines per page that can be printed
     on your paper.


5.4  Printing a Report

     You can print a report of all the address records on file to ordinary
     print stock using the Print Report option. As above, the only
     additional information you are asked for is the number of lines per
     page.


5.5  The printer settings

     ADDMAN maintains a small file called ADDMAN.SET which contains
     details of the default print settings. These include the length of a
     label, the left margin position, whether to print phone number or
     comments, and the number of lines per page.

     This process is transparent to you. It is useful because it means that
     the next time you use ADDMAN the default values will be the ones
     previously set up, and should should save time.





6.0  Quick Reference

     The following is a quick reference guide to the menu options.

     File Open          Open and existing address file
     File Create        Create a new address file
     File Save          Re-Write the address file in the current order
     File Purge         Re-write the file purging any inactive records

     Sort Name          Sort the file by Last Name/First Name
     Sort Company       Sort the file by Company Name/Last Name/First Name

     Record Search      Find a particular record based on Last Name
     Record Add         Add a new address record
     Record Delete      Mark the current Inactive
     Record Edit        Edit the current record
     Record Next        Make the next record current
     Record Last        Make the previous record current
     Record First       Make the first record current
     Record Last        Make the last record current

     Print Current      Print label(s) of the current record
     Print All          Print labels of all records on file
     Print Phone        Print a report of phone numbers
     Print Report       Print a report of all address records

     Help               Display online help screens

     Quit Yes           Exit ADDMAN
     Quit No            Do not Exit ADDMAN, return to the main screen



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