Four.Zero v2.90
for the Palm Computing(R) Platform

Mobile Generation Software
www.mobilegeneration.com
  

Four.Zero™
Copyright © 2000 Mobile Generation Software
All Rights Reserved

Tip - Need help downloading, unzipping, or installing Four.Zero or any other 3rd-party Palm software? Visit the software installation wizard at www.nearlymobile.com.

Tip - If you like Four.Zero, "beam" it to your palm-friends! Using the standard Palm beam functionality, FPZ will be beamed as the unregistered version to the user and it will not beam any of your data.

1. Four.Zero Overview
        Four.Zero Overview
        Features
        Four.Zero System Requirements
        How to install Four.Zero
        Limitations
        Known Bugs
        Possible Future Upgrades

2.  Four.Zero Instructions
        Start Up
        Coursework List View
        Add a New Class
        Maintain Instructor Information
        
Maintain Textbook List
        Maintain Coursework Types
        
Maintain Class Grading Policy
        Add Coursework
        View Coursework
        Export Coursework to the Datebook
        Institution GPA Setup
        Grade Prediction (What if..)
        Report Card
        Options

3.  Version Information

4.  Purchasing / Registration

5.  License

6.  Company Information
 
 

Four.Zero

Four.Zero Overview
Four.Zero (pronounced four-point-zero) is the award-winning Palm software developed to enable students to track their class details, coursework, and current grades on their PalmPilot, Palm III series, Palm V series, Palm VII, or any PalmOS compatible device such as the HandSpring Visor.

Class Information Management
Use FPZ to track class details such as instructor information, textbooks, grading policies, and detailed course information. Now students have access to vital class information such as class time and room, instructor office hours, phone, and email, as well as the class web page right at their fingertips.


Coursework Management

Four.Zero contains extensive coursework management functionality to enable students to track homework and test details including due dates, scores, coursework types, and even related textbook information. Coursework is sorted chronologically and can be viewed by the class, due date, or type of work. FPZ also enables users to export coursework due date information to the Palm datebook automatically or at their discretion.

Grade Tracking and Prediction
Students will never again be surprised by a final grade as the Four.Zero grade tracking functionality provides visibility to class grades as well as overall GPA. Users may perform "what if.." scenarios to predict their final grade for a single class by entering their grade prediction for each class work type.

Features
-
Track class details, grades, and coursework information for up to 15 classes
-
Quick access to instructor information including phone numbers, office hours, email, etc..
-
Display coursework as a todo list and check them off when complete
- V
iew all coursework due today, this week, on a specific date, or by coursework type
-
Define grading policies for each class with or without coursework type weighting
- V
iew the current grade in a class or the GPA for all the classes combined
-
Grade prediction functionality to perform "what if" scenarios through the end of the term

Four.Zero System Requirements
Four.Zero is compatible with the PalmPilot Professional, Personal, Palm III series, Palm V series, Palm VII, or any other PalmOS compatible device using the PalmOS 2.0 or newer, such as the Handspring Visor. The compatibility of any new devices can be verified at the Four.Zero product page located at www.mobilegeneration.com/products/fourzero.

How to Install Four.Zero
Use the Palm Computing Installation tool to install the fpz.prc file.  For more information on using your Palm Computing Installation tool, consult your Palm Computing Device instructions or see the Palm software installation wizard at www.nearlymobile.com.

Limitations
Only 15 classes may be tracked simultaneously.

Known Bugs
There are no known bugs in Four.Zero at this time. If you notice any bugs please check our Four.Zero support page at www.mobilegeneration.com/custsupp to see if it has already been reported. If it has not been reported, please email us with detailed bug information at support@mobilegeneration.com.

Possible Future Upgrades
You can email us at support@mobilegeneration.com to give us your input on what features you would like to see in future upgrades. You may also want to check the planned enhancements at the FPZ support page at www.mobilegeneration.com/custsupp to ensure that we are not already planning to add the functionality. Currently, we are working on FPZ 3.0 which will include usability enhancements to follow the UI standards of Palm OS software.
 

Usage

Startup
The unregistered version of Four.Zero will launches with the "bugme" screen informing the user that the version of FPZ is unregistered. Just tap the "Register Later" button to enter the FPZ application. The registered version allows for
full functionality of the application for a single class. Once FPZ is registered then the application will no longer display the "bugme" screen and it will allow the user to track up to 15 classes.

Coursework List View
The main view of the Four.Zero application is the Coursework List View.  There are two types of views into the coursework list, a view into "All" the classes and a view into a specific class. To switch between the two views, select the class at the top right of the screen or select "All" to see view into all the classes. For more information the functionality of this screen, see the view coursework section.

Add a New Class
To add a new class select "New" from the "Class" menu. You will be asked to add the basic class information such as the class name, department, section, course #, classroom number, class time (and date), the class web page, as well as any freeform notes that you would like enter for the class. To modify this information in the future, ensure that the class is selected at the top right of the screen and then select the "Class Info" item from the "Class" menu.

Note that you will only be able to add a single class to the unregistered version. If you find Four.Zero useful enough to track more than a single class, you will need to register it. Please see the purchasing and registration section for more information on registering FPZ.

Maintain Instructor Information
To add Instructor information, make sure that the class is selected at the top right and then choose the "Instructor" item from the "Class" menu. Then enter the instructor name, office location, office hours, phone, and email.

Maintain Textbook List
To maintain the textbook list for a specific class, make sure that the class is selected at the top right and then select "Textbooks" from the "Class" menu. To add a textbook, tap the "add" button and and enter the name of the textbook. To rename a textbook, select the textbook from the list, tap "Rename", and then enter the new name. If you rename a textbook then all associations to that textbook will remain intact. To delete a textbook, select the textbook and tap "Delete". Note that when you delete a textbook it will break the all the associations (coursework, etc..) with that textbook.

Maintain Coursework Types
Coursework types are used to categorize the coursework for each class into tests, homework, reading, quizzes, labs, etc.. These are user-defineable as each class has different coursework types. Defining coursework types will allow the user to view the coursework list based on the coursework type, assign different grading weights for each coursework type, and show the overall grade for a specific coursework type.

To create and modify coursework types, ensure that a class is selected at the top right of the screen and select "Coursework Types" from the "Class" menu. To add a coursework type, tap the "add" button and and enter the name of the coursework type. To rename a coursework type, select the coursework type from the list, tap "Rename", and then enter the new coursework type. If you rename a coursework type then all associations to that textbook will remain intact. To delete a coursework type, select the coursework type and tap "Delete". Note that when you delete a coursework type it will break the all the associations (coursework, etc..) with that textbook.

Maintain Class Grading Policy
To change the Grading Policy for a Class
it is important to understand the difference between the GPA setup and the grading policy. The GPA setup, available from the Tools menu, enables users to define the grade point average and corresponding letter grades for your entire institution. The Grading Policy, accessible by the "Grading Policy" item in the "Class" menu, enables the user to define the percentages necessary to reach a letter grade in a specific class. Users may also enter the weights used for each coursework type to calculate the final grade for a specific class. FPZ allows each class to use a different grading policy but when the user creates a new class it defaults the values to that of the first class created.

To use the weighting functionality, select the "weighting" checkbox on the Grading Policy screen. Then select "By Type" or "Per Item". If the class grading policy is weighted by coursework type (homework, quizzes, tests, etc..) then tap the "Type Setup" button to enter the weight for each work type. Users may also enter the number of items to drop from each coursework type. If all the coursework types are not available for your class then then you will need to go back to the "Coursework Types" menu item in the class menu to add all the necessary coursework types.

To weigh items individually (per item) select the "Per Item" weight. Once this is selected, FPZ will display an entry field for the weight of each item in the Edit Coursework screen. The weights you enter are always relative to the other values so it is not a requirement to enter a percentage.

Extra Credit
A note on extra credit: with no weighting, extra credit is just added to the total. For "By Type" weighting extra credit is added to your total for the coursework type and then it weighs the type normally. For "Per Item" weighting, FPZ will add the score to the total weighting percent. Therefore, if you earned 3% extra credit out of 5% possible then put 5% for your weight to remind you that was how much was possible (it doesn't actually affect the weighting) and then put 3 in the score. You will now have 3% extra credit.

Add Coursework
To add coursework (homework, quizzes, test dates, etc..) ensure that you have the correct class selected at the top right of the screen then select "Add Coursework" from the "Class" menu or tap the "Add" button at the bottom left of the screen. Enter the name of the coursework, the due date, the coursework type, and free-form notes about the coursework, and the textbook for which it relates. This is also where you will enter your score on the coursework. Optionally, use the shortcut "copy" icon to add the coursework type to the name of the coursework. Therefore, if the
coursework name is "Quiz #1" and"Quiz" is set up as a coursework type then just tap the copy button to place the word "Quiz" in the name field.

View Coursework
There are multiple views into the coursework so it may take a few minutes to get comfortable with the different views. Use the "View" dropdown at the bottom left to select the view for the coursework. View coursework by "Due" to view all due items, "Due By" to view items due by a certain date, "Past" to view past due items, and by "Coursework Type" to view all the coursework by coursework type (homework, tests, etc..) The Daily and Weekly views sort all coursework by date and display all the items that are due that week or day for each class. Note that this view will automatically switch your class selector at the top right to "All Classes."

To view completed items completed coursework items as well as uncompleted items select the "View Done" checkbox. Note that if you check an item as done and you do not have "View Done" selected the item will not disappear until the next update to the page.

The grade displayed at the bottom is the current grade for the entire class unless you are viewing a specific coursework type and then it is the grade for that coursework type. Note that the grade is calculated only for scored items. To edit a coursework item just select it. If you have more than 10 items then use the scrollbar or hardware buttons to scroll or page up and down.

Export Coursework to the Datebook
There are two options for exporting your coursework to the datebook, automatically or manually. To manually export the items just press the "Add to Datebook" button when you create a new coursework item. To automatically export each coursework item to the datebook as it is created, select "Datebook" from the "Sync" menu and then check "Automatically add coursework to the Datebook." The rest of the options on the "Datebook Sync" page are independent of whether you automatically or manually export the coursework to the datebook. Select the "Alarm" checkbox if you would like an alarm set in the datebook and the repeat selector if you would like to add repeating datebook entries for your coursework. Note that once the entries are exported to the datebook, FPZ has no visibility to those entries. Users must use the datebook application to modify or delete datebook entries created by FPZ.

Institution GPA Setup
The GPA setup, available from the Tools menu, enables users to define the grade point average and corresponding letter grades for the entire institution. So, if your institution doesn't use + or -, then uncheck them and they will not be be utilized. Users can also define the GPA next to the corresponding grade and choose "E" or "F" for the fail grade.

Grade Prediction (What if...)
Choose "What If" from the tools menu to predict your grade in the class. Select your predicted grade for the rest of the term for each coursework type. If either no grade or no type is selected then that grade/workload type is not factored in. FPZ displays a range of grades if there is not a grade selected for every workload type.

Report Card
From the "tools" menu choose the "Report Card" item for a view of the current grade point average (GPA). This screen displays the percent grade, letter grade, and GPA for each class as well as the overall GPA with and without hours calculated in.

Options
To modify the FPZ options, choose the "Options" menu item from the "Tools" menu. The options allow users to set the behavior of the hardware arrows: scroll up and down coursework items, page up and down items, change the view, or change classes. If the option is set for "Change the View" then it will skip the "Due By" selection. To display the class name in the "Daily" and "Weekly" views then select the "Show Class Name in Daily\Weekly". To use FPZ as left-handed with the scrollbar on the left side then select the "Left-handed" item.


Version Information
Version 3.0 (not yet available)
3.0 will contain significant usability enhancements to Four.Zero in order to make it a more "standard" Palm interface.

Version 2.9
This is the first public release of Four.Zero from Mobile Generation Software.  

Purchasing / Registration of Four.Zero

Mobile Generation Software has released the
unregistered version of Four.Zero for general distribution.  The unregistered version allows for full FPZ functionality for 1 class. To register FPZ, purchase a registration code from Mobile Generation Software and enter the code in the Four.Zero registration screen to "register" it. Once registered, the application will remove the 1 class limitation and allow you track up to 15 classes simultaneously. Unregistered, FPZ also contains a 'bugme' screen at each startup to remind you that you are using the software as unregistered

A Four.Zero registration code can be purchased for $14.95 through any of the methods below. As always, Mobile Generation Software will supply you with free upgrades to Four.Zero for the lifetime of the product. Note - for any of the registration procedures below, you will need to provide your Palm Username so we can generate a valid FPZ registration code for your device. Your Palm username is available on the hotsync screen of your Palm or on the PC hostync dialog displayed when you Hotsync.

Purchase On-line
Purchase a
Four.Zero registration code securely with a credit card from the Mobile Generation Software on-line Store available from the Mobile Generation Software web site. Your Four.Zero registration code will be emailed to you within 1 working day after entry of the order.

Purchase by Phone
Purchase a
Four.Zero registration code with a credit card through PalmGear H.Q. at 1-800-741-9070.  Your Four.Zero registration code will be emailed to you within 2 working days after receipt of the order. PalmGear charges an extra $2 for phone orders.

Purchase by Mail
Purchase a
Four.Zero registration code by sending a check or money order for $14.95 made out to Mobile Generation Software to the address below.  Also include the name of the software you are registering, your PalmOS username, and your email address.  Your Four.Zero registration code will be emailed to you within 1 working day after receipt of the order.

Mobile Generation Software
PMB 149
368 S. McCaslin Blvd
Louisville, CO 80027

 
 

License
Four.Zero
Copyright © 2000 Mobile Generation Software
All Rights Reserved

For registration procedure information, see the registration procedures section

License Agreement
You should carefully read the following terms and conditions before using this software.  Unless you have a different license agreement signed by Mobile Generation Software, your use of this software indicates your acceptance of this license agreement and warranty.

Governing Law
This agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Colorado.

Disclaimer of Warranty
THIS SOFTWARE AND THE ACCOMPANYING FILES ARE SOLD "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES AS TO PERFORMANCE OR MERCHANTABILITY OR ANY OTHER WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED.  Because of the various hardware and software environments in which Four.Zero may be utilized, NO WARRANTY OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IS OFFERED.

Good data processing procedure dictates that any program be thoroughly tested with non-critical data before relying on it.  The user must assume the entire risk of using the program.  ANY LIABILITY OF THE SELLER WILL BE LIMITED EXCLUSIVELY TO PRODUCT REPLACEMENT OR REFUND OF PURCHASE PRICE.

Evaluation and Registration
Four.Zero is not free software.  Subject to the terms below, you are hereby licensed to use Four.Zero for evaluation purposes for 30 days only.  If you use this software after the 30 day evaluation period, a registration fee of $14.95 is required.  Please see the registration process section for more information on registering Four.Zero.  Unregistered use of Four.Zero after the 30 day evaluation period is in violation of U.S. and international copyright laws.

Distribution
You are hereby licensed to make as many copies of the this software and documentation as you wish; give exact copies of the original version to anyone; and distribute the software and documentation in its unmodified form via electronic means.  All the original documents and files must remain intact and unchanged.  There is no charge for any of the above.

You are specifically prohibited from charging, or requesting donations, for any such copies, however made; and from distributing the  software and/or documentation with other products (commercial or otherwise) without prior written permission.

Registered Version
One registered copy of Four.Zero may only be used by a single person on one Palm Computing Platform Device.  Since the registration code is derived from the PalmOS user name, a new registration code is required for each Palm Computing Platform device.

Send comments and requests about this information to mailto://info@mobilegeneration.com or visit the Mobile Generation Site at: http://www.mobilegeneration.com/
 

 

Company Information
Mobile Generation Software is a privately held company located in the Boulder, Colorado area. MGS was founded on the principle that the next generation of hardware and software will be the "Mobile Generation."  Mobile Generation Software is committed to serving this new generation by becoming the industry leader for consumer handheld solutions. For more information on how Mobile Generation Software can provide cost-effective handheld solutions to you or your business, visit the Mobile Generation Software web site at www.mobilegeneration.com. 

Also check out the following software from Mobile Generation Software

Mobile Account Manager - Safely and securely store all your passwords, pin numbers, login ID's, checking accounts, credit card numbers with the original security application.

MobileDB - View and edit any small database, table, or spreadsheet data on your Palm. MobileDB also includes a free PC version of the software to create and access MobileDB databases on your PC.

Annual Event Manager - Track all your automobile expenses including gas, services, and billable miles then export them to excel to print out.

Mobile AutoLog - Count down the days to all your annual events including birthdays and anniversaries.

Mobile LinkDoc - You got to have a good text document (doc) viewer to round out your Palm. This great doc viewer allows you to create bookmarks and links from one doc to another.

Plus, check out all our freeware software including Mobile Checklist Lite, clones of PacMan, MIssle Command, Space Invaders, and more!


Looking for Custom Palm development? Search for experienced Palm developers at our sister site, http://www.mobilecoders.com/