Copyright: Copyright © 1998 Ability Plus Software (UK) Ltd.


Using files from previous versions of Ability

Ability Office 98 can import, and in most case use directly, files from all previous incarnations of Ability, including:

•	Ability 1.2 - released 1985

•	Ability Plus 1.0 - released 1987

•	Ability Plus 2.0 - released 1992

•	Ability Plus 3.0 - released 1995

•	Ability for Windows 1.5/1.6 - released 1995/1996

In the first four cases, the process is identical, see Using DOS Ability files.

For Ability for Windows, see Using Ability for Windows 1.5/1.6 files.


Using files from DOS versions of Ability

Ability Office will import files from all previous DOS versions. This includes most features from Write, Database and Spreadsheet.

See:

Using Write documents

Using spreadsheet files

Using databases

What won't import

•	Paper size - this is always reset to the default A4 or Letter according to your printer setup. This is because the paper sizes allowed in DOS versions of Ability hardly ever match those available with printers in Windows.

•	Master forms. The layout from database won't be brought in with the database import. This will hopefully not cause too many problems since Ability Office has an automatic form generator and it's easy to drag and drop fields to new positions.

•	Links to other files are a general problem that this version of Ability Office has not been able to address properly. Single, one-way links can be re-built once both files are imported. Embedded spreadsheets can be reinserted, again, once both files are imported.

•	Macros - it is hoped some macro capability (or equivalent) will be available in a forthcoming version of Ability Office. Any existing macros won't be imported however.


Opening DOS version Ability Write files
Using Write documents from a DOS version of Ability

To open a Write file in Ability Office 98, follow these steps:

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Write application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Write.

2.	Select the Open button [image] or select the Open command from the File menu.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	In the Files of Type box set the type to Ability for DOS.

5.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.

Ability will open the file and display it on screen. The DOS version of Ability could only understand simple fonts that aren’t really used under Windows anymore. So, the first step you'll probably want to make is to convert the font:

1.	Choose the Select All command from the Edit menu.

2.	Use the Font drop-down box [image] to select a Windows font - try Arial or Times New Roman.

Now save the file: select the Save button [image] or select the Save command from the File menu. For more information, see what happens when imported files are saved.

You're now free to use any of the new formatting and layout capabilities Write.


Using spreadsheets from a DOS version of Ability

To open a spreadsheet in Ability Office 98, follow these steps:

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Write application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Spreadsheet.

2.	Select the Open button [image] or select the Open command from the File menu.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	In the Files of Type box set the type to Ability for DOS.

5.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.

Ability will open the file and display it on screen.

Now save the file: select the Save button [image] or select the Save command from the File menu. For more information, see what happens when imported files are saved.


What happens when imported files are saved

When saving as file from a DOS version of Ability, the following occurs:

1.	A new file is created in the updated Ability Office format.

2.	The old file is preserved unchanged.

For example, if you import a Write file called banklet.xtx, after saving the file in Ability Office you'll have two files: banklet.xtx (not changed) and banklet.aww (the new format).

Once you're happy that everything is working to your satisfaction, you can delete the old file. Or you can just leave it as a backup - it won't take up much disk space.


Using databases from a DOS version of Ability

To import a DOS database, you first need to create a new Ability Database to hold the information (see how database files are arranged for more information). If you haven't already created a new database, follow these steps.

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Database application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Database.

2.	Select the New button [image], select the New command from the File menu, and enter a new name for your database.

Now you can import each DOS database file to a new table.

1.	Select Import from the File menu.

2.	Select Ability 1.2 DOS Database or Ability Plus DOS Database from the list of source types.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.


How database files are arranged

In the DOS version, you'll be used to having different files for different databases. For example, a simple system may look like this:

customer	a list of customers

custsort	sorted version of customer

products	a list of products

sales	a list of orders made

The databases would be stored in separate files that would appear on the Library Screen.

In the new Ability Office Database, you would usually store all these in a single database file with each of the imported files forming a new table. This is because they are all related - a sale is made to someone from the customer list who is buying an item from the product list. Even if the data is not related, it is usually more convenient to store them all in a single file. There is no restriction to do this however - you can create as many databases as you wish.

If you have created any sorted or subset files in a DOS version of Ability, you should only import the original. This is to avoid duplicating data. In the above example, you can import customers or custsort, but not both. It is much easier to sort and filter information in the new Ability Database, so don't worry about not importing sorted lists or subsets - the important thing is the data itself.


Using Ability for Windows 1.5/1.6 files

Ability Office will import Write documents, spreadsheets and databases from the previous Ability for Windows.

See:

Using Write documents

Using spreadsheet files

Using databases

What won't import

Forms cannot be imported. This will hopefully not cause too many problems since Ability Office has an automatic form generator and it's easy to drag and drop fields to new positions.


Using Ability for Windows Write documents

To open a Write document in Ability Office 98, follow these steps:

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Write application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Write.

2.	Select the Open button [image] or select the Open command from the File menu.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.

Ability will open the file and display it on screen. The next time you save the file, the format will be updated to the new version.


Using Ability for Windows spreadsheets

To open a spreadsheet in Ability Office 98, follow these steps:

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Spreadsheet application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Spreadsheet.

2.	Select the Open button [image] or select the Open command from the File menu.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.

Ability will open the file and display it on screen. The next time you save the file, the format will be updated to the new version.


Using Ability for Windows databases

There are three steps to getting the databases from Ability for Windows 1.5/1.6 into the new Ability Database.

•	Save the all the existing databases in the Ability Exchange format:

For a recap on how to do this in the previous version, see exporting 1.5/1.6 files

•	Create a new Ability Office 98 database:

1.	Run the Ability Office 98 Database application - select the Windows Start button, select Programs, Select Ability Office 98 and then Ability Database.

2.	Select the New button [image], select the New command from the File menu, and enter a new name for your database.

•	Now you can import each of the database exchange file to a new table:

1.	Select Import from the File menu.

2.	Select Ability for Windows 1.5 Exchange from the list of source types.

3.	Select the directory where your old Ability files are located. Trouble finding the files?.

4.	Pick the file you want from the list and select OK.

5.	Repeat steps 1 through 4 for each file you want to import.


Save the all the existing databases in the Ability Exchange format

This process is explained at the end of the Database Chapter in the Ability for Windows User's Guide.

1.	Run the Ability for Windows 1.5 or 1.6 Database application - select Cancel when prompted to open an existing table.

2.	Select the Export command from the File menu.

3.	Select the table you want to export from the list displayed and select OK

4.	Select the Ability Exchange format in the List Files of Type box (hint - it's the last in the list).

5.	Enter a name for the table in the File Name box (you can simply use the table name if it is 8 characters or less). Don't replace the AWX extension.

6.	Select the OK button

7.	Repeat steps 2 through 6 for each table you want to export.


Finding the old directory

If you're having troubles finding files from a previous version of Ability, there's a good chance they'll be located in one of the default directories created during installation (or a sub-directory of one of these). The most likely candidates are:

c:\ability
c:\ab2
c:\ab3

To select one of the above directories in an Open dialog and make it current, follow these steps:

1.	Click on the Up One Level button [image] until you see one of the above names in the main list.

2.	Double-click on the folder name.

3.	If necessary, double-click on a sub-folder as well.

Once you've located the correct directory, you'll see a list of your old files.


DOS versions of Ability

This covers any previous version DOS versions of Ability as follows:

Ability 1.2 - released 1985

Ability Plus 1.0 - released 1987

Ability Plus 2.0 - released 1992

Ability Plus 3.0 - released 1995