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* * * My Little Realm, v2.5 * * * - Records of the Realm - ____________________________________________________________________ General Information ____________________________________________________________________ Important Records of the Realm is protected by copyright. It is not freeware, and it is not in the public domain. This is the evaluation version of My Little Realm's Records of the Realm. It is a full-featured, fully functional program. You are welcome to try it on your computer to ensure that it functions on your system as it should, and that it meets your individual needs. If after 30 days you decide to keep using Records of the Realm, you must register the program with the author. To print an order form, press <$> in the Options Window. Bonus! Purchase any MLR stand-alone program before 12/31/94 and receive another absolutely free. See DESCRIBE.TXT for details. Thank you for trying Records of the Realm! ____________________________________________________________________ Introduction + Documents + The records of the realm are __________________________ the memory records that remember | | when you can't. This routine's | A Marriage License | major purpose is to record the | B Birth Certificate | location of those documents deemed | C Death Certificate | invaluable to the realm, but it | D Divorce | can also help alleviate the worry | E Adoption | should you discover that your | F Military | credit cards have been lost or | G Personal Data | stolen. The types of documents | H Will | typically catalogued are reflected | I Citizenship | in the list of Document categories | J Contract | found in the sample Viewing Window | K Life Insurance | to the right. | L Loan | | M Car Information | All of the Document types (except | N Home Information | Q, Credit Card) may be changed by | O Social Security | using the Change Quickeys EPO, <\>. | P Mortgage File | Refer to the section entitled | Q Credit Card | Extended Processing Options for |__________________________| more details. ____________________________________________________________________ The Interface Windows. Records of the Realm's screen consists of three types of windows: a Working Window, a Viewing Window, and an Options Window. If you are using a color monitor the Viewing Window is always green, the Working Window red and the Options Window blue. You select processes (like adding a record) in the Options Window. You create your records in the Working Window, and you find your Quickeys documents in the Viewing Window. ---------------------------- Extended processing options. Several processing tasks, called extended processing options or EPO's, are not listed in the Options Windows, because they are functions that only occasionally need to be performed. EPO's are used to "extend" a program's power and functionality. To find out what EPO commands are employed by Records of the Realm, enter <?> (the question mark) in the Options Window. The EPO's of Records of the Realm are defined at the end of this document. ---------------------------- Quickeys. The Quickeys in Records of the Realm give you single key access to the types of documents whose whereabouts you want to catalog. Enter them once, and you'll never have to enter them again. See the section "Extended Processing Options" for full details. ____________________________________________________________________ Getting Started Note: If you have a color monitor, press <#>, the pound sign, in the Options Window to switch to the color mode. The very first thing you'll want to do with Records of the Realm is make the program uniquely yours. To do that, you will probably want to change some of the Quickey document categories in the Viewing Window. The Change Quickeys function is invoked by the backslash key, <\>, entered in the Options Window. Tip: Be sure you log the important documents that are infrequently needed, like your school age children's medical records. You should also record documents like life insurance policies, house titles, condo or rental contracts, important warranties (on your cars, furnace, water heater), marriage licenses, divorce papers, and even jury duty notices. Please understand, Records of the Realm can't help you remember if you don't tell it what it needs to know. Make it a family event some rainy day, and collect all of those important papers, notices, documents, what have you, and log them ... and THEN forget all about them. Exiting Records of the Realm. If you've made changes to your data file, Records of the Realm will so notify you when you attempt to return to your operating system and ask if you want to save the changes. You will almost always respond with <Y> or <enter> to save the changes. If, for some reason, you do not want to save the changes, press <N>. Following either response, you'll be returned to DOS. If you press <esc>, Records of the Realm will instead return you to the Options Window from where you can resume processing. Why would you ever want to not save changes? Home programs must take into account the unwanted help of children who occasionally get into a program and wreak havoc. Should you find that someone you love is "helping you" with Records of the Realm, don't get angry. Just exit the program and don't save the changes. ____________________________________________________________________ Program Information ____________________________________________________________________ Options Window of Records of the Realm. _____________________________________________ | | | 1 Add 4 View | | 2 Change 5 Print Choice __ | | 3 Delete 6 Lost! | |_____________________________________________| There are several EPO's available in the Records of Realm. They are defined at the end of this document. ____________________ Option # 1, adding records. Creating records requires four pieces of information for all but the credit card entries (Quickey Q in the Viewing Window). If you tell Records of the Realm to make a credit card record, it will display the extra fields necessary to create one in the lower half of the Working Window. ~ Field Definitions ~ - Item field (20, required). Type in the Document Quickey and press <enter>. If you wish to enter your own document category manually you should keep it short (and mnemonic). If you're creating a credit card Document record (Quickey Q), be sure you have the necessary information to complete the record. See the Credit Card Record Fields section immediately following the Memo field definition below. You can change the Quickeys to suit your own needs by using the <\> (backslash) EPO described near the end of this document. Note: You cannot change the Q Quickey, Credit Cards. ____________________ - For field (35, optional). Use this field to indicate to whom the record belongs (i.e., in whose name it is). If it's a birth certificate, for example, put the person's name here; if it's a credit card, the person whose name appears on the card; and so on. Other memory records that are useful to keep are items that should last a long time but frequently don't for one reason or another. If you buy a new car battery, create a record with Quickey M, Car Information. In the For field, enter the car that received the new battery. In the Location field, enter the store or garage that sold you the battery, and in the Memo field, put the purchase and expiration dates. This procedure is quite beneficial for all sorts of costly items, like appliances, replacement parts for cars, or anything that has a lengthy warranty. ____________________ - Location field (35, optional). Use this field to identify the location of the document or who has possession of said document. Read the section entitled Using the Records of the Realm Program found at the end of this document. ____________________ - Memo field (35, optional). Use this field to note contract expiration dates, loan interest rates and other pertinent information. __ _________________ ____________________ __ -- Credit Card Record Fields -- If you are entering a credit card record, Records of the Realm will display the credit card portion of the Working Window and ask for the following: Card Name Card Number Card Issuer Address (of card issuer) City, State and Zip (of card issuer) Phone Number (of card issuer) These fields are defined below. You will quickly discover that finding this information is not so easy as it might first appear because card issuers don't always put the necessary information on the Agreements they send you. If you cannot find the information you need on the Agreements statements, look at the Billing statements. They sometimes carry it. In the case of local stores, you might be better off getting the addresses and phone numbers from the phone book. Note: You will not be able to enter credit card records until you've created your Credit Card Quickey list using the <|> EPO function. If you are already using My Little Realm's Charging program, Records will automatically use its Quickey file. Read about the <|> EPO in the section entitled "Extended Processing Options" at the end of this document for more information. ____________________ - Card name field (single character entry, required). This is another Quickey field. Records of the Realm will display your Credit Card Quickeys in the Viewing Window when it's time to fill in this field. Simply enter the Quickey of the credit card you want. You cannot manually enter a credit card name here. ____________________ - Card number field (20, optional). Records of the Realm uses this number in the letter it generates when you run the LOST! function, <6> in the Options Window, declaring your credit cards lost or stolen. ____________________ -- The next six entries pertain to the credit card issuer. -- - Card Issuer field (30, optional). This is the name of the company that extends you credit ... not necessarily the company that offered the card. As examples: Ford Motor Company offers MasterCard and Visa, but the card is actually made available by the Associates National Bank of Delaware. Sears offers the Discover Card, but credit is actually extended by the Greenwood Trust Company, also of Delaware. Check your Cardmember Agreement Statements to find the name of the bank/company that is actually extending the credit. ____________________ - Address field (30, optional). ____________________ - City field (15, optional). ____________________ - State field (15, optional). ____________________ - Zip Code field (15, optional). Numbers and letters may be entered in this field to accomodate international zip codes. ____________________ - Phone Number field (10, optional). Numbers and letters may be entered in this field to accomodate international phone numbers. ____________________ All of the optional fields in the credit card section of this function must be filled in if Records of the Realm is to do a proper job for you. Creating records like these was called a "rainy day job" in the Getting Started section of this document. Now you'll find out why. But it's better to do this work on a rainy day when you have a little leisure time than after you've actually lost your credit cards and are hard pressed to remember everything you have to do given the time constraints for legal notification. ____________________________________________________________________ Option # 2, changing a record. Select the Document category under which the record you want to change is stored. Records of the Realm will take you to the first in that category and ask if that is the one you want to change. If it isn't, press <N>, and Records of the Realm will take you to the next record. You can also use the directional keys to peruse that Document category. When you find the record you need to change, press <Y> or <enter>. Records of the Realm will display a sub-menu in the Viewing Window of the fields you can change. You may not change the Document type. If the record is not a credit card record, those fields pertaining only to the credit card records will not be displayed. Enter the hotkey of the field you want to change, and Records of the Realm will put the cursor in that field and await your changes. If you change your mind, press <esc>, and Records of the Realm will restore that field's old value. ____________________________________________________________________ Option # 3, deleting a record. Indicate the Document category of the record you want to delete. Records of the Realm will ask if the displayed record is the one you want to delete. If it isn't, press <N> until you find the correct record, and then press <Y>. Like the Change function, you can also use the directional keys to find the record in question. After you've found the record you want to delete, press <Y> or <enter>. Records of the Realm will ask you to verify the record it is about to delete. If you're sure that it's the one you want to delete, press <Y>. [Note: You cannot press <enter> for yes in this final query.] ____________________________________________________________________ Option # 4, viewing a record. Simply tell Records of the Realm which Document category you wish to view, and it will display the records in the chosen category to you one at a time. Use the directional keys to view the Document category. If you want to view all of the records in your file without regard to Document categories use the View All function, invoked by entering the plus sign in the Options Window. See Extended Processing Options at the end of this document. ____________________________________________________________________ Option # 5, printing a record. This option prints a comprehensive listing of all of your records. If, during the execution of the Print function, you decide you do not want to print out the entire listing, press <esc>. ____________________________________________________________________ Option # 6, lost credit cards. Doing double duty, Records of the Realm also serves your credit card needs in the event of loss or theft. If you've set up your records properly, Records of the Realm will, when you choose this option, print: 1) the list of phone numbers that you have to call to issue a loss/theft notice, 2) the letters necessary to legally notify all of your card issuers of the loss or theft, and, 3) the mailing labels you'll need to send those letters off promptly. Records of the Realm will ask for your name, address, and phone number so that it can complete the letters to your credit card issuers. You should not leave any of the data fields blank. You can advance and retreat through the fields using the up and down arrow keys. Note: Once you enter your name and address you will not have to enter that information again, unless you leave Records of the Realm. That is to say, if you find, after entering your personal data, that you need to make changes to several of your credit card records, you can safely leave the Lost! function, make your changes, and return to the Lost! function to find your personal data intact. Unlike Calling Cards's Label function, this function does not validate the addresses. In other words, it is up to you to make sure all of the addresses on your credit card records are complete. You can abort this function at any time by pressing <esc>. If you have not yet created a credit card Quickey list, you will not able to choose the LOST! option. Read about the <|> EPO in the Extended Processing Options section at the end of this document. ____________________________________________________________________ Using the Records of the Realm Program. Each member of the realm should have a file folder kept in a metal filing cabinet marked "Personal File" with his or her name under that title. Into these files go all of the personal documents relating to the individual named on the folder ... for instance, that person's medical records, life insurance policies, birth certificate, and, social security papers. Then for each document put into these files, you should enter a record in Records of the Realm logging the document's existence and whereabouts. For example, to enter a new daughter's birth certificate into the records file, bring up Records of the Realm. In the Options Window of this routine you would press <1> to enter a new record. Records of the Realm would put you in the Working Window and wait for the Document Quickey of the item to be entered. In this instance, you would enter <B>, Birth Certificate. The next field entry is "For:", to which you would respond with your new daughter's name. After that comes the entry for the location of the document which in this case might be something like "in her Personal File." The last entry is Memo which gives you an extra 35 spaces to add any additional details such as "original in safe deposit box". Many of the realm's documents won't be kept in your personal files. Passports, titles, contracts, mortgage papers, and so on, should be kept in your safe deposit box. (The original copy of a will should not be kept in a safe deposit box, however, since it will be locked upon your demise, but rather with your executor or lawyer. You should keep a copy of your will in your safe deposit box or at home for easy reference.) In the case of copies of any document, make a note of the whereabouts of the original document as well as the copy. You might find it advantageous to record your warranties in Records of the Realm, too. Your file will require frequent updating, however, since most warranties are only for 60 or 90 days, and the necessary adding and deleting of records can quickly grow tedious. The best compromise might be to record only the extended warranties you obtain on your major purchases. Tip: If you are considering purchasing an extended warranty, Consumer Reports' article entitled "Who Needs An Extended Warranty?" dated January 1991 should be required reading. Flotsam and Jetsam. Some of the "where can I put these?" records are best kept under general categories. For example, keeping tabs of your auto insurance records is important, but so is the oil change you're supposed to give your car every three or four months. List those records as well under "Car Information", along with warranty data on the new muffler, battery, etc. Note: If you haven't yet started a "Warranty" file, it would be a good idea to start one now. Put all of your long term warranty statements in it. To keep it up to date, browse through it once a year and discard the expired warranties. Don't forget to delete those old records from your Records of the Realm file as well. Keep a record of your jury duty sessions, too, under the Personal category. Some states do not require you to pull jury duty if you've already performed your civic obligation within the past year or two. Keep the official notice in your personal file. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ One final note. Once you've set up the records of your realm, don't just use them when you need to find something. Use them when it comes time to return that something to its proper place and you can't recall where to put it. That way you'll be able to find it ... again and again and again. ____________________________________________________________________ The Extended Processing Options. EPO Definition <\> Change the Records of the Realm default Document categories. Records of the Realm will ask you which document category you want to change. It will then put your cursor under that category and await your modifications. If you want to delete the entire line, press <alt> + <C>. If you press the wrong Quickey or make changes to a document type, press <esc> while the cursor is in the Viewing Window and the old Document category will be restored. To end the Change Quickey function press <esc> when Records of the Realm asks which Quickey you want to change. Category names can be up to seventeen characters long. Note: You cannot modify or delete the last Quickey, Credit Cards. - - - - - - - - - <|> Create or change your credit card names. This EPO is used to enter the names of your credit cards in the event you do not have My Little Realm's Charging program to create the list for you. See Warning below. Records will display your present credit card file, if it exists, and ask: Change which credit card Quickey? _ Enter in the Quickey of the name you want to change. Records of the Realm will put your cursor under the existing name, if there is one, and let you make the necessary changes. If you inadvertently press the wrong Quickey, press <esc> and Records will reinstate the old name. Credit card names can be up to 19 letters in length. WARNING! If you already have MLR's Charging program, you must not use this EPO or any other text editor to modify your credit card name file. If you use MLR's Charging program, Records of the Realm will automatically use its Quickey file. As a matter of fact, if you have MLR's Charging program, Records will tell you to use Charging to modify your credit card Quickey file. Serious damage will result to your credit card data file if you do not. - - - - - - - - - <+> View all records in the Records of the Realm file. This allows you to see all of the records regardless of the Document type. You browse through the file by using the directional keys, <ctrl> + <home>, and <ctrl> + <end>. This EPO is handy should you discover you cannot recall how you spelled a Document category you manually entered on the Item line. Remember, keep it short! - - - - - - - - - <#> Enter the pound sign in the Options Window to switch between color and monochrome modes. - - - - - - - - - <$> Print an order form for the registered version of the Records of the Realm program. This EPO is only available from the Options Window. - - - - - - - - - <?> Display the Records of the Realm's EPO symbols and their definitions. + The End + ____________________________________________________________________ (c) Copyright 1991 - 1992 John L. Salisbury