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DJ Pro
Version 1.0c
July 1994
DJ Pro 2
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.1 Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Disclaimer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.4 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2 Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.1 Installing the Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.2 Trial Run . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.3 Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.4 Creating your Media Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3 Program Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1 Starting the Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.2 Menu Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.3 Editing Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4 Menu Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1 Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1.1 Add a New Album . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1.2 Update an Album . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1.3 Delete an Album . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.2 Locate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2.1 An Album Title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2.2 A Track Title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2.3 Tracks By An Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.3 ScanFor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.3.1 Via Track Title Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3.2 Via Artist Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.4 Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.4.1 All Album Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.4.2 All Track Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.4.3 Tracks By 1 Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.4.4 Tracks of 1 Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.4.5 A Cassette Insert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.5 Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.5.1 Print Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.5.2 Media Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.5.3 Logo / Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.5.4 Print Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.6 File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.6.1 Exit to DOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.6.2 Export to File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.6.3 Import a File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.7 Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
DJ Pro 3
1 Introduction
1.1 Acknowledgements
This program was developed in Microsoft BASIC PDS 7.1 with
the help of an excellent subroutine library (ProBas - from
Terra Tech).
More importantly, it would certainly not have been written
if I hadn't become frustrated in trying to explain to my son
(a professional DJ) why all the various Shareware
cataloguing programs that we explored just didn't seem to do
what he wanted. His requirements were simple:
* Simple data entry
* Reasonably flexible search ability
* Not too slow as he has only an old XT clone.
(Dad's cast-off)
So ... since I am a professional mainframe programmer by
trade, and have owned and programmed PC's since the TRS-80
model I days, what else could I do? I volunteered to write
something for him; this program is what developed.
What features it has and doesn't have are entirely based on
whether my son wanted it or not; if he didn't want it; I
didn't code it; so blame/congratulate him for its
appearance. I'm making this available as it is (now that
I've had extensive looks at a lot of other similar Shareware
programs) since I feel there is a place for yet another one.
If we were frustrated by what was available, perhaps others
were. Give it a look; it might be what you're looking for.
1.2 Registration
At the present time I do not want any registration fee if
you choose to use this program. i.e. it is 'FreeWare'.
However, I would like feedback. This means criticism where
it needs it; suggestions for improvement; problems and bugs
(I hope not); anything at all is welcome. Nothing is worse
than working in a vacuum. Mind you, if you find that it
suits your needs, I certainly wouldn't be offended by any
contribution you might offer.
George D. Deluca
1428 Aspen Court
Burlington, Ontario
L7M 1E5 Canada
DJ Pro 4
1.3 Disclaimer
This software is provided on an 'as is' basis. If it works
for you and is useful, great! If it doesn't, or causes you
problems, all I can say is that I will do my best to correct
the problems if you report them to me. I will not be liable
for any loss of profit, data, or use of the software, or
special, incidental, or consequential damages. As with any
software, it is best to try it on your own equipment with
non-critical data before considering it for day-to-day use.
O.K. legal junk done with.
DJ Pro 5
1.4 Overview
DJ-Pro allows you to enter information about the records,
tapes, CD's etc. in your music collection. It has attempted
to keep everything as simple as possible, as such, only
basic information is stored.
For the album/record itself the following are maintained:
* A 10 character Album ID. This is typically the
reference number assigned by the publisher.
* A 1 digit 'sequencer' to handle sets of records
(collections) which all have the same Album ID.
* The Album Title (34 characters)
* The media code (2 characters) e.g. CD, TP LP, etc.
Allowable codes may be specified in the SETUP
menu.
* Up to 4 8-character Formats. e.g ROCK, DANCE,
CLASSIC, etc. under which you wish the album
categorized.
* A $ value for the item (whole dollars only). A
printed list of all albums gives the total value
of the collection. (Handy for insurance purposes)
* A 16 character Label (publisher) field.
* A Note field (64 characters) for any comments
about the album.
For each track on the album, the following:
* The Track Title
* The Performer/Composer
That's it! No provision is made for track times, both
composer and performer, extensive notes, etc. If you really
need that level of support, try another program (and get
frustrated like we did!)
Reports available (on paper) are:
* Alphabetical list of all Album Titles
* Alphabetical list of all Track Titles
* Alphabetical list of all Track Titles by an Artist
* Alphabetical list of all Track Titles of one
Format.
* A 'J-card' Insert for a Cassette Case
Online searches for:
* An Album Title (leading characters)
* A Track Title (leading characters)
* Track Titles by an artist (leading characters)
* A Track Title (scan)
* Tracks by an artist (scan)
DJ Pro 6
2 Installation
2.1 Installing the Program
Just copy the DJPRO.EXE file to the directory from which you
wish to run the program. There are no auxiliary files needed
to run the program itself, simply DJPRO.EXE. As I said,
keep it simple.
I do recommend a hard disk. The program will probably
operate from a floppy but I don't think it would be a very
pretty sight. Besides, for even a modest collection, the
floppy capacity would probably be insufficient.
Note that the program will expect to find and/or create its'
data file in the same directory and drive from which the
program was executed.
2.2 Trial Run
The simplest way to 'try out' the program is to execute it
using the sample database included on the distribution disk.
If you have copied DJPRO.EXE to a working directory, copy
the sample database to the same location. For example, if
the distribution disk is in drive A: and you have created a
DJPRO directory on your hard drive (C:) then issue the
following command
COPY A:SAMPLE.MDB C:\DJPRO
To start your trial run enter
DJPRO SAMPLE
Have fun. Try things out, you can't hurt anything.
Note: During testing, either with the SAMPLE database,
or a new one created yourself, you may notice the
size of the database in relation to the amount of
data in it and become concerned that it is
enormous. Don't worry too much. The program uses
Microsoft's ISAM access method and this technique
has a very large initial overhead. (e.g. it
allocates segments in 32K chunks) A lot of what it
initially allocates is actually available for data
storage for your records. Payback? Well, it seems
to perform very quickly, even on old slow systems.
You win some, you lose some.
DJ Pro 7
2.3 Printing
The program makes no special demands on the printer you may
have. All output is printed in Compressed mode at 8 lines
per inch. Why? Well my son's collection is so large that
printing as small as possible is needed to prevent possible
physical injury carrying the listings around.
2.4 Creating your Media Types
Before you can really start to enter your own collection you
should review the default media codes and modify them, if
needed, to suit your preferences. The following codes are
set when a new database is initialized. If they are not
suitable, use the SETUP menu to alter them.
7 for 7" records.
10 for 10" records.
12 for 12" records.
TP for cassette tapes.
DT for DAT tapes.
CD for CD's.
VH for VHS cassettes.
3 Program Operation
3.1 Starting the Program
Switch to the directory which contains the DJPRO.EXE file
and enter
DJPRO
The program will default to accessing database DJPRO.MDB
which should exist in the same path as the program itself.
You may optionally enter another name on the command line to
request the DJPRO program to utilize another database. For
example, that was the technique used if you tried the sample
database during the trial run. At that time you entered
DJPRO SAMPLE
which caused the program to access the file SAMPLE.MDB.
Similarly, you can use DJPRO.EXE to maintain multiple
collections if desired. Simply enter the name of the
collection on the command line following DJPRO.
DJ Pro 8
Note: Do not enter the file type as well. i.e. if your
collection file is MYDATA.MDB enter
DJPRO MYDATA not DJPRO MYDATA.MDB
If DJPRO finds that the requested database does not exist
you will be prompted whether to create it or not. Obviously
when you start to create your own collection for the first
time this message will appear and you should reply Y to
proceed. If the message occurs unexpectedly at some future
time you had better reply N until you determine just why the
file is not present. You may have typed the name of your
database incorrectly (if you are not using the DJPRO
default) or you may not be logged in to the correct disk
drive or directory.
3.2 Menu Selection
When you initially start the program you will be presented
with a Logo screen across the top of which are the main menu
selections. In fact, at the completion of every activity you
will be returned to this screen to select your next
function.
The background for the main menu consists of the name 'DJ
PRO' in large letters. Later on the discussion of the Setup
menu will describe how you can customize this text to
whatever you wish. (Something to boost your own ego
perhaps?)
The menu consists of a typical pull down menu format, that
is, the main menu categories across the top with subsidiary
items below each heading.
You may at this point use the cursor movement keys to select
the particular function you wish. The left and right keys
choose the major menu categories; the up and down keys
select within a menu category. When the highlight bar is
over your choice, press ENTER.
To Exit the program, choose the Exit to DOS selection under
the File category.
3.3 Editing Screen
The Editing screen is used by DJPRO whenever an album is
displayed or when you are Adding or Updating an album.
Although when used for display purposes all the editing
functions will seem to work as normal, don't be fooled, none
of the changes you make are actually done to the data.
Whenever this screen is displayed, the screen is divided
horizontally into two independent sections. The top for
Album related data, the bottom for data about the tracks on
the album.
DJ Pro 9
Editing Functions Available
While entering or updating information in any of the
sections of the Editing Screen the following keys (most of
which are industry 'standard') are effective:
ENTER Moves the cursor to the beginning of the next
field or line. If needed the screen section
will be scrolled to keep the line the cursor
is on within view.
F7 Deletes the line where the cursor is located
(if in the Track Data portion of the screen).
F8 Inserts a blank line preceding the line on
which the cursor is located.
F9 Restart. Moves the cursor back to the top
left-hand field.
F10 F10 indicates you are finished entering or
modifying data for this album.
ESC ESC is used to exit without saving any
information. You will be returned to the menu
screen.
Up arrow Moves the cursor up one line in the track
area. Scrolling will occur if needed.
Down arrow Moves the cursor down one line. Scrolling
will occur if needed.
Left Arrow Moves the cursor left one position. No change
is made to any existing data in the field.
Right Arrow Moves the cursor right one position. No
change will be made to any existing data in
the field.
Page Up Scrolls track area up by one page.
Page Down Scrolls track area down by one page.
Home Moves the cursor to the left most position on
the current field.
End Moves the cursor to the blank following the
last character of the current field.
Insert Toggles between Overtype and Insert mode. In
Overtype mode, any characters you enter
simply overlay any current characters on the
field. In Insert mode, characters you type
are inserted and any existing characters are
shifted to the right. When you are in Insert
mode the cursor will appear larger than when
in Overtype mode.
Backspace The cursor will be moved to the left by one
character. If a non blank character is in the
new location, it will be deleted.
Delete The character at the cursor location will be
deleted and all characters to the right will
be shifted left by one position.
Tab The cursor will be moved right to the next
tab stop. This allows you to align things in
columns easily. Tab stops are automatically
set every 6 characters.
DJ Pro 10
4 Menu Options
4.1 Edit
The Edit menu contains the items needed to enter and
maintain the data in the database.
4.1.1 Add a New Album
This option transfers you to the data entry screen
where you will enter the information for a single
album. Each album entered must have a unique album ID.
Duplicates will produce an error message
When entering track information, you may separate
Side1/Side2 tracks by inserting a line starting with
'---' (3 dashes) for the track title. This will be used
when printing J-Card inserts to correctly identify what
tracks are on what side.
4.1.2 Update an Album
This option will prompt you for a specific Album ID and
then present the current data for that album in the
standard data entry screen. You may then make any
desired alterations.
4.1.3 Delete an Album
This option will prompt you for a specific Album ID and
then prompt you to confirm the deletion. The prompt
will contain the album title. Enter Y to delete it or N
if you change your mind.
DJ Pro 11
4.2 Locate
The Locate options provide for quick searches of the
database for information.
All the Locate options search using the leading
characters that you enter. This is the quickest way of
searching for information in the database as it uses
the keys within the database. If you wish to search for
items anywhere within the field, see the next major
menu item, ScanFor.
You may enter the requested data in upper or lower
case, the search is not case sensitive.
4.2.1 An Album Title
When selected, a prompt will appear requesting the
desired title. Enter as many leading characters of the
album title as you wish. DJ PRO will present you with a
list of all album titles which match. From the list you
may select specific albums for detailed review.
4.2.2 A Track Title
This option is identical to the prior item except that
it will search Track Titles rather than Album Titles.
4.2.3 Tracks By An Artist
This option allows you to locate Tracks by a particular
Artist. Its operation is identical to the prior two
items.
4.3 ScanFor
The ScanFor options provide for more thorough, but
slower, searches of the database.
These options will search for your request anywhere
within the data field. e.g. a search for 'what' would
find "What do you want" as well as "Do what you
want".
Note: The ScanFor search method requires DJ Pro to
read all database records and thus takes a
lot longer than the similar Locate functions.
DJ Pro 12
ScanFor requests are also 'sensitive' to whether or not
you include a trailing blank on the search request.
When a trailing blank is included, the request is
effectively a 'word' request. For example, searching
for 'THE' would select both the following titles;
searching for 'THE ' would find only the first.
THE BEST IN THE WORLD
THERE IS NO BETTER WAY
4.3.1 Via Track Title Scan
As with Locate, you will be prompted for the search
string and will be shown a selection list of all
matching titles from the database.
4.3.2 Via Artist Scan
This is similar to the prior option except it searches
the Performer/Artist data.
4.4 Print
The Print options provide for 'hard copy' requests.
i.e. reports on paper
4.4.1 All Album Titles
This option will print an alphabetical list of all
album titles. The list is two-up, 75 titles per column.
(i.e. 150 titles a page) For each title, the list will
show the Album-ID, the title, and the primary artist.
At the end, the total value of listed albums will be
printed on a separate line.
4.4.2 All Track Titles
This option will print an alphabetical list of all
Track Titles. The list is also in two-up, 150 titles
per page format. For each title the list will have the
Track Title, the Artist and the media..
4.4.3 Tracks By 1 Artist
This option allows you to request a printout of all
Tracks by a particular artist. You will be prompted for
the Artist's name. For each title the list will have
the Album ID, the Track Title, and the Album Name.
DJ Pro 13
4.4.4 Tracks of 1 Format
This option will allow you to print all the Track
Titles which are indicated as a specified music format.
You will be prompted for the desired format. For each
title the list will have the Album ID, the Track Title,
and the Artist.
4.4.5 A Cassette Insert
This option will print a normal 'J-Card' insert to fit
standard cassette tape cases. If you create custom
'mix' tapes, this provides an easy way to create
inserts to record their contents. Just cut it out and
... ta da! Nice and tidy; better than hand printing
them.
4.5 Setup
The Setup options provide for altering some of the
defaults that DJ Pro uses during its processing.
4.5.1 Print Destination
This option allows you to specify the destination for
printer output. This will normally be either LPTn for a
real printer; or a file name if you wish the output
directed to a data file on disk.
4.5.2 Media Types
When entering an album, DJ Pro will only allow you to
enter certain specified media types. This setup option
allows you to customize just what is considered
allowable. Simply edit the displayed values to whatever
set of 2 character media types you prefer.
4.5.3 Logo / Owner
This option provides two functions:
You can specify two 11 character strings
which will be used as the background logo
whenever the pull-down menus are displayed.
Change to whatever you like. Note that the
change will take place the next time DJ Pro
is restarted.
You may specify your name which will appear
in the page heading of all printed reports.
DJ Pro 14
4.5.4 Print Options
Currently only one option is provided:
The value LM=0 can be altered to specify a
Left margin space. Watch out! Not all
printers can print more than 132 characters
in compressed mode. Mine can, my son's can't.
If you alter this from LM=0 to another value
and the print lines 'wrap' to a new line, put
it back.
4.6 File
The File options provide some interfaces to the 'outside
world'.
4.6.1 Exit to DOS
Guess what? Yes, this is the way out!
4.6.2 Export to File
This option will prompt you for a file name and then will
write the entire contents of the database to the file. This
allows creation of a 'flat file' which you may wish to
process in some other way, or allow you to move records from
one collection to another. i.e you could export records from
one of your record collections and then Import into another.
The other reason for this is also if a newer version of this
program is ever created which is not compatible with the
database format, Export/Import will allow easy migration to
the new version.
DJ Pro 15
The format of this file? The easiest way (for me) to
describe it is to tell you to create one and then go look at
it. You'd have to be brain-dead to have problems figuring it
out.
4.6.3 Import a File
This obviously the opposite of Export. It reads a file in
the format created by the DJ Pro Export function and re-
loads the data into the current database.
4.7 Recovery
Basically, protect yourself by backing up the database
frequently, I can think of no better solution. Although
Microsoft does provide an ISAM 'repair' program which is
supposed to 'fix up' damaged databases, I have not included
it. The program 'fixes' things by going through a damaged
database and deleting anything that is non-standard until
everything that's left is considered 'O.K.'. I can't
honestly recommend that as an alternative when something is
broken, so, create backups to protect your data.
Good Luck! I hope to hear from you.
George Deluca
1428 Aspen Court
Burlington, Ontario
Canada L7M 1E5
George.Deluca@canrem.com
