QuickNote is a program that allows the user to quickly create
and store notes and reminders. It functions and looks like a
Post-It (tm) note for the users computer. It also allows the
user to schedule a deadline for the reminder. When QuickNote
is loaded, any notes whose deadlines are the current date,
will be displayed in their full size, thus alerting the user
to the upcoming deadline. An hour before the deadline, the
note will once again maximize itself.
System Requirements
QuickNote needs at least a 386 with 4MB of RAM to run. It
requires about 3MB of hard disk space. It was designed for
Windows 3.1x but it will run fine under Windows 95. (A
Windows 95 version is in the works. Registered users will
receive the Windows 95 version for free.)
How to Use QuickNote
The first time QuickNote is run the button bar will be in the
upper left hand corner of the screen. After the initial running
of the program, QuickNote will remember the last position of
the button bar. The button bar has 7 buttons on it. When
QuickNote is loaded, it loads each saved note and creates an
icon for it on the desktop (Windows 3.1x). If the deadline for
the note is the current date, the note will be displayed full
sized, but more on deadlines later.
New Note Button: This button creates a new note. After
pressing this button, the user is prompted for a title
for the note. This title will be displayed beneath the note
when the note is minimized. To accept the default value of
"Note" simply press enter.
Open All Notes Button: This button closes all the notes
that are on the desktop (saving all of them) and reopens all
notes that have been saved. This is used when the user has
accidentally or intentionally closed a note and needs access
to one or more of the saved notes.
Save All Notes Button: This button saves all the notes that
are currently open. When this button is pressed, the user
will notice that the save buttons on the notes will be disabled.
This is to indicate that the note has been saved. When any
modification is made to the note, the Save button is re-enabled.
Close All Notes Button: This button saves and closes all notes
currently displayed, but leaves QuickNote running.
Close All Notes and Exit Button: This button saves and closes
all notes, and terminates QuickNote.
View Calendar Button: This button displays a simple calendar.
Erase All Notes Button: This button erases ALL notes. It closes
and erases all notes currently open and erases all notes from disk.
QuickNote Buttons and Deadlines
Each note is setup in the following way. In the title bar
of the note is the title. Underneath that is the button bar.
Below that is the date on which the note was created. The
blank area underneath the date of creation is where the deadline
date and time are displayed. If the note has no deadline, this
area remains blank. The next area of the note is the contact person.
This is optional and does not have to be filled in. Next is
the telephone number, and finally the extension of the person to
contact, all optional. Each note in QuickNote has 7 buttons.
Several of these buttons function in much the same way as the
buttons on the tool bar.
Save Note Button: This button saves the current note. After
this button is pressed the Save Note button is disabled.
Whenever any change is made to the note, the button is
re-enabled. This allows the user to quickly determine whether
or not the note has been changed or saved.
Copy Text To Clipboard button: This button copies the currently
selected text to the clipboard. This function only works with
the text of the note (I'm working on this problem).
Cut Text: This button cuts the currently selected text,
placing the text on the clipboard.
Copy Text From Clipboard button: This button copies the
contents of the clipboard into the text of the note.
Close Note button: This button closes the note. If the note
has not been saved, the user is prompted with a dialog box
asking if the note should be saved before closing. Closing a
note does not erase it. The next time QuickNote is loaded,
the note will reappear.
Erase Note button: This button closes and erases the current
note. This is a way of signaling that whatever was on the note
was completed. The next time QuickNote is loaded, the note will
not appear.
Set a Deadline button: This is one of the most powerful
aspects of QuickNote. This function allows the user to set a
deadline on the note. The deadline is displayed in the blank
area under the "date of creation". If the deadline is sometime
in the future, the deadline date will be displayed in navy blue.
If the deadline is the current date, the deadline will be
displayed in red. An hour before the deadline on the note, the
note will maximize itself in order to remind the user that the
deadline is approaching. (The note must be opened for it to do this.) To select the deadline, simply click on the date, and select a time (or the user can enter a time) and press the OK button.
Other Issues
This program was designed to work on a stand alone workstation
and will more than likely not work on a network. This is due to
the problem of sharing records and record locking.
Future Plans
A Windows 95 version is hopefully coming soon. I would like
to have one available by the summer of '97. A network version
will hopefully be coming after the 95 version. This version
will more than likely be written for a Novell 4.1 network
(as soon as I learn some of the Novell API).
Contact Information
To register the program or to report bugs, I can be contacted
via email: dhamlin@olivet.edu or by Snail Mail:
Dan Hamlin
ONU Box 6021
PO Box 592
Kankakee, IL 60901-0592
Registering the program will allow the user to receive the
Windows 95 version for free. Registering the program costs $20
for a single user, $90 for 5 users, $170 for 10 users (US Dollars).
For registering the software for more than 10 users, please contact me.
