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1989-12-29
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Blackmail
Blackmail is a very simple program. It extracts information from a dBase III
database and merges it into a form file. The form file designates dBase III
fields by enclosing them inside delimiting characters. It should accept all
word processing document formats. Although, you may have to re-adjust the
paragraph breaking (justification) of the resultant form letters.
RUNNING BLACKMAIL:
To run Blackmail use the following command:
BMAIL text_file dbaseIII_file output_file delimiter
text_file is a standard ASCII text file with fields delimited
dbaseIII_file is a dBase III file (include .dbf), e.g, mail.dbf
output_file is the new file created by the merge
if this output_file already exists then it is overwritten.
delimiter is a single character used in the text_file to mark db fields
default is the @ character.
INPUT
Blackmail expects an ASCII text file as input. The program design, however,
permits it to work on any file, e.g., a WordPerfect 4.2 file. It does this by
looking through the file for the field delimiter, and examining the field name
between the delimiters. If the field name is valid, then it is replaced by the
dBase III record contents. If the field name is invalid, then the field name
is ignored. This enables, Blackmail to ignore extraneous fields in non-ASCII
text files. In some cases, although rare, the text file will accidentally
contain a valid field name, e.g., @D@ for the delete field. In this case,
change your delimiter and try again.
For WordPerfect 5.0 users BMAIL requires field names be defined as comment
fields. The comment should have the dBase field name enclosed in the
specified delimiter. I have enclosed two WordPerfect example files.
Blackmail permits you to define where to begin replacing field names at
with the keyword field name START. This is essential for many form letters,
and quite often required for non-ASCII input, e.g., WordPerfect 5.0. The
format for this keyword is *START* enclosed in delimiters.
FIELD NAMES:
In addition to simple field name substitution, Blackmail can substitute
substrings of the field. This is specified using a bracketing convention:
@Field[<start>,<length>]@,
where <start> is the offset position to start the substring and <length> is
the number of characters to use. NOTE: You may not have any spaces before or
after the comma separating the start and length, i.e., FIELD[0 , 3] is invalid
and should be FIELD[0,3]. A zero length indicates field trimming. For
example, consider the ten character field, FIELD_ABC, as follows:
ABCDEFGHIJ
The expression @FIELD_ABC@ will produce ABCDEFGHIJ.
The expression @FIELD_ABC[0,2] will produce AB.
The expression @FIELD_ABC[6,3] will produce GHI.
The expression @FIELD_ABC[3,0] will produce DEFGHIJ. (field is trimmed)
The expression @FIELD_ABC[3] will produce DEFGHIJ . (field isn't trimmed)
OPTIONS:
/N - do not put CRLF breaks in memo fields. Use this for WordPerfect.
/R<value> - set the right margin for CRLF breaks to <value>, e.g, /R72
Examples:
1. ASCII TEXT
Example 1: Simple Form Letter
BMAIL sample.txt sample.dbf sample.out @
Sample.txt is a standard ASCII file; a simple form letter. It was created
with Captain Blackbeard. Running the command will produce a set of four
letters in the file sample.out.
Example 2: Labels
BMAIL label.txt sample.dbf label.out %
Will produce a simple list of mailing addresses.
Example 3: Inventory
BMAIL invent.txt invent.dbf invent.out
Will produce a simple room inventory.
2. WordPerfect 4.2
BMAIL sample.wpf sample.dbf sample.out @ /N
Sample.wpf is a WordPerfect 4.2 file with underline and bold. Running the
command will produce a set of four letters in the file sample.out.
3. WordPerfect 5.0
Example 1: Purchase Requisition using dBase IV
BMAIL req.wp req1 req.out ~
Produces a purchase requisition. This form is set up for printing on a
pre-printed purchase requisition form.
Example 2: Complex College Class Information Form
BMAIL class.wp class.f89 class.out ~ /n
Creates a filled in form about college classes.
J K Powers is committed to the principle of free distribution and voluntary
contributions after you have tried and liked the product. While Blackmail is
copyrighted, the copyright owner has made it available for free distribution.
Please feel free to give Blackmail to your friends. We are counting on you as
a participant in the largest distribution network in the nation (the owners and
users of PCs) to make Blackmail a popular product. You can register Blackmail
for 25 dollars. Dealer inquiries are welcome. The mailing address for
Blackmail is:
J K Powers
222 W. Spruce St.
Sequim, WA 98382