笳 About Biorhythms: See (again) this rather elegant splash screen featuring vital shareware information, plus my various addresses. See the Shareware Information section for more information. If you hold down the option key when choosing this item you will instead see an empty window. Any suggestions?
笳 Register窶ｦ When you have paid your shareware fee and received your unique registration code from me, choose this item, type in your name, your company/union/organisation, and the code. You will then be able to register your copy of the program.
笳 Biorhythms Help This reveals the online help document (you're already reading it) , providing the Help document has been placed in your Preferences folder. To leave room for other windows, Help can be resized by dragging in the bottom right-hand corner. The document can be saved as a TeachText/SimpleText file if you like (click the disk button), or copied to the clipboard. Use the popup menu to change topic.
笳 Handy Hints窶ｦ Reveals the Hints window. See the Windows section for more information.
File Menu
笳 New窶ｦ lets you create new charts. Enter a name in the box and choose a date with the arrows, click Create and it will be drawn. When you窶况e finished creating, choose Done. Click on the pop-up to alter the date. See Date Menu for more information about this.
笳 Open:
笳 One chart窶ｦ lets you open a Biorhythm chart. You should have a folder named 窶呂harts窶 窶 this contains the charts of dozen famous people with which you can experiment.
笳 Folder contents窶ｦ opens a number of charts at a time. Simply select the folder in which there are charts and all of them will be opened (don't choose too many!)
笳 Some charts窶ｦ is a bit like the last option but allows you to add the charts you want opened to a list, using the Add button, or Add all to save time. Once you click Done all the charts contained in the list at the bottom of the window will be opened.
笳 Open last chart will, not surprisingly, reopen the last chart you opened (even if it is already open).
笳 Close This closes the front window 窶 if it is a Chart window and needs saving you will be asked to do so.
笳 Close all This closes all open window 窶 if any are Chart windows which need saving you will be asked to do so.
笳 Save:
笳 Save chart窶ｦ lets you store the data from the chart window in a saved Biorhythms document.
笳 Save chart as窶ｦ As above, but you can choose a different file name to that which is current.
笳 Schedule窶ｦ Look for Schedule in the Windows section for information about this item.
笳 Picture窶ｦ Here, you can save the chart image as a picture file (PICT) for export to a graphics/DTP program.
笳 Revert chart Lets you discard all changes to an existing chart file and return to the last saved version.
笳 Page Setup窶ｦ Use this option to set up your printer.
笳 Print窶ｦ Here you can print the front window with a variety of options.
笳 Quit Closes all windows and leaves the program..
Edit Menu
笳 Copy Text Like with Copy in other programs, the selected text is copied into the clipboard.
笳 Copy Picture If a chart window is frontmost the chart image inside it will be copied to the clipboard. If a calendar window is at the front the calendar image is copied, and the image can also be copied from the Chart Comparison window.
笳 Select all This selects all the text in the current Help page (if Help is open) so you can copy it to the clipboard, or selects all entries in the Multiple Comparison Setup window.
笳 Copy settings This will store all the colours from the front chart, its duration, texture, and other data. This data can then be reapplied to the same chart, or to another chart by choosing the next option窶ｦ .
笳 Apply settings Lets you use the stored data from one chart, and apply it to another. Just like Copy and Paste.
笳 Chart note窶ｦ This allows you to edit and store a small piece of text with each chart.
笳 Window size窶ｦ This item lets you set directly the size of a chart window 窶 either the entire window or just the chart area inside it.
笳 Aggregate cycle colours窶ｦ Biorhythms will let you draw a fourth cycle 窶 an average of the three you know, so you can see a sort of 窶trend窶. Use the Chart menu to turn the cycle on, and use this menu item to choose the style in which the cycle will be drawn.
笳 Condition colours窶ｦ lets you alter the colours used for each combination of phases when Coloured Conditions are turned on.
笳 Schemes menu窶ｦ Look in the Windows section for information about this item.
笳 Options:
笳 Print margins窶ｦ lets you choose the margins that will be used on every printed page. The bigger the margins the less room in the middle for the pictures and text.
笳 Printing options窶ｦ Look for Printing Options in the Windows section for information about this item.
笳 Preferences窶ｦ Look for Preferences Window in the Windows section for information about this item.
Cycles Menu
This menu lets you alter the way in which the three cycles are drawn. Each of the three chart cycles has its own options, accessible through submenus 窶 each can either be drawn or not drawn, by checking or unchecking its 窶x cycle窶 option; each can have its own colour 窶 there are 256 to choose from; each can have its own pattern 窶 useful if you lack a colour monitor; and each can have a different line width 窶 3 or 4 point thickness is usually best.
By default, on a colour monitor the program will load with the three cycles in red, blue, and green respectively. However, start in black窶冢窶冽hite or < 4 bits and the three cycles will be given different patterns rather than different colours.
By clicking All three cycles ON or All three cycles OFF you can quickly get Biorhythms to draw all three cycles or else draw none of them. The colour/pattern/size options at the end of the menu will apply to all three cycles.
笳 When a Chart window is active, these colours apply to that chart窶冱 cycles; when a Comparison window is active, the changes apply to the selected person窶冱 cycles.
Chart Menu
This menu gives you even more choice in the appearance of your biorhythm chart plots.
笳 Background: Choosing a colour from this submenu will place that coloured background behind the cycle lines.
笳 Grid colour: Choosing a colour from this submenu will draw a grid with that colour in front of the image. Remember, each grid rectangle represents one day in your life.
笳 Texture: Textures work just like backgrounds 窶 they are attractive coloured patterns which look really nice with cycle lines in front of them. If you choose to display a texture, it will always be drawn instead of any background you have chosen.
笳 Transfer Mode: To further customise your images, you can vary the so-called 窶狼ransfer modes窶 which control the way your Mac draws. Using Normal is usually to be recommended, as the others can produce some really weird effects, but blend is nice and this and the ones below it go well with textures.
笳 Differences: Lets you change the date format applied to the Difference: value in the chart window, or in other words, the subject's age on that particular day. Thus his/her age can be shown in days, weeks, months, or years with this menu.
笳 Durations: This submenu lets you choose the number of days the current biorhythm chart will show 窶 if you choose a very long duration the chart will shrink horizontally, and stretch for short durations. Normally a chart will show 30 days, but this can be customised in three ways: by using this menu, or by clicking on the duration text or the up/down arrows on the lower toolbar. See the entry on the Chart window for more information. 窶｢ In addition to the preset durations, you can now choose any duration from 2 to 1000 days, by choosing Other窶ｦ and typing in a value.
笳 Colour Scheme: There is an almost infinite number of combinations of colours/patterns/sizes to choose for each cycle. This menu contains eight standard schemes, listed at the top, and any number of your own. These will be shown at the bottom, if present. Add, remove or modify your own by choosing Schemes menu窶ｦ from the Edit menu. To use them, choose one from the Scheme menu, and its settings will be applied to the current chart. 窶｢ Note that if you haven't placed the Biorhythms Textures file in your Preferences folder, some of the schemes may be unavailable
笳 Phase indicators: When checked the positive, critical and negative areas of the chart will be denoted with small coloured markers down the left hand side of the window.
笳 Show interpretation: When this is turned on, Biorhythms will display, for each chart, the biorhythmic significance of the phases of the currently selected day. For example, on one particular day you may be physically positive but emotionally and intellectually negative. This combination has its own special meaning 窶 for that day you are required to 窶弋hink before you act today, 窶ｦ窶. This will be displayed in the chart, unless this option is turned off. This text can be drag & dropped.
笳 Extra Toolbar: Turning this option on will display a series of toolbar buttons with the following functions:
Chart Summary, Open Calendar, Preferences, Search, Help.
笳 Colour Bar: The Colour bar gives the advantages of the Coloured Conditions option, in a less obtrusive form. It draws a bar across the top of the chart, divided into the same one-day sections as the chart itself. These blocks are coloured according to the biorhythmic conditions found on that day. The colours used can be changed with the Edit Menu. In black/white mode, positive days have lighter patterns than negative days, and critical days have cross-hatched patterns.
笳 Coloured conditions: is a very useful feature: any day shown in the chart which features three positive days will be given a dark blue background, red for three negatives, etc. In fact, you can choose the colours you want to use, by clicking the 'Coloured Conditions' button in the Preferences window. Remember that if Coloured conditions are turned on, neither backgrounds nor textures will be visible.
笳 Show Aggregate cycle: Turn this option on to display a fourth cycle on your chart 窶 basically an average of the first three which gives a useful indication of general wellbeing. To change the colour/size/pattern, see the option in the Edit menu.
笳 Month labels: Provided day labels are already shown, you can use this to display the month, on the line below. Click and hold here to drag the chart image.
笳 Year labels: Provided day labels are already shown, you can use this to display the year, on the line below or underneath the month. Click and hold here to drag the chart image.
Special Menu
笳 Animation: Turning animation on will cause the biorhythm chart to continually increment its 窶歪urrent date窶 by the amount selected in that menu. For example: if animation is on, Plus: one day is checked and the current date is 29/8/1995, then this will change to 30/8 and redraw, then to 31/8 and so on with the result that the image appears to be scrolling to the left. Experiment.
笳 Set current date: This submenu allows you to alter the current date shown in the current biorhythm chart. For information see 窶魯ate Menu窶.
笳 Macintosh Information: This opens a window which lets you keep track of the number of colours available (8 bits = 256 colours/greys, the recommended number) and the amount of memory left in Biorhythms窶 partition 窶 the more memory that窶冱 left, the more windows you can have open. The current system version is also shown.
笳 For all other items, see the Windows section of Help.
Images Menu
This menu allows you to edit the Biorhythms picture list. This is basically a collection of chart images stored in the Preferences file, with a small text description. If you feel you would like to store the image of the frontmost chart, so you can access it later, choose Add this chart from the menu. To see the list of pictures, choose View list窶ｦ. The first image will be shown in the window, scaled to fit if necessary. To scroll through all the images, click on the buttons. If you窶决e sure you want to erase the list, you can do so. For more information, see the Drag and Drop section.
Favourites Menu
This program can store the details of different people in the Preferences file, and show their names and dates of birth (optional) in this menu. Simply choose a person from this menu, and a new chart will be opened containing their information. See the Compare window help for details of how you can use this feature there.
The first time you use Biorhythms you will find no information stored in the menu. To add some people or edit the names and dates, choose Edit this menu窶ｦ from the Edit menu. Alternatively choose Add charts窶ｦ, add some to the list and press Done in the dialog box.
If you have a chart window open, you can add that information directly into the menu, by choosing 窶連dd this chart窶ｦ窶
窶｢ When you窶决e editing the entries in the menu, click on an entry to select it. You can now drag this item, and by releasing it where the grey bar is, you can rearrange the items in the list, and alter where they appear in the menu. If you want to sort the list of entries, exit the window, and choose from the Sort charts: submenu.
Windows Menu
笳 This menu contains a list of all the currently open windows, and choosing one will bring it to the front. You can tell whether that window is a biorhythm chart, or one of the utility windows, perhaps 窶呂ompare窶ｦ窶 or 窶呂olour Information窶, by the icon next to it in the Windows menu.
Chart windows are listed at the top: the first one you opened is at the top of the list; the most recent chart created appears at the end of the chart section. After the chart windows, utility windows are listed, sorted in alphabetical order so each can be found quickly.
笳 Tile windows: Choosing this will, providing there is space on the respective screen, attempt to arrange all chart windows in order that each one is visible, with no overlap.
笳 Stack windows: This, on the other hand, will position the chart windows, stacking them from left to right, and downwards.
笳 Zoom window: This works just like clicking in the window窶冱 zoom box, useful for very large windows.
笳 Zoom to fit page: This option will alter a Chart, Comparison, or Calendar window such that if it was printed, it would fit onto a single page, with no wasted space.
笳 Full Titles: When this is on, opened chart files will be displayed with their (truncated) file path name as their window title, rather than just the document title: eg 窶廴acintosh HD:窶ｦ:Conservatives:John Major窶.
笳 Synchro Scrolling: When this is turned on, advancing any chart (by clicking in the chart area, or pressing the left or right arrows at the bottom of the window) will advance all open charts by the same number of days, and update them accordingly.
笳 Palettes:
笳 Show/Hide all palettes will respectively hide or reveal all the open palette windows: Chart Tools, General Tools, Chart Summary, and Grouped Summary. The windows are hidden, not closed.
笳 Anchor/Release Chart Tools You can use the Chart Tools window as a fully floating window, able to move, or you can anchor it just under the menubar. If you do, windows will automatically adjust so as not to overlap, and you still enjoy the benefits of using it as a proper toolbar. It窶冱 just neater that窶冱 all.
笳 Anchor/Release General Tools You can use the General Tools window as a fully floating window, able to move, or you can anchor it to the left of your screen. If you do, windows will automatically adjust so as not to overlap, and you still enjoy the benefits of using it as a proper toolbar.
Date Menu
笳 Today窶冱 date: replaces the values in the date boxes with today窶冱 date.
笳 Birth date: When used in a chart window sets the 窶歪urrent date窶 equal to the date of birth.
笳 Previous/Next day: subtracts or adds one day to the date.
笳 A week earlier/later: subtracts or adds seven days to the date.
笳 10 years earlier/later: subtracts or adds ten years to the date.
笳 First/Last day of month: sets the day part of the date to be either the first or last day of that month.
笳 Date Information: reveals information about the date 窶 its full name, the gap between that date and today's date and the number of that date within the year, eg Jan 1st = day 1. Also the week the date is in, is shown.
笳 Get date: reveals a hierarchical menu showing 12 窶惑avourite窶 dates. Choose one of these and it will be copied into the relevant date boxes. Initially all dates are set to 1/1/1960, but you can change them to anything you want and they will be saved in the Preferences file.
笳 Set date: lets you alter the 12 窶惑avourite窶 dates. Choose one of these and the date from the relevant date boxes will be copied into the menu in the slot you choose, replacing the one that was there before. The new date is now saved for later use.
