WCS (Windows Collector System) is designed to work with any sort of collection of information. Typical examples include items ranging from baseball cards to inventory of parts. The collections or inventories can have photographs, scanned images, or graphic images as part of the data set. WCS works primarily with user-programmable templates that you can use to define what sort of data to work with. Refer to the [ TEMPLATES ] topic for a discussion of these. There are a number of supplied example templates, and you can create your own. In addition to templates, extensive use of lists allows you to easily enter and search for data. Lists are programmable for each template, and can take many forms. In the supplied example BASEBALL CARDS template we use a list to define player position. In the ANTIQUES example we use the same list for defining an object's style. Images and associated text are accessed by clicking the appropriate icon in the main window. The text access icon looks like a BOOK, and images are accessed by clicking the CAMERA. The SHUTTLE icon allows you to launch a subprogram to manipulate WCS data. See the [ Launching ], [ Book Icon ], and [ Camera Icon ] topics for more information.
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TEMPLATES:
Templates allow you the ability to make WCS work with different types of information. A template allows you to name information fields so that the type of data you work with is easily understood. For example, in the included SOFTWARE PROGRAMS template, one of the fields is used to define the program size in Kilobytes. In the supplied ANTIQUES template, this same field is used to hold the year of manufacture. No matter what you work with, you can set up a template to record specific information that deals only with that type of item. We have supplied a number of templates with WCS that you can edit, look at, and otherwise modify to make your own. In this manner WCS is programmable such that it can work with any information you want to set it up for.
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USING THE FILE DIALOG:
To open or save a file, WCS needs to know certain things: the file's name, the disk that contains it, and the folder (directory) that you wish to retrieve from or place into. The filename is in the box at the upper left. Beneath it is a list box that contains matching file extensions. To the right of the list is the folder/directory list, and below this is the disk drive box. To change disk drives, simply click the DOWN arrow of the drive box and click the name of the desired drive. To change the directory or storage folder, DOUBLEclick the name of the folder. The [..] portion will take you down one level of folder heirarchy: let's say that you are wanting a file in C:\WCS but you are in C:\WCS\NEW. To get back to C:\WCS, just doubleclick the [..]. The names of files matching any file name or extension in the new folder will show up in the list box (file names) on the left. To choose one of these, click it once and you'll see that the filename box now has this name in the file name box. You can click OK to open this file. You can alternately doubleclick the file's name in the list box to do this. You can change the type of the input file extension by typing it into the FILE text box. For instance, if you were to import text into the text information area rather than type it in, WCS defaults to *.TXT. You may change this by selecting the box and typing in the name of the extension you wish to work with. For example, if you want to open a text file with an extension ASC, you would select the box, type in *.ASC, and press the ENTER key. Any ASC files in the current drive and directory folder would appear in the filename list box.
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OPEN EXISTING FILE:
See the discussion [ USING THE FILE DIALOG ] for instructions on how to manipulate the File dialog box. WCS uses the extension of *.WDB (Wcs DataBase) to define its' own files. This is done to make it easier to locate WCS files. The FILES list box will contain a list of file names that are located in the current drive and directory folder. If one of these matches the one you are looking for, you can doubleclick the name inside the FILES list to open it. You can alternately type it in the NAME box or click the filename once followed by clicking the OK pushbutton.
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CREATE NEW FILE:
Creation of a new WCS data file takes two steps: first, you must decide on a name for the new file. Do not enter an extension, as WCS will append one for you. You are limited to the standard characters Windows allows for naming of files. Refer to your Windows manual if you have questions on allowable filenames or characters used under the Windows environment. Second, you will need to pick out what sort of template it will use. Will it be a Stamps file? Antiques? Inventory? The template allows you to define what sort of data file this will be. Refer to the [ Templates ] topic for more information on templates.
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EDIT EXISTING TEMPLATE:
First, pick out the template name using the FILE dialog box. You may want to refer to the [ Using the FILE Dialog ] topic for more detailed information. You will be presented with an editing window. You may type in any revised text information such as field names in the boxes provided beneath the headings. To add to the pick list, type the text to add in the box above the list and click the ADD button. To remove a pick list item, choose that item in the list and click the REMOVE button. The number of items that can be in the list is limited to around 4000, so we do not think you'll run out of list room in most applications. When you are done editing,
click the OK button to save the *.DEF file or click the CANCEL button to abort the editing
process. You can get additional information on templates in general in the [ Templates ] topic.
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CREATE NEW TEMPLATE:
You will need to type in an eight character standard Windows filename to give your template a name that you can retrieve it with later. Refer to your Windows manual for information on file naming conventions. You should name your new template something that is meaningful if possible so that it will be recognisable later, or perhaps to any others that are working on a WCS project with you. Refer to the [ Edit Existing Template ] topic for editing instructions.
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EDIT CONDITION FILE:
The condition file pick list is used to enter or search for "common" data. In collections of most items, the condition is usually one of the high priority considerations. As an example, a poor quality used coin is usually worth far less than a mint (unused) coin. The condition list can also be used for other things. In the SOFTWARE PROGRAMS example that we supplied, the Condition list is used as a rating of software quality. Editing of the condition list is simply a matter of adding and/or removing items. To ADD an item to the list, type in the text in the box above the list box and click the ADD button. The new item will be appended to the bottom of the list. To remove an item, click the text in the list and it will appear as highlighted in the list box. CLick the REMOVE button. When you are done editing, click the OK button to save the condition file or click CANCEL to abort the editing.
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SAVE FILE:
This menu item will save the file currently in memory. It will save it using the name it was opened with.
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SAVE FILE AS:
This menu item will allow you to enter a new name to save a data file under. You will need to enter a Windows standard eight character file name without an extension. Please refer to your Windows Manual on naming conventions. We suggest you use a name that is as meaningful as possible: try to name a stamps file as STAMPS1, for instance.
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PRINT:
This menu item will print your data out on the printer. Please refer to the [ Print Setup ] topic for specifics on what information is printed.
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PRINT SETUP:
This menu item allows you to define what information will get printed out when PRINT is selected. It will bring up a selection window. Items defined on the left, when checked, will be printed. The radio button options on the right will allow you to define the range of items to print.Click the OK button when done. This setup will be retained until you specifically change it.
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SEARCHING:
When you choose the SEARCH menu item from the FILE menu, you will be presented with a
window containing the data fields that WCS can search on. These include the pick lists, the overall description, and the user defined number. Searches are limited to matching. The fields that will be actively searched for are those that you check the corresponding box next to the data field name. Just enter text or pick a list item to show WCS what it is you wish to search for. Press the SEARCH pushbutton to initiate a search. You will be shown the number of matching records in the datafile, and you will see the FIRST available matching record in the window. The
horizontal Scroll Bar will allow you to view all of the matching records. Since WCS keeps all data in memory, searches take hardly any time. You may at any point initiate a new search by entering new search text, lists, or clicking different check boxes. Click the CANCEL pushbutton when you are done. The data concerning what was found (in the last search you did) will be retained so that you may print these items out if you wish.
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EXITING:
You may QUIT WCS at any time by choosing the EXIT item from the FILE menu. You may also
doubleclick the WCS control button to exit. WCS will ask you if you wish to save your data file if you have made any changes to it: you will get a 'query' dialog box that asks you if you wish to save your data. Clicking the YES pushbutton will save the file prior to exiting.
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IMPORT GRAPHIC IMAGE:
When you click the Camera Icon for access of graphics images, the image window will automatically load the appropriate image. If there is no image, or you wish to replace the
existing image, you may click the IMPORT GRAPHIC IMAGE button to load in one. This will bring up the File Dialog for you to choose an image file. WCS recognises the Windows Bitmap (*.BMP) image format. If your graphic is a *.PCX image, you may convert it to the BMP format by using the Windows Paint program that is bundled with Windows. Other image formats (*.GIF, etc.) can be converted to either PCX or BMP format by a number of inexpensive Windows applications.
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IMPORT TEXT:
When you click the Book Icon for access to text information, you are not limited to typing it all in. You may import ASCII text instead. When you click the IMPORT TEXT pushbutton, you will see the File Dialog. It will allow you to search for and load in any text files you may have. Refer to the [ Using the FILE Dialog ] topic for details on how to use the File Dialog. Imported text
will be appended to the bottom of the current contents and will otherwise be inserted at the present cursor position if you wish to INSERT text. The text window's capacity is 32k, so you may wish to check the size of any text files you intend to import.
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ADD RECORD:
WCS allows you to add records by creating a new empty record area. Just press the ADD RECORD pushbutton to add a record. You will see that the record count updates itself. Use the Scroll Bar to get to the LAST record to access it.
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DELETE RECORD:
Deletion of a record does not update the record count or make any disk accesses like you may have expected. Instead, when you click the REMOVE RECORD pushbutton, the DESCRIPTOR of the currently shown record is erased. This effectively marks the record to be 'not written' to the disk when the file is saved. The general theory is that any valid data record will have a description; removal of the description is an indicator that the record data is not complete. This mechanism also offers one other very important attribute: you can change your mind.
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ADDING TEXT:
To add text information such as letters, fax copies, and other computer based documents
to a WCS data file, click the BOOK icon. You must have a valid ADDENDUM name so that any
text can be saved under a unique name for later retrieval. This will bring up a window in which you can type notes or import full text documents. See the [ Import Text ] topic for a discussion of importing text. The text window is limited to 32k of text per file. You can also type in text. To aid in reading and/or typing, you may change the font size in the window up to 12 points.
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RECORD SCROLL BAR:
The record scroll bar is used to access and display the different records. Clicking the large change area (between the position marker and the arrow buttons) will cause the records to jump by 10 percent. Clicking the arrow buttons will move by single records. Dragging the position marker will move you to the nearest record to the new position.
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LAUNCHING:
The shuttle icon, when clicked, will bring up a window with up to five program icons in it. Doubleclicking one of these will launch a subprogram that will read a WCS data file and allow you to manipulate data that is generally held in the TEXT record area. The subprogram can be provided by us (ASL) or by any other party.
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EDITING LAUNCH.INI:
Use the Windows Notepad or similar text editor. The format is as follows:
