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BirdData 3.12 <ASP>
Bird Breeders database/record-keeping program.
Print this file for program instructions.
⌐1991-1996 All rights reserved
_______
By Don Bradner ____|__ | (R)
Arcata Pet --| | |-------------------
600 F Street | ____|__ | Association of
Arcata, CA 95521 | | |_| Shareware
|__| o | Professionals
-----| | |---------------------
|___|___| MEMBER
Compuserve: 76130,1007
America OnLine: DBirdMan Forum KeyWord: ArcataPet
Internet: dbirdman@arcatapet.com
http://www.arcatapet.com
Contents of this file:
A. Note to users of BirdData 2.x
I. Program Description
II. Program Requirements
III. Installation
IV. Getting Started
V. Files that make up BirdData
VI. Troubleshooting
VII. Getting future upgrades
VIII. Registration and distribution
IX. ASP Ombudsman Statement
A. NOTE TO USERS OF BIRDDATA 2.X.
This version of BirdData uses a completely different file
structure from previous versions. It is possible to run
BirdData 3 and a previous version simultaneously without
harm. It is recommended that version 3.x be installed to a
completely different directory than 2.x, so that files don't
get "jumbled."
There is a conversion program (convert.exe) included to convert
2.x files to 3.x format. The conversion program installs to
your BDATA3 directory along with the rest of the files, so it
may be run later. If the conversion is run after data has been
entered in 3.x format, THE NEW DATA WILL BE OVERWRITTEN.
Consequently, the conversion should only be done once. Your
version 2.x data will not be disturbed by the conversion
process.
If you are a registered user of an older version, there is no
charge to upgrade. If, after installing version 3.x you see the
shareware "nag" screen, it means that the SETUP program did not
find the version 2 registration key. You need to manually copy
the key (BDATAREG.KEY) from your version 2 directory or the
distribution diskette to the version 3 directory. In most
cases SETUP will take care of this automatically.
I. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION.
BirdData is a custom database for the types of records useful
to bird keepers. The program is oriented towards the
needs of Parrot breeders, but may be useful to pet owners as
well.
Bird records include identification information, fields for 6
items of user-defined data, and weight/journal for up to 2000
lines. Weight information may be shown graphically for
individual birds and various groupings of birds. Bird records
are placed in user-defined groups.
There is a search function for bird records that allows
searching for a text string among any of the identification
items or the six user-defined items.
A handy daily-weigh function will locate all babies that are a
specific age or less on a specific date, and allow weights and
comments for that date to be entered. This is useful both for
daily entering of data, or for entering groups of paper-written
info maintained on a per day basis.
Pair data includes identification information, information on
bird origins, free-form date-stamped diary entries, and ongoing
egglaying data. The program will calculate hatchdates, based
on user input or prior data.
Pet data was maintained separately in previous versions, but is
integrated with the rest of the bird data in version 3.0.
Most records and lists may be printed to provide permanent
records.
Full documentation is included in the form of a Windows Help
file. When you desire help, press your F1 function key for
context-sensitive help, or press the help key if you are in a
dialog box.
II. Program requirements.
BirdData requires an IBM compatible 286 or better, running
Windows 3.1, with at least 4 megs of RAM. A 386 with 8 megs or
more is recommended. A mouse is required for some funtions.
About 1 megs of hard-drive space is required to install, and each
bird record will use about 2K of disk space initially and more
as the data increases.
III. Installation.
If you obtained BirdData by downloading it from a computer
Bulletin Board (BBS) or another online source, one necessary
file may not have been included. You will need a file called
VBRUN300.DLL, which is almost always available from any source
that would have BirdData. On BBS systems the file will usually
be called VBRUN300.ZIP or VBRUN3.ZIP. Registered versions
obtained from the author should always include VBRUN300. If
the file is included with the program it should be installed by
the setup procedure; if it is independently obtained it should
be unzipped and placed in your Windows\System Directory.
To install BirdData, run the included setup program. If the
program is on a floppy disk, you can use File/Run in the Program
Manager and type a:bdsetup or b:bdsetup, whichever drive is involved.
You can use the same technique to run setup from a directory on your
hard drive by supplying the full path, such as c:\temp\bdsetup.
Alternatively you can use File manager to find the files and
double-click on BDSETUP.EXE.
Windows 95 users can use the "Add/Remove Programs" item in the
Control Panel to find and start BDSETUP.
IV. Getting Started.
The SETUP will create a "Bird" program group, with icons for
the program and the various text files. Double-click the
BirdData icon to start the program.
The best way to familiarize yourself with the program elements
on screen is to click the help (question mark) icon, or choose
"Help" "Overview" from the menus. In the helpfile's overview,
you may graphically choose different program elements to see an
explanation of their function.
Now click the "New Bird" icon (the "chick-in-shell"). Select a
category and input a bird's information. Don't worry about getting
everything right; you can always edit it or delete the record later.
Add a couple of additional records, then try out the other
program elements as they relate to those records. When you are
comfortable, you can convert any paper data you have to the
BirdData format and begin to use the program on a daily basis.
V. FILES AND UNINSTALLING
When BirdData is installed, a program (UNINSTAL.EXE) and a data
file (INSTALL.LOG) are placed in the BData3 directory. The
following information is provided to aid in removing the
program in case those files are lost or damaged.
Files distributed with BirdData:
BDSETUP.EXE
This file contains all of the program files. Running it will
install the files where they belong, and will also produce a
record and program that can be used to uninstall this package.
README.TXT
The text file you are reading now. It is placed outside
the main install program so that it is readable before the
program is installed.
VENDINFO.DIZ, FILEID.DIZ
Information files for shareware distributors and online
services. These explain distribution rights and allowable
methods.
Files installed by BirdData:
Main Program directory files
BDATA3.EXE, BDATA3.HLP, BDATA3.INI, README.TXT, UNINSTAL.EXE, INSTALL.LOG.
An Icons subdirectory under the main program directory is
created by the install and a number of custom icons included
with BirdData are placed in it; they were drawn by the author
or by Sally Blanchard. Sally's all have a file name beginning
with 'SB'. You may use these as you wish, to replace the bird
group icons in the program defaults. There is also a blank
icon included to use as a template for creating your own
icons. You will need an icon editor; there are many free and
shareware editors available; IconWorks is included with
registered copies from the author and is directly accessible
from the Tools menu.
Windows\System directory files
BDTLIBR.VBX, CMDIALOG.VBX, GRID.VBX,
Registered users will have three additional files: 1) BDATAREG.KEY;
this file must be in your BData3 directory, and will keep the
startup shareware screen from appearing. If you upgrade to a
new version of BirdData, do not delete this file - it will work
with all future versions; 2&3) ICONWRKS.EXE and ICONWRKS.HLP,
an icon editor that can be called from the BirdData tools menu.
Files required by BirdData:
VBRUN300.DLL
A "runtime" library for programs written in Visual Basic 3.0.
This file is almost always available from any source for
BirdData. From on-line sources, look for VBRUN3.ZIP or
VBRUN300.ZIP. It must be placed in your Windows\System
directory.
Files created by BirdData:
BirdData will make a one-line section addition to your WIN.INI
file. This entry tells the program the directory path to the
program files.
BirdData will create a number of .REC files and .NDX files in
your BDATA3 directory for the storage of data. If you follow
good backup procedures, these are the most important to
backup, along with BDATA3.INI.
Uninstalling BirdData:
If the UNINSTAL.EXE program and INSTALL.LOG file have been left
intact in the BData3 directory, running the program will remove
all files that were installed with BirdData. The uninstaller
does not know anything about the files created by the program,
so those require manual deletion. If the UNINSTAL program has
been removed, use the file list above to determine which files
to remove.
VI. Troubleshooting.
Errors will frequently relate to a corrupted .INI file. You may
load BDATA3.INI into Windows Notepad or a similar text-only
editor and look for obviously bad entries. Always make a
backup of the file before changing any entries, since it is
easy to make problems worse.
Some errors may be corrected by use of the Rebuild Indices menu
item in the Category menu. If a specific record causes
problems all of the time, either restore a backup copy or else
delete the record and do an index Rebuild. In the latter case
you would lose that record's data, which is a good reason to do
frequent backups.
VII. Getting future Upgrades.
When you register BirdData with the author, you will receive a
copy of the latest version and a registration key that removes
the startup screen. That key file will work with future
versions of the program, so no upgrade fee will be required.
Current versions of BirdData can always be found at the
author's internet FTP site:
ftp://redshift.com/arcatpet/bdata/bdataxxx.zip where xxx is the
version number. There is also a jump available from the
author's web page at http://www.arcatapet.com
Registered users who do not have online access may get a disk
copy from the author for a fee of $5 ($7 non-US). Send a short
note indicating your registered status and requesting the
latest copy. Please use the same name under which you are
registered.
VIII. Registration and Distribution.
BirdData is shareware. Free use is extended to any user for a
reasonable evaluation period; typical idea of "reasonable" is
30 days. If use is continued, the program should be registered
with the author. Registration fee is $30. Registrants receive
a disk copy of the latest version of BirdData. A convenient
form for registration is included in the Help file (and may be
printed from there). Until you register, there will be nag
screens asking you to register, which you will have to respond
to. When you register, this annoyance will go away. Otherwise,
this version is complete and un-crippled in any way. As a
registration incentive, the author will provide on request two
free scanned images from your original prints or slides, when
sent with the registration.
Commercial use: BirdData may be used commercially, as long
as there is a registered copy for each computer/terminal that
is using it.
You may freely distribute BirdData as long as no fees are
charged for the program, and all necessary files are included.
Shareware services may charge their normal fees for
distribution of the disk, so long as it is clear to the
purchaser that they are not buying the program itself.
If you are a registered user, do not distribute the file
BDATAREG.KEY, which identifies you as the user (This
identification shows up in the startup logo and the About box).
The author is very interested in feedback from users. Please
feel free to make contact at the address shown at the beginning
of this file with any comments/questions/problems.
IX. ASP Ombudman Statement
This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware
Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware
principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a
shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member
directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you
resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide
technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP
Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 USA, FAX
616-788-2765 or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP
Ombudsman 70007,3536