PsL Monthly 1994 February

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\\HELPFILE// VERSION 1 Written by Barry MacDonnell for REMIND version 3.4 .Main Help Information and Registration ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Press <Enter> or click on [√] for Help Topics │ └───────────────────────────────────────────────┘ Key: Use: <> or <PgDn> for More... ─── ─── ───────────────────────── F1 =Help. Available from any window or data input field. Alt-F1 =Function key Menu. (Also invoked with right mouse button.) F2 =Toggle display between All Events and Active Events. Alt-F2 =Select a Category of events to display. F3 =Save any changes, exit REMIND. (No confirmation) Alt-F3 =Save any changes, but remain in REMIND. F4 =Quit REMIND without saving changes. (No confirmation) F5 =Add a new event and reminder message. F6 =Update, view, or clone (copy) the highlighted event. F7 =Shell to DOS; to return to REMIND type EXIT at the prompt. F8 =Search all events for Reminder text and/or event Due Date. Ctrl-L or Alt-S =Look (Search) for next occurrence of event(s) after using the "Search all events" function (F8). F9 =Expire (reset) event. Clear event until next due date. Alt-F9 =Delete event. Erase event from data file; no history kept. F10 =Re-sort the events displayed on screen. Esc =Exit program; you are prompted to save changes, if any. (Esc also returns to the calendar screen when a period is "viewed.") Other keys: ─────────── Alt-C =Pop up a Calendar showing the number of reminders each day. Alt-F =Select another reminder data File. (Default = REMINDER.DAT) Alt-O =Select Option editor (enter user-defined startup options). Alt-P =Select the Print Events Menu. Alt-V =Toggle between 25-line and 50-line mode for VGA displays. Shortcuts: ────────── A or Ins =Add a new event and reminder message. C =Select a Category of events to display. D or Del =Delete event. Erase event from datafile; no history kept. E =Expire (reset) event. Clear event until next due date. M =Function key Menu. R =Re-sort displayed events on screen. S =Search events for Reminder text and/or event Due Date. U or Ent =Update, view, or clone (copy) the highlighted event. Tab/Shft-Tab =Cycle forward/backward through categories displayed on the main screen. Explanation of status area terms (main display screen): ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Memory - Amount of conventional RAM memory used (1%-100%) while REMIND is running; this memory is released as soon as you exit REMIND Events - Number of events in the data file History - number of expired events written to the history file (For "Active Events" and category information see the "RUNNING REMIND" section in the on-disk manual, and "Category Display" under Help Topics.) Explanation of title line (main display screen): ──────────────────────────────────────────────── C - Category code of event and reminder text message. Type - Event type (access Help from Add New Event or Update Event screens for more information on types.) A "+" indicates a Sticky event flag. Event Date - The date an event is due. Days - The number of calendar days until an event is due, or is past due (shown with a trailing minus sign). Reminder - Text message about the event. A "*" following the reminder indicates one or more Memo fields are included. Place the bar cursor on the event and press <Enter> or <F6> or to view Memos. Registration: ───────────── If you have not already registered, please take a minute and do so. REMIND is the product of hundreds of hours of work, and you can help keep the concept of "shareware" alive by supporting software authors who want to continue to use this approach to bring high-quality, affordable programs to users. You'll also be notified of updates to the program. To register, complete the registration form at the end of the documentation or send $20 (in U.S. Funds) to: Tom Donnelly Computer Software P.O. Box 3856 San Dimas, CA 91773 *Please indicate what size floppy disk you prefer.* You also can register via CompuServe's Software Registration feature. (Type GO SWREG at any CompuServe prompt.) Individual registration: $23.00 Product name: Remind - Appointment reminder and task list Registration ID: 1429 The REMIND program was written by Tom R. Donnelly (CompuServe 73200,1323). REMIND's documentation and help text were written by Barry MacDonnell (CompuServe 71500,3413). Thank you for supporting shareware. .FileName Data File Name REMIND keeps events in a separate ASCII text file, in the same directory as REMIND.EXE. The default filename is REMINDER.DAT. Pressing <Alt-F> allows you to specify another reminder data file to load in place of the current (default) file. If you have made changes to the current file, you will be prompted to save them before you load the new data file. You can select from several data files by using wildcards (*,?). For example, after pressing <Alt-F>, type *.DAT to select from all data files (files ending with the extension .DAT) in the current directory, or simply press <Enter> and choose a data file from the pop up list. If the new data file is on another drive or directory, include the full drive/directory path as part of the new reminder data file name. For example, if you have a special data file, SPECIAL.DAT, that you keep in the \WORK directory of drive D, you would type D:\WORK\SPECIAL.DAT If you type a filename and the file is not found in the directory, REMIND will prompt you for confirmation to create a new data file with that filename. Note: You can directly edit the data file with an ASCII text editor or word processor capable of saving the file in pure ASCII format. This allows greater freedom in manipulating data (for example, by using a global search-and-replace of selected information in a large data file). Be sure to make a back up of your data files before editing them in this way. See REMIND.DOC for more information about the structure of REMIND's data files. .CategoryDisplay Category Display When you add or update events, you can assign them to a user-defined category so that they can be sorted and viewed on the main display screen separately from all events. (They also can be searched using a category to limit the search.) The default category given to an event is "Uncategorized," unless you have set another default with the Option editor (<Alt-O>). To select a category to display on the main screen: Press <C> or <Alt-F2> from the main display screen. From the Select Category Display box that pops up, move the bar cursor to the category of your choice (two pre-existing categories are given: "Uncategorized" and "All Categories") and press <Enter> to select that category. REMIND will use your selection to sort and view events that were assigned to that category. Selections made this way will remain valid only for the current REMIND session. If one or more events were originally categorized with the code "*" (All Categories) when you added or updated them, you will see these events (if they are Active events) regardless of the user-defined category set as the default or selected from the main screen with <Tab> or <C>. Adding this code to an event makes the event display in "all categories." However, "all categories" has a slightly different meaning at the main screen: If you cycle to "All Categories" with <Tab> or <C> from the main screen, you then will see ALL events (if they are Active events) in ALL categories (i.e., everything). Also, remember that you can use <F2> to toggle back and forth between Active Events and All Events in any category you are displaying. To add, change, or delete a category: If you want to add, change, or delete categories from the category list, select the choice "<<< Add/Edit Category >>>" in the Category Display box. Then: To add a category, enter a category Code (A-Z, 0-9), and a brief Description (1-15 characters). For example, you could add "B" for "Business," "C" for "Clients," or "P" for "Personal." Press <Enter>, then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. You can have up to 36 categories in addition to the special categories "Uncategorized" and "All Categories." To change a category, enter a valid code (or press the <Spacebar> to see a list of current categories), change the description, press <Enter>, then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. To delete a category, enter the category Code, then press <Enter> to move to the "Delete: [ ]" field. Press any key in this field to set it to "On" [√], then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. The special categories "@" and "*" cannot be deleted, but their description may be changed. Changes are saved in the disk file REMINDER.CAT upon exiting the box. This is an ASCII file which may be edited with a plain-ASCII editor or word processor. Limit changes to the format described above for codes, descriptions, and number of categories. .MainCalendar Calendar The pop-up calendar displays the number of events that you have set for each day, including any events that are set to roll forward to that date. It is invoked with <Alt-C>, or by clicking on the top (date information) line of REMIND's main display screen. Press <Esc> to return to REMIND's main display screen. Note: You can have REMIND automatically display the calendar immediately every time you load REMIND by setting a start-up option. Start-up options are accessed by pressing <Alt-O> from REMIND's main display screen. The calendar also is a handy way to jump to a particular date. Just move the calendar cursor (indicated by the calendar date shown in reverse video) to the new date with the arrow keys or the <PgDn>/<PgUp> keys. If you use a mouse, click anywhere in the new date box to move to it, or double-click to immediately edit its events. Use the mouse scroll bars at the bottom right side of the calendar screen to move quickly to other days or months. Once the calendar cursor is in a new date's box, pressing <Enter> or clicking anywhere inside the box displays events for that day. (This is the same as selecting <F6>:Edit from the calendar screen.) In the same way you edit events from REMIND's main display screen, you can edit the selected day's events by moving the display screen's horizontal bar cursor to an event and pressing <Enter>, or by double-clicking on the event. You also can add a new event by pressing <F5> or <A>, either while viewing the selected day or by pressing either of these keys from the calendar screen itself, after you move the calendar cursor to the new date. Press <Esc> to return to the calendar. If you want to VIEW events for a day, week, or month, use the <F7>, <F8>, or <F9> keys. PLEASE NOTE: VIEWing events with these three calendar function keys means you will see an onscreen SIMULATION of the selected period that includes any updated "roll forward" events (repeating events due to display during the selected period). The words "Simulated Day (or Week or Month) View" will appear in the status area to indicate that REMIND is in simulation mode. A simulated view makes the display more readable by displaying all events with dates exactly as they will appear on REMIND's main screen during the period in question. However, because of this technique you cannot add or edit events while VIEWing them. To make changes, simply press <Esc> and return to the calendar screen. Then move to the desired date and press <F5> to add, or <F6> to edit, events for that date. Calendar keys: ───────────── <F1> =This help screen <F5> =Add an event to that date (or press the <Ins> key) <F6> =Edit (update) an event on that date (or press <Enter>) <F7> =View the day the calendar cursor indicates <F8> =View the week the calendar cursor indicates <F8> =View the month the calendar cursor indicates <F10> =Jump back to today's date <Esc> =Go back to REMIND's main display screen, or if you have "viewed" a date, go back to the calendar Options: ─────── You can set the color of the calendar screen as well as the color of the "n items" fields. Press <Alt-O> from the main REMIND display screen for Options, then select "Colors." To make the calendar pop up immediately whenever REMIND is invoked, select "Calendar at start up" from the Options box. Be sure to save your changes (with Save Settings) before exiting the Options box. .InputMain Event Input Screens REMIND has two event input screens: -Add New Event- ... Allows you to create events. Accessed with the <F5> or <A> keys. -Update Event- ... Allows you to modify or view events. Accessed with <F6> or or <Enter>. In either screen you can specify the due date, event type, "sticky" option, the number of warning days (either calendar days or weekdays), a message to display, and up to three memo lines of extra information. You also can assign an event to a user-defined category, and optionally select a date to automatically delete the event. While adding or updating events, you can use these editing keys in the event input screens: <Enter> Ends each field. <Ctrl-Enter> Ends entry and skips to Add Event? or Replace Event? question. <Backspace> Back up and erase 1 character. <Control-U> Erase current field. <Control-End> Erase from current location to end of field. <DownArrow> or <Tab> Move to next field. <UpArrow> or <ShftTab> Move to prior field. <Arrow Left/Right> Position cursor left/right 1 character. <Delete> Delete character cursor is under. <Insert> Toggle between insert/overwrite mode. <Home> Position cursor to start of field. <End> Position cursor to end of field. <+> and <-> Increment/decrement date/numeric fields. <=> Pop up a calendar from a date field. <F7> Copy all data in an input screen to a temporary memory buffer. <F8> Paste data copied with <F7> into another input screen. The Update Event screen (accessed with <F6> or or <Enter> or by clicking on column 1 of an event) also allows you to copy or "clone" another event. This is useful when you have several events to enter that differ in minor respects (date, message, etc.). To clone an event: Press <F6> or or <Enter> or click on column 1 of an event and make the changes to an existing event. Instead of selecting OK (in answer to Replace Event?) from the choices displayed at the bottom of the screen, select "AddNew." The new event then will be added to REMIND's data file when you Exit & Save (with <F3>) from REMIND's main display screen. The event that was cloned will remain unaffected. Additional help is available from within each event input screen by pressing <F1> when the cursor is in any field. .InputDueDate Event Due Date Event Due Date ────────────── This is the date your event and reminder message are due to be displayed on the main screen (where this date is simply called the "Event Date"). When it actually displays -- and how long it remains displayed -- can be modified by you in other fields of the event input screens ("Add New Event" and "Update Event"). If no warning days have been set in the event input screens, REMIND will display your reminder message on the main screen on the Event Due Date. If warning days have been set, REMIND will display your reminder in advance of the Event Due Date by the number of calendar days (or weekdays) you indicated. If the event has been flagged [√] as a Sticky event, REMIND will continue to display your message until you deliberately reset or delete it. You can enter the Event Due Date in several ways: One way is to use the calendar window that pops up when you press <Enter> or <=> in the input screen's Due Date field. Press <Enter> to accept the calendar display date, or move to a new date with one of the cursor arrow keys and press <Enter>. (You can click on a new day with your mouse, then click on the OK box at the bottom of the calendar). The <Home> and <End> keys move to the first and last day of the displayed month. The <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys change the displayed month; <Ctrl-PgUp> and <Ctrl-PgDn> change the displayed year. Press <Esc> or click the right mouse button to bail out of the calendar window without making a choice. You also can type in the date. When adding or updating Due Dates manually, the current year will be added if not entered (i.e., entering 11/02 produces 11/02/1995, if the current year is 1995). If only a day is entered, the current month and year will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1995). You can just enter MON, TUE, WED, THU, FRI, SAT or SUN in the blank Due Date field and REMIND will calculate and display the date of the next occurrence of that day. Pressing the Plus <+> key or Minus <-> key will increment or decrement the date shown. Finally, while adding or updating events, you can use these editing keys in the event input screens: <Enter> Ends each field. <Ctrl-Enter> Ends entry and skips to Add Event? or Replace Event? question. <Backspace> Back up and erase 1 character. <Control-U> Erase current field. <Control-End> Erase from current location to end of field. <DownArrow> or <Tab> Move to next field. <UpArrow> or <ShftTab> Move to prior field. <Arrow Left/Right> Position cursor left/right 1 character. <Delete> Delete character cursor is under. <Insert> Toggle between insert/overwrite mode. <Home> Position cursor to start of field. <End> Position cursor to end of field. <+> and <-> Increment/decrement date/numeric fields. <=> Pop up a calendar from a date field. <F7> Copy all data in an input screen to a temporary memory buffer. <F8> Paste data copied with <F7> into another input screen. .InputType Event Type Event Type ────────── Event Type is the frequency of occurrence of an event. Event frequencies can be ONE-TIME (the event displays just once), REPEATING (e.g., every week, quarter, year, etc.), FLOATING (the event's calendar date "floats," but the event pops up on the same day of a given month or other period), or specifically PERIODIC (every 90 days, every 3rd Monday in June, or some other exact period between the event's due date). Valid types that can be used in the event input screens are: Value: Meaning: Updated to: ────────────────────────────────────────────────────── O Once (Automatically deleted after the scheduled day/date has arrived.) D Daily Next day (tomorrow). W Weekly 7 days from scheduled date. B BiWeekly 14 days from scheduled date. QW QuadWeekly 28 days from scheduled date. M Monthly Same date next month. BM BiMonthly Same date in two months. Q Quarterly Same date in three months. SA SemiAnnually Same date in six months. Y Yearly Same month/date next year. BA BiAnnually Same month/date in two years. Other periodic events: ───────────────────── 1,2,3,4,5, or L, plus SU, MO, TU, WE, TH, FR, SA, or DA, and --optionally-- M, BM, Q, SA, or JAN-DEC Floating Next occurrence that qualifies. Examples: ----------------------------------- 3WE=every 3rd Wednesday each month; LDA=Last day of each month; LMO=Last Monday of each month; 3WeQ=every 3rd Wednesday each quarterly period following the original Due Date; 3WeFeb=every 3rd Wednesday in February. 1,2,3,4,5, or L, plus BU Floating Next business day (weekday) that qualifies. Examples: ----------------------------------- 1BU=First business day of each month; 5BU=Fifth business day of each month; LBU=Last business day of each month. 1-999 (plus D, W, M, Q, Y) Nth period Next occurrence that qualifies. Examples: ----------------------------------- 4M=same date every 4th Month; 90D=exactly every 90 Days; 3M (or Q)=same date every quarter. Pressing <Enter> or <?><Enter> in this field lets you select the event type from a list of possible values. .InputSticky Sticky Event Sticky Event flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ────────────────────────────────── Setting this flag to "On" in the event input screens will make REMIND continually display the event's reminder message after the event's Due Date has passed. (Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off.") Sticky events continue to pop up until they are reset with the <F9> or <E> key, or are deleted with the <Alt-F9> or <D> or <DEL> keys. An event marked Sticky will have a "+" mark in the Type column on the main REMIND display screen. While any event type can be made Sticky, it makes little sense to use it with Daily events, which are always displayed until removed. And some events are not worth being nagged about after their Due Date has passed, such as reminders about holidays or vacations: set the Sticky flag off (blank) for these events. You may set the start up default for this field by using the Option editor (<Alt-O>). If you set most of your events to Sticky (so that you'll be nagged into attending to them), set the start up to "On". (You can always choose the "Off" flag in the input screen for any event you don't want to have "stick" on the screen.) .InputWarnDays Warning Days Warning (or Preview) Days ───────────────────────── In the event input screens, enter how many days (0-9999) before the event's Due Date you would like to be reminded of the event's existence. The default is 0 days, or the value specified by you in the Option editor (<Alt-O>). Note: The type of warning or preview days can be toggled between calendar days and just weekdays (Monday through Friday) in the next field on the input screen. Press <F1> when in the "Warning in Weekdays" field for more information on this feature. Pressing the Plus <+> key or Minus <-> key will increment or decrement the number of days. For example, if you celebrate Winter Solstice on December 21 and need a reminder as early as the first of December, enter 20. A typical number of warning days for One-time events, as well as Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, or other long term events, is 3 calendar days. (You may prefer to be warned in weekdays instead of calendar days; see the "Warning in Weekdays" field.) This will account for weekends with Monday holidays, when you might not catch the event if you are not at work and the event pops up only once. Weekly or Daily events will fall on the day of the week you select, and may not require much warning, if any. Events may not require as much warning as you think, and it may be irritating to see the event displayed dozens of days before the event is due. Use the fewest number of preview days that work for you: too many days of warning can dilute the impact of a REMIND message. Finally, you can use the Option editor (<Alt-O>) to set the default "Warn in weekdays" field to either weekday warning days (option "On") or calendar warning days (option "Off"). .InputWarnWeek Warning in Weekdays Warning in Weekdays flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────────────────────────── If you set this flag "On" (in the event input screens) REMIND will use weekdays instead of calendar days when calculating the earliest warning (or preview) day to display an upcoming event. (Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off.") See also the Help message for the Warning Days field in the event input screens. Setting this flag "On" may be helpful for students or business people who operate mainly on a Monday-through-Friday schedule. If, for example, you need to be reminded as early as Friday of a meeting the following Wednesday (because you will not be at your computer Saturday or Sunday), you would enter 3 weekday warning days for the Wednesday event so that the Reminder will pop up Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. (It will also pop up Saturday and Sunday, if you load REMIND on those days.) A typical number of weekday warning days for One-time events, as well as Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, or other long term events, is 1 to 3 weekdays. Remember to account for weekends with Monday holidays, when you might not catch the event if you are not at work and the event pops up only once. (REMIND doesn't "know" that a Monday holiday isn't a business day: it counts it as a normal weekday.) Remember that Weekly or Daily events will fall on the day of the week you select, and may not require much warning, if any. Events may not require as much warning as you think, and it may be irritating to see the event displayed dozens of days before the event is due. Use the fewest number of preview days that work for you: too many days of warning can dilute the impact of a REMIND message. Finally, you can use the Option editor (<Alt-O>) to set the default "Warn in weekdays" field to either weekday warning days (option "On") or calendar warning days (option "Off"). .InputText Reminder Text Reminder Text ───────────── Reminder text is the text REMIND should display on its main display screen, one field per event. This field may contain up to 54 characters, which are entered via the event input screens. Additional characters will be wrapped to Memo field #1. (Memo fields do not display on the main REMIND screen. A "*" in column 80 of REMIND's main display screen indicates a memo exists for that event. To view memos, place the bar cursor on the event that has memos, and press <F6> or or <Enter> or click on column 1 of the event.) The first word of text in this field will be considered as a sort criterion for reminders with the same Due Date. Thus you can use the first word to help you sort reminders for the day in a logical way, such as assigning priorities (A,B,C... etc.). You also can use time as a sort criterion. If an event's Reminder text starts with a time (e.g., 10:30), any events that occur on the same day but at different times will be ordered according to the time placed at the beginning of the text field. This feature can be used to schedule daily appointments. Be sure to include leading zeros for a proper sort. For example, use 09:00 for 9:00 A.M. Also, use 24-hour time by adding 12 to all P.M. times. Three o'clock in the afternoon is entered as 15:00, and 7:30 P.M. is entered as 19:30. Since reminders with the same Due Date are sorted by the first word in ASCII order, numbers precede capital letters, which in turn precede lower case letters. If you use REMIND both as an appointment scheduler and a task manager, your appointments will appear above any tasks for the same date if you follow the HH:MM time scheme above. .InputMemo1 Reminder Memo 1 Memo 1 ────── From the event input screens, enter any extra text REMIND should keep as a memo. This field can contain up to 54 characters. Additional characters will be wrapped to Memo #2. (Memo fields do not display on the main REMIND screen. A "*" in column 80 of REMIND's main display screen indicates a memo exists. To view memos, place the bar cursor on the event that has memos, and press <F6> or or <Enter> or click on column 1 of the event.) .InputMemo2 Reminder Memo 2 Memo 2 ────── From the event input screens, enter any extra text REMIND should keep as a memo. This field may contain up to 54 characters. Additional characters will be wrapped to Memo #3. (Memo fields do not display on the main REMIND screen. A "*" in column 80 of REMIND's main display screen indicates a memo exists. To view memos, place the bar cursor on the event that has memos, and press <F6> or or <Enter> or click on column 1 of the event.) .InputMemo3 Reminder Memo 3 Memo 3 ────── From the event input screens, enter any extra text REMIND should keep as a memo. This field may contain up to 54 characters. (Memo fields do not display on the main REMIND screen. A "*" in column 80 of REMIND's main display screen indicates a memo exists. To view memos, place the bar cursor on the event that has memos, and press <F6> or or <Enter> or click on column 1 of the event.) .InputCatList Category List Category List ───────────── When you add or update events in the event input screens, you can assign them to a user-defined category so that they may be sorted and viewed on the main display screen separately from all other events. (They also can be searched using a category to limit the search.) The default category given to an event is "Uncategorized," unless you have set another default with the Option editor (<Alt-O>). See below about how to add new categories. To change categories, make a selection from the Select Category window. (If the window isn't visible, you can press the <Spacebar> to erase the existing category code in the Category field; the selection window then pops up.) Move the menu bar in the window to the category of your choice (two pre-existing categories are given: "Uncategorized" and "All Categories") and press <Enter> to assign this event to that category. If you want to force REMIND to always display this event no matter what category is selected to display on the main screen, select "* - All Categories." Then you will always see this event displayed, regardless of the category selected. If you want to add, change, or delete categories from the category list, select "<<< Add/Edit Category >>>" from the Select Category window, or return to the main display screen and press <C> or <Alt-F2> and make this same selection. Then press <F1> for help with category codes and descriptions when in the pop up window. If you never use special categories, you may want to accept the default value set for the Category field by skipping this field with the <Enter> or cursor arrow keys. Remember that the default value is either "@" - "Uncategorized" or a personal default value that you can set in the REMIND option file with the Option editor (<Alt-O>). .InputTo End Date End Date ──────── In the event input screen's "End Date" field you can enter the last date you want the event to display on REMIND's main screen. This entry is optional, since you can delete any event at any time with the <Alt-F9> or <D> or <Del> keys. The event automatically will be *PERMANENTLY DELETED* after the End Date passes. The End Date field allows you to limit the display of a reminder to a given period, starting with the earliest Warning Day (if any) and ending with the End Date, without having to delete it manually after it is no longer useful. This presumes you know in advance that you will *NOT* need the reminder again after the End Date. If you think you may need it, leave this field blank. If you leave this field blank (the default), the event will either automatically delete itself after its Due Date (if it is a One-time event), or automatically reset itself to continually pop up on specific future dates. (In addition, if the event was made Sticky it will remain on screen after popping up, until you manually reset or delete it.) If you toggle the main screen from Active Events to All Events with <F2>, the event will display only until the End Date. You can enter the End Date in several ways: One way is to use the calendar window that pops up when you press <=> in the input screen's End Date field. Press <Enter> to accept the calendar display date, or move to a new date with one of the cursor arrow keys and press <Enter>. (You can click on a new day with your mouse, then click on the OK box at the bottom of the calendar). The <Home> and <End> keys move to the first and last day of the displayed month. The <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys change the displayed month; <Ctrl-PgUp> and <Ctrl-PgDn> change the displayed year. Press <Esc> or click the right mouse button to bail out of the calendar window without making a choice. You also can type in the date. When adding or updating End Dates manually, the current year will be added if not entered (i.e., entering 11/02 produces 11/02/1995, if the current year is 1995). If only a day is entered, the current month and year will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1995). You can just enter MON, TUE, WED, THU, FRI, SAT or SUN in the blank End Date field and REMIND will calculate and display the date of the next occurrence of that day. Pressing the Plus <+> key or Minus <-> key will increment or decrement the date shown. .EventTypeList1 Event Type Selections Event Type Selections ───────────────────── From the event input screens you can choose the Event Type you want to use for your reminders. Event Type is the frequency of occurrence of an event. Choose one of the 13 types from the list (use arrow keys, type the number, or double-click the mouse): Type: Update Event to: ─────────────────────────────────────────────── Once (Automatically deleted after the scheduled day/date has arrived.) Daily Next day (tomorrow). Weekly 7 days from scheduled date. BiWeekly 14 days from scheduled date. QuadWeekly 28 days from scheduled date. Monthly Same date next month. BiMonthly Same date in two months. Quarterly Same date in three months. SemiAnnual Same date in six months. Yearly Same month/date next year. BiAnnual Same month/date in two years. Floating Next day that qualifies. Nth period Next day that qualifies. See the "Event Type" help screen for examples. .EventTypeList2 Event Type - Floating Event Occurrence Event Type - Floating Event Occurrence ────────────────────────────────────── Floating Events are those where the event's calendar date "floats," but the event pops up on the same day of each month. Example: The third Thursday of each month (the calendar date may differ but the day --Thursday-- remains the same). Choose the occurrence of the floating event (use arrow keys, type the number, or double-click the mouse): Value: Meaning: ─────────────────────────────────── Last Last occurrence. 1st First occurrence. 2nd Second occurrence. 3rd Third occurrence. 4th Fourth occurrence. 5th Fifth occurrence. .EventTypeList3 Floating Event Day Event Type - Floating Event Day ─────────────────────────────── Floating Events are those where the event's calendar date "floats," but the event pops up on the same day of each month. Choose the day of the week from the list. This day will be combined with the occurrence (previously selected) to form the floating event (i.e., First Monday of the month, Last Sunday of the month, etc.). .EventTypeList4 Floating Event Month Event Type - Floating Event Month ───────────────────────────────── Floating Events are those where the event's calendar date "floats," but the event pops up on the same day of each month. Choose the month or other period from the pick list. This month or period will be combined with the event's occurrence and day (previously selected) to form the floating event -- i.e., the First Monday in June, the Last Sunday of every Quarter, etc. (Once you learn the format of REMIND's floating event codes, you can type the code directly into the Event Type field when in either input screen. For some, this may be faster than picking floating event types and periods from the pop up lists.) Value: Meaning: ─────────────────────────────────── M Monthly (the default) BM BiMonthly (every other month) Q Quarterly SA SemiAnnual (every 1/2 year) JAN January . . . . DEC December .NthPeriodMain "Every Nth Period" Nth Period ────────── REMIND can set an event to display on every "Nth" occurrence of a date. (See CAUTION below.) For example, you can have an event display on the same day of every 4th month from a given Due Date. You would enter a "4", then an "M", in the dialog box that pops up when you choose "Every nth period" as the event type when adding or changing events. (Once you learn the format of REMIND's event codes, you can type the code directly into the Event Type field when in either input screen. For some, this may be faster than entering event types and periods from the pop up lists.) You can select any period from 1 to 999, and chose Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, and Yearly events. Note that selecting "7", then "D", is the same as selecting "Weekly" as the event type. Other redundant codes are: 2W or 14D = BW (Biweekly) 4W or 28D = QW (Quad-weekly) 2M = BM (Bimonthly) 3M = Q (Quarterly) 6M or 2Q = SA (Semiannual) 12M or 2SA = Y (Yearly) 24M or 2Y = BA (Biannual) CAUTION: Some periods may seem equivalent but may not be the same. For instance, a "Quarterly" period may -- or may not -- equal 90 days. It will be equal to 90 days in a leap year for a period spanning February (29 days), March (31 days), and April (30 days), but won't be equal for the period spanning June (30), July (31), and August (31) of any year. So, if you choose "Q" as the event type, the event will display on the same date (e.g., the 10th), every third month. But choosing "90D" means the event will display *exactly* every 90 days. Similarly, "180D" (every 180 days) and "BA" (same date every 6 months) are not identical, and "30D", "4W", and "1M" have different meanings. .NthPeriodCount "Nth Period" Count Nth Period Count ──────────────── For "Nth period" events, you can select any period from 1 to 999. Then choose Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, and Yearly as the Event Period Type. For example, "3W" means the event will display on the same day every three weeks (i.e., every 21 days). See the Help topic "Every Nth Period" for more information and cautions about setting this type of event. (Press <Enter> now for Help topics.) .NthPeriodType "Nth Period" Type Nth Period Type ─────────────── For "Nth period" events, after you choose the Period Count choose the Type: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, or Yearly. See the Help topic "Every Nth Period" for more information and cautions about setting this type of event. (Press <Enter> now for Help topics.) .SearchMain Search Criteria Input Screen Search Criteria Input Screen ──────────────────────────── REMIND allows you to locate reminders by text words (keywords) and/or by the event's Due Date. Press <F8> or <S> to access the Search Criteria input screen screen. This screen allows you to enter the criteria that will be used for your search. Fill in all desired fields and press <Enter>, or click on OK, to begin your search. You can use these editing keys in any field in the Search Criteria screen: <Enter> Ends each field. <Ctrl-Enter> End entry and immediately start search. <Backspace> Back up and erase 1 character. <Control-U> Erase current field. <Control-End> Erase from current location to end of field. <DownArrow> or <Tab> Move to next field. <UpArrow> or <ShftTab> Move to prior field. <Arrow Left/Right> Position cursor left/right 1 character. <Delete> Delete character cursor is under. <Insert> Toggle between insert/overwrite mode. <Home> Position cursor to start of field. <End> Position cursor to end of field. <+> and <-> Increment/decrement date/numeric fields. <=> Pop up a calendar from a date field. .SearchKeywords Search Keywords Search Criteria Input Screen - Search Keywords ────────────────────────────────────────────── Keywords are the specific words in your Reminder text and Memo fields that you wish to locate with the search feature. From the Search Criteria input screen, enter the search keywords separated by one or more blanks. Each keyword you enter must exist in the reminder for it to be considered a match. This corresponds to a logical "AND" condition between keywords. For example, to find all reminders that contain both the words "Richard" and "sales," you would enter (without quotes): "Richard sales" or "sales Richard." You can use these editing keys in any field in the Search Criteria screen: <Enter> Ends each field. <Ctrl-Enter> End entry and immediately start search. <Backspace> Back up and erase 1 character. <Control-U> Erase current field. <Control-End> Erase from current location to end of field. <DownArrow> or <Tab> Move to next field. <UpArrow> or <ShftTab> Move to prior field. <Arrow Left/Right> Position cursor left/right 1 character. <Delete> Delete character cursor is under. <Insert> Toggle between insert/overwrite mode. <Home> Position cursor to start of field. <End> Position cursor to end of field. <+> and <-> Increment/decrement date/numeric fields. .SearchFromDate Search From Date Search Criteria Input Screen - Search From (Due) Date ───────────────────────────────────────────────────── You can limit the extent of a search used to locate events by specifying a pair of search dates when in the Search Criteria input screen. Enter the BEGINNING date from which all events will be searched. If a date is entered in this field, the search will only include events whose Due Date is ON or AFTER the date entered. You can enter the Search From Date in several ways: One way is to use the calendar window that pops up when you press <=> in the Search From Date field. Press <Enter> to accept the calendar display date, or move to a new date with one of the cursor arrow keys and press <Enter>. (You can click on a new day with your mouse, then click on the OK box at the bottom of the calendar). The <Home> and <End> keys move to the first and last day of the displayed month. The <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys change the displayed month; <Ctrl-PgUp> and <Ctrl-PgDn> change the displayed year. Press <Esc> or click the right mouse button to bail out of the calendar window without making a choice. You also can type in the date. When adding or updating dates manually, the current year will be added if not entered (i.e., entering 11/02 produces 11/02/1995, if the current year is 1995). If only a day is entered, the current month and year will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1995). You can just enter MON, TUE, WED, THU, FRI, SAT or SUN in the blank date field and REMIND will calculate and display the date of the next occurrence of that day. Pressing the Plus <+> key or Minus <-> key will increment or decrement the date shown. .SearchToDate Search To Date Search Criteria Input Screen - Search To (Due) Date ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── You can limit the extent of a search used to locate events by specifying a pair of search dates when in the Search Criteria input screen. Enter the ENDING date to which all events will be searched. If a date is entered in this field, the search will only include events whose Due Date is ON or BEFORE the date entered. You can enter the Search To Date in several ways: One way is to use the calendar window that pops up when you press <=> in the Search To Date field. Press <Enter> to accept the calendar display date, or move to a new date with one of the cursor arrow keys and press <Enter>. (You can click on a new day with your mouse, then click on the OK box at the bottom of the calendar). The <Home> and <End> keys move to the first and last day of the displayed month. The <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys change the displayed month; <Ctrl-PgUp> and <Ctrl-PgDn> change the displayed year. Press <Esc> or click the right mouse button to bail out of the calendar window without making a choice. You also can type in the date. When adding or updating dates manually, the current year will be added if not entered (i.e., entering 11/02 produces 11/02/1995, if the current year is 1995). If only a day is entered, the current month and year will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1995). You can just enter MON, TUE, WED, THU, FRI, SAT or SUN in the blank date field and REMIND will calculate and display the date of the next occurrence of that day. Pressing the Plus <+> key or Minus <-> key will increment or decrement the date shown. .SearchRollFwd Roll-Fwd Events Search Criteria Input Screen - Roll-Fwd Events Flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────────────────────────────────── When a date range is specified in a search, setting this flag "On" will cause REMIND to include any events that would fall within the date range as they roll forward (e.g., weekly or monthly events). Setting this flag "On" has the effect of forcing the "Show All Matches" option to "On." The default for the Roll-Fwd Events Flag is "Off." PLEASE NOTE: You must have an entry in the "SearchFrom" and "SearchTo" fields for this option to function. Also, setting the Roll-Fwd Events Flag "On" means you will see an onscreen SIMULATION of the selected search period that includes any updated "roll forward" events (repeating events due to display during the selected period). This is done to make the display more readable by displaying all events with dates exactly as they will appear on REMIND's main screen during the period in question. However, because of this technique you cannot add or edit events that are displayed after a search of this type. To make changes, simply press <Esc> and return to the main screen. Then move to the desired date (you can do this quickly with the pop-up calendar) and press <F5> to add, or <F6> to edit, events for that date. .SearchIgnoreCase Ignore Case Search Criteria Input Screen - Ignore Case flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────────────────────────────── Leaving this flag set to "On" (the default) when in the Search Criteria input screen will make REMIND search for Reminder text without taking case into account (a capital letter and its lower case counterpart will be treated the same). Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." If you want case to be respected, toggle the field "Off." .SearchPhonetic Phonetic Search Search Criteria Input Screen - Phonetic Search flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────────────────────────────────── REMIND can search for Reminder or Memo field text according to the way it "sounds." Toggle this field "On" when in the Search Criteria input screen if you want the search to be performed using the phonetic equivalent of your keywords. Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." Phonetic searching tends to be more relaxed and result in more matches. If you want the search to use exact matches, leave this field blank (the default). .SearchShowAll Show All Matches Search Criteria Input Screen - Show All Matches flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────────────────────────────────────── REMIND can search the reminder data file and show you all matches that it finds on a separate (Show Matches) screen, or it can search through All Events and stop on the first occurrence of any event that it finds that matches your criteria. Toggle this field "On" when in the Search Criteria input screen if you want the show all records matching the search criteria. Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." If you select "On," rather than positioning the bar cursor to the first/next event matching your keyword, ALL events that qualify for the match will be displayed on a separate screen. Any event that doesn't match will not be displayed. Leave the field blank (the default) if you simply want to find and stop at the first reminder matching your search criteria. When a match is found, you can press <Ctrl-L> or <Alt-S> from the All Events screen to jump forward to the next occurrence of the event, if there is one. When "Show all matches" is "On," REMIND automatically sets "Search memos," "Start from first," and "Search forward" to "On" for the search. .SearchMemos Search Memos Search Criteria Input Screen - Search Memos flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────────────────────────────────── In addition to being able to search the Reminder text field, REMIND can find text in any of the three Memo fields in each record in the data file. Toggle this field "On" when in the Search Criteria input screen if you want the search to also include Memo fields. Any key toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." If you only want to search the Reminder text field, leave this field blank (the default). When "Show all matches" is "On," this field is automatically set "On" for the search. .SearchFromFirst Start from First Search Criteria Input Screen - Start From First flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────────────────────────────────────── You can tell REMIND where to begin a search for Reminder or Memo text and/or the event's Due Date. Leave this field "On" (the default) when in the Search Criteria input screen if you want the search to begin at the first reminder on file. Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." If you want to search from the current reminder (the one pointed at by the bar cursor), toggle this field "Off." When a match is found, you can press <Ctrl-L> or <Alt-S> from the All Events screen to jump forward to the next occurrence of the event, if there is one. .SearchForward Search Forward Search Criteria Input Screen - Search Forward flag: [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── You can tell REMIND which direction to search for Reminder or Memo text and/or the event's Due Date. Leave this field "On" (the default) when in the Search Criteria input screen if you want the search forward in the file. Any key pressed while in this field toggles this flag between "On" and "Off." If you want to search backwards, toggle this field "Off." This option is meaningful only if you left the "Start From First" field blank. And if you start at the first and search backward, you aren't going to find many matches! .EditCategory Edit Category Overview Editing Categories ────────────────── You may add, change, or delete categories to which events can be assigned (when adding or updating them). Two pre-existing categories are given: Uncategorized and All Categories. From the main display screen, press <C> or <Alt-F2> or click on the Category field to pop up the Select Category List box. Or, from the Add New Event or Update Event windows, move to (or click on) the Category field to pop up the List box. Then place the bar cursor on <<< Add/Edit Category >>> and press <Enter> or click on this choice to pop up the Edit Category window: To ADD a category, enter a category code (A-Z, 0-9), and a brief description (1-15 characters). Press <Enter>, then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. You can have up to 36 categories. To CHANGE a category, enter a valid code (or press the <Spacebar> to see a list of current categories), change the description, press <Enter>, then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. To DELETE a category, enter the category code, then press <Enter> to move to the "Delete: [ ]" field. Press any key in this field to set it to "On" [√], then move to the "OK" box to confirm your choice. The special categories "@" and "*" cannot be deleted, but their description may be changed. Changes are saved in the disk file, REMINDER.CAT, upon exiting the box. This is an ASCII file which may be edited with a plain-ASCII text editor or word processor. Limit changes to the format described above for Codes, Descriptions, and number of categories. Remember: do not delete the "@" or "*" codes if they are present in the category file. The default category given to an event is "Uncategorized," unless you have set another default with the Option editor (<Alt-O>). .EditCategoryCode Edit Category Code Editing Categories - Edit Category Code ─────────────────────────────────────── To ADD a category code, put the cursor in the Code field and add a letter (A-Z) or a number (0-9). To CHANGE a category code, enter any valid code or press <Enter> to pop up a list of current categories. You are allowed up to 36 categories in addition to the special categories, "Uncategorized" and "All Categories." To DELETE a category, go to the "Delete: [ ]" field and press any key to place a "√" mark in this field. Any key toggles the delete flag between "On" and "Off." .EditCategoryDesc Edit Category Description Editing Categories - Edit Category Description ────────────────────────────────────────────── To add or change a category description, put the cursor in the Description field and type a short description (1-15 characters). You can delete a category by going to the "Delete: [ ]" field and pressing any key to place a "√" mark in this field. Any key toggles the delete flag between "On" and "Off." .EditCategoryFlag Edit Category - Delete a Category Editing Categories - Delete a Category flag: [√]=On [ ]=Of ──────────────────────────────────────────── You can delete a category by going to the "Delete: [ ]" field and pressing any key to place a "√" mark in this field. Any key toggles the delete flag between "On" and "Off." .Print Print Events Menu Pressing <Alt-P> displays the Print Events Menu. Turn your printer "On" and make a selection to print out your reminders. Printout is formatted for a standard 8.5" x 11" page (daisy wheel, dot matrix, or laser printer). The printout follows the format of the main display screen, but also prints all Memo fields if they have data. Menu choice: Prints: ─────────── ────── Today's Events Just events due for today's date. This Week's Events Just events due (or set to roll forward to) this week. Next Week's Events Just events due (or set to roll forward to) next week. This Month's Events Just events due (or set to roll forward to) this month. Next Month's Events Just events due (or set to roll forward to) next month. Active Events Events due today, plus upcoming events for which you have set a specific number of warning (or preview) days, and any past due events (i.e., Sticky flag set). Matches from Search Events found that match your search criteria, after setting "Show Only Matches" to "√" ("On"). All Events All events in the data file. After making a choice of the type of events to print, a Category for Printing list pops up. Choose "All Categories" (the default) to print events in all categories or select another category of events to print. .PrintCategory Print Category Selection After pressing <Alt-P> to invoke the Print Events Menu, and making a choice on the type of events to print, a pop up "Category for Printing" box will let you select events to print by the category to which they are assigned. Print output will be limited to the category selected in this box. If you select "*" (All Categories), all categories of events are printed for the type of event you chose from the Print Events Menu. .Expire Expire (Reset) Event <F9> │ Expire (Reset) Event. Clears event until next Due Date. or │ <E> │ Does NOT permanently delete an event from the data file. │ (Use <Alt-F9> or <D> to permanently delete events.) This key will reset or "expire" the displayed event under the bar cursor, and set it to the next relevant date depending on whether it is Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Yearly, Floating, etc., whereupon it will pop up again when you invoke REMIND. Note that One-time events that are reset in this manner are deleted, since One-time events have no "next" date. .Delete Delete Event <Alt-F9> │ Delete Event. Erases event from the current data or │ file; no entry is made in the history file. <D> │ or │ PERMANENTLY DELETES any event under the bar cursor. <DEL> │ (Use <F9> or <E> to just expire--i.e., reset-- │ events to their next relevant Due Date.) .OptionOverview Option Setting Overview Option Settings - Overview ────────────────────────── You can configure REMIND to your preferences through the use of "start up options." Options may be set while in REMIND by pressing <Alt-O>, which will bring up a Option Settings dialog box -- the "Option editor." Move to the option of your choice with the arrow keys (or mouse click), and press any key (or click the mouse) to toggle the option between On [√] and Off [ ] (blank). Help is available for each option with <F1>. You can save your preferences by selecting "[ ] Save settings to ..." and then selecting [OK] to confirm your choices. REMIND will then remember your preferences by saving them to a plain-ASCII text file named REMINDER.OPT in the same directory as REMIND.EXE. REMIND reads this file when it boots and uses the settings in it as program (and Option display list) defaults. [REMINDER.OPT may be directly edited using an ASCII text editor or word processor in "plain text" mode; if you edit this option file you can place one or more options per line in any order. Each option begins with a slash (e.g., /A = Autosave option).] You also can use these start up options on the command line (i.e., from the DOS prompt). If you invoke REMIND from the command line or your AUTOEXEC.BAT, start-up options may be added in any order. The syntax is: REMIND [option][option]...[option] To automatically start REMIND each day from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, using the optional Once-per-day and Quick modes, enter this command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file (after any Path statement, which should include your REMIND directory) with an ASCII text editor or word processor in plain text mode: REMIND/O/Q All other optional settings (with the possible exception of /MONO -- see the "Change Colors option") can be entered with the Option editor (i.e., with <Alt-O>). .OptAutoSave Autosave updates option Autosave updates option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── Automatically saves any internal updates (resetting of events) made by the program that may take place. Using this option will prevent REMIND from asking if you want to save when you press <Esc> to exit. Most users will find this option useful. NOTE: If you make changes to events/reminders, you still will be prompted to save whether the Autosave option is used or not, if you press <Esc> to exit from REMIND. The only way to quit REMIND without being prompted to save changes is with the <F4> (Quit) key. .OptConfirmExpire Confirm on expire option Confirm on expire option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────── Sets REMIND to require confirmation (displays a Yes/No box) when you expire events (i.e., reset them to their next relevant due date) with the <F9> or <E> keys. Helps prevent accidentally resetting events prematurely -- very useful for new users. .OptUseHistory Maintain history option Maintain history option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── Indicates whether the file, REMINDER.HST (or other history file(s)), should be maintained. A history file is an ASCII file of your expired reminders. It can be used to recover old expired events. See the "History File Features" section in the REMIND manual for more information. (See also the Help Topic "Backup data file option." The Backup option makes a mirror image of your data file, while the History option makes a cumulative record of expired events.) .OptDefCat Default Category option Default category option ─────────────────────── Categories are used to group events on the main display screen, or to limit searches, and are user-definable. The value of this option can be set to one of 38 codes (A-Z, 0-9, *, or @) which sets the start up default value when adding new events. The code "@" (Uncategorized) is the default if not otherwise specified. That is, events are not categorized when first added to REMIND. See also the Help Topics "Category Display" and "Category List" for more information. .OptOnceMode Once per day mode option Once per day mode option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────── If set "On" this option causes REMIND to display events only once per day. Like Quick startup mode, the Once-per-day mode option typically is used when REMIND is run from your AUTOEXEC.BAT, if you frequently reboot your system and only want reminders displayed the first time REMIND is run each day. REMIND will bypass reminding you of today's events if you reboot your computer for any reason during the day. In your AUTOEXEC.BAT, use the command REMIND/O to set this option (or combine it with Quick startup mode: REMIND/O/Q). CAUTION: Setting this option "On" with the Option editor will set REMIND to load only once per day by changing the date stamp on the "date keeper" file, REMINDER.RUN, to the current date. You will NOT be able to run REMIND again that day unless you load it from the DOS prompt with this command: REMIND/NO (Negate Once per day mode) NOTE: REMIND will ask for confirmation if you set this option "On" with the Option editor and then choose "Save Settings." .OptQuickMode Quick start up option Quick start up option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────── Operate in Quick start up mode. In this mode, REMIND will not display if there are no Active events. It will simply display a message that "no events are active." Like the Once-per-day mode option, this option is typically used with the REMIND command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. REMIND will be bypassed if there are no Active events scheduled for the day, and the remainder of AUTOEXEC.BAT will execute. In your AUTOEXEC.BAT, use the command REMIND/Q (or combine Quick startup with Once-per-day mode: REMIND/Q/O). CAUTION: Setting this option "On" [√] with the Option editor or from the DOS command line will prevent you from loading REMIND in the usual way if there are no events Active. (Naturally, if you have Active events that day, REMIND will load as usual.) Therefore, if you set this option you may need to load REMIND from the DOS prompt with this command: REMIND/NQ (Negate Quick mode) NOTE: REMIND will ask for confirmation if you set this option "On" with the Option editor and then choose "Save Settings." See also the "Pause on Quick exit option" topic in this Help file. .OptPauseQuick Pause on Quick exit option Pause on Quick exit option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ────────────────────────── If set "On," and REMIND's Quick start up option is also set "On," REMIND will pause and alert you that no events are active. This toggle serves to modify the behavior of Quick start up mode, which if set, normally bypasses loading if no events are active that day. See also the "Quick start up option" topic in this Help file. .OptColorMonitor Color Monitor option Color Monitor option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────── This option is automatically set on for color monitors. Set it "Off" if you have a screen such as a lap-top that emulates a color adapter but has a monochrome screen. Start up options can be used to change colors. See the Help Topic "Change Colors." .OptSound Use sound option Use sound option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────── Include sound prompts (a soft "beep"). This option is particularly useful when REMIND is run from your AUTOEXEC.BAT, to alert you during boot-up that events are displayed. If used, this option will also cause the program to beep when certain confirmation messages are displayed. .OptBackup Backup data file option Create .BAK files ... Backup data file option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── Sets REMIND to automatically make a back up copy of your data file, with a .BAK extension, whenever you save your reminders. (See also the Help Topic "Maintain history option." The Backup option makes a mirror image of your data file, while the History option makes a cumulative record of expired events.) .OptSoftMouse Soft Mouse Reset option Soft Mouse Reset option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── If you are having problems with your mouse (erratic operation, slow initiation of the mouse, etc.), try setting this option Off. .OptAltDate Alternate Date option Alternate Date option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────── This option controls how REMIND display dates. You can set dates to display in US, or European (or military) format: "On" : October 15, 1995 will display as 15Oct1995 (European) "Off": October 15, 1995 will display as 10/15/1995 (US) The default is US format. .OptStickyDef Sticky-is-default option Sticky-is-default option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────── Indicates whether "On" or "Off" is the default setting for the "Sticky:" field in the event input screens. Some people want most events to "nag" them until they are physically reset <F9> or removed <Alt-F9>, and will set this option "On." Events then "stick" to the main display screen until the user takes some deliberate action in removing them. This default setting can be over-ridden: Any event's "Sticky" flag can be toggled "On" or "Off" when adding or updating the event from an input screen. .OptExpandBox Expanding boxes option Expanding boxes option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ────────────────────── Use "exploding" dialog boxes. Setting this "Off" can be useful on slower video systems, such as older PC/XTs; the dialog box is then displayed immediately (full-size). .OptSepHist Separate history file option Separate history file option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────────────────── Maintains a separate history file for event data. If set "On," REMIND will write history information to a file with the same name and directory as the currently loaded data file, using the extension .HST. Useful for multiple users with different REMIND data files on the same system. .OptVgaMode VGA 43/50-line mode option VGA 43/50-line mode option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ────────────────────────── Use VGA/EGA 50/43 line display mode, if available. The <ALT-V> key will also toggle the display between these two modes. This option is ignored if there is no VGA or EGA installed. .OptSolidTitle Solid Title Line option Solid Title Line option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── Sets the style of the underline characters and separator characters on the main display screen. "On" = graphic characters, "Off" = horizontal dashes. Turning this option "Off" is useful for those who prefer the "dash style" (used in earlier versions of REMIND), which may allow a cleaner "PrintScreen dump" to some printers. .OptTitleBox Title Box option Title Box option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ──────────────── Sets the style of the display screen's top lines. If set "On" (the default), the top lines will be enclosed in graphic lines (boxes). By setting this option "Off," you can force REMIND to display 3 more lines of events on its main display screen by reducing the space that graphic lines occupy. .OptWarnDays Default warn days option Default warn days option ──────────────────────── Allows a default number of warning (or preview) days to be specified. Enter how many days (0-9999) before the Due Date you would like to be reminded of the event's existence. (You can override this number when adding/updating an event.) When warning days have been set, REMIND will display your reminder in advance of the event's Due Date by the number of days you indicate. For many users, the more important the event the larger is this number. Setting this to 0 (zero) means the event will display exactly on its Due Date. However, if that day you are not on your computer, you will miss the event unless you have set the Sticky flag. Some events may not require much prior notice, and it may be irritating to see the event displayed dozens of days before the event is due. Use the fewest number of preview days that work for you. Too many days of warning can dilute the impact of a REMIND message. Warning days can be calendar days or week days. See the Help Topic "Warn-in-weekdays default option." .OptWarnWeekday Warn-in-weekdays default option Warn-in-weekdays default option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────────────── Specifies the default type of warning days when adding or updating an event: "On"= weekdays (Monday through Friday), "Off"= calendar days. If "On," REMIND will use weekdays instead of calendar days when calculating the earliest warning (preview) day to display an upcoming event. This setting may be helpful for students or business people who operate mainly on a Monday-through-Friday schedule. If, for example, you need to be reminded as early as Friday of a meeting the following Wednesday (because you will not be at your computer Saturday or Sunday), you would enter 3 weekday warning days for the Wednesday event so the Reminder will pop up Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. (It will also pop up Saturday and Sunday, if you load REMIND on those days.) See also the Help Topic "Default Warn Days option." .OptDateCheckDays Date-Check days option Date-Check days option ────────────────────── Indicates that REMIND should check the system date before processing reminders. The value specified indicates the maximum number of days (0-9999) before or after the previous run of REMIND that will be considered an error. This can be useful in detecting problems with the system date setting so that REMIND does not prematurely expire events. (REMIND uses the system date to perform some automatic functions, and assumes the system date is correct.) Try setting this value to 3, and increase/decrease as desired. .OptBlinkBg Blink Background option Blink Background option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────── If set "On," this option allows certain message fields in dialog boxes to blink, instead of displaying bright background colors. Using Blink Background precludes the use of Bright Background colors in message fields: these settings are mutually exclusive. Default = "Off." .OptShortCursor Short Cursor option Short Cursor option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────── If set "On" (the default), the horizontal bar cursor that selects an event will be shortened to cover only the Event Date and Days fields. If set "Off," the bar cursor will extend the width of the screen. .OptFirstWeekDay First Week Day option This option is set to "Mon" (the default) if you want REMIND to calculate using Monday as the first week day. Valid entries are Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, and Sat. .OptInputInsert Input Insert option Input Insert option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────── If set "On," the insert mode will be turned on during data entry in dialog boxes. (Default = Off) .OptCalAtStart Calendar At Start Up option Calendar At Start Up option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ─────────────────────────── Set "On" to have REMIND display the monthly calendar immediately after booting. Ordinarily, you must pop up the calendar by pressing <Alt-C> or clicking on the top line (date information) of the display screen. After the calendar displays, press <Esc> to return to the main reminder screen. .OptPrinterSetup Printer Setup Printer Setup option - [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────────────── Press any key in this field to bring up a dialog box that will allow you to set the printer port, number of lines to a page when printing from REMIND, and any special codes to be sent to the printer before or after printing. .PrtSetOverview Printer Settings Overview Printer Settings - Overview ─────────────────────────── You can configure your printer through the use of Printer Setup options. Printer port and lines per page: If your printer is connected to a port other than the default (LPT1), or it needs to be set to print fewer lines per page than the default value of 66 lines, you can change REMIND's settings to reflect these needs. Printing controls: You may want or need to send a printer "initialization" code or printer job "termination" code to the printer so that REMIND will temporarily set the printer's output (e.g., to compressed print mode). These codes are usually sent as a string of decimal numbers (e.g., 027 is decimal for ESC). .PrtSetPort Printer Port Most users will have their printer connected to LPT1. Change this to another port if your printer is connected differently. .PrtSetLines Lines per page Some printers may need to be temporarily set to a lower setting than 66 lines per page (the default). Enter the appropriate number in this field. (Some lasers cannot print more than 60 lines per page.) .PrtSetInit Init string Your printer may require (or you may desire) certain codes be sent to it to "initialize" it -- perhaps to set the printer to print in a different font or compressed pitch. These codes are usually sent as a string of decimal numbers (e.g., 027). See your printer manual for the appropriate codes to enter here. .PrtSetTerm Term string Your printer may require certain codes be sent to it to "terminate" the print job. These codes are usually sent as a string of decimal numbers (e.g., 027). See your printer manual for the appropriate codes to enter here. .OptChangeColors Change Colors Change Colors ───────────── If you have a color system, you can select start up default colors. Press any key in this field to bring up a dialog box ("Select Field"). In the box, choose between resetting all colors to their factory-shipped settings (the first selection), or setting one or more fields -- that is, areas on the main display screen -- to a new color. Remember to tell REMIND to save your settings to disk with "Save settings to ..." in the Option editor. NOTE: If you have a monochrome monitor, LCD screen, or color screen that may not be detected properly, or are having problems reading the screen (and you have tried various color combinations), try entering the option command /MONO in the REMINDER.OPT file with a plain-ASCII editor. .ColorOptFieldList Color Field List Color Field List ──────────────── You can choose between restoring all color defaults to their factory-shipped settings, or setting a field (an area on the main display screen) to a new color. The fields whose colors can be changed are: Field: Description: ----------------------------------------------- *Reset* Default color scheme Past Past events Today Today's events Future Future events Blank Blank line in the display area Cursor Bar cursor CursorP Color of bar cursor on past events CursorT Color of bar cursor on today's events CursorF Color of bar cursor on future events File "File:" name line Memory Memory status line Titles Column titles above events/reminders Legend Top line of screen & function key legend Addupd Add/Update dialog box Confirm Delete/Expire dialog box Search Search criteria dialog box Calendar Pop-up monthly calendar Calitems "N items" lines on calendar Exitbox Message box when exiting REMIND The current colors (foreground,background) for these fields are displayed in the Select Field box. Use the arrow keys or mouse to select a field to change. Press <Enter> (or mouse click) to bring up the dialog box entitled "New Foreground for ..." Choose a new foreground color for this field. Another box will pop up and allow you to set the background color for this field. For example, you may want to set the horizontal bar cursor to complement the colors of Past/Today's/Future events -- or perhaps allow the foreground color of an event to show through while retaining cursor highlighting. Try these: Field: Complementary: Show through: ------------------------------------------------------------------ Past - Lightred,Black Red,Black Today - Lightgreen,Black Yellow,Black Future - Lightcyan,Black Lightblue,Black ... ... Cursor - Black,Lightgray Black,Lightgray Cursorp - Black,Red Red,Lightgray (or Red,Cyan) Cursort - Black,Green Yellow,Lightgray (or Yellow,Cyan) Cursorf - Black,Cyan Lightblue,Lightgray (or Lightblue,Cyan) Remember to tell REMIND to save your settings to disk with the "Save settings to ..." option in the Option editor. .ColorOptFgList Color Foreground List Color Foreground List ───────────────────── Choose a foreground color from this list (you can type the letter displayed to the left of the color name): BLACK MAGENTA LIGHTBLUE YELLOW BLUE BROWN LIGHTGREEN WHITE GREEN LIGHTGRAY LIGHTCYAN CYAN DARKGRAY LIGHTRED RED LIGHTMAGENTA .ColorOptBgList Color Background List Color Background List ───────────────────── Choose a background color from this list (you can type the letter displayed to the left of the color name): BLACK RED BLUE MAGENTA GREEN BROWN CYAN LIGHTGRAY For EGA/VGA monitors, bright background colors may be selected: DARKGRAY LIGHTRED LIGHTBLUE LIGHTMAGENTA LIGHTGREEN YELLOW LIGHTCYAN WHITE If the blink option is set, the following background settings can be specified: BLACK+BLINK RED+BLINK BLUE+BLINK MAGENTA+BLINK GREEN+BLINK BROWN+BLINK CYAN+BLINK LIGHTGRAY+BLINK .OptSaveSettings Save Settings Save Settings [√]=On [ ]=Off ───────────── If you change any options listed in the Options editor, you can tell REMIND to save them for future sessions by setting this field "On" [√]. Otherwise, any changes you make to the option settings will be used for the current REMIND session only.