Black Box 4/BlackBox.cdr/desktop/rmnd30.arj/REMINDER.HLP

Text File | 1992-04-01 | 57KB | 1,320 lines

\\HELPFILE//  VERSION 3
.Main Help Information and Registration
 Key:    Use:                                   <PgDn> for more...
 ───     ───                                    ──────────────────
 F1      =Help. Available from any window or data input field.
 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.
 Alt-F   =Select a new reminder data File.
 Alt-V   =Toggle between 25-line and 50-line mode for VGA displays.
 Alt-P   =Select the Print Events Menu.

 Shortcut keys:
 ─────────────
 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.
 R        =Re-sort displayed events on screen.
 S        =Search events for Reminder text and/or event Due Date.
 U        =Update, view, or clone (copy) the highlighted event.
 Tab/Shft-Tab
          =Cycle forward/backward through categories displayed
            on the main screen.


 Explanation of main display screen terms:
 ────────────────────────────────────────
 C          - Category code of event and reminder text message.
 Event Date - The date an event is due.
 Days Left  - The number of calendar days until an event is due,
              or is past due (shown with a trailing minus sign).
 Type       - Event type (access Help from Add New Event or
              Update Event screens for more information on
              types.)  A "+" indicates a Sticky event flag.
 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 <F6> or <U> to view Memos).
     ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
     │ Press T (or click on Topics) for a menu of help topics │
     └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
       For Registration, press <PgDn>...

 REMIND was written by Tom R. Donnelly.  Documentation and help
 text were written by Barry MacDonnell.

 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 (yet affordable) programs to users.  You'll
 also be notified of free updates to the program.

 To register, complete the registration form at the end of the
 documentation or send $20 (U.S. Funds) to:
               Tom Donnelly Computer Software
                       P.O. Box 3856
                    San Dimas, CA  91773
       *Please indicate what size floppy disk you prefer.*
              Thank you for supporting shareware.

.FileName Data File Name

 REMIND keeps events in a separate ASCII text file.  The default
 name 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.

.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 /DEFCAT:x) in the REMIND
 option file.  (See below on how to add new categories.)

 From the Select Category Display box, 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.

 If you want to add, change, or delete categories from the
 category list, select the choice "<<< Add/Edit Category >>>."
 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.

.InputMain Event Input Screens

 REMIND has two Event Input Screens:

  <F5> or <A>  Add New Event allows you to create events.
  <F6> or <U>  Update Event allows you to modify or view events.

 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.

 The Update Event screen (accessed with <F6> or <U> 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 <U> 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,
 this is the date REMIND will display your reminder message on
 the main screen.  If Warning Days have been set, REMIND will
 display your reminder in advance of the event's Due Date by the
 number of (calendar or weekday) days 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 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 11/02/1992, if the current year
 is 1992).  If only a day is entered, the current month and year
 will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1992).

 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.

.InputType Event Type

 Event Type is the frequency of occurrence of an event.
 Valid types that can be used in the Event Input Screens are:

 Value  Meaning        Updated to
 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 O      One-time       (Automatically deleted after the
                         scheduled date has arrived.)
 D      Daily          Next day (tomorrow).
 W      Weekly         7 days from scheduled date.
 B      Biweekly       14 days from scheduled date.
 QW     Quad-weekly    28 days from scheduled date.
 M      Monthly        Same day next month.
 BM     Bimonthly      Same day in two months.
 Q      Quarterly      Same day in three months.
 SA     Semiannually   Same day in six months.
 Y      Yearly         Same month/day next year.
 BA     Biannually     Same month/day in two years.
 LDA    Floating       Last day of the month.

 1,2,3,4,5, or L (plus SU, MO, TU, WE, TH, FR, SA)
        Floating       Next occurrence that qualifies
                       (e.g., 3WE=3rd Wednesday).

 1,2,3,4,5, or L (plus BU)
        Floating       Next business day (weekday) that
                       qualifies (e.g., LBU=last business
                       day of the month).

 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.

 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 (like reminders about holidays or
 vacations): set the Sticky flag off (blank) for these events.

 You may set the default for this field to "On" by using the /SD
 option in the REMIND option file.

.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 the /WARN: option in the REMIND option file).

 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 set the default type of warning days to either
 Calendar Warning Days or Weekday Warning Days with a setting in
 the REMIND option file: /WARNDEF:CAL for calendar days, and
 /WARNDEF:WEEK for weekdays.

.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 may set the default type of warning days to either
 Calendar Warning Days or Weekday Warning Days with a setting in
 the REMIND option file: /WARNDEF:CAL for calendar days, and
 /WARNDEF:WEEK for weekdays.

.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 <U> 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 <U> 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 <U> 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 <U> 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
 /DEFCAT:x) in the REMIND option file.  (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 /DEFCAT:x command.

.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 11/02/1992, if the current year
 is 1992).  If only a day is entered, the current month and year
 will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1992).

 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 types from the
 list:

 Type           Update Event to:
 ───────────────────────────────────────────────
 One-time       (Automatically deleted after the
                 scheduled date has arrived.)
 Daily          Next day (tomorrow).
 Weekly         7 days from scheduled date.
 BiWkly         14 days from scheduled date.
 QuadWk         28 days from scheduled date.
 Monthly        Same day next month.
 BiMonth        Same day in two months.
 Qrtrly         Same day in three months.
 SemiAnn        Same day in six months.
 Yearly         Same month/day next year.
 BiAnn          Same month/day in two years.
 Floating       Next occurrence that qualifies.

.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.
 Choose the occurrence of the floating event:



 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.).

.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 11/02/1992, if the current year is
 1992).  If only a day is entered, the current month and year
 will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1992).

 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 11/02/1992, if the current year is
 1992).  If only a day is entered, the current month and year
 will be added (entering 2 in November produces 11/02/1992).

 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.

.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 /DEFCAT:x) in the
 REMIND option file.

.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.

   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
 permanently 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.)

.Startup Start Up Options (Part 1)

 You can configure REMIND to your preferences through the use of
 start up options.  These may be kept in a plain-ASCII text file
 (one or more options per line in any order) named REMINDER.OPT,
 in the same directory as REMIND.EXE.  Or you may 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]

 Option                 Description
 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 /A   Automatically save 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, if you press <Esc> to exit. Most users will find this
      option useful.  (NOTE: If you make changes while in REMIND,
      you will still be prompted to save whether this option is
      used or not, if you press <Esc> to exit.  The only way to
      quit without being prompted to save changes is with <F4>.)
      /NA = Negates Automatic save mode if previously set.

 /CE  Indicates whether confirmation is required when expiring
      events with the <F9> or <E> key.  /NCE is the default if
      not otherwise specified.  /CE is very useful for beginners.
      /NCE = No confirmation.

 /D:nnn
      Indicates that REMIND should check the system date before
      processing reminders.  The value nnn indicates the maximum
      number of days before or after the previous run of REMIND
      that is to be considered an error.  This can be useful in
      detecting problems with the system date setting so that
      REMIND does not prematurely expire events.  Try setting
      this value to 3, and increase/decrease as desired.
      /ND = No date checking is performed (the default).

 /DEFCAT:x
      Definition of categories. Categories are used to group
      events on the main display screen, or to limit searches,
      and are user-definable. The value of "x" can be one of 38
      codes (A-Z, 0-9, *, or @). This sets the start up default
      value when adding new events. "@" (Uncategorized) is the
      default if not otherwise specified.

 /H   Indicates whether the file, REMINDER.HST or other history
      file(s), should be maintained.  /H is the default if not
      otherwise specified.  A history file is an ASCII file of
      your expired reminders.  See also the /SH option and the
      "History File Features" section in the REMIND manual.
      /NH = Negates the use of history files.

 /O   Display events only Once per day.  This option 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.  However, you can still run
      REMIND anytime from the DOS prompt.  /NO = Negates
      Once-per-day mode if previously set.

 /Q   Operate in Quick mode.  In this mode, REMIND will display
      nothing if there are no Active events.  This option is only
      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.  Do not use from the DOS command line or in a
      start up option file.  /NQ = Negates Quick mode if
      previously set.

 /S   Include Sound-prompts (a soft "beep").  No Sound-prompts
      is the default.  This option is useful when REMIND is run
      from your AUTOEXEC.BAT, to alert you during boot-up that
      events are displayed.  If used, the Sound-prompts option
      will also cause the program to beep when certain
      confirmation messages are displayed.  /NS = Negates
      Sound-prompts mode if previously set.

 For additional options, see these help topics:

           Start Up Options (Part 2)
           Start Up Options - Examples
           Screen Colors

.Startup2 Start Up Options (Part 2)

 /SD  Indicates whether "√" ("On") is the default answer to
      "Sticky" when entering events in the Event Input Screens.
      /NSD (i.e., Not a Sticky Date) is the default if not
      otherwise specified.  Some users may wish to have most
      events "nag" them until they are physically reset <F9> or
      removed <Alt-F9>.  /NSD = Sets Sticky flag off if
      previously set on.

 /SH  Maintain separate history files for event data.  If used,
      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 data files on the same system.  /NSH = No
      separate history files (the default).

 /V   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.  /NV = Negates VGA/EGA mode if previously set.

 /WARN:nnnn
      Allows a default number of Warning Days to be specified.
      The default is zero (0) warning days when adding new
      reminders.  The type of warning days can be set with
      /WARNDEF.

 /WARNDEF:WEEK or /WARNDEF:CAL
      Specifies the default type of Warning Days when adding an
      event interactively.  WEEK=Weekdays. CAL=Calendar days.
      /WARNDEF:CAL is the default if not otherwise specified.

 /X   Use exploding dialog boxes.  Exploding boxes is the
      default.  /NX can be useful on slower video systems, such
      as older PC/XTs; the dialog box is then displayed
      immediately (full-size).  /NX = Negates exploding boxes.

 For additional options, see these help topics:

           Start Up Options (Part 1)
           Start Up Options - Examples
           Screen Colors

.StartupExamples Start Up Options - Examples

 Some examples using REMIND's start up options on the command
 line or in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file:

      REMIND/Q/O         or,
      REMIND/A/SD/V      or,
      REMIND/O/Q/A/S/CE

 (Options may be in any order.)

 These commands are especially useful if they are placed in your
 AUTOEXEC.BAT file, after your PATH statement and before any
 system menu command or program start up command.  The last
 example means:  Display reminders Once a day, Quick mode,
 Automatically saving internal updates, Sound (beep) on boot up
 or when messages are displayed, and ask for Confirmation before
 resetting Events.  You can also create a plain-ASCII start up
 option file named REMINDER.OPT, containing these same commands
 (except /Q an /O), in the same directory as REMIND.EXE.

 For example, below is a REMINDER.OPT file containing one user's
 preferences for certain start-up defaults and a color monitor.
 If you use this example, then the only command you may want to
 insert in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file is:  REMIND/Q/O.  That is,
 start REMIND in Quick mode (i.e., bypass loading REMIND if there
 are no reminders Active for that day), and automatically display
 any Active reminders only Once a day.

      /S/A/SD/CE/D:3
      /WARNDEF:WEEK
      /DEFCAT:*
      /COLOR:FILE:LIGHTGREEN,BLACK
      /COLOR:MEMORY:LIGHTGRAY,BLACK
      /COLOR:TITLES:LIGHTCYAN,BLACK
      /COLOR:CURSOR:BLACK,LIGHTGRAY
      /COLOR:PAST:LIGHTRED,BLACK
      /COLOR:TODAY:LIGHTCYAN,BLACK
      /COLOR:FUTURE:YELLOW,BLACK

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 Note 1: For changing COLORS with color monitors or using LCD
 monitors, see the Help Topic "Colors."

 Note 2: For a complete explanation of how to use start up
 options, see "PLACEMENT OF START-UP OPTIONS" in the manual.
 Or see these help topics:

           Start Up Options (Part 1)
           Start Up Options (Part 2)
           Screen Colors

.Colors Screen Colors

 If you have a color monitor or are using a LCD monitor, these
 start up options can be used to change colors or force the type
 of scheme used.  (Also see the Help Topic "Start Up Options.")

 /COLOR and /MONO   These options force the use of color or
      monochrome color schemes. Useful when running REMIND on
      monochrome screens that emulate color (like LCD screens) or
      color screens that are not detected properly.

 /COLOR:fld:fg,bg

      This option allows various fields to be set to
      user-designated colors.

      "fld" names the field to be set.  "fg" and "bg" are the
      foreground and background colors.

      For example, to set PAST events as yellow on red,
      /COLOR:PAST:YELLOW,RED should be used.  These may be
      specified either as an environment variable, in the option
      file, or on the command line -- but the option file is
      probably better due to space considerations.

      /COLOR:DEFAULT may be used to override colors in the option
      file with the default color scheme (note there are no color
      values with this parameter).

      fld
      Values  Description                     fg Values bg Values
      ──────  ──────────────────────────────  ───────── ─────────
      LEGEND  Top line & function key legend  BLACK     BLACK
      FILE    "File:" name line               BLUE      BLUE
      MEMORY  Memory status line              GREEN     GREEN
      TITLES  Column titles                   CYAN      CYAN
      PAST    Past events                     RED       RED
      TODAY   Today's events                  MAGENTA   MAGENTA
      FUTURE  Future events                   BROWN     BROWN
      CURSOR  Bar cursor                      LIGHTGRAY LIGHTGRAY
      ADDUPD  Add/Update dialog box           DARKGRAY
      SEARCH  Search criteria dialog box      LIGHTBLUE
      CONFIRM Delete/Expire dialog box        LIGHTGREEN
      DEFAULT Use default color scheme        LIGHTCYAN
      EXITBOX Message box when exiting REMIND LIGHTRED
      BLANK   Blank line in display area      LIGHTMAGENTA
                                              YELLOW
                                              WHITE

 For additional options, see these help topics:

           Start Up Options (Part 1)
           Start Up Options (Part 2)
           Start Up Options - Examples