The Business Master (3rd Edition)

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E A S Y A C C E S S E A S Y A C C E S S Version 6.2 A fixed disk menu system for all PC & MS DOS computers Copyright (C) 1987-1991 TengWare Enterprises A member of the Association of Shareware Professionals INSTRUCTION MANUAL TengWare Enterprises 28162 Amable Mission Viejo, CA 92692 Phone: 714-587-1025 CompuServe ID: 71541,1317 Table of Contents Table of Contents 1. Product Information ........................ 3 2. Installation ............................... 5 3. Create / Modify Configuration .............. 9 4. Create / Modify Menus ...................... 12 5. Create / Modify Function Keys .............. 16 6. Create / Modify User Sign On's ............. 17 7. Calendar / Reminder System ................. 19 8. Predefined Function Keys ................... 21 9. Troubleshooting ............................ 24 10. Version Notes .............................. 26 11. Converting Menu Files from Version 5.x ..... 30 12. Association of Shareware Professionals ..... 31 13. Registration Form .......................... 32 - 2 - Chapter 1 The Easy Access Menu System The Easy Access Menu System The Easy Access Menu System has been designed to be simple to use yet have the features and aesthetics required in the business environment. Features : Simple set up and maintenance User defined colors and headings Twenty six options per menu with unlimited sub-menus Ten user defined function keys Two screen display formats Usage logging with user log on (optional) No memory overhead when in your application programs Screen Saver Calendar and Reminder subsystem Point & Shoot Mouse Support Easy Access has been designed so that no files will be corrupted if you turn off the computer when you are either sitting at a menu or waiting for log on. If you turn off the computer while entering users or reminders you may corrupt the corresponding file. See notes on troubleshooting if you think this may have happened. Easy Access is marketed under the shareware concept. This means that you are obligated to register it with TengWare Enterprises if you find it to be of value to you. You may distribute unregistered copies as long as they have not been modified in any way and it is given without charge, a distribution fee not to exceed $9.00 is allowable. Distribution of this program in modified form or for profit is expressly forbidden. The benefits of registering: 1. You will receive a serialized copy of the latest version of Easy Access. This copy will not display the TengWare logo upon system start up. The TengWare logo will only be displayed when you change the configuration. 2. You will be given phone access to TengWare Enterprises for quicker response to any questions or problems you may have. 3. You will be informed of major enhancements to the program. The registration fee is $25 for a single installation. A Site license is available for $200. Send all correspondence to: TengWare Enterprises 28162 Amable Mission Viejo, CA 92692 - 3 - If you are having problems or need some questions answered you will receive faster response if you use the electronic mail on either GEnie (ID: J.TENGWALL1) or CompuServe (ID: 71541,1317). To make registration easier a registration form has been included at the end of this document. If you would like the menu system to display your company name and address, or some form of advertising upon system start up, send a description of what you would like done along with the registration form to TengWare Enterprises. We will contact you regarding cost. Standard customization fees: Display of your company name and address $150.00 Advertisement or company name for distribution $300.00 These charges are in addition to the registration fee. Note: The passwords & security in Easy Access are not, nor are they meant to be, a fool proof security system. It is meant as a means of reducing operator error. TengWare Enterprises makes no warranty of any kind, express or implied. TengWare Enterprises shall not be liable for any damages, whether direct, indirect, special or consequential arising from a failure of this program to operate in the manner desired by the user. TengWare Enterprises shall not be liable for any damages to data or property which may be caused directly or indirectly by use of this program. In no event will TengWare Enterprises be liable to you for any damages, including but not limited to, lost profits, lost savings or other incidental or consequential damages arising out of your use or inability to use the program, or for any claim by any other party. - 4 - Chapter 2 Easy Access - Installation Guide Easy Access - Installation Guide Easy Access is designed to run on a hard disk but it may be installed on a floppy. The following instructions assume you are going to install it on hard disk C:. If you wish to install it on a different drive just replace all references of C: to the drive of your choice. Before beginning you should make a list of the programs you wish to attach to the menu system. You will need the program name, drive that the programs are on, and the path or directory the programs are in. Ex: You have Lotus on your computer, it is on drive D: in the directory LOTUS123, and you run it by typing 123. In this case the program name is 123, the drive is D:, and the directory is LOTUS123. If you are upgrading from a previous version of Easy Access please read chapter 9 before continuing. 1. Insert the Easy Access diskette in drive A. 2. Set your working drive to the drive you wish to install Easy Access on. Type: C: C: 3. Create a subdirectory for Easy Access on drive C. Type: MD \MENUS MD \MENUS 4. Change over to the new directory. Type: CD \MENUS CD \MENUS 5. Copy the files from the diskette to your fixed disk drive. Type: COPY A:*.* COPY A:*.* 6. Your screen should list the following files as they are copied to your fixed disk. MS.EXE MSHELP.DAT READ.ME ORDER.TXT MENU.BAT MANUAL.TXT 7. You now need to run Easy Access Type: MENU MENU Hit the Enter key to bypass registration information. - 5 - 8. Easy Access will tell you the configuration file was not found, this is normal. It will also ask if you wish to create it, answer 'Y' to this question. You must now answer all of the configuration questions. For a detailed explanation of the configuration turn to chapter 3. Remember that hitting the F1 key displays help. Also information about each question is displayed at the bottom of the screen. 9. If you have answered 'Y' to Sign On in the configuration you will now have to sign on. The default sign on is '*' and the password is 'tengware' (note lower case). 10. Upon completion of the configuration Easy Access will tell you the menu does not exist, this is normal. It will also ask if you wish to create it, answer 'Y' to this question. You should now set up your first menu. Please refer to Chapter 4 for instructions on setting up the menu. 11. If you have answered 'Y' to Sign on in the configuration you will now have to sign on again. Please do so using the default sign on defined above. You now need to set up a sign on for yourself. To access the sign on file hit the F8 key, goto Chapter 5 for instructions to set up sign on's. 12. You should now have the menu displayed on your screen. Exit to DOS (hit the F10 key) and run the menu batch file. Type: MENU MENU The menu system is now functional. Note that the first time you access the program you run MS. From that point on you do not run MS, you run the batch file defined in the configuration (the default batch file name is MENU). If you run a program from Easy Access, when you exit that program you will automatically be returned to Easy Access if you are running a program whose name ends in either .COM or .EXE. If you are running a batch file (they end in .BAT) you will need to add the commands to return to Easy Access to the end of that batch file. For Example lets say you have a batch file set up to format a group of floppies and then backup your fixed disk. It may read as follows: FORMAT A: - 6 - BACKUP D:\*.* A: /S To make this batch file return to Easy Access you will need to add the following statements: C: CD \MENUS MENU So that the new batch file will read as follows: FORMAT A: BACKUP D:\*.* A: /S C: CD \MENUS MENU For information on how to modify batch files refer to your DOS manual. To make the menu system come up automatically when you turn on your computer you need to modify or create a file called AUTOEXEC.BAT that resides in the root directory of the disk you boot from. For information on how to modify a batch file refer to your DOS manual. An example AUTOEXEC.BAT file: ECHO OFF PATH C:\DOS CD \MENUS MENU /L If you wish to be able to access Easy Access from anywhere on your PC you will want to modify the PATH command in the above example to read: PATH C:\DOS; C:\MENUS This will allow you to access Easy Access from any disk or directory on your PC. If you already have an AUTOEXEC.BAT file keep in mind that no statements after the MENU statement will be executed. - 7 - List of Easy Access File MS.EXE The Easy Access program file MSHELP.DAT Contains the help text displayed when F1 is pressed MANUAL.TXT Contains this document READ.ME A file that should be read prior to installation ORDER.TXT A sample registration form MENU.BAT The batch file used to run MS.EXE MSB.BAT The batch file created to run your application *.M60 The menu files, one file for each menu / sub-menu MSUSR.DAT Contains user log-on's MSREM.DAT Contains the reminders MSREM.HST Reminder history MSCFG.DAT Contains the configuration, colors, headings, etc. MSFKY.DAT Function key definitions MSLOG.DAT The usage log file, will only be present if usage logging has been enabled. - 8 - Chapter 3 The Configuration The Configuration The configuration defines the options, colors, and headings that Easy Access uses on your computer. It is possible to set up the configuration so that Easy Access does not work, so it is important that it is set up correctly. What follows is a list of all the questions in configuration maintenance and their effect. At the top of the screen is a display of 15 colors, if you are on a monochrome monitor this will display as different intensities. The number that appears under each color is what is used to answer a particular question as to which color you want. If you answer a question with 0 no color will appear. If you make all colors the same including the background color you will not be able to see anything at all. System Password: XXXXXXXX System Password: The system password is required to modify the configuration and menus. If you enter something here you will need to remember what it is to be allowed back in to modify it. If you do forget what it is refer to chapter 8. It is important to remember that passwords are case sensitive. System Heading: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX System Heading: This is the heading that appears at the top of all of your menus. Designed for your name or your companies name. Disk Drive: X Disk Drive: This is the drive the Easy Access programs and files are on. You should only need to change this if you are copying the menu system from one disk to another. If this is wrong Easy Access will not work correctly. Path Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Path Name: This is the directory the Easy Access programs and files are in. They must all be in the same directory. You should only need to change this if you have copied Easy Access from one directory to another. If this is wrong Easy Access will not work properly. User Defined F-Keys: X User Defined F-Keys: This enables/disables the use & definition of the 10 user defined function keys. 'Y'=Enabled, 'N'=Disabled. Return to Last Menu: X Return to Last Menu: After running a program from the menu a 'Y' here tells Easy Access to display the menu you were last on, also highlighting the option chosen. An 'N' here tells Easy Access to always return to the Main Menu (MS.M60) after executing a program regardless of which menu you ran the program from. - 9 - System Heading Color: NN System Heading Color: This is the color that the System Heading, the date, and the time, will be displayed in. Border Color: NN Border Color This is the color of the boxes drawn on the screen. If you do not wish to see the boxes make this color the same as the background color. Menu Color: NN Menu Color: This is the color your menu heading and options will be displayed in. Help Line Color: NN Help Line Color: This is the color for the help line and function key definitions that appear at the bottom of the screen. Background Color: NN Background Color: This is the color of the background on your screen. If this color is the same as any of the other color choices you will not see it on the screen. For instance if both the Background Color and the Menu Color are 11 (Cyan) you would not be able to see you menu choices. Input Color: NN Input Color: This is the color used as background for all inputs. This allows you to see how long of an input the computer will accept. Screen Time Out Msg: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Screen Time Out Msg: This is the message that appears when the screen has been saved. It's purpose is to inform the user that the screen has been cleared and how to restore it. Menu Box Color: NN Menu Box Color: This is the background color for the menu box. Do not use the same color here as used in either the System Heading or the Menu Color. Select Color: NN Select Color: This is the background color used to highlight the current selection. If this is the same as the System Heading Color your current selection will not be visible on the screen. User Sign On: X (Y/N) User Sign On: This tells Easy Access whether or not you want people to sign on before they are allowed to do anything on the computer. If you answer 'Y' to this question you will need to set up the people who are allowed to use the computer in User Maintenance. For more details refer to chapter 5. Usage Log: X (Y/N) Usage Log: Tells Easy Access whether or not you want to keep a log of everything that is accessed through the menu system. If you - 10 - answer 'Y' a file (MSLOG.DAT) is created and the F7 key is enabled. A slight increase is speed is gained by answering 'N' here. Menu Status: X (Y/N) Menu Status: This enables/disables the F3 key from the menu. If you answer 'Y' here the F3 key will display the options on your menu, when they were last run, and who ran them. A slight increase in speed is gained by answering 'N' here. Reminders: X (Y/N) Reminders: This enables/disables the Reminder subsystem (the F2 key from the menu). See chapter 6 for more information about the Reminders. Screen Time Out: NN Screen Time Out: How long in minutes to leave the menu displayed before the screen is cleared. This option is meant to save your monitor from damage due to leaving it on to long. The screen will be restored when you hit the space bar. If you enter '0' here the screen will never be cleared. CR Required: X (Y/N) CR Required: Should users be forced to hit the enter key after each input ? Answering 'N' speeds up getting around in the system but also increases the probability of making a mistake. 12 Hour Clock: X (Y/N) 12 Hour Clock: Answering 'N' will display the time in military format (1pm = 13:00). Answering 'Y' will display 1pm as 1:00. Batch File Name: XXXXXXXX Batch File Name: This the name of the batch file used to invoke Easy Access. You may already have a program on your system called MENU. This allows you use Easy Access without any conflict with other applications. If you change this to be something other than MENU you should replace MENU with whatever you put here in the installation instructions. DO NOT try to add an extension to this name, Easy Access automatically adds the .BAT extension when defining the file. Display Format: N (1 or 2) Display Format: This indicates which type of menu display you wish. You should try both options to decide which you want to use on a regular basis. Date Format: X (M/D/Y) Date Format: This allows the dates that are displayed by Easy Access to be in one of three formats, where M = MM/DD/YY, D = DD/MM/YY, and Y = YY/MM/DD. If you are setting up the configuration for the first time or are changing the answer to User Sign On to 'Y', you will need to sign - 11 - on after completing the configuration. If there are no previously set up users on the system you will have to use the default sign on: USER = '*', PASSWORD = 'tengware'. If you are installing Easy Access please return to step 9 of the installation instructions. - 12 - Chapter 4 Creating / Modifying Menus Creating / Modifying Menus We have tried to make setting up menus as simple as possible yet still have the options we felt were necessary. If a menu is set up incorrectly it will not access your programs correctly. When in menu maintenance you may use the arrows to move around. If you are trying to change or add an option at the bottom of the screen there is no need to CR through all of the previously entered option. What follows is a list of the different inputs in the order that they appear on the screen. Return Menu: XXXXXXXX Return Menu: This is the menu to return to when you hit the F9 key. It will automatically be set to the prior menu. The menus normally follow a standard tree structure where the main menu points to a sub-menu which may point to another sub-menu, when you hit the F9 key to go to the previous menu it will back out in the reverse order that you took to get there, going no further when you finally reach the main menu (MS). You can change this by changing the return menu name. You may want all sub-menus to return directly to the main menu, you can do this by entering 'MS' in all of the sub-menus. You can also make the F9 key toggle between 2 menus or create a circle where the F9 key will cycle through all of your menus. If you do not understand this explanation do not change what is there and Easy Access will work fine. If you want to delete this menu entering the word DELETE will delete it. Menu Title: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Menu Title: This is the title for this particular menu. It will appear just under the System Heading on the screen. The rest of the inputs are for the individual options on the menu. You may have up to 16 programs or sub-menu attached to 1 menu. Type: X Type: This defines what type of option this is. There are three types: H - Menu Heading, P - Program/Command, M - Sub-Menu. The following defines each option and the user input required. Type H - MENU HEADING Type H - MENU HEADING Menu headings appear within the body of the menu. They can be used to further define options on the menu or to double space the menu itself. Description: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Description: This is the heading you wish to appear within the menu. It can not be selected by the user as an option. - 13 - Type P - PROGRAM/COMMAND Type P - PROGRAM/COMMAND Program options are to add your programs or DOS commands to the menu. Without these the menu would have no useful function. Menu Description: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Menu Description: This is the description of this program as you wish it to appear on the menu. DISK: X DISK If your program is on drive 'D:', you would enter 'D' here. The programs you want to run from Easy Access do not need to be on the same drive as Easy Access. You must specify the correct disk the program is on for the program to work. Path: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Path This is the directory/path your program is in. If this is not correct Easy Access will not be able to run your program. Program/Command: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Program/Command XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX These are the program(s) and or DOS command(s) you want to execute when the user chooses this option from the menu. If the path is the same as specified above you do not need to include the path in the name. Any DOS commands or files with extensions EXE, COM, or BAT are valid entries here. Parameters may be entered following the command/program name. Action Flag: X Action Flag There are three valid options here. If you enter 'C' here Easy Access will ask for a command line before running this program. A 'P' will cause Easy Access to ask you to hit the enter key before returning to the menu after running your program. Anything else is ignored and nothing special is done either before or after your program is run. Password/Access Code: XXXXXXX Password/Access Code This is either a password or access code. If you enter just one character here it is considered an access code, if you enter more than one character it is considered a password. If this is left blank no restrictions are placed upon this option. Access Codes are only active if User Log On is enabled. Help Line Description: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Help Line Description This is a line of description that will appear when this option has been selected by the user. It can be used to further define what the option is or does. Some examples: - 14 - You have Lotus on your computer and you want to attach it to a menu. Lotus is on drive D: in the directory LOTUS123. To access it without the menu system you would have to type in the following commands: D: CD \LOTUS123 123 To attach this to the menu you would set it up as follows: Description: Lotus 123 Dsk : D Path : LOTUS123 Program : 123 F : blank A : blank You want to have an option on the menu that copies files from C:\SPRINT and you want only those files that end in .SPR to a location that you want to input each time you do the copy. Description: Copy Sprint Files Dsk : C Path : SPRINT Program : COPY *.SPR F : C (this allows you to input where you want it copied to) A : blank Type M - SUB-MENU Type M - SUB-MENU Sub-Menus are complete menus that are accessed from your main menu. There is no limit to the number or depth of the menus. The only limit imposed is you can not access more than 26 menus from one menu. Sub-Menus are useful in grouping programs of like nature together on one screen, i.e. Games. Menu Description: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Menu Description: This is the description of this option as you wish it to appear on the menu. Menu Name: XXXXXXXX Menu Name: This is the name of the menu. It must be unique, you can not have two menus with the same name. It is used to create a file so you should use only the characters 1-9 and A-Z, anything else may not work. Password/Access Code: XXXXXXX Password/Access Code This is either a password or access code. If you enter just one character here it is considered an access code, if you enter more than one character it is considered a password. If this is left blank no restrictions are placed upon this option. Access Codes are only active if User Log On is enabled. - 15 - Help Line Description: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Help Line Description This is a line of description that will appear when this option has been selected by the user. It can be used to further define what the menu is. An example: Menu Description : Games Menu Menu Name : GAMES Password/Access Code : Help Line Description: This sets up the option on the current menu, you now have to set up the sub-menu itself. To do this exit out of menu maintenance. You will now see 'Games Menu' as one of your options, choose that option. Easy Access will tell you the menu was not found, do you wish to define it. Answer 'Y', you are now in menu maintenance for your GAMES menu. If your are installing Easy Access please return to step 11 of the installation instructions. - 16 - Chapter 5 Create / Modify Function Keys Create / Modify Function Keys Easy Access allows you to set up 10 function keys, they are accessed by hitting the ALT key in conjunction with the specified function key. They work exactly like choosing a 'P' option from the menu but they remain constant regardless of which menu/sub- menu you are in. To add or modify the function keys hit the F9 key from any menu. A window will appear displaying F1 through F10. Use the arrow keys to get to the desired key, now hit the enter key. A window now appears exactly like the one for 'P' options in menu definition, the only difference is that the menu description is limited to 8 characters. For detailed information on what each field in the window is and does refer to Chapter 4, Type P - Program/Command. - 17 - Chapter 6 Create / Modify User Sign On's Create / Modify User Sign On's Users only need to be set up if you have User Sign On enabled in the configuration. Easy Access automatically sets up user '*'. You can not delete this sign on. If you do not want people to use this sign on change it's password. If you do not have at least one sign on which enables you to add users or change the configuration you will will have to erase MSUSR.* to restore this ability. This means you will have to re-enter all of your sign on's. Sign On: XXXXXX Sign On: This is a persons sign on, it is not the password and it appears on the screen when they type it. First names are what we recommend using. If you hit the enter key without entering anything it will bring up the next user on file. User Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX User Name: This is meant to be the users full name for identification purposes only. Hitting the F10 key here will return you to the menu. Password: XXXXXXXX Password: This is the password required to use this sign on. Remember that passwords are case sensitive. User Set Up: X (Y/N) User Set Up: This allows this user to add and change other user sign on's including their own. Answering 'Y' to this field even if you answer 'N' to others will allow this user to change their sign on at a latter time to do anything they want. Configuration: X (Y/N) Configuration: Allows this sign on to modify the configuration. If answered 'Y' this person can turn off User Sign On which would stop access codes from restricting access to programs. They could also turn off usage logging so that there is no record of what they did on the computer. Modify Menus: X (Y/N) Modify Menus: Allows this user to modify menus. If answered 'Y' this user can change passwords and access codes in any menu. This means they can access any option on any menu. Usage Report: X (Y/N) Usage Report: If answered 'Y' allows this user to view and clear the usage log. Access DOS:: X (Y/N) Access DOS: If answered 'Y' allows this user to hit F10 from the menu and get to DOS. Access Codes: XXXXXX Access Codes: - 18 - This is used in conjunction with the access code in menu maintenance to decide whether or not a user is allowed to access a particular program. If this field is left blank the user is allowed in all programs and menus, otherwise if a menu option has an access code it must appear in the users access list for that user to be allowed to run that option. Reminder File: XXXXXXXX Reminder File: This is the name of the file to store this users reminders in. If you wish all users to share the same reminders leave this with 'MSREM'. If you want users to have their own separate reminders give each user a different file name here. I suggest using their Sign On as the file name. Do not use file extensions here. There is no limit to the number of users that can be set up on the system. Easy Access will require someone to sign on if: 1. The last person using the computer signed off. 2. The date on the computer has changed since the last sign on. 3. MSRESET has been run. MSRESET was designed to handle those people who just turn off the computer without signing off. If you add MSRESET to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, every time the computer is turned on or rebooted Easy Access will require a sign on. If you are installing Easy Access please return to step 12 of the installation instructions. - 19 - Chapter 6 Calendar / Reminder System Calendar / Reminder System There are many calendar systems currently available for PC's but none that I have seen work well for recurring entries. The Reminder system was designed for recurring entries like birthdays, anniversaries, etc. If you use your computer daily you should never miss someone's birthday again! Todays reminders will be automatically displayed whenever the date changes on your system. You can view them at anytime by hitting the F2 key from a menu. To add or modify your reminders you should hit F2 from a menu then hit the F10 key. This will display all of the reminders on file and let you add to or modify the file. Reminder history is accessed by hitting the F9 key. Whenever a reminder is deleted because the date has passed the computer will store it in the history area. This history is kept until you clear it. What follows is a description of all of the information required to set up your reminders. To add or change reminders hit the F10 key when the calendars are first displayed, then hit the F2 key to Add. If you wish to change or delete a reminder move the cursor down to the reminder in question and hit the F3 key to modify or the F4 key to delete. Date: NNNNNN Date This is the actual date of the reminder. If your mothers birthday is January 1st you would enter January 1st. Dates are entered as MMDDYY, so if your mothers next birthday is on January 1st, 1989 you would enter 010189. Type: X Type There are several types of reminders allowed, enter the letter that corresponds to the type of reminder you are entering. The types are as follows: 1: One time only, it is deleted after the date is passed A: Annual, you need to be reminded of this every year M: Monthly, this time every month you need be reminded D: Monthly but on the same day of the week, 3rd Friday of the month, etc. Q: Quarterly, Every quarter (3 months) R: This one comes up every day until you delete it S: Semiannual, Every 6 months W: Weekly Description: Description - 20 - This is the description of the reminder. If this is your mothers birthday you would enter just that. This is what is displayed on the screen when today's reminders are displayed. Days: Days This is how much time in advance you need to be warned that this event is taking place. If you were to enter 5 here on the above example the computer will start reminding you on 12/27/88 that 01/01/89 is your mother's birthday. After the date of the reminder has passed, unless it is a type 'R' reminder, the computer deletes it and sets it up again under a new date based on the type of reminder it is. In the above example you would have set this reminder up as a type 'A', on 01/02/89, or the first time after that that you turn on your computer, the date of this reminder will be changed to 01/01/90. - 21 - Chapter 7 The Menu The Menu Function Keys Once you have set up your menus you can run any program on your computer with just a couple of key strokes. The function keys on your computer have been used to allow access to different functions within Easy Access. What follows is a description of these keys. The function of the function keys varies depending upon what part of Easy Access you are in. For instance if you are sitting at a menu F10 will exit to DOS, but if you have just entered the Calendar system F10 will allow you to input new reminders. If a key has a function at any point, a description of what it does will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. All function keys except F1 vary depending upon where you are, F1 is always help. F1 - Help, this is true no matter where you are in Easy Access F2 - If you are at a menu F2 will take you to the Calendar / Reminder system. See chapter 6 for more details. F3 - From the menu will display the menu status. This is explained in more detail on the following pages. F4 - If users are enabled this logs off the current user & waits for the next user to sign on. See the chapter 5 for more details. F5 - To modify the menu currently displayed. If a system password was entered in the configuration you will be prompted for it before it will allow you to modify the menu. See chapter 4 for more details. F6 - To modify the configuration of Easy Access. If a system password was entered in the configuration you will be prompted for it before you will be allowed to modify the configuration. See chapter 3 for more details. F7 - To display the Usage Report. This is only displayed if Usage logging has been enabled in the configuration. This is explained in more detail on the following pages. F8 - To access the user file. This is only displayed if user log on has been enabled in the configuration. See chapter 5 for more details. F9 - This allows you to modify the user defined function keys. F10 - If you are at the menu this will exit to DOS. Anywhere else it will terminate what you are currently doing. - 22 - Up Arrow - Go to previous input Down Arrow - Go to next input If user log on is enabled the function keys displayed/allowed while at the menu depends upon how the user was set up. If a user is not allowed to perform a particular function, that key will not be displayed at the bottom of the screen. - 23 - Menu Status The menu status (accessed by hitting the F3 key from the menu) displays information about each option on that menu. It shows the program name, the description as it appears on the menu, who last ran that program (will show an '*' if user log on is disabled), and the date and time the program was last run. This information is kept regardless of whether or not usage logging is enabled. Usage Report This option is only available if you have usage logging enabled in the configuration and your user (if user log on is enabled) is allowed access. This allows you to see what programs have been run and when. If you have user log on enabled it also shows you who ran the program. When you first choose this option it gives you six items to condition the report on. 1. USER: what user do you want to report on ? If you leave this blank it will report on all users. 2. PROGRAM: what program do you want to see ? If you leave this blank all programs will be displayed. 3. BEG DATE: this is the date to begin the report, if you leave this blank it will start with the first entries recorded. 4. END DATE: if you enter a date here all activity after this date will not be included on the report. 5. BEG TIME: Only activity after this time of day will be reported. 6. END TIME: Only activity taking place prior to this time will be included on the report. After the report is complete it asks if you wish to clear the log file. If you answer 'Y' to this question the file is erased. It does not just purge the data included on the last report. All data is purged. - 24 - Chapter 8 Troubleshooting Troubleshooting Here is listed some of the common problems and solutions people have with using Easy Access. If you are having a problem not covered here please contact us, we will be more than happy to solve it for you. You have forgotten the system password & can not modify the menus or configuration. Erase MSCFG.DAT, this will allow you to set up the configuration again. You have user log on enabled and you do not have any users who are allowed to modify the menus or the configuration. Erase MSUSR.*, this will erase your user files. You will have to go back and set up your users again but the default user and password will be re-established (user = '*', password = 'tengware'). Easy Access works fine except when you return after running an application, the TengWare logo is displayed & it tells you the configuration file was not found. There are two things that could be wrong: 1. Check the disk & directory in the configuration and make sure that is where Easy Access actually is. If it is wrong fix it and that should eliminate the problem. 2. You may need to increase the FILES= option in the CONFIG.SYS file in your root directory. FILES=24 is large enough for most systems. For more information on the CONFIG.SYS file refer to your DOS manual. You get a run time error before the menu is displayed. One of two things has probably happened: 1. If you have user log on enabled your user files have been corrupted. This can be corrected by erasing MSUSR.*. You will have to re-input all of your users. 2. Your reminder files have been corrupted. This can be corrected by erasing MSREM.* and re-inputting your reminders. - 25 - This can happen if your computer is turned off while you are entering either users or reminders. No files will be corrupted if you turn off the computer while at either a menu or user log on. You run an application from the menu and you exit to DOS instead of going into your application program. Are you running the menu batch file ? When you first set up Easy Access you need to run MS.EXE. From that point on you need to run the menu batch file. Unless you have changed it it's name in the configuration file it is MENU.BAT. So you should type MENU not MS to run Easy Access. You run an application from the menu and it does not return to Easy Access when you exit your program. You are probably running a batch file. Batch files need to be modified to return to the menu. In the installation instructions is an explanation of what needs to be done to batch files. When trying to return to the main menu (MS) from a sub-menu it tells you the menu was not found. If you answer 'N' it returns to the main menu. You have probably changed the return menu name as defined in the upper left hand corner of menu maintenance. Please refer to the chapter on creating/modifying menus for more information. You have set up a system password or a password for a particular application and the computer will not accept it when you try to access the application. Passwords are case sensitive. If the password was originally typed in lower case then you must always type it in lower case. The same applies to upper case or combinations thereof. - 26 - Chapter 9 Version Notes Version Notes VERSION 4.0 1. Files defined under previous versions are NOT compatible with version 4.0. If you are upgrading from a previous version you should erase or move all 3.X files before attempting installation. This means that all users, reminders, and menus will have to be keyed in again. 2. Previous versions were compiled under Turbo Pascal 3.0, this version was compiled under Turbo Pascal 4.0. Because of this MS.COM has been replaced by MS.EXE. 3. Easy Access now works with Hercules graphics cards. 4. The log file is no longer in standard text file format. This means that someone can not edit out their usage from the file as easily. 5. Typing MSCFG.DAT will no longer display the system password. 6. All reported misspellings have been corrected. 7. Displaying HELP while editing a menu will no longer affect cursor position on the screen. 8. MSHELP.DAT is now in standard text format. VERSION 4.1 1. Added configurable option to eliminate the need to hit the enter key. 2. Changes in the configuration file mean that the file MSCFG.DAT is not compatible with 4.0 files. If you are upgrading from 4.0 you need to erase MSCFG.DAT before replacing 4.0 programs with 4.1. All other files are compatible with version 4.0. VERSION 4.2 1. Increased the length of the program name field from 8 to 16. This allows a limited number of parameters to be passed to the program being run. 2. Eliminated the password on menu options & replaced it with the access code. 3. Easy Access now has Point & Shoot, it will not be evident unless you hit either the up or down arrow while at a menu. - 27 - 4. All files except for MSREM.* are not compatible with previous versions. MSREM.* contains the reminders. VERSION 4.3 1. Restored the option for a password on menu options. 2. Switched the F1 & F9 keys to make F1 = Help. This makes Easy Access more compatible with other products on the market. 3. Put restrictions on allowable names for sub-menus. It was possible to input invalid file names creating a run time error when the menu file was created. 4. Corrected display of more than one page of reminders. When today's reminders were displayed, if there was more than one page, only the first page was displayed. 5. Eliminated the ability to delete the '*' sign on. Easy Access needs the '*' sign on for certain defaults. Deletion of this password created a run time error. 6. Added floating message when screen has been saved. 7. With 4.3e this manual is included in distribution. 8. All *.MNU files are not compatible with previous versions. They should be deleted prior to upgrading. This means that all menus will need to be re-created. 9. The '^' character in the program name for a menu option will now be interpreted as a new line. VERSION 4.4 1. The formats of the configuration file (MSCFG.DAT) and the user files (MSUSR.*) have been changed. This means that if you are upgrading from a previous version these files must be re-created. You should erase MSUSR.* and re-input all users. 2. Allowed user control of the message displayed when the screen times out. 3. Added option to eliminate the menu status function. 4. Added option to eliminate the Calendar/Reminder system. 5. Option to display the time in 12 hour format. 6. Ability to have unique reminders for each user of the system, if user sign on is enabled. - 28 - VERSION 5.0 1. The format of the configuration file (MSCFG.DAT) has been changed. If you are upgrading from a previous version you will be forced to re-input configuration data. 2. The current menu option is now highlighted. 3. A CR after entering the menu system will choose the first option on the menu. 4. There are now two formats for the menu display. One with pre-lettered options, the other using the first letter of the options description. 5. Compiled under Turbo Pascal 5.0 6. Enhanced usage logging 7. The Escape key will now return you to a previous menu 8. Added option to print usage log on printer. VERSION 5.1 1. The reminder & user files have been redone. This means that all reminders & users will have to be re-entered. You will get a run-time error if you try to use this version of Easy Access with previous versions of MSREM & MSUSR. 2. Reminder History has been added. The history is kept until cleared, there is no automatic purging. 3. Reminder input has been redone, eliminating the need for the reminder number. 4. The reminders & user files are no longer quite so sensitive to the computer being turned off. You may lose any reminders or users you were in the process of changing but you should not need to re-enter them all. VERSION 5.2 1. When returning to the menu from a selected option the option selected will still be highlighted on the menu. This required a change to the configuration file. When you first update your programs the system will tell you the configuration file was not found. You will have to re-enter the configuration information. All other files are compatible with version 5.1. - 29 - 2. When the system date changes the new date will automatically be displayed. Previously you had to choose a menu option before the date would be re-displayed. 3. Some display problems involving passwords have been corrected. VERSION 5.3 1. Mouse support added. 2. International date formats added. This required a change in the configuration file, all other files are compatible. You will have to re-enter the configuration information. 3. A blank directory in a menu option will no longer reset the system to the root directory. This is to compensate for the way some networks access your programs. If you wish the system to go to the root directory you must have a '\' in the path name. 4. Corrects problem with deleting users. 5. Add option to send Usage History to ASCII file. 6. 5.3d corrects problem with mouse. VERSION 6.0 1. Menu files & configuration files have been changed. If you are converting from version 5.x you can run MSCNVRT, this will reformat your menu files for version 6. Otherwise you will have to re-input your menus. 2. Increased number of options per menu from 16 to 26. Also allowed for a new type of entry, 'H' for heading. This allows you to insert subheadings or blank lines within the body of the menu. 3. Added user defined function keys Alt-F1 through Alt-F10. 4. Added option to always return to the Top Menu rather than returning to the last menu accessed. 5. Cleaned up point & shoot display so when using screen display 2 you can have more than one option that starts with the same letter. 6. F9 no longer returns to the previous menu, ESC is used instead. F9 is used to set up the user defined function keys. - 30 - Chapter 10 Converting 5.x Menu Files to 6.0 Converting 5.x Menu Files to 6.0 The utility MSCNVRT has been provided to convert menu files defined in version 5.x of Easy Access to version 6.0 format. If you have a version below 5.0 you will have to re-enter all of your menu data manually. What follows is the recommended method for converting from 5.x to 6.0. These instructions assume version 5.x resides on drive C: in the directory MENUS. 1. Move to the correct drive: C: 2. Define a NEW directory for the menu system: MD \MENU60 ('MENU60' can be replaced with any desired name) 3. Insert the Easy Access 6.0 floppy in drive A: 4. Copy the new menu programs into the directory: COPY A:*.* \MENU60 5. Copy all of the old menu files to the new menu directory: COPY \MENUS\*.MNU \MENU60 6. Change your directory to the new menu directory: CD \MENU60 7. Run the conversion program: MSCNVRT 8. Erase the old menu files: ERASE *.MNU The menu files have now been converted. You should now proceed to step 7 in the installation instructions. Remember to change your AUTOEXEC.BAT file to access the new directory 'MENU60' instead of the old directory 'MENUS'. When you have gotten the system working to your satisfaction you should erase the old menu system as it will just be wasting space on your computer. - 31 - The Association of Shareware Professionals This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for member's products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at P.O. Box 5786, Bellevue, WA 98006 or send a Compuserve message via easyplex to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536. - 32 - INVOICE Remit To: Ship To: TengWare Enterprises _____________________________ 28162 Amable _____________________________ Mission Viejo, CA 92692 _____________________________ (714) 587-1025 _____________________________ _____________________________ Version _____ Contact Individual/Phone: How did you get your copy of Easy Access ? ____________________________ ____________________________ ____________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Quantity Description Unit Price Total ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Easy Access Menu System Version 6.0 ____ Single User Registration $25.00 ________ ____ Site License Registration $200.00 ________ ____ Single User upgrade to latest version $15.00 ________ ____ Site License upgrade to latest version $50.00 ________ Total ________ Check One: ___ 5 1/4" Disks ___ 3 1/2" Disks Note that Easy Access Computer Software has been delivered and accepted by the customer. Upon receipt of this paid invoice, a registered copy of the latest version of Easy Access which does not display the TengWare logo upon system start up will be sent. Comments/Suggestions: - 33 -