The Business Master (3rd Edition)

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THOT-PLAN'r <tm> TUTORIAL: Getting Started The best way to get a feeling for THOT-PLAN'r is to go through a session in a "Guided Tour". This Tutorial will use many of the commands that you will use in a typical session. Here are some points for you to keep in mind: A) The symbol <CR> stand for the key marked RETURN, ENTER, or with the Return Arrow. B) If you need to erase, just use the <BACKSPACE> key. C) If the Cursor is a blinking, underline character, you are in the EDIT MODE and must press the <ESC> key to get to the COMMAND MODE. D) If the entire line that the cursor is on is highlighted in "Inverse Video", you are in COMMAND MODE, and may use the single letter commands. E) While in the COMMAND MODE, you may see what commands are available to you by pressing the key with the question mark <?> (you don't have to press the <SHIFT> key with it). A list of the commands will be shown in the top box (Status Display), and when you press any key (including the key for the command that you wish to execute), this display will return to normal. F) When in COMMAND MODE, you can get help by pressing the <H> key (again, upper or lower case). Press <ESC> to exit from HELP. ----------------------------------------------------------------- To Begin the Tutorial, just follow these steps: 1. Turn on your computer and call up the Operating System. You should have an "A>" on the screen. 2. Insert THOT-PLAN'r disk in Drive A. 3. Load THOT-PLAN'r by typing "tp" (upper or lower case is O.K.) and then press <CR>. You will see a Title Screen> as it loads. - You will now see two framed boxes on the screen. The box along the top of the screen is called the Status Display. Normally, this shows two lines of text separated by a line drawn across the display. Notice that the top line has a small box at its extreme left which is highlighted and now says, "FUNCTION MENU". This tells you where you are in the program. It changes as you move from function to function. - The rest of the top line displays the label for the Current Topic (which now reads, "Topic is Undefined"). The second line, the Message Line, will give you immediately helpful information in the form of messages. Right now it tells you that you are in COMMAND MODE, and that you may press <H> for HELP, <?> for a Command Summary (points E and F above), or <ESC> to "escape" to the FUNCTION MENU. - Go ahead and press the <?> key to see what happens. Watch the Status Display box contents change. Now press the SPACE BAR. It now returns to normal. Do this several times if you wish. Now press the <H> key. The disk drive will start up (to retrieve the HELP text from the disk) and the HELP window opens in the middle of the screen (replacing any workspace already there), and then it fills with text which should help you. If this information is larger than this window can display, you may "scroll" more information into view with <PgDn> or <PgUp> keys. When you wish to escape from all this help, press <ESC> and you will be returned to where you were in the program. - The box in the center of the screen is the Function Menu. The top line in this box is highlighted in inverse video (remember point "D" above?). This also shows you that you are now in the COMMAND MODE and that the cursor is on this line. Look at the eight items listed in this menu. These are the eight Functions, or functional areas, of THOT-PLAN'r. Press the DOWN ARROW key once. The cursor has now moved to the second item. - There are two ways that you may choose items from any of the menus in THOT-PLAN'r. The first way uses cursor movement to highlight the item and then select it by pressing the <CR>. The second way is to simply press the number (along the top of the keyboard, not from the numeric pad) that corresponds to that item's number in the menu. In addition to this, the Functions may be selected by pressing the Function Key with the appropriate number. This way, you may by-pass the menu once you become familiar with the functions. 4. Before you can do anything else in THOT-PLAN'r, you must select a Topic. This activitiy is the second Function, item "2" on this menu, so go ahead and select this using any of the two ways explained (or the third way as well, since this is a Function). Since the cursor is on this item, you could do so by simply pressing the <CR>. - The screen display will now change, and the upper left box of the Status Display has now changed to "TOPICS" and that a larger box has replaced the menu box of the previous Function. This new box will display the Topics already present (previous sessions). Actually, these are the labels for the Topics-- maximum of 50 characters. Also, notice that you are now in the COMMAND MODE. - Since you will be adding/creating a new topic, press <A>. This will open a new line at the end of the list of Topics and switch into the EDIT MODE (the message line reflects this). Now you can "Add" a new Topic to this list. 5. Type in the following: "Uses for THOT-PLAN'r", and press <CR>. This enters the new Topic's label and returns you to the COMMAND MODE. Press <CR> again to tell the computer that you now want to make it the Current Topic. Now it shows in the top line of the Status Display, and you are ready to work with it. 6. Press <F3> (the shortcut method for getting to the BRAINSTORM Function). You could have pressed <ESC> to return to the Function Menu and then proceeded from there. - Again the screen display changes. A new, blank window opens in the middle of the screen, and the Status Display shows "BRAINSTORM" at the upper-left corner. If this was a previously used topic, the ideas listed in it would be here, but since this is a new Topic, the workspace is empty, except for the "1." and the blinking Cursor which is waiting for you to begin typing in your thoughts. 7. Type: "General Business" and press <CR>. - The Cursor now jumps to the next line which is automatically numbered for you and awaits your next thot! 8. Now, please type in the following items, being sure to press <CR> after you have typed each thot: Court Briefs Business Plans Novels Lesson Plans Creative Writing Projects Education Law Marketing Plans Goals/Objectives Thesis Magazine Articles 9. Press the <ESC> key, followed by the <F4> key. (The <ESC> got you out of the Edit Mode, the <F4> advances you to the ARRANGE Function.) - Again the screen display changes. Now there are two boxes in the middle of the screen. The one on the left (the List Window), contains your Brainstorm list of ideas. The box on the right (the Arrange Window) is the workspace where you will select items from the List, and Arrange them into an Outline. - The Cursor has highlighted the first thot on the List (Command Mode!) 10. With the Cursor on thot #1, press <CR>. - The words "General Business" have been copied onto the Arrange workspace, preceeded by Roman Numeral One (capital "i")--You've just begun your Outline!--and the Cursor is now in this window. - Notice that "General Business" in the List is now diminished in intensity. As you use items, they will do this to help call attention to those that have not been used yet. 11. Now press <CR> again to move the Cursor back to the List. (The <CR> key toggles you back-and-forth between these two windows.) 12. Using the Cursor Controls (Up/Dn arrow keys), place the Cursor on thot #3, "Business Plans". 13. Press <CR> to make this the Current Thot so that it may be added whever you want it to the Outline. 14. Now press <A> to Add this after General Business, then press the Right Arrow key once. This will indent "Business Plans" and assign the capital "A." as its index. 15. Press <CR> to go back to the List. 16. Use the Cursor Controls to place the Cursor on #9 and then press the <A> key. This will Automatically Add it to the Outline without you having to toggle back-and-forth. 17. Move the Cursor to thot #10 and press <A>. 18. Now you are going to shift to another grouping. Move the Cursor to thot #6 and press <CR>. - Since you are going to create a new major group, you need to get the Cursor over into the Arrange Window, and doing this way carries this new idea with it as the "Current Thot". 19. Press <A> to Add this thot to the Outline, and then press the <LEFT> Arrow key to "promote" it to the next major group (Roman Numeral Two). 20. Press <CR> to get back to List. 21. Move the Cursor to thot #4 , then press <CR>, and then press <A>. 22. Now press the <RIGHT> Arrow key to subordinate this thot to "Creative Writing", and then press <CR> to get back to List. 23. Move Cursor to thot #12 and press <A> to add this to the new group. 24. Move Cursor to thot #8, "Law", and press <CR> (another new Group). 25. Press <A> to add it; <LEFT> Arrow once to promote it (creating the third group); then <CR>. 26. Now move the Cursor to #2, press <CR>,<A>, then <RIGHT> Arrow to put this under the newest group, and <CR> again to go to List. 27. Move Cursor to thot #7, press <CR>, press <A>, then <LEFT> Arrow (creating the fourth group), and then <CR>. 28. Move Cursor to thot#5, <CR>, <A>, <RIGHT> Arrow, <CR>. 29. Finally, move the Cursor to thot #11 and press <A>. . . . . .You've just complete your first outline in the Arranging Window, based upon the thots you typed into the Brainstorm Window. Notice that the Roman Numerals indicate the major categories, and that the thots grouped under them are properly indexed and indented. If you want to, Save this by pressing <S>, and then play around with it. Look at the Command Summary Card and try some of the moving and copying....Try collapsing and expanding the Outline with the numbers (don't forget to restore the View with <V>!). To quit the Tutorial, press <ESC> to go to the Function Menu, or use the Function Key short-cut, <F8>. If you didn't save your work, and don't care to, select the second option. Good Luck, and many Happy Thots to you!