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1995-09-10
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11KB
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269 lines
___________________________________________________
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
VSU-Base
Venture Scout Unit member database system
This application is © 1995 Tim Wiser.
It is FREEWARE. Use is at your own risk.
Please read the conditions at the end of this file.
___________________________________________________
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
I am the secretary of the 15th Matlock Venture Scout Unit (VSU) and as part
of my duties I was required to compile a list of phone numbers of the
people in our unit. I found that a few people were ex-directory so I'd
have to ask them for their number. I then decided to take this
opportunity to get full details about each member. I used a form (using
Impression Style; the form should be inside the !VSU-Base application
directory if you're interested in using it) that I handed out to everyone in
the unit. When these were filled in I set about entering them into a
database. I used DATAVision from an old Acorn Computing cover disc because
I couldn't find my copy of PowerBase or even Desktop Database. Anyway,
after putting all the data into DATA- Vision I found that the system was
really inflexible and I couldn't really be bothered to learn how to use
it. I then searched through hundreds of floppies and found my copy of
PowerBase lurking amongst them. I then designed a new database and after
putting in loads of data found that I was experiencing the same problems
that I faced with DATAVision and PowerBase was much slower.
"Bugger it", I thought, "I'll write my own". So I did, and that is how
!VSU-Base (highly original name, I think you'll agree!) came into being.
It's specifically designed for my unit and is based on the data gathered
from the forms handed out so therefore might not be ideal for your own unit
but is perfect for mine, so there!
You can enter the data for each person, compile a phone list (don't
projects explode ..!), search the database and export the data to other
databases via the CSV export facility should you want to give a copy of
the database to PC owning people or you find a better database.
The toolbox (ie: buttons for moving around the database) are built in to
the main window. If you want, you can open a floating toolbox by selecting
the 'Open toolbox' option in the main menu. The window version of the
toolbox remains though, so you haven't really gained much.
If you are finding that the whole window doesn't fit onto your desktop,
try using a bigger mode. For non-multisync owners I recommend mode 35
(this is the mode I use). For multisync owners, try mode 31.
This application requires RISC OS 3 to run. As if you didn't already know!
____________________________________________________________________________
Hot keys
____________________________________________________________________________
The following hotkeys are implemented in VSU-Base.
Most only work when the main window has the input focus (ie: the title bar
is creamy-coloured).
Escape - Close the main window
Print - Pop up the print dialog window
F3 - Pop up the save dialog
F4 - Pop up the search dialog
____________________________________________________________________________
Save formats
____________________________________________________________________________
This version of VSU-Base allows saving in three formats;
1. Database
This is the format specifically designed to hold your database. Use it all
the time to save your database. It is the only format that you can load into
the program.
2. Report
This is really a textfile that holds what VSU-Base calls a 'report'. This
lets you export specific fields of your database into a textfile. If you
want to print out a hard copy of your database you should use this format.
On the other hand, if you wanted a list of who's done what on the Duke of
Edinburgh award scheme, you would use this format with only 'Name' and 'D of
E' ticked in the Format dialog window (see later).
3. CSV
This is a very useful format because it allows you to save the database in a
format that can be read by just about any spreadsheet and database in the PC
world, and many in the Acorn world. The CSV file is an industry standard
file format. I have tested this format with the following programs:
Eureka 2 2.00f Longman Logotron
Presenter GTi 1.14 Lingenuity
SuperCalc 5 5.5 Computer Associates Int.
Excel 5.0a Microsoft Corporation
No problems were experienced with any of these applications. You may want
to use other spreadsheets on PCs, in which case you might find it handy to
know that you may have to use the 'Import' option in the 'File' menu, and
will need to mess around with the 'Filetype' menu bit to make Windows look
for the file.
____________________________________________________________________________
Transferring files between DOS and RISC OS
____________________________________________________________________________
As mentioned earlier, there is a version of VSU-Base that runs under DOS
on IBm and compatible machines (clones). To transfer data between the
two platforms (Acorn and PC) you should use the 'PC format' file format.
Both computers will read the data just fine. Only the Acorn can read and
write the 'Database' file formats.
If you import a file from the PC version into the Acorn version and look
in the 'File .. info' window you'll notice that in the 'Origin' field
there will be the text "From PC". The 'Date' field will not be filled
correctly either.
In the DOS version you cannot include commas and punctuation in fields.
This has led to me having to put in what I call the 'DOS fix' which means
that for any situations where a comma would be nice:
ie. Tim Wiser, Cowgate Cottage
.. I have to put a forward slash:
ie. Tim Wiser/Cowgate Cottage
Now this can be fixed during the import to the Acorn package by selecting
the 'DOS fix' option on the iconbar menu. If this is selected, any forward
slashes are replaced by a comma followed by a space.
____________________________________________________________________________
The Format dialog window
____________________________________________________________________________
You can define what information appears in the CSV
and report files via the 'Format ...' dialog window.
You may experience problems regarding strings being over 255 characters long
during attempts to save in CSV format. This problem is most likely to occur
when you have a lot of fields selected in the Format dialog window (notably
'Address' and 'Hobbies').
____________________________________________________________________________
Printing your database
____________________________________________________________________________
You can print either through the use of the Acorn !Printers application or
you can use the quick Epson print. To use the Epson printing your printer
needs to be Epson compatible. Most decent printers are (I've tested the
program with an Epson LQ400 and a Hewlett-Packard 520 bubblejet).
You should get a nice printout with an Epson print. If you want a really
quick print you can select the 'Draft' option, in which case the hardcopy
will appear much quicker but with less style.
After a printout it's handy to eject the page from the printer. To do this
automatically you have to select the 'Form feed' option. This is rather nice
because the printer will beep first and then do the form feed. "Most
impressive!" I hear you cry.
In the current version (v 1.33) the option to print to the RISC OS drivers
(ie: !Printers) is not available. You are notified that it is not available
if you attempt to use the option.
____________________________________________________________________________
Call me ...
____________________________________________________________________________
I love getting letters, so if you use this program on a regular basis or
would jus