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JCSM Shareware Collection 1996 September
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1994-11-01
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HOME PLAN (TM) is by:
HOME PLAN SOFTWARE
6890 Rimrock Valley Rd. Orders: 1-800-671-7526 Fax: (209) 754-3737
Mountain Ranch, CA 95246 Info: (209) 754-4891 CIS 71321,167
"The author of Home Plan is 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 members'
products.
Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon,
MI 49442 or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP
Ombudsman 70007,3536."
DEFINITION OF SHAREWARE
Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before
buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it,
you are expected to register.
Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software.
Because the overhead is low, prices are low also. Shareware has
the ultimate money-back guarantee -- if you don't use the product,
you don't pay for it.
DISCLAIMER - AGREEMENT
Users of HOME PLAN must accept this disclaimer of warranty:
"HOME PLAN is supplied as is. The author disclaims all warranties,
expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of
merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no
liability for damages, direct or consequential, which may result from the
use of HOME PLAN."
**************************************************
Home Plan was written on an IBM compatible in Turbo Pascal 6.0 to
draw and print floor plan type drawings on 9 & 24 PIN dot matrix or
HP Laser compatible printers.
This program requires a VGA monitor.
**************************************************
INDEX Pg. 1
Installation Pg. 2
General Hints Pg. 3
Plan Size Adjustment Pg. 4
Undo Pg. 4
Redo Pg. 4
Cursor Movement Pg. 4
Cursor Speed Pg. 4
Line Drawing Pg. 5
Line Erasing Pg. 5
Line Type Pg. 5
Draw Rectangle Pg. 5
Draw Rectangle w/ Double Wall Pg. 5
Draw Rectangle w/ Framing Pg. 5
Draw Circle Pg. 6
Draw Circle w/ Double Wall Pg. 6
Draw an Arc Pg. 6
Draw Walls Pg. 6
Insert Text Pg. 7
Insert Figures Pg. 7
Rearrange Furniture Pg. 7
Insert a Door Pg. 7
Delete Screen Portion Pg. 7
Automatic Dimensioning Pg. 8
Clone the Last Element Pg. 8
Square Footage Calculation Pg. 8
Alter Plan Menu Pg. 9
Reverse Horizontally Pg. 9
Reverse Vertically Pg. 9
Move the Plan Pg. 9
Move/Copy/Delete a Group Pg. 9
Move/Copy/Delete/Re-size Pg. 10
View/Purge Pg. 10
Metric Mode Vs USA Mode Pg. 11
Toggle Auto-Dimensions Pg. 11
Start a New Plan Pg. 12
Save a Plan to Disk Pg. 12
Load a Plan from Disk Pg. 12
Delete a File from Disk Pg. 12
Print the Current Plan Pg. 12
Print to Scale Pg. 13
Removing On Screen Prompts Pg. 13
Return to Opening Menu Pg. 13
Deleting Drawing Elements Pg. 13
Appendices Pg. 14
Registration Pg. 15
List of Command Keys Pg. 16
Page 1.
INSTALLATION:
Just copy the files to your working drive, and type HOMEPLN to start.
FEATURES include:
METRIC/USA System
User defined drawing size
Adjustable cursor speed
Undo of the last action
Automatic dimensioning
Optional showing of framing (studs, joists etc.)
Rectangles, circles and Arcs etc.
Clone the Previous action
Deletion of user defined screen portions
Adjustable width Walls
Selectable line styles
On screen 'odometer' shows horiz & vert measure
Line angle indicator
Insert Doors of any size
Saving & loading plans to & from disk
Deleting plans from disk
Printing at Screen size or 1/8" per Ft. Scale
Insertion of pre-drawn furniture & appliances
Square Footage Calculation
Move the Plan
Reverse the Plan
Copy/Move/Re-size/delete elements from the plan
This Manual is meant to be a reference manual, not a constant
companion. Use the Manual if a command gives you trouble.
I advise you to load the program & start to draw a plan.
Select the first option from the main menu, press F1 to see a list of
commands; 'Esc' to make the list go away.
Just start drawing & use the commands listed while following the
prompts.where applicable.
Frequent use of F1, Undo & Del will fix any mistakes.
Load one of the sample .PLN files that came with this program and
modify it. Insert some furniture or appliances into it.
**************************************************
This was written because I couldn't find a way to do these things without
using a huge program and hours of manual reading.
**************************************************
See below for some hints then:
JUST type "HOMEPLAN". F-1 for help.
( there is a Tutorial option on the Main Menu. This walks you through a
few samples of Home Plan's drawing routines.)
A description of Home Plan Pro is available at the end.
***************************************************
Page 2.
GENERAL HINTS: F-1 = Help:
The Option Menu allows you to configure the program. Don't be afraid
to experiment. Anything changed can be changed back easily.
COLORS:
If you have trouble reading the screen on your monitor, try changing the
colors. Select the Option Menu from the Opening Menu. Then, select
Color Menu from the Option Menu. The Color Menu will let you see
the changes as you make them, so try for the best combination.
GET USED to using the '+' & '-' keys to adjust cursor speed.
Zipping around your plan sometimes requires speed and sometimes,
precision.
A 'speedometer' in the lower right corner will tell you how far the
cursor will go with each press of the NumberPad keys.
Watch this change when the + or - keys are pressed.
Using Shift with the NumberPad Keys will slow the cursor to the
minimum speed for precision placement.
The four Arrow keys on 101 keyboards also will move at the minimum
speed.
Move quickly using the NumberPad Keys, adjusted at a brisk pace, and
hold down the Shift key at the end, to place the cursor precisely.
The AUTO-Dimension may appear somewhat less than intuitive. Just try
it a few times. (there is always Undo.)
AUTO-DIMENSION will not work on distances less than two ft.(default
scale) because of inadequate room. You can draw the lines, & use Insert
Text ('Ins') to enter the appropriate numbers.
SOME operations will cause lines to be partially erased and other
distortions which will be rectified when the plan is redrawn.
The plan is frequently redrawn in the normal course of events. If you
want to force a redrawing, press F1 to bring the command list down,
then 'Esc' to make it go away & redraw the plan.
When you start serious plan drawing, draw a basic structural outline &
save it under 'Basic' or some such.
Now, you can load 'Basic' and do all sorts of things with it, saving new
versions under new names.
Many versions can be saved under many names all starting with 'Basic'
until you settle on one approach.
The PRE-DRAWN furniture & appliances are sized for average sizes of
the items depicted. We can't guarantee that your stuff is the same size.
Starting with ver 2.6, you may alter the size of furniture and appliances
with the Plus & Minus keys while inserting the figures.
At scales more than two or at most three times the default, the pre-drawn
stuff is just too small to use. (it's still available if you want to insert a dot
in your drawing.)
Page 3
COMMANDS: ( For a Command List & a brief description, press F1 )
EDIT Commands:
PLAN SIZE ADJUSTMENT:
You may adjust the Plan Size when starting a new Plan.
The on-screen prompts will tell you to press '-' or '+' to adjust the size
of your new drawing.
The maximum horizontal & vertical screen dimensions will be shown as
you select the optimum scale.
Once a plan has been started, or retrieved from disk, the Size can not be
changed.
Use the smallest plan size that will accommodate your proposed plan.
'Esc' cancels & invokes the Default size.
UNDO 'Alt U'
Mistakes are easy to fix!
Pressing 'Alt U' will cancel the most recent command and redraw your
plan without it.
Successive presses of 'Alt U' will continue to delete the previous
commands in reverse of the order they were made.
REDO 'Shift Alt U'
Hold down the Shift key while pressing Alt U, to bring back the last
element that was "Undone" by Alt U.
CAUTION: only the most recent deletion by UnDo can be restored. All
previous elements that were Undone are no longer in memory.
CURSOR MOVEMENT:
The cursor is moved by the Numberpad Keys. (if the NumLock is off,
the program will turn it on while you are drawing)
The Numberpad keys can move the cursor in 8 directions. In addition,
Pressing <Asterisk> will center the cursor on the screen.
In addition to the Number Pad keys, the dedicated arrow keys will move
the cursor one pixel at a time. They are not affected by the cursor speed
adjustment described below.
You can use these separate arrow keys for precision work without
disturbing the cursor speed adjustment of the Number Pad keys.
CURSOR SPEED: '+' ... '-'
The cursor speed is adjusted with the '+' or '-' keys while in the
Drawing Mode.
Use Shift with the NumberPad keys to slow the cursor to the minimum
speed for precision placement.
The distance that the cursor moves each time is shown at the lower right
corner of the screen.
At the default drawing size, the minimum cursor movement is one inch.
The next press of '+' increases it to 6 inches.
Subsequent presses of '+' increases movement by 1/2 foot with each
press. (The Metric Drawing Mode uses 25mm increments)
Pressing '-' reverses the process.
Selecting a larger size will cause the cursor movement to increase
proportionately. (actually, the cursor moves the same, but the odometers
show larger measurements)
Page 4.
LINE DRAWING: 'L' or 'Enter'
Press 'L' to start the drawing process.
No line is drawn yet, but two 'odometers' will appear at the lower left
corner of your screen.
These 'odometers' will show the cursor movement (one vertical; one
horizontal) in feet & inches. (Millimeters in Metric Mode)
Press 'L' again, to draw a line between the two points.
Press 'Esc' to cancel the process without drawing the line. (this is a
handy way to move to a measured point without drawing a line)
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo any unwanted lines.
Ver 2.5 and newer, support the use of the 'Enter' key interchangeably
with the 'L' key for drawing lines..
LINE ERASING: 'E'
The Line Erase command works like the Line Draw command, but uses
the 'E' key.
Lines erased with this routine sometimes are not erased on printouts
made with the higher resolution printer drivers. If you have this
problem, use the Delete Screen Portion routine to erase lines.
LINE TYPE: 'space'
Three types of line are available for most operations.
At the bottom center of your screen, is a sample of the current line type.
Pressing the Space Bar will toggle between these line types.
DRAW RECTANGLES: 'Alt R'...'R'
'Alt R' brings an on-screen prompt to place the cursor at one corner of
the proposed rectangle & then to press 'Enter'.
When you move the cursor, a rectangle is shown in a dotted line.
When you have the desired rectangle, press 'R' to permanently draw the
rectangle. ( 'Enter' works also )
Rectangles of the appropriate width make nice walls. (see Show Framing
below)
DRAW RECTANGLES with DOUBLE WALLS: 'Alt R'...'='
Terminate the Rectangle Command ('Alt R') with an ' = ' sign instead
of an 'R" to create a rectangle with a double wall.
The "Wall Thickness Menu" will appear. Use the Arrow Keys to adjust
the thickness & Press Enter to draw the Rectangle.
This can be useful for drawing the exterior perimeter.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
DRAW RECTANGLES with FRAMING: 'Alt R'... 'F'
Terminate the Rectangle Command ('Alt R') with an 'F' instead of an
'R' to create a Rectangle with two inch framing members spaced on 16"
centers.
(Use 'SHIFT F' to change the spacing to 24" centers)
In the case of narrow rectangles, such as walls, the end view of the wall
studs will be shown. In the case of broader rectangles, perhaps floors or
roofs, the joists or rafters will be shown across the shortest dimension of
the rectangle.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
Page 5.
DRAW CIRCLE: 'Alt C'
'Alt C' brings an on-screen prompt to place the cursor at the center of
the proposed circle & then to press 'Enter'.
A small circle will be shown with a prompt to move the rim with the
cursor.
Actually, this command draws an Ellipse.
Moving the cursor vertically and horizontally will vary the ellipse radii.
To draw a circle rather than an oval, keep the two radii equal.
The NumberPad diagonal keys work fine for that purpose. Also, the
'odometers' will show both dimensions as you change them.
After creating the circle, You will be prompted to move it exactly where
you want it before pressing Enter.
DRAW CIRCLE with DOUBLE WALL: 'Alt C'...'='
Terminate the Circle Command with an ' = ' sign to create a double
walled circle.
The "Wall Thickness Menu" appears. Use the arrow keys to adjust the
thickness & Enter to draw the Circle.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
DRAW an ARC Alt ') or ('
Hold down the Alt key & Press one of the Parentheses Keys to draw an
Arc.
Follow the prompt to place the cursor at the first end of the Arc, and
press Enter.
Follow the next Prompt to place the cursor on the second end of the
proposed Arc, and Press Enter.
An Arc will be shown between the two points.
The last Prompt asks you to move the Rim of the Arc with the cursor.
Just try it. It's easy.
When everything is to your satisfaction, press Enter to complete the
process.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
DRAW WALLS 'ALT W'
This version draws WALLS consisting of level and plumb parallel lines.
The WALL Process is started by pressing Alt W.
The "Wall Thickness Menu" will appear. Use the Arrow keys to adjust
the Wall Thickness, then Press Enter.
A prompt will appear telling you to move the cursor with the
NumberPad keys. (Only the Vertical & Horizontal keys will work)
After moving the Cursor to the wall's end point, Press Enter to draw the
lines. Then, move the cursor in a Right Angle to the first line. Press
Enter again to draw the second Wall section.
The Intersection will clean up for a nice corner.
This function is nice for drawing walls of varying thickness around
irregular shapes.
(It is possible to draw parallel lines at angles other than level & plumb,
but the corners won't clean up and the width may vary.)
Press Esc to quit the process. Alt U will Undo after you Quit.
Page 6.
INSERT TEXT: 'Ins'
Text may be inserted into the plan by pressing the 'Ins' key.
Type the desired text & press 'Enter'.
The text will start at the cursor position.
Left/Right Arrow, Insert, and Delete do the expected.
Ctrl Left/Right Arrow go to the next/previous word.
Ctrl Home deletes from the cursor to the beginning, and Ctrl End to the
end.
Text entries are limited to 70 characters each entry.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo unwanted entries.
INSERT FIGURES: 'Alt F'
'Alt F' will bring up a menu of Pre-Drawn figures of furniture &
appliances to insert into your plan.
Select the figure with the NumberPad keys & press Enter.
The selected Figure will appear on your plan at the last cursor position.
You may move the figure using the NumberPad keys & the 'Tab' key
will rotate the figure in 90 deg increments.
The figure can be re-sized by pressing the Plus or Minus keys.
Press 'Enter when you have the figure where you want it.
'Esc' cancels. 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
REARRANGING the FURNITURE: 'SHIFT Alt F'
You can Move/Rotate/Re-size/Copy furniture that was previously
inserted in your plan.
Place the cursor near the center of the figure. Hold down the Shift key
while pressing Alt F. Follow the prompts.
TAB, the cursor keys & the Plus/Minus keys will move / rotate / re-size
the figure.
If you press Shift/Enter, the figure will be moved to its new location.
Pressing Ctrl Enter, will do the same thing, but also leave the original
in place.
INSERT a DOOR: '/'
Press the '/' Slash Key to Open the Door.
The Prompt will ask you to move the cursor to where you want the Door
HINGE to be. Press Enter.
The next prompt asks you to move the cursor to other edge of the
Doorway. Press Enter.
Finally, the prompt will ask you to press the ARROW key that points to
the direction you want the Door to OPEN.
The Door will open. (A dimension appears, if there is room)
Esc Cancels. 'Alt U' will undo mistakes.
DELETE SCREEN PORTION 'Del'
Move the cursor to one corner of the screen area that you want to delete.
Then press the "Del" Key.
A small dotted rectangle will appear with a prompt to size the rectangle
to cover the area that you want to delete & to press Enter.
The drawing within the area you defined, will disappear.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
Page 7.
AUTOMATIC DIMENSIONING: 'Alt D'
Press 'Alt D'. The on-screen prompts will direct you to place the cursor
where you want the dimension to start & press 'Enter'.
To find the place where you want the dimension to start, place the cursor
on one edge of the thing that you want to measure. Then, move the
cursor to a clear area while keeping it in line with the starting point.
Press 'Enter' and you will be prompted to move the cursor to the other
end of the thing to be measured.
The 'odometers' will show the distance moved, & preview the dimension
that will be printed.
It isn't necessary to keep the cursor level or plumb. In fact, it is easier to
actually place the cursor on the line you want to measure to.
The Dimension line will appear level or plumb depending on whether the
cursor was moved MOSTLY horizontally or MOSTLY vertically.
So moving the cursor a short distance at a right angle to the desired
direction of measurement won't make any difference.
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
CLONING the last COMMAND: '='
Pressing the '=' key will start the Cloning process. The Cursor will
move to the beginning point of the previous operation.
A Prompt will ask you to move the cursor to a new point and to press
Enter to draw a clone of the previous command.
This is a powerful and versatile feature, useful for repetitive drawing
chores. (stairs, siding, deck boards, framing, etc.)
'Esc' cancels; 'Alt U' will Undo mistakes.
SQUARE FOOTAGE CALCULATION '[ or ]'
Press one of the SQUARE BRACKETS to start the process. You will be
prompted to place the Cursor at one corner of an area to be calculated.
Then, press Enter.
Next, drag the dotted line with the NumberPad keys to cover the desired
area, & press Enter again. The area will be covered by a grid & the
square footage will appear at the lower left corner of the screen.
Do this as many times as you want, a running total is kept at the lower
left corner of the screen.
Press Esc to quit & make the grids go away. The running total will stay
in the lower left corner until you start another operation.
Use Insert Text if you want to get the total on the plan before it
disappears.
Page 8.
PLAN ALTERING ROUTINES: 'CTRL F10'
Press Ctrl F10 to see the Alter Plan Menu.
This menu lists six routines to alter the current plan in some way.
Each routine can also be accessed directly by its "Hot Key" combination.
These routines are:
1. Reverse the plan Horizontally (left to right). 'Ctrl F1'
2. Reverse the plan Vertically (top to bottom). 'Ctrl F2'
3. Move the entire plan. 'Ctrl F3'
4. Move/Copy/Delete a Group of elements. 'Ctrl F4'
5. Move/Copy/Delete/Resize Individual elements. 'Ctrl F5'
6. View/Purge elements in chronological order. 'Ctrl F6'
Also on this menu, is a chance to save your plan before making any
drastic changes.
FIRST: What is a drawing element?
A line, an Automatic Dimension, a block of text, a rectangle, even a pre
drawn figure or a deleted screen area is a drawing element.
Drawing Elements are stored in records. An array of these records is
stored in memory, and in a disk file when you save your plan.
Drawing elements can be moved or copied or deleted or re-sized in the
routines described below.
1. Reverse the Plan Horizontally.
2. Reverse the Plan Vertically.
Both of the above simply execute when they are selected. They do
what they say, making a mirror image of the plan.
Note:
Walls drawn with the Wall routine do not reverse well. See appendix A.
3. Move the Entire Plan.
A box encloses the plan. Move the box with the cursor keys.
Press Enter when the box is in the desired location, and the plan
will be redrawn inside the box.
Continue until satisfied, then press Esc to quit.
4. Move/Copy/Delete a Group of elements.
You are prompted to draw a highlighted box around a group of
drawing elements. The box "rubberbands" as you draw it.
When you have the box around the area you want, press Enter to
select all the elements that are entirely within the box. They will be
highlighted.
(Elements Partially within the box will not be selected)
Move the box with the cursor keys.
Press Shift Enter to move the highlighted elements to the new
location of the box.
Press Ctrl Enter to copy the highlighted elements to the new
location of the box, and leave the original intact.
Press the Del key to delete all the highlighted elements.
NOTE: Once deleted, these elements can not be restored.
Page 9.
5. Move/Copy/Delete/Resize Individual elements.
You are prompted to place the cursor on a drawing element and
press Enter.
If the cursor is already on an element, it will be highlighted.
otherwise, move it to the desired element.
Now, there may be more than one element that is "selectable" from
one cursor position. Pressing Tab will cause Home Plan to look
for the next "selectable" element.
Pressing a cursor key will de-select any element and start over
again from the new cursor position.
Press Enter to select the highlighted element.
Move the selected element with the cursor keys.
'-' and '+' make the selected element smaller or larger.
Shift Enter moves the selected element.
Ctrl Enter copies the selected element.
Del deletes the selected element.
NOTE: Selecting drawing elements is not an exact science. Arcs,
ellipses, figures, are selected by their centers. Lines &
rectangles are selected by placing the cursor on any part of their
lines. Text & Walls have arbitrary areas they "own".
Doors are selected by their hinge points.
When an element changes color, press Enter, and you have it.
NOTE: WALLS drawn by the Wall routine are part of a system when
more than one is drawn in one session.
You must use the Group routine described above to move all the
connected walls together.
One wall can be re-sized, but will not move away from its adjacent
walls.
6. VIEWING & PURGING the Plan: 'Ctrl F-10'
The current plan will be redrawn with the most recent element
highlighted.
The total number of plan elements will be shown in the lower left corner
of the screen. ( where the "odometers" are normally shown )
To the right of that, will be a description of the type of the current
element (line, text, etc.)
The following keys will navigate through the plan, allowing you to see
the plan re-created chronologically:
Press Home to show the first plan element.
Press + and - to step through the plan element by element.
Press PgUp and PgDn to step through the plan ten elements at a time.
Press End to again show the complete plan.
Press Del to delete the last element displayed.
Press Esc to terminate the process.
CAUTION: SAVE the Plan before deleting plan elements!
Page 10.
PURGING HINTS:
It is easy to ruin a plan by deleting the wrong elements by mistake, so
Save the plan first.
It is easier to determine the element that will be deleted, if you are
stepping forward through the plan, rather that backwards.
If you wish to delete an element which was later erased during drawing,
find the erasing element first. Delete it. Then go back and delete the
drawn element.
It is hard to find an erasure when you have already deleted the element
which was erased!
METRIC MODE Vs USA MODE: 'Item 2.' (Option Menu)
This version supports the drawing of plans in either the Metric System
(mm), or the USA System. (Ft/Inches)
Item 2. on the Option Menu toggles between the two modes.
Most people will probably draw in one mode or the other without
changing this option.
If you do use both modes, you should know that each mode uses a
different scale. In the Metric Mode, the cursor moves in multiples of 25
mm.
In the USA mode, the cursor moves in multiples of 1 inch (25.4 mm).
If you draw and save a plan in one mode, and load it in the other, any
Auto Dimensions in the plan will differ from what they were originally.
This is the difference between 25mm and 25.4mm (1 Inch), or 01.6%.
1.6% might not seem like a huge difference, but it could make a big
difference to your contractor when your plan changes by six inches or
so.
You will be warned if you try to load a plan into the wrong mode. If you
don't care, you may go ahead and load it. (If you save it in the new
mode, it will load without the warning from then on).
Understand, that the drawing itself does not change, only the Auto-
Dimensions change.
Since the new Auto-Dimensions will be in a different format, one might
not notice the difference...... UNLESS one used the F-9 function. (see
below)
TOGGLE AUTO-DIMENSIONS: 'F-9'
The Auto-Dimensions on a plan will switch between the USA system
(Ft/Inch) and the Metric system (mm) when the F-9 key is pressed.
The Drawing Scale does not change, the Odometers & Cursor Speed do
not change.
Nothing changes except the numbers created by the Auto-Dimension
process. They will change back with the next press of F-9.
This is an opportunity to compare Metric and USA equivalence.
Page 11.
FILE COMMANDS:
START A NEW PLAN: 'Alt N'
Pressing 'Alt N' will prompt you to save the current plan and then allow
you to select a Drawing Size for a new plan.
'Esc' cancels.
SAVE a PLAN to DISK: 'Alt S'
Pressing 'Alt S' will show you a list of .PLN files in the current
directory, and ask you for a name for the file you want to save.
If the name you type already exists, you will be asked if you want to
overwrite it. If not, type in another name.
It is not necessary to type the file name extension. If you type a period
(.) or press 'Enter' it will be assumed the file name is complete.
You will be returned to the current plan.
( This version provides cursor selectable file names )
LOAD a PLAN from Disk: 'Alt L'
If this command is invoked while a plan is current, you will be prompted
to save it before loading another. Just follow the prompts.
Pressing 'Alt L' will show you a list of .PLN files in the current
directory, and ask you for the name of the file to load.
If the name that you type doesn't exist, you will be so informed. Type in
a name that does exist.
It is not necessary to type the file name extension. If you type a period
(.) or press 'Enter' it will be assumed the file name is complete.
( This version provides cursor selectable file names )
DELETE a FILE from DISK: 'Ctrl D'
Unused & unwanted .PLN files tend to pile up, wasting disk space and
filling up the File List window.
Pressing 'Ctrl D' will show you a list of .PLN files and ask for the name
of the file to Delete from disk.
If the name you type doesn't exist, you will be so notified. Re-type the
name.
You will be asked to verify the file to Delete. Answer Y or N.
Caution: This program cannot bring back files deleted from disk!
We recommend that you first load the file and make sure that you don't
want it before deleting it.
( This version provides cursor selectable file names )
PRINT the CURRENT PLAN: 'Alt P'
Press 'Alt P' to print the current plan.
If your printer is off line, out of paper, turned off, or some other
mysterious malady occurs, you will be so notified. Fix the problem &
press 'Enter' as per the prompt, or press 'Esc' to cancel.
This version supports 24 pin & 9 pin dot matrix & compatibles as well as
HP Laser Jet compatibles.
When you print a plan, you will be shown the current printer
configuration and asked to confirm it. Press 'N' to change the printer
options.
The options you select will stay in effect until you change them again.
Laser Jet compatibles can choose between 75 or 150 dpi
Page 12.
PRINT to SCALE:
After selecting the printer data, You will see the Print Scale menu.
Item 1. "FULL SIZE" is the default.
Item 2. "1/8" per ft." (at the default size; Actual distance per ft varies
inversely with the drawing size)
Use Item 2. when you want to be able to pull dimensions off the plan
with a rule.
This scale is also handy for enlarging 100% to get a 1/4" per ft. scale.
(you will need a copier for that)
"Full Size" fills the paper & looks like what you drew. APPROX 1/5"
per ft.
REMOVING ON-SCREEN PROMPTS: 'Ctrl BkSpc'
Usually, the On Screen prompts for drawing operations do not interfere
unduly with the operation.
Sometimes, however, a prompt will obscure the exact part of the plan
that you want to alter.
Press Esc to go back to the drawing board, Then press
Ctrl-BackSpace to hide the On-Screen prompts until
Ctrl-BackSpace is pressed once again.
Ctrl-BackSpace only operates from the drawing board, and toggles the
prompts on & off.
NOTE: The On Screen prompts are useful. Even if you are an
experienced user, it is sometimes difficult to remember what you are
doing without the prompts
I recommend leaving the prompts on unless absolutely necessary, and
then turning them back on as soon as the operation is done.
RETURN to OPENING MENU: 'Ctrl Home'
From the Drawing Screen, Hold down the Ctrl key and press 'Home' to
go to the Opening Menu. You will be prompted to either save or
abandon the current screen.
DELETING DRAWING ELEMENTS:
There may be reasons for you to delete elements from a plan.
HomePlan supports a large number of elements in each plan, However, it
is theoretically possible to exceed that limit in a complex plan, by many
repeated overdrawings & erasures.
Removal of duplications will reduce the size of a plan.
Or, you may want to delete an element after it is too late to use Undo.
The last three of the Plan Altering routines (Ctrl F10) allow you to
delete drawing elements. You can select elements one at a time, define a
group of elements, or search in chronological order in View/purge.
Note: Elements deleted with these routines can not be brought back.
Page 13.
Appendix A.
WALLS drawn by the Wall routine are a special system of drawing
elements. Each wall is drawn to conform to the wall before it.
When the wall system is drawn in a clockwise direction, the "second"
line is drawn to the inside of the cursor line. It is drawn on the outside
for walls drawn in a counterclockwise direction.
When a plan with these walls in it is reversed, the "second" line will
switch sides.
Because each wall is drawn according to the wall that preceded it, we
cannot reverse the process.
One choice is to preserve the clean corners of our walls, at the expense
of them actually moving over a distance equal to their width.
The other, is to lose the clean corners.
You can toggle between those choices by pressing Shift/Ctrl/W to see
what I mean.
NOTE: Be sure to save your plan before playing around with this stuff.
Once the walls have been reversed, using the two options described, they
won't go back to the original form
HOME PLAN REGISTRATION
IF you find that you are using HOME PLAN and continue to use it
after a reasonable trial period, you must make a registration
payment of $20.00 + 4.00 s&h to HOME PLAN SOFTWARE.
The $20.00 registration fee will license one copy for use on any
one computer at any one time.
Anyone distributing HOME PLAN for any kind of remuneration
must first contact HOME PLAN SOFTWARE at the address below for
authorization.
This authorization will be automatically granted to shareware
distributors, and such distributors may begin offering
HOME PLAN immediately.
(However HOME PLAN SOFTWARE must still be advised so that the
distributor can be kept up-to-date with the latest version of
HOME PLAN).
You are encouraged to pass a copy of HOME PLAN along to your
friends for evaluation. Please encourage them to register their
copy if they find that they can use it. All registered users will
receive a copy of the latest maintenance version of the
HOME PLAN system.
Page 14.
Use the "Print Registration Information option at the Opening
Menu.
Then send $20.00 + 4.00 ($7.00 outside US) s&h to:
HOME PLAN SOFTWARE
3890 Rimrock Valley Rd.
Mountain Ranch, CA 95246
for:
1. New Registered version,
2. Printed manual
3. FREE registered copy of AMORTIZE.EXE, a fast & easy way
to calculate mortgage Balances, Payments, Loan duration,
Principal and Interest.
( Amortize.Exe also prints amortization schedules )
4. FREE utility to convert your Home Plan plans to a PCX file.
(PCX files can be imported into many word processors, etc.
5. CompuServe will send you a FREE sign up kit & $25.00 usage
credit when you call them with your Home Plan authorization.
Home Plan
HOME PLAN SOFTWARE
CIS 71321,167
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Mountain Ranch, CA 95246
1-800-671-7526 (PLAN) Orders only, please, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Pacific time.
(209) 754-4891 Tech support & general info. 24 hr Fax: (209) 754 3737.
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Page 15
NUMBERPAD / ARROW KEYS............Move the Cursor:
SHIFT ............................Slows the Cursor.
'L' or ENTER .....................Toggle Line Draw.
'E' ..............................Toggle Erase Line.
'*' ............................. Center the Cursor.
'=' ..............................Clone the last Command.
'[' or ']' .......................Calculate Square Footage.
'/' ..............................Insert a Door into a wall.
ESC ..............................Cancel Drawing Modes.
DEL ..............................Delete Screen Portion.
INS ..............................Insert Text.
ALT A ............................Abandon Current Plan
ALT C ............................Circle Function.
ALT D ............................Automatic Dimension.
ALT F ............................Insert a Pre-Drawn Figure.
ALT L ............................Load a Plan from Disk
ALT P ............................Print the Current Plan
ALT R + R.........................Rectangle Function.
ALT R + = ........................Double Wall Rectangle
ALT R + F ........................Rectangle w/ Framing
ALT S ............................Save a Plan to Disk
ALT U ............................UNDO last action
ALT X ............................Exit the Program
ALT W ............................Draw double line Walls.
CTRL HOME ........................Go to Opening Menu
CTRL BKSPC .......................Toggle Drawing Prompts
CTRL F10 ........................ Alter Plan Menu
SPACE BAR ........................Select Line Type
F9 .............................Toggle Metric/USA Dimensions
Thank you for using Home Plan.