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CONTACT TRACKING SYSTEM
VERSION 3.0
DOCUMENTATION
The Contact Tracking System (version 3.0) is produced and copyrighted by
Jamal Mazrui of Access Success. It is a shareware database management system
for keeping track of contacts of people and companies, and the ongoing status
of relationships with those contacts. A contact file contains address and
phone number information about each contact; a status file contains dates
and descriptions of events in connection with those contacts. A wide range
of operations can be performed on each record including the ability to create
the skeleton of a letter to a contact and load it into your word processor,
address an envelope, and dial a phone number with your modem. Report options
include mailing labels, a list of reminders organized chronologically, and
mail merge form letters.
The system is written to work well with a speech synthesizer and screen
reader program. It will automatically verbalize relevant information. It is
also meant to be visually friendly, however, and need not be used with speech
output.
CONTENTS
Introduction
Installation
The Menu Interface
The Update Interface
The Report Interface
Report Types
Utilities
Multiple Contact Files
Help Screens
Registration Information
INTRODUCTION
The Contact Tracking System is written and compiled in the Foxbase Plus
programming language: a "dialect" of the DBASE language, widely used for
database management applications on IBM-compatible personal computers.
Portions of the code were generated using the Genifer development tool
(copyright by Bytel Corporation). Data is stored in the standard 'DBF' file
format, so conversion of data between this and other applications should be
relatively easy.
The Contact Tracking System (CTS) is contained in two archive files:
CTS30#1.ZIP and CTS30#2.ZIP. These archives can be uncompressed with the
PKUNZIP.EXE utility (copyright by Phil Katz), which is widely available. The
first archive, CTS30#1.ZIP, contains all program and documentation files
specific to this system. The second archive, CTS30#2.ZIP, contains the
Foxbase Plus interpreter software (copyright by Fox Software), needed to run
programs written in the Foxbase Plus language.
To repeat, the Contact Tracking System is not a self executing program
like programs which have a 'COM' or 'EXE' extension. Rather, it requires
Foxbase software to interpret and execute code during its operation. The
second archive of this package contains either the demo or runtime version of
the Foxbase Plus interpreter. In accordance with the author's license with
Fox Software, the fully functional runtime version must be distributed
directly by the author to each user. It cannot be posted on a bulletin board
or distributed by one user to another. The demo version, however, can be
freely distributed without these limitations. It is fully functional except
for a limit of 120 records per database file. You may thus use and share the
demo version of this package all you like, but you need to contact the author
directly to purchase the fully functioning version, which you may not
distribute to others.
INSTALLATION
To install the Contact Tracking System, uncompress all files into a new
directory on your hard drive, such as 'C:\CTS' standing for "Contact Tracking
System." Then change to this directory and enter the name of the batch file
that loads the system. The demo package incorporates the 'FOXPLUS.EXE'
interpreter software and the batch file 'CTSDEMO.BAT.' The runtime package
uses the 'FOXPRUN.EXE' software and the batch file 'CTS.BAT.' You will thus
enter either "CTSDEMO" or "CTS" at the DOS prompt to load the Contact
Tracking System.
Configuration information specific to your installation is stored in a
file called 'CTS.CNF', which the program reads during the loading phase. If
no 'CTS.CNF' file is found, you will be presented with two configuration help
screens, followed by two screens for entering configuration information.
After responding to the prompts for configuration data, a configuration file
will be created and you will be presented with the Main Menu of the system.
Three types of user interfaces appear consistently throughout the
Contact Tracking System, corresponding to the tasks of selecting from menus,
updating databases, and generating reports. After these interfaces are
explained, the specific reports and utilities available will be described.
Next, all help screens are presented to serve as a summary and reference. At
the end is information on contacting the author and obtaining the registered
package.
The 3.0 version of CTS has many improvements over earlier versions,
based to a great degree on feedback from users. Refer to the file
'UPGRADE.TXT' for a list of features and changes incorporated in this
version. Feedback is appreciated from users, including information on any
program bugs or typographical errors discovered, on effective uses of the
system, and on ideas for future improvement.
THE MENU INTERFACE
Menu screens are laid out as follows. On the third line from the top
are two screen titles: the title of the system, "Contact Tracking System",
at the left and the title of that particular menu at the right, e.g., "Main
Menu." Below this, menu options are displayed, one per line. One of the
menu options will be highlighted, indicating that it is the "current" option,
the one that will be selected if you press the Enter key. Pressing the Up or
Down arrow keys will change the current option to the one above or below
accordingly. Thus a menu option can be selected by pressing the Up or Down
arrow keys until it becomes the current one, and then pressing Enter.
An alternative, quicker method of selecting an option is to press the
first letter of that option, regardless of what is the current option at the
time. For example, if "Help" is an option on the menu, pressing the letter
'H' will select the "Help" option and display a help screen giving more
information about each option on the menu. "Help" is usually an option, so
selecting it is a good way to explore the system. Pressing F1 is an
alternative way to request help. Selecting a "Quit" option or pressing
Escape will exit the menu and return you to the screen from which you entered
that menu.
On the bottom (25th) line of the screen a description of the currently
highlighted option appears. It includes the single letter "hot key" that may
be used to select that option, regardless of what option is currently
highlighted on the menu. For example, the description line of the "Help"
option is
H = Display help screens
This serves as a learning aid and reminder. Unless your screen reader is
configured to read lightbars, it will read the description line (on the
bottom of the screen) rather than the highlighted option (in the middle of
the screen) when you read the current line or move among options with the Up
and Down arrow keys. Some screen readers require tracking with the "hardware
cursor" for this to work properly.
When you enter a menu screen, the menu title and current option will
automatically be spoken by your speech synthesizer. If your screen reader is
configured to read the current line after pressing the Up and Down arrow
keys, then the changing current option will be spoken to you as you use these
keys to move among menu options. Depending on the speed of your computer,
you may need to configure your screen reader with a "cursor delay" so that
the correct option is spoken, rather than the previous one the cursor was on.
THE UPDATE INTERFACE
An "update" screen is a screen with options for updating the information
contained in a database. The name of the database file being updated is
displayed at the upper right. Below this are field names and field data, one
field per line. Line 24, the second to the last line of the screen, displays
the highlighted name of the current option, and a brief help message about
keys that can be used. For example, the line might say
Press first letter or arrow keys. Enter for Retrieve F1 for Help
Thus the "Retrieve" option can be selected by pressing Enter. It is the
default option on the Update Menu, since it is used most frequently
(explained later). Like other menus, a description of the current option
appears on the bottom line, line 25. For example, the description line for
"Retrieve" says
R = Retrieve a record by its key fields
An update option can be selected by pressing its first letter, or by moving
to it with the Up and Down arrow keys and then pressing Enter. With a screen
reader, the line describing the current option, Line 25, will be read each
time you move to a new option.
On the update screen, field data from one record is displayed at a time,
that record being the current record. For example, a CONTACT database
includes fields for a contact's name and address. When an update screen for
a CONTACT database is presented, lines displayed will include field names of
"FIRST NAME," "LAST NAME," "CITY," etc. and their corresponding field data
from the current record, e.g., "Jane," "Doe," and "Sometown," etc. Each time
a new record is displayed, the record is identified verbally by summary
information being spoken, rather than verbalizing the whole record. This
summary information is usually the data that makes that record unique, that
is, distinguishes it from others. In a CONTACT file, it is the combination
of a last name, first name, and company. In the TYPES file, it is the status
type, etc. After the current record has initially been displayed visually
and identified verbally on the screen, it can be identified verbally again at
any time by selecting the "Identify" option from the Update Menu, invoked
with the single '?' (question mark) character. This provides a quick way of
knowing what record is currently displayed without issuing a screen reader
command to hear the whole screen. As well as the regular identifying
information, this command will verbalize the date the record was last
updated, as displayed visually on the top line of the screen.
Select "Add" to add a new record, e.g., a new friend if updating a file
of personal contacts. Select "Copy" to add a new record containing much of
the same data as the current record. Just change the fields that are
different. Select "Modify" to modify data in the current record. Select
"Delete" to delete the current record. You will be prompted for
confirmation. Think of the deletion as permanent. However, if you have
really made a mistake, you can select the "Undelete" command, which will
restore all records deleted in the current update session. Deleted records
are permanently removed when you return to the Main Menu, unless there are
over 500 records in the file--in which case you are prompted to do this since
the processing time may be significant.
When adding or modifying a record, or performing any operation which
gives you field by field access to the record on the screen, pressing Enter
will move you to the next field and pressing Tab will move you to the
previous one. Page-Up will jump to the first field and page-Down will jump
to the last. The cursor will be placed on the first character of the field
data, which is to the right of the field name. Your speech synthesizer will
automatically speak the field name and current field data when you move to a
new field.
You can enter characters into a field or just press Enter to leave it
the way it is and move on to the next field. A warning beep will sound if
you fill a field that contains data of a variable length, e.g., after typing
38 characters in the COMPANY field. This alerts you to the fact that typing
any additional characters will overwrite existing ones in the field.
Pressing Control-Y will delete data from the cursor to the end of the field.
Pressing F6 will delete all data in the field and place the cursor at the
beginning of the field. You can press Escape or Control-Q to abort the
editing of that screen of fields. You can press F10, Control-End, or
Control-W to save the current data in all fields. This is a shortcut to
pressing Enter repeatedly until you get past the last field.
Pressing F1 will display a help screen giving more information about the
current field, including the number of characters of data the field contains,
any automatic formatting of the data, and an example of data. Pressing F4
allows you to change the automatic formatting of data in certain fields.
Pressing F4 while on the zip code field, for example, allows you to alter the
format from American to British or vice versa. Pressing F4 on the state
field allows you to change the format from all letters being capitalized to
only the initial letter being capitalized. Addresses outside the U.S. can
thus include a state or province of up to 10 characters, rather than a 2
character abbreviation.
Several options help you locate a specific record. CONTACT records are
indexed in alphabetical order by last name, first name, and then company.
STATUS records are indexed in chronological order by the WHEN field. Select
"Next" to go to the next record in the index order. Select "Previous" to go
to the previous record. Select "Beginning" to go to the beginning or first
record, and "End" to go to the end or last record. Select "Jump" to jump
forward or backward by more than one record. You will be prompted for the
number of records. Entering a positive number will jump forward or a
negative number will jump backward that many records.
Select "Retrieve" if you remember values in the key fields of a record
you wish to locate. Since this command is the default on any Update Menu,
you can simply press Enter, instead of the letter 'R' (though that will work
too). In a CONTACT database, you will be prompted for the last name and then
company of the contact. You need not enter all characters of the last name,
only enough to make it unique. For example, you could just enter "maz" to
find a last name of "Mazrui." Similarly, if you want to find the record of a
particular company, you can just enter the first few characters of that
company's name. Most of the time, you will only need to enter data in the
LAST NAME field and can leave the COMPANY field blank, since this will
usually isolate the record you want. If the contact has a company name, but
no data in the LAST NAME field, however, you would leave the LAST NAME field
blank and only enter data in the COMPANY field.
If you select "Retrieve" when updating the STATUS file, you will be
prompted for the date of the record to be found. In FILES update, you will
be prompted for the file name. In TYPES update, you will be prompted for the
STATUS type. In searching for data, the system treats upper and lower case
characters the same. If the search is unsuccessful, the system will go to
the record whose data most closely matches what you specified.
If you remember values in fields other than indexed fields of a record
you wish to locate, select "Filter" to limit records displayed to those
containing the data in the filter. You will be prompted
Scan/Fields/Memo/>Tag/<Untag/Cancel?
This kind of prompt is common in the system. Choices are separates by
slash marks, the first letter of an option being the hot key to select it.
Select "Scan" (the default) to scan all fields of each record for a
particular string of characters. For example, you could scan the database
for all records containing "pizza" if you were trying to look up all possible
pizza delivery places. Records would be selected that contained the string
"pizza" in the company or notes field (or in any other field).
Select "Fields" if you want to set a filter based on values occurring in
particular fields. All fields will be available for entering data in the
filter. For example, entering "Boston" in the CITY field will set a filter
so that only contacts whose city is Boston will be displayed. If "computer
user" is also entered in the NOTES field, then a filter will be set
containing only Boston contacts with the phrase "computer user" somewhere in
the NOTES field. To cancel a filter and have access to all records again,
press 'F' for "Filter" and then 'C' for "Cancel."
Selecting "Memo" will allow you to search the memo field for a string of
characters. If the string contains more than one word, they must occur on
the same line of the memo text in order to be found. Note that this type of
filter takes significantly longer to set.
Selecting "<" will set a filter that contains only untagged records;
selecting ">" will set a filter that contains only tagged records. This
allows you to tag several records and then perform operations such as
transfer and delete on only those tagged records.
Besides the set of fixed-length fields, each CONTACT record and each
STATUS record also has a "memo" field, in which miscellaneous text of
variable length can be written. Select "Write memo" to enter or edit up to
four screens worth of text in a mode that works like a simple word processor.
The up and down arrow keys will move from line to line. The Home and End
keys will move between words. The delete and backspace keys erase text as
expected. Press the F6 key to delete a line. Press the insert key to turn
insert mode on, and insert again to restore type-over mode. When done
editing, press the F10 key to save the changes you've made to the memo field,
or the F7 key to exit without saving these changes.
Select "View memo" to view the contents of the memo field without
actually going into the mode to edit it.
Selecting "Yield" will tell you the number of records in the database
file, or in the filter if one is set. Thus you could count the number of
computer users you know in Boston by setting a filter as previously described
and then pressing 'Y' for "Yield."
Selecting "List" will list records (in the filter if one is set), one
per line starting with the current record. The Up and Down arrow keys allow
you to move quickly through this list with each line spoken. Pressing Page
Up moves to the previous screen of records; Page Down moves to the next
screen. Control-Page-Up moves to the first screen; Control-Page Down moves
to the last. Press Spacebar to perform an index search within list mode,
just like the "Retrieve" command in update mode. When you have found the
record you want, press Enter to exit this list display of many records shown
in brief, and return to the full screen display of the record corresponding
to the last line you were on in the list. Pressing Escape also aborts this
list mode and returns you to the Update Menu.
To examine each field individually in the full screen display, press 'X'
for "Examine." (The letter 'E' was already being used for the "End"
command!) This provides a way of placing the cursor on field data so that it
can be read or spelled by your screen reader. It is an alternative to
entering your screen reader's review mode. You could thus look up someone's
home phone number by pressing 'X' and then pressing Enter until you get to
the HOME PHONE field. At this point you can use the Left and Right arrow
keys to read by character, or issue a screen reader command to spell the
current word.
Selecting "Generate" will automatically address either an envelope or a
letter to the current contact. If you choose "Envelope," position a business
sized envelope in your printer so that the print head is at the upper left
corner. Choosing "Letter" will create a skeleton of a letter and load this
text file into the word processor you specified during configuration. The
default file name of the letter is the last name of the contact, or the
company if there is no last name. At the "FILE NAME" prompt you can press
Enter to accept this default or edit the file name. As usual, the cursor is
in overwrite mode unless you changed it to insert mode. Control-Y will
delete the default value completely if you want to type a whole new file
name. (F6 only deletes a field in an editing screen of multiple fields.)
Remember that a file name can have up to 8 characters which are optionally
followed by a period and up to a 3 character extension. If you prefer your
letters to have an extension other than the default 'LTR', you can specify
this. For example, some users enter a "DOC" (standing for document)
extension because their word processor expects files to have this extension.
If you are writing a second or third letter to, say, "John Smith," then you
might name the files "SMITH2.LTR," "SMITH3.LTR," etc.
What if you want to load an existing letter but don't remember its exact
file name? You can enter a DOS "wild card specification" for the file name.
For example, entering "*.LTR" will bring up a list of all files with an "LTR"
extension. Entering "SMITH?.*" will bring up a list of all files beginning
with the word "SMITH" followed by one character and any extension. This list
mode responds to the same keystrokes as the one that may be entered by
pressing 'L' from the Update Menu. Cursor to the file name you want and then
press Enter.
One more question asked before the letter is generated is whether you
wish the salutation to be formal or informal. A formal salutation will use
the title and last name of the contact whereas an informal one will use the
contact's first name only.
The system assumes your word processor will give the letter a one inch
margin at the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the document.
(WordPerfect does this by default.) The letter will be laid out as follows:
your return address in the upper right (according to configuration data); the
current date below it; the contact's inside address below this against the
left margin; a salutation of the form "Dear" followed by a formal or informal
reference to the contact as specified; and finally a closing of the form
"Sincerely" with your full name in the lower right.
Essentially, you just have to fill in the body of the letter, although
you may also have to improve its formatting before printing. (In some word
processors, such as WordPerfect 4.2, you will want to delete the Control-Z
end-of-file character at the end of the letter.) The letter is saved in the
letters directory you specified during configuration, and can be re-saved
there after you add the body and any formatting changes.
A utility called 'SWAPMEM.COM' (copyright by Nico Mak and Mansfield
Software Group) is used to swap memory to disk to free up as much memory as
possible in order to load your word processor. It is still possible to run
out of memory if you were using almost all memory before loading your word
processor. The SWAPMEM utility is not compatible with some memory resident
software (including some keyboard macro and network shell programs). If your
computer locks up before or after loading your word processor, try deleting
(or renaming) the 'SWAPMEM.COM' file. The system will then try to load your
word processor in the memory available during the operation of CTS. If your
word processor is small or if your computer is configured with additional
(extended or expanded) memory, the word processor may load successfully.
Selecting "Transfer" presents you with the "Files Menu" where you can
select a CONTACT file to which you would like to transfer a copy of the
current CONTACT record. This allows you to create new CONTACT files out of
existing ones without re-typing. If a filter is set, you will be prompted as
to whether to transfer all filtered records, or the current record only. A
common use of this feature is when you want to create a CONTACT file for a
special mailing by transferring contacts to it from various other CONTACT
files.
As a source record is transferred, the target file is checked to see if
it already contains a record with the same key value, that is, with the same
last name, first name, and company combination. If so, you will be prompted
"Update/Replace/Display/Cancel." Select "Update" to replace the target
record with the source record if the source was updated more recently. (The
date a record was last updated is displayed on the top line of the screen
when at the Update Menu. (It can be verbalized by pressing '?' (question
mark) to identify the current record.) Select "Replace" to replace the
target record with the source record regardless of the dates they were last
updated. Select "Cancel" to cancel the transfer and leave the target record
as is. Selecting "Display" will display for comparison the source record on
the left side of the screen and the target record on the right. You will
then be able to choose whether to replace the address, the phone numbers,
both address and phone numbers, the work phone only, the home phone only, or
the entire record. You may also cancel the transfer at this point. If you
are transferring a set of filtered records rather than a single record, you
will be asked at the beginning whether to update, replace, or cancel the
transfer on records with the same key value.
If you are updating a CONTACT database, an additional "Zoom" option is
available which allows you to update related records in the STATUS file. A
common use is after you've entered a new contact into, say, your database of
business contacts. You may want to write a reminder to yourself to call or
write that contact about something. Pressing 'Z' will "Zoom" you to any
STATUS records that exist regarding that contact. If there are none, the
"Add" update option will automatically be invoked, presenting you with the
TYPE field of a new STATUS record.
The 8 character TYPE field allows you to classify the kind of STATUS
record you are creating. Several STATUS types have been provided by default,
though you may change these as you wish from the "Types Update" module,
accessed from the Main Menu. The default types indicate a written, phone, or
in-person transaction in the future or past between you and the individual or
business in question. As a convention, the word "should" means that you plan
to take an action and the word "have" means that the action was taken by you.
Correspondingly, the word "will" means that the other party plans to take an
action and the word "did" means that the action was taken by the party. Thus
the default STATUS types are as follows:
SC = Should call
SM = Should meet
SW = Should write
HC = Have called
HM = Have met
HW = Have written
WC = Will call
WM = Will meet
WW = Will write
DC = Did call
DM = Did meet
DW = Did write
If a planned transaction occurs, you may indicate this by either
entering a new STATUS record or modifying the existing STATUS record by
typing a new letter over the first letter of the STATUS type. For example,
to indicate that you wrote a letter that you had reminded yourself to do, you
could modify the "SW" to "HW" to change the meaning from "should write" to
"have written."
The "when" field can contain either the date of the transaction or the
date you entered the record (which is the default value). An additional
STATUS type of "BD" indicates the birthday of the contact, as entered in the
WHEN field. Other STATUS types may be added according to your need to track
transactions with contacts.
The TYPES file contains a record for the value and description of each
valid status type. If you are updating a STATUS record and you enter a
status type that is not found in this file, you will be prompted as to
whether you want to select, edit, or create a status type. Pick the "Edit"
option if you realize you made a typing error and wish to alter the spelling
of the status type you had just entered.
The "Select" option will take you to a menu of the existing status types
and make the current option the one closest alphabetically to the one you had
entered in the field. The STATUS type menu works like the Files Menu,
requiring you to press Enter to confirm the option you want, since more than
one STATUS type may begin with the same letter. The choice you selected will
then be placed in the status type field.
The "Create" option allows you to create a new status type, that is, to
add another valid value to the list. If you select this option, you will be
prompted for up to a 65 character description of the value. For example, you
may have entered a status type of "POSITION" to indicate that you are using
this STATUS record to store someone's position at a company. If "POSITION"
was not a valid status type, rather than the cursor moving to the next field,
the system would give you a "Select/Edit/Create" prompt. If you press 'C'
for "Create,", it would then prompt you for a description for this new
"POSITION" type of STATUS record. You might enter "Position at company" to
indicate how this type is meant to be used.
Following the TYPE field is the WHEN field, which allows you to
associate a date with the STATUS record. Today's date is the default, so
just press Enter if that is satisfactory. Otherwise, enter 6 digits for a
date, in month, date, year order for American date format or day, month, year
order for British. (The date format to be used throughout the system--
American or British--is an option in the configuration utility.) Slash marks
will automatically be inserted, so don't add these. After the WHEN field is
the WHAT field, which allows you 62 characters to write a reminder about an
event, fact, or something to do in relation to that contact. It is a one
line elaboration of the status type you had entered. For example, if you
entered a type of "CALL," you might enter "to schedule appointment" in the
WHAT field. If you had entered "WRITE," you might now enter "about
legislative issue." If you fill up the 62 characters space, a warning beep
will sound to alert you that any more characters you type will overwrite
existing characters in the field. To continue the note, enter text in the
memo field using the "Write" command from the Update Menu.
If you want to create another STATUS record on a different topic, select
"Add" again or "Copy" to use some of the same data as before. All update
options are available here, just as with CONTACT records. Select "Quit" or
press Escape to return to the CONTACT Update Menu.
If you want to add or retrieve STATUS information related to different
contacts, select "STATUS Update" from the Main Menu rather than "CONTACT and
STATUS Update." In this case, related contact information can still be
examined by pressing 'X', but only status information can be changed.
The Contact Tracking System can dial the phone number of a contact if
your computer is equipped with a modem, the connecting port to be specified
during configuration. (Note that if your modem is connected to 'COM3' or
'COM4', you may need to run the enclosed 'COMMSET.EXE' utility in your
'AUTOEXEC.BAT' file for this to work properly.) Press '#' (number sign or
Shift-3) to dial a local number. From the Update Menu, press '$' (dollar
sign or Shift-4) to dial a long distance number, requiring that the digit '1'
and the area code be dialed before the number. Press '%' (percent sign or
Shift-5) to dial a "medium distance" number, requiring a '1' before the
number but no area code. This is sometimes appropriate for phone numbers
within the same area code that are not nearby. Press '@' (the "at sign" or
Shift-2) to dial an "internal" number, requiring only the last five digits of
the number. This is sometimes appropriate within large businesses or
agencies that have an internal phone system such as "Centrex." It is a
shortcut for dialing someone else at the same location (hence the "at sign"
as a memory association).
In this situation, you would probably have to dial a '9' before dialing
an outside number. If so, change the "dialing prefix" setting in the
configuration utility. It should say "ATDT9" rather than "ATDT". Sometimes,
a different dialing prefix is needed for a long distance call, such as the
digit '8'. If so, you might enter "ATDT9" for the local dialing prefix and
"ATDT8" for the long distance one. The "dialing prefix" and "dialing suffix"
settings can also be used to insert access or security codes before or after
the number being dialed. For example, you might have an "MCI" long distance
account which requires you to dial a series of digits before the number you
are calling. Just enter them in the dialing prefix after the "ATDT" and
place a ',' (comma) in any place that requires a pause of a couple seconds
(usually for the phone system to respond with a tone). If your phone uses
"rotary" or "pulse" dialing rather than "touch tone" dialing, then use "ATDP"
rather than "ATDT" in the dialing prefixes.
Whether you selected the '@', '#', '$', or '%' command, the system will
prompt "Workphone/Homephone." Press 'W' to dial the work number of the
contact, or 'H' to dial the home number. You should hear the modem dialing
the phone. You can pick up your phone's receiver before the modem has
finished dialing. However, wait until it finishes dialing before responding
to the prompt "Press any key to complete connection." This releases the
modem's control of the phone line. (You may still be able to hear the person
you've called if you haven't pressed a key, such as the Spacebar, but the
line will be clearer if you do.)
THE REPORT INTERFACE
A report screen displays its title in the upper right. Below this are
fields by which you specify how the report will be generated. Below these
fields is the list of report options separated by slashes:
Specify/Generate/Edit/Help/Quit
Press 'S' to select "Specify". You will be prompted as to whether you
want to "Set" or "Modify" the current report specification. "Set" presents
the specification fields with the default field data, whereas "Modify"
presents them with the data you last entered into them. The first field is
"OUTPUT" into which you enter whether you want the report output to go to the
screen, printer, or a file on disk. Press the first letter of the option you
desire, the default being 'S' for "Screen." Next, enter the name of the file
the report should be saved in if you requested file output, the default being
'TEMP' (standing for "temporary"). A file extension of 'RPT' (standing for
report) will automatically be given. The file will be saved in the directory
you specified for reports during configuration.
In the "FORMALITY" field, enter 'F' for "Formal" or 'I' for "Informal"
to specify whether names should be output with the title and last name or
with the first name only.
The remaining specification fields enable you to set a filter, as in the
update interface, by which only records containing certain data are displayed
in the report. In the Calendar report, for example, you can set a filter so
that only status records between the "BEGINNING DATE" and "ENDING DATE" will
be displayed. An additional specification in the Calendar report is whether
records should be displayed in order by the contact's last name or the status
date.
Select "Generate" to generate the report according to the current report
specification. If you want to see and hear a report that contains all
records, you can simply select "Generate" when you first enter the report
screen, since the default output is to the screen and the default filter
allows all records.
If you specify printer output, you will be asked for confirmation as to
whether your printer is online and otherwise ready for printing. If you
specify file output, you may want to select "Edit" after the report is
generated. This will load the report file into your word processor to allow
you to edit the content or formatting of the report before printing, similar
to the way you can load a letter into your word processor in the update
interface. A report may be as wide as the screen, so you may want to widen
your word processor margins to 1 and 80 so that lines do not wrap.
REPORT TYPES
There are six types of predefined reports. A "Calendar" report displays
records from the STATUS database, two lines per record. The first line
displays the related CONTACT, if any. The second line displays the STATUS
TYPE at the far left, followed by the corresponding WHEN date, and the WHAT
reminder at the right.
The "1UP" and "2UP" reports produce names and addresses formatted so
that mailing labels can be produced if printing to appropriate label paper--
either 1 across or 2 across, respectively. Each label is 38 characters wide
and six lines high. The first line contains the contact's first and last
name if informal, or title, first and last name, if formal. The second line
contains the company field. The third and fourth contain the ADDRESS1 and
ADDRESS2 fields. The fifth contains the city, state, and zip code. Finally,
the sixth line contains the COUNTRY field. if any line is blank (e.g., no
company data), it is omitted from within the address and instead added as a
blank line after the address (in order to keep six lines per label).
The "Phone" report contains the work and home phone numbers of each
contact as well as the address. Two columns of contact information appear on
each screen or page.
The "Status" report contains status information as well as address and
phone number information for each contact. There is one column of data per
screen or page. Below the address and phone number data of a contact is the
NOTES field of 65 characters in length, followed by the "TEXT" memo field, 60
characters wide and any number of lines long. Below it are all STATUS
records corresponding to that contact. Each of these records is displayed as
in the Calendar report, with the TYPE data at the left of the line, followed
by the WHEN data in the middle, and the WHAT reminder at the right.
The "WPMERGE Report" allows you to create a WordPerfect "secondary merge
file." This is a file containing data in WordPerfect format that can be used
to "personalize" a form letter, sent in bulk to a number of contacts. A
skeleton form letter is provided, similar to the kind that is generated for a
single person from the CONTACT Update Menu. It is created during the
configuration process using the contact information you enter for your return
address, displayed in the upper right. Below this is the current date. The
inside address and salutation contain WordPerfect codes that enable the
appropriate data to be filled in from the "secondary merge file" when you use
the merge feature in WordPerfect. Thus you can create a form letter with the
following steps:
1. Load WordPerfect, either from outside or inside CTS. Press Shift-F10 to
retrieve the 'LETTER.FRM' skeleton form letter, created by CTS and stored in
the reports directory. Add a body of text to the letter between the
salutation and closing. Add any other formatting commands you wish. Save
the file under a new name that suggests the subject of the letter, e.g.,
'REQUEST.FRM" for a letter requesting a product catalog from a selection of
companies in your business CONTACT file, which you transferred to your hold
CONTACT file.
2. From within CTS, choose the hold file after selecting the WPMERGE Report
from the Reports Menu. Specify the output to go to a file called
'REQUEST.RPT'. For ease of remembering, it is helpful to name the form
letter and data files with the same name, differing only in the extension.
WordPerfect refers to the form letter file as the "primary merge file" and
the data file you generate as the "secondary merge file."
3. Generate the secondary merge file.
4. Select "Edit" to load WordPerfect (assuming this is your word processor).
The data file will be loaded into it. However, clear this file out of memory
to use the merge feature. Press Control-F9 for merge. Enter 'REQUEST.FRM'
for the primary file and 'REQUEST.RPT' for the secondary file. WordPerfect
will then merge the two files, creating a "personalized" letter for each
contact in the file you generated. Each letter will begin on a new page.
You may then print immediately with the Shift-F7 key, or save this multi-
letter document for later printing. If you save it, a name lie 'REQUEST.MRG'
would suggest that it is the merged file you produced from the 'REQUEST.FRM'
primary file and 'REQUEST.RPT' secondary file.
A final report type is user defined. You will be prompted for the name
of a file to define. If you type a name that already exists, you will be
able to modify that definition. If it does not exist, you will be able to
create a new definition with that name starting with the 1UP mailing label
definition as default values. You are brought to the Foxbase report writer,
which allows you to specify the layout of fields to be printed in the report.
(This mode does not speak automatically with a screen reader, but it is quite
manageable by using the "current line" hot key.) Press F10 to save the
report definition. You will be brought to the standard report options
prompt, allowing you to specify a filter, generate the report, or edit the
output.
UTILITIES
There are three utilities available from the Utilities Menu. Select
"Backup" to backup all database and configuration files to the drive you
specified during configuration. You should do this at least once a week if
you are using the system regularly. A public domain utility called
'COPYON.COM' is used for backing up, because it checks to see whether a
source file will fit on the target disk before copying, and if not, prompts
you to insert another disk. Backup disks must already be formatted. Files
are copied onto them in regular DOS format, so they can be re-copied into the
source directory if original files are lost or corrupted. In this situation,
run the re-index utility to build new index files upon entering the system.
Select "Configuration" to change any configuration settings. A new
configuration file will be created in place of the previous one. By default,
the system uses a configuration file named 'CTS.CNF. However, another
configuration file may be specified in the command that loads CTS. For
example, suppose that more than one person is using a computer on which CTS
is installed. For "Jane" to load CTS with the word processor, letters
directory, and other settings preferred by her, she might enter the following
at the DOS prompt
CTS JANE
This would tell CTS to use the 'JANE.CNF' configuration. If it is not found
on disk, then the system will prompt Jane to create a new one, just like the
original configuration of CTS.
Select "Index" to create new index files for all CONTACT and STATUS
databases. You can do this at any time without harming the system. It is
advisable to do this if you did not exit the system normally, e.g., a
keyboard lockup or power cut. Another time to build new indexes is if
records do not seem to be in the appropriate order, such as alphabetical
order by last name for a CONTACT database. Note that deleted records will be
permanently removed during this process, if they were not removed after the
update session in which you deleted them.
MULTIPLE CONTACT FILES
There is a single STATUS database containing dates and reminders, but
there can be multiple CONTACT databases which you can define. This is one of
the most powerful features of CTS. The system comes configured with six
CONTACT files as follows:
personal friends and relatives;
business firms, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations;
miscellaneous acquaintances;
job leads;
a master file of all contacts;
and a file for contacts to hold as a reminder for further action.
The FILES database contains names and descriptions of CONTACT files.
Select "Files" from the Main Menu to update this database. Update options
are the same as when updating a CONTACT or STATUS database. You can thus
select "Add" to add a new CONTACT database. You will be prompted for its
file name. Suppose we called it "PARTY" for contacts in your political
party. You will then be prompted for a description of this CONTACT file.
Including the single letter hot key at the beginning of the description will
serve as a useful reminder of this shortcut selection method when you are
moving through the Files Menu with the Up and Down arrow keys. You might
enter
P = Party contacts
or perhaps something longer since you have up to 65 characters. This data
will then be saved in a FILES record and an empty CONTACT file with the name
'PARTY.DBF' will be created on disk in the CTS directory. You could select
"Modify" to rename a database or change its description. Selecting "Delete"
will delete both the FILES record and the actual CONTACT file on disk.
When you are going to update or report on a CONTACT database, you will
first be presented with a Files Menu for selecting which CONTACT file to use.
In this case, options are CONTACT file names which can be selected with the
Up and Down arrow keys or with the first letter of the name. The file names
appear one per line in alphabetical order. Since you may create more than
one CONTACT file that begins with the same letter, pressing a letter will
highlight the first file that begins with that letter, but not actually
select it. This allows you to use the Up and Down arrow keys to move to a
nearby file in the list before pressing Enter to confirm the option you want.
The description of the current file as entered in the FILES database appears
on Line 25. (A screen reader will normally speak this line as the "current
line.") Pressing Escape will return you to the menu from which you entered
the Files Menu.
The following pages contain the help screens that may be displayed with
the F1 key throughout the system. They can serve as a review of the features
and commands of the Contact Tracking System.
CONFIGURATION HELP SCREEN
This is version 3.0 of the Contact Tracking System, developed and
copyrighted by Jamal Mazrui of Access Success. Since the
'CTS.CNF' configuration file is not found, you will be asked for
configuration settings at this time. Default data is provided, but ensure
correct answers so the system will work properly.
To accept a default value, just press Enter. To enter new data,
press F6 to delete the old value, and then type new data, followed by Enter.
Press the F1 help key if you desire more
information on the field you are editing.
First, you will be asked to enter single letter codes indicating
the drive for backing up data and the format to be used for phone numbers,
zip codes, and dates.
Next is a series of fields for entering your own contact
information, so that letters you
write will automatically include your return address. The
default values provide examples of what kind of data to enter.
When you get to the second configuration screen, enter the name of your word
processor, including path and extension. Existence of this file
will be verified.
Next, provide the names of directories for saving letters and reports
created with the system. The directories will be created if they
do not exist.
You will then be asked to enter the ports by which your printer
and modem are connected to your computer. Enter the word "NONE"
if a printer or modem is not connected. The remaining fields
allow you to customize the dialing prefix and suffix to be used
by a modem in making local and long distance calls.
MAIN MENU HELP SCREEN
Select an option by pressing its first letter, or by moving to it with the Up
and Down arrow keys and then pressing Enter.
CONTACT Update -- Add, modify, and retrieve records in the
contact database you select, containing names, addresses, and phone numbers
of
contacts. Zoom to related records in the status database, containing
fields for documenting when and what is the status with the contact.
STATUS Update -- Add, modify, and retrieve records in the status database,
containing dates and descriptions of events.
FILES Update -- Update the set of CONTACT files.
TYPES Update -- Update the list of valid STATUS types.
Reports -- Go to the Reports Menu with options for producing various
reports on contact and status data.
Utilities -- Go to the Utilities Menu with options for backing up data,
configuring the system, and building new indexes.
Word processor -- Load your word processor in the letters directory,
as specified in the configuration utility.
Help -- Display these help screens.
Quit -- Quit the Contact Tracking System and return to DOS.
FILES MENU HELP SCREEN
Pressing a letter will highlight the first CONTACT file beginning with
that letter. If this is the desired file, just press Enter. Otherwise,
move to it with the Up and Down arrow keys and then press Enter.
Press Home to jump to the first option, or End to jump to the last. Press
Escape to abort the Files Menu and return to the previous menu.
UPDATE HELP SCREEN
Select an option by pressing its first letter, or by moving to it with the Up
and Down arrow keys and then pressing Enter.
Add - Add a record to the database (with a unique key value)
Beginning - Go to the beginning record (in the filter)
Copy - Add a record by copying and then modifying the current record
Delete - Delete the current record
End - Go to the end record (in the filter)
Filter - Set a filter to select records containing certain data
Help - Display this help screen
Jump - Jump forward/backward a +/- number of records (in the filter)
List - List records (in the filter), one per line
Modify - Modify the current record
Next - Go to the next record (in the filter)
Previous - Go to the previous record (in the filter)
Quit - Quit the current update level
Retrieve - Retrieve a record by its key value
Undelete - Undelete all records deleted in this update session
View - View memo text
Write - Write memo text
Xamine - Examine the current record (without risk of modifying it)
Yield - Count the yield of records (in the filter)
Zoom - Zoom to the STATUS update level
>tag - Tag the current record
<untag - Untag the current record
=global - Global tag/untag all records (in the filter)
@internal - Dial internal number with modem
#local - Dial local number with modem
$long - Dial long distance number with modem
%medium - Dial medium distance number with modem
?Identify - Identify the current record with voice
EDIT KEYS HELP SCREEN
When editing a screen of fields, the following keys can be used:
Left Arrow or Control S - Previous character
Right Arrow or Control D - Next character
Home or Control A - Previous word
End or Control F - Next word
Tab, Up Arrow, or Control E - Previous field
Enter, Down Arrow, or Control X - Next field
Page Up - Previous page or first field
Page Down - Next page or last field
F1 - Help on current field
F2 - Pick valid lookup value
F4 - Change field format
F6 - Fix field (by blanking and re-entering)
F10, Control W, or Control End - Accept screen
Escape or Control Q - Abort screen
Backspace or Control H - Delete previous character
Delete or Control G - Delete character
Control T - Delete word
Control Y - Delete to end of field
Insert - Toggle insert mode on/off (default is off)
Status Types Menu Help Screen
Pressing a letter will highlight the first STATUS type beginning with
that letter. If this is the desired type, just press Enter. Otherwise,
move to it with the Up and Down arrow keys and then press Enter.
Press Home to jump to the first option, or End to jump to the last. Press
Escape to abort the types menu and return to the previous menu.
REPORTS MENU HELP SCREEN
Select an option by pressing its first letter, or by moving to it with the Up
and Down arrow keys and then pressing Enter.
Calendar -- Produce a report listing who, when, what reminders
Numbers -- Produce a report listing names and numbers
1UP -- Produce mailing labels, one across (suggested for dot matrix printers)
2UP -- Produce mailing labels, two across (suggested for laser printers)
Phone Numbers and Addresses -- Produce a two column contact list,
including phone numbers and addresses.
Status, Phone Numbers, and Addresses -- Produce a single column contact
list including status, phone numbers, and addresses.
WordPerfect Mail Merge -- Produce a data file to be merged with form letters
using the WordPerfect word processor.
User Defined -- Select or define a custom output format, entering
specifications in a "label definition mode" before choosing the CONTACT file.
Help -- Display this help screen.
Quit -- Return to the Main Menu.
REPORT HELP SCREEN
Press the first letter of a report option to select from the following:
Specify -- Specify certain parameters of the report to be generated. The
"Set" suboption lets you define a new specification from the default values.
The "Modify" suboption lets you make changes to the current specification.
In the first field, choose whether the report is to be output to the screen,
printer, or a file, the default being the screen. For file output,
give the file name, the default being "TEMP". A file extension of
"RPT" (standing for "report") is automatically added to the file name.
In the FORMALITY field, enter 'F' for formal or 'I' for informal. A
formal reference consists of the contact's title, first name, and last name.
An informal reference consists of the contact's first name only.
The remaining specification fields allow you to set a filter determining
which records will be output.
Generate -- Generate the report according to the preprogrammed format
and the specification you made.
Edit -- Change to the reports directory and load the generated report file
into
your word processor for additional editing or formatting before printing.
Help -- Display this help screen.
Quit -- Return to the Reports Menu.
UTILITIES MENU HELP SCREEN
Select an option by pressing its first letter, or by moving to it with the Up
and Down arrow keys and then pressing Enter.
Backup -- Backup the database and configuration files to the drive
specified in the configuration utility.
Configuration -- Configure the following settings of the Contact Tracking
System: the backup drive, printer port, modem port and dialing codes;
format for phone numbers, zip codes and dates;
word processor, directory for reports generated, directory for letters
automatically addressed, and your own contact information for such letters.
Index -- Build the index files that keep database records in order.
Help -- Display this help screen.
Quit -- Return to the Main Menu.
RUNTIME ERROR HELP SCREEN
Safety measures exist to protect your data, so it is probably all right to
continue. But if the error recurs, report the circumstances to Access
Success
at (617)666-9856. Every effort will be made to correct the problem.
FIELD HELP SCREENS
PHONE FORMAT -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Default phone format.
Choices are A for American or B for British.
Example: A
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
STATE FORMAT -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Default state/province format.
Choices are A for all caps or I for initial cap.
Example: A
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ZIP FORMAT -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Default zip/postal code format.
Choices are A for American or B for British.
Example: A
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
DATE FORMAT -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Default date format.
Choices are A for American or B for British.
Example: A
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
TITLE -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Title of contact.
Example: Ms.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
FIRST NAME -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
First name of contact.
Example: Jane
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
LAST NAME -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Last name of contact.
Example: Doe
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
COMPANY -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Company or organization of contact (if any).
Example: Widgets Inc.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
WORK PHONE -- 18 characters. Default format is set in the configuration
utility.
Format may be changed with the F4 key. If the format includes place holders
such as parentheses or a dash, they will be automatically inserted.
Optionally add the letter 'x' and up to a 4 digit extension.
Work phone number of contact.
Example: (909)123-4567x8900
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
HOME PHONE -- 18 characters. Default format is set in the configuration
utility.
Format may be changed with the F4 key. If the format includes place holders
such as parentheses or a dash, they will be automatically inserted.
Optionally add the letter 'x' and up to a 4 digit extension.
Home phone number of contact.
Example: (909)765-4321
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ADDRESS1 -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
First address line of contact.
Example: 1122 This St.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ADDRESS2 -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Second address line of contact.
Example: Suite 33
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
CITY -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
City of contact.
Example: Sometown
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
STATE -- 10 characters. Default format is set in the configuration utility.
Format may be changed with the F4 key.
State of contact.
Example: OZ
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ZIP -- 10 characters. Default format is set in the configuration utility.
Format may be changed with the F4 key. In the American format,
a dash and 4 digit extension may optionally be added.
Zip/postal code of contact.
Example: 12345-6789
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
COUNTRY -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Country of contact.
Leave blank unless you want it to be part of the contact's address on
letters, envelopes, or mailing labels.
Example: U.S.A.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
TITLE -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your title.
Example: Ms.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
FIRST NAME -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your first name.
Example: Jane
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
LAST NAME -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your last name.
Example: Doe
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
COMPANY -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your company or organization (if any).
Example: Widgets Inc.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
WORK PHONE -- 18 characters. Format is set in the configuration utility. If
the format includes place holders such as parentheses or a dash, they will be
inserted automatically. Optionally add the letter 'x' and up to a 4 digit
extension.
Your work phone number.
Example: (909)123-4567x8900
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
HOME PHONE -- 18 characters. Format is set in the configuration utility. If
the format includes place holders such as parentheses or a dash, they will be
inserted automatically. Optionally add the letter 'x' and up to a 4 digit
extension.
Your home phone number.
Example: (909)765-4321
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ADDRESS1 -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
First line of your address.
Example: 1122 This St.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ADDRESS2 -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Second line of your address.
Example: Suite 33
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
CITY -- 14 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your city.
Example: Sometown
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
STATE -- 10 characters. Format is set in the configuration utility.
Your state.
This value will be the default when adding a CONTACT record.
Example: OZ
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ZIP -- 10 characters. Format is set in the configuration utility. In the
American format, a dash and 4 digit extension may optionally be added.
Your zip/postal code.
Example: 12345-6789
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
COUNTRY -- 38 characters. First letter will be capitalized.
Your country.
Leave blank unless you want it to appear on your return address.
Example: U.S.A.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
NOTES -- 65 characters.
Miscellaneous notes about contact.
Example: referred by John. uses Amiga computer.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
TYPE -- 8 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Type of STATUS record.
Choices are the values in the TYPES database.
EXAMPLE: CALL
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
DESCRIPTION -- 65 characters.
Description of STATUS type.
Example: Write letter to contact.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
WHEN -- 8 characters. Slashes will be inserted.
Date of event, deadline, or reminder.
Example: 07/04/89
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
WHAT -- 62 characters.
Description of event or other reminder.
Example: call to schedule appointment.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
CONTACT FILE -- 8 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
CONTACT file related to this STATUS record.
Example: BUSINESS
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
FILE NAME -- 8 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Name of CONTACT file.
Example: PERSONAL
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
DESCRIPTION -- 65 characters.
Description of CONTACT file.
Example: Personal contacts: Friends, relatives, classmates, etc.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
OUTPUT -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Output type.
Choices are S for screen, P for printer, and F for file.
Example: F
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
FILE NAME -- 8 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Name of output file.
Example: REPORT1
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
ORDER -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Order of STATUS records.
Choices are A for alphabetical by last name and C for chronological by date.
Example: C
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
BEGIN WHEN -- 8 characters. Slashes will be inserted.
Beginning date of events, deadlines, or other reminders.
Example: 01/01/89
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
END WHEN -- 8 characters. Slashes will be inserted.
Ending date of events, deadlines, or other reminders.
Example: 12/31/89
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- --
FORMALITY -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Formality of salutation.
Choices are F for formal and I for informal.
Example: F
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SPEECH PORT -- 4 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Port of speech synthesizer.
Choices are COM1, COM2, COM3, COM4, LPT1, LPT2, LPT3, and NONE.
Example: LPT3
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PRINTER PORT -- 4 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Port of printer.
Choices are COM1, COM2, COM3, COM4, LPT1, LPT2, LPT3, and NONE
Example: LPT1
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MODEM PORT -- 4 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Port of modem, used for dialing phone numbers of contacts.
Choices are COM1, COM2, COM3, COM4, and NONE
Example: COM2
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LOCAL PREFIX -- 20 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Dialing Prefix for Local Phone Numbers.
Example: ATDT
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LOCAL SUFFIX -- 20 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Dialing suffix for Local Phone Numbers.
Leave blank unless you must dial a code following the number being called.
Example: ,31526
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LONG DISTANCE PREFIX -- 20 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Dialing Prefix for long distance Phone Numbers.
Example: ATDT1
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LONG DISTANCE SUFFIX -- 20 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Dialing suffix for long distance Phone Numbers.
Leave blank unless you must dial a code following the number being called.
Example: ,31526
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BACKUP DRIVE -- 1 character. Letter will be capitalized.
Drive for back up of data.
Example: A
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WORD PROCESSOR -- 25 characters. All letters will be capitalized.
Word processor for editing and formatting letters and reports.
Existence of this file on disk will be checked.
Example: C:\WP51\WP.EXE
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LETTERS DIRECTORY -- 25 characters. All letters will be capitalized. A
backslash will be added at the end if none was entered.
Directory for letters automatically addressed.
Example: C:\CTS\LETTERS\
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REPORTS DIRECTORY -- 25 characters. All letters will be capitalized. A
backslash will be added at the end if none was entered.
Directory for reports generated.
Example: C:\CTS\REPORTS\
Registration INFORMATION
This 3.0 version of the Contact Tracking System is being distributed as
shareware. That means you can try it before you buy it. If you do not find
a regular use for it, you are under no obligation to pay for it.
If you find CTS valuable to you, please pay the $90 registration fee to
the author, as he has invested over 700 hours in its development. It is
deliberately priced so that it may be purchased by most interested
individuals, not just businesses or government agencies. By registering, you
will receive the latest version of the program, a cassette tutorial, and free
technical support (within reason). Whether you decide to register or not,
you are encouraged to give demonstration copies of the program to others. It
can be used or given to anyone so long as no fee is charged and all program
and documentation files are distributed together.
As the author, I hope that many blind and sighted people benefit from
CTS. I believe it fills a niche as a powerful, verbally and visually
friendly mailing list manager. By default, it comes configured with a single
record in the business database containing contact information on me, so you
can readily look me up with comments, questions, or suggestions. As a
consultant, let me also make you aware that I am available for development of
other database applications, with or without speech output. I may be reached
as follows:
Jamal Mazrui
Access Success
745 Somerville Ave.
Somerville, MA 02143
Phone: (617) 666-9856