Shareware Overload Trio 2

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PageDn @@ @@@ @@@@@ @ @@ @@ @@ @@ @ @@ @@ @@ @@@@ @@ @@ @ @@ @@@@@ @@@@@ tm Qwik Start Guide C Y B E R S O F T 14155 Wimbleton Drive Victorville CA 92392 USA A2Z is one of the most powerful data bases yet it is relatively simple to build simple to complex data base structures. You can save considerable time designing data bases if the following tips are followed: 1) build a test data base of a few records to test your application before entering REAL DATA. Once TESTED, you can use SIZE to set the data base to zero records 2) make the primary ACCESS KEY the REC number!! for example, customer number 777 would be equal to REC 777. This allows instantaneous access of any record via FILE 3) POSITION the MOST ACCESSED data fields at the FRONT of the RECORD to allow them to become ARGUMENT fields 4) FIELD NAMES also function as COLUMN NAMES on reports. Avoid OBSCURE names and names LONGER than the FIELD 5) NUMERIC or MONEY fields are for calculations or subtotals. EVERYTHING else should be CHARACTER 6) Avoid OVERFLOWs by making NUMERIC and MONEY fields as large as necessary In order to start, there are 2 things A2Z must know: 1) the NAME of the FILE that EXISTS or that you are CREATING. if you cannot remember an existing FILE name (-FN-), use HELP at the FILE name prompt to get a list of all A2Z files 2) A2Z automatically creates a NULL profile at build time. All report and sort settings are SAVED for future use. If multiple profiles are required, specify a PROFILE name. if you cannot remember an existing PROFILE name (-PN-), use HELP at the PROFILE name prompt to get a list of all PROFILE names. If an application does not require MULTIPLE reports or indexes, then the default NULL profile is entirely suitable . Within each record are pieces of information called FIELDS. Each field is defined at file build time and describes such information as NAME or ADDRESS . A2Z supports 3 data types: (C)haracter 1-99 length (N)umeric 1-11 length ($)money 1-11 length . Character fields contain mixed data of numerics, characters, and special symbols. Calculations cannot be performed on these fields . Numeric fields contain numeric values with an associated decimal point. A numeric field with a decimal place value of 4 would be in the form 10.0000 . Money fields contain money data with an associated decimal place value of 2. Note that a numeric field with a decimal place value of 2 is identical to a money field. A numeric field with a decimal place value of 0 could define a whole dollar field . A2Z performs calculations on whole numbers. Truncation and Rounding commands are provided to adjust a calculated value to account for decimal places . Each field within the record has its own starting position, field length, data type, and number of decimal places . A field with a position value of 200 would start at position 200 of the data base record. If its length were defined as 8 then it would be located in positions 200-207 . A2Z allows data RE-DEFINITION and RE-POSITIONING of data fields . A2Z also allows screen RE-POSITIONING of data fields assume TIME is at position 200 for a length of 8 it is stored in the form 10:45 PM use DICT to re-define fields Key Pos Len Typ TIME 200 8 C HOUR 200 2 C MIN 203 2 C MID 206 2 C . is this example, HOUR, MIN, and MID redefine TIME HOUR can be referenced in A2Z by the keyname HOUR or by STRING(TIME,1,2) which means the substring of TIME at position 1 for a length of 2 thus in A2Z the command 'IF STRING(TIME,1,2) = 10' and 'IF HOUR = 10' are equivalent . A2Z supports automatic DATE, DAY, and TIME update a 6-character TARGET field should be defined for SYSDATE a 8-character TARGET field should be defined for SYSTIME a 21-character TARGET field should be defined for SYSDAY . A2Z can sort on ANY field at ANY time. A sort key of 1-3 fields is allowed. The ENTIRE sort key is sorted ascending or decending . A2Z uses a proprietory online sort program to create an index to A2Z data bases. Files not indexed will be accessed in sequence, ie., record 1 is read first, then record 2, and so on until the end of file is reached . to find or list records, A2Z uses a search technique called 'binary search' to search on the 'index' . with binary search, ANY record, no matter how LARGE the file, can be accessed on the AVERAGE of 10 accesses . if the record value is NOT EQUAL to the argument, the index is again HALVED up or down until the record is found or the search is exhausted . if a record is NOT FOUND in the index, the OVERFLOW record is searched for a match . any records added after indexing add MINIMALLY to search times . to minimize search times, A2Z uses a search technique called 'EXCLUSIVE SEARCH' to SKIP records BEFORE and AFTER the search range . when searching for for a name such as 'WILLIAMS' and there may be records 'WILLIAMSON' use the argument delimiter to make the search 'equal and only equal' ie. EQ/WILLIAMS/ . when coding a LINK, the dictionary MUST be in the disk DRIVE being referenced,ie, for [B:1990] file 1990 must be READY in drive B: . a file is LINKed in 3 ways: by searching on an argument provided by the ROOT record by searching on an argument provided as a CONSTANT by writing an OUTPUT file using option WRITE . an argument provided by the ROOT record can be: REC to REC Example: LINK REC[C:SALE] = REC KEY to KEY Example: LINK EMPL[C:PERS] = EMPL . an argument provided as a CONSTANT can be: any valid Example: LINK REC[C:SALE] = 1 value Example: LINK EMPL[C:PERS] = 1201 . an argument to create an OUTPUT file: Example: LINK REC[C:SALE] = WRITE . LINK sets the system field RECORD LINKED and BYPASSES the record if link not successful . LINK REC[C:SALE] = REC One to One LINK ............ ............ .Rec 1 .<...LINK...>.Rec 1 . ............ ............ ............ ............ .Rec 2 .<...LINK...>.Rec 2 . ............ ............ ROOT LINK . LINK EMPL[C:PERS] = EMPL One to One LINK ............ ............ .Empl 1 .<.LINK... .>. Empl 2 . ............ .... ............ ............ .. ............ .Empl 2 .<.LINK.....>. Empl 1 . ............ ............ ROOT LINK . the LINK record is LINKed by looking for a match based on the ROOT argument. Either file may be indexed. A non-indexed LINK file will be searched SEQUENTIALLY. An indexed LINK file will be BINARY SEARCHED . LINK REC[C:LETR] = 1 One to Many ............ ............ .Rec 1 .<...LINK.....Rec 1 . ............ . ............ ............ . .Rec 2 .<...LINK.. ............ ROOT LINK . for each TARGET record, SOURCE REC 1 is LINKed can be used to PROPAGATE data from ONE file to MANY files, for example, copying a form letter from ONE record and merging it with EACH empl- oyee record to create a mail-merged letter . LINK REC[C:1990] = 1 Many to One ............ ............ .Rec 1 .....LINK...>.Rec 1 . ............ . ............ ............ . .Rec 2 .....LINK.. ............ ROOT LINK . TARGET REC 1 is updated by each SOURCE record can be used to accumulate data from many records to one record, for example, creating a statistics record by accumulating data from each ROOT record @@ @@@ @@@@@ @ @@ @@ @@ @@ @ @@ @@ @@ @@@@ @@ @@ @ @@ @@@@@ @@@@@ tm Demo Guide C Y B E R S O F T 14155 Wimbleton Drive Victorville CA 92392 USA .. System Requirements . IBM or COMPATIBLE PC, XT, AT, or PS/2 computer . IBM MGA/CGA/EGA/VGA/XGA or COMPATIBLE graphics card and monitor . Any Printer ........................................................................ . A2Z supports Proprinter, HP, Extended ASCII, and ASCII Print Modes . ........................................................................ ......................... . Sample Applications . ......................... .. The following applications are representative of simple data base applications that can be created for home and personal use ...................................................... . all entries can be made in upper or lower case . ...................................................... ....................... . DEMO starts HERE! . ....................... enter 'trial' at A2Z logo screen hit ENTER at Author credit screen ................... . select DRIVE . ................... at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: ................... . view FILES . ................... at the File Name? prompt: enter: help ................... . select FILE . ................... FIRST, let's access a RECIPE file to demonstrate A2Z's ease of use enter the NAME of the RECIPE DB to the File Name? prompt: enter: RECP ................... . select PROFILE . ................... to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] ................... . select TASK . ................... use [ARROW KEYS] to select LIST hit [ENTER] to load LIST task hit ENTER to move to Keyname hit '\' to BACK UP at RECIPE: enter: CO/BAR (select all RECIPEs containing BAR) hit END key ..................................... . get NEW FILE tape database VDIO . ..................................... .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: VDIO to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] ........................ . let's FIND a title . ........................ use [ARROW KEYS] to select FIND hit [ENTER] to load FIND task hit ENTER to move to Keyname hit '\' to BACK UP at TITLE: enter: CO/JACKS (find TITLE containing JACKS) hit END key .. hit [INS] key to access record .. hit [ESC] key to exit record ............................ . BROWSE the VIDEO file . ............................ hit [PgDn] and [PgUp] to browse file .. hit [ESC] to exit FILE ........................... . let's LIST all Titles . ........................... use [ARROW KEYS] to select LIST hit [ENTER] to load LIST task at REC: hit END key ................................................ . keep hitting ENTER to list all RECORDS.. . ................................................ ....................................................... . FORM type is LIST, let's change to REPORT format . ....................................................... hit [ENTER] to load LIST task hit F2 to select FORM at Form? prompt: enter: R hit END key at REC: hit END key ......................... . let's LIST by ACTOR . ......................... hit [ENTER] to load LIST task hit ENTER to move to Keyname hit '\' to BACK UP at ACTOR: enter: CO/MARVIN (select ACTOR containing MARVIN) hit END key !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! NOW here is where A2Z separates itself from the HOME FILERS ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let's build a RELATIONAL application using 5 FILES: . ADDR file is a DATA ENTRY file that contains NAMES and ADDRESSES . ZIP file contains CITY and STATE for a given ZIPCODE and is used as INPUT by ADDR file to get CITY and STATE . LABL file is OUTPUT from ADDR and is a MAILING LABEL file . LETR file is OUTPUT from ADDR and merges MAILING LABEL and MACRO CONSTANTS to create the VARIABLE portion of letter . FORM file is a A2Z code editor file which is included into the LETR file using an @INCLUDE key ......... . . . . . . . . . .. ZIP . . . . . ......... . LINK ZIP[C:ZIP] = ZIP . ......... ......... ......... . . . . @INCLUDE . . ADDR.COD . . . ADDR . . . . . . . LETR . . . . . . . FORM . . . . . . . ......... ......... ......... . ROOT LINK REC[C:LETR] = WRITE . . ......... . . . . . . . . . . .. LABL . . . ......... LINK REC[C:LABL] = WRITE ................... . get NEW FILE . ................... .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: ADDR to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] use [ARROW KEYS] to select COMP hit [ENTER] to load COMP task ............................ . Compile ADDR.COD macro . ............................ at Edit or Compile or Show or Print or Delete or Esc prompt: hit [ENTER] at ===> prompt: hit F1 key [ show help ] ................................................ . keep hitting ENTER to view all HELP screens . ................................................ at ===> prompt: enter: RUN ........................................... . RUN files CODE and sends to COMPILER . ........................................... ............................... . enter NAMES and ADDRESSES . ............................... use [ARROW KEYS] to select FILE hit [ENTER] to load FILE task .. hit [INS] key to ADD a record | move the update BAR 'DOWN' using 'ENTER' key or v key move the update BAR 'UP' using ^ key | ....................................................... . although data entry is shown in CAPS for reasons . . of clarity, all entries can be made in LOWERCASE . ....................................................... with the RED update BAR on: Last enter: DOE First enter: JOHN Mid enter: J Addr enter: 100 ELM STREET Zip enter: 93551 City enter: = .. EQUAL '=' tells A2Z to execute macro ADDR.COD .. hit [ESC] key to exit record .. to ADD another record, hit [INS] key ....................................................... . an example of how to copy last record data . ....................................................... with the RED update BAR on: Last (hit F1 key First enter: JANE Mid (hit F1 key Addr (hit F1 key Zip (hit F1 key City enter: = .. hit [ESC] key to exit record ....................................................... . you may now ADD your own names and addresses . . . . NOTE: the ONLY zipcode in ZIP data base is 93551 . . . . macro has been coded to enter an 'X' into . . SKIPZIP if zip <> 93551 . . . . if zip <> 93551, enter CITY and STATE . . manually. Later in the demo, you may add . . additional zipcodes to ZIP file. Remove . . 93551 ZIP check from ADDR.COD and recompile . . . . entering a 'D' in the line number area . . will remove each line of this code . . . ....................................................... .. to ADD another record, hit [INS] key .. enter YOUR address data THEN enter: = .. if DONE entering data, hit [ESC] to exit RECORD .. hit [ESC] key to exit FILE ................................................. . let's print LABELS generated from ADDR file . ................................................. .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: LABL to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] use [ARROW KEYS] to select LIST hit [ENTER] to load LIST task at REC: hit END key ....................................................... . note that labels will print on the SCREEN... . . to print using forms, hit F2 for FORMS options . ....................................................... ..................................... . let's print MAIL MERGED LETTERS . ..................................... .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: LETR to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] hit [ENTER] to load LIST task at REC: hit END key ....................................................... . note that letters will print on the SCREEN... . . to print using forms, hit F2 for FORMS options . ....................................................... ......................................... . to ADD more zipcodes to ZIP database . ......................................... .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: ZIP to the Profile Name? prompt: hit [ENTER] use [ARROW KEYS] to select FILE hit [ENTER] to load FILE task .. hit [INS] key to ADD a record with the RED update BAR on: Zip enter: (your zipcode City enter: (your city State enter: (your state Record Status enter: = .. EQUAL '=' tells A2Z to execute macro ZIP.COD (STATE = UPPER) .. hit [ESC] key to exit record .. to ADD another record, hit [INS] key .. if DONE entering data, hit [ESC] to exit FILE ................................................. . let's look at what A2Z can do with numbers . ................................................. .. hit [END] key to specify NEW FILE at Data on Drive? prompt: hit ENTER .. default is drive C: to the File Name? prompt: enter: EXPS to the Profile Name? prompt: /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// enter: REPO [ NOTE: Profile EXPSREPO saved FORM options ] /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// use [ARROW KEYS] to select LIST hit [ENTER] to load LIST task at REC: hit END key ....................................................... . . . NOTE that this report was created from RAW data! . . A2Z also is a world class report generator... . . . . A2Z did all the headers, break totals and totals. . . EXPS DB was sorted by YR,MO.DY and totaled by . . breaking at a change in YR and MO. Profile REPO . . was used to save the report specifications... . . . . Once created, profiles can be used to run a . . daily, weekly, or monthly report without having . . to define the report each time it is run... . . . ....................................................... .. hit [ESC] key to exit to DOS .. A2Z Data Base Features . A Complete System For Storing, Retrieving, And Reporting Data . Designed For Ease Of Use Yet Possess Sufficient Functionality To Handle Complex Data Base Operations Where Home Filers Dare Not Thread! . Provides Online Help In A Graphical Office Environment . Relational With Root And Link Data Fully Accessible With Data Relationships Of One To One, One To Many, And Many To One Possible . Word Processor Files Accessible To The Data Base . Query By Example Easily Constructs Compound Data Search Arguments . Qwik-Sort Provides Fast File Indexing For Binary Search . Data Dictionaries Can Be Readily Modified . Databases Can Be Readily Resized . Macro Compiler Compiles Commands Written In A2Z's Application Programming Language Using The Builtin Editor . Supports Automatic Date, Day, And Time Update A2Z can be ordered directly from: C Y B E R S O F T 14155 Wimbleton Drive Victorville CA 92392 USA