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1994-03-15
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TO: INTEGRA COMPUTING, 910 Cobb Place Manor Dr., Marietta, GA 30066 RS 6.6
Name __________________________________________________________
Firm Name __________________________________ Phone ________________
Address __________________________________________________________
City _________________ State ___ Zip _______ County ________
# Professionals _____ # Employees ____ Type of Business ________________
I first heard of Integra Computing from ___________________________________
Prices and availability are subject to change without notice.
Send registered** copies of the following:
___ copies of ReSearch at $90 [+ $60 EXTRA to get 1 hr support]* $_____
___ copies of RAMdesk at $50 [$25 w/TickleX/BillPower] $_____
___ copies of PopForm at $50 [$25 w/TickleX/BillPower/MT-Tracker]$_____
___ copies of TickleX at $60 [+ $60 EXTRA to get 1 hr support]* $_____
___ copies of MT-Tracker at $90 [+ $110 EXTRA to get 2 hr support]* $_____
___ copies of BillPower at $100 [+ $110 EXTRA to get 2 hr support]* $_____
___ copies of BillPower Plus at $150 [+ $200 EXTRA to get 4 hr support]* $_____
Send unregistered** copies of the following:
___ copies of TickleX at $10 ea $_____
___ copies of MT-Tracker at $15 ea $_____
___ copies of Nifty at $10 ea $_____
___ copies of PopForm at $10 ea $_____
___ copies of ReSearch at $10 ea $_____
___ copies of BillPower at $10 ea $_____
___ copies of BillPower Plus at $15 ea $_____
To have programs supplied on 3.5" media, enclose $5.00 extra PER PROGRAM $_____
If you don't live in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico, please add $10.00 more $_____
TOTAL ORDER $_____
___% Sales Tax for ___________ county, if you're a GA resident $_____
If you live in a country that was formerly governed by communists, and
this order is being placed before 1 January 1994, you may subtract 50% -$_____
Please enclose CHECK or MONEY ORDER in US dollars -- GRAND TOTAL $_____
Credit card orders and purchase orders which are
not accompanied by payment will not be accepted.
A check or money order must be drawn on a bank
with a US branch or affiliated with a US bank.
I have read and agreed to all the terms of the Disclaimer found below.
_______________________________________ _________________
SIGNATURE DATE
* Telephone support will be provided if you pre-purchase it with this order
form. Such support must be used within a year. When you need assistance, you
may reach Integra Computing (404-426-5735) most weekdays from 4:00pm to 6:00pm,
Eastern Time. Because so much time is required to respond to mailed correspon-
dence, letters requesting assistance may not be answered. If you need help,
call -- don't write. But please don't even call unless you've pre-purchased
support with this order form; if you call without having prepaid for support,
each call will cost you a minimum of $15, plus $1.50 per minute.
** Unregistered software is programmed to remind you to register. Please
note that no credit will be given at the time of registration for the cost of
an unregistered copy.
-- LICENSE:
BillPower, TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch, Nifty, RAMdesk, and
their documentation are copyrighted in 1985 to 1994 by R.A. Kelly. You may
use any program on as many computers as you like, as long as it is never ins-
talled with a SERIAL NUMBER (provided to you when you register as a user) on
more than one computer at a time and as long as you do not alter the program in
any way. You may distribute any of these programs to potential new users, pro-
vided that you never divulge your SERIAL NUMBER to anyone, that you charge no
fee for the program, and that you do not bundle it with (or use it as an incen-
tive to purchase or lease) any other product or service, without the written
consent of R.A. Kelly. All rights not expressly granted above are reserved in
R.A. Kelly.
-- DISCLAIMER:
BillPower, TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch, Nifty, and RAMdesk may
contain design and programming flaws. Before using ANY software on a regular
basis, try estimating the potential harm that could result from your reliance
upon it. Please don't use any of these programs unless you're willing to as-
sume the associated risks, such as billing and report inaccuracies and data
loss.
BILLPOWER, TICKLEX, MT-TRACKER, POPFORM, RESEARCH, NIFTY, RAMDESK, AND
THEIR INSTRUCTIONS ARE PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND (INCLUD-
ING THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE). NO ORAL OR WRITTEN INFORMATION OR ADVICE PROVIDED BY INTEGRA, ITS
DEALERS, DISTRIBUTORS, AGENTS, OR EMPLOYEES SHALL CREATE A WARRANTY OF ANY
KIND REGARDING BILLPOWER, TICKLEX, MT-TRACKER, POPFORM, RESEARCH, NIFTY, OR
RAMDESK, AND YOU MAY NOT RELY UPON SUCH INFORMATION OR ADVICE. USE OF
BILLPOWER, TICKLEX, MT-TRACKER, POPFORM, RESEARCH, NIFTY,OR RAMDESK IS ENTIRELY
AT YOUR OWN RISK.
NEITHER INTEGRA NOR ANYONE ELSE WHO HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN THE CREATION,
PRODUCTION, OR DELIVERY OF BILLPOWER, TICKLEX, MT-TRACKER, POPFORM, RESEARCH,
NIFTY, OR RAMDESK SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSI-
NESS PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, AND LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION)
ARISING FROM THE USE OF (OR INABILITY TO USE) BILLPOWER, TICKLEX, MT-TRACKER,
POPFORM, RESEARCH, NIFTY, OR RAMDESK, EVEN THOUGH INTEGRA MAY BE ADVISED THAT
SUCH DAMAGES ARE POSSIBLE.
-- AGREEMENT:
As used in this Agreement, the terms "BillPower" ,"TickleX", "MT-Tracker",
"PopForm", "ReSearch", "Nifty", and "RAMdesk", if not followed by a series or
version designation, mean any version or series of BillPower, BillPower Plus,
TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch, Nifty, or RAMdesk provided to you now
or in the future.
Your attempt to use BillPower, TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch,
Nifty, or RAMdesk constitutes your acceptance of the terms set forth in the
foregoing LICENSE and DISCLAIMER (which are incorporated into this Agreement).
Your attempt to use BillPower, TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch, Nifty,
or RAMdesk also constitutes your agreement that if you bring any legal action
relating to BillPower, TickleX, MT-Tracker, PopForm, ReSearch, Nifty, or RAM-
desk, 1) your sole remedy for the damages for which any defendant is found lia-
ble (including direct, indirect, incidental and consequential damages) will be
the recovery of whatever you paid to register as a user of the program, and 2)
you will pay all defendants' attorneys fees and other legal costs if you do
not prevail on all claims made in your pleadings.
The terms of this Agreement are governed by Georgia law. If any of this
Agreement's terms shall be held invalid to any extent, the remainder of this
Agreement shall be unaffected by such invalidity.
THE ABOVE PARAGRAPHS CONSTITUTE THE ENTIRE AGREEMENT BETWEEN YOU AND INTE-
GRA. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION, INFORMATION, OR ADVICE FROM ANY SOURCE
MAY ALTER THE AGREEMENT AS SET FORTH ABOVE.
SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR OF LIABIL-
ITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO SOME OF THE ABOVE EXCLUSIONS
AND LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. YOU MAY HAVE OTHER RIGHTS WHICH MAY
VARY FROM STATE TO STATE.
RESEARCH
INSTRUCTIONS
If you're using an unregistered copy of the program,
it will begin to beep at you in several weeks, reminding
you that it's time to register. Don't worry -- no data
will be destroyed, and you'll always be able to use the
program, despite the fact that you delay registering.
SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION
ReSearch, the research, document, and evidence organizer, is a
member of the ManageX Time & Billing software series. It is designed
with an interface similar to the other programs in the series, and,
where appropriate, it will access the data files maintained by these
programs. Please see the appendix for an overview of the other progr-
ams in the series.
ReSearch allows you to enter notes on evidence, research you're
conducting, etc. You may enter such things as the source, page, and
line numbers where each item you enter can be found. You may also
enter an eleven-line summary of the item and indicate the subject cat-
egory into which the item falls. A note's subject and its abbrevia-
tion are very useful in finding specific individual notes among hun-
dreds or thousands. A prime use of this program is to create print-
outs of research data, sorted alphabetically by subject abbreviation.
Another use is to keep tabs on documents and other evidence (who sent
it, who received it, its current location, etc). Finally, it can be
used to prepare a chronological report of a sequence of events which
may have been entered at random into the data base.
You may string several consecutive records together if just one
isn't long enough for you. And, at any time in the future, you may
sort though your notes by several criteria, sending the sorted data
to the printer, the screen, or a text file on your hard disk.
Each data base file you open may have up to 32,000 records and up
to 500 subject/type categories. You may establish any subject/type
categories you desire for each data base, or you may copy previously-
established categories from one data base to another. You may keep as
many 32,000-record data base files as your hard disk will hold, and
you may sort through several at a time when you're looking for infor-
mation.
SECTION 2. THE BUILDING BLOCKS
Before you begin using ReSearch, you should first acquaint your-
self with some basics. To begin with, make sure your monitor's con-
trast is set so that the screen can display different shades. If it's
not set properly, ReSearch's instructions will occasionally seem con-
fusing.
Sec.2.A Keyboard Entries
Using ReSearch requires you to make data entries at your compu-
ter keyboard. When you are asked to "enter" something, you should
type in the response at the keyboard and then finish your entry by
pressing RET (the return key). "Enter", therefore, implies that you
will complete your entry with a RET. If you are asked merely to
"press" a key, you should not press RET after you have pressed the
appropriate key. "Press" means that you need make only one key-
stroke; "enter" implies that more that one keystroke is permissible,
since all entries must end with RET.
Sec.2.B Control characters
On-screen instructions will frequently instruct you to press
control characters. A control character is represented graphically
as a letter preceded by an up caret (eg: ^A or ^H). If you are
instructed to press a control character, you must hold the Ctrl key
down, while simultaneously pressing the appropriate letter key. For
example, to press ^O, hold down the Ctrl key and tap the "O" (or "o")
key. Do not actually press the up caret key; the up caret is used
merely as a graphic representation of the control key.
Sec.2.C The RET key
RET (the Return key) serves two functions in ReSearch. First, it
is the key used to end all entries. And second, if, in response to a
screen prompt, you press it before you press another key, it acts
to tell the program that you wish to ignore the prompt and retain the
current response, if any. If, for instance, ReSearch asked you a
name, you could just press RET, and the program would infer that you
wished to ignore the question. Depending upon the circumstances,
ReSearch would then move on to the next question in a series, or it
would abort the procedure in which the question occurred. ESC (the
Escape key) will usually serve to tell ReSearch not only to ignore a
response, but also to abort the procedure entirely.
Sec.2.D Pausing
When you find the computer in the middle of some lengthy proce-
dure, such as printing a report, and you want to pause, press the
space bar. Doing so will cause the process to stop until you press
the space bar again. This use of the space bar will not work in all
of the program's operational modes, but it will in most. Pressing
the space bar may take a few seconds to have an effect, so be patient.
Sec.2.E Aborting
If, instead of wishing that the computer pause in the middle of
a procedure, you prefer to abort that procedure altogether, press ESC
(the Escape key). As with the space bar, this key may not work in
all parts of the program, and it may take a few seconds to work.
Sec.2.F Printer Toggling and Sending Reports to a Disk File
Whenever you are about to have a report printed on the screen,
and you would prefer that it be printed on your printer, press ALT-P
before the report preparation begins. ALT-P is the printing toggle,
and it turns the flow of data to the printer on and off. You may
alternatively send the data to a disk file, instead of the printer,
by pressing ALT-F (in place of ALT-P). The file created or appended,
named "TEXT.MX", may then be modified with most any text editor.
Sec.2.G Message Line
The last line on the display screen will nearly always have a
message for you. The message will often contain either instructions
or an error message. If you are ever unclear about what you are
supposed to do next, look at the message line, which will be displayed
in reverse video.
Sec.2.H Help
General on-line help will appear whenever you press the F1 key.
More specific help is also available when you are entering a subject
abbreviation in the (M)ake mode. To obtain a listing of all the abb-
reviations being used by the current data base, press the F1 key when
the cursor is at the abbreviation item. To limit the list to only
those abbreviations beginning with a certain letter, press that letter
just before you press F1.
SECTION 3. SETTING UP
If you have a color video board in your computer, ReSearch will
expect you to tell it what color combination you want. Press B to
change the background color, M to change the main foreground color,
and S to change the secondary foreground color. Press the RET key
when you're happy with the color combination.
If you're using a laser printer, you should edit the RS.BAT file,
changing the line that read "ReSearch" to "ReSearch x x LASER". Other
possible changes to the RS.BAT file will be discussed in the approp-
riate sections below.
SECTION 4. USING RESEARCH
Using ReSearch is straightforward in concept: start the program
by entering "RS" at your computer's DOS prompt; then, tell ReSearch
which data base file you'll be using; use the (M)ake option to add a
new note to the data base; or use the (E)dit option to make changes to
a record that has previously been entered; if you need to hunt through
the data base for some information or prepare a report, you use the
(H)unt option.
In actuality, however, you must give a good deal of forethought
to how you want to organize each data base you create. Before you
open a new data base, you should, for example, decide what sort of
information you want it to contain and what keywords you wish to use
in searching through it. It is recommended that, before you begin
using the program "for real", you first experiment with a "practice"
data base. This practice will benefit you when you decide to use the
program for real data.
Sec.4.A Entering ReSearch
When you enter the program, you will be shown a listing of all
the data base files (if any) presently on the hard disk, and you'll be
asked to enter the name of the data base file with which you intend to
work. If you're opening a new file, give it a one- to eight-character
name. Make the name as descriptive as possible. A data base that
contains research of a general nature might, for instance, be called
"RESRCH1". A suggested scheme for naming case files is that you use
the first three characters of the client's last name and the first
three characters of his last name, followed by a number. For ins-
tance, the first file you open for the John Smith case might be called
"SMIJOH1".
If you would prefer to work with a diskette in drive A, place a
disk into the drive and enter "A", instead of a file name. If you're
using floppies for your research, make sure that you use each diskette
for only ONE project. For example, don't try to keep on one diskette
files for both 1) the JOHN SMITH business research and 2) the JOHN
SMITH v. ELLEN SMITH divorce research.
If you're using the hard disk for your data base files, and if
you're now opening a new one, you will be asked to enter the name
of a file from which you want to copy subject abbreviations. If
you wish to create this file's abbreviations "from scratch" as you
enter data into the file, you should just press RET. But you might
prefer instead to copy the abbreviations from a related old file as
you open the new one. The advantage of doing so is that the new file
you're opening will already have an abbreviations listing before you
start; therefore, you can save some time entering data, because you
won't have to create abbreviations "on the fly" as you make individual
entries.
Finally, if you're opening a new file, you'll be asked to enter a
a few items. One is a description of the file's contents. The gener-
al research file mentioned above (RESRCH1) might be described as fol-
lows: "General Legal Research". If the new file will contain records
for a particular case, you might enter the style of the case (eg: the
SMIJOH1 file might be described as "John Smith v. Harvey Jones").
Other things you may wish to include in the description include the
responsible person's initials and the date you open the file.
Two other items you'll be asked to enter, if you're opening a new
file, are the names of two untitled miscellaneous "fields". Each re-
cord in the file will contain many fields of information, such as a
date, a source, and a recipient. All the fields, except the last two,
are pre-defined. The last two fields are for miscellaneous text en-
try, and they may be defined by you. You should enter a 1-to 9-char-
acter name for each of these fields. See Sec.4.B for a discussion of
the fields that are pre-defined; only after you've seen what fields
are already available can you decide what extra fields you'll need.
If you are unsure about what to name the extra fields, just enter
"Misc1" and "Misc2" for each one respectively.
If you're not opening a new file and can't seem to remember which
one contains the information you want, press ^V to view/change the
files' descriptions. Then, enter the name of the file you wish to
open (if you want to change a file's description and miscellaneous
fields, type its name and press ^O instead of the RET key).
Sec.4.B (M)aking a data base record
To enter a record into the data base, press "M" when the MAIN
MENU is on the screen. Then, fill in each appropriate blank item.
When asked for a subject abbreviation, enter a 1- to 8-character
keyword by which you intend this record to be indexed for quick ret-
rieval and alphabetical sorting. If the abbreviation you enter is not
already part of the data base, you'll be asked to formally enter it.
If it is already in the data base (having been entered as the abbrevi-
ation for a prior record), the subject to which it refers will be dis-
played and the cursor will move on to the next item. If you want to
index this record by more than one subject, you'll be given the oppor-
tunity to do so when you have finished filling it in.
Other items that you may enter are described below:
DATE: Enter whatever date you think is pertinent to the
type of information being entered. For instance, if
you're describing an occurrence, you may wish to enter
the date that it took place. This will help you later
on, when you want ReSearch to prepare a chronological
report of a sequence of events . If you're just entering
a simple research note, you might use today's date.
SOURCE/AUTHOR: Here, enter the source of the information
that you're summarizing. For instance, you might enter
"S.E. Reporter", or "John Smith Deposition". If you're
summarizing a document without a title, you should enter
the document's author.
PAGE/LINE: These items will help you find the exact
source of the summary. They're of particular value when
you need an accurate citation to a specific quotation, to
case law, or to a deposition.
RECIPIENT/ADDRESSEE: If this record describes a document
or other evidence, you might wish to enter the person to
whom it was addressed or the one who actually received it.
LOCATION: If you're involved in complex litigation,
you'll need to keep track of where your evidence is locat-
ed.
TYPE: This item will assist you in future searches
through the data base. You should enter here an abbre-
viation for the category into which the source for this
information falls. Is it a document? Physical evidence?
Research? An event? Make up whatever short category
abbreviations you wish. With some forethought, your
scheme of assigning types will prove to be invaluable.
You might begin or end each type with some unique two-
character sequence that identifies it as belonging to a
certain major category (containing several sub-types).
For instance, you might assign all summaries with chrono-
logical importance a type beginning with `@-'. That way,
you can later produce a report that includes all records
whose types are `@-accdnt', `@-hsptl', etc. You're
urged to set up and play with a practice data base in
order to get the "hang" of how best to assign types. See
the discussion of Hunt Gates, below, for more details on
producing reports.
ID NUMBER: If your firm assigns ID numbers to documents
and evidence, you can follow them with ReSearch if you
fill in this item.
MISCELLANEOUS FIELDS 1 AND 2: The last two fields are
user-definable text fields. You will define them when
you open a data base for the first time. The first field
may contain up to twenty-five characters, and the second
may have up to fifteen. The records in each data base
you open may have different MISC1 and MISC2 fields, de-
pending upon the data base's particular needs. You might
be interested to know that you can also re-define the
LOCATION and ID NUMBER fields if you wish. The instruc-
tions for doing so will appear as you open each new data
base.
You are allowed up to 11 lines for summarization. The fewer
lines you use, the less disk space will be used in storing the record.
You may enter anything you wish into the summary area. Assume, for
instance, that this record is a summary of a letter that mentions five
people. If you think that it will be important for you to be able to
sort through all your documents by peoples' names (among other
things), you should be sure to include the name of each person cited
in the letter. You might also wish to state the relationship each
person has to the matter at hand, as well as to each other person.
If the standard entry fields that ReSearch supplies for each re-
cord do not include one that you think is important, the summary sect-
ion may be used as a substitute. For example, if you wish ReSearch had
a field for entering an importance factor (to measure how critical the
document or other evidence summarized in the record is), you could
decide that you will always enter that factor on the first line of
each record's summary and precede it with a unique character sequence.
If your importance ranking scheme were based upon a numerical weight
of 1 to 5, you might enter "!!1" on the first summary line of a record
summarizing something of the most critical nature. "!!5" would be
used for something that is not very important at all. Later, when you
want to find all the items that are extremely important, you could
tell ReSearch to hunt for every record whose summary section contains
"!!1".
Something else you might want to include in the summarization
area is whether the item being summarized is privileged information.
You could indicate such a record with a unique character sequence,
such as !!P. Later, when you're asked to provide the opposition with
all documents, you could ask ReSearch to sort through its data base for
all records, EXCEPT those that contain "!!P". The resulting report
would contain only non-privileged information.
As you can see, ReSearch's potential flexibility is enormous. If
you plan to consistently use the summary section for some of your pet
fields (such as the "importance" factor or the "privileged" notation),
try to always put all such those items on the first or second line of
the summary. The reason for this suggestion is that doing so will
make subsequent searches for these items faster than would be the case
if they were to appear nearer the bottom of the summary.
When you're finished entering all the information you need, press
the F6 key. This will cause the record to be saved on the disk.
Next, a new blank record will appear. Fill it in if you wish.
But if you're all done, just press F6 again.
If the new record is to be a continuation of the last one, just
skip down to the Summary/Description area and continue the summary.
When done, just press F6. There's no need to waste time filling in
any of the other items. ReSearch automatically assumes that if you've
left all the other items blank, this record is to be regarded as a
continuation of the prior one.
You may, instead, want the new record to be a duplicate of the
last record in all respects but the subject abbreviation. To do so,
simply enter the new abbreviation, skip down to the Summary/Descrip-
tion area, and enter "S" (for "same"). ReSearch will then copy all the
data from the last record to this one, saving you precious time. You
may often wish to enter a summary under two or more different sub-
jects. This procedure allows you to easily do so. Don't worry about
wasting a lot of disk space on duplicated records, because ReSearch
saves only what it needs to for each record.
NOTE:
A record duplicated as described above will maintain
an invisible link to the previous record (unless, while
originally entering the duplicate, you change something
in its description -- see the next paragraph). ReSearch
will assume that you will always want these records to be
exact copies of one another (except for their subject/ab-
breviations). The linking will ensure that subsequent
corrections to one or more will also be automatically
made in the others. If, after entering a series of dup-
licate records (that differ ONLY in their subject/abbrev-
iations), you subsequently edit one of them to correct
something (other than its subject/abbreviation), all the
other records linked to it will also be updated to ref-
lect the correction.
If, while originally entering a record, you copy
fields from the previous record (by using the "S" des-
cribed above), and then (before saving the record) change
some wording in the description area, NO LINK will be
established with the preceding record. In this case,
ReSearch assumes that you used the "S" function simply to
facilitate the entry of large amounts of data, but that
you don't intend to maintain links among duplicate
records.
If you think that ReSearch's attempts to link records
will cause more problems than they're worth, you may
invoke the program in a fashion that prevents linking.
To so so, edit the RS.BAT file, changing the line that
reads, "ReSearch", to "ReSearch x x x x NOLINK".
NOTE:
ReSearch maintains a complete listing of both TYPE
and SUBJECT abbreviations in the same file. To see an
alphabetized listing of this file, press the F1 key when
the cursor is positioned at either the "Subject Abbrevia-
tion" or "Type" item. This file is maintained to assist
you in recalling an abbreviation that may have been used
with the data base earlier. Since the same file main-
tains both TYPE and SUBJECT abbreviations, and since each
abbreviation within the file must be unique, you should
not use the same abbreviation for both a subject and a
type. For example, if one of your subjects is "Doctor
problems" and one of your types is "Document", you
shouldn't assign them both the abbreviation, "DOC".
If you would like ReSearch to also keep other fields'
information (eg: source/author, recipient) in this abbre-
viations file, you may force the program to do so. Just
edit the RS.BAT file, changing the line that reads,
"ReSearch", to "ReSearch x x x x x MANYFIELDS".
Sec.4.C (H)unting through a Data Base
The (H)unt option allows you to prepare reports on the contents
of the file with which you're working. Pressing the RET key begins
the hunt through the file's records.
If you begin a hunt without changing any of the hunt gates, all
the records in the file will be displayed. That's because, in their
default state, they are all "open", allowing all records to pass
through them. But if you want to produce a selective report, you
have to set the hunt gates accordingly. For instance, if you want a
report of only those records pertaining to a particular subject, you
should enter its abbreviation at hunt gate A. When you press RET
to begin the hunt, the program will allow only the records whose sub-
ject abbreviations match your entry at gate A to pass through and ap-
pear on the screen (or printer or file). Likewise, if you want to
find only those records whose summaries contain a certain word, you
would enter that word at gate B. Generally, the more hunt gates you
fill in, the more discriminating the subsequent hunt will be.
Hunts may be made on the basis of partial entries. For instance,
if you wish to find all records whose summaries contain the words,
"salt" and "salutation", you could enter "sal" at gate B. The hunt
would then find all records whose summaries contained the character
string "sal".
ReSearch also accepts "wildcard" characters. If you want to find
all records whose summaries contain either "salt" or "silt", you
should enter "s?lt" at gate B. The question mark means, "this posi-
tion in the word can be occupied by ANY character." The report pro-
duced would find all records whose summaries contained "salt" or
"silt", since the second character of the word to be found can be "a"
or "i" (or anything else, for that matter).
Gates A to D may have up to 10 multiple entries, each separated
from the next by a slash. For instance, if you wanted to find all
records whose summaries contain either "bull" or "cow", you would
enter "BULL/COW" at Gate B.
Exclusionary hunts may be conducted by preceding with a minus
sign any character sequence entered at Gates A to D. For example, to
find all records EXCEPT those whose summaries contain either "BULL" or
"COW", you would enter "-BULL/-COW" at gate B. Incidentally, "BULL/-
COW" would cause the hunt to find all records whose summaries contain
"BULL", but do NOT also contain "COW".
Remember, any gate that is left blank will be considered to be
open, allowing ANY record to pass through. In other words, each
record will be deemed to meet that gate's criterion, and, assuming
that all the other gates' criteria are also met, will be displayed
during the hunt. An exception to this rule occurs when you're doing
an "OR" hunt (see discussion of Gate O below).
If you want the hunt to be done in alphabetical or chronological
order, select gate L or M. But be aware that such hunts are much,
much slower than unsorted hunts.
Gate N (which will not work until you register as a user) allows
you to hunt through more than one data base for the information you're
looking for. If you select gate N, you'll be shown a listing of the
data bases available to ReSearch, as well as the current que of those
already selected for the hunt. To add a data base to the hunt que,
press "A" and then enter the name of the data base. To delete a file
from the que, press "D". To clear the entire que (except for the data
base which you are currently accessing), press "C". To return to the
Hunt Gates screen, just press RET.
Gate O allows you to choose between associating gates A through I
with either "AND" or "OR". An "AND" hunt will find all records that
contain matches for ALL the gates you've filled in, while ignoring
those gates that you haven't filled in. An "OR" hunt, on the other
hand, will find all records that contain a match for ANY of the re-
cords you've filled in. In other words, an "AND" hunt will allow a
record to pass through its filters if that record meets the criteria
set by Gate A and Gate B and Gate C and Gate D, and so on. An "OR"
hunt will allow a record to pass through the filters if it meets the
criteria set by Gate A or Gate B or Gate C, and so on.
The effect of leaving Gates A through I blank differs between an
"AND" and an "OR" hunt. If you leave these gates blank, an "OR" hunt
will allow no records to pass through, while an "AND" hunt will allow
ALL records to pass. Hence, if you leave all the hunt gates blank and
do an "AND" hunt, the resulting report will contain ALL the records in
the data base. But, if you do an "OR" hunt with all the hunt gates
blank, then no records at all will appear on the report.
Gate P allows you to select whether the report will contain
citations only, citations with summaries, summaries only, or summaries
with half-citations.
If you choose the "Full-Screen Edit" hunt at Gate Q, the data
shown for each conforming record will appear on a screen identical to
that used in the Edit mode. While it is on the screen, you may edit
it just as if you were in the Edit mode. Only one conforming file's
data will be displayed on the screen at one time. Unlike the "Con-
tinuous" hunt routine, this one will not search for the next conform-
ing file unless you press RET to indicate that you wish to move on. If
you want to abort the Hunt routine, press ESC instead of RET.
NOTE:
If you can edit a record in the Hunt mode, why even
bother having an Edit mode? The answer is that, with large
data bases, you can find the record you're looking for more
quickly in the Edit mode.
Sec.4.D Scanning Text Files
Most of the entries you make into each of your data bases will
probably be made with the (M)ake option on the MAIN MENU. With it,
you manually enter the source, pages, lines, subject area, and
summary.
An automated alternative is to use the (S)can mode to have Re-
Search read the source directly from a file on your hard disk. Frank-
ly, most people won't use this feature much, because they may have
difficulty finding files that ReSearch can read (industry-standard
ASCII files) and because it takes time to import text files and review
them verbatim. This mode is simply an "added extra" for those few who
may need it.
In the (S)can mode, you can scan a file and copy blocks of text
to the active data base. An advantage of this method is that it saves
time, allowing you to quickly place verbatim passages into the data
base. If your court reporter, for instance, makes a deposition avail-
able to you on floppy diskette, you can have ReSearch transfer it to
your hard disk. Then, it will be ready for your perusal.
When you enter the Scan mode, you'll be shown a list of the text
files currently in the ReSearch research area of the hard disk, and
you'll be asked to enter the name of the file you wish to scan.
Sec.4.D.1 New Text Files
If the file you want is not yet on the hard disk, enter a name
for it anyway. ReSearch will look for it, inform you that it's not
present, and ask whether you want to copy it from a diskette in drive
A. If you answer affirmatively, ReSearch will then show you what's on
drive A and ask you which file you wish to copy. After you've iden-
tified the file you wish transferred, ReSearch will ask you to desig-
nate a new name for it on the hard disk. The new name can be only
eight characters long and can contain only letters and numbers. Af-
ter you've designated a new name, ReSearch will copy the file from
drive A to the hard disk and give it the name you requested.
NOTE:
ReSearch actually appends ".TX1" to the name you re-
quest, but it will rarely show you any more than the one-
to-eight-character name you specified. By the way, ReSearch
also sets up an index file and gives it, too, the name you
designated, followed by ".TX2".
Then, ReSearch will request that you enter a 1-to-25-character
description of what the file contains (eg: the Bert Cummins 23
December deposition might be called, "B.Cummins 12-23-88"). Whenever
you transfer passages from this file to a data base, the "source"
item in the data base will be derived from this description.
After ReSearch does an initial scan, the file will be displayed on
the screen. You will note that all blank lines have been eliminated,
so that more text can appear on your screen at once.
Then, you'll be asked to move the cursor to the first line of
the first actual page and press RET. This step is necessary for the
proper identification of page and line numbers. The typical deposi-
tion, for instance, has a few introductory pages before the actual
"meat" of the document. Unless you tell it otherwise, ReSearch will
assume that the first physical page it encounters should be called
page "1", even though page 1 is really the third or fourth physical
page. You must also properly identify the first line of text on the
page. If you don't, ReSearch will assume that the first physical line
on the page is line "1", even if that line is just a header contain-
ing a title and page number. If you're working with a deposition,
you should move the cursor to the first numbered line on the first
numbered page and press RET. ReSearch will assume that it should begin
counting lines on every subsequent page at the position you've
identified as the first line on page 1.
Sec.4.D.2 Using the Scan Mode
The bottom line of the screen always displays the page and line
number (as well as a couple of other items, like the name of the file
you're scanning. Use the up and down arrows (or PgUp and PgDn keys)
to move through the file. To quickly get to the end of file, press
the END key. To go to the beginning of the file, press the HOME key.
To move to a particular page, press "P" and then enter the number of
the page you wish to appear.
To find a word within the body of the file, press "F" and then
enter the word to find. After the first occurrence of the word is
found, you may find the next occurrence by pressing "N" (for "next").
When you find text that you want copied to the data base, its
beginning and end need to be marked. Simply move to the first line
you want included and press "M" (for "mark"). Then move down to the
end of the block you wish to copy and press "M" again. As you move
down, the text you are marking will appear in a different color.
After you've pressed "M" a second time, you'll be asked to enter
the subject abbreviation applicable to marked-off block of text.
ReSearch needs to know the subject so that it will be able to quickly
sort through the data base to find this and other passages pertaining
to a particular subject.
Then, you'll be asked to specify the file to which you wish to
send the marked text. If you want to send it to the currently active
data base (opened when you first entered ReSearch), enter "DB". To send
the text to the printer, instead, enter "P". Or, if you prefer, you
may send the text to another separate text file by simply entering the
name of the file (up to eight characters). If you specify a file
(other than the data base or printer), ReSearch will append ".LBU" to
the name you specify and will store the file in the \MANAGEX\DB
subdirectory (where the data bases are also stored)
If you send the text to the data base ("DB"), the source, page,
and line information will also be automatically transferred, along
with a pre-set type ("SCAN"). Note that each data base entry is limi-
ted to eleven lines of text. If the block you're transferring is lon-
ger than eleven lines, more than one data base entry will be made.
For example, transferring 24 lines will cause two data base entries,
each with eleven lines, to be created, along with a third entry with
two lines.
Unless you have ReSearch configured otherwise, the text that it
sends to other files will be with all blank lines removed (as it ap-
pears on the screen). If you prefer the text to be sent with blank
lines included, you should press ^O BEFORE you enter the block-sending
mode. ^O toggles between "blank lines output" and "NO blank lines
output". The current status of the toggle is always shown on the bot-
tom line. If "NoBlank" is present, then no blank lines will be out-
put; otherwise, blank lines WILL be output (except to the data base,
which will not accept blank lines).
If, after transferring the marked block to one file or data base,
you wish to repeat the procedure to a second file (or to the printer),
enter "C" (for "copy). You might even want to transfer the same block
to the data base a second time, but this time entering an alternate
subject abbreviation.
NOTE:
If you want to create a data base SUMMARY of the text
block you've marked off (after pressing "M" the second
time), press the ALT-F2 key when ReSearch askes you for a
subject abbreviation. If you enter the subject abbrevia-
tion, ReSearch will assume that you want to send verbatim
text. If you press ALT-F2, instead, you'll be presented
with a new record creation screen.
To mark off another block of text, simply use "M" to mark the
beginning and end and repeat the procedure outlined above.
When you're done with the text file, press the ESC key.
Sec.4.D.3 Files That Can Be Scanned.
Only industry-standard "ASCII" files can be scanned by ReSearch.
All modern word processors can create this type of file, which is
needed when different word processors try to read each other's files.
When you order depositions, etc., be sure to specify ASCII format (in-
cluding end-of-page markers, which some reporting services purposely
delete for some reason) rather than a specific word processor's prop-
rietary format.
Sec.4.E Omitting Files and Records
To omit a database or ASCII text file, press ^O at the Main Menu.
When you do, you'll be expected to press either "D" (for database) or
"T" (for text file). Then, you'll be shown a listing of files of the
type you designated. Finally, enter the name of the one you want
omitted.
To omit an individual record, call it to the screen with the
(E)dit function and then press ^O. All you'll actually be doing with
this procedure is tagging the record for omission, so that it won't
appear on your reports. If you ever need to "un-tag" the record, just
call it to the screen with the (E)dit function again, and press ^O.
APPENDIX -- RESEARCH ON A LOCAL AREA NETWORK
When invoked for use on a LAN, ReSearch utilizes file locking to
prevent two or more users from simultaneously altering the same record
in the data base.
-- Some Preliminaries...
If your LAN defaults to the assumption that you want it to auto-
matically lock files for you, you may have problems with ReSearch.
ReSearch, not your LAN, must decide when to lock which files. Make
sure that your LAN is configured to give ALL users complete access to
ALL files in the server's MANAGEX directory. Make sure that ALL prog-
ram and data files are "sharable" (eg: immediately after installing
the program onto a Novell workstation, enter "FLAG *.* S" at the DOS
prompt in the directory containing ReSearch, and do the same in the
server directory that will contain ReSearch's data).
Also make sure that each workstation's CONFIG.SYS file contains a
line that says, "FILES=60". The fact that your server may have such a
line in it's CONFIG.SYS file may do your workstations no good whatso-
ever.
IMPORTANT:
If you're a REGISTERED user (keep reading if you're
not), you must have a copy of ReSearch that's been prepared
for the maximum number of users you intend to have on the
LAN. If you use a non-LAN version (or a LAN version that's
not prepared for as many users as you actually have on the
net), the program may appear to work properly in most ins-
tances, but you'll be running the risk of losing data. If
the number of users on your net ever increases beyond the
number for which you're registered, you must be sure to up-
date your registration and install a copy of the program de-
signed for more users. If you forget to do so, you may lose
data. Therefore, it's a good idea to register, not necessar-
ily for the number of users you presently have, but for the
maximum number you anticipate may eventually be on the net.
-- Using Only a Single Copy of ReSearch on the Network
To load a single copy of the program onto the net, run the normal
install routine (eg: "INSTALL A: X:", where X is your server's drive
designation). This routine will automatically load the program into a
MANAGEX directory on the server.
Each workstation must have a dedicated directory, either on
its own hard disk or on the server, from which it will run ReSearch.
This dedicated directory must be located directly off the disk's root
directory and must contain an RS.BAT file, customized especially for
that workstation. Start with the RS.BAT file provided with ReSearch.
Insert a couple of extra lines near the top of the RS.BAT file,
just below the line that reads, "cls". These extra lines should cause
the workstation to log into the server directory where ReSearch's prog-
ram and data files will be maintained. Assume, for instance, that the
server's hard disk is referred to as drive "F" and that ReSearch is
installed into the "MANAGEX" directory on that drive. In this case,
the lines to insert into the workstation's RS.BAT file would be:
F:
CD\MANAGEX
NOTE:
No directory/path name used with ReSearch may exceed
fourteen characters in length.
Also, add a few lines at the very bottom of the RS.BAT file that will
cause the computer to log back into the workstation's "home" directory
when you exit ReSearch. Examples:
Example 1 Example 2
--------- ---------
F: C:
CD\AWB CD\MANAGEX
CLS CLS
-- RS.BAT's "RESEARCH" line
Now, each workstation's RS.BAT file must also reflect its OWN
user's ID and that of the program's MAIN user (that is, the person
chiefly responsible for maintaining the data base). Additionally, it
must reflect both its OWN drive/directory and the SERVER drive/direc-
tory where ReSearch is maintained. Read on.
Find the line in the RS.BAT file that begins with "RESEARCH".
After the word "RESEARCH", you need to add several parameters, each
separated by a space. The first four may already have been set (see
the SETTING UP section of CHAPTER 1), but if they're not, just sub-
stitute an "x" for each one. Example:
RESEARCH x x x x
The fifth parameter should be a 1- to 3-letter ID of the MAIN user
(the one chiefly responsible for ReSearch). The sixth parameter should
be a 1- to 3-letter ID for this SPECIFIC workstation's user. For ex-
ample, if Jane Jones is the program's main user, the fifth parameter
following "RESEARCH" in each workstation's RS.BAT file might be "JJ".
If the user of a specific workstation is Allen W. Bosley, that work-
station's RS.BAT file might specify "AB" at the sixth parameter.
IMPORTANT:
Make absolutely sure that each workstation's RS.BAT
file contains the SAME fifth parameter (since the MAIN user
is the same for all workstations). Also ensure that no two
stations have the same sixth parameter (since each individual
station is DIFFERENT). If you violate either rule, you run
the risk of losing data, despite the fact the program may
appear to be operating properly. Once you set up each work-
station's RS.BAT file, you might want to write-protect it, to
prevent it's being changed by a user.
The seventh parameter tells ReSearch which of the server dir-
ectories will hold its common data base, accessible by all users. If,
for instance, a given workstation refers to that directory as
"F:\MANAGEX", the seventh parameter should be "F:\MANAGEX".
The eighth parameter following "RESEARCH" should be the drive and
directory from which the workstation will be running ReSearch. This is
that workstation's "home" directory.
Here is an example that ties it all together:
PARAMETERS --> 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
-----------------------------------------------------------
Example 1: RESEARCH x x x x JJ AWB F:\MANAGEX C:\MANAGEX
This example tells ReSearch that this workstation's "home" directory
is C:\MANAGEX. It also specifies F:\MANAGEX as the server directory
containing ReSearch and its data. JJ is the main user, and AWB is the
local workstation's user.
The "generic" RS.BAT file that comes with ReSearch has %1 at the
sixth parameter. If you substitute the workstation user's initials at
that parameter, you must also search the entire RS.BAT file for all
places where %1 exits and substitute the same initials (eg: if AWB is
substituted for %1 at the sixth parameter, the line that says "util%1"
becomes "utilAWB"). Further, if you ever subsequently change the
initials at the sixth parameter, you must search the file for the old
initials and substitute the new initials in their places.
THE "POWER OFFICE" LINE-UP
Each unique program in this series requires a hard disk-equipped IBM-compatible
PC with 512K of memory. The following paragraphs contain brief descriptions.
TickleX --> the ultimate in scheduling/planning/docket control
MT-Tracker --> TickleX's scheduling power, plus client management
BillPower --> time & billing with totally integrated general ledger
RAMdesk --> pop-up network message system, calculator, scheduler,
phone directory, time/work/expense log, data base
BILLPOWER and BILLPOWER PLUS
BillPower is a system designed to relieve you of the drudgery involved in
billing. In a nutshell, it will track the time you work on professional mat-
ters, keep up with your receipts and disbursements, and calculate the amount
owed by each client. And it will automatically prepare informative monthly
statements for all your clients.
Engineered exclusively for the small firm, this innovative software offers
a rare combination of power and ease of use at a fair price. Unlike programs
that attempt to electronically emulate ancient manual accounting procedures,
BillPower is designed to capitalize upon the power of your computer. If you
are an "old hand" at bookkeeping, then open your mind to a real-time system
which immediately updates all balances at the time an entry is made; one that
does not require periodic batch postings or annual close-outs; one that pro-
vides a convenient method for correcting erroneous entries; a system that never
erases old data in the interest of consolidation. You'll find both BillPower
and BillPower Plus to be advanced products.
--> BillPower ($100): time, billing, & bookkeeping for firms with
up to three timekeepers -- includes bank account management,
income-expense reports, balance sheets, & several bill formats.
--> BillPower Plus ($150): time, billing, & bookkeeping for firms
with up to fifteen timekeepers -- builds upon BillPower's fea-
tures, adding the abilities to keep extensive indexed memos on
any subject, maintain notes on thousands of people, conduct con-
flict of interest checks, prepare mailing labels, and more.
BillPower can prepare several types of reports. Whenever you request
one, you will be presented with a screen listing the parameters by which you
can choose the information to be included. After you have selected the appro-
priate parameters, BillPower will hunt through its data base for informa-
tion meeting your specifications. The report may be sent to the screen, the
printer or to a disk file.
Finally, while other time and billing programs may offer "links" to exter-
nal accounting software, BillPower completely integrates its bookkeeping func-
tions into the rest of the program. In fact, BillPower Plus can simultaneously
update affected G/L accounts (as well as a client's balance and aged receiv-
ables) at the time that a disbursement or receipt is entered. This "real-time"
approach to bookkeeping, virtually unprecedented in a time and billing program,
saves you the time you would otherwise spend making duplicate G/L entries, pos-
ting transactions, and/or transferring files from one program to another. With
BillPower Plus, a SINGLE entry can handle all the updating that needs to be
done. No other program offers such a degree of integration. NONE!
TICKLEX
TickleX ($60) is a tickler/calendar program that will keep track of your
appointments and deadlines, print your itinerary at the beginning of each day
day, keep a "to-do" list, and chart the projected course of each matter you
handle. It will also schedule trips and vacations, print weekly and monthly
calendars, and beep at you when you need to do something.
TickleX is unusual in its ability to dynamically link reminders to ap-
pointments and deadlines. Assume, for example, that you have a very important
meeting scheduled for 15 August. As with other programs, you could establish
reminders several days or weeks in advance to allow adequate preparation for
the meeting. For the purposes of this example, let's say that you have entered
a reminder one week in advance and another two weeks in advance. Now, what
happens if the meeting is moved forward one week to 22 August? Again, all tic-
kler programs would allow you to reschedule it. But TickleX will also
automatically update the two reminders, moving each one week forward in order
to maintain the original reminder intervals. Other programs would require you
to search for each reminder, delete it, and then enter it again on another
date. This TickleX exclusive is an absolute "must" for offices that have fre-
quent schedule changes.
TickleX is also unique in the way it handles multi-day events. TickleX
allows you to enter an event such as a week-long trip with just one entry.
Other programs might require a separate entry to be made for each day of the
trip. If your trip plans change, you need change only a single entry if you
have TickleX.
TickleX even has built-in project planning. No fancy charts, mind you.
Just a very simplistic means of linking and updating related events. And it's
completely integrated into the TickleX system. All project updates are auto-
matically incorporated into the same schedule that contains appointments, dead-
lines, vacations, etc.
Add to these features an attractive user interface, the ability to attach
extensive notes to each scheduled event, a number of other nice touches, and
TickleX comes up a winner. Whether you're an executive looking for a powerful
centralized personnel scheduler, a busy entrepreneur needing an easy-to-use
tickler system, or a lawyer seeking the ultimate docket control software, Tick-
leX is the program for you. There isn't a more robust scheduler available at
any price. At only $50, it's a steal.
MT-TRACKER
MT-Tracker is the ideal client tracker and scheduler. It integrates the
scheduling power of TickleX with the ability to track several thousand clients,
companies, contacts, projects, or jobs. Also included is a note-keeping module
that will link memos to the dates and clients to which they apply.
In addition to the expected name, address, phone, and contact information,
each client record has space for six full lines of miscellaneous data and nine
USER-CUSTOMIZABLE fields. And each note kept in the Note-keeping module may
contain up to seventeen lines of information.
Because MT-Tracker is an integrated system, you can easily zip from one
module to another. Assume, for instance, that you're looking at Mr. Smith's
record, and you'd like to see everything (not just one or two items) scheduled
for him during the coming month. A few keystrokes later, what you need will be
displayed on your monitor or sent to your printer. When you're finished look-
ing at the schedule, press a key to re-display Mr. Smith's record. Notes and
logged events, income, and expenses are just as easily accessed.
If you're a sales representative, consultant, personal injury lawyer, or
anyone else who needs to track clients, customers, or jobs, this is the soft-
ware you've been waiting for. Give it a try.
RAMDESK
RAMdesk ($50) is a handy "pop-up" program that contains a number of
features useful in a business environment. It will:
--> if used on a network, instantly send and receive messages;
--> schedule and review upcoming events on a pop-up basis, allowing
up to 20 alarms per day;
--> maintain a pop-up record of income, expenses, and the time spent
working on various projects;
--> provide a pop-up address and phone directory, giving you instant
access to records on hundreds of people;
--> provide a pop-up programmable calculator with a 50-line "tape";
--> allow you to establish numerous pop-up databases, such as to-do
lists, general ledger account listings, etc.
Once RAMdesk is installed (it needs 7 to 45K), it's instantly avail-
able at the touch of a hot-key combination. It may be called up from with-
in most word processors, spreadsheets, and other primary applications. If
you also happen to have BillPower and TickleX, you'll find that RAMdesk
ties in beautifully with them. Whatever appointments or deadlines you've
scheduled with RAMdesk will be automatically picked up by TickleX, while
BillPower will automatically take in the services, expenses, and receipts
you've logged with RAMdesk. TickleX and BillPower can even assimilate en-
tries made into RAMdesk by users on other computers around the office. If
the computers are networked, the assimilation will be handled automatically;
otherwise, you may use floppy disks to transfer the data between each "sate-
llite" computer and the main database on another machine.
