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1994-04-21
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WILSTAR VIDEO TAPE LIBRARY
Version 2.2 <c> 1994
VERSION 2.1 AND LATER CAN HOLD UP TO 750 SEPARATE VIDEO TITLES!
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of the Wilstar Video Library is to allow you to store
all your video tape titles in a usable database. In addition to the
title of the show, you may also want to list the rating, the category,
and the tape volume number.
Video titles can be retrieved in various ways. You can choose to
search for a title or part of a title; for titles with a certain rating;
for titles that are in a certain category (ie -- drama, comedy, childrens',
adventure, etc). Or, you can search for tape volume number.
MAIN MENU
To start the program, type VIDFILE at the DOS prompt. You will
then see the Main Menu, which includes 10 choices. To select a
choice, type the number that occurs in front of the selection and then
press ENTER.
1. Search by Title
Select this if you want to search for a particular title or set
of titles. For example, suppose you have recorded several episodes of
"Star Trek, The Next Generation" on several video tapes. You could
select option 1 and then type the entire title name to display a list
of ST:TNG titles and what tapes they are recorded on.
You could also simply search for the word "star". In this case,
all the "Star Trek" titles would be displayed, in addition to any other
title that begins with "star", such as Star Wars, or Star Man, or
Stargazer, etc.
Searching by Key Word in Title
Any word entered as a search criterion under option 1 becomes the
title search key word. As stated above, this may be the entire title or
the first word in the title. It may also be any word or set of characters
contained in the title. For example, entering "October" would return
a list of movies such as "The Missiles of October", and "The First Monday
in October", if these are part of your database. Notice "October" is the
last word in both these titles, not the first word.
A search on a word such as "THE" would reveal any title containing
that word. Obviously, the key word search feature can be a very powerful
searching tool. One example of how you could use it would be to include
a key word in parentheses following the title of the movie.
For example, suppose you have recorded several science programs from
PBS or the Discovery Channel and that each show has a different title. If
you include the word "(SCIENCE)" after the name of each of these shows, then
using the word "(SCIENCE)" as a search criterion would reveal the entire list
of all your science shows.
2. Search by Volume Number
All video tapes should be assigned a separate Volume Number. For
example, the first video tape you purchase or record would be labled
Volume 1. It may include several taped shows off the air, or a single
movie.
When you select option 2, type in a whole number. All titles
contained on that tape will be displayed.
3. Search by Type Code
All titles should be given a code based upon the type of film or
program it is. For example, is it a comedy, comedy-drama, family
program, holiday favorite, adult program, educational show, etc.
Type Codes must be TWO characters in length. The program will
accept any two-character code, but a list of suggested codes will be
displayed at the end of each list of titles when they are printed or
displayed to screen. It would be easier to go ahead and use these
title codes.
CM = Comedy
CD = Comedy-Drama
DR = Drama
FA = Family Show
AV = Adventure
AD = Adult
CH = Children
ED = Educational
HL = Holiday
HM = Home Movies
MU = Music
So, for example, if you select option 3, then type HL, you will be
shown a listing of all movies designated by you to be holiday shows. Be
careful and don't mix up your AV's and your AD's!
4. Search by Rating
Simply enter a rating upon request after selecting option 4.
So, to get a listing of all PG13-Rated movies you have archived,
select option 4 and type "pg13" (without quotes). A list of titles will
be displayed if any are rated PG13 in the database.
5. Display Titles
Selecting this option will display a complete listing of titles
you have entered, including the volume number, rating, type code,
and entry number.
All entries are automatically assigned an entry number. No two
entry numbers are the same and these should not be confused with the
tape volume number, which you must assign to each title.
If the number of entries exceeds the screen capacity, you will be
prompted to strike a key to continue the listing. At the end of the
listing, the Rating Code Key and the Type Code Key will be displayed.
6. Output to Printer/file...
If you want the next listing (or search result) to go to somewhere
other than the screen, select option 6 and then choose SCREEN, PRINTER,
or FILE from the sub-menu list.
If you want to print out a listing, select the PRINTER option. Then
you will be returned to the Main Menu. The next time you SEARCH or
DISPLAY titles, they will be directed to the printer.
You may also choose to have the titles printed to a file. When you
choose this option, you will be prompted for the file name. It must
be a legal DOS file name, limited to 8 characters, a period, and then
up to three additional characters.
The purpose of printing to a file, is that you can then import the
ASCII text file created into any word processor for formatting before
printing. Or, you could send your video library list to a friend via
modem.
Once you have printed to the printer or a file, the Main Menu will
reappear and the NEXT listing will default back to screen output. If
you have selected to print to a FILE or PRINTER and then change your
mind before you print, select option 6 again and choose SCREEN.
7. Sort by...
Entries may be sorted by either TITLE or VOLUME NUMBER. To display
an alphabetical list of titles, sort by TITLE. Or, if you want to see
what titles appear on which tape, select sort by VOLUME NUMBER. The
data file will remain sorted until you decide to re-sort by selecting
option 7 again.
Sorting may take several seconds or longer, depending on your
computer speed and the number of entries in the data file. Using a
486 computer running at 33 MHz, a data file containing 200 entries
can be sorted in under 10 seconds.
8. Add a Title
This is where you will want to begin when you first run the
program, since there is no data enterred yet. You must select option
8 to enter the data for a new entry, including title, rating number, and
type code.
Movies are almost always given ratings. You should designate the
rating by a single-digit number. The rating codes are:
0 = No rating (Use this if the movie is not rated, or you do not
know what the rating is, or if the program is not a movie.)
1 = G, All audiences
2 = PG, Parental Guidance Suggested
3 = PG13, Parents strongly cautioned
4 = R, Adult subject matter or language
5 = NC17 (old X), Adult sexual content
DO NOT enter the rating designation itself. Instead, enter the
number above associated with the rating.
After adding a new entry, the Main Menu will appear again. To
add another entry, select option 8 again.
If you want to add additional information, such as starring rolls,
director, whether it's animated, etc, you should include this on the
same line as the title, but place it in parentheses after you have
typed the title.
9. Edit/Delete Entry
To edit or delete an entry, you must first know the ENTRY NUMBER.
The ENTRY NUMBER is NOT the same as the Volume Number, so be careful.
Every title has a separate entry number that is assigned to it by the
program. However, a volume (individual tape) may hold more than one
title. You supply the volume numbers, which are the same as the
numbers that you place on each video tape.
To obtain the entry number, first choose option 5 to display all titles.
When you get to the title you want to delete, make a note of its entry
number (the first number shown on the line). Then, go back to the Main
Menu and choose option 9. Type in the number of the entry you wish to
edit or delete from the data file.
10. Quit
Select this option when you are finished with your data base and
wish to return to DOS.
SUPPORT
Wilstar Software
Jerry Wilson
P.O. Box 73
Edinburgh, IN 46124
GEnie Email address: J.WILSON120
INTERNET Email: J.WILSON120@GENIE.GEIS.COM