mde infoHandler for Windows =========================== Program for managing and categorizing of personal information: notes, dates, birthdays, documents, programs, Internet links, Email, News, and more. Version 5.2.0.0 (built 1999-10-20). Content ------ 1. Installation 2. De-Installation 3. Short Description 4. Documentation 5. Hints for Using infoHandler with Screen Resolution 800 x 600 or Less 6. Versions 7. Known Problems 8. Time-limited Evaluation, Registering and Support 1. Installation --------------- You need Microsoft Windows 95, Windows NT 4.0 or later versions of these operating systems to run infoHandler. To install mde infoHandler start 'setup.exe' which you find in the installation archive. This program will guide you then through the further installation process. Generally, it is not necessary to end other programs before installing infoHandler. On the other hand, if you have a prior version of infoHandler installed on your system make sure that this is not running when you start setup of the new version, otherwise the new version would not be installed correctly. If newer versions of system libraries have to be installed you are asked to reboot the system at the end of the setup. Reboot the system in this case before starting infoHandler. mde infoHandler comes in two localized versions: English and German. If you are using the dual-language setup package (setup in German) you can prevent installing both by selecting custom setup and removing all components that have the not wanted language in their description. If you install both versions (the default) the selected version on first start of the program depends on the global country settings of your computer (English for all but German settings). You can change the language independently of the global settings using 'Options' on menu 'Extras'. After the installation is complete you'll find an entry for infoHandler in Menu Start/Programs. Use this to start the program. 2. De-Installation ------------------ If you want to undo the installation of infoHandler select 'Software' from the system control panel. In the tab 'Install/Deinstall' select 'infoHandler' in the list of installed programs and then click on 'Add/Remove'. After that, all installed components are removed from the system. 3. Description -------------------- infoHandler manages your information in special databases called 'InfoBases'. You'll create one of these infoBases for every type of information that you want to manage. You organize the info by assigning 'Categories' to the 'InfoRecords', manually or automatically. These Categories are much more powerful than the familiar keywords, often used when storing information and documents, and their organisation is quite unusual. You organize Categories per InfoBase in up to 16 different CategoryGroups. If you once did introduce a new Category for new info you never again would have to type-in that Category for other info but select it readily from various lists as needed. So you cannot misspell it, but you can change its identifier globally any time. The Categories and CategoryGroups come into play when you search for interesting informmation in a voluminous infobase. By using the Categories, you then formulate queries upon the InfoBase by making selections from various lists and assigning logical operators to combine them. It may sound complex, but is performed with just a few clicks of your mouse. Your search may be narrowed further by setting constraints for various time stamps forming part of a record. You can also assign a special time stamp, we call it 'InfoTime', which you may use eg for appointments, birthdays, or any other timed data. A third interesting feature of an Infobase record is a 'Reference', or link, to an external object, such as a file or folder of the local file system, or an Internet page. You are able to manipulate the referenced objects from within infoHandler. infoHandler also supports "drag & drop" in various forms. You may drag the icons of documents or URLs (Internet addresses) onto an infoBase window, thereby creating one or more references. 'Alarms' turn InfoRecords into events. You can link any number of alarms with any number of records. If such an alarm is raised precise to the minute you can activate the linked record with one klick of your mouse. Alternativly you can also set 'free' alarms that are not linked to InfoRecords. The rich functionality of infoHandler is complemented by a sophisticated graphical user interface. You may adjust this freely to the varying demands of the diverse InfoBases and the current task. As a convenience, every InfoBase always remembers its last layout. 4. Documentation ---------------- infoHandler offers many functions for the management and organisation of information of various types. Accordingly, the user interface is somewhat sophisticated and perhaps a little overwhelming to the user at first sight. But please, do not throw in the towel immediately, try to get an overview at first! There is no paper-back handbook but an extensive "on-line" context-sensitive help. We tried hard to make this a really efficient help and hope that you use it intensively. For the beginner we wrote a couple of introducing chapters. Here you find among other things an active screenshot of an infoHandler window with explanations of the different parts popping up after clicking with the button of your mouse. Further down in the list of contents you find hints for using the program. Let also the "tip of the day" guide you step by step to a more efficient usage of the many possibilities of infoHandler. Particularly informative for the novice are the added examples, which you find in the subfolder 'Examples' of the installation folder (if you didn't exclude them explicitly during setup). The first example with the file name 'Example.0..TheBasics' offers a step by step introduction to the most important and common actions to build simple InfoBases and should be the starting point for every beginner. The other examples introduce more advanced features and could be studied peu à peu later on. The second example with the file name 'Example.1..Links' demonstrates the use of links to various external objects. It contains also links to the other sample InfoBases that you can load from there. The third example with the file name 'Example.2..CD-Collection' demonstrates an application without links but with a rich set of 'Categories' and use of the InfoTime. The fourth example with the file name 'Example.3..Anniversaries demonstrates the managment of dates. Since we cannot give you an example with your own appointments for the next days, as a substitute, we offer these "days of remembrance". The fifth example with the file name 'Example.4..Addresses demonstrates the automatic initializing of the text of a new InfoBase record from templates and working with TextFields in this text. 5. Hints for Using infoHandler with Screen Resolution 800 x 600 or Less ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Because of its rich graphical interface infoHandler should be operated best at screen resolutions of 1024 x 768 or higher. If you want to work at lower resolutions you should take some measures to make most of the limited space. Here are some possibilities: - Set the Windows Task Bar to automatically hide. - Maximize the infoHandler main window as well as the contained InfoBase windows. - Hide the tool bars and the status bar using the resp. commands in the menu 'View', or customize the tool bar with a few really important buttons and drag it to some place where it is not in the way so much. - Try to adjust the layout of the InfoBase Windows optimally to the specific task using the 'splitter bars'. - Using command Extras/Options select 'small' for all font settings. - If you manage dates using the 'dates control' window move this to the lower right corner in such a way that only those parts remain visible that you need frequently. 6. Versions ----------- You find information about changes in the diverse infoHandler versions in the accompanying file versions.htm or (up-to-date) on our Web-site. 7. Known Problems ----------------- Currently there is a problem if you work with very big InfoBases (more than about 5000 records) under certain versions of Windows NT (not under Windows 98). Please read the article in he online doc about big InfoBases if you plan to go to these order of magnitude. 8. Time-limited Evaluation, Registration and Support --------------------------------------------------- mde infoHandler is distributed as Shareware and not free software! As Shareware, mde infoHandler is freely distributable You may pass on the files of the installation package (and only these) to others. This includes distribution by mediums such as CDs. We grant everyone the right to install this program on his or her computer and evaluate it up to 60 days. After this period the program can be used without restrictions only after entering a personalized serial number. For more details about the trial license and registration please consult the chapter on registration in the online documentation (online help) or visit our Web Site for the most up-to-date info. If you have any questions or suggestions concerning infoHandler please use the e-mail address given below. Please do contact us if you encounter any serious problems installing or running infoHandler! We hope that you find infoHandler useful for you! mdeSoft Blumenstr. 21 D-83607 Holzkirchen Germany fon ++49-8024-92416 fax ++49-8024-92417 web: http://www.mdesoft.com e-mail: infohandler@mdesoft.com