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Text File | 1987-02-08 | 18.1 KB | 451 lines

pSSSt A Suspense And Priority Manager Version 2.0 by ANGSC/DOSC Maj Jim McMurry AV 273-8303 Table Of Contents Set Up 3 Configuration Initiation 4 Phone Input Edit 5 Search Delete Print Job Tracking Input Edit 6 Complete Delete Print Priority Management Priority 7 Non-Priority View Print Suspense Listing <RETURN> Backup 8 Limitations Changes Credits pSSSt is a combination suspense, priority, and phone management program designed to operate with dBase II under MS- DOS. It will run on any MS-DOS computer without graphics, however, screen displays are enhanced if running it on a Z-100 or Z-150 (or compatible). - SET UP - In order to run pSSSt you must either create a disk with dBase II and the pSSSt files on it or create a directory on your hard disk with these files on it. If you are using a Z-100, you must have the file ALTCHAR.SYS available in your root directory when initially booting up. Without this file, you'll get a display of letters rather than the desired graphics when running this (and other) programs. ALTCHAR.SYS is available on MS-DOS distribution disk 1. If you desire the pSSSt memory jogger feature (a listing of your suspenses each time the computer is turned on), you'll need to either modify or create an AUTOEXEC.BAT file in the root directory to do that. EXAMPLE: DATE TIME DBASE PSMEMJOG - CONFIGURATION - As it comes to you, pSSSt is configured for a generic MS-DOS computer. To take advantage of many additional features, you must run the configuration program. Do this by typing: DBASE PSCONFIG SINGLE OR MULTI-USER - pSSSt will create and maintain datafiles for any number of users within the constraints of disk space. If you select multi-user you will be prompted for your last name each time you initiate the program. Your last name is used to name the datafiles. If you are the only one using pSSSt on your computer, you may select single-user and bypass the requirement to enter your name each time. In addition, pSSSt will store your first name and use it occasionally during the course of each session. BACKUP DRIVE - You are asked to select the drive you want to use for backing up your datafiles at the end of each session. Select a letter and pSSSt will use that drive if you elect to backup at the end of a session. PRINTER - Select the type of printer you are using. If you aren't using one of the listed printers, select user defined and enter enter the code for each question concerning printer operation. If you don't know them, just answer with <RETURN>. COMPUTER - Select the type of computer you're using. Z- 100's are capable of some nice graphics. Z-150's and compatibles (such as IBM) are capable of quicker, but not so nice graphics. If you have a different computer or desire no graphics, select (O). DELAYS - pSSSt has built in delays to display messages during the course of the program. New users may want to select (L)ong to give them time to study them. After using the program for awhile, you may be familiar enough with the messages to select (S)hort messages. After this selection, you are returned to the system prompt and ready to go. - INITIATION - To begin a session of pSSSt type: DBASE PSSST Of course there many batch file schemes to do this for you, and if you are currently using one, you'll know how to integrate this into your system. The first thing you are presented with is the advertising (everybody needs to be stroked once in awhile) and a menu at the bottom of the screen. You may advance through the menu by using the arrow keys and then hit <RETURN> to select a portion of pSSSt. Note that a description of each major portion of the menu is displayed on the right side of the screen. We'll now examine each of these major modules of pSSSt in order. - PHONE (Rolodex System) - In all cases, whether it be PHONE or one of the others, if the date you gave your system on bootup was prior to the last date pSSSt was used, you'll be prompted to enter the correct date. You'll also notice that the date is entered YY/MM/DD. This was necessary due to dBase II constraints. The next thing you'll notice if you are a new user is that pSSSt has to take some time to create your files. Upon completion of that task, you are presented with another menu at the bottom of the screen listing the modules of the PHONE system. INPUT - If you select INPUT, you'll be prompted to enter the name of the person you wish to input to your phone file. pSSSt will search for folks with that same last name, and if found, will display them all and ask if you want to select one of them, or enter a new name. This should prevent duplicate entries. If this is a new name, you are presented with a data entry screen. Fill in any or all of the information. Getting to the end of a block or hitting <RETURN> will move you to the next block. After you have proceeded past the last block, you are asked for another last name. If you have no more to enter, hit <RETURN> and you will be returned to the PHONE menu. EDIT - Selection of the EDIT feature works exactly as does the input feature. Enter the last name, then select the record number of the guy you want to edit. Hitting <RETURN> at each block will skip you to the next block without changing any data. Any of the data may be changed except the last name. SEARCH - If you select SEARCH, you are presented with another similar menu which allows you to select how you want the datafile to be searched. You have the option of selecting last name, first name, rank, unit number, unit type, ICAO, office symbol, subject, autovon prefix, or state. Select the search you want, then you are asked to supply the desired information. You need not supply the entire word or phrase, but must supply enough to make the desired output unique. For example, suppose you selected a search by subject and supplied the subject "AIR". You would get a listing of all AIR COMMANDERS as well as a listing of all AIR HEADS. Be as specific as your memory allows. Once the search is complete, you are asked if you want output to screen or printer. You may want to list it to screen first, then to printer later once you are sure it is the info you want. DELETE - If you select the DELETE option of the phone module, you are asked to either provide the name you want deleted, or enter (S)can. If you enter a name, all folks with that last name are displayed and you are asked which one you really want to delete. If you enter a record number to delete, it will be done -- forever. If you enter <RETURN>, you abort that operation and are asked for another name. The (S)can feature was incorporated to encourage folks to clean up large phone databases. If you select scan, pSSSt will go through the alphabet letter by letter displaying names and asking if you want to delete any of them. You can scan a specific letter, or spend some time scanning them all. The phone database is common to all users of pSSSt on each computer, and can become quite large. Periodic deletion of unused information is desirable. PRINT - The print option of the phone module simply prints out a master phone listing of all the folks in your datafile for those of you that like to keep lists of things laying around in drawers. - JOB (Tracking And Editing System) - This portion of pSSSt is designed for maintenance of your suspense items. Priorities, although entered here, are handled further in the priority module. INPUT - If you select INPUT, you are prompted to enter a description of the suspense item (or task). All letters are forced to capitals and semi-colons are stripped out as they wreak havok during screen displays or printouts. Once the description is entered and checked, you are presented with the rest of the input screen. Input works the same way as in the phone system. The current date is already entered for you, however you may change it. The due date you give it drives the suspense and memory jogger features of pSSSt. You are given two lines of initial remarks, however if more are needed, you may enter the edit portion where you are given more. EDIT - If you select EDIT, you are presented with a list of your suspense items based on due date and asked to select the record to edit. Upon entering the record number, you are presented with an edit screen with the above mentioned extra remark lines. This edit works just as does the one in the phone system. Once that edit is complete, the same list of suspenses are displayed for selection. Hitting <RETURN> either gives you some more suspenses to choose from (if there are any) or returns you to the jobtrack main menu. COMPLETE - Selecting COMPLETE displays your suspense items and asks you to select the record you wish to complete. Items that are completed in this manner are moved to a "completed" datafile for the current year. Records of these "completed" items are maintained for 4 years and accessable as you will see a later on. This "completed" file would be a good place to put tasks for ORI or deployment preparation as well as anything you may want to remember come OER time. It probably isn't the place to keep things like "get a haircut". Once an item is selected for completion, you are prompted for the completion date. DELETE - Selecting DELETE lists your suspense items the same as above. The difference is that when a record item is selected, it is moved to a "deleted" datafile which is only maintained for the current calendar year. This is where the mundane tasks are put once completed or once they become no longer viable. When a suspense item's record number is selected, you are prompted to give a reason for deletion. Deleted items are accessable as you'll see later. You may want to know why it became "no longer viable". PRINT - The PRINT option of the jobtrack menu presents you with another menu. Selecting CURRENT gets you a printout of current suspense items. Selecting COMPLETED gets you a printout of this years completed items. Selecting DELETED gets a printout of this years deleted items. Selecting PAST allows you to get printouts of completed items from any or all of the last 4 years. If there is no data available for one of those years, you are told. You are given the option of printing this information either to the screen or printer. - PRIORITY (Management System) - The priority management module was designed to allow you to set priorities if you deem necessary, then force you to get rid of any duplicate priorities. There are two priority lists, those with priority and those without. Assigning priority 0 or hitting <RETURN> to bypass the priority field when entering data during the jobtrack input operation, will put the task on the non-priority list. Assigning any priority other than 0 will put it on the priority list. PRIORITY - Selecting the PRIORITY option on the menu will put you in the duplicate checking mode. pSSSt will check for duplicate priorities, and if found, display those records and prompt for the record number to change, then what new priority to give it. This goes on until there are no duplicate priorities. It is suggested that this option be used first upon entering the priority module. Other portions check for duplicates, but this is by far the fastest way to get rid of duplicates. Once the duplicates are taken care of, the suspenses are displayed in order of priority and you are prompted to supply the record number of the priority to change. This is the "Big Picture" and where you can change reletive priorities. If you create another duplicate priority during this process, you will be forced to get rid of the duplicates. NON-PRIORITY - Selection of this option gets you a list of non-priority tasks. Selecting a record number then assigning a priority other than 0 will move a non-priority item to the priority list. VIEW - If you select the VIEW option, you are presented with a listing of the priority items just as during the PRIORITY option. Duplicate checking and priority changing works in the same manner. PRINT - The PRINT option of the priority module simply makes you a printout of your priority items in the order of priority. - SUSPENSE (Listing To Screen Or Printer) - The SUSPENSE option on the pSSSt main menu gets you a listing of suspense items identical to the listing to screen during the memory jogger option. This is here to allow you to get hard copy as well as for those of you who wish not to use the memory jogger feature. You are asked if you want output to screen or printer after which you are presented with a listing of your suspense items in the order: OVERDUE ITEMS ITEMS DUE TODAY ITEMS DUE IN THE NEXT 7 DAYS OTHER SUSPENSES FACING YOU - <RETURN> - All major menus of the pSSSt system have a RETURN option. Each will return you to the previous menu, and in the case of the main menu, will exit pSSSt. DO NOT exit pSSSt in any other fashion or you are likely to lose data, screw up your index files, or both. If the program seems to hang up and there is no disk access going on (no light flashing on your disk drive), check your printer. If the program is trying to print and the printer is not on, the program will hang up. Turn the printer on and it will resume. In case of some other hangup you can exit pSSSt by hitting ESCAPE twice. This will leave you at the dBase dot prompt with your files open. Either exit dBASE by typing QUIT or type CLEAR at the dot prompt. Either of these methods will close your files and prevent loss of data. - BACKUP - When you exit pSSSt via <RETURN> on the main menu, you are asked if you wish to backup your data. This is highly recommended as pSSSt, dBASE, and other program software can be replaced from your backup copies but data cannot unless you keep it backed up. If you select the (Y) option, the current years suspense, completed, and deleted files are copied to the drive you specified during the configure session. If you specfied no drive (just hit return) during that session, you will be asked which drive you wish to use. Once backup is either accomplished or bypassed, you will be returned to the MS-DOS system prompt. - LIMITATIONS - The major limitation other than the physical size of the fields available for data entry is that a semi-colon entered in any field used during printout to either screen or printer will really mess up the display. I used a routine to trap this out where I thought this was likely to occur. In the interest of speed, I did not do this in all cases where it is possible. Any other limitations are unknown to me at this time - CHANGES - Version 2.0 is the current version of pSSSt. I welcome any and all comments and ideas. Future plans for the program include conversion to dBase III to increase the speed and compilation so that users without access to dBase may use it. Notes as to future changes will be logged in this section of the documentation. - CREDITS - Version 1.0 of pSSSt was written by Lt Col Denny Hugg of ANGSC/DOS fame. The major algorythms for version 2.0 were drawn from that, however the coonass influence was removed. Credit for the graphics goes to TSgt G. "Mac"Feggan. A month ago I couldn't spell grafics. The oldest Captain in the world, Prof Al Morrison, is responsible for teaching me how to make some of this work on the Z-150. You can blame him for what I may do to those machines in the future. Capt Charlie is a nit-picker as far as screen displays go. Thanks to him for the guidance. Foreward comments and suggestions to: Maj Jim McMurry 3110 Mitchell Street Madison, Wi 53704-2591 AV 273-8303 And tell your boss to tell his boss to tell his boss that our orders should be renewed in the fall of 1987.