373 lines
12 KiB
Groff
373 lines
12 KiB
Groff
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RADIO MASTER
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Radio Maintenance Database
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Version 1.0
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INTRODUCTION -
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RADIO MASTER is a database program to keep track of
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maintenance records for two way radios. The program was
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designed primarily for use by public safety agencies, but it
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adapts very easily to any number of applications.
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LICENSE -
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RADIO MASTER is distributed under a unique concept know
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as shareware. RADIO MASTER is in the public domain and has
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no registration fee associated with it's use. It may be
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distributed freely, so long as it is transferred in tact with
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all of it's applicable files, in their original forms. RADIO
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MASTER may not be altered in whole or in part at any level
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without written permission from the author.
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WARRANTY -
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The author makes no warranties, expressed or implied
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toward the use of RADIO MASTER in part or in full. The
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author is not responsible for any lost data or financial loss
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for any reason through the use of this program. Any use of
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this program or incompatibilities with a particular system
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configuration shall be the responsibility of the user.
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Any product or company name referred to in this
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documentation or program code are and shall remain registered
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trade marks of their respective companies.
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SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS -
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IBM PC,XT,AT compatible computer, 256K available RAM,
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Microsoft DOS Version 3.0 or higher, CGA or Monochrome video
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card and monitor, floppy disk drive, and a parallel printer
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(Optional).
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OVERVIEW -
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RADIO MASTER is a user friendly program that allows you
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to keep track of radios used by your agency, as well as any
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repairs preformed on those radios. The radios can be
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portables (Hand Units), mobiles (Car Radios), or base units.
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The program is menu driven. For the most part the user need
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only move the selector around the screen using the cursor or
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arrow keys and follow the directions that are provided.
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On-line help on available for most screens by pressing
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the F1 key. A help window will "pop up" on the screen with
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additional instructions about the function you are working
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with.
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RADIO MASTER uses key record files. These files are
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used to rapidly sort and recall data when needed. Key files
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are dynamic and are updated every time a record is added,
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deleted, or changed. This assures that the user is always
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working with accurate information.
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RADIO MASTER offers a feature that saves disk space.
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When a record is added RADIO MASTER searches for a "hole"
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left by a record that was previously deleted, rather than
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appending it to the end of the file. If no holes exist, RADIO
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MASTER will then append the record to the end of the file.
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Many database programs require you to "pack" the file from
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time to time to eliminate these holes. RADIO MASTER does
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this automatically.
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DONATION -
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RADIO MASTER was designed for use by Public Safety
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Agencies. As a public safety professional, I am aware of the
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need for professional level computer programs without a giant
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price tag.
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RADIO MASTER is the result of many hours of hard work
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in front of a keyboard using some rather costly development
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software. As stated before there is no required registration
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fee associated with RADIO MASTER, however, if the program
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meets your needs (and your budget can afford it) a donation
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of at least $20 would be greatly appreciated. Your donation
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goes towards the continued development of similar programs.
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Timothy Woll
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4140 St. Lawrence Ave.
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Reading, Pa. 19606
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FILES -
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The base files that come with RADIO MASTER are:
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RADMSTR.EXE - Main Program File.
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RADMSTR.MAN - User Manual Documentation.
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RADMSTR.HLP - On-Line Help File.
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The first time you run RADIO MASTER the following files
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will be created:
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RADIO.DAT - User input list of radios
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RADIO.(K01 thru K05) - radio key files
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REPAIR.DAT - User input list of repairs
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REPAIR.(K01 thru K05) - repair key files
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REPAIR.MEM - memo file for REPAIR.DAT
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INSTALLATION -
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Floppy Disk Users: Copy the RADIO MASTER base files to a
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clean diskette.
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Hard Disk Users: I recommend you run RADMSTR from it's own
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sub directory. To create the directory, type:
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MD\RADMSTR
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from a DOS prompt. Then type:
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CD\RADMSTR
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to change to that directory and copy the base files into that
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directory.
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GETTING STARTED -
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Once you have installed the program. Change to the
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proper directory and/or disk and type RADMSTR from a DOS
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prompt. The program will start and the first screen you will
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see is a title page. Press ENTER at the title page and the
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MAIN MENU will appear.
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Entering Radios -
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The first thing you will want to do is enter all the
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radios that are used by your department. Select one of the
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SHOW RADIO BY ... selections from the menu by moving the
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highlighted bar over the selection and pressing ENTER. A
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reference screen will appear. Since this is the first time
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you are running RADIO MASTER the file is empty and the
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program assumes you want to add a record. The Update window
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will automatically appear. Type in the requested information
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and type ENTER when finished with each entry. When you reach
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the end of the window, it will disappear and the information
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you just entered will appear on the reference screen.
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To enter the next radio, press the INS or INSERT key.
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The update window will appear again. Enter the information as
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before. If you want to abort the operation and return to the
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reference window press CTRL-ESC. Continue entering the radios
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in this manner until you have entered all the radios.
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Entering Repairs -
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Once you have finished with entering the radios, press
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ESC until you are back at the MAIN MENU. Move the cursor to
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REPAIR RECORDS and press ENTER. The REPAIR MENU will appear.
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Select one of the SHOW REPAIRS BY ... choices and press
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ENTER. As before with the Radio information, a reference
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window will appear, followed by an update window. Make
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entries until you reach the end of the window. It will
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disappear and the repair information will appear on the
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reference screen.
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When entering the serial number or the department number
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of the radio that was under repair, you can make your life a
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little easier by pressing the F2 key. A list of all numbers
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on file will appear. Select the one you want from the list
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and press ENTER. Your choice will be moved into the related
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field. Department number is displayed first. I recommend you
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use this field and look it up first. If you do, the serial
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number will be loaded as well. Just press ENTER to accept the
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serial number.
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You can also leave the department number blank and press
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F2 at the serial number field. As before a list will pop up
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with all serial numbers on file. The department number will
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be automatically loaded.
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You can also entry each field manually if you wish.
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To add additional repairs press the INS or INSERT key.
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The update window will appear again and you can continue as
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before. Continue until you have finished entering all the
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repair records.
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Using the Reference Screens -
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The screens will display data in a sorted format. This
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format is determined by the previous menu entry. For example,
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if you select SHOW RADIO BY MAKE from the Main Menu, the
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reference screen will appear with the data sorted
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alphabetically by the MAKE entry.
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Use the UP and DOWN arrow keys to move the highlighted
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selection about the screen.
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A LOCATE field is provided with most reference screens.
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It found at the top of the screen just under the title. This
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is a fast way to locate a particular entry. This is
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especially handy if you have a large file and need to find an
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entry fast. Type the information in from the keyboard. The
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program will search from the top down for the first record
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that matches your entry in the locate field. For example if
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you are looking for a radio with serial number MT53534453,
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when you type in "M" RADIO MASTER will find the first entry
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that has a serial number that starts with "M". When you type
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the next character "T", RADIO MASTER will find the first
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serial number that begins with "MT" and so on. You can see
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how this could save a lot of time. Sometimes you only need
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to enter a few characters to get close, then use the UP and
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DOWN arrow keys to move to the desired record.
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Changing the information -
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If you entered the information wrong or you need to
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change it of any reason, move the highlighted selection bar
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to the desired record and press ENTER. The update window
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will appear. Change whatever information you wish and press
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CTRL-ENTER. The information will be changed and resorted.
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Deleting a record -
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Move the highlighted selection bar to the record you
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wish to delete. Press the DEL or DELETE key. The update
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window will appear and show you the entire record. Press
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ENTER to delete or ESC to abort.
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Using the update window -
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These windows are used to update the reference screens.
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All the applicable information pertaining to a record is
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contained on this window. In some cases you can look-up
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information by pressing the F2 key.
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PRINTING REPORTS -
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RADIO MASTER is designed to print on an 80 Column wide
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printer. The program does not check to see if there is a
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printer on line. The program just "goes for it". Don't worry
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if you made a mistake. Just wait until your keyboard control
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returns in a few seconds and proceed as you wish. Shutting
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the printer off in the middle of a report will not hurt
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anything, just be sure to wait until you have keyboard
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control again before you turn the printer back on.
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Set the paper to the top of form before you begin. Make
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sure the printer is ON-LINE and ready to receive data. The
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program will eject the current sheet to the top of form, so
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you will be able to print one report after another without
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having to reset the printer each time.
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Before printing, the program will prompt you for a start
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and stop date. The report will not show any entries before
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to start date. The report will not show any entries after the
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stop date.
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If the start date is left blank, the program will
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default to the date of the earliest record. If the stop date
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is left blank, the program defaults to today's date.
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Moving about the RADIO MASTER screens -
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There are two basic key board commands that are common
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to all RADIO MASTER screens, CTRL-ENTER and CTRL-ESC.
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CRTL-ENTER will complete the screen and except all
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current data. This data will then be stored and changed if
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it's different than existing data. Pressing ENTER without
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CTRL will accept the current entry and move on to the next.
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CTRL-ESC will exit the current screen and abort any
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changes that were made. Pressing ESC without CTRL will allow
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you to "Back-up" one operation at a time.
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Printing the documentation -
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You can print this file by using your favorite word
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processor. Load the file RADMSTR.MAN in ANSII format. You
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can also print it from DOS by setting your printer and
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typing:
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PRINT RADMSTR.MAN
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from a DOS prompt. The files was constructed using an
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80 column format, with a left and right margin of 10 spaces
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each.
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Thanks -
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I hope RADIO MASTER works well and meets your needs.
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It's my first attempt at a program for distribution. If you
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have any questions or comments please contact me at:
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Timothy Woll
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4140 St. Lawrence Ave.
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Reading, Pa. 19606
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I can also be reached by E-Mail via The Glass Menagerie
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BBS (215) 478-1430 or the FILE CABINET BBS (215) 678-9334
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(Interlink). I can also be reached via PRODIGY ID# MSHT41A.
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I would like to thank everyone associated with RADIO
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MASTER, especially the program testers. An suggestions for
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additional programs are also encouraged.
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Thanks again, and happy computing.
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