Media Inventory Program v 1.xx - by Gary D. Moore & Associates Copyright (c) 1990 License Agreement & Disclaimer I, the user of the Media Inventory Program, agree not to alter, or damage this or related programs by Gary D. Moore & Associates. And, do assume full and total responsibility and liability for its use. I, the user of the Media Inventory Program, will distribute this program and related programs without fee beyond the cost of a diskette. I, the user of the Media Inventory Program, also agree that Gary D. Moore & Associates is not responsible for any damages, nor losses incurred through use, or misuse of this and related programs even if Gary D. Moore is advised of such. If you find mistakes in my typing, grammar, or other such stuff in this text, these have been strategically placed to assure those who look for things "wrong" that they will find them! (I attempt to do the impossible.... I try to please everyone! gary d. moore) The Media Inventory Program is a specialized relational data base. I needed a way to track my CDs (compact discs), books, etc. This program allows me to classify an item, enter the purchase date, the amount paid for it, and a few other informational tid-bits. It is very easy to use. You've heard that before... right? This time it's true. The Media Inventory Program has the necessary commands on the screen. However, reading the following may also help. Each file (with the extension MED) can hold several thousand records. The limitation is RAM, but three to four thousand records is feasible. (If you have more "records" than that, perhaps, you should invest in a little more expensive program.) A record in the Media Inventory Program is 77 bytes long, therefore, one hundred records is a just under 8K. About 100 (additional) records can be added to a file before the Media Inventory Program forces a restart. (I use an index array in RAM, and don't want to create too huge an array. Sorry for the inconvenience, but adding a hundred records at a time is a lot, besides, the restart is very fast even on a floppy system.) If the "system" date is not set to (at least) 1991, you will be prompted to enter the current date. (Come on..., set the DATE and TIME properly upon booting your system... don't be THAT lazy!) Additional information for the Media Inventory Program is provided by topic: 1) Keys. A) The arrow keys, the TAB, and RETURN (Enter) key move the cursor around the data fields. You may quickly jump to end of a "text" field by pressing the END key. Or, the HOME key to position the cursor at the beginning of the text. B) The normal mode of entering or editing is "over strike". Press the INS (Insert) key to display a block cursor that "inserts" characters. Press the INS again, or move to the next data field and it defaults to over-strike. C) Two other key combination (as indicated on the screen) are: 1) ALT-C (the ALTERNATE key and the "C" keys pressed together) clears the field (numeric and date fields, too). 2) ALT-R (the ALTERNATE key and the "R" keys pressed together), restores the previous "text" (not on the numeric or date fields). D) The ESC (Escape) key functions as described on the screen. The ESC key was choosen because it is familiar to most computer users, and isn't (normally) a TSR hot-key. Pressing ESC while editing a record will have an additional prompt displayed. - Pressing "Y" or "y" will normally UPDATE the record (or ADD the record in the ENTRY mode), or PRINT the screen. - Pressing "Q" or "q" will end the process and not alter the data. - Pressing "N" or "n" will place the cursor back in the edit/entry mode at the top of the screen as noted by the inverse field. The "key" sequences of the Media Inventory Program are very easy to understand. Once you have entered about ten records, you will have mastered them. 2) Menus. A) Menu selections are made by using the up and down arrow keys, or by pressing a number within the range of the menu selections. The HOME key positions the cursor bar on line one of the menu. Pressing END will position the cursor bar on the last selection on the menu. A clock is displayed on the lower portion of your screen. Very handy when "time" slips away while at the terminal. 3) MEDIA.PRO file. A) Media.PRO saves the name of the previous file you used. If you have used MEDIA.EXE before reading this text, perhaps, it asked if you wanted to use the "DEMO.MED" file? Pressing "Y" or "y" will automatically load the demo information file. The MEDIA.PRO file can be deleted, but it is created everytime the Media program is executed. The "PRO file" helps you remember where you left off. 4) Deleted records. A) The Media Inventory Program automatically uses the space occupied by deleted records before adding other records to the file. This saves having to "reorganize" the data file (or PACK it as some data base programs call it). ("Reorganizing" the Data File is done via the Utilities Menu.) B) Deleted records are written to a file named DELETED.MED. If it doesn't exist, it is created. I've goofed in other data base programs, so, DELETED.MED saves mistakes from being a total disaster. DELETED.MED can be used just like any other "MED" file. CREATING A NEW DATA FILE w/DELETED.MED. C) If you want to create a new file with selected records from an existing data file, you can easily do this. Use DOS DELete to "delete" or REName to "rename" the DELETED.MED file (if it exists). Then, use the DELETE RECORDS selection from the Main Menu of the Media Inventory Program. A secondary selection menu allows you to DELETE by MEDIA TYPE. You can use the DELETED.MED file to your advantage by deleting the selected records (let's say, BK for BOOKS). When you are finished, the "selected" records will be in the newly created DELETED.MED file. The current data file can be then REORGANIZED via the Utility Menu to eliminate the newly DELETED records. Finally, use the DOS REName command to rename DELETED.MED to (for example) BOOKS.MED. Now, you have a new data file without re-entry of this information. Also note, if you mistakenly delete a record(s) and have not added, nor reorg-ed, you can UN-DELETE it by EDITING the record(s) and pressing "Y" to UNDELETE the record. Then press and "Y" to make changes. The record will be recovered (un-deleted). 5) Media Type & Category. A) Two alpha characters (automatically capitalized) are used for this entry. My rational is based on the terms CD - for Compact Disc, LP - for Long Playing record (the almost obsolete album). Other suggestions are BK - for Book, CT - for Cassette Tape, SW - for Software, 45 - for 45 RPM record, etc. Be creative and consistent! B) Category. Under the topic of "Media Types" is an ambiguous, yet helpful field titled, CATEGORY. Categories are useful when classifying Books, Movies, Music, etc. I have included several of my personal classifications in a ASCII text file, CatCodes.TXT (this should be included with the MEDIA.EXE program). This text file is an alphabetized list of three (3) digit alpha codes. There are (no doubt) hundreds more than these twenty-five plus. However, the array will only handle about two hundred lines. That should cover the classification range used by most normal humans. If you want to alter the CATCODES.TXT file, please make a BACKUP first! Use a "pure" ASCII text editor. Leave one blank space in front of the alpha code. I believe the length of the line is 33 characters (including the space). That should be adequate for a CODE and DESCRIPTION. If CATCODES.TXT is missing from your copy of the Media Inventory Program, create your own list by following these instructions. Pressing the "F1" key (as noted on the screen) at the "Category" entry will bring up the CatCodes list in a window. Press ESCape or 'Q' to close the window (instructions are on the screen). 6) Sorts. A) Default sorts are done on Author/Artist/Group. The Utilities Menu also provides sorting by (Media) Type, Category, and Title. B) The "sorts" provided an easy way to check for duplicate records in a "MED" file by reviewing the DISPLAY INDEX ARRAY option. This is my "cheaters" way of checking things without hard copy. Duplicates can be found quickly when reviewing this RAM display. 7) Reports. A) There are four reports at this time. The first is sorted by Author/Artist/Group. However, selection for the Media Type, etc., helps narrow your selected data. The reports sum the investment at the bottom (a grim reminder of how much money you may have "wasted" on some items...). The second report is sorted by Media Type. An additional way to select the output is provided on another menu. The third report lists the file by Title, and provides the summary at the bottom of the page. The fourth report provides a list by CATEGORY. The output can go to SCREEN, LPT1 (printer), or an ASCII file. Within reason, I'll create other reports on demand, and as time allows. Suggestions are welcome. 8) Printing. A) Printing a screen or report will work with most dot matrix printers. (My laser printer works well also.) Contact me if your printer does not function properly. Include the details of the problem(s). However, one suggestion is to TURN-OFF the printer, wait a few seconds, then TURN-ON the printer. This procedure will "dump" any previous (down-loaded) configuration. B) If your printer is not turned ON, or you do not have a print spooler installed, a message will display (with a beep) three times. After three cycles, the program will resume without printing the screen or report. 9) Cost. A) The cost of the Media Inventory Program is the amount to pay off the national debt (of your country). But, since most people can't do it, you will have to accept this as a freebie. Okay? It's a partial repayment for the "stuff" I've gleaned from Public Domain. 10) Updates. A) Updates are available from me. I am requesting a five dollar (US) donation to cover the shipping costs, etc. 11) Distribution policy. A) The Media Inventory Program and related files can be distributed without fee beyond the "normal" cost of a diskette and modest handling fee. The total fee can not exceed six (US) dollars per diskette unless approved by Gary D. Moore. Individuals or organizations who want to distribute this program according this policy can. Please drop me a post card so that you may be updated. B) Please transfer these files as a group (unit): MEDIA.EXE - Executable Media Inventory Program. MEDIA.TXT - This file. CATCODES.TXT - Sample Category Codes file (ASCII). DEMO.MED - Dummy DEMO inventory file. 12) Virus perverts. A) The demented moron(s) and many other derogatory names of less than person(s) who corrupt programs ought to be hanged by the floppy for a year. If you believe the Media Inventory Program has been altered, please contact me "immediately" at my address. I'll ship you a new program (as well as other freebies by me and my associates) for the five dollar fee. Please tell me where you got the program, the version number, and any other relevant information. Thanks! 13) X-Port Option in the PRINT Menu. A) Those who may want to export the data contained in a "MED" file will be happy to know that the "current" file can be exported. The "X-Port" option in the PRINT Menu will handle this. B) The ASCII record length is noted on the screen. The file is in "random access" format (please refer to appropriate dictionary or data base text for a detailed explanation). C) PC File* users can quickly "import" the exported file via the PC File* (F8) Utility Menu by selecting IMPORT -- RANDOM FORMAT. Of course, those familiar with the PC File* (by Jim Button) can quickly build a data file with the fields and designated lengths as they appear on the screen. (You are prompted to PRINT the screen after the X-Port is finished.) The fields should be considered TEXT or CHARACTER when importing. The process to export my "CD" inventory, quit the program, change directories to the one containing the data base, start the data base, create the data schema (as noted on the screen), and import the X-Port(ed) file took less than five minutes. This "X-Port(ed)" data can be manipulated as you desire with any program that accepts "random access" format. The X-Port ASCII file can also be imported to most word processors. Hope you find this feature useful. 14) Change Text Screen Color Monochrome users will not be able to change colors. This features allows a the user to select the "foreground/background" color combination used in the "window" displays. For the "composite" (mono-color) monitor user, it allows switching to a more readable "monochrome" color combination. Changing Text Screen Color is presented before the text is displayed. The "default" color is shown at the bottom of the screen, all instructions are on the screen. With 127 different color combinations, just about every one should be satisified. Experiment... for the price, you can't go wrong! Credits: My associate in this project was Fearless "Wonder" Mutt (my dog). Fearless provided me with the inspiration to make the Media Inventory Program simple. He likes simple things, i.e., his water dish to be clean and filled with cool, filtered water. His food bowl always full (he'll let me know when it's empty). Fearless also "demands" walks to assure that our trees haven't moved. Thanks is also due Ethan Winer and staff at Crescent Software** for some of the routines used in the Media Inventory Program. The people at Crescent are a great support team, and can answer almost any (reasonable) question. Other Odds 'n Ends: You can create as many (MED) files as you wish. Each type of media can be kept in a separate data file, i.e., books in BOOKS or MYBOOKS or HERBOOKS, etc., and CDs in GarysCD, or DavesCD, etc., and etc. As stated, practically everything is on the screen. If you have difficulty, please advise. And, PLEASE drop me a post card (to let me know) if you use/like this program. You are invited to send comments, suggestions, etc., to: Gary D. Moore 5161 Howard Road Port Huron, MI 48060-2326 Thanks, and God bless. Peace! * PC File is a trademark of Buttonware. Call 1-800-JBUTTON to order a copy of Jim Button's PC File, or other fine products. ** Crescent Software produces many programming aides. Crescent's product list is available by phoning 203-846-2500. Gary D. Moore Media.TXT 911023