DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN         PA3.00        PAGE 1 OF 10

The Master Menu screen lists most of the features of the Personal Port-
folio Analyzer.  However, some features cannot be listed because of
space limitations.  Here are some functions that are not apparent from
the Master Menu screen:

To see a list of the portfolios that are known to the system, press B.

Stock splits and fund distributions are processed from the Transaction
Register.  Use the (B)uy/sell function.

To add a new portfolio that is not on the list, type B to see the Port-
folio Select Screen for Buying and Selling.  Then type A to ADD a new
portfolio.  Once a portfolio is on the list, you can select it and then
press the Enter key to go to the Transaction Register.

If a portfolio file (with a DOS file name ending in .POR) already exists
but is not on the list, type B and then ADD it to the list.  The program
will recognize it. 



DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 2 OF 10

Following are explanations of functions that can be performed from the
Master Menu screen.  The functions are described in the order in which
they appear in the Master Menu, from top to bottom.

                      FILE MAINTENANCE FUNCTIONS

A = ADD:  This function will take you to the Securities Register, which
    lists all of the securities available in the system.  From there
    you can add new securities, delete securities and make changes or
    corrections to any data items that pertain to securities (except
    market prices, which are entered in the Current Quote screen - see
    ENTER).  The Securities Register has its own separate HELP function
    for more information.  See Chapter 11.

    If you are starting a new data directory, or if the data directory
    is incorrect (see PATH), you will be asked if you are starting a new
    catalog file.  Respond (Y)es if you are, (N)o to insert a new data
    disk, or Esc to return to the Master Menu.



DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 3 OF 10

B = BUY:  This function will first take you to the Portfolio Select
    Screen for Buying & Selling.  The purpose of that screen is to
    choose which portfolio you want to buy or sell in.  You can also
    add new portfolios, up to 31 in all (see Chapter 9).

    After using the up- or down-arrow key to select the portfolio you
    want, press Enter to go to the Transaction Register, which lists all
    transactions in the selected portfolio.

    Note the BUY function is for buying and selling shares (or other
    units) of securities; the ADD function is for working with informa-
    tion about the securities themselves.  You can only buy or sell in
    one portfolio at a time.

    The Transaction Register is also used to process a stock split or
    fund distribution.  The Portfolio Select screen and the Transaction
    Register each have their own separate HELP functions for more in-
    formation.  See Chapters 9 and 16.



DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 4 OF 10

E = ENTER.  This function will take you to the Current Quote screen,
    which is used to enter price quotes for all securities from a news-
    paper.  This screen has its own separate HELP function for more in-
    formation.  See Chapters 13, 14 and 15.

    You can also "import" price quotes from an external ASCII file.
    That file can be created by a spreadsheet or communications program,
    which is not a part of the Personal Portfolio Analyzer.  You can
    therefore use any database service such as Dow Jones, Compuserve,
    Prodigy, etc.

    After entering or "importing" quotes, you will be asked to enter the
    date for which that information is "current".  That date can become
    either the beginning or ending report date, and is used to select
    data for reports.    






DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 5 OF 10

                           REPORT FUNCTIONS

The Master Menu has two REPORT functions which are described later in
this chapter.  In all reports, you can select which portfolio(s) and
which security type(s) are to be included.  Any one - or several -
portfolios and any combination of security types can be included.

After typing M or G you will see the Portfolio Select Screen for
Reports.  To select just a single portfolio, type U to remove all tags.
Then choose the portfolio you want by using the up- or down-arrow keys,
and press the Enter key.  Or type H for more detailed information.

Next, you will be prompted to choose the security types you want.  This
choice will affect all the portfolios you have selected.  To choose ALL
security types press the Enter key by itself without typing any letters.
To choose specific security types, type the letters corresponding to the
security types shown in the box.  For example type AH <Enter> to choose
cash accounts and common stocks.



DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 6 OF 10

Following are descriptions of each of the REPORT functions:

M = MARKET:  This group of reports includes Market Values and Return and
    Yield on Market, and is intended to show portfolio performance since
    original purchase.  In both of these reports, purchase transactions
    in like securities are combined and the time frame is from original
    purchase date to the "as of" report date.  These reports show such
    items as gain/loss since purchase, portfolio allocation, yield on
    market and total annualized return.  Summary reports combine detail
    items by security type, or by industry or fund category.











DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 7 OF 10

G = GAINS and Losses:  In this trio of detail reports, individual pur-
    chase transactions (tax lots) are shown separately.  These reports
    are intended to show performance of individual tax lots since orig-
    inal purchase or between two dates.  The report dates are the ones
    set in the Current Quote screen (see Chapters 13, 14 and 15) after
    entering security prices.

    Detail reports include Annual Appreciation Since Purchase, Annual
    Appreciation Between Two Dates, and Percent Gain/Loss Between Two
    Dates.  The three detail reports each have two corresponding summary
    reports which combine tax lots by security type or by portfolio name
    - in addition to showing the grand totals.  The summary reports are
    intended to show performance of various groupings between two dates.








DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 8 OF 10

                            OTHER FUNCTIONS

P = PATH:  The purpose of this function is to tell the program where
    your data files are.  The active directory is shown near the bottom
    of the screen.  For best results, data files should be kept in a
    different directory, separate from programs.  Data files are those
    with names ending in .POR.  Program files are those with names
    ending in .CTL, .EXE, or .HLP.

    After you press P the program will give examples and prompt you to
    enter the path name (such as \PERSONAL\).  The program will then
    use that directory for data files, until the path is again changed.

    This is not related to the PATH command in DOS.  To find out what
    a "path" is, see Appendix A, GLOSSARY OF COMPUTER TERMINOLOGY.
    Refer to a good DOS manual for more information about directories
    and paths in DOS.




DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                       PAGE 9 OF 10

    NOTE:  You can have multiple data directories, each with its own
    catalog file.  If a required data file does not exist, the program
    will ask if you want to create a new one; reply (Y)es if you are
    starting a new set of data files.

V = VIDEO:  The purpose of this screen is to choose the color scheme on
    your video display.  It will affect only the Personal Portfolio
    Analyzer, not any other programs.  After typing V you will see
    various color blocks on the screen, and you can choose any one you
    like by typing a number from 0 to 9 and then pressing Enter.

    NOTE:  If you cannot see more than two different colors on your
    screen at the same time, enter color 0 (zero).  For most laptop
    computers with monochrome screens, try 0 or 1.







DESCRIPTION OF THE MASTER MENU SCREEN                      PAGE 10 OF 10

F = FORMAT:  This function permits you to select among a number of dif-
    ferent date formats, allowing the input and display of dates in
    "non-standard" (in the USA, anyway) formats.  You can show dates
    month, day or year first and with various punctuation.

    Use the up- and down-arrow keys to select the required format inside
    the box, then press the Enter key.  Once this is done, the selection
    remains in effect for all program functions until it is changed
    again.  The date format affects both input (data entry) and output
    (screen displays and reports).

H = HELP.  This function displays the User Manual chapter you are read-
    ing now.

Q = QUIT.  This function terminates the Personal Portfolio Analyzer and
    returns to DOS.  Pressing the Esc key will have the same effect.
