6.2 Known bugs at time of release None. But see Section 7.1 (the warning about RUN and removable media), and "WinSetup.Doc", last paragraph (Tip 3). 6.3 Errors User errors, illogical requests, and the need for confirmation are all signalled by a single "beep". There aren't many errors you can actually make within the program, but you CAN make illogical requests: attempting to join a record to itself, for instance, or trying to Paste before you have Copied. If something doesn't work, something of that sort will likely be the reason. Possible SYSTEM error codes include: 2 - file not found 3 - path " " 5 - access denied (sharing violation) 8 - not enough memory If the program encounters an unexpected problem when opening a database it generates a fatal error and terminates. This is to allow you to diagnose the problem and/or fix your parameters. You will get an error like this if, for example, you try to open a database on a read-only drive (or if you simply run out of memory). ---------------------------------------------------------- If a database is already in use or has been left flagged as "in use" because of an abnormal termination of BlueBook this message appears when you next try to open it: " Database already in use, or a component (file DBasName.BBL/.BBI/.BBD) missing. " If it is genuinely in use all you can do is close it and try again. If it is NOT actually in use, then abnormal termination has occurred and the database MAY be corrupt. See next section: "What to do about a corrupt database". If one of the three files really is missing you have no choice: you MUST scrap the others and restore from backup. ---------------------------------------------------------- After you get this message, BlueBook will attempt to open a previously opened existing database; or default, opening one called "BlueBook". ---------------------------------------------------------- 6.4 Protecting your data: Saving work-in-progress to disk No special saving is necessary: all changes are saved to disk automatically at the moment you finish editing. But if you want to take precautions, you can. Hitting F2 at the main screen whilst NOT in edit mode causes the database to be transparently closed and reopened. With luck, this will force the system to flush to disk, making the database structure "good" from now until the next add, delete, or date [key] change - EVEN if the "in use" flag is left ON by a crash. The "in use" flag - what's that? ------------------------------- When BlueBook opens a database, it marks the ".BBL" file as being in use, and saves it back to disk. This is reset when the database is closed normally (via File/Next or eXit). If this "flag" (switch) is ON when BlueBook next tries to open the database, it is proof that the database has not been "legally" closed - and MAY (or may not) be corrupt. (In that case, integrity cannot be guaranteed and it's "carry on at your own risk" time.) Why "with luck"? --------------- Well, a program may think it has updated a file on disk, but it ain't necessarily so. Input-output is "buffered" in memory, especially under Windows. In fact, that's the whole point of SmartDrive and other disk-cacheing software. This speeds things up, but at a price. If the power fails, or you hit Reset before shutting down properly, partly rewritten files can get corrupted; and databases are highly sensitive to that. ---------------------------------------------------------- You should therefore take care NEVER to terminate a database program abnormally, with files still open. ---------------------------------------------------------- Easier said than done, however. Power can fail at any time, and Windows is notoriously "flaky": one badly behaved program can crash your entire system. If you have a database open at the time, and it has been changed (and SmartDrive hasn't yet physically written the changes to disk), then it's goodbye database! At the least, you'll get an "in use" message when you next try to open it. What to do about a possibly corrupt database -------------------------------------------- With a possibly corrupt database, the best thing to do is scrap the offender, restore from a backup (either manually or via the supplied utility "BBRestor"), and start again. What? You don't have a backup? Tut-tut... In that case, if you're desperate, use "BBReset" to force the "in use" flag OFF. You're telling BlueBook to carry on regardless: the database is okay. You may or may not be right. If the program fails under these circumstances, or behaves strangely, don't be surprised. ---------------------------------------------------------- BACK UP OFTEN - You have been warned! ---------------------------------------------------------- Another excellent tip is: Avoid "stranger danger". Don't leave databases open while running untried Windows programs. (We learned THAT the hard way!) 6.5 Getting data into Windows As a DOS program, BlueBook does not have direct access to the Windows clipboard, but it's easy to simulate. Just MAKE an item listing as explained in section 7.5, then start Windows NotePad, File/Open the listing, select text according to taste, and Cut/Copy.