Copyright: Visual Help ® 1993-1994 Firas Bushnaq


Intro
Gift Gauge

Introduction

Gift Gauge is a popular shareware program because it is simple, deals with an activity that we all engage in (giving and receiving gifts), and is very affordable. There are a lot of reasons why you would want to use such a program. For instance, it easily tracks all the gifts you have received at an event such as a baby shower or wedding. It instantly reminds you of what you gave a particular person on a previous occasion so that you can gauge how much to spend on the current occasion.

Main Screen

On the left side of the main screen, you will see a list of people. All gifts will pertain to a person in your list. You cannot add a gift record without relating it to a person. To add a person, click ADD, fill in the information and click SAVE. To edit information for a person, select them in the list, click on the field you want to edit, make your changes, and click SAVE. To delete a person, select the person in the list and click DELETE. If you delete a person, you also automatically delete all gifts associated with that person.

On the right side of the main screen, you will see a list of gifts. Each time you click on a person's name, the gifts associated with that person will be listed. The radio buttons on the right side of the screen let you control which gift records you want listed - all, just received gifts, or just given gifts. To add a gift record, make sure you have the right person selected, click ADD, fill in the information and click SAVE. To edit a gift record, select it in the list, click on the field to edit, make your changes and click SAVE. To delete a gift record, select it in the list, then click on the DELETE button. When you are adding new gift records, a calendar will appear. If you click on a date in the calendar control it will be inserted into the gift record you are adding. Dates should be entered in the format MM-DD-YYYY.

You'll also notice on the main screen, a verse for the day. These are a collection of verses from the Bible dealing with gifts, giving and receving. Each time you start the program, the verse pointer moves to the next verse in the file, so you get a new verse each time. If you click on the verse, the pointer will move forward showing you the next verse. You can also add your own quotes, verses and change or delete any of the verses on file.

 Menu Options


Menu Options

File

1 	Quotes - this option will open a window where you can browse the quotes file. You can add your own quotes and edit/delete the existing quotes. To add a quote, click ADD, enter the quote and source, then click SAVE. To edit a record, select it in the list, then click EDIT, click on the field to edit, make your changes and click SAVE. To delete a quote, select it in the list, and click DELETE.

2 	Gifts Received - this option will open a window where you can review and/or print your gifts received without regard to a specific person. To review all gifts received, click on the radio button "All Dates". If you want to review all gifts received on a certain date, click the radio button "Selected Date", then click on the date you want in the calendar control. If you click on any entry in the gift list, you will notice that the entry you made in the "note" field for the gift  will be displayed below the list. This is handy for reviewing your notes on gifts received.  The PRINT button will print a list of the items you have displayed in the list box.

3 	Gifts Given - this option will open a window where you can review and/or print your gifts given without regard to a specific person. To review all gifts given, click on the radio button "All Dates". If you want to review all gifts given on a certain date, click the radio button "Selected Date", then click on the date you want in the calendar control. If you click on any entry in the gift list, you will notice the entry you made in the "note" field for the gift record will be displayed below the list. The PRINT button will print a list of the items you have displayed in the list box.

4 	Exit - this option exits the program.

About

This option just tells you a little something about the program and how to contact the author for technical support if you are a registered user.

Help

This option opens the help file.

Registration

This option opens the registration screen. If you have not registered, you can use this screen to register. Simply fill in your name and address and click the PRINT ORDER button. Mail in the order form and your check for $10 made out to McCook Software and you will receive the latest version on 3.5 inch diskette, free technical support if you need it, you'll be able to download any new versions from your BBS and use your existing registration code. So you never have to pay for the program more than once.

Reports

1 	Name and Address List - this option prints the names and addresses that you have on file.

2 	Telephone # List - this is an abbreviated listing which only lists each person's name and their phone #.

3 	Displayed Gift List - this option prints the list of gifts that you have currently displayed on the main screen.

4 	Gifts Received - this takes you to the "Gifts Received" window where you can browse and/or print all gifts received on a certain date or all gifts received which you have on file.

5 	Gifts Given - this takes you to the "Gifts Given" window where you can browse and/or print all gifts given on a certain date or all gifts given which you have on file.

Exit

This option exits the program. You can also find an EXIT command on the FILE menu.


Dates

When you are adding gift records, there is a field for the date of the gift. Your date should always be entered in the format MM-DD-YYYY. The year 2000 is not far away, so you might consider getting used to this format since you'll be seeing it more and more frequently.

When you first add a gift entry, a calendar control will appear. If the date provided in the date field is incorrect, you can change it by simply clicking on another date in the calendar control. The calendar will disappear after you save the record.