
                 BallBase Program Manual

BallBase  is  a  database  program  designed  to  let you 
maintain  your  Baseball  Card  collection  in  an  easy, 
practical,  useful  manner.   Up to 10,000 entries can be 
maintained.

Entry  Screen  flexibility  lets  you enter your baseball 
cards  as a set or individually, or by any other means or 
combination  of  methods you wish. BallBase is useful for 
both personal and commercial use. 



                     Program Features

BallBase  can  be  executed on any IBM or compatible with 
at least  256k RAM  and  DOS 2.0  or greater.

A  context-sensitive  help  screen is always available by 
pressing the F1 function key.

Use  of  a  color  or  monochrome screen is automatically 
detected and the proper adjustments made.

User  input  boxes are word processor capable, with arrow 
cursoring, insert/overtype/delete functions, etc.


                      The Main Menu


The Main Menu is the central focus of the program.


From  here,  you  can  choose to see entries currently on 
file, add an entry, or quit the program.


To  choose  one of the above options, use the spacebar or 
arrow  keys  to  highlight the option and press the ENTER 
key.


                       See Entries

Choosing  this  option allows you to examine your entries 
currently  on  file.   You  are  first  asked whether you 
would like to see all the entries, or certain entries.

If  you select "All Entries", you are asked to select how 
you  wish  the list sorted.  Highlight one of the options 
and press the ENTER key.

If  you  select "Certain Entries", you are asked to enter 
from  one  to  nine  parameters for the program to search 
and  find  by.  Let's look at this feature in more detail 
below--

                   See Certain Entries

Highlighting  and  choosing  this  option  opens  a large 
entry  box  in  which you may enter up to nine parameters 
for  the  program  to  use to find matching entries.  For 
example,  you  can  ask  to  find all 1985 Topps Standard 
Issue  cards featuring pitchers, or any 1987 cards in any 
Update Set that mention the Yankees!

Used  thoughtfully,  this feature can search as generally 
or  as  specifically as you desire, in any combination of 
parameters  you  wish  to  use,  and  provide  an instant 
listing  to  view  or  print.  As you can see, the search 
possibilities are limited only by your imagination.

                  Displaying the Results

Whether  you choose "All" or "Certain" entries, your data 
file  is  sorted  and/or  entries found very quickly. The 
program  then  displays the first of a list (or sub-list) 
of your sorted (or found) entries.

At this point you have several options:  You may
<F2>   Printout one or all of the listed cards,
<F4>   Modify any field in the currently displayed card,
<F8>   Delete the currently displayed card, or
<Esc>  Return to the Main Menu.

Simply press the appropriate key.

                     Adding an Entry


This  entry  screen  was  designed to facilitate entry in 
various  ways.   Whether  you  make  entries as a set, or 
individual  cards,  or  any  other method or combination, 
you  should  be  able  to  make  your  entries  here in a 
practical manner.

If  you  wish  to abort an entry, simply press the Escape 
key at any time...

Let's  look  at  each  field  of the entry screen in more 
detail below--


Issue Year:

     Enter the year the card or set was issued.


Issuing Company:

     Enter  the  company,  such  as  Topps or Fleer, that 
     issued the card or set.


Type Set:

     Enter  the  issue  category, such as Standard Issue, 
     MVPs,  All-Star  Rookies,  Team  Traded,  etc.  Note 
     that  different  companies  issue different kinds of 
     sets, and new categories are regularly created. 


Card Number:

     If  you  are  entering an individual card, enter the 
     number  here.  If you are entering a set, leave this 
     field blank.


Quantity:

     If  you  have  more  than 1 of this particular card, 
     enter  the  quantity  of  cards  here.  If you enter 
     nothing,  BallBase  will  assume you own one of this 
     card (or set) and enter a "1" for you.


Player's Name:

     In  order  to let the program alphabetically sort in 
     a  practical  manner,  be sure to enter to enter the 
     player's  name in a LastName, FirstName format, such 
     as:
     
                        Mattingly, Don


Team:

     If  this is an individual card entry, enter the name 
     of  the baseball team that the player represents for 
     this card.


Position:

     Enter   the   player's   position  (Second  Baseman, 
     Catcher, etc.) as shown on the card.


Key Phrases:

     If  used  wisely,  this  is  the most powerful field 
     entry  you  can  make.  Here you may enter key words 
     or  phrases that can be later used to associate this 
     entry  with  any other entries that also include the 
     same  key  word or phrase.  This allows you to user-
     define  as  many associative indexing systems as you 
     wish,  and  later create a sub-lists based solely on 
     your indexing preference.
     
     For  example,  suppose  it's  important to you to be 
     able  to find and display lists according to whether 
     a  baseball  player  is a switch-hitter.  If this is 
     the  case,  make sure to type "Switch-hitter" in the 
     Key  Phrase  field of each appropriate player entry. 
     Then,  at  any later time, you can create a sub-list 
     of  all  switch  hitters  in  your  file by choosing 
     (from  the  Main Menu) "See Items", "Certain Items", 
     and  then  type  "Swit" (you don't have to enter the 
     entire  word  or  phrase)  in  the Key Phrase field, 
     along  with  any  other  parameters  in other fields 
     that  you wish to define the search by.  The program 
     will  then  search,  find, and present a sub-list of 
     all  entries  that  have the word "Switch-hitter" in 
     their Key Phrase field!


Comments:

     This  field  reflects  my  awareness as a programmer 
     that  it's impossible to design an entry screen that 
     will   satisfy   everybody.    Here  you  may  enter 
     anything  that you think should be entered and isn't 
     provided for elsewhere.
     
     As  an additional benefit, this field is included in 
     the  "Certain  Items"  options, so you can find this 
     entry  by  telling the program to search all comment 
     fields for a certain phrase, word, or partial word.




                     Quit the Program


You  will  be  asked  to  confirm.  If you press "y", the 
program  will  exit.   If you press "n", the program will 
return to the Main Menu.






               End of BallBase Help Screen

