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RADIO MASTER
Radio Maintenance Database
Version 1.0
INTRODUCTION -
RADIO MASTER is a database program to keep track ofmaintenance
records for two way radios. The program was
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designed primarily for use by public safety agencies, but
itadapts very easily to any number of applications.
LICENSE -
RADIO MASTER is distributed under a unique concept knowas
shareware. RADIO MASTER is in the public domain and has
no registration fee associated with it's use. It may
bedistributed freely, so long as it is transferred in tact withall
of it's applicable files, in their original forms. RADIOMASTER may
not be altered in whole or in part at any levelwithout written
permission from the author.
WARRANTY -
The author makes no warranties, expressed or impliedtoward the
use of RADIO MASTER in part or in full. Theauthor is not
responsible for any lost data or financial lossfor any reason
through the use of this program. Any use of
this program or incompatibilities with a particular
systemconfiguration shall be the responsibility of the user.
Any product or company name referred to in thisdocumentation or
program code are and shall remain registeredtrade marks of their
respective companies.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS -
IBM PC,XT,AT compatible computer, 256K available RAM,Microsoft
DOS Version 3.0 or higher, CGA or Monochrome videocard and monitor,
floppy disk drive, and a parallel printer
(Optional).
OVERVIEW -
RADIO MASTER is a user friendly program that allows youto keep
track of radios used by your agency, as well as anyrepairs
preformed on those radios. The radios can beportables (Hand Units),
mobiles (Car Radios), or base units.The program is menu driven. For
the most part the user needonly move the selector around the screen
using the cursor orarrow keys and follow the directions that are
provided.
On-line help on available for most screens by pressingthe F1
key. A help window will "pop up" on the screen withadditional
instructions about the function you are workingwith.
RADIO MASTER uses key record files. These files areused to
rapidly sort and recall data when needed. Key filesare dynamic and
are updated every time a record is added,deleted, or changed. This
assures that the user is alwaysworking with accurate
information.
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RADIO MASTER offers a feature that saves disk space.When a
record is added RADIO MASTER searches for a "hole"left by a record
that was previously deleted, rather thanappending it to the end of
the file. If no holes exist, RADIOMASTER will then append the
record to the end of the file.Many database programs require you to
"pack" the file fromtime to time to eliminate these holes. RADIO
MASTER doesthis automatically.
DONATION -
RADIO MASTER was designed for use by Public SafetyAgencies. As a
public safety professional, I am aware of theneed for professional
level computer programs without a giantprice tag.
RADIO MASTER is the result of many hours of hard workin front of
a keyboard using some rather costly developmentsoftware. As stated
before there is no required registrationfee associated with RADIO
MASTER, however, if the program
meets your needs (and your budget can afford it) a donationof at
least $20 would be greatly appreciated. Your donationgoes towards
the continued development of similar programs.
Timothy Woll4140 St. Lawrence Ave.
Reading, Pa. 19606
FILES -
The base files that come with RADIO MASTER are:
RADMSTR.EXE - Main Program File.RADMSTR.MAN - User Manual
Documentation.RADMSTR.HLP - On-Line Help File.
The first time you run RADIO MASTER the following fileswill be
created:
RADIO.DAT - User input list of radiosRADIO.(K01 thru K05) -
radio key filesREPAIR.DAT - User input list of repairsREPAIR.(K01
thru K05) - repair key filesREPAIR.MEM - memo file for
REPAIR.DAT
INSTALLATION -
Floppy Disk Users: Copy the RADIO MASTER base files to aclean
diskette.
Hard Disk Users: I recommend you run RADMSTR from it's ownsub
directory. To create the directory, type:
MD\RADMSTR
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from a DOS prompt. Then type:
CD\RADMSTR
to change to that directory and copy the base files into
thatdirectory.
GETTING STARTED -
Once you have installed the program. Change to theproper
directory and/or disk and type RADMSTR from a DOSprompt. The
program will start and the first screen you willsee is a title
page. Press ENTER at the title page and theMAIN MENU will
appear.
Entering Radios -
The first thing you will want to do is enter all theradios that
are used by your department. Select one of theSHOW RADIO BY ...
selections from the menu by moving the
highlighted bar over the selection and pressing ENTER.
Areference screen will appear. Since this is the first timeyou are
running RADIO MASTER the file is empty and theprogram assumes you
want to add a record. The Update windowwill automatically appear.
Type in the requested informationand type ENTER when finished with
each entry. When you reachthe end of the window, it will disappear
and the informationyou just entered will appear on the reference
screen.
To enter the next radio, press the INS or INSERT key.The update
window will appear again. Enter the information asbefore. If you
want to abort the operation and return to thereference window press
CTRL-ESC. Continue entering the radios
in this manner until you have entered all the radios.
Entering Repairs -
Once you have finished with entering the radios, pressESC until
you are back at the MAIN MENU. Move the cursor toREPAIR RECORDS and
press ENTER. The REPAIR MENU will appear.Select one of the SHOW
REPAIRS BY ... choices and pressENTER. As before with the Radio
information, a referencewindow will appear, followed by an update
window. Makeentries until you reach the end of the window. It
willdisappear and the repair information will appear on
thereference screen.
When entering the serial number or the department numberof the
radio that was under repair, you can make your life alittle easier
by pressing the F2 key. A list of all numberson file will appear.
Select the one you want from the listand press ENTER. Your choice
will be moved into the relatedfield. Department number is displayed
first. I recommend youuse this field and look it up first. If you
do, the serialnumber will be loaded as well. Just press ENTER to
accept theserial number.
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You can also leave the department number blank and pressF2 at
the serial number field. As before a list will pop upwith all
serial numbers on file. The department number willbe automatically
loaded.
You can also entry each field manually if you wish.
To add additional repairs press the INS or INSERT key.
The update window will appear again and you can continue
asbefore. Continue until you have finished entering all therepair
records.
Using the Reference Screens -
The screens will display data in a sorted format. Thisformat is
determined by the previous menu entry. For example,if you select
SHOW RADIO BY MAKE from the Main Menu, thereference screen will
appear with the data sortedalphabetically by the MAKE entry.
Use the UP and DOWN arrow keys to move the highlightedselection
about the screen.
A LOCATE field is provided with most reference screens.It found
at the top of the screen just under the title. Thisis a fast way to
locate a particular entry. This isespecially handy if you have a
large file and need to find anentry fast. Type the information in
from the keyboard. Theprogram will search from the top down for the
first recordthat matches your entry in the locate field. For
example ifyou are looking for a radio with serial number
MT53534453,when you type in "M" RADIO MASTER will find the first
entrythat has a serial number that starts with "M". When you
type
the next character "T", RADIO MASTER will find the firstserial
number that begins with "MT" and so on. You can seehow this could
save a lot of time. Sometimes you only needto enter a few
characters to get close, then use the UP andDOWN arrow keys to move
to the desired record.
Changing the information -
If you entered the information wrong or you need tochange it of
any reason, move the highlighted selection barto the desired record
and press ENTER. The update windowwill appear. Change whatever
information you wish and pressCTRL-ENTER. The information will be
changed and resorted.
Deleting a record -
Move the highlighted selection bar to the record youwish to
delete. Press the DEL or DELETE key. The updatewindow will appear
and show you the entire record. PressENTER to delete or ESC to
abort.
Using the update window -
These windows are used to update the reference screens.
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All the applicable information pertaining to a record
iscontained on this window. In some cases you can
look-upinformation by pressing the F2 key.
PRINTING REPORTS -
RADIO MASTER is designed to print on an 80 Column wide
printer. The program does not check to see if there is aprinter
on line. The program just "goes for it". Don't worryif you made a
mistake. Just wait until your keyboard controlreturns in a few
seconds and proceed as you wish. Shuttingthe printer off in the
middle of a report will not hurtanything, just be sure to wait
until you have keyboardcontrol again before you turn the printer
back on.
Set the paper to the top of form before you begin. Makesure the
printer is ON-LINE and ready to receive data. Theprogram will eject
the current sheet to the top of form, soyou will be able to print
one report after another withouthaving to reset the printer each
time.
Before printing, the program will prompt you for a startand stop
date. The report will not show any entries beforeto start date. The
report will not show any entries after thestop date.
If the start date is left blank, the program willdefault to the
date of the earliest record. If the stop dateis left blank, the
program defaults to today's date.
Moving about the RADIO MASTER screens -
There are two basic key board commands that are commonto all
RADIO MASTER screens, CTRL-ENTER and CTRL-ESC.
CRTL-ENTER will complete the screen and except allcurrent data.
This data will then be stored and changed ifit's different than
existing data. Pressing ENTER withoutCTRL will accept the current
entry and move on to the next.
CTRL-ESC will exit the current screen and abort anychanges that
were made. Pressing ESC without CTRL will allowyou to "Back-up" one
operation at a time.
Printing the documentation -
You can print this file by using your favorite wordprocessor.
Load the file RADMSTR.MAN in ANSII format. Youcan also print it
from DOS by setting your printer andtyping:
PRINT RADMSTR.MAN
from a DOS prompt. The files was constructed using an
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80 column format, with a left and right margin of 10
spaceseach.
Thanks -
I hope RADIO MASTER works well and meets your needs.It's my
first attempt at a program for distribution. If you
have any questions or comments please contact me at:
Timothy Woll4140 St. Lawrence Ave.
Reading, Pa. 19606
I can also be reached by E-Mail via The Glass MenagerieBBS (215)
478-1430 or the FILE CABINET BBS (215) 678-9334(Interlink). I can
also be reached via PRODIGY ID# MSHT41A.
I would like to thank everyone associated with RADIOMASTER,
especially the program testers. An suggestions foradditional
programs are also encouraged.
Thanks again, and happy computing.
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