Jan 082018
 
Tool to help focus problem solving activities. Answer questions and respond to suggestions.
File DYNAMIND.ZIP from The Programmer’s Corner in
Category Science and Education
Tool to help focus problem solving activities. Answer questions and respond to suggestions.
File Name File Size Zip Size Zip Type
COMPUTER.DYN 26033 7955 deflated
DM.EXE 307941 102820 deflated
DYNAMIND.CNF 44 22 deflated
DYNAMIND.HLP 36249 6971 deflated
DYNAMIND.TUT 38416 12416 deflated
DYNAMIND.TXT 15738 5529 deflated
DYNMANUL.TXT 66904 19265 deflated
DYNTUT.TXT 33914 9781 deflated

Download File DYNAMIND.ZIP Here

Contents of the DYNAMIND.TXT file


*HELP
GETTING HELP IN DynaMind

You can, at any time, display a help window which will provide assistance on
operating DynaMind by pressing the F1 key. You can request ideas or
suggestions on how to attack your problem by pressing the F2 key while in
any of the windows. If there is more help text than will fit in the window
displayed on the screen, you may scroll through it by using the arrow keys,
the PgUp/PgDn, and the Home/End keys. Whenever a help window is displayed,
you may zoom the window to fill the full screen by pressing the Alt-F1 key
(hold down the Alt key and press F1).

In each DynaMind window, the bottom window border will contain a legend with
some numbers and words. The numbers refer to the function keys and the words
are a brief name for the function associated with that key. For example, in
every window, the legend F1:Help appears. This means that you can press F1
in any window for help on how to use DynaMind. Similarly, the legend
2:Suggestions appears in each window. This indicates that you can press the
F2 key for ideas or suggestions on how to solve your problem.

You may exit from any window or any prompt by pressing the Esc key. Also,
the F10 key can be used to exit in most places.

For a brief description of any of the menu items, move the cursor to the
menu option in question and press the F1 key.


USING DynaMind FOR PROBLEM-SOLVING

The normal sequence for using DynaMind is to start with the three Describe
windows, Describe the Situation, People & Organizations, and Rules &
Assumptions. You enter into these windows basic information about the
components and parameters of a problem you want to work on.

After you have provided a definition of your situation, you use the two
Goals windows, Goals & Objectives and Analyze Goals. In the Goals &
Objectives window, you set specific objectives to be accomplished. In the
Analyze window, you examine them to determine if they are appropriate and
obtainable.

When you have decided what objectives to pursue, you can then go on to the
Strategy windows to develop plans to attain your goals. Each of the strategy
windows provides you with a different perspective on your problem to help
you find creative approaches to it. For example, the Other Viewpoints window
suggests that you look at the situation from another person's point of view.
Since we are all different, we tend to think of different solutions to a
single problem. Another window, Change the Rules, asks you to temporarily
pretend that you can circumvent the rules and restrictions which seem to
obstruct you in the quest for your goals. For information on the other
Strategy windows, select them from the menu and press F1 or F2 for help
while in the window.

After you have developed a list of alternatives, you use the three Evaluate
windows, Develop Criteria, Pro, Con & Neutral, and Evaluate/Action Plan. In
the Develop Criteria window, you state specific standards by which you will
measure each of the options you have developed. The Pro, Con & Neutral
window provides a place to list the costs and benefits of each approach.
Finally, in the Evaluate/Action Plan window, you take a detailed look at two
or three of your most promising ideas. You then develop these into an action
plan which you will put into practice.

You need not use all of the windows for each situation you work on.
Depending on your problem and your problem-solving style, you may select
only those that seem most helpful. When you have finished a session and want
to leave the computer, you should save your file using the Save option on
the File menu. When you return next time, use the Retrieve option to recall
the information you entered previously. You may have any number of files,
one for each problem you are working on.


USING DynaMind MENUS

There are two ways of selecting a DynaMind window to work in: from the menu
or by the use of a control-key command. To select an item from the menu,
move the cursor bar to the desired option by using the arrow keys on the
numeric keypad and press the Return key. If the computer beeps when you
press the arrow keys, you probably have the keypad in NumLck state. While in
this state, your keypad does not generate arrow keys but rather, numbers. To
change to arrow key mode, press the NumLck key.

When selecting options from the menu, it is sometimes faster to enter a
letter on the menu instead of pressing the up/down arrow keys. For example,
while the Situation menu is displayed, to select the Describe the Situation
window press the "D" key. The first letter in each menu box (the letter
before the dash) is the letter to press to select any menu item.


MOVING QUICKLY BETWEEN WINDOWS

Whenever you are in a window and want to move to another window, you may
display the menu by pressing either the F10 or the Esc key. Once you become
familiar with DynaMind and know which window you want to go to, you can use
a shortcut method to get there which does not require displaying the menu.
You do this by pressing a control-key combination followed by another
letter. The control-key combination for each window is shown at the end of
each menu item. For example, for the Describe the Situation window, the
sequence is control-T followed by "d". The first letter (the control-key)
corresponds to one of the five main menu categories:

MENU CATEGORY CONTROL KEY
------------- -----------
File F
siTuation T
Goal G
Strategies S
Evaluation E

After you press the control-key, a small menu box will pop up in the center
of the screen to remind you of what your choices are for the second letter.
The second letter corresponds to the specific item on this menu which you
want and is the same as the first letter shown on the menu for that item. If
you decide that you don't want to go to any of the windows shown on the
menu, just press the Return key and you will be returned to your current
window.


FUNCTION KEYS IN DynaMind WINDOWS

While in each window, the bottom line of the screen (on the bottom border of
the window) will contain a list of the functions that the function keys will
perform in that window. The number of the key is shown, followed by a colon
and an abbreviation for the function. To get more information on any of
these functions, press the F1 key, while in the window.

While working in a window you can move between the various items you have
entered using the up and down arrow keys. For information on using the
DynaMind text editor, press F9 while in any window. You can exit from any
question or window in DynaMind by pressing Esc.
*RETRIEVE
The Retrieve option is used to load a DynaMind file which was previously
stored on disk.
*SAVE
The Save option is used to store to disk the DynaMind file you are currently
working on.
*CONFIGURE
The Configure option allows you to specify which printer to use and which
disk drives the DynaMind help files are located on.
*PRINT
The Print option lets you print the contents of one or more DynaMind
windows.
*EXIT
When you have finished working with DynaMind and have saved your file, you
exit to DOS with this option.
*DESCRIBE THE SITUATION
The Describe the Situation window is the place where you begin to examine
your situation by entering a description of it.

Other windows are provided specifically for the purpose of listing the
people involved in your situation and entering your goals.
*PEOPLE & ORGANIZATIONS
The People & Organizations window is provided for you to enumerate the
various people and organizations which are involved in your situation. You
may list people who are directly involved, those who may be sources of help
for you and those who are affected by the outcome of the situation.
*LIST RELEVANT FACTORS
The Rules & Assumptions window is used to enter the basic parameters or
boundaries of your problem. Typically, you would enter resources available
such as time, money and human resources here. However, there are many other
rules and restrictions which apply to most situations such as laws of
nature, the marketplace, and statutory law.

By listing these rules, you help to delineate the problem more clearly as
well as providing input for the "Change the Rules" window (in the Strategies
Window).
*ENTER GOALS
You use the Goals & Objectives window to define your goals for the outcome
of the situation.
*ANALYZE & EXAMINE
The Analyze Goals window is used to examine your goals in detail and
determine why you want to attain each one. It also allows you to determine
what other desires may be behind your stated goals and to focus on obtaining
the things that you may really want.
*FOCUS ON GOALS
The Focus on Goals window allows you to display each of your goals and
develop strategies for achieving each one.
*OTHER VIEWPOINTS
The Other Viewpoints window helps you to examine your situation from the
perspectives of other people. This can help you to think of new ways of
dealing with your situation as well as sensitizing you to the concerns of
others with whom you come into contact.

In addition to the names of the people that you enter, this window also
provides a list of famous people and characters who likely would have fresh
ways of seeing your situation. By pretending for a moment that you are these
individuals, you may come up with new approaches to resolving the situation.
*CHANGE THE RULES
In any situation, there are certain rules and restrictions within which you
must operate. Also, the resources available are limited. However, the
restrictions which we assume to hold true can sometimes be circumvented and
other times may not even be valid assumptions. By explicitly examining each
of your assumptions, you may find that an assumed limitation may be removed
or worked around in some way. The Change the Rules window assists you with
this process.
*METAPHORS
The Metaphors window provides a means to look at other situations as a
metaphors for your situation. Often, other situations which seem to be
unrelated to yours may have similarities which provide the spark for an idea
which can be applied to your situation.
*REVERSE YOUR GOALS
The Reverse Your Goals window asks you to enter the opposite of each of your
goals and then to list ways of achieving these reversed goals. After you
have entered strategies for attaining the reversed goals, you are then asked
to reverse these strategies to create new strategies for achieving your real
goals. By looking at those things that you want to avoid, you will often
find that you come up with alternatives you would have overlooked on the
direct path to your goal.
*TRANSFORM
The Transform window allows you to look at all of the strategies you have
created in the other windows and to think of ways to modify and combine them
to create new, improved options. In addition to providing a central list of
all of your strategies, this window will ask you stimulating questions to
assist you in manipulating your ideas in new ways.
*DEVELOP CRITERIA
The Develop Criteria window prompts you to create a list of standards which
you will use to evaluate each of the alternatives you generate in the
strategies windows. You review each of the goals you entered in the goals
window and create criteria which can be used to determine if the goal will
be satisfactorily met by your strategies. In addition to your customized
list of criteria, there is a standard criteria list which you can draw upon.
Having specific standards (quantifiable wherever possible) by which to judge
your ideas helps you to make accurate, objective assesments of the various
plans you create.
*PRO, CON & NEUTRAL
The Pro, Con & Neutral window allows you to scrutinize each of the
strategies and options you develop and list the costs and benefits of each
one. In addition to the pros and cons, you may wish to list considerations
which do not fit neatly into either of these categories. These things we
call neutrals and could be things which may be either pros or cons under
different conditions.
*EVALUATION/ACTION PLAN
The Evaluation/Action Plan window enables you to look at each strategy you
have devised together with its pros, cons, and neutrals as well as the
various criteria you have entered for evaluating your strategies. You may
then enter your final evaluation of each strategy and come up with one or
two action plans which you will put into practice.
*RETRIEVEHELP
Enter the name of the DynaMind file to be retrieved from disk. A file name
consists of from one to eight characters followed by a period and a one-to-
three character extension. You may enter the file name either with or
without an extension (the three characters after the "." . DynaMind does not
append any extension to the file name.

To exit without retrieving a file, press .
*VEREXITHELP0
You have made changes to the current file which have not been saved. If you
answer Yes, DynaMind will exit to DOS without saving. If you answer No,
DynaMind will not exit. (If you want to save the current file, you must
still select the Save option.)
*VEREXITHELP1
You have made changes to the current file which have not been saved. If you
answer Yes, Dynamind will allow you to Retrieve a new file, causing the
changes to the current file to be lost. If you answer No, Dynamind will not
execute the Retrieve option. (If you want to save the current file, you must
still select the Save option.)
*SAVEHELP
Enter the name of the DynaMind file to be saved to disk. A file name
consists of from one to eight characters followed by a period and a one-to-
three character extension. You may enter the file name either with or
without an extension (the three characters after the "." . DynaMind does not
append any extension to the file name.

To exit without saving a file, press .
*SUPERSEDEHELP
The file name you have specified already exists. If you want to replace that
file with the file currently in memory, enter Y. If you want to pick a
different name to use, enter N.
*PRINTHELP
PRINTING

Enter a number from 1-0 or a letter A-C to select a window whose contents
you want to print. When a window has been selected for printing, its name
will be highlighted. Enter the number or letter a second time to deselect
the window (its contents will not be printed). To select or deselect ALL
windows, press Z.

Press O to display the options window. This window allows you to set top and
bottom margins, number of lines per page and allows you to send the output
to a disk file instead of the printer. To send output to a disk file, enter
Y in response to the question "Print to disk file". Then enter a DOS file
name (with disk drive and path, if desired) in the Filename field below.

While in the print options window you can move between the various fields
using the arrow keys or the tab and shift-tab keys. To exit from the options
window, make all desired changes and press Return in the Filename field. (If
disk output is not desired, just leave this field blank.) To exit the
options window without keeping any changes you may have made, press Esc.

To begin printing (or writing to disk), press P while in the print window
(not the options window).

To select a different printer port (LPT1/LPT2) use the Configure option on
the file menu.


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