DOCUMENTATION
-------------

The documentation is in the file called PCDOC211.ARC. The four text
files extracted from PCDOC211.ARC use 188K of floppy disk space. The
changes to the documentation are minor and users with Version 2.05
and 2.10 do not have to reprint it.


INSTRUCTIONS TO UN-ARC THE PCDOC211.ARC FILE
------------ -- ------ --- ------------ ----

1. Insert the disk with the PCDOC211.ARC file into
drive A:

2. Copy ARC-E.COM to the disk in drive A:

3. Insert a blank, formatted disk in drive B:

4. Make B: the default drive.

5. Enter the command:

A:ARC-E A:PCDOC211


INSTRUCTIONS TO PRINT THE DOCUMENTATION
------------ -- ----- --- -------------

Before printing the documentation, set the printer print head at
the second or third line from the top of the page, then turn the
printer on. You will need 71 pages. To print all four documentation
files at once, use the command:

COPY PART? PRN

To print one file at a time, substitute the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 one at
a time for the question mark in the above command. These four files
are pure ASCII files with form feeds. You may also display them with
the TYPE command. They are sized to print properly on the LaserJet.



UPGRADE INSTRUCTIONS FOR USERS OF PREVIOUS VERSIONS
------- ------------ --- ----- -- -------- --------

Version 2.11 is the FULL FEATURED version of PC-ACCOUNT. Version
2.11 is identical to version 2.10 except for the correction of a bug
in the O command, a text change in the title screen and the ability
to print the Registration Form from the main menu. The program
ACT-EDIT.EXE has not been changed and is still identified as
Version 2.10.




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To upgrade from Version 2.05 or 2.10, copy PCACT.EXE, ACT-INIT.EXE,
REGFORM, and EDATA210 to your working disk. The limitations listed
in the documentation for 2.05 have been removed. Read the READ.ME2
file. You may skip the rest of this file.

If you are now using PC-ACCOUNT Version 2.0 and upgrading to
Version 2.11, read this file to learn how to convert to and use the
new features of Version 2.11. It is recommended that you read the new
documentation at some time to review all the features of PC-ACCOUNT.

Many of the new features were suggested by users. Since some are
personal preference, they can be selected/activated/deactivated at
any time with ACT-INIT.EXE.

If you just want to run PCACT.EXE Version 2.11 now without much
reading, you may do so after reading the next few paragraphs on how
to convert to this version.

CAUTION. PCACT.EXE Version 2.11 will read your existing file called
CONTROL, expand it, set new defaults and then write it in a format
that cannot be understood by version 2.0. Therefore, you may want to
first copy the 2.00 CONTROL file to another file name or disk to feel
secure. Version 2.11 does not change the format of any other files.

Version 2.11 is compiled with the Microsoft BASIC Compiler. To
prepare to run this version you must perform the following steps.

NOTE: If you do not have a PC-ACCOUNT system set up, this will
not work for you. See the manual for getting started.

1. Delete the old version of these files from your working
disk or directory:

PCACT.EXE
ACT-INIT.EXE
ACT-EDIT.EXE
BASRUN20.EXE
HERC.EXE
EDATA

2. Copy the following files from the Version 2.11 disk to your
working disk or directory:

PCACT.EXE
ACT-INIT.EXE
ACT-EDIT.EXE
BRUN20.EXE
USERLIB.EXE
REGFORM
EDATA210

3. Enter the command GO or PCACT to run the program.




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4. Enter the command ACT-INIT, select menu item 2, CHANGE
PROGRAM PARAMETERS, to select any of the new options.

Steps 1 and 2 can be performed automatically with the batch file,
UPDATE21.BAT. Place the PC-ACCOUNT 2.11 distribution disk in drive
A:. Place your PC-ACCOUNT 2.0 working disk in drive B: if you are
operating from a floppy disk. Make drive B: or your PC-ACCOUNT
directory on your hard disk the default drive. Enter the command:

A:UPDATE21


NEW FEATURES IN PC-ACCOUNT VERSION 2.11
--- -------- -- ---------- ------- ----

The following is a list of the new features in PC-ACCOUNT
Version 2.11 as compared to Version 2.0.

. SHELL command (Jump to DOS).
. Multiple Condition Query.
. Scroll the Accounting HELP screen.
. Jump scroll Payees & Search Codes by page or to Beginning/End.
. Search Accounts through many months.
. New Lotus 1-2-3 data record for account data.
. Select a Payee when Editing or entering a standard transaction.
. Specify another drive or directory for account and transaction
files. *
. U command to save accounting data without leaving the accounting
section.
. The wildcard character ? can be used in text search strings.
. Horizontal line on Account Screen #2 to separate asset & bank
accounts.
. Option to change the dollar amount during automatic transaction
processing.
. Change the default for 'Want to print a check' from Y to N. *
. Select the maximum number of records you want for Transactions,
Payees and Search Codes. *
. The amount of Free Memory is displayed.
. Turn on a Beep on command errors in Accounting sections. *
. Turn off Auto Return. *
. Redefine INPUT Search Code Delimiter. *
. Maximum number of lines on a check is increased to 110.
. New Date Formats for Checks.
. Print a Registration Form from PCACT.EXE.

* Indicates optional features selected in ACT-INIT.EXE


You now may use Version 2.11 or continue reading the explanations of
the new features.

1. The SHELL command is a means of temporarily returning to DOS. It
is accessed by pressing Function Key 5 which is now labeled SPECIAL
EXIT MODES. From this routine you can quit PCACT without saving the


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data, return to the program, or jump to DOS and leave PCACT in
memory. To return to PCACT from DOS, enter the DOS command EXIT.

If you booted from a diskette, you MUST have a copy of COMMAND.COM on
the disk in drive A:, otherwise the computer will hang and you will
have to reboot. If you remove the PC-ACCOUNT disk when in DOS, you
must reinsert it in the SAME drive it had been in before you enter
the EXIT command. This does not apply if you are running PC-ACCOUNT
from a hard disk because DOS then knows where COMMAND.COM is located.

On most systems PC-ACCOUNT remembers the drive and directory it is
running from and takes the steps to return to it when you EXIT from
DOS. However, on some computers it cannot determine the drive. It
then gives you a message to return to the correct drive and directory
before the EXIT.

2. Multiple Condition Query. This accounting command is used for
searching for transactions. It is activated by entering the O
command. You may enter one or any combination of five transaction
fields for searching. They are amount, first and second accounts,
search code or text in comment. You are prompted for a value for
each field. If you do not want to use a value in a field, just enter
RETURN to advance to the next field. After the fifth field, it
cycles back to the first. To delete a value enter |. To start the
search, enter \ as the only input to a prompt. The following is the
control screen for this command:

MULTIPLE CONDITION QUERY

Enter values ONLY for the conditions desired.
Press RETURN to SKIP to the next entry.
Press RETURN to ENTER a new value.
Press the ESC key to QUIT this command.
Enter | to DELETE a value.
Enter \ to START the search.

AMOUNT ?
FIRST ACCOUNT
SECOND ACCOUNT
SEARCH CODE
SEARCH TEXT

An example of when this is useful is when you want to find all the
deposits to a checking account. To do this, enter the O command.
Press RETURN twice to skip the amount and first account number
fields. Enter the checking account number as the second account and
press RETURN. Then enter \ and press RETURN.

3. Scroll the Accounting HELP screen. There are now more Accounting
commands then will fit in the HELP screen window. So, now it can be
scrolled with the function keys 9 and 10.

4. Jump scroll Payees & Search Codes by Page or to Beginning/End.
With large numbers of these records this became a necessity. It uses


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the ALT key and the A, S, Z, and X keys. The A and S keys scroll by
page and the Z and X keys jump from beginning to end. The S and X
keys are on the right and move the data in the same direction as the
Function 10 key does. Try it. Just remember to press the ALT key
while doing it.

5. Search Accounts through many months. This is now available in
section 4, Search Through Many Months. It is useful when you want to
see how the balance of a particular account varied over a period of
time. It is for this reason that there is a new Lotus 1-2-3 data
record for account data. The record now includes a field for the
month, year, and the Lotus date format for the first of that month.

6. Select a Payee when Editing or entering a standard transaction.
This uses familiar routines, but is available at other times when you
may need them.

7. Specify another drive or directory for monthly account and
transaction files. PC-ACCOUNT now will look for these files, and
only these files (they look like A05.87 and T05.87), on another disk
or directory. Run the program ACT-INIT.EXE to inform PC-ACCOUNT
where you want these files. You must then copy all of your account
and transaction files to the disk directory where you want them. You
may use the DOS command:

COPY ???.8* \ACTDATA\*.*

where ACTDATA represents the name of the directory for your data.

8. U command to save accounting data without leaving the accounting
section. Works like the X and Q command, but you stay in the
accounting section.

9. The wildcard character ? can be used in text search strings.
This command is used to search the Transaction Comment. Only the ?
can be used. This differs from the search without wildcards in that
it must match from the first character of the comment. For example,
the search string '???ABC??4' would match the comment 'BTYABC004A SDF'
and '923ABCZZ4X9 QWER', but not the string 'Z2396ABC004TY UIOP'
because the string 'ABC004' does not start on the 4th character of
the comment as is indicated by the first three ?'s.

10. There is now a horizontal line on Account Screen #2 to separate
asset & bank accounts. This is a screen format change for easier
interpretation.

11. Option to change the dollar amount during automatic transaction
processing. After a transaction has been automatically entered, you
get the prompt IS THE TRANSACTION OKAY? Following this you will now
see (A to change the Amount, Q to Quit) [Y]?

12. You can change the prompt default for 'Want to print a check'
from Y to N. This option can be toggled in the program ACT-INIT.EXE.
It is for those who do not print their checks.


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13. Select the maximum number of records you want for Transactions,
Payees and Search Codes. In version 2.0 these numbers were fixed at
about 300 each as a compromise on memory use. There still is a
memory limitation, but users can change the values to meet their
needs. PC-ACCOUNT now displays the amount of memory available at the
main menu. The Z command also displays the amount of memory
available along with other useful information. These values are
changed in ACT-INIT.EXE.

If ACT-INIT displays the number of records to be zero, that's okay.
Do nothing and the first time you run the new version of PC-ACCOUNT
and they will be set to the default settings. These values can be
displayed from the accounting section with the Z command. They can
be changed at any time with ACT-INIT.

14. Turn on a Beep on command errors in Accounting sections. This
feature is toggled ON/OFF in the program ACT-INIT.EXE.

15. Turn off Auto Return. You may choose to disable the auto entry
feature for some 1 and 2 character inputs. If you do, you will
always have to press RETURN to send data or a command to PC-ACCOUNT.
Some prompts are incorrect in this mode, such as PRESS ANY KEY TO
CONTINUE. The key you press must be the RETURN key.

16. Redefine INPUT Search Code Delimiter. The free form input
requires a delimiter to be inserted before the search code. This is
the | by default. Now you can change it in the ACT-INIT.EXE program.

17. Maximum number of lines on a check is increased to 110. The
previous limit was 99. This was required to precisely increment form
fed checks when a microspace of 30 lines per inch was selected for
checks that were 3.5 inches high. (30 x 3.5 = 105)

18. New Date Formats for Checks. There are 4 more date formats
available for printing on checks. They are selected with the program
ACT-EDIT.EXE. Examples are: 12/31/86, 86/12/31, 31-DEC-86, and
31-DEC-1986.

19. The Registration Form can be printed by selecting 9 from the
PCACT.EXE main menu.


CHANGE PROGRAM PARAMETERS
------ ------- ----------

As mentioned before, some features can be selected or activated with
ACT-INIT.EXE. When you select item 2, CHANGE PROGRAM PARAMETERS,
from the ACT-INIT.EXE main menu, you will see this display:








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There are several parameters that control the execution of
PC-ACCOUNT. If you are just starting to use PC-ACCOUNT, I
recommend that you skip this section. You may always return
to this section by running ACT-INIT again. ACT-INIT will
not delete any files without your permission.

1 - DRIVE or PATH TO MONTHLY ACCOUNT & TRANSACTION FILES
DEFAULT DRIVE
2 - TOGGLE GOOD DAY MESSAGE ON/OFF ON
3 - TOGGLE BEEP AT COMMAND ERROR ON/OFF OFF
4 - TOGGLE AUTO RETURN ON/OFF ON
5 - SELECT CHARACTER FOR TRANSACTION DELIMITER |
6 - TOGGLE IBM/HERCULES CARD IBM
7 - TOGGLE 'WANT TO PRINT A CHECK' DEFAULT Y or N YES
8 - SELECT THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS 0
9 - SELECT THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PAYEES 0
10 - SELECT THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF SEARCH CODES 0
11 - CHANGE SCREEN COLORS

SELECT FEATURE TO CHANGE OR TOGGLE [QUIT]?


That's it. I hope that you find these new features useful.

































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