**** * * CardMaster 1.2 * * © Rich Allen 11/1994 * **** These docs provide a general overview on how to use the CardMaster database program to keep track of your Magic:The Gathering® card collection. Version 1.1 fixes a problem with the gadget sizes. They are now formatted for the Topaz8 font, which is the Workbench default. Version 1.2 removes the '&' from structure variables as they are unnecessary and might be confusing to anyone looking through the code. It also now uses the Topaz 8 font in all windows, to avoid format problems on non-standard Workbench screens. Installation: Couldn't be easier. You can place the executable in any directory you like. The datafiles should probably be kept in the same directory as the executable, but it isn't necessary to do so. The program: You can start CardMaster from the shell or from Workbench. CardMaster opens a window on the workbench, displaying several buttons which control every function in the program. Initially, only the Quit and Load Database buttons are active. Each button is detailed below. - LOAD DATABASE: Clicking on this button opens a file requestor which allows you to select a cardlist file. Once a cardlist file has been loaded, this button becomes inactive and the rest of the buttons are activated. Included in this archive are two cardlists; cardlist.start has all cards from the Revised and Unlimited releases, as well as expansion sets up to The Dark. Cardlist.rich is a smaller listing of my card collection, with cards from the Revised, The Dark and Legends card sets. - SAVE DATABASE: Clicking on this button opens a file requestor, from which you can either type in a new filename or select an existing file to overwrite. It is suggested that you name your cardlist files as cardlist.[database name], e.g. cardlist.rich, for clarity, but you can choose any filename you like. - COUNT TO PRT: Clicking this button causes the program to create a statistical list of cards. It counts the total number of cards per set and color, the number of unique cards per set and color, and the total/unique numbers by rarity. A small window is opened showing the progress of the count and some limited count info, and sends to complete list to the printer. This operation assumes you have a printer connected and ready for printing. It does not check for the existance of a printer. - COUNT TO DISK: Clicking this button accomplishes the same thing as the previous button, except that the list is saved to a file. A file requestor is opened to allow you to type in a file name or choose an existing file to overwrite. Choosing cancel from the file requestor cancels this operation. - LIST TO PRT: Clicking this button sends a list of every card in the database with a number greater than zero to the printer. The list is sorted by set and color. This operation assumes you have a printer connected and ready for printing. It does not check for the existance of a printer. - LIST TO DISK: Clicking this button accomplishes the same thing as the previous button, except that the list is saved to a file. A file requestor is opened to allow you to type in a file name or choose an existing file to overwrite. Choosing cancel from the file requestor cancels this operation. - ADD CARD: Clicking this button adds one to the number field of the current card. This indicates the number of cards you own of the current card. You can have a maximum of 255 cards, further clicking will not advance the beyond 255. - SUB CARD: Clicking this button subtracts one from the number field of the current card. The minimum number is zero, further clicking will not decrement the count below zero. - NEXT CARD: Clicking on this button will advance the display to the next card in the database. When the last card in the cardlist is reached, clicking this button will wrap to the first card in the list. - PREV CARD: Clicking on this button will move the display to the previous card in the database. Clicking this button when the first card in the cardlist is displayed will wrap to the last card in the list. - QUIT: Clicking this button will bring up a requestor asking if you really want to quit. The program will not warn you if changes in the database haven't been saved. It's a good idea to save the database before quitting, even if no changes have been made. Further versions will include a warning. The datafiles: CardMaster expects its datafiles to formatted in a very specific way; failure to follow these guidelines will have unpredictable results, and may cause a guru visit. The very first line of the datafile must be the number of cards in the file. The rest of the file consists of card data, one card per line, in the following format: "011114","Badlands" The first field MUST be 6 characters long and surrounded by quotes, as shown. The second field is the card's name and must also be surrounded by quotes. There must be a comma between the two fields. The meaning of the first field is as follows: The first two positions is a hex value indicating the number of copies of that card in your collection. The third position is the card's color: 1 - Land 2 - Artifact 3 - Black 4 - Blue 5 - Green 6 - Red 7 - White 8 - Gold The fourth position is the spell type: 1 - Enchantment 2 - Instant 3 - Interrupt 4 - Sorcery 5 - Summon 6 - Artifact 7 - Artifact Creature The fifth position is the set the card came from: 1 - Revised 2 - The Dark 3 - Antiquities 4 - Arabian Nights 5 - Legends 6 - Unlimited 7 - Fallen Empires The sixth position is a hex value indicating the card's rarity: 1 - Land 2 - Common 3 - Uncommon 4 - Rare 5 - Common 6 - Common2 7 - Common3 8 - Common4 9 - Common5 A - Uncommon1 B - Uncommon2 C - Uncommon3 D - Uncommon4 Future versions: I plan on expanding the program to allow sorting the cards in several different ways. Also in the works is a sub-program that allows adding and deleting cards to/from the datafile itself. Version 1.2 will be the last revision to this initial release, barring any further bugs. Version 2.0 is being coded now, which will completely re-work the interface to allow for sorting, different methods of printing the list, and modification of the datafiles. No promises on a release date though! :) Other stuff: This program was written in BASIC using the incredible ACE package by David Benn. Version 1.2 was compiled with ACE 2.3, the latest release. Magic: The Gathering, set names, and card names are copyrighted by Wizards of the Coast. All rights to the card information belong to them, along with my thanks for a truly enjoyable game. Comments can be sent via e-mail to: rico@larry.cdsar.af.mil rico@io.com