DB2TXT



Copyright Peter Briscoe 1996 (October)

Welcome to db2txt this is my first Psion application that has gone further that my own Flash disk. This document will outline what the software can do and how to use it. If you have any comments feel free to contact me on the following:
				Peter.Briscoe@reo.mts.dec.com
Introduction
Db2txt is a cryptic name for a simple tool. The program takes information that is stored in the Psion Data application and converts this into a simple text document. Why? Well the reason I wrote the application was to create an address list. I hope that you find it of some use. If you find a new use for the program I would love to know.

License
You will be glad to know that I am licensing this application under the GNU Free Software Foundation rules. This means that the application can be used and distributed free of charge. This does not however, allow this program to be sold for profit by anybody and still remains the property of  me. A full copy of the license is included as part of the software kit.
Installation
The installation of db2txt is very simple. Using the Psion link copy the application program (OPA) onto either the internal drive or Flash/ROM card  APP directory. Below is list of the files that come as part of the software kit:

	db2txt.opa	Psion application.
	license.txt	The software license agreement.
	db2txt.doc	This document.
	db2txt.txt	Text copy of this document. (No pictures)

When the file is on the Psion use the normal install procedure (Psion-I) to add the file to system screen. For more information on how to install application see the Psion User Guide  (V1.0 April '94 p228).
Use
To use db2txt you should check that the database that you wish to use in closed and not being used by the Data program. The application will not extract the information if the file is in use. If you have created a text copy of the editor or used text files before you may have a M:\TXT directory. If not you may wish to create one. It is not compulsory to do this. If the directory does not exist then the files will be placed in the M:\WRD\ directory on the Psion.

To start the application select it from the system screen and press ENTER. You will be greeted with a welcome screen, just to blow my trumpet :-). Next is the file selector dialog.


From this pick the database file that you wish to extract the information from. The second file is where to information will be stored in text format. The default name is List.txt which will be placed in the TXT or WRD directory of the internal drive as default. If the output file already exists you will asked if you want to over write the file. Rename the file if you do not want to lose the information in the original file. The next screen you will see is the label selection screen.



This screen allows you to pick which labels you wish to extract from the database.  The order that you pick the labels will be the order in which the information will be listed. To create the list enter the number on the far left of the screen that matches the label and press enter. Repeat this for all the labels that you wish to extract from the database. When you have finished press the Esc key. You will then see the labels in the selected order.



If the order is incorrect press N and you can pick the list and order again. When you have got the labels correct press Y to move to the next dialog. This dialog will ask how many columns the text file should have. You can chose from 1,2 or 3 columns. You will also be prompted for the number of characters in a line. This is to set how wide your page is, most printers can print upto 80 chars wide without any boarders. After you have chosen you will see an example page layout.



This is only an example and does not represent the actual final page layout. After confirming that this is correct the program will write the text file with the data from the file. While the file is being written a percentage bar will be displayed on the screen to give an approximate idea of the time left to complete the file creation.



After the file has finished being written the application will remind you were the created file has been left and prompt you to exit the program.

Using the List File
After the file has been created you can access the file by using the built in Psion applications. The best way to do this is to use the text file editor. To create a text version of the Word Processor move the cursor onto the Word application, press the menu key and select 'Create new list' from the 'Special' menu. From this you will be given a dialog. Select a the directory  TXT, a type of 'Text editor' and an extension of 'txt'. When complete a new Word symbol will be created. For more information on creating the text file editor see Chapter 7 of the User Guide (page 126). If the file generated was placed in the TXT directory it will be listed under the new text editor. If it was placed in the WRD directory copy it into the new TXT directory or press TAB and select the file.

When in the text editor you will be able to modify any line of text and print out the file using the normal Psion printing options.

If you do not wish to create a separate text editor you can use normal Word application to view and print the file. Move the cursor to the Word application and press TAB key. From here you can select the list file and open it. Note that if you save the file while in the Word application it will be converted into the Word file type and the old file will not be removed. You must remove the text copy by hand if you save it as a Word format file.

Good-bye and thanks for the fish...
I hope this guide is of some use if you find any bugs then let me know. I will not promises to fix them but will give some simple assistance. The email address given is my current company email address which should not change but if you do not get any reply try putting out a request via the Psion news groups I should hopefully see it. Good-bye...