ENTRY 0021
Over the weekend, I picked up a new "toy." It was WordPerfect Office X5 (which I think is their way of saying version 15). I had been needing to upgrade for some time now. I was previously using WordPerfect 9. The computer I originally installed it on ran Windows 95.
The main reason I finally decided that it was time to upgrade was QuattroPro. A few months ago, for some reason, whenever I opened QuattroPro, I would get a message that said something like, "QuattroPro 9 has stopped working." A few seconds later, it would close. I uninstalled QuattroPro, then reinstalled it. It would work for a while, and suddenly I would be faced with the same message. I even uninstalled and reinstalled the entire Corel package. The same thing happened. Let's just say that I was starting to get a little annoyed at having to do this over and over again.
This past week, one of the weekly specials at Staples was WordPerfect Office X5. They had it for half of its regular price. I also had about $9.00 in rewards coupons that I needed to use right away. I had been thinking about upgrading for some time, and this was as good a time as any to do it, so I finally bought a copy.
Installation was easy, and I've spent a few hours getting acquainted with the new software. There's some cosmetic differences between the versions, but X5 works the same as 9 did. I opened files in both WordPerfect and QuattroPro, and the information looked the same as before. I had burned a CD backup of the spreadsheets for the library, and it might have been around that the time that my problems started. But there doesn't appear to be any problems with the new software. At this point, though, I have had it on my computer maybe 72 hours at the most.
I've been taking various written notes. The next order of business is to start integrating everything into the library records. And I need to figure out how often I need to burn a backup CD.
-30-
Showing posts with label records. Show all posts
Showing posts with label records. Show all posts
Monday, April 02, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
I'm Still Here
ENTRY 0020
Yes, I've been a little quiet for a couple of months. There have been a few reasons. First and foremost among those was Christmas shopping. With one little exception, I did all of my Christmas shopping in the real world. I'm not going to trust finding the right present for any of my family members to the vagaries of Ebay. I found what I wanted at different stores, and believe it or not, I enjoy going to the mall. You just have to approach Christmas shopping with the attitude that it's a full-contact sport.
I've also been working on the records for my library. In addition to the spreadsheet file I mentioned in a previous entry, I have pages of handwritten records that, for one reason or another, I never got around to turning into Quattro Pro files. Most likely, it's most likely because I would have needed to use another floppy disk to store these files. At the moment, the main spreadsheet file is just under 800 KB -- still quite a bit less than the 1.44 MB capacity of a floppy disk, but as I said, I could see where it would eventually use all of that capacity and more. Even with the relatively small 2 GB capacity of the flash drive which I use solely for the library's record-keeping, worrying about running of storage space is no longer a problem.
Both of the new files deal with the tracking of my acquisitions. Trying to go into more detail than that would probably require using a sheet or two as an example. And I'm not particularly interested in doing that; not the least of which is because I know that most of you would be asking, "Why are you doing this?" Remember I said that I was more than a little OCD? That would be why I'm doing it.
Creating the first sheet in each of the files is usually the most time-consuming. Once that first sheet has been formatted to my satisfaction, I can copy and paste the formatting to the second and subsequent sheets. When the sheet has been formatted, it's simply a matter of punching in the numbers, and double-checking them with the handwritten pages to be certain I entered everything correctly.
Now, it's more a matter of finding a few minutes here and there to transfer the information. Yes, I'm certain I could finish it within an hour or so if I focused solely on that specific task. Most of the time, though, I'm thinking about it when I'm also thinking about doing three or four other things at the same time. And this task requires one's full concentration -- multi-tasking doesn't work as well when handling all of these numbers.
I should be able to transfer all of the information to the spreadsheet files in another week or two. I'm not sure what I will be doing after that in the way of records.
-30-
Yes, I've been a little quiet for a couple of months. There have been a few reasons. First and foremost among those was Christmas shopping. With one little exception, I did all of my Christmas shopping in the real world. I'm not going to trust finding the right present for any of my family members to the vagaries of Ebay. I found what I wanted at different stores, and believe it or not, I enjoy going to the mall. You just have to approach Christmas shopping with the attitude that it's a full-contact sport.
I've also been working on the records for my library. In addition to the spreadsheet file I mentioned in a previous entry, I have pages of handwritten records that, for one reason or another, I never got around to turning into Quattro Pro files. Most likely, it's most likely because I would have needed to use another floppy disk to store these files. At the moment, the main spreadsheet file is just under 800 KB -- still quite a bit less than the 1.44 MB capacity of a floppy disk, but as I said, I could see where it would eventually use all of that capacity and more. Even with the relatively small 2 GB capacity of the flash drive which I use solely for the library's record-keeping, worrying about running of storage space is no longer a problem.
Both of the new files deal with the tracking of my acquisitions. Trying to go into more detail than that would probably require using a sheet or two as an example. And I'm not particularly interested in doing that; not the least of which is because I know that most of you would be asking, "Why are you doing this?" Remember I said that I was more than a little OCD? That would be why I'm doing it.
Creating the first sheet in each of the files is usually the most time-consuming. Once that first sheet has been formatted to my satisfaction, I can copy and paste the formatting to the second and subsequent sheets. When the sheet has been formatted, it's simply a matter of punching in the numbers, and double-checking them with the handwritten pages to be certain I entered everything correctly.
Now, it's more a matter of finding a few minutes here and there to transfer the information. Yes, I'm certain I could finish it within an hour or so if I focused solely on that specific task. Most of the time, though, I'm thinking about it when I'm also thinking about doing three or four other things at the same time. And this task requires one's full concentration -- multi-tasking doesn't work as well when handling all of these numbers.
I should be able to transfer all of the information to the spreadsheet files in another week or two. I'm not sure what I will be doing after that in the way of records.
-30-
Friday, September 16, 2011
Last Of The Easy Gaps
ENTRY 0017
I went to the post office this afternoon. I didn't know with any certainty that I would have something waiting for me, but I just had this feeling.
As Obi-Wan Kenobi said to Luke Skywalker, "Trust your feelings." As it turned out, I was right to do so. Inside my mailbox was a key. In the locker was the copy of Angel Scriptbook #5. (Incidentally, the episode script featured in this issue was "Five By Five.")
Well, it couldn't have been anything else; that was the only package that I was anticipating. (And at the moment, I don't have anything else in the pipeline from an Ebay auction or listing.)
I went from there to the library, and I logged on to Ebay to leave feedback. I quickly discovered that the seller had left feedback for me since last night, because my feedback rating was up to 238.
Unfortunately, I think this was the last of the easy gaps in my collection for me to fill. I still have gaps; it's just that it's going to be more than picking up just one or two issues from here. I'll have to check the spreadsheet file to be certain.
But then, that's what makes the whole pursuit of acquisition fun, right?
-30-
I went to the post office this afternoon. I didn't know with any certainty that I would have something waiting for me, but I just had this feeling.
As Obi-Wan Kenobi said to Luke Skywalker, "Trust your feelings." As it turned out, I was right to do so. Inside my mailbox was a key. In the locker was the copy of Angel Scriptbook #5. (Incidentally, the episode script featured in this issue was "Five By Five.")
Well, it couldn't have been anything else; that was the only package that I was anticipating. (And at the moment, I don't have anything else in the pipeline from an Ebay auction or listing.)
I went from there to the library, and I logged on to Ebay to leave feedback. I quickly discovered that the seller had left feedback for me since last night, because my feedback rating was up to 238.
Unfortunately, I think this was the last of the easy gaps in my collection for me to fill. I still have gaps; it's just that it's going to be more than picking up just one or two issues from here. I'll have to check the spreadsheet file to be certain.
But then, that's what makes the whole pursuit of acquisition fun, right?
-30-
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Keeping Track
ENTRY 0011
As far as I know, I'm the only one reading this blog at the moment. So I don't have what might be called "Frequently Asked Questions" just yet. At this point, it might be more likely to call them Frequently Anticipated Questions, because sooner or later, someone is likely to ask them.
In any event, I suspect that if anyone does stumble across this, I have a good idea what the first thing they would ask might be:
How do you know you're not picking up something that you already have?
Or to put it another way, How do you what items you're missing?
The answer is really quite easy. I keep records. I keep lists. I keep a spreadsheet.
I'm just a little bit on the OCD side. That might be just a little more than self-evident, considering the very reason for this particular blog's existence. And I've mentioned in at least a couple of entries, I'm something of a completist. Many years ago, I decided that I needed some way to keep track of everything in my library. And a card catalog didn't sound like the right way to go about it.
The first version of my record keeping was decidedly low-tech. I picked up some extra checkbook registers from my bank, and I noted in those registers the titles of the various books and magazines in my (at the time) small collection. This was a haphazard system at best -- if you could even call it a system. I had filled one register, and was about to fill a second, when I realized that I needed something better.
That second version was slightly more advanced. I had discovered accountants' pads. I think they are technically called analysis pads or columnar pads. They are loose-leaf versions of pages from a ledger book. This proved to be more organized. I used one sheet for each title in my collection -- for instance, Starlog or Omni -- and listed each issue of a magazine on subsequent lines on the sheet. I recorded the cover price in the dollars-and-cents column. If I missed an issue for some reason, I would list the issue number, but leave the cover price on that line blank until I acquired a copy.
I used my typewriter to make the listings nice and legible. And since they were loose-leaf sheets, I organized them in a binder. Of course, my own particular method of organization might seem a little unusual, but I have found that it works.
Eventually, the computer came along, and with it, the spreadsheet program. Since my word processing software of choice is WordPerfect, the spreadsheet program with which I am most comfortable is Corel's Quattro Pro. (Yes, I am familiar with Excel. I just prefer using Quattro Pro.)
The switchover from the columnar pads was a gradual one. I would enter information from the columnar pages to Quattro Pro a few pages at a time, usually on the weekends. And I would print out the sheets as I finished. For a while, I remember that the binder had an interesting mixture of pages -- green sheets from the columnar pads mixed with the plain white paper from my printer.
For a long time, I stored the file on floppy disk. Make that disks, plural, as I usually had at least one backup disk on hand should something happen. And on at least a couple of occasions, I did have to resort to using one of my backup disks and the binder to recreate everything. Recently, though, I transferred the file on the floppy drive to a flash drive. It was a case of necessity -- the file was quickly approaching the 1.44 MB capacity of the floppy disk. I plan on using this flash drive exclusively for matters relating to my collection. It's only a 2 GB flash drive, but I don't foresee running out of space anytime soon.
I suspect there will still be the need for making backup copies. I am a firm believer in Murphy's Law, after all. But now, I will probably be burning the files to a CD to make the backups.
-30-
As far as I know, I'm the only one reading this blog at the moment. So I don't have what might be called "Frequently Asked Questions" just yet. At this point, it might be more likely to call them Frequently Anticipated Questions, because sooner or later, someone is likely to ask them.
In any event, I suspect that if anyone does stumble across this, I have a good idea what the first thing they would ask might be:
How do you know you're not picking up something that you already have?
Or to put it another way, How do you what items you're missing?
The answer is really quite easy. I keep records. I keep lists. I keep a spreadsheet.
I'm just a little bit on the OCD side. That might be just a little more than self-evident, considering the very reason for this particular blog's existence. And I've mentioned in at least a couple of entries, I'm something of a completist. Many years ago, I decided that I needed some way to keep track of everything in my library. And a card catalog didn't sound like the right way to go about it.
The first version of my record keeping was decidedly low-tech. I picked up some extra checkbook registers from my bank, and I noted in those registers the titles of the various books and magazines in my (at the time) small collection. This was a haphazard system at best -- if you could even call it a system. I had filled one register, and was about to fill a second, when I realized that I needed something better.
That second version was slightly more advanced. I had discovered accountants' pads. I think they are technically called analysis pads or columnar pads. They are loose-leaf versions of pages from a ledger book. This proved to be more organized. I used one sheet for each title in my collection -- for instance, Starlog or Omni -- and listed each issue of a magazine on subsequent lines on the sheet. I recorded the cover price in the dollars-and-cents column. If I missed an issue for some reason, I would list the issue number, but leave the cover price on that line blank until I acquired a copy.
I used my typewriter to make the listings nice and legible. And since they were loose-leaf sheets, I organized them in a binder. Of course, my own particular method of organization might seem a little unusual, but I have found that it works.
Eventually, the computer came along, and with it, the spreadsheet program. Since my word processing software of choice is WordPerfect, the spreadsheet program with which I am most comfortable is Corel's Quattro Pro. (Yes, I am familiar with Excel. I just prefer using Quattro Pro.)
The switchover from the columnar pads was a gradual one. I would enter information from the columnar pages to Quattro Pro a few pages at a time, usually on the weekends. And I would print out the sheets as I finished. For a while, I remember that the binder had an interesting mixture of pages -- green sheets from the columnar pads mixed with the plain white paper from my printer.
For a long time, I stored the file on floppy disk. Make that disks, plural, as I usually had at least one backup disk on hand should something happen. And on at least a couple of occasions, I did have to resort to using one of my backup disks and the binder to recreate everything. Recently, though, I transferred the file on the floppy drive to a flash drive. It was a case of necessity -- the file was quickly approaching the 1.44 MB capacity of the floppy disk. I plan on using this flash drive exclusively for matters relating to my collection. It's only a 2 GB flash drive, but I don't foresee running out of space anytime soon.
I suspect there will still be the need for making backup copies. I am a firm believer in Murphy's Law, after all. But now, I will probably be burning the files to a CD to make the backups.
-30-
Friday, August 05, 2011
Surveying The Battleground
ENTRY 0002
I may be officially active again on Ebay, but I haven't rushed into bidding. I've decided that I want to be methodical about how I fill in the gaps, and not run in every direction. Focusing on one or two items at a time would seem to be the best strategy to take.
So at the moment, I'm just searching. I don't think I mentioned this last time, but I think I at least implied it. When it comes to magazines, I know where the gaps are. I have a list. Make that lists, plural. And I'm conducting a few searches based on those lists.
No, I will not be divulging what I might be searching. And once I start bidding, I won't be mentioning any auction until it ends. If by some chance anyone is reading this, I don't want someone swooping in at the last minute and outbidding me. That rather defeats the whole purpose of trying to acquire . . . well, whatever I might currently be trying to acquire, whether it's something for my library or anything else.
-30-
I may be officially active again on Ebay, but I haven't rushed into bidding. I've decided that I want to be methodical about how I fill in the gaps, and not run in every direction. Focusing on one or two items at a time would seem to be the best strategy to take.
So at the moment, I'm just searching. I don't think I mentioned this last time, but I think I at least implied it. When it comes to magazines, I know where the gaps are. I have a list. Make that lists, plural. And I'm conducting a few searches based on those lists.
No, I will not be divulging what I might be searching. And once I start bidding, I won't be mentioning any auction until it ends. If by some chance anyone is reading this, I don't want someone swooping in at the last minute and outbidding me. That rather defeats the whole purpose of trying to acquire . . . well, whatever I might currently be trying to acquire, whether it's something for my library or anything else.
-30-
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