                    


                    Cougar Mountain Software

                         Lynx Application
 
                    Supplemental Information





                   Lynx Supplemental Information
                          Table of Contents       

Section 1.  Introduction

Section 2.  Lynx Menu Options

Section 3.  Setting up File Definitions
            A.  Setting up the File Definitions
            B.  Charts of Setup Options


                
                            Section 1
                          INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the Cougar Mountain Lynx Supplemental Documentation. 
This is one of two files you need to print in order to have
complete Lynx documentation.  The other file is called Lynx.txt. 
Print it using the same procedures you used to print this file. 

This document is stored in ASCII format so that it can be printed
and used by all our users, whether they have a word processing
program or not.  

If you do have a word processing program, we recommend that you
bring this document into the word processing program and save it
under a new name.  Refer to your word processing manual for
instructions on how to import an ASCII text file.   

This document offers explanations and examples of how to use
Lynx.  The other document, Lynx.txt, contains the file
definitions, including file types and fields.

You will need to collect similar information for the third party
programs you want to work with.  Such information can be found in
the third party's reference guide, technical reference manual,
and through the third party's technical support department.

This supplemental file is organized into three sections, with a
title page and a Table of Contents page included in the
beginning.  

Section 1 is the Introduction section.  In it we have provided
some very basic explanations of the way files and records are
organized and stored within a computer, and how Lynx uses these
records. If you are familiar with these concepts, skip the first
section.   

Section 2 is an explanation of the Lynx menu options, so you may
find it valuable to have Cougar Mountain Software loaded up and
the Lynx menu displayed on your screen when you read through this
section.   

Section 3 contains two subsections.  The first subsection
consists of a detailed explanation of how to set up the external
file definitions in order to perform the Lynx conversion process,
and provides some very important definitions of terms used in
Lynx.  The second subsection contains a series of charts which
list and explain the options available within the different parts
of the Lynx screen. 

OVERVIEW
Lynx is one of the applications that comes standard with your
basic Cougar Mountain Accounting Series package, but it actually
has nothing to do with the accounting process itself.  

Lynx is used simply to import and export pre-existing data in
order to save you time.  You can use Lynx to import your list of
Inventory items, vendors, customers, or other accounting data
into the Cougar Mountain files, without having to spend hours
retyping the information.  You can export information into third
party software programs with the same ease.   

Lynx can import or export data into or out of ASCII files only. 
ASCII (pronounced ASK-EE) is an acronym for American Standard
Code for Information Interchange, and it was created so that all
kinds of different software programs could use each other's data. 
Nearly every computer program can read ASCII format.  

Refer to your operating system manual if you are unsure whether
your system can read ASCII files. You will also need to find out
whether the third party program or programs you want to work with
will convert data into ASCII format (Refer to the documentation
that came with the program, or call the company's technical
support department to obtain this information).  

One way to tell whether the file is coded in ASCII format is to
look at it on your screen.  From the DOS prompt, type the word
"Type" and the name of the file, for example: 

C>TYPE FILENAME.EXT.  

(Again, you will have to obtain the file names of the third party
program from the company's technical reference manual, or the
technical support department.)  

The file will be displayed on your screen.  If you can recognize
the information on your screen as real words and phrases, you are
probably working with an ASCII file If the information displayed
on the screen contains any non-keyboard characters (smily faces
or other strange symbols), you'd better investigate more
thoroughly before you try to import or export data.  

Note:  Xenix/Unix systems do not use the Type command.  If you
use Xenix/Unix, refer to your reference manual for information on
viewing an ASCII file.

In order to successfully exchange data between the Accounting
Series and another manufacturer's software, both programs must be
able to locate the intermediate ASCII file.  To locate a file,
the programs must be able to identify the drive, subdirectory,
and file name.

When you add an external file definition in Lynx, you specify the
external file name.  You can also specify a drive location other
than the one on which the Accounting Series data files reside. 
Do this by preceding the file name with the drive designation and
a colon.  

If you use the designation, F:EXTERNAL.FIL, Lynx exports the data
to the file named EXTERNAL.FIL on drive F:.  If the file does not
exist, Lynx creates it.  When importing, Lynx looks for a file
named EXTERNAL.FIL on the F: drive.  It will not search any other
drive.

Lynx always looks for or writes to the default directory of the
specified drive.  It does not search other directories and you
cannot specify other directories in the external file definition. 


The safest way to ensure that Lynx finds the external file is to
put it in the same directory as the Accounting Series data files. 
It can not be in a different directory on the same drive.  If the
external file is on a different drive, it must be in the default
directory of that drive.  

Consult your operating system manual if you don't know which
directory is the default directory, or if you want to change the
default directory.

Lynx can exchange data only with an ASCII file.  Refer to the
documentation for your other program for help in exchanging data
between the ASCII file and the other programs data files.

While using Lynx is a simple procedure, you do need to understand
how files and records are organized within a computer's memory. 
If you are already familiar with this information, skip the rest
of this section. 

Probably the most common example used to illustrate how a
computer stores information is to compare it to a file cabinet.  

Most people are familiar with file cabinets; they have drawers,
and inside each of the drawers there are individual manila
folders, and inside those there are individual pieces of
information, customer credit applications, for example.  

Storing data in a computer is very similar to saving documents in
a file cabinet (but it takes up much less space).  The storage
unit in your computer can be thought of as a kind of file
cabinet. 

The computer has different subdirectories, which can be
considered the same thing as file cabinet drawers.  Each
subdirectory contains several different files, which are
equivalent to the file folders in the file cabinet.  Inside the
files are records, which are basically the same thing as the
customer credit applications filed in the file folders.  

This shows how the files are saved within the computer, but Lynx
processes information on a level below these.  To continue the
above example a little further, each credit application in the
file cabinet is made up of individual lines.  The equivalent
technical term for the lines of the credit application is fields,
and it is at this level that Lynx operates.  

The first step in converting a file is telling Lynx which drawer
and file folder (external or internal file name) the credit
applications (records) are located in, and which folder (external
or internal file name) you want them transferred into.  Then you
define the lines (fields) that you want to import or export. 
Once Lynx has all this information, all you have to do is press a
button, and the information is copied where you want it.  This
is, of course, a very simplified explanation, but it is
essentially all you need to understand to use Lynx.  The rest is
just vocabulary.  
                           Section 2
                    LYNX MASTER MENU OPTIONS

NOTE:  There is a great deal of information available to you in
the On-line Help.  Press <HELP> on any of the lines in the Lynx
application to access this information. 

The Lynx Master Menu has four options, Add External File
Definitions, Change External File Definitions, Print External
File Definitions, and Process the Conversion.  Notice that the
only thing you can do is add or change EXTERNAL file definitions. 

It is very important to remember that you will always be defining
external files.  In the case of importing, you are telling Lynx
what the external file looks like, in the case of exporting, you
are telling Lynx how you want the external file to look when the
process is complete (Lynx already knows the internal file
structures). An explanation of each of the menu options is
presented below.

Add External File Definition
Whether you are importing or exporting data, the first step you
must complete is the addition of the external file definition. 
In this step you tell Lynx the name of the two files you're
working with, i.e. the internal and external files, and you set
up the individual fields you want transferred.

Change External File Definition
Once you have set up the definitions with the add option, you can
use this option to modify them.

Print File Definition Report
Use the Print File Definition Report to obtain a copy of all the
definitions you have set up and saved.  

Process File Conversion
The Process File Conversion option is where the actual function
of Lynx takes place.  In this option you define which direction
the conversion is going, internal to external or visa versa, and
you specify which records you want to include in the process.  


                         Section 3 - Subsection A.  
               SETTING UP THE EXTERNAL FILE DEFINITIONS

Setting up the file definitions can be confusing for some people
because most of the terminology is new.  Remember you are
defining the fields of a record, just as if you were telling Lynx
which lines of a credit application to use.

Line 1. External File Name:
The first screen of the file definition screen lets you set up
the names of the files you are working with.  Line 1, External
File Name, can be any name you want to use.  DOS limits the
number of characters of a file name to eight characters (plus a
dot and a three-character extension).  Xenix/Unix systems allow
up to 14 alphanumeric characters for file names.  

If you are importing data, the name you enter here must match the
name of the external file.  If you are exporting, you can assign
the name to the file that will be created when the conversion
process takes place.

Line 2. CMS File Name:
The second line, CMS File Name, is where you define which of the
existing Cougar Mountain files to either pull information from or
to add information to.  You will need to refer to the CMS File
Definitions (located in the document called LYNX.TXT) to help you
decide.  Read the descriptions listed at the top of each of the
different definitions to find the one that contains the
information you want to work with, and then use the Lookup
function to help you locate the file name you want.

Line 3. Record Delimiter:
Use the third line, Record Delimiter, to indicate to Lynx how to
tell when one record ends and the next begins.  

Most software programs use a carriage return/line feed (often
referred to as CR/LF) to indicate the end of a record, but you
may have to do a little bit of research to find out how the files
you're working with determine the end of a record.  

One way to determine this is to look at the external file on your
screen in ASCII format.  At the DOS prompt, type the word "Type"
and the name of the file.  For example:

C>Type Filename.ext.  

This will display the file, in ASCII format, on your screen.  If
you can see no obvious break between records, i.e. if it looks
like one long line of type, then choose 0, No Delimiter.  If each
record begins at the left edge of the screen, then use option 1,
Carriage Return/Line Feed.  (Option 2, Line Feed, is mostly used
with Xenix/Unix systems.)

Line 4. Fily Byte Offset:
Line 4, File Byte Offset, is where you tell Lynx how much of the
file it should skip before it actually starts the conversion
process.  This is used primarily when you are importing data. 
You may need to do some research on the external file you are
using to determine if it has any offset.  (Refer to third party's
technical reference manual or call company's technical support
department.)

The information you enter on this preliminary section of the
screen defines the overall look of the file.  In the Field
Maintenance section of the Lynx screen, you define the fields you
want to transfer.

On the Field Maintenance screen, you are asked to define the
following attributes: Type, Control, Length, Delimiter, Brackets,
CMS Field Number, and Constants.  

Using Type and Control you tell Lynx what kind of field it's
going to convert and details about how the conversion should be
done.  

Length and Delimiter tell Lynx when one field ends and the next
begins.  

Brackets also define the beginnings and endings of fields and are
used with certain third party programs.  

Constants are used in conjunction with Type and Control to
further define the various fields.  More information about each
of these is presented below.  

TYPE
Type refers to the kind of information that is found in the
fields, OR, Type can also indicate a function or operation to
perform on the preceding or succeeding line.  Your choices for
this field are 0, 10, 11, 15, 20-90, 100, 200, <PRINTER>. 
Explanations for each of these choices are listed in section 3B. 

CONTROL
The Control is used along with the Type to tell Lynx what to do
to the field it is converting.  There are a number of different
controls available to you; a list and explanation of each kind is
given at the end of this section.

LENGTH
The length of the fields may be variable or fixed.   You must use
a character of some kind, called a delimiter, when using a
variable length.  If the field is fixed, you must specify the
number of spaces allowed in each field.  

DELIMITER
The delimiter can be any character you want to use, but the most
common entry is a comma.  This defines the end of a field, and
the beginning of the next.  If the length of the field is fixed,
you do not need to use a delimiter.

BRACKETS
Brackets are commonly used to enclose a field.  Quotes are the
most common kind of bracket used but you can use whatever you
need.

CMS FIELD
This attribute tells Lynx exactly where in the Cougar Mountain
program you want the information added to or taken from during
the import/export process.  Unless you have a terrific memory,
you need to use the CMS File Definitions listed at the end of
this document to identify this field.  After you type the number,
a description of the field will be automatically displayed to the
right of the number so you can be sure you chose the right
number.

CONSTANTS
This last field is used in conjunction with the Control to
identify an alphanumeric string, a numeric value, a character or
a number of characters that will effect the field.  The Control
determines the action -- whether attaching, adding, multiplying,
skipping, or dropping -- applied to the item entered here.  

You must fill in the above information for each record you want
converted.  That may seem like a big job, but it really isn't,
because all the records you're moving should contain the same
kind of information, presented in the same order.  

For example, if you are importing inventory items from a word
processing program into Cougar Mountain, you would probably only
have a few different fields in each record.  You might have the
Inventory Code, the description, the location code, the buying
package quantity, and the inventory stock number.  

Since each of the inventory items has this information listed in
the same exact order, you will only need 5 lines of entry in the
Lynx External File Definition, one each for the Inventory Code,
the description, the location code, the buying package quantity,
and the stock number, even if you have 6000 separate inventory
items in the file.  

You are limited to 100 entries for each record, and if you have
more than 100 fields of data for each record, you will have to
choose which fields you want to use, or process the conversion in
two passes.
                  Section 3 - Subsection B
                CHARTS OF TYPES AND CONTROLS

TYPES
This chart presents all the Types available for the first column
of the Lynx External File Definition - Field Maintenance screen. 
Remember you are always defining the external file; you are
either defining what it looks like, or what you WANT it to look
like when you're finished.

TYPE
Type refers to the kind of information that is found in the
fields, OR, Type can also indicate a function or operation to
perform on preceding or succeeding lines.  Your choices in this
field are 0, 10, 11, 15, 20-90, 100, 200.  The <PRINTER> key is
used to add a line.  
 
0 = Entering a zero deletes a line of definition

10 = Using a type 10 indicates that the external field is (or
needs to be) left justified and is a string of alphanumeric or
special characters.

11 = Using a type 11 indicates that the external field is (or
needs to be) right justified and is a string of alphanumeric or
special characters. 

15 = Using a type 15 indicates that the external field is a
numeric string.

20-90 = These types are special types designed for use with
external file programming languages that use packed data (like
Microsoft BASIC, BASIC/Z).  If you need to work with these
programs, call our Technical Support department at 1-800-727-0656
for more information.

100 = Using this type indicates that the previous field needs to
be copied and then modified when exported or imported. 

200 = Using this type indicates that there is no external field
to correspond with the Accounting Series field.   This  type is
used only when importing information into Cougar Mountain
Software.

CONTROLS
This chart presents all the Control characters available for the
second column of the Lynx External File Definition - Field
Maintenance screen.  Remember you are always defining the
external file; you are either defining what it looks like, or
what you WANT it to look like when you're finished.


CONTROL
The Control is used along with the Type to tell Lynx what to do
to the field it is converting.  

0 = This character represents Direct Replace, which means that
during the import/export process, the data is transferred exactly
as it appears.

1 = This character represents Console Input, and tells Lynx to
pause during the conversion to allow you to input the appropriate
information into the field.

2 = This character represents Conversion to Different String,
which means that the data coming in will be replaced with a
different string.  The different string must be entered into the
Constants area of this line (you are limited to 10 characters).

3 = This character represents Add String to the End of this
Field.  This command appends, or attaches, an alphanumeric string
to the end of a field, or ADDS a numeric value to the field.  The
string or the numeric value must be entered into the Constants
area.  The action here depends on the Type used.  When used with
a Type 10 or 11, Lynx knows to attach a string to the end of the
field.  When used with Types 15 - 90, Lynx will know to add the
numeric value to the field.

4 = This character represents Add String to the Front of the
Field, and it works very similarly to the previous control.  This
command attaches an alphanumeric string to the front of a field,
or MULTIPLIES a numeric value by the field.  The string or
numeric value must be entered in the Constants area.  The action
here depends on the Type used.  When used with a Type 10 or 11,
Lynx knows to attach a string to the front of the field.  When
used with Types 15 - 90, Lynx will know to multiply the numeric
value by the field.

5 = Ignore through a character or number of characters on the
front of the field.  Use this control to tell Lynx to skip a
certain number of characters at the beginning of the field.  The
skipping can be done in two ways.  The first is to enter, in the
Constants area of the line, the number of characters you want
Lynx to skip.  The second is to enter, in the Constants area, the
non-numeric character you want Lynx to start with.  Lynx will
skip as many characters as necessary until it finds the single
character you enter as a Constant.

6 = Ignore through a character or number of characters on the end
of the field.  Use this control to tell Lynx to drop a certain
number of characters at the end of the field.  The dropping can
be done in two ways.  The first is to enter, in the Constants
area of the line, the number of characters you want Lynx to drop. 
The second way is to enter, in the Constants area, the non-
numeric character with which you want Lynx to begin  dropping
characters.  Lynx will drop all characters following the
character you enter as a Constant.

Controls 10 - 16 indicate a yes or no response in the external
file.  Refer to the On-line Help for specifics.

Controls 20 - 23 indicate a debit or credit in the external file. 
Refer to the On-line Help for specifics.

Controls 24 - 26 indicate a transaction type, and are used with
AP, AR, and IN applications.  Refer to the On-line Help for
specifics.

30 = Write as an Absolute value.  This control changes a negative
number to a positive number, but does not effect positive
numbers.

Controls 40 - 47 indicate different date formats in the external
file.  Refer to the On-line Help for specifics.

Controls 50 - 74 indicate accumulators.  Accumulators are areas
of the records where totals are added up, or accumulated, and
temporarily stored.  If you need to work with accumulators, we
recommend that you call our Technical Support department at
1-800-727-0656 for more information.

IMPORTANT:  For control numbers 50 through 74, the accumulator
assigned to the first field position will be Accumulator A and
the accumulator assigned to the second field position will be
Accumulator B. 

The available accumulator range is 0 through 9. The user may
select the accumulator by specifying the accumulator or
accumulators needed by assigning the accumulator a number from 0
through 9 using the controls listed below.

Your first or last CONTROL in a file definition should be a 50 to
assure that the accumulators are cleared before they are used for
the import or export of the next record in a file. 50  =  Clear all accumulators in constant field
51  =  Field = Accumulator at A
52  =  Field = Accumulator at A, then Accumulator at A = 0
53  =  Accumulator Zero = Accumulator Zero + Constant  field
54  =  Accumulator Zero = Accumulator Zero * Constant field
55  =  Accumulator at A = Integer of Accumulator at B
61  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at B + Field
62  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at B - Field
63  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at B * Field
64  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at B / Field
71  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at A + Accumulator at B
72  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at A - Accumulator at B
73  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at A * Accumulator at B
74  =  Accumulator at A = Accumulator at A / Accumulator at B



Controls 80 - 185 indicate comparisons.  These controls allow for
selective importing and exporting of data records.  Lynx has the
capability of comparing both alphanumeric strings and numeric
values.  The system is capable of making less than, greater than,
or equal to comparisons, and either converting or not converting
based on these comparisons.  If you need to work with
comparisons, we recommend that you call our Technical Support
department at 1-800-727-0656 for more information.

NOTE: When converting from CMS to an EXTERNAL file the
comparisons must be set up at the beginning of the definition or
they will be ignored. (Comparisons can only be used with Types
100 and 200.)

In EXTERNAL to CMS conversions the comparisons must be set up
when the external field is read. (Use a Type 100.)

80  =  Convert record if the import/export field is LESS than or
EQUAL TO the string in the constants field.

180 =  Convert record if the import/export field is LESS than or
EQUAL TO the numeric value in the constants field.

81  =  Convert record if the import/export field is GREATER than
or EQUAL TO the string in the constants field.

181 =  Convert record if the import/export field is GREATER than
or EQUAL TO the numeric value in the constants field.

82  =  Convert record if the string in the constants field is
EQUAL TO or found anywhere within the import/export field.

182 =  Convert record if the import/export field is EQUAL TO the
numeric value in the constants field.

83  =  DO NOT Convert record if the import/export field is LESS
than the string in the constants field.

183 =  DO NOT convert record if the import/export field is LESS
than the numeric value in the constants field.

84  =  DO NOT convert record if the import/export field is
GREATER than the string in the constants field.

184 =  DO NOT convert record if the import/export field is
GREATER than the numeric value in the constants field.

85  =  DO NOT convert record if the string in the constants field
is EQUAL TO or found anywhere within the import/export field.

185 =  DO NOT convert record if the import/export field is EQUAL
TO the numeric value in the constants field.