About Front Line Computers Limited

FRONT LINE COMPUTERS LIMITED 1989

Thanks are due to CAMBRIDGE COMPUTER LIMITED for their assistance and advise also to RACING CAR COMPUTERS (Thomas Nunn) for writing the software and to Stan Sutherland's consultancy HELP FOR MANAGEMENT for devising the original idea and concept of EVENT CONTROLS.

Event Control System for the Z88

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These applications need 32K of either EPROM or Flash space.

 Introduction

EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM is a ROM based application package for the Cambridge Computer Z88 portable. It was originally written as a Commentary Control System for commentating on motor rally events and to give the commentator up to the minute information on the positions of the drivers in their various groups and classes.

The EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM can be utilized for many types of events --indoors and outdoors and can easily accommodate up to 180 entrants. Its uses are varied:-

• Note pad and timing device for coaches in all kind of sporting activities.
• Motor sports events.
• Horse Trials and Show Jumping events. Cycle racing both circuit and road events. Canoe racing events. Etc. Etc.

In addition to sports uses the program can be equally at home in an office environment when required for such applications as Method Study, Time controlling of work control and processing applications and any activity requiring a stopwatch and note pad.

The EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM has been devised as a universal program which can be used for work and leisure activities.

Before using the software for a serious application it is recommended that some time is spent getting acquainted with the package to gain familiarity with the facilities available and to determine the best way to arrange the information required.

The manual should be read to appreciate the system fully and to avoid any mishaps at a later date when fully operational.

The package is a fully compatible application for the Z88 and allows all the machine's inbuilt software to be used while the EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM is running.

The standard INDEX, MENU and HELP facilities are available and the various editing keys can be used when entering competitors' names and details. If you are unfamiliar with the machine then it is recommended that some time is spent studying the relevant sections of the Z88 manual.

The CLOCK and the PANEL

It is important that the realtime clock reads the correct time as EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM has the facility to enter actual START and STOP times to evaluate elapsed time.

If necessary select the CLOCK from the index and set it to the correct time.

The default PANEL settings are suitable for most people but if you are particulary heavy handed when pressing the keys it may help to set the "Auto Repeat Rate" to a higher number than the default setting of 6, say 10 for example. If you are new to using a keyboard then set the "keyclick" to YES and then an audible tone will be heard everytime you press a key.

Selecting ECS

EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM can be started from the INDEX using the cursor bar or can be selected at any time using W. If EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM has already been used it will appear in the SUSPENDED ACTIVITIES area of the index from which it can be re-selected using the cursor bar. There can be any number of EVENT applications running - the only limit being set by the available memory in the Z88.

Modes

There are two types of MODES used in this program :-

ENTER mode

This mode allows for all editing and inserting of competitor information (with the exception of entering START/FINISH TIMES and START/STOP CURRENT CLOCK).

VIEW mode

This mode allows for the viewing of all competitors' information and rankings. No editing is available whilst in this mode. (With the exception of entering START/FINISH TIMES and START/STOP CURRENT CLOCK).

SAMPLE SCREEN LAYOUTS

SAMPLE COMPETITOR INFORMATION FORM

SAMPLE OPTIONS PANELS

SAMPLE RANKINGS SCREEN

Comp Name Gp/Cl Time Speed Place T.F.L 0/all T.F.o/a L.

Using EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM Program

From the APPLICATIONS MENU select EVENTS by moving cursor to highlight this and press . This will load immediately and the screen will show the software logos and Events Control System. Next the competitor information screen appears and you are requested to

Enter title of event

type in the Event title (2015 RACE) and press .

The screen then asks

Miles or Kilometres

move cursor to select unit required (miles), and press .

The next screen asks you to

Enter Distance

type in the distance in miles/kilometres (26.2) of the stage, course, track or total event and press

Next screen -

LOAD COMPETITORS?

Yes No.

If you have already entered and stored a list of competitors, then select Yes - if you have no list of competitors then select No and after selection press .

Selecting YES, the screen will request LOAD COMPETITORS

Enter filename

Type in your chosen filename, (2015 FILE) and press .

The screen will now indicate that it either

• No file found or
• is LOADING the file to the selected RAM.

On completion the screen will show the information record on the first competitor and you will be in View Mode, under the OPTIONS heading - at right hand side of screen.

Selecting NO will immediately place you in the Enter Mode.

Load new competitors

From View Mode press the key. This will present you with a blank entry form and automatically place you in the Enter Mode.

Enter Mode

Key in your required information and when the screen is completed another blank form will be displayed.

If you have completed all your entries of competitor information - press to return to View Mode.

NOTE:- In some events it is necessary to have competitors with the same number. This has been allowed for and when you are requiring to FIND COMPETITOR tFC then the first competitor with the duplicated number will appear and by pressing the  cursor key the next entry will appear on the screen.

To make amendments to existing competitor information

The  key moves between Enter Mode and View Mode.

CONTROL (<>) OPTIONS can only be made from View Mode.

Find competitor

Select FC - The screen will request a "Competitor's Number".

Type the required number and press . The screen will now show the information for competitor number selected. Press to return to Enter Mode, then correct your entry by pressing until you are at the section to be amended. When satisfied that the entry is correct, press for each field until last line of note section is reached. You will then see a new conpetitor record on the screen.

Press to return to View Mode.

View information on competitors

Select View Mode - the screen will show first record on file. To view last entry press   and to revert to first entry press  . To select any competitor in between first and last, press FC and enter competitor number, press . The screen will show selected competitor or alternatively page through the competitors by pressing either the  or  cursor keys.

Enter START/FINISH time and View Rankings

Select View Mode - the screen will show first selected competitor, or the competitor you last viewed.

To enter start/finish time, press ET -

Enter start/finish

Enter Start time 00:00:00:00 (hour:min:sec:sec) now enter the time of starting and press . The screen will now ask you to enter finish time 00:00:00:00, enter finishing time and press ENTER. The elapsed time will now be shown adjacent to the word TIME in the first frame under competitor details.

Repeat this for all competitors or as many as you require. To move between competitor records use  or  cursor keys or select a number by FC.

Enter times using the STOPWATCH facility

The screen will show the selected competitor information form. To start the STOPWATCH press GO. The TIME window will now show the clock operating.

To stop the STOPWATCH press ST. The TIME window will now show the clock stationary and the lapsed time will remain as a record.

ACCURACY OF THE STOPWATCH - This is set by the Z88 internal clock and is accurate to 1/100th of a second - which is more than accurate for most events. However care must be taken when pressing keys to start or stop the STOPWATCH as your action can affect the accuracy of your timings. It is recommended that keys are pressed in a single movement from above the keyboard.

BEWARE:- Do not run your finger horizontally across the keys as you may accidentally trigger the STOPWATCH.

View rankings

This can be by

1] Overall position or

2] Group position or

3] Class position or

4] Class within a Group position.

Overall Ranking

No restrictions

Select NR - press to return to View Mode. Now select VR

View rankings

the Options window shows ***Sorting***. The ranking of the first five competitors will appear on the screen and by pressing the  or  cursor key you will move up or down the list. Press  to return to a competitor information record.

Group Ranking

Restrict by group

Select RG to enter the group you wish to rank and press . The screen returns to competitor information record -now select VR- Options window shows ***Sorting***. Then rankings of the first five competitors in the selected group appears on the screen and by pressing the   or  cursor key you will move up or down the list. Press to return to a competitor information record. To derestrict a Group, select RG but leave entry blank or useNR.

Class Ranking

Restrict by class

Select RC - enter the class you require to rank and press . The screen returns to competitor information record, then select VR and the screen will show the first five competitors in the selected class and by pressing the ñ or ò cursor key you will move up or down the list. Press -ESC- to return to a competitor information record.

To derestrict a Class, select RC but leave entry blank or use NR.

Class within a Group

To apply both Group and Class restrictions simultaneously after restricting the Group with tRG and the Class with tRC, then by selecting tVR the screen will display ranking information relating to competitors in a specific Class in a specific Group.

To print any competitor information

Select PC - print competitor information and the printer will print a copy of the selected record, the screen then returns to a competitor information record.

To print the competitor rankings

Select PR - print ranking - and the printer will print a copy of all GROUP/CLASS rankings.

To stop printing at any time, press  key

NOTE: If in doubt about control codes, select key whilst in the View Mode to view control index.

At end of event, press key to return to APPLICATIONS menu or select DIE if you no longer require the EVENT CONTROL SYSTEM application.

ECS Competitors

When starting an event with no competitors entered, carry out initial instructions - completing title of event, measurement and distance.

You are then ready to enter new competitor information. Ensure you are in Enter Mode.

Enter information by typing competitor details in each field, pressing after each field entry. The cursor will then move to each field in turn.

If a mistake is made during the entering of information, after the  key has been pressed, press  key which will exit Enter Mode and return to View Mode.

Follow the instructions as under the Amendments Heading.

Note:- It is recommended that if you have many competitors to enter, that you periodically save the competitor details.

ECS Commands

COMMANDS

This is a reference list of the COMMANDS which control the program. These can be selected on screen by pressing the -MENU- key and using the curser keys to locate the required command or by typing the required command sequence directly.

The HELP screens for all of these commands can be selected by pressing the key at any time. The HELP screen is menu driven by commands shown on the right hand side of the screen.

 Represents the 'diamond' key

VR- View rankings

FL - Load competitors

FS - Save competitors

GO - Start current clock

ST - Stop current clock

ET - Enter start/finish time

- Toggle modes (View/Enter)

- Blank record entry

RG - Restrict by group

RC - Restrict by class

NR- No restrictions

PC- Print out competitor

PR - Print out rankings

CT - Change event title

CD - Change distance

NEW - Restart application

 - Previous competitor

- Next competitor

  - First competitor

  - Last competitor

FC - Find competitor

DC - Delete competitor

RAT - Reset all times

DIE - Abandon application

REFERENCE TO EACH COMMAND

VR - View rankings -

A sorted table of competitors is produced. Dependent upon any group or class restrictions set. Use ESCAPE key at any time to return to VIEW mode.

FL - Load competitors -

Reads the competitors' names from a file which has previously been created using the SAVE COMPETITORS command tFS. Enter a filename after a prompt.

FS - Save competitors -

Creates a file (in current filing device and directory) of the competitors' names. The file is "packed" to minimise memory usage so no attempts should be made to edit the file directly. Enter a filename after the prompt.

GO - Start current clock -

ST - Stop current clock

ET - Enter start/finish times

These are the three ways of entering a competitors' time - the Z88 can time a competitor using the START/STOP CURRENT CLOCK commands tGOtST

The second option allows the competitor's time to be entered directly when in the EDIT MODE.

The third method is to use the ENTER START/FINISH option.

 - Toggle modes -

The ESCAPE key is used to toggle between the VIEW mode and the ENTER mode. It is also used to return to VIEW mode from RANKINGS window. To abort printing use ESC.

TAB - Blank record entry -

The TAB key will also move from VIEW mode to ENTER mode but will provide a blank record sheet ready for entries to be made.

RG - Restrict by group -

The prompt will ask for a group identifier to be entered. The restriction only applies to the RANKINGS table, details for a competitor in any group can still be viewed or altered etc.

RC - Restrict by class -

The prompt will ask for a class identifier to be entered. the restriction only applies to the RANKINGS table, details for a competitor in any class can still be viewed or altered etc.

NR - No restrictions -

This removes any group/class restrictions. The RANKINGS table will then show all competitors.

PC - Print out competitors -

All printing takes place via the Z88's tPR - Print out rankings printer filter - use the printer editor

to set details of the printer in use. The output from PRINT RANKINGS will depend on any group or class restrictions set.

To abort printing use ESCAPE.

CT - Change event title -

The title appears in the top right hand window of the screen and also in the suspended application area of the INDEX.

CD - Change distance -

This is used to calculate average speeds for the competitors.

NEW - Restart application -

When NEW is used the application is restarted as though it had been selected from the INDEX page. AS THIS OPTION ERASES ALL CURRENT DATA IT MUST BE ENTERED DIRECTLY FROM THE KEYBOARD - IT CANNOT BE SELECTED FROM THE MENU USING THE CURSOR.

 cursor

- previous competitor

cursor

- next competitor

  - first competitor -

will show competitor with lowest No.

- last competitor -

will show competitor with highest No.

FC - Find competitor -

The prompt will ask for a competitor's number to be entered. Provided a competitor with this number exists then the display will be updated with the competitor's details. If duplicate numbers exist then the first competitor with the duplicated number will be shown.

DC - Delete competitor -

The prompt will ask for a number to be entered. Provided a competitor with this number exists then the display will be updated with the competitor's details and you will be requested to confirm deletion.

To delete a competitor which has a duplicated number, you first change the nunber to a unique number before proceeding with the deletion.

RAT - Reset all times. -

This sets the times for ALL the competitors to 00:00:00:00. The command is IRREVERSIBLE so if the times are important it is suggested that the SAVE COMPETITORS is used first.

The SAVE COMPETITORS command FS saves times as well as other competitor details.

DIE - Abandon application -

This command KILLS the application - it is IRREVERSIBLE. The command has to be entered from the keyboard - it cannot be selected from the MENU. The DIE command is equivalent to the KILL command from the suspended activities area.

ECS Errors

ERROR MESSAGES

Errors which occur when reading or saving files are fatal and result in the application being KILLED by the operating system - though it may always be re-selected from the INDEX.

BAD FILENAME

Filename should be alphanumeric characters only as described in the Z88 manual.

FILE NOT FOUND

The file specified does not exist.

If in doubt refer to the FILER for the correct filename.

FILE IN USE

This error will be generated if the file selected is already being used by another application.

NO ROOM

No memory is available to open a new file. Delete files which are no longer required or KILL redundant application from the Suspended Activities List