Make Mine MAPPER #33 -------------------- by Rob Haeuser Introducing GURU FM... (Don't Touch That Dial!) ----------------------------------------------------------------- I love MAPPER. I really do. This software is so dynamic, you can just about count on a new release every year or two. Mind boggling, when you consider the fact that you could refer to a COBOL level by which decade it was released... Let's see... Was it the summer of '74, or the fall of '85?... At that rate, we're due for a new one around winter of 1996. With at least 4 or 5 years to fully implement, I guess we'll check up on you COBOL guys around the year 2001, maybe in the spring this time. Other environments seem to be ramming ahead in fits and spurts. DOS 6 is not dead, but after the trouble I've had with it, I firmly believe that it should be killed: quickly; painfully. Windows is getting gooier than ever, so much so that you can get stuck in the muck without even trying. And, of course, booting is becoming more of a habit than cursing at the blasted machine for having to do it. If all this sounds like I'm complaining a little bit, well, ok then, maybe I am. If MicroSoft rushes out a new level of Windows that starts to slam applications to the wall (like certain emulators and PC MAPPER products), who is to blame? Certainly not Bill Gates, eh? And, oh boy, here comes DOS 7 and Windows NT! Yay!!! What about the mainframe arena? Specifically, my favorite "M" word, MAPPER? After almost eleven years of working with the product, I have never experienced a catastrophic application failure due to a major release upgrade. Ah, relative stability. That is not to say life has been completely incident free. But the few times that functions have somehow been changed, so that they now "work as intended" (I love that phrase!), a fix has been easily implemented. The MAPPER database structure has not changed fundamentally since it's conception. The original functions basically remain intact. This is not, I repeat, NOT bad! In fact, the only way to improve on a damned good idea is to add functionality, not re-write everything every time you want to call it a new level! It's called backward compatibility. Support what you have, re-write where necessary, build on it whenever possible, constantly add new functionality, but don't screw up what you already did, especially if it works! Ahem! Pardon me while I clear my throat. Now that I've gotten that out of my system, let me explain why I may seem a bit sensitive to the nuances of our ever more software-layered lives. First, I would like to commend Unisys and all the people that have worked on MAPPER over the last 25 years. Well done! Keep up the good work! Now, where's my ten bucks? Next, let me say that as good a product as MAPPER is, there are, and probably always will be, things that you wish they'd thought of. You know, a utility here, a utility there... Ahem! Excuse me, did I clear my throat again? Ladies and Gentlemen! Introducing GURU FM! No, not another bland radio station to tune out as you fight for your life on the expressway. GURU is an acronym for Gort's Ultimate Run Utilities (For MAPPER): a set of MAPPER utilities now available to help you through the trials and tribulations of your complicated existence! Come now, every site has one. You know, the MAPPER guru: the one with all the answers. The one to go to when you need peace of mind: to achieve a higher plane of existence: to accomplish what had seemed nearly impossible before, even on an XT! You know, the one that grumbles loudly as he shows you for the millionth time how to go through a complicated step of manual processes, just to get to where you want to be. Don't you wish you had a utility that could easily add a few blasted columns on the fly? Not your fault MAPPER won't let the total be bigger than the field when summing vertically. You might want to delete a few columns, to boot. And who the blinkety-blink sized the field to begin with!!!? Probably the damn coordinator! But, hey, it can be hard anticipating the needs of every field, everywhere, at all times. It's either too big or too small. It should'a been over here, or maybe over there. I should'a had a V8... How about a utility that takes the MAPPER "view" function to a whole new plane, with the ability to select individual columns within fields; to select blocks of fields; to re-arrange the selected fields in a different order; to save the newly created format for later recall; to give each format a title that can be listed and selected later; that can interface with any run to reproduce these pre-defined formats as necessary? In other words, nearly infinite formatting capabilities, available to you as an end-user, or as a run designer developing entire applications. This is but one utility in a set currently numbering over 50. The one I particularly like is the color utility. It allows a user to select the colors and intensity for 9 pre-defined areas of the screen, such as a title, screen border, background, interior, input fields, etc. These color combinations can be saved, specifically by user-id, department, and station number. Any run can then "see" what colors a user has selected, based on the department and station, using them appropriately to create screens truly individualized to the user. And, of course, all utilities support the color feature, which, by the way, does have a "random colors" generator (it can make some bizarre combinations, let me tell you). Interested yet? How about one that can locate a target string, even if it's not within the displayed columns on the screen? Or only locate the target if it is in a specific column? That can skip to a specified line (roll) before resuming the find (an especially desirable feature if you have ever used manual Locate, and have been cursed with a screen full of finds... hitting F1 more but enjoying it less)? Interested yet? Utilities to: reformat a report; display a report with a 20- key function-key bar; send printer control commands to HPs and Epsons; transfer files, etc. How about one to delete a block of lines without having to count how many to delete (I hate doing that)? GURU is for general users, run designers, and coordinators. Some very powerful; all very useful, and, dare I say it, extremely cost effective. And, yes, it can run with or without Windows. Next month: An in-depth look at the GURU "Kernel" utilities, or what I call "system-in-a-bucket"; a complete list of the utilities available in GURU 1r0; plus pricing and order information. Don't touch that dial, and I'll see you in Minneapolis! ----------------------------------------------------------------- Rob Haeuser has over 18 years of Data Processing experience. He was MAPPER Coordinator and Run Designer for the Texas Department of Human Services for ten years, and is now an independent contractor working in the Austin area. Covering MAPPER topics ranging from technical to tacky, his never-ending quest is for truth, justice, and the MAPPER way. Please direct all communications to: GURU Enterprises Attn Rob Haeuser 3212 Great Valley Drive Cedar Park, Tx. 78613 or call: 512-331-0498 (voice) / 512-335-3862 (fax)