Contents
Total Control Converter 1.0

Shareware / Evaluation Version

Contents

File Menu

Edit Menu

Using TC Converter

Defining Custom Quantities & Units

About the Shareware version

How to Register

Contacting the Author


File Menu

Read TCC.INI

Reference Data

Exit


Read TCC.INI
Read TCC.INI Option

This option lets you re-initialize TC Converter without exiting and re-running it.  This way you can modify TCC.INI and experiment with your definitions of, say , the unit conversion factors much easier.

See also:

Defining Custom Quantities & Units


Reference Data
Reference Data Option

The Reference Data Option lets you view the REFERENC.DAT file that comes with TCC and should be in the same directory as TCC.EXE.  The REFERENC.DAT itself can be edited with any text editor, such as Windows Notepad or the DOS Edit command as well as TCCs built-in editor.  You can use REFERENC.DAT to display frequently used definitions, formulas or any other text information, without going into File Manager or the DOS Prompt.  TCCs built-in editor / viewer, will also let you jot things in the Reference Data window and save your changes in the REFERENC.DAT file, as well as access the Clipboard by using the Edit menu functions as well as their keyboard shortcuts.  You can also refresh the Reference Data window by re-reading REFERENC.DAT:  just choose the File menu command Read Again.


Clipboard Keyboard Shortcuts

Cut: Control-x

Copy: Control-c

Paste: Control-v


Exit

This lets you exit TCC


Edit Menu

Cut

Copy

Paste


Cut Option

The Cut option in the TCC main window and the Reference Data window lets you move any text or numbers that you have highlighted (e.g. the contents of the active entry field) into the Windows Clipboard.


Copy Option

The Copy option in the TCC main window and the Reference Data window copies any highlighted text or numbers ( e.g. the contents of the active entry field) into the Windows Clipboard.


Paste Option

The Paste option in the TCC main window and the Reference Data window copies the contents of the Windows Clipboard to the position of the cursor.


Using TC Converter

The TC Converter window is made of three dropdown boxes and two entry fields.  The top dropdown box lists the quantities that TCC reads from the TCC.INI file.  The other two list the unit names that were defined in TCC.INI under the header if the quantity that is currently selected in the top dropdown box.

Suppose that you have defined Distance as a quantity in TCC.INI (defined in the default configuration) with at least two units, e.g. Meters and Feet.  To convert a number that is originally in meters to feet, first choose Distance in the top dropdown box.  Then select Meters (m) in either of the bottom two boxes, and Feet (ft) in the other. Then, enter the number that you wish to convert in the entry field next to the box that now reads Meters (m).  After you enter the number and press Return, the corresponding number in feet will appear in the other entry field.  You can now use any of  the Edit Menu functions to copy the result in any other Windows application.  You can also change the represented unit in either unit dropdown box: the corresponding number will be automatically updated to reflect this change.

See also:

Defining Custom Quantities & Units


Defining Custom Quantities & Units;
Defining Custom Quantities & Units

To define a custom quantity in TC Converter, you will have to manually edit the TCC.INI file that comes with TCC.  You can do this by using any text editor, such as Notepad (that comes with Windows 3.x), or the DOS Edit command.  The syntax used in the TCC.INI file is very simple and it follows the standard .INI file syntax as close as possible.  Consider this sample fragment of TCC.INI :

[Distance]

Meters (m) = 1

Feet (ft) = 3.280839895

Centimeters (cm) = 100

; This is a sample comment

[Mass]

Kilograms (kgr) = 1

Mass Pounds (lb*) = 2.2

The square brackets ([ ]) tell TCC to define a new quantity. The text included inside the brackets will be used to represent the quantity in the top dropdown box in the TCC window.  It is strongly advised that the first non-commented line of TCC.INI is a quantity definition .  Otherwise TCC might crash completely or not function properly.  Also keep in mind that currently TCC supports 30 quantities.  If you find this number small for your needs, please feel free to contact me; I will provide you with an expanded copy.

All non-commented lines between two quantity definitions are assumed to be unit definition lines.  Keep in mind that only 50 units may be defined per quantity. TCC will ignore the rest.  Again, if you think you need more, please contact me to receive an expanded copy.

A unit definition has to follow the format shown above: the unit name (and any other text that you want to be included in the unit dropdown boxes) followed by an equals sign and the conversion factor correspondng to the unit.  The conversion factor is defined as follows:

1 (unit being defined) =  [conversion factor] * (reference unit)

In the above example, for the Distance quantity, the reference unit was selected to be the meter.  If you want to change a reference unit, you will have to change accordingly the conversion factors for all units in the quantity.

Semi-colons (;) at the beginning of a line denote comments: the rest of the line is ignored by TCC.

If you change TCC.INI, you can update TCC without restarting it, by using the File menus Read TCC.INI option

Also, if you find TC Converter limited in any way, and need to use a different setup that will not require major changes, please feel free to contact the author


Contacting the Author

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or ideas for new Total Control utilities, feel free to contact me by mail at:

Costas Malamas,

Box 37692

Georgia Tech Station,

Atlanta, GA 30332,

USA

or by e-mail at:  cw459@freenet.cleveland.edu

Because FreeNet is a very busy site, please allow a week for a response.  I am using this account, because it is likely to remain active for much longer than any of my local site ones.

© 1994, Constantinos Malamas


TCC.INI

This is the TC Converter initialization file containing the Quantity and Unit definitions that can be modified and expanded by the user.  For information on the syntax of this file, see Defining Custom Quantities and Units.


Entry Field

This is one of the two areas of the main TCC window that the user can enter numbers in.


Dropdown Box

One of the three areas of the main TCC window that the user can select entries (such as quantities and units) from.


About the Shareware Version

The shareware version of Total Control Converter has one major difference from the full (registered) version: The user is not allowed to define more than three custom quantities; rather the quantity and unit definitions were built into the code.  Thus, the shareware version user has access to 19 pre-defined quantities and can define up to three more custom quantities.  Also, the pre-defined quantities and units are not as complete as in the registered version.

By registering Total Control Converter, you will receive the full version of TCC that will allow you to define up to 30 custom quantities as well as modify in any way you wish the ones that come with TCC.   You will also receive more and more complete pre-defined quantities and units. For registration info, see: How to Register

See also:  Defining Custom Quantities & Units


How to Register

The registration fee is USD 8.00 for a single user copy, USD 40.00 for a site license (less than 15 systems) and USD 140.00 for an organization license (more than 15 systems).  For addresses outside the US, include an additional USD 4.00 for postage.  To register, send a check or money order to:

Costas Malamas,

Box 37692

Georgia Tech Station,

Atlanta, GA 30332,

USA

You will receive a copy of the full version of Total Control Converter, and you will become elligible for a 50% discount on future versions.

An example order form can be copied into the Windows Cliboard and edited in a text editor, by clicking here and selecting Edit / Copy from the Windows Help menu.


Order Form
Order form for TCC

Name: ______________________________________________________________

Street: ______________________________________________________________

           ______________________________________________________________

City:  __________________  State (if in the US):  ________  Zip: _______________

Country (if not in the US): _______________________________________________

Preferred Medium (please check one):

___  3 1/2  floppy disk

___  5 1/4  floppy disk

___  uuencoded copy via e-mail  (Internet access required)

       e-mail address: ____________________________