The Tropical Fish Reference Guide v3.0 for Windows
Copyright (c) 1993, 1994  Don MacElrath.  All Rights Reserved.

READ.ME - IMPORTANT INFORMATION, PLEASE READ CAREFULLY.


                          "project brichardi"


Features
--------

   þ   7 databases to store your information

          Tropical Fish Library      1400 species & 70 images
                                     Color coded index by behavior
                                     Keep notes on your favorite species

          Tropical Plant Library     100+ species & 40 images
                                     Color coded index by difficulty
                                     Keep notes on your favorite species

          Accessories Library        Track equipment & misc. purchases

          Livestock Library          Track fish and plant purchases

          Maintenance Library        Log pH, temperature, DH, etc. and
                                     any additional information such as
                                     filter / water changes.  Color
                                     coded graphing and support for
                                     multiple tanks included.

          Image Library              Create your own photo album with
                                     your images (GIF, PCX, BMP)

          Notebook                   Store miscellaneous information
                                     using your favorite word processor.

   þ   Advanced Queries (Lightning Fast!)
          Scan the fish or plant libraries for specific records.  Would
          you like to scan for all the fish compatible with your water
          chemistry?  Not a problem!  You can search by pH range, DH
          range, temperature, lighting, names, family, etc.

   þ   Remind Me!
          You can schedule up to 10 events to alert you when it's time
          to change the filter, do a water change, etc.  No more
          excuses!

   þ   Computerized Index Cards
          Makes using the software fun and easy to use!

   ...and much more!  Try it!



System Requirements
-------------------

Microsoft Windows 3.1
80386 CPU (80486 recommended)
4 Megs RAM (8 recommended)
VGA (256 color driver recommended)
Approximately 8.5 MB of hard disk space (4.0 for the demo)



Installation
------------

DEMO INFORMATION - IMPORTANT!  PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!
-----------------------------------------------------

In addition to the 2 archive files required (FISH-T1 and FISH-T2),
you will also need the following files:

          VBRUN300.DLL
          PKUNZIP.EXE

These files are not included in the 2 archives because they already
available on most Bulletin Board Systems.  As a matter of fact, you
might already have them.

Note:  The registered version comes complete with all the necessary
files required to run the program.

INSTALLING THE DEMO VERSION:
----------------------------

 From DOS:
 ---------
 1)  Unzip both archives (FISH-T1 & FISH-T2) to a temporary directory.
 2)  Copy PKUNZIP.EXE to this same directory.
 3)  Make sure VBRUN300.DLL is in your WINDOWS\SYSTEM direcory.
 4)  Copy THREED.VBX to your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory.
     This file is located in the first archive (FISH-T1).
 5)  Make sure SHARE is loaded.  SHARE /L:500 /F:5100
     Don't forget to reboot if you need to make changes to your
     AUTOEXEC.BAT file.

 From Windows:
 -------------
 After steps 1 - 5 have been completed, load Windows.

 6)  Run the SETUP program in your temporary directory from the
     Program Manager.  Follow the prompts from here.


INSTALLING THE REGISTERED VERSION:
----------------------------------

 From DOS:
 ---------
 1) Insert DISK 1 of 4 into your disk drive.
 2) At your A:\ (or B:\) prompt, enter the following...
    INSTALL drive:path to your windows system directory.
    EX: INSTALL C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM

    (Install will copy VBRUN300 & THREED.VBX to your WINDOWS\SYSTEM
    directory)

 From Windows:
 -------------
 3) Start Windows and run the SETUP program located on DISK 1 of 4.


If you are having a problems, please feel free to call me voice at
(609) 783-4413   9am - 5pm EST.



General Program Information
---------------------------

Any changes you make to any of the libraries are automatically saved.
Remind Me! will prompt you if you want to save changes.

Manuals are not available for this release.

There are some images in the fish and plant libraries.  Needless to say,
some of the images are better than the others.  The quality depends on
the original photo and the actual equipment used for scanning.  
Feel free to send in photos of your favorite fish.

Do you have a curious spouse?  There is an option in AQUASOFT.INI called
PROTECTION (True or False) that will keep the cost & total cost from
being displayed in the Accessories and Livestock libraries.  For security
reasons, this feature is not listed in the help file.  

If you make changes to the cost of a particular item in the Accessories
or Livestock libraries, you can press the total cost button to update
the cost.



Other Stuff
-----------

One thing I would like to make perfectly clear is that I am no expert
in the field of ichthyology, but I do possess certain skills in computer
programming.  As an aquarist, I wanted a way to help me with keeping my 
fish.  This is it!  The one, the only, the original and the best.

For those of you upgrading from the dos version, you will find that the
windows version has a similar feel to it.  There is no automatic way to
upgrade from 2.0 to 3.0.  A lot has changed and all for the better, with
this release you will be able to easily upgrade to future versions.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome.  I do my best with them,
but there is only 24 hours in a day.  Hopefully if I haven't incorporated
your suggestions in this release, I will be able to do so in the future.
So much to do and so many good ideas.



Bugs
----

Some users might experience a General Protection Fault in the Image Library.

I don't think anyone should find any other serious bugs.  Let me know if
you do so I can fix them.  GP faults usually aren't within my ability to
correct other than reporting them to the appropriate software company
and hope they have an updated VBX/DLL.



References
----------

Dr. Axelrod's Atlas of Freshwater Aquarium Fishes Sixth Edition
 Dr. Herbert R. Axelrod
 Dr. Warren E. Burgess
  T.F.H. publications

Aquarium Plants, Their Identification, Cultivation and Ecology
 Dr. Karel Rataj
 Thomas J. Horeman
  T.F.H. publications

Aquarium Plants
 Holger Windelov
  T.F.H. publications

A Fishkeeper's Guide to Aquarium Plants
 Barry James
  Tetra Press

and various other sources for bits of information here and there.

