This program started as a simple "throw together" that I could use to estimate Commission costs. I'm using Quicken for Windows to keep track of my investments, and it's handy to be able to "pop-up" a calculator without having to shell out to DOS! (I haven't found any other calculator programs written for Windows.) Since then, It's evolved into a fairly useful utility! I'll probably keep adding features as I think of them and/or as time permits. It wouldn't be difficult to add modules to calculate costs on Mutual Fund, Option, and Bond trades if there is enough interest. ---------------- SIMPLE INSTRUCTIONS ---------------- Copy the files COMMCALC.EXE and COMMCALC.INI to your Windows directory. (Or you can create a separate directory if you'd like) Set up a NEW program item from Program Manager or Norton Desktop just as you would for any new program, setting the Startup Directory to \Windows or Whatever directory you created to store the program files. Note that since this is a Visual Basic program, you must have the VBRUN.DLL file in your path! Double-Click on the Artistic and Original Icon that is created and away you go................ The program will accept any WHOLE number as "No. of Shares" to buy or sell. You can enter Stock Prices either in Decimal format (ie. 23.375), or as a Quote in 1/8ths of a dollar (ie. 23 3/8). You can omit the space between the dollar amount and fraction (ie. 233/8) and the program will correctly interpret the value. If you enter a Decimal value, the program will convert and display the corresponding 1/8ths value. You can select the "Buy" or "Sell" options either before or after you have calculated the commission costs on your trade. With the "Buy" option selected the principal, commission, and total trade costs are displayed as well as the Share Price that you would need to sell at to realize a profit on the trade (after commission on buy and sell). With "Sell" selected only the principal, commission, and proceeds from the sale are shown. You can also select the commission type displayed (TeleBroker or Standard) either before or after you've calculated the commission. If after, the program will recalculate all values to display the differences in transaction costs on the trade. The Defaults are "Buy", "TeleBroker", and "Show Sale Price to Profit". These can be changed by selecting Configure from the File menu and then selecting the desired options from the Configuation Form. After much deliberation, I decided to include the ability to enter new Commission Schedual Values (just in case Schwab decides to change them again!!) Unless they change the whole structure, you should be able to update the program to allow for any fee changes! Your selected configuation is saved in the file COMMCALC.INI. (Note: These Schedual Values are current as of 3/1/92) ------------------------------------------ Basically that's it!! Enter the "Number of Shares" to trade, tab once and enter a "Share Price", then press return. After calculation the "Clear" button is the default, so you can press return again to clear everything. If you'd like to see the results at a different share price (or a different number of shares), click on the appropriate textbox (the existing text is highlighted - Calculate button is default), enter the new value (existing text is replaced), and press return. You can select Telebroker or Standard at any time to see the differences that the 10% discount would make in the trade. I've been using this program myself for around 8-9 months with no problems. Once I decided to upload it as Shareware, I tested it with a number of hypothetical trades, invalid entries, etc. It SHOULD be fairly bullet-proof! (Famous Last Words!!??) As always though; I cannot be responsible for any errors, inaccuracies, ommissions, profits, losses, marital disputes, etc.... resulting from the use of this program. (Any resemblence to persons or places, either living or dead... ) ---------------- PLEA FOR MONEY! ---------------- If you find this program useful, I would appreciate a $5.00 donation! If you'd like the source code, send $10.00 and I'll mail you a disk so you can modify/upgrade/experiment to your heart's content!! If I make any changes/updates in the future, I'll pass them along also! ------------------------------------------------- I've tried to incorporate my favorite features from other calculator programs into this one, and to make it as "intuitive" as possible! If you find any bugs or errors, or have sugesstions on enhancements or modifications, I can be reached on CIS (ID 70730,2467), GEnie (ID XTX7868), or by mail at the address below. I work in the offshore oil industry (usually 14 days on/7 off) and so am sometimes "out of touch" for a while, but rest assured that I WILL return any messages as soon as I return! Enjoy!! Robert Werning 8503 8 Mile Creek Rd. Pensacola, FL 32526-8757