AUTHOR	nbauers@samphire.demon.co.uk

                           
    			   CAT - general Information
                           

CAT     is SHAREWARE.  If you decide use CAT,  you are asked to register 
	and pay for the program.  Registration and payment details are given 
	in the file REGISTER.TXT.

CAT 	is 'CHAINWARE'.  If you like CAT,  you are invited to give 
	un-registered copies to other schools or colleges.  

CAT    	is a Computer Aided Timetabling program for simple timetables.
	Timetables are produced in the traditional brain hurting way but
	CAT makes the recording of the time table quicker.  Room,  Class 
	and Teacher timetables can be exported for printing.  The booked
	periods for rooms,  classes and teachers are counted and displayed.

CAT	works well if many minor changes need to be made as the term
	progresses.  
	
CAT 	assumes that bookings will have an indefinite duration.  You can't 
	book weeks 1 to 5 for one group and weeks 6 to 12 for another.  
	You need expensive software for this. ( Or COLCAT being developped. )
	
CAT    	will work VERY slowly on an ancient single floppy 4.7MHz 8086.
	Colour is recommended.  A mouse is strongly recommended as some
	options can only be accessed by mouse or equivalent pointing device.
	A faster machine is advisable.  CAT is quite quick on a 486sx33 with
	a 200 booking timetable.  Bigger timetables slow things down.  

CAT    	is designed for the simple case of one class with one teacher in one
	room studying one subject.  This is the most common situation and the
	exceptions can be timetabled manually.  If there are many exceptions,
	CAT may not be an appropriate software tool.

CAT 	is a simple aid to timetabling.  It records the timetable in a
	convenient format.  Double bookings are not possible.  Timetables can
	be  produced, altered and searched quickly.  Many common mistakes
	made with manual timetabling are avoided.

CAT 	does not do everything.  For example it does not stop you timetabling
	french in the physics labs.  It does prevent the booking of a third
	year class into a second year lesson.  If you follow the timetable
	design guidelines,  many common errors are made less likely.  To
	eliminate all types of error,  CAT would need extra information which
	would make it more laborious to use.  The present design is a
	compromise between convenience and accuracy.
	
CAT	help files can be printed or viewed from the program.


LIMITATIONS
	The size of timetables is limited by the free RAM in your computer.
	CAT does not use expanded or extended memory.  In spite of this,
	large timetables can be handled.  More than 2000 bookings if you
	are not too verbose with room,  teacher,  class and subject names.
	With more than 500 bookings,  you will need a fast PC to get
	acceptable performance.  (33MHz clock)
	
	The text editor is limited to a file size of 64K or less if you 
	make use of the cutting and pasting features.  This limits 
	timetables to one or two thousand bookings.  You can build bigger 
	timetables by using a different text editor that does not have 
	this limit.  

	Future versions of CAT are planned with these limitations removed.
	Please register this version to fund the development of the future.
	
	I would welcome suggestions for items to go onto a wish-list for 
	the next version.
	

To install CAT


First make a backup of the distribution disk or downloaded files.  This can 
be used in a single floppy disk system.  Feel free to make extra disk copies 
and give them to other schools or colleges so they can benefit.

If a hard disk is available,  copy all the files (*.*) from the
distribution disk to their own directory on the hard disk.  The
directory can have any name.  TIMTAB is the name used in a later example.

On a DOS system,  use the PATH command to give access to the program from
directories other than the one where CAT is installed.

Use the SET command to set an environment variable called CATHELP.
This lets CAT find its help files.  Get help from your DOS Guru if necessary.
An example batch file to start CAT is given later in this file.

If you use Novell Netware,  map insert a path to the directory where CAT is
installed.  Create a batch file to do this.  The batch file should also set
the CATHELP environment variable as explained above.  Get help from your
Novell Guru if necessary.

Remember to keep frequent backup copies of your timetable data.

The author also keeps a hard copy of the timetable information because his
computer system normally fails shortly before the timetable goes live.


Learn How To Create a Timetable


Look at the example timetables provided with CAT.

Look at the .TIM file available under the 'FILE | DEFINITIONS OPEN' menu.
In particular note the sections in this file for periods,  days,  rooms, 
teachers,  classes and subjects.  When you create your own time table, you 
will need the same sections.  Open the timetable and experiment by booking 
and un-booking slots,  displaying room, class and teacher timetables and 
loading and saving your results.  Read the other help files for more 
information on these topics.

To create your own timetable,  first create a .TIM file.  This option is in
the 'FILE | DEFINITIONS OPEN' menu.  Information on the structure of the .TIM
file is available via the 'HELP | DEFINITIONS FILE' menu.  Press the <F1>
key to get this.

Once you have specified some periods,  days,  rooms,  teachers,  classes and 
subjects in the .TIM file,  you can open the timetable and create bookings.  
When you first create the timetable,  there are no bookings.  CAT notices 
this and gives a warning message.  On subsequent occasions,  there should 
be no warning message unless you have accidentally lost the bookings file.


An Example Batch File for Starting CAT


@ECHO OFF

rem  			A Batch file to start CAT : Computer Aided Timetable
rem  			This example assumes CAT is installed in C:\TIMTAB

rem			Save the current path into OLDPATH
SET  OLDPATH=%PATH%

rem  			and add C:\TIMTAB to the current path
PATH C:\TIMTAB;%PATH%

rem  			Set the CATHELP environment variable
rem  			CAT will be now able to find its help files
SET  CATHELP=C:\TIMTAB

rem  			Run the program.
CAT

rem			Clear the environment variable CATHELP
SET CATHELP=

rem			Set the path back to what it was
path %OLDPATH%

rem			Clear the OLDPATH environment variable.
SET  OLDPATH=


