Tutorial

first prompt; presumably you’ve changed your mind about the pattern you wanted to SEARCH for. If that’s not the case, it takes only one more ESC to get back to Top Level.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Let’s see how ThinkTank’s reference tools can help you explore its most complex command, PORT. PORT is a facility for transferring information into and out of a ThinkTank outline. Like a shipping port, the PORT command is a way station; like a telephone, it is a communication device. You can use PORT

to print an outline, or to transfer it to a PASCAL text file where you can edit it with a word processor, send it to another user, store it as a backup, or incorporate it into another outline. Since you can’t transfer information directly from one outline into another, ThinkTank uses text files as intermediaries.

To PORT an outline, you choose a series of options that specify where, how, and what you want to transfer. You can see the major options under “Printing & Porting” on your reference card. Porting does not disturb the original outline; ThinkTank always ports a copy of the outline.

The material ported depends on the position of the bar cursor when you select PORT. Suppose we want to port the LESSON PLANS outline to a text file. Move the bar cursor to LESSON PLANS and press P for PORT from Top Level. ThinkTank displays the PORT DEVICE Menu which asks you to select a device.

Press T (for TEXTFILE) and ThinkTank displays the PORT DIRECTION Menu. You can either SEND a ThinkTank outline to a text file or RECEIVE a text file into an outline.

Press S (for SEND) and ThinkTank displays the PORT STYLE Menu. You can choose among three standard styles, each suitable for different purposes. The reference guide describes these styles

——and all the PORT options —— in detail, while Chapter 5 contains suggestions for porting as well as capsule instructions for porting with two floppy disk drives.

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