1.0-6-6-97                        
                        
                        P O W E R   P R O F I L E
                        -------------------------
......................(c) 1996, 1997 Ace Armstrong...........................

--------
OVERVIEW
--------
POWER PROFILE is a very simple program for use with your favourite BBS.
I designed it for use on my BBS (the Power Station) because I wanted my
users to be able to tell a little bit about themselves to the rest of the
world.  There are plenty of profile programs out there, but I couldn't find
any to my liking, so I decided to write my own.

The POWER PROFILE program itself is FREEWARE.  This means you may use it
as long as you like on as many machines as you like as many times as you
like without any interference from me, the software police or your guilty
conscience.  Registration for the editing program versions 0.3 Beta through 
version 1.0 was supposed to be only $3, but seeings how a whopping ZERO 
people bothered to register (which was about what I figured), I've decided 
to just make the whole thing freeware and build the editor into the program.  
At the time of this writing, version 1.0 is the latest version.  

------------
WHAT IT DOES
------------
Before you set up the program, you may want to make sure it's exactly what
you want.  Like I said, this is a simple program, and it doesn't have a 
whole heckuvanunch of features.  Basically, it asks each user to input his or
her name, date of birth, gender, education level and occupation.  Internet
Email addresses and WWW URL's are also supported.  Users are then allowed to 
enter up to ten lines of anything they want to tell other people about them.  
For the safety of the users, they are allowed to hide their real names and 
genders if they want to do so.  All information can be edited at any time by 
the user, or completely cleared out and re-entered.  The SYSOP can also 
configure whether the users are allowed to delete their own profiles or not.
(Once a user deletes his/her profile, he/she must exit POWER PROFILE and
re-enter the program to create a new profile.)

POWER PROFILE also allows the SYSOP to change and delete profiles, as  
well as add new profiles to the user records.  This feature is built into 
the program itself and can be activated in a couple of different ways.  The
first is to simply go into POWER PROFILE from a CO-SYSOP or SYSOP account
(security level 254 or 255).  Boom!  You're in SYSOP Mode and you can
edit or delete any user's profile.  The second way is to enter using the
SYSOP Password as the parameter.  This will work from the command line
in DOS.  You get to choose the password (defined when you run the
built-in /CONFIG or /INSTALL options), which is set for EDIT as the
default.  Then, whenever you type PWRPRFL EDIT (or whatever your password
might be), you are automatically put into SYSOP mode.  You may only
delete profiles in SYSOP mode.

--------------------
THE "IMPORT" UTILITY
 (Offline Profiles)
--------------------
POWER PROFILE features an "/IMPORT" utility.  This is a useful utility for 
SYSOPs with many off-line mail users who wish to enter profiles without
actually logging on to the board and doing things manually.  Here's how 
it works:

(1) You activate the IMPORT utility by type "PWRPRFL /IMPORT" from the
    DOS prompt. 

(2) POWER PROFILE looks for a new file in the current directory called
    "NEWUSER.DAT".  This file should contain the new and/or updated 
    information to be imported.

(3) POWER PROFILE searches the file to determine who is new and who is
    updating their profiles.  The new information is merged into the 
    list of users and saved.

(4) Boom!  You're done.

This procedure is designed to work as part of a batch file.  The idea is
as follows:  to create a batch file that nightly scans a specific mailbox
(i.e., PROFILER) for new mail.  The mail is exported as text, renamed 
to NEWUSER.DAT, and moved to the PWRPRFL directory.  PWRPRFL /IMPORT is
invoked, and the new information is imported.  (A batch file to do this 
had not been included, as none has yet been written, but it can be done,
and fairly easily.)

The format of the NEWUSER.DAT file is very basic.  Each bit of information 
to be changed must be preceded on the line before it by the keyword. The
keywords are as follows:

*** KEYWORD ******************* DESCRIPTION *****************************
ALIAS                           User's BBS Name ("Alias")
REALNAME                        User's real name
GENDER                          User's gender (Male, Female, Undisclosed)
EDUCATION                       User's education level
OCCUPATION                      User's occupation
EMAIL                           User's internet email address
URL                             User's website address
DESC1                           1st line of user's 10-line description
DESC2                           2nd line of user's 10-line description
DESC3                           3rd line of user's 10-line description
DESC4                           4th line of user's 10-line description
 ...
DESC10                          10th line of user's 10-line description
*************************************************************************

Any line not preceded by a keyword is ignored.  Only those fields addressed
by a keyword are changed.

For instance, say Bob has the alias MOONDOG, the real name BOB SMITH, 
his occupation set to CARPENTER and his email address set to NONE.  If
he wished to change his occupation to BRAIN SURGEON and his email address
to "brainbob@woodworking.com" he would need to send the following lines to
import:

EMAIL
brainbob@woodworking.com

OCCUPATION
Brain Surgeon

This would NOT affect his real name, alias, or any other information.  
Ideally, this would be set up in such a way that Bob could just send email
to an automated mailbox.  The email would contain the above information,
which would be exported to the NEWUSER.DAT file and then imported into 
POWER PROFILE.

NOTE: The IMPORT utility does not allow for off-line deletion of profiles. 
Users will still have to do that manually, or ask the SYSOP to do so instead.
Also, you may want to consider whether or not you want to enable this 
feature for all users, since the IMPORT utility has now way of verifying
who really sent the message.  Users could potentially abuse this utility
by modifying other users' profiles.

The IMPORT utility has a maximum of ten new users and/or 5,000 lines in
each NEWUSER.DAT file.  Trying to import 11 or more users or making the
program sift through a NEWUSER.DAT file longer than 5,000 lines will cause 
it to crash.


-------------------------
THE "POWER FORCE" UTILITY
-------------------------
I like all of my users to at least give us a little information about who
they are, so I wrote a little utility called POWER FORCE to force new 
users to enter profiles.  POWER FORCE consists of a separate .EXE file
(PWRFRCE.EXE) that uses the same parameters, configuration, drop file, 
data file, and everything else as POWER PROFILE.  To use POWER FORCE,
just put PWRFRCE.EXE in the same directory as PWRPRFL.EXE and set your
startup menu to launch PWRFRCE.EXE for new users when they log in.
(For the proper setup, see the "INSTALLATION" section below. POWER FORCE
should be set up just like POWER PROFILE.)

This is an optional utility; you need not use POWER FORCE if you run 
POWER PROFILE.


-----------
LIMITATIONS
-----------
This program was written on a 486/33 and tested on a single-line Searchlight 
BBS (version 4.5a).  It has not been tested under Windows, OS/2 or Desqview.
I suspect it will really cause problems on multi-line systems, so I don't
recommend trying it.  If you do and it works, though, please let me know!

There is a limit of 100 profiles.  If you wish to have a version that
offers more, let me know and I'll send you a modified, registered version
for a small ($2ish) charge.

You may not change the questions.  They are hard-wired in, and I do not
have any inclination to make them changeable at this point in time, since
that would be way too much work for a freeware program.  I mean, hey,
ya get what you pay for, right?  *8)


------------------------------------------------------
LEGAL NOTICES AND LICENSE AGREEMENTS
Or, "Why You Can't Sue Me If It Kills Your Hard Drive"
------------------------------------------------------
This version (1.0) of POWER PROFILE (consisting of the file 
PWRPRFL.EXE) is freeware.  You may use as many copies of this
program on as many machines as you like for as long as you like.
You may also copy and distribute this program at will, provided that
the program is distributed in an unmodified state with only the 
original files included.

The author of this program does NOT make any warranty or promise
about the usefulness, reliability or safety of this program; it is not 
guaranteed to do anything but take up space on your hard drive.  Any person 
who uses this program does so at his or her own risk.  By installing this
program, the user acknowledges that (s)he does so at his/her own risk, and
that the author of this program cannot be held responsible for any 
consequences of the use of this program.  He can also not be held responsible
for the price of gasoline, the failure of your local S&L, or the number
of Republicans currently in Congress.


------------------------
REGISTRATION AND SUPPORT
------------------------
POWER PROFILE is freeware, and does not require registration.
If you use this program on your BBS, however, I would like to know about
it.  Just drop me an email (ace.armstrong@evnet.com) or leave me a note
at the Power Station BBS (616-329-4316).  I'll be happy to answer any
questions you may have.  I can't make any guarantees about the level
of support I'll be able offer, but you shouldn't need any.  It's a 
pretty simple program.

Also, if you happen to write any neat utilities for this program, 
(such as a program to automatically wish users a happy birthday by reading 
the information from PWRUSERS.DAT, or even a batch file to automate the 
IMPORT utility), I'd love to hear about it.  In fact, I'd love a copy.
That way I can distribute it with the next version and we can bask in the
glory of authorship together.

Really!  I would like to know if you're using this program, and if you
find any bugs (no matter how small) I'd like to know so I can fix it.
(It's kind of embarassing to have those things in there . . . )

Donations (not a registration fee) are cheerfully accepted, so if
you feel grateful that this program was written and you want to say thanks,
I won't turn down any donations I get!  *8)  You can send cash, checks,
money orders, or Santa's list of Naughty Girls to:

Ace Armstrong
6021 S. Westnedge
Kalamazoo, MI 49002

Make those checks payable to Ace Armstrong!

---------------
   UPGRADING
---------------
There is a built-in upgrade feature for POWER PROFILE 1.0, so if you are 
running a previous version of POWER PROFILE it should be very easy to 
upgrade to the new version.

*** If you are upgrading from version 0.9 Beta through 0.94 Beta, 
    then simply copy the file PWRPRFL.EXE over the old version.  That's 
    all it takes!

*** If you are currently running POWER PROFILE v. 0.8 Beta or 0.81 Beta, 
    then to upgrade type "PWRPRFL /0.8 UPGRADE"

*** If you are upgrading from version 0.4 through 0.7, then to upgrade  
    you simply need to type "PWRPRFL /0.4 UPGRADE"        

*** If you are upgrading from version 0.1 through 0.3, then to upgrade  
    you simply need to type "PWRPRFL /0.1 UPGRADE"        

Boy, that was hard, wasn't it?  Once it's upgraded the data files, you
should run through the program a couple of times to make sure everything
got run through correctly.  If it seems to be working, you can delete
USERS.DAT because you won't need it anymore.  This file was used in 
versions 0.1 through 0.7 of POWER PROFILE. It was really an unoriginal 
name, and it was causing some confusion for some people who had other 
doors that used a file with the same name.  So, when you upgrade now, 
you'll get a brand new file called PWRUSERS.DAT which must remain in 
the same directory as POWER PROFILE.

WARNING: Once you've successfully upgraded the data files to the 0.8 Beta
format, DO NOT try to upgrade it again for giggles.  If your old 
USERS.DAT file is still there, it will use that data and undo any changes
that you might have made to the new data.  If the USERS.DAT file has been
deleted, it will either crash or erase the PWRUSERS.DAT file completely, 
and you'll have to completely install POWER PROFILE again.  It could
also completely screw up your configuration files.

-------------------------
 FIRST-TIME INSTALLATION
-------------------------

POWER PROFILE was designed for use on a Searchlight BBS, so that's the only
kind of BBS for which I can give really good setup instructions.  If you get
this program to run on another system (which it should pretty easily) please
send me the instructions and I'll include them in the next release.

To install, do the following:

(1) Copy all of the files from the ZIP file into the directory where you
want the door to reside.  (Usually this will be something along the lines
of C:\SLBBS\PWRPRFL)

(2) Type PWRPRFL /INSTALL

(3) Set the appropriate paths, default strings, etc. when prompted, and
    follow the very simple instructions.

(4) Set your BBS up to access the program!  (This is the easy part.)

The syntax for running POWER PROFILE is as follows:

PWRPRFL aliasname

"Aliasname" is the users alias.  (You need not use underscores to
replace spaces, by the way.)  All records are sorted by alias, so you
must pass this name along.
                                                                                
To set up the door for a Searchlight BBS, set up the menu screen as
follows (version 4.5 screen shown):

                      Press F1 to Change Command Type                           
                                                                                                      
 1. Command Name .................. Profile                                   
 2. Command Key ................... P                                           
 3. Description ................... User Profiles                               
 4. Event Logging ................. No                                          
 5. Access Levels & Graphics [...]                                              
 6. Door Command .................. c:\bbs\pwrprfl\pwrprfl.exe %I                 
 7. Directory Path ................ C:\BBS\PWRPRFL                            
 8. Communications Support ........ DirectVideo                                 
 9. Abort Method .................. Terminate                                   
10. Write Protection .............. No                                          
11. Parameter File ................ DOOR.SYS                                        
12. Pause After Door .............. No                                          
13. Pass Username As .............. Real Name
14. Pass COM Port As .............. COM1-COM4                                   

You may adjust lines 1 through 7 as appropriate to your particular BBS.
(Lines 6 and 7 should point to the appropriate directory, of course.)
Lines 8 through 13 are essential, however.  Make sure they read as 
instructed.  If you are upgrading, you will notice that line 13 USED to
read "Alias Name".  Now it needs to read "Real Name".  Please make that
change, or your users won't be able to have their real names on their
profiles at all.

As I said, I am not quite sure how to set this door up on any BBS software
other than Searchlight.  If you can get it to work on another system, 
please send me instructions on how to make it work and I'll include that
info in the next release.

---------------
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
---------------
This is the part of the documentation where authors (myself included) thank
the people who helped them write the program.  In that case, it would only
be me, since I wrote everything in here.  *8)  But, I *would* like to thank
my girlfriend (Sher) for being patient while I spent the few hours it took
me to whip the program together locked in the office, making a mess of 
things and neglecting the trash, the laundry, the cat, the dirty dishes,
and most of the general maintenance of this place.  Also, when my monitor
died, I had to use money I had saved up for some, uh, *special* jewelry to 
replace it.  She didn't kill me.  Now THAT'S love and understanding!


----------------------
HISTORY & "WHAT'S NEW"
----------------------
Version 1.0
- Finally!  An "official" release!  It seems to work pretty much like I 
  want it to work, so I'm gonna leave it alone for a while.

- At the request of some long distance users, added the IMPORT utility.
  SYSOPs may now configure their BBS's to allow users to enter profiles
  via offline mail.

- Decided to include the POWER FORCE utility in the public release.  I'd
  been running this since version 0.92 Beta, but all of the text was 
  specific to the Power Station BBS.  The "public" version just includes
  general references ("this BBS", "the SYSOP", etc.).

Version 0.94 Beta
- A lot of users were accustomed to hitting <ESC> to get out of programs, 
  so I added the escape key as a means of exiting.  For those odd systems
  that for some reason don't send <ESC> properly, I left the X option in.

- Changed the display at the bottom of the screen to reflect the change
  in commands.

- Fixed a small error that prevented users from abortion searched using the
  LIST command.

Version 0.93 Beta
- Made searches so that they were not case-sensitive.  Previously,
  all searched were case sensitive, which was a bit of a pain.

- Fixed some minor bugs and deleted some code that was not longer used,
  but that had been saved "just in case."

Version 0.92 Beta
- Fixed a couple of typos and formatting errors
- Now allows users to enter the last two digits of the year in which they
  were born. (Instead of having to type "1970" they can now just type
  "70" and the date will be automatically fixed.)
- Automatically rejects users who claim to be under five years old

Version 0.91 Beta
- Fixed a couple of typos
- Corrected an error which occured when the user tried to say that his/her
  birthday was not correct.  It would jump to the URL address information!

Version 0.9 Beta
- Removed the Main Menu.  Users automatically jump into the "VIEW" mode
  when the program is launched.  All other functions are accessed from
  this screen.
- Expanded the /UPGRADE switches to cover all previous versions of POWER
  PROFILE.  There is now absolutely NO NEED for external programs to 
  upgrade POWER PROFILE from any version!
- Added the ability for users to delete their own profiles, and the ability
  for the SYSOP to enable and disable this feature.
- Added the version number to the configuration file, so that future versions
  can auto-detect the version and perform appropriate upgrades automatically.

Version 0.81 Beta
- Fixed a major bug that freaked the system out when someone tried to create
  a new profile.
- Added the /INSTALL, /CONFIG and /UPGRADE switches.  There is now no need
  for external programs to set up POWER PROFILE!
- Fixed some color coding errors.
- Fixed some typos.
- Fixed a bug that was letting any user delete any other user's profile.

Version 0.8 Beta
- Completely started over from scratch because, like an idiot, I forgot to
  backup my source code and my hard drive crashed, taking all of the 
  source code with it, and like even more of an idiot I didn't even have
  a hard copy.  The lesson here is ALWAYS MAKE BACKUPS!!!
- Integrated the "View A Specific User" functions into the "View All Users"
  option. (This includes the "List" function.)
- Made the scrolling keys much more logical (now "[" and "]" instead of 
  "P" and "N").  I want to actually use the arrow keys if I can figure
  out how to do that in the next version.
- Gave the user the ability to edit his/her profile by pressing <ENTER> 
  when in the display mode.  Gave the SYSOP the same ability on any
  user, and also the ability to delete profiles in display mode.
- Added the ability to use commas!!!!!  Joy to the world!
- Standardized the birthday strings so that all birthdays will now be in
  "Month DD, 19XX" format.  Once a user goes in to edit his/her birthday,
  (s)he MUST complete the information.
- Cleaned up the editing interface.
- Made a minor change to the data files (added the total number of users
  as the very first field in the file)

Version 0.7 Beta
- Made the SYSOP functions more automated
- Fixed the bugs I thought I had fixed before
- Corrected some typos that came out of the changes in version 0.6 Beta
- Made the disk-writing routines much easier

Version 0.6 Beta
- Standardize the colors a little better
- Fixed a couple of major bugs in the SYSOP editor

Version 0.5 Beta
- Fixed a couple of small typos from version 0.4
- Debugged the PWRCREAT and PWRUP programs

Version 0.4 Beta
- Added Internet Email and WWW URL fields.
- Integrated the user editor into the base program.
- Added support for DOOR.SYS and various string configurations
- Removed the ability of users to edit their real names.  These are now
  read from the DOOR.SYS files, and the users only have the options of
  no name or the real name passed along by the BBS.  This came as the
  result of users abusing the program.
- Cleaned up a couple of display problems, and probably created more
  while I was at it.
- Made the whole thing FREEWARE!  Whoopie!!!

Version 0.3 Beta
 - Added prompts for extended lists of users
 - Limited the length of characters in each field.  In previous versions,
   users could type up to 255 characters per line, which really messed up
   some of the fields when they were displayed.
 - Made colours consistent and cleaned up some of the displays
 - Made single-key commands into hot keys, so users didn't have to press 
   the ENTER key
 - Fixed a nasty error that caused the program to crash when there were more
   than 10 profiles in the system

Version 0.2 Beta
 - Added the option for users to edit their profiles instead of starting
   over from scratch
 - Power Profile now offers users the ability to hide some parts of
   their profiles (real name and gender) for security reasons
 - Prettied things up a bit with some colour changes
 - Fixed some typos
 - Fixed the program so that it actually saved gender information. In version
   0.1 Beta, this information was not saved, and everyone's field was left
   blank.  Turned out to be a silly typo.  *blush*

