Open Window Software News Fall 2004 A Free E-mail Newsletter From Open Window Software Featuring Tips On Using The WinFlash Suite, HandyCards And ProUpdater Contents: 1) Version 8.0 Updates - v8.00.06 Just Released 2) New Freeware Wildflower Flashcards 3) HandyCards For PocketPC v5.0 Available Now! 4) Sharing Your Study Decks With Others 5) Free Upgrades For Referring Your Friends 6) Study Tip - Leave WinFlash Open When Using Your Computer --------------------------------------------------- 1) Version 8.0 Updates - v8.00.06 Just Released Since Version 8.0 was shipped on October 12, 2003 there have been six 'slipstream' releases to fix various bugs that have surfaced since the initial release and to introduce new functionality. If you are experiencing any problems with your WinFlash program, first be sure that you are using the latest version (currently v8.00.06, released 10/15/04). Here are the releases to date and a compilation of the bugs that were fixed in each: The 8.00.06 update to WinFlash Basic, Scholar, and Educator addresses the following issues: 1. Import/export compatibility between WinFlash Educator and HandyCards for PocketPC v5.0 has been greatly enhanced. Bidirectional Leitner mode data is maintained through multiple export/import cycles. 2. The minimum initial Leitner interval has been reduced to 1 day from the previous 4 days. 3. Minor consistency issues continue to be improved - none that caused any operational program problems. The 8.00.05 update to WinFlash Basic, Scholar, and Educator addresses the following issues: 1. Corrected error which caused the pairs in the highest-numbered Leitner Box to be asked EVERY session once the initial waiting period for the pair for that level box had expired. 2. Fixed problem caused by the interaction of auto-generated multiple choice answers with real multiple choice answers of Multiple Choice pairs. 3. Various minor consistency gremlins were fixed - none that caused any operational program problems. The 8.00.04 update to WinFlash Basic, Scholar, and Educator addresses the following issues: 1. Corrected error in Insert/Copy/Delete pair functions that failed to make adjustment for direct-record audio files. This caused the recorded sounds to 'move' to another pair under certain circumstances. 2. Fixed problem with Subject Outline that caused program to hang when files that used Multi-user mode were added to the outline. 3. Added display of direct-record audio files to the Editor|Table View. The 8.00.03 update to WinFlash Scholar and Educator addresses the following issue: 1. Corrected error in Copy Pair function that caused pair statistics data to be incorrectly written to the .FLD file. When running in Leitner Box System Mode this caused a 'Invalid Integer' error when restarting the deck after having closed it. If you have a deck displaying this error, just delete its companion .FLD file and the program will write a 'clean' .FLD file from scratch. The 8.00.02 update to all WinFlash versions addresses the following issue: 1. Corrected coding error that caused '%' and '<' characters to be incorrectly displayed in Q&A dialogs and the editor. The 8.00.01 update to all WinFlash versions addresses the following issues: 1. Fixed bug in Leitner Box System Mode that caused deck to hang if it had been created or modified between the hours of midnight and 1 a.m. Not a good feature for students :-). 2. Corrected omission that failed to generate independent unique identifiers for each pair during the import operation. The unique identifiers are not yet used, but may be needed in future releases. --------------------------------------------------- 2) New Freeware Wildflower Flashcards This small deck contains 10 Q&A pairs to help outdoor enthusiasts identify various common wildflowers. The pictures were taken on various hikes in Colorado during this past summer. In order to make this deck editable so that you can add wildflowers from your OWN area, I've included all support files and the source .fls file in a single .zip file. Consider this the beginning of a project rather than a completed one. If you have some pictures of flowers from your area (and their identifications), I'd love to build on this deck with contributions from the readers. You can download this file (~1.3 Mb) by clicking on the link below: http://www.openwindow.com/ftp/wflowers.zip Unzip the file into its own directory and open it using the File|Open dialog in WinFlash or by double-clicking on the wflowers.fls file in Windows Explorer. --------------------------------------------------- 3) HandyCards For PocketPC v5.0 Available Now! HandyMed has released its latest 5.0 version of its PocketPC edition of HandyCards. Current users of HandyCards can order the upgrade on our site for $14.95. If you also need the upgrade to WFEducator v8.0, simply add $14.95 to the cost of the Educator upgrade and note in the Comments section that you want the latest PocketPC version of HandyCards as well. Unfortunately it has not been possible to add these new features to the PalmOs version of HandyCards - it will remain at its current revision level of 1.8. WFEducator v8.00.06's export to HandyCards now supports all of the new features of HandyCards listed below: All-New Testing Methods Leitner Testing -- advanced learning methodology based on time-delayed exposure to questions, with increased focus on those areas which need more attention Subset Testing -- force the program to grab cards in user-defined groupings and then advance to the next group on demand Timed Testing -- rapid-fire testing with user-defined testing intervals Unfamiliar Testing -- test those questions which have been answered below a user-defined percentile Hidden-Answer Testing -- testing designed specifically for those working on conjugating verbs, where multiple-choice answers remain hidden until each individual answer has been tapped Category Testing -- testing based on files containing different categories (e.g. addition, subtraction, division, etc.) Testing Enhancements Enhanced testing statistics * Single-card testing performance * Category testing performance * Graphical view of single-card performance * Export your testing statistics User-defined hardware button support Hints can be shown with each question; Comments can be shown after each question has been answered Auto-rewind -- on reaching the end of a flashcard deck, the testing is automatically reset to the beginning and restarted without user intervention Auto-score -- for true/false questions, or questions with two or more answers, HandyCards will automatically record whether the question was answered correctly or not (single-answer questions will still need to be manually scored) Auto-advance - when a user indicates an answer was scored correctly or incorrectly, the testing automatically advances to the next question, thereby eliminating a click to advance to the next question. Auto-save -- to preserve testing statistics, a flashcard set can be automatically saved on exiting the program or closing a flashcard set Questions and answers can now have their own images, sounds, and movies. Supported formats include .jpg, .bmp, .2bp, .gif, .wav, .mp3, .wma, .wmv, and .asf. Edit screen question style can now be maintained when making multiple flashcards to allow for rapid creation of numerous flashcards using the same style Edit screen saving will no longer require closing a "Question Saved" message box multiple times Colors -- user-defined text and background colors Options -- now moved to Tools menu Enhanced Question/Answer swapping -- choices are now ask question, ask answer, or randomly switch between asking question or answer Full-screen single-answer testing to enhance readability File menu now stores the last four data files for rapidly recalling recent testing files File | New -- rapidly create a new data file, especially when a file is currently open, because it automatically closes the file --------------------------------------------------- 4) Sharing Your Study Decks With Others We often receive questions about the best way to share study decks with other WinFlash users. As with many questions the answer is "it depends". If one person is the sole author and editor of the deck and the other user(s) will simply be using it for study then it is simplest to create a .flz "compiled study file" to distribute to the other users. This has the great advantage of including any required support files (graphics, audio, rtf, etc.) in a single file. This file can then be e-mailed or transfrerred via CD-R or other removeable media to the other users. See the help file topic Creating Compiled Files as well as the tutorial section Create A Compiled Study File (.FLZ) From The Composite .FLS File for information on how to create such a file from your regular .fls source deck. The drawback of the .flz distribution is that others cannot edit or add to the deck. If you want the other users to be able to do this, you'll need to provide them with the deck in the .fls format (the "source" format with which decks are initially created). The easiest way to make this manageable is to create a separate directory for such a deck. Place all audio and graphic files that will be used with the deck into this directory as well. Once the deck is ready to distribute, use a zipping program to compress all of the files in the directory into a single .zip file. Including ALL the files in the directory assures that any files that may have been automatically created by WinFlash and are needed for proper deck operation will be included. Many zip utilities are available on the Internet - we recommend WinZip from http://www.winzip.com - the long-standing champ in this area. Again, this file can be distributed as an e-mail attachment or by removable media. Users can unzip this file into a single directory and can immediately add, edit and otherwise contribute to the project. For multiple-author projects, one person should be the editor for the group and be responsible for assembling the contributions of each of the authors using WinFlash Educator's Create Composite Source File tool which allows cards from two decks to be added together to create a third deck. In this way, each contributor's cards can be added to the master deck to produce a combined version of the previous master deck and the latest contribution. Try enlisting your fellow students in a joint deck-creation project. It's fun and can be a good way to get a large amount of data quickly available to all in easy-to-master WinFlash format! --------------------------------------------------- 5) Free Upgrades For Referring Your Friends Have a friend that could use WinFlash? We'll give you a free upgrade to the next release of your version of the program (v8.0 if you haven't upgraded yet or v9.0 when it comes out if you're already at v8.0) if your friend buys the program and mentions your name in the Comments section when they place their order. A great way to help out your friend and get the next major release gratis! --------------------------------------------------- 6) Study Tip - Leave WinFlash Open When Using Your Computer In a similar vein to the tip in the last issue (Your PDA - Don't Leave Home Without It!) try leaving your current 'hot' study deck open but minimized on the desktop while using the computer for other tasks. When you need a quick break or have just launched a task that may take some time to complete (such as a large file download) restore your WinFlash deck and run a few more pairs through. You've probably heard that repeated, shorter, study sessions are more effective than intense cramming. This is another way to add some more of those short sessions to your everyday computer use routine. --------------------------------------------------- Need Help? Have A problem? Check out our online listings of the latest releases and the problems that they've solved. For WinFlash programs see: http://www.openwindow.com/pages/wfprobs.htm For ProUpdater see: http://www.openwindow.com/pages/puprobs.htm If your issue isn't covered there, please send e-mail to support@openwindow.com and we'll do our best to resolve your problem. --------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIBE: Send e-mail to service@openwindow.com with SUBSCRIBE as the Subject. UNSUBSCRIBE: Simply send an email to service@openwindow.com with REMOVE as the Subject. This newsletter is a free service of Open Window Software and is Copyright © 2004 Open Window Software. All worldwide rights reserved.