Sorcerer Software Users Newsletter Issue 0201 Welcome to our monthly newsletter, covering the latest updates, tips, and user questions about our software programs. If you have an issue or question you would like to see addressed in a future newsletter, either by me or by your fellow users, please email me and I'll include it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- JANUARY 31, 2002 CONTENTS: 1. The Abacus 2. Envelope Printer 3. CD Stripper 4. Odds 'n' Ends 5. An interesting web site... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Abacus http://www.sorcerersoftware.com/abacus.htm Almost every month we release a new build of Abacus as we find things that we don't like or add new features to it... and of course, fix any glitches that surface. If you start Abacus and look on the Configuration Options screen (click on "Configure" on the Abacus main screen), you will find our current new features. On the "Log file options" page, note that you can now print the character count to the log file, which some users who count lines as 'characters per line' find useful. You can also print a blank line between entries in the log file. On the "Misc Options" page, we also added two new features. First, you can maintain the case in your filenames. In the past Abacus always converted filenames to lower case in both the batch screen listboxes and in the log file. Why? I just liked the looks of it. But now you can have it your way, not mine. And second, after hearing about it for the last year, Abacus will now let you use longer filenames. Specifically it now can handle filenames of up to 75 characters (up from 30). When you do use longer filename, the entry will take up 2 lines (instead of one) in the log file; hence the option of inserting a blank line between entries (see above paragraph). The current Abacus build is 020128. If you have an earlier build of version 3.0, you may want to download and upgrade to this build. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Envelope Printer http://www.sorcerersoftware.com/envelope.htm We recently completed some maintenance work on Envelope Printer, largely at the behest of some heavy duty users who noted a few small problems with the program and who requested some additional features. A major addition to the program is a printer center feed option. This is for use on laser printers that feed envelopes neither from the right nor the left, but rather from the center of the paper tray. Now you laser users no longer have to figure out what settings to use in the "Roll your own" mode, and instead can just select "Laser" from the "Options" menu. It will also give you the option of pausing between each envelope to allow you to feed one envelope at a time. We have also had requests to allow the option of alphabetizing on some of the printing functions. Therefore, when you print all addresses ("Print->Print All") or print the entire database ("Print->Print Database"), the program will print in the order you determined in the "Name and Address List" ("Addresses->List of Addresses") screen. So if you selected "Alphabetize", the envelopes will print in the order displayed in the "Name and Address List" listbox. If you selected "Alpha Off" (the default), then the envelopes will be printed in that order. The current Envelope Printer build is 020114 of version 6.1. If you have an earlier build of version 6.0, you may want to download and upgrade to this build and version. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CD Stripper http://www.sorcerersoftware.com/cdstrip.htm Just a few weeks ago we released version 4.0 of the CD Stripper recording program. The changes include faster and more accurate stripping and MP3 converting; and a markedly improved and more intuitive interface for copying CD tracks. We have spiffed up the graphics and the the way that you select tracks from an audio CD, and I think you will find this a lot easier to work with. You can also play individual CD tracks (or the entire CD) before recording or stripping it. We also made the decision to unbundle the other audio features from CD Stripper. But if you are a registered user of CD Stripper (version 4.0), you can use your unlock code on any or all of the other 3 audio programs. These program include: 1. MultiMedia Jukebox for playing your MP3, WAV, and other media files; 2. WAV2MP3 file conversion program (WAV to MP3 and MP3 to WAV); 3. Audio Recorder program for recording sounds and songs from any source that plugs into your sound card, such as a tape cassette player, phonograph, or microphone. These files can all be downloaded from our web site for a free trial, and with your CD Stripper unlock code you can convert them to the full featured versions of the program. If you are a current registered user of an earlier version of CD Stripper, you can upgrade to version 4.0 for only $10. You can do so by sending us a check or money order, or by using the PayPal payment system (see below under "Odds 'n' Ends"). Download CD Stripper or any of its pals (MultiMedia Jukebox, Wav2MP3, or Audio Recorder) from our CD Stripper web site at: http://www.sorcerersoftware.com/cdstrip.htm The current CD Stripper build is 020102 of version 4.0. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Odds 'n' Ends You can now use the online PayPal system to pay anyone... including us! To use PayPal, log on to their web site at: http://www.paypal.com and click on "Send Money". All you need is a PayPal account (simple to set up) and the email address of the person or entity you want to pay. Once you're registered with PayPal, they will need 4 pieces of information to make a payment, and you give it to them by filling out a short order form. In the case of buying our software, for example, you would fill out the form like this: Recipient's Email: bill@sorcerersoftware.com Amount ($): (whatever the cost of the program is) Type: Goods - Non - Auction Message: (Name of software program you are buying) And that's it! Now everybody go to PayPal and buy something. President Bush said said we're supposed to stimulate the economy. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- An interesting web site... staying on the movie theme from last month, is the Internet Movie DataBase: http://www.imdb.com This has been one of my major sources of entertainment for years. It is a huge database of movie information, including titles, actors, trailers, upcoming movies, directors... you name it. And there are always plenty of reviews, both from moviegoers like us, and local and national movie reviewers like Roger Ebert. You can even read about movies that haven't come out yet or have been released elsewhere. Personally, I enjoy reading reviews after I have seen the movie -- just to see if any of these folks have a clue. Do you know of an interesting site you would like to share? Let me know about it and I'll put it in a future newsletter. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That's all, folks. Look for our first newsletter of 2002 in about 4 weeks... -- Bill bill@sorcerersoftware.com Sorcerer Software http://www.sorcerersoftware.com To read all the old newsletters, go to: http://www.sorcerersoftware.com/archives.htm