The AMPR Map Collection Manager User’s Guide

 

Using the Collection

 

To start using your collection, all you need to do is to show it: Just click the “Show Collection” button at the bottom of the main AMPR window.  A window like the one shown here will be displayed. (Of course it will show your maps, not the ones shown here.)

 

 

This is the “List” view of your collection.  Each row in the list corresponds to a map record in your collection.  One row is always shown as the currently selected row. Use your mouse to click any row to make it the selected row. (Or use the Up and Down arrow buttons on your keyboard, or the “Previous” and “Next” buttons shown at the upper right part of the window.)

 

To look at the full details for any record, switch to the Item Details view. You can do this by clicking on the “Item Details” tab or by double-clicking on any desired row.

 

 

Following is a description of the various functions that can be performed from the collection window, all of which are available from the menus.  Some of these functions are only available with the List view, some only with the Item Details view, and others are available in both views.

 

Note: If you are running the stand-alone “Map Collection Manager”, rather than the Antique Map Price Record (which includes the MCM), then a few of the menu choices shown here will not be available.

 

File menu

Print – [shortcut: <CTRL>-P] From the Item Details view, the single entry is printed. The order of the fields is identical to the on-screen order. This order can be changed via the Detail Field Order choice of the Options menu.  If the Item Details contains one or more thumbnail images, these will also be printed as images. See the “Thumbnail images” tab of the Preferences dialog (accessible via the Preferences choice on the Options menu), for a choice regarding the method used to produce printed thumbnail images; this is described more fully in the description of the Preferences Dialog.

From the List view the entire list is printed in tabular format. (If the List does not include all of your collection’s fields, only the fields selected for display will be printed. Adjust the set of fields displayed in the List by the Field Selection choice of the Options menu, or by using a Field Profile.)  As on-screen, parts of longer texts will often not be visible in the tabular view. If you want to print out your entire collection, consider using the next menu choice (Print Details for All Entries).

Print Details for All Entries – This choice will produce an Item Details printout for each row in the list, one page per item.  Normally this will include all the records in your collection, but if you have been looking at only a portion of your maps (Subsetting in effect – see the Subset menu choices, below), only the records included in the current Subset will be printed.  The order of the printed records will match the current sort order.

Summary – This choice will bring up a window showing you a brief summary of your collection. The summary gives the name of the collection, the date and time that the collection was last modified, and a total value, which is simply a sum of the values in the Price field. (If you do not use the Price field, this information will not be displayed.  If you have created user-defined fields of type Currency, then totals for these fields will also be shown.) If a subset is in effect (see Subsetting the Collection), then the subset name will be shown and the record count and total value will be based only on the records in the subset.

Export to Excel (List view only) – This choice will invoke Excel, create a new spreadsheet, and copy the data from the collection viewer into the spreadsheet. (If you have elimininated some of the fields from the List display, only the fields selected for display will be copied. Adjust the set of fields displayed in the List by the Field Selection choice of the Options menu, or by using a Field Profile.)

Export to File (List view only) – This choice will write out a tab-delimited ASCII file from the List, with the field names in the first row. You will be prompted for the name and location of the destination file. (If you have elimininated some of the fields from the List display, only the fields selected for display will be exported. Adjust the set of fields displayed in the List by the Field Selection choice of the Options menu, or by using a Field Profile.)

Import Records from Excel (List view only) – See the description of Importing Data into the Collection.

Import Records from File (List view only) – See the description of Importing Data into the Collection.

Save – [shortcut: >CTRL>-S] Use this choice to save the current state of the collection to disk.  If you are doing a large amount of data entry or editing, it is a good idea to periodically save your changes so that you will not lose your work in the event of a power failure or any other kind of unexpected interruption. You can also turn on auto-save, which will cause your collection to automatically be saved back to disk on a regular interval. This is described more fully in the description of auto-save, in the Preferences Dialog. Note: The Save menu choice will be disabled if the collection has not been changed since the last save. You can also tell whether or not the collection has been changed by the collection window’s titlebar: An asterisk will be displayed after the collection name if the collection has been changed since the last save.

Revert – This choice undoes any as-yet unsaved changes. Depending upon when in the session you request to revert, the program may prompt you as to whether you want to revert to the most recently saved version of your collection, or to the earlier version of your collection as it was just before you began the current AMPR session.

Close – [shortcut: <CTRL>-X] Use this choice to close the collection viewer window.  The same operation can be performed by clicking on the ‘X’ close box at the upper-right corner of the window.  Note: If you have made changes to the collection since the last time the collection was saved, the program will prompt you as to whether to save your changes before closing. If auto-save is enabled (see auto-save) the program will automatically save your changes without any prompt.

Exit – This menu choice is only present on the stand-alone version of the Map Collection Manager. This choice will exit the program, prompting you, if necessary, to save any changes before exiting.

 

Edit menu

Select All (Item Details view only) – Selects the entire text of the window (typically in preparation for doing a Copy operation).

Copy (Item Details view only) – Copies the selected text to the clipboard (typically for subsequent pasting into some other application).

Edit Record – [shortcut: <CTRL>-E] This choice lets you edit the currently selected record. See the description of Editing Data.

Add New Record(s) – [shortcut: <CTRL>-N] See the description of Adding Data.

Delete Record – [shortcut: <CTRL>-W] This choice will delete the currently selected record from your collection database. You will be prompted to confirm that you really want to delete the record. There is no undo capability (other than revert, which undoes all changes made since the last save), so if you mistakenly delete a record, you may have to enter it again.

Modify Fields or Image Directory – This choice lets you make changes to the set of fields that are defined for the collection. You can rename (or hide) built-in fields, and you can create, modify or delete user-defined fields.  You can also specify or change the Image Directory to be used for the collection. The dialog used to modify fields and the image directory are described more fully in Modifying a Collection’s Fields & Specifying the Image Directory. Because changes to the definitions of a collection’s fields can alter the collection’s basic configuration, the collection window must be first be closed. When you pick this menu choice, a prompt ask you to confirm that the collection window should be closed.

 

Search menu

Find – [shortcut: <CTRL>-F] You will be prompted for a text string and a field to search in (with options to search in all fields, or in all fields displayed in the List). You can also specify a case-indpendent or case-dependent search. Starting from the record after the currently selected record, the program will search for the specified string. The search will wrap back to the top if the last row is reached. You will be told if no match is found. Note: When in Item Details mode, “Find” still operates as a “search for next record”, not as a “find in the current record”.  The MCM does not provide a way of searching for, and highlighting, a particular text in the currently displayed Item Details view.

Find Again – [shortcut: <CTRL>-A] Repeats the previous search, continuing on from the next record. If the end of the list is reached, the search will wrap around automatically, and continue searching from the first record in the list.

Go to ID # – This choice will prompt you for an ID # value, and will switch the currently selected record to be the record with the ID # you specified.

Search for Matching AMPR Records – This choice lets you locate records in the historical database that are for the same map as the currently selected record in the List (or the map displayed in the Item Details view).  The program uses the Map-Maker and Title information to try to find matching records, using the best logic it can muster to match your record to the historical database.  For example, if you specify the map-maker as “Janssonius,” while the AMPR database uses “JANNSON,” it will nonetheless accommodate this difference.  Similarly, with titles, even if you have used special characters - writing “Insulæ” where the AMPR would use “Insulae” - the program will handle this discrepancy and locate the matching records.  The program tries to accommodate these differences.  The results may not always be as you would hope: No matching records may be found, or additional, unmatching, records may be returned. In most cases, however, the program will probably do a pretty good job. If it doesn’t, simply go to the main AMPR window and enter whatever search criteria you think will best locate records that match your map. Note: This menu choice is not present on the stand-alone Map Collection Manager program.

Back to Previous Record (Item Details view only) – [shortcut: <CTRL>-B] Use this choice to go back to the previous record, after you have jumped to a new record by clicking on an “ID #” link.  This operates similarly to the “Back” button on a Web browser, returning you to the previous page after you have clicked on a link to jump to a new page.  This choice will be disabled if you have not previously done a jump via an “ID #” link.

 

Subset menu

Select a Subset  – Use this menu choice to limit the collection list to just the subset of records that meet a specified condition. For a full description, see Subsetting the Collection.

Show Full Collection (no subsetting) – Use this menu choice to return the collection list to the full set of records in the collection database. This choice turns off any subsetting that had been in effect. For a full description, see Subsetting the Collection.

Manage Subsets – Use this choice to create new subset definitions, or to modify or delete existing subset definitions. For a full description, see Subsetting the Collection.

Display Subset Definition – This choice will bring up a window in which the record-selection criteria for the current subset definition are displayed.

 

Options menu

Sort Order (List view only) – Use this menu choice to modify the sorting order of records in the List. See the description of Sorting the collection.

Field Selection (List view only) – Use this menu choice to modify the set of fields that are displayed in the List view, as well as to modify the order in which the fields are displayed. See the description of Selecting Fields for the List View.

Set Field Selection from Profile (List view only) – Use this menu choice to set the fields displayed in the List view from a “field profile”. Choose this menu and sub-menu will be displayed listing the available profiles. If no field profiles are defined, this menu choice will be disabled. You create new field profiles using the Manage Field Profiles dialog (also accessed from the Options). See the full description of field profiles in Creating and using Field Profiles.

Detail Field Order – Use this choice to change the order in which fields are displayed in the Item Details window, as well as in the data-entry window. A dialog box will be shown with a list of all the fields, in their current order. Select field names in the list and use the buttons at the right to move the selected fields.

View Collection List / View Item Details – These choices are the equivalent of clicking on the “List” and “Item Details” tabs, respectively. They also provide shortcuts (<CTRL>-L and <CTRL>-D, respectively) for switching between the two views.

Manage Field Profiles – Use this choice to create, modify or delete field profiles. See Creating and using Field Profiles for a full description.

Manage Picklists – Use this choice to create, modify or delete picklists.  Picklists are drop-down lists which can be created for Short Text fields and that will appear in the data-entry/editing window. See Picklists for a full description.

Preferences – Use this choice to set various preferences. See the full description of Setting User Preferences.

Small Font / Medium Font / Large Font – These choices let you change the size of text used. Select whichever size you find most comfortable for viewing data in the collection viewer window.

 

Windows menu

AMPR Main Window – Use this menu choice to bring to the front and transfer control to the main AMPR window.  Note: This menu choice is not present on the stand-alone Map Collection Manager program.

Map Collection Manager Control Window (available only on the stand-alone Map Collection Manager program) – This menu choice will bring to the front and transfer control to the MCM Control Window.  This is the window from which you can create a new collection or manage your existing collections.  Note: When using the MCM as part of the AMPR program, the functions of the Map Collection Manager Control Window are accessed via the Collection menu of the main AMPR window.

Data Adding/Editing Window – Use this menu choice to bring to the front and transfer control to the data-adding/editing window.  This menu choice will only be enabled if the data-adding/editing window is currently open.

Image Windows – If any image windows are open, you can select one of them from this sub-menu, and the chosen window will be brought to the front.  If no image windows are currently open, this menu choice will be disabled.

Close All Image Windows – Use this menu choice to close all open image windows.  This is a quicker way to clean up all open image windows than switching to each one, one at a time, to close it. If no image windows are currently open, this menu choice will be disabled.

 

Help menu

Map Collection Manager User’s Guide – This menu choice will bring up the Introduction/Index page to the MCM User’s Guide (of which the page you are currently reading is part).

AMPR Table of Contents – Use this choice to bring up the starting page (Table of Contents) for the Antique Map Price Record help system. Note: The AMPR help system does not document the MCM. The MCM is documented by the MCM User’s Guide (previous menu item). The AMPR help system documents the main AMPR program, which is for searching the historical database of dealer/auction records.

About AMPR Electronic Edition – This menu choice displays information about the current version of the AMPR program.

 

You may see links – identified by blue, underlined text – in the Item Details window display. These are of two different types:

 

 

 

This menu gives you access to the same functions that are accessed via the buttons at the upper right corner of the window as well as to some of the functions that can be accessed from the main menu. The “Copy full record to clipboard” choice is equivalent to choosing “Select All” followed by “Copy” from the Edit menu.

 

If you right-click on either an image link or an “ID #” link, the popup menu will have some additional items. If you right-click on an image link (either a thumbnail image or a textual image link), the popup menu will be either:

 

          or             

 

The popup menu shown on the left will be displayed when you right-click on an image link to a local image file on your computer. The “Display image in new window” choice is equivalent to simply clicking on the image link (with the left-button of the mouse), as described in the first note in this section. The “Display image in web browser” choice will open a web browser window and display the image there. The “Print Image” choice will send the image to your printer.

 

The popup menu shown on the right will be displayed when you right-click on an image link that is a web address (http://…) or a link to a local file that is of type .htm or .html.

 

If you right-click on an “ID #” link, the popup menu will look like this:

 

 

The first choice on the popup menu will perform the same action as simply clicking, with the left-mouse button, on the “ID #” link: The Item Details display will jump to the indicated record.

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