Converter v2.2
--------------

By Matt N. Marsh

Email: matt@mattmarsh.net
Web: http://www.mattmarsh.net/


Contents
--------

1. Introduction
2. Installation
3. Using Converter
4. New Versions
5. Bug Reports
6. Distribution and Usage Policy
7. Categories and Types
8. History


1. Introduction
---------------

Converter is a free unit conversion tool for the Palm, supporting over 200
unit types in 23 different categories. The easy to use interface allows you
to specify the types you use frequently and access them easily. Convert from
miles to kilometers, from pounds to kilograms and many, many other different
conversions with ease.

Converter is freeware so you are free to use and distribute this software
without restriction as long as it is not modified in any way and the
copyright notices remain in place.

Converter can currently convert 215 different types in 23 different
categories. For a full list of these see the 'Categories and Types'
section later in this document.


2. Installation
---------------

Once you have downloaded and unpacked the archive you should have a file
called Converter.prc in your directory. Install this file onto your Palm
device in the usual way using the 'Install Tool' or similar which comes
with the Palm device. Once installed an icon with the label 'Converter'
should appear in your application list.

Upgrading

If you are upgrading from a previous version of Converter, there is no
need to remove the old version first. Simply install the new version of
Converter onto your Palm device and it will overwrite the older version.
If you are using version 2.0 or later of Converter then when you upgrade
in this way your configured shortlist categories and types will be saved
and used with the new version.


3. Using Converter
------------------

The application is simple and intuitive to use following the same basic
style as many Palm applications. Pull down the box in the top right
corner to choose which category to use, then select the unit type to
convert from and to in the boxes on the main form. Finally enter the value
you wish to convert from into the value field.

Entering Values

Values can be entered in a number of different ways. In most categories
you can enter numbers as either:

Integers - e.g. 16

Decimals - e.g. 16.0

Scientific Notation - e.g. 1.6e01

A few categories require special treatment for the entering of values
as detailed below:

Shoes - Values in the Shoes category must be whole numbers only and
must be valid for the country selected in the 'From' list.

Clothing - Like the Shoes category, values in the Clothing category
also must be whole numbers and must be valid for the country
selected in the 'From' list.

Numbers - In the Numbers category, the valid entries for the value
field will be dependant on what is selected in the 'From' list.
Numbers must always be whole and valid for the particular number
system when Binary, Octal, Decimal or Hexidecimal are selected.
When Roman is selected, the entry must be a valid Roman number
using Roman notation such as 'XXIV' (to represent 24).

Switching Modes

Converter can operate in two modes: shortlist mode and full mode. You can
switch between the modes by tapping on the 'F' and 'S' buttons on the
bottom left of the screen, the 'F' button putting you in full mode and the
'S' button putting you in shortlist mode. In full mode you have access to
all the conversion types and categories in the Converter app, in shortlist
mode you are presented with a user-definable shortened list.

Defining Shortlist Types

By defining the types available in shortlist mode you can configure
Converter so that the conversion types which you frequently use are
readily available and easy to navigate between.

Selecting 'Edit Shortlist...' from the 'Options' menu presents you with a
dialog box from which you can configure your shortlist. You can use the
'Category' pulldown to select which category you want to configure then
you can see two lists: the one on the left contains the full list of
types within the category and the one on the right shows the types which
are currently available in that category when in shortlist mode. To add
a type to shortlist mode, select the type in the full list on the left
and hit the 'Add' button. To remove a type from the shortlist mode,
select the type from the shortlist on the right and hit the remove button.

If you remove all the types from the shortlist of a particular category,
that category will no longer show up when using the shortlist mode. Of
course it will still be available in full mode.


4. New Versions
---------------

The newest version of Converter will always be available from my website:

http://www.mattmarsh.net/computing/converter.shtml

so check back there from time to time to look out for updates. Also from
the same web page you can submit your email address so that you will be
automatically sent an email when new versions become available.


5. Bug Reports
--------------

This is the first program which I've written for the Palm Pilot so there
could well be plenty of bugs hiding in there somewhere... If you find
any faults in either the application itself or its documentation then I
would be really grateful if you could report them to me by email at
matt@mattmarsh.net. If you could include the version number of the
program you are running (this can be found from the 'About' dialog box)
then that would also be helpful.


6. Distribution and Usage Policy
--------------------------------

You are permitted to use this program free of charge. You may also
distribute it in any way and may even charge for it's distribution if
you wish, however you must not modify the software and all copyright
notices must remain in tact. You must obtain written permission for use
or distribution other than detailed here.

BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY
FOR THE PROGRAM, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT
WHEN OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER
PARTIES PROVIDE THE PROGRAM "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE
PROGRAM IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME
THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION.

IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING
WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR
REDISTRIBUTE THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR
DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL
DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM
(INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED
INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE
OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH
HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGES.


7. Categories and Types
-----------------------

The currently supported categories and types are listed below, if there are
any others that you would like to see added, feel free to contact me at
matt@mattmarsh.net.

- ACCELERATION - LINEAR
cm/sec^2, in/sec^2, kph/sec, ft/sec^2, mph/sec, m/sec^2

- ANGLE
seconds, minutes, grades, degrees, radians, quadrants, right angles,
rounds

- AREA
millimetres^2, centimetres^2, inches^2, feet^2, yards^2, metres^2, acres
hectares, kilometres^2, miles^2

- CLOTHING
USA, European, UK, Japanese

- COMPUTER
bits, nibbles, bytes, kilobits, kilobytes, megabits, megabytes, gigabytes,
terabytes, petabytes, exabytes

- DENSITY
grams/metre^3, kg/metre^3, oz/gallon UK, oz/gallon US, pounds/inch^3,
grams/mm^3

- ENERGY
ergs, joules, calories 20oC, calories THERM, calories 15oC, calories IT,
kilojoules, BTUs THERM, BTUs ISO, BTUs IT, kilocalories IT,
kilowatt hours, therms

- FLOW
litres/min, gals US/min, gals UK/min, ft^3/min, litres/sec, barrels/min,
gals US/sec, gals UK/sec, m^3/min, ft^3/sec, barrels/sec, m^3/sec

- FORCE
dyne, millinewton, ounce-force, newton, pound-force, kg-force, kilonewton,
kip-force, ton-f SHORT, ton-f LONG

- FUEL CONSUMPTION
litres/100km, miles/gal UK, miles/gal US, kms/litre, miles/litre

- LENGTH
angstroms, nanometres, microinches, microns, millimetres, centimetres,
inches, feet, yards, metres, fathoms, perches, poles, rods, chains,
cables IT, cables UK, furlongs, cables US, kilometres, miles, naut. miles,
leagues, astro. units, light years, parsecs

- NUMBERS
binary, octal, decimal, hexadecimal, Roman

- POWER
watts, donkeys, h.power METRIC, h.power 550, h.power ELEC, h.power WTR,
kilowatts, tons refridge., megawatts

- PRESSURE
pascals, mm H2O 39.2oF, cm H2O 39.2oF, millibars, hectopascals, mm Hg 32oF,
torrs, ounces/inch^2, kilopascals, cm Hg 32oF, in Hg 32oF, pounds/inch^2,
bars, atmospheres

- RADIOACTIVITY
becquerel, rutherford, curie

- SHOES
USA - Male, USA - Female, European, UK, Japanese

- SPEED - ANGULAR
grade/min, degree/min, grade/sec, radian/min, degree/sec, rev/min,
turn/min, radian/sec, rev/sec, turn/sec

- SPEED - LINEAR
cm/sec, inches/sec, kilometres/hr, feet/sec, miles/hr, knots, metres/sec,
mach

- TEMPERATURE
gas mark, celsius, fahrenheit, kelvin

- TIME
nanoseconds, microseconds, milliseconds, seconds, minutes, hours, days,
staff weeks, weeks, fortnights, staff months, months, staff years, years

- TORQUE
dyne cms, Newton metres

- VOLUME
millilitres, ccs, teaspoons, tablespoons, cubic incehs, fl ounces UK,
fl ounces US, decilitres, cups, pints US, pints UK, quarts US, litres,
quarts UK, gallons US, gallons UK, cubic feet, barrels, cubic yards,
cubic metres

- WEIGHT
carats, grams, ounces, ounces TROY, pounds, pounds TROY, kilograms,
stones, tons METRIC, tons SHORT, tons LONG


8. History
----------

Version 2.2 - 24th March 2002

- Fixed bug with conversions of Kilometers to Furlongs
- Fixed bug with shoe size conversions giving wrong results when
converting to or from USA shoe sizes
- Fixed bug causing conversions from Atmospheres to Atmospheres
to always return zero
- Fixed readme file in the .zip to have proper formating for viewing
on a Windows system
- Added engineering categories including Acceleration, Density,
Energy, Flow, Force and Power
- Added 'Numbers' category which allows conversion between decimal,
binary, octal, hexadecimal and even Roman numerals
- Added automotive categories of Fuel Consumption and Torque
- Added many types to existing categories
- Added small icon for the application launcher list mode and also
a color icon
- Eliminated annoying flicker at application launch and on opening
the preferences dialog

Version 2.1 - 23rd January 2001

- Fixed a bug which caused the Palm to hang when the categories
'Shoes' or 'Clothes' were used in shortlist mode

Version 2.0 - 21st January 2001

- Added shortlist feature to allow users to define a shortlist of
common conversions to be accessed easily in shortlist mode, with
the full set of conversions still available in full mode
- Removed the convert button, result values are now recalculated
whenever the input value changes or if another type or category
is selected
- Added cut, copy and paste functionality via menu and shortcuts
- Added menu items and shortcuts for popup keyboard and grafitti
help screen
- Added a clear button to clear the input and result fields
- The category and type selections are now saved between sessions
as are the input/result values
- Improved the result display so that trailing zeros are omitted
- Many more types and categories added

Version 1.1 - 29th December 1999

- Fixed some problems with temperature conversions from Kelvin to
Farenheit
- Changed the method of how conversions are done to one which is
much more acurate for many of the conversions

Version 1.0 - 8th June 1999

- Initial Version