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<B>QL-THESAURUS</B>
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<B>BASIC INFORMATION</B>
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<B>QL-THESAURUS</B> is, as its name implies, an electronic thesaurus for the QL and compatible systems. It multitasks with QL word processors to provide the user with fast on-screen help during a word processing session. QL-THESAURUS is heavily based on Roget's classic categorisation of words, and has a data base of 23,000 words divided into 1,000 groups. Both pointer and non-pointer versions of the program are provided on the disk.
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In this manual both &quot;Dictionary&quot; and &quot;Data base&quot; are used to describe the word list used by QL-THESAURUS.
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<B>SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS</B>
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A QDOS or SMSQ(-E) compatible computer with disk drives and at least 640K memory. To run QL-THESAURUS you will need a total of about 490K free memory on your system. It would be difficult to multitask QL-THESAURUS with a word processor on anything less than a Trump Card. Toolkit 2 must be active and, if you are using the pointer version of the program, the pointer environment files or SMSQ-E.
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To run the GD2 version of QL-Thesaurus, you will need a recent version of SMSQ-E.
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<B>ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS</B>
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QL-THESAURUS has been compiled using QLIBERATOR. The data base was written on the PERFECTION word processor. The pointer version was written using Albin Hessler's EASYPTR.
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A special, albeit posthumous, word of thanks must go to Dr Peter Mark Roget without whom this program would not have been possible. The roots of QL-THESAURUS date from 1852!
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The sprites in the GD2 version were designed by Fran&ccedil;ois van Emelen.
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<B>FIRST ESSENTIALS</B>
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Please check the supplied media to see if there is a file called UPDATES_DOC on the disk. If present, this will contain details of last minute changes or additions to the program and should be read before using this software. It may be read and printed using the Quill word processor. You should also make a copy of the master disk before proceeding further. You can do this by using the WCOPY command.
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<B>ON THE DISK</B>
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The following files are on the QL-THESAURUS disk:
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Boot: loads and runs the non-pointer version of QL-THESAURUS. Thesaurus_obj:  non-pointer version. 
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Thesaurus_ptr_obj: pointer version.
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Thesaurus_GD2_obj: GD2 colour version 
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Thesaurus_dic:  Data base or dictionary. 
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Thesaurus_def:  Definitions for customised version. 
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Groups_doc:  Quill file listing groups. 
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Updates_doc:  update information if available.
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<B>BOOTING UP</B>
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The non-pointer version of QL-THESAURUS can be booted from the disk. To load the pointer version change the name of the program in the boot file from &quot;Thesaurus_obj&quot; to &quot;Thesaurus_ptr_obj&quot;.
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The program can also be run by a direct command:
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&quot;EX flp1_thesaurus_obj&quot; or &quot;EX flp1_thesaurus_ptr_obj&quot;.
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QL-THESAURUS loads two files &quot;Thesaurus_dic&quot; and &quot;Thesaurus_def&quot;. If you work entirely from flp1_ you have no problems, but if you want to use another drive, a hard disk or subdirectories you will have to tell QL-THESAURUS where to find these files.
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<B>HARD DISK INSTALLATION</B>
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QL-THESAURUS can be installed and run from any media. The procedure is as follows:
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1: Copy the the necessary files from flp1_ to the required medium and directory.
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E.g.: WCOPY flp1_ to win1_thesaurus_
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You should copy at least one or both of the _obj files, the _dic file and the _def file.
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2: Use the QJUMP configuration program to alter the configuration block to give the drive and directory from which you wish to run the program.
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3: Instead of step 2 you could start the program via a parameter passed in an EX command:
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E.g. EX win1_thesaurus_obj;'win1_thesaurus_'
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<B>QUICK START - NON-POINTER VERSION</B>
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If you do not want to read this manual, you should read and follow this section. It will teach you how to use QL-THESAURUS. Be warned, however, you will only learn the mechanics of using the program. Any thesaurus, whether electronic or in book form, can often be difficult to use. You will gain more out of the program by reading the manual. If nothing else it is worth reading the section headed &quot;Colours&quot;.
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1: Put your QL-THESAURUS disk in flp1_ and either reset the computer or enter &quot;Lrun flp1_boot&quot;. The program will take a little time to load. If the cursor at the bottom of the screen does not flash, press CTRL + C (hold down CTRL, tap c and then release CTLR). Press ENTER to arrive at the menu screen.
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2: There are three search commands, &quot;Dictionary&quot;, &quot;Word&quot; and &quot;Group&quot;. &quot;Dictionary&quot; is the one you will use most. Press D. You will see an almost blank screen with an invitation to enter a few letters of a word. Think of a common word and then enter the first four letters of this word. In this way you can gain access to the dictionary.
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3: Press the down cursor key to scroll through the dictionary until you reach the last word on the screen. Continue pressing the down cursor key to continue scrolling through the dictionary. Now press the up cursor key. Using these keys you could scroll through the entire dictionary. Press ESC then Y to return to the input screen.
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4: Press Y for another word. Enter the word &quot;Marsh&quot;. Press ENTER or SPACE. A list of words associated with the word &quot;Marsh&quot; appears on the screen. At the top left hand corner of the screen is a number. This is the group number using Roget's classification. At the top of the screen are 3 key words or phrases describing the words contained within the group. This is an example of a simple search. The search word has only one meaning and it appears in only one group.
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5: Press ENTER. Press Y. Now enter the word &quot;Swamp&quot;. Press ENTER. This time no list of words appears, but instead a list of groups. This is a complex search. &quot;Swamp&quot; has two possible meanings. There is a noun giving a literal meaning and a verb giving a metaphorical meaning. Read the key words or phrases to distinguish between the two meanings.
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6: You can move through the list of groups by using the cursor keys. Press SPACE and the colour of the number of the current group changes. Press SPACE again and the colour changes back to the original. In this way you can &quot;mark&quot; and &quot;unmark&quot; the groups you wish to view. Mark group 162 and then press ENTER. A list of words now appears. Group 162 contains a lot of words and is divided over 3 screens. You can travel through these screens using the &quot;Page Up&quot; and &quot;Page Down&quot; commands.
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7: Press ENTER. Press N to return to the menu screen. Press W to enter Word mode. Enter the word &quot;Wash&quot;. A list appears on the screen of all words containing the letters &quot;wash&quot;. Scroll down the screen until you reach &quot;Wishy-washy&quot; and then press ENTER. This time there are four groups from which you can choose. Mark and view at least two numbers. You can travel between the groups using the &quot;Next Group&quot; and the &quot;Last Group&quot; commands (i.e. press N or L).
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8: Press ENTER. Press N. At the menu screen press G to enter group mode. Instead of entering a number press ALT + * (i.e. ALT + Shift + 8). This automatically types in the number of the last viewed group. Press Enter. A list of groups appears on the screen and you can scroll through this list using the cursor keys. Look at the two groups on either side of the number typed in. Often groups appear in the thesaurus as pairs of opposites. Go to the group that conveys the opposite meaning to the word you have chosen and then press ENTER or SPACE.
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9: Choose a word from the group by pressing ENTER. Press N to return to the menu screen. If your word processor is loaded, press CTRL + C until this is active and then press ALT + *. The word you chose is now typed into your document.
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You have now learnt how to use QL-THESAURUS. Now a couple of hints. Firstly, when you are using the program you may find it difficult at first. Persevere and after a few sessions it will become easier to use. Secondly, it is better to read through a word list quickly rather than to spend time thinking about each word individually. The word or words you are looking for will probably &quot;stand out&quot; from the others.
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<B>QUICK START - POINTER VERSION</B>
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If you do not want to read this manual, you should read and follow this section. It will teach you how to use QL-THESAURUS. Be warned, however, you will only learn the mechanics of using the program. Any thesaurus, whether electronic or in book form, can often be difficult to use. You will gain more out of the program by reading the manual. If nothing else it is worth reading the section headed &quot;Colours&quot;.
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1: Put your QL-THESAURUS disk in flp1_ and enter &quot;EX flp1_Thesaurus_ptr_obj&quot;.The program will take a little time to load. On the left hand side of the screen you will see an active menu. The menu items can be accessed by a mouse or by pressing the underlined letter. In this quick start section HIT means pressing SPACE or the left mouse button and DO means pressing ENTER or the right mouse button. CLICK means bringing the cursor to the item and pressing either button or pressing the underlined letter.
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2: There are three search commands, &quot;Thesaurus&quot;, &quot;Word&quot; and &quot;Group&quot;. &quot;Thesaurus&quot; is the one you will use most. Click on THESAURUS. An input window will open in the centre of the screen. Think of a common word and then enter the first four letters of this word. In this way you can gain access to the dictionary or data base.
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3: The main menu has become unavailable and a new menu has become available at the bottom of the screen. Click on PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN to move through the dictionary. Click on MAIN MENU to return to the original screen.
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4: Click on THESAURUS again and enter the word &quot;Marsh&quot; A list of words associated with the word &quot;Marsh&quot; appears on the screen. Click on &quot;Marsh&quot;. At the top left hand corner of the screen is a number. This is the group number using Roget's classification. At the top of the screen are 3 key words or phrases describing the words contained within the group. This is an example of a simple search. The search word has only one meaning and it appears in only one group.
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5: Click on MAIN MENU. Click on THESAURUS. Now enter the word &quot;Swamp&quot;. Click on &quot;Swamp&quot;. This time no list of words appears, but instead a list of groups. This is a complex search. &quot;Swamp&quot; has two possible meanings. There is a noun giving a literal meaning and a verb giving a metaphorical meaning. Read the key words or phrases to distinguish between the two meanings.
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6: HIT one of the groups. The colour of the group changes. HIT again and the colour changes back to the original. In this way you can &quot;mark&quot; and &quot;unmark&quot; the groups you wish to view. DO group 162. A list of words now appears. Group 162 contains a lot of words and is divided over 5 screens. You can travel through these screens by clicking the &quot;Page Up&quot; and &quot;Page Down&quot; commands.
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7: Click on MAIN MENU. Click on WORD. Enter the word &quot;Wash&quot;. A list appears on the screen of all words containing the letters &quot;wash&quot;. Click on &quot;Wishy-washy&quot;. This time there are four groups from which you can choose. Mark and view at least two numbers. You can travel between the groups by clicking on NEXT GROUP and LAST GROUP&quot;.
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8: Click on MAIN MENU. Click on GROUP. Instead of entering a number press ALT + SPACE (i.e. Stuffer Buffer). This automatically types in the number of the last viewed group. Press Enter. A list of groups appears on the screen. Look at the two groups on either side of the number typed in. Often groups appear in the thesaurus as pairs of opposites. Click on the group that conveys the opposite meaning to the word you have chosen.
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9: Choose a word from the group by a DO. You return automatically to the main menu. If your word processor is loaded, press CTRL + C until this is active and then press ALT + SPACE. The word you chose is now typed into your document.
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You have now learnt how to use QL-THESAURUS. Now a couple of hints. Firstly, when you are using the program you may find it difficult at first. Persevere and after a few sessions it will become easier to use. Secondly, it is better to read through a word list quickly rather than to spend time thinking about each word individually. The word or words you are looking for will probably &quot;stand out&quot; from the others.
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<B>THE MENU STRUCTURE</B>
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<B>MAIN MENU</B>
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The main menu is on the top half of the screen in the non pointer version, and on the left hand side in the pointer version.
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Three commands <B>DICTIONARY</B> or <B>THESAURUS, WORD</B>, and <B>GROUP</B> are used to start a search. The detailed use of these commands is described below in the section headed &quot;SEARCHING&quot;.
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<B>HELP</B> accesses a series of information screens. This command can also be accessed by pressing F1 in the non-pointer version.
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<B>ESC or QUIT</B> allows you to leave the program. The dictionary is removed from memory and the memory released.
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<B>F4</B> allows you to redraw the menu screen in the non-pointer version. QL-THESAURUS is designed to multitask with your word processor, and the screens of QL-THESAURUS could be overwritten by the other programs. You should always leave QL-THESAURUS via the menu screen and use the F4 command on your return.
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The <B>MOVE</B> icon in the pointer version allows you to relocate the program on high resolution screens. This command will not work on a standard resolution screen as the the program takes up the whole of the screen.
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The <B>SLEEP</B> icon in the pointer version puts the program to sleep on a button.
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<B>SET-UP</B> accesses further commands that enable you to customise your version of the program.
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<B>THE SET-UP COMMANDS</B>
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In the non-pointer version some of these commands are available at the bottom half of the main menu screen. These are accessed by pressing CTRL plus the initial letter of the command. Other are accessed on a separate menu by the SET-UP command. In the pointer version all the commands are accessed by clicking on SET-UP in the main menu.
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The set-up commands mainly concern sound and the printer.
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<B>BEEP or SOUND</B> allows you to switch sound on and off.
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<B>PRINTER</B> switches the printer option on and off.
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<B>FORM or COLUMN</B> allows you to toggle between a 1 and 3 column printout.
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<B>RATE</B> allows you to set the baud rate.
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<B>OUTPUT</B> allows you to change the printer device. Should you wish to import a group of words into a word processor, you can save the output to disk by using a file device and name for the printer device.
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In the non-pointer version there are three further possibilities:
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<B>BORDER</B> allows you to choose the colour of the border.
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<B>INK</B> toggles between a green and white ink colour.
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<B>ALTKEY</B> allows you to choose the Altkey you wish to use to drop chosen words into your word processor.
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The set-up can be changed temporarily at run time or can be saved as new program defaults by modifying the file Thesaurus_def. In the non-pointer version this is done by pressing SPACE or ENTER at the configuration screen, and in the pointer version by clicking on DEVICE.
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<B>THE SEARCH MENU</B>
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During a search of the thesaurus the Search menu becomes active. In both versions of the program this is at the bottom of the screen. The search menu governs the navigation through the results, and if a command is temporarily unavailable it is printed in an unreadable ink.
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<B>PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN</B> allow you to go to the previous or the next page.
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<B>NEXT GROUP and LAST GROUP</B> allow you to move between groups. In the non-pointer version these are the PgUp and PgDn keys on a PC keyboard.
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<B>ESC and MAIN MENU</B> end the searching in the non-pointer and pointer versions respectively.
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<B>ENTER or SPACE</B> in the non pointer version place the hghlighted word under the ALTKEY. The word can then be dropped into a word processor.
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<B>HIT or DO</B> place the highlighted word in the Stuffer Buffer for importation in a word processor.
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A word placed in the Stuffer Buffer or under an Altkey can also be used internally in QL-THESAURUS. For example you may not find the word you are looking for, but could choose its nearest equivalent and then look up this word in the thesaurus. The Stuffer Buffer or Altkey can be used when you are asked to enter the word.
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<B>SEARCHING THE THESAURUS</B>
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This section looks at the three search commands and the mechanical process of searching the thesaurus. If you find it a little theoretical and confusing, there is a later section in this manual, &quot;Colours&quot;, that gives a few examples of searching in practice.
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<B>DICTIONARY or THESAURUS</B>
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This is the main searching mode, which you will use most of the time. When you press &quot;D&quot; in the main menu of the non pointer version or click THESAURUS in the pointer version, the screen is cleared and you are requested to enter the first few letters of the word you wish to search. Usually the first four letters will suffice. It is better not to type in the full word, unless it is short, as the search word may not be in the dictionary but there may well be a near equivalent. You will not find the word &quot;insane&quot; in the dictionary, but you will find &quot;insanity&quot;. Also some words can be spelt in different ways. An example of this is &quot;realise&quot; and &quot;realize&quot;.
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When you have entered the first few letters, the first word in the dictionary that starts with these letters will be displayed on the screen together with the following words. You can move through the dictionary by using the up and down arrow keys in the non-pointer version of the program or clicking on PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN in the pointer version.
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If you cannot find a suitable word in the dictionary, press ESC in the non-pointer version to return to the input screen. From this screen press &quot;y&quot; to look for another word, or &quot;n&quot; to return to the menu screen. Pointer version users should click on MAIN MENU.
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If you do find a suitable word, move to that word and then press either ENTER or SPACE or if using the pointer version HIT or DO. What happens next depends on whether the search is a simple one or a complex one. This cannot be determined by the user. It is determined by the nature of the word.
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<B>SIMPLE SEARCHES</B>
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A simple search is one in which the word has only one meaning, and which is to be found in only one of the thousand groups contained within QL-THESAURUS.
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In a simple search the words in that group are displayed immediately. At the top left hand corner of the screen is the group number. Next to this are three key words or phrases that describe the idea conveyed by the group. The group number is also the group number in Roget's classification of words, and, if you wish, you can use this program as an electronic index to Roget's Thesaurus in book form. There is one exception. Group 000 in QL-THESAURUS should be read as group 1,000 in Roget's Thesaurus.
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<B>COMPLEX SEARCHES</B>
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A complex search is a search in which the word has more than one meaning or has one meaning, but is to be found in more than one group. The word &quot;ball&quot;, for example, can mean a toy or a dance. The meaning as a toy appears in no less than 3 groups. Firstly as a round object, secondly as a projectile and thirdly as a source of amusement.
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After you have chosen a word from the dictionary a list of the groups in which that word is to be found is displayed on the screen. You can use the three key words and phrases to identify the group or groups you want to view. If you wish to view only one of the groups, you move to it and then press ENTER or DO.
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If you wish to view more than one group, then you first have to mark the groups you wish to view. Move to a group and then mark it by pressing SPACE or HIT. The colour of the group number will change. Should you make a mistake you can &quot;unmark&quot; a group by pressing SPACE or HIT again. When you have completed marking the groups, press ENTER or DO to view the groups one after the other.
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At this stage the search menu at the bottom of the screen is active and you can move through the groups and word lists via the commands in this menu.
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<B>WORD</B>
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Dictionary or Thesaurus mode is not suitable for all searches. When you wish to find a phrase rather than a word, you cannot always be certain of its precise wording in the data base. &quot;On the tip of the tongue&quot; might appear as &quot;the tip of the tongue&quot; or even &quot;tip of the tongue&quot;. Word mode helps you to get over this difficulty. In word mode you can type in &quot;tip&quot; or &quot;tongue&quot; and you will get a list of all the references to that string in the data base.
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Note I have used &quot;string&quot; and not &quot;word&quot;, because there is a disadvantage in using word mode. Typing in &quot;tip&quot; will find &quot;on the tip of the tongue&quot; but will also find a lot of red herrings such as &quot;mulTIPly&quot;, &quot;sTIPend&quot; and &quot;consTIPation&quot;. A little common sense will help. It is better to type in &quot;tongue&quot; rather than &quot;tip&quot;. &quot;Tongue&quot; is longer and less likely to appear as a string in other words. (You can use this mode to get a list of phrases containing a particular word. Try it with &quot;tongue&quot;.)
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When you have chosen the word or phrase you wish to examine, press ENTER or SPACE or if using the pointer version HIT or DO to continue. Just as in dictionary mode the search can be either simple or complex.
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<B>GROUP</B>
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A group search is different from Dictionary/Thesaurus or Word searches. It is accessed by pressing G at the main menu or clicking on GROUP. You are then asked to enter the number of the group you wish to search. This will always be in the range 0 - 999.
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Ideally I would have liked to have included a list of the groups in this manual, but this would have doubled its size which, in turn, would have meant an increase in price. As a compromise you will find a list of the groups in the &quot;groups_doc&quot; file on the QL-THESAURUS disk. You can load this into the Quill word processor if you wish to print it out.
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Group mode is useful if you want to look for words that convey an opposite meaning to the search word. In this thesaurus many groups are in pairs of opposite meaning. Group 890 is &quot;friend&quot; and group 891 is &quot;enemy&quot;. Group 602 is &quot;willing, group 603 &quot;unwilling&quot;. To find antonyms you should enter the search word to find the groups in which it appears. Note the number of group that gives the most accurate meaning. Go back to the menu screen and enter Group mode. Enter the number of the group you have noted, and then look at the key words and phrases of the two adjacent groups. One of these will often contain words and phrases giving the opposite meaning to that of the search word.
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<B>COLOURS:</B>
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Now let us look at a few searches in practice. You may find it helpful to have QL-THESAURUS loaded into your computer to follow these examples in practice.
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If as the first search word we enter the colour &quot;Brown&quot;, this is an example of a simple search. A number of words appear on the screen....bronze, hazel, tawny etc....all of which are associated with the word &quot;Brown&quot;.
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If we now choose &quot;Maroon&quot;, the situation is more complicated. This is a complex search as &quot;Maroon&quot; has three meanings. Firstly it is a colour, secondly a warning signal and thirdly abandonment. These three different meanings can be clearly distinguished. The key words and phrases describe each of the 4 groups in which &quot;Maroon&quot; appears.
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If we choose &quot;Green&quot; as our colour, the situation becomes even more complicated. &quot;Green&quot; has several meanings, and appears in no less than 10 different groups. &quot;Green&quot; is a colour. &quot;Green&quot; is used to describe vegetation. Within this meaning of green there are 3 submeanings; vegetation in general; a type of open space as in &quot;bowling green; and finally &quot;unripe&quot;. &quot;Green&quot; is also used to describe a lack of experience. Within this meaning there are two nuances, one of which stresses youth and inexperience, the other credulousness. There is even a connection between green as vegetation and green as youthful inexperience in the word &quot;unripe&quot;. Words are fascinating things!
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<B>BACKGROUND INFORMATION</B>
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<B>WHAT IS A THESAURUS?</B>
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A thesaurus is not, as is commonly thought, the same as a synonym dictionary, although it is possible to use a thesaurus to find synonyms. A synonym dictionary groups words according to meaning. A thesaurus groups words according to ideas. Look up the word &quot;poisonous&quot; in a synonym dictionary and you find such words as &quot;toxic&quot; and &quot;venomous&quot;. You will also find these words in a thesaurus, but in addition you will find &quot;snake&quot;, &quot;serpent&quot; and &quot;scorpion&quot; in the same group of words.
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The classic thesaurus of the English language is that of Roget, which was first published in 1852. Almost 150 years later it is still the most common thesaurus, a tribute to the quality and relevance of his work. You will see titles such as &quot;New Modern Thesaurus&quot; and &quot;International Thesaurus&quot; in the shops, but most of these are adapted versions of Roget's work. There may have been new words added, a few extra groups appended or an updated presentation, but, at heart, they are still Roget's categories. These changes allow the publisher to claim a copyright on his work.
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It is no secret that QL-THESAURUS is also heavily based on Roget's work. Like the thesauri in book form there have been changes and additions which means the author claims a copyright, not only on the program, but also on the data base. The main change is the nomenclature of the groups, which is different from that of Roget. I have attempted to modernise Roget's, sometimes obscure, terminology to make it relevant and understandable to the modern user. It is inevitable that some compromises have been made. Occasionally you will wonder if the naming of a particular group of words is correct, but you would have wondered even more if I had used Roget's original terminology.
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Another change is that I have narrowed the ideas conveyed in many of the groups. Some words have been removed that have undergone a subtle change of meaning or that, if used today, would have a sexist, racialist or anti-semitic undertone. I have removed references to non-christian religions as heathen, and have omitted some words from groups that reflect outdated political or social judgements. New words have been added.
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Ideally the words in each group would all fit onto one screen, but, unfortunately, we do not live in an ideal world. Some groups have very few words, others very many. I have tried hard to ensure that in most groups no more then two screens are necessary to display all the words.
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There is a disadvantage of a thesaurus in comparison with a synonym dictionary. You will have to read more words to find the word you want, although in QL-THESAURUS this will rarely be more than 100. The advantage a thesaurus has over a synonym dictionary is that it encourages you to widen your knowledge and understanding of words. You are constantly confronted with the ideas conveyed by words and this can stimulate you to use language more creatively.
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When using QL-THESAURUS it is better not to spend time examining each word in a group. Read through the list fairly quickly. You will find that certain words will attract your attention more than others.
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<B>THE DATA BASE:</B>
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The data base or dictionary of QL-THESAURUS is separate from the main program. The following extract shows its form is simple:
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thesaurus_086_562_593 thesis_454_514_595 thespian_599 thick_102_202_321_352_426_888 thicken_035 thicket_367 thick-head_501 thickness_202_204 thickset_202_321 thickskinned_376_823
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The numbers are the group numbers in which that word is to be found.
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You can, if you wish, modify the dictionary although, to do this, you will need a suitable text editor or word processor. Unfortunately Quill is not useable because of the size of the word list, and the lack of an export routine except in the Xchange version. I used Perfection to write the dictionary. It was ideal for the purpose because, among other things, it has a fast search command.
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If you do attempt to modify the dictionary, do it on a copy and not the original. There are a few points to note. Firstly, the first and last character of the dictionary should be chr$(10). Secondly, QL-THESAURUS does not support upper case characters. Thirdly, each entry must end with chr$(10). Bear in mind that, in their internal formatting, not all word processors produce a line feed at the end of each line. Perfection sometimes uses chr$(206) where you might expect chr$(10). To avoid this switch off automatic reformatting (F3 W), set to no line wrap (F3 F3 W), set left and indent margins to 1 (F3 F3 M) and save by the export command (F3 I).
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There will be occasions when you would like to add a new word to the data base, but do not know the groups in which it should be included. Look up the definition of the word in a dictionary, and you will find other words that convey the idea of your new word. (If this does not help try a second dictionary!) Use QL-THESAURUS to see in which groups these words occur and whether your new word fits into this group. For example, the word &quot;scapegoat&quot;, in its modern use, is defined as &quot;One who is blamed or punished for the faults of others&quot;. You could examine the groups in which &quot;blame&quot; and &quot;punishment&quot; occurs to see if &quot;scapegoat&quot; fits into any of those groups.
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<B>FINAL WORDS</B>
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QL-THESAURUS is now over 8 years old and has proved to be a popular program with QL users.
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The original program, released as version 2, was written fairly quickly. In the early stages it involved entering 50,000 numbers, only to delete 8,000 of these at the editing stage. I still managed to retain my sanity (I hope!). Later stages of writing the program were much more interesting, I gained a new knowledge of words as well as a great respect for Roget.
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During the course of its life there have been two major revisions. Version 3 improved movement between word lists and word groups and allowed linking with a word processor. Version 4 was written for the pointer environment and introduced mouse and high resolution screen compatibility.
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I hope you will find this program a valuable and practical addition to your software collection. Every software author needs feedback. If you have praise, criticism, can suggest an improvement, discover a bug in the program or a mistake in the data base, please let me know. The QL market is small enough for your opinion to be valued. Your suggestions for the new QL software you would like to see, will always be welcome.
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Geoff Wicks.
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