Slateboard Software September 2006 Newsletter

Slateboard Software September 2006 Newsletter

QUIKCALC VERSION 6.0 CONTINUES TO WOW!

Our new version continues to see record numbers of upgrades including old V2.0 users that we haven't heard from in years! We've even had customers upgrade their computers just to take advantage of the new interface! And this month we are happy to announce that we have added an enhancement that allows those that MUST use 800 x 600 resolution or 1024 x 768 with large fonts to use the software (see What You Are Missing... below). The feedback continues to be universally positive with comments such as:

"I spent this weekend working with the software and it's fantastic.”

“Woah, have you ever changed the look of this thing. Cool!”

“Wow! What a different look!”

If you haven't already, try the new version and see the most significant facelift QuikCalc has ever received that has people raving. Then, upgrade to any edition, no matter what you owned before, for 50% off. Just visit our secure order site!

This Month's Newsletter

In this month's newsletter we provide you with an amazing general computer tip that you won't want to miss. We've already passed this on to some and the reaction has been jaw dropping awe in most cases. We also have links to screen snaps of the latest version of QuikCalc Amortization. We have the answer to last month's puzzler as well as the name of the winner of a copy of DebtCalc. This month's Fun Fact deals with the world's first attack submarine. The Nautilus? Nope. Again we have tips and offers that we hope will be of interest to you. Here's what's covered in this month's newsletter:

The Evolution of QuikCalc Edition Names Explained
See Why So Many Are Upgrading to QuikCalc Amortization Version V6.0
What You Are Missing If You Haven't Updated Your Software
Tip Of The Month - How to Improve the Readability of Your Text in Windows
Fun Fact - What Was The World's First Attack Submarine?
Last Month's Puzzler Answer
This Month's Puzzler Contest

The staff at Slateboard Software hope you find our latest newsletter interesting and thank you for your business.

The Evolution of QuikCalc Edition Names Explained

With the release of V6.0 a lot of users of older versions have been upgrading. This can sometimes lead to confusion on what edition they should be upgrading to since the names have changed over the years. Here is a breakdown:

Version 1 was known as QuikCalc Mortgage and Loan and came in only one edition that would be equivalent to the current Home Edition.
Version 2 and 3 were known as QuikCalc Mortgage and Loan Manager and came in three editions: Personal, Lite and an edition known simply as QuikCalc Amortization. Personal has become Premium, Lite has become Plus! and QuikCalc Amortization has become Home.
Version 4 added an Office Edition, all other editions retained their names.
Version 5 was known as QuikCalc Amortization and came in four editions: Office, Premium (briefly Professional then back to Personal then finally to Premium), Plus! and Home. The Edition names (with the exception of the short lived Professional and revisited Personal) have remained the same.
Version 6 continues to be known as QuikCalc Amortization and comes in 5 editions: Office, Premium, Plus!, Home and Courtesy. The Courtesy Edition is a promotional product sold personalized in bulk.

Hopefully this clears up the confusion when upgrading. Why all the changes? Marketing of course!

See Why So Many Are Upgrading to QuikCalc Amortization Version V6.0

As you read above, QuikCalc V6.0 is our most successful release ever. If you haven't seen it yet for yourself, visit our website to try the fully-functional demo, or use the links below to see screen snaps of what QuikCalc V6.0 looks like:

Screen snap of the Solve for Missing Number Calculator.

Screen snap of the Amortization Schedules Plus! window.

Screen snap of the Loan Manager.

Screen snap of the Office Edition's Client Manager.

Screen snap of the Payment Grids.

We encourage you to try out the demo at https://www.slateboard.com/info_demos.htm.

QuikCalc V6.0 is so dramatically different in look and feel that it may seem like an entirely new product!

We have resized the application to work in 1024 x 768 or better by default, thus giving us much more real estate to work with. We have also increased the font size from 8 point to 10 point making it easier to read on higher resolution systems.
We have reformatted some of the windows and renamed some of the fields to make them more intuitive.
We have added a Navigation Bar along the side that is much like those you are used to seeing in XP. It provides single-click access to most features.
We have dropped some fields and streamlined the Loan Manager Detail tab so that it is less confusing.
We have split the reports so that the Escrow columns are only displayed when necessary (i.e. Simple Interest U.S. Rule selected as the interest compounding method).
The Solve for Missing Number Calculator allows you to specify units (Days/Weeks/Months/Years) for the Amortization Period.

To make sure you enjoy your 50% discount as an existing customer, visit: https://www.slateboard.com/ORDERSITE/cat3_1.htm

Note that we have recently added PayPal as a payment method to our website. Through PayPal we accept not only Visa and MasterCard, but American Express, Discover and eCheck as well.

For more information visit https://www.slateboard.com/pro_quikcalcpro.htm.

Important Notice: With the release of QuikCalc V6.0, we are dropping support for Windows 95, 98, ME and NT. V6.0 will function on Windows XP, 2000, 2003 Server, Media Center and Vista. We apologize to those few users still on these unsupported versions of Windows who will not be able to take advantage of this upgrade. Rest assured we will continue to support your current version as before.

What You're Missing If You Haven't Updated Your Software

We recommend that you update your software at least once a month. You can do this easily by going to your Help menu and checking for updates. For users who haven't downloaded an update lately, these are some of the things you could be missing out on:

Version 6.0 was designed to fit in 1024 x 768 resolution (or better) with regular sized fonts. Some users due to old hardware or vision problems cannot use this larger resolution (or require larger fonts) therefore we have added an enhancement to the Edit menu of QuikCalc that allows you to selected a reduced screen resolution mode that will hide the task bar on the left, the toolbar on top and resize the windows so that the program can function in 800 x 600 mode with everything you need visible. All functions that were available on the left navigation bar are still available from the regular menus.
The Projected Cash Flow report in Office can now be filtered by Client.
Plus much more!

Tip Of The Month

Normally we don't do this but this month's tip is a general computer tip. In our research on screen resolutions we found out a piece of information that so far we haven't found a single person who knew about it. It is something so simple to do, with such amazing results, we were floored that we as computer experts didn't know about it and that no one else (except this one guy on the web!) knew about it either.

Windows XP was actually released in 2001 when flat panel displays and high-resolution monitors weren't as common as they are today. Today with state-of-the-art displays, text can look very "pixelized". Windows has a setting that allows you to smooth the text for a dramatic improvement in readability (to the point on some displays where it is near print quality). Here is how you do this:

1. Right-click with your mouse on your Desktop (this is the background of your computer screen where your icons usually are)
2. Select Properties
3. Select the Appearance tab on the top
4. Select the Effects... button
5. Make sure the "Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts" is checked on.
6. Change the drop down list under this to ClearType
7. Select OK to close the Effects... window
8. Next is the neat part. Look closely at the text on your screen and then select Apply.
9. Pick up jaw, select OK, and enjoy the new crispness of your text.

For those whose jaws didn't drop because there was no discernable difference, it could be that your hardware is too old to take advantage of this setting. You can repeat the above steps to undo the setting however leaving it as is should have no adverse impact. For those who did notice a difference and whose jaws didn't drop, repeat this process when the wires are removed. :-)

Fun Fact

What Was The World's First Attack Submarine?

In the mid 1770's David Bushnell, an inventive guy, created the world's first attack submarine. Using whiskey barrel technology, he made a watertight clamshell-shaped vehicle with barely enough room for one man. The thing, nicknamed the Turtle, was placed in New York Harbor one night containing Sgt. Ezra Lee, a 45-year-old man who was stronger than the frail inventor. He had two hand-operated propeller vanes, one for forward travel, the other for directional control.

Sgt. Lee cranked his way toward the British flagship of Admiral Richard Howe, called the Eagle. David Bushnell provided for instrument guidance in the underwater darkness, even though it was 1776 and electric lighting was still 100 years into the future. Inventor Bushnell's solution was ingenious. He lit the primitive instruments, a compass and a depth gauge, with foxfire, a moss that glows in the dark. Still, navigation was difficult, because it was cold in the Turtle, and therefore the foxfire was dim. Ezra Lee missed the battleship entirely and cranked himself out to sea. Realizing his error just in time, he cranked furiously against the tide and finally arrived under the ship. Now it was time to do his dirty work.

The plan was to turn a crank mounted in the ceiling of the Turtle, which would screw an eye-hook into the underside of the Eagle. Attached to the hook was a bomb. After several attempts at attaching the bomb, Ezra finally realized it couldn't be done. The ship was probably coated in copper plating to keep barnacles from growing on the ship, and the hook wouldn't drill into the ship. (Historians are not sure about why the bomb couldn't be attached, this is their theory.)

"Turtle Replica Built By Handshouse Studio"

"The Turtle"

Dawn was coming, and Sgt. Lee had to get away quickly before he would be discovered. Again, he cranked furiously, but some sailors on the ship saw him. Realizing he was in trouble, he released the bomb, which floated to the surface and blew up harmlessly. But it saved his life. The ship's men hadn't ever seen anything like the Turtle and weren't even sure it was a human-invented thing. It might be a monster, or a monster's creation. After the little explosion, they were truly afraid. And Ezra Lee sailed to harbor, his submarine was opened, and he was safe.

This was the first and last submarine voyage of the 18th century. David Bushnell was quite fascinated with inventions and explosive things in particular. He devoted his mental efforts to the war, but his creations didn't make any serious contributions. Once, some soldiers found a strange barrel floating in the water. They rowed out to it in a little boat and pulled it out of the water. On the contraption they found gears turning. This would be unusual by today's standards, but truly weird back in 1776. At about the time they made this observation, the time bomb exploded, killing three of the men and injuring some others. It was supposed to have floated up to a place where several enemy ships were docked and blow them up, but the men intercepted it. This was the only one of Mr. Bushnell's inventions that came anywhere close to working right.

*Source: odd-info .com

Last Month's Puzzler Contest Answer

Last Month's Question

Someone at a party introduces you to your mother's only sister's husband's sister in law. He has no brothers. What do you call this lady?

Answer

Mother/Mom/Ma/Mommy etc.

And This Month's Copy Goes To...

We had some creative answers on this, the most entertaining was "Tramp". However...this month's copy of DebtCalc Home Edition goes to: Debora Klassen of British Columbia. Congrats!

This Month's Puzzler Contest

Send your answer for the puzzler below to contest@slateboard.com for a chance at a copy of DebtCalc Home Edition. We will randomly draw one name from all of the correct answers received by September 30, 2006. The winner and correct answer will be revealed in the next newsletter.

Question: When the two met, one was half the other's age plus seven years. Ten years later, when they married, the bride was thirty, but this time one was nine-tenths the age of the other. How old was the groom? ( no fractions, no partial years---whole numbers only.)