PDA Shopping Lists User's Guide

Table of Contents

Introduction

Installation

Registration and Technical Support

1-Minute Tutorial

Lists

List View

QuickLists

Total

Preferences

Columns

Colors

Item Details

Stores

Coupons

Auto-Fill

Memorized Items

Deleting Items

Beaming

No Stylus Mode

Menu Commands

PDA Shopping Lists Desktop

Copy/Paste

Printing

Import/Export

PDA Shopping Lists Conduit

Backups

Introduction

PDA Shopping Lists is a shopping list application for Palm OS handhelds that is perfect for keeping lists of groceries to buy, movies to rent, CDs to buy, books to read and more! You can create an unlimited number of lists, and each list can be customized to record and display only the information that is relevant. And data can be easily synchronized between PDA Shopping Lists on your Palm OS handheld and PDA Shopping Lists on the desktop (Windows and Macintosh).

PDA Shopping Lists on the Handheld and PDA Shopping Lists Desktop are virtually identical. This user guide focuses on the features in PDA Shopping Lists on the Handheld. You may prefer to do most of your data entry in PDA Shopping Lists Desktop, however, since it's faster and easier with a keyboard, and then perform a HotSync operation to synchronize the data with your handheld.

Installation

Launch the PDA Shopping Lists Installer and follow the on screen instructions. You will be required to HotSync your Handheld to complete the installation. The installer installs the following files:

• PDA Shopping Lists - A Palm OS application used to view and edit information on the handheld.
• PDA Shopping Lists Desktop -- A desktop application (for Mac and Windows) used to view and edit information on the desktop.
• PDA Shopping Lists Conduit -- A HotSync Conduit used to synchronize data between the handheld and the desktop.
• Sample Shopping Lists - Sample shopping lists to help you get started with PDA Shopping Lists.
• PDA Shopping Lists User Guide - This User Guide.

Launch PDA Shopping Lists
After the HotSync operation is complete, go to the Applications Launcher on your Handheld and tap the PDA Shopping Lists Icon.

Registration and Technical Support

When you launch PDA Shopping Lists on the Handheld you will be prompted to enter a serial number or to run in Trial mode. You may run the software for 30-days in full-functioning Trial mode. The Trial software and Registered software are identical. Once the trial period ends you must purchase and enter a serial number to continue using the software. You do not need to re-install the software. Simply enter a serial number and your Trial version will be converted into a Registered version and all data will remain intact.

To purchase a product serial number, please visit our web site at www.handmark.com.

Once you purchase PDA ShoppingLists, there are two ways to register your new software with Handmark. Registering makes you eligible for technical support and for early notification when new product releases become available.

• Fill out the registration card included with your software and drop it in the mail.
• Register online at our web site: www.handmark.com/register

Technical Support

If you have a software problem you can't solve, please visit our web site and check out our Support section (Frequently Asked Questions). If you can't find the answer you're looking for, email us at support@handmark.com and we'll get you a solution right away.

1-Minute Tutorial

Following is a quick overview of how PDA Shopping Lists can be used as a tool for grocery shopping:

1. Launch PDA Shopping Lists. You're presented with a number of sample shopping lists. 

2. Open the Grocery list by tapping it. The All View is displayed, which shows a list of commonly purchased grocery items.

3. Make sure you are displaying the "All" tab then mark the items you need by tapping in the far left column. A cart icon ()will appear next to the items, indicating that they are needed.

4. Once you're done marking the items you need, tap on the "Need" tab to display a list of only the items marked as needed. 

5. Now go shopping and mark items completed by tapping the checkbox in the far left column. As you check things off they will be removed from the Need list. Once all the items are gone, you're done!

That concludes the 1-minute tutorial. Read on to learn more about the individual features of PDA Shopping Lists.

Lists

Home
When you first launch PDA Shopping Lists you are presented with the Home View. The Home View displays several sample Shopping Lists. The number of needed items for each list are displayed on the right. You may open a shopping list by tapping it. 

Editing Lists
You may create new lists or edit existing ones, as follows:

1. Tap the Edit button to open the Edit Lists Dialog.

2. Select a List and tap Edit, or tap New.

3. The List Info Dialog appears (see next).

List Info
You can create an unlimited number of lists. Each list includes:

• Name - The name of the shopping list (e.g., Groceries, Books, Music, etc.).

• Store Menu - The name of the Store Menu (e.g., Store, Author, Artist, etc.). See Stores for more details.

• Custom 1 - The name of custom field 1 (e.g., Description, Author, Artist, etc.).

• Custom 2 - The name of custom field 2 (e.g., Aisle, Publisher, Record Label, etc.).

• Tax Rate - Enter a tax rate (optional), if you wish to calculate tax into the Total cost (Qty x Price x Tax Rate) for all items marked as taxable in Item Details.

• Icon - Click the icon to select a custom icon for the List.

• Track Per-Store Prices - Select this option if you wish to track separate prices for each store in the Multiple Stores dialog (see Stores for more details).

List View

Tap a List name in the Home View to open the List View. The List View displays items in a list format separated into two tabs - All and Need. The following options are available in the List View:

• Stores - Use the Store menu on the top left to filter the view by Store. 
• Categories - Use the Category menu on the top right to filter the view by Category. 
• Columns - You can choose which columns to display in the Show Columns dialog. Columns may be resized by dragging the left/right edges of the column header. 
• Sorting - Lists may be sorted by tapping the column header. Tap again to reverse sort.
• All View - The All View displays all the items in the list. Items that are needed are marked with an icon (). Tap in the far left column to mark an item as needed.
• Need View - The Need View displays only the items that are marked as Needed in the All View. The far left column displays a checkbox allowing you to check off items as they are purchased.
• Total - Displays the Total price of all the items currently in view. Note: You can choose to show or hide the Total in Preferences.
• Lookup - Enter text into the Lookup field at the bottom of the screen to select the first matching item in the list. Note: The Lookup is performed in the Item column only.
• Home - Tap the Home button to return to the Home View.
• New - Tap the New button to create a new item and add it to the list (see Item Details for more info).
• QuickList - Tap the Quick menu to quickly mark a predefined list of items as needed (see QuickLists for more info).

QuickLists

QuickLists allow you to quickly mark a set of predefined items as needed. When you select a QuickList it will add the set of predefined items to your Need list. You can create an unlimited number of QuickLists for everything from "Weekly Groceries" to "Chicken Cacciatore ingredients" to "Bathroom supplies".

To use a QuickList, just select the QuickList name from the QuickList menu and the predefined set of items will be marked as needed and added to the Need View. Note: the QuickList items will be appended to the Need View along with any other items that are in the Need View. In this way, you can select multiple QuickLists, like "Weekly Groceries" and "Bathroom Supplies" to add the items from both QuickLists to the Need View.

Creating QuickLists
To create a new QuickList:

1. In the All View, mark a number of Items as needed.

2. Tap the QuickList menu and select New QuickList.

3. Enter a name for the QuickList and tap OK.

Editing QuickLists
To delete or change the name of a QuickList:

1. Tap the QuickList menu and select Edit QuickList.

2. Select a QuickList name and tap Edit to rename it, or tap Delete to delete it.

3. Tap OK.

Updating QuickLists
To add or remove items from an existing QuickList:

1. In the All View, mark a number of Items as needed.

2. Tap the QuickList menu and select Update QuickList.

3. Select a QuickList name that you wish to update and tap OK.

Total

Total Menu in All View

Total Menu in Need View

The Total Menu on the bottom right of the All and Need Views show the total of all the items currently in view. The Total is calculated as Quantity x Price x Tax Rate. The Total Menu changes context depending on whether you are in the All View or Need View, so that you can see the total of all items Needed, just the Uncompleted ones, and so on. Note: In order to calculate Total Completed, you must be Showing Completed Items in Need View, as specified in Preferences.

Preferences

Menu Icon in Graffiti area

Preferences Menu Command

Preferences Dialog

You can customize many options in PDA Shopping Lists. Tap the Menu Icon to the left of the Graffiti area to display the Options Menu and choose Preferences, to access the following options:

• Show Completed in Need View - Select this option if you wish to show completed items in the Need View. Note: if you select this option, you must manually clear the completed items from the Need View by selecting Clear Completed from the Options Menu. Otherwise, when this option is turned off, items are automatically cleared from the Need View when you check them off as completed. 

• Sort Completed Items at Bottom - Select this option if you wish to sort completed items at the bottom of the Need View. Note: You must be showing Completed Items in Need View (see above) for this option to work.

• Show Decimals in Price Column - Deselecting this option will hide the decimal display in the price column, thereby reducing the size of the price column in List View. Note: the actual price is still used to calculate the Total, even when the decimals are hidden.

• Show Total - Displays the Total of the currently displayed items (Quantity x Price x Tax Rate). See Total for more info.

• Mark Edited Items as Needed - If this option is selected, any items you edit (by opening the Item Details dialog and tapping OK) will be marked as Needed.

• Mark New Items as Taxable - If this option is selected, any new items you create will have the "Tax" checkbox pre-selected in Item Details. Note: The Tax Rate is specified in the List Info dialog. The tax rate will be calculated into the Total for any Items that have the Tax checkbox selected.

Columns

Menu Icon in Graffiti area

Show Columns Menu

Show Columns Dialog

You can customize the column display of the List View in PDA Shopping Lists. Tap the Menu Icon to the left of the Graffiti area to display the Options Menu and choose Show Columns. In the Show Columns dialog you may choose to show or hide the following columns: Store, Category, Custom 1, Custom 2, Quantity, Units, Price, Coupon and Note.

Once a column is displayed you may:

• Sort -  a column by tapping the column header. Tap again to reverse sort.

• Resize -  a column by dragging the left or right edge of the column header.

Colors

Choose Row/Header Color

Each List can be displayed with a unique row color, which makes it easier to distinguish between different Lists. To change the row color of a List, select Choose Row Color from the Options Menu and choose a new color from the color picker. Black & White devices running Palm OS 3.5 or later can choose from 16 shades of gray. You can turn off the row coloring by setting the color to white. You can change the header color as well by selecting Choose Header Color from the Options Menu.

Item Details

Item Details Dialog

To create an Item, tap the New button in the List View. The Item Details dialog appears. You may fill in the following fields:

• Item: You may enter a name (e.g., Bread, Milk, Eggs, etc.) in the Item field using graffiti (see Auto-Fill) or by selecting from the popup menu of memorized items (see Editing Memorized Items).

• Store: You may enter a name (e.g., Albertsons, Costco, Safeway, etc.) in the Store field or select --MULTIPLE-- if the Item is available at multiple stores (see Stores for more info).

• Category: You may enter a name (e.g., Dairy, Fruits, Vegetables, etc.) in the Category field.

• Custom 1: You may enter a name (e.g., a description like Whole Wheat, Low Fat, Large, etc.) in the Custom 1 field.

• Custom 2: You may enter a name (e.g., an aisle number like 1A, 3B, 3A, etc.) in the Custom 2 field.

• Qty: Select 1-9 from the popup list or enter a different number via Graffiti.

• Unit: You may select a unit description from the popup list, or edit the list of choices by selecting Edit Units.

• Price: You may enter the unit price of the item.

• Coupon: Select this checkbox to indicate that you have a coupon for the item. If you are showing the Coupon column, a scissors () icon will be displayed next to the Item in the List view (see Coupons for more info).

• Auto-Delete: Normally items that are marked as completed in the Need view are removed from the Need view but remain in the All view so that you can mark them as needed again in the future. Select Auto-Delete if you want to automatically delete the item once it has been marked as completed in the Need view. This is convenient for one-time purchase or on-sale items.

• Tax: Select this checkbox to indicate that the Item is taxable. Note: You must set a Tax Rate in List Info, if you wish to calculate tax into the Total cost (Qty x Price x Tax Rate) for all items marked as taxable.

• Note: Tap the Note button to enter a note.

Stores

The Store Menu is similar to the Category menu, in that it can be used to filter the view to only show Items assigned to a specific Store. But unlike Categories, you can assign multiple Stores to a single Item. For example, an Apple can be assigned to only one category (Fruit) but it can be assigned to multiple Stores (Safeway, Albertsons, Costco, etc.). In addition, if desired, you can track prices on a per-store basis, in order to determine which store offers the best overall value.

To assign an Item to multiple stores, select "--MULTIPLE--" from the Store Menu to display the Stores dialog where you can assign up to eight stores for an item. If you select "Track Per-Store Prices" in the List Info dialog, additional columns will appear allowing you to track Aisles (Custom 2) and Prices on a per-store basis.

You may use the Store Menu on the top left of the List View to filter the list by Store. When viewing All Stores, and "Track Per-Store Prices" has been selected in List Info, the lowest priced entry (Store name, Aisle and Price) will be displayed. If you select a specific Store from the Store Menu (e.g., Safeway), the list will display only Items available at that Store, and the selected Store's Aisle and Price will be displayed. If it is the Store with the lowest price for that Item, the price will be displayed in black, otherwise the price will be displayed in red.

Coupons

You may select the Coupon checkbox in Item Details to indicate that you have a coupon for an item. If you are showing the Coupon column, a scissors () icon will be displayed next to the Item in the List view. You may use the Coupon checkbox as a general means of marking items that are on sale or, if you are tracking prices, you can use the coupon to track the amount of the discount as follows:

• For general purposes: Mark an existing item with the coupon checkbox, then show coupons in the List View as a visual reminder that you have a coupon for that item.

• Or, for tracking the amount of the discount: Create a new Coupon Item (e.g., Cola Coupon) with a negative Price (this will reduce the Total amount displayed at the bottom of the List View). You may also wish to mark the Item as Auto-Delete, since the coupon will no longer exist once you use it.

• Or, for recording the amount of a discounted item: Create a new Item (e.g., Cola) and give it a price equal to its normal price minus the discount. You can mark the Coupon checkbox as a visual indicator that you have a coupon or it's on sale, and you may mark the Auto-Delete checkbox, since the item will no longer be on-sale once you redeem the coupon.

Auto-Fill

PDA Shopping Lists makes it easy to enter frequently needed items. It remembers items you've entered previously and auto-fills them for you. When entering text into the Item, Store, Category, Custom 1 or Custom 2 fields, PDA Shopping Lists will attempt to auto-fill the text for you based on matching data previously entered in those fields. For example if you write the letter "A" in the Item field, PDA Shopping Lists will auto-fill the field with a previously entered Item that starts with the letter "A", like "Apple". You can accept the auto-fill text by entering a Graffiti return character (back slash), tapping another field or tapping OK.

Memorized Items

Items, Stores, Categories, and Custom fields are memorized automatically as you enter them into PDA Shopping Lists. You can then select them from the popup lists that appear in the Item Details dialog. You can add, edit or delete Memorized Items, as follows:

Select Edit Items from the Item popup menu in the Item Details dialog. The Edit Items dialog is displayed.

• To create a new Item, tap New.

• To change the spelling of an Item, select the Item and tap Edit.

• To remove an Item, select the Item and tap Delete.

Deleting Items

Normally, items are not deleted from PDA Shopping Lists and remain in the All View so that you can easily add them to the Need View in the future. However, you may delete items that you no longer want to keep in the All View, as follows:

Deleting a single Item
Tap an Item to open the Item Details dialog, and tap the Delete button.

Deleting a group of Items
You may delete all items that are not needed, as follows:

1. In the All View, select a category that contains the items you want to delete.

2. Mark the items you want to keep as needed, and the items you want to delete as unneeded. 

3. Tap the Menu Icon to display the Options Menu and select Delete Unneeded.

Auto-Delete
Normally, items that are marked as completed in the Need view are removed from the Need view but remain in the All view so they can be marked as needed again in the future. Select Auto-Delete in the Item Details dialog if you want to automatically delete the item from the All view once it has been marked as completed in the Need view. This is convenient for Items purchased once only, or on-sale Items.

Beaming

Menu Icon in the Graffiti area

Beam Needed Menu

Beam Dialog

You may beam an entire list or just needed items to another handheld device that is running PDA Shopping Lists.

Beaming a List
You may beam an entire PDA Shopping Lists list to another handheld, as follows:

1. Open the List you wish to Beam on the sending device.

2. Tap the Menu Icon in the Graffiti area and select Beam List from the Beam Menu.

3. On the receiving device you will be asked if you want to accept the shopping list.

Beaming Needed Items
You may also beam just Needed Items from one device to another. This is ideal for spouses that each maintain their own list of needed items, and then want to combine those items on one handheld when it's time to go shopping. For example, a husband and wife may each have their own handheld with PDA Shopping Lists and mark items as needed in the Grocery List throughout the week. Then, when the husband is ready to go shopping, the wife can beam her Needed Items to the husband's handheld, and the husband's handheld will have a combined list of needed items.

You may beam Needed Items to another handheld, as follows:

1. Open the List you wish to Beam Needed Items from on the sending device.

2. Tap the Menu Icon in the Graffiti area and select Beam Needed from the Beam Menu.

3. On the receiving device you will be asked if you wish to receive the needed items into the current list. The receiving device must be running PDA Shopping Lists and it must have the list (e.g., Groceries) open, in which it wishes to receive the needed items. Note: The received items will not replace existing items with the same name-- it will just mark them as needed.

No Stylus Mode

Menu Icon in the Graffiti area

Home View Options Menu

No Stylus Mode Dialog

The No Stylus Mode is a convenient way to navigate PDA Shopping Lists without using a Stylus. No Stylus Mode allows you to use the hardware buttons to scroll the list, select Items and check them off as completed/uncompleted. This is particularly useful when using PDA Shopping Lists to check items off of your shopping list while doing your shopping. You may turn No Stylus Mode on or off in the No Stylus Mode dialog, which can be accessed by going to the Home View, tapping the Menu Icon to the left of the Graffiti area to display the Options Menu and choosing No Stylus Mode.

Menu Commands

When in the List View, tap the Menu icon to the left of the Graffiti area to display the Options Menu. The following Menu Options appear:

• List Info - Displays the List Info dialog.

• Goto Top - Scrolls the view to the top of the list.

• Goto Bottom - Scrolls the view to the bottom of the list.

• Mark All as Completed (Need View) - Marks all the items in the Need View as Completed.

• Mark All as Uncompleted (Need View) - Marks all the items in the Need View as Uncompleted. Note: This command requires that "Show Items in Need View" is selected in Preferences.

• Clear Completed (Need View) - Clears the Completed Items from the Need View. Note: This command requires that "Show Items in Need View" is selected in Preferences.

• Mark All as Needed (All View) - Marks all the items in the All View as Needed.

• Mark All as Unneeded (All View) - Marks all the items in the All View as Unneeded.

• Delete Unneeded (All View) - Deletes all the items in the All View marked as Unneeded.

• Preferences - Displays the Preferences dialog.

• Show Columns - Displays the Show Columns dialog.

• Choose Row Color - Displays the Row Color Picker.

• Choose Header Color - Displays the Header Color Picker.

• About PDA Shopping Lists - Displays the PDA Shopping Lists version number.

PDA Shopping Lists Desktop

PDA Shopping Lists Desktop is a Windows and Macintosh desktop application that provides identical functionality to PDA Shopping Lists on your Handheld plus some added features. Information is synchronized between PDA Shopping Lists on the Handheld and PDA Shopping Lists Desktop via the PDA Shopping Lists Conduit. You may find it more convenient to enter your items in PDA Shopping Lists Desktop using your keyboard and mouse, and then performing a HotSync operation to synchronize the data with PDA Shopping Lists on your Handheld. PDA Shopping Lists Desktop is virtually identical to PDA Shopping Lists on the Handheld, with the added ability to copy/paste, print and import/export as described below.

Copy/Paste

You can select multiple Items in PDA Shopping Lists desktop by clicking Items while holding down the control or shift key. Then you may copy the Items to the clipboard and paste them into another list. Or you may copy/paste Items between Users if you are syncing multiple handhelds with the same desktop by switching between users in the User Menu.

Printing

You may print your shopping lists from the desktop by selecting Print from the File Menu. PDA Shopping Lists will print whatever is displayed on screen. You may wish to customize the print format by hiding or showing columns or adjusting their width.

Import/Export

You can share information with other PDA Shopping Lists Desktop users by exporting and importing your PDA Shopping Lists records. Records can be exported/imported in several formats:

PDA Shopping Lists vShop
You may import and export PDA Shopping Lists records in PDA Shopping Lists virtual shopping list (vShop) format, which allows you to easily export and import shopping list items and share them with others. vShop files are a convenient way to share records with a coworker or spouse by exporting a vShop file and then emailing the resulting vShop file to the recipient. You can even use the vShop format as a backup mechanism by periodically exporting all of your lists in vShop format and archiving them on a backup disk.

To create a vShop file, simply display the Items that you wish to export (e.g., All View, Need View, a specific Category or Store, etc.), then select Export/vShop from the File Menu. In addition to the Items that are exported, all of the List Preferences (columns shown, field names, tax rate, etc.) are also contained in the vShop file. The recipient of the vShop file may open the file by double-clicking it or selecting Import/vShop from the File menu. When importing a vShop file, you have the option of creating a new list (which contains all of the pre-defined preferences) or importing just the records into an existing List.

CSV
You may also import and export PDA Shopping Lists records in CSV format. CSV stands for Comma Separated Values, and is a common file format readable by most spreadsheets, databases and word processors. If you wish to import a CSV file, the data must be in the following format:

Needed, Item, Store, Category, Custom1, Custom2, Qty, Unit, Price, Coupon, Auto-Delete, Tax, Notes

PDA Shopping Lists Conduit

Items may be created or edited on the Handheld or Desktop and the changes will be synchronized between the Handheld and Desktop during the next HotSync. By default information is synchronized in both directions, but you can adjust the settings, if desired, using the PDA Shopping Lists HotSync Conduit.

To open the PDA Shopping Lists Conduit, do the following:

1. Click the HotSync Manager icon in the Windows system tray and select Custom to open the Custom dialog. (On Macintosh: Launch HotSync Manager and select Conduit Settings from the HotSync menu.)

2. Double click the PDA Shopping Lists entry in the Conduit list. The PDA Shopping Lists Conduit Dialog appears.

• Synchronize the files -- Changes made on the Handheld or the Desktop will be synchronized.

• Desktop overwrites handheld -- All data on the Desktop is copied to the handheld. Any data on the Handheld will be replaced.

• Handheld overwrites Desktop -- All data on the Handheld is copied to the Desktop. Any data on the Desktop will be replaced.

• Do nothing -- Changes will not be synchronized between the Handheld and Desktop.

• Set as default -- Sets the current HotSync Action as the default.

Backups

PDA Shopping Lists data is stored on both the handheld and the desktop, and each acts as a backup of the other. So, in effect, if you lose the data on one of these devices through a catastrophic event (e.g., hard drive failure), the data will be restored to that device from the other device during your next HotSync. However, you may wish to backup your files as an additional precaution.

Handheld
Each time you perform a HotSync, your PDA Shopping Lists database files (PDBs) on the handheld are copied to the Palm Backup folder on your desktop, C:\Palm\<username>\Backup\. Each list is stored as a separate database file with the letters SpSh- preceding the list name. For example, if you have a list called Groceries, it will be stored as SpSh-Groceries.PDB in the Backup folder. You may wish to back up these files as an added precaution in case of a hard drive failure.

In the event of a hard reset, these PDBs will be automatically restored on your handheld during the next HotSync. You may also manually install these PDA Shopping Lists PDBs by double-clicking them to launch the Palm Install Tool, and then performing a HotSync.

Desktop
The PDA Shopping Lists Desktop database files are automatically saved to the PDA Shopping Lists directory on your hard drive each time you exit the application. Each List is stored as a separate file. You may back up these files as an added precaution in case of a hard drive failure. To restore one of these backed up files simply copy it back into the PDA Shopping Lists directory. Then the next time you launch PDA Shopping Lists it will open the file. These files are stored in one of the locations below depending on what operating system you are running.

PDA Shopping Lists Desktop for Windows

vShop Backups
You may also perform a manual backup of your data by periodically exporting your PDA Shopping Lists Lists in vShop format and archiving them on a backup disk. This data can be imported back into PDA Shopping Lists at a later date by simply double-clicking the vShop file.