Byers, J.A. 1999. Database program to manage slides and images for teaching
and presentations. Educational Media International 36:77-80. 
pdf
John A. Byers, Alnarp, Sweden
Abstracts
English: A compiled program for DOS/Windows
manages a collection of pictures such as photographic
slides, overheads, or computer images in one or more
databases. A database is comprised of a list of lines
(screen width) beginning with the letter-number of the
slide, for example, and a short description. The program
places pictures in alphabetical order so they can be edited
or marked if missing from the collection. Key words can be
searched for in the database using Boolean logic. An
associated file can contain 10 lines of details about each
picture as edited by a built-in word processor. This
database can also be searched. Presentations can be
saved in a files with specific lists of pictures for later recall
and viewing or updating. The time to present slides in a
particular talk can be calculated and saved for later editing.
Context-sensitive help is available and the contents of this
paper can be read from the program.
Français: Un programme conçu pour DOS/Windows met en oeuvre une collection d'images telles que diapositives,
transparents, images d'ordinateur dans une ou plusieurs bases de données. Une base de données comprend une liste de lignes
(largeur d'écran) commençant par une lettre et un numéro de la diapositive par exemple et une brève description. Le
programme place les images en ordre alphabétique afin qu'elles puissent être éditées ou marquées si elles manquent dans la
collection. On peut rechercher par mots-clé pour les bases de données utilisant la logique de Boolean. Un fichier associé peut
contenir 10 lignes de détails sur chaque image comme si elle était éditées par un processer à mots intégré. On peut aussi faire
des recherches sur cette base de données. Les présentations peuvent être conservées dans des fichiers avec des listes spécifiques pour
pouvoir être reprises, revues et mises á jour. Le temps nécessaire pour présenter les diapositives pour un exposé donne
peut être calculé et conservé pour une autre présentation. Une aide est fournie dans le contexte et le
contenu de cet article peut être lu à partir du programme.
Deutsche: Ein kompiliertes Program für DOS/Windows verwaltet eine Sammlung von Bildern wie Dias, OHP-Folien oder
im Computer erzeugten Bildern in einer oder mehreren Datensammlungen. Ein Datensatz besteht aus einer Zeilenliste
(Bildschirmbreite), die mit der Signatur z.B. eines Dias sowie einer kurzen Beschrebung beginnt. Das Programm ordnet die
Bilder nach dem Alphabet, so daß sie bearbeitet oder auch markiert werden können, wenn sie in der Sammlung fehlen sollten. Mit Hilfe Boolescher Formeln kann
nach Schlagwörtern in der Datensammlung gesucht werden. Mit einem eingebauten ebenfalls gesucht werden. Präsentationen können in einem
Datensatz mit einer spezifischen Bilderliste für einen späteren präsentieren, kann berichnet und zum späteren Edintieren gespeichert werden.
Kontextsensitive Hilfe ist verfügbar, der Inhalt kann ausgelesen werden.
Introduction
Presentations at scientific meetings and conferences,
as well as teaching lectures often utilize pictures such as
photographic slides, overheads, or computer images to
illustrate the topics. Hereafter, I will refer to such pictures
as slides, since managing slide collections is one of the
most likely uses of the database program. Over the course
of one's career many hundreds of slides may be taken and
organized into a collection covering several subjects.
Without special efforts, the details concerning a particular
slide may become fuzzy or even incorrect over time.
Furthermore, slides can be misplaced, forgotten, and hard
to find when needed among several volumes of
slides.
For those seminars that are well received and finish on
time, it would be efficient and productive to note the order
and type of slides so they could be used in identical talks
later. These notes are usually not taken and thus any
triumphant slide show becomes vague and half-forgotten
when the slides are returned to their plastic viewing folders
or slide trays. Much time can be wasted reconstructing
essentially the same slide show next year, with the feeling
that maybe the order is not even as good as that
presented earlier. Another common problem is running out
of time during a slide presentation because of too many
slides. The program described here solves these common
problems by keeping a permanent record of slides in a
database that can be updated easily. The slides used in
any successful presentation can be saved for later recall
and updating. A running total of time for a particular talk
can be kept in an associated file, also for later recall and
possible modification.
Slide, overhead, and image manager program
The compiled program, SLIDES.EXE, can be run from
DOS or Windows, and begins by opening a file called
DATABASE.DBD. If this file is not present, it is created
and the user is asked to enter a name for the slide
database, e.g. SLIDES.LST. The three letter extension
must end in `LST'. If the DATABASE.DBD file contains a
name, then this name is used to open the file with the
database. The opening screen with a sample database
and the pop-up help window is shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Opening screen with sample database and help window.
The database is a random access file of 80 characters (or
bytes) for the letters and numbers of the slide plus a short
description, plus 7 bytes not shown on the screen (1 byte
for marking and 6 bytes for numbers. The numbers point
to records in an associated file containing up to 10 lines
for detailed descriptions of each entered slide. The
associated file has the same parent name and must end
in `DTA'. The program begins by displaying the first 23
lines of the slide list, unless no slides are present,
whereupon the program enters a one-line word processor
so the user can enter the first slide of the collection.
Organizing the database
Slides entered into the main database list should begin
with letters followed by numbers. Letters can be used to
categorize the collection into topics, and numbers for
ordering slides within a topic. The same letters-numbers
should be applied to the actual borders of the slide which
is stored in plastic folders or similarly labelled slide trays in
the order labelled on the slides. In the database, the
entries are ordered alphabetically among those already
present by the program, if a mistake is made then the
entry is easily deleted or edited where it is automatically
inserted alphabetically. Context-sensitive help (Figure 1)
can be obtained anywhere in the program by pressing the
[F1] key. The common scrolling keys are used to rapidly
move to any slide, even in a list of several thousand
slides.
There maximum number of slides that can be listed in a
database is 32,767; but essentially there is no practical
limit if one uses more than one database (given 8 English
letters, DOS allows 2.17 x 1011 possible ones).
Pressing [F5] allows changing of the current database to
a new one or one that already exists. Pressing any letter
on the keyboard also will take one to that category of
slides, if present in the current database.
Searching the databases
A text string can be searched for in the main slide list a
simple text-string search or a complex search using
Boolean combinations of OR and AND type
of up to 10 word strings (usually only two or three strings
are used). A case-insensitive search is then performed,
meaning that any combination of lowercase and uppercase
letters are found (unless they are non-English letters). The
first such occurrence of the matching search words are
highlighted in the appropriate section of the database, and
the next occurrence is instantly found by pressing [F4]. In
the associated database of detailed descriptions only a
single text string is allowed, as well as when reading this
paper.
Database of detailed descriptions of
pictures
Pressing [Enter] while in the main database will open the
associated database of detailed descriptions about slides
and start a word processor. This database, ending in
.DTA, is a random access file of records of 800 bytes (10
lines) with any number of records (up to 32,767). Entries
in the main database have hidden numbers which tell
which 800 byte record to associate with. It is optional to
use this database, and usually not all slides will have
associated detailed descriptions. If a description has
already been entered for a slide, then the text can be
edited, and pressing [Enter] again saves the revised
record.
Files with slide shows for talks
If the [Tab] key is pressed, then the first slide show file is
opened for editing with the name SEMINAR.1, and
successive presses of [Tab] will toggle between additional
files, if present, and the main database. A maximum of
999 SEMINAR files are possible. The slide show file editor
is visible in a window on the left of the screen so that the
main slide list is still visible. A word processor allows the
specification of a title for the talk and then a series of slide
letters-numbers separated by commas are typed in the
order of desired presentation for a talk. Pressing [Tab] or
[Enter] will return the user to the main slide list, while the
left arrow key returns one to the current SEMINAR file.
Keeping track of time for slides in talks
Pressing [F4] while in the slide show editor will open an
associated file, named SEM-TIME.1 of the same extension
number which lists the slides in the appropriate SEMINAR
file; and allows entry of estimated times needed to present
the slides giving a running total time for the talk as
updated after each time entry. With this facility there is no
reason to run out of time again and aids in organizing and
refining the crucial ideas of the talk.
In all sections of the program there is a pop-up help
window that shows the appropriate help for the section.
There is also a pop-up calendar which can be made to
show the date and weekday for any month during this
century, and even the next century (to the year 2080). This
is beneficial when recording dates and recollecting details
about the scenes in the slides.
Other programs
Commercial slide scanners are now becoming widely
available at reasonable prices and packaged software
often allows cataloging and viewing of slides. However, the
databases of the text descriptions in these programs are
usually limited and there are no facilities for listing slides
for talks or time estimations. In comparison to the actual
slides, the thumbnail images, as they are called, are of
much less quality due to the low resolutions. Also, often
there are usually many more slides in the collection than
that scanned and stored in the computer so the only really
complete database is the slide collection itself. A high
resolution scan of 1600 x 2400 pixels, which is still less
than a slide, takes up 30 megabytes of disk space which
is a drawback for many without writable CD-ROMs.
Graphical monitors and advanced operating systems, e.g.
Windows 95, that can be expensive in some countries are
not required for the software. The program operates
entirely in color text mode and DOS, although it can be
used from Windows 95. The program will bridge the time
until software and hardware make slide scanning and
storage economical and easy. It can be obtained as a ZIP
file on the internet at
(http://www.wcrl.ars.usda.gov/cec/gensoft.htm).
Summary
Presentations using slides or overheads are one of the
most common ways of communicating scientific and
educational information in the classroom or at a
conference. The program described here is able to
manage a permanent database that can be updated and
modified as photographic materials are added or removed.
Slide shows can also be saved and times calculated for
presenting the slides or overheads during a talk.
Biographical note
John Byers was educated at Colorado State University
(B.S. and M.S.) and University of California at Berkeley
(Ph.D.) before becoming an Associate Professor of Insect
Chemical Ecology at the Swedish University of Agricultural
Sciences at Alnarp. His main research interests are in
insect behavior and chemical ecology, and in computer
simulation of behavioral and ecological models.
Address for correspondence:
