Introduction

About Fireworkz

Fireworkz is part of the Z family of applications from Colton Software. It is compatible with documents created in other members of this family such as Fireworkz Pro (as Fireworkz, but with additional database facilities) and the earlier Wordz (a stand-alone word processing application) and Resultz (a stand-alone spreadsheet application).

You can use Fireworkz as a word processor to write letters, reports, books, invitations, shopping lists, schedules and other documents.

You can use Fireworkz as a spreadsheet to perform calculations, analyse figures, and produce colourful charts.

Fireworkz further combines these two functions enabling you to do even more that you could with separate word processing and spreadsheet applications - incorporate live results in your reports, or automatic mail-merge to your friends or customers, for example.

Once you have learned how to use Fireworkz on one platform, RISC OS for instance, you should find it easy to use on any other platform, such as Windows, as it has been designed to be as similar as possible on each platform.

About this Guide

What you need to use Fireworkz

This Guide assumes that you are already reasonably familiar with the way your computer works. If you are new to computing, or to RISC OS or Windows, you are advised to familiarise yourself both with the relevant terminology and the basics of using your computer. You will need to know how to:

You should understand terms such as directory, double-click, and dialogue box.

You will find all this information in the RISC OS User Guide and Windows documentation provided with your computer. The tutorial chapters in the Getting Started Guide also provide a reminder of these skills.

Technical terms used in this guide are explained when they first appear, and in the Glossary at the end. However, you should also refer to the documenation which came with your computer for the basic vocabulary used to describe parts of your computer and the tasks you can do with it.

What you will learn from this Guide

This Guide provides a complete reference for all the menu commands and on-screen buttons in Fireworkz, so that if you have any questions while you are doing your own work you will quickly be able to find the answer.

Separate sections cover each subject in detail.

RISC OS conventions used in this Guide

There are set terms used to describe many of the parts of your computer, the objects displayed on screen and tasks you will carry out.

The mouse

The three buttons on your mouse each perform separate functions, and their names reflect this. Their names are:

Many actions using the mouse are performed by clicking or double-clicking an object. To do this, position the pointer over the required object (e.g. the Fireworkz application icon) and press and release Select (the left-hand button) once or twice respectively.

Pressing Menu (the middle button) with the pointer inside a Fireworkz window displays the main menu, from which you may choose an option by pointing at it and clicking with Select.

Adjust (the right-hand button) can be used to access some short-cuts and more sophisticated functions.

Windows conventions used in this Guide

There are set terms used to describe many of the parts of your computer, the objects displayed on screen and tasks you will carry out.

The mouse

Fireworkz uses the left button of the Windows mouse (or its equivalents on any trackball or any alternative pointing device which you use). When Fireworkz was designed in the early 1990s, the right-hand mouse button was reserved for use by OLE, and has since been used for context menus. Fireworkz does not use this button. For some special operations you will need to press the Ctrl key and the left mouse button.