Getting Started

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Who is Linda Bellville?

When the program is installed, a fictitious teacher named Linda F. Bellville is the current teacher. She has a few students with a few grades in various subjects. This sample data allows you to try out all of the program's features without having to set up grading data of your own. Feel free to explore all the menus and their associated windows. Make and change as many entries as you want. When you are ready to establish your own grading data, see the topic Replacing Linda Bellville (below) and the topics under "Setting Up the Teacher," the first of which is Teacher Setup Items.

This Grade Point trial version is a fully functioning program. You will have 30 days to use and evaluate the program before you need to register. Please take your time and explore the program thoroughly before you make your decision to purchase.



Help is Nearby

There are several ways to get help when working with Grade Point. Please see the topic Getting Help for a discussion of the various help functions.

Replacing Linda Bellville

When you are ready to establish your own grading data, you should create your own grading database. You should not simply edit Linda's information and replace it with your own. The example database is stored in the same area of your hard drive as the program. Your real grading data should be stored in an area that is more easily accessible. This will make it easier to perform data backups, or to move the data to another machine if that's ever necessary. To create your own grading database:

1.

Create a new database by selecting New, Teacher Database from the File menu.

2.

You will be asked to save the new database right away. A standard Save As dialog box will open, prompting you to provide a name for your new grading database. Use its navigational controls to place your new database where you want it, or accept the default location, which is your personal folder. Because the program will create over 50 files when it creates the new database, it is a good idea to choose an empty folder or create an empty folder to contain your database files. The contents of your database folder should never be disturbed. Never save other files inside this folder, and never use file management controls to delete or rename any of the files within it.

3.

After saving the new database, you will be returned to the main window. You might notice that some of the menu choices are disabled (grayed). They will not function until the program is set up. For example, the Grades menu cannot be used until you establish subjects, grading schemes, and a student list. To begin this process, select Teacher from the Setup menu. The teacher Setup window will appear. This window has a series of tabs along the top. Each tab displays a series of controls that set up one aspect of the program. To access tabs that are not visible, use the scroll arrows in the top-right corner of the window.

4.

If you need help, click the question mark button, then click the control you want to know about. A pop up help topic pertaining to the control you've selected will appear .

      

5.

After you have entered the needed information on the teacher setup tabs, the rest of the program menus will be enabled.