Form Consolidation 


1.7 FORM CONSOLIDATION 
 
     FREEFORM provides a facility for numerical consolidation of multi-page
Forms.  Consolidation sequencing is not preset and may be changed at will. 
Typical applications for consolidation would be instances where the same data
is prepared for multiple entities and the summation to one or more overall
entity levels is desired. 
 
     Prior to Form definition of a multi-page Form, consider the extra pages
needed to serve as 'scratch pads' for what-if consolidations and add these to
the total number of pages required during a Form definition. 
 
   To envoke the Form CONSOLIDATE procedure select menu option number 5. 
 
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          F R E E F O R M   The Electronic Worksheet  [F.4] 
          ========================================== 
                                        June 24, 1981
 
 
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          5.  Consolidation Utility        <======== CONSOLIDATE routine 
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          Enter desired option # _      Press ESC to leave 
 
     ********************************************************************* 
 
     Once the program has loaded, the screen will clear and a new title will be 
displayed. 
 
     F R E E F O R M   C O N S O L I D A T I O N 
 
*<Note> If FREEFORM does not find a 'directory' file on its first try (FREEFORM
searches on the prefix disk unless another drive was previously specified), it 
displays an error message stating there is no directory.  If this happens, 
FREEFORM will ask if you wish to try another disk.  If so press <return>; 
otherwise type <N>.  If <return> was pressed, the program will prompt for the 
disk drive number to search in for a directory file.  After receiving a valid 
disk drive number, the program will instruct the user to insert a disk into 
that drive and press <return>. 
 
*<Note> To avoid confusion, review the Standard Keyboard Procedures
(1.1.3). 
 
     The program then displays the prompt... 
 
*** Form Name (8 alpha max.) __________    Press ESC to leave 
 
     There are three possible responses to this command.  Press <esc> to
return to the FREEFORM main menu, supply a Form name, or press <?>.  Each
time <?> is pressed FREEFORM looks at the FreeForm directory and displays a
possible Form name.  If a selected Form name is not found on the user diskette,
the prompt 
 
*** Form named <name given> not found... 
*** Try another Form name? (Y/N)  Y 
 
will appear.  The user may now try another Form name by supplying the desired
Form name in the manner previously described.  If a user chooses not to select
another Form name, by typing <N> control will return to the FREEFORM main menu. 
 
     If the Form name selected is valid, the program will operate normally and 
inform the user that the Form controls are being loaded.  Freeform then asks if
there is a control file to use.  Consolidation control files contain the 
destination page number as well as the consolidation expression to use.  To use
an existing control file the Volume name of the disk it is on and its name must
be specified.  When this has been accomplished the program will prompt: 
 
*** Enter Consolidation Page # __  (max. is XX) 
 
      Enter the page number into which the results of the consolidation are to 
be stored.  This should be done carefully to avoid unintentionally writing over
other pages. 
 
*** Enter Consolidation Control 
***=_________________________________ 
 
     A prompt is given for a calculation string which will govern the
consolidation process.  The syntax and capabilities of this calculate string
are similar to those used in defining row and column calculations.  Constants
may be specified, however, parenthesis are not permitted.  All operators are of
equal precedence and are therefore executed in left-to-right order. 
 
Examples: 
 
(1) Pages 1, 2, and 3 represent three department profit and loss statements.  A
division total profit and loss statement is requested for the three pages.  In 
FORMDEF, 4 pages are allocated; 1 for each department, and 1 for a division 
total.  The consolidation page for this problem is 4.  The calculation string 
which defines the consolidation control is 1 + 2 + 3. 
 
(2) If, on the other hand, the division total and department 1 and 2 data is 
known, the objective would be to compute or 'squeeze' department 3 data.  The 
consolidation page for this would be 3, and the appropriate calculation string 
would be 4 - 1 - 2. 
 
(3) A different Form may contain inventory in Dollar amounts on page one.  To 
get the amounts in British pounds on page two, a constant would have to exist 
containing the exchange rate for Dollars and Pounds.  Suppose C1 equals 2.1900.
The appropriate calculation string would be 2 / C1 with the consolidation page 
set to two. 
 
(4) The inventory of 12 items in seven warehouses exists.  Three of the 
warehouses are in Texas, two are in Oklahoma, and two are in Louisiana.  A
record of beginning inventory, issues, receipts, and computed ending inventory
by item in each warehouse, a total of all items in each state, and a grand
total of all warehouses has been requested.  The Form to define would consist
of 11 pages; one for each warehouse, one for each state total, and one for a
total of all warehouses.  Each page would have 12 data rows to represent each
of the 12 inventory items and one calculated row to total the 12 items, plus
three data columns in which the quantities would be entered and one column for
computing the ending inventories.  The user would probably want to sequence the
pages so the display would be most meaningful.  Any sequence will work.  Some
examples are: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
               Sequence #1         Sequence #2         Sequence #3 
            pg 1 Tex. WH 1           Tex. WH 1         Grand Tot. 
            pg 2 Tex. WH 2           Tex. WH 2         Tex. SUB 
            pg 3 Tex. WH 3           Tex. WH 3         Okl. SUB 
            pg 4 Okl. WH 1           Tex. SUB          La.  SUB
            pg 5 Okl. WH 2           Okl. WH 1         Tex. WH 1
            pg 6 La.  WH 1           Okl. WH 2         Tex. WH 2 
            pg 7 La.  WH 2           Okl. SUB          Tex. WH 3 
            pg 8 Tex. SUB            La. WH 1          Okl. WH 1 
            pg 9 Okl. SUB            La. WH 2          Okl. WH 2 
            pg10 La.  SUB            La. SUB           La . WH 1 
            pg11 Grand Tot.          Grand Tot.        La . WH 2 
 
    The consolidation controls and sequence for these cases: 
 
          8 = 1 + 2 + 3       4 = 1 + 2 + 3       2 = 5 + 6 + 7 
          9 = 4 + 5           7 = 5 + 6           3 = 8 + 9 
         10 = 6 + 7          10 = 8 + 9           4 = 10 + 11 
         11 = 8 + 9 + 10     11 = 4 + 7 + 10      1 = 2 + 3 + 4 
 
*<Note> The user may want to define an extra page to be used as a scratchpad 
for hypothetical cases;  for example, in the inventory example above, Tex. WH 1
and La. WH 2 are both within 100 miles of a customer.  What is the total supply
of item 6 available in these locations? 
 
     After the consolidation string is entered, the program will perform the 
prescribed consolidation math and rewrite the consolidation page to the Form 
data file. 
 
     When this process has completed (time required will vary with the number
of pages in the consolidation and the number of calculated rows and columns in
the Form), FREEFORM will ask if the consolidation controls used should be
saved.  It will then ask if there are more consolidations to be done with the
current Form.  When there are no more consolidations to be done with the 
current Form, FREEFORM will return to the main menu. 
 
 


