Basic Instructions for using LanguageWORKS

Opening a Book of Exercises

Once you have started the program the first thing you will probably want to do will be to open a book of exercises. A book file consists of a set of tests, each of which contains a number of exercises or further tests. Book files have the file extension .BK.

To open a book:

  1. Select "Open Book" from the "File" menu. The Open Book dialog box appears.
  2. There are two ways to choose a book to open. Either:
    1. Type in the name of the book in the "Book to open" field, or
    2. Choose a book from the "Files" list. Use the "Tab" keys to move to the files list.
  3. Press "Enter", or click on the "open" button.
  4. If you don't want to open a book, press the "Esc" key or click on the cancel button.
When you open a book, the "Contents of Book" window appears. You can now choose an exercise to do.

Starting an Exercise

To start an exercise, you first need to open a book file. See the previous section if you need more information on opening a book file.

If you are using the keyboard, make sure the contents list in the book dialog is selected. If not, use the "tab" keys to select it.

Select the exercise you want to do using the arrow keys, then press "Enter", the spacebar, or "O" (the highlighted letter in the "Open Exercise" button.)

Alternatively, select an exercise with the mouse by clicking on it; double-click to open the exercise.

The exercise appears in a new window on the screen.

Moving around in an Exercise

You can answer the questions in an exercise in any order. To move from one question to the next use the up/down arrows, or click on the question you want to do with the mouse. You can also use the PgUp/PgDn keys to scroll the exercise, or, with the mouse, click on the scroll bar on the right.

Entering your Answer

Written answers are typed in at the keyboard. Spaces in the exercise expand if your answer is longer the space. You can edit your answer using "Del", the backspace key, and the left/right arrows. "Ctrl-backspace" deletes the whole answer.

In a multi-choice exercise move around the choices by clicking with the mouse, using the left/right keys, or pressing the key for the letter of the choice you want ( ie "c" or "C" to move to choice C. ) Select the choice by double-clicking, or by pressing "Enter" or the spacebar. If you change you mind, simply select a new answer - you don't have to delete the previous one first.

Marking an Exercise

You can mark either a complete exercise or just the current question you are working on.

Marking the Current Question

To mark the current question, choose "Mark current" from the "Mark" menu, or press the shortcut "Alt-C".

A dialog box appears, showing whether your answer is correct or not. If it is only partially correct it is considered incorrect. You can choose to look at the correct answer(s), or select "OK" or press "Esc" to return to the exercise and try again. You can try as many times as you want.

If you choose "Show" you a dialog will appear displaying the correct answer(s), and the mark you got for the question. Different types of exercise provide different information about the answer - see the on-line help for more information about particular exercises.

Marking the Complete Exercise

To mark a complete exercise, choose "Mark all" from the "Mark" menu, or use the shortcut "Alt-A".

You will be shown a dialog box containing your mark for the exercise and a list of the questions you got wrong. You can view the correct answers for any of these by selecting them in the list then pressing "Enter" or clicking on the "Show" button. See the previous section for details of the information provided about the answers.

Closing an Exercise

Close an exercise (or any window) by clicking on the close icon in the top left hand corner of the window or pressing "Alt-F3". You may be asked to confirm that you want to close the window.

Exiting LinguAssist

When you have finished using the program, exit by pressing "Alt-X" or choosing "Exit" from the file menu.

Other Options

For more information about using LinguAssist consult the context sensitive on-line help, available by pressing "F1" from anywhere within the program.

Where Can I Get More Help?

You can obtain more help on using LinguAssist by contacting me, Colin Mahoney, at cmahoney@readysoft.es.

I would also be pleased to hear any comments, suggestions, and criticisms you might have of the LinguAssist program.

Return to Home Page

Colin Mahoney, cmahoney@readysoft.es

Go to the SiliconValley GeoCities

Last update: 10/3/96