Notes from the Editor

This has been a very busy month. I have had a few things going on for the group and for computers, but the most that I have had is for my business. I have been building furniture for the last month. That DOES mean that I have been using some of the programs that are still available for the 2068 to help RUN my business. For example, the ARTWORX program from NovelSoft, a graphics drawing program, has come in quite handy for figuring out “shop drawings” for the pieces that need to be glued up and cut from solid wood or plywood. This is an essential part of figuring out the best way to produce the most from the least amount of wood. It also helps to figure out the difficult spots that I might come across in the building process.

I have also been using a spreadsheet, the OMNICALC2 program, for figuring out the cost factors, profit margins, labor costs, and overhead charges. It also helps to keep a check on the figures that I need to know from my suppliers as to the cost of lumber per hundred board feet and the ‘break’ that you get from buying over the one hundred board feet figure. 1 also keep figures on the number of pieces of plywood necessary for each piece that I produce and the time it should ordinarily take. Of course, I also use it for keeping track of all of the necessary figures for the accountant that I use at “tax time”.

The only other program in full use is a word processor, MSCRIPT V5.2. This is great for writing letters to supplies and for writing out the invoice forms and the contracts that the people need to sign before I can get to work. (Before I used a “standard” form but had to change so much of it that I wrote my own-maybe I will have some actually printed up someday.)

So, you might say that my 2068 has come in very handy for helping me keep track of my business-that also means that I have a very good excuse for using my computer.