HOW TO USE ADVANCED CHECKLIST
Advanced Checklist Version 1.5


[Description]

This is a Fly! II add-on that provides a more robust checklist feature. Advanced 
Checklist files are constructed using the XML format (and so your Internet 
Explorer browser can actually read them). Advanced Checklist files are therefore 
customizable. This version supports checklists for multiple aircraft and 
provides a certain level of fault tolerance to badly formatted checklist files. 
This version also provides an editor tool that can be used to create and edit 
Advanced Checklist files. Finally, this version supports both sound effects and
check item notes.


[Version History]

Version 1.0

	Initial Release
	
Version 1.1

	Added support for multiple aircraft checklists.
	Enhanced error-checking and recovery.
	
Version 1.2

	Added Checklist Editor.
	Enhanced error-checking and recovery.
	
Version 1.3

	Added sound effects support.
	Added notes window.
	Added minimize/maximize checklist.
	Enhanced error-checking and recovery.

Version 1.4

	Added subchecklists.
	Added ability to skip checklist items.
	Added Print capability into Editor.
	Added "LCR" format import/export for bulk text editing.
	
Version 1.5

	Added keyboard support for "Check", "Reset", and "Notes" buttons.
	Added keyboard support that selects the next checklist.
	Added Malibu Mirage, King Air B200, and TBM 700 Checklists.
	Various minor bug fixes.


[Preinstallation]

If you have installed version 1.0, please remove the CheckList.xml file from the 
Fly! II\system folder.

If you have installed version 1.1 or better, nothing needs to be done 
specifically. However, if you have edited any checklist files that were 
provided, you may want to copy them to a safe place so that they don't get 
overwritten.

This add-in requires the Microsoft XML 3.0 parser. It can be obtained via 
download from Microsoft.


[Installation]

Unzip the file to your Fly! II folder. Make sure that you use folder names 
during the file decompression. All of the files will be put where necessary.


[Using Advanced Checklist]

Press the F10 (this is the default key assignment). You should see a checklist 
window that has an empty popup menu, three buttons, and an empty list in the 
middle. 

To start using a checklist, click on the "Load Checklist..." button. This will 
bring up a new window that has a list of XML checklist files that are stored in 
the Fly! II\Checklists folder. Select one of the files and click the "Open" 
button. If anything goes wrong, an alert will popup and you will be given the 
opportunity to either choose another file or click the "Cancel" button. 

If you have successfully loaded a checklist, you should see some data in the 
checklist window. First, you will see the aircraft to which the checklists 
available in the popup menu apply.  The highlighted text field between the popup 
menu and the list of check items is the action that needs to be taken. The list 
item below the current action are the remaining tasks to be completed. As you 
press the "check" button, items will be popped off the list to become the new 
action to take. Eventually, the list will be eliminated and you will be rewarded 
with the "Checklist Complete" message. You can check off the current check item 
via the keyboard if you map a key to the "Advanced Checklist Check" key 
assignment found in the "Global Keys" category.

If you want to skip over checklist items, click on the item that you wish to 
skip to within the list box. The "check" button will become the "skip" button. 
Clicking on the "skip" button will cause the intervening checklist items to be 
skipped over and the highlighted checklist item to become the active checklist 
item. Clicking on the topmost checklist item causes the "skip" button to become 
the "check" button.

If you want to restart the current checklist, click on the "reset" button and 
the list will reappear from the start. The current checklist can be reset via 
the keyboard if you map a key to the "Advanced Checklist Reset" key assignment 
found in the "Global Keys" category.

The "notes" button (located between the "check" button and the popup menu) is 
used to display a window consisting of notes that are specific to the current 
check item. This window may be dismissed and recalled at will. It also dismisses 
if the checklist window itself is dismissed. Finally, it is recalled when the 
checklist window is recalled just in case it had been visible when the checklist 
window was last dismissed. The notes window can be invoked and dismissed via the 
keyboard if you map a key to the "Advanced Checklist Notes" key assignment found 
in the "Global Keys" category.

To switch lists, simply select one from the popup menu and a different checklist 
will appear. The next checklist in the list of checklists can be called up via 
the keyboard if you map a key to the "Advanced Checklist Next" key assignment 
found in the "Global Keys" category.

The checklist window can be dismissed and recalled at any time and will retain 
its position within whichever checklist you are working through. The minimize 
button now works, giving you a view that takes up a bit less real estate on the 
window.

The key assigment (F10) can be changed and can be found under the "Global Keys" 
assignment category as "Advanced Checklist".

The available key assignments are:

Category	Function Name			Default
===============================================================
Global Keys	Advanced Checklist		F10
		Advanced Checklist Check
		Advanced Checklist Next
		Advanced Checklist Notes
		Advanced Checklist Reset


[Using Advanced Checklist Editor]

The Advanced Checklist Editor is a (at least I hope it is) intuitively obvious 
tool that will allow you to create and edit Advanced Checklist files. The style 
of interface is similar to many of the windows tools that you are probably 
familiar with. In any case, here's a quick run down of the things you'll likely 
want to do and how to do it:

To create a new Advanced Checklist project:

Use File|New (or the keyboard shortcut CTRL-N). You will be offered a screen 
that requires you to enter the project name (i.e., the Aircraft for which the 
checklist file applies). In addition, you can choose to have some basic 
checklists preconfigured. These are Before Engine Start, Starting Engine, Run 
Up, Line Up, Takeoff, Top of Climb, Top of Descent, After Landing, and Shutdown. 
These default checklists will be empty, but you can at least start adding check 
items right away.

If you already have a project open and there were changes to that project, you 
will be asked whether or not you wish to save it.

To open an already existing Advanced Checklist project:

Use File|Open (or the keyboard shortcut CTRL-O). Choose a checklist file using 
the Open dialog. Once you click OK (or press return), the checklist file will be 
loaded and you can start editing the project.

If you already have a project open and there were changes to that project, you 
will be asked whether or not you wish to save it.

To close a project:

Use File|Close. If there were changes to the project, you will be asked whether 
or not you wish to save it.

To save a project:

Use either File|Save (or the keyboard shortcut CTRL-S) or File|Save As. These 
work as you would expect them to.

To exit the editor:

Use File|Exit. If there were changes to the project, you will be asked whether 
or not you wish to save it.

To add a checklist:

Use Project|Add Checklist (or the keyboard shortcut SHIFT-CTRL-A) or you can use 
the (new) item of the checklists combo-box. You will be required to enter a 
checklist name and optionally a sound file that will be played (pending the 
implementation in CheckList.DLL) as you begin running through a checklist.

To add a check item to a checklist that is highlighted in the checklists combo-
box:

Use the Add button on the right-hand side of the screen (or the keyboard 
shortcut (CTRL-A). You will be required to enter a challenge string and a 
response string. These will be joined in the Fly! II Checklist window as: 
<challenge> - <response>. They are separate, here, so that you can easily get a 
feel for the challenge/response flow of the procedures and checklists. You can 
also (optionally) enter a sound file and notes for the check item.

If you want to reorder the check items of the currently viewed, highlight the 
item you wish moved and click on the Move Up and/or Move Down buttons. You can 
also use the keyboard shortcuts CTRL-U and CTRL-D, respectively.

You can also reorder the checklists, by using Project|Organize Checklists. A 
dialog will offer you the opportunity to organize the order in which the 
checklists will appear in the Fly! II Checklist window's pop-up menu.

There is a keyboard reference that can be viewed using Help|Keyboard Reference. 

The print function now works and can be invoked using CTRL-P or by way of the 
File menu.

Once you have a checklist file that you are satisfied with, you deploy it by 
copying it to the Fly! II\Checklists folder.

The rest should be fairly straightforward.


[LCR File Format]

Editing checklist files within the checklist editor is reasonably efficient if 
you already have a substantial portion of the checklist complete. It is not very 
efficient for creating checklists from scratch. Consequently, I devised a very 
simple, but efficient, file format for creating and editing checklists. Files 
adhering to this file format can be imported into the checklist editor and then 
saved as XML files for deployment in the Checklists folder. Here are the rules
for building LCR Checklist files:

1) Every line must be preceded by a two character identifier.

2) The possible two character identifiers are:

	"A:" - aircraft name
	"B:" - line break used to separate subsections of a procedure
	"C:" - checklist item challenge
	"L:" - checklist name (starts a new checklist)
	"N:" - checklist item notes
	"P:" - checklist pause used to signal that a procedure needs to wait 
	       until some condition is met
	"Q:" - checklist query used to determine if some portion of a procedure
	       needs to be skipped over.
	"R:" - checklist item response
	"S:" - sound file
	"X+" - checklist separator used to add a separator between checklists in 
	       the Fly! II popup menu.
	"Z:" - checklist link used to cause a procedure to goto a subchecklist.
	
3) The "A:" tag must be the first line of the file (it is optional in that it
   can be omitted, but if present in the file it must be the first tag line).
   
   	A:Boeing 777-200IGW
   	
4) Each occurrence of an "L:" tag starts a new checklist.

	L:Before Start
	
5) If you want to insert a separator before a particular checklist, the "X+"
   tag must immediately follow the "L:" tag
   
   	L:Before Start
   	X+

6) If you want to add sound effects to the beginning of a checklist (e.g., you
   might record and have played back "Okay. Let's go through the Before Start 
   procedure"), optionally add the "S:" tag after both the "L:" and optional 
   "X+" tags.
   
   	L:Before Start
   	S:before start.wav
   	
   	L:Before Takeoff Checklist
   	X+
   	S:btcheck.wav
   	
7) There are five different checklist item types:

	C:/R:	challenge/response
	Q:/R:	query/response
	P:	pause
	B:	line-break
	Z:	checklist link
	
8) Each checklist item type may be optionally followed by a "S:" and/or a "N:"
   in that order.
   
   	Q:Aircraft Is Already Powered
   	R:Aircraft Powered
   	
   	B:Aircraft Powered
   	N:This is the line-break that is referred to by the query above.
   	
   	C:Bus Tie Switches
   	R:AUTO
   	S:bus tie switches.wav
   	
   	P:Transition Level
   	S:wait until tl.wav
   	N:This procedure is now on hold until the transition level is reached.
   	
   	Z:Before Takeoff Checklist
   	
9) The checklist link must "point" to a valid checklist. When the checklist link
   checklist item is encountered, the "check" button changes to the "goto" 
   button. Clicking on the "goto" button causes Fly! II to change checklists 
   automatically. When the subchecklist is complete, the button will change to
   the "return" button. Clicking on the "return" button, returns you to the 
   original checklist with the item following the checklist link being the new
   active item.
	   	
10) The easiest way to get a feel for the LCR format is to study the "Boeing 
    757-200 (avec 777 checklists).txt" provided in the Checklist Projects 
    folder.
   
   
   	
Enjoy !
Tony Crider
tony.crider@cox.net
