*** IMPORTANT -- PLEASE READ BEFORE USING MASTERCOOK II ***
This document updates information in the MasterCook II User's Manual and
provides instructions on how to obtain thousands of free recipes from the
Sierra Cooking Forum BBS. Please read this document before using
MasterCook II, or print it and save it for future use in conjunction with
the MasterCook II manual.
1. Changes to the name of the "Great Chefs" cookbook file
The "Great Chefs of America" cookbook file has been renamed to "Famous
American Chefs". "Great Chefs of America" and "Great American Chefs" are
copyrights of Great Chefs Publishing, which produces cookbooks as well as
the fine "Great Chefs" television show. We were unaware that this name was
already in use and that it had been copyrighted when we chose the name for
our collection of recipes from chefs around the country (some of whom have
appeared, it so happens, on the Great Chefs show!). To honor the "Great
Chefs" copyright we have changed the name of this cookbook file.
2. Changes to the Search Recipes command
The Search Recipes command has been changed to make it even more
user-friendly. When searching for recipes that include all of a set of
specified phrases, MasterCook formerly asked you to choose the terminology
"contains _ AND _" from the middle list box. Now, MasterCook offers the
more descriptive -- and more accurate -- "contains all of these:", to
tell the program that you wish to search for all recipes that include all
of the specified phrases. (When searching by ingredients, the terminology
has been changed from "Ingredients contain _AND_" to "Ingredients include
all of these:".)
When searching for recipes that include any of a set of specified
phrases, MasterCook formerly asked you to choose the terminology
"contains _ OR _" from the middle list box. MasterCook now asks you to
use the words "contains any of these:", to tell the program that you wish
to search for all recipes that include any of the specified phrases.
(When searching by ingredients, the terminology has been changed
from "Ingredients contain _ OR _" to "Ingredients include any of these:".)
Along the same lines, the "Logic box" -- used to tell MasterCook whether
to search for recipes that matched either all of the search lines or any
of them -- has also been changed. Now, the word "Logic" has been replaced
with "Search by", and "AND" and "OR" have been changed to "Search by all
of the criteria" and "Search by any of the criteria".
3. Nutritional Values and the Ingredients List
The MasterCook Ingredients List has been completely revised to make
it as easy as possible to use and to make its operation almost invisible
to you, the user. Now, amounts for most of the ingredients in the list
can be specified in any one of three ways: as a weight (all ingredients
in the list can be specified by weight); as a standard volume measurement
unit -- cups, teaspoons, liters, etc.; and as a whole amount -- a fillet,
a can, a package, a packet, a sprig, etc.
Some items, mostly meat and fish, can only be specified as weight
amounts; any of these items that would normally be specified as a
whole (such as a steak, breast, or fillet) also have whole amounts
provided and thus can be specified as a whole or a weight measure. A
few items -- those appearing in all capital letters in the Ingredients
List -- are almost always specified in whole amounts and thus can only
be specified as whole amounts or in weight amounts. Examples of these
items would include Dinner Rolls, Loaf of French Bread, and Bacon Slices.
All other items in the list can be specified by either a whole amount, a
volume amount, or a weight amount, and the whole amount is the form in
which the item most frequently occurs. So, for example, if you type 1
in the Amount column and "garlic" in the Ingredients column, MasterCook
will know that you mean 1 clove of garlic; but if you typed one
teaspoon -- or one tablespoon, or one cup -- of garlic, MasterCook would
know how to calculate the appropriate nutritional value for the amount
specified. The same is true for most items in the list, because the
volume measurement unit has been adjusted to account for a whole amount
of the unit. So, for example, fresh fruits and vegetables have volume
amounts based on one whole fruit or vegetable; soups, stocks, and canned
foods provide volume amounts based on one whole can of the item; frozen
vegetables provide volume amounts based on one 10 ounce package (the
most common size of a package of vegetables and the one most often
specified in recipes); etc.
While all of this sounds confusing and it seems like it will make using
the program complicated, don't worry. All of this effort has been taken
so that you can just type in your recipes as you wish and in most cases
MasterCook will make the correct judgements regarding which measurement
units to use in calculating the nutrition. It's designed so that you
don't have to worry about how you word your recipes.
4. Menu files installed by the MasterCook Install program
Because only the Great Chefs of America cookbook actually contains
menus, only that cookbook's menu file ("GREATCHE.MNU") is installed in
your /MSTRCOOK directory (or wherever you install MasterCook). The
other cookbook menu files -- "BARTENDE.MNU", "FAMILYFA.MNU", and
"KITCHENC.MNU" -- are created the first time you use the cookbook file.5. Screen colors.
If the default window and dialog box colors used by MasterCook don't look
good with your other screen color options -- or if you just don't like
them -- you can change them quickly and easily with the Preferences command
on the Tools menu.
6. Creating a degree sign (°).
Many users of earlier versions of MasterCook have called to ask us how to
create a degree sign. To do so, hold down the ALT key and press these keys
on your numeric keypad: 0176 (zero-one-seven-six). That's written
ALT-0176. Note that you must use your numeric keypad and that not all
fonts support this character.
Attention Modem Users: Sierra Cooking Forum BBS
Sierra On-Line has a public bulletin board system available for users
of MasterCook II! If you are interested in obtaining more recipes, or
perhaps sharing your own recipes with others, the BBS is a perfect place
to exchange them. It's called the Sierra Cooking Forum, and is available
24 hours a day, seven days a week. In order to connect to the BBS, you
will need a modem and terminal software. Set your terminal for no parity,
8 data bits, 1 stop bit, full duplex, and dial (512)327-9814. Baud rates
up to 28,800 bps are supported.
In addition to the file areas, there are message forums where users can
exchange general information and tips regarding the use of MasterCook II.
Many of the recipes previously posted on commercial on-line services as
well as the Internet will also be echoed on the bulletin board, making
it easy for you to collect a wide variety of recipes.
There is no charge for using the BBS other than the cost of your own
long distance service.
Attention Internet Users: MasterCook WEB Site
Sierra On-Line has an Internet WEB site available at the following
address - http://www.mastercook.com. Information regarding MasterCook
is available and also a recipe collection for downloading.
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