This is a software package written by an SCA herald, for the use of SCA heralds. That said, anyone can download and use it, if they wish ... It is "freeware". Unless you're a herald, it's not too likely you will find this of much use, but ...

Please keep in mind the phrase "You get what you pay for ..." -- in this case, I hope that you won't be disappointed, but I cannot 100% guarantee that everything will work the way you want it to, or expect it to; I cannot guarantee it is completely bug free (although lord knows, I've tried!). Note that I am interested in usability suggestions -- if there's something you think could be done in an easier to use way, or an enhancement that will help, please feel free to drop me a note (Email address is at the bottom of the page ...).

The purpose of this software is to make it possible to search the huge amount of Precedents created by past Laurel Sovereigns of Arms of the SCA. What are Precedents? They are rulings that help clarify the rules for submission, and other aspects of the SCA's College of Arms.

The reason this software was written is that the precedents as they can be found currently on the Laurel website, are in several files, and finding precedents affecting one specific topic can be difficult at best.

This is a Windows-based software package, so if you are not using Windows, at the moment you are out of luck, although it is my understanding others are working on similar software for other platforms.

If interested in seeing screen shots of what this looks like to see if it's worth your time: Screen Shots.

It should be noted that the actual Laurel Precedents are online at the Laurel Sovereign of Arms website: http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/precedents.html and can be viewed there, in their entirety. This is where the precedents included in this database came from.

New to Version 2.1:

• A slightly different look -- new icons and such.
• Removed the Beta button on the form ...

Instructions:

1. Download the software (see below) -- note it will take a long time, as the executable for the install program is approx. 12.5 megabytes in size. A good portion of this is the installer for the Borland Database Engine -- I have no control over that, sorry. Note: There are two different downloads here.

   Option 1 (the big one): Precedents Installer -- Download this if you have a good internet connection.

   Option 2 (smaller files): For those with problems downloading HUGE files, this will take a bit longer, but if you download all of the following, one at a time, you can deal with "recovery" if a problem occurs. Note that you must have all 10 files listed below for the install to work properly:

   Precedents_Small.exe
   Precedents_Small-1.bin
   Precedents_Small-2.bin
   Precedents_Small-3.bin
   Precedents_Small-4.bin
   Precedents_Small-5.bin
   Precedents_Small-6.bin
   Precedents_Small-7.bin
   Precedents_Small-8.bin
   Precedents_Small-9.bin

2. When the program is done downloading, run the program "Precedents.exe" OR "Precedents_Small.exe". As noted, if you do the smaller downloads, you need all 10 files total, and they need to all be in the same location.

3. Warning: It is not a good idea to install this on a network -- unlike SQL databases, a result set from a query will attempt to return the whole database, not just the result set, which will slow it down, and on a network can cause a bottleneck. It is best to install on a local machine, and is really what it was designed for.

4. Installation: When you run this, it will install some of the program pretty quickly, and then it will change to a black screen with the dBASE Plus Runtime and Borland BDE installer. Just click "OK" or "Next" on the various options, and this should run fine.

   If the install stops on you and does not go to the black screen, then the Microsoft Anti-Spyware program may be causing some conflict(s). The solution found by Donald Schroyer is to start Windows XP in SAFE mode (when booting the computer, press and hold F8 ...), run the install, and then reboot the computer to go back to normal mode. This is a pain, but it appears that Microsoft's software is causing some sort of a problem with this installer.

5. Please read the "README.HTM" file that is in the program group created (double-click it, or once the program is started, use the 'Help' menu ...).

6. If you have any problems, please let me know, see the Contact information below.

The Data

The data for this will be updated when "official" versions of Precedents are released.

There are no updates to the data at this time. (The full install of the software above includes the current data ...)

First, I make no claims that the software is perfect, but I did put a lot of work into it. If you have a problem with it, please drop me an email (address below) with details -- preferably with exact steps to reproduce the problem.

Second, I am always interested in suggestions for ways to improve the software. I may think you have a great idea and run with it, I may ask a bunch of questions if you toss an idea at me, but ... I am interested.

Hirsch von Henford is a companion of the Orders of the Laurel and the Pelican in the West Kingdom, a Baron of the Court of the West, and holds a variety of other honors and awards over the 25 years or so he's been in the SCA. In addition, during his career in the SCA he has been a herald most of that time, and has held positions including Principality Herald (Stellanordica and Sea Wolf) for two of the West's Principalities, a variety of Kingdom staff positions, including a tenure as Vesper Principal Herald. Currently he is the Golem Herald for the West Kingdom (handling the Herald's website, award list, and a variety of other computer oriented things).

Ken Mayer (Hirsch's real-world alter-ego) was a Software Quality Assurance Engineer for dBASE, Inc. (see below if interested), testing the software for flaws. Many projects written for the SCA have helped find bugs in the software, so in the process of writing this software, I was actually doing my job as well (nice trick, eh?). Currently I am surviving (barely) as an independent developer.

If you really want more info about me, see: http://www.goldenstag.net or you can visit my business site: Golden Stag Productions.