1. Using this User-Guide

This User-Guide aims to aid users in using NUStorage to its fullest potential. In this guide, we will be guiding you through the entire process of using NUStorage, from setting it up on your system to the using the features that NUStorage offers.

If you are a new user, we recommend that you read this user guide from start to the end and follow the examples provided in the commands section to gain a better understanding of the application. If you are an experienced user, feel free to use the Table-Of-Contents to skip to the section most relevant to you.

If you see an acronym that you don’t understand, kindly refer to the glossary. If you have further questions regarding NUStorage or this User-Guide, feel free to contact us at nustorage.support@u.nus.edu.

2. Introduction

Welcome to NUStorage, a desktop application that aims to help users to manage inventory, finance transactions as well as accounts.

NUStorage revolutionises the way we can manage our inventory and finances by ridding us of cumbersome traditional means of management, such as books and folders. Instead, everything is now stored and displayed neatly in a fast and low-resource application!

NUStorage is optimised for store owners and managers who prefer to work with a command line interface (CLI) while still enjoying the visual benefits of a graphical user interface (GUI).

With proper usage, NUStorage can manage your inventory and finance records much faster than traditional GUI-based applications, streamlining your workflow and increasing productivity.

Interested? Read on to get started!

3. Quick Start Guide

  1. Ensure that you have Java 11 or above installed on your device.
  2. Download the latest release of NUStorage.jar here.
  3. Copy the .jar file to the folder you want to use as the home folder for your application.

  4. Double-click on the .jar file to start the app. The GUI should look something like this:

    Start of NUStorage

  5. The image below explains the relevant areas of the application’s interface:

    NUStorage explained

  6. Type a few commands in the command box and press enter to execute. This is small calibration test to ensure that NUStorage is working as intended.
    • Here are some sample commands you can try out to get started:
      • create_inventory i/Logitech G400 q/20 c/69 to add 20 Logitech G400 gaming mouse that cost $69 to the inventory
      • add_finance amt/120.17 to add an inbound transaction of $120.17
      • exit to exit programme
    • Refer to the list of commands below for details of each command.

4. Command Formats

This section details the notations used to specify the command formats in the commands and commands summary sections.

:information_source: Notes about the command format:

  • Words in UPPER_CASE are the parameters to be keyed-in by the user.
    • e.g. in create_inventory i/ITEM, ITEM is a parameter which can be used in this format: create_inventory i/MacBook.
  • Only parameters in square brackets are optional, all others are compulsory.
    • e.g. amt/AMOUNT [at/DATE] [TIME] can be used as the possible formats:
      • amt/200 at/2020-04-10 18:00
      • amt/200 at/2020-04-10
      • amt/200 at/18:00
      • amt/200
    • Notice that the AMOUNT field is compulsory.
  • Inputs that require date and time have specific formats.
    • Date must be formatted in YYYY-MM-DD.
    • Time must be formatted in HH:mm.
    • e.g. input of 2020-01-01 will show up as 01 Jan 2020 as the date, and 13:00 will show up as 13:00 as the time in NUStorage’s response box.
  • Parameters can be switched around.
    • They do NOT need to come in the order as specified by the formats.
      • E.g. create_item i/iPad q/100 and create_item q/100 i/iPad are both accepted.
    • Exception: commands that require the INDEX must have the INDEX directly after the command.
      • E.g. edit_inventory 1 i/newname is accepted but NOT edit_inventory i/newname 1
  • Commands with only optional fields (excluding the INDEX field) require at least one field to be filled up
    • E.g. the edit_finance command, excluding the INDEX field, has only two optional fields: amt and at. Either the amt or at fields need to be filled up.
  • Range of valid inputs:
    • Commands that are expecting an INDEX parameter must ensure that the INDEX specified is a positive, non-zero integer that is not more than the number of items on the list.
    • Parameters that expect an integer must be between 0 and 2147483647, with the exception of the update_inventory command. More details of the update_inventory command can be read here.

5. Commands

This section shows the commands that can be used with NUStorage. It is divided into three sections:

  1. Inventory commands
  2. Finance commands
  3. Universal commands

Accompanying the details of each command are figures that show an example of the command and the result of executing the command.

5.1. Inventory Commands

NUStorage supports the storage and manipulation of inventory records. The following sections detail the commands related to inventory storage, given in alphabetical order.

Commands in this section are best executed when you are in the inventory tab. If you do not know how to switch to the inventory tab, please refer to the switch between tabs section for more information.

5.1.1. Add items to inventory: create_inventory

NUStorage allows you to add and save a new inventory record. Each inventory record has a finance record tied to it.

:information_source: What this command does:

create_inventory allows us to create and store a new inventory record into the inventory list.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the create_inventory command.

Format: create_inventory i/ITEM_NAME q/QUANTITY [c/ITEM_COST]

This creates a new inventory record for the item ITEM_NAME of quantity QUANTITY. Note that QUANTITY and ITEM_COST are bounded by a minimum value of 0 and a maximum value of 2,000,000,000. QUANTITY must be an integer and ITEM_COST can have up to 2 decimal places.

For the ITEM_COST parameter:

  • If given, then a finance record will be created automatically with a total amount of ITEM_COST * QUANTITY.
  • If left empty, then an empty finance record will be created with an amount of 0.
  • If given more than 2 decimal places, it will be rounded to the nearest 2 decimal places.

Example: create_inventory i/iphone q/10 c/20

This creates a new inventory record of item iphone and quantity 10. A finance record with the total amount of 200 will be created and tied to the inventory record through the finance ID column.

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: Add inventory command example

Result: Inventory record for the item iphone of quantity 10 is added to the inventory. Add inventory result example

A corresponding finance record of total cost 200 is added to the finance account. Add inventory result example

5.1.2. Remove items from inventory: delete_inventory

Previously in the Add Inventory Records section, we have created a new inventory record, and its accompanying finance record. Now, let’s try to delete the records from NUStorage using delete_inventory.

If you are reading this section without having read the previous section, please ensure that your NUStorage application has at least one inventory record stored. If you are unclear on how to do so, refer to the Add Inventory Records section.

For the purpose of this section, we have created two other inventory records, you can add them in if you wish to. Our NUStorage now has three records as shown below: Inventory tab with three records

:information_source: What this command does:

delete_inventory allows us to delete an inventory record, and the corresponding finance record currently stored within NUStorage.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the delete_inventory command.

Format: delete_inventory INDEX

This allows us to delete the inventory record with the ID of INDEX.

Example: delete_inventory 1 deletes the inventory record with index 1.

Enter the sample command into the command box as shown below: Delete inventory command example

Result: Inventory record at index 1 is removed from the inventory list. Delete inventory result example

The corresponding finance record is also deleted. Delete inventory result example

5.1.3. Edit record in inventory: edit_inventory

Previously in the Delete Inventory Records section, we have deleted one of our inventory records. For this section, ensure that you have at least one inventory record.

If you are reading this section without having read the previous section, please ensure that your NUStorage application has at least one inventory record stored. If you are unclear on how to do so, refer to the Add Inventory Records section.

We will proceed with our example from the previous section with two records in NUStorage, you can add them in if you wish to.

Currently, our NUStorage has two records as shown below: Inventory with two records

:information_source: What this command does:

edit_inventory allows us to edit the item name, quantity or item cost of the specified record in the inventory and then update the corresponding finance record if needed.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the edit_inventory command.

Format: edit_inventory INDEX [i/ITEM_NAME] [q/QUANTITY] [c/ITEM_COST]

This allows us to change the item name, quantity and cost of the inventory record with the ID INDEX. Please be reminded that QUANTITY and ITEM_COST are bounded by a minimum value of 0 to a maximum value of 2,000,000,000.

INDEX must be the first parameter for this command.

Note that there can be no two inventory records with the same ITEM_NAME.

Example: edit_inventory 2 i/iPad q/10 c/2000 edits the inventory record at index 2.

Enter the sample command into the command box as shown below: Edit inventory command example

Result: Inventory record’s item name changed from iphone 12 to iPad, quantity changed from 100 to 10 and unit cost from 1000 to 2000. Edit inventory result example

The corresponding finance record is also updated to reflect the new total cost of 20000. Edit inventory result example

5.1.4. Find record in inventory: find_inventory

Previously in the Edit Inventory Records section, we have learnt how to edit inventory records. Now, we are going to learn how to navigate through your inventory records using the find_inventory command.

For this section, ensure that you have least three inventory records in NUStorage. This is not necessary for the functionality of this command but rather to make the outcome of the command clear. If you are having trouble adding additional inventory records, please refer to the Add Inventory Records section.

After adding enough inventory records, your list would look something like this: Inventory with three records

:information_source: What this command does:

find_inventory allows us to find a specific record using a specified keyword. If the item name of the inventory record contains the specified keyword, it will be displayed on screen. The image below highlights where the item name is: Item name location

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the find_inventory command.

Format: find_inventory KEYWORD

This allows us to find an inventory record that has an item name that contains the word KEYWORD within it.

Example: find_inventory ip finds all inventory records containing the word ip in the item name and displays them.

Enter the sample command as shown below: Edit inventory command example

Result: All inventory records with item names that contain ip are listed.

Edit inventory result example

5.1.5. List inventory records: list_inventory

Previously, in the Find Inventory Records section, we have seen how we can find specific records using a specified keyword. However, this results in NUStorage only displaying records with item names that contain the keyword. In order to revert back to the original listing, where every inventory record is listed, we can use the list_inventory command.

For this section, we will be resuming where we left off in the Find Inventory Records section.

Our NUStorage currently looks like this: Inventory after find command

Even though we have three inventory records stored, we only have two displayed as we entered a find_inventory command.

:information_source: What this command does:

list_inventory displays all stored inventory records in NUStorage.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the list_inventory command.

Format: list_inventory

This command retrieves all stored inventory records in NUStorage and display them.

Example: list_inventory

Enter the sample command as shown below: List inventory command example

Result: All inventory records are listed.

List inventory result example

5.1.6. Update inventory record: update_inventory

In the Edit Inventory Command section, we have learnt how to edit values and names of our inventory records. However, in many situations we would only need to update the quantity stored in the record based on the change in our inventory stock. It can get cumbersome if one were to have to calculate what the final quantity should be every time there is a change in inventory stock. This is where update_inventory comes in handy.

For this section, we will be continuing where we left off previous in the List Inventory Records section.

If you are reading this section without having following the examples provided in the previous sections, ensure that you have at least one inventory record stored in NUStorage. If you are having trouble adding inventory records, refer to the Add Inventory Records section.

Currently, our NUStorage looks like this: inventory with three records

:information_source: What this command does:

update_inventory allows us to update the quantity of a specified inventory record with the specified change in quantity.

NOTE: update_inventory allows for both the increase and decrease in quantity of a specified inventory record. However, the updated quantity must not only be more than zero, it must also not exceed 2 billion.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the update_inventory command.

Format: update_inventory INDEX q/CHANGE_IN_QUANTITY

This allows us to update the quantity of the inventory record with the ID of INDEX by the CHANGE_IN_QUANTITY specified.

Example: update_inventory 1 q/5 increases the quantity of the inventory with the ID of 1 by 5 and updates the linked finance record. CHANGE_IN_QUANTITY can be of negative values too, in which case it would be specifying a decrease in quantity.

Enter the sample command as shown below: List inventory command example

Result: Inventory record at 1 is updated from 30 to 35.

List inventory result example

Result: The linked finance record is also updated.

List inventory result example

5.2. Finance Commands

NUStorage supports the storage and manipulation of finance records. The following sections detail the commands related to finance storage in alphabetical order.

Commands in this section are best executed when you are in the finance tab. If you do not know how to switch to the finance tab, please refer to the switch between tabs section for more information.

NOTE: Some commands only work for stand-alone finance records (i.e. finance records that are not attached to any inventory records).

5.2.1. Add finance records: add_finance

NUStorage allows you to add and save a new finance record into the account. In the Add Inventory Record section, we have seen how a finance record is added when an inventory record is created to reflect the changes in the finance account. However, there are times that you want to create a finance record independent of any inventory records to record an influx/outflow of funds for example.

This is where add_finance comes in handy.

:information_source: What this command does:

add_finance allows us to add a stand-alone finance record into NUStorage’s.

NOTE: This command can only add a stand-alone finance record.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the add_finance command.

Format: add_finance amt/AMOUNT [at/DATE] [TIME]

This creates a new finance record of amount AMOUNT. If DATE and TIME are specified, the finance record would reflect that DATE and TIME in the record.

NOTE:

  • If the Date and Time fields are not specified, they will default to the current location’s Date and Time.
  • The Amount field will be rounded to the nearest 2 decimal place.

Example: add_finance amt/30000 at/2020-03-03

This creates a new finance record of amount 30000 on 3rd March 2020

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: Add finance command example

Result: Finance record of amount 30000 on 3rd March 2020 is added to the finance account: Add finance result example

5.2.2. Delete finance records: delete_finance

Previously, in the Add Finance Records section, we have created a finance record. Now, let’s try to delete it from NUStorage using delete_finance.

If you are reading this section without having read the previous section, please ensure that your NUStorage application has at least one finance record stored. If you are unclear on how to do so, refer to the Add Finance Records section.

:information_source: What this command does:

delete_finance allows us to delete a stand-alone finance record currently stored within NUStorage.

NOTE: This command can only delete a stand-alone finance record.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the delete_finance command.

Format: delete_finance INDEX:

This allows us to delete the finance record with the ID of INDEX.

Currently, our NUStorage only contains one record, as shown below: Finance tab finding ID

Example: delete_finance 1 deletes the finance record with index 1.

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: Delete finance command example

Result: Finance record at index 1 is removed from the finance account. Delete finance result example

5.2.3. Edit a finance record: edit_finance

Previously, in the Delete Finance Records section, we have deleted our only finance record in our application. For this section, ensure you have at least one stand-alone finance record (i.e not attached to any inventory records) stored in the application and that you are on the finance tab.

Your NUStorage application should currently look something like this:

finance with one record

:information_source: What this command does:

edit_finance allows us to edit details of the stand-alone finance records currently stored within NUStorage. Currently, with edit_finance, we are able to edit a finance record’s amount and date.

NOTE: This command can only edit a stand-alone finance record.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the edit_finance command.

Format: edit_finance INDEX [amt/AMOUNT] [at/DATE]

This allows us to change the amount and date details of the finance record with the INDEX ID.

NOTE: The Amount field will be rounded to the nearest 2 decimal place.

Example: edit_finance 1 amt/120

This changes the amount of the finance record at index 1 to 120.

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: Edit finance command example

Result: Finance amount changed from 100 to 120 while the date remains unchanged.

Edit finance result example

5.2.4. Find a finance record with a specified keyword: find_finance

Previously, in the Edit Finance Records section, we have learnt how to edit a stand-alone finance record. For this section, let us first add some more finance records to populate our finance account.

Ensure that you have at least 2 finance records, preferably with differing amounts and dates, stored in NUStorage as well as that you are in the Finance tab before proceeding. If you are having trouble adding finance records refer to the sections on Add Finance Records or Add Inventory Records.

Currently, your NUStorage application should look something like this: Finance with three records

:information_source: What this command does:

find_finance allows us to find finance records that contain the specified keyword and display them on the record panel. This command will help in the event that we have multiple records, and locating a certain finance record can get tedious.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the find_finance command.

Format: find_finance [id/ID] [aft/AFTDATE] [bef/BEFDATE] [item/YESNO]

This allows us to find all finance records with a finance ID that contains ID that were created after the date AFTDATE but before the date BEFDATE. The parameter [item/YESNO] to choose between finance records tied to inventory records, or finance records that are stand-alone (yes to find only the finance records tied to inventory records, no to find stand-alone records only).

Example: find_finance id/8 aft/2019-10-20 bef/2020-12-30 item/no

This allows us to find finance records with finance IDs that contain “8”, created place between 20th Oct 2019 to 30th Dec 2020 (inclusive) and are not linked any inventory records.

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: Find Finance Command

Result: Finance records that fit the parameters are listed. Below shows the record(s) from the image above that passes the find_finance criteria:

Find Finance Result

NOTE: Do not worry if your resulting display does not match the image above. If the records you added is not exactly the same as the ones shown above, the output would likely not be the same as well.

5.2.5. List finance records: list_finance

Previously, in the Find Finance Records section, we have learnt how to find certain finance records that contains our provided parameters. For this section, we will be reusing the examples from the Find Finance Records section.

Currently, our NUStorage should look like this: Finance after Find Command

After finding certain records, chances are we would like to display all the records again. This can be achieved using the list_finance command.

:information_source: What this command does:

list_finance displays all stored finance records in NUStorage.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the list_finance command.

Format: list_finance

This command retrieves all stored finance records in NUStorage and display them.

Example: list_finance

Enter the example command into the command box as shown below: List finance command example

Result: All finance records are listed. List finance result example

5.3. Universal Commands

The following are universal commands for navigating the application.

5.3.1. Clear records: clear

Deletes all data stored locally.

:heavy_exclamation_mark: Executing this command DELETES ALL RECORDS AND CAN NOT BE UNDONE!

Format: clear

Example: clear

When on either tab, enter the command clear and press enter to execute. Clear command example inventory Clear command example finance

Result: All records currently stored in NUStorage are deleted as seen below.

Clear command result inventory Clear command result finance

NOTE: This command can be executed even if there are no records stored in NUStorage. There will be no effects when executing this command on an empty NUStorage.

5.3.2. Quit the programme: exit

Saves data locally in a data file and exits the programme.

Format: exit

Example: exit

Exit command example

Result: Programme terminates.

5.3.3. Get help on the commands: help

Opens a help window that links to this User Guide.

Format: help

Example: help

Help command example

Result: A help window is opened as shown below, redirecting user to this User Guide. Here, you can click on the Copy URL button to copy the link to the User Guide. Simply paste this URL into a web browser of your choice and press enter to visit the User Guide.

Help command result

5.3.4. Switch tabs: switch

Switches between the inventory and finance tabs.

:information_source: Using the command: Below are instructions on how to use the switch command.

Format: switch

Example: switch

  • When on the inventory tab, execute the command switch to switch to the finance tab.
    1. Make sure you are on the inventory tab first.
    2. Then, type in the command as shown below and press enter to execute the command. Switch from inventory to finance 1
    3. You should see the window changing to the finance tab, as shown below. Switch from inventory to finance 1


  • When on the finance tab, execute the command switch to switch to the inventory tab.
    1. Make sure you are on the finance tab first.
    2. Then, type in the command as shown below and press enter to execute the command. Switch from finance to inventory 1
    3. You should see the window changing to the inventory tab, as shown below. Switch from finance to inventory 1

Result: Tabs switched.

5.3.5. Undo/Redo the previous command: undo/redo[coming in v2.0]

[This feature is planned for v2.0]

Undo or redo the previous command.

Format: undo or redo

Example: undo or redo

Result: The previous command is undone / redone.

6. Commands Summary

This section gives a summarised view of the commands available in NUStorage.

6.1. Inventory Commands Summary

The following table gives a summary of the inventory commands for quick reference and look-ups.

Description Command and Example
Create inventory create_inventory i/ITEM q/QUANTITY [c/ITEM_COST]
e.g. create_inventory i/MacBook pro q/200 c/50
Delete inventory delete_inventory INDEX
e.g. delete_inventory 4
Edit inventory edit_inventory INDEX [i/ITEM_NAME] [q/QUANTITY] [c/ITEM_COST]
e.g. edit_inventory 3 i/Lenovo Y50 q/10 c/20.5
Find inventory find_inventory KEYWORD
e.g. find_inventory ipad
List inventory list_inventory
Update Inventory update_inventory INDEX q/CHANGE_QUANTITY
e.g. update_inventory 1 q/50

6.2. Finance Commands Summary

The following table gives a summary of the finance commands for quick reference and look-ups.

Description Command and Example
Add finance add_finance amt/AMOUNT [at/DATE] [TIME]
e.g. add_finance amt/420.69 at/2020-04-23
Delete finance delete_finance INDEX
e.g. delete_finance 2
Edit finance edit_finance INDEX [amt/AMOUNT] [at/DATE] [TIME]
e.g. edit_finance 1 amt/120 at/2020-10-01
Find finance find_finance [id/ID] [aft/DATE] [bef/DATE] [item/YESNO]
e.g. find_finance id/10 aft/2019-10-30 bef/2020-03-23 item/yes
List finance list_finance

6.3. Universal Commands Summary

The following table gives a summary of the universal commands for quick reference and look-ups.

Description Command and Example
Clear records clear
Exit programme exit
Help help
Switch tabs switch

7. FAQs

This section answers some of the frequently asked questions.

7.1. How do I migrate the data to another computer?

:heavy_exclamation_mark: Doing so will OVERWRITE the existing data you may have on the other device. Please make sure you make a backup before migrating data.

Steps to migrate data:

  1. Locate the data files under the directory (folder) ./data. The data files are names inventory.json and financeAccount.json.
  2. Copy the files to the other device.
  3. Place the two files under the directory ./data.
  4. Restart NUStorage on the other device to load the data.

7.2. How do I combine data from two devices?

Currently, NUStorage does not support the merging of data between different devices. NUStorage only supports moving of data from one device to another. Please see FAQ 7.1 regarding how to migrate data.

7.3. Can I directly modify the storage file?

:heavy_exclamation_mark: Manually editing data in the storage file may result in a TOTAL LOSS OF DATA!

Modifying the storage file is possible but NOT RECOMMENDED!

8. Glossary and Terms

  1. CLI: command line interface.
  2. GUI: graphical user interface.
  3. .jar: The file type that NUStorage is released in. This is similar to the .exe files in Windows and .app files in MacOS.
  4. stand-alone finance records: Finance records that are not attached to any inventory records.