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**ADVISOR Program**

**Quick Reference Guide**

**I. [Overview]{.underline}**

ADVISOR is a computer based training application which covers the VA
major benefit programs. Each module includes training text on
eligibility requirements, application procedures and processing flow,
entitlement, rates, payments and assessment testing. ADVISOR allows
Veterans Service Representatives (VSRs) and/or other users to learn
facts about veterans\' benefits. Because ADVISOR is delivered through
your computer, you can learn about veterans\' benefits without leaving
your office, or even your desk!

ADVISOR includes a computer based "User Guide" which is the first
training module. If you are a first time user we recommend that you
complete all lessons in this module. The following pages offer a quick
reference guide to ADVISOR.

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**II.** **[Program Main Areas]{.underline}**

ADVISOR contains 4 main areas designed to help you get started learning.
You may choose to review any or all of these topics at a quick pace
using this reference guide or a slower pace using the computer based
User Guide. The first button, in the computer based user guide
**"Getting** **Started",** simply directs first time users to this
lesson. This Getting Started lesson was designed to familiarize you with
the overall layout and acquaint you with some basic features.

The first area of the title page, is **\"Lessons**,**\"** which contains
lessons and topics that

cover each of the main benefit areas.

The second area, **\"Scenarios,\"** gives you the chance to \"watch\"
some counseling\\

sessions with experienced VSRs and callers.

The third area, **\"Self-Assessment,\"** gives you direct access to
almost all of the

multiple-choice questions that have been prepared through Advisor.

The fourth area, **\"Student Disk Utilities,\"** allows you to do
certain tasks related to

your student diskette.

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**III. [Individual Student Diskette]{.underline}**

A.  **[Information Mode]{.underline}**

The Information Mode is used to access and reference information
contained in ADVISOR in

a quick way without regard to the teaching/training method of a student
diskette. Information mode does not track student scores, bookmarks or
topics. Individuals should use

this option for informational purposes only.

**B. [Training Mode]{.underline}**

ADVISOR uses a student diskette for many purposes. The Training Mode
requires the use of

a student diskette, which is created to keep record of your scores,
bookmarks and

checkmarks that identify topics that have been completed.

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**[Remember]{.underline}:** The student data files are used by ADVISOR
to store:

\* Lesson Quiz scores

\* Scenario scores

\* Self-Assessment results

\* Check marks for topic and scenario completion

\* Bookmarks

While you\'re working in ADVISOR, leave your diskette in the disk drive.
ADVISOR will

read data from and write data to the disk when needed; there\'s nothing
that you have to do other than to:

**Insert the diskette when you first start the**

**program and remove the disk when you finish.**

**C. [Student Disk Utilities]{.underline}**

**1. [Disk Options]{.underline}**

In Advisor, the \"Student Disk Utilities\" contains these

options:

\* Create New Student File

\* Check Student File

\* Send Student File to Group File

\* Group Management

\* Guidelines for Student Diskette Creation

**2. [User Information]{.underline}**

During the student disk creation process**,** ADVISOR checks for any
existing student files.

You can have only one student file per diskette. You must confirm any
overwriting of

existing files after new User Information is supplied.

When you create a new student diskette ADVISOR asks for the following
information to

record on the diskette via the User Information screen:

**\"Social Security Number\",\
\"Name\",\
\"Group Directory\",\
\"Are you a Group Administrator?\",\
\"Press When Done\"**

**3. [Check Student File]{.underline}**

Use this button to ensure that you have the correct

diskette in the disk drive.

Each time a new student disk is created you are asked to supply your
name and social

security number for identification purposes.

This information is written to the diskette and is later used to
identify your student records

in the group files.

When you select this button, ADVISOR reads the student name from the
disk currently

being used.

**Select:**

**Yes\.....if the name is correct.**

**No\...\...if the name is not correct.**

If you select **\"No\"** you will be prompted to insert another student
disk.

**4. [Send Student File to Group File]{.underline}**

Use this button to send your student files to the group report
directory.

ADVISOR makes a copy of your Lesson Quiz scores to date and stores them
for use in

producing the Group Report.

You may send your Lesson Quiz scores to the group report directory as
often as you

wish. Only the latest scores are retained.

Your Training Coordinator will tell you when a new Group Report is to be
printed and

request that you \"send your scores\" when appropriate.

**5. [The Group Status Report]{.underline}**

**Advisor Group Status Report shows summary information only.**

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**IV. [Using ADVISOR]{.underline}**

**A. Navigating through** ADVISOR **Screens**

1.  Entering and Exiting - The most basic skill to using any application
    is knowing how to

get IN and OUT of it. To enter ADVISOR**,** you click on the *ICON.*

2.  Exiting - Exiting ADVISOR is almost as easy as Entering. If you\'re
    an experienced

Windows user, you already know that you can exit an application by
double-clicking

on its Control-menu box.

3.  Another way to exit ADVISOR is through the Go To option. The Go To
    option

    provides another \"doorway\" through which you can exit ADVISOR.

4.  Moving Forwards and Backwards. - The red and blue arrows enable you
    to move

> backward and forward in ADVISOR. You may or may not have noticed that
> the text on these arrows change according to where you are in a
> lesson.

For example, when you are on the first page of a lesson, the return
(red) arrow is

labeled \"Prev Section.\" Once you have moved past the first page of a
topic the arrow

is labeled "Prev Page".

5.  Using Page Up and Page Down - The \"PgUp\" and \"PgDn\" keys
    function the same as

your red and blue arrows. You can also use your keyboard to navigate
through most

of ADVISOR.

**PgUp (or PAGE UP) moves you backward**

**PgDn (or PAGE DOWN) moves you forward**

**B. [Learning Support Features]{.underline}**

There are several learning support features available. The navigation
bar across the top of the

screen provides access to the following areas of ADVISOR:

1.  **[Examples]{.underline}** - The Examples button is an optional
    feature that you can use to help

clarify the text. To use Examples, simply click on the blue Examples
button when

it is shown.

One or more examples are displayed each time the Example button
displays.

Calling up an example is just that simple.

An example describes a case or short story of what is being talked about
in the

text.

2.  **[Related Topics]{.underline}** - When this button displays,
    ADVISOR is telling you there is another topic, or topics, that
    relates to what you are reading. You\'ll find that you can really
    travel with this button. For example. . .Pretend that you\'re now in
    a topic about how a particular benefit may be available to those who
    have a certain

disability rating.

You might be curious about ratings and what they are and may want to
look at the

topic that explains ratings and how multiple ratings are handled.

You could do this easily by using this feature called \"Related
Topics\".

**a) [How to get back]{.underline} -** You always come back to your

originating page by clicking on the bright blue \"Return\" arrow. This
makes it

hard to get lost when you use Related Topics. When you are visiting a
Related

Topic and wish to return, click on the bright blue \"Return\" arrow to
get back.

The Related Topic feature always takes you to the FIRST page, or screen,
of

the related topic. Keep in mind that the information you\'re looking for
may be

on the second or subsequent page of that topic.

b.  **[Related Topic Restrictions]{.underline} -** Don\'t worry about
    getting lost when using

the Related Topic. Advisor protects you from straying too far from your

originating topic. Also, while in a Related Topic, you **CANNOT**:

\<\> Go to another Related Topic.

\<\> Answer the Practice Questions.

\<\> Use the Go To options.

If you should forget about these restrictions, don\'t worry. Nothing

catastrophic happens if you try to do something that isn\'t allowed in a
Related

Topic. Rather, a message displays reminding you that you\'re in a
Related

Topic.

**Desk Tools -** ADVISOR offers you a job reference system. You can use
the

Desk Tool option such as dictionary, fact sheets and form query as a
quick

reference system.

**C. [Fact Sheet Feature]{.underline}**

**1. [Gaining Access to Fact Sheets]{.underline}**

The Desk Tools button gives you access to several kinds of quick-look-up
type

information that you can use anytime. The first item on the Desk Tools
menu is Fact

Sheets.

When you double-click on \"Fact Sheets,\" a scrollable list of titles
displays. These are the

titles of the various Fact Sheets.

When the fact sheet titles display, scroll through the list and open a
fact sheet of your

choice. To open a fact sheet, simply double-click on the title, or,
highlight the title then

press the \"Show Fact Sheet\" button.

Fact sheet titles are displayed alphabetically. You can move quickly to
a fact sheet at the

middle or bottom of the list by pressing the first letter of the title.
When you close, or

leave, a fact sheet, you are always back in the same place that you were
before you opened

the tool.

2.  **[\"Finding Fact Sheets While in Lessons\"]{.underline}**

The ADVISOR fact sheets were developed in conjunction with certain
lessons.

When a particular fact sheet is discussed in a lesson, the lesson
provides you immediate

access to that particular fact sheet. We do this by putting the fact
sheet title

button at the bottom left corner of the screen.

The Fact Sheet option under Desk Tools gives you access to the same fact
sheets used in

the lessons, but it lets you decide which one to view. There\'s one fact
sheet that is

different from the others. It\'s called: **\"! Advisor Update !\".**
This fact sheet gives

you a summary of the changes made in both the Advisor curriculum
information and

feature. Check out this fact sheet to see what\'s new!

**Remember**, you can access fact sheets from any place inside
Advisor - - except

when taking a Self-Assessment.

**D. [Pacing Yourself]{.underline}**

Advisor has been designed to give you control over what to study and
when to study and at

the same time offer a structured learning experience. Any suggested
prerequisites are

mentioned right in the text. You can choose whether or not to follow the
advice given.

Advisor is self-paced \-- you can go as fast or as slow as you\'d like.
Advisor is individualized

you can revisit lessons, topics, scenarios as often as you\'d like.

All of Advisor\'s lessons have been structured into a logical learning
sequence. This does not

mean that you must take all lessons in the order shown.

**E. [ADVISOR Program - A Windows Application]{.underline}**

Keep in mind that Advisor is a Windows application. This means that you
can run

Advisor concurrently with other applications.

You can also \"shrink\" Advisor out of your way when you\'re not using
it and retrieve it on

demand. Your Windows User Guide tells you how to do this \-- it\'s
called \"reducing an

application window to an icon.\"

**V. [Working in Lessons]{.underline}**

**\*\* [User Guide explains how to complete the training modules in
further detail]{.underline}.**

A.  **[Modules]{.underline}**

ADVISOR is designed in MODULES. Modules may be completed in any

order, however we recommend completing the modules in top to bottom
order. ADVISOR

includes a "USER Guide" which is the first Training Module. We recommend
that you

complete all the lessons in this module before using ADVISOR.

[ADVISOR **Program (Modules)**]{.underline}

-   **User Guide**

-   **Disability Compensation**

-   **Pension (Live)**

-   **Death Benefits**

-   **Education**

-   **Vocational Rehabilitation**

-   **Medical/Dental**

-   **Insurance**

-   **Loan Guaranty**

    **B. [Lessons ]{.underline}**

    A lesson is an instructional unit that contains two or more closely
    related topics.

    All lessons in ADVISOR present information that relates to a
    Veteran\'s Service

    Representatives (VSRs) job according to topics. Navigating through a
    lesson is simple: you

    can press the red and blue arrows to move backwards and forwards.
    These arrows are

    located in the lower right corner of your screen. There are several
    instructional features that are unique to ADVISOR lessons. These
    features were designed to help you as you study

    each benefit area.

    **[ADVISOR Program (Lessons)]{.underline}**

-   **Eligibility Requirements**

-   **Application Procedures and Processing Flow**

-   **Entitlement**

-   **Rates**

-   **Payments**

-   **Benchmarks**

**C. [GO TO Option]{.underline}**

**1. [GO TO Navigational Device]{.underline}**

GO TO is one of the main navigational devices for ADVISOR**.** Click
once

on the GO TO button to display the list of options. To return back to
this page,

simply click back on the text which you are reading. The GO TO feature
is available

throughout all areas of ADVISOR.

**\* Go To**

The Go To button is used to get from place to place in Advisor. The menu
choices that

appear under Go To change depending on where you are at the time you
click on this

button.

**2. [Go To Bookmark]{.underline}**

From the title page you can go to another place in Advisor . such as
Lessons, Scenarios,

or Self-Assessment. Click on the GO TO while in a lesson, and your
options are:

**[Bookmark]{.underline}** - Use Bookmarks to move directly to a lesson
page upon which

you have previously set a bookmark. Bookmark is a feature in Advisor
that lets

you leave bookmarks in places that you choose and that you name.

Once a bookmark is placed, you can jump right to that spot at anytime
when

Advisor is running. Using bookmarks will be similar to the way you might
use

yellow sticky notes as tabs or other fast find devices that you create
yourself.

Just like paper tabs that you might make to mark important places in
manuals or

reference books, you can mark places in Advisor. The bookmark labels are
words

and phrases that you create. Because of this, you can find your
bookmarks

quickly.

Your bookmark labels are stored on your personal Advisor diskette. You
are the

only one who has access to your bookmarks.

**To set a bookmark**:

1\. Choose Desk Tools, Bookmark

2\. Click on a bookmark title. All titles will be blank when you first

start.

3\. Key in the text for your bookmark.

4\. Press OK.

**3. [Go To Other Options]{.underline}**

Click on **GO TO** while in lessons, and you have the following options:

**a. Score Card** - Score Card allows you to see the last three scores
of your

lesson quizzes.

**b. Status Report** - Status Report provides a listing of the lesson
topics

completed.

**c. Self-Assessment Results** - Self-Assessment Results allows you to
see the

results of your assessment and the date of the last test.

d.  **Lesson Table of Contents** - This option takes you back to the
    list of lessons

> for the module. From the Lesson Table of Contents page, you can choose
> another lesson to enter, or press the red arrow to return to the
> Module Table of Contents.

**e. Module Table of Contents** - Allows you to select the list of
modules.

ADVISOR has ten modules.

**f. Title Page** - Choose this option to go to Advisor\'s title page
(the one with

the people standing in front of the flag).

**g.** **Exit to Windows/DOS** - Choose this option to exit the Advisor
program.

VI. **[Practice Questions and Quizzes]{.underline}**

**A. [Practice Questions]{.underline}**

Another feature common to all lessons is \"Practice Questions.\" Each
topic in the Advisor

lesson ends with Practice Questions. All Advisor questions are currently
multiple-choice and

true-false.

Practice questions were designed to let you:

\(1\) test yourself on the information you just learned, and

\(2\) browse other answers that you might think are correct.

**B. [Lesson Quiz]{.underline}**

Another feature that is common to most lessons is \"Lesson Quiz\". Most
lessons end with a

Summary/Quiz.

Summary and quiz are accessible directly from the Lesson Preface page
should you wish

to try a quiz without taking the lesson.

Some people refer to this type of option as a \"pre-test.\" These quiz
items are scored. That is, only your first answer is scored.

Lesson Quiz Scoring - At the end of the lesson quiz you\'ll receive a
percentage score.

This score will be saved on your personal score card. You score card
saves only the last three

quiz scores from each lesson. This allows you to review your progress
over a period of time

**VII. [Working in Scenarios]{.underline}**

**A. [Scenario Area]{.underline}**

You can access VSR Scenarios by selecting \"Scenarios\" from the title
page. A menu,

consisting of the available scenario titles will display. Double-click
on a title to enter that

scenario.

After you select a scenario from inside the scenario area, you will see
a short description of the problem that will be played out through the
scenario. Each scenario has been

designed to give you the impression that you are \"watching\" a
conversation

between a Veterans\' Service Representative and another person.

Depending on what\'s happening in the scenario, this other person could
be a veteran,

dependent, or other caller.

**B. [Scenario Features]{.underline}**

Before you begin watching a scenario, take a look at the scenario
situation.

To do this, click on the **SITUATION** button. The **SITUATION**
describes some

background on the caller and sets up the scene for you.

Once a scenario is activated you can:

\<\> Use the red and blue arrows to move the conversation forward,

and backward if necessary.

\<\> Review the references.

\<\> Access any information available under Desk Tools.

\<\> Answer questions about the scenario.

**C. [Scenario References]{.underline}**

A scenario reference is a little different from what you\'ll see in the
Advisor lessons

under the Introduction topic called References.

In a scenario, a reference is anything that the VSR might use during
that particular

scenario to provide more information.

For example, in order to answer the caller\'s questions, the VSR might
look at

**\<\> a Target (BDN) screen,**

**\<\> a WIPP list,**

**\<\> or some other reference**.

A "scenario narrator tells you when it\'s time to look at a reference.
The narrator also

explains certain things to you as the scenario progresses

**D. [Scenario Questions]{.underline}**

You get involved in the scenario by answering questions about what is
going on and

why. Periodically, Advisor stops a scenario to ask you a question. These
questions are

multiple-choice and true-false.

Read them closely! Unlike the questions in the lessons, scenario
questions may have more

than one \"right\" answer.