Smeadlink Administrator`s Guide

Transcription

Contents
System Administrator's Guide
i
ii
Contents
No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without prior written permission from Records Management Automation Group, LLC (RMAG). The information in this document and the product it describes are subject to change without
notice. Companies, names and data used in examples herein are fictitious unless
otherwise noted. The software program described in this document is provided to
its users pursuant to a license or nondisclosure agreement. Such software program may only be used, copied or reproduced pursuant to the terms of such agreement. This manual does not contain or represent any commitment of any kind on
the part of RMAG.
© 2002 Records Management Automation Group, LLC. All rights reserved.
Smeadlink is a trademark of Smead Manufacturing Company.
Other products and company names herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Printed and bound in the United States of America.
iii
Contents
Smeadlink System
Administrator's Guide
Contents
Read Me First! .............................................................................. 1
Introduction .................................................................................... 1
1. Introduction to Smeadlink ......................................................... 5
Administrative Utilities .............................................................. 5
Introduction ..............................................................................6
About Your Smeadlink System .................................................7
New Features in Smeadlink .......................................................8
Smeadlink Administrative Utilities ............................................9
2. Opening a Smeadlink Program ............................................... 31
Introduction ............................................................................ 32
Opening a Smeadlink Program ................................................ 33
Using Smeadlink General Options .......................................... 40
Opening an Add-In from a Smeadlink Program ....................... 44
Using Smeadlink Help ............................................................. 45
Viewing Version and Registration Information ....................... 47
Exiting a Smeadlink Program ................................................... 48
3. Introduction to Security Manager .......................................... 49
Introduction ............................................................................ 50
Basic Security Manager Terms ............................................... 51
Basic Security Manager Concepts ......................................... 52
4. Using Security Manager ......................................................... 59
Introduction ............................................................................ 60
Creating a Group ..................................................................... 61
Creating an Operator .............................................................. 63
Assigning Operators to Groups ............................................. 66
Removing a Group or Operator ............................................... 70
Using Network Security .......................................................... 71
Assigning Access Rights for the Groups in a Database ........ 73
iv
Contents
Printing, Exporting and Resizing the Rows in a View .............. 80
5. Using Import Wizard ................................................................ 81
Introduction ............................................................................ 82
Creating an Import for a Delimited Text File ............................ 83
Creating an Import for a Fixed Width Text File ........................ 91
Creating an Import for an Excel Object ................................. 100
Creating an Import for an Access Table ................................ 108
Setting up an Import for Importing Images ........................... 116
Creating an Import for the Denso Portable Scanner ............. 117
Modifying an Import ............................................................ 124
Creating an Import Job ......................................................... 125
Modifying an Import Job ...................................................... 127
Removing an Import or an Import Job .................................. 130
Running an Import or an Import Job ..................................... 131
6. Introduction to Directory Settings ........................................ 133
Introduction .......................................................................... 134
Directory Settings Terms ...................................................... 135
Directory Settings Concepts ................................................ 137
7. Using Directory Settings ....................................................... 141
Introduction .......................................................................... 142
Creating a Path for a Magnetic Storage Device .................... 143
Creating a Path for an Optical Storage Device ...................... 148
Creating Multiple Paths Using Shared Components ............ 154
8. Introduction to Database Map .............................................. 149
Introduction .......................................................................... 150
Basic Database Map Terms .................................................. 151
Basic Database Map Concepts ............................................ 152
9. Using Database Map ............................................................. 161
Introduction .......................................................................... 162
Working with the Database Map Tree Diagram .................... 163
Creating a Workgroup .......................................................... 167
Creating a Folder .................................................................. 170
Creating a Subfolder ............................................................. 175
Creating a Dropdown ........................................................... 178
Working with Foreign Tables ............................................... 182
Using the Field Maintenance Utility ..................................... 187
Modifying Existing Items in a Database ............................... 191
Modifying the Bar Code Search Order for the Open Database201
10. Introduction to Label Manager ........................................... 205
Introduction .......................................................................... 206
Basic Label Manager Terms .................................................. 207
Basic Label Manager Concepts ............................................ 208
Contents
v
11. Using Label Manager .......................................................... 209
Introduction .......................................................................... 210
Creating a New Label Design ............................................... 211
Creating Text Objects on a Label Design .............................. 215
Creating Bar Code Objects on a Label Design ...................... 217
Creating Field Objects on a Label Design ............................. 221
Deleting a Label Design ........................................................ 224
12. Introduction to ColorBar Label Integrator ......................... 225
Introduction .......................................................................... 226
Basic Terms for ColorBar Label Integrator ............................ 227
Basic Concepts for ColorBar Label Integrator ...................... 229
Requirements for ColorBar Label Integrator ......................... 233
13. Using ColorBar Label Integrator ........................................ 235
Creating a New Job ............................................................... 237
Modifying an Existing Job .................................................... 243
Removing an Existing Job ..................................................... 246
14. Using Data Director ............................................................ 247
Introduction .......................................................................... 248
Data Director Concepts ........................................................ 249
Creating a Format ................................................................. 251
Running a Format ................................................................. 257
15. Using Smeadlink's Administrative Utilities I ...................... 259
Introduction .......................................................................... 260
Opening the Views Utility ..................................................... 261
Saving a View ....................................................................... 262
Adjusting the View Order ..................................................... 263
Deleting a View ..................................................................... 265
Modifying the Properties of a View ...................................... 266
Opening the Columns Utility ................................................ 267
Creating a Column in a View ................................................. 268
Deleting a Column from a View ............................................. 273
Modifying the Properties of a Column in a View .................. 274
16. Using Smeadlink's Administrative Utilities II .................... 279
Introduction .......................................................................... 280
Creating an Add-In ............................................................... 281
Deleting an Add-In ............................................................... 285
Modifying an Add-In ........................................................... 286
Report Generator Concepts .................................................. 288
Steps to Creating a Formatted Report ................................... 292
Using the Column Print Properties Window ......................... 294
Using the Report Setup Window .......................................... 299
Using the Report Styles Window ......................................... 308
Opening the Report Styles Window ..................................... 309
vi
Contents
17. Directly Modifying a Smeadlink Database ........................ 323
Introduction .......................................................................... 324
Opening a Table .................................................................... 325
Executing a Script File ........................................................... 326
Executing a Single SQL Statement ........................................ 328
Compacting and Repairing a Database ................................. 329
Demonstration and Template Databases .............................. 332
Appendix A: Smeadlink System Requirements ....................... 333
Appendix B: Smeadlink User Counting .................................... 334
Read Me First!
Welcome to the Smeadlink System Administrator guide. This guide will show
you how to use all the administrative utilities in your Smeadlink system. The
first chapter introduces you to the different Smeadlink administrative utilities, and the second chapter explains how to open a Smeadlink program.
The remaining chapters in this guide are divided into sections of one or two
chapters each, and each section explains how to use an administrative utility. Utilities that are simpler to use are explained in one-chapter sections,
and utilities that are more complicated are explained in two-chapter sections.
In the sections that contain two chapters, the first chapter explains basic
concepts about the utility, and the second chapter explains how to use it. If
you are not familiar with the utility, then reading the first chapter in the
section will give you a basic understanding of what it looks like, what tasks
it is intended for and how it accomplishes those tasks. If you are already
familiar with the utility you need to use, then going straight to the second
chapter in the section will take you to the step-by-step instructions for using
it.
Introduction
1
Introduction
Welcome to Smeadlink
Welcome to Smeadlink, a complete 32-Bit modular software system for managing both paper and electronic documents. This Introduction explains the
basic information you might want to know before learning how to use
Smeadlink, such as:
• the scope of each Smeadlink manual
• installing Smeadlink
• upgrading Smeadlink in the future
• customizing Smeadlink
• Smeadlink training
• Smeadlink contact information
Note: This introduction is very similar to the introduction in the User's
Guide, because the information covered is general information that applies
to both administrators and end-users. The information is included in both
manuals so that you do not have to flip back and fourth between them. If you
have already read the introduction in the User's Guide, you may just want
to skip this introduction and go straight to chapter 1.
The Scope of each Smeadlink Manual
Your Smeadlink system comes with two manuals. This manual that you are
reading is called the System Administrator's Guide, and it is intended for the
administrator of your Smeadlink system. The second manual is called the
User's Guide, and it is intended for end users.
There are three user names that are frequently used to access Smeadlink
systems: Guest, Editor and Manager. These names give three degrees of user
access to the programs in the system. Guest allows you to view a Smeadlink
program’s main contents and make nonpermanent changes to the program,
Editor allows you to edit tables or rows in the program and Manager allows
you to make permanent changes to the program’s appearance or default settings.
Introduction
2
The purpose of the User's Guide is to explain how to use the modules and
features that are available in Smeadlink when you log in with the standard
Guest or Editor user names. This includes everything a typical user will use
in Smeadlink. The User's Guide assumes that you have a basic knowledge of
Windows®-based programs, but it does not assume that you have any prior
knowledge of records management software.
The purpose of this manual is to explain how to use the administrative utilities that are available in Smeadlink when you log in with the standard
Manager user name. This includes all the tools needed for setup, maintenance and repair of your Smeadlink system. This manual assumes that you
have a basic knowledge of Windows-based programs and networking, but
it does not assume that you have any prior knowledge of records management software.
Installing Smeadlink
This manual and the User's Guide both assume that your Smeadlink system
has already been correctly installed. Smeadlink systems are typically installed by Smeadlink dealers. The dealer who installs your system should be
the one who sold you the system, and who worked with you to design and
build the database that your system will use.
In some cases, Smeadlink systems are installed by RMAG Services Development Representatives (SDR's). This usually occurs when a customer has
RMAG Professional Services design and build a database for them, instead
of having the database done by the dealer.
Upgrading Smeadlink in the Future
Every Smeadlink system sold comes with a maintenance contract. The contract describes how much support the customer can receive from the dealer
or RMAG Professional Services, and it describes how long the customer will
be entitled to free version upgrades. The actual terms of your contract will
depend on which dealer you purchased your system from, and which terms
you agreed on with the dealer.
Introduction
3
When a new version of Smeadlink is released, all customers with current
maintenance contracts will be sent a free upgrade package. The package will
include a CD with the new Smeadlink program (.exe file) on it, manuals expanded to include the latest features in the new version, and any white
papers necessary to explain specific setup issues or system requirements for
the new version. The customer can then either install the upgrade themselves using the white papers as a guide, or they can have the upgrade
professionally installed. Professional installation is available from both dealers and Smead Software Support.
In addition to upgrading to new versions as they are released, you may also
want to expand the capabilities of your existing system by adding one or
more new modules. For instance, you may originally purchase Smeadlink for
bar code tracking, but later on decide you would like to use it for imaging as
well. In this case, you would need to add the Imaging module to your existing
Smeadlink system. If you do decide to add one or more modules, then you
can purchase the additional modules through your dealer at any time.
Smeadlink Training
To get the most out of their Smeadlink system, many companies purchase
professional training for their employees who will be using Smeadlink on a
regular basis. Professional training is currently offered by authorized resellers
and by Smead Software Support, and it explains how to use both the enduser features and the administrative features in Smeadlink. For more information about Smeadlink training, contact your dealer or Smead Software
Support at (800) 800-6131.
Introduction
4
Smeadlink Contact Information
Technical Support
To obtain technical support for your Smeadlink system, contact your authorized Smeadlink reseller. For information about resellers in your area, call
Phone: (800) 800-6131
Sales Information
If you are interested in sales information about Smeadlink, Smead Sales can
be contacted by phone or email. The phone number and email address for
Smead Sales are both listed below.
Phone: (800) 216-3832
Email: [email protected]
On the Web
Once your Smeadlink system is installed, the latest version of each Smeadlink
program can be downloaded from the Smeadlink Web site shown below.
Website: www.smeadlink.com
Introduction to Smeadlink Administrative Utilities
1. Introduction to Smeadlink
Administrative Utilities
Chapter contents
Introduction
About Your Smeadlink System
New Features in Smeadlink
Smeadlink Administrative Utilities
5
Chapter 1
6
Introduction
Every Smeadlink system comes with a number of administrative utilities.
Some of these utilities are separate programs, and some of them are additional components that become available in end-user programs when you log
in with the standard Manager user name. These administrative utilities allow
you to set up and maintain a Smeadlink system—there is no longer any need
to use an external program such as Microsoft® Access to perform setup and
maintenance tasks.
This chapter will introduce you to Smeadlink in general and to the administrative utilities in your Smeadlink system. The first section explains all the
basic components that make up a Smeadlink system, and the second section
explains the new features that were added to Smeadlink in the latest version.
The last section includes a brief summary of each administrative utility in
Smeadlink. By the end of this chapter, you should have a good basic idea
about what administrative utilities are included with each Smeadlink system,
and how they work together with the other components in Smeadlink.
Once you have been introduced to Smeadlink and its administrative utilities
in this chapter, then chapter 2 will show you how to open Smeadlink. You
will learn the general procedure that can be used to open any Smeadlink
program, including both end-user programs and administrative utilities. Chapter 2 will also explain some general features that all Smeadlink programs
have in common. For instance, you will learn how to set Smeadlink general
options, which can be used to remember information about previous
Smeadlink sessions.
After you finish chapter 2, you will know how to open any Smeadlink program. The remaining chapters in this manual are divided into sections of
one or two chapters each, and each section explains how to use an administrative utility. Utilities that are simpler to use are explained in one-chapter
sections, and utilities that are more complicated are explained in two-chapter sections.
In the sections that contain two chapters, the first chapter explains basic
concepts about the utility, and the second chapter explains how to use it. If
you are not familiar with the utility, then reading the first chapter in the
section will give you a basic understanding of what it looks like, what tasks
it is intended for and how it accomplishes those tasks. If you are already
familiar with the utility you need to use, then going straight to the second
chapter in the section will take you to the step-by-step instructions for using
it.
7
About Your Smeadlink System
Note: This section is identical to the section About Your Smeadlink System
in chapter 1 of the User's Guide. The information is included here because it
applies to administrators as well as end-users. If you have already read the
section About Your Smeadlink System in the User's Guide, then you may
want to skip this section.
Smeadlink is a complete 32-Bit modular software system for managing both
electronic and paper documents. The main module in Smeadlink is a powerful database browsing program. Smeadlink uses an intuitive system to organize rows of data and display them in a way that is both informative and easy
to use. You can add additional modules to your Smeadlink system to enhance its functionality and give it the features that best fit your application.
Each Smeadlink system includes a start-up screen, a database, any optional
modules to enhance the Smeadlink's functionality, and a number of administrative utilities. The start-up screen is the central hub of your Smeadlink
system. It is the tool you will use to locate and view data. All data that is
specific to your Smeadlink application is contained in a file called a database. In order to view data in the start-up screen or other Smeadlink programs, you will need to open the database that contains the data you wish to
view.
To enhance the capabilities of Smeadlink, systems usually include one or
more optional modules. Unlike the start-up screen module, which only includes the one module, these optional modules include several components
each. The first component in each optional module is a separate program for
data input. The remaining components are add-on utilities for Smeadlink
that allow you to view data that was input with the first component. For
instance, the Smeadlink Imaging module includes the Scanner program and
an image viewer for the start-up screen. The Scanner program allows you to
scan images of paper or electronic documents into Smeadlink, and the image
viewer allows you to view the scanned images in Smeadlink.
Note: The start-up screen and the other end-user modules can be accessed
with the standard Guest and Editor user names, so they are not explained in
this manual. For more information about them, see the User's Guide.
Finally, each Smeadlink system includes a number of administrative utilities. Together, these utilities allow you to perform setup and maintenance on
your Smeadlink system. For instance, the Security Manager utility allows
you to create the user names and passwords that can be used to access your
system, and the Database Toolkit utility allows you to repair your database
if it becomes corrupted.
Chapter 1
8
New Features in Smeadlink
Note: This section is identical to the section New Features in Smeadlink in
chapter 1 of the User's Guide. The information is included here because it
applies to administrators as well as end-users. If you have already read the
section New Features in Smeadlink in the User's Guide, then you may want
to skip this section and go to the next section in this chapter.
This version of Smeadlink contains enhancements to the user interface and
additional options designed to make Smeadlink even more effective and
efficient for users in the document management industry. The new features
are summarized below:
• Enhanced records management
• Additional indexing and tracking abilities
• Streamlined user interface
New enhancements have been implemented to simplify requesting documents, streamline retention of legal documents, and assist with bar code
tracking. Other tools now part of Smeadlink make it even easier to manage
documents electronically. These new tools include enhanced integration of
Microsoft and email documents into Smeadlink. Other special tools such as
iAccess and iPublish enable users to easily and quickly create customized
HTML pages and web-based documents.
Smeadlink now offers more options to index images, request files and track
both electronic and printed records. In addition, bar code tracking enhancements build in flexibility to add memos, fields, and even drop down menus.
Smeadlink's enhanced user interface has been designed to be intuitive, allowing even a first-time user to start working with Smeadlink's various modules immediately. The main screen is divided into three sections; a "Find"
screen for quick searches, a clickable listing of the records management
workgroups, and the active work screen, with a menu of document management options.
Another obvious enhancement to the Smeadlink program is the updated and
streamlined main screen. The tool bar at the top of the screen has been simplified, and the screen now features a smaller menu bar for workgroup use.
Users will now be able to request files, transfer files and perform a variety of
functions using the new menu bar.
9
As you learned earlier, your Smeadlink system comes with a number of
administrative utilities in addition to a database and the end-user modules
you have purchased. Some of these utilities are separate programs, and some
of them are additional components that become available in end-user programs when you log in with the standard Manager user name. These administrative utilities allow you to set up and maintain a Smeadlink system—
there is no longer any need to use an external program such as Microsoft
Access to perform setup and maintenance tasks.
There are thirteen administrative utilities currently available in Smeadlink.
Each Smeadlink system includes all thirteen utilities, regardless of which
end-user modules it comes with. The table below contains a brief description of each administrative utility in your Smeadlink system. The rest of this
section then includes a one or two page summary of each Smeadlink administrative utility. The summaries explain what each utility does, and how it
works with the other components in your Smeadlink system.
Administrative utility
Description
Security Manager
• create groups and operators for the
open Smeadlink database.
• assign operators to groups.
• assign access rights for groups.
Import Wizard
• import various types of data into the
open Smeadlink database, including
text files, images, Excel® objects,
Access® tables and ERM data.
Data Director
• automatically capture label data sent
from an external program and
import it into a Smeadlink table.
• if desired, print the captured label
data out on one of the existing label
designs for the table.
Directory Settings
• specify image output directories,
which are used to store image data
for the open Smeadlink database.
continued on the following page
Chapter 1
10
Database Map
• view and modify the table relationships in a Smeadlink database.
• add or remove fields to the tables in
a database.
Label Manager
• create label designs for printing
black-and-white labels.
ColorBar® Label Integrator
• integrate existing ColorBar label
designs with the tables in the open
Smeadlink database.
Smeadlink Columns Utility
• add, edit or remove columns from
the views in the open Smeadlink
database.
Smeadlink Views Utility
• add, edit or remove views from the
folders in the open Smeadlink
database.
Smeadlink Add-Ins Utility
• add, edit or remove add-ins from the
open Smeadlink database.
Smeadlink Report Generator Utility
• add, edit or remove a formatted
Database Toolkit
• provides direct access to all the
report from each view in the open
Smeadlink database.
tables in the open Smeadlink
database.
• allows you to directly modify the
open Smeadlink database by
executing single or multiple SQL
statements.
Database Compact and Repair
Utility
• compact and repair existing
Smeadlink databases
• update Smeadlink databases to
newer versions of Access.
• create backups of Smeadlink
databases.
11
Security Manager
Security Manager is a program that allows you to assign access rights for
your Smeadlink system. Each time a user opens your Smeadlink system,
they will need to log in to a database with a user name and a corresponding
password. The user name and password determine what components in the
database that user will have access to. For instance, if someone logs into a
Smeadlink database with the standard Editor user name and password, they
will have access to the Tracking program but they will not have access to the
Import Wizard program.
Security Manager allows you to create the different user names and passwords that can be used to access your Smeadlink database. Each user name
and the corresponding password are treated in Security Manager as one object called an operator. The first step in assigning access rights for a database is creating all the operators that will be able to access the database.
After you use Security Manager to create the different operators, the next
step is to divide all the operators into different groups. You can then specify
exactly which components in your Smeadlink database each group of operators can access. The example below shows what the Security Manager program looks like.
Security Manager program
Each Smeadlink database comes with three default operators: Guest, Editor
and Manager. These three operators are divided into three groups: Everyone
Group, Editor Group and Administrator Group. By default, the Everyone
Group includes the Guest, Editor and Manager operators, the Editor Group
contains the Editor and Manager operators and the Administrator Group includes the Manager operator.
Chapter 1
12
The three default groups come set up with the following security levels.
• The operators in the Everyone group allow you to open any end-user
program in your Smeadlink system, and make nonpermanent changes
to the program such as filtering columns.
• The operators in the Editor group allow you to open any end-user
program in your Smeadlink system, and edit tables or rows in the program.
• Finally, the operator in the Manager group allow you to open any enduser program or administrative utility in your Smeadlink system, and
make temporary or permanent changes to the program.
After you have created the operators and groups for your Smeadlink system,
you can specify which Smeadlink components each group has access to.
Security Manager displays all the components in your Smeadlink system
using a number of views, or grids. Each view contains a group of related
components. For instance, the Tables view contains a list of all the tables in
the open Smeadlink database. The example below shows what the Tables
view looks like.
Tables view in Security Manager
You can go through each component in each view, and specify which group
has access to that component. If you want every Smeadlink operator to have
access to a component, regardless of which group they are assigned to, then
you can set the component to No Security. When you are finished going
through the Security Manager views in this way, you will have specified
exactly which Smeadlink components each one of your groups can access.
13
Import Wizard
Import Wizard is a program that allows you to import various types of data
into a Smeadlink database. You can use Import Wizard to import text files,
Excel objects or Access tables into your database. You can also use special
kinds of text files to import images or tracking data from a portable scanner
(like the Denso BHT-6000) into a Smeadlink database. The example below
shows what the main Import Wizard window looks like.
Import Wizard window
The first step in using Import Wizard is to create an import load. An import
load is similar to a Scanner rule—it is a group of settings that determines
things like which file to import data from and which folder or subfolder to
import data into.
The process for creating an import load varies somewhat according to what
type of file you are creating the import for. For instance, if you are creating
an import load for a delimited text file you will need to specify what type of
character is used as a delimiter, but if you are creating an import load for a
fixed width text file you will need to manually divide the data in the file into
columns. After you specify the type of file you are creating an import load
for, Import Wizard will walk you through the appropriate process for that
type of file.
Chapter 1
14
Once you have created an import load with Import Wizard, then you will be
able to run it and import the selected data into Smeadlink. After your import
load has been run, Import Wizard will create a status report. The status report will display basic information about the import load, such as how many
rows were added to the destination folder or subfolder and how many errors
were generated during the process. The example below shows what an Import Wizard status report looks like.
Import Wizard status report
If any errors were generated when your import load was run, then they will
be written to an error log. You can view the error log after the import load
finishes, to determine exactly what errors occurred and how to solve them.
In addition to creating imports loads, Import Wizard also allows you to create import jobs. A job is a group of import loads. When you run a job, its
import loads are automatically executed in the order they were added to the
job. The capability to group import loads into jobs was added to Import
Wizard to streamline the import process when you need to run multiple import loads. Previously, you would have needed to run the first import load,
wait for it to finish, run the second import load, wait for it to finish, run the
third import load, etc. Now you can simply group the import loads into a job
and run the job.
When you run an import job, Import Wizard creates a status report and an
error log, just like it does for a standard import. Both the status report and
the error log will be divided into sections, one for each import load in the
job. Apart from the expanded status report and error log, running a job is
just like running an import load.
15
Directory Settings
Directory Settings is a program that allows you to specify which directories
on your computer can be used by Smeadlink programs for storing image
files. Image files can be either document images created in the Scanner or
PC Files programs, or ERM files created in the Import Wizard program.
Smeadlink programs do not store image files in your Smeadlink database.
They store them in designated directories elsewhere on your computer. Directory Settings is the utility for designating which directories on your computer can be used for storing image files. The example below shows what
the Directory Settings program looks like.
Directory Settings program
When you want to designate a directory for storing image files (this is called
an image output directory), you use the Directory Settings program to create
a path that points to that directory on your computer. Once the path has been
created, it will become available to other Smeadlink programs. Now when
you are using a Smeadlink program that works with image files, like the
Scanner program or the Import Wizard program, you can set the image output directory for that program using the path you created in Directory Settings.
The paths that you create in Directory Settings are made up of three components: a devices component, a volumes component and a directories component. Each path that you create in Directory Settings must include all three
components, but the way you break the path into components is completely
up to you.
16
Chapter 1
For instance, say you were setting up the Smeadlink Scanner program, and
you wanted the Scanner to save all the images it scans to the C:\sdlk\images1
directory on your computer. You could create a new path in Directory Settings, and then set C: as the devices component for the new path, \sdlk as the
volumes component and \images1 as the volumes component.
You could also set C:\sdlk as the devices component, \images1 as the volumes component and a dummy entry as the directories component. (A dummy
entry is an entry that only has a name and an ID number — it does not include any path information.) Basically, as long as the path information is
contained in at least one of the three components, you are free to enter the
path as you wish. This flexibility allows Directory Settings to model a wide
variety of directory structures.
The paths that you can create in Directory Settings are all paths for magnetic
storage devices. A magnetic device is a standard hard drive. This could either be the hard drive on your computer, or the hard drive in a server that is
part of your computer network. When you create a path in Directory Settings for a magnetic storage device, you specify the exact directory on the
device that you want to use for storing image files. The C:\sdlk\images1
example in the paragraph above is a path for a magnetic storage device.
Note: Directory Settings is a mapping utility only—it does not allow you to
create or remove directories from your computer. If you need to alter the
actual directory structure on your computer, you can use Windows Explorer®
or DOS.
17
Database Map
Database Map is a program that allows you to view and modify the table
relationships in a Smeadlink database. It displays all the workgroups, folders, subfolders and dropdowns in a database using a tree diagram similar to
Windows Explorer. Clicking on any item in the Database Map's tree diagram will bring up a popup menu that allows you to change the properties of
the item, delete it entirely or add a new item below it. You can also use the
popup menu to adjust things like the name of the item or the icon it uses. The
example below shows what the Database Map tree diagram looks like.
Database Map tree diagram
The first item in the Database Map's tree diagram is the name of the open
Smeadlink database. In the example above, the name of the open Smeadlink
database is Basic Demo. The workgroups in the open Smeadlink database
are then listed in the tree diagram immediately beneath the database item.
The Basic Demo database in the example above contains three workgroups
called Records, Tracking and Test Set.
The Records and Tracking workgroups in the example are in a fully expanded state. This means that all of the folders, subfolders and dropdowns
contained in these workgroups are visible in the Database Map's tree diagram. The Test Set workgroup, on the other hand, is in a fully collapsed
state. This means that none of the folders, subfolders and dropdowns contained in this workgroup are visible in the tree diagram. You can expand or
collapse an item in the Database Map's tree diagram just like you do in
Windows Explorer—by placing the mouse pointer over the item and doubleclicking the left mouse button, and you can also expand or collapse an item
automatically using the commands on the Database Map's View menu.
18
Chapter 1
When you place the mouse pointer over an item in the tree diagram and click
the right mouse button once, one of several popup menus will appear. As you
learned earlier, these popup menus contain commands that you can use to
modify the selected item. For instance, you can use the commands to rename
an item or to change the icon that it uses. In addition to modifying the selected item in the tree diagram, however, you can also use the popup menus
to create a new item beneath the selected item. For instance, if you opened a
popup menu from a workgroup item, you could use it to create a new folder in
that workgroup.
Typically, the Database Map program is used for making minor changes to
an existing database. For instance, you could use it to quickly change the
background color of a folder or to add a new folder to an existing workgroup. However, you could also open an empty database in the Database
Map program and build up multiple workgroups, folders, subfolders and
dropdowns in the database.
Database Map has been expanded in Smeadlink to work with foreign tables
created outside of Smeadlink). You can now connect a Smeadlink database
to one or more external databases. Once you have connected to an external
database, you can register any table in that database with Smeadlink. The
foreign table (or tables) will then behave just like a regular Smeadlink table,
and you will be able to use it to create folders or subfolders in the open
Smeadlink database.
Some foreign tables are already located in a Smeadlink database, but they
are not visible in the database. For instance, if you used Microsoft Access®
to create a new table in a Smeadlink database, the table would not be visible
when you reopened the database in Smeadlink. If you want to create a folder
or subfolder based on one of these tables, you can now simply register the
table in Smeadlink. Once the table has been registered, it will behave like a
regular Smeadlink table, and you will be able to use it to create your folder
or subfolder.
Several other features have been added to the Database Map in Smeadlink
(from previous versions) to make it easier to work with. First, the Field Maintenance utility allows you to add or remove fields from any table in the open
database. It displays the name of each field in a table, along with the type and
size of the field. You can then either remove existing fields, or add new ones.
Another new feature is drag-and-drop capabilities. You can now reposition
workgroups, tables in a workgroup or table children by dragging them from
their current position in the tree diagram and dropping them in a new position. Finally, there are now two ways to attach tables to each other. You can
attach two tables automatically, where Smeadlink will create the Id field for
you, or you can attach them manually, where you pick existing fields
19
Label Printing Utilities
If your Smeadlink system includes the Tracking module, then you will need
to use labels to identify the physical items that you want to track (i.e. file
folders, boxes, etc.) and the physical destinations for your trackable items
(i.e. rooms, warehouses, employees, etc.). Each label needs to have a unique
Id number that identifies an item or destination. Each label can also have
some basic information about the item or destination, like a name or a description. When your Smeadlink operators begin tracking items, they will
use the label Id numbers to specify which destination each item is assigned
to.
There are two ways to print labels for Smeadlink Tracking: you can have
them printed by an outside source, or you can print them yourself from the
start-up screen. There are two types of labels you can print from the
Smeadlink—ColorBar® labels and black-and-white labels. The difference
between the two label types is that ColorBar labels include a color pattern
that identifies what type of item each label was printed for, in addition to the
Id number and item description. ColorBar labels are typically used to identify file folders, and the different color patterns helps users identify different
groups of folders. Without the color patterns, it would be hard for users to
locate one folder in a large group of folders.
In order to print either ColorBar labels or black-and-white labels from
Smeadlink, you will need to perform some setup procedures. The utility for
setting up black-and-white labels is called Label Manager, and the utility for
setting up ColorBar labels is called ColorBar Label Integrator. The next two
parts of this section will introduce you to these two utilities.
The last part of this section will introduce you to the Data Director. Data
Director is a utility in Smeadlink that allows you to automatically capture
label data sent from an external program, import the data into a Smeadlink
table, and print it out on one of the existing label designs for that table. Data
Director contains all the necessary setup tools for this procedure, so the
program the label data gets sent from is not affected and operates in exactly
the same was as it did before (i.e. it still behaves like it is sending data directly
to the printer). Data Director is typically used to take data for black-and-white
labels sent from a large, mainframe computer, and print ColorBar labels with
the data from Smeadlink.
Chapter 1
20
Label Manager
Label Manager is a program that allows you to create label designs for blackand-white labels. Black-and-white labels are used for tracking purposes to
identify all kinds of items and destinations, from file folders and boxes to
shelves, rooms and warehouses.
A label design is like a template—it determines what type of information
will be on the labels, and where the information will be placed. You will
need to create at least one label design for each Smeadlink folder or subfolder
that you want to print labels from. Once you have created a design for a
folder, your Smeadlink users will be able to use the design to print blackand-white labels for the rows in that folder. The example below shows what
a label design looks like in the Label Manager program.
A label design in the Label Manager program
Label Manager allows you to place three kinds of data on a label design: bar
codes, text and fields. When you place text on a label design, the text is
static—the same text appears on all labels printed with this design. When
you place bar codes or fields on a label design, however, the information in
the bar code or field changes with each label that is printed. This is because
each bar code or field object on the label design is attached to a column in
the folder or subfolder, and each label printed with the design uses data from
a different row in the column.
In addition to features for inserting bar codes, text and fields on a label
design, the Label Manager also includes some formatting features to make it
easier to position objects on a label design. For instance, the Center Horizontal feature allows you to center an object horizontally in the design, and
the Center Vertical feature allows you to center an object vertically.
21
ColorBar Label Integrator
ColorBar Label Integrator is a program that allows you to configure ColorBar
labels for printing from Smeadlink. ColorBar labels are color-coded strip
labels that are typically used to identify file folders. In order to print ColorBar
labels, you will need to have at least one label design configured for each
Smeadlink folder or subfolder you want to print labels from. The label design specifies how the data will appear on any labels printed from that folder,
and it also specifies what color pattern the labels will have. Label designs
are created in the ColorBar Gold® program, and they are typically created by
Smeadlink resellers.
On its own, a label design is not connected in any way to a Smeadlink folder
or subfolder. Instead, the label design is connected to its own ColorBar database, and it pulls data from the fields in that database. ColorBar Label
Integrator is the tool you will use to connect each of your label designs to a
folder or subfolder. This process is called configuring a label design. The
example below shows what the ColorBar Label Integrator program looks
like.
ColorBar Label Integrator program
ColorBar Label Integrator connects a label design to a Smeadlink folder by
mapping the columns in the folder to the fields in the label design's ColorBar
database. When a user then prints labels from that folder, Smeadlink sends
the data in the folder's columns to the corresponding fields in the label design's
ColorBar database, and the labels are printed from that database.
Chapter 1
22
Data Director
Data Director is a program that allows you to automatically capture label
data sent from an external program, route it into a Smeadlink table, and print
it out on one of the existing label designs for that table. Data Director was
created to give customers who already have high-end software for printing
black-and-white labels the capability to print color labels.
The advantage of Data Director is that it does not require you to make any
changes to the original label-printing program, or use it any differently. Data
Director automatically captures the data as it is sent to the printer (by monitoring a COM port), and it then extracts the necessary information, puts it
into the specified Smeadlink table and prints it using one of the table's label
designs. The example below shows what the Data Director program looks
like.
Data Director program
The first step in using Data Director is to create a format. A format is a group
of settings that determines what information to extract from captured label
data, how to place that information into a Smeadlink table and what label
design to print that information with. You will need to create a separate
format for each for each type of label that you send into Smeadlink with
Data Director.
Once you have created a format, you can open it and Data Director will
begin to monitor the COM port specified in the format for label data. You
can choose to have Data Director print labels one at a time as it receives
information, or wait to print out a group of labels at once (this is helpful for
label types that print multiple labels to a sheet). You can also hide, or minimize, the Data Director program while it is monitoring a COM port. This is
helpful if you want to work on something else in Smeadlink while Data
Director is open.
23
Unlike the other administrative utilities, which are separate programs, the
Smeadlink administrative utilities are additional components that become
available in the program when you log in with the standard Manager user
name. There are four main administrative utilities in Smeadlink—the Views
utility, the Columns utility, the Add-Ins Manager utility and the Report Generator utility.
The Views utility allows you to create new views, save the current view and
delete or edit the properties of existing views. The Columns utility allows
you to create new columns and delete or edit the properties of existing columns. Both of these utilities are made up of a number of menu commands.
These commands are not visible when a user logs in to Smeadlink with the
standard Guest or Editor user names, but they become visible when a user
logs in with the standard Manager user name. The example below shows
what the Views and Columns utilities look like.
As you can see in the example above, both the Views utility and the Columns utility are opened from the Tools menu. The Views utility consists of
the last five commands on the View Settings submenu, and the Columns
utility consists of the New Column, Delete and Column Properties commands on the Columns submenu. Because columns in Smeadlink are components of views, the Columns utility is a component of the Views utility.
Chapter 1
24
The first three menu commands that make up the Views utility—Save View,
Save View As and Delete View, are very straightforward. The next command, View Order, allows you to adjust what order will be used to display
the views in the open folder or subfolder on the View menu (this command
also allows you to specify the default view for a folder or subfolder). Finally, the View Properties command allows you to modify the property settings of the open view. These settings determine things like the name of the
view, whether rows can be added to the view and what SQL statement will
be used to display the rows in the view. The example below shows what the
View Properties window looks like.
View Properties window
The first command on the Column utility is called New Column. This command allows you to create new columns in the open view. The second command is called Delete, and it allows you to delete any column from the open
view. The last command on the Columns utility is called Column Properties,
and it is very similar to the View Properties command on the Views utility.
Selecting the Column Properties command will bring up the Column Properties window, which allows you to adjust the properties of any column in
the open view. Column properties determine things like whether or not users can sort or filter a column, and whether the column is always visible or
hidden in certain situations.
The third administrative utility in Smeadlink is the Add-Ins Manager. The
Add-Ins Manager allows you to create, delete and modify the add-ins in a
database. An add-in is a shortcut from Smeadlink to an external program or
file. An add-in can also be a shortcut to a page on the Internet. The capability
to create and use add-ins was added to Smeadlink in version 3.1 to make it
easier to use Smeadlink with external utilities.
25
For instance, you might want to use Crystal Reports® along with Smeadlink
to provide custom report capabilities for your system. To make it easy for
your users to switch from Smeadlink to Crystal Reports, you could create a
Crystal Reports add-in. Your users could then use the add-in to open the
Crystal Reports program from within Smeadlink.
The Add-Ins Manager utility is opened from the Add-Ins menu, which is
located on the main menu bars of all Smeadlink programs (including both
end-user programs and administrative programs). The Add-Ins menu also
lists all the add-ins that have been created for the open database. The AddIns menu has built-in security, so if an add-in points to a file that a user does
not have access to, then that add-in will not appear on the Add-Ins menu
when that user logs into Smeadlink. The example below shows what the
Add-Ins Manager looks like after it is opened from the Add-Ins menu.
Add-Ins Manager utility
The Add-Ins Manager lists all the add-ins that have been created for the
open database. In the example above, the Add-Ins Manager lists four addins, starting with one called Auction Info. You can use the Add-Ins Manager
to create new add-ins for the open database, and to delete or modify existing
add-ins. You can also use the Add-Ins Manager to change the menu order of
an add-in (i.e. whether it is the first add-in displayed in the Add-Ins menu,
the second, the third, etc.).
Chapter 1
26
The last administrative utility in Smeadlink is the Report Generator. The
Report Generator is a group of components in that allow you to create formatted reports for Smeadlink views. Formatted reports differ from basic reports printed using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows commands,
because they allow you to determine what data appears on reports and how
the data is displayed. With the Report Generator, you can create one custom,
formatted report for each view in the open Smeadlink database.
The three components in the Report Generator are the Column Print Properties window, the View Setup window and the Report Styles window. Together, these three components give you maximum flexibility in setting up
your own formatted reports.
The Column Print Properties window allows you to set the print attributes
for each column in the open view. For instance, you can use the Column
Print Properties window to set whether or not data in a column will be included in reports printed from the view. The Column Print Properties window is divided into two sections: one section contains options that only apply to formatted reports created in the Report Generator, and the other section contains options that apply to both formatted reports and basic reports
printed using the Print...Selected Rows or Print...All Rows commands. The
example below shows what the Column Print Properties window looks like.
Column Print Properties window
The second component in the Report Generator is the Report Setup window.
The Report Setup window allows you to set the print attributes for the open
view. For instance, you can use it to select whether or not to include data
from a subtable when printing a formatted report for the view. The example
on the following page shows what the Report Setup window looks like.
27
Report Setup window
One of the options on the Report Setup window allows you to select a style
for the open view's formatted report. While the Column Print Properties
window and the other options on the Report Setup window are used to specify
which data to include in the report, the style determines how the data in the
report is displayed. Styles are created and modified with the Report Styles
window, which is the third component in the Report Generator. The example below shows what the Report Styles window looks like.
Report Styles window
Chapter 1
28
Database Utilities
There are two administrative utilities in your Smeadlink system that give
you direct access to your Smeadlink database. The first utility is called the
Database Toolkit, and the second is called the Compact & Repair Database
Utility. Unlike the other Smeadlink administrative utilities, these two programs are not intended for normal setup and maintenance of a Smeadlink
system. Instead, they are intended mainly as troubleshooting tools that can
be used to repair damaged or corrupted components in a Smeadlink database. The rest of this section will introduce you to these two utilities.
Database Toolkit
The Database Toolkit utility is a program that gives you direct access to all
the tables in a Smeadlink database. It also allows you to modify a database
by executing SQL statements.
Because the Database Toolkit program gives users direct access to a
Smeadlink database, either by modifying table data or by executing SQL
statements, it needs to be used with caution. In most cases, the Database
Toolkit is only used by Smeadlink users when they are directed to do so by
Smeadlink Technical Support. In this kind of situation, the Technical Support representative would walk you in detail through whatever changes you
needed to make or whatever settings you needed to verify in the Database
Toolkit program.
There are two main modes in the Database Toolkit program—Tables mode
and Scripts mode. The Tables mode allows you to view and modify the
different tables in the open Smeadlink database, and the Scripts mode allows
you to enter SQL statements and then execute them. The example on the
following page shows what the Database Toolkit program looks like in Tables
mode.
29
Database Toolkit program in Tables mode
As you can see in the example above, activating Tables mode in the Database Toolkit program displays a list of all the tables in the open Smeadlink
database. You can then double-click any of the tables on the list, and it will
be opened in the Database Toolkit program.
Tables mode is often used in the troubleshooting process to see whether or
not Smeadlink has saved a change that was made. For instance, say you use
the Database Map program to change the background color of a Smeadlink
folder. Now say that when you open the folder, it does not have the new
background color. To see whether or not your change was saved, you could
open the Database Toolkit program, open the appropriate table for the
Smeadlink folder and check the appropriate row in the table. You would then
know whether or not Smeadlink had saved the change you made, and you
could continue the troubleshooting process from there.
The second mode in the Database Toolkit program is Scripts mode. Scripts
mode allows you to modify the open Smeadlink database by executing SQL
statements. The SQL statements can either be statements that you type directly into the Database Toolkit program, or statements that are contained in
a script file. (A script file is a standard text file that contains a number of
SQL statements. When you execute the file, the statements are executed
one-by-one in the order they appear in the file. )
Chapter 1
30
Compact and Repair Database Utility
As its name implies, the main purpose of the Compact and Repair Database
Utility is to compact and repair Smeadlink databases. In addition, it can also
convert databases to newer versions of Access and it can automatically create backups of databases.
The Compact and Repair Database Utility is a stand-alone program. In other
words, you have to open it directly—you cannot open it from the start-up
screen. This is so you will be able to open the utility if your Smeadlink database becomes corrupted (If the Compact and Repair Database Utility was
bundled with the other Smeadlink programs and utilities, then you would not
be able to open it if your database became heavily corrupted). The example
below shows what the Compact and Repair Database Utility looks like.
The Compact and Repair Database Utility is typically used after a database
has become corrupted, or after large amounts of data have been removed
from a database. During the compact and repair process, the Compact and
Repair Database Utility will recreate the indexes for all the tables in the
open database. This will fix any index problems that have been created by
adding and removing information to the database over time.
In addition, the database will be resized so that it only takes up as much
storage space as it currently needs. This will release any unused space that
the database was taking up. (Unused spaced is caused by deleting information from the database. When information is deleted, the database is not
resized—it takes up the same amount of space as it did when it contained the
information.)
Opening a Smeadlink Program
2. Opening a Smeadlink Program
Chapter contents
Introduction
Using Smeadlink General Options
Opening an Add-In from a Smeadlink Program
Using Smeadlink Help
Exiting a Smeadlink Program
31
32
Chapter 2
Introduction
As you learned in chapter 1, some of the administrative utilities in your
Smeadlink system are separate programs, and some are additional components that become available in end-user programs when you log in with the
standard Manager user name. In order to use any one of these utilities, you
will need to know how to open a program in Smeadlink.
This chapter will show you how to open a Smeadlink program. All programs are opened with the same basic procedure, so you can use the information in this chapter to open any program in your Smeadlink system—
including both end-user programs and administrative utilities. After you learn
how to open a program, the next sections in this chapter will explain some
general features that all Smeadlink programs have in common. For instance,
you will learn how to use general options, which can be used to remember
information about previous Smeadlink sessions.
Once you have gone through this chapter, you will be ready to learn about
the different administrative utilities. The remaining chapters in this manual
are divided up into sections—one for each administrative utility in
Smeadlink. Terms and concepts that you will need to know in order to use a
utility are explained in the introductory chapter of that utility's section. Any
optional hardware that can be used with the utility will also be listed and
explained in the introductory chapter. The remaining chapter or chapters in
the section will then explain the different tasks that the utility was intended
for.
Note: The information in this chapter is basically the same as the information in chapter 2 of the Smeadlink User's Guide. It is included again here so
that you do not have to flip between two manuals. If you have already read
chapter 2 of the User's Guide and you know how to start a program in
Smeadlink, then you may want to skip most of this chapter.
The one part of this chapter that is different from chapter 2 of the User's
Guide is the section Opening a Smeadlink Program. In chapter 2 of the
User's Guide, the second part of this section explains how to open other
end-user programs from the Smeadlink. In this chapter, however, the second
part of the section explains how to open administrative utilities from the
program.
33
This section will show you how to open a Smeadlink program. In Smeadlink,
the first step in opening a program is to open the start-up screen. You can
then open other Smeadlink programs, including both end-user programs and
administrative utilities, from the start-up screen. The first part of this section
will show you how to open the start-up screen, the second part will show
you how to open Smeadlink administrative utilities from the start-up screen
and the third part will show you how to open multiple copies of Smeadlink at
once.
Opening Smeadlink
The following instructions will show you how to open Smeadlink.
To open Smeadlink:
1. Double-click the Smeadlink icon on your desktop. The example below
shows what the Smeadlink icon looks like.
Smeadlink desktop icon
If you do not have a Smeadlink icon on your desktop, then you will need to
use the Start menu as explained below.
• Click once on the Start button. The Start menu will now appear.
• Click the Programs command on the Start menu. The Programs submenu will now appear.
• Click the Smeadlink Document Management command on the Programs submenu. The Smeadlink submenu will now appear.
• Click the Smeadlink command on the submenu.
Once you double-click the Smeadlink desktop icon or click the Smeadlink
submenu command, then the Log in window will appear. The Log in window allows you to specify which database Smeadlink will be opened with.
The example on the following page shows what the Log in window looks
like.
34
Chapter 2
Smeadlink Log in window
2. Select the appropriate type option for the database you wish to open. To
select a type:
• Click the Access or SQL button in the Database Type section of the
Log in window.
The type you will need to select is determined by the database you want to
open (i.e. if you want to open an Access database then you will need to
select the Access type, and if you want to open a SQL database then you will
need to select the SQL type). Once you select a type, all the recently opened
databases of that type will be listed in the database box beneath the two type
buttons.
Note: If you are unsure which database type to select, check with your
Smeadlink administrator.
3. Select the desired database. To select a database:
• If the database is listed in the database box beneath the two type
buttons, then click the database. It will turn blue once you click it, to
indicate that it is now selected.
• If the database is not listed in the database box, then double-click the
More Files option in the database box. The Open Database window will
now appear. Use the window to locate the database you wish to open,
and then double-click the database to select it.
35
The database you select will determine what data is displayed in Smeadlink
programs and utilities (i.e. what workgroups and folders are displayed, what
images are displayed in the Scanner program, etc.).
Note: If you are unsure which database to select, check with your Smeadlink
administrator.
4. Type your user name in the Name box.
5. Type your password in the Password box.
6. Click the OK button or press the ENTER key on the keyboard.
The Smeadlink program will now open. The example below shows what
Smeadlink looks like immediately after it has been opened.
Smeadlink program immediately after being opened
When you first open Smeadlink, it will probably look somewhat different
than the example above. This is because the exact appearance of the program depends on the structure of the database you selected earlier, and the
current settings of the Smeadlink's preference options (located on the Options window in the Smeadlink folder). You will learn more about these options later on.
36
Chapter 2
Opening Administrative Utilities from Smeadlink
This section will show you how to open the different administrative utilities
in your Smeadlink system. The information in this section applies to all
Smeadlink administrative utilities that are separate programs, such as Security Manager or Directory Settings. You will learn how to open administrative
utilities that are not separate programs, like the Views utility or the Columns
utility in Smeadlink, in their respective sections of this manual.
To open an administrative utility from Smeadlink:
1. Open the Tools menu from Smeadlink's main menu bar.
The top section of the Tools menu lists the all the administrative utilities in
your Smeadlink system except the Database Toolkit (which is opened as a
separate program, as explained in chapter 1). The example below shows what
the Tools menu looks like.
Tools menu
2. If you want to open any utility except the Data Director or the Import
Wizard, then simply click the name of the desired utility on the Tools menu.
The selected Smeadlink utility will now open. The data displayed in the
program will be determined by the open Smeadlink database.
Note: For a summary of each administrative utility in your Smeadlink system, see the section Smeadlink Administrative Utilities in chapter 1.
37
3. If you want to open the Data Director utility, follow the steps below:
• Click the Data Director command on the Tools menu. The Data Director
submenu will now appear as shown below.
Data Director submenu
• Click the Setup command on the Data Director submenu. The Data
Director Setup window will now appear, which allows you to add or edit
the label formats for the open database.
4. If you want to open the Import Wizard utility, follow the steps below:
• Click the Import command on the Tools menu. The Import submenu will
now appear as shown below.
Import submenu
• Click the Setup command on the Import Wizard submenu. The main
Import Wizard window will now appear, which allows you to add, edit or
run any import load or import job in the open database.
38
Chapter 2
Opening Multiple Copies of Smeadlink
For most Smeadlink programs, such as the Scanner program or the Tracking
program, you can only have one copy of the program open at once (this is
called one instance of the program). For the start-up screen, however, you
can have up to five copies open at once.
When you have multiple copies of Smeadlink open, the same database is
open in each copy, but each copy can display a different section of that
database. For instance, one copy could display a Clients folder in the database, one copy could display an Employees folder and another copy could
display a Purchase Orders folder. You could also display the same folder in
all three copies, because they are not mutually exclusive. Each open copy
retains all the original functionality of Smeadlink. The following instructions will show you how to open multiple copies of Smeadlink. The instructions assume that at least one copy of Smeadlink is currently open.
To open multiple copies of Smeadlink:
1. Open the Go menu from the Smeadlink's menu bar, and then click the
Smeadlink command in the middle section of the Go menu.
Note: You can also click the Smeadlink button on the toolbar.
The Smeadlink submenu will now appear. If only one copy of Smeadlink is
currently open, then the submenu will contain one command called New
Smeadlink. If multiple copies of Smeadlink are already open, then the submenu will contain the New Smeadlink command and a list of the other open
copies. The copies will be called Smeadlink 1, Smeadlink 2, etc.
Smeadlink submenu
39
2. Click the New Smeadlink command on the Smeadlink submenu.
A new copy, or instance, of Smeadlink will now be opened. The new instance will appear in front of any previous instances. If five instances of
Smeadlink are already open, then you will get an error message stating that
there can only be five open instances of Smeadlink.
3. The default mode for displaying multiple Smeadlink instances is a cascade mode. This means that the copies appear stacked on top of each other,
and the only copy that is fully visible is the active copy at the front of the
stack. If you want, you can also display multiple Smeadlink instances using
a tile mode. Tile mode divides the screen up, giving an equal screen area to
each open instance. To activate tile mode for the open Smeadlink instances:
• Open the Window menu from Smeadlink's menu bar.
• Click the Tile All command on the Windows menu.
The open Smeadlink instances will now be arranged in tile mode. The
example below shows what two Smeadlink instances look like in tile
mode. The top instance in the example is currently active.
Multiple Smeadlink instances displayed with tile mode
40
Chapter 2
Using Smeadlink General Options
Once you have opened a Smeadlink program for the first time, it is a good
idea to look at the general options. The general options can be accessed
through any Smeadlink program's Tools menu, and they allow you to determine what information will be saved each time a user exits a Smeadlink program or exits Smeadlink entirely. For instance, you can choose to have a
Smeadlink database remember the last user name that was used to open it.
Next time someone begins opening the database, the last user name will then
be automatically entered in the Log in window.
This section is divided into two parts. The first part shows you how to
access the general options from any Smeadlink program, and the second
part explains what each option does.
Accessing the General Options
The following instructions will show you how to access the Smeadlink general options. You can use these instructions to access the general options
from any Smeadlink program.
To access the general options from a Smeadlink program:
1. Open the Tools menu from the program's menu bar. The example below
shows what the Tools menu looks like.
Tools menu
2. Click the Options command on the Tools menu.
The Options window will now appear as shown on the following page. The
folder that is open in the Options window will be determined by what
Smeadlink program you opened it from. In the example on the following
page, the Smeadlink folder is open.
41
Smeadlink folder in the Options window
3. Click the General tab on the Options window.
The General folder will now open as shown below. The Smeadlink general
options will be displayed in the middle of the General folder.
General folder in the Options window
42
Chapter 2
General Options
The previous part of this section showed you how to access the general
options from any Smeadlink program. The rest of this section will explain
the purpose of each option.
Restore Open Windows on Startup
If this option is enabled, any programs that were open in Smeadlink when it
was last closed will be automatically opened next time it is opened. For instance, if the Scanner and Tracking programs were open along with the
Smeadlink when it was last closed, then both of these programs will be automatically opened next time Smeadlink is opened. In addition, this option
will also reopen any windows that were open in a program (like the Position
Viewer in Smeadlink).
Restore User Name on Startup
If this setting is activated, the last user name that was used to open the
current database will automatically be entered in the Log in window the
next time someone begins to open the database. This setting is helpful if
one user uses a database on a regular basis, because it saves them from
having to enter their user name each time they want to open the database.
Show Menu Tips
If this setting is activated, a menu tip will appear in the lower left corner of the
program window each time you click a menu, or place your mouse pointer
over a command on an open menu. The example below shows where menu
tips are displayed on a program's window.
Menu tip for highlighted menu command
43
Monitor for Labels on Startup
If this setting is activated, then the Data Director format that was open when
the current database was last closed will be automatically reopened the next
time the database is opened. This setting only applies if a format was open
when the current database was last shut down—if no formats were open at
that time, then no formats will be automatically reopened the next time the
database is opened.
This setting is helpful if you have a Smeadlink workstation dedicated exclusively to Data Director, and if you use the same format on a regular basis to
capture label data and print labels. Monitor for Labels on Startup saves you
from having to reopen a Data Director format each time you open your
Smeadlink database.
Note: For more information about Data Director, see chapter 14 in the
System Administrator's Guide.
Monitor Imports on Startup
If this setting is activated, then the import or load that was running with Quiet
Processing when the current database was last closed will be automatically
reopened the next time the database is opened. If no imports or loads were
running with Quiet Processing when the database was last closed, then no
imports or loads will be automatically reopened the next time someone opens
the database.
This setting is helpful if you have a Smeadlink workstation dedicated exclusively to Import Wizard, and if you use the same import or load on a regular
basis to import data into Smeadlink. Monitor Imports on Startup saves you
from having to reopen the import or load each time you reopen your Smeadlink
database.
Note: For more information about Import Wizard, see chapter 5 in the System Administrator's Guide.
Database Connection Timeout
This setting only applies to SQL databases, and it determines how much
time Smeadlink has to connect to the database after the OK button on the
Log in window is clicked (i.e. how much time Smeadlink has to make the
initial database connection). To set Database Connection Timeout, simply
type the desired connection timeout in seconds into the Database Connection Timeout box.
44
Chapter 2
Opening an Add-In from a Smeadlink Program
Some Smeadlink programs are integrated with outside utilities. For instance,
Crystal Reports is often used with Smeadlink to provide extended report
capabilities beyond Smeadlink's Report Generator. To simplify this process,
Smeadlink allows you to create shortcuts to other programs, files or Web
pages. These shortcuts are called add-ins, and they are created with an administrative utility called the Add-Ins Manager.
Once an add-in has been created, it becomes visible in the Add-Ins menu of
each Smeadlink program. The Add-Ins menu has built-in security, so if an
add-in points to an item that a user does not have access to, then that add-in
will not appear on the Add-Ins menu when that user logs into Smeadlink.
Once an add-in is selected, the corresponding program or file will be opened.
If the selected add-in was for a program, then that program will be opened in
its default mode, if the selected add-in was for a file, then that file will be
opened in the appropriate program and if the add-in was for a web page, then
that web page will be opened in your default browser. This section will show
you how to open an add-in.
Note: If no add-ins have been created for the open database, then the AddIns menu will not be visible in Smeadlink programs. This section assumes
that at least one add-in has been created for the open database.
To open an add-in from a Smeadlink program:
1. Open the Add-Ins menu from the program's menu bar.
The Add-Ins menu lists all the add-ins that have been created for the open
database. The number of commands on the menu, and the name of each
command, will vary from system to system. The example below shows what a
typical Add-Ins menu looks like. The menu in the example contains three
add-ins, starting with one called Smeadlink Online.
Add-Ins menu
2. Click the desired command on the Add-Ins menu.
45
Using Smeadlink Help
Selecting Help from the menu bar of any Smeadlink program will bring up
the menu shown below.
Help menu
The Help menu allows you to view PDF versions of this manual or the
Smeadlink User's Guide, and it also allows you to view the exact version
number and registration information for your Smeadlink system. The first
part of this section will show you how to view a PDF version of this manual,
and the second section will show you how to view the version and registration information for your Smeadlink system.
Viewing the PDF Manuals
The PDF format preserves page layout and typography, so when you open
either Smeadlink manual from the Help menu it will look the same as it looks
in printed form. The advantage of viewing the manuals online is that you can
find information and move from topic to topic much faster in the online versions, and also you do not have to keep track of any physical documents.
PDF Requirements
In order to view the PDF manuals, you will need to have the following items
installed on your computer:
• the Smeadlink PDF help files
• the Adobe® Acrobat Reader
The PDF files for both manuals are included on your Smeadlink CD-ROM,
and they were installed automatically when your Smeadlink system was
installed. The Acrobat Reader is also included on the Smeadlink CD-ROM,
but it was not automatically installed. If you do not already have the Acrobat Reader and you want to be able to view the PDF manuals, then the steps
on the following page will show you how to install the Reader from your
Smeadlink CD-ROM.
46
Chapter 2
To install the Adobe Acrobat 4.0 Reader:
1. Place the Smeadlink CD-ROM into the CD drive on your computer. The
Smeadlink Installation System window will now appear as shown below.
Smeadlink Installation System window
2. Click the Adobe Acrobat Reader command on the Smeadlink Installation
System window.
The install wizard will now walk you through the process of installing the
Acrobat Reader on your computer.
To open a PDF version of either manual:
1. Open the Help menu from any Smeadlink program.
Help menu
2. Click the appropriate command on the Help menu for the manual you want
to open. The manual you selected will now open automatically in the Acrobat
4.0 Reader.
47
Viewing Version and Registration Information
The second section of the Smeadlink Help menu allows you to view the
version and registration information for your Smeadlink system. Customer
service representatives will often ask you for the version number when they
are helping you with your system. The version and registration information
are both displayed in the About window.
To open the About window and view version and registration information:
• Click the About command on the Smeadlink Help menu. The About
window will now appear as shown below.
About window
• The version number of your Smeadlink system is displayed in green in
the middle of the About window. In the example above, the version
number is 5.0.48.
• The registration information for your Smeadlink system is displayed
also. The registration information is grayed out in the example above.
48
Chapter 2
Exiting a Smeadlink Program
There are two ways to exit a Smeadlink program and return to Windows.
Both methods are explained below. You can use these methods to exit any
Smeadlink program, whether it is an end-user program or an administrative
utility.
To exit a Smeadlink program:
1. Open the File menu from the program's menu bar.
2. Click the Exit command at the bottom of the File menu. The program will
now close.
OR
Click the Close (X) button in the upper right corner of the program's window.
The example below shows what the Close button looks like on a Smeadlink
program's window.
Close Button
Introduction to Security Manager
3. Introduction to Security Manager
Chapter contents
Introduction
Basic Security Manager Terms
Basic Security Manager Concepts
49
50
Chapter 3
Introduction
The first two chapters in this manual introduced you to the administrative
utilities in your Smeadlink system, and showed you how to start a Smeadlink
program. The information covered in these chapters is general information,
so it applies to all the administrative utilities in your Smeadlink system.
The remaining chapters in this manual will show you how to use each administrative utility in Smeadlink. The chapters are divided into sections of
several chapter each, and each section explains one utility. The first chapter
in each section explains the basic information you should know before you
begin using the utility, and the remaining chapter or chapters explain the
different components in the utility and the tasks it is intended for.
This chapter will introduce you to the Security Manager program. As you
learned in chapter 1, Security Manager is a program that allows you to assign access rights for your Smeadlink database. The first section of this chapter
will explain some terms that are often used in discussing Security Manager.
The next section will explain the basic concepts you should know before
you begin using Security Manager. Chapter 4 will then show you how to use
Security Manager to assign access rights for your Smeadlink database.
Note: For a summary of the Security Manager utility and its function in
your Smeadlink system, see the section Smeadlink Administrative
Utilities...Security Manager in chapter 1 of this manual.
51
Basic Security Manager Terms
There are several terms that are often used in discussing the Security Manager program. This section will introduce you to those terms and explain
how they are typically used.
Operator
The operators in a Smeadlink database determine what user names and passwords can be used to log in to that database. Each operator consists of one
row in the Security Manager Operators view, and it includes a user name, a
full name and a password. The user name and password are used together to
log in to the database, and the full name is used as a reference to distinguish
different operators.
Each operator also includes an entry called Last Password Change that lets
you know when the password for this operator was last changed. This information is sometimes used for security reasons. (For instance, your security
system may require you to change your passwords every month.)
Operators are typically referred to in Security Manager by their user names.
Therefore, the default operators that come with your Smeadlink system are
typically called Guest, Editor and Manager.
Group
A group is a collection of operators. Security Manager assigns access rights
on a group-by-group basis, not on an operator-by-operator basis. The default groups that come with your Smeadlink system are the Everyone Group,
the Editor Group and the Administrator Group. The Everyone Group includes the Guest, Editor and Manager operators, the Editor Group includes
the Editor and Manager operators, and the Administrator Group includes
the Manager operator.
52
Chapter 3
Basic Security Manager Concepts
As you learned earlier, Security Manager is a program that is used to set up
access rights for your Smeadlink database. The first step in setting up access
rights with Security Manager is to create the different groups that your operators will be divided into. Once all your groups have been created, you
can create the different operators in each group. You can then specify which
components in your Smeadlink database each group of operators has access
to.
Typically, you will use Security Manager when you are first setting up your
Smeadlink database to assign access rights for each of your users. You may
also use Security Manager again from time to time if you would like to
change the access rights for one of your users, or if you create a new Smeadlink
table and you need to assign access rights for it.
The Security Manager program includes five views, or grids. Each view
includes a number of related rows. The Groups view and the Operators view
allow you to create the groups and operators for your Smeadlink system.
The Tables, Workgroups and System views then allow you to specify which
components in your Smeadlink system each group can access.
When you are assigning access rights for your Smeadlink system, the first
view that you will use is the Groups view. The Groups view contains one
row for each group in the open Smeadlink database. You can add new groups
to your database by adding new rows to the Groups view, and you can delete
existing groups by deleting their rows in the Groups view. The example
below shows what the Groups view looks like. The Groups view in the example contains one row for each of the three default Smeadlink groups.
Groups view in Security Manager
53
Once you have used the Groups view to create the desired groups for your
Smeadlink database, then the next step in assigning access rights is to create
the different operators in the database. Operators are created in Security
Manager with the Operators view.
The Operators view contains one row for each operator in the open Smeadlink
database. You can add new operators to the database by adding new rows to
the Operators view, and you can delete existing operators by deleting their
rows in the Operators view. The example below shows what the Operators
view looks like. The Operators view in the example contains three rows for
the default Smeadlink operators.
Operators view in Security Manager
After you have created all the operators for your Smeadlink database, then
you will need to assign each operator to a group. There are two methods for
assigning an operator to a group in Security Manager: the first method uses
the Groups view and the second method uses the Operators view.
The Groups view has a special subtable that allows you to add or remove
operators from any group in the view. This subtable is called the User Name
list, and it looks and functions just like a standard subfolder in Smeadlink.
When you select a row in the Groups view and then open the User Name list,
you will see the names of all the operators in the open database that are
members of that group. You can assign operators to this group by adding
rows to the User Name list, and you can remove operators by removing
rows. Adding or removing operators to the User Name list does not modify
the actual operator rows in the Operators view; it only determines whether
or not the operators are members of the selected group.
54
Chapter 3
The example below shows what the User Name list looks like. The User
Name list in the example was opened from the Everyone group's row in the
Groups view, so it displays the three default members of the Everyone group.
User Name list
The second method for assigning an operator to a group uses the Operators
view. Like the Groups view, the Operators view includes a special subtable
that looks and functions just like a subfolder in Smeadlink. The subtable in
the Operators view is called the Group list, and it allows you to specify
which group or groups each operator in the Operator's view is a member of.
When you select a row in the Operators view and then open the Group list,
you will see the names of all the groups in the open database that the selected operator is a member of. You can modify which groups the selected
operator is a member of by adding or removing rows to the Group list. Just
like the User Name list, adding or removing groups to the Group list does
not modify the actual group rows in the Groups view; it only determines
whether or not the selected operator is a member of those groups.
The example on the following page shows what the Group list looks like.
The Group list in the example was opened from the Manager operator in the
Operators view, so it shows the three groups that the default Manager operator is a member of.
55
Group list
Once you have assigned your operators to the appropriate groups, then you
can begin assigning access rights for your groups. The Tables view, Workgroups view and System view list all the different components in the open
Smeadlink database, from specific tables and workgroups to general system
components. You can use these three view to specify exactly which components in your Smeadlink system each group can access.
The Tables view lists all the user tables in the open Smeadlink database.
Each row in the Tables view corresponds to one table in the database. You
can use the Tables view to specify which tables each one of your groups will
have view privileges for. If a group does not have view privileges for a
table, then the operators in that group will not be able to see the folders or
subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on that table.
You can also use the Tables view to specify which tables each group will
have add, edit and delete privileges for. Add privileges determine whether
or not the operators in a group can add rows to a table. If a group does not
have add privileges for a table, then the operators in that group will not be
able to add rows to the folders or subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on
that table. Similarly, edit privileges determine whether or not the operators
in a group can edit the rows in a table. If a group does not have edit privileges for a table, then the operators in that group will not be able to edit rows
in the folders or subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on that table.
56
Chapter 3
Finally, delete privileges determine whether or not the operators in a group
can delete the rows in a table. If a group does not have delete privileges for
a table, then the operators in that group will not be able to delete rows in the
folders or subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on that table. The example
below shows what the Tables view looks like. The Tables view in the example contains ten rows for the ten user tables in the Basic Demo database
(a standard Smeadlink demo database).
Tables view
The default setting for each table in the Tables view is Everyone Group. This
means that the Guest, Editor and Manager operators will all have view, add,
edit and delete privileges for all the tables in the database. You can leave the
security settings in the Tables view as they come, or you can modify them so
that some of your operators only have privileges for certain tables.
In addition to setting access rights for the user tables in the database, the
Tables view also allows you to set view rights for the views that are based on
each table. To accomplish this, the Tables view includes a special subtable
called the View list, that looks and functions just like a subfolder in Smeadlink.
When you select a row in the Tables view and then open the View list, you
will see all the views in the open database that are based on that table. You
can then specify which group will have view privileges rights for each view.
If a group does not have view privileges for a view, then its operators will
not be able to see it in Smeadlink, although they may be able to see other
views that are based on the same table. The example on the following page
shows what the View list looks like. The View list in the example contains
three rows for the three views based on the Clients table.
57
View list
The next view for assigning access rights is the Workgroups view. The Workgroups view lists all the workgroups in the open Smeadlink database, and
each row in the Workgroups view corresponds to one workgroup in the
open database.
The purpose of the Workgroups view is to specify which workgroups in the
open Smeadlink database each one of your groups will have view privileges
for. If a group does not have view privileges for a workgroup, then the
operators in that group will not be able to see the workgroup in the Smeadlink
program or the Database Map program. The example below shows what the
Workgroups view looks like.
Workgroups view
58
Chapter 3
The default setting for each workgroup in the Workgroups view is No Security. This means that every operator in the open Smeadlink database will
have view privileges for all the workgroups in the database. You can leave
the Workgroup security settings as they come by default, or you can modify
them so that some of your operators can only view certain workgroups in
the database.
The last view in Security Manager is the System view. The System view
lists all the remaining components in your Smeadlink system that you may
want to set access rights for. For instance, you can use the System view to
determine whether or not your operators will have access to the Scanner
program and the Security Manager program. When you finish setting the
options on the System view, you will be finished setting up the access rights
for your Smeadlink system. The example below shows what the System
view looks like.
System view
Using Security Manager
4. Using Security Manager
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating a Group
Creating an Operator
Assigning Operators to Groups
Removing a Group or Operator
Using Network Security
Assigning Access Rights for the Groups in a Database
Printing, Exporting and Resizing the Rows in a View
59
60
Chapter 4
Introduction
The previous chapter introduced you to the Smeadlink Security Manager
program. You learned about basic Security Manager terms, and about the
basic concepts for using Security Manager. This chapter will show you how
to use Security Manager to assign access rights for a Smeadlink database.
As you learned earlier, the first step in assigning access rights for a Smeadlink
database is to create the different groups that your operators will be divided
into. Once all your groups have been created, you can create the different
operators and assign them to the appropriate groups. You can then specify
which components in your Smeadlink database each group will have access
to.
The first section in this chapter will show you how to create a group. The
second section will show you how to create an operator. You can use the
information in these first two sections to create any number of groups and
operators in a Smeadlink database. The third section in this chapter will then
show you how to assign operators to groups. You will need to assign each
one of your operators to a group before you can set up access rights for it.
The fourth section will show you how to remove existing groups and operators from a Smeadlink database. If you want to remove the default groups
and operators that came with your Smeadlink database, you could do so
using the information in this section. The fifth section in this chapter will
show you how to use network security with a group. Using network security
means that you do not have to create any operators for a group. Instead, you
specify a network file, and if a system user has access to that network file
then they will become members of the group.
The sixth section in this chapter will show you how to assign access rights
for the groups in a database. This section will explain the options on the
Tables, Workgroups and System views, and show you how to use them to
specify which components your groups can access. The last section in this
chapter will then show you how to print, export and resize the rows in a
Security Manager view.
61
Creating a Group
The first step in assigning access rights for a Smeadlink database is to create
the different groups that your operators will be divided into. As you learned
earlier, each Smeadlink database comes with three default groups: the Everyone Group, the Editor Group and the Administrator Group. The Everyone Group includes the default Guest, Editor and Manager operators, the
Editor Group includes the default Editor and Manager operators and the
Manager group includes the default Manager operator.
If you do not want to create any additional groups in your database, then you
may want to skip this section and go straight to the next section. Otherwise,
this section will show you how to create a new group in the open Smeadlink
database. You can use the information in this section to add any number of
groups to the open database.
To add a group to the open Smeadlink database:
1. Open the Groups view in the Security Manager program. To open the
Groups view:
• Open the Go menu from the main menu bar.
• Click the Groups command in the bottom section of the Go menu.
The Groups view will now appear in the main Security Manager window.
The number of rows in the Groups view will be determined by the number
of groups in the open Smeadlink database. The example below shows what
the Groups view looks like.
Groups view
62
Chapter 4
2. In the Name cell of the blank row at the bottom of the view, type the
desired name for the new group.
As soon as you begin typing, a pencil will appear in the row selector of the
row you are typing in, and a new, blank row will be created at the bottom of
the view. The example below shows what the Groups view will look like
after you begin adding a new group. The new group in the example is called
Test Group.
New group in the Groups view
3. Now save the new group. There are several ways to save a group, and
each method is explained below.
• Click the Save Row command on the Rows menu.
• Use the Up or Down arrow keys on the keyboard to move to another
row in the open view.
• Use the TAB key on the keyboard to move to the row beneath the new
row.
• Click on another row in the open view.
After you use one of the methods above to save the new group, the Id cell of
the new group's row will automatically be filled in, and the pencil at the left
of the group's row will disappear to let you know that the group has been
saved.
63
Creating an Operator
Once you have created the groups in the open database that your operators
will be divided into, then you will be ready to create the different operators
for each group. As you learned earlier, each Smeadlink database includes
three default operators called Guest, Editor and Manager. If you want to
leave the default operators as they are, then you may want to skip this section and go straight to the section later in this chapter called Assigning Access Rights for a Group. Otherwise, this section will show you how to create
a new operator. You can use the information in this section to create any
number of operators in the open Smeadlink database.
To create an operator in a Smeadlink database:
1. Open the Operators view in the Security Manager program. To open the
Operators view:
• Open the Go menu from the main menu bar.
• Click the Operators command in the bottom section of the Go menu.
The Operators view will now appear in the main Security Manager window.
The number of rows in the Operators view will be determined by the number of operators in the open Smeadlink database. The example below shows
what the Operators view looks like.
Operators view
64
Chapter 4
2. In the User Name cell of the blank row at the bottom of the view, type the
desired user name for the new operator.
The user name will be used along with the password to log in to the open
Smeadlink database. As soon as you begin typing the user name for the new
operator, a pencil will appear in the row selector of the row you are typing in
and a new, blank row will be created at the bottom of the view. The example
below shows what the Operators view looks like when you begin adding an
operator.
New operator in Operators view
3. In the Full Name cell of the same row, type the desired full name for the
new operator.
Full Names are used for reference purposes only—they help to distinguish
between the different operators in a database.
4. If your security system requires you to change passwords at regular intervals, then enter today's date in the Last Password Update cell.
Like the Full Name cell, the Last Password Update cell is used for reference
purposes. It gives you a convenient place to store the date that the password
for each operator was last changed. The Last Password Update cell is entirely optional, so if your security system does not require you to change
passwords at regular intervals or if you have another place to store the dates
when you change passwords, you can leave this cell blank.
65
5. Enter the desired password for the new operator in the Password cell.
Each password can be at most eight characters long, and it can be any combination of letters, numbers or symbols. The password for this operator will
be used along with the user name to log in to the open Smeadlink database.
6. If you would like to enter any miscellaneous information about the new
operator, then type it now in the Miscellaneous 1 and Miscellaneous 2 cells.
Both Miscellaneous cells are entirely optional, so you can leave them blank
if you would like.
7. Now save the new operator. There are several ways to save an operator,
and each method is explained below.
row in the open view.
• Use the TAB key on the keyboard to move to the row beneath the new
row.
• Click on another row in the open view.
After you use one of the methods above to save the new operator, the pencil
at the left of the operator's row will disappear to let you know that the operator has been saved.
66
Chapter 4
Assigning Operators to Groups
After you have created the groups and operators for your database, the next
step in assigning access rights for the database is to assign your operators to
the appropriate groups. As you learned in the previous chapter, there are two
methods for assigning an operator to a group. The first method is convenient
if you would like to assign multiple operators to one group, and the second
method is convenient if you would like to make one operator a member of
multiple groups. You can use either method to assign one operator to a group.
This section will explain both methods.
To assign multiple operators to one group:
1. Open the Groups view.
2. Activate the row of the group you would like to add operators to. You can
activate a row by selecting it or by clicking in one of its cells. To select a
row:
• Click the row selector of the desired row.
The row selector is the gray box at the very left side of each row. The row
will appear highlighted after you click its row selector, to indicate that it is
now selected.
3. Open the User Name list. There are multiple ways to open the User Name
list, and each method is explained below:
• Open the Go menu and click the Down One Level command.
OR
• Place the mouse pointer over the selected row, and then double-click
the right mouse button.
The User Name list will now appear. The User Name list will display the
names of all the operators that are members of the group you activated in
step 2. The example on the following page shows what the User Name list
looks like. The operators in the example are the default members of the
Everyone group.
67
User Name list
4. Open the Operators dropdown menu from the empty cell at the bottom of
the User Name list. To open the Operators dropdown:
• Click once in the empty cell at the bottom of the User Name list. A
down arrow will appear on the right side of the cell after you have
clicked in it.
• Click the down arrow. The Operators dropdown will now appear. This
dropdown lists all the operators in the open database.
5. Click the desired operator in the Operators dropdown.
The operator you selected will now appear in the selected row, and a new,
empty row will appear at the bottom of the User Name list.
6. Click in another cell on the User Name list.
The row you just created will now be saved, and the operator will be added
to the selected group.
7. You can continue adding operators to the selected group by repeating
steps 4, 5 and 6 for each operator that you would like to add to this group.
68
Chapter 4
To make one operator a member of multiple groups:
1. Open the Operators view.
2. Activate the row of the desired operator. You can activate a row by selecting it or by clicking in one of its cells. To select a row:
now selected.
3. Open the Group list. There are multiple ways to open the Group list, and
each method is explained below:
• Open the Go menu and click the Down One Level command.
OR
• Place the mouse pointer over the selected row, and then double-click
the right mouse button.
The Group list will now appear. The Group list displays the names of all the
groups that the selected operator is a member of. The example below shows
what the Group list looks like. The groups in the example are the groups that
the default Manager operator is a member of.
Group list
69
4. Open the Groups dropdown menu from the empty cell at the bottom of
the Group list. To open the Groups dropdown:
• Click once in the empty cell at the bottom of the Group list. A down
arrow will appear on the right side of the cell after you have clicked it.
• Click the down arrow. The Groups dropdown will now appear. This
dropdown lists all the groups in the open database.
5. Click the desired group in the Groups dropdown.
The group you selected will now appear in the selected row, and a new,
empty row will appear at the bottom of the Group list.
6. Click in another row on the Group list.
The row you just created will now be saved, and the selected operator will
become a member of this group.
7. You can continue adding groups by repeating steps 4, 5 and 6 for each
group that you would like the selected operator to be a member of.
70
Chapter 4
Removing a Group or Operator
As you work with Security Manager, you will eventually want to remove
some of your existing groups and operators. For instance, you may want to
remove the default groups and operators that come with a Smeadlink database, and then create all the groups and operators for the database from
scratch. This section will show you how to remove a group or operator. You
can use the information in this section to remove any number of groups or
operators from the open Smeadlink database.
To remove a group or operator:
1. Open the Groups or Operators view.
2. Activate the row of the desired group or operator. You can activate a row
by selecting it or by clicking in one of its cells. To select a row:
now selected.
Note: You can select multiple rows for deletion by holding down the SHIFT
key while you click the row selectors.
3. Click the Delete Row command on the Rows menu, or press the delete key
on your keyboard.
The Delete Rows window will appear as shown below asking if you want to
delete the selected row (or rows).
Delete Rows message window
4. Click the OK button on the message window, or press ENTER. The selected row or rows will now be deleted from the open view.
71
Using Network Security
If your Smeadlink system will be used by a lot of different people, then
using network security can dramatically reduce the time it takes you to assign and maintain access rights for your system. Using network security
means that you do not need to create any operators for the groups in your
Smeadlink database. Instead, you specify a network file for each group, and
if any system users have access to the specified network file, then they will
become members of that group.
When a system user logs into a Smeadlink database that has been set up for
network security, they will only need to enter their Windows user name (no
password). Smeadlink will then assume that any security issues have been
handled at the system level, and it will allow the user to view all the Smeadlink
components that the user's group has access to.
Network security options are available in Security Manager because most
larger companies have already set up access rights for their employees at a
system level. Network security eliminates the need to create and work with
operators for a large number of Smeadlink users. This section will show you
how to enable network security for a Smeadlink database, and how to specify
a network file for each group in the database.
Note: This section assumes that you have already created the groups in the
database you will be working with. For information about creating a group,
see the section earlier in this chapter called Creating a Group.
To enable network security for a Smeadlink database:
1. Open the Tools menu from Security Manager's main menu bar, and click
the Options command.
The Options window will now appear, and the Security folder in the Options
window will be open because the Options window was opened from Security Manager. The example on the following page shows what the Options
window looks like when you open it from Security Manager.
72
Chapter 4
Options window
2. Set the Network Security enabled option in the Security folder to Yes.
Network security will now be enabled for the open Smeadlink database, and
you will need to specify a network file for each group in the database. The
instructions below will show you how to specify a network file for a group.
You can use this procedure to specify network files for any number of groups.
To specify a network file for a group:
1. Open the Groups view.
2. In the Network File cell of the group's row, type the name of the desired
network file.
3. Press the Down arrow key once to move to the next row in the view and
save your changes.
73
Assigning Access Rights for the Groups in a Database
Once you have created the groups in a database and specified the operators
in each group, then you will be ready to assign access rights for your groups.
Access rights are assigned in Security Manager using the Tables, Workgroups and System views. This section will show you how to use these three
views to specify access rights for the groups in a database.
Assigning Access Rights in the Tables View
Tables view
The Tables view lists all the user tables in the open Smeadlink database.
Each row in the Tables view corresponds to one user table in the database.
You can use the Tables view to specify which groups have view, add, edit
and delete privileges for each table. View privileges determine which group
can see the folders or subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on the table,
add privileges determine which group can add rows to the those folders or
subfolders, edit privileges determine which group can edit rows in those
folders or subfolders and delete privileges determine which group can delete rows from those folders or subfolders.
The Tables view contains five columns: Table, View Privileges, Edit Privileges, Add Privileges and Delete Privileges. The Table column displays all
the different tables in the open database, and the remaining columns display
the groups that have view, edit, add and delete privileges for each table. The
default setting for all the cells in the View, Edit, Add and Delete Privileges
columns is Everybody Group. This means that the default Guest, Editor and
Manager operators will all be able to see every table in the Smeadlink or
Database Layout programs, and they will all have edit, add and delete privileges for every table.
74
Chapter 4
In addition to assigning view, edit, add and delete privileges for the tables in
the open database, the Tables view also allows you assign access privileges
for the Smeadlink views that are based on each table. This is helpful if you
have some views that can only be viewed by certain users, and other views
in the same folders that need to be viewed by all users.
The first part of this section will show you how to modify the setting in one
cell of the Tables view. You can use this information to adjust the table
privileges for all the groups in your database. The second part will then
show you how to modify access privileges for all the Smeadlink views that
are based on a table. You can use this information to modify the access
privileges for any view in the open database.
To modify the setting in one cell of the Tables view:
1. Click the desired cell in the View, Edit, Add or Delete Privileges columns. A down arrow will now appear at the right side of the cell you clicked
in.
2. Click the down arrow. A dropdown menu will now appear listing the
different groups in the open database. The example below shows what the
dropdown menu looks like.
Tables dropdown menu
3. Click the desired group in the dropdown menu. The group you selected
will now appear in this cell.
4. Save your change.
75
To modify the access privileges for all the views based on a table:
1. Activate the row of the table that the desired views are based on.
2. Click the Down One Level button on the Go menu.
The View list will now appear. The View list contains two columns. The first
column lists the name of all the Smeadlink views that are based on the
selected table, and second column lists the group that has access privileges
for each view. The example below shows what the View list looks like. The
list in the example contains three views.
View list
3. Click the View Privileges cell of the desired view. A down arrow will now
appear at the right side of the cell you clicked in.
4. Click the down arrow. A dropdown menu will now appear listing the
different groups in the open database.
5. Click the desired group in the dropdown menu. The group you selected
will now appear in the selected cell.
7. Repeat steps 3–6 for each view in the list that you want to modify access
privileges.
76
Chapter 4
Assigning Access Rights in the Workgroups View
Workgroups view
The Workgroups view lists all the workgroups in the open Smeadlink database. Each row in the Workgroups view corresponds to one workgroup in
the database. The Workgroups view allows you to specify which groups
have view privileges for the workgroups in the database. View privileges
determine which groups can see each workgroup in the Smeadlink or Database Map programs.
The Workgroups view contains two columns called Workgroup and View
Privileges. The Workgroup column displays the different workgroups in the
database, and the View Privileges column displays the groups that have view
privileges for each workgroup. The default setting for all the cells in the
View Privileges column is No Security. This means that every Smeadlink
operator in the database will be able to see all the workgroups in the database. The following instructions will show you how to adjust the setting for
a cell in the View Privileges column. You can use these instructions to set
the view privileges for any number of workgroups.
To adjust the setting for a cell in the View Privileges column:
1. Click the desired cell in the View Privileges column. A down arrow will now
appear at the right side of the cell you clicked in.
2. Click the down arrow. A dropdown menu will now appear listing the different groups in the open database.
3. Click the desired group in the dropdown menu. The menu will now close,
and the group you selected will appear in the selected cell.
77
Assigning Access Rights in the System View
System view
Unlike the Tables and Workgroups views, the System view does not list
specific components in your Smeadlink database. Instead, it lists all the general components in your Smeadlink system, and it allows you to specify
which group will have access to each component. The System view contains
two columns called Property and Value. The Property column displays all
the general components in your Smeadlink system, and the Value column
displays the groups that have access to each component.
The cells in the Property column are set according to the default Smeadlink
access rights you learned about in chapter 3, so administrative components
are only available to the default Manager group, editing components are
only available to the default Editor group and general components are available to the default Everyone group. Components that are used separately
from other Smeadlink programs, such as the PC Files program, are set to No
Security. This means that any Smeadlink operator will have access to these
components, regardless of whether or not the operator is assigned to a group.
Some of the names in the Property column refer to multiple components in
Smeadlink. The table on the following pages explains which components
each name refers to. To change the Value setting for one of these items, you
can use the same method explained on the previous page for adjusting the
setting of a cell in the View Privileges column (i.e. click in the desired cell,
open the dropdown menu, click the desired group and save the change).
78
Chapter 4
Property Name
Refers to
Manager Group
The Columns and Views utilities in
Smeadlink, and the Database Map utility. If a group does not have access
rights to the Manager group, then its operators will not see any of the commands on the Columns or Views utilities, and they will only be able to view
the Database Map, they will not be able
to create or edit any tables in it.
Redlining/Annotations Add/Edit/
Delete
The Redlining and Annotations features
in Smeadlink's Image Viewer and
Manual Indexing Viewer. If a group does
not have rights to Redlining/Annotations
Add/Edit/Delete, then its operators will
not be able to modify annotations or
redlining objects on images in the Image Viewer or the Manual Indexing utility.
Redlining/Annotations View
The Redlining and Annotations features
in Smeadlink's Image Viewer and
Manual Indexing Viewer. If a group
does not have rights to Redlining/Annotations View, then its operators will
not be able to view annotations or
redlining objects on images in the Image Viewer or the Manual Indexing utility.
ERM Group
ERM imports in the Import Wizard utility. If a group does not have rights to
the ERM Group, then its operators will
not be able to view ERM imports.
Import Group
The Import Wizard utility. If a group
does not have rights to the Import
Group, then its operators will not be able
to open the Import Wizard, and the Import command on Smeadlink's Tools
menu will be unavailable.
79
ColorBar Label Integrator
Group
The ColorBar Label Integrator utility. If
a group does not have rights to the
ColorBar Label Integrator Group, then
the ColorBar Label Integrator command
on Smeadlink's Tools menu will be unavailable to the group's operators.
Database Toolkit Group
The Database Toolkit utility. If a group
does not have rights to the Database
Toolkit Group, then the Database Toolkit command on Smeadlink's Tools menu
will be unavailable to the group's operators.
Scanner Group
The Scanner program and the Manual
Indexing utility in Smeadlink. If a group
does not have rights to the Scanner
Group, then the Scanner command on
the Tools menu will be unavailable to
the group's operators. The Manual Indexing command on the View menu will
also be unavailable to the operators in
the group.
Security Manager Group
The Security Manager utility. If a group
does not have rights to the Security
Manager Group, then the Security Manager command on Smeadlink's Tools
menu will be unavailable to the group's
operators.
Tracking Group
The Tracking program. If a group does
not have rights to the Tracking Group,
then the Bar Code Tracking command
on Smeadlink's Go menu will be unavailable to the group's operators.
80
Chapter 4
Printing, Exporting and Resizing the Rows in a View
The five views in the Security Manager program function similarly to views
in Smeadlink. You can select different rows in each view, and then print or
export the data in the selected rows. You can also resize the rows in a view
by stretching the row cells horizontally or by stretching them vertically. The
procedures for printing, exporting and resizing rows are explained in detail
in the Smeadlink User's Guide. The section names and page numbers for
each task are listed below.
• For information about printing (including both the print setup process
and the actual print process), see the sections Print Setup and Printing
Reports in chapter 7 of the User's Guide. The Print Setup section starts
on page 109, and the Printing a Report section starts on page 112.
Note: When going through the print setup process in Smeadlink, it is
necessary to go through the process two times if you will be printing
both reports and images. In Security Manager, however, you only need
to go through the print setup process once.
• For information about exporting, see the section Exporting Rows in
chapter 7 of the User's Guide. The Exporting Rows section starts on
page 127.
• For information about resizing the rows in a view, see the section Adjusting the Size of Rows in a View in chapter 5 of the User's Guide.
This section starts on page 69.
Using Import Wizard
5. Using Import Wizard
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating an Import for a Delimited Text File
Creating an Import for a Fixed Width Text File
Creating an Import for an Excel Object
Creating an Import for an Access Table
Setting up an Import for Importing Images
Creating an Import for the Denso Portable Scanner
Modifying an Import
Creating an Import Job
Modifying an Import Job
Removing an Import or an Import Job
Running an Import or an Import Job
81
82
Chapter 5
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to assign access rights for a Smeadlink
database. You learned how to use the Groups and Operators views in Security Manager to create the groups in a database and assign the operators for
each group, and you also learned how to assign access rights for your groups
using the Tables, Workgroups and System views.
This chapter will show you to use Import Wizard to import data into your
Smeadlink database. As you learned in chapter 1, the first step in importing
data into a Smeadlink database is to create an import load. An import load is
similar to a Scanner rule—it is a group of settings that determines things like
which file to import data from and which folder or subfolder to import data
into. The process for creating import loads varies somewhat according to
what type of file you want to import. This chapter will show you how to
create import loads for the various types of files that you can import with
Import Wizard, including delimited text files, fixed width text files, Excel
objects and Access tables.
In addition to creating import loads for general file types, this chapter will
also show you how to set up two kinds of specialized imports. The first
specialized import load is for importing tracking data from the Denso BHT6000 portable scanner, and the second is for importing images into Smeadlink
and attaching them to Smeadlink rows. After you learn how to create the
different types of import loads, this chapter will show you how to modify or
remove existing import loads. You will then learn how to import data into
your Smeadlink database by running an existing import load.
Note: From this point forward, this chapter will refer to import loads as
simply imports. This is done to make the chapter easier to read, and also to
reflect what import loads are called by Smeadlink Technical Support.
In addition to working with imports, this chapter will also show you how to
work with import jobs. A job is a group of imports. When you run a job, the
imports it contains are run one after another in the order they were added to
the job. The capability to group imports into jobs was added to Import Wizard in Smeadlink 3 to streamline the import process when multiple imports
need to be run.
Note: For a summary of the Import Wizard utility and its function in your
Smeadlink system, see the section Smeadlink Administrative Utilities...Import
Wizard in chapter 1 of this manual.
Using Import Wizard
83
Creating an Import for a Delimited Text File
Creating an import is the first step in the process of importing a file into your
Smeadlink database. An import is similar to a Scanner rule—it is a group of
settings that determines things like which file to import data from, which
table to import data into and which column to import rows by.
The process for creating an import varies somewhat depending on what type
of file you would like to import data from. This section will show you how
to create an import for a delimited text file. If you need to create an import
for a different type of file, see one of the next three sections in this chapter
(these sections explain how to create imports for fixed-length text files, Excel objects and Access tables).
To create an import for a delimited text file:
1. Click the New button on the Import Wizard's toolbar. The New submenu
will now appear. The New submenu contains three commands called Load,
Load from Denso and Job.
2. Click the Load command on the New submenu. The Select Import File
Select Import File window
3. Select the desired delimited text file in the Select Import File window,
and then click the Open button.
The Select Import File window will now close, and the second Import Wizard window will appear. The example on the following page shows what the
second Import Wizard window looks like.
84
Chapter 5
Second Import Wizard window
4. Select the desired number of rows to sample from the import file. To
select the desired number of rows:
• Click the arrows at the right of the box labeled Number of Rows to
Sample. Clicking an arrow will increase or decrease the current number by 10.
You can sample between 10 and 90 rows from the import file. The sample
rows will be displayed in the middle of the second, third, fourth and fifth
Import Wizard windows, and the purpose of the sample rows is to help you
set the options on these windows. The default number of rows to sample is
20, so when the second Import Wizard window appears you will see the first
20 rows in the selected file.
5. Make sure the Delimited option is selected (the Delimited option is the
first option in the Format section of the window).
6. If the first row of your import file contains column names, then check the
First Row contains Field Names box.
Once you check this option, Import Wizard will remove the column names
from the other sample rows and place each name in the column header of the
appropriate column. If the first row of your import file contains column
names and you leave this box unchecked, then the column names will be
imported as data.
Using Import Wizard
85
7. Select the delimiter for the columns in your import file.
• If the delimiter is a comma, tab, semicolon or space, then select the
appropriate option.
• If the delimiter is another symbol, then select the Other option and
type your delimiter in the provided text box.
Once you select the correct delimiter for your import file, the sample row
columns will become correctly aligned. If you select the wrong delimiter,
then only one column in your sample rows will be displayed.
8. Click the Next button at the bottom of the second Import Wizard window.
The third Import Wizard window will now appear as shown below.
Third Import Wizard window
9. Select the desired destination table in the open Smeadlink database. To
select a destination table:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Destination box. A dropdown
will now appear that lists all the tables in the open database.
• Click the desired table in the dropdown. The name of the table you
clicked will now appear in the Destination box.
86
Chapter 5
10. Select which columns in the import file will correspond to which columns in the destination table. Data from each column in the import file will
be imported into the specified corresponding column in the destination table.
To select corresponding columns:
• Click the column header of one of your sample data columns. The
column will now turn blue to indicate that it is selected.
• Click the column in the Available Fields box that you would like to set
as the corresponding column for the selected sample data column.
Note: In addition to the columns in the destination folder, there are
several other options that may appear in the Available Fields box.
These options are listed below.
• The <<SKIP FIELD>> option will always be displayed in the
Available Fields box. This option allows you to skip a column in
the import file, so that none of the data in the column is imported
into the destination table.
• The <<IMAGE COPY>> option will always be displayed in the
Available Fields box. This option is used for importing images. If
the delimited text file contains information for importing images,
then map the column that contains image paths to the <<IMAGE COPY>> option.
• The five tracking options <<TRACKING DESTINATION>>,
<<TRACKING DATE>>, <<TRACKING OPERATOR>>,
<<TRACKING DESTINATION>> and TRACKING OPERATOR>> will be displayed in the Available Fields box if the specified destination table is a tracking folder. These options are used
when setting up an import for a file that contains tracking data.
You will learn more about them later in this chapter.
• Click the single right arrow button once. The single right arrow button
is the first of four buttons that are located between the Available Fields
box and the Selected Fields box. Once you click this button, the column you selected from the Available Fields box will appear in the
Selected Fields box.
Using Import Wizard
87
Note: Clicking the double right arrow button will transfer all the columns in the Available Fields box to the Selected Fields box. Clicking
on a column in the Selected Fields box and then clicking the single left
arrow button will remove that column from the Selected Fields box.
Finally, clicking the double left arrow button will remove all the columns in the Selected Fields box.
• If you want to create a default value for the highlighted column in the
Selected Fields box, click the Properties button above the box. A window will now appear that allows you to enter a default value for the
highlighted column. This value will be used for any blank or zero values in the import column. If the highlighted column contains dates,
you will also be able to select the date format in the Properties window.
• Repeat the above four steps for each sample data column (i.e. for each
column in the delimited source file).
11. Click the Next button at the bottom of the third Import Wizard window.
The fourth Import Wizard window will now appear as shown below.
Fourth Import Wizard window
88
Chapter 5
12. Type the desired name for this import in the Load Name box at the top
of the fourth Import Wizard window.
13. Make sure that the Source File box displays the name of the desired
source file. If it does not, enter the desired file in the Source File box.
14. Select the desired overwrite/add option. The three overwrite/add options are explained below.
Overwrite/Add option
Description
Overwrite Existing and
Add New Records
If a row in the source file contains the
same Id number as a row in the destination table, then replace the row in the
destination table with the row from the
source file. If a row in the source file
contains a unique Id number, then create a new row for it in the destination
table.
Overwrite Existing
Records Only
If a row in the source file contains the
source file. If a row in the source file
contains a unique Id number, then write
the row to the error log.
Add New Records Only
If a row in the source file contains a
unique Id number, then create a new
row for it in the destination table. If a
row in the source file contains the same
Id number as a row in the destination
table, then write the row to the error log.
Using Import Wizard
89
15. If you would like the delimited source file to be deleted after its data has
been imported into the specified Smeadlink table, then check the Delete
Source File after Processing box.
16. Select the desired Import By option. The Import By setting determines
which column, if any, will be used as the Id column in the destination table.
• If you selected one of the two overwrite options in step 14, then you
will need to specify an Id column in this step. Smeadlink will use the
Id column and the corresponding column in the import file to determine when to overwrite rows.
• If you selected the Add New Records Only option in the previous step,
then you will not need to specify an Id column. You can select None as
your Import By setting.
17. If you would like the rows in the import file to be imported in reverse
order, check the Process in Reverse Order box.
18. Click the Next button at the bottom of the fourth Import Wizard window. The fifth Import Wizard window will now appear as shown below.
Fifth Import Wizard window
90
Chapter 5
19. The SQL Statement box allows you to update or modify other columns
in the open Smeadlink database as the import is running.
If you want to use this option, enter the desired SQL statement in the SQL
Statement box. Smeadlink will execute the SQL statement after it imports
each row into the destination table. You will need to use the token %ID% in
your SQL statement to refer to the rows in the destination table.
20. The Tracking Destination and Due Date options are both used when
creating imports for the Denso portable scanner. These options allow you to
specify a default destination and due date for objects without a specified
destination or due date. You will learn more about these options later in this
chapter.
21. If the import file contains information for importing images, you will
now need to specify which output settings will used to store the images. To
specify output settings:
• Click the arrow at the right of the Use ScanRule box. A dropdown will
now appear listing all the Scanner rules in the open database.
• Click the rule that contains the desired output settings.
• Now click the appropriate option for saving images with the Id of a
row that already has an image attached to it. Save As New Version will
save the image as a new version of the first image. Save As New Page
will save the image as a new page for the first image.
22. Click the Finish button at the bottom of the fifth Import Wizard window.
The fifth Import Wizard window will now close, and the first window will
reappear. The import you just created will be selected in the Saved Imports
box on the first Import Wizard window.
Using Import Wizard
91
Creating an Import for a Fixed Width Text File
to create an import for a fixed width text file. If you need to create an import
for a different type of file, see the previous section in this chapter for information about creating an import for a delimited text file, or see the next two
sections in this chapter for information about creating imports for Excel
objects and Access tables.
To create an import for a fixed width text file:
2. Click the Load button on the Smeadlink window. The Select Import File
3. Select the desired import file in the Select Import File window, and then
click the Open button.
The Select Import File window will now close, and the second Import Wizard window will appear. The example on the following page shows what the
second Import Wizard window looks like.
92
Chapter 5
4. Select the number of rows that you would like to sample from the import
file. To select the desired number of rows:
You can sample between 10 and 90 rows from the import file. The sample
20 rows in the selected file.
5. Check the Fixed Width (Aligned by column) option in the Format section. The delimited options above the sample rows will now disappear, and
a scale, or ruler, will appear in their place.
Using Import Wizard
93
6. Divide the rows in the fixed width import file into columns.
To divide the rows in the import file into columns, you will need to create a
number of break lines. For instance, if your import file contains three columns of data, you will need to create two break lines to separate the columns. To create a break line:
• Place your mouse pointer over the desired break line position on the
ruler, and click the left mouse button once.
A break line will now appear over the sample rows. If you need to move the
break line, simply click it and drag it to the desired position. If you need to
remove a break line, simply double-click it. The example below shows how
two break lines have been used to separate data in an import file into three
columns.
Ruler for creating and
moving break lines
First break line
Second break line
The third Import Wizard window will now appear as shown on the following page.
94
Chapter 5
8. Select the desired destination table in the open Smeadlink database. The
destination table is the table that the data in the fixed width file will be
imported into. To select a destination table:
• Click the desired table on the dropdown. The name of the table you
9. Select which columns in the import file will correspond to which columns
in the destination table. Data from each column in the import file will be
imported into the specified corresponding column in the destination table.
To select corresponding columns:
Using Import Wizard
95
into the destination table.
the fixed width text file contains information for importing images, then map the column that contains image paths to the <<IMAGE COPY>> option.
<<TRACKING DESTINATION>> and TRACKING OPERATOR>> will be displayed in the Available Fields box if the specified destination folder is a tracking folder. These options are used
highlighted column. This value will be used for any blank or zero value
in the import file. If the highlighted column contains dates, you will
also be able to select the date format in the Properties window.
column in the fixed width source file).
96
Chapter 5
13. Select the desired overwrite/add option. The three overwrite/add options are explained on the following page.
Using Import Wizard
97
Description
Add New Records
If a row in the import file contains the
import file. If a row in the import file
table.
Overwrite Existing
Records Only
If a row in the import file contains the
import file. If a row in the import file
If a row in the import file contains a
row in the import file contains the same
Id number as a row in the destination
table, then write the row to the error log.
• If you selected one of the two overwrite options in the previous step,
then you will need to specify an Id column in this step. Smeadlink will
use the Id column and the corresponding column in the import file to
determine when to overwrite rows.
98
Chapter 5
15. If you would like the rows in the import file to be imported in reverse
each record into the destination table. You will need to use the token %ID%
in your SQL statement to refer to the rows in the destination table.
chapter.
Using Import Wizard
99
100
Chapter 5
Creating an Import for an Excel Object
to create an import for an Excel object. If you need to create an import for a
different type of file, see the previous sections in this chapter for information about creating an import for a delimited text file or a fixed width text
file, or see the next section in this chapter for information about creating an
import for an Access table.
To create an import for an Excel object:
2. Click the Yes button on the Smeadlink window. The Select Import File
window will now appear as shown in the example below.
3. Select the desired Excel object in the Select Import File window, and then
click the Open button.
The Select Import File window will now close, and the second Import Wizard window will appear as shown on the following page.
Using Import Wizard
101
4. Select the number of rows that you would like to sample from the Excel
object. To select the desired number of rows:
You can sample between 10 and 90 rows from the Excel object. The sample
20 rows in the selected Excel object.
5. If the Excel object you selected in step 3 contains more than one worksheet
or named range, then you will now need to select which one you would like
to import data from. To select a worksheet or named range:
• Click the desired worksheet or named range in the list under the Number of Rows to Sample box.
102
Chapter 5
6. If the first row of the Excel object contains column names, then check the
First Row contains Field Names box.
Once you check this option, Import Wizard will remove the column names
from the other sample row data and place each name in the column header
of the appropriate column. If the first row of your Excel object contains
column names and you leave this box unchecked, then the column names
will be imported as data.
destination table is the table that the data in the Excel object will be imported into. To select a destination table:
Using Import Wizard
103
9. Select which columns in the Excel object will correspond to which columns in the destination table. Data from each column in the Excel object
will be imported into the corresponding column in the destination table. To
specify corresponding columns:
into the destination folder.
the import object contains information for importing images, map
the column that contains image paths to the <<IMAGE COPY>>
option.
104
Chapter 5
highlighted column. This value will be used for any blank or zero
value in the import file. If the highlighted column contains dates, you
will also be able to select the date format in the Properties window.
column in the Excel object).
Using Import Wizard
105
13. Select the desired overwrite/add option. The three overwrite/add options are explained in the table below.
Description
Add New Records
If a row in the Excel object contains
the same Id number as a row in the destination table, then replace the row in
the destination table with the row from
the Excel object. If a row in the Excel
object contains a unique Id number,
then create a new row for it in the destination table.
Overwrite Existing
Records Only
If a row in the Excel object contains
the same Id number as a row in the destination table, then replace the row in
the destination table with the row from
the Excel object. If a row in the Excel
object contains a unique Id number,
then write the row to the error log.
If a row in the Excel object contains a
row in the Excel object contains the
same Id number as a row in the destination table, then write the row to the
error log.
106
Chapter 5
which column, if any, will be used as the Id column in the destination folder
or subfolder.
use the Id column and the corresponding column in the Excel object to
determine when to overwrite rows.
15. If you would like the rows in the Excel object to be imported in reverse
16. Click the Next button at the bottom of the fourth Import Wizard window.
The fifth Import Wizard window will now appear. The example below shows
what the fifth Import Wizard window looks like.
Using Import Wizard
107
in your SQL statement to refer to the rows in the destination table.
chapter.
19. If the Excel object contains information for importing images, you will
108
Chapter 5
Creating an Import for an Access Table
to create an import for an Access table. If you need to create an import for a
different type of file, see the previous three sections in this chapter for information about creating an import for a delimited text file a fixed width text
file, or an Excel object.
To create an import for an Access table:
2. Click the Yes button on the Smeadlink window. The Select Import File
window will now appear as shown in the example below.
3. Select the database that contains the desired table, and then click the Open
button.
The Select Import File window will now close, and the second Import Wizard window will appear as shown on the following page.
Using Import Wizard
109
4. Select the number of rows that you would like to sample from the import
table. To select the desired number of rows:
You can sample between 10 and 90 rows from the import table. The sample
20 rows in the selected Access table.
5. If the database you selected in step 3 contains more than one table, then
you will now need to select which table in the database you would like to
import data from. To select a table:
• Click the desired table in the list under the Number of Rows to Sample
box. In the example at the top of this page, the open database contains
two Access tables called Customers and Employees.
110
Chapter 5
destination table is the table that the data in the selected Access table will be
imported into. To select a destination table:
8. Select which columns in the import Access table will correspond to which
columns in the destination table. Data from each column in the import table
will be imported into the specified corresponding column in the destination
table. To select corresponding columns:
as the corresponding column for the selected column.
Using Import Wizard
111
Note: In addition to the columns in the destination table, there are
into the destination folder.
the import table contains information for importing images, map
the column that contains image paths to the <<IMAGE COPY>>
option.
highlighted column. This value will be used for any blank or zero value
in the import table. If the highlighted column contains dates, you will
also be able to select the date format in the Properties window.
112
Chapter 5
column in the Access table).
12. Select the desired overwrite/add option. The three overwrite/add options are explained in the table on the following page.
Using Import Wizard
113
Description
Add New Records
If a row in the import table contains the
import table. If a row in the import table
table.
Overwrite Existing
Records Only
If a row in the import table contains the
import table. If a row in the import table
If a row in the import table contains a
row in the import table contains the
same Id number as a row in the destination table, then write the row to the
error log.
use the Id column and the corresponding column in the import table to
determine when to overwrite records.
114
Chapter 5
14. If you would like the rows in the import table to be imported in reverse
in your SQL statement to refer to the records in the destination table.
chapter.
Using Import Wizard
115
The fifth Import Wizard window will now close, and the Import Manager
window will appear. The import you just created will be selected in the
Saved Imports box.
116
Chapter 5
Setting up an Import for Importing Images
Smeadlink 3 now allows you to import images, and attach the images to
rows in Smeadlink folders or subfolders. You can import images with a text
file, an Excel object or an Access table, as long as you include certain information. This section will show you what information needs to be included
for importing images. Once you have verified that your file, object or table
is set up correctly for importing images, you can create an import for it using
one of the four previous sections in this chapter. You can then run the import, and all the images listed in the file, table or object will be imported into
Smeadlink and attached to the specified rows.
Requirements for importing images:
The following requirements apply to any delimited text file, fixed length
text file, Excel object or Access table that you want to use for importing
images.
1. One column needs to include the entire path of each image that you want
imported into Smeadlink. When you are creating the import, this column
needs to be mapped to the <<IMAGE COPY>> option, instead of to a field
in the destination table.
2. One column needs to include the Id number of the Smeadlink row you
want each image attached to. The entries in the Id column need to correspond to the entries in the image path column (i.e. the first entry in the Id
column needs to be the Id of the row you want the first image attached to,
the second entry in the Id column needs to be the Id of the row you want the
second image attached to, etc.).
Using Import Wizard
117
Creating an Import for the Denso Portable Scanner
table to import data into and which column to import rows by. The previous
sections in this chapter showed you how to create imports for the various
file types that can be imported into Smeadlink, including delimited text files,
fixed width text files, Excel objects and Access tables. You also learned
how files of any one of these four types need to be set up for importing
images into Smeadlink.
This section will show you how to create an import for the Denso BHT6000 portable scanner. The Denso scanner is a hand-held unit that is optional for use with Smeadlink Tracking, and it allows Smeadlink operators to
track objects away from their computers. After the Denso scanner has been
used to track some objects, you will need to create an import for it so that the
data in the scanner can be imported into a Smeadlink database.
You will need to create at least one Denso import for each Smeadlink database that you would like to import tracking data into. After you have created
the initial import for a database, you will be able to use it each time you want
to download some new tracking information from the Denso scanner into
the database. Once the import has been run, the database will then be updated with the new tracking information. You may eventually want to modify
the Denso import for a database, or create a new one with different settings,
but this is entirely optional and up to you.
Note: This section assumes that your Denso scanner already has the
Smeadlink Tracking program on it, and that it has already been configured
for Smeadlink. Fore more information about these tasks, see the section
Tracking Objects with the Denso Scanner in chapter 14 of the User's Guide.
To create a Denso import:
2. Click the Load from Denso button on the Smeadlink window. The second
Import Wizard window will now appear as shown on the following page.
118
Chapter 5
3. Click the Acquire button on the second Import Wizard window.
A Smeadlink window will now appear as shown below telling you to prepare the Denso scanner for transmitting. The data you will transmit here is
not going to be imported into Smeadlink. Instead, it will be used as sample
data to set up the import. You can use either dummy data created expressly
for this purpose, or actual tracking data (once data is transmitted from the
scanner it is not automatically deleted, so you do not have to worry about
losing real tracking information).
Smeadlink window
4. To prepare the Denso scanner for transmitting:
• Make sure that the Denso scanner's cradle is connected to the appropriate COM port on your computer. If you are not sure which COM port
the cradle needs to be connected to, open the Options window and then
open the COM Port folder in the Options window. Now look at the
current COM Port setting in the Denso Settings section. The cradle
needs to be connected to this COM port.
Using Import Wizard
119
• Make sure that the cradle's power cord (it looks like a DC adapter) is
attached to the cradle, and then turn the cradle on.
• Place the Denso scanner in the cradle, and then turn the Denso scanner
on.
• Open the main menu in the scanner.
• From the main menu, press the 5 button.
5. Click the OK button on the Smeadlink window, then press the ENT button on the Denso scanner.
Once you have clicked the OK button on the Smeadlink window, it will
disappear and an status window will appear in its place. You will now have
30 seconds to click the ENT button on the Denso scanner. If you wait longer
than 30 seconds to press the ENT button or if you click the Abort command
on the status window during the transfer process, then no data will be sent
from the scanner to Smeadlink.
Once data has been transferred from the Denso scanner to Smeadlink, a Transfer Completed! message will appear in the scanner, and sample data will
appear in the second Import Wizard window. As in normal imports, the
sample data will be displayed in the second, third, fourth and fifth Import
Wizard windows, and the purpose of it is to allow you to set the options on
these windows.
6. Create break lines between each field in the sample data. Import Wizard
will use the break lines to determine how the data should be separated into
fields. To create a break line:
• Place your mouse pointer over the desired break line position on the
ruler above the sample data, and click the left mouse button once. A
break line will now appear over the sample data. If you need to move
the break line, simply click it and drag it to the desired position. If you
need to remove a break line, simply double-click it.
You will need to create break lines for five or six fields: Location, Object,
Scan Date, Operator, the Transmit Code: T and, if set, the Due Back Date.
The third Import Wizard window will now appear as shown on the following page.
120
Chapter 5
8. In the Destination box at the top of the third Import Wizard window,
select the <<TRACKING IMPORT>> option.
Selecting the <<TRACKING IMPORT>> option specifies that the data in
the Denso scanner will be imported into the Tracking table of the open database, and not any user tables (i.e. tables used to create folders or subfolders).
Once you have selected the <<TRACKING IMPORT>> option, the Available Fields box will be updated so that only the tracking fields are displayed
in it.
9. Now map the tracking fields in the Available Fields box to the Selected
Fields box. The tracking fields need to be mapped to the Selected Fields box
in the order they are listed in the Available Fields box: To map a field:
• Click the desired field in the Available Fields box.
• Click the single right arrow button between the Available Fields and
Selected Fields boxes. The field will now appear in the Selected Fields
box.
Note: If you want to skip a field, such as the <<TRACKING DUE DATE>>
field, map the <<SKIP FIELD>> option to the Selected Fields box in place
of the field you want to skip. Fields skipped in this way will not be imported
into Smeadlink.
Using Import Wizard
121
10. If you have not set the <<TRACKING DATE>> or <<TRACKING
DUE DATE>> fields to be skipped, then select the correct format for them
now. To select the format for either field:
• Click the field in the Selected Fields box.
• Click the Properties button above the Selected Fields box. The Properties window will now appear as shown below.
<<TRACKING DATE>> Properties window
• Select the mmddyyhhmmss format in the Date Format box, and then
click OK to close the Properties window.
122
Chapter 5
12. Enter the desired name for the import in the Import Name box at the top
13. If a copy of the tracking data from the Denso scanner needs to be saved
for other purposes, then enter the desired name in the Storage File for Denso
Import box (i.e. Denso.txt).
Note: If you use this import multiple times to import data from the Denso
scanner, then the data in the storage file specified here will be overwritten
each time the import is run (i.e. the storage file will only contain data from
the last import). If you want to save a copy of your tracking data each time
you download it from the Denso scanner, then you will need to enter a different file name in the Storage File for Denso Import box before you run the
import.
If you do not enter a name in the Storage File for Denso Import box, then the
Denso scanner will still automatically create a text file each time you import
data from it. This text file is part of the import process. Data cannot be sent
directly from the Denso scanner to Smeadlink, so instead the Denso scanner
exports its data to the text file. Once the tracking data is in the text file, it can
be imported into Smeadlink.
14. Check the Delete Source File after Processing option if your want the
text file created during each import process deleted after the data has been
imported into Smeadlink.
15. Click the Next button at the bottom of the fourth Import Wizard window. The fifth Import Wizard window will now appear as shown on the
following page.
Using Import Wizard
123
16. If would like, you can now specify a default destination and due date for
the tracking objects that will be imported from the Denso scanner. The default destination and due date will be used if there is no data in the <<TRACKING DESTINATION>> and <<TRACKING DATE>> columns, or if you
skipped one or both of these columns.
• To specify a default tracking destination, type the Id number of the
desired destination in the Destination box.
• To specify a default tracking due date, enter the desired date in the
Date Due box. You can also click the down arrow at the right of the
Date Due box and use the calendar that appears to specify a due date.
To specify a due date with the calendar, click on the desired day in the
calendar.
You have now have finished creating an import for the Denso scanner. Remember that you can use this import as many times as you like to import
data from the Denso scanner into the open Smeadlink database.
124
Chapter 5
Modifying an Import
Once you have created an import, you may eventually want to go back through
your import and modify some of its settings. For instance, you may want to
specify a different source file. This section will show you how to modify an
import. You can use the information in this section to modify any existing
import in your Smeadlink database.
To modify an existing import:
1. Select the desired import in the Saved Imports box.
2. Click the Setup button on the Import Manager's toolbar. The second Import Wizard window will now appear as shown below.
Note: The options on the second Import Wizard window will differ depending on what type of import you selected in step 1.
3. You can now modify any of the settings on the second Import Wizard
window. If the settings you want to modify are on another Import Wizard
window, use the Next button to open the appropriate window and then make
the desired changes.
4. Once you are finished modifying the selected import, open the fifth Import Wizard window and click the Finish button. The import will now be
saved with your new changes.
Using Import Wizard
125
Creating an Import Job
Some import procedures require you to run multiple imports. In previous
versions of Smeadlink, you would have needed to run each import individually to accomplish these kinds of tasks. In Smeadlink 3.5, however, you can
create a group of imports and run the whole group at once. This group is
called an import job, or job, for short.
When you run a job, each import in the job is run automatically in the order
it was added to the job. Import Wizard creates a status report and an error
log for the job, just like it does for a standard import. Both the status report
and the error log are divided into sections, one for each import in the job.
Apart from the expanded status report and error log, running a job is just like
running an import. This section will show you how to create an import job.
To create an import job:
2. Click the Job button on the Smeadlink window. The Import Job window
will now appear as shown below.
Import Job window
3. Create a name for the new job. To create a name:
• Type the desired name in the Job Name box at the top of the Import
Job window.
126
Chapter 5
4. Add the desired imports to the new job. To add imports:
• Click the blank cell under Name. A down arrow will appear at the right
side of the Name cell.
• Click the down arrow to display a dropdown listing all the imports in
the open database.
• Click the import in the dropdown that you want to run first when the
entire job is run. The dropdown will now close, and the import you
selected will appear in the Name cell. An editing pencil will also appear in the row selector at the far left of the row, and a new, blank
import row will be added beneath the first row.
• If you want to use the input file specified in the import, check the Use
Load Input File option.
• If you want to use a different input file than the file specified in the
import, then type the name of the desired file in the Input File box.
Note: You can also specify an input file by clicking the dot box that
appears at the right side of the Input File cell once it is activated. After
you click the dot box, a standard Select File window will appear that
you can use to specify the desired input file.
• Once you have finished filling out the options for the first import in the
job, use the mouse button, the TAB key or the arrow keys to move the
cursor to the next import row. Once you move to the second row, the
editing pencil at the left of the first row will disappear, to let you know
that the row is no longer being edited.
• Repeat the above six steps for each import that you want in the job.
Remember that when you run the job, the imports it contains will be
run in the order they were added to it.
5. Once you have finished adding the desired imports to the new job, then
click the Finish button in the lower right corner of the Import Jobs window.
The Import Jobs window will now close, and the first Import Wizard window will reappear. The import job you just created will be listed in the Saved
Imports box on the first Import Wizard window.
Using Import Wizard
127
Modifying an Import Job
Once you have created an import job, you may eventually want to go back
through it and modify some of its settings. For instance, you may want to
specify a different input file for one of the imports in the job, or you may
want to remove some of the existing imports and add new ones. This section
will show you how to modify an import job. You can use the information in
this section to modify any existing job in the open database.
To modify an import job:
1. On the first Import Wizard window, select the desired import job in the
Saved Imports box.
2. Click the Setup button on the Import Wizard's toolbar.
The first Import Wizard window will now close, and the Import Jobs window will appear as shown below. The name of the selected job will be displayed in the Job Name box at the top of the window, and the various imports in the job will be listed in the records grid in the middle of the window.
The job in the example below is called Test Job, and it contains three imports called Matters, Attorneys and Tracking.
Import Job window
128
Chapter 5
3. If you would like to delete one or more of the imports in the job, then follow
the steps below:
• Click the row selector of the first import that you want to delete (the row
selector is the gray box at the far left of each row in the import records
grid). Once you click the row selector, the first import row will turn blue
to indicate that it is selected.
• If you want to delete additional imports, hold down the CTRL key while
you click the row selector of each import.
• Once you have selected the import (s) you want to delete, press the
DELETE key. The Delete Rows popup window will now appear. This
window will tell you how many import rows you have selected to delete, and it will ask you to verify that the selected imports should in
fact be deleted.
• Click the Yes button on the Delete Rows popup window, or press the
ENTER key. The selected imports will now be removed from the open
import job.
4. If you would like to add one or more imports to the job, then follow the
steps below:
• Click the Name cell of the blank row at the bottom of the import records
grid. A down arrow will now appear at the right of the cell.
• Click the down arrow to display a dropdown listing all the imports in
the open database.
• Click the desired import in the dropdown. The dropdown will now
close, and the import you selected will appear in the Name cell. An
editing pencil will also appear in the row selector at the far left of the
row, and a new, blank import row will be added beneath the active
row.
• If you want to use the input file specified in the import, check the Use
Load Input File option in the active row.
• If you want to use a different input file than the file specified in the
import, then type the name of the desired file in the Input File box of
the active row.
Using Import Wizard
129
Note: You can also specify an input file by clicking the dot box that
appears at the right side of the Input File cell once it is activated. After
you click the dot box, a standard Select File window will appear that
you can use to specify the desired input file.
• Once you have finished filling out the options for the new import, use
the mouse button, the TAB key or the arrow keys to move the cursor to
the next row in the import records grid. Once you move to the next
row, the editing pencil at the left of the first row will disappear, to let
you know that the row has been saved and it is no longer being edited.
• Repeat the above six steps for each import that you want in the job.
Remember that when you run the job, the imports it contains will be
run in the order they were added to it.
5. If you want to modify the input file for one or more of the imports in the
job, then follow the steps below:
• Click the Input File cell in the row of the desired import. A dot box will
now appear at the far right side of the Input File cell.
• You can now either delete the current input file path and type in the
new one, or you can click the dot box to open a standard Select File
window, and use this window to specify the desired input file.
Note: If you want to use the input file specified in the import, you do
not have to type it in or select it in the Select File window. Instead,
simply check the Use Load Input File cell. The import's default input
file will now be automatically entered in the Input File cell.
6. Once you have made the desired changes to the open job, click the Finish
button in the lower right corner of the Import Jobs window.
The Import Jobs window will now close, and the first Import Wizard window will reappear. The import job you just modified will be listed in the
Saved Imports box on the first Import Wizard window.
130
Chapter 5
Removing an Import or an Import Job
This section will show you how to remove an import or an import job. You
can use the information in this section to remove any existing import or
import job from the open Smeadlink database.
To remove an existing import or import job:
1. On the first Import Wizard window, select the desired import or job in the
Saved Imports box.
2. Click the Remove button on the toolbar.
A message box will now appear asking if you would like to remove the
selected import or job. The example below shows what the message box
looks like.
Remove import or job message box
Note: There is no way to restore an import or import job once it has been
deleted, so make sure the message box displays the name of the import or
job that you want to delete.
3. Click the Yes button on the message box. The selected import will now be
permanently removed.
Using Import Wizard
131
Running an Import or an Import Job
This section will show you how to run an import or an import job. You can
use the procedure explained in this section to run any existing import or
import job in the open Smeadlink database.
To run an existing import or import job:
1. On the first Import Wizard window, select the desired import or import
job in the Saved Imports box.
2. Click the Run button on the toolbar.
The selected import or import job will now be run, and a status bar will
appear beneath the toolbar to display it's progress. When the import or import job is finished, a button called View Report will appear beneath the
status bar. The example below shows what the first Import Wizard window
looks like immediately after an import or an import job has been run.
Status Bar
View Report button
3. If you would like to view a status report for the import or import job you
just executed, then click the View Report button. The Import Report window will now appear as shown on the following page.
• If you executed a single import, then your report will look like the one
in the example—it will display the start and end time at the top, followed by information about the table that was modified and any records
that were affected by the import.
132
Chapter 5
• If you executed an import job, then your report will look slightly different than the one in the example—it will contain one section for each
import in the job. Each section will have the start and end time for one
import at the top, followed by information about the table that was
modified and any records that were affected by the import.
Import Report window
4. If any errors are generated when your import or import job is run, then
they will be written to an error log and a View Errors button will appear
underneath the status bar. If you would like to view the error log, then click
the View Errors button. The Import Error Log window will now appear as
shown below.
Import Error Log window
Introduction to Directory Settings
133
6. Introduction to Directory Settings
Chapter contents
Introduction
Directory Settings Terms
Directory Settings Concepts
134
Chapter 6
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to import different objects into
Smeadlink using the Import Wizard program. You learned how to create
imports for the various types of objects that can be imported into Smeadlink,
and how to work with imports once they have been created. You also learned
how to group imports together into a job, and how to work with jobs once
they have been created.
This chapter will introduce you to the Directory Settings utility. As you
learned in chapter 1, Directory Settings is a program that allows you to specify
which directories on your computer can be used by Smeadlink programs for
storing image files. Image files can be either document images created in the
Scanner or PC Files programs, or ERM files created in the Import Wizard
program. Smeadlink programs do not store image files in your Smeadlink
database. They store them in designated directories elsewhere on your computer. Directory Settings is the utility for designating which directories on
your computer can be used for storing image files.
When you want to designate a directory for storing image files (this is called
an image output directory), you use the Directory Settings program to create
a path that points to that directory on your computer. Once the path has been
created, it will become available to other Smeadlink programs and they can
use it to specify which image output directory they will use for storing image files.
The first section in this chapter explains basic Directory Settings terms, and
the second section explains basic Directory Settings concepts. If you are
familiar with earlier versions of Directory Settings, then you may want to
skip this chapter and go straight to chapter 7. If you have not used Directory
Settings before, then reading this chapter should give you a good basic understanding of what the different components in the Directory Settings program look like and how they are used.
Note: For a summary of the Directory Settings utility and its function in
your Smeadlink system, see the section Smeadlink Administrative
Utilities...Directory Settings in chapter 1 of this manual.
135
Directory Settings Terms
There are three terms that you will need to know when you are using Directory Settings. These terms are: devices component, volumes component and
directories component. As you learned in chapter 1, these are the three components in each path created with Directory Settings. This section will introduce you to these three components.
Devices component
The devices component of a path typically specifies which drive the image
output directory is located on. For instance, suppose you were setting up the
Scanner program and you wanted it to store all the images it scanned to the
c:\sdlk\images1 directory on your computer. The drive in this path is c:, so
the devices component of the path in Directory Settings would probably be
set to c:.
Directory Settings is very flexible in how it allows paths to be entered, however, so the devices component of this path could also be c:\sdlk or even
c:\sdlk\images1. This flexibility allows Directory Settings to model a wide
variety of directory structures. Directory Settings requires every path to include a devices component, a volumes component and a directories component, so if you entered all the file path information in one or two components, you would need to use one or two dummy components to complete
the path (a dummy component is a component that does not include any path
information).
In addition to the actual file path information (i.e. c:\ in the example above),
the devices component of each path in Directory Settings also includes several other pieces of information. For instance, one of them allows you to
enter a name for the specified drive letter. Using a name instead of just a
drive letter often makes a drives easier to identify, for when the path is modified later on.
Volumes component
The volumes component of a path typically specifies which one of the main
directories on the drive contains the image output directory. For instance,
going back to the example from above, suppose you were setting up the
Scanner program and you wanted it to store all the images it scanned to the
c:\sdlk\images1 directory on your computer. The main directory in this path
is devices, so the devices component of the path in Directory Settings would
probably be set to \devices.
136
Chapter 6
Again, Directory Settings is very flexible in how it allows paths to be entered, so the volumes component of this path could also be c:\sdlk or even
c:\sdlk\images1. Remember that Directory Settings requires every path to
include a devices component, a volumes component and a directories component, so if you entered all the file path information in one or two components, you would need to use one or two dummy components to complete
the path (a dummy component is a component that does not include any
path information).
Directories component
The directories component of the path typically specifies the actual image
output directory. For instance, going back to the previous example one more
time, suppose you were setting up the Scanner program and you wanted it to
store all the images it scanned to the c:\sdlk\images1 directory on your computer. The image output directory in this path is images1, so the directories
component of the path in Directory Settings would probably be set to images1.
Again, Directory Settings is very flexible in how it allows paths to be entered, so the directories component of this path could also be \sdlk\images1
or even a dummy component if all the path information was already entered
in the devices and volumes components (a dummy component is a component that does not include any path information).
137
Directory Settings Concepts
This section summarizes the basic Directory Settings concepts. It explains
what the different components on the Directory Settings window are and
how they are typically used.
As you learned earlier, in a normal Directory Settings session you will be
creating paths that point to image output directories. Once you create each
path in Directory Settings, it will become available to other Smeadlink programs. It can then be used by the Scanner program, the PC Files program or
the Import Wizard program to specify where they will store image files.
Typically, you will use Directory Settings when you are initially setting up
your Smeadlink system. Once you begin using Smeadlink, you may use Directory Settings again from time to designate new directories as the existing
ones fill up with image files and become difficult to work with.
There are three main views, or grids, that can appear in the Directory Settings window—one for each component of a file path. The views are set up
so that they form a three part hierarchy. The Devices view is the top element
in the hierarchy, the Volumes view is the next element down and the Directories view is the lowest level in the hierarchy. Each row in the Devices view
can be attached to multiple rows in the Volumes view, and each row in the
Volumes view can be attached to multiple rows in the Directories view.
Because of the way it is organized, Directory Settings can model many different types of directory structures—from simple to very complex.
The diagram below shows how three paths would typically be entered into
Directory Settings. The file paths used in the diagram are c:\sdlk\images1,
c:\sdlk\images2 and c:\sdlk\images3. Each box in the diagram represents
one row in the labeled view. Each line represents a connection between two
rows.
Devices view:
c:
Volumes view:
\sdlk
Directories view:
images1
images2
images3
138
Chapter 6
The paths used in the diagram on the previous page have two shared components: the devices component, which in this case is c:, and the volumes component, which in this case is \sdlk. A shared component in Directory Settings is a component that is used in more than one path. In the diagram, the
c: row in the Devices grid and the \sdlk row in the Volumes grid are each
used to define three different paths.
There are several advantages to using shared components when you are entering paths into Directory Settings. The first advantage is that it saves time
when you are initially entering the paths. Instead of entering the same component any number of times, you only need to enter it once. The second
advantage is that if the actual directory structure on your computer ever
changes and you need to modify the existing paths to match the new structure, you only have one component to modify instead of possibly many.
Finally, shared components are easier to read in Directory Settings, because
they eliminate duplicate information in the views.
Directory Settings displays one view at a time in its main window. When
you first open Directory Setting, the Devices view will be displayed in the
top portion of the Directory Settings window. The Devices view will be
empty if you have not used Directory Settings before. The first step in creating a path with Directory Settings is to create a blank row in the Devices
view and enter the device information for your file path into the blank row's
fields. The example below shows what the Devices view looks like in Directory Settings. The Devices view in the example contains one row, and the
device information for a path has been entered into the row's fields.
Devices view
139
As you learned earlier, the devices component of a path in Directory Settings typically specifies which drive the image output directory is located
on. However, because there are no internal checks in Directory Settings,
you can put as much path information as you want into the Devices view. It
is normally not very efficient to put a lot of information into one view, though,
and it may require dummy rows in later views that make the entire path
harder to work with. It is usually recommended that you put only one or two
pieces of a path into the Devices view. As you learned earlier, this saves you
time in initial setup, makes it easier to alter the paths in Directory Settings if
your actual directory structure changes later on and increases readability.
Once you have created a row in the Devices view and entered your device
information into the row, then the next step in creating a path is to select the
row you just made and open the Volumes view. When the Volumes view
opens, it will display all the volume rows that are attached to the selected
row in the Devices view. If you are creating a new path, then the Volumes
view will be empty. The example below shows what the Volumes view looks
like. The Volumes view in the example contains one row, and the volume
information for a path has been entered into the row's fields.
Volumes view
140
Chapter 6
After the Volumes view is open, you create a new blank row in it just like in
the Devices view, and fill in the row's fields with the volume information of
the path you are creating. Once you have created a row in the Volumes view
and entered your volume information into the row, then the next step in
creating a path is to select the row you just created and open the Directories
view.
The Directories view is related to the Volumes view just like the Volumes
view is related to the Devices view. When the Directories view opens, it will
display all the directory rows that are attached to the selected row in the
Volumes view. If you are creating a new path, then the Directories view will
be empty. The example below shows what the Directories view looks like.
Directories view
After the Directories view opens, you create a blank row in it just like in the
other views, and fill in the row's fields with the directory information of the
path you are creating. The path will now be completely entered into Directory Settings, and it will become available to other Smeadlink programs,
including the Scanner program, the PC Files program and the Import Wizard program.
Using Directory Settings
7. Using Directory Settings
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating a Path for a Magnetic Storage Device
Creating a Path for an Optical Storage Device
Creating Multiple Paths Using Shared Components
141
142
Chapter 7
Introduction
The previous chapter introduced you to the Smeadlink Directory Settings
program. You learned about basic Directory Settings terms, and about the
basic concepts for using Directory Settings. This chapter will show you how
to use Directory Settings to create paths for your Smeadlink programs.
As you learned earlier, there are two main types of paths that can be created
in Directory Settings: paths for magnetic storage devices, and paths for optical storage devices. A magnetic storage device is a standard hard drive,
either on your computer or on another computer attached to your computer's
network, and an optical storage device is a drive in a jukebox. You use the
same options to create paths for both types of storage devices, but the way
you use the options differs somewhat depending on which type of device
you are creating a path for.
The first section of this chapter will show you how to create a path for a
magnetic storage device, and the second section will show you how to create a path for an optical storage device. The third section will then show you
how to enter multiple paths at once into Directory Settings and share common components between the paths. The information in the third section
applies to paths for both types of storage devices.
143
Creating a Path for a Magnetic Storage Device
This section will show you how to create a path in Directory Settings for a
magnetic storage device, which is a standard hard drive. Once you have
created the path in Directory Settings, it will become available to the
Smeadlink Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs, and they will be
able to use it to specify an image output directory.
Before you begin going through this section, remember that there is no one
way to divide a path into components in Directory Settings. This section
will show you the typical way a file path for a magnetic storage device would
be divided and entered into Directory Settings. Depending on the directory
structure in your computer, you may want to divide your file paths differently, but the basic process for creating the path will remain the same.
Note: Directory Settings is a mapping utility only, it does not actually create
directories. You need to create all image output directories in Windows Explorer or DOS before you create paths for them in Directory Settings.
To create a path for a magnetic drive:
1. Open the Devices layout.
The Devices layout will open automatically when you first open the Directory Settings program. If you are in another layout, though, you will need to
open it manually. To open the Devices layout from another layout:
• Click the Up One Level command on the Go menu, or click the Up
One Level button on the toolbar.
The Up One Level command will take you back one level in the layout
hierarchy, so if you are in the Directories layout you will need to select Up
One Level twice to get back to the Devices layout (the name of each layout
is displayed above the field names on the left side of the Directory Settings
window).
144
Chapter 7
2. Create a new row in the Devices layout.
The new row will contain all the devices information for your file path. To
begin creating the new row:
• Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row at the
bottom of the Devices layout.
The purpose of the name is to describe the device whose drive letter or
UNC path you will put in this row. You do not have to put anything in
the Name cell, but an actual name for a device makes it easier to identify than a just a drive letter or a UNC path.
Once you begin typing the name, a pencil will appear at the left of the
row to indicate that the row is being edited, and a new, blank row will
be added to the bottom of the Devices layout. The example below
shows what the Devices layout looks like when you begin creating a
new row.
New row being created in the Devices layout
• Now press the Tab key on the keyboard to move to the row's second
field (you can also use the right arrow key on the keyboard or the
mouse pointer to move from one field to another).
3. Enter the desired devices information into the Drive Letter or UNC field
of the new row. Once you are finished, move to the next field in the row.
You can enter the devices information using standard drive letter notation,
like c:\sdlk, or using UNC notation, like \\my_machine\c\sdlk. Typically,
the devices component of a path in Directory Settings identifies which drive
the image output directory is located on. For instance, in the path
c:\sdlk\images1 the images1 directory is located on the c: drive, so the devices component for this path would typically be set to c:. There are no
internal checks in Directory Settings, though, so you can enter as much file
path information as you want into the devices component of a path.
145
4. Enable or disable the Require Temporary box for the new row. To enable
the Require Temporary box:
• Click the box once.
A check mark will now appear in the Require Temporary box for the new row,
to indicate that Require Temporary is enabled. Require Temporary is used to
determine how images stored with this path will be viewed. When Require
Temporary is set to True and a user opens an image in Smeadlink, the server
will create a copy of the image in the user's c:\windows\temp directory and
Smeadlink's image viewer will display the local copy of the image. When
Require Temporary is set to False and a user opens an image in Smeadlink,
the image viewer will display the original image on the server.
5. Ignore the Active box for the new row. The Active field is only used when
you are creating a path for an optical drive—it does not apply when you are
creating a path for a magnetic drive.
6. Save the new row in the Devices layout. There are several ways to save a
row in Security Manager. These procedures are explained below.
row.
• Use the Tab key on your keyboard to move to the row beneath the
edited row.
• Click on another row in the open layout.
After you use one of the methods above to save your row, the pencil at the
left of the row will disappear to let you know that your changes have been
saved.
7. Select the row you just created. To select the row:
• Click the row selector at the left of the desired row.
The row selector is the gray box at the very left of each row. Once you click
a row selector, the row will turn blue to indicate that it is selected.
146
Chapter 7
8. Open the Volumes layout. To open the Volumes layout:
• Click the Down One Level command on the Go menu, or click the
Down One Level button on the toolbar.
The Volumes layout will now appear. Since no volumes rows have been
created for the selected row in the Devices layout, the Volumes layout will
be empty. You should see one, blank row in the Volumes layout. The example below shows what the Volumes layout should look like.
Empty Volumes layout
9. Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row in the Volumes layout. After you enter the name, or if you do not want to enter a name
at all, move to the second field in the row.
The Name field in the Volumes layout is similar to the Name field in the
Devices layout—it allows you to give a name to the information you will
put in the Path field. A real name often makes path information easier to
work with, but it is not a necessary piece of information.
10. Enter the desired volumes information into the Path field of the new
row. Once you are finished, move to the next field in the row.
Typically, the volumes component of a path identifies which one of the
main directories on a device the image output directory is located on. For
instance, in the path c:\sdlk\images1 the sdlk directory is the main directory
on the c: drive, so the volumes component for this path would typically be
set to \sdlk. There are no internal checks in Directory Settings, though, so
you can enter as much path information as you want into the Path field.
147
11. Ignore the Juke Box Volume Id cell of the new row . This field is used
when creating paths for optical storage devices, but it does not apply when
creating paths for magnetic storage devices.
12. Save the new volumes row just like you saved the devices row in step 6.
Once you have saved the row, select it and open the Directories layout. The
example below shows what the Directories layout should look like.
Directories layout
The Id field of the new row will be automatically filled in for you when you
save the row. This field is used internally to keep track of the entire path.
13. Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row in the Directories layout. After you enter the name, or if you do not want to enter a
name at all, move to the third field in the row.
14. Enter the desired directories information into the Path field of the new
row.
Typically, the directory component of a path specifies the exact image output directory. For instance, in the path c:\sdlk\images1, images1 is the actual directory specified by the whole path, so the directory component of
this path would typically be set to \images1. Just like the other layouts though,
there are no internal checks in the Directories layout, so you can enter whatever path information you want into this field.
15. Now save this row just like you saved the others in the Devices and
Volumes layouts.
When you have finished saving this row, you will be finished entering your
file path into Directory Settings, and it will immediately become available
to the Smeadlink Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs.
148
Chapter 7
Creating a Path for an Optical Storage Device
This section will show you how to create a path in Directory Settings for an
optical storage device, which is a cartridge in a jukebox. Once you have
created a path in Directory Settings, it will become available to the Smeadlink
Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs, and they will be able to use
it to specify which cartridge in the jukebox they will use to store images.
Even though you use the same options in Directory Settings to create paths
for both magnetic and optical drives, the procedures for creating each type
of path are not the same. When you are creating a path for a magnetic drive
you specify the exact location of a directory on the drive, and the way that
you break the path up into components is basically left up to you. When you
are creating a path for an optical drive you first specify a cache directory on
the jukebox's server, and then you specify one of the cartridge's in the jukebox. There is not as much flexibility in Directory Settings when you are
creating a path for an optical drive, as you have to enter the path in a certain
way. This section will walk you through the process of creating a path in
Directory Settings for an optical drive.
To create a path for an optical drive:
1. The Devices layout will open automatically when you first open the Directory Settings program. If you are in another layout, though, you will need
to open it manually. To open the Devices layout from another layout:
• Click the Up One Level command on the Go menu, or click the Up
One Level button on the toolbar.
The Up One Level command will take you back one level in the layout
hierarchy, so if you are in the Directories layout you will need to select Up
One Level twice to get back to the Devices layout (the name of each layout
is displayed above the field names on the left side of the Directory Settings
window).
2. Create a new row in the Devices layout.
The new row will contain all the devices information for your file path. To
begin creating the new row:
• Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row at the
bottom of the Devices layout.
149
The purpose of the name is to describe the device whose drive letter or
UNC path you will put in this row. You do not have to put anything in
the Name cell, but an actual name for a device makes it easier to identify than a just a drive letter or a UNC path.
Once you begin typing the name, a pencil will appear at the left of the
row to indicate that the row is being edited, and a new, blank row will
be added to the bottom of the Devices layout. The example below
shows what the Devices layout looks like when you begin creating a
new row.
New row being created in the Devices layout
• Now press the Tab key on the keyboard to move to the row's second
field (you can also use the right arrow key on the keyboard or the
mouse pointer to move from one field to another).
3. Enter the desired devices information into the Drive Letter or UNC field
of the new row. Once you are finished, move to the next field in the row.
You can use standard drive letter notation, like R:\cache, or you can use
UNC notation, like \\jukebox_server\cache. When you are creating a path
for an optical drive, the devices component of the path needs to specify a
directory on the jukebox's server that the jukebox will always have access
to. Typically, the jukebox will always have access to the cache directory, so
the Drive Letter or UNC field typically specifies the cache directory on the
jukebox's server.
150
Chapter 7
4. Enable or disable the Require Temporary box for the new row. To enable
the Require Temporary box:
A check mark will now appear in the Require Temporary box for the new
row, to indicate that Require Temporary is enabled. Require Temporary is
used to determine how images stored with this path will be viewed. When
Require Temporary is set to True and a user opens an image in Smeadlink,
the server will create a copy of the image in the user's c:\windows\temp
directory and Smeadlink's Image Viewer will display the local copy of the
image. When Require Temporary is set to False and a user opens an image in
Smeadlink, the Smeadlink's Image Viewer will display the original image on
the server.
5. Enable or disable the Active box for the new row. To enable the Active
box:
A check mark will now appear in the Active box for the new row, to indicate
that Active is enabled. The purpose of the Active field is to let you know if
a cartridge is in the jukebox or not. When Active is enabled, Smeadlink
assumes that the cartridge you specified in the Drive Letter or UNC field is
in the jukebox (in other words, that the cartridge is active). You will be able
to save or import image files using the path, and Smeadlink users will be
able to view any images saved with this path. When Active is disabled,
Smeadlink assumes that the cartridge is not in the jukebox. Smeadlink will
display an error message if you try to save images using the path, or if a user
tries to open an image saved using this path. Enter the appropriate value in
this field.
6. Save the new row in the Devices layout. There are five ways to save a row
in Security Manager. These procedures are explained below.
row.
• Use the Tab key on your keyboard to move to the row beneath the
edited row.
• Click on another row in the open layout.
• Click the Save Row button on the toolbar.
151
After you use one of the methods on the previous page to save your row, the
pencil at the left of the row will disappear to let you know that your changes
have been saved.
7. Select the row you just created. To select the row:
• Click the row selector at the left of the desired row.
The row selector is the gray box at the very left of each row. Once you click
a row selector, the row will turn blue to indicate that it is selected.
8. Open the Volumes layout. To open the Volumes layout:
• Click the Down One Level command on the Go menu, or click the
Down One Level button on the toolbar.
The Volumes layout will now appear. Since no volumes rows have been
created for the selected row in the Devices layout, the Volumes layout will
be empty. You should see one, blank row in the Volumes layout. The example below shows what the Volumes layout should look like.
Empty Volumes layout
9. Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row in the Volumes layout. After you enter the name, or if you do not want to enter a name
at all, move to the second field in the row.
The Name field in the Volumes layout is similar to the Name field in the
Devices layout—it allows you to give a name to the information you will
put in the Path field. A real name often makes path information easier to
work with, but it is not a necessary piece of information.
152
Chapter 7
10. Enter the desired volumes information into the Path field of the new
row. Once you are finished, move to the next field in the row.
When you are creating a path for an optical drive, you do not have to enter
anything into this field if you have already specified a directory on the
jukebox's server in the Devices layout. If you did not enter the entire path to
the jukebox's directory in the Drive Letter or UNC field of the Devices layout, then you will need to enter the rest of the path to that directory in this
field.
For instance, say the directory that you want to specify on the jukebox's
server has the path \\server1\cache. If you enter this entire path in the Drive
Letter or UNC field of the Devices layout, then you do not have to enter
anything else here. If you entered just the first component of the path in the
Drive Letter or UNC field, then you would need to enter \cache here.
11. The Juke Box Volume Id field is used to specify which cartridge in the
jukebox you want to save image files to. Enter the desired cartridge name in
this field.
12. Save this row like you saved the devices row earlier. Once you have
saved the row, select it and open the Directories layout.
The Directories layout will be empty when it opens, because no rows have
been created in it for the selected row in the Volumes layout. The example
below shows what the Directories layout will look like.
Directories layout
153
The Id field of the new row will be automatically filled in for you when you
save the row. This field is used internally to keep track of the entire path.
14. Type the desired name into the Name cell of the blank row in the Directories layout. After you enter the name, or if you do not want to enter a name
at all, move to the third field in the row.
16. The third field in the Directories layout is called Path. This field contains the actual directory information of the file path you are creating. This
field is not used when you are creating a path for an optical drive.
17. Save this row just like you saved the others in the Devices and Volumes
layout.
When you finish saving this row you will be finished entering your file path
into Directory Settings, and it will immediately become available to the
Smeadlink Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs.
154
Chapter 7
Creating Multiple Paths Using Shared Components
An image output directory can typically hold about 10,000 Smeadlink image files before it becomes difficult to use. If you will be working with more
than 10,000 images in your Smeadlink system, you will need to create multiple paths in Directory Settings to specify multiple image output directories.
The previous two sections in this chapter showed you how to create individual paths for both magnetic and optical storage devices. You could use
the information in these sections to create multiple paths in Directory Settings, but the paths would need to be created one at a time. Also, each path
would need to have its own devices, volumes and directories component. As
you learned earlier, it is usually most efficient to share components when
you are entering more than one path in Directory Settings. You can share
either the Devices component or the Devices and Volumes components between any number of paths. This section will show you how to create multiple paths at once in Directory Settings using shared components. The information in this section applies to paths for both magnetic and optical storage devices.
To create multiple paths using shared components:
1. The first step is to add a new row to the Devices layout. This new row will
be shared by all the paths that you are creating, and it will contain the devices information that is used by each path.
Open the Devices layout now and add a new row to it just like you did when
creating an individual file path. Once you have added the new row, enter the
devices information for the paths you are creating into its fields and then
save the row. When the row has been saved, select it and open the Volumes
layout.
2. You will now need to create one or more rows in the Volumes layout,
depending on whether you want to share one volumes row between the paths
you are creating, or use a separate volumes row for each one. Each volumes
row that you create will be attached to the selected row in the Devices layout, so they will all share the same devices component.
• If the paths you are creating share the same volumes component, add
one row to the Volumes layout, enter the desired volumes information
into its fields and then save the row. When the row has been saved,
select it and open the Directories layout.
155
• If the paths you are creating have different volumes components, create one volumes row for each path. As you create new rows in the
Volumes layout, enter the desired volumes information into each one
and save it. When you have finished creating rows in the Volumes
layout, select the first row and open the Directories layout.
3. The last step in creating multiple paths in Directory Settings is to create
the directories component of each path. The directories component cannot
be shared between paths, or the paths would be identical. You will need to
create a separate row in the Directories layout for each path that you are
creating.
• If you shared both the directories and volumes components of the paths
you are creating (in other words, if you created one row in the Devices
layout and one row in the Volumes layout), then you will now need to
add one row to this grid for each path that you are creating. As you add
new rows to the Directories layout, enter the desired information into
each one and save it. A path will be completed as you save each directories row, and it will become available to the Smeadlink Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs.
• If you shared just the directories component of the paths you are creating (in other words, if you created one row in the Directories layout
and multiple rows in the Volumes layout), then you will now need to
add one row to this grid. This row will be attached to the first row that
you created in the Volumes layout. Enter the desired directories information into this row, and then save it when you are finished. The path
that you just completed will now become available to the Smeadlink
Scanner, Import Wizard and PC Files programs.
Now go back to the Volumes layout, select the second row from the
top and open the Directories layout again. Create a new row, enter the
desired information into its fields and save it. A second path will now
be completed, and it will become available to the Smeadlink Scanner,
Import Wizard and PC Files programs. Keep repeating this process
until you have created one directories row for each row in the Volumes layout.
Introduction to Database Map
8. Introduction to Database Map
Chapter contents
Introduction
Basic Database Map Terms
Basic Database Map Concepts
149
150
Chapter 8
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to create paths in Directory Settings
for specifying image output directories on your computer. You learned how
to create a path for a magnetic storage device, and you learned how to create
a path for an optical storage device. You also learned how to create multiple
paths at once using shared components.
This chapter will introduce you to the Database Map program. As you learned
in chapter 1, Database Map is a program that allows you to view and modify
the table relationships in your Smeadlink databases. You can use Database
Map to modify or delete existing workgroups, folders, subfolders and dropdowns in a Smeadlink database, and you can also use it to create new work
groups, folders, subfolders or dropdowns in the database. The first section
in this chapter will explain some terms that are often used in discussing
Database Map. The second section will explain the basic concepts you should
know before you begin using Database Map.
151
Basic Database Map Terms
There are several terms that are often used in discussing the Database Map
program. This section will introduce you to those terms and explain how
they are typically used.
Item
An item is one of the components in the Database Map's tree diagram. There
is one item in the tree diagram that corresponds to the Smeadlink database
that is currently open, and there is another item in the tree diagram for each
workgroup, folder, subfolder and dropdown in the open database. Each item
includes an icon and a name. The maximum number of items in your tree
diagram will be determined by the number of workgroups, folders, subfolders and dropdowns in the open database. The example below shows what an
item looks like in the Database Map's tree diagram. The item in the example
is a workgroup item.
An item in the tree diagram
Level
As you have seen in the examples so far, the items in the Database Map's
tree diagram are organized into a hierarchy that is made up of different levels. The first level in the diagram includes just one item, and that is the item
at the top of the diagram that corresponds to the open Smeadlink database.
The second level in the diagram includes all the workgroup items, the third
level in the diagram includes all the folder items, and so on. The maximum
number of levels in your tree diagram will be determined by the structure of
the open database. You can determine which level an item is on by starting
at the database item in the tree diagram and counting each item that contains
the item you are interested in.
152
Chapter 8
Basic Database Map Concepts
Database Map is a program that allows you to view and modify the table
relationships in your Smeadlink databases. The main component in the Database Map program is a tree diagram that displays all the workgroups, folders, subfolders and dropdowns in the open database. You can choose to
have the tree diagram start out in a fully expanded or collapsed state when
you open the Database Map program.
When the tree diagram starts out in a fully expanded state, every workgroup,
folder, subfolder and dropdown in the open database is visible in the diagram. This allows you to see the structure of the entire database. When the
tree diagram starts out in a fully collapsed state, on the other hand, only the
database item is visible in the tree diagram. You can then expand just the
portion of the tree diagram that you will be using. Starting the tree diagram
in a fully collapsed state and then expanding just the area you need is helpful
if you are already familiar with the structure of the open database, and you
know exactly which item in it you want to modify. This is because it allows
you to focus on just the area you are working with, and it prevents you from
being distracted by other items in the database.
As you have probably noticed in the examples so far, you can choose whether
or not you want plus/minus buttons to be displayed in the Database Map's
tree diagram. Plus/minus buttons in the tree diagram work just like plus/minus
buttons in Windows Explorer—they are displayed to the left of each item in
the tree diagram, and they allow you to quickly see whether or not an item
contains any subitems. If the button to the left of an item contains a plus
sign, then that item contains at least one subitem, and if the button to the left
of an item contains a minus sign, then that item does not contain any subitems.
The example on the following page shows what a button with a plus in it and
a button with a minus on it look like in the Database Layout's tree diagram.
153
A minus button
A plus button
You can expand any item in the Database Map's tree diagram by placing the
mouse pointer over that item and double-clicking the left mouse button once.
After you click the left mouse button, the contents of the selected item will
appear underneath it in the tree diagram. For instance, if you place the mouse
pointer over a workgroup item and click the left mouse button once, then the
folders in that workgroup will appear underneath it in the tree diagram.
You can collapse an expanded item in the same way you expand a collapsed
item—just place the mouse pointer over the item you want to collapse and
double-click the left mouse button. In addition to using the mouse pointer
and left mouse button to expand and collapse items, you can also use the
features on the Database Map's View menu. The View menu has several
features that allow you to expand or collapse one item in the tree diagram.
You can also use the View menu to expand or collapse the entire tree diagram at once.
After you have adjusted the tree diagram to your liking by expanding or
collapsing the desired items on it, you can use the popup menus to modify
any of the items displayed in the tree diagram. There are three popup menus:
the database menu, the workgroup menu and the table menu. As you learned
in chapter 1, you open a popup menu by placing the mouse pointer over the
item in the diagram you want to modify and clicking the right mouse button
once. The popup menu for that item will then appear in front of the tree
diagram. The example on the following page shows what the database popup
menu looks like. This menu appears when you click the right mouse button
over the database item at the top of the tree diagram.
154
Chapter 8
Database popup menu
Like the other popup menus, the database popup menu contains commands
for renaming the item the menu was opened from and changing its icon.
You can also expand or collapse the tree diagram from the database popup
menu, and you can create a new item underneath the selected item (in this
case, a new workgroup in the open database). Finally, you can open a Properties window from the database popup menu, which allows you to adjust
several properties for the selected item (in this case, these are general properties for the open database, like whether or not rows in the database's folders and subfolders will alternate colors).
In addition to the standard options on the database popup menu, there are
also several options that only apply at the database level. These options allow you to create folders and subfolders based on foreign tables, and modify
the bar code search order for the open database.
As you learned in chapter 1, Database Map now supports foreign tables
(tables created outside of Smeadlink). There are two types of foreign tables:
tables located in an external database, and tables located in a Smeadlink
database that were created with another program (such as Microsoft Access). In earlier versions of Smeadlink, the only way to work with a foreign
table was to modify several Smeadlink tables at the system level. In 3.1,
however, all the required tools for working with foreign tables are included
in the Database Map program.
155
For foreign tables located in an external database, the first step is to connect
the external database to the Smeadlink database you want to use the foreign
table in. Once you have connected the external database, you can register
any table in the database with Smeadlink. The foreign table (or tables) will
then behave just like a regular Smeadlink table, and you will be able to use it
to create folders or subfolders in the Smeadlink database.
For foreign tables that are already located in a Smeadlink database, you simply register the table in Smeadlink. Once the table has been registered, it will
behave like a regular Smeadlink table, and you will be able to use it to create
folders or subfolders.
The last function of the database popup menu is that it allows you to modify
the bar code search order for the open database. The bar code search order is
used by Smeadlink Tracking to find objects or destinations that do not have
a bar code prefix. Typically, when you enter an Id number in Smeadlink
Tracking, Smeadlink will search through the open database, looking for a
row with the same Id number as the number you entered (this is true for both
object Id numbers and destination Id numbers). Smeadlink will use a bar
code prefix to determine what folder or subfolder the matching row is located in. It will then go straight to that folder or subfolder, and search the
entries in its Id column for a matching number.
Although this system works well when the labels used for tracking have bar
code prefixes on them, it is not very reliable or efficient if the tracking labels
do not have bar code prefixes. In that situation, duplicate Id numbers on the
labels can lead to incorrect tracking assignments, and even if the correct
match is found, it may take a long time.
For situations where the labels used for tracking do not have bar code prefixes on them, Database Map allows you to set up a bar code search order for
the open database. The bar code search order lists what tables in the database to look through when trying to find a matching Id number, and what
order to look through the tables. It also specifies what field in each table
contains Id numbers for Tracking, and what mask and strip characters to
apply for the field, if necessary. The Bar Code Search Order utility is the tool
you can use to view and modify the bar code search order for the open
database. This utility is opened from the database popup menu, and the
example on the following page shows what it looks like.
156
Chapter 8
Bar Code Search Order utility
The second Database Map popup menu is the workgroup menu. This menu
appears when you click the right mouse button over any workgroup item in
the tree diagram, and it is the smallest popup menu. It includes several of the
general commands you learned about on the database popup menu. For
instance, you can use it to rename the workgroup item the menu was opened
from and to change its icon. You can also expand or collapse the tree diagram from the this popup menu, and you can create a new item underneath
the selected item (in this case, a new folder in the open workgroup). The
example below shows what the workgroup popup menu looks like.
Workgroup popup menu
157
The third Database Map popup menu is the table menu. This menu appears
when you click the right mouse button over any folder or subfolder item in
the tree diagram. It includes all the general commands you learned about on
the database popup menu. For instance, you can use it to rename the folder
or subfolder item the menu was opened from and to change its icon. You
can also expand or collapse the tree diagram from the this popup menu, and
you can create an item underneath the selected item (in this case, you would
be creating a subfolder underneath the selected folder or subfolder). The
example below shows what the table popup menu looks like.
Table popup menu
In addition to the standard options on the tables popup menu, there are also
several options that only apply at the table level. These options allow you to
view and modify the fields in a table, and adjust the table properties.
In previous versions of Smeadlink, the utility for adding new fields to a table
was in the Smeadlink. In 3.1, however, this utility has been expanded and
moved to the Database Map. When you click the Fields command on the
Table popup menu, the Field Maintenance utility will appear in front of the
tree diagram. This utility allows you to add, edit and remove the fields in the
selected table. It also allows you to print out a list of all the fields in the
table. The Field Maintenance utility has been moved from Smeadlink to the
Database Map program so that you can add fields to new tables as you create them. The example on the following page shows what the Field Maintenance utility looks like.
158
Chapter 8
Field Maintenance utility
The last function of the Tables popup menu is that it allows you to modify the
properties of the selected table. Clicking the Table Properties command on
the Table menu will bring up a window called the Properties window. If you
are familiar with earlier versions of Smeadlink, then you will see that the
Properties window contains many of the options that used to be located on
the Tab Manager utility in Smeadlink. For instance, you can use the options
on the Properties window to change the background color of a folder or
subfolder, modify the bar code prefix for the rows it contains and determine
whether or not attachments are allowed for the rows in the folder. The example below shows what the Properties window looks like.
Properties window
159
In addition to standard properties, the Properties window also allows you to
adjust the tracking properties for the selected folder or subfolder. The tracking properties determine things like the container level of the of the items in
the folder or subfolder, and whether or not the folder or subfolder contains
an active field. All the tracking properties are contained in a separate window that you can open from the standard Properties window. The example
below shows what the Tracking Properties window looks like.
Tracking Properties window
Using Database Map
9. Using Database Map
Chapter contents
Introduction
Working with the Database Map Tree Diagram
Creating a Workgroup
Creating a Folder
Creating a Subfolder
Creating a Dropdown
Working with Foreign Tables
Using the Field Maintenance Utility
Modifying Existing Items in a Database
Modifying the Bar Code Search Order for the Open Database
161
162
Chapter 9
Introduction
The previous chapter introduced you to the Database Map program. You
learned about some terms that are frequently used while discussing the Database Map program, and you also learned about the basic concepts for using Database Map. You should now have a basic idea about what the Database Map program looks like and what it is used for.
This chapter will show you how to use the Database Map program to modify
a Smeadlink database. The first section of this chapter will show you how to
work with the Database Map's tree diagram using the options on the View
menu and the Options window. The remaining sections in this chapter will
then show you how to use the tree diagram and the Database Map popup
menus to create and modify workgroups, folders, subfolders and dropdowns
in the open Smeadlink database.
Using Database Map
163
Working with the Database Map Tree Diagram
As you learned earlier, the main component in the Database Map program is
a tree diagram that displays all the work groups, folders and subfolders in
the open Smeadlink database. You can expand any collapsed item in the tree
diagram by placing your mouse pointer over that item and double-clicking
the left mouse button (if an item is already expanded, you can collapse it
using the same procedure).
In addition to the mouse pointer and mouse buttons, you can also work with
the Tree Diagram using the options on the View menu and the Options window. This section will show you how to use these options to work with the
Database Map's tree diagram. The remaining sections in this chapter will
then show you how to use the tree diagram and the Database Map popup
menus to modify the workgroups, folders and subfolders in the open
Smeadlink database.
Options on the View Menu
The View menu contains four commands that you can use to automatically
expand or collapse the items in the tree diagram (these commands are also
listed at the bottom of each of the three popup menus). Each command is
explained below.
Expand All
The first option on the View menu is called Expand All. This option allows
you to expand every collapsed item in the tree diagram at once. If your tree
diagram contains one or more collapsed items, you can simultaneously expand them all by selecting Expand All. If your tree diagram is already fully
expanded, then clicking the Expand All option will not change the appearance of your tree diagram.
Expand All Children
The second option on the View menu is called Expand All Children. This
option allows you to fully expand a collapsed item in the tree diagram. For
instance, if you selected a collapsed workgroup item in the tree diagram and
then clicked the Expand All Children option, the workgroup item would
become fully expanded. All the folders in that workgroup would be displayed in the tree diagram, and any subfolders contained in those folders
would also be displayed.
164
Chapter 9
To fully expand a collapsed item in the tree diagram, place the mouse pointer
over the desired item and click the left mouse button once. The item will
turn blue after you click on it, to indicate that it is selected. Now select the
Expand All Children command. The selected item will now be fully expanded in the tree diagram.
Collapse All
The third option on the View menu is called Collapse All. This option allows you to collapse every expanded item in the tree diagram at once. If
your tree diagram contains one or more expanded items, you can simultaneously collapse them all by selecting the Collapse All option. If your tree
diagram is already fully collapsed, then selecting the Collapse All option
will not change its appearance.
Note: Another way to fully collapse your tree diagram is to place your mouse
pointer over the database item at the top of the diagram and then doubleclick the left mouse button.
Collapse All Children
The final option on the View menu is called Collapse All Children. This
option allows you to fully collapse an expanded item in the tree diagram.
For instance, say you had a workgroup item in your tree diagram that was
fully expanded. It had several folders underneath it, and each of these folders contained several subfolders. You could use the Collapse All Children
command to remove all these folders and subfolders from the tree diagram
at once. Once the Collapse All Children command had been selected, no
more items would be displayed under the workgroup item in the tree diagram.
The first step in fully collapsing an expanded item in the tree diagram is to
place the mouse pointer over the item and click the left mouse button once.
The item will turn blue after you click on it to indicate that it is selected.
Now select the Collapse All Children command. The selected item will now
be fully collapsed, and no more subitems will be displayed under it in the
tree diagram.
Note: Another way to fully collapse an item in the tree diagram is to place
your mouse pointer over the item you want to collapse and then double-click
the left mouse button.
Using Database Map
165
Using the Options Window
The Options window contains two options that allow you to determine how
your tree diagram will be displayed. Each of these two options are explained
below. As you learned earlier, you can open the Options window by selecting the Options command on the Tools menu. The Options window will
open with the Database Map folder selected.
Show Plus / Minus on Database Tree Display
The first option in the Database Map folder is Show Plus / Minus on Database Tree Display. This option allows you to select whether or not plus/minus
buttons will be displayed in the Database Map's tree diagram. As you learned
in the previous chapter, plus/minus buttons in the Database Map's tree diagram work just like plus/minus buttons in Windows Explorer—they are displayed to the left of each item in the tree diagram, and they allow you to
quickly see whether or not an item in the tree diagram contains any subitems.
If the button to the left of an item contains a plus sign, then that item contains at least one subitem, and if the button to the left of an item contains a
minus sign, then that item does not contain any subitems.
In addition to being a visual reference, you can also use plus/minus buttons
to expand and collapse the items in the tree diagram. If the button for an
item in your tree diagram contains a plus sign, then you can expand that item
by placing your mouse pointer over the button and clicking the left mouse
button once. The item will now be expanded, and a minus sign will appear
in its button to indicate that all the subitems contained in this item are currently displayed. Once you are done working with the item in its expanded
state, you can collapse it again by placing your mouse pointer over the item's
button and clicking the left mouse button once.
If your tree diagram does not currently have plus/minus buttons displayed in
it, you can add them to the tree diagram by opening the Options window and
enabling the Show Plus / Minus on Database Tree Display command. A
button will now appear to the left of each item in your tree diagram. If an
item contains any subitems, then a plus sign will be displayed in that item's
button. If an item does not contain any subitems, then a minus sign will be
displayed in that item's button. The two examples on the following page
show what a tree diagram looks like with and without plus/minus buttons.
The first example shows what a tree diagram looks like without plus/minus
buttons on it, and the second example shows what the same tree diagram
looks like with plus/minus buttons.
166
Chapter 9
Database Map program without plus/minus buttons
Database Map program with plus/minus buttons
Startup with Database Tree Expanded
The second option in the Database Map folder is Startup with Database Tree
Expanded. This option allows you to determine what your tree diagram will
look like each time you open the Database Map program. You can choose to
have the tree diagram start in a fully expanded or a fully collapsed state. If
you would like your tree diagram to start in a fully expanded state each time
you open the Database Map program, then enable the Startup with Database
Tree Expanded option. If you would like your tree diagram to start out in a
fully collapsed state each time you open the Database Map program, then
make sure the Startup with Database Tree Expanded option is not enabled.
Using Database Map
167
Creating a Workgroup
The previous section in this chapter showed you how to use the options on
the View menu and the Options window to work with the tree diagram. The
remaining sections in this chapter will show you how to use the tree diagram and the Database Map popup menus to modify existing items in the
open Smeadlink database, and add new items to the database.
This section will begin by showing you how to create a new workgroup.
When you finish creating your new workgroup, it will have a name and an
icon but it will not contain any folders. You will learn how to add folders to
a workgroup in the next section of this chapter.
To create a new workgroup in the open Smeadlink database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the database item at the top of the tree
diagram, and then click the right mouse button once.
The database popup menu will now appear as shown in the example below.
Database Map popup menu
2. Click the New Workgroup command on the database popup menu.
A new workgroup will now be added to the open Smeadlink database. The
workgroup will be called "Workgroup X", where X is the number of workgroups in the open database, and it will appear at the bottom of the tree
diagram. It will have the default cloud icon, and it will not yet contain any
folders. The example on the following page shows what a new workgroup
looks like in the tree diagram.
168
Chapter 9
A new work group in the tree diagram
Note: If your tree diagram is fully collapsed when you click the New command on the popup menu, then you will not notice any changes in its appearance. Expand your tree diagram by double-clicking the database item
or by using one of the Expand commands on the View menu, and you will
then see the new workgroup at the bottom of your tree diagram.
3. You can now select an icon for the new work group. To select an icon:
• Place your mouse pointer over the new work group item in your tree
The workgroup popup menu will now appear. Notice that this popup menu
contains several workgroup-specific commands that were not on the database popup menu. You will learn how to use all of these commands later on in
this chapter.
Using Database Map
169
4. The last step in creating the new workgroup is to rename it from "Workgroup X" to the name you would like it to be called. To rename the workgroup:
• Place your mouse pointer over the workgroup item and click the left
mouse button once. The item will turn blue to indicate that it is selected.
• Now place your mouse pointer over the selected item and click the left
mouse button once again. A box will appear around the item to let you
know that it is in Edit Mode, and a blinking cursor will appear inside
the item to let you modify its name.
• Press the Backspace key on the keyboard to delete the name "Workgroup X", and then type in the desired name.
• When you are finished entering the name for the new workgroup, press
the Enter key on the keyboard.
You will now be finished creating the new work group. At this point, your
workgroup will have a name and an icon, but it will not yet contain any
folders. The next section in this chapter will show you how to add new
folders to an existing workgroup.
170
Chapter 9
Creating a Folder
There are two ways to create a new folder in a workgroup. First, you can
create a folder based on an existing table, and second, you can create a folder
based on a new table that you add to a database (either the open Smeadlink
database or a connected external database). This section will show you how
to create a folder using each method.
Creating a Folder based on an Existing Table
The following instructions will show you how to create a folder based on an
existing table in the open Smeadlink database. If you want to create a folder
based on an existing foreign table (a table created outside of Smeadlink),
then you will first need to attach the foreign table to the open database. For
information about attaching foreign tables, see the section in this chapter
called Working with Foreign Tables.
When you finish creating the new folder, it will have a name, an icon and
one Id column. You can add other columns to the folder by using Database
Map's Field Maintenance utility and the Columns utility in Smeadlink, and
you can add new rows to the folder by using Smeadlink's editing features or
the Import Wizard utility.
To create a folder based on an existing table:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the workgroup that you want the folder to
be added to, and then click the right mouse button once.
The workgroup popup menu will now appear as shown in the example below.
Using Database Map
171
2. Click the Attach Table command on the workgroup popup menu.
The Attach Table window will now appear. The example below shows what
the Attach Table window looks like.
Attach Table window
3. Select the table that you want the new folder to be based on. To select a
folder:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Existing Tables box on the
Attach Table window. A dropdown will now appear listing all the tables
in the database.
• Click the desired table. The table you selected will now appear in the
Existing Tables box.
4. Now press Enter or click the OK button on the Attach Table window.
The Attach Table window will now close, and the new folder will be added
to the selected workgroup. The folder will appear in the tree diagram beneath the workgroup item, and it will include the default cloud icon. If you
would like to change the icon from a cloud to something else, see the section
in this chapter called Modifying Existing Items in a Database. The third part
of that section explains how to change the icon of an item in the tree diagram.
172
Chapter 9
Creating a Folder Based on a New Table
The following instructions will show you how to create a folder based on a
new table that you add to a database. The database that you add the table to
can either be the open Smeadlink database, or an external database that you
have connected to the open Smeadlink database. When you finish creating
the new folder, it will have a name, an icon and one Id column. You can then
add other columns to the folder by using Database Map's Field Maintenance
utility and the Columns utility in Smeadlink, and you can add new rows to
the folder by using Smeadlink's editing features or the Smeadlink Import
Wizard utility.
To create a folder based on a new table:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the workgroup that you want the folder to
be added to, and then click the right mouse button once.
The workgroup popup menu will now appear as shown in the example below.
2. Click the New Table command on the workgroup popup menu.
The Create New Table window will now appear as shown in the example on
the following page.
Using Database Map
173
Create New Table window
3. Select the database that you want that you want the new table be added to.
To select a database:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the database box. A dropdown will
now appear listing the open Smeadlink database and any external databases that you have connected to Smeadlink.
• Click the desired database on the dropdown. The dropdown will now
close, and the database you selected will appear in the Database box.
Note: If you selected an external database, the new table will be automatically registered for you. You will not need to register the table manually.
4. Type the desired name for the new folder in the Name box on the Create
New Table window.
There are no limitations on the number or type of characters that you can
enter in the Name box. Whatever name you enter in this box is the name that
the new folder will be called in Smeadlink. This is different than the internal
name, which is the name the folder will be called if you work with it in
Microsoft Access or Microsoft SQL Server.
5. Type the desired internal name for the new folder in the Internal Name
box.
The Internal Name box is located directly under the Name box on the Create
New Table window. You can enter any combination of upper or lower case
letters in the Internal Name box. As you learned in step 3, the difference
between the name of a folder and the internal name of a folder is that the
name is what the folder is called in any Smeadlink program, and the internal
name is what the folder is called if you work with it in Microsoft Access or
Microsoft SQL Server.
174
Chapter 9
6. Type the desired unique field name in the Unique Field box.
You can type any combination of upper or lower case letters in the Unique
Field box. The name you enter will be used to identify the "unique field" (or
the Id column) in the new folder.
7. Select the field type for the new folder's unique field. To select a field type:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Field Type box.
A dropdown menu will now appear listing the three different field type
options. The first option is called Long Integer. If you select this option, each cell in the new folder's unique field will need to contain a
unique integer from 0 to approximately 2 billion. The second field
type option is Automatic Counter. If you select this option, the cell in
the new folder's unique field will be filled in automatically for you
each time you create a row. The first cell will contain the integer 1, the
second cell will contain the integer 2, and so on. The third field type
option is Text. If you select this option, each cell in the new folder's
unique field will need to contain a unique text string.
• Click the desired field type option in the dropdown menu. The dropdown
menu will now close, and the field type you selected will be entered in
the Field Type box.
8. If you selected the Text field type option, then type the desired field length
for the new folder or subfolder's unique field in the Field Length box.
The field length determines how many text characters can be contained in
each cell of the new folder or subfolder's unique field. The maximum field
length is 99, which corresponds to 99 characters in each cell of the unique
field.
9. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Create New Table window.
A new folder will now be added to the open Smeadlink database. It will
appear in the tree diagram beneath the selected workgroup (the item that
you opened the popup menu from in step 1). By default, the new folder will
include a cloud icon. If you would like to change the icon from a cloud to
something else, see the section in this chapter called Modifying Existing
Items in a Database. The third part of that section explains how to change
the icon of an item in the tree diagram.
Using Database Map
175
Creating a Subfolder
A subfolder is a folder that is attached underneath another folder. Subfolders
are sometimes called child folders, and the folders that contain them are
sometimes called parent folders. Once you select a row in a parent folder,
you will be able to open any subfolder contained in that parent folder. When
the subfolder opens, it will display all the rows it contains that are attached
to the selected row in the parent folder. If the subfolder does not contain any
rows that are attached to the selected row in the parent folder, then it will be
empty when it is opened from that row.
There are two different ways to create subfolders in the Database Map program. First, you can attach a folder's table to another table that already exists
in the open database. If you use this method, the subfolder you create will
contain a number of rows to start with, but none of the rows will be attached
to the rows in the parent folder. Unless you use dropdowns, you will need to
manually create all the rows in the subfolder that you want visible from the
rows in the parent folder. One advantage of using this method is that you can
see all the rows in the subfolder at once. To do so, simply open the original
folder that you used to create the subfolder. The folder will contain all the
rows it originally contained, plus all the rows that you added to the subfolder based on this folder.
The second way to create a subfolder is to attach an existing folder to a new,
unique folder. This method is basically the same as creating a new folder for
a workgroup—you select the New Table command on the Table popup menu,
the Create New Table window appears and you fill in the desired options on
the Create New Table window for table name and unique field. If you use this
method, you will not be able to see all the rows in the subfolder at once.
This section will show you how to create a subfolder using the first method
explained above. If you want to create a subfolder using the second method,
simply follow the steps that you use to create regular folders. The only difference is that you will need to open the popup menu from the desired parent
folder, not the desired workgroup.
To create a subfolder:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the desired parent folder item in the tree
The Table popup menu will now appear as shown in the example on the
following page.
176
Chapter 9
Table popup menu
2. Click the Attach Table command on the Table popup menu.
The Attach Table submenu will now appear. This submenu contains two
options: "Automatic" and "Using Existing Fields". If you select the Automatic option, Smeadlink will automatically attach the two tables by creating
the appropriate Id field. If you select the Using Existing Fields option,
Smeadlink will let you choose an existing field to attach the two tables. The
Using Existing Fields option is helpful if the tables are external tables attached in another program. In this case, the required Id field for attaching
the tables will already exist.
3. Select the desired option on the Attach Table submenu.
If any other Smeadlink programs are open, a message box will now appear
stating that all other Smeadlink windows need to be closed before you can
continue. Press Enter or click the Yes button on the message box window.
Any other open Smeadlink programs will now be closed.
4. If you selected the Automatic option in step 3, the Attach Table window
Attach Table window
Using Database Map
177
• Select the desired table for the subfolder.
• Once you have selected a table, press Enter or click the OK button on
the Attach Table window.
A subfolder will now be created for the selected parent folder based on the
table you just selected. The subfolder will appear in the tree diagram beneath the folder item, and it will include the default cloud icon. If you would
like to change the icon from a cloud to something else, see the section in this
chapter called Modifying Existing Items in a Database. The third part of that
section explains how to change the icon of an item in the tree diagram.
5. If you selected the Using Existing Fields option in step 3, the Attach
Tables Using Existing Fields window will now appear as shown below.
Attach Tables Using Existing Fields
• Select the desired table for the subfolder. If the selected table does not
contain any fields matching the data type of the Id field in the parent
table, a window will appear with a message to this effect and the Fields
box will be disabled.
• Select the desired Id field for the subfolder's table.
• Once you have selected a table and an Id field, press Enter or click the
OK button on the Attach Tables Using Existing Fields window.
A subfolder will now be created for the selected parent folder based on the
table you just selected. The subfolder will appear in the tree diagram beneath the folder item, and it will include the default cloud icon. If you would
like to change the icon from a cloud to something else, see the section in this
chapter called Modifying Existing Items in a Database. The third part of that
section explains how to change the icon of an item in the tree diagram.
178
Chapter 9
Creating a Dropdown
Creating a dropdown is similar to creating a subfolder. Both procedures involve setting up a parent-child relationship between two folders in the open
Smeadlink database. The difference between the two procedures is that creating a subfolder sets up the relationship from the parent folder to the child
folder, but creating a dropdown sets up the relationship from the child folder
to the parent folder.
The purpose of dropdowns is to attach rows in child folders to rows in parent folders. When you create a dropdown, a new column is created in the
child folder. This column is attached to a column you select in the parent
folder, that easily identifies each row in the parent folder. For instance, if the
parent folder contained client rows, the dropdown column would probably
be attached to the column in the parent folder that contained client names.
Once the new column has been created in the child folder, any Smeadlink
operator can use the column to attach rows in that folder to rows in the
parent folder. To attach a row, simply click the new column's cell in the
desired row. A dropdown will appear listing the entries from the selected
column in the parent folder. Clicking the entry of the desired row in the
parent folder will attach it to the selected row in the child folder.
The example below shows what a dropdown looks like in a Smeadlink folder
called Clients. The dropdown in the example contains a list of billing attorneys, and it allows Smeadlink operators to attach rows in the child folder
(Clients) to rows in the parent folder (Billing Attorney).
A dropdown in a Smeadlink folder
Using Database Map
179
In order to create a dropdown, you will need to use both the Database Map
program and the administrative utilities in Smeadlink. You will use the Database Map program to attach the table of the parent folder to the table of the
child folder, and you will use Smeadlink to create the column that the
dropdown can be opened from in the child folder.
This section explains the whole process for creating a dropdown in a
Smeadlink folder. There is no limit on the number of dropdowns in a folder,
so you can use the information in this section to create any number of
dropdowns in a folder (or subfolder).
To create a dropdown in a Smeadlink folder:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the desired parent folder item in the tree
The Table popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what the
Table popup menu looks like.
Table popup menu
2. Click the Attach Table command on the Table popup menu.
The Attach Table submenu will now appear. This submenu contains two
options: "Automatic" and "Using Existing Fields". If you select the Automatic option, Smeadlink will automatically attach the two tables by creating
the appropriate Id field. If you select the Using Existing Fields option,
Smeadlink will let you choose an existing field to attach the two tables. The
Using Existing Fields option is helpful if the tables are external tables attached in another program. In this case, the required Id field for attaching
the tables will already exist.
180
Chapter 9
3. Select the desired option on the Attach Table submenu.
If any other Smeadlink programs are open, a message box will now appear
stating that all other Smeadlink windows need to be closed before you can
continue. Press Enter or click the Yes button on the message box window.
Any other open Smeadlink programs will now be closed.
4. If you selected the Automatic option in step 3, the Attach Table window
Attach Table window
• Select the desired table for the child folder.
• Once you have selected a table, press Enter or click the OK button on
the Attach Table window.
The Attach Table window will now close, and you will be done using the
Database Map program. You can close it now if you will not be using it for
any other tasks.
5. If you selected the Using Existing Fields option in step 3, the Attach
Tables Using Existing Fields window will now appear as shown below.
Attach Tables Using Existing Fields
Using Database Map
181
• Select the desired table for the child folder. If the selected table does
not contain any fields matching the data type of the Id field in the
parent table, a window will appear with a message to this effect and
the Fields box will be disabled.
• Select the desired Id field for the child folder's table.
• Once you have selected a table and an Id field, press Enter or click the
OK button on the Attach Tables Using Existing Fields window.
The Attach Table window will now close, and you will be done using the
Database Map program. You can close it now if you will not be using it for
any other tasks.
6. Open the Smeadlink program.
7. Open the folder in Smeadlink that you want the dropdown to be in (the
child folder in the dropdown relationship), and open the desired layout in
the folder.
8. Add a new column to the open layout. This column will be the column
that the dropdown is opened from.
When you create the column, make sure the column type is Upper Table
Field. Once you select the Upper Table Field option, select which field in
the parent folder you want displayed in the dropdown. For information about
creating a new column in a layout, see the section Creating a Column in a
Layout in chapter 12.
Note: Because a dropdown column in a folder does not pull its data from the
folder's table, you do not need to create a new field in the layout before you
create the new column.
After you finish creating the dropdown column in the child folder, you will
be finished creating your dropdown. Your Smeadlink operators will now be
able to use the dropdown to attach rows in the child folder to rows in the
parent folder.
182
Chapter 9
Working with Foreign Tables
As you learned in chapter 8, Database Map has been expanded in Smeadlink
3.1 to work with foreign tables (tables created outside of Smeadlink). You
can now connect a Smeadlink database to one or more external databases.
Once you have connected to an external database, you can register any table
in the database with Smeadlink. The foreign table (or tables) will then behave just like a regular Smeadlink table, and you will be able to use it to
create folders or subfolders in the open Smeadlink database.
Some foreign tables are already located in a Smeadlink database, but they
are not visible in the database. For instance, if you used Microsoft Access to
create a new table in a Smeadlink database, the table would not be visible
when you reopened the database in Smeadlink. If you want to create a folder
or subfolder based on one of these tables, you can now simply register the
table in Smeadlink. Once the table has been registered, it will behave like a
regular Smeadlink table, and you will be able to use it to create your folder
or subfolder.
This section is divided into two parts. The first part explains how to connect
an external database to Smeadlink, and the second part explains how to register a foreign table. If you want to work with a foreign table in an external
database, you will need to connect the database and then register the desired
table in Smeadlink. If you want to work with a foreign table in a Smeadlink
database, you will just need to register the table. Once you have finished the
appropriate procedure, the foreign table (or tables) will behave just like a
regular table, and you will be able to use it to create folders or subfolders.
Connecting an External Database to a Smeadlink Database
The following instructions will show you how to connect an external database to a Smeadlink database. If you want to work with a foreign table in an
external database, the first step is to connect the database to Smeadlink. If
you want to work with a foreign table in a Smeadlink database, however,
you will not need to connect a database, and you can go straight to the instructions for registering a foreign table.
Using Database Map
183
To connect an external database to Smeadlink:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the database item in the tree diagram, and
click the right mouse button once.
The database popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what
that the database popup menu looks like.
Database popup menu
2. Click the Define External Database connections command on the database
popup menu.
If any other Smeadlink programs are running, a message will now appear
stating that all other Smeadlink programs must be closed before you can
continue. Press Enter or click the Yes button on the window. Any other
Smeadlink programs that were running will now be closed, and the Database
Maintenance window will appear. The example on the following page shows
what the Database Maintenance window looks like.
184
Chapter 9
Database Maintenance window
3. Click the Add button on the toolbar at the bottom of the Database Maintenance window. The Add New Database window will now appear as shown
below.
Add New Database window
4. Fill in the options on the Modify Database Properties window with the
appropriate information for the external database you want to connect.
Note: If you do not enter a User Id and Password, then the access rights for
the external database will be determined at the system level. If you do enter
a User Id and Password, then anyone who opens the database through
Smeadlink will have the access rights of the User Id and Password you enter.
5. Press Enter or click the OK button at the bottom of the Modify Database
Properties window.
The external database you specified in step 4 will now be connected to the
open Smeadlink database. You will now need to register any tables in the
external database that you want to work with in Smeadlink. The next part in
this section will show you how to register a foreign table.
Using Database Map
185
Registering a Foreign Table in a Smeadlink Database
The following instructions will show you how to register a foreign table in a
Smeadlink database. If the table is contained in an external database, then
you will need to register it after you have connected the external database to
Smeadlink. If the table is contained in a Smeadlink database, then you will
need to register the table before it becomes visible in the database from
Smeadlink.
To register a foreign table in a Smeadlink database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the database item in the tree diagram, and
click the right mouse button once.
The database popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what
that the database popup menu looks like.
Database popup menu
2. Click the Register Table with Smeadlink command on the database popup
menu.
If any other Smeadlink programs are running, a message will now appear
stating that all other Smeadlink programs must be closed before you can
continue. Press Enter or click the Yes button on the window. Any other
Smeadlink programs that were running will now be closed, and the Add
Table Definition window will appear as shown on the following page.
186
Chapter 9
Add Table Definition window
3. In the Available Databases box, select the database that contains the desired foreign table.
4. In the Available Tables box, select the desired foreign table.
5. In the Primary Field box, select the desired Id field for the foreign table.
6. Now press Enter or click the OK button on the Add Table Definition
window.
The foreign table will now become visible in Smeadlink, and you will be
able to use it to create folders and subfolders just like regular Smeadlink
tables.
Using Database Map
187
Using the Field Maintenance Utility
In Smeadlink 3.0, fields were created in Smeadlink using the Layouts utility.
In newer versions, however, the utility for creating fields has been expanded
and moved to the Database Map program. The new utility for creating fields
is called the Field Maintenance utility, and in addition to creating fields it also
allows you to view all the fields in a table, edit or remove existing fields and
print a list of all the table's fields. This section will show you how to use the
Field Maintenance utility. The first part will show you how to open the utility,
and the remaining parts will show you how to use it to add, edit, delete and
print the fields in a table.
To open the Field Maintenance utility:
1. Place your mouse pointer over a folder or subfolder item in the tree diagram
that is based on the desired table, and then click the right mouse button once.
The Table popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what the
Table popup menu looks like.
Table popup menu
2. Click the Fields command on the Table popup menu.
The Field Maintenance utility will now appear, and it will list all the fields in
the selected table. The example on the following page shows what the Field
Maintenance utility looks like.
188
Chapter 9
Field Maintenance utility
To add a field to a table:
1. Open the Field Maintenance utility for the table you would like to add a
field to.
2. Click the Add button on the toolbar at the bottom of the Field Maintenance utility. The Create New Field window will now appear as shown below.
Create New Field window
3. Type the desired name for the new field in the Internal Name box.
4. Select the desired type for the field in the Field Type box. To select a field
type:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Field Type box. A dropdown
will now appear listing the different available types.
• Click the desired type. The dropdown will now close, and the type you
selected will appear in the Field Type box.
5. If the type you selected does not specify a certain field length, then type
the desired length for the new field in the Field Length box.
6. Press Enter or click the OK button at the bottom of the Create New Field
window. The window will now close, and the new field will now be added
to the table the Field Maintenance utility was opened from.
Using Database Map
189
To edit a field in a table:
1. Open the Field Maintenance utility for the table that contains the field
you would like to edit.
2. Select the desired field in the table. To select a field:
• Place the mouse pointer over the row of the desired field in the Field
Maintenance utility.
• Click the left mouse button once. The field's row will turn blue after
you click it to indicate that it is now selected.
3. Click the Edit button on the toolbar at the bottom of the Field Maintenance utility. The Modify Field window will now appear as shown below.
Modify Field window
4. You can now edit the name, type and length of the selected field.
• To edit the name, simply click the Internal Name text box and type in
the desired name. You will not be able to rename a field if the field is
the primary Id field for its table, or if the field is used in any table
relationships.
• To edit the type, simply click the down arrow at the right of the Field
Type box. A dropdown will now appear listing the different available
types. Click the desired type on the dropdown. It will now close, and
the type you selected will appear in the Field Type box. If the selected
type specifies a certain field length, then that length will automatically
appear in the Field Length box and you will not be able to change it.
• To edit the field length (if the selected type does not specify a certain
length), simply type the desired length in the Field Length box.
5. Once you have finished editing the selected field, press Enter or click the
OK button on the Modify Field window. The window will now close, and
your changes will be added to the table.
190
Chapter 9
To delete a field from a table:
1. Open the Field Maintenance utility for the table that contains the field you
would like to delete.
2. Select the desired field in the table. To select a field:
• Place the mouse pointer over the row of the desired field in the Field
Maintenance utility.
• Click the left mouse button once. The field's row will turn blue after
you click it to indicate that it is now selected.
3. Click the Remove button on the toolbar at the bottom of the Field Maintenance utility.
If the field you selected to delete is used in any layouts, a window will now
appear listing each layout that the field is used in. You will not be able to
delete a field while it is a member of any layouts, so if you still want to
delete the field you will need to go into Smeadlink and remove it from all the
layouts it is a part of.
If the field you selected is not used in any layouts, then a Smeadlink window
will now appear asking if you want to delete the field.
4. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Smeadlink window. The field
will now be permanently removed from its table.
To print a list of all the fields in a table:
1. Open the Field Maintenance utility for the desired table.
2. Click the Print button on the toolbar at the bottom of the Field Maintenance utility. A standard windows Print window will now appear.
3. Set the options on the Print window to the desired settings.
4. Press Enter or click the OK button at the bottom of the Print window.
Smeadlink will now print a list of the fields in the selected table. The list will
be divided into three labeled columns—one for field names, one for field
types and one for field widths.
Using Database Map
191
Modifying Existing Items in a Database
This section will show you how to use Database Map to modify the existing
items in a Smeadlink database. The first part of this section will show you
how to delete an item from a database, the second part will show you how to
rename an item, the third part will show you how to change the icon of an
item and the fourth part will show you how to relocate an item.
The last part of this section will then show you how to adjust the properties
of an item. You can adjust the properties of any folder or subfolder item in
the tree diagram. The properties of a folder or subfolder determine things
like what the background color will be and whether or not images can be
attached to the folder or subfolder's rows.
To delete an item from the open Smeadlink database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the item in the tree diagram that you want to
delete, and then click the right mouse button once.
The Workgroup or Table popup menu will now appear. You will use the
Remove command on the popup menu to delete the selected item from the
open Smeadlink database. If the Remove command on the popup menu is
lowlighted, then it is not available for the selected item and you will not be
able to delete that item.
The Remove command is not available for the database item at the top of the
tree diagram, because deleting this item would delete the entire database.
Remove is also not available for any item in the database that contains at
least one subitem. For instance, Remove would not be available for a workgroup item that contained three folders. If you would like to delete an item
that contains subitems, you will need to delete all the subitems first. Once
you have deleted all the subitems, the Remove command will become available for the item you want to delete.
Note: There is no undo feature in Database Map, so once you delete an item
you cannot get it back. Make sure you have selected the proper item in the
tree diagram before proceeding to step 2.
2. Click the Remove command on the popup menu. A popup window will now
appear asking if you want to delete the selected item.
3. Press Enter or click the OK button on the message window. The selected
item will now be permanently removed from the open Smeadlink database.
192
Chapter 9
To rename an item in the open Smeadlink database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the item in the tree diagram that you would
like to rename, and then click the right mouse button once.
The Database, Workgroup or Table popup menu will now appear, depending
on what type of item you selected.
2. Click the Rename command on the popup menu.
The popup menu will now disappear, and the selected item in the tree diagram
will be put into edit mode. A box will appear around the item's name, the letters
in the name will be highlighted and a blinking cursor will appear at the right
side of the name. The example below shows what an item in the tree diagram
looks like after it has been put into edit mode.
An item in edit mode
3. Type desired name for the selected item.
There are no limitations on the number or type of characters that you can use
for the name of an item. The original name of the item will be removed as
soon as you start typing the new name.
4. Once you are finished typing in the new name for the selected item, press
the Enter key on your keyboard. This will turn off Edit mode.
Using Database Map
193
To adjust the properties of an item in the open Smeadlink database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the item in the tree diagram whose properties you would like to adjust, and then click the right mouse button once.
The Table popup menu will now appear.
2. Click the Table Properties command on the popup menu.
The Properties window will now appear. The Properties window contains all
the properties that can be adjusted for Smeadlink folders and subfolders.
You can use this window to view the current properties settings for the selected item, and to adjust some or all of the settings. The example below
shows what the Properties window looks like.
Properties window
The first two options on the Properties window are for reference only—they
cannot be modified. The Database option displays the name of the database
that contains the table for the selected item, and the Internal Name option
displays the internal name of this table.
194
Chapter 9
3. If you would like to modify the background color of the selected item,
follow the steps below.
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Color Selection option.
A dropdown menu will now appear listing the different color options.
The color options in the dropdown menu are numbered from 1–16.
The example below shows what the Color Selection dropdown menu
looks like.
Color Selection dropdown menu
• Click the desired option on the Color Selection dropdown menu. The
Color Selection dropdown menu will now disappear, and the color
you selected will appear in the Color Selection box.
4. If you would like to modify the bar code prefix of the selected item, or
create a new bar code prefix if it does not yet have one, type the desired bar
code prefix in the Bar Code Prefix box.
The bar code prefix you enter for this item needs to be unique from the other
bar code prefixes in the database. Typically, the bar code prefix for an item
is the first letter of that item's name. For instance, the bar code prefix for a
folder called Boxes would probably be "B". Although this is the typical way
bar code prefixes are created, you could also create a bar code prefix with
multiple letters in it, or even one with numbers.
Using Database Map
195
If you are not familiar with bar code prefixes, they are used in Smeadlink to
help speed up the tracking process, and to eliminate incorrect tracking assignments. Bar code prefixes are entirely optional—you can choose whether
or not each folder or subfolder in your Smeadlink database will contain a bar
code prefix. Typically, bar code prefixes are only created for folders that
contain tracking rows. For instance, a folder that contained rows for different boxes would probably have a bar code prefix, but a folder that contained
customer rows would probably not have a bar code prefix.
If you do decide to create a bar code prefix for an item, you will need to
make sure that any labels printed for the objects in this item contain the
same prefix in their bar codes as the prefix you specified for the item. For
instance, say you had a folder called Locations that contained rows for different tracking locations, and say that the bar code prefix for this folder was
"L". After you specified "L" as the bar code prefix for this folder, you would
need to open the label design for this folder in Smeadlink Label Manager,
and specify "L" as the first character in the label's bar code. Any labels
printed for the objects in the Locations folder would then contain the prefix
"L" in their bar codes.
When you begin to track an object by scanning its bar code, Smeadlink will
look at the first character in the bar code and see if it matches any existing
bar code prefix in the open database. If Smeadlink finds a matching prefix, it
will go immediately to that folder or subfolder's unique field. It will then
scan through the cells in that field until it finds an entry that matches the rest
of the bar code that you scanned. If Smeadlink does not find a matching
prefix, then it will use the bar code search order for the open database to
look through the database until it finds a match. The last section in this
chapter will show you how to modify the bar code search order of the open
database.
As you can see, the advantage of using a bar code prefix is that Smeadlink
knows immediately which folder or subfolder contains the row of the object
you scanned, so it only has one unique field to look through. Without a bar
code prefix, Smeadlink has to search through the unique field of each table
in the bar code search order until it finds a match. This can noticeably increase the processing time when you track objects.
196
Chapter 9
5. If you would like to specify one or more strip characters for the selected
item, then type them now in the Strip Characters box.
You can only enter one character or group of characters in the Strip Character box; you cannot enter multiple groups of characters. For instance, you
could specify the character group "--" as the strip characters for an item, but
you could not specify the character "-" and the character "?" as separate strip
characters for the same item.
Like Bar Code Prefix, the Strip Characters feature is used for items that
contain tracking rows. When you track one of the objects in a folder or
subfolder by scanning the object's bar code or entering its Id number,
Smeadlink will begin searching for a row in the open database that contains
a matching Id number with the object you scanned. When Smeadlink is comparing the number you entered with the numbers in the unique field of an
item, it will temporarily remove any characters in the number you entered
that match the strip characters that have been specified for this item. If
Smeadlink cannot find any matching number in this item, then it will proceed to the next item, remove the appropriate strip characters from your
original number and search through the unique field of this item looking for
a matching number. Smeadlink will continue this process until it has either
found a row that matches the number you entered, or it has gone through all
the items in the bar code search order for the database.
The Strip Characters feature is often used with the Mask feature to make
sure that special characters in a tracking bar code are positioned correctly.
For instance, say you have a folder that contains rows for tracking objects,
and the Id number of each row in this folder is made up of three numbers, a
dash and then two more numbers. When someone tries to track one of the
objects in this folder by typing in the object's bar code, there is a good chance
that they will either place the dash incorrectly in the Id number, or not type
in the dash at all. To avoid problems with users entering the dash incorrectly, you could specify the dash as a strip character in this folder. Smeadlink
would then remove all dashes typed in while tracking the objects in this
folder. You could then use the Mask feature to automatically put a dash
back into the Id number in the correct position (the Mask feature is explained on the following page).
Using Database Map
197
6. If you would like to create a mask for the selected item, then type the
desired mask into the Mask box.
As you learned on the previous page, the Mask feature is used in conjunction with the Strip Characters feature to temporarily reformat bar codes or Id
numbers that are entered while tracking Smeadlink objects. You can use
these two features to make sure that when users try to track one of the objects in this folder or subfolder, the number they enter matches the format of
the numbers in this item's unique field.
The format characters for creating masks in Smeadlink are standard mask
characters. The characters are listed and explained below.
Mask Character
#
.
,
Description
Digit placeholder.
Decimal placeholder. The
actual character used is the
one specified as the decimal
placeholder in your regional settings. This character is treated as a literal
for masking purposes.
Thousands separator. The actual character used is the one specified as the
thousands placeholder in your regional
settings. This character is treated as a
literal for masking purposes.
:
Time separator. The actual character
used is the one specified as the time
placeholder in your regional settings.
This character is treated as a literal for
masking purposes.
/
Date separator. The actual character
used is the one specified as the date
placeholder in your regional settings.
This character is treated as a literal for
masking purposes.
198
Chapter 9
\
Treat the next character in the mask
string as a literal. This allows you to include the #, &, A and ? characters in the
mask. This character is treated as a literal for masking purposes.
&
Character placeholder. Valid values for
this placeholder are ANSI characters in
the following ranges: 32–126 and 128–
255.
>
Convert all the characters that follow to
uppercase.
<
Convert all the characters that follow to
lowercase.
A
Alphanumeric character placeholder
(entry required).
a
Alphanumeric character placeholder
(entry optional).
9
Digit placeholder (entry optional).
C
Character or space placeholder (entry
optional). This operates exactly like the
& placeholder, and ensures compatibility with Microsoft Access.
?
Letter placeholder.
Literals
All other characters are displayed as literals.
7. If you would like to modify the four headers and fields for the selected
item, then type the desired headers in the two header boxes, select the desired field in the two field boxes and type the desired width in the width
boxes.
The header and field options are used to identify the rows in the selected
item when they are displayed in other Smeadlink utilities. For instance, these
options will be used to identify any rows that are displayed in the Smeadlink
Tracking Viewer. The example on the following page shows how these options are used to identify a row in the Tracking Viewer.
Using Database Map
199
Data in Display 1 Heading box
Data in Display 2 Heading box
Data from field in
Display 2 Field box
Data from field in
Display 1 Field box
The data that you enter in the two heading boxes will be displayed exactly
as it is entered in the boxes, regardless of which row is selected. On the other
hand, the data that you enter in the two field boxes will be used to specify
fields in the selected item. The data that is displayed for these fields will
change depending on which row is selected. For instance, in the example
above the headings Description: and ID: will be displayed in the Viewer for
any row that is selected in the Locations folder. However, the data "Records
Center" and "1" will change if another row is selected in the Locations folder.
The width options allow you to specify the width in twips of each field (1
twip = 1/1440 of an inch). Field width is not relevant in the Tracking Viewer,
because all the tracking information for a row is displayed in one line. Field
width is used in dropdowns, though, because the header is displayed above
each field. In that case, each width you enter defines the width of both a
header and a field. If you leave the width options blank, a default width will
be used.
8. If you want to be able to attach images, enterprise report documents and
PC Files documents to the rows in the selected item, make sure the Allow
Attachments option is checked.
9. If you would like to adjust the tracking properties for the selected item,
click the Tracking button at the bottom of the Properties window.
The Tracking Properties window will now appear as shown in the example
on the following page.
200
Chapter 9
Tracking Properties window
10. If you would like to modify the container level of the selected item,
select the desired level in the Container Level box.
A container is a tracking object that can both be tracked and have other
objects tracked to it. In other words, sometimes it behaves like a an object,
and other times it behaves like a destination. For instance, boxes are often
containers because they can have objects like folders tracked to them, but
they themselves can then be tracked to employees or shelves or rooms.
The Container Level setting determines what objects can be tracked to the
rows in this item, and what destinations the rows themselves can be tracked
to. Objects with a higher container level than the rows in this item can be
tracked to the rows, and objects with a lower container level can serve as
destinations for the rows. If the rows in an item cannot be tracked to other
objects at all, then you can select the Not a Container option on the Container Level dropdown.
11. If you would like to modify the tracking status field of the selected item,
enter the desired field in the Tracking Status Field box.
12. If the selected item has a container level between 1 and 7 and you do not
want the rows in the item to be tracked to other locations, then make sure the
Tracking Object option is disabled. Otherwise, make sure the Tracking Options is enabled.
13. Once you have made all the desired changes on the Tracking Properties
window, press Enter or click the OK button to save your changes. The Tracking Properties window will now close, and the standard Properties window
will become active once more.
14. Press Enter or click the OK button on the standard Properties window to
save the changes you made. The Properties window will now close.
Using Database Map
201
Modifying the Bar Code Search Order for the Open Database
When you enter an Id number in Smeadlink Tracking, Smeadlink searches
through the open database, looking for a row with the same Id number as the
number you entered (this is true for both object Id numbers and destination
Id numbers). Typically, Smeadlink uses a bar code prefix to determine what
folder or subfolder the matching row is located in. Smeadlink then goes
straight to that folder or subfolder, and searches the entries in its Id column
for a matching number. Although this system works well when the labels
used for tracking have bar code prefixes on them, it is not very reliable or
efficient if the tracking labels do not have bar code prefixes. In that situation, duplicate Id numbers on the labels can lead to incorrect tracking assignments, and even if the correct match is found, it may take a long time.
For situations where the labels used for tracking do not have bar code prefixes on them, Smeadlink allows you to set up a bar code search order for the
open database. The bar code search order lists what tables in the database to
look through when trying to find a matching Id number, and what order to
look through the tables. It also specifies what field in each table contains
Tracking Id numbers, and what mask and strip characters to apply for the
field, if necessary. This section will show you how to modify the bar code
search order for the open database.
To modify the bar code search order for the open database:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the database item at the top of the tree
diagram, and click the right mouse button. The database popup menu will
now appear.
2. Click the Bar Code Search Order command on the database popup menu.
The Bar Code Search Order window will now appear as shown below.
Bar Code Search Order window
202
Chapter 9
3. You can remove as many tables as you want from the bar code search
order list. To remove a table from the list:
• Select the row of the table you want to remove (to select a row, click
the row selector of the desired row—the row selector is the gray box at
the left of each row).
• Now click the Delete Row button at the bottom of the Bar Code Search
Order window. A message window will appear asking if you want to
delete the selected row.
• Press Enter or click the OK button on the message box to delete the
selected row
4. If you want to move an existing table in the list to a different position:
• Select the row of the desired table.
• Click the Move Up or Move Down buttons at the bottom of the Bar
Code Search Order window, until the selected row is in the desired
position.
5. The Field Name column determines which field in each table contains
tracking Id numbers. To modify the Id field of an existing table:
• Click the Field Name cell of the desired row. A dropdown will now
appear listing the different fields in the selected table.
• Click the desired field on the dropdown. The dropdown will now close,
and the field you selected will appear in the Field Name cell of the
selected row.
6. The Strip Characters column determines what characters, if any, to temporarily pull out of tracking Id numbers before comparing them to the entries in the Id field of the selected table. If no match is found in the selected
table, any stripped characters will be put back into the tracking Id number,
and Smeadlink will proceed to the next table in the list. For information
about the format for entering stripped characters, see step 5 of the previous
section in this chapter.
Using Database Map
203
7. The Mask column determines what mask, if any, to apply to tracking Id
numbers before comparing them to the entries in the Id field of the selected
table. Like Strip Characters, Mask is a temporary feature that only applies
while tracking Id numbers are compared to the Id numbers of the selected
table. If no match is found in the table, the mask is removed and Smeadlink
proceeds to the next table in the bar code search order list. For information
about the format for entering masks, see step 6 of the previous section in this
chapter.
8. If you would like to add another table to the bar code search order list:
• Click the Table Name cell of the blank row at the bottom of the list. A
dropdown will now appear listing the different tables in the open database.
• Click the desired table in the dropdown. The dropdown will now close,
and the table you selected will appear in the Table Name cell of the
row. Also, a pencil will appear to the left of the row to indicate that the
row is in Edit Mode, and a new, blank row will be added to the bottom
of the list.
• Click the Field Name cell of the same row. A dropdown will now
appear listing the different fields in the selected table.
• Click the desired field in the dropdown. The dropdown will now close
and the field you selected will appear in the Field Name cell of the
row.
• In the Strip Characters cell of the row, enter the desired strip character
or characters. If this option does not apply for the selected table, then
you can leave it blank. Otherwise, see step 5 of the previous section
for information about formatting strip characters.
• In the Mask cell of the row, enter the desired mask. If this option does
not apply for the selected table, then you can leave it blank. Otherwise,
see step 6 of the previous section for information about formatting
masks.
• Click the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key once to save the row you just
created.
• Click the Close button to close the Bar Code Search Order window.
Introduction to Label Manager
10. Introduction to Label Manager
Chapter contents
Introduction
Basic Label Manager Terms
Basic Label Manager Concepts
205
206
Chapter 10
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use the Database Toolkit program.
You learned how to open tables in the Database Toolkit, and you learned
how to execute single and multiple SQL statements.
This chapter will introduce you to the Label Manager program. Label Manager is a program that allows you to create label designs for black-and-white
labels. Once you have created the designs in Label Manager, you will be
able to print black-and-white labels from Smeadlink. The first section of this
chapter will introduce you to some basic Label Manager terms, and the second section will explain the basic concepts for using Label Manager.
Introduction to Label Manager
207
Basic Label Manager Terms
There are several terms that are often used in discussing the Label Manager
program. This section will introduce you to those terms and explain how
they are typically used.
Black-and-white label
Black-and-white labels are basic labels used to identify tracking objects and
destinations. Each black-and-white label includes a unique ID number for
identifying an object or destination, and some basic information about the
object or destination (like a name or description).
The difference between black-and-white labels and ColorBar labels is that
black-and-white labels do not include color patterns. ColorBar labels include color patterns because they are made for identifying file folders, and
the color patterns help distinguish between different groups of folders. Blackand-white labels, on the other hand, are made for identifying all types of
tracking objects and destinations, so the color patterns are not necessary.
Label design
A label design is a template for printing labels. In order to print either blackand-white labels or ColorBar labels, you will need to first set up a label
design. Label Manager is the tool you will use to set up label designs for
black-and-white labels. Label Manager allows you to create label designs
for any table in the open Smeadlink database. Once you have created a design for a table, your Smeadlink operators will be able to print labels from
the folders or subfolders in Smeadlink that are based on that table. The information on the labels will be laid out according to your label design, and the
actual data that appears on each label will be taken from the rows in the
folder or subfolder.
208
Chapter 10
Basic Label Manager Concepts
Label Manager is a program that allows you to create label designs for blackand-white labels. A label design is like a template—it determines what type
of information will be on the labels, and where the information will be placed.
You will need to create at least one label design for each Smeadlink folder or
subfolder that you want to print labels from. Once you have created a design
for a folder, your Smeadlink users will be able to use the design to print
black-and-white labels for the rows in that folder. The example below shows
what a label design looks like in the Label Manager program.
A label design in the Label Manager program
Label Manager allows you to place three kinds of data on a label design:
barcodes, text and fields. When you place text on a label design, the text is
static—the same text appears on all labels printed with the design. When
you place bar codes or fields on a label design, however, the information in
the bar code or field changes with each label that is printed. This is because
the bar code and field objects on the design are attached to the design's
Smeadlink table. The first label printed includes data from the first row in
the table, the second label includes data from the second row, etc.
In addition to features for inserting bar codes, text and fields on a label
design, the Label Manager also includes some formatting features to make it
easier to position objects on a label design. For instance, the Center Horizontal feature allows you to center an object horizontally in the design, and
the Center Vertical feature allows you to center an object vertically in the
design.
Using Label Manager
11. Using Label Manager
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating a New Label Design
Creating Text Objects on a Label Design
Creating Bar Code Objects on a Label Design
Creating Field Objects on a Label Design
Deleting a Label Design
209
210
Chapter 11
Introduction
The previous chapter introduced you to the Label Manager program. You
learned about basic Label Manager terms, and about the basic concepts for
using Label Manager.
This chapter will show you how to use the Label Manager program to create
label designs for printing black-and-white labels. Once you have created the
designs in Label Manager, your Smeadlink operators will be able to use the
designs to print black-and-white labels from Smeadlink. For information about
printing labels from Smeadlink, see chapter 7 of the Smeadlink User's Guide.
Using Label Manager
211
Creating a New Label Design
This section will show you how to create a new, blank label design for a
table in the open Smeadlink database. Once you have created the design,
you will then need to add the desired text objects, bar code objects and field
objects to it. You will learn how to add text, bar code and field objects to a
label design later in this chapter.
When you have finished adding the desired objects to your design, your
Smeadlink operators will be able to use the design to print black-and-white
labels from Smeadlink. The design can be used to print labels from any folder
or subfolder in Smeadlink based on the design's Smeadlink table. If your
operators need to print labels from folders or subfolders that are based on a
different table, then you will need to create another label design for that
table. You can create label designs for any user table in a Smeadlink database.
To create a blank label design for a Smeadlink table:
1. Open the Label Manager program from the Librarian.
For information about opening Label Manager, see chapter 2 of this manual.
The example below shows what the Label Manager program looks like after
it has just been opened.
Label Manager program immediately after being opened
2. Open the File menu from the main menu bar, and click the New Label
command.
The Enter Label Information window will now appear. The example on the
following page shows what the Enter Label Information window looks like.
212
Chapter 11
Enter Label Information window
3. Enter the desired name for the new design in the Label Name box at the
top of the Enter Label Information window.
4. Select the desired Smeadlink table for the new label design. To select a
table:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Table Name box. A dropdown
will now appear listing the tables in the open Smeadlink database.
• Click the desired table in the dropdown. The dropdown will now close,
and the table you selected will appear in the Table Name box.
5. Select the desired stock type for the new label design. To select a stock
type:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Form box.
A grid will now appear listing the different available stock types, and
the print information for each type. The example on the following page
shows what the Form grid looks like.
Using Label Manager
213
Form grid
The Form column lists the names of the different types. The remaining
columns in the Form grid list the print information for each label type.
The Page Width and Page Height Columns list the dimensions of the
sheet each type is printed on, and the Across and Down columns list
the number of labels printed on each sheet.
• Click the desired stock type in the Form grid. The grid will now close,
and the stock type you selected will appear in the Form box.
6. Enter the desired SQL statement in the SQL String box.
The SQL String statement is used to retrieve the actual data that will be on
the labels printed with this design. For a basic statement that will print labels
for all the rows in the selected table, click the Create SQL button under the
SQL String box. The SQL statement will now be automatically created for
you, and entered into the SQL String box.
Note: The SQL String statement will be modified at print time, if one or more
rows are selected in the Smeadlink folder or subfolder that the labels are
being printed from. In this situation, Smeadlink will automatically modify
the SQL String statement so that labels are only printed for the selected
rows.
7. Enter the desired update statement in the SQL Update box.
The SQL Update statement is run after the labels have been printed, and it is
typically used to set print flags.
8. If you would like all the labels printed with this design to have an outline
around them, then enable the Display Label Outline option.
214
Chapter 11
9. Click the OK button at the bottom of the Enter Label Information window.
The Enter Label Information window will now close, and a blank label design will appear in the main Label Manager window. The shape of the blank
design will be determined by the form you specified in the Enter Label Information window. The example below shows what a blank design looks
like in the Label Manager window.
A blank label design
Once you have created a new label design, you will need to add the desired
text objects, bar code objects and field objects to the design. The next three
sections in this chapter will show you how to add text, bar code and field
objects to a label design.
Using Label Manager
215
Creating Text Objects on a Label Design
This section will show you how to create one text object on an existing label
design. You can use the procedure explained in this section to create as
many text objects as you want on a label design. The text in each text object
will be static, so it will appear the same on all labels printed with the design.
If you are building a label design from scratch, then you will need to add bar
code and field objects to the label after adding the desired text objects. The
next two sections in this chapter will show you how to add bar code and
field objects to an exiting label design.
To create a text object on an existing label design:
1. Select the label design that you want to create a text object for. To select
a label design:
• Open the File menu from the main menu bar, and click the Load Label
command. A submenu will now appear listing all the label designs in
the open Smeadlink database.
• Click the desired label design on the Load Label submenu. The selected design will now appear in the main Label Manager window. If
you have not added any text, bar code or field objects to the design yet,
then it will be blank.
2. Add a new text object to the open design. To add a new text object:
• Click the Insert New Text... button on the button bar.
OR
• Click the Insert command on the Tools menu, and then click the
Text command on the Insert submenu.
A new text object will now appear in the top, left corner of the design.
The text object will contain a red outline around it to indicate that it is
selected, and it will contain the text "New".
216
Chapter 11
3. Drag the new text object to the desired location on the label design.
If you want the text object to be centered horizontally or vertically on the
design, you can position it automatically by clicking the Center Horizontal
or Center Vertical commands on the Format menu.
4. Enter the desired text information for the new text object.
The text information options determine the actual text in the object, and they
also determine the properties of the text (i.e. size, font, alignment, etc.). To
enter text information:
• Double-click the new text object. A window will now appear as shown
below that contains all the text information options.
Text information window
• All the options on the Text information window are standard text options. Enter the desired setting for each option now, and then press
Enter or click the OK button. The Text information window will now
close, and the settings for the text options will be applied to the selected text object.
5. Once you have added the desired text objects to the open label design,
open the File menu and click the Save Label command. The label design
will now be permanently saved.
Using Label Manager
217
Creating Bar Code Objects on a Label Design
This section will show you how to create one bar code object on an existing
label design. The bar code object will be attached to a column in the design's
table that contains unique numbers (or letters), so the actual data in the bar
code object will be unique for each label printed with this design. If you
want, you can use the procedure explained in this section to create several
bar code objects on a label design.
To create a bar code object on an existing label design:
1. Select the label design that you want to create a bar code object for. To
select a label design:
2. Add a new bar code object to the open design. To add a new bar code
object:
• Click the Insert a New Bar Code... button on the button bar.
OR
• Click the Insert command on the Tools menu, and then click the Bar
Code command on the Insert submenu.
A new bar code object will now appear in the top, left corner of the
design. The bar code object will contain a red outline around it to indicate that it is selected.
218
Chapter 11
3. Drag the new bar code object to the desired location on the label design.
If you want the bar code object to be centered horizontally or vertically on
the design, you can position it automatically by clicking the Center Horizontal or Center Vertical commands on the Format menu.
4. Enter the desired bar code information for the new bar code object.
The bar code information options determine the column that the bar code
object is attached to, and they also determine the properties of the bar code
(i.e. type, alignment, format, etc.). To enter bar code information:
• Double-click the bar code object. The bar code information window
will now appear. The example below shows what the bar code information window looks like.
Bar code information window
• In the Field Name box, select the column in the design's Smeadlink
table that you want this bar code object to be attached to.
• If you want to format the data in the bar code, enter the desired format
in the Format box. For information about Smeadlink formatting commands, see chapter 9 in this manual. Format commands are listed and
explained in step 6 of the section Modifying Existing Items in a Database.
Using Label Manager
219
• The Start Character Position and Maximum Characters options allow
you to specify which digits from the column in the Field Name box
will appear in the bar code object. For instance, if you wanted to skip
all the first digits in this column, you could set Start Character Position
to 2. If you wanted to use just the first four digits in the column, you
could set Start Character Position to 1 and Maximum Characters to 4.
• If you want to change the color of the bars in the bar code object, click
the Text box in the Colors section (the Background box does not apply
to bar code objects). A standard Windows Color window will now
appear as shown below. Click the desired color in the window, and
then press Enter or click the OK button to save your changes and close
the window.
Color window
• If you want to change the alignment of the characters in the bar code
object, select the desired Alignment option.
• In the Type box, select the desired type for the bar code.
• If you want the bar code to contain UPC notches, select the desired
option in the UPC Notches box. Otherwise, make sure the None option is selected.
220
Chapter 11
• If you want to change the direction of the characters in the bar code
(i.e. left to right, right to left, centered, etc.), select the desired option
in the Direction box.
• If you want to adjust the size of the entire bar code, enter the desired
values in the Width and Height boxes. Both values need to be entered
in twips (1 twip = 1/1440 inch).
• If you want all the bars in the bar code to be at least a certain width,
enter the desired minimum width in the Bar Width box. Unlike the
Width and Height values, the Bar Width value needs to be entered in
pixels (remember that the size of a pixel depends on the resolution of
the printer). If you set the Bar Width value to 0, then the bars in the bar
code will be sized automatically.
• Once you have finished setting the options on the bar code information
window, press Enter or click the OK button. The new settings will
now be applied to the selected bar code object.
5. Once you have added the desired bar code objects to the open label design, open the File menu and click the Save Label command. The label design will now be permanently saved.
Using Label Manager
221
Creating Field Objects on a Label Design
This section will show you how to create one field object on an existing
label design. The field object will be attached to a column in the design's
table, so the actual data in the field object will be unique for each label
printed with this design. If you want, you can use the procedure explained in
this section to create several field objects on a label design.
To create a field object on an existing label design:
1. Select the label design that you want to create a field object for. To select
a label design:
2. Add a new field object to the open design. To add a new field object:
• Click the Insert a New Field... button on the button bar.
OR
• Click the Insert command on the Tools menu, and then click the
Field command on the Insert submenu.
A new field object will now appear in the top, left corner of the design.
The field object will contain a red outline around it to indicate that it is
selected.
222
Chapter 11
3. Drag the new field object to the desired location on the label design.
If you want the field object to be centered horizontally or vertically on the
design, you can position it automatically by clicking the Center Horizontal
or Center Vertical commands on the Format menu.
4. Enter the desired field information for the new field object.
The field information options determine the column that the field object is
attached to, and they also determine the properties of the field (i.e. font,
alignment, format, etc.). To enter field information:
• Double-click the field object. The field information window will now
appear. The example below shows what the field information window
looks like.
Field information window
• In the Field Name box, select the column in the design's Smeadlink
table that you want this field object to be attached to.
• If you want to format the data in the field object, enter the desired
format in the Format box. For information about Smeadlink formatting commands, see chapter 9 in this manual. Format commands are
listed and explained in step 6 of the section Modifying Existing Items
in a Database.
Using Label Manager
223
• The Start Character Position and Maximum Characters options allow
you to specify which characters from the column in the Field Name
box will appear in the field object. For instance, if you wanted to skip
all the first digits in this column, you could set Start Character Position
to 2. If you wanted to use just the first four digits in the column, you
could set Start Character Position to 1 and Maximum Characters to 4.
• If you want to change the color of the characters or background in the
field object, click the appropriate box in the Colors section. A standard
Windows Color window will now appear as shown below. Click the
desired color in the window, and then press Enter or click the OK
button to save your changes and close the window.
Color window
• If you want to change the alignment of the characters in the bar code
object, select the desired Alignment option.
• If you want to modify any of the font information for the field object,
set the appropriate Font options to the desired settings.
• Once you have finished setting the options on the bar code information
window, press Enter or click the OK button. The new settings will
now be applied to the selected bar code object.
5. Now save the changes you have made to the open label design. To save
your changes:
• Open the File menu and click the Save Label command. The label
design will now be permanently saved.
224
Chapter 11
Deleting a Label Design
This section will show you how to delete an existing label design. You can
use the information in this section to delete any label design in the open
Smeadlink database.
To delete an existing label design:
1. Select the label design that you want to delete. To select a label design:
2. Open the File menu from the main menu bar, and click the Delete Label
command.
A Smeadlink window will now appear asking if you want to delete the selected label.
3. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Smeadlink window.
The selected label design will now be permanently removed from the open
Smeadlink database.
Introduction to ColorBar Label Integrator
12. Introduction to ColorBar Label
Integrator
Chapter contents
Introduction
Basic Terms for ColorBar Label Integrator
Basic Concepts for ColorBar Label Integrator
Requirements for ColorBar Label Integrator
225
226
Chapter 12
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use the Database Map program to
modify a Smeadlink database. You learned how to work with the Database
Map's tree diagram, and you learned how to use the tree diagram and the
popup menus to create new items in a database or modify existing items.
This chapter will introduce you to the ColorBar Label Integrator program. As
you learned in chapter 1, ColorBar Label Integrator is a program that allows
you to configure ColorBar labels for printing from Smeadlink. It allows you
to map the columns in a Smeadlink folder or subfolder to the fields in a
ColorBar label design's database, so that users can then print ColorBar labels
from that folder or subfolder. The first section of this chapter will explain
some terms that are often used in discussing ColorBar Label Integrator, the
next section will explain basic concepts and the last section will explain system requirements.
227
Basic Terms for ColorBar Label Integrator
ColorBar label
Colorbar labels are color-coded strip labels that are typically used to identify file folders. Each ColorBar label includes a unique bar code and a specific color pattern. The bar code identifies the label and allows it to be scanned
into Smeadlink, and the color pattern identifies what type of folder the label
was printed for. For instance, labels for customer folders might all have one
color pattern, and labels for employee folders might all have another color
pattern.
Label design
A label design is a template for printing ColorBar labels. Each design specifies how the data will appear on any labels printed with the design, and it
also specifies what color pattern the labels will have. Label designs are created in the ColorBar Gold program, and they are typically created by
Smeadlink resellers. The example below shows what a label design looks
like in the ColorBar Gold program.
A label design in the ColorBar Gold program
On its own, a label design is not connected in any way to a Smeadlink folder
or subfolder. ColorBar Label Integrator is the tool you will use to connect
each label design to a folder or subfolder in Smeadlink. This process is called
configuring a label.
228
Chapter 12
Configured label design
A configured label design is a label design that has been connected by the
ColorBar Label Integrator program to a folder or subfolder in Smeadlink.
Specifically, the columns in the Smeadlink folder or subfolder have been
mapped to the fields in the label design's ColorBar database.
Once a label design has been configured, users can print ColorBar labels
from the Smeadlink folder or subfolder that has been mapped to the design.
Data from the columns in the folder or subfolder will be copied to the corresponding fields in the label design's ColorBar database, and that data will
then be used to print the labels from the ColorBar Gold program.
229
Basic Concepts for ColorBar Label Integrator
ColorBar Label Integrator is a program that allows you to configure ColorBar
labels for printing from Smeadlink. It includes four main windows set up
like a wizard. Each window prompts you to select or enter some information. Once you have selected or entered the required information, you will
be able to open the next window.
When you first open the ColorBar Label Integrator program, you will see
the window shown below. This window allows you to create a new job or
select an existing job for modification (a job is a configured label design). If
you choose to create a new job, you will be able to select a label design for
the job from the first window.
First Label Integrator window
In addition to creating a new job or selecting an existing one, the first Label
Integrator window allows you to remove existing jobs. When a job is removed, the Smeadlink folder or subfolder and the label design in the job are
both unaffected—only the mapping between the two items is deleted. Removing a job only involves the first Label Integrator window, but if you are
creating a new job or modifying an existing one you will need to use the
other windows as well. The example on the following page shows what the
second window looks like.
230
Chapter 12
Second Label Integrator window
The second Label Integrator window allows you to select a Smeadlink table
for the current job. If you are modifying an existing job, then you will not
want to change the table. This is because changing the table would require
you to redefine the rest of the job. On the other hand, if you are creating a
new job, you will want to specify the table of the Smeadlink folder or subfolder that you want mapped to the selected label design.
Once you have selected a Smeadlink table, if necessary, then you will be
ready to set the options on the third Label Integrator window. This window
is the window you will use to map fields in the selected Smeadlink table to
the ColorBar fields used by the selected label design. The example below
shows what the third Label Integrator window looks like.
Third Label Integrator window
231
The main feature in the third Label Integrator window is a records grid. The
first column in the records grid is called CBGOLD Field. This column lists
all the fields in the ColorBar database that are used by the selected label
design. The CBGOLD Field column will be automatically filled in when
you first open the third Label Integrator window, but the other columns in
the records grid will be empty.
The second column in the records grid is called Smeadlink Field. This column allows you to specify which field in the selected Smeadlink table corresponds with each ColorBar field used by the label design. Clicking a cell in
the Smeadlink Field column will open a dropdown that lists all the fields in
the selected Smeadlink table. You can then select which Smeadlink field you
want to map to the ColorBar field in the cell to the left of the selected cell.
In some situations, you may want to assign some static text to a ColorBar
field, or concatenate multiple Smeadlink fields into one ColorBar field. You
can accomplish either one of these tasks with the third field in the records
grid—the Manual field. If you want to assign some static text to a ColorBar
field, you can do so by typing the text in the appropriate cell of the Manual
column. If you want to concatenate multiple Smeadlink fields into one
ColorBar field, simply enter the desired fields in the appropriate cell of the
Manual column. One situation where you might want to concatenate multiple Smeadlink fields into one ColorBar field is if you had a First Name and
a Last Name field in a Smeadlink table, and you wanted to put data from
both these fields into one ColorBar Name field.
The last column in the records grid is called Format. This column allows
you to format the data in each Smeadlink field before it is copied to the
ColorBar field. For instance, you could use this field to insert dashes in a
Smeadlink field that contains social security numbers, or you could use it to
put parentheses around the area codes of a field containing phone numbers.
The Format field accepts standard formatting notation.
After you have mapped the fields in the selected Smeadlink table to the
ColorBar fields of the selected label design, you will be ready to set the
options on the fourth Label Integrator window. This window allows you to
modify the two SQL statements used in the label printing process. The example on the following page shows what the fourth Label Integrator window looks like.
232
Chapter 12
Fourth Label Integrator window
The fourth Label Integrator window lists the two SQL statements used in
the label printing process, and it allows you to modify each statement. The
top section of the window lists the SQL statement that identifies what rows
in the selected Smeadlink table to print labels for. You can modify this SQL
statement as you wish. The second section of the window lists the SQL
statement that is run after the labels are printed. This statement is called the
SQL Update statement, and it is often used to set print flags. Again, you can
modify it as you wish. Once you finish modifying the SQL statements used
for label printing, then you can save the open job by clicking the Finish
button.
233
Requirements for ColorBar Label Integrator
In order to configure label designs with ColorBar Label Integrator or print
ColorBar labels from Smeadlink, you will need to have the ColorBar Gold
program installed. If your Smeadlink system includes the ColorBar Gold
module, then your Smeadlink installation CD will have the ColorBar Gold
program on it.
In addition to having ColorBar Gold installed, you will also need to have the
appropriate label designs created in ColorBar Gold. Label designs are typically created by Smeadlink resellers.
Using ColorBar Label Integrator
13. Using ColorBar Label Integrator
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating a New Job
Modifying an Existing Job
Removing an Existing Job
235
236
Chapter 13
Introduction
The previous chapter introduced you to the ColorBar Label Integrator program. You learned about some terms that are frequently used while discussing ColorBar Label Integrator, and you also learned about its basic concepts. You should now have a basic idea about what the ColorBar Label
Integrator program looks like, and how it is typically used.
This chapter will show you how to use the ColorBar Label Integrator program to configure ColorBar label designs. As you learned in the previous
chapter, a configured label design is called a job in ColorBar Label Integrator. The first section of this chapter will show you how to create a new job,
the second section will show you how to modify an existing job and the
third section will show you how to delete an existing job.
237
Creating a New Job
This section will show you how to create a new job in ColorBar Label Integrator. The job will connect an existing ColorBar label design to a folder or
subfolder in the Librarian. Once you have created the job, any Smeadlink
user can open the job's Librarian folder and print ColorBar labels from it.
The data from the columns in the folder will be formatted according to the
job's specifications, and copied to the corresponding columns in the label
design's ColorBar database. The labels will then be printed from the ColorBar
Gold program using the data in the ColorBar database.
Note: As explained in the previous chapter, you will need to have the ColorBar
Gold program installed in order to print labels from the Librarian. You will
also need to have at least one label design created in ColorBar Gold before
you can begin creating a job in ColorBar Label Integrator.
To create a new job:
1. Open the ColorBar Label Integrator program from the Librarian.
For information about opening ColorBar Label Integrator, see chapter 2 of
this manual. The example below shows what the ColorBar Label Integrator
program looks like immediately after it has been opened.
ColorBar Label Integrator program after opening
2. Click the New button on the ColorBar Label Integrator window.
The Open a ColorBar Gold Label Design window will now appear. This
window lists all your available label designs. The example on the following
page shows what the Open a ColorBar Gold Label Design window looks
like.
238
Chapter 13
Open a ColorBar Gold Label Design window
3. Select the desired label design for the new job. To select a label design:
• Click the desired label design. The label design will turn blue after you
click it to indicate that it is selected.
• Click the Open button on the Open a ColorBar Gold Label Design
window.
The Open a ColorBar Gold Label Design window will now close, and the
design you selected will appear in the box on the first ColorBar Label Integrator window.
4. Click the Next button at the bottom of the first ColorBar Label Integrator
window.
The second ColorBar Label Integrator window will now appear. The example below shows what the second window looks like.
Second ColorBar Label Integrator window
239
5. Select the desired Smeadlink table for the new job. To select a Smeadlink
table:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the box in the middle of the second
ColorBar Label Integrator window.
A dropdown will now appear that lists all the Smeadlink tables in the
open Smeadlink database. The dropdown will have two columns. The
first column lists the user name of each Smeadlink table in the database, and the second column lists the actual table name. The example
below shows what the tables dropdown looks like.
Tables dropdown
• Click the desired table on the tables dropdown. The table you selected
will now appear in the tables box.
6. Click the Next button at the bottom of the second ColorBar Label Integrator window.
The third window will now appear. The example on the following page
shows what the third ColorBar Label Integrator window looks like.
240
Chapter 13
Third ColorBar Label Integrator window
7. Select which column in the selected Smeadlink table corresponds with
each ColorBar field in the selected label design. To map the columns in the
selected Smeadlink table to the fields used by the selected label design:
• Click a cell in the Smeadlink Field box. A dropdown will now appear
listing all the columns in the selected Smeadlink table.
• Click the Smeadlink column in the dropdown that you would like to
map to the corresponding field in the CBGOLD Field column. The
column you selected will now appear in the cell.
• Repeat the above two steps for each field in the CBGOLD Field column that you would like to map one Smeadlink field to.
• If you would like to map static text to a field in the CBGOLD Field
column, or if you would like to concatenate multiple Smeadlink fields
to one field in the CBGOLD Field column, then skip the corresponding cell for that field in the Smeadlink Field column.
Note: If the fields in the selected Smeadlink table have the same names as
the fields in the selected ColorBar label design, you can click the Autofill
button to have the fields automatically matched up for you. Once you click
Autofill, Label Mapper will automatically enter the column name in the
Smeadlink Field column that matches the corresponding field name in the
CBGOLD Field column.
241
8. If you would like to map some static text to a field in the CBGOLD Field
column, then type the desired text in the corresponding cell of the Manual
column.
9. If you would like to map multiple Smeadlink fields to one field in the
CBGOLD Field column, then enter the desired fields in the corresponding
cell of the Manual column.
You will need to use standard table notation (i.e. TableName.FirstFieldName
+ TableName.SecondFieldName), and you will need to specify a space between the two tables if you want one to appear in the labels.
10. If you would like to format the data from the Smeadlink columns before
it is copied to the ColorBar fields, then enter the desired format in the appropriate cell of the Format column.
The Format column accepts standard format notation, and it is typically used
to reformat things like social security numbers, dates or phone numbers.
11. Click the Next button at the bottom of the third ColorBar Label Integrator window.
The fourth window will now appear. The example below shows what the
fourth ColorBar Label Integrator window looks like.
Fourth ColorBar Label Integrator window
242
Chapter 13
12. If you would like to modify the SQL statement, enter the desired changes
(the SQL statement is the top statement on the fourth Label Mapper window).
The SQL statement determines what rows in the selected Smeadlink table
will have labels printed for them. The example on the previous page shows
a typical Smeadlink SQL statement.
13. If you would like to modify the SQL Update statement, enter the desired
changes (the SQL statement is the lower statement on the fourth Label Mapper window).
The SQL Update statement is run after the labels have been printed, and it is
typically used to set print flags. The example on the previous shows a typical Smeadlink SQL Update statement.
14. Click the Finish button to save the new job.
Your Smeadlink operators will now be able to print labels from the folders
or subfolders in the Librarian that are based on the table specified in this job.
243
Modifying an Existing Job
This section will show you how to modify an existing job in the ColorBar
Label Integrator program. Modifying a job means keeping the Smeadlink
table and ColorBar label design specified in the job, but changing more
minor things like corresponding fields or formatting. You can use the information in this section to modify any existing job.
To modify an existing job:
2. Click the down arrow at the right of the box in the middle of the ColorBar
Label Integrator window. A dropdown will now appear listing all the existing jobs.
3. Click the job on the dropdown that you would like to modify. The job
name will now appear in the box.
4. Click the Next button at the bottom of the first ColorBar Label Integrator
window.
The second window will now appear. The example on the following page
shows what the second ColorBar Label Integrator window looks like.
244
Chapter 13
Second ColorBar Label Integrator window
5. Click the Next button at the bottom of the second Label Integrator window. The third window will now appear as shown below.
Third ColorBar Label Integrator window
6. You can now modify any of the settings on the third window. For more
information about these settings, see steps 7–10 of the previous section in
this chapter.
7. Click the Next button at the bottom of the third Label Integrator window.
The fourth window will now appear as shown on the following page.
245
Fourth ColorBar Label Integrator window
8. You can now modify either of the SQL statements on the fourth window.
For information about these statements, see steps 12 and 13 in the previous
section of this chapter.
9. Click the Finish button in the lower right corner of the fourth window to
save the changes you have made to the selected job.
246
Chapter 13
Removing an Existing Job
This section will show you how to remove an existing job from ColorBar
Label Integrator. Removing a job does not affect the Smeadlink table or the
ColorBar label design specified in the job—it only affects the relationship
between the two items. You can use the information in this section to remove any existing job in ColorBar Label Integrator.
To remove an existing job:
2. Click the down arrow at the right of the box in the middle of the first
ColorBar Label Integrator window. A dropdown will now appear listing all
your existing jobs.
3. Click the job on the dropdown that you would like to remove. The job
name will now appear in the box.
4. Click the Remove button underneath the box. The selected job will now
be permanently removed from ColorBar Label Integrator.
Using Data Director
14. Using Data Director
Chapter contents
Introduction
Data Director Concepts
Creating a Format
Running a Format
247
248
Chapter 14
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use ColorBar Label Integrator.
This chapter will show you how to use Data Director. As you learned in
chapter 1, Data Director is a utility that allows you to automatically capture
label data sent from an external program, import the data into a Smeadlink
table, and print it out on one of the existing label designs for that table. Data
Director was created to give customers who already have high-end software
for printing black-and-white labels the capability to print color labels.
The first section in this chapter will explain the basic concepts for using
Data Director. If you are already familiar with the Data Director utility, then
you may just want to skim this section. The second section will then explain
how to create a format. A format is similar to a rule in the Scanner program
or an import in the Import Wizard utility—it is a group of settings that Data
Director uses to determine what information should be extracted from captured label data and how that information should be printed. Finally, the last
section in this chapter will show you how to use an existing format to capture label data and print labels.
Using Data Director
249
Data Director Concepts
Data Director is a program that allows you to automatically capture label
data sent from an external program, route it into a Smeadlink table, and print
it out on one of the existing label designs for that table. Currently, Data
Director captures label data by monitoring a COM port. In the future, Data
Director will also be able to capture label data by monitoring a specified file.
Data Director was created to give customers who already have high-end
software for printing black-and-white labels the capability to print color labels. For many of these customers, the cost and effort required to replace
their existing black-and-white label software with color label software would
be prohibitive. Data Director gives them the best of both worlds—it allows
them to print color labels when they want, and it leaves their existing software (and hardware) in place and untouched.
The first step in using Data Director is to create a format. A format is similar
to a Scanner rule— it is a group of settings that determines what information
to extract from captured label data, how to place that information into a
Smeadlink table and what label design to print that information with. You
will need to create a separate format for each type of label that you capture
and print with Data Director. The window for creating formats in Data Director is called the Data Director Setup window. The example below shows
what this window looks like.
Data Director Setup window
250
Chapter 14
Once you have created a format, then you can open it and the Data Director
Monitoring window will appear. This window displays which format is open,
and which stock type (i.e. Avery, Intermec, etc.) will be used to print any
label data that is captured. Once Data Director starts to receive data and
print labels, the Data Director Monitoring window will display the number
of records that have been saved and the number of labels that have been
printed since the format was opened. The example below shows what the
Data Director Monitoring window looks like.
Data Director Monitoring window
You can choose to have Data Director print labels one at a time as it receives
information, or wait to print out a group of labels at once (this is helpful for
stock types that print multiple labels to a sheet). You can also hide, or minimize, the Data Director program while it is monitoring a COM port. This is
helpful if you want to work on something else in Smeadlink while Data
Director is open.
Using Data Director
251
Creating a Format
The first step in using Data Director is to create a format. A format is a group
of settings that determines what information to extract from captured label
data, how to place that information into a Smeadlink table and what label
design to print that information with. You will need to create a separate
format for each type of label that you capture and print with Data Director.
Before you begin creating a format, make sure that your system is set up as
follows:
• The computer that you will be capturing data from needs to be connected to the COM port of the computer with Smeadlink on it. In most
cases, a standard DB-9 Null Modem cable can be used for this purpose, however, some systems may need a different type of cable. Consult the documentation that came with your hardware for information
about the type of cable you will need.
• The Port monitoring for Label input option in Smeadlink needs to be
set to the active COM port. This option is located in the General folder
of the Options window.
To create a format:
1. Open the Data Director Setup window. To open the Data Director Setup
window:
• Open the Tools menu the Smeadlink and click the Data Director command. The Data Director submenu will now appear.
• Click the Setup command on the Data Director submenu. The Data
Director Setup window will now appear as shown on the following
page.
252
Chapter 14
Data Director Setup window
The Data Director Setup window lists all the formats in the open database. If
no formats have been created, then the Data Director Setup window will be
blank as shown in the example above.
2. Click the Add button in the lower left corner of the Data Director Setup
window.
The Format setup window will now appear. This window contains all the
options for creating a format. The example below shows what the Format
setup window looks like.
Format setup window
Using Data Director
253
3. Type the desired name for the new format in the Label Name box (located
in the top left corner of the Format setup window).
4. Select the table for the new format in the Table box.
When you begin using the new format, the label data it receives will be
imported into the table selected in the Table box, and then printed using one
of the table's label designs. Label designs in Smeadlink are specific to individual tables, so the table you select in the Table box will determine what
label designs you can use to print captured label data.
5. Select the desired design for the new format in the Labels for this table
box.
The design you select will be used as a template for printing label data captured with the new format—it will determine how the label data is arranged
on each label, and it will determine what colors are on the label (if it is a
ColorBar design). If you do not want to print the captured label data at all,
then you can select the Import Only option and the data will only be imported into the specified Smeadlink table, it will not be printed.
The Labels for this table dropdown displays all the label designs and configured label designs that have been created for the table selected in the Table
box. Remember that label designs are templates for printing black-and-white
labels, and configured label designs are templates for printing ColorBar labels. There is no way to distinguish label designs from configured label
designs in the Labels for this table dropdown, so you will need to know
beforehand which is which. If you are unsure which design to pick, you can
open the Label Manager utility to view the different label designs in the
open database, and you can open the ColorBar Label Integrator utility to
view the different configured label designs in the open database.
6. Now print one or more labels with the program you will be capturing
label data from (printing two or more labels may make the setup process
easier later on).
If your system is set up as explained at the beginning of this section, then
Data Director will capture the label data and it will appear in the Printer
Output box on the Format setup window. The example on the following
page shows what captured label data looks like.
Note: The data that appears in the Printer Output box depends on the program the labels were printed from and the labels that were printed, so the
data you see will not look exactly like the data shown in the example.
254
Chapter 14
Captured label data
7. You will now need to specify what information you want extracted from
the captured label data, and which fields in the Smeadlink table you want the
extracted information mapped to. For each field in the captured label data
(i.e. for each field in the original labels that were printed), follow the steps
below:
• Find one of the field's entries in the captured label data.
• Use the entry to locate the start string for this field. The start string is a
unique group of characters that identifies the entries in each field. Every entry in the field will have the same start string located immediately before it in the captured label data. You may need to use two
entries from the field to determine what characters make up the start
string.
• Highlight one of the start strings for this field. The Add Start String
and Add End String buttons beneath the Printer Output box will now
become available.
• Click the Add Start String button. The characters you selected in the
Printer Output box will now be entered into the Field Definition table,
in the Text Start String cell of the blank row.
Note: Data Director will not allow you to type text directly into the Text
Start String, Text End String, Label Start String or Label End String cells.
This is because start and end strings may include characters that you cannot enter from the keyboard.
Using Data Director
255
• Use the same procedure (replacing the Add Start String button with the
Add End String button) to specify the end string for this field. Once
you have defined the field by specifying a start string and an end
string, then the first entry in the field should appear in the Sample Data
cell of the row.
• Select which field in the specified Smeadlink table the data in the field
you just defined will be imported into. To select a field, click in the
Field Name cell of the row. A down arrow will now appear that you
can use to open a dropdown listing all the fields in the specified
Smeadlink table. Click the desired field in the dropdown.
• If you want the field you just defined to be the Find by field for the
label data captured with this format, then check the Find by cell in the
active row. When Data Director imports captured label data into the
specified Smeadlink table, it will compare each entry in the captured
data's Find by field to the entries in the Smeadlink table's Id column. If
a match is found, then the existing row in the table will be replaced
with the matching row in the captured data. If no match is found, then
a new row will be created in the Smeadlink table for the row in the
captured data.
8. Specify the start and end strings for the captured label data. The start
string is a unique group of characters that at the beginning of the captured
label data, and the end string is a unique group of characters at the end of the
captured label data. To specify the start and end strings:
• Locate the characters that make up the start string in the captured label
data.
• Highlight the entire start string. The Set button at the right of the Label
Start String box will become available once you highlight the characters in the start string.
• Click the Set button. The selected characters in the captured label data
will now be entered in the Label Start String box.
• Use the same procedure (replacing the Label Start String box with the
Label End String box) to specify the end string for the captured label
data.
256
Chapter 14
9. Enter the lowercase character string for captured label data in the
Lowercasing Characters box. To enter the lowercase character string:
• Type the string into the Lowercasing Characters box.
• Click the Add button at the right of the Lowercasing Characters box to
save the string.
The lowercase character string is a unique group of characters that identifies
which characters in captured label data should be imported as lowercase
characters. The lowercase character string will appear in captured label data
immediately before each lowercase character.
Note: If the original label data does not contain lowercase characters, or if
you do not care whether characters are imported as lowercase or uppercase, then you can leave this option blank.
10. If you want Data Director to automatically remove certain characters in
captured label data, then enter the desired characters into the Characters to
remove box. To enter the characters:
• Type the desired characters into the Characters to remove box.
• Click the Add button at the right of the Lowercasing Characters box to
save the characters.
11. Set the desired time out for the captured label data.
The time out only applies if a label design has been selected in the Labels
for this table box. The time out determines how long Data Director will wait
each time it receives captured label data before it begins printing the data
from Smeadlink.
You can set the time out to a number of minutes by entering the desired
number into the Time Out (in minutes) box, or you can set it to infinite by
checking the Infinite Time Out box. If you set the time out to infinite, then
Data Director will wait until it has received enough information to print out
an entire sheet of labels at once before it starts printing (this option only
applies to label designs that use a stock type with multiple labels per sheet),
or it will wait until you manually click the Print button on the Data Director
Monitoring window.
12. Click the OK button on the Format setup window.
The new format will now be saved. The Format setup window will close,
and the Data Director Setup window will reappear. The new format will be
selected in the Data Director Setup window's format list.
Using Data Director
257
Running a Format
Once you have created a format, then you can run it and Data Director will
process and print captured label data according to the format's settings. When
you are running a format, you can hide, or minimize, the Data Director program so that you can do other work in Smeadlink while Data Director is
capturing label data. This section will show you how to run a format. You
can use the information in this section to run any format in the open Smeadlink
database.
To run a format:
1. Open the Data Director Monitoring window. To open the Data Director
Monitoring window:
• Open the Tools menu the Smeadlink and click the Data Director command. The Data Director submenu will now appear.
• Click the Load command on the Data Director submenu. The Load
submenu will now appear as shown below. This submenu lists all the
formats in the open database. The submenu in the example contains
one format called test_format.
Load submenu
• Open the desired format on the Load submenu. The Data Director
Monitoring window will now appear as shown on the following page.
258
Chapter 14
Data Director Monitoring window
As long as the Data Director Monitoring window is open, label data coming
through the active Com port will be captured and processed according to the
open format's settings. The top box in the Data Director Monitoring window
displays the name of the open format, and the second box displays the name
of the open format's stock type.
The last three boxes display how much information Data Director has received and processed since the format was opened. This includes the total
number of rows imported into the format's table, the total number of labels
printed and the total number of labels currently queued up for printing. Remember that if a label design is not specified in the open format, then captured label data will only be imported into the specified Smeadlink table, it
will not be printed.
2. If you want to minimize the Data Director Monitoring window, click the
Hide button in the lower left corner of the window.
The Data Director Monitoring window will now be minimized, but it will
continue to function just like it does when it is the active window. Hiding
the Data Director Monitoring window is helpful if you want to work on
something else in Smeadlink while Data Director is capturing and processing label data.
3. If the open format has an infinite time out, then you can click the Print
button on the Data Director Monitoring window to print all the labels in the
queue.
4. Once you are finished running the format, click the Stop button.
A popup window will now appear asking if you are sure you want to exit the
current format.
5. Click the Yes button on the popup window.
Using Smeadlink's Administrative Utilities I
259
15. Using Smeadlink's Administrative
Utilities I
Chapter contents
Introduction
Opening the Views Utility
Saving a View
Adjusting View Order
Deleting a View
Modifying the Properties of a View
Opening the Columns Utility
Creating a Column in a View
Deleting a Column from a View
Modifying the Properties of a Column in a View
260
Chapter 15
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use the ColorBar Label Integrator
program to configure ColorBar label designs. You learned how to create
new jobs in the ColorBar Label Integrator program, and how to modify existing jobs. You also learned how to remove jobs that are no longer being
used.
The next two chapters will show you how to use the administrative utilities
in the Smeadlink. As you learned in chapter 1, there are four administrative
utilities in Smeadlink—the Views utility, the Columns utility, the Add-Ins
utility and the Report Generator utility. This chapter will show you how to
use the Views and Columns utilities, and the next chapter will show you how
to use the Add-Ins and Report Generator utilities.
This chapter is divided into two main parts, each part consisting of several
sections. The first part will show how to open the Views utility and use it to
work with Views, and the second part will show you how to open the Columns utility and use it to work with columns.
Note: For an introduction to all Smeadlink's administrative utilities, see
the section Smeadlink Administrative Utilities in chapter 1 of this manual.
261
Opening the Views Utility
The following instructions will show you how to open the Views utility. Once
the Views utility is open, you will be able to use it to create, delete and modify
Views in Smeadlink. You will also be able to adjust the view order for the
open folder or subfolder, which determines what order the Views are displayed with on the View...Views submenu. After you learn how to open the
Views utility in this section, the next four sections in this chapter will show
you how to use the Views utility to work with Views in Smeadlink.
To open the Views utility:
1. Open the Tools menu from Smeadlink's main menu bar.
2. Click the View Settings command on the Tools menu.
The View Settings submenu will now appear. The Views utility consists of the
six lower commands on the View Settings submenu. The example below shows
what the Views utility looks like.
262
Chapter 15
Saving a View
The Views utility includes two commands for saving Views—Save View and
Save View As. The Save View command allows you to save an existing view
after you make changes to it, while the Save View As command allows you to
save the active view as it appear on your screen as a new view. This section
will show you how to use both save commands.
To save an existing view after making changes to it:
• Simply click the Save View command on the Views utility. The active
view will now be saved as it appears on the screen.
To save a new view:
1. Set up the active view as you want the new view to be saved.
2. Click the Save View As command on the Views utility.
The Save View As window will now appear. The example below shows what
the Save View As window looks like.
Save View As window
3. Type the desired name for the new view in the Save As box.
4. If you want the new view to share columns with the active view, check the
Share Columns With Current View box. When two Views share columns, any
changes made to the columns in one view will be made to the columns in the
other view.
5. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Save As window. The new view
will now be saved, and the Save As window will close.
263
Adjusting the View Order
The view order determines how the Views for the open folder or subfolder are
displayed on the View...Views submenu. It also determines the default view
for the open folder or subfolder. The default view is subject to security settings, so if a user does not have access to the view that has been specified as
the default view, then they will see the next view in the list as their default
view. This section will show you how to adjust the view order for the open
Smeadlink folder or subfolder.
To adjust the view order for the open folder or subfolder:
1. Click the View Order command on the Views utility.
The View Order Editor window will now appear. All the Views for the open
folder or subfolder will be listed in the middle of this window. The Views will
be listed in the order they appear on the View...Views submenu (i.e. the first
view in the Editor window is the first view on the Views submenu, the second
view in the Editor window is the second view on the Views submenu, etc.).
In addition, the first view in the View Editor's list will be the default view for
the open folder or subfolder. As you learned above, if a user does now have
access to the view that has been specified as the default view, then they will
see the next view in the list as their default view. The example below shows
what the View Order Editor window looks like. The window in the example
lists three Views, starting with one called All Clients Sorted by Name.
View Order Editor window
264
Chapter 15
2. You can now adjust the position of each view in the list. To adjust a view's
position:
• Click the desired view. The view will turn blue after you click it to
indicate that it is selected.
• Click the up or down arrows at the right of the view list until the selected
view is in the desired position.
3. Once you have arranged the Views as you want them, press Enter or click
the OK button at the bottom of the View Order Editor window. The window
will now close.
265
Deleting a View
Sometimes you may create a view that you will only need for a short period of
time, or the information in an existing view may not be needed any more. The
Views utility allows you to quickly and easily delete any existing view in
Smeadlink. Deleting unnecessary Views will keep your database as efficient
as possible. This section will show you how to delete a view from the open
folder or subfolder. You can use the information in this section to delete any
number of Views from the open folder or subfolder.
To delete a view from the open folder or subfolder:
1. Click the Delete View command on the Views utility. The Select View to
Delete window will now appear as shown below.
Select View to Delete window
2. Select the view that you want to delete. To select a view:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Select a View box. A dropdown
will now appear listing the different Views in the open folder or subfolder.
• Click the desired view in the dropdown. The dropdown will now close,
and the view you selected will appear in the Select a View box.
3. Press Enter or click the Delete button at the bottom of the Select View to
Delete window.
266
Chapter 15
Modifying the Properties of a View
The properties of a view determine things like the name of the view, whether
rows can be added to the view and the SQL statement used to display the
rows in the view. This section will show you how to modify the properties of
the active view. You can use the information in this section to modify the
properties of any view in the open database.
To modify the properties of the active view:
1. Click the View Properties command on the Views utility. The View Properties window will now appear as shown below.
View Properties window
2. If you would like to change the name of the active view, type the desired
name in the Current View box.
3. If you want users to be able to add rows to the active view, make sure the
Allow Adds option is enabled.
4. If you want Smeadlink to display the exact number of rows in the view
each time it is opened, make sure the Exact Count option is enabled.
5. If you would like to modify the SQL statement of the active view, type the
desired changes in the View SQL box.
6. Click the Apply button to view the changes you have made. If the changes
are not to your liking, correct the appropriate settings.
7. Click the OK button at the bottom of the View Properties window to save
the changes you made. The View Properties window will now close.
267
Opening the Columns Utility
The following instructions will show you how to open the Columns utility.
Once the Columns utility is open, you will be able to use it to create, delete
and modify columns in Smeadlink. After you learn how to open the Columns utility in this section, the next three sections in this chapter will show
you how to use the Columns utility to work with columns in Smeadlink.
To open the Columns utility:
1. Open the Tools menu from the Librarian's main menu bar.
2. Click the View Settings command on the Tools menu. The View Settings
submenu will now appear.
3. Click the Columns command on the View Settings submenu.
The Columns submenu will now appear. The Columns utility consists of the
first two commands and the last command on the Columns submenu. The
example below shows what the Columns utility looks like.
268
Chapter 15
Creating a Column in a View
This section will show you how to create a new column in the active view.
The column will be based on one of the fields in the view's table, so you will
either need to use an existing field or create a new one (if you want to create
a new field, see the section Adding a New Field to a Table in chapter 9). You
can use the information in this section to add any number of columns to the
active view.
To create a column in the active view:
1. Click the New Column command on the Columns utility. The New Column window will now appear as shown below.
2. Select the desired type for the new column. To select a type:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Column Type box. A dropdown
will now appear listing the different available types.
• Click the desired type on the dropdown.
There are 16 column types that you can choose from. The different column
types are listed and explained in the following table.
Column Type
Description
Any Image Flag
Displays one of three abbreviations if a
row has an image attached to it. The abbreviation lets you know that an image
is attached, and it displays the type of
the image. The three abbreviations are
Scan (from Scanner program), PC Files
(from PC Files program) and ERM (from
Import Wizard program). This type option will not be available if the open view
is based on a table that cannot have attachments.
269
Child Lookdown/ [CR] Separated/
Display Dups
Displays information from one column of any child rows attached to
the parent row. If there are multiple
child rows with entries in the column, the entries are separated by
carriage returns (i.e. a separate line
for each entry). Duplicate entries
are allowed. This type option is not
available in Views that do not have
child rows.
Child Lookdown/ [CR] Separated/
Skip Dups
carriage returns (i.e. a separate line
for each entry). If an entry occurs
multiple times, it is only listed once.
This type option is not available in
Views that do not have child rows.
Child Lookdown/ Comma Separated/
Display Dups
commas. Duplicate entries are allowed. This type option is not
available in Views that do not have
child rows.
Child Lookdown/ Comma Separated/
Skip Dups
commas. If the same entry occurs
multiple times, it is only listed once.
This type option is not available in
Views that do not have child rows.
270
Chapter 15
Children Count
Displays the number of child rows
in one table that are attached to
each parent row. This type option
is not available in Views that do
not have child rows.
Children Flag
Displays a flag if a row has one or
more child rows attached to it. The
flag will be two asterisks if there is
one child attached, and two plus
signs if there are two or more children attached. This type option is
not available in Views that do not
have child rows.
Direct Field
Displays all entries in one field of
the table that the open view is
based on. If the view is based on
multiple tables (i.e. if there is a
JOIN in the view's SQL statement),
then displays all entries in one field
of any of these tables.
ERM Flag
more ERM documents attached to
it. The flag will be two asterisk if
there is one document attached,
and two plus signs if there are two
or more documents attached. This
type option is not available in Views
that do not have child rows
Fax Flag
more fax documents attached to it.
The flag will be two asterisks if
that do not have child rows
271
Image Flag
more image documents attached to
it. The flag will be two asterisks if
that do not have child rows.
PC Files Flag
more PC Files documents attached
to it. The flag will be two asterisks
if there is one document attached,
that do not have child rows.
Row Number
Displays the number of each row
in the open view (i.e. displays a 1
for the first row in the view, 2 for
the second row, etc.).
Tracking Location
Displays the tracking location of
each object in the open view. Can
only display one type of location
(i.e. folders, boxes, shelves, etc.).
This type option is not available
in Views that do not contain
trackable objects.
Tracking Status
Displays one of three types of tracking status information for the objects in the open view. The three
types of information are due date,
whether or not the object is out and
transaction date and time. This
that do not contain trackable objects.
272
Chapter 15
Parent Lookup
Displays information from one field
of any parent table for the open
view.
3. Now select the field that the new column will be based on. To select a
field:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Field box. A dropdown will
now appear listing the different available fields. The fields listed in the
dropdown will differ depending on which column type you selected.
• Click the desired field on the dropdown. The dropdown will now close,
and the field you selected will appear in the Field box.
4. Press Enter or click the OK button on the New Column window. The new
column will now be saved, and the New Column window will close.
273
Deleting a Column from a View
This section will show you how to delete a column from the active view. You
can use the information in this section to delete any number of columns from
the active view.
To delete a column from the active view:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the header of the column you want to
delete, and click the right mouse button.
The Column popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what
the Column popes menu looks like.
Column popup menu
2. Click the Delete command on the Column popes menu.
The selected column will now be deleted from the open view. You can restore
the deleted column to the active view by clicking the Reload View command
on the View Settings submenu.
274
Chapter 15
Modifying the Properties of a Column in a View
The properties of a column determine things like the name of the column,
when the column is visible and whether the cells in the column can be sorted.
This section will show you how to modify the properties of a column in the
active view. You can use the information in this section to modify the properties of any column in the view.
To modify the properties of a column in the active view:
1. Place your mouse pointer over the header of the column you want to
modify, and click the right mouse button.
The Column popup menu will now appear. The example below shows what
the Column popes menu looks like.
2. Click the Column Properties command on the Column popup menu. The
Properties window will now appear as shown below.
Properties window
275
3. If you would like to modify the heading of the selected column, type the
desired heading in the Heading box.
4. If you would like to apply a mask to the data in the selected column, type
the desired mask in the Display Mask box.
For information about formatting masks in Smeadlink, see the section Modifying Existing Items in a Database in chapter 9. The mask formatting commands are explained in step 7 of that section.
5. If you would like to apply an input mask to the selected column, type the
desired input mask in the Input Mask box.
If you create an input mask, it will be applied whenever a new entry is added
to the selected column (i.e. when a new row is added to the open folder or
subfolder, or an existing entry in the column is deleted and replaced by a
new one). Again, for information about formatting masks in Smeadlink, see
the section Modifying Existing Items in a Database in chapter 9. The mask
formatting commands are explained in step 7 of that section.
6. If you have created an input mask for the column, type the desired prompt
character in the Mask Prompt box.
The mask prompt character will replace all placeholders in the input mask,
but literal characters will appear in the selected column exactly as they appear in the Input Mask box.
7. If the selected column is assigned an alias in the SQL statement of the
open view, and if you want the column to be sortable, then you will need to
enter an alternate field name for the column. The alternate field name needs
to be whatever calculation or concatenation is used in the SQL statement of
the open view to define the selected column. The alternate field name will be
used whenever the column is sorted, in the SORT BY portion of the SQL
statement.
276
Chapter 15
8. If you would like to modify the visual attributes of the selected column,
select the desired visual attribute option. The five visual attribute options
are listed and explained below:
• Always Visible. This option means that the selected column will always be visible.
• Visible on Level One Only. This option means that the column will
only be visible if the folder that contains the column is located immediately under a work group on the Database Map tree diagram.
• Visible on Level Two and Below. This option means that the column
will be visible in subfolders, but it will not be visible in regular folders.
• Not Visible. This option means that the column will not be visible at
all.
• Smart Column. This option means that if the column is visible in an
open folder, it will not be visible in any subfolders opened from that
folder.
9. If you would like to modify how the data is aligned in the selected column,
select the desired alignment option.
10. If you want the selected column to be sortable, filterable and editable,
enable the desired options.
11. If you want all the data in the selected column to be capitalized, enable
the Caps Lock option.
12. If you want any literal characters in the Input Mask box saved in the
database, enable the Include Mask in Data option.
If you enable the Include Mask in Data option you will not need a display
mask, because the literal characters in the input mask will be saved as data.
If you do not enable the Include Mask in Data option, then you will want to
create a display mask if you want the data to be displayed the same way it is
created.
277
13. If you will be printing reports from the open view while the view is sorted
according to the selected column, then you can use the Page Break option to
divide the report up according to the entries in the selected column.
If you enable the Page Break option, Smeadlink will create a page break each
time it comes to a new entry in the selected column. The Page Break option is
only applicable to columns that contain duplicate entries, because in columns that contain unique entries it will create a page break for each entry in
the column.
14. If you enable the Page Break option, you can eliminate duplicate entries
in the report by enabling the Do not print Duplicates option. This option will
only print each entry in the selected column once in the report, instead of
repeating it for each row that contains the entry. Getting rid of the duplicate
entries makes the report much easier to read.
15. Once you have set all the options on the Properties window, press Enter
or click the OK button to save your changes and apply them to the selected
column.
Using Smeadlink's Administrative Utilities II
16. Using Smeadlink's Administrative
Utilities II
Chapter contents
Introduction
Creating an Add-In
Deleting an Add-In
Modifying an Add-In
Report Generator Concepts
Using the Column Print Properties Window
Using the Report Setup Window
Using the Report Styles Window
279
280
Chapter 16
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use the first two administrative
utilities in Smeadlink—the Views utility and the Columns utility. You learned
how to use these two tools to work with the views and columns in the open
Smeadlink database.
This chapter will show you how to use the other two administrative utilities in
Smeadlink—the Add-Ins Manager and the Report Generator. The Add-Ins
Manager allows you to create and modify the add-ins in the open database
(recall from chapter 1 that an add-in is a shortcut from Smeadlink to an
external program, file or web page), and the Report Generator allows you to
create a formatted report for each view in the open database.
This chapter is divided into two main parts, each part consisting of several
sections. The first part explains how to use the Add-Ins Manager utility to
work with add-ins in the open Smeadlink database. The second part explains
the basic concepts for using the Report Generator, and then it explains in
detail how to use the Report Generator utility to work with formatted reports
for Smeadlink views.
Note: For an introduction to all Smeadlink's administrative utilities, see the
section Smeadlink Administrative Utilities in chapter 1 of this manual.
281
Creating an Add-In
An add-in is a shortcut from Smeadlink to an external program, file or web
page. The capability to create and use add-ins was added to Smeadlink 3.1 to
make it easier to use Smeadlink with external programs such as Crystal Reports. This section will show you how to create an add-in for the open
Smeadlink database.
Add-ins are created in Smeadlink with a utility called the Add-Ins Manager.
You can open this utility from the start-up screen, the Scanner program or
the Tracking program if you have Manager access rights. Once you use the
Add-Ins Manager to create an add-in, the add-in will become visible in all
three of these programs, regardless of which program you used to create it.
The add-in will appear on the Add-Ins menu of each program, and your
Smeadlink operators will be able to use it to open the corresponding external program, file or web page. The Add-Ins menu has built-in security, so if
an operator does not have access to the program or file that an add-in points
to, then that add-in will not appear on that operator's Add-Ins menu.
Note: For information about using add-ins, see the section Opening an AddIn from a Smeadlink Program in chapter 2 of the Smeadlink User's Guide.
To create an add-in:
1. Open the Add-Ins Manager from Smeadlink, Scanner program or Tracking program. To open the Add-Ins Manager:
• Open the Add-Ins menu.
• Click the Add-Ins Manager command at the top of the Add-Ins menu.
The Customize Add-Ins Menu window will now appear as shown on the
following page. The window in the example contains four add-ins. The number of add-ins in your Customize Add-Ins Menu window will be determined
by the number of add-ins in your open Smeadlink database.
282
Chapter 16
Customize Add-Ins Menu window
2. Click the Add button on the Add-Ins Manager window.
The Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window will now appear. The example
below shows what this window looks like.
Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window
3. Type the desired name for the add-in in the Menu Item Description box.
The name that you enter in the Menu Item Description box is the name that
the add-in will be called on the Add-Ins menu. If you want to create a hot
key for the add-in, you can do so by typing an ampersand (&) before the
desired hot key character.
4. Type the desired path for the add-in in the Location box.
The path that you enter in the Location box needs to be the exact location of
the external program, file or web page you want the add-in to access. For
instance, if you are creating an add-in for the Crystal Reports program, you
would type the entire path to the Crystal Reports .exe file in the Location
box.
283
If you do not know the exact location of the item you want the add-in to
open, click the Browse button at the bottom of the Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window. A standard Open window will then appear, and you can use
it to navigate around the files in your computer or network and pick the
desired file.
If you are creating for a program or file and the add-in will be used by multiple operators, then you may not know where the program or file will be
located on each operator's computer. Furthermore, a program may be located in one directory on one operator's computer, but it may be located in a
different directory on another operator's computer.
For situations like this, where you need to create an add-in for a program
that is either in an unknown location or in different locations on various
computers, you can simply type the name of the program or file in the Location box—you do not need to type the entire path to the program or file. The
only stipulation is that if you are creating an add-in for a program, the program needs to be registered on each operator's computer, and if you are
creating an add-in for a file, the file needs to be saved locally on each
operator's computer.
Note: If you have already typed in the entire path for a program or file, and
you want to remove all the components in the path except the name of the
program or file, you can do so automatically by clicking the Remove Path
button at the right of the Location box.
5. If you specified a program in the Location box, and if the program needs
any parameters each time it is opened, then type the appropriate parameters
in the Parameters box.
Parameters are only used by programs—they are never used by files. If a
program requires parameters, then the documentation that came with the
program will explain the type of parameters required, the order they need to
be in and the character or characters they need to be separated with.
As a convenience, the Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window contains three
predefined parameters: Todays Date, Todays Date/Time and User Name.
To enter any of these parameters in the Parameters box, click the Predefined
button at the right of the Parameters box, and then click the desired predefined parameter on the list that appears.
284
Chapter 16
6. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Add-Ins Menu Item Properties
window.
The window will now close, and new add-in will appear at the bottom of the
add-ins list in the Customize Add-Ins Menu window.
7. Select the desired menu position for the new add-in (i.e. first add-in on
the menu, second add-in, third add-in, etc.). To select the desired position:
• Click the up or down arrows at the right of the add-ins list until the new
add-in is in the desired menu position.
8. Click the Close button on the Customize Add-Ins Menu window.
The window will now close, and you will be finished creating the add-in.
The new add-in will now be visible to your Smeadlink operators in the startup screen, Scanner program and Tracking program, as long as they have
access rights to the item the add-in opens.
285
Deleting an Add-In
This section will show you how to delete an add-in from the open Smeadlink
database. You can use the information in this section to delete any number
of add-ins from the open database.
To delete an existing add-in:
1. Open the Add-Ins Manager from the start-up screen, Scanner program or
Tracking program. To open the Add-Ins Manager:
The Customize Add-Ins Menu window will now appear as shown below.
All the add-ins that have been created for the open database will be listed in
this window. The window in the example lists four add-ins, starting with
one called Auction Info.
2. Click the add-in that you want to delete.
3. Click the Remove button at the bottom of the Customize Add-Ins Menu
window.
A popup window will now appear asking if you want to delete the selected
add-in.
4. Press Enter or click the Yes button on the popup window to delete the addin.
5. Click the Close button at the bottom of the Customize Add-Ins Menu
window to close it.
286
Chapter 16
Modifying an Add-In
The Edit button on the Add-Ins Manager utility allows you to modify the
properties of any existing add-in in the open database. The properties of an
add-in determine the name of the add-in, the item that opens when the addin is selected and the parameters that are passed to the program or file when
it is opened. This section will show you how to modify an existing add-in. In
addition to the properties listed above, you will also learn how to adjust the
position of an add-in on the Add-Ins menu (i.e. whether it is the first add-in
on the menu, the second, the third, etc.). You can use the information in this
section to modify any number of add-ins in the open database.
To modify an existing add-in:
1. Open the Add-Ins Manager from the start-up screen, Scanner program or
Tracking program. To open the Add-Ins Manager:
The Customize Add-Ins Menu window will now appear as shown below.
All the add-ins that have been created for the open database will be listed in
this window. The window in the example lists four add-ins, starting with
one called Auction Info.
2. Click the add-in that you want to modify.
3. Click the Edit button at the bottom of the Customize Add-Ins Menu window.
The Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window will now appear as shown on
the following page.
287
Add-Ins Menu Item Properties window
4. If you want to modify the name of the add-in, delete the current name
from the Menu Item Description box and type in the new name.
The name that you type in the Menu Item Description box is the name that
the add-in will be called on the Add-Ins menu. If you want to create a hot
key for the add-in, you can do so by typing an ampersand (&) before the
desired hot key character.
5. If you want the add-in to open a different program, file or web page when
it is selected, or if the original item was moved and you need to update the
path, delete the current path in the Location box and type in the new path.
For more information about entering a path for an add-in, see step 4 in the
section Creating an Add-In earlier in this chapter.
6. If you want to modify the parameters of the add-in, delete the current
parameters from the Parameters box and type in the new parameters.
Parameters are only applicable to certain programs—they are never used
with files. The parameters are passed to the program each time it is started to
set certain options inside the program. The documentation that comes with
these programs will explain in detail what parameters are required by the
program, what order the parameters need to be in and what character should
be used to separate the parameters.
7. Press Enter or click the OK button on the Add-Ins Menu Item Properties
window.
8. If you want to change the position of the add-in on the Add-Ins menu:
• Click the up or down arrows at the right of the add-ins list until the new
add-in is in the desired menu position.
9. Click the Close button on the Customize Add-Ins Menu window.
288
Chapter 16
Report Generator Concepts
The Report Generator is a utility in Smeadlink that allows you to create a
formatted report for each view in the open database. Formatted reports differ
from basic reports printed using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows
commands, because they allow you to determine what data appears on the
report and how the data is displayed.
The Report Generator is made up of three separate components in Smeadlink:
the Column Print Properties window, the Report Setup window and the Report Styles window. The Column Print Properties window and the Report
Setup window are used to determine what data appears on formatted reports,
and the Report Styles window is then used to determine how the data will be
displayed (i.e. what color it will be, how large it will be, etc.).
This section explains the concepts you will need to know to get the most out
of the Report Generator. Specifically, it explains the capabilities of the Report Generator, the components included in the Report Generator and the
basic steps to creating a formatted report for a Smeadlink view. After you
learn about Report Generator concepts in this section, then the next three
sections in this chapter will explain in detail each of the main components in
the Report Generator.
Capabilities of the Report Generator
The basic capabilities of Smeadlink's Report Generator utility are listed below. For more detailed information about the Report Generator's capabilities, see Components in the Report Generator later in this section.
• some header and footer formatting
• font style, size and color adjustment
• margin adjustments
• print up to three levels
• print tracking history and contents
• print images (full size or continuous in specified margins)
289
Components in the Report Generator
The Report Generator utility consists of three main components: the Column Print Properties window, the Report Setup window and the Report Styles
window. Each component is displayed below, followed by a brief explanation of it's role in the Report Generator and the different capabilities it provides.
The Column Print Properties window can be opened for any column in the
active view, and it allows you to set the print attributes for the column it was
opened from. For instance, you can use the Column Print Properties window
to determine if data from the column will be included in reports, and you can
use it to determine if a count will be included for the column, that counts
how many entries from the column were printed in the report.
The Column Print Properties window is divided into two sections. The first
section contains options that apply to both basic reports and formatted reports, and the second section contains options that only apply to formatted
reports. Some of the options in both sections work together with options on
the other Report Generator components. For instance, the Max Lines per
Row option works with the Max Lines and Fixed Lines options on the Report Setup window, to determine how many lines from entries in the column
will be printed on the report.
290
Chapter 16
Report Setup window
Report Setup window
The Report Setup window can be opened for any view in the open database,
and it allows you to set the print attributes for the view it was opened from.
For instance, you can use the Report Setup window to determine if users
will be able to print a formatted report for the open view, and you can use it
to determine if data from a subtable will be included in the formatted report.
The print attributes on the Report Setup window apply to formatted reports
only—they do not apply to basic reports printed with the Print...All Rows or
Print...Selected Rows commands.
The Report Setup window is divided into two sections, one on the left side
of the window and one on the right side. The left section contains options
that apply to row data, and the right section contains options that apply to
images. The image section will only be displayed on the Report Setup window if the view it was opened from contains rows with images attached to
them.
291
The Report Styles window can be opened for any view in the open database,
and it allows you to work with the styles that have been created for the view
it was opened from. A style is similar to a rule in the Scanner program—it is
a group of settings that defines how the different items on the report will be
displayed. For instance, a style determines what text will be in the header
and footer fields on the report, and it also determines what color the different items on the report will be. Styles only apply to formatted reports.
The Report Styles window displays each style that has been created for the
open view, and it may also display a brief description of the style (if a description for it has been created). You can use the Report Styles window to
edit existing styles, delete existing styles or create new styles. You can also
use it to select which style will be used to print the formatted report for the
open view.
When you open the Report Styles window for any view in the database, the
window will display a style called Default, in addition to any other styles
that have been created for the view. As its name implies, the Default style
sets all the style options to their default settings. You can edit the Default
style you just like you edit any other style, but you cannot delete it. This is
because new styles are created in the Report Styles window by cloning existing styles, so there must always be at least one existing style.
292
Chapter 16
Steps to Creating a Formatted Report
There is no set way to creating a formatted report with the Report
Generator utility, but if you have not used it before or if you are not very
familiar with it, then it may be difficult to know which component to start
with and which options to set. The following steps explain the general
procedure used to create a formatted report.
These steps are only suggestions, but they will give you a basic
procedure to follow when creating a formatted report. Once you create
one or two reports and become familiar with the different components in
the Report Generator utility, then you will probably come up with your
own method that works best for you. Feel free to experiment, as the
Report Generator is by design a very flexible tool.
After you learn the general procedure for creating formatted reports in the
steps below, then the next three sections in this chapter will explain in
detail each of the three components in the Report Generator utility (the
Column Print Properties window, the Report Setup window and the Report
Styles window). The sections list each option on these windows, and
explain what each option does and how it is typically used.
To create a formatted report:
1. Open the view in the Librarian that you would like to create a formatted
report for. If you would like to create a nested report with two or three
levels (i.e. parent view to child view, or parent view to child view to child
view), then open the innermost view first.
2. Set the print properties for each column in the open view. To set the
print properties for the columns in the open view:
• Open the Column Print Properties window for the first column
in the view.
• Set the options on the Column Print Properties window to the
desired settings.
• Click the OK button on the Column Print Properties window to
save your settings.
• Repeat the above three steps for the remaining columns in the
view.
293
For more information about the Column Print Properties window, see the
section Using the Column Print Properties Window later in this chapter.
The first part of that section explains how to open the Column Print
Properties window for a column in the open view, and the second section
explains each of the options on the window.
3. Open the Report Setup window for the open view and set the options
on it to the desired settings (remember to click the OK button on the
Report Setup window after settings its options, to save your settings).
As you learned earlier, the Report Setup window allows you to set the
print attributes for the view it was opened from. For instance, you can use
it to determine if users will be able to print a formatted report for the open
view, and you can use it to determine if data from a subtable will be
included in the formatted report. For more information about the Report
Setup window, see the section Using the Report Setup Window later in
this chapter. The first part of that section explains how to open the Report
Setup window for the open view, and the second section explains each of
the options on the window.
4. Open the Report Styles window for the open view and select the
desired style for the formatted report. As you learned earlier, the Report
Styles window allows you to work with the existing styles that have been
created for the open view and create new styles. A style is similar to a rule
in the Scanner program—it is a group of settings that defines how the
different items on the report will be displayed.
You can either select an existing style on the Report Styles window, or
you can create a new one. For more information about the Report Styles
window, see the section Using the Report Styles Window later in this
chapter. The first part of that section explains how to open the Report
Styles window for the open view, the second part explains how to work
with the existing styles in the Report Styles window and the third part
explains each of the options used to create a style. Once you select and or
create a style for the open view, then you will be done setting up the
formatted report.
5. If you are setting up a multilevel report, then open the parent view of
the view you just finished setting up, and repeat steps 2–4 of this section
on the parent view. Once you finish setting up the parent view, then you
will be finished setting up the report if it contains two levels. If it contains
three levels, then open the outermost view in the hierarchy now and
repeat steps 2–4 on it. You will now be finished setting up your report.
294
Chapter 16
Using the Column Print Properties Window
The Column Print Properties window is one of the components in Smeadlink's
Report Generator utility, which allows you to create a formatted report for
any view in the open database. Formatted reports differ from basic reports
printed using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows commands, because they allow you to determine what data appears on reports and how the
data is displayed.
This section will show you how to use the Column Print Properties window
to set the print properties for the columns in the open view. The first part
explains how to open the Column Print Properties window for a column in
the open view, and the second part explains each of the different options on
the Column Print Properties window. You will need to open the Column
Print Properties window separately for each column in the view, because the
settings on it only apply to the column it was opened for.
Note: For information about the procedure for creating a formatted report
with the Report Generator, see the section Report Generator Concepts earlier in this chapter. The Report Generator Concepts section explains the
capabilities of Smeadlink's Report Generator, the components in the Report Generator and the order that the components are used in to create
formatted reports.
295
Opening the Column Print Properties Window
The following instructions will show you how to open the Column Print
Properties window for a column in the open view. If you later adjust any of
the settings on this window, they will only apply to the column it was opened
from.
To open the Column Print Properties window:
1. Right-click the header of the column you would like to open the Column
Print Properties window from. The Column popup menu will now appear as
shown below.
2. Click the Print Properties command on the Column popup menu.
The Column Print Properties window will now appear. The example below
shows what the Column Print Properties window looks like.
296
Chapter 16
Options on the Column Print Properties Window
The rest of this section explains each of the options on the Column Print
Properties window. The options are explained in the order they appear on
the window, from top to bottom.
Note: If you would like to see how a changed setting on the Column Print
Properties window will affect the printed report, then open \Smeadlink's
File menu and click Print Preview...Formatted Report. The Print Preview
window will now appear, with a preview of what a formatted report for the
open view would like with the current settings on the Report Generator windows.
Print on Report
The Print on Report option determines if data from the selected column will
appear on reports printed from the open view (both basic reports printed
using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows commands, and formatted reports). If this option is enabled, then data from the column may appear
on reports printed from the open view (depending on the other Report Generator settings). If this option is disabled, then data from the column will not
appear on printed reports, regardless of any other settings.
Note: The default setting for the Print on Report option is enabled, so all the
columns in the open view will be included in reports unless you manually
disable Print on Report for each one.
Page Break
The Page Break option determines if a page break should be included in
printed reports after each unique entry in the selected column. This option is
often used when the selected column contains multiple duplicate entries, and
has been used to sort the open view. Each group of rows with the same entry
in the selected column can then be printed on a separate page (or pages) in
the report.
Note: The Page Break option can be enabled for multiple columns in the
open view. If you enable the Page Break option for multiple columns, then a
page break will be inserted in the report after the data in any one of the
columns changes.
297
Do Not Print Duplicates
The Do Not Print Duplicates option determines if duplicate entries in the
selected column will be printed on reports (this option is only applicable if
the selected column contains multiple duplicate entries and has been used to
sort the open view). If this option is enabled, then for each group of duplicate entries in the column, only the first one will be printed. The following
entries will be left blank.
When a row has a duplicate entry that will not be printed, then the only cell
in the row that is affected by Do Not Print Duplicates is the cell with the
duplicate entry—the rest of the row is printed out normally on the report.
Max Lines per Row
The Max Lines per Row option determines the maximum number of lines
from cells in the selected column to print on reports. For instance, if you set
Max Lines per Row to 5, then reports printed from the open view would
contain at most five lines of data from each cell in the selected column. If a
cell contained more than five lines of data, then the extra data would not be
printed.
You can set a different Max Lines per Row value for each column in the
open view. If you do this, then the height of each row in the report will be
determined by the cell in the row with the most printed lines of data. The
remaining cells in the row will be padded with white space (or alternate
row-colored space), to give them the same height as the tallest cell.
Note: In addition to the Max Lines per Row option, there are also two options on the Report Style Settings window that affect how many lines from
cells in the view's columns will be printed on reports. These options only
apply when printing a formatted report for the open view, and they may
override the Max Lines per Row settings in the view, depending on how they
are set up. For more information, see Maxed Lines and Fixed Lines in the
section Using the Report Style Settings window—Options on the Report Style
Settings window later in this chapter.
Count
The Count option counts the number of cells from the selected column that
have data printed in the formatted report. It then displays this number at the
end of the report. If the selected column is a column in a child view that is
printed on a report from the parent view, then a count will also be displayed
at the bottom of each group of child rows, in addition to the count for total
children at the end of the report.
298
Chapter 16
Subtotal
The Subtotal option adds the entries in the selected column together, and
displays the total at the bottom of the report. Since this option requires numerical data, it is only available for columns that contain numbers.
Restart Page Numbers on Page Break
The Restart Page Numbers on Page Break option is used with the Page Break
option explained earlier. If the Page Break option is enabled, then you can
use the Restart Page Numbers on Page Break option to determine if you
want to restart page numbering for each group of duplicate rows in the report.
Use as Id in Header/Footer
The Use as Id in Header/Footer option allows you to put data from the selected column into the header or footer of the formatted report. When this
option is enabled, you will be able to select a token in any of the header or
footer text fields on the Report Style Settings window, that corresponds to
the selected column. When the report is then printed, the token will be replaced by data from each of the column's cells. The Use as Id in Header/
Footer option will only be available if the Page Break option is enabled,
because it cannot function with more than one unique entry from the selected column on each page.
The Use as Id in Header/Footer option is intended for printing full-page
images in a report. When printing full-page images, the Use as Id in Header/
Footer option provides the only way to identify in the report which row each
image is attached to. You simply enable the Use as Id in Header/Footer
option for the Id column in the view, and then select the token in one of the
footer fields on the Report Style Settings window. When the report is then
printed, the footer of each image will contain the Id number of the row it is
attached to.
Note: For more information about the Report Style Settings window, see the
section Using the Report Styles Window-Options on the Report Style Settings Window later in this chapter.
299
Using the Report Setup Window
The Report Setup window is one of the components in Smeadlink's Report
Generator utility, which allows you to create a formatted report for any view
in the open database. Formatted reports differ from basic reports printed
using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows commands, because they
allow you to determine what data appears on reports and how the data is
displayed.
This section will show you how to use the Report Setup window to set the
print attributes for the open view. The first part explains how to open the
Report Setup window, and the second part explains each of the different
options on the Report Setup window.
Note: For information about the procedure for creating formatted reports
reports.
Opening the Report Setup Window
The following instructions will show you how to open the Report Setup
window for the open view. If you later adjust any of the settings on this
window, the new settings will only apply to the view it was opened from.
To open the Report Setup window:
1. Open the Reports menu from Smeadlink's main menu bar.
2. Click the "NAME OF OPEN VIEW" Report Setup command on the Reports menu.
The Report Setup window will now appear. The example on the following
page shows what the Report Setup window looks like.
Note: If the open view does not contain any images, then the Report Setup
window will not contain the image options shown on the right side in the
example.
300
Chapter 16
Report Setup window
301
Options on the Report Setup Window
The rest of this section explains each of the options on the Report Setup
window. The general options that are always displayed on the Report Setup
are explained first, in the order they appear on the window. The image options that are only displayed if the open view contains images are explained
following the general options.
Note: If you would like to see how a changed setting on the Report Setup
window will affect the printed report, then open Smeadlink's File menu and
click Print Preview...Formatted Report. The Print Preview window will now
appear, with a preview of what a formatted report for the open view would
like with the current settings on the Report Generator windows.
Show as Printable View
The Show as Printable View option determines whether or not users will be
able to print a formatted report for the open view. If this option is not enabled, then the Print...Formatted Report command will not be available on
the File menu, so no user will be able to print custom reports. If this option
is enabled, then the Print...Formatted Report command will be available on
the File menu, and any user will be able to print a formatted report for the
open view using the current Report Generator settings.
Print Grand Total Page Only
The Print Grand Total Page Only option is used in views that contain columns with either counts or subtotals. When Print Grand Total Page Only is
enabled, then only the last page of the formatted report will be printed (the
page with all the final counts and subtotals). Print Grand Total Page Only is
intended for people such as managers or administrators, who only want to
see the final counts and subtotals in a report.
Note: Counts and subtotals are set up individually for each column using
the Column Print Properties window. For more information about them, see
Count and Subtotal in the section Using the Column Print Properties Window—Options on the Column Print Properties window earlier in this chapter.
302
Chapter 16
Print Header
The Print Header option determines if a header will be printed on the formatted report. If Print Header is enabled, then the text, box and shadow of
the report's header will be printed on the pages of the report according to the
current settings on the Report Style Settings window. The header will be
printed on both pages with rows on them and pages with images on them. If
Print Header is disabled, then the header will print not print on any pages in
the report.
Note: For more information about report headers, see the section Using the
Report Styles Window—Options on the Report Styles Window later in this
chapter.
Print Footer
The Print Footer option determines if a footer will be printed on the open
view's custom report. If Print Footer is enabled, then both the text and line of
the report's footer will be printed on pages that include rows or images and
rows (pages that include full-page images use the image footer explained
later). If Print Footer is disabled, then the footer will not print on any pages
in the report.
Note: For more information about report footers, see the next section in this
chapter.
All Columns
The All Columns option determines what columns in the open view will be
included in the custom report. If this option is enabled, then all columns in
the open view will be included in the report. If this option is not enabled,
then the Frozen Columns Only option will be enabled and you will need to
freeze the columns you want included in the report.
Frozen Columns Only
The Frozen Columns Only option determines what columns in the open
view will be included in the custom report. If this option is enabled, then
only frozen columns in the open view will be included in the report. If this
option is disabled, then the All Columns option will be enabled and all the
columns in the open view will be included in custom reports.
Note: For more information about freezing columns, see the section Freezing Columns in a Layout in chapter 5 of the Smeadlink User's Guide.
303
Select
The Select button allows you to select the style that will be used to print the
formatted report. The style does not affect what data will be printed on the
report, instead, it determines what the data will look like. For instance, the
style determines the font of the text on the report, and it also determines the
colors of the different items on the report.
To select a style for the formatted report:
• Click the Select button.
The Report Styles window will now appear as shown below. The styles
that have been created for the open view will be listed in the middle of
the Report Styles window. The window in the example contains two
styles called Default and Test Style.
• Click the desired style in the Report Styles window. The style will now
appear highlighted.
• Click the Select button on the Report Styles window.
The Report Styles window will now close, and the style you selected
will appear in the Report Style box to the left of the Select button.
Note: For more information about the Report Styles window and report
styles, see the section Using the Report Styles Window later in this chapter.
304
Chapter 16
Sub Table
The Sub Table box determines if data from a subtable will be included in the
formatted report. If you select a subtable in the Sub Table box, then you will
also need to select one of the subtable's views in the Sub Table View box.
When the report is then printed, each row in the parent table's view will be
followed by all the rows in the subtable's view that are attached to it.
To select a subtable:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Sub Table box to open the Sub
Table dropdown.
The Sub Table dropdown will display all the subtables that have been
created for the open view's table. If the table contains tracking information, you will also see an option called <<Tracking>> in the Sub
Table dropdown.
• Click the desired table to select it, or click <<Tracking>> if you want
to display tracking information in the report. The Sub Table dropdown
will now close, and the item you selected will appear in the Sub Table
box.
Sub Table View
The Sub Table View box will only function if the a table has been selected
in the Sub Table box. If no subtable has been selected, then the Sub Table
View dropdown will be blank when you open it. If a subtable has been
selected, then the Sub Table View dropdown will display all the views in the
selected subtable.
To select a subtable view:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Sub Table View box to open
the Sub Table View dropdown.
The Sub Table View dropdown will display all the views for the selected subtable. If the <<Tracking>> option is selected in the Sub Table
box, then the Sub Table View dropdown will display all the tracking
contents types for the open view.
• Click the desired view to select it, or click the desired tracking type.
The Sub Table View dropdown will now close, and the item you selected will appear in the Sub Table View box.
305
Left Indent
The Left Indent option determines how far tracking data or data from a
subtable will be indented on the left side of the formatted report. This option
is typically used with the Right Indent option to distinguish tracking data or
data from a subtable from data in the open view. If you set Left Indent to 0,
then tracking data or data from a subtable will not be indented at all, and it
will look just like data from the open view. If you sent Left Indent to a
positive number, then tracking data or data from a subtable will be indented
accordingly to distinguish it from the parent data.
Note: The Left Indent option is set in twips, where one twip equals 1/1440 of
an inch.
Right Indent
The Right Indent option determines how far tracking data or data from a
subtable will be indented on the right side of the formatted report. This option is typically used with the Left Indent option to distinguish tracking data
or data from a subtable from data in the open view. If you set Right Indent to
0, then tracking data or data from a subtable will not be indented at all on the
right side of the report, and it will look just like data from the open view. If
you sent Right Indent to a positive number, then tracking data or data from
a subtable will be indented accordingly to distinguish it from the parent
data.
Note: The Right Indent option is set in twips, where one twip equals 1/1440
of an inch.
Always, Never, At Top of Page Only
The Always, Never and At Top of Page Only options determine when to
print column headers for tracking data or data from a subtable on the formatted report. If you select Always, then headers will be printed before each
row or group of rows containing tracking data or data from a subfolder. If
you select Never, then headers will never be printed. Finally, if you select At
Top of Page Only, then headers will only be printed at the top of each page
in the report.
306
Chapter 16
Include Tracked Objects Ever Contained
The Include Tracked Objects Ever Contained option will only be available
if the <<Tracking>> option is selected in the Sub Table box, and if a contents type option is selected in the Sub Table View box. If you enable Include Tracked Objects Ever Contained, then the report will display all the
objects of the selected type that have ever been tracked to each row in the
open view. If you leave Include Tracked Objects Ever Contained disabled,
then the report will only display objects that are currently tracked to the
rows in the view.
Print Images
The Print Images option, along with the other image options, will only be
displayed on the Report Setup window if the open view contains images. If
Print Images is enabled, then any images attached to rows in the view will be
printed on the formatted report according to the settings of the other image
options. If Print Images is disabled, then the other image options will not be
available and no images will be printed on the report.
Print Images Full Page
The Print Images Full Page option will only be available if the Print Images
option is enabled. If you enable Print Images Full Page, then each image
attached to a row in the open view will be printed in the formatted report on
a full page. If you leave Print Images Full Page disabled, then images will be
printed according to the following algorithm:
• Scale the width to fit into the space between the left and right margins.
• Scale the height so it is proportional to the width.
• If the scaled image fits on the current page, then print it on the page.
• If the scaled image does not fit on the current page, then go to the top
of the next page and print it there.
Print First Page Only
The Print First Page Only option will only be available if the Print Images
option is enabled. If you enable Print First Page Only, then when a formatted report is printed for the open view, only the first image in the report will
be printed. If you leave Print First Page Only disabled, then the entire report
will be printed. This option is helpful if you want to check what a printed
image looks like with the current Report Generator settings.
307
Print Redlining
The Print Redlining option will only be available if the Print Images option is
enabled. If you enable Print Redlining, then any redlining objects that have
been created for the images in the open view will be printed on the images in
the report. If you leave Print Redlining disabled, then the images will be
printed without any redlining objects on them.
Print Data Row
The Print Data Row option will only be available if the Print Images option
is enabled. If you enable Print Data Row, then when a formatted report is
printed for the open view, each row in the view will be printed on the report
before the image or images it is attached to. If you leave Print Data Row
disabled, then only the images in the view will be printed on the report, and
they will be printed in the order of the rows they are attached to.
Print Image Footer
The Print Image Footer option will only be available if the Print Images and
Print Images Full Page options are enabled. The purpose of the Print Image
Footer option is to make images printed out in a report look similar to images printed from the Image Viewer or Manual Indexing Viewer. When
images are printed from either viewer, they are printed full page with a footer
at the bottom. The footer is printed in 6 point Arial text, and it contains
information like the location of the image and the date and time it was printed.
The Print Image Footer option allows you to make images printed in a report
look like images printed from Smeadlink viewers. If you enable Print Image
Footer, then each image in the report will have a footer printed at the bottom
of its page. The footer will contain the same data as the standard footer, and
it will be laid out in the same way, but it will be forced into 6 point Arial text to
match the footers of images printed from the Image Viewer or Manual Indexing Viewer.
Left Margin and Right Margin
The Left Margin and Right Margin options will only be available if the Print
Images option is enabled and the Print Images Full Page option is disabled.
The left and right margins are used to determine how large images in the
open view will be printed on the report. First, the images are scaled horizontally to fit in the space between the left and right margins, and then the
images are scaled vertically to retain their original proportions. The left and
right margins are both measured from the edge of the page, and they are set
in twips (1 twip is equal to 1/1440 inch).
308
Chapter 16
Using the Report Styles Window
The Report Styles window is one of the components in Smeadlink's Report
Generator utility, which allows you to create a formatted report for any view
in the open database. Formatted reports differ from basic reports printed
using the Print...All Rows or Print...Selected Rows commands, because they
allow you to determine what data appears on the reports and how the data is
displayed.
This section will show you how to use the Report Styles window to work
with styles for the open view. The first part explains how to open the Report
Styles window, the second part explains how to modify existing styles or
create new ones and the last part explains each of the different options for
create a report style.
Note: For information about the procedure for creating formatted reports
reports.
309
Opening the Report Styles Window
The following instructions will show you how to open the Report Styles
window. Once the window is open, you can use it to clone a new style or
modify an existing one, and you can also use it to select which style will be
used to print the formatted report for the open view. You will learn how to use
the Report Styles window to work with styles later in this section.
To open the Report Styles window:
1. Open the Reports menu from Smeadlink's main menu bar.
2. Click the "NAME OF OPEN VIEW" Report Setup command on the Reports menu.
The Report Setup window will now appear as shown below.
Note: If the open view does not contain any images, then the Report Setup
window will not contain the image options shown in the example.
Report Setup window
310
Chapter 16
3. Click the Select button on the Report Setup window. The Report Styles
The styles that have been created for the open view will be listed in the
middle of the Report Styles window. The name of each style will be listed
beneath the Style Name heading, and a brief description of each style will be
listed beneath the Description heading (if a description has been entered for
the style). The window in the example below contains two styles called
Default and Test Style.
As its name implies, the Default style is created automatically for each view
in the database, so it will always be listed when you open the Report Styles
window. You can use the Default style to create any number of new styles
for the open view (by cloning the Default style and then changing the desired settings), so the actual number of styles you see in the Report Styles
window will vary from view to view.
311
Working with Report Styles
The following instructions will show you how to use the Report Styles window to work with report styles. You will learn how to select the style that
will be used by the open view to print formatted reports, how to create a new
style and how to edit or remove an existing style.
Note: The following instructions assume that the Report Styles window is
already open. For information about opening the Report Styles window, see
the previous part in this section.
To select the style for printing formatted reports:
1. Click the desired style in the Report Styles window. The style will appear
highlighted after you click it, to indicate that it is selected.
2. Click the Select button at the bottom of the Report Styles window.
The Report Styles window will now close, and the style you selected will be
displayed in the Report Style box on the Report Setup window.
To create a new style:
1. Click the existing style that most closely matches the new style you want
to create.
The style will appear highlighted after you click it, to indicate that it is now
selected.
2. Click the Clone button at the bottom of the Report Styles window.
The Report Style Settings window will now appear as shown on the following page. This window contains all the options that define a report style. The
options on the Report Style Settings window will be set according to the
style you selected before clicking the Clone button, except the Name and
Description options will be blank.
312
Chapter 16
Report Style Settings window
3. Enter a name for the new style in the Report Style Name box.
The name you enter will be used along with the description to identify the
style in the Report Styles window.
4. Enter a description for the new style in the Description box.
The description you enter will be used along with the name to identify the
new style in the Report Styles window. If you think the name you entered
will be enough to identify the style, then you do not need to enter a description in the Description box.
5. Look over the remaining options on the Report Style Settings window,
and make sure they are all set to the desired settings.
For information about the different options on the Report Style Settings window, see Options on the Report Style Settings window later in this section.
Each option is listed there in the order it appears on the window, followed
by a detailed description of what the option does and how it can be set.
6. Once you have set the options on the Report Style Settings window to the
desired settings, then press ENTER or click the OK button.
The Report Style Settings window will now close, and the new style will
appear in the Report Styles window. The new style will be automatically
highlighted, in case you want to work any further with it (i.e. select it, edit it,
etc.).
313
To edit an existing style:
1. Click the style you want to edit.
selected.
2. Click the Edit button at the bottom of the Report Styles window.
The Report Style Settings window will now appear as shown below. This
window contains all the options that define a report style. The options on the
Report Style Settings window will be set according to the style you selected
to edit.
Report Style Settings window
5. You can now edit any of the options on the Report Style Settings window.
For information about the different options on the Report Style Settings window, see Options on the Report Style Settings window later in this section.
Each option is listed there in the order it appears on the window, followed
by a detailed description of what the option does and how it can be set.
6. Once you have set the options on the Report Style Settings window to the
desired settings, then press ENTER or click the OK button.
The Report Style Settings window will now close, and the edited style will
appear in the Report Styles window. The edited style will be automatically
highlighted, in case you want to work any further with it (i.e. select it, edit it
again, etc.).
314
Chapter 16
To remove an existing style:
1. Click the style you want to remove.
selected.
2. Click the Remove button at the bottom of the Report Styles window.
Note: The Remove button will not be available if the Default style is selected. This is because the Default style is created automatically for each
view, and it cannot be removed.
A Smeadlink window will now appear as shown below asking if you want to
remove the selected style.
Smeadlink window
3. Click the Yes button on the Smeadlink window, or press ENTER.
The selected style will now be permanently removed. Once a style has been
removed in Smeadlink, there is no way to bring it back.
315
Options on the Report Style Settings Window
The Report Style Settings window contains all the options that define a report style. It appears when you click a style on the Report Styles window
and then click the Clone or Edit buttons.
• If you clicked Clone, then when the Report Style Settings window
opens, all of its options except Name and Description will be set just
like they are on the style you selected before clicking Clone.
• If you clicked Edit, then when the Report Style Settings window opens,
all of its options will be set just like they are on the style you selected
before clicking Edit.
The rest of this section explains each of the options on the Report Style
Settings window. The options are explained in the order they appear on the
window, from top to bottom and left to right.
Note: If you would like to see how a changed setting on the Report Style
Settings window will affect the printed report, then open Smeadlink's File
menu and click Print Preview...Formatted Report. The Print Preview window will now appear, with a preview of what a formatted report for the open
view would like with the current settings on the Report Generator windows.
Report Style Name
The Name option determines the name of the selected style, which is used to
identify the style in the Report Styles window. If you are creating a new
style (i.e. if you opened the Report Style Settings window by clicking the
Clone button on the Report Style window), then you can enter whatever
name you wish in the Name box. If you are editing an existing style (i.e. if
you opened the Report Style Settings window by clicking the Edit button on
the Report Styles window), then you will only be able to view the current
name in the Name box—you will not be able to modify it. This is to reduce
overhead if the open view is a child view in a multilevel report.
Description
The Description option determines the description of the selected style, which
is used along with the style's name to identify it in the Report Styles window. The name of each style that has been created for the open view will be
listed on the Report Styles window under the Style Name heading, and the
description of each style will be listed under the Description heading. Unlike the name, the description is editable if you are creating a new style or if
you are editing an existing one. You can enter any combination of characters in the Description box to create a description for the selected style.
316
Chapter 16
Left, Center and Right Heading Line 1
The three Heading Line 1 options specify the text that will appear on the first
line of the formatted report's header. The Left Heading Line 1 option specifies
the text that will start at the left side of the line, the Center Heading Line 1
option specifies the text that will start in the middle and the Right Heading
Line 1 option specifies the text that will start at the right side. Each Heading
Line 1 box can contain approximately 50 characters, but if you enter too many
characters in each box or if you select a large font size for the text later on,
then the three text strings will overlap.
Center Heading Line 2
The Center Heading Line 2 option is used with the three Heading Line 1
options to specify the text that will appear on the formatted report's header.
The Center Heading Line 2 option specifies the text that will appear in the
middle of the second line on the header. The Center Heading Line 2 box can
contain approximately 50 characters, but if you enter too many characters in
the box or if you select a large font size for the text later on, then all your text
may not be able to fit in the space available.
Left, Center and Right Footer Line
The three Footer Line options specify the text that will appear on the formatted report's footer, immediately beneath the footer's rule. The Left Footer
Line option specifies the text that will start at the left side of the footer, the
Center Footer Line option specifies the text that will start in the middle and
the Right Footer Line option specifies the text that will start at the right side.
Each Footer Line box can contain approximately 50 characters, but if you
enter too many characters in each box or if you select a large font size for the
text later on, then the three text strings will overlap.
Orientation
The Orientation option determines what orientation will be used to print the
formatted report. If you set the Orientation option to the Printer Default
setting, then the report will be printed with the current settings for the selected printer. If you would like to make sure the report is only printed in
portrait mode or landscape mode, then select the Portrait or Landscape setting. If you set the Orientation option to Portrait or Landscape, then that
setting will override the printer's setting if the two conflict with each other.
317
Header Box Height
The Header Box Height option specifies the height of the main box in the
formatted report's header. Header Box Height is measured in twips, where 1
twip equals 1/1440 of an inch. There is no limit in the Header Box Height
option, so you could make the header box take up the entire page if you
wanted.
Shadow Thickness
The Shadow Thickness option specifies the thickness of the header shadow
in the formatted report. The header shadow is the shadow on the right and
bottom sides of the report's header box. Shadow Thickness is measured in
twips, where 1 twip equals 1/1440 of an inch.
Min Column Width
The Min Column Width option specifies the minimum width for columns in
the formatted report. Min Column Width is measured in twips, where 1 twip
equals 1/1440 of an inch. If any of the columns included in the report are
narrower than the Min Column Width setting, then the columns will be printed
on the report with the Min Column Width setting, not their actual widths.
Blank Line Spacing
The Blank Line Spacing option determines the number of blank lines used
to separate items in the formatted report. Blank lines can be placed in various places in a report, such as between a parent row and a child row. The
Blank Line Spacing option is measured in lines, so if you set it to 1 then one
blank line would be used to separate items in the report, if you set it to 2 then
two blank lines would be used to separate items in the report, etc.
Column Spacing
The Column Spacing option determines the space between columns in the
formatted report. Column Spacing is measured in twips, where 1 twip equals
1/1440 of an inch.
Line Thickness
The Line Thickness option specifies the height of all line objects in the formatted report, including the line around the header box, the line beneath
each column header, the line above the footer text, etc. Line Thickness is
measured in twips, where 1 twip equals 1/1440 of an inch.
318
Chapter 16
Max Lines and Fixed Lines
The Max Lines and Fixed Lines options are used along with the Max Lines
per Row option on the Column Properties window, to determine how much
information from cells in the report's columns will be printed on the report.
• If the Max Lines per Row settings for the report's columns are all less
than the Max Lines setting, then the highest Max Lines per Row setting will be used to print the columns' cells on the report. For instance,
if the Max Lines setting is 10 and the highest Max Lines per Row
setting is 5, then up to five lines of data will be printed from each cell
on the report. Cells containing more than five lines of data will have
their data truncated after five lines.
• If the Max Lines setting is smaller than the highest Max Lines per Row
setting for the columns in the report, then the Max Lines setting will be
used to print the column's cells. For instance, if the Max Lines setting
is 3 and the highest Max Lines per Row setting is 5, then up to three
lines of data will be printed from each cell on the report. Cells containing more than three lines of data will have their data truncated after
three lines.
• If the Fixed Lines option is enabled, then the current Max Lines setting
will be used to print the cells in the report's columns, regardless of the
Max Lines per Row setting for each column. In addition, the row height
will not vary dynamically sized according to the data they contain.
Instead, they will all contain the same number of lines as the current
Max Lines setting.
For instance, if the highest Max Lines per Row setting is 15 and the
Max Lines setting is 99, then enabling Fixed Lines will print 99 lines
of data for each cell in the report. If a cell does not contain 99 lines of
data, then the remaining lines will be blank. Fixed Lines is helpful
when you want all the rows in a report to be the same size.
Alternate Row Shading
The Alternate Row Shading option determines whether alternate rows in the
formatted report will be shaded. If you enable the Alternate Row Shading
option, then every other row in the report will be shaded with the current
Row Shading color. If you leave Alternate Row Shading disabled, then all
the rows in the report will have a white background instead of a shaded one.
319
Report Centered
The Report Centered option allows you to center rows on a page if the rows
do not take up the entire horizontal space available. If the Report Centered
option is not enabled, then printed rows on the formatted report will be leftjustified. So if the rows do not take up all the horizontal space available on
the page, then the data on the page will be weighted towards the left side.
If you enable the Report Centered option, then all the rows in the report will
be centered. In addition, if the open view is set up as a child view in another
view's formatted report, then the rows in the parent view will be moved as
far left of center as they need to be for the child rows to be centered on the
report.
Item
The Item box is used with the Choose button and the style buttons to specify
the font, style and size of the various text items in a formatted report. For
instance, you can use the Item box, Choose button and style buttons to change
the size of the text in the Header 1 line, or to make the text in the footer line
bold. The Item box's role in this procedure is to select the text item you want
to modify. Once a text item is selected in the Item box, then you can use the
Choose button and the style buttons to modify the font, style and size of the
selected item.
To select a text item in the Item box:
• Click the down arrow at the right of the box. A dropdown will now
appear listing the different text items on the formatted report.
• Click the desired text item on the dropdown to select it. The dropdown
will now close, and the selected text item will appear in the Item box.
Style Buttons (B, /, U)
The Style buttons are used with the Item box to specify what style attributes
will be used to print the text items on the formatted. For instance, you could
use the Style buttons and the Item box to make the column headers on the
report print in bold, or to make the row text on the report print in italics.
To specify the style attributes for one of the text items in the report:
• Select the desired item in the Items box, as explained above.
• Click the desired style button (or buttons). The item in the Items box
will now be printed with the selected style attributes on the report.
320
Chapter 16
Choose
The Choose button is used with the Item box to specify the font, style and
size of the text items on the formatted report. For instance, you could use the
Choose button and the Item box to change the column headers on the report
from Times New Roman to Arial, or to make them a point larger in size.
Note: If you just want to change the style of a text item (i.e. whether it is
bold, italic, or underlined), then it is easier to use the Item box with the Style
buttons explained on the previous page.
To specify the font, style and size for one of the text items on the report:
• Select the desired item in the Item box, as explained in the Item section
on the previous page.
• Click the Choose button. A standard Windows Font window will now
appear as shown below, that you can use to specify the font, style and
size of the selected item in the Item box.
Font window
• When you are done specifying the attributes of the selected text item,
click the OK button on the Font window, or press ENTER. The Font
window will now close, and the attributes you selected will be applied
to the selected text item when the formatted report is printed.
321
Text, Line, Header Shadow, Header Box Fill, Row Shading
The Text, Line, Header Shadow, Header Box Fill and Row Shading boxes
allow you to specify the colors of the various items on the formatted report.
The items each box refers to are listed in the table below.
Color Box
Refers To
Text
All the text on the formatted report. This
includes header text, body text and
footer text.
Line
All the lines on the formatted report,
including the line forming the border
of the header box, the line beneath each
column header, the line above the footer
text, etc.
Header Shadow
The shadow on the right and bottom
sides of the header box.
Header Box Fill
The background color of the header
box.
Row Shading
The color of every other row in the report, starting with the first row, then the
third row, etc. (This box is only applicable if the Alternate Row Shading option is enabled.)
To specify a color for items on the formatted report:
• Double-click the box of the desired items (see the table above for information about the items each box refers to).
A standard Windows Color window will now appear as shown on the
following page.
322
Chapter 16
Color window
• Use the Color window to select the desired color for the box's items.
For information about using the Color window to create and select a
color, see your Windows documentation.
• Click the OK button on the Color window or press ENTER. The Color
window will now close, and the color you selected will appear in the
box you opened the window from.
Left, Right, Top and Bottom
The Left, Right, Top and Bottom boxes allow you to specify margins for the
formatted report. These margins are used to print the header, footer, content
and partial-page images, but they are not used to print full-page images (for
information about setting up margins for full-page images, see Left Margin
and Right Margin in the section Using the Report Setup Window-Options
on the Report Setup Window earlier in this chapter). The Left, Right, Top
and Bottom margins are set in twips, where 1 twip is equal to 1/1440 of an
inch.
Directly Modifying a Smeadlink Database
17. Directly Modifying a Smeadlink
Database
Chapter contents
Introduction
Opening a Table
Executing a Script File
Executing a Single SQL Statement
Compacting and Repairing a Database
Demonstration and Template Databases
323
324
Chapter 17
Introduction
The previous chapter showed you how to use the administrative utilities in
Smeadlink. You learned how to open each administrative utility, and you
learned how to perform the tasks that each utility is intended for.
This chapter will show you how to use Smeadlink database utilities. As you
learned in chapter 1, there are two database utilities in Smeadlink: the Database Toolkit and the Compact and Repair Database Utility. These utilities
give you direct access to your Smeadlink database. Unlike the other
Smeadlink administrative utilities, the Database Toolkit and the Compact
and Repair Database Utility are not intended for normal setup and maintenance of your Smeadlink system. Instead, they are intended mainly as troubleshooting tools that can be used to repair damaged or corrupted components
in a Smeadlink database.
Database Toolkit is a program that gives you direct access to all the tables in
a Smeadlink database. It also allows you to modify a database by executing
SQL statements. The SQL statements can be either single statements entered directly into the Database Toolkit program, or multiple statements contained in a script file. The Compact and Repair Database Utility is a program
that allows you to compact and repair Smeadlink databases. It also allows
you to upgrade a database to a more current version of Microsoft Access,
and it allows you to automatically backup a database.
This chapter is divided into two main parts. The first part explains how to
use the Database Toolkit program, and the second part explains how to use
the Compact and Repair Database Utility.
325
Opening a Table
Database Toolkit allows you to directly access system-level Smeadlink tables.
Once you have opened a table, you can then either modify the table's contents, or you can simply read through it and verify that it contains the appropriate information. This section will show you how to open a table in the
Database Toolkit program.
To open a table in the Database Toolkit program:
1. Open the View menu from the main menu bar, and then click the Tables
command. The Database Toolkit will now be in Tables mode, and it should
look similar to the example shown below.
Database Toolkit in Tables mode
2. Double-click the row of the table you would like to open.
The selected table will now open, and you can edit it just like you edit folders and subfolders in Smeadlink. The example below shows what an open
table looks like in the Database Toolkit program.
An open table in the Database Toolkit program
326
Chapter 17
Executing a Script File
There are two ways to execute SQL statements in the Database Toolkit program—by executing a script file or by executing a single SQL statement
entered directly into Database Toolkit. A script file is a text file that contains
a number of SQL statements. When you execute a script file, Database Toolkit
goes through the SQL statements in the file and automatically executes them
in the order them appear in the file. This section will show you how to execute
a script file in the Database Toolkit.
To execute a script file:
1. Open the View menu from the main menu bar, and select the Scripts
command. The Database Toolkit will now be in Scripts mode, and it should
look similar to the example below.
Database Toolkit program in Scripts mode
2. Open the File menu and select the Open Script File command.
The Open Script File window will now appear. The example on the following page shows what the Open Script File window looks like.
327
Open Script File window
3. Select the desired script file in the Open Script File window. Smeadlink
script files have an extension of .xql.
4. Once you have selected the desired script file, press Enter or click the OK
button on the Open Script File window.
The Open Script File window will now close. The name of the selected
script file will appear in the lower left corner of the Database Toolkit program, and the Execute button will become available on the toolbar. The example below shows what the Database Toolkit program will look like after
you select a script file.
Execute button
Name of selected script file
5. Click the Execute button on the button bar or select the Execute command on the Go menu.
The selected script file will now be executed. Any changes that the statement makes to the database are permanent—there is no way to undo an SQL
statement.
328
Chapter 17
Executing a Single SQL Statement
The previous section in this chapter showed you how to execute a script file
in the Database Toolkit. In addition to executing script files, though, you
can also execute single SQL statements that you enter directly into the Database Toolkit program. This section will show you how to execute a single
SQL statement.
To execute a single SQL statement:
1. Open the View menu from the main menu bar, and select the Scripts
command. The Database Toolkit will now be in Scripts mode, and it should
look similar to the example below.
Database Toolkit program in Scripts mode
2. Type the desired SQL statement into the SQL Statement box.
3. Press Enter to execute the statement.
329
Compacting and Repairing a Database
As its name implies, the main purpose of the Compact and Repair Database
Utility is to compact and repair Smeadlink databases. In Smeadlink, compacting and repairing a database is one procedure—it is no longer two separate procedures like it was in earlier versions of Smeadlink. Compacting a
database will free up any unused space that the database was taking up, and
repairing a database will fix any index problems caused by adding and removing items to the database over time.
While it is compacting and repairing a database, the Compact and Repair
Database Utility can also automatically create a backup of the database, and
it can upgrade the database to a more current version of Microsoft Access.
This section will show you how to compact and repair a Smeadlink database.
To compact and repair a database:
1. Open the Compact and Repair Database Utility.
As you learned in chapter 1, the Compact and Repair Database Utility is a
stand-alone program. By default, it is installed in the same directory that the
other Smeadlink files are installed to. To run the Compact and Repair Database Utility, you can either create a shortcut to it or you can use the Run
utility on the Windows Start menu. The example below shows what the
Compact and Repair Database Utility looks like.
330
Chapter 17
2. Select the database that you want to compact and repair. There are several
ways to select a database. Each procedure is listed below.
• Type the entire path to the database in the Database Path box.
OR
• Click the down arrow at the right of the Database Path box to display a
list of recently-opened Smeadlink databases.
• Click the desired database in the list. The database will now appear in
the Database Path box.
OR
• Click the Browse button below the Database Path box. A standard
Windows Open window will now appear.
• Use the window to navigate to the desired database.
• Double-click the database to select it. The Open window will now
close, and the database will appear in the Database Path box.
3. If you want a backup of the database to be created before it is compacted
and repaired, make sure the Create Backup option is enabled. To enable the
Create Backup option:
• Open the File menu from the main menu bar.
• Click the Create Backup command on the File menu.
A check mark will appear at the left of the Create Backup command once it
has been enabled.
4. If you want the database to be updated to a newer version of Access
during the compact and repair process, select the desired Access version. To
select a version:
• Open the File menu from the main menu bar.
• Click the Convert to command on the File menu. A submenu will now
appear listing the three different Access versions you can convert to.
The example on the following page shows what the Convert to submenu looks like.
331
Convert to submenu
• Click the desired command on the Convert to submenu. A check mark
will now appear at the left of the command to indicate that it has been
enabled.
5. Now click the Compact and Repair button at the bottom of the Compact
and Repair Database Utility, or click the Compact/Repair command on the File
menu.
A window will now appear stating that the selected database will have to be
exported to a temporary file. If the Create Backup option is enabled, the
window will display the name of the database, and the name of the backup
copy of the database that will be created. The example below shows what
the window looks like.
Compact and Repair window
6. Press the Enter key, or click the Yes button on the Compact and Repair
window.
The selected database will now be compacted and repaired. If the Create
Backup option is enabled, a backup of the database will be created with the
name you saw on the Compact and Repair window (the same name as the
original database, but with a .bak extension instead of a .mdb extension). If
the Convert to option is enabled, the database will also be converted to the
selected version of Access.
332
Chapter 17
Demonstration and Template Databases
Smeadlink comes with a demonstration database and a blank template database. Your Smeadlink system was most likely built from one of these databases and will be ready to go when installed. Therefore, you will most likely
not need these databases. Should you need to build a database from the
beginning, these are where you would start.
The demonstration database is a good place to start and see an example of
how Smeadlink databases are laid out. These databases are installed by
Setup into the Data directory. Their name will very depending on what version of Smeadlink you purchased. Refer to your Quick Start or Getting Started
Guide for information on these databases.
The blank template database, or Starter database, is included on your CD in
the Extra's directly. This database contains a couple of generic workgroups
and one folder. The database has very little data in it and provides a clean
slate to start building your database on.
There are two versions of the Starter database on your Smeadlink CD. The
Microsoft Access version is called Starter.mdb. This database can be copied
and used immediately. Remember, when copying files from a CD in Microsoft
Windows, Windows will mark the target file Read-Only. You will need to
remove the Read-Only attribute before working with the database. (Refer to
your Microsoft documentation for assistance with this) The Microsoft SQL
Server version is called Starter.bak This file is a Microsoft SQL Server 7.0
backup file and can be restored to your SQL Server (Version 7.0 or Version
2000 - both with appropriate service packs) for use (contact your SQL Database Administrator to perform this task).
(This page intentionally left blank.)
333
Appendix A: Smeadlink System Requirements
333
Appendix A: Smeadlink System
Requirements
Minimum Hardware
Pentium II 266 MHz or greater
128 MB RAM
4x CD-ROM (Unless connected to network)
40 MB free disk space
256 colors at 800x600dpi
Recommended Hardware
Pentium II 450 MHz or greater
128 MB RAM
8x CD-ROM (Unless connected to network)
40MB free disk space
256 colors at 800x600dpi
Operating System
Windows 98 SE
Windows NT 4.0 Workstation (Service Pack 6A)
Windows 2000 Professional (Service Pack 1)
Windows XP
Servers
Windows NT 4.0 Server (Service Pack 6A)
Windows 2000 Server Edition (Service Pack 1)
Database
Access 97
Access 98
Access 2000
Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 (SP2) or SQL Server 2000 (SP1)
Microsoft Office Connectivity (for PC Files)
Microsoft Office 2000
Microsoft Office XP
334
Appendix B: Smeadlink User Counting
Appendix B: Smeadlink User
Counting
When you purchased your Smeadlink system, you purchased a Server license, and you purchased "Seat" licenses. Seat licenses, or Seats, are the
number of seats, or users, who can use Smeadlink concurrently (at the same
time). Smeadlink counts user logins and tracks how many people are using
the system at one time. If the number of users trying to use Smeadlink
exceeds the number of Seats your organization owns, the last user(s) trying
to log in will get the following message:
The user(s) trying to login should click Cancel and try again later after another user exits Smeadlink. Should your users frequently get this message,
this indicates that your organization needs additional seats. To purchase
additional seats, contact your authorized reseller.
Should your user's machine or operating system experience an error, causing
Smeadlink to shutdown prematurely, the user's "count" may not be subtracted from the concurrent usage count. As a result, when the user tries to
login again, they may get this message. There are two ways to fix this situation.
One is an automatic method. If the user wait 30 minutes, Smeadlink will detect
that the count is not active and remove it from the count. This will allow the
user to log in normally again without any further action. If it is critical that the
user log back in immediately, they can press the Details button and be presented with the screen on the following page.
Appendix B: Smeadlink User Counting
335
If the Purge button is available, then clicking Purge will remove any inactive
counts, allowing the user to log in normally. If it is not, the user or system
administrator can highlight the count line and press the DELETE key. The
user will be warned that they are deleting a row and can click on OK. After
removing the count record, they can click the Close button and continue
normally.
Warning: deleting other active user count records will force Smeadlink to
shut down that active user, without warning, in the near future. The user
will lose all unsaved work and will have to restart Smeadlink. You should
only delete a count record if you are sure that the user in question truly had
a problem. The preferred and safe method is to wait approximately 30
minutes and allow Smeadlink to automatically recover.

Smeadlink Administrator`s Guide

Transcription

Similar documents

Alpha Epsilon Rho Alpha Kappa Psi

McVeighs Pumpkin Patch

Datability Directions

Baby Waves Blanket MATERIALS

Time Sheet Reminder

Registration Form - City of Airway Heights

Investor360º Makes Filing Easier for TurboTax Users.

Window Sticker - FordDirect.com

View our Events Brochure