This service is mainly about providing access only to DB/TextWorks software on our server, but not necessarily the entire ecosystem of applications our clients may be used to having on their own PCs for viewing and editing documents.įor our museum and archival clients with databases of historic photographs, and our many clients with databases of documents, when managing records in a textbase on our server, they still need a quick and easy way to open these files, if not to edit them, but at least to make sure they select the correct file name to add to the record. Lately we’ve been helping clients make good use of the image / document viewer as part of our DB/TextWorks hosting service. We can of course help you! Contact us if you’d like any training or assistance with designing any DB/TextWorks screens.ĭid you know that DB/TextWorks has a built-in image viewer? And that it can be used to view not only images but PDFs as well? As a well-established software application, DB/TextWorks has quite a few features that aren’t always well known or used.
These simple conventions and the addition of hints can make the search and data entry experience much easier for your new or irregular users! We still occasionally find clients just using the basic forms – taking advantage of these design capabilities can dramatically improve the usability of your database. You can also click on a box, and right click to copy and then paste to create multiple matching boxes for your hints. When adding either a form or a text box, parameters such as size, label position and font are inherited from the box above of the same type. If in doubt use Save As to make a copy of an existing form while you experiment. The DB/TextWorks Form Designer is a drag and drop WYSIWYG interface so quite easy to learn. In the screenshot below we have also divided a long data entry screen up into sections with black textboxes, and resized boxes to indicate the length of a typical entry. We indicate in the label formatting whether a field is required (red) or has a validation list (underlined). We also often add brief instructions in a text box right next to each field on data entry screens. The databases in all our DB/TextWorks kits feature query screens with searching hints in a text box at the bottom:
These can be as brief or as lengthy as you need – we have designed some forms for clients with incredibly detailed instructions. However printed documents are often lost or not readily accessible, so we recommend adding notes and hints to the DB/TextWorks forms themselves.
Inmagic db textworks save to notepad how to#
If you have new staff, students or volunteers who may need to search or add records to your databases, it is a good idea to have guidelines on data entry protocols, and some instructions on how to search effectively.