CERT Help

Second: Open the database. The primary box that will open will give you access to all the information you need. The big button on the left called "View Data" shows our primarty data forms. The buttons to the right will give you emergency numbers, CERT team members, yellpw pages, etc. The exit button will close the program. When you use the "View Data" form, at the top of the form you will see tabs, each of these contains various information on who to contact and how. Also you will notice there are many buttons on some of the pages, these will help sort out the information you're looking for.

If you do not have a copy of the database, or a current working version of the CERT database, you can contact the CERT team to obtain one.

I don't have a database, where can I get information?

You can view the CERT teams website at: www.web-friend.com/cert
You can also see oakdale.redirectme.net

Can I have a copy of the database, or give it to the local fire department / police:. Who do I contact about using or distributing this information?

While none of the information within the database is considered "secret", and CERT is a non-profit organization, a great deal of time and expense has gone into developing this database. That being said, NO this database is not 'public domain'. If you are interested in making, keeping, or distributing a copy of this database and it's information, please contact:

Lea Lester at: 412.780.1403. For a nominal fee to help recover the costs of development well will get a copy developeed and made for you. Additional contacts.

How do I volenteer to work with the CERT team?

contact: Lea Lester at: 412.780.1403.

I have information to contribute to the database.

We are always happy to add information to our database and improve our services to the community. If you have information you would like to contribute, and can contact us at the following:

Lea Lester at:
412.780.1403.
Email Deputy Director Lea Lester

Charles H. Davis (Ched)
412.580.0098
Email webmaster Ched Davis

I get an error that my computer doesn't know what kind of file it is.

More than likely, your computer does not have Microsoft Access installed on it. If you have Word and Excel on your computer, then you have part of the Microsoft Office package already installed. Try inserting the Office CD, and checking to see if the option to install Access has been checked. If you do not have Access as part of your "MS Office" CD, you can either purchase an upgraded Office package, or a stand-alone version of Access at your local computer store.

What is Access?

Access is a database program developed by Microsoft. It is not part of "Windows". It IS part of the Microsoft Office Professional package which is sold seperately. Word is the Word Processing package, Excel is the Spreadsheet program, PowerPoint is the presentation manager, and Access is the database program. A database holds information in tables (similar to, but not the same as a spreadsheet). The tables hold records, fields, and data. You can then sort the information, filter out what is not relevent, compare data, create reports, and design forms for viewing and editing data.

How does Access work?

A VERY brief description of an Access database would be to compare it to a spreadsheet, or a piece of graph paper.. Each row would be a record, and each column would be a field. Now to use a phone bood or address book as an example, along the top would be the names of each field. (such as first name, phone number, address, zip code etc. Along the left hand side would be a list of the records. (such as John Does name, phone number, Jane Smiths name address, and zip code, etc.) Now all this information would be held in one "Table" of the Access Database, and you could work with all the information simply by scrolling over and down through the table.

Now, you have what's known as "Forms". Forms are just a pretty book covering to display the information (usually 1 record at a time), and you can use that to add or edit the data that gets put back into the tables.

When you have a great deal of data, you can use reports, filters, sorts, etc. to organize the information. A report could be used to show all the records of people who lived in zip code 15071 (by using a filter to eliminate anyone who was NOT in 15071). Then you can also sort those records to be displayed in alphalbetical order.

For a LITTLE bit more info on the CERT database, see the help-cert file.

I have an old version of Access, can I still use the database?

It is not updated as often as the main database, but there is a copy called cert05-all.mdb located here
cd\backup\cert05-all.mdb.

How do I change or add information to this database?

The primary function of the database was designed to "view" or "look up" information. While there are a few buttons added to add people and information, if you are having problems editing or entering data, it is probably because you are in a read only mode. To access the main data sheets, click on the "Administrator" button (bottom left of main CERT window). This will close the "Front End" of the database, and you can now access the raw data. open the Access window that has all the information in it (either the little restore or the maximize button) on the cert05-e.mdb bar / window. (if it is minimized to begin with) NOW, make sure you are in the TABLES section and open the relevent table you want to enter data in to.

I don't have Access, can I use Excel or Word to view the data?

There are a few files in the misc folder in various formats; HOWEVER, these are not all up to date. If you need a particular table or set of data that needs to be converted to another format such as Excel (xls) Word (doc) or text file (csv, txt, etc.) then contact Charles "Ched" Davis at 412.580.0098

There is too much information, how do I find what I want?

This is where you need to use the Access functions such as sort, filter, query and creating reports. There are some buttons on each of the forms which will either show you information, or prompt you to enter what you're searching for. See the help-cert file for more details.

Some files must be missing because I can't change, edit, or add data such as locations, phone exchanges, zip codes, etc.

There are a few files (tables and forms) that I've hidden just to make it easier to find the table or form that was relevant. Things like a list of zip codes, phone exchanges, or locations. To view these files, first make sure you're in the Administrator mode (close the main start up form window by clicking on the "Administrator" button. Then in the Access menu bar (the bar at the top with the words: File, Edit, View, etc.) go to Tools ... Options. In the main window (the view tab) put a check mark in the "Hidden Objects" box where it says "Show" and click apply.

I opened the database, now where do I start?

hmmm...... now where do I START in telling you where you want to start?

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