What's new in the Vitalware Help

This version of the Vitalware Help was published on Wednesday, 24 March 2021. It has been prepared for Vitalware version 3.0 (and earlier).

Updates include:

Date

Page / Section

Details

22 Mar 21

New Registry entries

New Registry entries have been added for the Trinidad and Tobago Companies Registry, and for Work Queues.

19 Jun 19

Scheduled Exports

Clarification: details on most tabs in the Schedules module, including the Schedule, Fields, Conditions, Exports and Security, are read-only.

06 May 19

Update to XML / XSL code examples. Previously, when creating a Page View and configuring an import using the Import Tool, encoding was specified as encoding="iso-8859-1"; with Vitalware's support for Unicode, encoding must now be specified as encoding="UTF-8".

26 Jul 17

 

Added dynamic scroll-to-top feature.

25 Jul 17

Search filter

New search filter added to limit search results to documentation for Users (i.e. excluding Administrator documentation). To limit search results, select a filter from the drop list in the Search bar:

24 Jul 17

Usability

A couple of usability features added to the Help:

  • The Header bar (containing the main menu and search bar) is now fixed and remains in view when scrolling through a page's content.
  • A [Close] option has been added to the bottom of all Drop downs.

30 Jun 17

Quick Help

Added Quick Reference Guide pdf for download.

19 Jun 17

Types of Search

Explanation for why a NOT search does not return records that have no value in the searched field (and how to work around this).

2017   Conversion of Vitalware Help from .chm to HTML5.
01 Dec 16 Multimedia enhancements

New features include:

25 Nov 16 Copy List Items

Functionality has been added to support the copying of items in list dialog boxes. This includes:

  • Insert and Query Defaults
  • List Columns
  • Record Templates
  • Reports
  • Shortcuts
  • Sorts

The copied item is named automatically and ownership of the copied item changes to the current user. For Report list items the report file is also copied and automatically assigned a new name.

05 Sep 16

ADO Reports

Vitalware's Reporting subsystem was modified in order to bypass some filtering which occurs when a Crystal Report or Microsoft report (Excel, Word, etc.) is generated out of Vitalware. Bypassing the filtering improves report generation and performance.

24 Aug 16

Wildcards in a Global Replace

Updated. The introduction of full Unicode support with Vitalware 3.0 affects the use of wildcard characters when searching. Currently it is NOT necessary to escape wildcards in a Global Replace.

24 Aug 16

Punctuation in Lookup List values

While the introduction of full Unicode support with Vitalware 3.0 affects searching in particular, it does impact other parts of the system. The most notable change is that punctuation is now significant in Lookup List values.

18 Aug 16

Search

Full Unicode support was introduced with Vitalware 3.0. The impact of Unicode support is felt most when searching, which is greatly enhanced. The Search section of the Help has been updated with details of how searches are performed in Vitalware 3.0 onwards.

15 Aug 16

Vitalware's support for Unicode

Full Unicode support was introduced with Vitalware 3.0. Unicode support affects several areas of the system, especially searching. Full details are provided.

12 Aug 16

Texpress: optimizing and configuring the database engine

Detailed documentation about the Texpress configuration subsystem and tools for achieving optimal indexing of database tables.

Includes details about:

  • The params file used for storing configuration settings.
  • texanalyse, texdensity, texconf.

09 Aug 16

Tabs Registry entry (Tab Switching) Clarification added: If two tab switching Registry entries specify the same tab name and one is preceded by a - and the other by a +, the tab will always display.

27 Jul 16

Unique Strict Registry entry

Updated with an explanation of the difference between the Unique Override and Unique Strict Registry entries.

13 May 16

Vitalware 3.0 Release notes

Release notes for Vitalware 3.0 added.

04 Dec 15 Vitalware 2.6 Release notes Release notes for Vitalware 2.6 added.

15 Jun 15

ServerPath Registry entry

Details about the ServerPath Registry entry.

20 May 15

How to import multimedia and attach it to a record

How to construct a .CSV import file to import an image and attach it to a record .

29 Apr 15

Record Status Mapping Registry entry

Used to map record statuses defined by the Queensland Registry to default record statuses in Vitalware. Required to ensure the correct processing of registrations and orders, which are governed by the default record statuses defined in Vitalware.

Note: This entry is only valid in the Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

28 Apr 15

Column CSS Registry entry

Used to specify the default font family and font size for Vitalware client controls that display HTML formatted text (i.e. KEHTMLFrame controls).

30 Mar 15

How do I copy and paste multiple values on which to search?

Details about copying and pasting multiple values (from MS Word or Excel for instance) into a search field.

26 Feb 15

Reporting with MS Excel

Updated to cover creation of reports with Excel (Office 2013).

Dec 14

Administration

Review of Administration section continues. Sections reviewed include:

12 Sep 14

Vitalware 2.5

Release Notes for Vitalware 2.5 added.

12 Sep 14

Change to Scheduled Exports

It is now possible to exclude one or more scheduled exports from the standard scheduled run by specifying the -x parameter, e.g. -xirn[,irn,..] (where irn is the irn of a record for a scheduled export specified in the Schedules module).

27 Aug 14

Modify Continue Batch Print After Error Registry entry

The Continue Batch Print After Error Registry entry is now the Continue Batch Process After Error Registry entry.

26 Aug 14

System Technical Requirements

Details about Vitalware's technical requirements, as well as example system configurations.

26 Aug 14

How to write-off a bad debt

Details of the facility introduced with Vitalware 2.5 to write-off a bad debt.

20 Aug 14

Various Registry entries

04 Jun 14

Registry entries

Reorganized.

May-Jun 14

Multimedia Registry entries Registry entries

Overhauled.

May 14

Record Level Security

Overhaul of Record Level Security documentation:

15 Apr 14

Fix applied to Animations

Error introduced with the previous build of Help meant that animations failed (stepping through processes). The animations work again.

07 Apr 14

Scheduled Operations module

Details about Scheduled Operations.

The Scheduled Operations facility introduced with Vitalware enables the scheduling of operations to be run immediately or at a specified date and time.

03 Apr 14

Version Registry entry

Updated.

Mar 14

Administration

Review of Administration section continues. Sections reviewed:

Columns / Fields

Feb 14

Administration

Review of Administration section commences. Sections reviewed:

The Vitalware Registry

15 Jan 14

Correction to Import Tool documentation

Incorrect use of double quotes when referencing a value in a CSV Import file, e.g.:

LatSource_tab(+ group="opinion")

should be

LatSource_tab(+ group='opinion')

14 Jan 14

Release Notes

Section added: new features, improvements and resolved issues.

18 Dec 13

Import Tool Training

Minor corrections.

17 Dec 13

Column Access Registry entry

Explanation of the effect of hiding the first field in a group box.

16 Dec 13

(Record Level) Security Registry entry

Clarification regarding use of Attachment fields in Security Registry entries.

21 Nov 13

Certificates Registry entries

Clarification of several Registry entries concerned with the printing of certificates, notably:

18 Nov 13

Various

Various updates as a result of the Vitalware 2.4 release, including details about:

02 Aug 13

Update to Ditto Skip Columns Registry entry

Clarification about the Ditto Skip Columns Registry entry: by design it does not apply to Ditto Current Field (F9).

02 Aug 13

Update to Column Access Modifier Registry entry

Description of limitations when performing a Global Replace: setting -duReplace on a column does not guarantee that users are unable to perform a Global Replace on that column, and in some circumstances a -duReplace permission set on a column in a record will be ignored when a Global Replace is performed.

15 May 13

Various new Registry entries documented

New entries include:

10 May 13

Modifications to the Help

Working in a multi-language Vitalware environment section added to hold multi-language content.

Two new sections added to the Vitalware modules section with details about:

06 May 13

Editing in a single language

Vitalware 2.3.01 has seen the introduction of a number of extensions that provide a more flexible mechanism for displaying and altering data within a single language:

  • When the All Languages option is selected, users may now select the order in which languages are displayed (but not, it is important to keep in mind, the order in which language data is stored in Vitalware, which is defined by the Supported Registry entry). This allows users who are dominant in a particular language to display this language first with other languages following.
  • User may now alter data while a single language is displayed. Any data entered into a field will only update the value of the language selected.
  • When displaying data in a single language and a value does not exist for a given field, the value of the first filled language may be displayed. The text is shown in a user selectable color (gray by default) to indicate that it is not associated with the current language. When the field is entered, the text is removed, allowing data to be entered.
  • A number of data entry helpers always display all languages in the user defined order to assist data entry. For example, if a Lookup List is displayed, all languages are always shown so that users may select the correct entry based on context. This is particularly important where one term in a given language has multiple terms in another language.

    Many changes introduced to the Help to accommodate the new Language facilities, including a new section - Support for languages.

08 Apr 13

Work Queue Registry entry

The Work Queue Registry entry specifies the menu label for a work queue (which will display as a sub menu of Process>Work Queue) and the conditions to be met in order for records to be included in the work queue.

08 Apr 13

Two new Registry entries

Two new Registry entries added:

  • Transmit Map

    Used when copying data from a record in one module to a record in another module using the Transmit menu option: specifies a mapping where the name of the From column is different to the name of the To column.

  • Transmit Skip

    Specifies a list of fields to skip when copying data from one record to another using the Transmit menu option.

05 Apr 13

A warning about partial range searches

New topic added to explain how to perform a range search with a partial date / latitude / longitude, etc.

07 Mar 13

How to add multimedia to a report

Updated.

06 Mar 13

Unique Strict Registry entry

Correction.

24 Jan 13

Show Printer Dialogue Registry entry

The Show Printer Dialogue Registry entry is used to specify that the printer dialog will / will not display when printing in the Communications module.

28 Nov 12

Lookup List Maintenance background service

To reduce the nightly system maintenance and to allow the Lookup List table to be used as a regular module, Vitalware 2.3 has added a background service that ensures the Lookup List entries are always in sync with the records in the Vitalware system. The addition of the service removes the need to rebuild the Lookup Lists on a nightly basis, hence reducing system maintenance time.

Furthermore, as the Lookup List table is no longer reloaded, the Lookup List module has been extended to include support for attributed notes (Notes tab) and multimedia (Multimedia tab). Audit trails on individual records are now maintained and Record Level Security may be used as for any other module.

Although a Lookup List rebuild program is still provided, it now applies changes to the eluts table rather than rebuilding the table completely. The introduction of the Lookup List service means that rebuilds are only required if the Lookup List table becomes corrupted, or if users accidentally delete records that are still in use.

26 Oct 12

Mandatory Modifier Registry entry

The Mandatory Modifier Registry entry allows the mandatory setting on a column (set using the Mandatory Registry entry) to be adjusted based on the value in other field(s). Part of Vitalware's Dynamic Security options.

26 Oct 12

Archive View

Archives tab functionality is sufficient for viewing the structure of an Archive hierarchy for the current record, but it does not provide a simple mechanism for relocating other records within the hierarchy (i.e. records other than the current record), nor does it allow the hierarchy to be restructured easily. In order to address these two shortcomings and provide a constant visual reminder of the archive hierarchy, Vitalware 2.3 introduces the Archive View facility.

26 Jun 12

What to do if you've forgotten your password

Topic and FAQ added.

23 Jun 12

Dynamic Security

Minor corrections.

25 May 12

Operations Registry entry

New daMerge operations privilege added and daReplace modified.

26 Mar 12

Reportable Registry entry

New Registry entry specifies whether a column can / cannot be included in a report.

22 Mar 12

Security

Two Registry entries added:

  • Security|Update Registry entry

    Allows the contents of one or more fields to be modified based on the value in a field whenever a record is saved.

  • Column Access Modifier Registry entry

    Used to modify the default Column Access values based on data found in the current record.

    A new Security section has been added to Working with Vitalware records. This contains general user information about Record Level Security and Dynamic Security. Information for Administrators has been added to a new Security section: Administration>The Vitalware Registry>Registry Settings. This contains security Registry entries (including Record Level Security and Security|Update). Note that the Users / Groups section (which holds access / permissions Registry entries) has been moved to this new Administration Security section.

01 Mar 12

Ignore Address Change Registry entry

Specifies whether or not a second verification of postal data will occur when a number change is made to an address that was entered after a lookup of the Postal Code database.

Note: This entry is only valid in Canadian Vital Records Offices.

28 Feb 12

Image File Extension Registry entry

Updated.

31 Jan 12

Index

Updated.

24 Nov 11

After Export facility

Introduced with Vitalware 2.3, the After Export facility allows a command to be executed once an export has completed. Amongst other things, the command can:

  • Email the export files to a list of users.
  • Email the results of the export to a list of users.
  • Copy the export files to another machine behind a secure firewall.
  • Copy the export files over the internet via a secure transfer mechanism.
  • Send an SMS to a list of telephone numbers.

19 Oct 11

Password Management

The implementation of password management in Vitalware 2.3 provides System Administrators with a range of options in terms of managing user authentication and ageing passwords. It also allows users to change their passwords from within the Vitalware Windows client.

17 Oct 11

Lookup Registry entry

Addition of the AutoWriteIgnore permission, combining the AutoWrite and WriteIgnore permissions.

17 Oct 11

Operations Registry entry

Addition of the daDittoAll operations privilege. Required in order for a user / group to use the Edit>Ditto>All Fields (SHIFT+F9) option.

17 Oct 11

Indexing Registry entries

New Indexing Registry setting that sets the unique attribute for one or more columns in a table. The Unique Index setting is available from Vitalware 2.3 onwards.

14 Oct 11

New Registry entries

New entries include:

21 Jun 11

Supplementary Media

Introduced with Vitalware 2.3, the Supplementary tab in the Multimedia module allows associated resources to be stored with a master resource in the same Multimedia record.

11 Mar 11

Read Only Registry entries Registry entries

Prior to Vitalware 2.2.01 it was possible to make the back-end tables read-only (and it still is), however the Vitalware client did not reflect the read-only nature of the table in the module interface: it was still possible to select the menu entry to insert a new record, but an error would then be displayed as the table was read-only. The ReadOnly Registry entries control the Vitalware client while still leaving the back-end tables operational. This means that the menu entry to insert a new record is now disabled if the table or system is marked as read-only.

28 Feb 11

Postal Code verification Registry entries

Four new Registry entries for Canadian clients which facilitate the use of Canada Post postal data.

28 Feb 11

Samples module

Sampling facilitates the selection of a subset of records on which to perform some processing or other. This is particularly useful when an external agency is responsible for data entry of records and it is desirable / required to perform quality assurance on the records before accepting them into the production system.

The Samples module is used to manage the process of sampling records.

28 Feb 11

Communications module

Unlike the Correspondence module, which records correspondence related to a POS record, the Communications module can be used for all communications (letter, fax, email, phone call) related to a registration or POS transaction. Additionally, Communications allows for formatted letters (not just simple text as with the Correspondence module).

The Communications module is used to:

  • Create templates for standard outgoing correspondence (letters, etc.)
  • Record all incoming and outgoing communications for registration and POS records.

See How to work with the Communications module for details.

10 Feb 11

Multi-group Support

Vitalware 2.2.01 introduces multi-group support, which allows a single user to be registered in more than one group:

  • A user who is a member of more than one group can select the group name to use from the Login dialog box when logging into Vitalware.
  • At any time it is possible to switch to another group without logging out and back in again.
  • When switching groups the user decides whether opened modules should remain open or whether they should be closed.
  • Any new modules opened will use the group permissions assigned to the group that the user switched to.

    See How to log in and out of Vitalware for details about logging in to Vitalware when you are a member of more than one group.

    See Switching between groups for details about how to switch between groups in Vitalware.

    See Group Registry entry for details about assigning users to more than one group.

    See Multi-group Support: security profile extensions for details about how the Vitalware server security profiles provide support for multiple groups per user.

12 Dec 10

Encrypted Connections

Vitalware 2.2.01 has been extended to support an encrypted connection between the client and server programs.

17 Sep 10

Match Lists

Updated with new option to Reject potential matches.

16 Sep 10

vwperiodic

Updated.

06 Sep 10

Export Schedules

Changes made to the Export tab of the Export Properties dialog box and to the layout of the Schedules tab of the Schedules module.

31 Aug 10

Three new Registry entries added.

11 Jun 10

Export Schedules

Vitalware 2.1.02 introduces a new facility that enables data to be exported on a regular basis. Users can define:

  • A set of fields for export.
  • A sort order for the exported records.
  • A TexQL statement to determine which records to export.
  • Dates on which the export is to occur.

29 Apr 10

Security Stock module

Section updated to reflect improved field labels in the Security Stock module.

19 Apr 10

How to append data using the Import facility

Details about using the Import tool to append data to tables and nested tables of values.

10 Mar 10

Right to Left Language Support

Details about Vitalware's support for display of right to left languages.

23 Feb 10

Correspondence Module

Details about the Correspondence module and how to make use of it have been added.

18 Feb 10

Multimedia Audio/Video|Exclude Registry entry

The Multimedia Audio/Video|Exclude Registry entry has been removed from Vitalware.

26 Nov 09

New Certificate/Stock Registry entries

Two new Certificate / Stock Registry entries have been added:

09 Jul 09

Mail Merge Report

How to create a mail merge report has been updated due to changes with Microsoft Word.

26 Jun 09

Keying Duplicate Check Registry entry

Specifies which Duplicate Check will be used by default when a record is being keyed.

24 Jun 09

New Registry entries

Security Stock:

22 Jun 09

Security Stock module

Details about how to manage security stock.

30 Apr 09

Unique Registry entry

Updated. Unique Registry entry has been extended to apply to nested and double nested tables.

25 Mar 09

Reports

Updated further, in line with the new Vitalware Reports training course.

25 Mar 09

Uniqueness checking and Auto-incrementation

Clarification.

05 Mar 09

Multimedia compression quality

It is now possible to specify the compression quality of JPEG images generated in Vitalware.

The Resolutions Registry entry has also been extended to automatically include a compression quality for JPEGs.

04 Mar 09

Statistics Module

Details about the Statistics facility (introduced with Vitalware 2.1.01). This facility allows statistical information to be generated on a regular basis (hourly, daily, weekly or monthly) and stored in the Statistics module for later use.

22 Jan 09

Context IDs / Related Information

Context IDs have been added to the footer of most pages in this Help, making it easier to use the What's This Help utility to link directly to a page from within Vitalware.

21 Jan 09

Can Cancel Adoption Registry entry

Details of a new Registry entry that allows users/groups to cancel incorrectly added adoptions.

21 Jan 09

Security Stock module

Details about the Security Stock module, which keeps track of the movement of secure certificate stock. Use this module to record the receipt of Security Stock by your organization, its distribution within your organization, its return to secure storage, as well as missing stock. Associated with it are a number of scripts which report on lost or missing stock.

19 Jan 09

Lookup Exact

Details of a new Registry entry that enforces a strict comparison of terms entered into a Lookup List.

15 Jan 09

How to view attachment records

Clarification.

14 Jan 09

Merge Records

View Attachments Registry entry

Clarification.

22 Dec 08

Reports

Overhaul of reports documentation. Sections that have been updated to date:

  • Introduction to Vitalware Reports
  • How to generate a report in Vitalware
  • How to create a report in Microsoft Excel (without needing Visual Basic code!)
  • How to create a report: Step 1: Create the report in Vitalware
  • How to create a report: Step 2: Design the report in a third party application: Crystal Reports
  • How to create a report: Step 3: Save the report to the Vitalware server.

26 Nov 08

Copy Special: Copy & Paste in List View

The Copy Special utility allows you to specify what character(s) or notation should be used at the end of a paragraph or row when copying records in List View and pasting them into another application.

24 Oct 08

Record Templates

Vitalware 2.0.04 sees the introduction of the Record Template utility, which combines the functionality of the Ditto and Default Values facilities.

06 Oct 08

Impact Printer Newline Count Registry entry

Receipt Printer Name Registry entry

Details of two new Registry entries.

14 Aug 08

Image Display Registry entry

Update to the Image Display Registry entry that allows the Image Display feature to test for the existence of data in a field rather than for an exact value.

13 Aug 08

General options

Clarification about the Record Updates options.

16 Jul 08

Shortcut List

Registry entries documented for Shortcut Lists.

02 Jul 08

Tools for adding, updating and checking records

Restructure of the Working with Vitalware records section with the addition of a new section Tools for Adding and Updating Records that brings together Default Values, Ditto, Import and Record Templates.

02 Jul 08

Operations Registry entry

New User/Group permission (daTemplates) added to the Operations Registry entry. Required for creating Record Templates.

10 Jun 08

Duplicate Check Registry entry

Amendment to this Registry entry (addition of a 6th Key).

02 May 08

In Order Codes Registry entry

Registry entry that specifies that if an order contains more than one product type, the white copies are printed together rather than separated out from each other when batch printing.

Note: This entry is only valid in the Vital Statistics Agency, Manitoba.

24 Apr 08

Reset LinkGrids Registry entry

Registry entry that resets the cursor to the top left cell of a link grid when a user enters Insert / New mode.

22 Apr 08

XSLT processing of XML import files

Vitalware 2.1.01 has added XSLT processing as part of the Import tool for XML files: it is now possible to import an XML file and have it transformed as part of the Import process.

09 Apr 08

Context IDs

All Context IDs for topics in this Help with a number < 500100 have been changed. This affects approximately 60 topics and is only an issue if you have used Vitalware's Related Information function to link the Vitalware client to an affected topic in this Help.

20 Mar 08

Global Replace

Clarification about use of Global Replace functionality: all substitutions defined in the current session and displaying in the Replace box will be run when either the Replace or Replace All button is selected.

19 Mar 08

Record Recall

Details about the extension to the Audit Trails functionality, allowing the current version of a record to be "replaced" by an earlier version of a record.

07 Mar 08

How do I search attached documents?

Clarification on how to search text based documents stored in the Multimedia module.

28 Feb 08

Registry entries

Various Registry entries, including: Booking Surcharge Product; Double Key Clear; Print Certificate Status; Back Fill Event Details; Security Stock Padding; Marriage Rebooking Product; Query Databases; Query Fields.

27 Feb 08

Range Indexing entries

Details about the Range Buckets Registry entry.

26 Feb 08

Indexing

Details added to the Understanding how Vitalware works section describing new Range indexing options - essentially how Administrators can fine-tune Range indexing.

11 Jan 08

Registry Settings

Section reorganized to separate Client specific Registry entries from Registry entries that apply to every Vitalware implementation.

Additional Registry entries added.

13 Dec 07

Various pages

Registry updated with new Registry entries:

30 Nov 07

Groups

Details about the new Groups module.

22 Nov 07

The Auditing Facility

Details about Vitalware's fully integrated auditing facility.

07 Sep 07

Stage 2: Using the Sample Code

Addition of a sample xsl stylesheet that can be easily modified to produce a new Page View (rather than creating a stylesheet from scratch).

29 Aug 07

Case Sensitive

Details about performing a case sensitive text search.

10 Aug 07

Import Identifier Screen

Clarification about use of the System identifier.

25 Jun 07

Query Defaults Registry entry

Insert Defaults Registry entry

Updated with details about how to add multiple values to a search / new record by default.

25 Jun 07

Mandatory Registry entry

Updated.

22 Jun 07

Customizing Vitalware

Help & Field Level Help

Various FAQs added for how to specify Related Information.

21 Jun 07

Related Information

How to add Related Information

Describes how to add a link to a webpage, a page within the Vitalware Help, etc. from the Field Help dialog box for a field. In the example below, selecting the Party Type details link under the See Also heading will open the Party Types page in the Vitalware Help:

21 Jun 07

Colours|Maximum Size Registry entry

Details added