PistolWhipt

I have a small project that I am stuck on and could sure use some ideas / assistance.

I want to design a windows-based log book to keep track of the events that happen throughout the day.
Most of the events that I want to keep track of are repetative in nature and I am thinking about some kind of a drop-down window that will give me a choice of which event I want to record.
The part that I can't figure out is how to date/time stamp each event as I record it. The computer keeps track of this already... I just don't know how to tie it in to this application.

I want it to look something like this:

10:42 BEGAN SECURITY ROUNDS
10:49 COMPLETED SECURITY ROUNDS
13:45 CONTRACTOR ARRIVED ON SITE


I tried to use Excel and I can figure out how to make the drop-down window work, but when I format a cell to record the date/time, I run into two problems:

1) There are far too many steps required to make this user friendly.
2) When I attempt to make another entry, the previous line entry date/time also updates. At the end of the page, it looks like every event happened at the same time.

Other than manually typing in the current date/time ... I am at a loss.
Anyone have a solution ??

PISTOL

hotdram

Can't you just tell an E-5 or E-4 to write the stuff down
Or maybe some academy grad. with a degree in Comp. Sci. can help

Sorry, can't help, that's why I am a hardware designer, can't stand coding.

~Rob

hotdram

I can see your log now:

0530 Made coffee
0532 Logged onto DTR
0535 Drank coffee
0545 Drank coffee
0600 Made trip to head
0605 Made coffee
0606 Logged onto DTR
0610 Drank coffee
0625 Drank coffee on way to head
0630 Logged onto DTR
0700 Light Locker maintenance
1000 Made coffee
1005 Logged on DTR




Looks pretty repetative to me

~Rob

PistolWhipt

It's funny ... of all the JO's w/ degrees that I asked, most of them had the basic, generic degrees that aren't really good for anything but let them come in as officers.

I'm trying to bring our watch into this century by using more computer applications.
The new ships use something like that but it is tied in with all of the Smartship technology that would be hard to adapt to my application.

PISTOL

PistolWhipt

Hehehehehe "Light Locker maintenance" ... we've met, haven't we ??!!

PISTOL

nirion

Did you think about access? Make a little form and it might do want you want.

Nick

grantx5

Depends on how fancy you want it.

Excel uses VBA behind the scenes to do just about anything. You can also write macros that respond to certain key strokes.

You could use MS Access but its takes a little more knowledge to put something together.

There is also .NET. You could develop a simple ASP page, using C# or VB behind the scenes, that records the information into a database.

Have you surfed the web to see if someone else has already developed an application for your needs? Often there are free apps that will do just fine or you may find a shareware product. Shareware is a very cheap way to get fun stuff that usually works pretty well.

Another idea is to use Outlook. You can record the events on the calendar, that way you automatically know the date and time. Outlook allows for reports so you can get the information back out when you need it. You can also access the Outlook data using VBA or .NET or whatever.

Just a few thoughts...

AlpineRAM

Pistol: do you want to have the software record the event like pushing the button is the time when the event is recorded or do you want to enter the time yourself?
Do you want to have different classes of events- like if you punch "contractor enters" that it will make you fill in the license plates and the IDs of the workers?
You could do it in Excel, but personally I#d prefer to do it in PHP with an SQL database in the background. (I hate the datagraveyard excel becomes over time)

AlpineRAM

darrenG

I'll write the program for you for a grand.

chaikwa

Seeing as how you've already played around with Excel, I thought maybe they might have an 'add-on' that would work, and found this;
http://www.excelbusinesstools.com/so...s.asp?prod=103

Dunno if it'll work for you or not, but it can't hurt to look. Seems pretty cheap too!

chaikwa.

PistolWhipt

Tempting offer Darren ... I'll ask Uncle Sam to spot me some pocket change and I'll get back to you.

I appreciate the input from everyone. Alpineram, I am not looking for this log to do any special things like asking for badge numbers and things like that (we already have tools in place to do this) ... this is just a simple chronologic account of events.

This is what I am looking for:
1) I would like for my watch stander to be able to hit an "event" key and have the computer prompt for a choice of events. Hotdram's example is basically what it should look like. (You've stood your share of mid-watches !!!)

2) I need it to save the info to the server as often as possible (without any thought from the watch stander) maybe every 10 - 15 minutes or so.

3) I want the option to be able to print out the form at the end of the day for my authorizing signatures to present a legible timeline of the days events to my Commanding Officer.


Grantx5, I took a look at Outlook but don't see how I can make it work in this fashion. It sure would be handy, since we use Outlook a lot. I had the best luck so far with Excel but I'm not savvy enough to make the Macros do a time stamp feature. I can do it manually by clicking Insert and then date/time ... but for the sake of keeping it simple for my watchstanders I would prefer a hotkey.

I appreciate the input ... please keep it coming !! There is a Marine unit around here that is already using something like this and I am sure I can get them to hook me up ... but I don't learn anything that way.

PISTOL

darrenG

so you know what sort of server you run? what type of database?

the program you're looking for can be done in visual basic pretty easily, if you can stand to program VB. I'd use C#/Mono instead.

PistolWhipt

Darren ... I have no clue what they are using here. To be honest with you, if they told me I still wouldn't know what they were talking about. I am an engineering type guy and have rudimentary computer skills at best.

PISTOL

AlpineRAM

You could do a users manual that says:

Typing CTRL-; will enter the current date in a cell. Typing CTRL-SHIFT-; (or, also, CMD-; for Macs) will enter the current time (to the minute only).

Or you could write a macro for excel about like this one:
DateTimeStamp Macro

This macro provides a lot of flexibility in inserting a date or time stamp. You can attach it to a toolbar button to stamp the active cell, or call it from an event macro.

Public Sub DateTimeStamp(ByVal ChangedCells As Range, _
Optional ByVal IncludeDate As Boolean = True, _
Optional ByVal IncludeTime As Boolean = True, _
Optional ByVal DTFormat As String = "dd mmm yyyy hh:mm", _
Optional ByVal RowOffset As Long = 0&, _
Optional ByVal ColOffset As Long = 1&, _
Optional ByVal ClearWhenEmpty As Boolean = True)
Const n1904 As Long = 1462
Dim bClear As Boolean
Dim rArea As Range
Dim rCell As Range

Application.EnableEvents = False
For Each rArea In ChangedCells.Areas
For Each rCell In rArea
With rCell
bClear = ClearWhenEmpty And IsEmpty(.Value)
With .Offset(RowOffset, ColOffset)
If bClear Then
.ClearContents
Else
.NumberFormat = DTFormat
.Value = Date * -IncludeDate - _
Time * IncludeTime + _
n1904 * .Parent.Parent.Date1904
End If
End With
End With
Next rCell
Next rArea
Application.EnableEvents = True
End Sub

The procedure should be self-explanatory. All arguments are optional except for the cells to monitor. By default, both the date and the time are entered in the cell to the right of the monitored cells.

Taken from: http://www.mcgimpsey.com/excel/timestamp.html

So you can make the right cells protected and simply let the guy on watch enter an event into the "left" cell when it happens.

HTH

AlpineRAM

PistolWhipt

Wow ... whole bunch of Greek in that post .

It does look like something that I can figure out ... thank you. I will show it to some of my IT buddies that have been trying to 'splain things to me.

Nirion sent me a sample in ACCESS that does this as well. I have never used access, so it will take some playing with.

Again ... thanks to everyone for their knowledge and help. I sure do like DTR !!!

PISTOL