Yep, sounds like a very good idea. I had a go at this a while ago with Exhibitions/Loans related reports, but gave up! I should try again. Which fields are you sorting on? Thanks Jon -----Original Message----- From: Carole Campbell [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: 09 December 2002 17:58 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Sorting Object and Loan records within the Exhibitions Module Hi, We have set up many of our reports to prompt users for the sort order with parameters. We then setup formulas to control the sort based on how they answer the prompt. I am listing the possible sort orders in the prompt question, but it would be nice if the drop-down list control feature found in Crystal would work in TMS. We had found that trying to maintain all the various forms of a single report was getting too hard. With this approach we only have to maintain one report. Thanks. Carole. Carole Campbell Associate Registrar for Collections Management J. Paul Getty Museum 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1000 Los Angeles, CA 90049 [log in to unmask] >>> [log in to unmask] 12/09/02 08:13AM >>> Object Packages are a useful way to generate lists of exhibition records on the fly, and resort them. First, call up the exhibition record, and go to related objects. Make an object package of those related object records. Then, call up the object package in the objects module using advanced query, which allows you to determine the sort order. Make a new object package of the sorted records, which curators can use to view their lightboxes, and immediately print using screen shots. The key to success here is getting users so comfortable and fast with whipping up an object package, that they will be equally comfortable deleting it rather than let it linger, becoming increasingly outdated and clogging up the back of the refrigerator. Incorporating the date of the package in the package name helps you identify those that have gone a bit stale. (I must have Thanksgiving leftovers on my mind!) Regarding the combining of object packages that Scott from Seattle mentioned, I've had success combining packages by using the Event Module as sort of a holding area. I set up an event for whatever project I'm working on, add the relevant packages into them, go to the related object records, and make a new package. Then I delete the event record, since it has served my purpose, but doesn't have any enduring value. Convoluted, yes. But quick and reliable. Frances p.s. I'm testing the Silver Bullet this week, and will let you know how it is working... ************* Frances R. Francis Registrar High Museum of Art 1280 Peachtree Street, NE Atlanta, GA 30309 tel: 404/733-4480 fax: 404/733-4502 email: [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Jonathan Thristan [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Monday, December 09, 2002 6:50 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Sorting Object and Loan records within the Exhibitions Module Yes, point taken, but we've writen various 'big' reports in the Exhibitions area. The sort of issue I'm refering to occurs when, for example, somebody phones a Curator with a query about an object in the process of being loaned-in to Tate and the Curator doesn't have an up to date copy of the appropriate report to find the information they need. For a big exhibition with 200+ loaned objects, scrolling down a list sorted by an arbitary Object ID is time consuming - ditto Loan IDs. And where the burden of entering all of this data in the first place falls to the same Curators (an additioanl workload for them...) who can't get the information back out, then frustration follows. At the moment, the Exhibitions module of TMS doesn't support the ongoing activity of organising an Exhibition as well as it might. Possible work-arounds include linking reports via a Media record and refreshing these periodically, or scheduling reports to run nightly and serving via intranet or, again, a Media record. -----Original Message----- From: David Parsell [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: 06 December 2002 19:12 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Sorting Object and Loan records within the Exhibitions Module If you write reports in Crystal Reports, you can sort TMS data almost any way you choose. Also, CR saves the messy work of exporting and manipulating the data in excel since you can easily review the report on screen after you query the appropriate data. CR is extremely powerful. I rarely have the need to export TMS data for manipulation in another program. However, CR does require a commitment, especially to learning how the TMS tables are linked. I suggest taking the Gallery Systems CR class to learn TMS table linking and CR. David Parsell Yale University Art Gallery At 05:25 PM 12/6/2002 +0000, Jonathan Thristan wrote: >Hello TMS Users! > >At Tate we use TMS to record details of all of our Displays and >Exhibitions. Curators and Registrars both agree that the inability to >specify sort orders (via a drop down?) for the lists of Object and >Loans within the Exhibitions module is a major drawback of the system. >It tends to mean that users view exhibitions information via reports >(e.g. for exhibitions a report exported into excel, sorted according to >need), rather than via standard forms. Unfortunately, at Tate it has >also made some members of staff reluctant to use the system. Has >anybody else encountered this issue? Any thoughts? > >Regards > >Jon > > >Jon Thristan >Tate >Systems Manager >E: [log in to unmask]