Lab Assistant Software

A Data Entry, Editing, and Reporting Tool

Lab Assistant is a data entry and editing program designed to aid the researcher in the task of accurately entering large and small amounts of laboratory data into a computerized database system. While providing easy and intuitive access to data files, the program offers the data-entry features missing from most database, spreadsheet, and statistical packages.

What it does ...

Lab Assistant combines a menu-assisted text entry system with a direct instrument-to-computer link to a variety of laboratory instruments for fast, efficient, and error-free data entry. The program produces dBASE III+ compatible databases or ASCII text files for compatibility with a wide range of commercially available analytical packages. Data recorded or edited with Lab Assistant is accessible by packages such as dBASE, Reflex, Paradox, Lotus 1-2-3, Symphony, Systat, and many others.

Who uses it ...

The program is designed specifically for archaeological and anthropological laboratories which perform a variety of data-entry tasks including artifact cataloging, faunal analysis, and osteometric studies. While the program comes with sample configurations for cataloging and faunal analysis, it is completely flexible and may be configured easily to accommodate your present data collection and recording strategies. Lab Assistant is currently used by government agencies, universities, museums, cultural resource management firms, wildlife biologists, and private researchers across the country.

Features

• Direct Instrument-to-Computer Data Entry
  Via the computer's serial ports, lab instruments with RS-232C compatible outputs can be physically connected to the computer and thus generate their readings directly into your dataset. The readings are instantaneous and error-free. For electronic scales which support remote control facilities, Lab Assistant provides keyboard control of "read" and "tare" functions. The program supports electronic calipers, micrometers, and balances from a wide variety of manufacturers including Brown & Sharpe, Fowler Instruments, MTI-Mitutoyo, Ohaus, Fisher Scientific, and Mettler.
• Menu-Assisted Text Entry
  Lab Assistant utilizes a menu-assisted text entry system which can provide pop-up menus for various fields in a database. The menus list appropriate responses to the current field and can be organized in a hierarchical manner, leading the user through a logical path of choices. Selections are made by simply pointing to the desired menu item using the arrow and Enter keys. Menu items may have attached descriptions as well; as each item is highlighted, its description appears on an adjacent area of the screen. Menus are easily created and modified by the user and may be adapted to any database structure.
  This menu-assisted system greatly reduces the amount of typing (and typographical errors) involved in the entry process and can impose a measure of consistency into the dataset. Even those who are unfamiliar with the typology being used can quickly master the entry procedure by simply choosing the most appropriate responses from the menus.

  The following sample menu file and associated database structure is provided with the program:

  • University of California, Santa Barbara's Archaeological Coding System Version 7
    An "electronic edition" of the catalog format required by UCSB for materials curated at the UCSB Repository for Archaeological and Ethnographic Collections. Included are the standard UCSB database structure and menus presenting over 3,500 selections. Menus list the UCSB code and English equivalents for selections related to fields such as artifact class, artifact description, unit type, recovery type, material, and modification. Menu selections cover both prehistoric and historic artifacts.
• Data Compatibility with Major Analytical Software
  Lab Assistant is able to read and write data in both dBASE III+ (.DBF) database and ASCII text (.TXT) formats. These formats allow data created and modified by the program to be shared by a wide variety of database, spreadsheet, and statistical software packages.
• Editing and Reporting Features
  Several editing and reporting features are available for viewing and modifying data.
  • Form and Table Editing Views
    Data may be entered and edited in either of two views. The form view is similar to the dBASE EDIT facility and presents full screen views of one record at a time. The table view, similar to the dBASE BROWSE mode, presents a multiple record view.
  • Global Search-and-Replace
    Global changes are performed easily throughout one or all data fields in the database, allowing one-step changes of repetitive misspellings, etc.
  • Data Sorting
    Data may be reordered for viewing, editing, and reporting based on one or more of the data fields.
  • Reporting Facilities
    A report generator allows the user to generate a hardcopy of data in a variety of formats. Existing dBASE report (.FRM) forms may also be used to generate reports.
  • Label Generator
    Labels may be generated as new records are added or in a batch from existing data. The label generator is especially useful for creating artifact labels.
  • Selectable Editing Modes
    An administrator-selectable editing feature determines whether a user may modify any record in the database, modify only records added during the current session, or only have the ability to add new records without modifying existing data. This can prevent inexperienced data-entry personnel from modifying existing data while allowing them to add new information to the dataset.
• Data Formatting Options
  Data fields may be formatted with the following special options to facilitate the entry process:
  • Automatic Data Carry-Over
    Eliminates the need to re-enter data which has not changed from the previous record. Similar to the dBASE SET CARRY feature.
  • Automatic Counter Fields
    Counter fields provide automatically incrementing values for catalog numbers, item numbers, etc., as new records are appended.
  • Automatic Date and Time Values
    Inserts the system date or time into a field automatically as new records are appended.
  • Upper/Lower Case Formatting
    Automatically converts all data entered into a field into upper or lower case.
  • Menu Selection Only
    Automatically displays the field's pop-up menu and restricts input to selections from that menu.
  • Individual Field Locks
    Protects specific fields from being modified by individual edits and global search-and-replaces.

System Requirements

Lab Assistant requires an IBM PC / XT / AT / PS/2 or true compatible, MS/PC-DOS Version 3.1 or higher, 512K RAM, and 1 to 2 RS-232C Serial Ports (optional). A hard disk is recommended.