To add choices to the Dam and Sire menus, you first need to tell FlockFiler Lite which of your sheep are eligible to be dams or sires. On the sheep that you want in these menus, check the box Breeder on the "Basic" screen. These sheep are now on the menus for Dam or Sire.

What if I don't know the dam and/or sire of the sheep?

If you don't have information about the dam and/or sire, check the Is Unknown box that corresponds to the Dam or Sire.

What if the dam and/or sire for my sheep are not owned by me?

If you know the ancestry of your sheep it is not appropriate to check the Is Unknown checkbox for the Dam or Sire. Instead, create records for the Dam and Sire. On their Status, select "Never on Farm" to indicate that they are in your database to complete your ancestry records. You can now use these records for dam and sire as choices for your sheep records. Don't forget to enter the Breed values for the new dam and sire records on the "Advanced" screen.

What if my sheep gets a replacement or a second tag?

There is no need to erase the old tag. Type in the new tag before the old one in the Tag (s) field. The old tag will then be underneath it on a different line. Do this as often as you need for any additional tags. The top line will be taken as the primary tag and used in the sheep lists and reports. It is a good idea to keep the old tag information in there so that you can still find the sheep if you only know its old tag number from an old printout or other past record.

I don't feel like entering each individual lamb into the database as a separate record. Can I just note the lambs born on the ewe's record?

Yes, you can just note each lambing as a Log Entry on the ewe's record. But that will be very limiting in the long term. The "Sibs./Offspring" screen will not be automatically filled in and it will be tedious to determine how many lambs were born in total to that sheep. Doing analysis to evaluate the productivity of your ewes will be more difficult. Additionally you will lose the automatic association of these lambs with the sire's record.

The practice of entering a separate record for each lamb is highly recommended because it allows FlockFiler Lite to have enough information to do the maximum analysis and correlation work for you. Plus, if you decide to upgrade to FlockFiler Pro, the records will be more easily transferred and even more powerful analysis will be available.

I don't need photos of my sheep in the computer. Can I use the Photo field for anything else?

Sure. Instead of an image of a sheep, you can put any image in there. You might find it useful to scan in an important document such as a page of the sheep's registration papers and put that in there. The scan won't be legible at that small size on the screen, but it is there for archival purposes. When you need it later, you can copy it out of the Photo field and paste it into an image program to print it out full size again.

The Photo field is not just for images. It is a multimedia Container field. It can hold sounds and QuickTime movies too. For maximum flexibility, you will want to install Apple's free QuickTime multimedia software. Installers for Microsoft Windows or Macintosh are found at the QuickTime webpage.

Printing

My list printouts have some message at the top and it doesn't properly describe my list. How do I get rid of this or change what its says?

This message is referred to as the "Header Text". You can edit this on the Reports screen to make it say whatever you want. Push the "Clear Header" button on the Reports screen if you want no message to appear at the top of your list.

The List-finding Reports will automatically type in the Header Text appropriate to the list for that report. This message will persist until you manually change it.

Configuration

How do I add to or edit the selection of breeds?

Go to the "Admin. Area". The choices for breeds are listed one per line under Breeds.

How do I edit the Specific Location menu?

This menu will create itself automatically from the locations that you enter. To enter a new location, click twice in the field. The first click will bring up the menu. The second will let you type in your own value. The next time you use the menu, your new value will appear in it.

I am a manager for at least two flocks of sheep and I want to use FlockFiler Lite on two or more computers at the same time. Can I use my same license code on each one?

No. The FlockFiler Lite license is for one working installation on one computer at a time. If you want to install it on two computers, you need to purchase a second license and use a second Registration Code.

Can I network FlockFiler Lite with another computer so that I can work with it from more than one location?

Yes and no. "Out-of-the box" FlockFiler Lite isn't a networkable database. But if you have two copies of FileMaker Pro version 5, 5.5, or 6 from FileMaker Inc., you can use it to read and serve up the FlockFiler Lite files. The first copy of FileMaker Pro would be the server and the second copy would be the client. You can have multiple clients and have full remote access over a local network or even over the Internet. One license of FileMaker Pro 7 has an MSRP of $299 but can usually be purchased for around $250. At present, FileMaker Pro is at version 7. Earlier versions are no longer being produced. You will need to find FileMaker Pro version 5, 5.5, or 6 to read and use FlockFiler Lite in this networked way.

An alternate solution is to use some sort of general remote access software that lets you work as if you were sitting in front of another computer. A good example would be the free program VNC. By running a VNC server on the computer that has FlockFiler Lite, you can run a VNC client on any number of other computers and interact with FlockFiler Lite.

Be very careful about other possible networking solutions. Sharing files is an alternative that can easily lead to disaster. If you share the contents of the hard drive between two different computers by using a network and you run the same FlockFiler Lite files on two computers at the same time, you will do irreparable damage to that copy. FlockFiler Lite is a single-user distribution.

Assorted

I am on an unfamiliar screen. How do I navigate back to someplace familiar?

This most often occurs when you Cancel out of some action. You are left on whatever working screen the activity needed. To provide yourself with on-screen buttons, you need to be in Browse Mode. If you are in Preview Mode commonly used by Reports designed for print, you won't have access to the navigational buttons. Switch to Browse mode by choosing Browse Mode from the View menu at the top of the screen. You can now use the "Home" or "Reports" button to go to the corresponding screen.

If you get too confused, you can always quit FlockFiler Lite and start it up again. It will start fresh at the Home screen and all your prior editing will be preserved.

My on-screen buttons no longer work and the screen appearance isn't what I'm used to seeing. What do I do?

You are probably in Preview Mode. Preview Mode is used to preview what the information would look like if you printed it out. This most often occurs when you Cancel out of a Report. Switch to Browse mode by choosing Browse Mode from the View menu at the top of the screen.

How do I uninstall FlockFiler Lite?

If you used the Windows Installer, run the installer program again and choose the Uninstall option.

In all other installations, simply delete the folder that contains FlockFiler Lite. If you used the Mac OS X Installer Package, this folder will be in Applications. If you used the archived folder method of installation, the folder is where you placed it.

How do I make a graph or bar chart of some of the information in FlockFiler Lite?

FlockFiler Lite does not have any built-in capability to make graphs or charts. You can make graphs or charts by exporting your information into a file and then using another program to graph the information in that file. If you do not have a dedicated chart or graph making program, many spreadsheet programs have some graphing/charting capability built-in.

I am retiring from the sheep business and selling my entire flock to another farm. Can I give or sell them my FlockFiler Lite license?

No. The license for FlockFiler Lite is not transferrable. You may provide the buyer with your FlockFiler Lite files, but you must Unregister FlockFiler Lite before giving them a copy. Do this by pushing the "View Registration" button on the Home screen and then push the "Unregister" button to remove your license information and place FlockFiler Lite into Demonstration Mode. The new buyer may then purchase a license and type in their own Registration Code.

FlockFiler Lite and FlockFiler Pro are products of Cosmic Consulting.
info@flockfiler.com (540) 888-0008

FlockFiler Lite | FlockFiler Pro | Download | Support | Purchase