View source for User manual for FARLAB orders and sample database

'''General considerations'''

In general, all changes made in the database take effect immediately. There is no undo button. Some additions can not be deleted. Therefore, use the database with care. In particular, when you are a new user. Clicking on a column header will sort by that column, click again to reverse the order. Some tables can be filtered, the filtering will only hide some rows in the browser display, and will not affect the underlying database.


'''Projects - view, add and edit FARLAB projects'''

The most common task is to create and edit a FARLAB project. Projects have a unique identifier that carries over to associated samples. The database will set an identifier as the project is created. New projects require that the corresponding customer has been created. In case of a new customer, start adding this information first. Projects belong to one of FARLAB's components. The sample state is used to track when samples are at FARLAB, in processing, or have left FARLAB. Because of the potential dependencies across other tables, projects can not be deleted from the database once they have been created. However, all aspects except the FARLAB ID can be changed freely.

{| class="wikitable"
!Table columns !! Example !! Description
|-
|FARLAB ID
|-
|Customer
|-
|Component
|-
|Operator
|-
|Date in
|-
|Date out
|-
|Project
|-
|Funding
|-
|Samples
|-
|Analysis
|-
|Total Price
|-
|Billing
|-
|Sample status
|-
|Comment
|}

'''Customers - view, add and edit instrument users and sample providers'''

If projects are carried out for customers outside of FARLAB, or when new people join FARLAB, their details have to be specified in the Customer table, such that they become available as an option in the table Projects. It is possible but not required to enter the customer's address or payment details in the comment field.

{| class="wikitable"
!Table columns  !! Example !! Description
|-
|Date
|-
|First name
|-
|Last name
|-
|Email
|-
|Comment
|}

'''Operators - view, add and edit instrument and database operators'''

All projects have an operator specified that takes care of handling the samples, updating the project information and so on. When new people join FARLAB, their details have to be added to the Operators table.

{| class="wikitable"
!Table columns  !! Example !! Description
|-
|Date
|-
|First name
|-
|Last name
|-
|Email
|-
|Initials
|-
|Comment
|}

'''Analyses - view, add and edit analysis data and pricing'''

Samples within a project are assigned a certain analysis. Analyses depend on the sample type, the FARLAB component, and affect which instrument will be used. The chosen analysis is also the basis for estimating and calculating the total cost of a project. In case that new analyses become available, they need to be added in the table Analyses.

{| class="wikitable"
!Table columns  !! Example !! Description
|-
|Name
|-
|Price
|-
|Component
|-
|Description
|-
|Comment
|}

'''Standards - view, add and edit water standards'''

The table Standards contains reference information about past and current water isotope standards in use at FARLAB. In addition to local laboratory standards, we collect information about the standards used in other laboratories, for example when laboratory intercomparisons have been made.

'''Instruments - view, add and edit instruments'''

The Instruments table collects basic information, mainly about field-deployable instrumentation. New instruments have to be added to this table. The instrument information is required for specifying bookings associated with a project (see next table).

{| class="wikitable"
!Table columns  !! Example !! Description
|-
|Purchase date
|-
|FARLAB name
|-
|Manufacturer
|-
|Type
|-
|Serial number
|-
|Component
|-
|Weight
|-
|Size
|-
|Description
|-
|Comment
|}

'''Bookings - view, add and edit instrument bookings'''

Instruments listed in the instruments table can be booked for some time periods, in association with a project. This can either be for the purpose of sample processing at FARLAB, or for taking the instrument to a field location. The description field should be used to specify the purpose. The Bookings table will give an indication for billing in case of time-based cost calculations.

'''Samples - view, add and edit sample lists'''

Liquid water samples for a given project should be added to table Samples. It is most efficient to upload a table in the "Accounting" csv format of FLIIMP result files (*,sample_name,farlabid,*,run,*,runfilename), where (*) indicates an ignored column. The project to which samples will belong needs to be created first. The analysis specified in a project will carry over to the imported samples.

'''Runs (not yet implemented) - view, add and edit run data'''

Liquid water analysis on the Picarro analyzers produces run files which will be kept in table Runs in a forthcoming version of the FARLAB projects database.

'''Results - view, add and edit results data'''

Calibrated results of liquid water analysis on the Picarro analyzers with the software FLIIMP are kept in the table Results. It is possible to specify individual records, but most efficient to import the "Calibrated" csv format from FLIIMP, with the columns (*,sample_name,farlabid,--isotope parameters--), where (*) indicates an ignored column.

'''Metadata - view, add and edit sample metadata'''

Samples in the sample list can be associated with additional data, specified in table Metadata. This information should only be collected for internal or collaboration projects, where FARLAB should have access to sample metadata. The information in tables Samples, Results, and Metadata will in the future provide the basis for a netCDF export functionality directly from the database.