Re: Database Editor Reply to Jim

Marsha,

Is your software vendor unable to do anything more for you? It seems odd
that they would just give up and leave you hanging like this. I know that
everybody on this list would keep at it until you were happy. That's just
the way these folks are.

If the software that you are using comes from that government software
vendor in Florida, I know that there are lots of entities out there that use
it. Have you tried contacting any of the other jurisdictions in Florida
through the software users group? That's where I'd try first. If you strike
out, contact me off-line. I know some people who use the package and might
be willing to help you.

Paul Nelson
Arbor Solutions, Inc.
708-670-6978 Cell
708-923-7354 Home
pnelson@xxxxxxxxxx

----- Original Message -----
From: "Marsha Barton" <marsha.barton@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2003 9:43 AM
Subject: Database Editor Reply to Jim


> Jim,
>
> I looked and DB2Query Mgr and SQL DevKit for AS/400 is not currently
installed on our system (thank you so much for the info on checking that, it
really helped).  I'm checking to see if it could be installed. Our O/S
version is 4.5.  It's the Case Numbers that need to be changed, to match the
new State of Florida mandated Case Number format.  Each client has a Master
List number (the primary key) and under that ML#, the individual case
information resides. There is a separate record created for each case and
various tables record case information, payment information, community
service hours completed, etc.  A client could have one case or twenty cases,
depending upon how many times he/she has come into contact with the Criminal
Justice system. We administer several programs including Pre-Trial Release,
Pre-Trial Community Supervision, Mediation, Pre-Trial Diversion, Probation,
Drug Court and Community Service.
>
> Since we began using this software in '91, there has been a lot of
"creativity" in regards to Case Numbers, not to mention the fact that the
Clerk of Court has changed Case Number formats several times over the years
as well.  The NEW format looks like this: 052003MM012345A.  The first two
characters are the County Code (unique to each Florida county), the next
four are the four-digit year, the next two characters are the Case Type code
(could be MM for Misdemeanor, MO for Municipal Ordinance, etc.) then comes
the 6-digit assigned case number, and the final character is a Defendant
Identifier, usually an A, but there can be a defendant B, etc. when multiple
defendants commit the same crime together (doesn't happen often with
Misdemeanor cases).
>
> When we first started using this software, every program had it's own
method of assigning case numbers, so we have ALL kinds of creativity that
happened in the past, and those numbers need to be converted to the standard
format (above) that has been mandated for all Florida counties.  The old
case numbers could look like 99-123456MMA (one of the old Probation formats)
or 99-CV123456 (old Mediation format) or 01011957A (old Pre-Trial Release
format that used the client's DOB for a case number because a Case Number
had not yet been assigned) and so forth. We started using the new mandated
format in January of 2000, and since then, have been working on converting
all the old case numbers to the new format.
>
> For $7,000, our software vendor created and ran some sort of program that
converted approx. 90,000 numbers, but the remaining 20,000 were ones that
had typos or mistakes, etc.  Somebody may have put a "/" where a "-" should
have been or left out the "-" all together, etc.  Some of the old Probation
cases have MM instead of MMA.  Some of the old Pre-Trial Release numbers had
"/" or "-" and weren't supposed to have any special characters in them.
Anything odd or out of the ordinary in a Case Number kept it from being
converted, which means that that case number now has to be converted
manually.
>
> As you can guess, it has been a MAJOR undertaking.  The thing is that even
though the vendor could not convert those 20,000 numbers, I am able to see
some consistencies among them - I can spot 10 or 20 or 50 that have the SAME
mistake or difference and it would be a HUGE advantage to be able to convert
those in a group somehow. The big problem is my inexperience.  I've never
written a program and don't even know how to get started.  The AS/400 admin
that we'd had since we bought the first system left the County last year.  I
was just a regular clerical worker/secretary who was her emergency backup.
I knew how to change/initialize backup tapes, reset user passwords, restart
printers and how to call IBM for emergencies - that made me the resident
"expert" so the job was offered to me.  I've been struggling since then to
keep my head above water and keep the system functioning. I have been a PC
user for 12 years, but with no administrative responsibilities.  The AS/400
box was!
>  totally foreign to me, outside of being a simple user of the software.
Our department totally subsists off of the Program Fees that clients pay, no
General Funds are available to us. Therefore, no money is available for any
type of training.  I've purchased books that I don't have time to read and
even when I do read them, I don't understand much of what they are saying. I
guess this places me up the proverbial creek without a paddling device!
>
> Marsha Barton
> Criminal Justice Services
> 1040 S. Florida Ave.
> Rockledge, FL 32955
> (321) 633-2006 Ext. 52330
>
> Please make note of new email address:
> marsha.barton@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
>
>
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