Record Linkage Projects. All record linkage work is done in the context of linkage projects. All active record linkage projects are listed on this tab. All data tables for a project are deleted when you delete the project so be sure to create an archive copy before you do. Give each project a short, meaningful name that consists of only letters and numbers, without special characters. Each new project is created for either the Access JET Data Provider or the SQL Server Data Provider, depending on which you specify on the Options Tab. If you specify Access JET as Data Provider, all data tables for the project are built in Access databases (*.mdb) in a local folder with the same name as the project. Multiple databases are created because of size limitations in Access. The default location for the project folder is the same as the default location for new databases (Access Options > General). You can change the location of a new project to a different local folder before you open it for the first time. Click on the Project Location for the project and navigate to the desired folder in the Select Folder dialog. You cannot change the location of a project after it has been opened but you can copy a project to a different location. Do not create a project on a network drive -- it causes excessive network traffic. If you specify SQL Server as Data Provider, all data tables for the project are built on the server in a single database. The server and database must be identified as an ODBC data source in a System DSN named SQL_STMT (Control Panel > Administrative Tools). Specify Windows NT Authentication for the DSN. You may want to change databases for different projects so that data tables for a new project do not overwrite data tables for an old project. An Access Data Project (*.adp) is created in the default project folder and connected to the specified SQL Server database. Provide information requested by the New Connection dialog. When you re-open a project Access links and queries are recreated from stored specifications. This can take a few minutes depending on how much work was done earlier.
Auto Pilot Flights. The Auto Pilot follows a prescribed flight plan and displays a description of each step in the process. The descriptions are logged automatically and can be reviewed in a report after the Auto Pilot flight is complete. You can Pause (and Resume) or Stop the Auto Pilot while any description is displayed by clicking on the appropriate command button. If you stop the Auto Pilot be sure to delete the CrashTest80 project created the by Auto Pilot. Do not try to do other work on the computer while the Auto Pilot is running -- the Auto Pilot might get lost. This is a live demonstration of record linkage, not just a display of pre-established results. Afterward, you can open and review the CrashTest80 project. The CrashTest80 project simulates creation and linkage of police accident reports (Crash records), ambulance run reports (EMS records), and acute care treatment reports (Hospital records).