Link Rota FAQ

What if the information is incorrectly updated? How can we recover?

What's on this page?
This page contains information primarily targeted at folks who are helping regularly at the link. The major feature is the rota, the complete list of everyone who is helping on a week by week basis, and in which capacity they are helping. The system allows you not only to see who is helping, it allows online changes to the information (if you need to swap with someone, for example) and it allows you to search for specific names (to see when you are helping, for example).

How can I see what I have signed up for?
On the screen, there is a field which says "EnterNameHere", with a button next to it saying "Search by Name" - enter your name where it says "EnterNameHere" and then click the "Search By Name" button - the rota screen will reappear, and everywhere your name appears, your name will be in red, bold letters, easy to spot.
Note: It is possible that you will be warned that your name is hidden - see the topic on searching in a hidden column for more information.

How can I print this out for my reference?
Your browser should have a print option which you can use, typically under the "File" menu.

There's too much information - how can I only see what I want to see?
You can hide any column you want by clicking in the box at the top of the column and the clicking the "Hide checked columns" button (just above the rota). You may select as many columns as you want before clicking the "Hide checked columns" button - when the table reappears, the columns will no longer appear on your screen. You may choose additional columns to hide - columns already hidden will stay hidden, with the newly selected columns also becoming hidden.

Now that I've hidden some information, how can I see everything again?
Whenever there are hidden columns, there will be a button labeled "Show all columns" next to the "Hide checked columns" button (Note: if you do not see this button, try hiding one or more columns and then looking for it. If there are no hidden columns, the "Show all columns" button does not appear.) Click on the "Show all columns" button and the entire rota will appear.

What if I search for something in a hidden column?
If you search for an entry, and the entry appears in a column which is not currently being display, the following warning will appear at the bottom of the rota:

Warning: Entries matching "xxx" appear in hidden columns. Hit "Show all columns", then search again, to see them.

Hit the "Show all columns" button and repeat the search.

How can I sign up for a slot?
To sign up, click the "Update Table" button. This will bring you to a screen where you will see the entire rota (all columns will be shown, even normally hidden columns) in a format where every item can be edited. Choose the area where you want to help and for which no one has yet signed up - normally indicated by a "?" in that entry - and type your name there. Change as many entries as you wish, then choose the "Submit changes" button to save your changes.
You will be returned to the normal view of the rota, with your changes incorporated.

How can I swap with someone?
Click on the "Update Table" button to view the rota where all the entries can be edited. Simply change the entries where you want to make the swap (assuming you've spoken to the people involved!) and then hit "Submit changes".
Please do not remove your name from a slot unless you have notified that person in charge of that area first!

How can I add information to the rota (new weeks)?
Hit the "Update Table" button - underneath the rota, there will be a line which says "Add 0 new rows", with the 0 in a box - you can change the 0 to be any number you wish, and that many additional rows will be added to the rota (after you hit "Submit changes"). You may then edit these to indicate new weeks and may start filling in the rota for these new weeks.
Similarly, after hitting the "Update Table" button, next to each row will be a checkbox. If this is selected and you hit "Submit changes", then any selected row will be deleted. This is handy for clearing old entries out of the rota!

How can I add jobs to the rota (new columns)?
If you wish to add a new task (or tasks) to the rota, hit the "Update Table" button, then look at the bottom of the rota - there will be a row of entries like 0^, where you can change the 0 to be any number you wish - after hitting "Submit changes", new columns will have been added wherever you entered a non-zero number. You should then fill in a meaningful title for the column and start filling in the information for that area.

What if the information is incorrectly updated? How can we recover?
Each time you make a change to the rota, a backup copy of the rota is saved (to reduce the number of backup copies, only one backup copy per day is saved.) If there is a problem and the rota file is either lost or hopelessly corrupt, send mail to the rota maintainer and request that the rota be reverted to the prior day's version. This change will be done as soon as possible and you will be notified when it is safe to edit the rota again.