Local Information System - Enquiry walk-through
We have produced the following screen shots using Windows Vista, but the system runs under many different versions of Windows.
This is the initial screen shown when an adviser first starts the system.
Note that the 'Local news' and 'Government information' buttons are 'soft' buttons that you can re-label and redefine to do different things depending on your needs or - if you don't need them - you can hide them.
To search the local information database you enter some text in the box at the top left and click the 'Search' button. For example, searching for "advocacy" shows this screen:
Note that the search finds the word "advocacy" even if it is not the first word of the title. It can also match items that do not have the word "Advocacy" in the title if we have created alternative search terms for the item; for example, you can find the ICAS entry by searching for "Health". You can search for parts of words; for example "advoc" will find items containing "advocacy" and "advocate". You can also search for multiple terms so "surrey carers" will find "Mid-Surrey Young Carers Project".
In the above list, Advocacy Partners is highlighted with an icon and is shown at the top of the list. That's because the information system coordinator has marked it as 'Popular'.
The results of the search are displayed in a simplified web browser (It's actually Microsoft's Internet Explorer but with fewer buttons). You can expand any item to see all the text by clicking the triangle to the left of an item:
We can now see the infomation we hold about Advocacy Partners. Note the reference to our paper files where we hold leaflets and brochures. There is also a link to the AP home page; clicking the link shows:
Note that we have resized the screen to show more information by dragging the bottom right corner.
We can also refer to documents held on our server. Here's the technical overview for the local information system displayed in Adobe Acrobat inside the local information window:
To see even more on screen we have clicked the little thumb tack icon at the bottom of the normal enquiry screen to hide the search buttons at the left. Moving your mouse to the left edge of the screen brings them back when you need them. Clicking the thumbtack icon again keeps them displayed.
The buttons at the top of the screen allow us move forwards and backwards between pages just like you can with any browser so we can go back to the list of matched items and try another one. You can even use forward and back buttons and the scroll wheel on your mouse if you have them.
The system also has a tool that blocks advertising pop-ups and a 'zoom' tool so you can increase or decrease the size of text and graphics on web pages and result lists. For example, here's the AP page zoomed to 70%:
This feature requires Internet Explorer 7 or later. If you use a previous version of Internet Explorer, the Zoom tool is replaced by a text sizing tool.
Clicking the 'Zoom' icon at the bottom left of the screen displays this screen:
This allows you to resize the buttons and text at the left of the screen - useful for people with weak vision or users of high resolution displays.
Returning to the main screen...
The technical overview manual explains how you can tailor the appearance of the search screen including font used, size and colour without having to change the enquiry program.
You can use the enquiry screen as a normal web browser by entering web addresses at the top right of the page. You can also search the internet by entering search terms and clicking the 'Internet search' button. For example, a search for "epsom ewell CAB" reveals:
Note that we use Microsoft's search tool because it is good for local information. You can, however, use any search tool you like (Google, for example) without having to change the program.
The enquiry system comes with help text that brings up help relevant to the currently highlighted item. Pressing F1 with the search button highlighted displays:
You can also search the help for the assistance you need.
Click here to get more information about the system and find out how you can get hold of a copy of the software.
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