Section 1. Accessing the data entry page
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• When I go to the login page, I get a message saying "WARNING: YOU MUST ENABLE JAVASCRIPT TO USE THE DATA ENTRY PAGE. What does it mean and what should I do?
• When I go to the login page, I get a message saying "WARNING: YOU MUST ALLOW COOKIES TO USE THE DATA ENTRY PAGE. What does it mean and what should I do?
• What web browser should I use?
• Where can I get my atlasser number?
• I tried to login for the first time, and I am asked for a password. How do I know what it is?
• I have my atlasser number and I tried using my postal code as a password, but the login still fails.
• I forgot my password. How can I recover it?
• Can I store my login information so that I don't have to provide it each time I want to enter/review data?
• How can I be sure that cookies are enabled on my computer?
• I click on many links or buttons and nothing happens. What's going on?
• The page does not fit into my screen and I have to scroll from left to right to view the rest of the page. How can I change this?

Section 2. Personal information
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• How can I change my contact information or my password?
• I do not want to receive the newsletter by email. Why is it important to provide my email address anyway?
• How are you going to use my personal information?
• On the personal information review page, there are 3 drop down lists: status, assistants and squares. What are they?
• I have changed my list of squares or assistants, but the new ones don't appear in the drop-down lists on the review page.

Section 3. Before you start entering data
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• I try clicking on one of the forms to enter data, but I am being told that I must select a square first. Why and how?
• Can I enter data for a square, even if I have not been assigned to it?
• I did some observations away from my region. How can I find out what square number these were in?
• I have defined my square, but it still doesn't show in the drop-down list on the first page.
• If I enter my data online, should I also send the paper forms to the Regional Coordinator?
• What else should I know about data entry?
• If I send my data using paper forms, will they also be available for reviewing online?
• When I try printing the page, I cannot see the right hand-side of it.

Section 4. Error messages
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• What are the different types of errors and what do they mean?

  There are at least 3 different types of error messages that you may encounter when using the pages. The first type, the data checking errors, will normally come as a pop-up window with a message saying that, for example, the data you've just typed is outside the allowed range, or that it does not match some other information elsewhere on the page. Most of these messages should be self-explanatory. Some prevent you from entering invalid data. Others are only intended as a warning and will ask you if you still want to keep those data. If you cannot enter data that you know to be valid, please contact us and we will look into it.

  The second type will normally appear in a different color on the page after you have submitted data. This could be for example because you've tried entering an invalid square number (you may also get messages that are not errors, simply to tell you that the data have been processed successfully).

  Finally, other types of errors will bring up a page saying "There has been an error processing your request". As soon as you reach that page, the program will generate an email to tell us about the error so we can try to fix it immediately. That message will tell us what error has just occurred as well as provide us with information that will help us determine why that error has happened. Each error have a unique reference number that you can use if you have any question or additional details.

• "Your session has expired or has been closed. You need to log in again"

  This is probably because you have not accessed the site (by clicking a link or submitting data) for a period exceeding 30 minutes. Any data that you've try sending at that point has not been saved. So, if you start entering data and need to leave your computer for an undetermined period of time, you must make sure that you submit or save your data first.

• "Sorry! You have exceeded the number of failed login attempts. You will be able to try again in 30 minutes."

  If you try to log in with an incorrect password on 3 consecutive occasions, the your login will temporarily be frozen (for a period of 30 minutes). After 30 minutes you should be able to try again. If you cannot remember your password, you can refer to this question.

• "The page requested does not exist"

  You should normally not see this error and we will look into it if it happens. However, you must make sure that you only use the links provided on the page to navigate the site. Do not try to link directly (through favorites or a bookmark) to any pages other than this one: www.mba-aom.ca/jsp/login.jsp

• "Objects are not loaded in memory"

  This error most likely to happen if you use the BACK and FORWARD buttons on your browser instead of the links or buttons within the page itself. When you do that, the server will receive data from pages that it did not expect and will not have all the information to process your request. This is why you should always move between pages with the links and buttons provided within the pages.

• "No user information was found"

  The reasons for this error are the same as for the error explained above (see this question.

• "You cannot edit this form because it is being "locked" by another user"

  In some cases, we, or a Regional Coordinator, may need to access your data to review or revise them. Because of the way the Internet works, we need to lock the data while somebody is working on it, so that 2 people do not try to overwrite data that has just been modified by somebody else. Normally, the lock is removed when the other person has finished working with the data, or after 30 minutes of inactivity. The lock will also prevent Regional Coordinators from modifying your form if you are working on it.

• "Sorry! Data Entry has been temporarily disabled by one of the administrators of this site."

  Occasionally, we will need to turn off access to the data entry site to allow for normal site maintenance operations. In most instances, access will resume within approximately one hour, although we may occasionally require up to a few hours. In cases when we anticipate longer delays, we will inform participants (ahead of time if possible) through the web site and the Atlas Listserv.

• "The login has just been disabled by an administrator. Your current session will be terminated within 30 minutes."

  This message, when displayed at the top of every page within the data entry site, means that the site administrator has just turned off the access to the data entry and will terminate all active sessions within approximately 30 minutes.  When you see this message, please log out of data entry site and come back a little later. (Also see this question.)

Section 5. Entering data
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• I have entered data, but when I returned to the page, it was not there anymore. What happened?
• What is the Reset button and what does it do? I click on it and nothing seems to happen.
• I cannot find a species that I have observed on the list that is displayed. Where is it?
• I accidentally entered data under the wrong square number, but I cannot change the number on the form! Do I have to start all over again?
• When I use Internet Explorer, there is a long delay when I try to move among the fields within the form.
• I can now see online the data that I have submitted on paper, but there are some errors. How can I correct them?
• I have submitted data on paper forms, but I don't see it online. What happened?
• There are now several entries for the same person(s) in my list of assistants. How can I fix this?

Section 6. Breeding Evidence Form
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• What is the list of assistants and can I modify it or add a new person?
• I try to enter a visit number, but I get a message saying that it is not a valid number. What does that mean?
• I am upgrading the breeding status of a species that I have reported previously. Should I also change the visit number?
• On the species pages, I enter a visit number, but it is not saved when I save the data. Why is that?
• On the species page, why are some species displayed in a different color or with a symbol?
• What should I do if I have read through the instructions, and the FAQs and I still need help entering my data?

Section 7. Point Count Form
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• Why can I only select the months from May to July?
• Why do I get a warning when I try entering the time of the point count.
• I have moved the location of one of my designated point counts, but I cannot enter both the point number and the new coordinates. Why is that?
• In the "Coordinates" box, what does "GPS, Map and Web" mean?
• How can I find the coordinates of my point count?
• What does NAD83 and NAD27 mean?
• Where can I find the habitat codes?
• If I know my habitat codes, can I enter them directly on the point count form?
• Why are some species displayed with color comments?
• How can I enter a species that is not listed on the form?
• Can I use the list of additional species to enter all my records?

Section 8. Rare/Colonial Bird Form
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• I can see the Rare/Colonial Bird Form that I submitted on paper, with the site information, but the Site and Species Description sections are all blank.