Options and Setup Dialog
There are several options that you
can set up that will affect the way DairyLive computes and
presents certain information. You set these options through the
Options and Setup dialog. To get to this dialog, select
View->Options and Setup from the main menu.
This dialog is divided into
several pages. They are:
- General
- Language
- Farm
Information
- Lists
and Reports
- Explorer
Click on the tab that corresponds
to which category you are interested in.
- Milk Price
- This is the current price for
milk per hundred units of weight (either pounds or
kilograms). DairyLive uses this number to compute actual
or projected milk values. The price you enter should
include any usual premiums or penalties.
- Gestation Time
- This is the average time from
breeding to delivery of the young. DairyLive uses this
number to compute expected calving or kidding dates.
- Normal Lactation
- This is the usual number of
days from freshening to dry-off. DairyLive uses this
value to compute dry-off events and total expected
production numbers.
- Preferred Dry Time
- This is the number of days
that you would like between an animal's dry-off date and
next calving. DairyLive uses this value to compute
dry-off reminder dates.
-
- Voluntary Waiting Period
- This is the number of days
that you normally wait after an animal freshens before
beginning attempts to get her pregnant again. DairyLive
uses this value to compute which cows are eligible for
breeding. The default is 45 days.
-
- Milkings Per Day
- Enter the number of times you
milk each day. DairyLive uses this value to estimate milk
weights for missing milking data.
-
- Animal Identification
- If you give your animals
names (like "Betsy", "Gloria", etc.)
select By Name. If you use numbers, select By Number. In
either case, the name or number is the common
"identifier" for an animal.
-
- Measurements
- DairyLive can use either
English or metric measurements. Select which one you want
to use.
- Average DIM at Lactation
Peak
- This is the DIM (days in
milk) that is the average peak lactation for your herd.
You can provide different values for the first lactation
and later lactations. DairyLive uses this value to
compute projected production data.
- Average % Production
Decrease Per Month After Peak
- After the lactation peaks,
this value represents the average percentage of peak
production that the production decreases each month until
dry-off. DairyLive uses this value to compute projected
production data.
- Remind Me to Backup My
Herd Database
- It is very important that you
backup your herd database regularly. If there is a
hardware failure (such as a disk crash) or something
happens to corrupt your herd database, you will be unable
to access your data and you will have to re-enter
everything. By checking this box, you can have DairyLive
remind you to backup your data at periodic intervals. We
recommend that you backup your data at least once a week.
- Show Me Current Reminders for All Animals
on Startup
- If you check this box, DairyLive will
display a list of all reminders when you start up the program.
- At Startup...
- Here you can select what you want DairyLive
to do upon startup: 1) automatically open the last herd; 2) show the
general welcome page; or 3) do nothing.
- Currency
- Select the monetary symbol you want to use from
the list or type in your own.
- Language
- Choose either English or
Spanish. If you change to a different language, you
should restart DairyLive in order for all of the menus
and dialog boxes to be refreshed.
The items on this page should be
self-explanatory. Currently DairyLive does not use this
information except for the Herd ID.
- Show Grid Lines in Printed
Lists
- When you print a list, this
option will determine whether grid lines separate the
columns and rows. Using grid lines may take slightly more
space on the printed page, but may make the lists easier
to read.
-
- Include Extra Blank Column
in Printed Lists
- This option will cause an
extra blank column to appear in printed lists. This may
be useful for making written notes next to each animal on
the printed output.
- Use Colors in Printed Lists
- This option will cause colors to be used when printing a list or certain reports.
If you have a color printer, you should select this.
- Animal Detail Report
Options
- Select which items you want
to be shown in printed animal detail reports. See Animal
Details View and List
View.
- Show Barn Name/Number Next to Scatter
Points
- If this is checked, DairyLive will display
the barn name or number next to each point in a scatter
graph report.
You can customize the columns that
are shown in the Explorer for your animals. Up to eight
properties can be displayed. The list on the left side shows all
possible properties, and the list on the right side shows the
ones that are selected for display in the Explorer. To move an
item from one side to another, select it and then press one of
the arrow buttons. The order of items on the right side can be
adjusted using the Up and Down buttons.
- See Also
- Maintaining
Your Herd Database