Step one: Define the necessary custom codes in ShipWeight, to at least cover information needed in reports and database transmittal.

The needed codes should be defined into ShipWeight custom codes C01, C02, etc…   The codes would preferable in ShipWeight be defined as listbox type (will give a selection droplist in ShipWeight containing the options for each code when filling in data) or of type combobox (will give a droplist, but also the possibility to enter in free text), or a combination of listbox and combobox.

To define custom codes, please see or user guide or our knowledgebase article

http://www.shipweight.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73:the-code-definition-dialog&catid=29:settings-code-definitions&Itemid=35

Tip: Whenever you define something in ShipWeight it is a good habit to always go to the line below to “enter” or “confirm” the information in the line you have input data to.

Step two: Get your weight data into ShipWeight

Once the custom codes are defined, the task is to get the weight items into ShipWeight and this is usually through:

• Manual input, typically weight take off from drawing
• Import from generic files such as Excel, Access or text files

If you do manual input, you need to know how to navigate through the SWBS, this can be done in three ways:

1. Selecting the appropriate SWBS group in the main window and open up items dialog
2. Selecting/Changing the SWBS group directly in the item dialog by opening up the navigation three and select SWBS group
3. Use the “quick change” by selecting the SWBS (type it in) in the weight group field in the toolbar in to item dialog.  In this field you can also use the wildcard % to select multiple (or all) weight groups in the item dialog.  This way you can load many weight groups into the item dialog at the same time and also get several weight groups to select from in weight group droplist when entering in new items.

Tips: Using the TAB-key is a convenient way to move around in the items dialog, both in weight items area and toolbar

If you do file import through excel or text files you can define import definition files (*.swi) to accommodate to the files you need to import.

You can set up one SWI file for each “source” you need to import.  It is a good idea to take a look at the step-by-step import example that is described in ShipWeight user manual, or you can check our knowledge base:

http://www.shipweight.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=47:import-data-from-a-spreadsheet&catid=33:import-data&Itemid=38

Tips: If you are missing some SWBS groups or want to rename them, see the user manual on how to change the SWBS structure.  NB: You need version 8.0 or newer for this function. 

Step three: Adding additional information to the weight items

Once the data is in ShipWeight you might want to edit some information that was not originally in the data source.  In example, you might want to set a station letter (A-Z) to weights that has been imported from a source where this information was not present.   Of course, you can manually select the weight items and set the station number one by one, but here an example of a way to do a multiple editing on items:

1. Open the items dialog and select all weight groups by applying only the wildcard (%) in the weight group box in the toolbar in the items dialog.
2. Open the filter dialog (Filter->Apply… on “Tools” menu – or “Apply filter” button on toolbar) in the items dialog and use this to set a filter for all items you want to assign a special value (in example: [LCG]>0 and [LCG]<20).  Click “Test” button to verify filter and the click “Ok” to apply filter.
3. Go to Edit->Select All (or Ctrl+A) to select all weight items fitting the filter.
4. Go to menu “Items->Set field values…” and follow the pop dialog instructions to select the correct custom code for the field you want to set the value for and to specify the value you want to set.
5. Now, all selected weight items will get the station value assigned and you’re done. 

Although ShipWeight is a database tool, you can use “Save as” from the Project menu just as you do with a file based software (such as Excel).

This means that once you’ve submitted a report and want to go on with the next revision, you can “freeze” the current version by doing a “Save As..” to make a copy and work on from that copy.