The NOAA Fisheries Toolbox is a collection of
programs which can be used in fishery stock assessments. The toolbox
models combine a sophisticated graphical interface with an independent
calculation engine.
For more information on general features and details on the
Toolbox's design, please see the About
NFT and Toolbox Design
pages.
Your computer user account
must have administrative
privileges to install Toolbox applications.
If your user account does
not have administrative privileges, you may
have to log out of your user account and log back in as an
administrative user to install a Toolbox program.
With some versions of
Windows, you may not have to log out to run the setup program. You may
be able to right-click on the installer program and select "Run as..."
from the pop-up menu. Then you would select a user name with
administrative privileges and type in the password.
Note: If your regular computer
user account has limited privileges, do not run the Toolbox
application as an administrative user. Many models use a
configuration file to record user customizations. If this file is
created by the administrative user, the limited user may not have
permission to modify these customized settings, and some parts of the
application may not function correctly when used by the
limited privilege user.
Issue
2:
If you use Windows
2000 you must have Service
Pack 4 or
later installed.
I can't open the
compressed ZIP file I just downloaded from the Toolbox web site.
All Toolbox downloads are posted as compressed ZIP files. Some
recent versions of Windows can extract the files enclosed in the ZIP
file without needing additional software. However, you may need to
install a compression utility such as WinZip or Pkzip if Windows does
not automatically recognize the file format.
The
installer is asking "Do you want to keep the existing
file?" What does this mean?
During the installation, you may encounter the message:
"The existing file is
newer than the one Setup is trying to install. It is recommended that
you keep the existing file.”
This simply indicates that you have a more recent copy of a helper file
needed to run the program. At the prompt, "Do you want to keep the
existing file?" click "Yes" to keep the file that is on your computer
or click "No" to overwrite the file with the one supplied by the
installation package. It is generally recommended to keep the
file that is newer.
I
just uninstalled a Toolbox model. Now other NFT models on my
computer don't work.
Under certain conditions, uninstalling a Toolbox model may
disable other Toolbox models. This seems to happen if you installed and
ran Toolbox models as an administrative user, but then switched to
using Toolbox models as a limited permission user.
A common error message in this situation is:
"Component
'NFTFlexGrid.ocx' or one of its dependencies not currently registered:
a file is missing or invalid."
Try one of the following workarounds.
Workaround
1:
Search for a file called "NFTFlexGrid.ocx" by using the
Windows Search
tool located in the Start menu. You will probably have several copies
on your computer.
Note the location of any one of the copies of
"NFTFlexGrid.ocx".
Open the Windows Command Prompt as an administrative user.
You can do this by going
to the Start
menu > Programs > Accessories, then
right-clicking on the Command Prompt
shortcut and selecting "Run as...".
Type the following, where <path> is the
location of
"NFTFlexGrid.ocx" from step 2:
regsvr32
"<path>\NFTFlexGrid.ocx"
Hit Enter. You will get a message confirming that
NFTFlexGrid.ocx
was properly registered if the procedure is successful.
Workaround 2:
Installing almost any recent
(April 2007 and later) Toolbox model that has the new grid
editing tool (most models do, including AIM, ASPIC, SCALE, SRFIT, VPA,
YPR), fixes the problem by having the setup program re-register the
grid editing tool.
I just
installed a Toolbox program. How do I get started?
Each model includes one or more sample input files. You may
open one of these sample input files, or any other existing input file,
and modify the data. Or you may construct a new case from
scratch.
In most models, the command to open an existing input file or
to create a new case from scratch is located in the File
menu.
You may wish to consult the graphic interface help for model-specific
information. There is usually a topic named "Getting Started" that will
help guide you. The help manual can be accessed from the Help
menu, or by
pressing the "F1"
key on your keyboard.
Tip:
If you use an existing input file, you may want to save the file under
a different file name before
altering the input data so that you don't accidentally overwrite data
in the original file.
Basic overview
of how to use the graphic interface.
Most Toolbox graphic interfaces consists of three main sections:
a menu bar at the top of the main program window which executes user
commands (such as File > Save or Model > Run);
at least one input window where data are entered and verified,
at least one output window which displays the results of the model in tables
and/or plots.
The output window(s) are available for viewing only after the model has
been run, or after the results of a previous run have been loaded back
into the program.
You can switch between the input and output windows by choosing the
appropriate item from the Window menu in the menu bar. Each window
contains several tabs, similar to file folder tabs in a desk drawer, to
help organize and categorize the information.
You can modify the input data and model options and edit the data grids
within the program. You can insert data from other applications by
copying the data to the Windows clipboard and pasting it into the
various text boxes and grids.
When you are done modifying the input data, you can run the model and
view the resulting output in tables and/or plots. If the model has been
run previously, you can load the results back into the graphic
interface without having to re-run the model. You can copy the output
tables to the Windows clipboard for pasting into other applications.
You can also save the plots individually or, in many cases, collect specified plots
into a single text document.
How do I get help
relating to the specific graphic interface chart, grid, button or box
that I am working with?
Most models incorporate "context sensitive help" to provide
guidance on the graphic interface object (e.g., a form, button, chart,
grid, etc.) that you are working with. By pressing the "F1" key on your
keyboard you can display the graphic interface help file, and in many
cases, it will go directly to the topic of interest.
I don't understand
what the label for this text box or button (or other
graphic interface object) means. Is there something like a pop-up help
box that can help me?
Some models include pop-up text describing important graphic
interface objects like text boxes, buttons, or grids. If a pop-up note
is available, hovering the mouse pointer over the object will display
the pop-up text.
When pop-up text is not available, many graphic interface
features are described in the help manual. Press the "F1" key on your
keyboard to display context sensitive
help. Or, you can go to the graphic interface Help
menu (located
in the top row of the application) and select the help file from there.
How do I get
information about the underlying stock assessment model that this
program uses?
Information about the stock assessment model used in the
program can be accessed from the graphic interface Help
menu. Most
models include a PDF reference manual, separate from the graphic
interface help file, that describes this information. For other models,
information about the model is integrated with the graphic interface
help file.
Almost all Toolbox models
perform validation checks to the
input data when they are saved to ensure that they can be utilized by
the calculation engine. The validation routine checks that all inputs
to the model are specified and, for some kinds of data, that the values
fall within a certain basic range. In order to save the
file, all input quantities must be specified and valid.
Every
attempt is made in the graphical interface to avoid the actual loss of
data caused by exiting prematurely from the graphical interface, but
there are cases where it may be possible to enter an infeasible input
that can not be handled without error.
The only exceptions to the
required validation checks are VPA
/ ADAPT and Visual Report
Designer. With VPA / ADAPT, there is a Save
file without validationfeature that
allows you to save incomplete data without checking
for errors. Note that you will need to save the data with
validation before you can run the model. With Visual Report Designer,
which doesn't have a calculation engine, all changes you make to the
report are saved automatically.
Issue
2:
If you installed the Toolbox
model under a user account with administrator privileges and are running
the model as a limited user, you may not have permissions to modify
files or folders that were created by the administrator user. You will
need to have the administrator user change the file or folder
permissions for you.
Under Windows XP, you can
check if your currently logged in user has the appropriate
permissions by doing the following:
In the Windows
Explorer file folder view, right-click on the file name or
folder name to
bring up a menu of options and select Properties.
Select the Security
tab, then click on your user name from the list of user names.
The recommended setting is to allow Full Control to the
file or folder.
Why can't I
import my text
file into the selected data grid?
In older Toolbox models (i.e., prior to April 2007) users can
import text files using the Import Data
to Grids menu item, located in the Data
menu of the model's tool bar. In these cases, the number of rows and
columns in the text file that the
user wishes to import must be the same as the number of rows and
columns of the target data grid (exclusive of row and column
headers). For more information please refer to the help file (*.chm)
provided with the model. The help file can be accessed by going to the Help
menu and selecting the appropriate item (typically Using [model
name]) from the list.
Data can also be imported
by opening the file in a spreadsheet, copying the
data to the Windows clipboard, and then pasting it into the selected
grid.
For copying and pasting using older versions of NFT models,
the number of rows and columns of the copied data must be
the same as the number of rows and columns that the user has selected
in the target grid (exclusive of row and column
headers). Please refer to the help file (*.chm) provided with
the model for more information.
Note:
Newer
versions of Toolbox models use a new grid
editing tool that
provides for easier copying and pasting of data. The new grid editing
tool does not require users to select the same number of rows and
columns as the copied data. It
is suggested that
users install the latest model version to access this and
other
improvements.
The
calculation engine exits without running my
model.
Issue 1:
Users of older Toolbox
models (i.e., prior to April 2007) should not
place input files in directories with spaces in the file or folder name
(e.g., "model
run 4.dat"
for a file name or "My
Documents"
for a folder name).The
graphical interface passes the name of the user's input file to the
calculation engine as part of a space-delimited argument list.
If there are
spaces in the file or folder name, the calculation interprets
each section between the spaces as a separate argument, assumes that
the path to the input file is the portion before the first space, and
incorrectly determines that the file doesn't exist. To fix this problem,
use an underscore ( _ ) instead of spaces in file and directory names.
Issue 2:
The calculation engine may
also exit without running the model
if the output files are in use
by a text editor, perhaps from the previous model run. If the
output files are in use by another application, the calculation engine
will fail to be able to
write the new output file. In this case, close the application you are
using to view the output files before running the model.
Issue 3:
If you installed the Toolbox
model under a user account with administrator privileges and are running
the model as a limited user, you may not have permissions to modify
files or folders that were created by the administrator user. You will
need to have the administrator user change the file or folder
permissions for you.
Under Windows XP, you can
check if your currently logged in user has the appropriate
permissions by doing the following:
In the Windows
Explorer file folder view, right-click on the file name or
folder name to
bring up a menu of options and select Properties.
Select the Security
tab, then click on your user name from the list of user names.
The recommended setting is to allow Full Control to the
file or folder.
Users commonly start with a previous input file and alter it
to fit expanded data for a new case. A good practice is to save the
previous input file with a different file name just after opening it in
the graphic interface, but before altering any of the data. In this way
you will not lose data as you make changes, or accidentally overwrite
data from the original case.
For newer versions of Toolbox models (April 2007 and later):
Newer versions of Toolbox
models incorporate a new grid editing tool. The new tool
streamlines
data entry when typing
from the keyboard and when pasting data from the Windows clipboard.
Features of the new grid editing tool include:
To enter data from the keyboard, select a cell (using the
mouse or arrow keys) and simply begin typing.
When you are done typing, press the Enter key or one of
the arrow keys to go to the next cell.
Shortcut key combination are available for commonly used
functions (CTRL-X
for Cut, CTRL-C for Copy, CTRL-V for Paste, CTRL-A for Select All, DEL for Delete).
Commonly used editing functions (including Fill Right and Fill Down) are
available from a pop-up menu by right-clicking anywhere on the grid.
To
paste data, there is no longer a need to select an exact range of
cells. Simply select the top-left cell where you want the data pasted,
and the pasted data will fill out to the right and bottom edges of the
grid automatically.
For older versions of Toolbox models (prior to April 2007):
In older Toolbox models, the
Copy
& Paste
feature associated with the data grids is the quickest way to add large
sections of data. To copy or paste grid data in older models, first
highlight multiple cells in the
grid. The Copy/Paste
to Clipboard
form automatically pops up allowing you to copy the range of selected
cells, or to paste previously copied data into the selected range of
cells. When pasting data into a grid using the older Toolbox models, it
is important to select the same number of rows and columns in the grid
as the copied data contains.
In some older Toolbox models
entire grids can be created by
importing or
exporting data from text files. The options for importing and exporting
text files to and from grids can be accessed from the application's Data
menu.
Note that the copied or
imported data should not contain row or column headers.
How
do I turn off the "Save Input Files
Now?" prompts?
In many models, when the user closes the application they are
prompted with a message asking to save the input files. This
feature is provided to help remind users to save any changes to the
input data
between model runs. To turn off this prompt, go to the
Options
menu, click on the Save
Prompt on Exit item and
select Disable.
This will suppress the prompts when the program exits in
future sessions.
In older Toolbox models, a feature was incorporated to allow
users
to set the color scheme to a printer-friendly color palette with a
single click. For older Toolbox models, users should use the Set
Light Background item on the Option
menu to get a printer friendly image.
In
newer Toolbox models, the plotting package incorporates a set of 10
built-in color palettes. For newer models, select one of the palette
options from the Palette
Selector (the icon that looks like a paint
brush) in the plot's tool bar.
For saving many plots at one time, many of the models now
feature a Create
Plot Collection option. This
provides an automated means to generate a group of plots.
Please see the topic in the model's help file for details specific to
that model.
Can
I use the text editing software of my choice to view the output reports?
Many models include a feature to view output reports from
within the
graphic interface, eliminating the need to navigate to the folder where
the output file is stored. Models that incorporate this feature are set
to open the output file using a very simple built-in text
viewer.
If you wish to use a different text viewer or use a text
editing program (such as
Microsoft Word
or Notepad)
to view the output files instead, you may do so by selecting the Select
File Viewer item on the Options
menu.
The
graphic interface help file won't display properly.
A new security feature in recent versions of Windows
may prevent the help file from being displayed
correctly if you install Toolbox models on a remote or network drive.
If you would like to keep the model on the remote drive, copy the help
file to a local drive if you wish to use it. The file will be located
in the directory where you installed the program and will have a ".CHM"
extension. It usually named something similar to "[model]Help.chm".
Note that copying the help file to a directory other than the
installation directory will disable the context
sensitive feature. You will need to navigate to the folder
where you copied the help file and double-click on it to open it each
time you want to use it.
If having access to the help manual from the graphic interface
is important to you, you may wish to uninstall the model from the remote
drive and re-install it on a local drive. If you accidentally deleted
the installation file you may re-download
it here.
The program
screen does not fill out to
the size of my monitor display.
Each Toolbox program has been
designed
to fit many sizes of monitor displays from
large desktop resolutions to small laptop
resolutions. Therefore, the design size of each Toolbox
program is a
compromise. The program will approximately fill the screen if the
screen
settings are 800 x 600 pixels.
