FAQ
Racks
I was wondering if there is any way to delete a rack?
Go to Facility and select "Racks" in the top menu. Select a rack from the list and go to its detail by clicking its name, then click "Delete". This action is available only to users with the corresponding permission (admin and facility).
I needed to edit a rack that was customized manually but can't manage to do it. Is it possible to edit customized racks once already created?
Please create a new rack, move the substocks there, and delete the old one (this workflow may be helpful: batch mode → select a row or whole rack → put on shelf → transfer mode → move from the shelf to the new rack).
Is it possible to move an entire rack from one room to another?
Go to Facility/Racks, select your rack and click Update.
Actions
I need your expertise in how is best to proceed when we’re injecting a construct not into WT lines but into a transgenic line. What is the best way to create such a fishline?
You have the option to add a genotype while crossing - in the Crossing form, click Add non-parental genotypes and select a genotype from the list (i.e. the genotype needs to be defined first in Genotypes). This will work for both WT and transgenic parents.
Is there a way of registering crossings without generating a new substock? Most of the crossings we do are to generate embryos for experiments, so they will not give rise to a new stock. Therefore, we find it useful to have records for the dates of crosses, but not to have associated stocks.
We recommend setting the “Number of fish in each substock” to 0 in the Crossing form - this will automatically create a dead substock which will not appear on lists nor in statistics.
I crossed one line to originate another substock and by mistake used the wrong parent lines. How can I reverse this crossing and change the parent lines that originated the substock?
You can delete the new substock and the crossing action and try it again. The link to the action detail is in Action log in the substock detail, or you can find it in Admin / Logs / Action log. The substock can be deleted by clicking the red Delete button in the substock detail.
Pricing & billing
Could you explain your pricing? I see a “flat fee” and a “per tank fee.” Do I combine these? Our facility has about 1000 tanks, with the possibility of adding more. Could you estimate our cost per year for the different plans, (Premium, Standard, Basic)?
The price is a combination of a flat fee and price per tank. The number of tanks is usually estimated as the actual size of your facility, however, can be lower if you don't use its whole capacity. For 1000 tanks, it would be 999 EUR per year for Standard or 1299 EUR for Premium. You can use the price calculator available on our webpage.
How do I determine the number of tanks we should pay for?
The general rule of thumb is the actual size of your facility, however, we actually bill on the basis of live substocks (fish groups occupying one tank) in the database. This is because some facilities don't use their whole capacity, but still want to have all tanks defined in Zebrabase. So, you can only count the “active tanks” in your facility and pay for those.
The number of paid substocks should not be breached at any point of the year. Of course, it is always possible to add more substocks for the price in the pricing table.
Users & passwords
I am trying to add a user, but he cannot log in to change his password to start.
You as an admin only fill in the username, email, and the first and the last name of the user. The user receives a randomly generated password by e-mail immediately after his account is created. If the email address is incorrect, the original password email is lost, but you (admin) can set the correct address by updating the user, and then the user can reset his/her password from the login page.
I managed to create users and assign them to workgroups, but I could not generate user accounts with unique permissions and privileges. Is this possible? So far, we are using only the admin login credentials.
You can assign a user to a permission group either when creating the user account, or in Admin/
I would like to create a new user group. People from our department will access my database to get fish counts and tank counts. Could I create a group that would have permission to access all data, but can't edit anything?
You don’t need any special permissions to read the data, so it is possible to leave these users without any group. Another option is to create a new “guest” permission group with no permissions. New permission groups can be created in Admin/
I have been trying to add new users to my database. Somehow they seem to not receive the email with their login credentials. Can I somehow resend the email? Or what would be the best way of adding them?
They can recover their password from the login page by clicking Forgot password? this will reset the password and send the new credentials to the user's email. If the new recovery email is also lost, the problem is most probably in your antispams or firewalls. The admin can change the user email address in Zebrabase and retry to recover the password this way.
Is it possible to change the user name of an existing account? It is currently XXX but she would like to have the user name YYY, for identification purposes once the labels are printed. Is it possible to do this for the admin? And for the other users, will we need to create new accounts to update the names in the same way?
Admins cannot change the username of an already existing user. Nevertheless, in exceptional situations (just one or two users), we can change it for you. Please, think in advance about what usernames you want to use. And of course, you can always do it the way you suggested - create a new user account and deactivate the old one.
One user requested a new password, which she got, but now she would like to change the password to something easier to remember.
Every user can change his/her own password: click your name in the top-right corner of the page to get to the user profile page, then click Change password. No permissions are needed to do it. Check if you are entering the generated password correctly (no leading/ending spaces etc.). Is the new password strong enough? The requirements are:
- at least 8 characters long
- not numeric-only
- not too common (basic sequences or dictionary words are disqualified)
Data import
I can´t find a way to import my data into your database. I have a lot of information in Excel files about the facility that I would like to import. Even though I have to make changes to my format it is much easier to import than to transfer one by one.
Data imports can be performed only with our assistance. Upon request, we will provide you with a template Excel file. After filling out the template, return it to us and we will proceed with the import. You will be able to import the stock/substock-related data. If your import contains position information, substock owners, workgroups, etc., it is necessary to have these structures already predefined in Zebrabase before the import.
Backups
Is it possible to receive an exported version of our database, so we can separately store a backup of our data? If there is a way for me to complete the export, could you point me to how to get started?
You can export all your substock data to an .xlsx file(there is an export/download icon in the upper right corner of the substock page). If you wish for the complete database backup (dump), we can also provide that but it is not accessible from the GUI. I.e. downloading data backups is possible upon request.
Printing
Finally, I have a Zebra GK420t printer available. In the database, however, I see the message printer unreachable.
Please look at https://docs.zebrabase.org/admin/09-printing_troubleshooting/ and try to locate the problem. It looks like the Printwes2 Client software is not running on the computer where you run Zebrabase. Alternatively, the printer is not switched on or is not connected to the same computer. If you are unable to solve the problem, send us snapshots of what the Printwes2 Client is showing (connection status, list of available printers).
Just recently the database started printing 2 labels rather than 1. It prints a duplicate label regardless of the device used to print from (iPad/computer)
You probably have Printwes2 Client running on two different computers and both computers have access to the same printer. You can prevent printing the label twice by switching off one of the Printwes2 Clients.
I’m trying to connect my new printer with Zebrabase and I went through your troubleshooting list: I can’t print your example even from the Printwes2 Client GUI web page "Print". I may not be using the right language for the template. The user manual indicates that this printer supports the Datamax®3 language, Zebra®6 language, and Eltron®6 language. I also noticed the print button in Zebrabase (in Print QR) remains gray.
If you are using a Mac OS to run the Printwes2 Client and it does not work, you should try the procedure for installation of label printers for that system from the Zebra printers manufacturer: Installing a Zebra Printer on a Mac. Your printer should support ZPL language emulation, but the quality of emulation offered by non-Zebra manufacturers is uncertain and can differ from model to model, and the fastest method how to find out if it works for your labels is just to try. The first attempt should be made with software delivered by the manufacturer of your printer.
The Printwes2 client will not open on my Mac so I cannot print labels from Zebrabase. I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling Printwes2 three times, and the application still will not open/run. My Intermec PC43t printer works and will print labels from other applications. Do you know what I should do to correct this problem, or do you have the contact information for the people who developed Printwes?
The version of the Printwes2 client you are using has the problem that if the program is not shut down correctly, it leaves in the folder ~/.printwes2 the file printwes_systray.pid. The presence of this file indicates that the program is already running (even if it does not) so an attempt to start the Printwes2 client again will fail. Please download a new version of Printwes. Alternatively, the workaround is to delete this file manually, i.e., delete the file ~/.printwes2/printwes_systray.pid The ~ means the home folder of the user who installed the Printwes2 client, usually /Users/USERNAME, where the USERNAME is replaced with the actual user name.
I'm trying to work out how to apply the split code. In my label code below, the substock.project.name is often too long to fit on one line, but there is space within the label to split it across two lines. How would I apply the split code to do this please? Also, is it possible to change the font size of just one line or one item?
You can find the information about printing templates in the manual:
https://docs.zebrabase.org/admin/08-printing/#printing-templates
You can also get information about individual ZPL commands (e.g., ^CF, ^FO, …) on the page Labelary Online ZPL Viewer. Here, you can paste your Rendered source code (from the template update page) and when you click on a ZPL command in the text it will show you help for that command in the lower part of the web page. You can split any text using the smart_split command which is already used in the template for the substock name, so for your project name you can use, e.g.: {% set prj_name_parts = substock.project.name | unidecode | smart_split(30) %} and then print prj_name_parts[0], prj_name_parts[1], … (the unidecode filter splits the eventual accents from the letters). You can change 30 to any other number of characters to be in the part of the project name. But I would recommend using the substock.project.code unless you have a special reason to have the full name of the project on the label. To change the font just for the following ^FD command you can use ^A command, e.g., to print a really small text: ^A0,10,10.
I have got the printer set up and working, using the printwes client on a networked computer. However, it only works when I, individually log onto that specific computer to launch the client. If I log off, or log onto another computer on our network the printer is unreachable. Is it the case that the Printwes client software must be running in order to print from Zebrabase on any computer? This is problematic as we hotdesk, so I'm not always logged onto that computer. Any advice you can provide?
This is how the Printwes client works now. It must be running in a logged-in user account. Nevertheless, the screen for the user account can be locked if security is a problem. Or, a special user account can be created just for the Printwes client.
If you are using the remote mode configuration of Printwes, it makes sense to install the Printwes client only on computers that are connected to different printers. The printers should have different names assigned to recognize them. Another option is to switch Printwes to the local mode, then you can have Printwes clients installed on any number of computers (all with connection to the printer). But you would be able to print only from the computers with the Printwes client installed.
We are interested in purchasing a label printer. Based on the docs, it appears that the Zebra ZD420 is recommended. Have you found labels that work well for this printer and fish facility tanks? If so, could you please send me the info on the labels?
Any labels of the size 1 x 1.5 inches (25 mm x 38 mm) or larger can be used for printing the Zebrabase QR labels. If you want to use larger labels, you should keep in mind that the width of the label must be smaller or equal to the maximum supported label width of your label printer the roll core diameter and its outer diameter must correspond to the values stated in the specification of your label printer.
I want to install the Printwes 2.0.8 client on a Windows server without having a user to be logged on all the time. I have not found documentation about this setup, could you please help me out?
Printwes Client currently can not be run as a Windows service. Running it from a regular user account proved to be easy and for the Printwes local mode, it is also quite reasonable. See also Printwes2 Client user account FAQ above.