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GLOSSARY OF BANNER TERMS

General Person

Each person (student, faculty member, recruit, etc) in the system may be considered a “general person”.  This is opposed to a “non-person” (company), who have unique identification, but are not really “persons”.

General Person Record

Items of information which do not change from term to term are stored in one location in the database, the “general person record”.  This information includes Social Security Number, gender, ethnic background, date of birth, and an indicator whether the person is deceased.

Form

Interactive screen-oriented programs that query (search and display), update, and delete parts of a database.  Forms are divided into one or more blocks of information, which may take up one or more pages (windows).

Block

Data that are logically related are displayed in separate blocks on a display form.  Often, all data within a block are actually stored in the same table in the database.

QuickFlow

A defined series of forms, reports, and quick-flows that are run in succession.  Quick-flows can be defined by anyone wishing to repeat the same several processing steps.

Table

Data that are logically similar are stored in separate tables in the database.  Each table consists of multiple records which are made up of the same fields.

Record

A record is a “row” in a table.  Each record is a group of data elements in the table with something in common.  For example, each record in a table may represent an individual student (in a “base table”), or each record may represent an address for an individual student (in a “repeating table”).

Field

A field is a “column” in a table.  Each record in a table has the same fields.  Each field represents a different item of data (eg: name, ID, term code, etc.)

Base Table

Tables which have a single record for individual persons are “base tables”.  An example of a base table is the General Person table.

Repeating Table

Tables which have multiple records for individual persons are “repeating tables”.  An example of a repeating table is the Address table, where each person may have an unlimited number of address records, or the Registration table, where each student may have an unlimited number of registration records.

Validation Table

Tables which are used to store and translate codes are “validation tables”.  Each validation table has one or more coded field, for example the Address Type validation table holds address types (a two character code), which may be used in one or more other parts of the Banner system.

Report

The term “report” may refer to the procedure that produces printed output of some kind, or the actual printed material.  The report procedure may produce tabular “reports”, letters, labels, etc.

Query

A query is a process that provides a particular view of the database.  Typically, certain criterions are specified that limit which records from the database are displayed.  When a query is entered with no values specified, all records within a table are displayed.  To query from a Banner form, use the EnterQuery function, enter the criteria, and then use the ExecuteQuery function.

Save

Changes made while in a Banner form do not immediately affect the database until they are saved using the Save function (by clicking on the Save button or pressing the Save function key).  Errors in data entry may be corrected, or entire transactions “rolled back” before committing changes.  Many Banner forms do not allow you to proceed to the next block or leave the form without either committing or “backing out” (rolling back) changes.  Once the save function is used, the changes are actually written to the database.

List Field Values

The ListFieldValues function may be used to query the database for possible valid values (usually codes) when entering or updating information.  A Banner form or dialog box is displayed which usually displays the contents of a validation table.

     


GLOSSARY OF BANNER FUNCTIONS

 

ROLLBACK

Clear the information on the form and put the cursor in the key block to display information about another entity.

EXIT

Exit from the current form to the previous (calling) form or to the Banner menu.  The exit key also cancels a query.

EXIT WITH VALUE /
NEXT PRIMARY KEY

Return from a query form bringing the value from the cursor position back to the calling form.

NEXT BLOCK

Move the cursor to the next block of information on the screen.

PREVIOUS BLOCK

Move the cursor to the block the cursor was at previously.

CLEAR BLOCK

Clear the displayed information in the current block.

CLEAR RECORD

Clear the displayed information in the current record.

DELETE RECORD

Clear the current record and marks it for deletion from the database.

NEXT RECORD

Scroll to the next record of information.

PREVIOUS RECORD

Scroll to the previous record of information.

CREATE RECORD

Make room at the current cursor position for the user to create a new record of information.

DUPLICATE RECORD 

Duplicate all information from the previous record to the current record.

NEXT SET OF RECORDS/SCROLL DOWN 

Scroll to the next set of records to be displayed.

PREFIOUS SET OF RECORDS/SCROLL UP

Scroll to the previous set of records to be displayed.

CLEAR ITEM (FIELD)

Clear the displayed information in the current field.

NEXT ITEM (FIELD)

Move the cursor from the current position to the next item in the current block.

PREVIOUS ITEM

Move the cursor from the current position to the previous item in the current block.

DUPLICATE ITEM

Duplicate the corresponding field in the previous record to the current field.

CANCEL QUERY

End a query that has been entered without actually displaying the database information.

ENTER QUERY

Begin a new query.  Specify values to use in the query.

COUNT QUERY HITS

Display the number of records a query will retrieve.  This key may perform many other functions that may change from form to form. 

EXECUTE QUERY

Search and retrieve the relevant information from the database.

COMMIT / SAVE

Update the database with any changes the user has made to the displayed information.

LIST FIELD VALUES

Call a query form or dialog box to display available choices for the current field.

PRINT

Print the information currently displayed in the form.

SHOW KEYS

Display the function key mappings that may be used from the current field.

DISPLAY ERROR

Display the error message and code when an error has occurred.

DYNAMIC HELP

Display information about the form, block, or field you are working in.

HELP

Display information about the field the cursor is positioned at.

        

     

                                         
BANNER NAMING CONVENTION STANDARDS

 

Most Banner forms and reports are identified using a seven digit name using the following convention:

abcdddd

 

a          = one character code identifying the primary system owning the object

      A = Alumni       R = Financial Aid

      F = Finance            T = Accounts Receivable (Student Accounts)

      G = General           N = Position Control (Human Resources)

      S = Student            P = Payroll

b          = one character code identifying the primary module owning the object

c          = one character code identifying the type of object

      A = Application/Functional (query and modification)

      Q = Query (called from another form)

      R = Report or Rule Form

      T = Maintenance

      V = Validation

      I = Inquiry       

dddd  = unique four character object name

      example: SPAIDEN

      S = Student

      P = General Person

      A = Application Form

IDEN = Identification

  

 

 

 

 

POSTAL ABBREVIATIONS

ALABAMA................................... AL........... NEBRASKA............................................. NE

ALASKA..................................... AK........... NEVADA................................................. NV

ARIZONA................................... AZ........... NEW HAMPSHIRE..................................... NH

ARKANSAS................................. AR........... NEW JERSEY........................................... NJ

CALIFORNIA............................... CA........... NEW MEXICO......................................... NM

COLORADO................................ CO........... NEW YORK............................................. NY

CONNECTICUT........................... CT........... NORTH CAROLINA................................... NC

DELAWARE................................. DE........... NORTH DAKOTA...................................... ND

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA............. DC........... OHIO.................................................... OH

FLORIDA..................................... FL........... OKLAHOMA............................................. OK

GEORGIA................................... GA........... OREGON................................................. OR

HAWAII...................................... HI........... PENNSYLVANIA........................................ PA

IDAHO........................................ ID........... PUERTO RICO......................................... PR

ILLINOIS..................................... IL........... RHODE ISLAND........................................ RI

INDIANA...................................... IN........... SOUTH CAROLINA.................................. SC

IOWA.......................................... IA........... SOUTH DAKOTA...................................... SD

KANSAS...................................... KS........... TENNESSEE............................................ TN

KENTUCKY.................................. KY........... TEXAS.................................................... TX

MAINE........................................ ME........... VERMONT............................................... VT

MARYLAND.................................. MD........... VIRGINIA.............................................. VA

MASSACHUSETTS........................ MA........... VIRGIN ISLANDS.................................... VI

MICHIGAN.................................. MI........... WASHINGTON......................................... WA

MINNESOTA................................ MN........... WEST VIRGINIA..................................... WV

MISSISSIPPI............................... MS........... WISCONSIN........................................... WI

MISSOURI.................................. MO........... WYOMING.............................................. WY

MONTANA................................... MT

 

APARTMENT............................... APT........... NORTHWEST.......................................... NW

ATTENTION............................. ATTN........... PARK.................................................. PARK

AVENUE.................................... AVE........... * PARKWAY........................................... PKY

BOULEVARD............................ BLVD........... * PLACE.................................................. PL

BUILDING............................... BLDG........... * PLAZA................................................ PLZ

CIRCLE..................................... CIR........... POST OFFICE BOX............................ PO BOX

COURT....................................... CT........... RIDGE.................................................. RDG

DRIVE........................................ DR........... ROAD..................................................... RD

EAST............................................ E........... ROOM..................................................... RM

EXPRESSWAY........................... EXPY........... ROUTE................................................... RT

* FLOOR..................................... FLR........... RURAL ROUTE......................................... RR

HEIGHTS.................................. HGTS........... SOUTH.................................................... S

HIGHWAY.................................. HWY........... SOUTHEAST............................................ SE

HIGHWAY CONTRACT RT.............. HC........... SOUTHWEST........................................... SW

* HOSPITAL............................. HOSP........... SQUARE.................................................. SQ

INSTITUTE................................ INST........... STATION............................................... STA

JUNCTION.................................. JCT........... STREET................................................... ST

* LAKE......................................... LK........... * SUITE................................................ STE

LANE............................................ LN........... * TERRACE............................................ TER

* MEADOWS............................ MDWS........... TURNPIKE........................................... TPKE

NORTH........................................... N........... * VILLAGE............................................ VLG

NORTHEAST.................................. NE........... WEST...................................................... W


POSTAL STANDARDS

 

The Address sub-committee of the Data Management Committee has identified the following as data entry standards for addresses in Banner:

  • Use mixed case.  DO NOT ENTER ADDRESSES IN CAPITAL LETTERS.
  • If you do not have an address, do not enter anything.
  • Do not use punctuation characters.  This includes , . # / ; : “ %.  Hyphens should appear only in the zip code.  A few addresses require hyphens, but apartment “B-2" should be entered “B2" or “B 2" (but not “B-2" or “#B2").
  • Use abbreviations as recommended by the US Post Office (see the postal abbreviations section above).  Exceptions to these abbreviations (indicated by “*” in above) include:

    Floor                 Hospital            Lake                 Meadows          Parkway

    Place                Plaza                Suite                 Terrace            Village

    Abbreviate these only if there isn’t room to spell them out.  If you abbreviate them, use the Post Office’s recommended abbreviation.  For example, if you’ve run out of room for “Parkway”, enter :”Pky”, not “Parkw” or anything else.

  • When entering a foreign address, indicate the name of the country in the Nation field.  Do not enter the name of the country in any other field.
  • Street names that are numerical should be followed by the appropriate ordinal sign, such as “th”, “st”, or “rd”.  For example: “3rd St”, or “44th Ave”.
  • Always enter the Zip Code.  In a 9-digit (Zip+4) Zip Code, you must enter the hyphen.  Banner will not insert the hyphen.  If you have only 5 digits of the Zip Code, enter only those 5 digits.  Do not put “-0000" at the end.  You can obtain the necessary forms to order a Zip Code reference book at the Student Center Post Office to look up United States Zip Codes.  Canadian addresses require a Zip Code; other foreign addresses can be entered with or without a Zip Code.
  • Any apartment, suite, or room number should be entered at the end of the street information, or all by itself ABOVE the street information.  Examples:

    1745 N Washington Apt 305                  Suite 2200                     4627 Chatelain Terrace Rd

  • Place the attention line or customer information line immediately above the company name.
  • The guaranteed printable length of an address line is 25 characters (the field is 30 characters).  The only time a label program will chop off characters you entered is when you ask it to print laser-printer labels.  All other kinds of labels will use the full 30 characters.
  • The guaranteed printable length of a city name is 15 characters (the field is 20 characters).  The only times a label program will chop off the characters you entered is when you ask it to print laser-printer labels or Cheshire labels.  All other kinds of labels will use the full 20 characters.  So for example: You want to enter “Inver Grove Hts” (15 characters) instead of “Inver Grove Heights” (19), so it won’t get truncated and come out as “Inver Grove Hei” (15) on some labels.

Need more help? Please contact the Help Desk by email or by phone at 651-523.2220

 

 


Hamline University
1536 Hewitt Avenue
Saint Paul, MN 55104-1284
U.S.A.
651-523-2800