vvEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Prevention, Pesticides
And Toxic Substances
(7406)
EPA 744-B-93-001 September 1993
Planners'
Library On
User-Friendly
Software
Solid Waste And
Emergency Response
(5101)
User's Guide
PLUS
o
o
o
n
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: GETTING STARTED 1
1.1 Loading PLUS onto Your Computer 2
1.2 Running PLUS After Installation [[[ 2
1.3 Setting Up the Software: The System Utilities Menu 3
CHAPTER 2: SEARCHING FOR RECORDS 5
2.1 About the References 5
2.2 Performing a Search 5
2.3 Interpreting a PLUS-generated List 9
2.4 Printing 9
2.5 Topic Descriptions 10
CHAPTER 3: UPDATING PLUS 14
3.1 Adding Records , 14
3.2 Editing Records 16
3.3 Deleting Records 17
CHAPTER 4: TROUBLESHOOTING 18
Appendix A: PLUS Problem Reporting Form
Appendix B: Additional Reference Form
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CHAPTER 1:
GETTING
STARTED
Welcome to PLUS, the Planners' Library on User-friendly Software! PLUS was developed by the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to assist emergency planners in locating references related
to chemical emergency planning activities. PLUS currently contains over 300 citations of references,
which include documents, audio-visual materials, data bases, and training courses. PLUS does not
contain any actual texts of documents; it is intended only as a bibliography.
PLUS may be useful in several ways to Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) and other
persons interested in emergency planning. For example, LEPCs may use PLUS to locate references
to help them update their plan. PLUS can also be used to locate planning exercises and training
materials. Planners may also use PLUS as a computerized library and may add their own references
to the system. This manual explains the features of PLUS in four chapters:
Chapter 1:
Chapter 2:
Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:
Getting Started
Searching for Records
Updating PLUS
Troubleshooting
Before beginning to load and use PLUS on your computer, you will need the following equipment
and software capabilities:
• An IBM-compatible personal computer;
• A hard disk drive with at least 1.5 megabytes of free hard disk space;
• Word processing software1; and
• At least 512 KB of memory.
PLUS can be used with a color or monochromatic monitor, and can be used with any printer.
1 You will need word processing software only if you want to add or update PLUS'S records (see
Chapter 3). The word processing software may be located either on your hard drive or on a floppy disk (you
will specify the location of this software before running PLUS - see Section 1.3).
1
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1.1 Loading PLUS onto Your Computer
To run PLUS, you must load the system's files onto your computer. The files on the PLUS disk are
"zipped" (i.e., compressed so that they will fit on one disk). These files must be expanded or
"unzipped" to their normal size and loaded onto your computer before they will work. PLUS cannot
be run directly from the disk; it must be installed on the hard drive of your computer. Before
installing PLUS, you may want to copy the files on the PLUS disk to another disk as a backup copy,
in case your original disk ever becomes damaged.
To install PLUS on your computer:
»• Insert the PLUS disk into your floppy disk drive (this will generally be the A: drive, but it can
be another letter such as B: if you have more than one floppy disk drive).
>• At the A: (or B:, if you are using the B drive) prompt, type INSTALL ci and press Enter.
The program will create a subdirectory on your C: (hard disk) drive called "PLUS" and will
"unzip" and copy the PLUS files into that subdirectory. (If you already have a subdirectory
called "PLUS," the files will be loaded into that existing subdirectory.)
If you would like to copy the files to a hard disk drive other than the C: drive (e.g., the D:
(hard disk) drive) type INSTALL and the designation for that drive (e.g., INSTALL D:) and
then press Enter.
* The installation will take between 2 and 10 minutes. (Actual installation time depends on the
speed of your computer and the amount of available diskspace.) When the computer has
finished "unzipping" the files, the message "Installation complete" will appear and the A:
prompt (or B: is you are using that drive) will return to the screen.
PLUS is now installed on your computer. Once this installation process has been completed, you will
not need to use the disk again unless you delete PLUS from your computer and need to reinstall the
system.
1.2 Running PLUS After Installation
As discussed above, you only need to install PLUS once. To start PLUS on a computer that already
has the system loaded onto it:
»• Begin at the C: prompt.
> Type CD PLUS to change to the PLUS subdirectory.
»• At the C:\PLUS prompt, type PLUS and then press Enter.
PLUS will begin running, and the Main Menu, shown on the next page, will appear:
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Main Menu
3 - System Utilities
E - Exit
1.3 Setting Up the Software: The System Utilities Menu
NOTE: The setup operations described below are necessary only after you
first install PLUS on your computer. It is not necessary to repeat
these steps every time you use PLUS.
The next steps in using PLUS are to specify the type of monitor, printer, and word processing
software that are used on the computer. To begin:
> At the Main Menu, select 3 - System Utilities. (To select an option, either type the
corresponding number or move the cursor to highlight the desired option and press Enter.)
The screen shown below will appear:
System Utilities - Main Menu
2
3
4
5
E
Sack aad
Printer Setup
Default Subdirectory
Word Processor Setup
Monitor Setup
Exit
To prepare PLUS for your specific system, take the following steps:
> Select 2 - Printer Setup.
> Specify the number of lines that your printer supports. In general, a laser printer supports
60 or 62 lines per page; dot matrix printers generally support 66 lines. The default number
of lines is 60.
> Press Enter. This will return you to the System Utilities Main Menu.
*• Select 4 - Word Processor Setup.
* At the first prompt, enter the name of the drive on which your word processing software i
located (e.g., c: \WP5l \) and press Enter.
is
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>• At the second prompt, enter the execute command you use to start your word processing
software from DOS (e.g., WP for WordPerfect) and press Enter. This will return you to the
System Utilities Main Menu.
»• Select 5 - Monitor Setup.
*• PLUS will ask you if you want to display the system in color. If you have a color monitor,
type y and press Enter. If you do not have a color monitor, type N and press Enter, or press
Esc (PLUS'S default is for no color display).
PLUS is now ready to run on your computer. At this point, you may type E (exit) to return to the
Main Menu, or continue with the System Utilities Main Menu.
Another option under the System Utilities Main Menu is option 1 - Pack and Reindex Databases.
Although you will rarely need this function, it may become useful if you have added, deleted, or
edited many of the references. This function essentially "cleans up" the PLUS files so that they will
be more readily accessible. Just select 1 and the function will begin. This function takes only a few
minutes; when reindexing is complete, PLUS will instruct you to "press any key to continue." Press
a key and you will return to the Systems Utilities Main Menu.
When you choose to print a reference or a set of references, PLUS will give you the chance to print
either to the printer or to a file. When installing PLUS, a subdirectory called "REPORTS" will be
created on your PLUS directory. When you choose to print to a file, the file will be saved in this
subdirectory. At the time of printing, you will be asked to specify a file name (see Section 2.4 for
more information on printing). If, however, you wish to change the subdirectory to which PLUS will
send a reference when printed, you may access option 3 - Default Subdirectory under the System
Utilities Main Menu. This function will allow you to determine where your references go when you
choose to print to a file. (An easy way to keep track of your records is to create a subdirectory
within the PLUS subdirectory. We do not recommend that you choose a floppy disk as your printer
file destination.)
To exit the System Utilities Main Menu, type E (exit).
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CHAPTER 2:
SEARCHING FOR
RECORDS
PLUS'S main function is to provide citations of references to assist in emergency planning activities
required under SARA Title III, section 303. The Report option in the system allows the user to
generate lists of references based on specified search criteria. This chapter discusses how to perform
a search and print the results, and explains the search criteria.
2.1
About the References
References were selected for inclusion in PLUS through an extensive search of emergency-planning-
related literature, audio-visual materials, data bases, and training courses. Once selected for inclusion
in the system, a reference was assigned a "Record Tracking Number" (RTN). An RTN consists of
three letters, indicating the author's last name, and three numbers, indicating the order in which the
reference was received for entry into the system. For example, the first book by an author named
Smith to be entered into the system would be given the RTN "SMI001." In some cases, the letters
in the RTN indicate an agency or group that produced the reference; for example, the third reference
by the Environmental Protection Agency entered into PLUS would have the RTN "EPA003."
Each reference listed in PLUS has been assigned one "primary" topic. The primary topic reflects the
main subject matter of the reference. If the reference also covers other topics, it has been assigned
"secondary" topics. For example, a book entitled Responding to a Chemical Emergency: Cleanup
Procedures might have "Containment, Cleanup, and Recovery" as its primary topic. If it contains a
chapter about equipment for first responders, "Emergency Equipment and Equipment Handlers"
might be a secondary topic. For more detail on search topics, see section 2.5.
Each reference has also been assigned a media type and a source type (i.e., the type of organization
or group that produced the reference), and, if applicable, a state designation and/or chemical name.
(See Section 2.2 for more detail on search criteria.) Each citation listed in PLUS has been checked
for consistency and accuracy and is, to the best of EPA's knowledge, correct. If you find inaccurate
information in the system, please inform EPA by submitting the correction/problem reporting form
included in Appendix A.
2.2 Performing a Search
To begin searching for citations:
At the Main Menu, select 2 - Reports Menu. The screen shown at the top of the next page
will appear:
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I
Reports - Main Menu
*
3
4
5
6
7
8
E
- Search by Media Type (e
- Search by Source (e.g.,
— Search by State Name
— Search by Chemical Name
- Search by a Combination
— List All References
- Exit
^ % :",",.
only
g., Article, Video)
Govt , Private )
of the Above
»> Select one of the search criteria by moving the cursor with the up and down arrow (t i) keys
and pressing Enter or by pressing the number of your choice.
*• For search criteria 1 through 6, a list of options for that criterion will appear. Choose one
of the options (e.g., one of the topics listed under Search by Topic) by moving the cursor
using the up and down arrow keys and pressing Enter. PLUS will search for references that
match the selected criterion and will display a list of citations. Directions for search criterion
7, Search by a Combination of the Above, are provided below. For search criterion 8, List
All References, you have the choice of listing references by topic or alphabetically by author.
The Reports Main Menu lists the criteria by which you may search for references. A brief
explanation of each search criterion follows:
1 - Search by Topic. This search will generate a list of all references that have been coded
for a selected topic. The list will include references that have the selected topic as their
primary topic, as well as those that have the topic as a secondary topic. Topics listed under
this category are described in Section 2.5.
2 - Search by Primary Topic Only. This search will produce a list of references that have
been assigned the selected topic as their primary topic. The list will not include references
for which the selected topic is a secondary topic. For example, a reference which has "Risk
Analysis" as its primary topic and "Evacuation" as its secondary topic will be listed under a
Primary Topic search for "Risk Analysis," but not a primary topic search for "Evacuation."
Topics listed under this category are described in Section 2.5.
3 - Search by Media Type. Using this option, you may select references according to their
medium. Options for this search are:
• Journal, newspaper, or magazine article
Audio or video presentation
Computer data base
Congressional hearings "
Correspondence
Document (e.g., book, fact sheet)
Standards/Guidelines
Periodical
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• Regulation or statute
• Training materials
• Other
A reference was coded as "Journal, newspaper, or magazine article" if it appeared once in a
periodical as a single article. References coded as "Periodical" are a description of a
periodical series (e,g., Emergency Preparedness Digest or American Fire Journal) without
reference to specific articles.
4 - Search by Source. You may generate a list of all references produced by a certain type
of organization. Options for this search are:
Academia
Federal government
Local government
State government
Public interest group
Trade or industry group
International
Other
5 - Search by State Name. You may select a specific state. PLUS will generate a list of all
references that either are produced by an agency in that state or contain information (e.g.,
case studies) directly related to that state.
6 - Search by Chemical Name. By choosing a chemical from the given list, you may search
for all references pertaining to the selected chemical. Although all the chemicals listed are
Extremely Hazardous Substances (EHSs), the first release of the software contains references
to only 18 chemicals. These are:
• Ammonia
• Anhydrous ammonia
• Anhydrous hydrogen fluoride
• Butadiene
• Chlorine . •
Explosives
Hydrochloric acid
Hydrogen sulfide
Nitric acid
Oleum
Phosphorus trichloride ...
Phosphorus
Sulfur dioxide ;. ,
Sulfuric acid
Toluene
Vinyl Chloride
White phosphorus
Xylene
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7 - Search by Combination of the Above. Using this function, you may enter a combination
of any of the search criteria listed above EXCEPT a combination that includes both criteria
1 and 2 ("Search by Topic" and "Search by Primary Topic Only"). This function may be useful
in narrowing the scope of a search. For example, if you need a video about a particular
subject, you may specify "Emergency Equipment and Equipment Handlers" as the topic and
"Audio-visual materials" as the media type. PLUS will list only the references that meet both
criteria.
The following screen will provide you with search options:
References by Combination Search
Topic
Primary Topic Only
Media Type (e.g., Article, Video)
Source (e.g., Govt, Private)
State Name
Chemical Name
Select any combination of the above to search by
Press F2 to look up a code, ESC to exit
To enter the criteria for a search, use the arrow keys to move to each of the options you
want to specify and press F2. A list of options will appear. Move the cursor using the up and
down arrow keys and select an option by pressing Enter. The screen will then display your
selection and give you the opportunity to select another search category.
You may fill in as many blanks as you wish, but you may not specify both "Topic" and
"Primary Topic Only" for the same search.
When you have entered all the criteria for your search, press Enter, moving the cursor
through all possible options, and the search will begin.
8 - List all References. By selecting option 8 on the Report Menu, "List All References,"
PLUS will allow you to list all references in the system by topic or alphabetically by author.
Once PLUS has performed your search, a reference list will appear on the screen. Part of a typical
reference list, generated by using the topic search for the topic "Hazard identification," is shown on
the next page.
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[Date]
RTM - BEN002
Title:
Author:
Date:
Publisher:
Prim Topic:
RTN - DOT006
Title:
Author:
Date:
Publisher:
Prim Topic:
g-Prev Page
References by Topic
Topic = 01 (la. Areas of concern - hazard Identification)
Flammable and Combustible Liquids Code Handbook, 1th edition
Benedetti, Robert P., ed.
1990
National Fire Protection Association
01 (la. Areas of concern - hazard identification)
Hazardous Materials Flows By Rail
DOT
March 1990
DOT
01 (la. Areas of concern - hazard identification)
Page 1
H-Next Page
-View Expanded Description
fet-Print
SS-Exlt
2.3 Interpreting a PLUS-generated List
The list generated by PLUS provides you with basic bibliographic information about the references
that meet your search criteria. Reference citations are listed in alphabetical order (e.g., alphabetically
by RTN). Because RTNs are keyed to the last name of the reference's author, references by the
same author are listed together. Once you have generated a list, you may perform the following
functions:
Scroll. You may scroll through the list by pressing the Page-Up and Page-Down keys. At the end
of a list, you may only review the list by answering yes to the question "Do you want to view the list
again?"
Obtain Additional Information. If you would like more detailed information on a reference, press
F6 to view the "expanded description." A menu appears that contains the RTNs for the references
currently listed on the screen. (The RTN for a reference appears on the first line of the citation for
that reference.) Select the RTN of the reference for which you want more information. If there is
only one reference on the screen, PLUS will go directly to the expanded description. The expanded
description provides the same bibliographic information that was shown in the initial list as well as
a summary of the reference's contents and information on acquiring the reference.
View the Listing Again. When you have finished viewing a listing, press Esc. PLUS will ask you if
you want to view the listing again. Press Y and then Enter to return to the beginning of the list you
just viewed. If you do not want to view the listing again, press N and then press Enter to return to
the list of topics or search options you just used.
2.4 Printing
You have several options for printing:
Print from the Initial List of References. By pressing F9 at a list of references, you are given the
option of printing the entire list of references, printing all the expanded descriptions for that list, or
printing both the list and the accompanying expanded descriptions.
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Print from the expanded description Screen. While viewing an expanded description, you may press
F9 to print that expanded description.
Once you have chosen one of these printing options, PLUS will ask you if you want to print to a
printer or to a file. If you choose to print to a file, PLUS will ask you for the filename of the file
to print to. You must provide a name for the file; you may want to consider giving the file a name
that reflects the topic of the search (i.e., "Video" for a list of audio-visual materials). PLUS will then
copy your report to a subdirectory called .REPORTS (or the subdirectory you specified under
"Default Subdirectory"; see Section 1.3 for more detail about the default subdirectory and how to
change it) within your "PLUS" subdirectory. If you choose to print to a printer, PLUS will ask you
if the printer is ready. When your printer is ready, press Y and PLUS will send your selection to the
printer. NOTE: On some computers, it may be necessary to press Ctrl-Alt-* after PLUS'S print
commands in order to send your print job to the printer. If you do not press Ctrl-Alt-*, the print
jobs will be printed when you exit PLUS.
In some instances, you may want to print all the references. You can do this by selecting 8 - List All
References at the Reports - Main Menu and then following the above instructions.
2.5 Topic Descriptions
To perform a search by the topic of a reference, it is helpful to understand the meanings of the topic
areas and the types of references they include. The topics by which you may search are described
in this section. This list of 13 topics, which appears on the screen when you select "Search by Topic"
or "Search by Primary Topic Only," is based on the required elements of an emergency plan as stated
in the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). A few of the topics,
namely topics 1, 3, and 8, are based on EPCRA, but have been subdivided to handle the large
number of references for each topic more effectively. For example, topic 1, which is entitled "Areas
of Concern," has been divided into four topics: la - Hazard Identification, Ib - Vulnerability Zone,
Ic - Risk Analysis, and Id - Modeling. Therefore, no references are coded under topic 1 alone; all
references that fit under "Areas of Concern" are assigned to at least one of the topic's subdivisions.
Topics 3 and 8 are similarly subdivided.
1. Areas of Concern (No references coded under 1)
la. Hazard Identification
Hazard identification references include information on identifying hazardous
chemical facilities in a community, determining which chemicals are used at those
facilities, the quantities of chemicals used, and their storage/use conditions.
Ib. Vulnerability Zone Determination
References on vulnerability zone determination address ways to estimate the extent
to which populations, property, and sensitive areas might be affected in the event of
a hazardous chemical release.
Ic. Risk Analysis
Risk analysis materials provide information on methods for estimating release
probabilities and for assessing the severity of the impacts of a release.
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Id. Modeling
Modeling references provide options for predicting and evaluating the sequence and
nature of events that may cause an accident as well as the likely results. This section
includes data bases and software programs that use various models to describe
physical and chemical phenomena.
2.
General Emergency Response
The references in this section cover a variety of response-related topics. For example,
materials may have chapters or sections on emergency equipment, fire and medical
response, and containment. This section does not include references that focus
exclusively on chemical-specific data, fire response, or medical response. Specific
information on these topics can be found under topic designations 3a - General
Chemical Data, 3b - Fire Response, and 3c - Medical Response.
3. Specifics of Emergency Response (No references coded under 3)
3a. General Chemical Data
This section contains references (e.g., data bases, software packages, books) that
provide lists of chemicals and data associated with each chemical. Data contained in
these references may include physical data (e.g., reactivity, explosivity, and
flammability), methods and equipment for handling spills of a specific chemical,
medical and fire response information, and other chemical-specific data. Data in
these references are presented on a chemical-by-chemical basis.
3b. Fire Response
References in this section cover fire response equipment, technologies and techniques
for fighting chemical fires, protective equipment for firefighters, and other topics
specifically related to response to a fire involving a hazardous chemical release.
3c. Medical Response
This section contains references on coordination of medical response equipment and
personnel, procedures for handling mass casualties, coordination of special response
and rescue teams, coordination of response activities with hospitals, and other subjects
specifically related to medical response to an incident involving a hazardous chemical
release.
4. Appointment of Coordinators: Facility and Community
This section includes references on selecting facility and community emergency
coordinators. Materials listed in this section cover topics such as identifying potential
coordinators, qualifications, duties and responsibilities, and the general role of the
coordinator within the community's response structure.
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5.
Notification
This section includes information on whom to notify (e.g., public authorities, response
organizations, media, population, facility personnel, the National Response Center,
CHEMTREC). It also contains references on methods of notification, establishing
a communications network (including who is responsible for notifying whom and
under what circumstances as well as the physical equipment for communication), and
establishing alarm systems (e.g., sirens, bells, horns) at facilities and within the
community. Systems may include, for example, designated emergency radio and
television channels, sirens, and house-to-house notification. References include
information on the NRC Hotline and the Emergency Broadcast System.
6.
Containment, Cleanup, and Recovery
References in this section cover containment, cleanup, and recovery following an
accident involving a hazardous chemical release. Material on containment includes
information on repairing and stopping leaks, methods for mitigating spills, and
methods for suppressing released gases. References on cleanup discuss topics such
as technologies for handling spills on land and water, disposal of spilled material, and
identification of available cleanup equipment and specialists in the community.
Additional references in this section deal with damage evaluation and recovery.
Topics include decontamination, monitoring of atmospheric concentrations, and
establishment of alternate water supplies.
7.
Emergency Equipment and Equipment Handlers
This section contains references on protective and emergency equipment for
responders other than-firefighters. Topics include protective clothing and equipment
(e.g., SCBA), vapor monitors, and identification of emergency equipment, responders,
and other resources in the community. References in this section may also cover
communications equipment, especially for communication among responders, but the
majority of information on communication can be found under topic 5 - Notification.
The information contained in this section deals with emergency equipment designed
for chemical spills that do not involve fire. Fire response equipment information can
be found under topic 3b - Fire Response.
8. Public Safety and Protection (No references coded under 8)
8a.
Evacuation
References in this section provide information on developing emergency evacuation
plans, assigning responsibility for implementing evacuation plans, and coordinating
transportation and subsistence requirements. References may also include
information on notifying the public of the evacuation, but most material on
notification and communication can be found under topic 5 - Notification.
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8b. In-Place Protection/Shelter
This section contains information on the concept of in-place sheltering of potentially
exposed persons, when in-place sheltering may be appropriate, and other information
relevant to evacuation alternatives.
9.
Training
References in this section address methods for training emergency responders, facility
personnel, and the public to handle chemical emergencies. This section also provides
information on sources of training materials (e.g., catalogs, private sources,
government). It does NOT include descriptions of training courses that have already
been developed. To identify available training courses, search by Media and select
"Training."
10. Methods and Schedule for Exercising the Plan
This section contains emergency exercises and simulations (ranging from paper
exercises and table-top simulations to full-scale accident simulations) that can be used
by community planners to exercise their emergency response plans. It also includes
references that planners can use to develop their own exercises based on their
particular plans and community needs.
11. Case Studies
This section contains specific examples of actual chemical emergencies and the
responses taken by the community.
12. General Planning
References in this section contain information on several general topics related to
emergency planning. Some material can be used by planners to initiate the planning
process or to evaluate and update plans in their community. Examples of materials
included in this section are training courses, information management materials, and
documents on planning skills and plan format.
13. Other
References in this section may be useful to emergency planners, but they do not fall
into any of the categories listed above. One example of such a reference is the
CEPP/Title III Hotline, which provides information on Title III, but which is not
specifically devoted to emergency planning.
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PLUS
JJ
CHAPTER 3:
UPDATING
PLUS
PLUS allows you to update the system by adding, editing, and deleting references. This chapter
discusses the procedures for each of these operations.
To modify PLUS:
>• At the Main Menu, select 1 - Data Maintenance Menu. The following screen will appear:
Data Maintenance Menu
. records
v^tff¥-""f'f', _
- Edrh records
3 - Delete records
4 - Exit
3.1 Adding Records
You may add as many records to PLUS as you wish. Each additional record will require a small
amount of additional hard disk space. These records will be a part of the system only on your hard
drive and will not be available to other users. However, if you know of a reference that is not
currently in the system as circulated by EPA that you feel would be helpful for future PLUS updates,
please let EPA know about this reference. The form in Appendix B is available to provide the
required information for inclusion in future updates.
To add a reference to PLUS:
> Select 1 - Add records at the Data Maintenance Menu.
> Enter the RTN for the record you are adding. You will have to create your own RTN for
this purpose. Each RTN must consist of three letters followed by three numbers. You may
want to consider using RTNs based on a personal system, such as your initials (instead of
author's last name) so that user-added references are readily apparent.
* Press Enter.
Entering Data in Fields. After you have entered an RTN for the reference, the following data entry
screen will appear.
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Author (Last name first)
Title of reference <
Name of Journal
Publication date f v,
Name of publisher
Media type »'
Source type
International (Y/N)
State Involved
Chemical name y- ,, ••
Primary topic
QC check
F2-Lookup F4-Subtopics F6-Expand Desc FlO-Save ESC-Exit
> Fill in the fields as appropriate for your reference, leaving blank those fields that do not
apply.
> In the fields for "Media type," "Source type," and "Primary topic," you must enter a two-digit
code. You may either enter the code (if you know it) or press F2 to see a list of the codes
for the field. After pressing F2, highlight one of the options from the list by moving the up
and down arrow keys and select it by pressing Enter.
+ To enter a state name in the "State involved" field, enter the two letter abbreviation for that
state. Press F2 to view a list of state abbreviations.
> It is not necessary to fill in the blank for "QC Check." This space was used for EPA's quality
control review.
Selecting Secondary Topics. Any number of secondary topics can be selected for new references.
Although secondary topics do not appear as an entry on the screen above, they will appear on the
reference lists generated during searches.
> To specify secondary topics for a reference, press F4.
> Press Insert for a list of topics, move the cursor to an appropriate topic, and press the space
bar to include that topic. Once you press the space bar, the topic is "tagged" and is marked
with a V". You may select as many topics as appropriate.
> Press Enter to select all tagged topics. These topics will be the secondary topics for that
reference.
Entering the expanded description. After you have entered the bibliographic data about the
reference in the blanks on the data entry screen, you may create an expanded description for the
reference. To begin:
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> Press F6.
By pressing F6, you are commanding the system to enter the word processing program on
your computer. (You must input the "Word Processor Setup," described in Section 1.2,
before this command will work.)
NOTE: Occasionally, if there is not enough free disk space on your hard drive,
you will be unable to access the word processing software. An error
message will appear informing you that you do not have enough disk
space. You will need to exit PLUS and delete some files on your
hard drive before creating or editing any expanded descriptions.
>• Enter the information you would like to see in the expanded description for the reference.
You may enter this information in any format you wish. EPA-generated expanded
descriptions repeat the information given in the initial listing, list the primary topic and
subtopics for the reference, provide a summary of the reference's content, and give
information on where to acquire the reference.
>• After you have entered the expanded description, you MUST save the file as an ASCII file. The
filename must be the same as the RTN, with the extension "ASC" (e.g., a reference with RTN
EPA001 will have an expanded description file called EPA001ASC).
In WordPerfect (versions 4.1 and all more recent versions), a file can be saved as an ASCII
file by pressing Ctrl-F5, 1, 1. You may then exit WordPerfect normally, by pressing F7,
without saving.
Saving the Record
*• When you have exited your word processor, press F10 and then type Y to save your changes.
You then have the option to add another record or exit the add function.
3.2 Editing Records
Editing a record is similar to adding a record, except that you are working with a record that is
already in the system. Before entering this function, you must know the RTNs of the records that
you will be editing. To edit a record:
> Select 2 - Edit records at the Data Maintenance Menu.
>• Enter the RTN of the record you want to edit. If you do not know the RTN, press enter and
a list will appear. Because this list has only RTNs and no other identifying information, you
should determine the RTNs of the records that you want to edit prior to entering this
function. If you enter an invalid RTN, PLUS will provide the complete list of RTNs from
which you should select the proper RTN.
* Change data as desired by moving the cursor to the appropriate field and typing over what
is there.
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•> To edit the expanded description, press F6 and proceed as explained above in the "Adding
Records" section. Remember to save your expanded description file as an ASCII file before
exiting the word processor.
* When you are finished, press F10 and Y to save your changes.
3.3 Deleting Records
PLUS gives you the option of deleting references from the system. Once you have deleted a
reference, you will not be able to restore it (unless you reinstall the system from the original disk).
To delete a reference:
>• Select 3 - Delete Records at the Data Maintenance Menu.
> Enter the RTN of the reference you want to delete. PLUS will show you the data entry field
for that reference.
* Press Y to confirm deletion of the record. The expanded description will also be deleted.
»• Enter the RTN of the next reference you want to delete or press Esc to exit.
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CHAPTER 4:
TROUBLESHOOTING
This chapter is designed to help you solve problems that you may encounter when using PLUS. If
you encounter problems that are not covered here, please fill out the form in Appendk B and return
it to EPA at the EPCRA Hotline (address below), so that the problem can be corrected in future
versions. You may also call the EPCRA Hotline in order to describe your problem. The Hotline
will then refer your problem to system experts who will reply with a technical answer.
PROBLEM: I have loaded PLUS and used it before, but for some reason today I can't get PLUS
to start running on my computer.
SOLUTION: Make sure that you are at the C: prompt before you type CD PLUS. PLUS will not
work if you are in another subdirectory.
PROBLEM: While I was running PLUS, I got an error message and the system froze up.
SOLUTION: Reboot your computer (e.g., turn it off and back on) and enter the PLUS system
again. If the system froze while you were adding or editing a record, your changes
will not be saved unless you were able to save them before rebooting.
PROBLEM: When I view an expanded description, I see funny characters (e.g., #«/©«>) instead
of normal text.
SOLUTION: The expanded description file for that reference was not saved as an ASCII file. To
fix this situation, go to the Data Maintenance Menu and select 2 - Edit Records.
Enter the RTN of the reference that had the expanded description format problem
and press Enter. Press F6 to go into the expanded description (see Section 3.1,
Entering the expanded description, for a more detailed explanation). Once you are
in the expanded description, save it as an ASCII file, using the RTN as the file name
with the extension ".ASC". After you have saved the expanded description as an
ASCII file, exit your word processor normally, without saving.
PROBLEM: I can't get my lists to print.
SOLUTION: Press Ctrl-Alt-* to send your print jobs to your printer, or exit PLUS and the lists will
print.
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PROBLEM: When I print, the spacing of the lists from page to page is off (i.e., the page breaks
don't fall correctly).
SOLUTION: Go to the System Utilities Menu and select 2 - Printer Setup. Make sure that you
have told PLUS the correct number of lines that your printer will support. Consult
the manual for your word processing software to determine the appropriate number.
PROBLEM: I can't see the cursor on my screen.
SOLUTION: For a black and white screen, go to the System Utilities Menu and select 5 - Monitor
Setup. Make sure that you have selected "no" for the color display option.
PROBLEM: I want to edit (or delete) a reference but I don't know the RTN.
SOLUTION: Return to the list where you saw the reference. The RTN is located in the upper
left-hand corner of each citation.
PROBLEM: I can't access the files once I've selected my criteria.
SOLUTION: Go to the System Utilities Main Menu and choose 1 - Pack and Reindex Databases.
This will "clean up" your system and make it easier for the computer to find the
references you've selected.
If you have a problem that is not addressed here, call the EPCRA Hotline at 1-800-535-0202. Also,
please complete the form in Appendix B so that a written record of the problem can be addressed
for future software and manual updates.
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APPENDIX A
PLUS PROBLEM REPORTING FORM
This Appendix contains a form that may be used to submit questions or problems about PLUS to
EPA. If you have encountered a problem, please fill out this form. Please include your name and
address and return the form to:
EPCRA Hotline
Booz • Allen & Hamilton, Inc.
1725 Jefferson Davis Highway
Arlington, VA 22202
1-800-535-0202
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APPENDIX A
PLUS PROBLEM REPORTING FORM
I have encountered the following problem(s) in using PLUS:
_I have not found a solution to this problem.
_I have developed the following solution to the problem(s) discussed above:
Submitted by:
Name
Address
Phone
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APPENDIX B
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES FORM
This appendix contains an initial information form for references to be added to PLUS. If you have
a reference that you would like to see included in future updates of the system, or if you have found
a mistake in one of the citations, please copy this form, fill it out in as much detail as possible, and
return it to:
EPCRA Hotline
Booz • Allen & Hamilton, Inc.
1725 Jefferson Davis Highway
Arlington, VA 22202
1-800-535-0202
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ADDITIONAL REFERENCE INFORMATION SHEET
PLUS Software
Submitted by:
Name
Affiliation.
Address
Phone
BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION (complete all if applicable)
Author/Editor/Agency:
Title:
Journal:
Publication Date:
Publisher:
Document Summary Please include information on the usefulness of this document to you and how it would
be useful for other users.
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Below, please indicate how you coded the reference for your system:
Media Type: _
Source Type:
Primary Topic
Secondary Topic(s):
Information on Acquiring/Accessing the Reference (Include contact name, address, and/or phone number,
publication number (e.g., NT1S or GPO number), and cost, where available.)
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