CACTUS Frequently Asked Questions

• You can't get CACTUS installed on another machine and you get some message about XVGA and 1024 x 768.  This means you haven't set the resolution on your video high enough.  Right click on the desktop, select "Properties", select "Settings" and increase the desktop area to 1024 by moving the slider to the right.
• I can't see the scroll bars.  This usually results from having too large a font set for MS Windows.  Right click on the desktop, select "Properties", select "Settings" and decrease the font in the font drop-down list box.  This will allow the scroll bars to be seen.   Although it is not a permanent fix, you can always use the Page Up and Page Down keys on the keyboard to move through a table of rows.
• What does it mean if I get a Database Error Code 7?  This means you have lost your connection to the CACTUS database and you will have to reconnect.  First you must exit CACTUS if it is still running and then restart it and logon again. Such an error may indicate something has gone wrong with you connection to the Internet.  If you are using a dialup line your modem may have hung-up.
• What do I do when everything seems to "lock-up" while I'm making changes CACTUS?  There may be any number of reasons for this, some of which may be caused by events outside of CACTUS.  However, if this occurs while make or saving a change you may try exiting CACTUS and when asked whether or not you want to save changes reply with "No".  If you cannot log back into CACTUS the problem may be with your machine (try rebooting) or with your network connection (call your network support staff).  Sometimes things seem to freeze after you've added on record or row in one window and another row or window to a second window.  Try deleting one or both records.  You can do this before you even "save" and is always a good way to remove data you may have added in error.
• When I try to highlight a row of a table a list of items (such as schools or assignments) appears.  You have just clicked on a drop-down list of some sort.  Be careful not to change some data item you do not want to change.   When selecting a row, clicking on the first item in the row is usually safe and will not result in a list being displayed.  Dates are safe items to click on.   You can click on any item but some may cause unexpected results.