With English Query technology, the user can ask any question in prose about the data, have it translated into SQL, and select the fields they wish to see in the return set. The user can to go back to the query to refine the question. On separate buttons, "common queries" are offered, which are based upon the list of queries originally presented on this site, and a "tutorial" is offered, which is a list of many examples of queries that the user may modify, complete with dropdown boxes to aid with spelling and format. The data are returned in a table in a frame below the query frame. The fields returned are set by the user or by default. From the return set table, the user may select the hyperlink in the MBARI ID field to view more information about the individual specimen, see a GIS map of collecting locations, get comma-delimited files or make labels (more about these below).

Select pages: Further data for individual specimens are found in the page "Sample Info", which is an ASP page that returns data for the selected sample. This page is reached from the initial return table by clicking the hyperlinked MBARI ID field. From there the user can choose to go to the ASP page "Images", which returns all the images on file for that specimen. From these "select pages", the user can go to the "edit pages" (below), can query for subsamples, view the VIMS annotations at the time the sample was collected, and other options. The "select" and "edit" pages call views in SQL Server.

Edit pages: Information to be edited in the database can be entered with the "edit pages" for collecting event information, sample information, and images. These are ASP pages. These pages return the information that exists in the database for a particular specimen and offer form fields for the user to type in information to be changed. The action on the forms is to: A) send an e-mail to Jenny that lists any values typed into the fields, and B) append this data to a log file on the web site. Jenny then manually edits the data using a MS Access satellite database (e.g., sampleForms.mdb).

Attached to the internal Query the Samples Database site are links to several functions:

	Comma-delimited files link asks the same SQL statement, but returns the data in a new page as comma-delimited text. View the instructions for exporting to other programs such as MS Excel. This link is from the return frame of the query page.
	Create labels link first creates a comma-delimited file, then instructs the user to choose the type of label desired, and fires up a Microsoft Word document containing a macro that runs to create pages of the appropriate label size.
	View with GIS link first creates a comma-delimited file, then runs an applet to open a map showing the locations of all the samples in the query result set. See the documentation for the GIS display of samples data. This link is from the return frame of the query page.
	View the VIMS annotations link queries the VIMS (video annotation) database for all the annotations within 10 minutes on either side of the time the specimen was collected. This link is from the select "Sample Info" page.
	View subsamples sends an SQL statement for all other samples that share the same CollectionEventID and returns a table that resembles the original query return table. This link is from the "select" pages.

2. The external Query the Samples Database web site
The external Query the Samples Database site is not yet available. It is expected that it will enable users outside MBARI to ask a limited set of questions about the data and receive a limited scope of data in return. Use of the data is subject to the MBARI data use policy disclaimer:

Queries list: The main queries list is an HTML page. (See static example.)
Query forms: The forms that are linked from the queries list are ASPs. The action on the Submit button is to call the ASP returnTable.asp with the form values as variables and the particular query type (qType) as a hidden variable.
MS SQL views: The same "views" in SQL Server (similar to "queries" in MS Access) are called over and over again by the different queries and ASP files.
Return templates (ASP files): The return templates contain the SQL statements, identify the ODBC data source (e.g., sample1, the ODBC name for MBARI_Samples), and specify the appearance of the return pages. In most cases, the SQL statements pass variables through views in SQL Server to the database. The different types of return templates are:

returnTable.asp: The initial return from any of the main queries is a table. The variables were passed from the query forms. The hidden variable qType calls a case statement in the file, which determines which SQL statement will be passed to the database. (See static example.)

Select page templates: Further data for individual specimens are found in the page "Sample Info", which is an ASP page that returns data for the selected sample. (See static example.) This page is reached from the initial return table by clicking the hyperlinked MBARI ID field. From there the user can choose to go to the ASP page "Images", which returns all the images on file for that specimen. From these "select pages", the user can query for subsamples, and other options. The "select"pages call views in SQL Server.

3. The Expedition Search pages
An alternate way of retrieving sample data from the web and entering the above system of queries is through the tables generated in the Expedition search web site. The specimen information is summarized in these tables through an automated process that searches for specimens in the MBARI_Samples database.