## Export (Backup) and Delete Options

Selection of 'backup and delete' on the switchboard will allow the user to archive (backup) their data, or remove blocks of records from the database.

Export (Backup)
In this context, 'backup' does not refer to merely creating a copy of the database file; rather, it is concerned with long-term data archiving.

In past decades, much archaeological data have been lost due to storage on media no longer accessable, or in formats no longer readable. Because of this, it is safest to reduce data to an easily readable format. It is possible to export data to a variety of file formats using Access' inbuilt features, but users may prefer to use this backup option for ease and convienence. It creates a series of comma-separated text files (.txt), one per table (see the navigation and structure page for definitions). These text files can then be viewed with only minimal software, such as Notepad or WordPad, and can be imported into a variety of other programs, including other database systems. Their other advantage is that each file is extremely small in size and will easily fit on floppy disks, unlike the actual database file.

The backup files created will be placed in a folder called 'backup', located in the same directory as the main database file. A blank file of this name is included on the CD, although if it is missing, a new one can be easily created in the normal way. Once the files have been created, that folder can be moved, copied, renamed, etc.

Four types of tables can be backed-up, as illustrated at left. The 'main' tables are those which contain most of the data entered by the user, the 'measurement' tables are self-evident, and the 'lookup' tables are those that contain lists of species, elements, etc. The system tables contain technical information and are created and maintained by Access itself. Most users will probably wish to create backups of the first two types of files, as those will contain all the data recorded about all specimens. However, if the user has customised several of the lookup tables, they may wish to preserve their changes by saving copies of these as well. Finally, the system tables can be saved if desired, as they contain all the data relating to the structure of the database itself; these data can then be used to completely reconstruct the basic database. Only experienced database designers need bother with this option.

In the unlikely event of either the York System or Access itself becoming corrupted, these backup files can then be imported manually into a fresh version of The York System, using File | Get External Data | Import... .

Delete
This option doesn't have a corresponding 'undo' function, hence the advice on backing-up files above! The purpose of this option is to remove some or all records from the database, especially useful if a blank copy is not available. All sites in the database are listed; users are given a choice of selecting specific ones to remove, or simply clearing out all records, while leaving all lookup tables intact. If recording is to follow immediately, it is advisable to use Access' compact function (Tools | Database Utilities | Compact and Repair Database...), which will make the application more efficient. Archiving The Archaeology Data Service, based at the University of York, has offered to archive the electronic record of any assemblage recorded with the York System. This will permit other zooarchaeologists to access raw data, which will allow inter-site comparisons to be made easily. This service is free of charge, as long as an entire site's archive is not being held by the Archaeology Data Service. It is crucial that adequate metadata is recorded about the site, to allow other zooarchaeologists to make use of the data.