To COG Atlas users
I had a close look at the online database after receiving information (people were so polite that they could hardly be called complaints) that some of their more recent sightings were missing from the database.
To my surprise and horror there were some serious holes in the data. Most of this was caused by my omission of a key step in processing the data. When I download the data, I check it for accuracy, and then allocate a COG “Sheet Number” to replace the temporary number allocated when the data is entered. Thus Sheet T55 could become Sheet 35555.
I then append the new data to tables in 3 different databases: the COG Atlas online database, the COG Main Database, and the AllSurveys database.
What has happened in a number of instances is that I omitted to append the data to the COG Online database, so to all intents and purposes it disappeared from the users view. Sorry about that.
Anyway, I have restored the missing data, and according to my audit, everything is up to date.
If you have been bored witless by my risible attempt to give a simple description of the process, you will understand that it is probable that such errors could occur. However, there has been sufficient backup in this case to enable me to restore the situation to some semblance of normalcy. If there are still problems please do not hesitate to contact me.
Many thanks for the continuing patience and indulgence of COG Atlas Users.
Cheers
Paul
Paul Fennell
Editor Annual Bird Report
Manaager COG Databases
0262541804
0407105460
