TCFlow User s Guide Revision 1.3 August 28, 2009

Transcription

1 TCFlow User s Guide Revision 1.3 August 28, 2009

2 Licenses This manual is the exclusive property of Prometric, Inc. This manual is licensed for use with restrictions to authorized centers and Agents. Information herein is proprietary in nature and may not be disclosed to unauthorized persons without the expressed consent of Prometric. Microsoft, Window and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Copyright 2009 Prometric ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, Web distribution, or information storage and retrieval systems, or in any other manner without the written permission of the publisher.

3 TCFlow User s Guide 1 Using this Guide... 1 Guide... 1 General Computer Setup Information... 1 TCFlow Software Installation Information... 2 TCFlow Basics... 2 TCFlow General Information... 2 Logging On to TCFlow... 2 Opening the Test Center... 3 Closing the Test Center... 3 Testing the Examinee... 4 General Information... 4 Checking In the Examinee... 4 Starting the Exam... 5 Checking Out the Examinee... 7 TCFlow Admin Basics... 7 TCFlow Admin General Information... 7 Administration Tab... 8 Roster Tab Scheduling Tab Site Management Tab Tools Tab Configuration Tab Help Tab Using TCFlow Scheduler on Your Admin Search Functions Scheduling, Rescheduling or Cancelling an Exam Searching for Exam Information Managing Site Management from Your Admin To View/Modify Your Site s Calendar: To View/Modify Your Site s Standard Hours: To View/Modify Your Site s Exception Hours: To View/Modify Your Site s Seat Availability: To View/Modify Your Site Information: To View/Print Forms: Workstation Demos TCFlow Scheduler Web Access Web Scheduler Procedure Potential TCFlow Error Issues (both using Your Admin and Web) Net Error Messages Browser Compatibility Error Messages Adobe Reader Error Messages... 31

4 TCFlow User s Guide Using this Guide Guide Table 1. Guide. This guide covers basic information on how to use the TCFlow application. TCFlow is a tool that is both intuitive and easy to use for managing site operations and scheduling examinees. For more information on IT policies, procedures and practices, contact your Regional or Territory Operations Manager. Table 2. General Computer Setup Information. TCFlow Computer Software Requirements: General Computer Setup Information All testing and Admin computers must have Internet Explorer 7.0 installed. All testing and Admin computers must have.net 2.0 or higher installed. All computers that access TCFlow Scheduler must have Adobe Reader 7.0 or higher installed. Note: IE 7.0 is required for scheduling purposes, you must install this on all workstations configured as either an Admin or a test station. Admin Set up Recommendations: A dedicated Admin computer which is separate from the test station computers is recommended. If you have not previously had a dedicated Admin computer, you will need to run seat set up. A test station computer used as both an Admin and a test station is a secondary recommendation. If you use a test station as your Admin computer, the workstation must have Windows XP as the operating system. Note: Prometric does not recommend or support running the admin functions from your server. TCFlow User s Guide - 1

5 Table 3. Software Installation Information. TCFlow Software Installation Information TCFlow Installation Process (when queued for release to your site): Pulse will download the TCFlow installation package during any Pulse run. Pulse will install TCFlow on your server once Pulse processes are complete. The installation package will contain a new version of TSTSTART which will be updated the next time TCM is executed on each workstation. Reboot following the TSTSTART update and select the Network APTC Testing option to launch TCFlow. TCFlow will attempt to automatically detect whether you are setting up an admin station or a testing station. If you do not see the appropriate set of features, you can manually set the workstation type (see Table 18. Configuration Tab ). TCFlow Basics Table 4. General Information. This section deals with these basic site operations. Logging on. Opening the test center. Closing the test center. TCFlow General Information Table 5. Logging On to TCFlow. Logging On to TCFlow Screen Computer Screen To log on to the TCFlow application, enter your site code and password. TCFlow User s Guide - 2

6 Table 6. Opening the Test Center. Opening the Test Center Screen Computer Screen The Open the Test Center screen appears. To continue to the test delivery sections, click the Open the Test Center button. Once your center is open, The test center is now open message appears (not shown). After you acknowledge it, by either clicking on the black X in the upper right corner, this screen appears. Table 7. Closing the Test Center. Closing the Test Center Screen Computer Screen When you have finished testing for the day, use the Administration tab to close your site. Click the Close the Test Center button that appears in the middle of the screen. Note: After you click Close the Test Center, you must run Pulse to process the day s results including all incomplete exams. TCFlow User s Guide - 3

7 Testing the Examinee Table 8. General Information. General Information This section deals with test launching information such as: Checking in the examinee. Starting the examinee s exam. Checking out the examinee. Checking In the Examinee Table 9. Checking In the Examinee. Step Computer Screen 1 On the Admin computer, click on the Roster tab. 2 Highlight the examinee s name. 3 Click on Check In (located in the upper left corner). TCFlow User s Guide - 4

8 Step Computer Screen 4 The Appointment screen appears. Read the exam-specific information to the examinee. 5 Click Check in (located in the center of the Appointment screen). 6 Go to the workstation assigned to the examinee. Table 10. Starting the Exam. Starting the Exam Step Procedure Note: At the assigned workstation - if not already logged on, log on. The appointment should appear. If you need to check in an examinee who is assigned to a different test station, click Full Roster (appears in the upper left hand corner of the screen) and all checked in examinees will be displayed. TCFlow User s Guide - 5

9 Step 2 Procedure With the examinee s name highlighted, click Sign On Candidate (appears on top tool bar). 3 The Sign On Candidate box appears, enter the examinee s Testing ID and click Sign On. 4 Instruct the examinee to click on either Start the Exam or Start the Tutorial. TCFlow User s Guide - 6

10 Table 11. Checking Out the Examinee. Checking Out the Examinee Screen Computer Screen After the examinee has completed his/her exam, go to the Roster tab, and select the exam. Next, click the Check Out button on the tool bar. The Appointment box will list any exam-specific policies that need to be followed. Click the Check Out button at the bottom of the Appointment box to continue. TCFlow Admin Basics Table 12. TCFlow Admin General Information. TCFlow Admin General Information This section covers basic information on how to use the TCFlow admin. It includes information on the following tabs: Administration Roster Scheduling Site Management Tools Configuration Help TCFlow User s Guide - 7

11 Table 13. Administration Tab. Administration Tab Screen Computer Screen The Administration tab has four functions: Read Messages Create Site Reports Edit Site Reports Reprint Score Reports The Message of the Day can be accessed from the Administration tab by clicking Read Messages. The Read Message box appears. It displays and prints the Messages of the Day and archives them much the same as an inbox. To create a site report, from the Administration tab, select the examinee by highlighting his/her name. TCFlow User s Guide - 8

12 Screen Computer Screen Site reports are filed for any incident outside normal operations. It is very important to file a site report for all no-show examinees in order to properly account for all test results. If needed, previously written site reports can be edited to include additional details. There are several Report Types for filing site reports. Select the report type that is most descriptive of the issue you are reporting. It is crucial that site reports satisfy the following criteria: Complete Professional Relevant TCFlow User s Guide - 9

13 Screen Computer Screen The Reprint Score Report feature can be used for any exam delivered. High light the appropriate examinee s exam and click OK. Sites may also reprint score reports from previous testing days by changing the date in the drop down menu on the Choose Appointments box. Table 14. Roster Tab. Roster Tab Screen Computer Screen The Roster tab allows you to: check in examinees check out examinees when exams are complete reset an examinee view examinee details such as his/her SR number print a regulation form cancel or reschedule examinees print the site roster view the seat assignments TCFlow User s Guide - 10

14 Screen Computer Screen Important: The Cancel and Reschedule buttons in the TCFlow application are the only way that a TCA can cancel or reschedule an appointment on the day that it is scheduled. By selecting either button, the system will delete the selected appointment from your site s database so that it cannot be launched. TCFlow will then load the Scheduling tab and perform a cancellation or load the examinee s profile and begin the rescheduling process. After cancelling or rescheduling an examinee, you must run Pulse in order to update the roster. One of the new features of TCFlow is the Check In and Check Out functions. Use the Roster tab to begin the Check In process. The Appointment screen will list exam-specific policies you may need to know. When an examinee has completed his/her exam, click the Roster tab. Select the exam, then the Check Out button on the tool bar. The Appointment box will display exam-specific policies that need to be followed. Click the Check Out button on the bottom of the Appointment box. TCFlow User s Guide - 11

15 Scheduling Tab Table 15. Scheduling Tab. Screen Computer Screen Scheduling Use the Scheduling tab to schedule, cancel, or register examinees. Table 16. Site Management Tab. Site Management Tab Screen Computer Screen The Site Management tab opens up with your site hours displayed on a calendar. It allows you to modify site hours and seat availability for any given day. For additional details see Table 24. To View/Modify Your Site s Calendar. TCFlow User s Guide - 12

16 Tools Tab Table 17. Tools Tab. Screen Computer Screen The Tools tab is used for 4 main purposes: run Pulse check Site Readiness (not used at this time) show the computer s Desktop applications (currently used for SUN Topcoder Readiness only) The Pulse button will launch the Pulse application. Note: If you do not see the Pulse progress screen as shown, use the Alt+Tab keys to determine if the screen is behind the TCFlow screen. The Show Desktop button allows you to start and stop Windows explorer. The Tools tab is also available on the testing station. Note: If Windows explorer is running on a test station, the exam launch software will report it as an unauthorized application. Table 18. Configuration Tab. Configuration Tab Screen Computer Screen The Configurations tab allows you to change your TCFlow password. It also has the option to set the station s language. This button will allow a site to configure the station as a testing station or an admin station. Configuration changes take effect immediately it is not necessary to reboot. The Configurations tab is also available on the testing station. Note: These changes are not saved unless you close TCFlow by using the red X in the upper right corner. Any other method of closing TCFlow such as Ctrl+Alt+Del will not save your seat configuration changes. TCFlow User s Guide - 13

17 Help Tab Table 19. Help Tab. Screen Computer Screen The Help tab has three main functions: Help Use to open the APTC web site. Chat Use to start an isupport echat service event with the Global Help Desk. About Use to determine the version of TCFlow installed. The remaining buttons are used for browser navigation. The Help tab is also available on the testing station. Use the Help button to go to the APTC web page. The APTC web page contains the most current information you will need to deliver exams at your center. Log on information: Username: channel Password: Prometr1c TCFlow User s Guide - 14

18 Screen Computer Screen Use the Chat button to open an isupport chat session with the Global Help Desk. For specific instructions on using this tool refer to the isupport users guide posted in the electronics manuals section of the APTC Web site. In the top box, be sure to select APTC as the type of site in order to be placed in the proper queue. Using TCFlow Scheduler on Your Admin Table 20. Search Functions. Search Functions Task Note: On the Scheduling tab, click on one of the two secondary tabs Search or Exam Information - to open the menu for that item. Main Search Click on Scheduling to bring up the default search view. TCFlow User s Guide - 15

19 Task To Search for an Examinee Use the drop down box to display these search options. Each search option displays a user-friendly screen. You can search by: Prometric Testing ID Full Name Confirmation Number Phone Number Client ID Candidate not Found Message If the examinee is not found, the Candidate not Found message appears below the Reset and Search buttons. You will be given the opportunity to enter him/her as a new examinee by selecting the New Candidate link. Note: Make sure to search by all options before adding a new examinee to the system. TCFlow User s Guide - 16

20 Task Registering a New Candidate Complete the required information to register an examinee. Fields with asterisks are mandatory. Candidate Found If the examinee is found, you will be able to use these features: Show Address - use to confirm the examinee found is the correct examinee. Select - use to schedule a new testing event. Exam Activity - use to reprint score reports and view previous testing events. TCFlow User s Guide - 17

21 Scheduling, Rescheduling or Cancelling an Exam Table 21 Scheduling, Rescheduling or Cancelling an Exam. Step 1 On the Scheduling tab, click on Search. The Candidate Search screen appears. 2 If known, enter the search parameters. In this example, the Full Name was used. Click Select. 3 The examinee s information appears. Click Register. TCFlow User s Guide - 18

22 Step 4 The Candidate Privacy Policy screen displays. Read it to the examinee and then click Accept. 5 Enter all required fields. If a voucher is not used, payment options will appear later in the process. Click Next. 6 The Register screen appears, click Next. TCFlow User s Guide - 19

23 Step 7 Your center s calendar appears. Select the date, time and seat. 8 The examinee s registration information appears. Review, if correct, select Confirm Registration. Note: Check the box to Override the confirmation by clicking on the box. 9 The Confirmation Number is displayed. Click on either Print Receipt or Finish. TCFlow User s Guide - 20

24 Step 10 When printing a receipt, you will see the following messages. Respond as applicable. Note: If you choose to print the receipt, when the receipt screen appears, use the printer icon. TCFlow User s Guide - 21

25 Step To Reschedule or Cancel an Appointment: 11 To reschedule or cancel an appointment, locate the examinee using Search. Then click Exam Activity on the bottom right hand side of the screen. 12 A list of all scheduled and taken exams appears for that examinee. Select the exam to be rescheduled or cancelled. 13 If you are cancelling an exam, you will see this message. When acknowledged, you will return to the exam listing. 14 If you are rescheduling an exam, you will be prompted to select a date, time and seat. TCFlow User s Guide - 22

26 Table 22 Searching for Exam Information. Searching for Exam Information Task Use the Scheduling tab to find out exam specific details. Main Exam Use the drop down boxes to select the: Information Screen Client Name Program Exam Number/Name Language Currency Sample Exam Information The specific Exam Information displays. TCFlow User s Guide - 23

27 Managing Site Management from Your Admin Table 23. To Manage Site Operations. This section deals with managing your site using the Site Management tab. You can click on the applicable options from the menus that go across the screen just under the main tabs. Table 24. To View/Modify Your Site s Calendar. To View/Modify Your Site s Calendar: Option Calendar Procedure From the main calendar screen, click on the date you wish to adjust. Then, use the boxes at the bottom of the screen to add time or reset that date. TCFlow User s Guide - 24

28 Table 25. To View/Modify Your Site s Standard Hours. To View/Modify Your Site s Standard Hours: Option Standard Hours Procedure To modify the Standard Hours, click on Edit next to the desired date to change the site hours for that day. Table 26. To View/Modify Your Site s Exception Hours. To View/Modify Your Site s Exception Hours: Option Exception Hours Procedure To change the hours on a single day, click on the calendar icon next to the Day field to select the desired date. Then enter your desire Start and End times. TCFlow User s Guide - 25

29 Table 27. To View/Modify Your Site s Seat Availability. To View/Modify Your Site s Seat Availability: Option Seat Availability Procedure Click on Availability Date next to the calendar icon to select the date. Next select the seat and Edit or Range to modify. Note: Range means date range. Table 28. To View/Modify Your Site Information. To View/Modify Your Site Information: Option Site Information Procedure Click in any of the boxes to edit the information. You can also edit or add additional contacts for your site. TCFlow User s Guide - 26

30 To View/Print Forms: Table 29. To View/Print Forms. Option View/Print Forms Procedure You may select any of the four listed forms to open that form in a printable PDF format. Workstation Demos Table 30. Workstation Demos. Workstation Demo Exams Some demo tests can be launched from the workstation to assist with site readiness. Use the Demo Exam tab to schedule demo exams. Highlight the desired exam and click Start the Exam. TCFlow User s Guide - 27

31 TCFlow Scheduler/Site Management Web Access Table 31. Starting TCFlow Web Scheduler. Step Procedure Web Scheduler Procedure Use the steps below to access the TCFlow Scheduling and Site Management features from the web. You may notice some slight differences in naming convention but all procedures are the same as using the TCFlow functions from the admin. 1 To start the Scheduler, enter in your Internet browser. 2 The Scheduler Log On dialog box opens. 3 Enter your User name and Password: User Name = your center site ID code Password = your Pulse password 4 Choose Log In to continue. TCFlow User s Guide - 28

32 Step Procedure 5 Use the dropdown menu to select your site code. The main scheduler applications appear. This consists of two main functional areas: Schedule Search Look up examinee information and/or schedule new appointments. Exam Information - Look up exam information. Manage Site Includes these functions to assist you in managing your site operations: Calendar Standard Hours Exceptions Hours Seat Availability Site Information View and Print Forms Potential TCFlow Error Issues (both using Your Admin and Web) Table 32..Net Error Messages..Net Error Messages TCFlow will fail to open on a testing or admin station if the Microsoft.Net Framework version 2.0 is not installed. You will see one of two messages, depending on whether no version of.net is installed or you have an older version installed. This error message will appear if no.net framework is installed. TCFlow User s Guide - 29

33 This error message will occur if you have an older version of the framework installed. Solution: To install the Microsoft.NET Framework Version 2.0 for Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Server 2003 (Vista should come with the required software already installed) go to and follow the instructions. Once the Microsoft.Net installation has completed, reboot the station and confirm that TCFlow loads correctly. Browser Compatibility Error Messages Table 33. Browser Compatibility Error Messages. If the message indicated by the arrow (or a similar error message) appears, you have a browser compatibility issue. TCFlow User s Guide - 30

34 Solution: TCFlow requires Internet Explorer 7.0. Although the scheduling tool will allow use of Firefox, the TCFlow admin application loads the installed version of Internet Explorer through the Scheduling and Management tabs. Download Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP at: If you are not able to install Internet Explorer 7.0 on the computer where you are using TCFlow, and wish to use the TCFlow Scheduler website on that computer: Go to the Tools menu, then select Show Desktop so that you can access your other Windows applications. Once you have done that, install Firefox from if you have not already done so. Launch Firefox, and follow the instructions on loading the Scheduler from Note: If you are doing this on a station used to deliver tests, you will need to close all Firefox windows and select Hide Desktop from the Tools menu to avoid warnings about unauthorized applications when you sign on an examinee. Adobe Reader Error Messages Table 34. Adobe Reader Error Messages. If you do not have adobe reader installed or the version is not supported by the system, this message will appear: Solution: Download and install Acrobat Reader from TCFlow User s Guide - 31