There are two main ways of entering data into the Process Dashboard. The first is through various input tools and dialogs provided by the dashboard (e.g. the defect dialog, the time log editor, etc.).
The second is through various process forms. The scripts and forms are provided through an integrated web interface. See the Accessing Process Scripts help topic for more info on how to access the scripts and forms. To find out more information about the different process scripts and forms that are available, see the process scripts help topic.
The dashboard forms are implemented via static and sometimes dynamic HTML pages. Unlike the HTML forms you see on the internet, the forms on these HTML pages are "live" at all times, much like a spreadsheet. You can type values in the input fields and other fields will recalculate automatically, even if those fields are in different browser windows. There is no need to press any kind of "submit data" button.
After typing in a value, you must generally "leave" that input field to signal that you are finished entering information. Pressing the "Tab" key (to move to the next input field) or clicking anywhere else on the page is generally sufficient. As soon as the "input cursor" leaves the field in question, the dashboard will automatically pick up your data, recalculate related data items, and save your data for future sessions.
If you enter an invalid value for a data item (for example, typing "foo" in an input field that is expecting a number), the dashboard will reject the invalid value and restore the previous value for that input field.
The dashboard uses various visual cues to show you where data is missing or where a calculated value could not be completed. Here is a partial screen shot of a dashboard form that shows several of the ways the dashboard indicates incomplete or bad data:
When a required data value is missing, the
dashboard will display "?????". This is an indication that you
still need to enter a value for that data item. Therefore, you should ensure
that there are no "?????" symbols in the Plan column of your
project plan summary before marking the Planning phase complete. Similarly,
make certain you fill in all missing values in the Actual column of your
project plan summary before marking the project complete.
If the dashboard cannot recalculate a formula because the formula
references a missing ("?????") or otherwise invalid data value,
it will display "#VALUE!" as the result of the calculation.
When you see "#VALUE!" in a dashboard form, it almost
always means that there is a "?????" field somewhere that
you still need to fill in.
If the dashboard recalculates a formula and encounters a divide-by-zero
error, it will display "#DIV/0!" as the result of the
calculation. Divide-by-zero errors are common when you first begin using the
dashboard, since you will not have any historical data.
To make all this possible, the dashboard software actually contains a very
small HTTP server embedded within it. This server allows communication
between the HTML pages and the process data that is tracked by the
dashboard. If you close the dashboard program while one of the HTML forms is
open, the form will reset and display "NO CONNECTION". You can
reestablish the connection simply by restarting the dashboard, then telling
your browser to reload the HTML page.
The Process Dashboard automatically calculates many data elements for you. Normally, these calculated data values are not directly editable, but rather they will update when other data elements to which they are related get updated. If you are using a recent web browser, these values are displayed with a grey background.
Sometimes you may decide that you want to override one or more of these calculated values. You can "unlock" these read-only data elements by clicking on the "Unlock read-only data" link at the bottom of the page. Unlocking read-only data will make all the elements on the page editable, allowing you to override calculated values with your own.
Unlocking read-only data is useful for times when you intentionally want to override a calculation, but it is not without risk. Once you have overridden a calculation, it will no longer automatically update in response to changes in related data items. In addition, related calculations may no longer add up like you would normally expect. Therefore, this feature should be used with caution.
After you have overridden a calculation with some value, you may decide
that you want the old calculation back. Just type DEFAULT in
the input field, and when you leave the field the old calculation will be
restored.
For some component types, the dashboard will "freeze" appropriate pieces of data when the corresponding process phase is marked as completed. The two points where this happens are at the end of the Planning phase and at the completion of the component.
For example, when you are planning your component with a PSP process, the dashboard will use your historical data to help you create an estimate of how your total time will be distributed across the process phases. Once you click the completion checkbox to complete the planning phase, all your Planned data will be baselined. The estimates you entered for size and time, along with all the calculated computed data elements for estimated data, will be frozen so that your planned data will always stay constant.
Similarly, when you mark the component complete, the To Date numbers will be brought up to date and frozen. This will enable you to view this report again in the future without having the To Date numbers changing in the report.
One side effect of the freezing of data is that if you want to change your time or size estimate, you will have to navigate back to the Planning phase and mark it as incomplete by clicking the completion checkbox again. Once it has been marked as incomplete the dashboard will allow you to enter a different estimate.
The same is true of the To Date items on the report. If you navigate back to an old component and start logging time to it, the Actual columns will update as required, but the To Date columns will not. You will need to mark the component as incomplete so that the To Date items will thaw out and recalculate.
The Project Completion checkbox is located on the Project Plan Summary form.
When you open a dashboard form, the form connects to the process dashboard
to retrieve the most up-to-date values for all the data elements on the page.
If you choose the "File 
Save"
option from your browser, you will find that only the form is saved; the values
contained in the form are not. If you want to save an electronic copy of a
dashboard form (for example, to email to a coworker, or to save with project
documentation), click the "Export to HTML" link at the bottom of the page. The
dashboard will create an HTML version of the form containing a snapshot
of your data. This HTML snapshot can be saved using the "File Save" option of your browser.
If you would like to perform additional analysis on the data in a dashboard form, use the "Export to Excel" link at the bottom of the page. This will open the form in Excel, where you can reference the data in Excel charts and equations. For more information on the Excel export feature, see the Exporting your data help topic.
Important: the Excel version of the form contains exported data only. If you edit values in the Excel spreadsheet, your changes will not be imported back into the Process Dashboard. To change a data value in the Process Dashboard, you must make the change in a dashboard form.