Creating your Database

Before setting up your park information, you need to create a new database file that will be used to hold everything.  If you've used any other computer program that works with files, like Microsoft Word, Excel, etc., then you're familiar with this concept.  One difference is that since you would most likely never use more than one database with Campground Master and only have to do this once, there isn't a simple "New document" function under the File menu.

Important:  If your have multiple "Users" for logging into Windows, make sure you're logged in as an Administrator before starting.  Otherwise it can't create the necessary files.

When you start the program for the first time, and assuming you're not purposely running the "demo", then you will be told that "No database is defined", and it will ask if you want to load the sample database.  You should answer "No" to this, so it opens with a blank "<Untitled>" database.

The next step is to create a database file.  Go to Maintenance / New Database (create a new database file).  This will show a warning prompt and it sounds scary, and in a way it's meant to be scary because you should only do it once, but really all it does is create a new database file with a name that you give it.  Answer "Yes" to the prompt, and it will ask you for a database name.  We suggest entering the name of your park, or perhaps a short version if it's a lengthy name.  There's no reason to make it more than a couple words long.

Click OK after entering the name, and the database will be created in the proper location, and you're ready to start setting it up.  The new database will be the default database and will automatically open the next time you start Campground Master, so you should never have to worry about trying to find it.

Important: When you create a new database, it doesn't ask you to log in.  The default Administrator operator is created and you are automatically logged in.  You should do the Operator Setup soon to establish your own logins, but if you don't do that before closing the program then you will be asked to log in the next time you start it.  You will need to use the default login, described in the earlier section on Logging In and Out.