Customization From an
ISD Perspective
Presented by
Tim Howard
Calhoun ISD
howardt@calhounisd.org
Why customization?
District Requests
State Requirements
Data Transfers
Data Warehouse
Special Education
Career Centers
Food Service
Transportation
Alert/Calling
Available Tools
Data Mining
Custom Reports
Skycoder
Custom Forms
SkyBuild Imports and Exports
Data Mining
What is Data Mining?
“Create customized reports of information not
otherwise collected in a standard report”
Why use Data Mining?
Powerful tool for building more complex queries
Mailing or information labels for specific groups
Processing lists (for use in other areas of Skyward)
Empower users with training
Custom Reports
What are Custom Reports?
Crystal Reports ®
Offers more complex reporting options
• Aggregate functions (Sum, Average, Count, etc.)
• Formatting (fonts, colors, images, etc.)
• Sub-reports
Are Custom Reports for me?
Maybe...
You need:
Licensed copy of Crystal Reports ®
Understanding of SQL language
Knowledge of Skyward table structures
• View Tables (WS\CR\VD)
• Database Design (SkyDoc)
View Tables:
Database Design:
And once you know the tables, you can
write the query:
Sample Custom Report:
Skycoder
What is Skycoder?
Allows modifications to
web page elements
within the structure of
the application by
inserting JavaScript
directly into the served
page
Blah, blah, blah...
Skycoder turns this...
...into this!
Use built-in functions or write your own JavaScript code...
Custom Forms
What are Custom Forms?
Allows the addition of whole pages to the
Student Profile or Families
Add user-defined fields that can also be
accessed in Data Mining and Skybuild
Custom Forms can also be added to virtually
any screen through Skycoder
Can also create HTML version
Just set up the Custom Form
(WS\ST\PS\CF\CF)...
...and it become available for every
Student (or Family)!
SkyBuild
What is SkyBuild?
Imports and Exports:
•
•
•
•
Allows export of data for specific applications
Allows import of student data
File formats can vary (.txt, .csv, etc.)
Fields selected individually and can be formatted
or used to filter data selection
• Can be scheduled as a recurring job
• Audit Reports and Job Notifications available
Things to remember:
This is Student data, not District data
Not all fields are available for export/import
Skyward templates are available
Interfaces are entity-specific
Lots and lots of options – think it through
But the MOST important thing is:
Have a secure place to hold the data!
Skyward Database
Network Server
Secure FTP
Connections
File Server
Dist A
Dist B
Dist C
Share Drive(s)
Mounted on
Servers
Dist D
Dist E
Skyward Server
SFTP
Server
Basic Configuration
Questions?
Most of the tools discussed here are
subjects of other sessions
Round Table Discussion
Planetarium – 4:15 to 5:05 PM (Tuesday)
Encore Presentation
Ballroom D – 10:45 to 11:35 AM (Wednesday)