by Aldus Marius on Wed Mar 30, 2005 8:31 am
Avete, amici iocosi!
As might be suspected, I have a tabletop miniatures Legion, about 225 figures strong. Unlike many such armies, my troops do not all look the same...oh, no. Why should they? --I have served in the armed forces m'self; I know that soldiers are individuals, just like the rest of us. Furthermore, absolute uniformity of equipment was not a Roman concept. So I have mixed and matched heads, body/armor styles, weapons and shields, and assembled them in such a way that each one has his own distinct pose and 'attitude'; this has led to a very pleasing 'individual' look--no two alike.
And, because I use them for roleplaying games, each figure represents a particular character in my game world. Every single one has a name...a hometown...a family history...a service record. And now I can tell you the stunt: All of the above are being (knowingly!) maintained for me by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs! <fiendish, evil grin>
How'd I do that?
Bene, I had a work-study job in Spring semester of '95 with the VA's San Francisco Information Systems Center. On paper, I was there to catalogue their software library. To do that, I had to learn how to use their database program, called VA FileManager (FileMan for short). As I've been a database geek since way back (in 1986 I helped design and 'playtest' the "Worldwide Keypunch Replacement Program" for the US Air Force's Standard Base Supply System), it did not take me long to become fast friends with VA FileManager.
They had me take a three-day training course, at the end of which I had to prove I'd been paying attention by designing a FileManager database. So I went them one better and made three of 'em: TROOPS, LEGIONS, and PROVINCES.
PROVINCES was a bald list of (yup) Roman Provinces. It only existed to be referenced by the other two.
TROOPS listed everyone in my Legion, with options to add more. Their hometowns, years of birth, what Legion they were with, where they'd been stationed, present rank and such were all listed; I was especially pleased with having taught the database how to (a) alphabetize by nomen, and (b) arrange everyone chronologically, from BC to AD, if I so desired.
But my real masterpiece was LEGIONS; I had to do some very heavy research, including the original kind, to get the best list I could of what Legions were stationed where at various times during the Roman era. I believe I still have one of the closest approximations of their movements in the academic world. I'm always on the lookout for new info, which is why I was looking for my good printout to bump against the UNRV site; I know that my own assumptions must always be open to challenge and revision, that's how scholarship works. Anyway, I listed all the Legions from Caesar's onward, where they were stationed, from what year, which Emperor transferred them there... As most Legions had more than one duty-station throughout their history, I had to create a kind of data field called a "multiple" to handle when there's more than one answer to a question. Try that in Access.
So there I was, with my three li'l databases, all referencing each other and printing out beautiful reports using each others' info. I passed the "final", natch! But they could have been better; so, several weeks and way too much overtime-spent-playing-with-the-system later, I finally declared myself "Done" and hung my code on the outside wall of my cubicle.
A couple of things happened because of this. One, the Database Manager for the facility fell in love with my code, then started hanging around me just to pick my brain about algorithms and search patterns and such.
The other, more relevant thing was that the Training Department was so impressed with my toy that they asked me (asked me!) for permission to upload it to the "training account" for the newbies to play with. They said it was the best example they'd seen of how a FileManager database ought to work. The Help prompts were helpful (one was a five-line seminar on how to form a Roman name), the pointers pointed, the multiples had multiplied. So, feeling highly-honored, and not being averse to having new TROOPS added in from time to time, of course I gave my consent! >({|:-D
It is now ten years later. My project is still out there, and has seen some distribution to other ISC's. My counselors at the Dallas VA hospital were able to get to it, and as for their info management people...they knew who I was when I got there. Sometimes I call my old bosses and ask 'em how it's coming along. I've picked up a few dozen "recruits" from San Fran, though it's hard to discover how many have been added at other sites.
Still...the idea: the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs is knowingly --proudly! --productively!! maintaining the personnel records for my Legion. That has got to be my single best computer stunt ever!
In amicitia,
Aldus Marius Peregrinus.