DSS Tips and Tricks A Must-Read for DSS Beginners Rev. Apr 2008

Congratulations! You have just received your DSS account. Now what? If this is the first time you are navigating within DSS, please make sure you go through the rest of these slides. These will tell you what hardware and software requirements and settings you will need to ensure a successful and smooth DSS experience. Happy trails to you! Click to continue

Table of Contents Click on a topic to get to that slide: Minimum System Requirements Reviewing LAUSD’s Information Protection Policy Downloading Java (for Aggregate Reports) Downloading Adobe Acrobat (for Detail Reports) Disabling Pop-up Blockers Internet Explorer Security Settings Excel Macro Settings Dealing with the Oracle Security Screen Blue vs Black Numbers Troubleshooting Common Problems I get a blank report with a red X in the upper left corner of the report. I don’t see the Reports link. DSS Assistance DSS Training

Minimum System Requirements to Run DSS Reports Before using DSS, please make sure that your computer meets the following minimum system requirements: PC users: MS Windows 95 or higher MS Internet Explorer v.5.5 or higher Java Adobe Acrobat Reader v.7 or higher Mac users: OS v (Panther) or higher Safari browser Java Adobe Acrobat Reader v.7 Back to Table of Contents

Reviewing the Information Protection Policy DSS reports contain sensitive student and employee information. Before accessing these reports, it is highly recommended that you read LAUSD’s Information Protection Policy to understand the importance of the policies around this sensitive information.LAUSD’s Information Protection Policy Back to Table of Contents

Downloading Java (for aggregate reports) DSS has aggregate and detail reports. Aggregate reports are summarized reports, while detail reports display individual students. To run the aggregate reports, you must have the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) software installed on your machine. Otherwise, you will get a blank report with a red “X” on the upper left corner of the report. To download Java Virtual Machine, go to You can also access this link by clicking on the DSS Help link from the DSS Home Page. Click on the Java Virtual Machine link. Click on the Free Java Download button.DSS HelpJava Virtual Machine Back to Table of Contents

Downloading Adobe Acrobat (for Detail Reports) To run the detail reports, you will need Adobe Acrobat v.7 (or higher) software installed on your machine. Otherwise, your detail reports will not open. To download Adobe Acrobat, go to You can also access this link by clicking on the DSS Help link from the DSS Home Page. Click on the Acrobat Reader link.DSS Help Acrobat Reader Back to Table of Contents

Disabling Pop-Up Blockers DSS detail reports open in a new window. If you have pop-up blockers enabled, you will need to disable them to view the detail reports. To disable pop-up blocker in Internet Explorer: 1. Click on Tools on the menu bar and select Popup Blocker option. 2. Click on Turn Off Popup Blocker. To disable pop-up blocker in Yahoo: 1. Click on the pop-up blocker icon on your Yahoo Toolbar. 2. Uncheck “Enable Pop-Up Blocker.” To disable pop-up blocker in Google Toolbar 4.0: 1. Click the "Settings" button on your Google toolbar and select "Options." 2. Select the "More" tab. 3. Un-check the box next to "Enable Popup Blocker.“ 4. Click "OK.“ To disable pop-up blocker in Google Toolbar 3.0: 1. Click on the "Options" button on your Toolbar. 2. Uncheck the box next to "Popup Blocker." Back to Table of Contents

Internet Explorer Security Settings Internet Explorer security settings for “Downloads” need to be enabled before downloading detail reports to Excel. Follow these procedures. 1. Launch Internet Explorer 2. From the menu bar, click Tools -> Internet Options -> Security -> Custom Level 3. Scroll down to Downloads and set the following to Enable: Back to Table of Contents 4. Click OK to close the Security Settings window. 5. Click OK to close the Internet Options window.

Excel Macro Settings Before downloading detail reports to Excel, make sure to change your Excel’s macro settings to Medium Security. Follow these procedures. 1. Launch Microsoft Excel. 2. From the menu bar, click Tools ->Macro -> Security. 3. Select Medium from the Security Level Tab. 4. Click OK. You can now go back to the DSS detail report and click Download to Excel. Back to Table of Contents

Dealing with the Oracle Security Warning Window The first time you access the aggregate reports in DSS, you will get an Oracle Security Warning window. This window lets you know that it will load Oracle components into your system so you can view Oracle reports. Check the box "Always trust contents from Oracle" and then click on Yes (or OK). If you click No, the report will display only the title and a gray screen. (On other screens, you will need to click the “More” option to see the other available options, such as “Always”) Back to Table of Contents

Blue vs Black Numbers When you access most of the aggregate reports, you will see blue numbers as well as black numbers in the cells. What is the significance of these colors? The blue numbers are hyperlinks that can be drilled to obtain a list of individual students. To drill, simply double-click on the blue number with your left mouse button ( or right click, and then left click on the Drill to Detail link ). A detail report will open in a new window, giving you names of individual students. Detail reports also show student ID’s as blue links, which means that you can single-click on the link to drill to individual student information. Back to Table of Contents

Question: I get a blank report with a red X in the upper left corner of the report. Answer: This error message comes up if you are trying to open an aggregate report and you have not installed the Java Virtual Machine software. To do this, follow the instructions stated on the Downloading Java (for aggregate reports) slide.Downloading Java (for aggregate reports) After downloading, close the Java window and go back to your DSS report. Click the Refresh icon on your toolbar (or press F5 on your keyboard). The report should start loading. Troubleshooting Common Problems Back to Table of Contents

Question: I don’t see the Reports link on the left side of the DSS Home page. Answer: You will only see the Reports link if you have a DSS account. If you only have an SSO (Single Sign-On) account but no DSS account, the Reports link will not be visible. If you already have a DSS account and still don’t see the Reports link, your account will need to be checked. Send an to or call Troubleshooting Common Problems Back to Table of Contents

DSS Assistance For DSS assistance, the following options are available to you: ITD Helpdesk DSS Phone DSS Fax DSS Back to Table of Contents

DSS Training DSS training is available to LAUSD principals, assistant principals, coordinators, coaches, counselors, central office and local district administrators, educational research analysts, and Members of the Board of Education. A list of the training sessions (101A and 101B) is available from the Training link on the DSS Home page or from the Learning Zone. Training Learning Zone To sign up for training, you may register via the Learning ZoneLearning Zone Or send an with your name, employee number, title, school or office, local district, phone number, LAUSD address and the date and time of the session(s) you are requesting to the DSS Training Administrator at Back to Table of Contents