Q: I am trying to save a card in the Data Entry Center, and I get an error "Duplicate card" and it doesn’t save. I know the cards are different, except for the first name. Why can´t I save more than one first name?

A: The problem is actually back in the Card Design Center. What is happening is the criteria for duplicate cards needs to be adjusted to be less restrictive. This is set in two locations, both in the Card Design Center.

The first place to check is to go to the menu along the top, Tools>Define Duplicate Card Criteria. This will bring up a dialog that allows you to select the various fields that will be used to determine what makes up a duplicate card. If only the first name field is selected, then a lot of cards will be kicked out. If first name and last name are selected, chances are most will get through. You can also set all the criteria fields to "none", although this will result in duplicate cards being entered into the database.

Another location to check is View>Show All Data Entry, and look for which field is selected as the "key" field. The key field is used by the software to manage the records, and if it is set to something like the name field, a lot of duplicates can be registered. Set it to employee ID or card number, or some other unique identifier. You can also uncheck all the boxes and the program will still work.