Like all TIPS applications, the data base is menu driven to facilitate use. This shell is available through OSM to all RA's so that they may enter State specific hydrologic data. This shell is also available to the public and industry users provided a current version of Oracle software is part of their system. It is extremely user-friendly and often a subset of data from the Oracle DBMS is downloaded into reflex for detailed analysis. Standard report output files have been created so that data may be exported from Reflex to other TIPS applications.
Quality control refers to specific procedures used to achieve prescribed standards of performance.
Quality assurance is an integrated planning process for assuring the reliability of hydrologic data so that it can be used with some definable degree of confidence. TIPS has automated routines that perform indirect error checks rapidly within a Reflex shell. It is very helpful for the DBMS to be programmed to include tests for TDS error and ion balance error. With tests included in the DBMS, the data not passing the error test can be filtered from use. Water quality analyses should contain, at a minimum, the major cations and anions.