Author: Jeff Feiertag

Fixing the September 2022 Java Error

Posted on September 6, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

With the Java update of version 1.8.0_341, an error may arise. Here is the way to fix that error:

Note the security warning pop-up.
Check the box at the lower left corner, to indicate you accept the risk associated and click the Run button.
Wait for the next pop-up warning screen, as shown below:
Click the Run with the latest version button.
Wait for the last screen to appear, as shown below:
Check box box (labeled Do not show this again) and click the Allow button.
Run MCtime, Oracle or whatever other app you had intended when you were originally prompted with this error.

As with anything else tech-related, please do not hesitate to submit a TSR if you still have trouble.

Requesting to Record a Video Meeting

Posted on August 17, 2022August 26, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

In an email to Montgomery County department heads dated April 1, 2022, the Chief Administrative Officer provided direction that we must limit use of the recording features in our online meeting systems (Teams, Google, Zoom) to only those selected personnel who need to record:

Formal trainings intended for large audiences
Public meetings, where there is no expectation/obligation of privacy and meeting is open to public

As such the MCFRS will use the following process for obtaining authorization for recording meetings for a specific window of time.

Form Submitter’s Role:

Submit a Tech Service Request (TSR) and choose Meeting Video Recording Request for the category. In the auto-generated e-mail reply, you will see a link for the Meeting Video Recording Request Form. Click that link.
Fill in the form. Some notes on the form:
- Choose Other as your rank if your rank is below battalion chief (career), if you are not an LFRD chief (volunteer) or if you are not an M3 (civilian)
- Ensure that you have no typos when you input your supervisor’s e-mail address. That individual will receive e-mail that requests for chain-of-command information.
- Note that, for the purposes of this form, the chain of command among the LFRD will be from the person submitting the form, to the LFRD chief and then to Division Chief Mike Kelley.
- Select the appropriate video technology you plan to use (Google Meet, Teams or Zoom).
- Identify the start and stop dates for recording capability.
- Read the paragraphs of fine print very closely, as they are important. By submitting the form, you agree to them.
- Supply the specific reason you are recording the event in the text box provided.

Supervisor’s Role:

Preface: If you are an AC, DC or LFRD Chief, please skip to the Approver’s Role section below.

Receive the e-mail and click the link to fill in chain of command, if applicable.
Fill in the necessary information.
Click the Submit button.
Receive the e-mail message and approve/deny as needed. Approval will move the request up the chain of command.

Approver’s Role:

Receive the e-mail and review the request details.
Click the Approve or Deny button and wait for the form to load in your web browser.
Change your response, if needed, and then (for approve or deny) provide the reason why you are approving or denying the request.
Click the Complete button.Note: The form will then trigger e-mail to the next level in the chain of command. This process will continue through the division chief’s approval or denial of the recording request. The MCFRS IT Web Coordinator will then activate the recording capability (Google Meet and Teams) or request TEBS to activate the capability (Teams) and follow up with the requestor.

Approving Working Out of Class (WOC) Hours as a Battalion Chief

Posted on August 15, 2022February 6, 2023 by Jeff Feiertag

Scenario: You are a battalion chief and you have received e-mail, requesting approval of Working Out of Class (WOC) hours.

Pull up the Crystal Report to compare the hours listed in your e-mail message to what appeared in TeleStaff, ensuring that the requested hours WOC are legitimate.
- Go to Quicklinks | Crystal Reports | WOC Audit | Activity Audit Report.
- Input the proper date range.
- Note the following sample report:
Log into FireApp and click the WOC button, found toward the bottom of the left-hand navigation.
Click the Battalion Chief Approvals button.
Review the report details.
Click the Approve or Deny button for each entry. Note: If you choose Approve, the report will queue to go to the employee. If you choose Deny, e-mail will queue to go to the employee who submitted the hours to note that the hours have been denied. Further, please input a reason in the Supervisor Notes box if you deny hours, to explain why you are denying the hours.
Click the Email Report button. If you do not click that button, the process is not complete and no e-mail will send.
Click any other FireApp menu item (including Log Off) in order to leave the screen.

Please email the WOC administrator at FRSWOCAdministration@montgomerycountymd.gov, if you have any questions.

Creating a Working Out of Class Report to Submit for Approval (MFF or LT)

Posted on August 15, 2022July 20, 2023 by Jeff Feiertag

Scenario: You are MFF or LT who has been working out of class (for at least 280 hours in the last six months, plus 10 days) and would like to submit a report for approval.

Log into FireApp and click the WOC button, located near the bottom of the left-side navigation.
Click the Create Report button after you have created your WOC entries. (If you have not yet logged those entries, please click here for directions.)
Check the boxes of the items you wish to include in your submission for approval.
Notes:
- Anything grayed out has already been submitted. If an item was denied in error, you will need to resubmit that entry.
- All selectable items (i.e., non-gray) will appear at the top of the list.
Select the appropriate battalion chief from the drop-down list and click the Send to BC button.
Note: You will not be able to send the report until you select a BC. When the items you have selected turn gray, you will know that the report has been sent. From there, you will also get an e-mail confirmation message.
Log off of FireApp when you are finished.

Creating a Working Out of Class Report to Submit for Approval (FF3)

Posted on August 15, 2022August 16, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

Scenario: You are a FF3 who has been working out of class and would like to submit a report for approval at the end of the pay period. (Note: To cut down on the possibility for error, it is preferable for you to submit one report per pay period.)

Log into FireApp and click the WOC button, located near the bottom of the left-side navigation.
Click the Create Report button after you have created your WOC entries. (If you have not yet logged those entries, please click here for directions.)
Check the boxes of the items you wish to include in your submission for approval.
Notes:
- Anything grayed out has already been submitted. If an item was denied in error, you will need to resubmit that entry.
- All selectable items (i.e., non-gray) will appear at the top of the list.
Select the appropriate battalion chief from the drop-down list and click the Send to BC button.
Note: You will not be able to send the report until you select a BC. When the items you have selected turn gray, you will know that the report has been sent. From there, you will also get an e-mail confirmation message.
Log off of FireApp when you are finished.

Understanding MIS

Posted on July 21, 2022July 21, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

MCFRS field staffing employees work shiftwork (96 hours in a pay period) and are assigned to a station, shift and Kelly Day (day off). Each day of the week is assigned a number 1 through 7…Sunday is 1, Monday is 2, Tuesday is 3 and so on. Shift workers work 24 hours and are off for 48 hours. Based on that, the employee’s schedule fluctuates each pay period.

When the Kelly Day falls on the employee’s shift to work, the employee is off, meaning they only work 72 hours that pay period. To make the employee whole and pay them for 96 hours, they are given a MIS Advance of 24 hours (72 + 24 = 96 hours). When an employee works too many hours in a pay period (5 shifts), a negative MIS of 24 hours is applied to make them whole (120 – 24 = 96 hours). Some pay periods, an employee will work 96 hours and no adjustment is needed. The MIS was designed to provide a stabilization of pay for MCFRS employees who don’t work the same number of hours in a standard pay period.

The MIS adjustments are added to the employee’s timecard on the 1^st Sunday of the affected pay period and appear on the employee’s payslip under Earnings.

Employees with a Sunday, Wednesday or Saturday Kelly Day never require an MIS adjustment…. they always work 96 hours in a pay period.

Each shift (A, B & C) has a different MIS cycle.

Additional scenarios re: MIS

Employees assigned to ECC work 84 hours each pay period and they have triple Kelly Days.
Employees assigned to FEI work 84 hours each pay period and they have a Kelly Day equivalent.
Employees on long term details or special schedules are given a Kelly Day equivalent.

Field staffing personnel have a 6-week MIS cycle

ECC personnel have a 12-week MIS cycle

FEI personnel have a 8-week MIS cycle

This information comes courtesy of FRS HR. Please contact them if you have any questions or concerns.

Approving of Denying Working out of Class Entries

Posted on July 11, 2022July 12, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

Effective 07/01/2022, all tracking for working out of class is now performed via the FireApp Working out of Class (WOC) module.

Scenario: You have received e-mail, indicating that someone you supervise has submitted an entry for working out of class.

Log into FireApp and click the WOC button, located near the bottom of the left-side navigation. You will see any entries which require your attention. (Note: Do not reply to the e-mail you received about the WOC activity to be approved; they are not monitored.)
Click to select the one which you would like to approve or deny.
Review the details for the submission and click either the Approve or Deny button.

Note: You may not approve any entry that is greater than 24 hours, excluding Daylight Savings.

Entering Out of Class Hours in the FireApp WOC Module

Posted on July 11, 2022July 20, 2023 by Jeff Feiertag

Have you worked out of class (F3 as a primary apparatus officer, MFF as an officer in a station, MFF to primary unit officer while LT or LT as the sole or senior-most officer)? Effective 07/01/2022, out-of-class tracking is now done through FireApp’s Working Out of Class (WOC) module.

Log into FireApp.
Click the WOC button, located near the bottom of the left-side navigation panel.
Click the Member (Enter Working out of Class Activity) button.
Fill in the necessary fields.
Note the following:
- Activity Type: Select one of the four options.
  
  Note: The Firefighter III as a primary apparatus unit officer option will require you to select the specific incident and unit on which you worked out of class.
- Start DateTime and End DateTime: Identify the period in which you worked out of class in this role. This entry must be equal to or less than 24 hours. If you enter a time range which is greater than 24 hours, your supervisor is directed to deny the entry, except for daylight savings. (If you need to enter time for the period after 24 hours, such as for an incident than ran over into the next day, simply input a second entry for that next day’s activity.) Since tracking is now performed through the FireApp WOC module, you may enter hours that occurred prior to the last six months (plus a 10-day grace period), factoring in a rolling six-month period.
- Activity Hours: This field will auto-calculate, based upon the start and end times.
Click the Send to Superv(isor) button, located at the top of the screen.

Notes:
- This will send e-mail to your assigned supervisor. If your supervisor is on extended leave or you need to change supervisors for some other reason, you may search for another officer by using the Supervisor FSID field.
- If you make a mistake and switch to another FireApp module (effectively saving this entry without sending it to your supervisor), you may return to the WOC module and continue the entry. Additionally, if you made an error and want to have the record removed from the database, simply submit a TSR to request the entry be deleted. Please be as specific in the description as you can.

Using the PPE Quarterly Inspection Form

Posted on July 5, 2022July 6, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

MCFRS has moved the PPE Quarterly Inspection Form to Jotform. While it is mostly self-explanatory, please note the following:

The form may be accessed via Quicklinks (Support Services menu) or by direct link here.
Pictures may be added to the bottom of the form. The images should be of the tag that is filled out and returned by Maryland Fire. An example of a ticket (although not filled out) is below:

Note: Please place the two tags side by side for you to take your picture before submitting.

Viewing SeamlessDocs Submission Attachments

Posted on June 6, 2022 by Jeff Feiertag

Did you receive a SeamlessDocs message, indicating you need to approve a form which may have some attachments? Would you like to view those attachments to determine if you should sign?

Receive the e-mail, requesting your signature and click the Sign Document link or button, as directed in the message.
Wait for the browser to load your form.
Click the paper clip (attachments) icon.
Note that the Upload Attachments window appears. It is nearly identical for someone who needs to attach a file as it is for someone who needs to review a file.
Click the link labeled Click Here to View (as opposed to Click Here to Upload). The file will either open in a new tab or download to your default download folder (typically the Downloads folder).

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