Gas and Oil e-Forms System Troubleshooting Guide

This guide is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of issues that may be encountered when using the E-forms and Gas and Oil Information Systems. Descriptions of and potential solutions to the most common internet browser settings and usage issues are listed below. If you still have questions or problems, please contact the Gas and Oil e-Forms Center.



Trusted Sites

In order for the Virginia Gas and Oil Information and E-Forms Systems to function optimally,  https://www.energy.virginia.gov  should be added to your browser's list of trusted sites (found in Internet Explorer under "Tools">"Internet Options">"Security">"Trusted Sites"). This may eliminate problems viewing parts of the system or downloading files.

Pop-up Blockers

Sections of the Virginia Gas and Oil E-Forms System use pop-up windows; therefore, pop-ups should not be blocked for the E-Forms system website. To avoid issues with viewing pop-up windows, add https://www.energy.virginia.gov to the list of sites from which pop-ups are allowed in both Internet Explorer (found under "Tools">"Pop-up Blocker">"Pop-up Blocker Settings") and Google's pop-up blockers.

Downloads

Some areas of the Virginia Gas and Oil Information and E-Forms Systems provide the opportunity to download files in several formats. To take advantage of these available files, downloads and download prompting should be enabled once you have added the Information and E-Forms Systems to your Trusted Sites. In Internet Explorer, these settings are found under "Tools">"Internet Options">"Security">"Trusted Sites">"Custom Level." Additionally, users should ensure that they have software installed that is capable of viewing the file format downloaded. Where appropriate, Virginia Gas and Oil has recommended internet locations where freeware versions of software can be obtained to view certain downloads. Information is typically available in Adobe PDF and MS Excel formats from the Information System. Downloads may be available in several different electronic formats from the E-Forms system as operators are able to upload submissions in numerous formats.

Plug-Ins

Much of the information available on the Virginia Gas and Oil Information and E-Forms Systems can be viewed directly in an internet browser if the correct plug-in has been installed. For example, many of the reports and database information available from the systems can be retrieved in Adobe PDF format. The Adobe Reader and plug-in software can be obtained from Adobe's website

Filtering File Numbers

Several selection forms within the Virginia Gas and Oil Information System include a "Filter File Numbers" entry box and button. This tool can be used to quickly limit the file number box on the selection form to display only files matching a specific character string. This tool will accept and filter the data to be retrieved based on either an existing Operation Name or Virginia Gas and Oil File Number or parts thereof. Once the character string is entered and the "Filter File Numbers" button is clicked, the "File Number" box will display only the file names matching or containing the entered character string. At this point, a selection(s) should be made from the remaining file numbers in the "File Number" box and the "Selection" button should be clicked to retrieve the data.

Page Refresh Delay

On some selection forms within the Virginia Gas and Oil Information System, selection criteria box choices may be dependent upon earlier selections made on the same form (e.g. The "Monthly Gas Production by Well" form allows a time period selection of only three years. Once a "Beginning" year is selected, the "Ending" year selection box will be reduced to contain only the next three consecutive years.) It may take a few moments for dependent selection boxes to refresh selection choices. During this time, the user should not attempt to refresh the page as all selections made will be lost.

Geophysical Logs

All geophysical  logs maintained by Virginia Gas and Oil through approximately the year 2006 are available on the Virginia Gas and Oil Information System. For various reasons such as changes in regulatory requirements, geophysical logs are not available for all gas and oil wells in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As confidentiality regulations and government resources allow, geophysical logs will be continually added to the system and made available online. Logs are currently available as .tif images, some of which are large files (up to 250Mb). Currently, geophysical logs can only be downloaded one-at-a-time.

An electronic image viewer capable of opening .tif files of very long vertical dimensions is required to view these files. Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, which is often the default .tif viewer on computers running a Windows operating system, is typically not acceptable for viewing geophysical logs. IrfanView is a freeware image viewer capable of viewing geophysical log images in .tif format. Installing IrfanView software will not cause .tif images to open directly in an internet browser; however, .tif images can be downloaded and then opened with IrfanView.

Data Limitations

Additional data is being added to the Virginia Gas and Oil Information and E-Forms Systems daily. If data for known operations cannot be found on the system, it may not yet be available online. Users may choose to contact the

Virginia Department of Energy
Gas & Oil
3405 Mountain Empire Road
Big Stone Gap, VA  24219
276-415-9700 (phone)

For additional information. Data retrieved from the Virginia Gas and Oil Information System is subject to the disclaimer provided on the system's Main Menu.