One of the complaints of this type of software is the amount of data entry required to get the database ready for operations. This program will most likely be the highest in data entry requirements, however most of it will be one time data entry. The program is designed to have bare minimum interaction while you do what you want to do most -- run trains. However, there is a little irony here. Most modelers will think nothing of spending days putting together a scratch built passenger car, or weeks getting a scene just right. But when it comes to operations, it seems most layout owners skimp, and that a day or two of initial data entry is too much. This is the opportunity to not only have a really nice and professional looking layout, but one that operates like the real railroads.
There are two places in this program for data entry. The Step by Step has all of the data entry in a series of questions asking about your layout. You do not need to enter the data in one sitting, but it must be entered in sequence (you cannot enter your industries until the towns have been added first). The Step by Step is by far the easiest and quickest way to get data into the system. But not all functionality is entered here, just enough to get your started. There are other places for more detailed data entry.
The other option is to enter the data into the forms provided. There are three main areas for this. The New/Edit Data form where you can enter the layout properties, towns, yards, routes, trains, industries, rolling stock and locomotives. (This is documented here in a step by step series of pages) In there are a number of displays to help you in entering the proper data. To enter shipments, a completely different form is accessed from the main screen. Shipments in the menu is where you want to go.
Shipments will be one of the most complicated part of the data entry process. There is a separate form just for making and seeing shipments. Thus it has been designed as if you are reading a sentence. Shipments happen from the shipper to the destination on a per commodity, per car type basis. Shipments are frequency dependant. That is, you can make shipments happen in a variety of frequencies such as Weekly (selecting the day), Daily, Monthly (selecting the day of the month), random (which you can set the probability factor) and one time shipments that happen only once and never again. You can make shipments happen all year or only during one of the seasons.
This form also has a number of displays that will allow you to see how your shipments are affecting other aspects of the layout. You can see the flow of shipments from one place to another and follow each movement. You can see if you have enough rolling stock to move any given commodity, as well as seeing on a per frequency basis which industries are shipping out. It will also show you industries which are missing shipments.
The third place for data entry not in the Step By Step is passenger consists and exchanges and scheduling of trains. This is also done in a separate form.
When you do the initial data entry, it is suggested you take time and get it right the first time. Though a lofty thought, it is not going to happen, and you have the ability to edit and change any data as required. Start simple and once comfortable, work on more complicated shipments. On line discussions will aid you in getting interesting shipments happening.
So here is what is recommended you need to do to enter all the data you want into the database. First enter the raw data. This includes the basic layout properties (name of layout, name of railroad, operation date, mode of simulation, etc), the towns on your layout, yards on your layout (see yard definitions for the different types of yards), industries, rolling stock, and locomotives. The first two challenges you will face in data entry is routes and trains. Each of these are discussed separately.