UDS Green Industry Software, Inc. Newsletter

September 1 2003

 

YES!  Finally we have the time to work nearly full time on Version 7. This will introduce a new Job Scheduling application for repetitive maintenance jobs. Estimating and Costing will be revised in the process. There will be minor impact other applications. Some of those will be revised slightly, too.

 

This newsletter is a must read for any ActiveApplications customer looking to the near future.  If you would prefer to read this UDS Newsletter directly from the support web site, click now on Newsletter or just continue reading on.

 

Topics in this newsletter:

 

• Brian’s Notes
• New Hardware Products
• New Ideas for Support customers
• New Pocket PC Software for Inventory Management.
• Support Website Changes – You will like the new look and features
• User Conference Notification-Mark your calendar for October 24, 2003.
• More SQL Version Enhancements - Shipping

 

Next Issue’s Topics

 

• Active Applications User Conference – more details
• More on the new Job Scheduling application
• More new programs

 

 

Brian’s Notes

 

Take a look at your support web site: www.ActiveApplications.com. Wes has been working to improve its appearance and function. He has incorporated some good ideas into the site. It is more than just a site where you can pick up releases.

 

We continue to create and enhance programs you might be interested in reading or hearing more about. Jeff outlines in the newsletter one of many new SQL enhancements being released now. You will find that the SQL version of Active Accounting is very similar to the Access version but it is more reliable, has many refinements, and is capable of supporting many more users. Please feel free to call me to chat further about these or any opportunities introduced in this Newsletter.

 

NEW Hardware Product to See

 

Take a look at this new keyboard on the www.udsgis.com web site. It is available from your local Comp USA and other retailers. We can get one for you if you cannot find it elsewhere. This keyboard is flat, flexible and fits in the laptop bag while providing the full size keyboard. It is called the Virtually Indestructible Keyboard. Click this link to learn about it: http://www.udsgis.com/vik_a_floppy_keyboard.htm

New Ideas for Support Customers

 

Two new opportunities are explained below. Your opinions on each will go a long way towards determining if UDS goes any further with them. Please register your “Yes” or “No” response to each on our Survey.

 

Topic #1

 

Would you like a free web page? Wouldn’t you enjoy an added benefit to your Active Applications support agreement? You can use this web page to reference your full web site or as a means of expanding your reach with more content and options. If you have a web site or can program your own, there would be no charge. If you need our assistance in web design the charge will vary by the amount of time it takes to get your new web page setup to your specifications.

 

Topic #2

 

We would also like you to consider the possibility of adding on line ordering between you and your vendors or customers. This makes an intriguing possibility for AA users. The first of the programs to create these functions will soon be released to development customers. We will create the basic structure of the ordering system and provide the programs to match your information to the files. The inventory import and export programs will allow you to easily transmit your information to our site.

 

 

More Portable Applications

New Pocket PC Software for Inventory Management

 

UDS is now releasing two new and simple to use software packages specifically designed to run on the portable “Pocket PC” hardware that is currently available and which many of our customers already use. Being in business today means you must deal with tight budgets, reduced personnel and greater productivity demands. We at UDS have been working towards unlocking the potential of remote applications to increase your productivity for years, and we believe the time has arrived. Inventory status updates are crucial to effective inventory management, and if they can be done quickly in a fashion that minimizes the risk of error, then you’ve got yourself a solution that doesn’t take a lot of selling to be sold on.

 

“Container Inventory” Pocket PC Software

 

Take a simple inventory of each of your locations.  Answers the need to know what’s there, what’s not, and how much.  Feel free to jump to the Location Inventory web page for additional details or continue on to read the brief outline below.

 

Process Steps:

1. Your inventory person takes the Pocket PC with them to the location.
2. Selects that inventory location from the list of your locations displayed on the Pocket PC screen. The items existing in that location along with previously recorded on hand quantities are automatically displayed.
3. Selects an item from the list that needs the on hand quantity changed. The Pocket PC then automatically displays a number pad on screen for easy entry of the updated on hand quantity.
4. Inventory person updates all item on hand quantities in the location as necessary.
5. The Pocket PC is returned to the main system where it is ‘docked’ and the updated inventory counts are automatically posted to the Active Accounting system.

 

Field Grown (Tree) Inventory Pocket PC Software

 

Takes a simple inventory as above while also being able to facilitate ‘sizing’ of the current inventory. Feel free to jump to the Field Grown (Tree) Inventory web page for additional details or continue on to read the brief outline below.

 

Process Steps:

1. Your inventory person takes the Pocket PC with them to the location.
2. Selects that inventory location from the list of your locations displayed on the Pocket PC screen. The items existing in that location along with previously recorded on hand quantities are automatically displayed.
3. Selects an item from the list that needs the on hand quantity changed. All sizes for the item selected are displayed along with their current on hand quantity. Those sizes already assigned to this location are marked with an asterisk.
4. Inventory person selects the size item from the list that needs the on hand quantity changed. The Pocket PC then automatically displays a number pad on screen for easy entry of the updated on hand quantity.
5. The inventory person updates all item on hand quantities as necessary. The before and after changes totals are conveniently displayed as an aid to accuracy.
6. The Pocket PC is returned to the main system where it is ‘docked’ and the updated inventory counts are automatically posted to the Active Accounting system.

 

Summary

 

UDS Support

UDS Support Web Site Changes

 

The mission of the UDS web site http://www.activeapplications.com/ has always been to enhance the support services we traditionally provide through telephone, email, or fax. UDS is aware of the fact that many of you view this web as just a place to obtain “downloads“, and we hope to convince those of you that do, to take a quick tour of the entire site every so often to see “what’s new” and beneficial. UDS would also like to invite you to become an active participant and contributor in making this web site more valuable to both new and experienced Active Applications users

Three new pages have been added to this web site and are introduced below. For your convenience you may jump directly to each of them using the links placed in the body of this article below.  Ordinarily you would select the button that corresponds to each from the ‘Home’ page.

The web site has also gone through some cleanup. There were a few things that had either become outdated or unused and these were removed. Some existing content has been updated to reflect current procedures or methods. UDS would appreciate any additional input our customers may have regarding the content of this web site.  In fact, there is a “Suggestion” box within the web site that would make that easy to do.  If you would like UDS to know who is submitting the suggestion, remember to include your name along with it.

 

Introducing UDS Newsletter Library page

 

This web page is intended as a convenience to UDS customers who may wish to search past newsletter articles for information. Past and current newsletters are listed chronologically by the date they were distributed starting with the most recent. You may display the original table of contents for any particular newsletter before deciding to view the entire newsletter itself.

A few old newsletters were not saved and don’t appear on this list, but from this point on all newsletters will be saved and displayed here for viewing or printing. Hypothetically, if there were any question in your mind as to whether you received the last UDS Newsletter or not, you would only have to check the Newsletter Library page for any newsletter with a date more recent than the last one you’ve seen. To go directly to the Newsletter Library page now, click on Newsletter Library

 

Introducing Inquisitor Library page

 

Why “reinvent the wheel” when the wheel you may need already exists? This is what many of our Active Accounting users have been telling us. Therefore we are proud to announce a new web page devoted to our customers that will list Inquisitor reports donated by you and your fellow Active Accounting users. Easy to follow directions are included on this page for downloading and importing any of these donated Inquisitor report formats. Not only can you download and use them as is, but also modify them to the extent you need to. In order to speed your search for a certain type of report, each one contributed is grouped under the application heading that most closely matches the report’s intended use. As the number of available Inquisitor reports grows, it will be worth your while to visit the Inquisitor Libraryat intervals to see what’s new.

            Donating your favorite Inquisitor Reports is easy and directions are found on the web page. However, about all there is to it is selecting File/Export Report Format from your Inquisitor Reports window, ‘saving’ the file to a familiar folder, and then ‘attaching’ the resulting .xml file to an email addressed to us here at www.support@udsgis.com.

Please include within your email message a statement of the report’s intended use or purpose. Any additional instructions you can provide that relate to using your Inquisitor report will be greatly appreciated and will be included along with your report. Your report will most likely be selected for use if the users know how they will be benefited from it, and how it is to be used.

Visit the Inquisitor Library web page by clicking on this link and view a couple examples already posted. Additionally, UDS would prefer to place your name and/or company name alongside your report design, as "Submitted by: ___" unless you tell us otherwise.

 

Introducing Tips & Techniques page

 

This new page is dedicated to our customers and is intended to develop into a useful knowledgebase containing many time saving tips and techniques. UDS encourages all of our users to submit those ideas that they feel have made them more productive. Your donations to this page will be used and appreciated by many other Active Applications users. If your contribution doesn’t fall into any of the existing headings on this page, a suitable one will be created under which yours can be placed.

            Simple directions for viewing and for submitting your own Tips & Techniques, are found on the web page. Send your tips and techniques via email to www.support@udsgis.com. Here again, UDS would prefer to place your name and/or company name alongside your Tip or Technique, as "Submitted by: ___" unless you tell us otherwise.

 

HTML Help and Manual downloads

 

Near the top of the System Overview page in help is now a version date shown. In the event you might question whether you are currently using the latest help manual or HTML “F1” help, you can check this date against the date for these files showing on the ‘downloads” page on the web site. This version date is merely the date the help file was placed out on the web site for download.  If the date shown on the ‘downloads’ page is after your version date, you should schedule a time to download at least the HTML “F1” help file.  If no version date appears on the Overview page in your help, you really need to download the latest help file.

            Also, you might have already noticed an underlined link on the ‘downloads’ page that says: “Click here for a list of recently enhanced help topics.” Clicking on that line will present a drop down list of topic names for which help was added or updated as part of this latest revision to ‘help’.

 

Performing Program Updates

 

A number of customers have contacted the Support Desk lately inquiring as to whether they may have missed any “Updates” because they hadn’t spotted any report “r” updates in their email ‘in-box’ for a while. The pace at which Updates and Fixes are being distributed for the MS Access version of Active Applications has slowed when compared to that at the start of 2003. However, it is still a good idea to check the ‘downloads’ page once a week for any available “m” main updates. When you find a main update out on the support web site, it is also a good idea to check your email in-box for any report “r” updates, and the same goes for the other way around.  This is particularly true the more Active Applications you own.

 

ActiveApplications User Conference Notification

                                                                             

 

Adventures in SQL Land – Chapter 2 - Shipping Enhancements

 

In the past, shipping has been one of those applications relegated to that of second-class citizen.  It performed a useful function but without any glory or attention.  In SQL this has changed significantly.

 

SQL version of shipping has been enhanced to allow for much greater flexibility and control over the state of orders and inventory.

 

            Flexibility in the number of orders allowed on a Load is the first thing that will stand out.  No more 24-order limit.  It is now completely up to the users discretion as to how many orders go on a Load.  This in turn give us a much more efficient reporting structure to work with.  The fact that the load is now a header-detail relationship, similar to that of orders and invoices gives better control over inquiry and report structures.  The ability to quickly determine if an Order is already on a load through an inquiry function is just one example.

 

            Control over the status of orders is another enhancement that should prove useful to users.  The ability to use a load to move inventory from its source location to a loading dock in one easy step is an example of the great control you have.  Also the ability to remove quantities from inventory before an order is invoiced, giving you a more timely indication of your current inventory availability.

 

With these enhancements, shipping has become an integral part of the Active Accounting system.  Please contact Brian Dontje directly for all the details and benefits the SQL version of Active Applications has to offer.