UDS Green Industry Software, Inc. Newsletter

July 21, 2004

Topics in this newsletter:

General Notes from Brian

AASQL.com web site and UPGRADE notes

From the Support Desk

            New Training Plays Available

            Report changes are emailed directly to you

            Main System updates are still downloaded from www.activeapplications.com

            Support Web Page continues to server you

New From Development: Job Costing for nurseries

Trade Show and Travel Schedule

Next Issue:

It is time to think about the user conference.

AASQL upgrade pricing is now available

Much More…

Notes from Brian:

Version 7 has been released to all users on support. If you do not have yours contact support@udsgis.com immediately. The implementation has been as error free as any we have ever had. Few problems have been reported even though many changes were made. It is a testimony to Wes’s dedication in testing of this product before shipment. Next time you talk with him on the support line thank him. You should be on version 7 now. If you are on another version be aware that support for that version will end soon.

Summer Trade shows have started with the conclusion of the Ohio Short Course. Interest in ActiveApplications is high and we are getting new customers. Your kind words of reference are appreciated. I appreciate you recommending ActiveApplications to your fellow green industry businesses. We work very hard to make sure you have the best product and support available.

With the release of SQL ActiveApplications version 7 it will begin a new phase in our joint journey through the world of Information Technology. Make sure to read the article on AASQL and version 7.

Even with the transition to AASQL beginning we are not stopping the enhancement to the standard Access version of AA. See the tech notes from Jeff to learn what will soon be released to you.

Version 7 of ActiveApplications is the best documented version ever, too. Wes has done a good job of getting revisions to the help files published for your use. He is also well on his way to adding training plays to our ActivePlaymaker library, too. Check out the articles he has developed. 

As things in you season progress we wish you the best in business.

AASQL Web Site: www.aasql.com is being developed as you read this article. New articles are being added almost every day. Recently new pricing pages have been added. As a support customer of ActiveApplications Standard version you will receive a significant discount off this price should you elect to upgrade to AASQL. Pricing for the switch will be posted to www.aasql.com first so watch for it.

Our SQL customers love the reliability of AASQL. Although SQL offers its own challenges to implement it operates at high transaction volumes without a hitch. The standard Access version of AA could never handle the volume and data sizes that occur every day in our SQL customers. 

The new features of AASQL make it even more attractive. Profiles make the arrangement of programs and windows much easier for specific job tasks. The SQL Production Planning application is truly beyond anything available or imagined for the nursery industry. The enhanced Accounts Payable and Purchase Order applications make your job much more controlled and easier. The added Inventory Grading options in Order Entry make the process of selecting inventory to ship much easier to control. The order entry status also makes the control of the Order Fulfillment process much easier.

The web site will soon contain comparisons between AA Standard and AASQL. This will help you get ready for the added function available in AASQL.

Take a look at www.aasql.com as it continues to develop.

From the Support Desk:

New Active Plays Available for Download on the Active Plays web page of the Support web site.  The exact page is http://www.activeapplications.com/ActivePlays/Active%20Plays.htm Viewing them will definitely assist even the experienced user with acquiring the latest application skills they need.

Newest Active Plays:

§ Estimate Total Line – separates Non-Billable from Billable Items on an Estimate.  Thus, setting up for “Contracted” for Items and “Time & Material” issues to the Job, can begin with the first Estimate.

§ Estimate Sub Total Line – the development of Subtotals into Phases brings with it speed and increased flexibility.

§ Job Cost Defaults tab –updated version of the Job Type Control File Play illustrating its’ new capabilities, one of which, is the ability to combine GL Account numbers in the Item record with those in the Control File when posting transactions for a Job.

§ Job Create/Update – brings together all the functions needed for creating and editing the Job File under one roof.  A complete demonstration of this multifunctional tool is presented.

§ Job Cost Transactions Create – brings together all the functions needed for creating and editing JC Transactions under one roof.  A complete tour of this multifunctional tool is presented.

What is an Active Play?

Each Active Play is an animated training presentation that explains a particular feature, function, or benefit within Active Applications.  There is a "Help Agent" resembling a simple cartoon character that talks, moves around, and sometimes makes life-like gestures to further articulate important information being presented. Realism is enhanced through the extensive use of screen images taken from the actual software.

How Do Active Plays Compare to F1 Key Help?

For quick referencing of Help documentation while in the midst of using Active Applications, we suggest trying the F1 key on your keyboard first.  F1 key help is also sometimes better suited to the boring, yet important task of defining each and every field that may appear on a form.  However, for many of us Active Plays offer the quickest method for familiarizing ourselves with what we need to know to use the software.  Active Plays are particularly well suited for demonstrating procedures and processes step by step.

How are Active Plays used?

All the viewer has to do is select the Active Play they are interested in viewing from the Active Player menu, sit back, then watch and listen.  If this is the first time this particular Active Play is being viewed, the user may decide to allow it to run without interruption from start to finish.  In successive viewings the presentation can be paused, rewound part way, or fast-forwarded when certain details need to be reviewed.

Where do I find Active Plays?

On the “Active Plays” web page on the Support web site.  The procedure for downloading Active Help Plays is provided on the Active Plays web page itself.  However, if you come up against a snag, do not hesitate to contact Support.  The list of Active Plays available for viewing will continue to grow.  UDS hopes that your newest staff members will be allowed to view them, since these people will get up to speed faster and with less effort.  This should translate into fewer mistakes and greater productivity.

Procedure Review: Report Updates are E-mailed The menu options found under the Reports button on your main Active Accounting task bar are referred to as “Reports”.  Any fixes or enhancements to these report programs are sent to you via email.  Likewise, this goes for any, New reports UDS would like you to have.  The email address UDS uses to email these reports out to you is the one we presently have on record.  If you change your email address it is very important to let us know ASAP so that you do not miss out on receiving a report update.  If you have received report updates in the past and have not changed your email address recently, do not be concerned.  If you have implemented a new email system, or recently installed “filters” on incoming emails, or made changes to your network that could possibly have impacted your email system, UDS would be happy send you a couple test emails in such cases as that.  If any of our Customers have any doubt as to whether we have your current email address, send us a note via email using that address to support@udsgis.com, and we will update our records if we need to. 

Procedure Review: Main Program Updates are Still Down loaded

If you have visited the “Downloads” page on the Support web site lately, you will have noticed a slight change in appearance of the page due in part to the release of version 7.  The main or “m” type updates are still downloaded and applied to your system in the traditional fashion and nothing has changed there.  Our message would be only to reinforce the requirement that you know the version of the software you are currently running so that you download the correct main update.  Simply explained, if you are currently at version 6 you will only want to download version 6 updates.  If you have performed the version 6 to 7 upgrade, then you only want to download version 7 updates from here on out.  In order to check to see what version of Active Accounting you are currently running, select from the main task bar- Help and then About Active Accounting on the drop down menu.  The UDS Version will read 98.07.10?? if you have upgraded to Version 7 already.  We use the question marks here, by the way, to represent any number including zero.  UDS recommends routinely checking the Downloads page about once a week to look for an available “m” update.  If you have any questions regarding updates or the update procedure, do not be afraid to ask Support.  This is an important aspect of successfully using Active Applications.

The Tips & Techniques Web Page is Going Strong:

Support doesn’t want to preach to the choir here folks!  If you have been out to the Tips & Techniques web page then you know there are well thought out and detailed articles out there.  “All the more power to you” as they say, and you can skip reading any further.

For those of you that haven’t, we recommend you visit the Tips & Techniques web page.  More than just occasionally a support email now ends up being referred to the title of a specific article existing on this web page.  There is always an implied invitation that goes along with it, to take up the issue again with Support after the user has read the article.  We would not suggest anyone visit this page for the sole purpose of reading every article but rather to be aware of what is there.  For example if your interest is General Ledger, check out the 7 titles of the articles under the General Ledger heading.  At least you will know they are there and, “forewarned is forearmed”.  It’s all about avoiding hassles.

Each article on this web page is organized under a category ‘Heading’.  A date also accompanies each article so that new articles can be spotted quickly.  Sometimes it is useful to take into account the age of the article.

Enjoy the Tips & Techniques web page.  It’s all about saving you time and avoiding hassles.  It is available to anyone without need of a username and password.  You can login to the Support web site 7 days a week and anytime 24 hours a day.  UDS continues to welcome articles and tips submitted from our Customers.

From the Development Desk: Extending the Power of Active Accounting

To provide our customers with the most powerful business application, UDS has extended the power of Job Costing to our Nursery customers.  With the upcoming release of Active Accounting to version 7.01, a new table will be included call Project Definition.

Through the use of this table as well as the existing function of Estimating, Payroll, Accounts Payable and Job Costing, Nursery customers will be able to define projects and track the actual costs and sales for the defined project (Job).  The project could be as specific as a crop or field, but you control the extent of the project.  The length of the project could be as short as a few weeks or extend over multiple years depending on the scope of the project.

The project would start with an estimate, which would define the income opportunities as well as the expenses against the project.  This Estimate would then be use to create a Job in Job Costing.  You would create Project Definition records defining the items, which when sold would track as incomes against the job.

Expenses are tracked through Payroll transactions and AP Invoices.  By assigning a Reference (Job Number) to a payroll transaction, as well as specifying the Department, which has a Item Number assigned to it, the item number on the Department would cause a Job Costing Transaction to be generated.  AP to JC Distribution program is used assign purchase order invoice amounts to specific Jobs and categories (item numbers from the estimate).

Incomes are tracked through normal processing of invoices.  Items sold on invoices are checked to see if they have a Project Definition record.  If a Project Definition record does exist, a Job Costing transaction is generated coded as an income.

All this information is reported to you through Job Transaction History Summary, which gives you a month-by-month summary of the transactions, or through Job Transaction History by Phase, which gives you a detailed comparison for up to six months information.

Please look for more detailed information in the coming weeks distributed through the Help file releases and through new Active Plays available for download from the web site.

Thank you for your continued support.

UDS Development Team

Trade Show and Travel Schedule:

We hope to see you at one of these events:

August 12 to 14 UDS will be at the Southern Nursery Association Trade show in Atlanta Georgia. I will be making calls through the south during that time, too.

August 27 to 29 UDS will be at the Farwest Show in Portland Oregon. I have appointments before the show in that area, too.

August 31 to September 5 Brian will be in Florida and available for appointments.