MAS 90 MAS 200 Tips, Tricks, & FAQ s 2002 User Conference August 15, 2002

Transcription

1 MAS 90 MAS 200 Tips, Tricks, & FAQ s 2002 User Conference August 15, 2002 This is a compilation of ideas from various members of The Fitzgerald Group, clients, and other miscellaneous sources. We strongly recommend that you contact The Fitzgerald Group if you re unsure of any of the suggested ideas or resolutions. 1. There is a large range of voided checks showing on the A/P Check History report. How can I get rid of these? Go to the Run option on the File menu in the MAS 90 main screen (launcher) and type: apwrvd. Enter the appropriate Bank Code and the check number range, and click Proceed. 2. The Customer Type field on the A/R Customer Maintenance/Inquiry-Additional screen is a free text field, which means users can enter anything in this field. Is there a way to make this a pre-defined list? Yes, using the Custom Office module, you can customize this field by creating a validation list, so that only valid entries will be accepted. 3. How does Retained Earnings work with MAS 90? At year end, the MAS 90/200 G/L Period End Processing function clears all income and expense account balances and posts the net profit/loss to the Retained Earnings account specified in the General Ledger Options screen. And if you run the Standard Financial Statements off the G/L Reports menu, you'll notice that the Equity section on the Balance Sheet shows this account, and it also will show a line that says Retained Earnings-Current Year. This Current Year line is just the YTD net profit/loss off the Income Statement, and will get zeroed out to the Retained Earnings account specified above, at year end. 4. How can I get specific Comment Lines on my graphical Sales Order to automatically format a certain way when they are used? You need to enter formulas for the Comment field format options in Section E of the form: Style: if {SO_20CRWSalesOrderDetail.CommentLine1} = "SEE ATTACHED SHIPPING NOTES" then crbolditalic else crregular

2 2002 User Conference Page 2 of 14 Size: if {SO_20CRWSalesOrderDetail.CommentLine1} = "SEE ATTACHED SHIPPING NOTES" then 13 else How can I put criteria on my Crystal Report for Invoice Dates that are blank? {SO_03SOHistoryHeader.LastInvoiceDate} = Date (0000, 00, 00) 6. How can I show Social Security # s in the correct format on my Crystal Report? Use one of the following formulas: Picture ({PR1_EmployeeMaster.SocialSecurityNumber},"xxx-xx-xxxx") Or Mid ({PR1_EmployeeMaster.SocialSecurityNumber},1,3) + "-" + Mid ({PR1_EmployeeMaster.SocialSecurityNumber},4,2) + "-" + Mid ({PR1_EmployeeMaster.SocialSecurityNumber},6,4) In Excel you can use: =MID(C4,1,3) & "-" & MID(C4,4,2) & "-" & MID(C4,6,4) - where C4 is the 9-digit SS # You can use the above formulas to format other fields as well. 7. Why is MAS 90 still running slowly even though I set the AntiVirus scanning options to scan program files and documents only, as opposed to all files? This could be caused by the Norton AntiVirus SmartScan Technology option being turned on. Uncheck this option to disable it. 8. When entering a Kit item during S/O Entry, can we prevent the do you want to order this from stock message from appearing? Yes. With the release of version 3.60, there is an Explode Kit option in the Inventory Maintenance- Options screen. (1) Select Prompt to display a message dialog box during data entry prompting whether or not you want to order items from stock. (2) Select Always to automatically explode the component lines for the kit item without being prompted. (3) Select Never to order the kit line item from stock without being prompted. 9. How can I account for exchange rate fluctuations in A/R Cash Receipts Entry? a. Enter the actual deposit amount in the Deposit Amount field. b. Enter the actual amount received in the Amount Received field.

3 2002 User Conference Page 3 of 14 c. On the Lines tab, select the invoice(s) to apply the payment to, change the Amount Posted field to the full invoice amount, and click OK. d. Select a G/L account to post the exchange rate gain/loss, which should show in the Amount Posted field. Click OK e. Accept and Update the Cash Receipts Journal. 10. I m using Crystal Reports 8.0. How can I export to PDF format? (a) Install version 8.5 OR (b) Contact us for the updated.dll files for Why am I getting error messages when installing Crystal Reports on a Windows 2000 workstation? You may need to log onto the computer as Administrator, and try again. 12. Can I change the Check Maintenance option on the A/P Check Printing menu to say something else? The term Check Maintenance is confusing. Yes, using the SUMNUA utility. 13. Why am I getting a no orders to print message when trying to print S/O Picking Sheets? There are a number of reasons this may be occurring, but the most common cause is if the Pick Sheet was previously printed. However, if the Sales Order contains credit card information but no deposit amount (therefore no authorization code), or if the credit card is expired, the same message could occur. You can get by this by clicking on the include unauthorized/expired credit card orders check box in Picking Sheet Printing. Or, using the Custom Office module, you can force this check box on. 14. When entering a Sales Order, how can I easily bring up that customer s Excel file which contains various information? Using Custom Office, add a Program Link button to the Sales Order screen, containing a script of: c:\m903-61\mas90\arabc\"{ml_cust$}".xls. Then, clicking this button will launch the customer s Excel file, which must already exist.

4 2002 User Conference Page 4 of How can I reverse a range of posted invoices? You would have to manually reverse each one. There is no automated process - unless it was a very large volume of invoices, in which case we might recommend a Visual Integrator job. 16. What is the correct way to merge Vendors, Customers, etc.? First of all, any Delete/Renumber/Merge Utility should be performed first thing in the morning. The reason for this is if you accidentally do it incorrectly, and need to restore off the backup from last night, you won t have to re-do any of the current day s work. (This Utility CANNOT be undone!!!) For merging (customers for example), the starting and ending Customer # must be the same, unless you specifically want to merge a range of customers into a single customer. 17. How can I control the number of records to print on the check stub when using Graphical A/P checks? On the A/P Check Printing screen, simply set the Stub Lines to the appropriate # (e.g. 22) 18. We have graphical forms turned on, but when I print one, it s not using the graphical form. Why? The most common cause of this is loss of the workstation s network connection. Re-boot the workstation, verify your network drive mapping, and try again. If the drive mapping isn t there, you must set it. 19. How can we get line # s to print correctly on the graphical S/O Shipping Data Entry Packing List? The Packing List form is set to print only the items that will be shipping, which means during Shipping Data Entry, only the lines with a quantity shipped greater than 0 will print out. This formula, {SO_61CRWPackingListDetail.QtyShipped} > 0, is used on the form. So, using the line # field from the data file won t always work because it picks up the line # s from the sales order, which may cause the line # s to skip.. A Running Total should resolve this: - Field to Summarize: SO_61 Item Number - Type of Summary: Count - Evaluate: Formula: {SO_61CRWPackingListDetail.QtyShipped} > 0 - Reset: On Change of Group - Group 1, SO_61 Invoice Number

5 2002 User Conference Page 5 of Which credit card merchants support TCP/IP authorization, as opposed to dial-up? NOVA; Vitel (Visa Net); FTMS 21. Are there recommended country code abbreviations for use in MAS 90 Country Code Maintenance (Library Master-Common menu)? Yes. Here s a website that can help: What is the Extended Stub Report option in the A/P module, and how does it work? By definition, the Extended Stub report is a report that shows the invoice detail for the check being paid. The report can be printed for all checks or only for checks with more invoice detail than can fit on one check stub. In A/P Setup Options: * Select Yes to print the Extended Stub Report only for checks where the invoice detail does not fit on one stub. * Select No to print void checks with continuation stubs as necessary (not available with Graphical Checks selected in A/P Options). * Select Always to always print the Extended Stub Report. Manual Check Entry: In addition, when using the Quick Print feature in Manual Check Entry for a Crystal Reports check, the Yes option is assumed. However, the Extended Stub report will not print if using non-graphical checks. If the Extended Stub report needs to print (based on the setting in A/P Options), the Extended Stub Report printing screen will appear just before the Check Register printing screen. You must print the Extended Stub Report to be able to update the Check Register. 23. How can I get Country Names to print on my graphical forms? You need to create a formula like the following: if {SO_26CRWInvoiceDataHeader.BillToCountryCode}="CAN" then "Canada" else if {SO_26CRWInvoiceDataHeader.BillToCountryCode}="FRA" then "France" else if {SO_26CRWInvoiceDataHeader.BillToCountryCode}="ITA" then "Italy" else if {SO_26CRWInvoiceDataHeader.BillToCountryCode}="USA" then "" 24. When updating Cash Receipts, what date is used for the posting date? MAS 90 uses the deposit date, not the A/R system date.

6 2002 User Conference Page 6 of What options do I have for remote connections? It depends. If you want to operate remotely un-tethered to your system, there are a couple of modules that can help. Remote Salesperson allows your sales force to enter orders, check inventory and customer accounts on a Palm Pilot that was previously synchronized with your system. Timekeeper allows entry of time on a Palm Pilot that can then be pushed into Payroll as well as Sales Order, Accounts Receivable, Job Cost or Time and Billing. If you want to actually connect with your system you have a number of options depending on the how many people need to connect and what your budget will allow. 26. Can I enter all my invoices through the Purchase Order system without creating a PO and a receiver for all of them? Yes, in Receipt of Goods Entry, skip the PO # field and just enter an Invoice #. 27. Can we print Bar Codes without Bar Code Master? Yes, if you are using graphical forms (Crystal generated), you should be able to change the font on any item to a Bar Code. You will have to download the Azalea font (small charge). 28. Can we add a UPC # to the Item Master? Yes, most likely with a User Defined Field unless you have an unused field large enough to hold it. 29. Can we add User Defined Fields to the Lot # screen? No, the Lot record does not yet allow UDF s. However, there is an enhancement from Macabe Associates that accommodates for this. 30. Does MAS 90/200 link with any CRM (Customer Relationship Management) packages? Yes. Act!, GoldMine and SalesLogix. 31. What is that new Shipping menu in the Sales Order module? This is new with version It is completely optional. Basically, it allows for a Pick, Pack, and Ship system and separates the shipping process from invoicing/accounting.

7 2002 User Conference Page 7 of 14 It allows your warehouse personnel to call up existing Sales Orders (in a Shipping Data Entry screen) and specify what exactly is shipping and can even specify what went in each box/package. Then they generate optional Packing Lists. This process automatically creates the invoices so then the Accounting department simply prints the invoices and updates them. Of course, Accounting can first go into Invoice Data Entry to verify them first, and/or make any necessary changes. 32. Why aren t I seeing all the transactions on the Inventory Inquiry/Maintenance Transactions screen? By default, the Transactions screen will initially show only the current period s transactions, based on the last period that was closed. To see the other month s transactions, click the Binoculars icon and select the All check box to see All transactions, or specify a transaction data range. Note: This may apply to other screens as well. 33. How do I match open Debits and open Credits in the A/R module? One option is to use the Match Credits to Open Invoices feature on the A/R Period End Processing menu. However, there are times this may not actually work, dependent on your data, or you may want to apply them in a specified manner. So the other option is to do it in A/R Cash Receipts Entry. Example: $0 cash receipt, and apply it against the -$50 credit and +$50 debit. 34. When performing P/O Receipt of Goods/Invoice, is there an easy way to tell if any of the line items have already been received/invoiced? Yes. In both P/O Receipt of Goods Entry and P/O Receipt of Invoice Entry, click on a line item and then click in the Received Qty field. At the bottom of this screen, you ll see Original Qty, Qty Received to Date, and Qty Invoiced to Date. 35. A/R Cash Receipts Entry will not allow me to post payments against a customer s open invoice(s) even though the customer has outstanding invoices - although I can post it against the customer s balance. Why is that? This is most likely due to the customer being incorrectly set as a balance forward customer, as opposed to open item. Look at the Open Item Customer option in A/R Customer Maintenance, and if it s unchecked, but your A/R module is set for Open Item customers, you must contact The Fitzgerald Group, as we need to edit a few files to fix this.

8 2002 User Conference Page 8 of I lost all my custom icons on my MAS 90 toolbar after the upgrade. Is there an easy way to recreate them? Yes drag and drop. Simply drag a MAS 90 function from your tree view up to the toolbar, & drop it. 37. Why aren't purchases showing up on my Vendor Purchase Analysis Report (or sales on my Customer Analysis Report)? It is likely you have not closed your month(s) properly. Any transactions for future periods (beyond current month as set in Setup Options) are being held in a "Future" bucket awaiting month-end processing. Once month-end processing is completed these amounts will be rolled into the Company MTD and YTD figures. These future amounts can be viewed in Vendor Inquiry (Maintenance) on the History Tab via the Future button. 38. I m trying to print checks (A/P or P/R), but I m getting a message that says check printing in progress, and it won t let me continue. Why do I get this message and how do I resolve it? Typically this is caused by an error or some interruption that occurred while actually printing checks. First confirm that someone else isn t really printing checks. To fix this on version 3.61 or higher, go to the File-Run option on your MAS 90 launcher, and type: glwska and click OK. Then select the Bank Code that s yielding the error, and click Proceed. Review the Warning message that appears, and click Yes. Then select Exit. The error should no longer occur. To fix this on versions prior to 3.61, please contact The Fitzgerald Group. 39. How can I keep a job from purging related history, after I run Period End Processing in Job Cost? Job history can be retained indefinitely, provided the job does not have a closed status at the time of performing Period End Processing. If a job s status is closed the job will be purged from history. The job s status can be manually changed before running Period End Processing. 40. Is there any way to stop posting to a job, which I ve determined to be closed? No, but there is a recommended workaround. Change the job status to hold or similar - i.e., use only this status for jobs considered closed. Then, modify the F2 Lookup (for data entry people) to not include jobs with a status of hold. Users will not see the jobs, therefore they won t be able to post to them.

9 2002 User Conference Page 9 of Is the only way to purge history, by running Period End Processing? No. History can also be manually purged, by running 1 or more of the purge history utilities - located inside the Period End Processing function in the various modules. Several utilities are available. 42. I ve created a new company. How can I copy just the Vendors masterfile to the new company, so I don t have to manually re-enter them? Run the SVTRNA utility from the File-Run screen. Make sure you have a current backup prior to running this utility. This utility can also be used for copying Customers and Items. 43. How can I keep employees from posting to prior months and/or future months? There is a setting under File/Preferences/System Preferences, that allows for posting to only the current and one future period. This setting should be turned on at the required workstations, and can be password protected. 44. How can I force employees to post to today s date? Technically you can t, but you can force today s date to automatically populate when the user goes into each MAS 90/MAS 200 module. In File/Preferences/System Preferences, turn on Auto Set Accounting Date to System Date. 45. What is the difference between MAS 90 and MAS 200? MAS 90 runs as a traditional LAN (local area network) application with data and programs stored at the server, but the processing takes place at the workstation. MAS 200 also has the data and programs stored at the server, but is a thin-client application and thus eliminates about 90% of the network activity, as the majority of the processing takes place at the server. 46. During Sales Order data entry, is there a way to make sure we re making enough profit? Yes, in the Sales Order Options screen, there are 2 options for Margin %: (1) You can specify a minimum margin % to display a warning (with optional password override), and (2) You can specify whether or not you want the margin % to display on screen.

10 2002 User Conference Page 10 of Last year s Tips and Tricks document contained a work-around tip for handling RMA s. Has a better way been developed? Actually, Yes. With the release of MAS 90/ , there is a new RMA module. 48. What s the easiest way to get my customer list in Excel? Create a simple Crystal Report and use the Export function inside Crystal. 49. I ve set up some users with access to Business Insights (BI), but inside BI they have access to information that they have been secured out of via MAS 90 security? Why? It s very likely that the user is part of a Group, and the security is set on the Group (as opposed to the User). BI cannot interpret Group security. 50. Can I run MAS 90/200 on Windows 95? It will run with versions 3.61 and prior, but they are not supported by Best. For the current version (3.7), you need Windows 98 or higher. 51. I just performed the MAS 90 workstation setup on a Windows 2000 (or Windows XP) computer but I can t get into MAS 90 now (error messages). Why? Most likely it s due to the rights/permissions on that computer for the user you re logged in as. 52. Is there a way to modify existing MAS90 Reports? Although you have a lot of options when running the hardcoded reports from the Reports Menu in any module, you cannot modify the looks of these reports. Best has however created several pre-written Crystal Reports under the Custom Reports Menu in most modules. These reports can be modified. In fact, if you are intimidated by Crystal Reports, you might want to try experimenting with these reports to see the effects. However, if you are going to change them we suggest you save them with a different name, so that you don t lose your original reports. 53. In ALE when I search or filter using 0 as a qualifier it doesn t seem to work. Using 0 doesn t seem to work, try using.01 (or.001).

11 2002 User Conference Page 11 of Can we use a User Defined Field (UDF) to search with the Advanced Lookup Engine? Yes. The User Defined Fields normally appear at the bottom of the list that appears when you click the Custom button. (sometimes they are a little hard to decipher). This became available in version How do you write off a bad debt? A zero-dollar cash receipt is the easiest way to write off a bad debt, but it also may be accomplished by issuing a credit memo against the invoice or by adjusting the invoice. 56. How come the 3rd line of the address isn t printing on my forms? The formulas/data fields for the 3 rd line address need to be added/corrected so that it includes the 3 rd line in addition to lines 1 and What is the best way to do a bank transfer? This should be accomplished using G/L Transaction Entry, mainly because it ll flow through to the Bank Reconciliation module. A Cash Clearing account is used in this process. 58. How do I post our payroll which is done by an outside service so that it hits the GL and Bank Rec at the same time? This can be accomplished using G/L Transaction Entry, mainly because it ll flow through to the Bank Rec module, and if required, will allow for the individual checks to show up for reconciling purposes. A Cash clearing account is used in this process. 59. What are all the keyboard shortcuts and is there a list available? Inside the MAS 90 Help system is a section for Keyboard Navigation that lists out the various keyboard shortcuts. You can also print out the following pages of the Getting Started section of the User Manuals: 3.61 = Pages 29-31, 49-50, 54, 56-59, which contain additional Navigation information. 60. Can I make a copy of my existing company to use for testing or training? Yes, there is a hidden utility called SVDATA (SUDATA prior to 3.51) that allows you to copy your entire company data files and setup to a new or existing company (overwriting existing data). We suggest that you give us a call the first time you are going to use this as it is potentially catastrophic if you copy the wrong way. (SVTRNA allows for copying just masterfiles.)

12 2002 User Conference Page 12 of People are in the system all day, so we have trouble finding a time to run our daily updates. Can we run these at night while no one is here? In Library Master/Utilities, there is an Automatic Update feature that allows you to specify which journals/registers you want to schedule for unattended printing and updating. It allows you to update all or specific batches, and creates a log to let you know what happened. 62. How important is it to close our months on time? From a strict accounting viewpoint, not crucial, as the subsidiary ledgers will stay in balance as will the General Ledger, however Other than General Ledger, if you don t close out month one before posting activity for month three, a whole bunch of reports and inquiries will get out of whack. For all PTD and YTD reporting (again other than GL) MAS 90 uses two buckets: current (dates before or in this month) and future (dates beyond this month). When you close the month, MAS 90 transfers all data in the future bucket into the current bucket. Consequently, if you had month two and month three data in the future bucket it is going to all show up in the MTD totals for month two, thus making both month two and three inaccurate. You basically have 30 days to close your months. That should be enough. 63. Hopefully most people are aware of the select feature in A/P Payment Selection and A/R Cash Receipts. If not, it is a point and click option that lets you select multiple invoices without recalling the list each time. Click the Select button on the applicable screens to use this feature. 64. Can I Fax or Reports or Forms? If you preview a Crystal Report or Form, you can it from the preview. For standard reports you can purchase a copy of Adobe Writer and create PDF documents which can then be attached to s. MAS 90/200 also has batch faxing capability to fax all your PO s or SO s at night, unattended. In addition, you can print to a fax (printer device) via Windows printing. 65. Can we disable the ability to add Customers on the fly? Yes, using the Custom Office module. 65. How can we make global changes to Customers and Inventory Items)? There is a Global Field Change Utility on the A/R Setup/Accounts Receivable Utilities Menu, and an Apply Button on the Inventory Setup/Product Line Maintenance Screen that allows you to make changes

13 2002 User Conference Page 13 of 14 to large ranges of records. PLEASE BE CAREFUL, as we have had clients completely blank out all fields by mistake. You might want to give us a call the first time you use these utilities. You can also do global changes to almost all files within MAS 90 using Visual Integrator as long as you can identify consistent criteria. 66. We use Excel (or some other external system such as scanners) for taking Physical Inventories. Is there a way to get this into MAS90/MAS200? Yes, it can be imported using Visual Integrator. 67. How can we stop the extended item description box from popping up during Sales Order and Purchase Order Entry? After going into Sales or Purchase Order Entry, but before starting the first order, click the Default button on the top right of the screen. Then click on the Tab button and unclick the Description box. 68. Are there documented Year End Procedures? Yes, in the Technical Reference and Support Guide (TRSG). If you don t have it installed and need help doing so, please call our office. 69. How do I match debits and credits in Accounts Payable? In the Manual Check Entry screen, enter APP + a 3-digit numeric (e.g., APP001) at the check No. field. Then on the lines screen select the invoices you want to apply to each other. You could also issue individual credit memo s (and debit memo s) if applicable. 70. How to properly do a pre-payment in Accounts Payable: Enter the check amount in Manual Check Entry. Use an invoice # as PPYYMMDD for example PP Print and Update the check entry. Once the invoice comes in enter in Invoice data entry and call up the pre-paid invoice (which will have a zero balance) and apply it to the original expense acct. with the zero balance on tab How to properly do a pre-payment in Accounts Receivable: Enter the payment in cash receipts as usual on tab 2 at the invoice number field type in an invoice number such as the date with the suffix PP for example 88-PP you will asked is this a pre payment?

14 2002 User Conference Page 14 of 14 Click yes and go on. Once an invoice is entered, printed and posted in Invoice Data Entry go to Period End and choose match credits to open invoices option and enter the customer and proceed. 72. What is the difference between Crystal Reports and FRx? Crystal Reports is a graphical report writer, whereas, FRx is a graphical financial report writer. FRx is better used for Balance Sheets, Income Statements, etc. 73. How can I add my custom Crystal Reports to the MAS 90 Custom Reports menu(s)?? This is accomplished using the Report Manager function on the Library Master-Utilities menu. 74. There isn t a lot of room on my MAS 90 Launcher (main menu) for placing icon/functions I frequently use. What can I do about it? You have a couple options but the best is to move the Web Navigation toolbar up, and the Custom toolbar down. Also, you can rename the icon text labels, or hide them altogether. 75. Is there an easy way to search for specific text/numbers when previewing a MAS 90 report to screen? Yes there is. Click the Binoculars icon at the bottom of the screen and type in the text you re looking for. It may be advantageous to select Beginning (as opposed to Cursor) for the Start At criteria. For a copy of last year s Tips & Tricks, contact Tony Bella