Key Ops Dispatch

The Newsletter for Key Operators of DDMS Systems
November 2003
Vol. 3, No. 7

Included in this issue:

1 ECi Headquarters, Data Center Move to New Locations
DDMS-integrated ecommerce servers migrate Nov. 14-16, 2003

2 New Approval Link™ Products Handle Credit Card Details Fast
Approval Link 2 and Approval Link +™ offer new capabilities

3 Deadline Nears for Discount on Approval Link Upgrades
Support for PC Authorize and DataCap ends Dec. 31, 2003

4 Get Ready for New and Improved Year-End Key Ops
Revisions help navigate graphical software

5 Dealer Station® DDMS Edition 3.11 Coming Soon
Detailed documentation will be available Friday, Nov. 21, 2003

6 Get Acquainted with Order Entry Shortcuts
Use this quick reference whether you’ve used text-based or not

7 Avoid Duplicate P/Os when Using Both Graphical and Text
Text-based P/Os pull from Short-Buys; graphical P/Os pull eligible items

8 Did You Know? Tech Tips
Online Help Highlights, Text-Based Guides, Parameter Guide

1. ECi Headquarters, Data Center Move to New Locations

ECi has relocated its corporate headquarters from Vienna, Virginia, to Reston, Virginia. The ECi data center is also in the process of migrating to a co-location facility near the new offices.

No other locations are affected by this move, nor are we transferring support operations from other locations. Support for your ECi products will continue to be provided by the same support technicians as in the past, and those technicians will continue working from their current locations.

Dealer Station® DDMS Edition, is.D-Force®, and ECi Private Supply Network (PSN) servers will migrate to the new facilities the weekend of November 14-16, 2003. Other e-commerce products hosted at the data center have also been scheduled to migrate to the new facilities. We have notified dealers who use these services.

Since the data center’s IP address range is changing, some dealers may need to prepare their firewalls or domain name server host records. These steps will prevent or even eliminate downtime.

For more information, see Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the ECi Data Center Migration.

2. New Approval Link™ Products Handle Credit Card Details Fast

Approval Link 2.0 and Approval Link+ enable your DDMS business system to communicate with POS-partner, a credit card authorization program by Vital®.

Approval Link 2.0 provides:
• Both Level I and Level II processing
• Internet-based transaction processing
• Support for multiple hubs and separate merchant IDs
• Compatibility with all DDMS-approved point-of-sale equipment.

Approval Link+ includes all the features of Approval Link 2.0 and adds Level III processing. Either way, you can process credit card transactions faster and more efficiently than ever before.

Vital will fully support its product, POS-Partner, including going to dealer sites and training dealer personnel. It is important to get POS-Partner set up successfully as a standalone, manual credit card entry process before implementing Approval Link 2 to connect it to your DDMS business system.

Approval Link 2 and Approval Link + are currently in beta testing with customers who have successfully implemented POS-partner. The software will be released upon completion of testing.

Additional information is available in Credit Card Transactions Made Easy.

3. Deadline Nears for Discount on Approval Link Upgrades

In an email dated Oct. 29, 2003, ECi announced to DataCap™ and Approval Link™ users that upgrading now to Approval Link 2.0 or Approval Link + will save hundreds of dollars. To receive an upgrade discount, existing Approval Link customers must purchase before January 1, 2004. After that date, the regular price applies: Approval Link 2.0 is $695, and Approval Link+ is $1,650.

Different early bird discounts apply if you lock in your savings before Nov. 31, 2003. or Dec. 31, 2003.

Why upgrade? Support for both the original version of Approval Link and DataCap will end on December 31, 2003.

PC Authorize™, the credit card authorization software for which Approval Link was designed, has been discontinued and is no longer supported by its manufacturer. DDMS will no longer support the use of this software with DDMS business systems. This includes support for the original Approval Link software, which provided the interface between PC Authorize and the DDMS software.

While DataCap is still available, later versions of the software are not supported by DDMS. If you are a DataCap user and your communication hardware fails, the replacement unit that DataCap provides will include updated software that is incompatible with your DDMS business system. Therefore, we are also discontinuing support for use of DataCap with DDMS business systems.

ECi announced two upgrade paths for these products: Approval Link 2 and Approval Link +. Both will save you money, give you faster connections, and provide you with additional capabilities. For more information, contact ECi Sales by calling 866-374-3221, or emailing info@ecisolutions.com.

4. Get Ready for New and Improved Year-End Key Ops

DDMS has completely revamped the Year-End Key Ops newsletter. Revisions are designed to help you navigate through the year-end roadmap and relevant graphical software windows. New topics include merging monthly sales journals into one yearly sales journal, posting retained earnings, and timesaving tips to make your year-end go smoothly.

We have already posted an electronic copy of the December 2003 Year-End Key Ops on our Web site. You should receive your printed copy of the Year-End Key Ops after Thanksgiving weekend.

Most people don't think about year-end procedures until they’re ready to close the year’s books. Unfortunately, that means everyone has questions at the same time. It also means that everyone waits longer for Customer Service to return their calls. You can avoid the traffic jam altogether:

• Attend a free virtual class on year-end procedures. We have announced the availability of eleven free sessions on year-end procedures in a separate email. Please check the schedule of virtual classes.

• Contact Support at ddmssupport@ecisolutions.com with your questions ahead of time, as soon as you have read the new and improved Year-End Key Ops.

In this issue, you’ll find period-ending procedures for both AIX/UNIX and Microsoft Windows®-based operating systems. The information is color-coded for AIX/UNIX (green) and Windows (blue). Instructions in black are common to both operating systems. Points in red are key. Pay particular attention to them.

The text-based keystrokes are still at the beginning of the step to get you to each screen quickly. However, we’ve also added the DDMS path to the beginning of each step to help you navigate graphically.

Make your end-of-year easier by reading this special issue of Key Ops early.

5. Dealer Station® DDMS Edition 3.11 Coming Soon

We plan to release a new version of Dealer Station DDMS Edition on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2003. We plan to begin the update process at 10:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on Friday, Nov. 21, 2003, and anticipate completion by 2:00 AM EST on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2003.

We'll announce a complete list of new features and information on documentation in a subsequent email to Dealer Station customers.

Just before the release, we will post “What’s New in Dealer Station DDMS Edition 3.11”, updated end-user documentation Understanding Online Purchasing, and updated administrator documentation Setting Up Dealer Station DDMS Edition Admin Pages on our Dealer Station Documentation page.

6. Get Acquainted with Order Entry Shortcuts

When you first upgrade from the text-based software to one of our graphical DDMSducts, you may notice that some features are labeled differently. You will also notice that the graphical software lets you look up information from different databases without making you leave the window.

In Shortcuts in the Graphical Order Entry Application, we list common text-based tasks, along with simple tips on how to accomplish these tasks in graphical software.

This Quick Reference also provides a visual key to menu and button shortcuts in the graphical Order Entry application.

The Quick Reference is intended to supplement, but not replace, your online help documentation and Order Entry training. Please see Shortcuts in the Graphical Order Entry Application.

7. Avoid Duplicate P/Os when Using Both Graphical and Text

If you are using a combination of text-based and graphical software to complete purchase orders, you must understand how each mode handles short-buys.

Purchasing works differently in graphical software than in text-based. In the text-based software, you must first run the (T-10) Short-Buys Report so that the database can pull from the SHORT-BUYS file when you create a P/O. In the graphical software, Purchase Order Entry simply pulls items that qualify to be placed on a short-buy P/O. You do not have to run the (T-10) Short Buys Report when using the graphical software.

If you do not understand this difference, you may be creating duplicate purchase orders.

For the purpose of illustration, let’s say you have two employees who do purchasing for your company, Georgie and Terry. Georgie likes to use the graphical software. Terry is more accustomed to using text-based software.

Terry runs the (T-10) Short Buy Report from text-based software. This creates the SHORT-BUYS file with backordered items.

Meanwhile, Georgie opens Purchase Order Entry in DDMS, clicks Action, and selects Short-Buy. Georgie will see the same items that are in the SHORT-BUYS file. But the graphical purchasing application IS NOT reading the SHORT-BUYS file. It simply displays all items that qualify to be placed on a purchase order.

Still in graphical software, Georgie creates the P/O that includes all the items shown when she selected the Short-Buy action. Remember, graphical doesn’t pull from the SHORT-BUYS file, so the items are still in that file.

If Terry were then to open the text-based (F) Purchase Order screen and select [S] Short-Buys, it would create a duplicate P/O.

If your purchasing personnel use both text-based and graphical, it is very important for text-based users to run the (T-10) Short Buy Report immediately before running (F-S) Short Buy to create a P/O. The (T-10) re-creates the SHORT-BUYS file, and any items that are currently on a P/O would not be included in the newly created file. Running a (T-10) immediately before an (F-S) will prevent duplicate P/Os.

If this issue affects you, and if you need help understanding the flow of data in short-buys, please contact Support by calling 800-366-4778 or emailing ddmssupport@ecisolutions.com.

8. Did You Know? Tech Tips

8A. Using Online Help

Most of you are aware that DDMS has online help. You can access online help by clicking Help and selecting Contents from the menu at the top of the screen. The help file features a table of contents, an index, and a search to help you find all the information you need.

The graphical software itself will display field definitions when you simply click in any field and press the F1 function key at the top of your keyboard. You can also press F1 at any time to view a help menu for the application you are working in.

Having trouble understanding why an application works the way it does? You’re in luck: for every database and/or application, our online help includes conceptual topics. For example, under the main topic of Customers, we have Customer Concepts and Customer Basic Procedures; under the main topic of Order Entry, we have Order Entry Concepts and Order Entry Basic Procedures.

In addition to coverage of each graphical feature, the online help includes all the features that currently remain in text-based screens. You’ll find every parameter explained in the online help, for example.

The only software features not covered in online help are text-based screens that have been replaced with graphical applications. You can manage your inventory database in the Item window or the (E) screen, for example. In this case, online help covers the Item window, but not the (E) screen.

The online help files are also available on our Web site. You can get to the help for any supported version of our software from the main Documentation page.


8B. Documentation for Text-Based Modules Replaced by Graphical Modules

We have received several requests to post Version 4 Documentation in PDF format on the Web site. We have made it available at www.DDMS.com/resources/doc/standard_doc/v4bklist.pdf. You can also get there from the main Documentation page. It may be helpful for understanding text-based modules that have been replaced by graphical modules, such as the (E) Inventory screen. Of course this documentation does not reflect any text-based software updates from Version 5 and up. For the latest conceptual information about these modules, it is best to refer to online help in DDMS and additional documentation on the DDMS.com Web site. Another helpful resource is Cross Reference of Text-Based Screen Name To Graphical Window

8C. Parameter Manual

The complete documentation for every DDMS parameter is available in Adobe® Acrobat Reader format at www.DDMS.com/Resources/Doc/parameters/title.pdf. Full parameter documentation is also available under online help, which is available in your DDMS graphical software.

Tell Us What You Think: Online Forms For Your Feedback

We are always open to your ideas for continual improvement, and we want to make it as easy as possible for you to communicate those ideas.

If you have feedback or corrections to report for documentation, please use our online documentation feedback form. Of course, you can also send a simple email to docfeedback@eci2.com, but using the online form will help us find exactly what needs to be edited.

To submit Support requests, please enter detailed information about your problem at www.DDMS.com/support/supportcall.htm. The online form provides your Support tech with information regarding your issue, which is helpful before returning your call. You can also call us at 800-366-4778 or email us at ddmssupport@ecisolutions.com.

Can you think of anything we can do to make Customer Service even better? Please send any comments or suggestions to keyops@eci2.com

To unsubscribe, change your e-mail address, or add additional recipients to this subscription, please e-mail your request to emailchg@eci2.com. Please include your company name, account number, and phone number for validation purposes.

For other ECi contact information, please see the updated Contact Us Web page

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