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Newsletter
–
October 2006
Editorial
Climate
change driven by vehicle emissions, Car-free day, the "High-Occupancy Vehicle
Lane" on the M1-N1, and the taxi operators' strike have all focused attention on
transport issues. If you are using a car, are you monitoring its fuel
consumption? We can help. Get our free Excel Fuel Consumption
spreadsheet which you can order from our web site in the "Free
Business Software" section. While you are there, you might like to
order the free Water Meter Readings spreadsheet and/or the free Bank
Reconciliation spreadsheet and/or the free Quotation System spreadsheet too.
If you want
to learn more about Excel, as usual we have our bite-sized Excel tip-of-the
month below. To help new subscribers, we've collected all the back issues
of the Excel Tips
series on our web site.
By way of
adding value for you, our valued customers, the Excel tips on the web site are
only part of an extensive range of tips on Maximizer, Microsoft Windows, Word,
Outlook, Excel, and Access. For Excel and Access we also have pages of
Visual Basic code to help you with your macros: See
our free stuff.
QuickBooks and
Quick Payroll
As enthusiastic long-term users
of QuickBooks, we have now become resellers of QuickBooks and Quick Payroll.
This decision was taken as Quick Books integrates with Maximizer and it seemed a
good way to go.
Integrating
Accounting, Payroll and Maximizer CRM - the Quick Books Solution
Are you wanting to look at a solution which works seamlessly and is
affordable? Then Maximizer CRM linking into Quick Books Accounting may be
the place to look. Furthermore, Quick Payroll comes on board to ensure
that your payroll needs are covered as well. Please speak to Judith about
this: 082 389-3481. (Sneaky thought - we can provide other integration
options as well).
Problems and Solutions - the Q&A of software
Please send us questions to
answer!
Question: I am running
Incredi-Mail and want to set Microsoft Outlook as my default e-mail package.
How do I do it?
Answer: Normally you set
Outlook as your default by running it and then clicking Tools > Options >
Other: Under General you then tick "Make Outlook the
default..". However in this case this option did not exist! We think
Incredi-Mail hides it and recommended uninstalling Incredi-Mail.
Question: How can I get an
alphabetical list of the files in a certain folder?
Answer: Good old DOS to the
rescue! Click Start > Run, type cmd and click OK.
A DOS window opens. The drive and current folder should be listed in the
DOS prompt (ending in a ">"). IF the drive is wrong, type the drive letter
followed by a colon (e.g. F:), and press Enter. The prompt should change
to suit. Type CD "folder name" (e.g. CD \Test Data), and press Enter.
The prompt should change to suit. Now type DIR/B/O >filename (where
filename is the name of the file for your listing, e.g. temp.txt), and press
Enter. Use Windows explorer to find the file, double-click it to open it
in Notepad, or open it in Word or Excel. Tip: Use DIR/B/O/S to list
files in subfolders of the folder, too.
Question: That seems terribly complex. Isn't there a simpler way?
Answer: Well, yes, it just so
happens that our free WinMatch program will list a folder to a file too (apart
from comparing and copying files). Ask us if you need more information, or
click here.
To give us more questions -
please
contact
info@softwareafrica.co.za
Some "Excel-lent"
tips from Microsoft's "At Home and At Work" Newsletter:
Four quick tips for using
Excel <https://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=5666622>.
The Crabby Office Lady's top 5 Excel tips and tricks <https://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=5666623>
For more tips, and to
subscribe:
· Microsoft At Home site <https://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=5666620>
· Microsoft At Work site <https://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=5666621>
Green Raspberry of the Month
To Citroën for advertising with the slogan "Future
Technology Today" while still selling cars with internal combustion engines (and
ignoring phone messages on the subject).
Come on guys, that is not just last-century technology, it's over a hundred
years old (and bad for the environment)! "Future Technology" is hybrid
vehicles, followed by fuel cells and ultimately solar-electric cars! Other
people are doing it: How about putting your money where your mouth is?
Excel Tips
35 – Format Cells, Font / Border / Patterns / Protection
In the last few issues we looked at the first two
tabs of the
Format > Cells dialog in Excel, which cover the number formats and
alignment. We will now briefly cover the other tabs in the dialog box.
On the Font tab, things are pretty
straightforward. Two points worth noting: For the size, you can type any
number between 1 and 1638, not just those in the Size list. If you tick
the Normal Font check box, the settings on the Font tab will reset to the
default style.
On the Border tab, just remember to choose
the Line Style first, before you tell Excel where to put it.
The Patterns tab lets you select the
background colour for the cell, and then overlay a pattern (always in black!)
over it if desired. Not as versatile as PowerPoint where you can get one
colour to shade into another!
The final tab, Protection, is the sparsest
of the lot, but there is a fair bit to be said about it. The checkbox "Hidden"
hides the formula in a cell so that it is not visible in the editing box when
you click on the cell. The "Locked" checkbox stops the selected cells
being changed, resized, moved, or deleted. However, both these
settings only work if the sheet is protected. The trick is to first set
all the required formula cells hidden, and unlock all the cells where you want
to allow the user to enter data (notice that all cells are marked "locked" by
default) and then protect the sheet, by clicking Tools > Protection > Protect
Sheet (password optional). To make it
obvious to users where they can enter data, I like to give the spreadsheet a
background colour, such as grey or light blue, and give the unlocked cells "no
colour" (white), possibly with an outline border. People are used to white
text boxes on grey Windows forms, so this seems intuitive. Of course these
colour setting must be set before
setting Protection on!
High level training
in Excel
Could you be
more productive if you had a greater understanding of Excel and its formulas?
We can offer the Excel for Professional Users course. This covers how you
can use Excel to maximize your reporting skills and minimize the hassles!
We include using pivot tables, "What-If" scenarios and other data analysis
techniques. For a full specification of this course and costs – please
contact
Judith.
Tips: Remembering to follow up the results of
appointments!
You come back to the office and you click the
completed box in your hot list tasks. Now what - well you will be prompted
to make a note to follow up, which you dutifully do. However, you haven't
put in the meeting result. Click on the contact name and drag it to the
Notes Window, this will open a note, into which you can type your meeting notes.
This completes your documentation on the meeting and you still have the follow
up task already set.
By using this method, you are keeping clear on your
customer's requirements and ensuring that you also complete the tasks that are
needed to move the sale forward.
In Maximizer, your Hot List is your workflow, in
fact it is your business bible, tracking everything that you have undertaken to
do for a customer.
Next month –
Let's look at Opportunities again!
Remember: We can Help you with:―
-
Writing
your custom databases on Microsoft Access, or custom programs in Visual
Basic. If you can’t find that piece of software to do things your
way, ask us!
-
Solving
your Maximizer, Access, Excel, Word, and Lotus 123 problems.
-
Training
your company on Maximizer, Excel, Word, Access and Windows. We do all
levels from beginners to Programming.
-
Software:
We re-sell and support various CRM, timesheet, scheduling and productivity
programs.
All
the Best from the team!
Judith and Rick
Directors, Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd t/a Software Africa
PO Box
987, Gallo Manor, 2052
South Africa.
Tel: (+27 11) (011) 802-2685. Fax: 802-4576. Cell: 082 389-3481/2.
E-mail: info@softwareafrica.co.za
This entire newsletter is
Copyright© 2006
Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd.
Please share it with your friends or post it on your site as long as it is left
intact with all links unchanged and includes this notice.
To Subscribe to the newsletter, Click here and SEND the resulting e-mail.
Your data will not be sold, rented or given away to any third party without your
express permission. To
unsubscribe, Click here
and SEND the resulting e-mail from the address to which this newsletter was
sent.
Back to top
Newsletter –
November 2006
Editorial
The year is
drawing to a hectic close and a hot one as well. Please note that we have
two specials this month on products. The Maximizer special is more than
just licence discounts. It is an opportunity to upgrade to the current
version and receive a free Product Upgrade agreement if you have a version as
old as Maximizer Enterprise 3.0. (Does anyone remember that one?).
The Quick
Books bundle is really good value for money as well.
Special wish
- may all your systems be safe from lightning including your swimming pool pump!
Ours was hit two weeks ago and we are now gradually bringing the water back from
green to blue!
On the wider
front, we heartily recommend that you see the film "An Inconvenient Truth"
by Al Gore on global climate change, showing at Cinema Nouveau, Rosebank.
It is a real wake-up call for our leaders and all of us. As we watched it
we were painfully aware that South Africa is around the world's fifth worst
carbon-dioxide polluter (not per capita, but overall!) after the USA, China,
Russia, and Britain –all much larger nations! We cannot ruin Africa plus
if we do not protect our wetlands and rivers, we will all die of thirst.
QuickBooks and
Quick Payroll - November SME Special
The
Bundle Offer includes:
-
Quick
Payroll (1 – 120 Employees)
-
FREE
QuickBooks Regular 2006
-
FREE
Quicken XG
-
FREE
Customer Manager
Your clients will receive
this
AWESOME
Bundle Offer for
R 1,999.00
(Incl.),
and this is more than likely a
NEVER TO
BE REPEATED OFFER!!
Stocks are limited though!
Maximizer CRM -
November Special
We have a 10% discount on 5 user licences, 15% on
10 user licences and 20% on 15 user licences. For discounts on upgrades from
previous versions, please e-mail Judith
info@softwareafrica.co.za
with your version number and the number of users. Or ring me on (011)
802-2685. This special offer expires on 28 November.
Problems and Solutions - the Q&A of software
Please send us questions to
answer!
Question: If I run a
workgroup network, how many PCs can connect to another PC?
Answer: With Windows XP Pro
on your PCs, you can have as many as you want. However, if you have an XP
Home PC on the network, then you are limited to a total of 5 PCs on the network.
Question: I am importing an
Excel spreadsheet into my Microsoft Access database using the menu choice
File > Get External Data > Import. Data in the PersonID column is
numeric in the first 100-odd rows and alphanumeric further down. Although
I tell it to import into a text field, it fails to import the alphanumeric IDs:
I get a new table "_ImportErrors" with "Type Conversion Failure" for all those
cells.
Answer: Due to a bug in
Microsoft Access's import function, it looks at the first few rows, decides the
PersonID is numeric, and acts accordingly. When it gets to the alphanumerics it
can't handle them. It completely disregards the field type of the field it is
importing into! As a workaround, either sort the spreadsheet in DESCENDING
order by PersonID (this gives alphabetics at the top), or put a single quote (')
at the start of the first PersonID.
Question: I was given an Excel spreadsheet that complains if I put
negative values into a cell. How did they do that?
Answer: Funny you should ask! See
this issue's Excel tip below.
To give us more questions -
please
contact
info@softwareafrica.co.za
A brand New Marketing Site
There is a brand new
marketing site on the Internet, set up by Anne Williams. She send out a
newsletter with marketing tips and information to subscribers. The link is
https://www.2bbusiness.co.za/ and it
is headed
Practical marketing for real companies
in the small-business sector
Take a look and see if it
can add value to your business!
For Early Adopters (Madonna excluded)
(Madonna had just adopted a Malawian baby)
Do you want to know where your fleet
vehicle is? Has somebody copied your number plate and run up traffic fines
on your behalf? Have you lost your car, but think it is still around with
the same license plate?
We are starting an initiative together with various
partners to spot vehicles using cameras and number-plate recognition software:
Please look at www.CarID.co.za (since discontinued)
and let us know what you think.
Green Raspberry of the Month
Eskom is serious about saving fossil fuels and
reducing climate change, right? Wrong! Look at their
Saving Tips -
Residential Users - Where to save electricity (link discontinued): "Tips 1: Hot water system
(geyser)" asks readers to insulate their electric geysers, but they don't
even mention solar water heating, which is much more energy-efficient!
They also ignore e-mails on the subject sent to
Bayanda.Nyasheng@eskom.co.za, but perhaps you'd like to try. I think
that he doesn't exist!
Excel Tips
36 – Introducing Data Validation
Wouldn't it be nice to prevent users from entering
wrong data into your spreadsheets? Now you can: With Data Validation.
On the Data menu, click Validation.
A dialog with three tabs appears: Settings, Input Message, and Error Alert.
On the Settings tab you set the Validation Criteria, in other words you
tell Excel what data are acceptable. Some possibilities:
- Any Value (the default)
- Whole numbers (integers) between 0 and 100.
- Decimal numbers greater than 20.
- Decimal numbers greater than a specified cell.
- Dates greater than or equal to =TODAY()
- Text with a length of 4 characters (e.g. for Post Codes - format the
cell as Text too).
- List from values A,B,C,D using "In-cell dropdown" (this gives a
drop-down list using the values specified –the drop-down arrow only appears
when you click on the cell).
- List from cells =$A$4:$A$8, using "In-cell dropdown" (this gives a
drop-down list using the range specified). Since these cells could
contain formulas, imagine how powerful this can be!
The Input Message tab lets you set a message, with a bold title, that
appears as a tooltip when the cell is selected.
On the Error Alert tab you specify a message that tells the user what
they have done wrong. It appears when they enter data that does not fit
your criteria. Explain in detail what is required. The "Style"
determines the icon that is displayed: Stop, Warning or Information.
Stop prevents the user from continuing with bad data, the other two let the
user accept bad data and carry on (or try again).
Data validation works independently of whether
you have worksheet protection set on or not. It's good practice, though,
to set the cells where you want to allow data entry with "Locked" off,
and then set Tools > Protection > Protect Sheet ON, as discussed in last
month's issue. Also see it for a discussion of background colour for the
worksheet and unlocked cells .
Tips: Let's look at Opportunities again!
Opportunity Manager is where you work to follow
through with a prospect and turn the opportunity into a sale. When you
have a prospective customer entered into Maximizer, you drag the contact name up
to Opportunity Manager to start the process. The Opportunity window opens
and you now make some decisions:
-
What is your objective? Is it a new system or product sale; is it a
further sale into the customer; is it an upgrade? State your intention
clearly here.
-
What products or services are you selling into the customer?
There should be a drop down list here to choose from and you can add new
fields.
-
What Category does the sale fall into? Again there are choices.
-
Description - what is special about this sale? Flesh it out.
-
Fill in the stage the opportunity is at - probably "Starting" and your
Confidence Rating.
-
Fill in all the Opportunity details that you can complete at this time and
any other information needed to complete this window
-
Click the User Defined Fields tab and complete the information
requ9ired by your company there.
-
Click Sales Plans and note that you are not using a strategy, so
choose Show Activites.
-
Click on the More button, and start your activities around this
opportunity.
-
Work the opportunity until it is closed!
-
Click on the Competitors and Partners tab. Find the competitors
you know you have and put them in with comments. If you have a partner
in the deal, find them as well.
-
The last tab is the Status tab. Here you will able to put in
information on how you won the deal. This knowledge enables you to do
more deals more easily!
Next month –
Taking a break! Will start again in January and we will have a December
newsletter.
Remember: We can Help you with:―
-
Writing
your custom databases on Microsoft Access, or custom programs in Visual
Basic. If you can’t find that piece of software to do things your
way, ask us!
-
Solving
your Maximizer, Access, Excel, Word, and Lotus 123 problems.
-
Training
your company on Maximizer, Excel, Word, Access and Windows. We do all
levels from beginners to Programming.
-
Software:
We re-sell and support various CRM, timesheet, scheduling and productivity
programs.
All
the Best from the team!
Judith and Rick
Directors, Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd t/a Software Africa
PO Box
987, Gallo Manor, 2052
South Africa.
Tel: (+27 11) (011) 802-2685. Fax: 802-4576. Cell: 082 389-3481/2.
E-mail: info@softwareafrica.co.za
This entire newsletter is
Copyright© 2006
Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd.
Please share it with your friends or post it on your site as long as it is left
intact with all links unchanged and includes this notice.
To Subscribe to the newsletter, Click here and SEND the resulting e-mail.
Your data will not be sold, rented or given away to any third party without your
express permission. To
unsubscribe, Click here
and SEND the resulting e-mail from the address to which this newsletter was
sent.
Back to top
Newsletter –
December 2006
Editorial
The year is
almost over and business confidence is rising as the construction work required
for 2010 gets underway. I think 2007 will be a year to remember - perhaps
8% growth to impact against higher interest rates. We are still short of
much needed rain and this is causing food prices to rise as much as the Rand
exchange rate has.
Many
companies and employees are looking forward to close down around the 15th
December and heading off on holiday. To all of you, travel safely and
enjoy the break. Return refreshed and ready for action! (Use your
seat belts!)
Everyone at
Software Africa wishes our customers and suppliers a safe and prosperous festive
season and the very best for 2007.
QuickBooks and
Quick Payroll
Were
you aware that the top end version of Quick Books delivers more than Pastel
Evolution at a lower cost? We were surprised to find this out when a
colleague who knows the latter product well remarked on this fact. If
you are considering a powerful accounting solution, please talk to us about
Quick Books Accountant!
Maximizer CRM
The eCRM version of Maximizer runs completely web
based. It is true access anywhere at any time. It also enables your
customers to log on to the system to check their queries and the status of their
customer service incidents. Roaming personnel can log on to update their
progress with projects from airports and hotels, or home. Your business
partners can also have access to the sales projects that they are participating
in.
This makes for a truly integrated solution.
If you then add to it the connection into Microsoft Exchange Server, which means
that your non-Maximizer users can be included in appointments and meetings; the
whole company is now working together.
If this sounds like a solution that your company
is looking for to take the next leap forward into greater success, please
contact Judith for more details. Tel (011) 802-2685 or
info@softwareafrica.co.za
People at
Software Africa
Just an end of year update on who we are, and how
to contact us by e-mail:
Problems and Solutions - the Q&A of software
Please send us questions to
answer!
Question: Appointments not
completed yesterday do not show in my Maximizer Hot List Tasks, why not?
Answer: Open File |
Preferences and choose the Calendar / Hotlist tab. Click on
Carry forward unfinished activities. The tasks will now show the next
day.
Question: How do other
people access my calendar and hot list to make appointments for and reassign
tasks to me?
Answer: This is related to
the above answer, as you use the same area of Maximizer to make this happen.
Make the Calendar and Hot list Full Access either All users or
just the user you want to be able to do these asks for you.
Question: Maximizer 9.0 no longer runs scripts on the calendar window and
does not display appointments, why?
Answer: You have downloaded Internet
Explorer 7.0. If you don't have a high speed line, contact us and we will
come and load the Service Pack that fixes it. If you do, download the
Service Pack from www.max.co.uk/support
and apply it. Be very careful to apply to all users' PCs before opening
the database, as it will be upgraded.
Maximizer Enterprise 9.0 and 9.5 also require new
service packs to counter the problem and they are available on the same site.
To give us more questions -
please
contact
info@softwareafrica.co.za
Small Business Assistance
We are Business Warriors. Are you? If you're a small business owner or
planning to start a business, this community can help you. It:
Focuses on all the challenges small business owners face
- not just the business issues:
Helps remove the risks from and uncertainty about starting your business.
Suggests ways to finance your growing business without signing your life away.
Gives ways to get your bank to finance you on your terms, not theirs.
Stops your business from owning you, rather than the other way round.
Helps you develop yourself so that you can have fun captaining your ship.
Helps structure your business to guarantee your family's financial security,
no matter what happens.
Addresses the biggest challenge facing small business owners:
entrepreneurial loneliness.
Since 96% of small businesses eventually close, they look at how to close your
business intelligently, when, and why.
Green Tip of the Month
Are
you concerned about global climate change but feel there's nothing you can do?
You can make a difference! Join
EarthLife Africa to stay informed about what you can do locally, while
helping press government to reduce our appallingly high carbon emissions.
Excel Tips
– Your Present for Christmas /
Chanukah /
Summer Solstice /
New Year!
Since it's that time of year and you've taken the trouble to read this far,
instead of giving you more to learn, we have a present for you:
It rains every few days: How about tracking your
rainfall? Hop down to your local hardware shop and buy your friend or
loved one a rain gauge as his/her present! [You think we're joking?
Friends of ours say it's the most useful present anyone has given them!]
Then
click here
to go to our web site (free spreadsheets page), and request the free
rainfall spreadsheet. This Excel file not only makes data entry easy, but
calculates your monthly and annual statistics (days of rain and mm rainfall for
the period).
As a bonus, from the same page you can also request:
- Bank Account Reconciliation Spreadsheet (sorts out and checks a
copy-and-paste from on-line statements of ABSA, FNB, and NedBank – Standard
on request)
- Fuel Consumption Spreadsheet (easily track your car's fuel consumption
and service record))
- Water Meter Readings Spreadsheet (avoid "interim readings" (guesses) by
submitting your readings to Johannesburg Water on-line, and check their
charges)
- and, coming soon: Electricity Meter Readings Spreadsheet (Eskom
3-phase))
Enjoy!
Taking a break - see
you next year!
Next
month – Setting up an automated campaign
Remember: We can Help you with:―
-
Writing
your custom databases on Microsoft Access, or custom programs in Visual
Basic. If you can’t find that piece of software to do things your
way, ask us!
-
Solving
your Maximizer, Access, Excel, Word, and Lotus 123 problems.
-
Training
your company on Maximizer, Excel, Word, Access and Windows. We do all
levels from beginners to Programming.
-
Software:
We re-sell and support various CRM, timesheet, scheduling and productivity
programs.
All
the Best from the team!
Judith and Rick
Directors, Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd t/a Software Africa
PO Box
987, Gallo Manor, 2052
South Africa.
Tel: (+27 11) (011) 802-2685. Fax: 802-4576. Cell: 082 389-3481/2.
E-mail: info@softwareafrica.co.za
This entire newsletter is
Copyright© 2006 Communication in Action (Pty) Ltd.
Please share it with your friends or post it on your site as long as it
is left intact with all links unchanged and includes this notice.
To Subscribe to the newsletter, Click here and SEND the resulting e-mail.
Your data will not be sold, rented or given away to any third party without your
express permission.
To
unsubscribe, Click here
and SEND the resulting e-mail from the address to which this newsletter was
sent.
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