2012 tug national users conference – early … · user-to-user helpline/tug talk ......

February 2012News and Information for Users of Sage Timberline Office Software

2012 TUG Conference Early Registration Deadline ..........12012 TUG Conference – Must-Attend Exhibitor Sessions ........................2Manage Your Contact Selection Lists with AB’s ‘Sort as’ Field ................4Membership in TUG Has its Benefits ....4Managing Your Software...Are You Legal? Part One ............................5TUG Online WebEx Training and Open Forums ................................6User-to-User Helpline/TUG Talk Bulletin Boards .............................7From the TUG Talk Bulletin Board: Users to Users ..............................7Sage’s New Products – MyAssistant and Office Connector ....................8To: The Estimating Guru ........................8What Can the Option Tool Do for Me? ...9Stay Connected with Sage ..................10Punctuation – Those Pesky Little Hyphens ............................11ODBC Part One – What, Why and How! ....................................12

Kissimmee, Florida, is this year’s destination and the conference promises to be better than ever. The

2012 TUG National Users Conference, May 15-18, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center is designed to bring together expert users, new users and potential users of the Sage Timberline Office (STO) software to share knowledge, ideas and experiences.

With an anticipated attendance of 500, this conference is the perfect place to find answers to your questions, meet with Sage representatives, collaborate on ideas

for future upgrades and visit with various exhibitors eager to display their products and services to you. Additionally, if you are working toward certification, this conference offers many opportunities to earn continuing professional education (CPE) credits.

NEW THIS YEAR, TUG is offering recommendations for sessions based on job title and experience. Once you decide

on the “bundle” that’s right for you, you can register for all the individual sessions through the regular registration process or you can personalize your schedule and make any changes you wish. Additional information regarding bundled sessions can be found on the conference Web site.

Only a few days remain to register at the early registration rate – register today to ensure your place at this all-important conference AND save $100! Join us for four days filled with educational sessions, hands-on labs, great networking opportunities and a little bit of fun!

For additional information, including conference registration and multiple attendee discounts,

session details, hotel accommodations and much more, please visit the 2012 TUG National Users Conference Web site today at www.tugconference.com.

2012 TUG National Users Conference – Early Registration Deadline February 29, 2012

Register by February 29, 2012, and save $100! Visit tugconference.com for more details and to register!

REGISTER TODAY!2012 TUG National Users Conference

May 15-18, 2012Gaylord Palms Resort& Convention Center

Kissimmee, Florida (Orlando area)Visit tugconference.com to register!

February 2012 News and Information for Users of Sage Timberline Office Software

u 2 u

the TUG PulsePublished by the

Timberline Users Group, Inc.and sent to all members.

Board of DirectorsMatt Weaver, President

Tim Cooke, Vice President

Sharon Hessong, Treasurer

Jon Banse, Secretary

Natalie Allen, Past President

Janice Barnard

Scott Bishop

Barbara Morse

Michael Suhovecky

Marlene Williams

Lenni M. Witt

Publications CommitteeDavid Brown

Sharon Hessong

Maeva Mayes

Liz Perez-Lavin

Val Steffen

Eire Stewart

Shanna Torges

Timberline Users Group3525 Piedmont Road

Building Five, Suite 300

Atlanta, GA 30305

e-mail: [email protected]

Phone: 404.760.8171

Fax: 404.240.0998Toll Free: 866.846.0999

[email protected]

Web Sitewww.TUGweb.com

Are you looking for a way to streamline your work processes, go paperless and/or get more out of your STO products?

Our vendor sessions during the 2012 TUG National Users Conference, May 15-18, can help! Come see the latest and greatest offerings from Construction Imaging, Core Associates, eRisk Consulting, Sage and others. A list of sessions can be found below and you can register for these sessions online as part of the conference registration process at www.tugconference.com.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012, Sessions1-2 & 1-3 Accounts Payable Issues and Solutions: This is a four-session class that will deal with all aspects of Accounts Payable and will include presentations from third-party vendors that sell products relating to Accounts Payable or AP automation. The second and third sessions will focus on vendor presentations. Join Core Associates and other vendors for presentations that will make Accounts Payable processes easier and more streamlined!

22-1 Excel-Based Reporting Using Sage Timberline Office Connector – Presented by Sage: Leverage what you already know and start building your own reports fast! Through hands-on experience you will learn how to build powerful reports within Excel that let you interact with your Sage Timberline Office information. During this lab you will build reports in Excel that can be reused and refreshed with a click of a button and that utilize the robust features that Excel offers for filtering, sorting, professional presentation and navigation of your business data.

22-4 Getting the Most out of Your STO Solution – Presented by Sage: Learn about new, easy-to-use capabilities that allow better access to Sage Timberline

Office data and business critical information through custom auto alerts and Excel-based reporting.

5-4 Sage Timberline Estimating Today – 11.x Hands-On Lab: Come and get a sneak peek at Sage’s newest Estimating solution. Learn how you can win more jobs by creating more accurate estimates in less time. Based on the market-leading Sage Timberline Office Estimating product, our new Estimating solution has an all-new user interface and is built on a high-performance, secure and scalable Microsoft SQL database. If you are currently using Sage Timberline Office Estimating, come and learn the differences between the two products and decide what’s best for your company.

23-4 Lean, Mean and Green: Going Paperless in the New Economy – Presented by eRisk Consulting: Still thinking about going paperless? What are you waiting for? In today’s economy, best-in-class contractors are investing in “Paperless Technologies” to automate AP and other workflow processes. At the same time, they are realizing the benefits of a more efficient workplace with instant access to critical information, rather than manually retrieving and compiling essential documents. In this exciting session, Mike Carbino of eRisk Consulting will help you understand what it means to “go paperless” by leveraging technologies to provide the greatest opportunity for sustainability and growth in the future. The session will also include a live demonstration of an actual Enterprise Content Management application. Please join us and learn how easy it is to become “lean, mean and green!”

2012 TUG National Users Conference – Must-Attend Exhibitor Sessions

o Continues


u 3 u

Register today atwww.tugconference.com

Wednesday, May 16, 2012, Sessions1-6 & 1-7 Paperless Office Issues and Solutions: This is a four-session class that will deal with all aspects of Paperless Office and will include presentations from third-party vendors that sell products relating to scanning and/or document management. The second and third sessions will focus on vendor presentations. Join Construction Imaging, Core Associates, Sage and other vendors for presentations that will make going paperless a breeze!

5-6 Sage Timberline Estimating Futures/Roadmap: Come and get a sneak peek at Sage’s plans for future Estimating solutions.

22-6 Stay on Top of Your Business by Proactively Monitoring Key Performance Indicators – Presented by Sage: Learn how to proactively monitor key business and project issues based upon individually customized requirements and automated triggers.

22-7 Excel-Based Database Management and Workflow Using Sage Timberline Office Connector – Presented by Sage: Learn how you can use Sage Timberline Office Connector Query, Write and Import to utilize data you have in Excel, or place data in Excel from your Sage Timberline Office Database, to create records, update records and import records into Sage Timberline Office with ease. You will learn how these tools can be used to facilitate Excel-based data entry, creation of user-defined forms in Excel that feed data into Sage Timberline Office, and much more.

Thursday, May 17, 2012, Sessions22-9 Sage Timberline Office Futures/Roadmap – Presented by Sage: Learn about our three-year plan to build an even more powerful Sage Timberline Office solution (including Cloud Services) helping your business become more efficient and profitable.

1-10 & 1-11 Payroll Issues and Solutions: This is a four-session class that will deal with all aspects of Payroll and will include presentations from third-party vendors that sell products relating to Payroll or PR automation. The second and third sessions will focus on vendor presentations. Join Sage and other vendors to find out more about products that can make payroll processing more streamlined help you process documents electronically.

22-10 Easy Document Management – Get it Integrated – Presented by Construction Imaging: It’s easier when it’s INTEGRATED. Integrations for Outlook-Email Management, SharePoint-Portal, Timberline Office-Accounting/PM, Windows File Share-Project Files. Workflow automation connects your back office with the field and the field with third parties – RFIs, Payment Applications, Employee Applications (HR Automation), Change Orders, Purchase Requests, Timesheets, Field Reports, Quality Control and, of course, Invoices. Attendees will have a chance to participate in this presentation with Construction Imaging’s tablet applications, Web interface and mobile capability. Documents are now automatically archived without manual indexing.

22-11 Cloud Technology for the Construction Industry – Presented by Sage: Learn about new cloud services that Sage will be releasing in the coming months. Using this technology and the Sage Timberline Office software you already own, you’ll learn how cloud-based reporting, project management and administration can foster greater collaboration and efficiency.

22-12 TimberScan: A/P Approved and More – Presented by Core Associates: TimberScan is a program designed exclusively for Sage Timberline Office to automate the AP approval process. It uses built-in imaging technology to provide paperless invoice processing. Although going paperless is a major leap forward, the breakthrough innovation and the key to TimberScan’s success is its ability to define each company’s unique business rules for routing invoices, thereby automating even the most complex routing requirements. Join us to learn all about how TimberScan can help your company simplify the AP process.

Friday, May 18, 2012, Sessions1-14 & 1-15 Field Access for Timesheets and Daily Logs Issues and Solutions: This is a four-session class that will deal with all aspects of Field Access and will include presentations from third-party vendors that sell products relating to Wireless or Web Access and Field Reports or Remote Timesheets. The second and third sessions will focus on vendor presentations.


u 4 u

We all know that Address Book (AB) provides a single place from which to manage information about the contacts with which you do business. You can create company and person contacts

that can be accessed from within other Sage Timberline Office (STO) applications such as Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Project Management, Estimating and Buyout. What you may not know is that Address Book offers a convenient way to organize how those contacts are displayed in the various contact selection list windows. You can access the various Contact Selection Lists depending on where you open the list. For example, in AB, click [Find], in Project Management, click the binocular icon.

STO uses the ‘Sort as’ field to display the contacts in the Contact Selection Lists; the ‘Sort as’ field allows you to customize how the

contacts are sorted. When you setup a contact (or a company), you can accept the prefill from the ‘Name’ field, or enter the contact’s name as you want it to appear in Contact Selection Lists. For example, sort as “Portland; City of” rather than “City of Portland.” If you enter a company name with an initial “The,” it is automatically placed at the end of the name; for example, “The ABC Company” becomes “ABC Company; The.” If you are using this company in Estimating, limit your entry here to 20 characters. The name you enter here will display in the Spreadsheet name field in Estimate Subcontractor window.

It is advisable to create a standard for entering information in the ‘Sort as’ field. Some companies prefer to have contact lists sorted by last name, first name; others by first name, last name. Choosing either method works, just make sure you are consistent. If some users are entering names in the ‘Sort as’ field using last names and others are using first names, trying to find contacts in the Contact Selection Lists becomes difficult and increases the chance that you will setup dupli-cate information in AB. I have also seen users modify the ‘Sort as’ field to show other information such as “DO NOT USE – XYZ Company” or “XYZ Company – City” to differenti-ate companies that have a similar name but different locations.

If you need additional information using the ‘Sort as’ field, keep in mind that you can use the ‘What’s This?’ icon in STO. Simply click on the icon then click on a field in STO, a help menu will appear with information about the field.

Manage Your Contact Selection Lists withAddress Book’s ‘Sort as’ Field

by: Matt Weaver, MCPMeyer Najem Construction, LLC

Membership in TUG has countless benefits – from networking opportunities to resource centers designed to guide users to productive solutions. Some of these valuable benefits include:

• TUGWebAccess• MonthlyWebinarTrainingSessions• AnnualTUGNationalUsersConference• TUGTalkBulletinBoard• Reports&InquiriesLibrary• TemplatesLibrary

• SageEnhancementRequests• VolunteerOpportunities• LocalChapters

Don’t miss out! Any questions regarding your membership,or any of these benefits, can be directed to the TUG office at:[email protected] or 866.846.0999. You can also learn moreby visiting www.tugweb.com.

Are You Getting the Full Value of Your TUG Membership?


u 5 u

Software has become such an integral part of business. There would be no way you could run your business in

today’s business environment without it. As expensive and frustrating as software licensing is, it is just part of our business now, so we have to be aware of the legal issues that surround software licensing and how to manage licensing within your own business.

I have handled many software compliancy audits and I am still amazed and sometimes baffled as to why companies put themselves at risk because they choose not to comply with software licensing laws. Software, like any other product, is the intellectual property of the people or company that created it and, just like your business, if someone wants or needs your product you should have an expectation that your business will be paid for your product or intellectual knowledge.

There are risks to your business and to the officers of any company that is reported using illegal software. Software companies are now very diligent and vigorously going after companies and software pirates that are illegally using their intellectual property. If you are using illegal software don’t think you will get off with a slap on the wrist, as there are legal consequences to using illegal software, such as civil penalties and risk of criminal prosecution, which could include jail time.

Properly managing your software has many benefits. One of the most significant is cost control for budgeting purposes. Software within most organizations can be between 25 and 35 percent of the annual IT budget. With that large of a budget impact it only makes good business sense that you would want to manage how you acquire software, how much you are spending on it, and how

to implement training processes around how your employees are using your software.

Software purchases should be an individual line item within your annual technology budget, which would allow for your software purchases to be managed in an orderly manner, along with identifying potential upgrades or annual fees. Managing the software budget by line item allows you to more effectively anticipate your needs and reduce the risk of excessive spending when making software purchases. Managing by line item also allows you to identify and react to software that might not be properly licensed.

There are many potential risks to your business to consider when using illegal software and I am going to clear up a myth around software right now. When you purchase software you are not really purchasing the software as you would normally think about it. You’re really only purchasing a license to use the software in accordance with the licensing terms and conditions. The actual ownership of the software remains with the development company.

There are many different licensing programs out there for businesses. However, most organizations will purchase an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) license, which means that that particular license is licensed to that computer and cannot be moved or transferred to another computer. If you transfer or load that software on another computer than that would be considered a software violation and would be illegal. Most major software vendors have open licensing programs, or volume licensing programs

depending on your organizations individual needs, and many of these programs come with discounts and software assurance programs built into them. These programs are specifically designed to help reduce the risk that you will load and utilize illegal

software and lower your overall cost of ownership, so it is worth your time to look into these types of programs and see which one best fits your needs.

Using illegal software does have some basic business operational consequences. Software companies offer legal users services and value-added resources, such as user manuals and other feature-specific documentation, notifications of problems within the software and how to fix them, user training on the software to help maximize your return on investment, support services,

Managing Your Software…Are You Legal? – Part Oneby: Scott M. Lewis

Winning Technologies, Inc.

o Continues

• Buy only the software that you need

to run and manage your business.

• Ensure that your employees are

only using properly licensed and

activated software.

• Pay to upgrade only the software

that is being used within your

organization.

• Take advantage of volume licensing

programs to standardize your

software and lower costs.

Some of the key items to manage software include:

News and Information for Users of Sage Timberline Office Software

u 6 u

February 2012

and the most important upgrades and fixes to the software application itself. These are all important benefits that you do not get when you are using an illegal version of the software.

Using illegal software comes with other risks that you might not be aware of that can severely cost your organization valuable time and money. Purchasing software over the Internet is very risky, and common

sense should tell you that Office does not cost $49.99 and if you think you are buying it for that you should be aware of the risk you are taking. First, it is an illegal copy, but many times these are test copies that have bugs that can compromise or damage data files. They can also be hiding viruses that can compromise the security of your network and allow someone else to have access to your data or network. The result of this type of virus is that the cost of repair,

downtime and lost data can easily cost more than if you would have just purchased legal copies of the software to begin with.

This is part one of a multipart article and in part two we are going to go into how do you actively manage your software, how do you know if you are already illegal and some steps you can take to protect yourself in the complex world of software licensing.

MARCH 2012

Tuesday 3.6.12 1:00 p.m. ET PJ: WORKFLOW + ENTERING ESTIMATES + ENTERING COMMITMENTS

Wednesday 3.7.12 1:00 p.m. ET CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE & FORUM: RECURRING INVOICES

Thursday 3.8.12 2:00 p.m. ET REAL ESTATE COMMITTEE & FORUM: LEASE AND TENANT NUMBERING OPTIONS

Friday 3.9.12 2:00 p.m. ET PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE MEETING

Tuesday 3.13.12 1:00 p.m. ET PJ: MANAGING COMMITMENTS: PURCHASE ORDERS

Wednesday 3.14.12 2:00 p.m. ET CONSTRUCTION ACCOUNTING COMMITTEE & FORUM

Thursday 3.15.12 11:00 a.m. ET SERVICE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE & FORUM:

BEST PRACTICES FOR MOVING WORK ORDERS TO HISTORY

Friday 3.16.12 1:00 p.m. ET ESTIMATING: PLANSWIFT

Tuesday 3.20.12 1:00 p.m. ET PJ: MANAGING COMMITMENTS: SUBCONTRACTS

Monday 3.26.12 1:00 p.m. ET INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE & FORUM

Tuesday 3.27.12 1:00 p.m. ET PJ OPEN FORUM: PJ PROJECT MANAGEMENT TIPS & TRICKS

Wednesday 3.28.12 11:00 a.m. ET ESTIMATING COMMITTEE & FORUM

To attend an online event, please e-mail attendee(s) name and e-mail address to [email protected]. You will receive an e-mail confirmation along with connection instructions once you are registered. These classes are free of charge and open to members

only – one more benefit of belonging to the Timberline Users Group! We are adding more sessions every day. Check theOnline Event Calendar at TUGweb.com for an updated list. If you have any suggestions on sessions you

would like to see, please e-mail [email protected].

TUG Online WebEx Training and Open Forums


u 7 u

February 2012

At TUG, we are continually looking for ways to improve features on www.tugweb.com. After careful review,

we have decided to move the User-to-User Helpline into the TUG Talk Bulletin Boards. This move allows users to reach a broader range of expert users and provide responses to the entire membership.

You will still have the ability to connect with other TUG users who are willing to provide expert advice to help guide you to resolve issues. As always, when a matter requires formal support or training, you will be referred to Sage Customer Support or your Business Partner. Please use the TUG Talk Bulletin Boards for all future questions and postings. The TUG Talk Bulletin Board can

be found under the Member-to-Member Benefits section of the TUG Web site. You will need your login credentials to access the bulletin boards.

The TUG Talk Bulletin Boards are organized into topics ranging from Accounts Payable to Third-Party Solutions. There are currently 25 topics with over 3,300 messages! We are excited to announce that we have added two new topics, MyAssistant and Office Connector. Both products extend the functionality of Sage Timberline Office and are fully integrated into Sage Timberline Office software. MyAssistant provides automated alerts and streamlines task functionality. Office Connector provides Excel-based reporting capabilities.

For more information about MyAssistant or Office Connector, check out the article in this month’s issue of TUG Pulse on page 8. You can also contact your Sage Business Partner or Sage Customer Account Manager at (800) 858-7095 to learn more.

User-to-User Helpline and TUG Talk Bulletin Boardsby: Matt Weaver, MCP

Meyer Najem Construction, LLC

REPORT DESIGNERCynthia Brew writes:We would like to change “the range” data on an existing report that we use (Billing WIP). We would like the range data to be the contract job numbers. Is there an easy way to change this so that we don’t have to condition the report for each specific job number that we want information on?

Doug Lewanda provided this solution:Most of the time, you can enhance your report design by “moving” the condition button to the reports Print Selection window by:

1. Introducing a prompt window2. Creating a formula that filters (“conditions”) off of the data entered into the prompt window

In other words, if you are currently drilling down on the Conditions button to select the contract job number, create a prompt window and then a design formula something like: <contract job number> record = prompt window field. Now you are controlling the conditioning on the same screen that you print the report because Timberline now looks to match the data you entered in the prompt window against the field that you normally

selected when you conditioned the report in the first place. Good luck!

From the TUG Talk Bulletin Board: Users to Users


u 8 u

February 2012

Sage recently released two new products, Sage Timberline Office MyAssistant and Sage Timberline Office Connector, based on cus-tomer requests for automated alerts and Excel integration.

Sage Timberline Office MyAssistant monitors and delivers approxi-mately 350 standard alerts and automated tasks, and can be tailored with custom rules for individual business needs. For example, the software can be configured to:

• Identifyandsendalettertovendorswithinsuranceexpiringin 30 days. • Sendpastduecustomersalistoftheirdelinquentinvoices.• Generateanddistributepersonalizedreportsona regular schedule. • Notifyexecutiveswhenjobsdropbelowaprofitthreshold.• Sendeachprojectmanageralistofcostscodesthatareover budget for their jobs.• Auditprocessessuchasjob,contractoremployeesetupto ensure they are completed correctly.

Sage Timberline Office Connector automatically connects Sage Tim-berline Office data to Excel, with the ability to refresh data at any time. The software consists of three separate products:

• Sage Timberline Office Connector Query – to retrieve data from Sage Timberline Office for analysis and data manipulation using Excel reports, work sheets and graphs.• Sage Timberline Office Connector Write – to map data from Excel worksheets and forms to corresponding writable fields within Sage Timberline Office.• Sage Timberline Office Import – to save Excel worksheets in formats that can be imported into Sage Timberline Office.

For more information about either of these new products, Sage is offering two free weekly live webcast presentations: • Sage Timberline Office MyAssistant Webcast – monitor project/company information and deliver auto alerts. Register at http://sage.adobeconnect.com/f8bxcafidt9.

• Sage Timberline Office Connector Webcast – query, report and move data back and forth between Microsoft Excel and Sage Timberline Office. Register at http://sage.adobeconnect.com/f378vldxrfa.

Learn More About Sage’s New Products –MyAssistant and Office Connector

TO: THE GuruYou told us about Scan Mode a few months ago. Cool feature, as it’s kept us from leaving holes in our estimates, but it does have one very irritating issue. We use a lot of plug numbers in the sub column, but we don’t assign a sub name. Scan stops on the sub name for every one of them. Is there any way to have it skip the sub name?

– Tired of Being Stopped

TO: StoppedOf course there is…and you’ve come to the right place to find it. You can make Scan Mode skip the sub name field by unchecking a box in the Estimating Options. To set that option, go to Edit>Options and uncheck the “Include Subcontractor Name during scan” check box. Once you have unchecked this box you’ll never have to worry about being stopped again.

– THE Guru

ESTIMATING TIPS & TRICKS


u 9 u

February 2012

What Can the Option Tool Do for Me?by: Susan Gladd

Stenco Construction

The [Options] button is down on the bottom of the Tools tab, but have

you ever considered what wonders might lay within? [Options] contains a plethora of settings, many of the effecting Reports, that can be detailed for a single directory or for Sage Timberline Office (STO) overall. Following is a brief descriptions of what each item in the Options tool does.

Date FormatSelect a date format to use when entering dates and when generating reports and files. For example, select month-day-year (which is the

default) and the report date displays 10-16-2012. You can enter dates without punctuation and without the first two digits of the year.

All current and future printouts will reflect changes to this item. You can change this default for report designs in

Report Designer using Page Setup > Page Headings on the File menu.

Audit setup activity NOTE: This option is only available if your application administrator has given you permission to access this task.

To log changes, additions and deletions made when using certain commands, select this box. This also allows you to access privileged items that are otherwise displayed but not available. The activity is logged to Tools > Log viewer under the Auditsetup log type.

Do not use this auditing feature to correct errors. Error correction should be done through normal processing.

Product EvaluationIf you want to opt out of the Sage Timberline Office Product Enhancement Program, select the Decline box. If Decline is selected, then anonymous product information is not sent to Sage for the purposes of product analysis and improvement. To rejoin the Product Enhancement Program, clear this box.

MarginsEnter the amount of blank space, in inches,

you want at the top, left, right and bottom of each page.

Attach to report To print a separate cover page before the body of a report, mark this box. A cover page includes the report title, the date and time the report is printed, the names of the files used to create the report, ranges (if used), and conditions (if used).

Include system date To include in report headings the date that a report is printed, mark this box.

Include system timeTo include in report headings the time that a report is printed, mark this box.

Include file namesTo include in report headings the names of the files that are used to create a report, mark this option. This can be especially useful if you are using the “Named Files” feature in STO and are printing from multiple files. Note:

• ThesettingsonthistabdonotapplytoCrystalreports.These reports have a “(CR)” at the end of the report name.

o Continues


u 10 u

• Thesettingsonthistabtakeaffectthenexttimeyougenerate a report.• YoucanchangethedefaultforthissettinginReportDesigner (File > Page Setup > Margins).• Youcanmodifythissettingatprinttime.Inaprintselection window, click [Page Setup]. Your modification applies to only the current print session.

Affected UsersSelect who should be affected by the General and Reports tab selections:

• Allusersofthissoftware–Optionsaffectallusers, including all workstations if using a network, regardless of the data folder they use.• Onlyusersofthecurrentdatafolder–Optionsaffectonly those users who are working with the current data folder. Select this if you have multiple data folders and you want options to vary by data folder.

Letterhead optionsSpecify a letterhead option for Crystal letter and form reports. A crystal report has “(CR)” at the end of the report name.

• Printformswithoutaletterheadorlogoprintsthecompany name, address, and phone number at the left margin of the page heading. This is the default.• Printformstopre-printedletterheadstationeryleavesthe top 1.5 inches of a report blank to accommodate letterhead stationery.• Usetheletterheadimagebelowformyformsinsertstheimage at the left margin of the page heading.

BrowseOpens the Select Letterhead Image window.

ImageDisplays the selected image file name.

It’s always great to know that you have Options. Now you have the information you need to take advantage of them!

Be sure to stay abreast of the latest news relating to STO:

• E-mail exclusive for TUG members: [email protected]

• Follow Sage on Twitter: @SageConstruct

• Join the Sage Construction and Real Estate

LinkedIn group

• Subscribe to the SageCRE1 YouTube channel

STAYCONNECTED WITH SAGE


u 11 u

Punctuation – Those Pesky Little Hyphensby: Matt Weaver, MCP

Meyer Najem Construction, LLC

While most users of Sage Timberline Office (STO) use hyphens as separators in formatted IDs (JC Job, CN Contract, AR Customer, etc.), STO does allow users to select different

separators. Typically, the process of determining the formatted IDs is performed during the initial setup of the software. It is possible to make modifications to formatted IDs, but the procedure usually requires a key change. You must contact Sage to perform a key change and there may be additional fees to make key changes. Per Sage KB 199172, you can change the length of the first section of any formatted ID in any module but General Ledger. I strongly encourage you to contact Sage support or your Business Partner before you make any changes to formatted IDs.

To keep things simple, let’s assume you are using hyphens as separators in your formatted IDs. We’ll use the formatted ID, JC Job, in the following example. The JC Job formatted ID has three sections (you don’t have to use all three), each separated by a hyphen. In the initial setup it was determined that the first two sections would be used; section one is titled ‘Year,’ section two is titled ‘Job.’

The picture above is from File > Company Settings > Custom Descriptions > JC Job > Set Up Sections. You can see each section’s description and its size. You can also see the separators – those pesky little hyphens! These settings tell Timberline how to format job numbers throughout the software. In this example, Timberline will automatically format job numbers according to the JC Job sections settings. When you go to enter a job number in Timberline you can choose to enter the

hyphen. If you don’t, the system will automatically enter it for you. If you enter a job number that doesn’t conform to the JC Job custom description setting you’ll get an error. Crystal Reports: When you are running Crystal Reports that have formatted IDs as parameters you typically enter the hyphens (or whatever separators you have setup). Crystal Reports parameters are looking for specific information and do not look at the Timberline settings for formatted IDs. To help users remember they have to include the hyphens, I include the format of the ID in the report print selection screen.

You will notice in the example that my JC Job formatted ID is xx-xx-xxx. This follows the settings in my company’s production data folder. Timberline sample data uses xx-xxx.

Report Designer: Depending on the report design, you may or may not enter the hyphens. Usually you select job IDs using the Ranges button on RD reports. It is possible to have report designs that prompt you to enter job numbers, such as the Committed Cost Status report. The design includes instructions to enter jobs without using punctuation. Just remember to follow the instruction on the print selection windows for your reports. You will get used to using the hyphens.


u 12 u

February 2012

You hear the term “ODBC” thrown around all the time, but what is ODBC? And what can it do for you? Simply put, ODBC is a tool that can allow data from one software application to be imported

or exported to another.

What is ODBC?• ODBCstandsforOpenDataBaseConnectivity.• ODBCwasdevelopedbyANSI(AmericanNational Standards Institute).• ODBChassetindustryperimetersthatmakedata“readable” and “transferrable.”• ODBCcompliantapplications(tonamejustafew): • MicrosoftOfficeapplications:Excel,Word,Access, PowerPoint, Query • MicrosoftVisualBasic • LotusSmartSuiteapplications:Lotus1-2-3,Approach,Ami-Pro • LotusNotes

Why Use ODBC?Duplication of entry is both time consuming and poses a risk for errors. ODBC can both save time and eliminate data entry errors. In addition, it can allow you to combine data from different applications in a single platform. Some examples of the benefits of ODBC are:

• Reduceddataentrybetweendatabases,spreadsheets, letters/labels.• Improvedreport/dataaccuracywithsingleentrypoint.• Morespreadsheet/letter/labelformatcapabilities.• Moredatamanipulationwithmultipledatabases,queries, formulas.

ConceptsODBC has a back end and a front end. Think of the back end as the source or the donor. The front end is the recipient or the beneficiary. The relationship between the two is a simple one of giver and taker.How does this work with Sage Timberline Office (STO)? Although

there are a number of opportunities to import information into STO using ODBC, most using Access, the more common relationship uses STO as the back end or source with an external application, such as Excel, as the recipient.

How to Use ODBC?The first step in using ODBC is to create a Data Source Network (DSN) to pull the data. The various types include:

• UserDSN–datasourcelimitedtocurrentWindowsuser• SystemDSN–datasourcelimitedtocurrentcomputer• FileDSN(MicrosoftExcel): • Linkedto‘ts.ctl’file • CreatedinTimberlineDataFolder • Availabletoalluserswithnetworkrightstoserver

To create a STO Driver:1. Click on [Start], [Control Panel], [Administrative Tools],[ODBC data sources], [Add] and a list of ODBC drivers will open. 2. Scroll down to Timberline Data. Click on [Finish].3. Name your Data Source and click [Select Folder] to browse to the Timberline Data folder you want to use.

by: Jenny Evans, Project Resources LLC,and Eire Stewart, JP DiNapoli Companies

ODBC Part One – What, Why and How!

o Continues


u 13 u

February 2012

Special Considerations for Estimating UsersThe following is a brief sample of fields and record types with which Estimating users should be thoroughly familiar before they use ODBC. This list is not complete and is no substitute for an in-depth understanding of the application’s records and fields. Estimating software is continually enhanced to keep up with customer requests and industry trends. As a result of these enhancements, fields and their attributes change. Refer to ODBC Help for lists of Estimating records and fields.

• Ifyoucreateoraddtoanexistingpricelink,youmustalsomake applicable changes to the item prices.• Eachrecordhasoneormorekeyfields,andsomerecordshave alternate keys. These fields distinguish one record from another and must be unique. For instance, on the subcontractor record, the key field is the sub number. While two or more subcontractors may have the same address or sub type, each must possess a unique sub number and spreadsheet name (alternate key). You should be familiar with the key fields for any records you intend to modify through ODBC. In ODBC Help, key fields are marked with (k).• Avoidchanginghierarchicalflagsonexistingrecords.For example, the Group phase field on the phase record and the Group workpackage field on the workpackage record.• Donotchangevaluesthatresultfromacalculation.Forinstance, do not change the estimate total amount or sequence numbers in an estimate.• DelphiusersshouldbeawarethattheDelphiDatabaseEngine supports the read capabilities of Timberline ODBC, but does not fully support the write capabilities.• RefertotheODBCHelptopic,“Aboutthepossiblecharactersin Estimating database records,” for detailed information on allowable entries to specific fields.• ODBCprovidestheabilitytousenon-Estimatingtoolsfor data manipulation and reporting. When you use ODBC to write to Estimating files, you become responsible for many tasks, which Estimating handles automatically.

Once the DSN set-up is complete, this powerful tool can be used with a variety of applications. Part two will explore some common uses for ODBC using Office Connector!

Data Source Options• TableandField: • Customdescriptions(default)–usesCustomizedand Timberline Field Names • Standarddescriptions–usesTimberlineStandard Descriptions from Timberline Standard Edition • Dictionarynames–usesInternalFieldNames• Usemaximumtablesegmentsize• Unchecked(default)

NOTE: Purchasing, Inventory and Service Management applications require a System or File DSN like the one that is created when the application is opened for the first time like the one below.