Contractor Web Site Revamped

The Contractor Inspection Request web site has been rewritten to match the style of the Staff site. If you receive any feedback of problems using the new site please let me know. For those customers that are unfamiliar: the Contractor Inspection Request site allows contractors to request inspections and check the status of inspections from their own web site.It is an add-on option for all existing ZP SQL customers who have the Contractor Module installed.

New Public Web Site

Every ZP SQL customer now has a new Public web site. The idea is the same as the previous Public web site but this one was rewritten to match the style used by the Staff web site. The purpose of the Public web site is to provide a convenient way for non-employees to see information housed in ZonePro. The new Public site is still limited in the information it shows (no fees, phone numbers, or notes, etc.) and still does not provide any editing. One major new feature from the previous version is that Public site now supports mapping. It also supports limiting reporting options. The idea of a Public web site always seems to spark some controversy as to what information should or should not be included. If you want changes made to your community's Public web site please let know. You can opt out altogether as well.

Jump Reports for Staff Site

One of the great unsung features of the Windows interface for ZonePro is the ability to use the report screens as search tools and then "jump" to the application record you were seeking. Now you can do that on the Staff web site too. It works a little different though. I've actually created several "Jump" reports which show up in the Report Choice drop-down box of various report screens. Rather than producing a report you can print however, these reports show the results in a grid that lets you "jump" to any of the included records. It's a great way to search for permits and the like when you don't know the permit number.

Alert Messages for Staff Web Site

The Alert Message feature of ZonePro has been added to the Staff web site. If you have the value "ALERT" typed into either the Status field or the User4 field of any of the major databases, an Alert message box will pop up to tell the viewer to look at the Notes field before proceeding. This function should work the same in the Staff web site as it does in the Windows interface. This is a great way to flag property records or permit records that need special attention before any other action is allowed.

Notekeeper for Staff Web Site

The Notekeeper feature of ZonePro has been added to the Staff web site. For those who need a refresher: the Notekeeper feature allows you to store pre-defined bits of text for any of the various application screens that can later be easily added to the Notes field of a given record. This features saves you having to retype commonly used phrases, etc. The text segments are defined in Maintenance Options and organized by topic. Special buttons near the Notes fields allow you to paste in these text segments when editing application records. This feature is great for inspections, for example, to pre-define the text that you like to use for common problems. Then instead of having to retype the text each time you come across one of these common infractions, you can simply select the text you want by topic name and have it automatically copied into the inspection Notes field. Give it a try on the web site and let me know what you think.

Planning and Miscellaneous Modules Combined

The Planning Module has been absorbed into the Miscellaneous Module in the latest update. You may have noticed that this change happened a while ago in the Staff web site. Now it has happened in the Windows program too. This means that every customer who owns the Miscellaneous Module will now have the Planning database and screens added to their system. There are a handful of cases of customers who only own the Planning Module and they will now have access to the Miscellaneous screens (Misc Fee, Other Permits, and Extra Permits). The annual fee for the two modules will simply be combined starting in 2015. Most customers will not have to do anything other than download the latest updates to get access to the new screens. Those few with just the Planning Module will receive an e-mail with an extra step required to transition smoothly to the new format.

No Time for Last Update

In the newest updates to the Windows modules and the web pages the Last Update field has been modified to remove the time portion of the value. The Last Update field appears on every database screen and is one of the few that cannot be edited manually because it is filled in by the host server. It tells the viewer when that particular record was last edited. Unfortunately, because it is filled in by the host server, it is subject to the time zone of that server and this caused undo confusion and consternation to several customers. Since the most important information was the date portion of that value, I decided to save everyone grief by only showing the date portion in all screens. This update does affect just about every module in ZP SQL. You can download the updates by using the Installed Modules screen in Maintenance. Your web site already has the changes.

PDF Generation from Staff Web Site

I am experimenting with a method for generating PDF versions of reports and documents from the Staff web site. Right now customers can try this out from the document and report pages associated with the Building, Zoning, and Violations databases. In each of these pages you'll find variants of the standard documents or reports that have a "pdf" tag. Viewing these documents you'll see the option to create either a "Saved" or "Temporary" PDF version of the document. The temporary version can be downloaded or printed. The saved version creates a PDF file that is stored in a special folder in your ZP SQL internet account. This file can be viewed from the Document or Report main page from that point on. One obvious next step is to make it easy to email these PDFs as links or attachments. I've also thought about making it possible to upload files directly to the special PDF folder. If you have any ideas about making this feature more useful please share them with me.

Document Editor for Staff Site

The Staff web site has a new Document Editor option. This option allows you to edit existing documents and create new ones by using a "Save As" option. Just like in the Windows interface the editor is a clunky tool that is difficult to use but offers great benefits. Unfortunately the skills required bear little resemblance to those needed in the Document Editor of the Windows program so there will be a new learning curve no matter what. I have disabled the save options in the Document Editor to start with until I have a better idea how this tool will be used. I'm happy to work with individual customers on using this option though if they wish to contact me.