Annotation Training Video

I just published a Training Video for the new Photo Annotation feature I wrote about earlier this week. This is the first time I have tried making a video for web features and the video format is much larger than those I have used in the past. This will only be a problem if you have a particularly small monitor. The new Photo Annotation feature is fun to try and easy to figure out after watching the video: http://zoneprosoftware.com/support/videos/annotate.html

Security Training Video

I was reviewing the list of Training Videos on our web site and realized that some basic feature were not covered...such as the Security Module. So I have remedied at least that one. It is now posted for viewing. I also did some rearranging of that web page to hopefully make it easier to find videos of interest.

Contact Merging Training Videos

I have recently posted new Training Videos that cover the Contact File merging options discussed in the previous two posts. Check them out.

Formula Messagebox Function Training Video

I had written about this function before in the Tutorials section but since I did the Inputbox() video it only seemed fair to do one for the Messagebox() function. The Messagebox() function is another way to prompt a user for input in the midst of calculating a permit formula. It is best used for Yes or No prompts. The training video shows how that works.

Formula Training Video on INPUTBOX() Function

I added a new training video to the web site this morning that shows how to use the INPUTBOX() function in a formula if you have a calculation that requires additional input from the user. I was helping a customer set up some fees and they had an oddball permit that required information they don't normally store in the database so I showed them how you could use a special function to prompt for that information inside the formula itself.

Change Owners and Occupants Faster

I have reworked the View Owner and View Occupant buttons on the Property Screen to provide a new option. The buttons now perform three functions: 1) If the Owner (or Occupant) field is filled, left-clicking on the View button brings up the Contact File Screen for that person. 2) If the field is blank, left-clicking of the View button brings up the Quick Add Screen that lets you add a new name to the Contact File database. 3) Right-clicking on the View buttons brings up the new Contact File Change Options Screen. This screen lets you quickly add a new Contact record or link an existing one to current property. It is the fastest way to change the owner or occupant assigned to a property. I have just posted a new Training Video that demonstrates these options.

Webinar: Contact File Maintenance

This morning I conducted a free webinar training session covering various topics to do with the Contact File database. I had a couple of request to record the meeting so I did. Here is a link to that recording: www.zoneprosoftware.com/webinar/2011-05-12-Contact File Maintenance.wmv. This is a large file at 79MB. You can download and play it using Windows Media Player. The video lasts over an hour. You have been warned!

Forcing Pick Boxes to Display

You can now force a Pick Box list to display whenever a user edits a field that has the Pick Box option. Before you had to take an action such as clicking on the Pick Box button to view the list of Pick Box choices. In order to use this new feature you have to turn it on in the Global Options Screen in Maintenance. Once the feature is activated it will only work for those fields where you have saved a local list of the Pick Box choices. In other words, this feature is an extension of the Pick Box List Manager. This means you don't have worry about Pick Box screens popping up all over the place when you're editing. You control which fields it works for by saving your list of Pick Box choices for the desired field. This new option should make it even easier to encourage users to enter data consistently in the fields where that is important. You can view a new Training Video on this feature at our web site.

On-Line Educational Meeting 8/19

I've been threatening to do this for a while but tomorrow I will host the first on-line educational meeting for ZP SQL customers via GoToMeeting.com. This meeting will demonstrate the recent changes to the Photo Module and show how it now supports the on-line storage of photos and PDF files. Space is limited for these on-line meetings but I expect there will be enough room for those who have the time and the interest. I hope to have many more such meeting if this one is a success. Details for the meeting are:

Thursday, August 19 at 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time.https://www1.gotomeeting.com/join/831437328

Changing Owner Names Video

As I expected, some former ZP 32 users are having trouble adjusting to the Contact File database in ZP SQL. In ZP SQL names are no longer stored in the property database. Rather, all names are stored in the Contact File database. This means the process of changing the owner name for an existing property is different in ZP SQL. I just posted a new Training Video on our web site to walk through how it is done. We've had a couple of cases where customer errantly tried to edit the existing Contact File name rather than add a new one. To help curb this  I also added an alert message to the Contact File screen if you attempt to edit the Last Name of a contact record there. In general you would never change that field unless the person (or company) legally changes their name. That doesn't happen too often.

Update to Tutorial on Special Pick Box Option

I added a section to the Special Pick Box tutorial on our web site to discuss how this option would work for the Building databases. The original tutorial covers a Zoning database example but with a few minor changes you can use the same Pick Box tool in the Building Fee Detail screen too.

Guided On-line Tours of ZP SQL

If any existing ZP 32 customers are interested in learning more about ZP SQL please contact me to arrange an on-line meeting. I've got this new on-line meeting account and it should be perfect for giving tours of ZonePro SQL. All you need is a good internet connection and a PC with speakers. You'll want a microphone too if you want to talk back ...and who doesn't. Actually, you can dial into a phone number too but that option costs you long distance charges whereas the microphone option is free. I expect a typical tour would take 30 to 60 minutes depending on your questions. I'm anxious to try out this Go-To-Meeting software so let's do it!

Special Pick Box Feature Aids in Variable Fees

This past week I converted the City of Fostoria from ZP 32 to ZP SQL. As it turns out they are the first case I have converted that had used the variable fees option for Zoning permits in ZP 32. That feature was dropped in ZP SQL because I reasoned that formula scripts could handle those fees just as well, and as far as the fee calculation that is true. What I didn't account for, however, was the way the old variable fee feature let you pick fee choices from a list of options. I wanted that same ease of use in ZP SQL. The solution I came up with is to add a Special Pick Box feature to ZP SQL. This is a Pick Box screen that can be called from any script. You simply add a line of code to the script that calls the Pick Box and passed it the list to use as choices. It returns the selected item which you can then copy to any available field. I have added a new tutorial to the ZP SQL Documents section of the Tutorial page in our web site that shows how I used this feature in Fostoria's case. The newest version of the ZP SQL demo also uses this option for the "Sewer" Zoning permit type.

Web Based Help

This really is a no-brainer and yet it took me a while to think of it. ZonePro SQL has moved all of its help files to the internet. When you click on the little yellow ? button in any ZP SQL screen, your default web browser is launched to display the relevant Help topic. This is an obvious way to go since you need internet access to use ZP SQL anyway. Have a central repository for the Help files means fewer files that customers need to manage. It also makes it easier to update the Help files incrementally rather than waiting for a new release.