NPD Update 3.49 (02/15/01)

The NPD 3.49 CD contains four programs you may install:

1.     

The New NPD Installation and the AcornFTP Installation may restart your computer.

It is redundant to run both the NPD Update and the NPD New Installation.

 
New NPD Installation

2.      NPD Update 3.49

3.      AcornFTP

4.      Adobe© Acrobat Reader 4.0

Save this CD so you will have a recent NPD Installation should you buy a new computer.  If you have an internet connection, you are encouraged to install AcornFTP if you have not already done so.  The best way to download a new version of NPD is to use the Download NPD Update button in NPD Tools.  (The password is update, all in lower case.)

The following modifications have been added since the last update of 3.48 (11/24/00):

  1. The three links to the Washington Post have been moved from Special Functions to a Washington Post Online switchboard.  The Washington Post Online button on the Main switchboard is visible only if the paper name contains the words “Washington Post”.  The latest feature added to this area is the ability to download and print your daily service transactions (“mail”). Currently three NPD distributors are using this feature.  The Washington Post will be adding others one at a time.  I am in the process of adding the capability to NPD to automate much of the data entry. This should save you time and keystrokes.
  2. The Carrier Tip reports no longer print tips if the amount is zero.
  3. A flaw in the Bill Now Bill Thru Date has been corrected.
  4. The Presort Summary now has the new postal rates.
  5. The glitch that prevented changing a Cash Receipts entry has been fixed.
  6. The Bare Bones Drop Report now supports multiple Truck/Drivers.
  7. The Mailing Label feature now supports PANs of up to 13 digits.
  8. In Daily Mail, some of you were experiencing a problem of not being able to pull up a new subscriber until leaving Daily Mail and coming back in. I think that has been fixed.
  9. You now can change the date of a Carrier Note.
  10. The Vacation Report on the Subscriber Switchboard now has an option to list only NIE Donation vacations.
  11. Subscriber List now has more room for the Account Numbers.  Some printers needed a bit more space.
  12. In System Maintenance, the Clear Carrier YTD Pay has been replaced with Reset Carrier YTD Pay.  The new button recalculates each carrier’s pay for the current year.  You are reminded that this number should not be used as the basis for 1099 reporting. You should use information from the actual checks used to pay the carriers.
  13. The Rates button under System maintenance now displays only one rate date at a time.  You are advised to not purge the 2/3/97 rates for a few months.  It’s a good idea to keep at least 12 months of rates around.  You should purge rates prior to 2/3/97.
  14. In Daily Mail, you may enter the letter A followed by an account number in the House Number box. This will quickly look up by account, saving the click to position to the Account Number box.  Likewise, entering the letter P followed by a PAN will lookup by PAN.

FYI

a.      The password to download a NPD update from NPD Tools is update.

b.      The password to FTP an Export For Address Check is earl.

c.      The best times to call with questions or problems is from 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.  Please limit calls at other times to emergencies.

d.      If you surf the net or use email, you are encouraged to use anti-virus software, and to keep its virus file current.  I like both McAfee and Norton, but I’m sure there are others that are just as good.

e.      If you are backing up to floppies and it’s taking more than 3 floppies, you are encouraged to purchase a ZIP drive or a CD-RW drive.  They take the pain out of backing up and are much more reliable than floppies.

f.        Also, use the Backup on Normal Exit option on the Main switchboard.  While not a replacement for external backups, they are more convenient when you need to restore.

 

Call or email if there are any questions or problems.

 Earl O. Merrill

Acorn Data Systems, Inc.

emerrill@acorndata.com

410-997-0187