Chapter 19

Ten More Frequently Asked Questions

In This Chapter

How do I respond to an error message?

What's eCenter?

What are the benefits of linking Timeslips and Outlook?

Can I copy name and address information from one client to another?

Can I save printer settings for bills?

Chapter 18 lists ten commonly asked questions and their answers. This chapter lists ten more.

How Do I Respond to an Error Message?

When responding to an error message, try each of the following steps in turn. After each step, repeat the action that caused the error in the first place to see whether the error has been resolved:

1. Exit and restart the program.

   If the problem isn't fixed, continue with Step 2.

2. Empty your Temp folder:
   1. With no programs running other than Windows. Choose Start⇒Run.
   2. Type %temp% to open a Windows Explorer window showing the contents of your Temp folder.
   3. Delete all the files in the folder.

      Windows might not want to delete some files because Windows is using them. That’s OK; just skip those files.

   If the problem is corrected, great! If not, continue with Step 3.

3. Reboot your computer.

   Still having problems? Continue with Step 4.

4. Run Data Verification with Look for Errors selected — and nothing else. See Chapter15 for more information.

   If you are still experiencing problems, you have one more step to try.

5. Run Station Administrator and choose Options⇒Diagnose This Computer.

If none of these troubleshooting techniques solve your problem, call Timeslips Technical Support or a Certified Consultant for help. Note that either option might cost you money.

Can I Change the Nickname Length?

You set the length for each type of nickname from the General Settings dialog box. Choose Setup⇒General. Then display the Nicknames tab (see Figure 19-1).

Click the drop-down list beside each nickname to see the maximum length that you can set for each nickname. All nicknames can be a maximum of 30 characters. Timeslips sets all Nickname 1 fields to the maximum but sets Nickname 2 fields to 15 characters.

Can I Import Copying and Long-Distance Costs?

You can use the TSImport program, which comes with Timeslips, to import any copying and long-distances costs. You can run the program directly from the Timeslips folder on your All Programs menu. Or while working in Timeslips, you can choose File⇒Import.

Because each phone system and copy machine is different, setting up an import template will be specific to your needs. In some cases, the systems already have built-in connections to Timeslips. For those that don’t, you’ll probably need the help of your machine service representative and a Timeslips Certified Consultant. As an overview, the process involves your machine generating a comma-separated or tab-separated text file and then setting up a TSImport template to match the fields in the machine-generated file to the fields on an expense slip.

What’s eCenter?

The Timeslips eCenter is an add-on product that gives in-house and remote computer and mobile device users the capability to track time and expenses, set up new clients, and print reports using a browser interface and an Internet connection. Remote users can enter information concerning tasks and costs as they happen, optionally using slip timers. (Preloaded dictionaries check the spelling of words in description areas.) The Sage Timeslips eCenter transfers data to the current version of the Sage Timeslips Desktop database using the Data Transfer Utility, keeping the Timeslips database up to date.

Sage Timeslips eCenter users don't have to install additional software. They can use multiple devices, including Android, Apple, and Windows desktop, laptop, or tablet computers. The Sage Timeslips eCenter works with all major browsers including Internet Explorer 7.x or higher, Mozilla Firefox 3.x or higher, Google Chrome 4.x or higher, and Apple Safari 4.x or higher and can be optimized for mobile devices.

Can Timeslips Notify Me When a Client Exceeds an A/R Balance?

You can use the Alerts feature to signal data-related events such as a client exceeding an accounts receivable balance or a timekeeper’s hours exceeding 40 during a work week.

To use the Alerts feature, you set up alert rules by using the Alert Rule Wizard (choose Special⇒Alerts⇒Manager). Alert rules determine the conditions to meet, the timekeeper to notify when the conditions are met, and the type of data — firm, timekeeper, client, task, expense, or reference — Timeslips reviews to determine if the conditions are met.

As timekeepers approve bills or enter and save data such as slips or transactions, Timeslips reviews that data to determine whether it satisfies any alert rules. If so, Timeslips triggers the alert and displays it to the timekeepers associated with the alert rule.

If an alert condition is met while a timekeeper who needs to be alerted is not logged into Timeslips, the alert appears when that timekeeper opens the program. Timekeepers can dismiss alerts, have Timeslips redisplay the alert after a specified time passes, or open the transaction that triggered the alert.

For additional details on setting up and using alerts, search the index of the Online User’s Guide (choose Help⇒Online User’s Guide) for alerts.

What Are TAL and TAL Pro?

TAL and TAL Pro are features you can use to connect Timeslips data to a general ledger. Timeslips data is the equivalent of accounts receivable data. To get a complete picture of your company’s business health, you can integrate the data Timeslips generates with your accounting package.

TAL establishes a one-way link to your accounting package’s general ledger. You use Timeslips financial information to update your general ledger using journal entries.

If you use Sage 50 or QuickBooks, Timeslips can send electronic journal entries that update the general ledger. If you use any other accounting package, Timeslips can produce a report of the journal entries you need to update your general ledger. You can then enter those journal entries manually.

TAL Pro offers Sage 50 and QuickBooks users the opportunity to establish a two-way link between Timeslips and the accounting package. Using a two-way link, checks you write in your accounting package can update related client information in Timeslips. For example, if you write a check to cover a cost you need to charge to a client, TAL Pro can generate an expense slip for the check.

For details on using both TAL and TAL Pro, visit the web at www.dummies.com/extras/sagetimeslips and read “Linking to a General Ledger.”

What Are the Benefits of Linking Timeslips and Outlook?

If you link Timeslips with Outlook, you can

• Create slips using Outlook information while working in Outlook. For example, Outlook Link can automatically prompt you to create a new slip for a completed meeting or appointment. Or you can trigger slip creation on your own, for example, by selecting an Outlook task or sending an e-mail message and choosing Timeslips⇒Create Slip.
• Create Outlook records while working in Timeslips. That is, while viewing a slip in Sage Timeslips, you create an Outlook e-mail message, task, meeting, or appointment. Outlook Link can automatically fill in some fields in the Outlook entry.
• Synchronize Timeslips clients with Outlook contacts. Outlook Link can automatically update client/contact information with changes you make in either Timeslips or Outlook, saving you the effort of making the change in each program.

To perform any of the tasks in the preceding list, Outlook and Sage Timeslips must be on the same computer.

For details on linking Timeslips and Outlook, read Appendix B.

Can I Copy Name and Address Information from One Client to Another?

Yes, you can import or export the information. The process is the same, other than the three differences described in Table 19-1.

Table 19-1 Differences between Importing and Exporting

In Figure 19-2, I opened a client who contains the information, and I am exporting that information.

After you click the Export button on the vertical toolbar, Timeslips displays the Export Client Information dialog box shown in Figure 19-2. You can deselect any fields you don’t want to send to the other client. In addition, if you scroll down the left side of the window, you can add fields to export. On the right side of the window, simply select the client (or clients) to whom you want to send the information. Then click the button labeled Export, at the bottom of the dialog box.

If you were importing, you’d see the fields to import on the right side of the Import Client Information window; you can still deselect fields and select additional fields. You’d choose one client from the left side of the box to use as the client containing the information.

How Do I Prepare One Bill for the Court?

The court often requires attorneys to prepare a single bill that contains all the charges that were billed to date on separate bills. The solution? Print the History bill report. This report is on the Billing tab of the Report List window; choose Reports⇒Billing.

Can I Save Printer Settings for Bills?

Yes, you can save all your settings, but you might not want to save the selection of clients if you don’t bill all clients every time you bill.

To save your settings, choose Bills⇒Generate Bills. In the Report Entry: Generate Bills window, click the Options button and make any selections you want. For example, if you don’t want Timeslips to prompt you to print envelopes or labels each time you bill, deselect the Matching Envelopes or Labels check box in the Also Print section.

After you’ve set up the settings the way you want them each time you bill, click OK. Then, in the Report Entry: Generate Bills window, click the Save (disc) button on the vertical toolbar. Timeslips displays the dialog box shown in Figure 19-3.

I suggest that you not select the Report Filters check box. You can safely select all the other check boxes.