Software of the Month Club 1996 October/Software of the Month Club 1996 October.iso/pc/dos/biz/service/tutorial.doc

Text File | 1996-07-02 | 19.9 KB | 442 lines

                 SERVICE ASSISTANT
                    1.1
                USER GUIDE
             COPYRIGHT 1994-1996 KDK SOFTWARE


                 Table of Contents

Thank You .................................................... 1

Minimum Requirements ......................................... 1

License Agreement ............................................ 1

Warranty ..................................................... 2

Installation ................................................. 2

Configure Service Assistant .................................. 2

Tutorial ..................................................... 3

Customer History ............................................. 3

Estimates .................................................... 6

Tool Inventory ............................................... 8

System Administration ........................................ 8

Technician Data .............................................. 9

Technician's performance Report .............................. 9

Backup ....................................................... 9

Restore ...................................................... 9

Reduce Customer History ...................................... 9

Hot Keys .................................................... 10

Technical Support ........................................... 11



Thank You

 Thank you for choosing The Service Assistant. We think You will be delighted
with our product.  Service Assistant is primarily a database program. It
was developed by a service manager for use in shops that don't have or want
full blown electronic repair order system. Service Assistant has many
different modules that will help you organize yourself and your shop. It
will keep track of your Service customers and all of their repairs. It will
keep an inventory of your special tools. It tracks the performance of your
technicians. You will never again forget an appointment with SA's reminder.
You will have all of your important phone numbers and address at your
finger tips. It has a built in calculator and calendar. And can generate
professional looking estimates just by filling in the blanks. Help is
available almost everywhere in the program by pressing one key.  After
installation you will be guided through a few examples that will bring you
up to speed in no time. A great deal of effort has gone into this product
to keep the learning curve down. We know you will find this program extremely
useful in your day to day business.
 And once again thank you for choosing the Service Assistant.



MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
286 CPU or higher

1 meg ram (4 meg for best results)

 Himem.sys should be loaded. Service Assistant will run in protected mode if
you have at least 1 meg of ram free. Otherwise it will use conventional
memory and EMS if present.(See your DOS manual if you don't know what this
means)

Hard Drive with 4 meg of space.



Shareware
 This program is shareware. Shareware is not freeware. You may use the
shareware version of Service Assistant for 30 days, after that you must
register it or remove it from your computer.
 Service Assistant may be uploaded or copied freely as long as all
files are kept together. Service Assistant is a quality program and the
only way we can continue to offer this quality software is from
registration fees.  The cost of registration is $49.00.  The registration
form may be printed by printing register.doc from the SA directory. Upon
receipt of you registration fee you will be sent the currant version of
Service Assistant.  With the nag screen removed.

WARRANTY
 There is no warranty express or implied.


INSTALLATION
 Unzip files onto a 3.5 high density disk Insert disk into drive A: or B:
depending on which drive you are installing from, type  a: or b:\install
at the DOS prompt.  From that point follow the directions on the screen the
install program will do everything else.  Accept the default settings by
pressing the Enter key.  After installation is complete, Start The Service
Assistant by typing SA at the dos prompt in the installed directory.


Configure Service Assistant
 Before you can use Service Assistant you must configure it. This is done by
selecting System Administration from the Main Menu. Move the light bar down
with the arrow keys and press Enter or press S. A window appears saying
Enter Your Password. Press the Enter key for now. Another window appears.
Select Service Assistant Set Up by pressing the Enter key. The first field
you must fill in is the password field. Type in any combination of letters
or numbers up to 8 digits in length. BE SURE THAT YOU REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT
YOU TYPED, so that you will be able to get back in to System Administration
later. Next type in your shop name and press Enter. Now continue to type in
your city, state, zip, phone numbers of your business, your labor rate per
hour, state and local taxes in percent, if you have any otherwise skip by
pressing the Enter key.  You then type in the number of years to keep the
service records of your customers. Any customer who has not had work done
in the specified number of years will be deleted from your database when
you select reduce customer history from the System Administration menu.
When you finish filling in this field you will be taken back to the System
administration menu. From here select Technicians Data. This is where you
tell the computer who your mechanics are. Now type in his number or code
followed by his name in the next field. The window will close and you will
be at the Technicians Data browse window. To enter another Technician press
the Insert key on your keyboard and repeat the above procedure or press the
ESC key to return to the Main Menu.  Now the Service Assistant is set up
and ready to use.  We recommend that you go through the short tutorial
that we have included, to give you a quick start using SA.





                                  TUTORIAL

  When SA starts it begins to make all the necessary files. The first
screen you see is the Main Menu. It is from here that you select what you
want to do. Notice the line near the bottom of the screen.
F1=Help F2=Calculator F3=Calendar F4=phone book F5=Set Alarm F6=to do ESC=Exit
These are hot keys, and will allow access to their functions at almost
anywhere in the program. Try pressing F2. A fully functional calculator pops
up. Now press F1. A help screen is displayed showing how to use the
calculator. Context sensitive Help is available at most screens, by pressing
F1. All the other hot keys work the same.


                               Customer History
 If you have a color monitor you'll notice that each selection on the Main
Menu has a highlighted letter. Pressing that letter will take you to it's
part of the program. By pressing C you will find yourself at the Customer
Service History Menu. Press C again. Being that this is the first entry in
the database, SA takes you to the add screen. The cursor is setting in the
last name field.  Type Smith then press the Enter key notice the cursor
advances to the Inl field. Type J. Now at the first name field type Tom,
for the street, type 100 Main St. and press the Enter key. You might have
noticed that SA capitalized the first letter of every word for you
automatically. Now for the City field, type Any town. For state type MT
for Zip type 99999, 1ST phone is 406-232-2001, VIN is 1G2AF54TSL6256416,
Year is 1990. AT this point the screen turns blue and The History screen
comes up. Type in the repair order date of 10/12/95. At RO Number type
E72651.  Mileage is 57600. The Mechanic's field works a little different.
Only the Mechanics that you entered in the Technician's data module will be
allowed.  If you have forgotten what you entered, press the Enter key and a
pick list will pop up. Select one of your mechanics by moving the light bar
with the up or down arrow key then press Enter. The field is filled in with
that mechanics number and advances to the labor field. Type 55.00 In the
work performed field type this Customer complained that his car would not
start after it had set for 2 days. Found glove box light on. Replace Glove
box switch.  Notice that the line your typing on scrolls as you type. It
will hold up to 244 characters. When you press the Enter key that completes
the repair entry. And you find yourself at browse window listing the entry
you just made.  Press Enter. You are now in the view/edit window for your
entry.  Use the arrow keys to move the light bar to the Labor Amount field
then press Enter. Type in 65.00 and press Enter again. You have just Edited
that field. Press the ESC key and your back to the repair history browse
window.  Lets Enter another Repair for this customer. Press the Insert key.
   The add screen comes up type the following Ro Date: 11/01/95 Mileage:
65000 Mechanic: (pick one of yours) Labor Amount: 45.15 Repair: Tune up
Back at the repair browse window again you are positioned on the repair
you just entered. But where is the other one? Its there, just press the up
arrow. The light bar is always positioned on the repair that was just
entered when returning to the browse window. Don't let this confuse you.
After you use SA for a little while it will all make sense. Now keep
pressing the ESC key until you are at the Main Menu. The ESC key will
always back you up one screen.  Now lets enter another customer and a
repair. From the main menu go to the customer browse again press the
insert key. Type
Last name : Swayne
Inl : T
First name : George
Street : 910 Pleasant
City : Miles City
State : MT
Zip : 59301
1st Phone : [phone]
2ed Phone : [phone]
VIN : 1B4GH54R9NX151685
Year : 1992
Make : Dodge
Model : Caravan
License : 14-78856
Del Date 07/08/92
Next the Repair History screen pops up. Type
RO Date : 12/13/94
RO Number E12466
Mileage : 1330
Mechanic : one of yours
Labor Amount : 31.00
Worked Performed : Repair Wiring to seat motor
At this point you will be taken back to the repair browse window.
Now continue pressing the ESC key until you are at the Customer Service
History Menu.

                             Customer Report
 Select the Customer Report menu item with the light bar and press Enter or
just press R Type 1B4GH54R9NX151685 a print device menu will pop up. Make
sure that your printer is on and loaded with paper. Select LPT 1 (which is
your printer port) and press Enter. The customer info and all of his repair
history is printed. You don't always have to select LPT1. You can also
direct the report to the screen or a computer file, its your choice.

 Ok, now You have entered a customer and 2 repairs for that customer. Next
try entering a couple of your own repair orders. If need be, refer back to
the above text for help or press F1 at any of the fields for on line help.
 SA will not allow you to enter the same VIN more then once into the
database.  So if a customer's vehicle is already entered how Do you know?
Easy, at the Customer Browse window type the VIN of the customer you want
to search for. Notice the cursor flashing at the left hand bottom of the
screen. SA will conduct a search of all the vehicles in the database if the
one you enter is not in the database the light bar will be positioned at
the first record and will not match the number you typed. But if it is in
the database the light bar is positioned on that VIN.  Press the Enter key.
And the Customer screen pops up. The light bar is on the History File field
press the Enter key again. The Repair History browse window pops up. Press
the Enter Key again  you can then type in another repair for this customer.
When finished use the ESC key to back up to the Customer browse window.
There will be times you may want to remove a customer repair or a customer
and all of the repairs for that vehicle.  Lets delete a Customer Repair
first.  At the Customer Browse window type 1G2AF54TSL6256416 The first
customer we entered is displayed. Press enter again and the repairs for
that customer is displayed. Press the Delete key and a window pops up that
says Ok To Delete press Y for yes and that highlighted repair is removed.
Return to the customer browse window by pressing the ESC key twice.  Now
lets suppose you want to remove a Customer and all of his repairs.  Type
1G2AF54TSL6256416 the first customer you entered is highlighted again.
Press the Delete key, press Y for yes and all the records for that
customer are removed.  You may change the way you search the database
by pressing the F10 key at the Customer browse window. This will allow
you to search by VIN, Last Name or License Plate Number.
Now you have completed the tutorial for the customer history part of
Service Assistant. You will find that the other modules of the program
operate very much the same way. We will give you a few more examples for
the other modules to make sure understand all aspects of SA.



                 Estimates

  Service Assistant will generate estimates and print them out giving your
customers a professional looking document. At the same time allowing you to
keep a copy on file for future reference.  The estimate module will make an
estimate that has multiple repairs using any number of parts for each
repair.  Let's begin. Select Estimate Menu from the Main Menu. Then
select Make Estimate. The first time you use Make Estimate you will be
taken to the customer entry screen.  Type in the following for each
field
Name: Jim Carter
Street: : 401 Main
City: Terry
State: MT
Zip: 59301
Phone: [phone]
Year: 1992
Make: Chevrolet
Model: Truck

 The next screen is the repair screen. From here you type in your first
repair.  The cursor is setting on a blank line.
Type Replace water pump
Labor Hrs : 2.3
Notice the cursor skips labor rate, that is because your labor rate is
automatically entered based on what you entered in set up.  Now continue
typing
Misc: 2.00
Hazardous waste or shop charge: 1.00
The total is calculated for you.  Next we enter the parts needed for this
repair.
Quantity: 1.0
Part number: 2506445
Description: water pump
Price: 59.95
Total is calculated for you.  At this point we are at the parts browse
window.  From here we can enter another part for this repair or ESC back.
But lets enter another part by pressing the Insert Key.
Quantity:  1.5
Part number: glc410
Description:  anti freeze
Price: 5.95
Press ESC key 3 times. At the Estimate Menu select Print Estimate Move the
Light Bar to whatever output device you want and press enter.  Let's use
the Printer.  Another browse window come up Select Jim Carter press enter.
Your estimate for Jim Carter will be printed on your printer.
Congratulations you just made your first estimate. Now lets say you want to
add another repair to Jim Carter's estimate. Select Make Estimate, move the
light bar to Jim Carter and press Enter then press Enter again on the labor
field. At the Repairs Browse Window Press the insert key.
Type replace battery
Labor hrs: .5
Misc: press enter
Haz/SC: press enter
At the parts entry window type
Quantity: 1
Part Number: Exide 750
Description:  battery
Price: 62.00
Now print the same estimate again. This time to the screen.  Notice the top
line of the report screen has options that will help you manipulate the
information in the report.  You can also delete any repair or part for a
repair by going to the respective browse window and pressing the Delete
Key.  Select Make Estimate position the light bar on Jim Carter press the
Delete Key then Enter.; The estimate is removed.  You don't have to delete
estimates after you print them they can be held in the system as long
as you want for future reference.


                  Tool Inventory
 At the Main Menu there is another selection named tool inventory when
selected you first see the tool add screen. Enter a tool in it. You will
then be at the tool browse window. Press Insert Key to add another tool,
the Delete Key to remove a tool, or the Enter Key on the highlighted tool
to edit it.  By now you have a good understanding of the basics of the
program. But please read on to use it to it's full potential.



               System Administration
 When selected the password box appears. Enter the password you typed in
 when we started this tutorial. We are now at the system administration
screen.  You have already done the setup module, so use the arrow key to
move the light bar to Tool Report, select destination and all of the tools
will be listed by tool number order.



                  Technician Data
 This was also entered when we first set up Service assistant. But may be
used at any time to add, edit, or delete Technicians.



              Technician's Performance Report
 This report will give a detailed listing showing all repair order numbers,
labor amount and a running total of all work performed by a particular
technician between the dates specified by you.  Select Technicians
Performance  Report. Then enter the beginning date you want the report
started from. Then the ending date. Press enter to see a list of
possible Technicians. Next select the output device.  This report takes
a little time to run depending on the size of customer history and the
speed of your machine.



Backup
 Backup is one of the most important tasks you will perform. Be sure to do
this anytime new information is entered. It will allow you to recover any
data you my loose due to hardware failure or human error. And believe me
this CAN happen to you.  Select Backup, insert a disk into the drive. then
type the drive letter of the drive you want the backup to go to. Backup
will do the rest. Just follow the screen prompts.  Be sure to store your
disks in a safe place when done.



                  Restore
Restore will reinstall all of the information you saved when you backed up
Service Assistant. Only use this if your files have been damaged or erased.



              Reduce Customer History
 Reduce Customer History is a Maintenance routine that only needs to be
performed ounce a year or when ever the computer slows down. This procedure
cleans up all the files and puts them back in order. It will also remove
customers and their service history that have not been back for service in
a predetermined amount of time (this is set in Service Assistant set up. In
the Years To Keep field).  BE SURE AND PERFORM A BACKUP BEFORE USING THIS
PROCEDURE.


                 Hot Keys
 At the bottom of the Screen is a row of hot keys. Theses are keys you can
 press anytime to perform some special tasks.

F1 Will display help at most screens

F2 is a calculator

F3 is a Calendar

F4 Is a personal phone book press F4 and enter a name, house number,
street,  and phone number of a friend. At the browse window you add entries
by pressing the Insert Key. Remove Entries by pressing the Delete Key.
Press F10 to change the way the phone book is searched. Position the light
bar on the desired selection and press enter to edit any entry.

F5 is an alarm
   This is a handy little function that pops up a red screen displaying a
message that you have entered, on the day and time you specified. You
must be in the Service Assistant program when the event arrives in order
for the alarm to work. Otherwise it will come up the next time you start
SA.

F6 To Do
   This is a To Do list that will help you remember your important items.
Press F6 then the Insert Key to add. The Delete Key to remove unwanted
reminders and the enter key to edit existing ones.





 That's all there is to it. You will notice that the Phone Book, Tool
Inventory, To Do List, Estimate and Technicians Data all work the same way.
Help is available at most screens by pressing F1.

 This completes the tutorial. By now you should feel comfortable adding,
editing, deleting, and entering customer service history.




                 Technical Support

                   KDK Software
      Phone [phone] leave message. We will get right back to you.
         You may also reach us on the Internet. Our email address is
                             [e-mail]