2700 Report Module Demo Documentation



INTRODUCTION

Welcome to ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module. This software is designed as an easy method of capturing and reporting historical information from the Micros 2700 cash register for both single-site and multi-site installations. With historical information at your fingertips, you will be better able to make informed decisions concerning your business!

This software supports multiple methods for interfacing to a Micros 2700 cash register. You can manually get the appropriate ASCII files yourself on a daily basis using the Micros PC2700 Interface Utility. Or, you can utilize ProfitWare's ProfitPoll, which automates the scheduling and polling of the register(s) and is already configured to export the correct ASCII files with the correct filenames to support the 2700 Report Module.

FEATURES

ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module offers the following standard features:

Configuration

The definition of locations, which history files are being maintained, how often to purge the history data, etc. are all under the complete control of the user. This built-in flexibility allows a user of ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module to configure the software based on the ever-changing needs of business. Changes to your business can quickly be reflected in the system configuration (e.g. a new store is opened).

Auto-Sequence

The software allows the configuring of Auto-Sequenced reporting. You can specify on a daily, end-of-week, end-of-month and end-of-year basis, which reports you want to see based on your processing date.

Command-line Processing

If you choose to, the software can be run from the DOS prompt in command-line mode rather than from the menus. It will automatically update your historical database files and print your auto-sequenced reports for either all dates available, or for only the date you specify in the command-line.

GETTING STARTED

This document describes all the steps required to begin using ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module. This document is not a detailed manual, but serves as a quick start into the system. There are three (3) major activities associated with "getting started:" There are many pieces to the communications puzzle and they must all fit snugly.

PC PREPARATION

PC Hardware/Software Requirements

The minimum space requirement for your hard disk is approximately three and a half (3-1/2) megabytes of storage.

This software does NOT require the use of a mouse, however, certain functions (e.g. moving to the top/bottom of a list, choosing menu options, quickly moving around on a screen display, etc.) are much more efficient using a mouse.

This software package will automatically select a color scheme for a color monitor. In some instances, most noticeably on laptops, monochrome may look better or be easier to read. You can toggle back and forth between a color or a monochrome display.

ALMOST any printer should work with this software package. Generic formats and control characters have been used to insure compatibility with most brands of dot-matrix, ink-jet and laser printers.

PC Software Considerations

The 2700 Report Module can utilize either expanded memory (EMS) or extended memory (XMS). The software can be run under DOS 3.3 or higher, or in a DOS session under Microsoft Windows 3.1 or 3.11, Windows 95 or OS/2.

Relationship Between ProfitWare and Interface Utilities

ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module software does NOT do the actual communication with a cash register. It is up to you, the user, to choose the appropriate method of communicating with your registers. The Micros PC2700 Interface Utility is a necessary player in this communication, but you have the option of obtaining the files yourself by manually invoking PC2700, or by using ProfitWare's ProfitPoll automated polling software (which also uses PC2700, but fully automates the scheduling and polling process).

REGISTER PREPARATION

Preparing your cash register to communicate with a PC is largely a programming effort. This document assumes that you, or a qualified technician, have the knowledge to program your cash register so that it is configured for PC communication with the Micros PC2700 Interface Utility. If you plan to use ProfitWare's ProfitPoll, please read that product's documentation for further details.

SOFTWARE INSTALLATION

The following instructions apply to installation from floppies. If you have downloaded from the web, follow the directions on the web page.

1. From the floppy drive's DOS prompt, type INSTALL.

2. An initial install screen will be displayed that is personalized with a unique serial number and your company name, which are permanently assigned/recorded to your copy of the software. For your convenience, you can at ANY time during the install process and start again from the beginning.

3. Follow directions on the screens that follow as to drives and sub-directories.

Once you have answered all questions on the various installation screens, the installation process automatically begins to copy files from the installation diskette to your hard drive.

Your CONFIG.SYS is also automatically updated if necessary. The FILES= statement in your CONFIG.SYS file needs to be FILES=50. If the number of files is already 50 or greater, this task is not performed. A message is displayed indicating either no changes were required to CONFIG.SYS or a message is displayed indicating the details of the change including what your old CONFIG.SYS was renamed to (CONFIG.BAK). Remember to re-boot your PC if the CONFIG.SYS has been modified.

8. You have now completed the installation of ProfitWare's 2700 Report Module. Type PW2700 at the DOS prompt in the 2700 Report Module directory (which defaults to PFTW2700 unless you specify otherwise) to start the system.

TAKE IT FOR A TEST DRIVE

This demo comes with pre-loaded data so that you can immediately peruse the various reports to see what's available before exporting over your own data. When the system first starts, the Reports menu option will be selected. Execute the following steps to view the various reports available:

1) Choose Reports: This option will display a list of available reports. If you choose a "Daily" report, the system will ask you for a single date to report on. All other reports will ask for a date range. The pre-loaded demo data has dates of 9/13/95 through 9/18/95, 9/22/95 and 9/23/95.

2) Auto Sequence: This option will initially display the message that "No Reports were generated" no matter what date you enter. This is because an Auto Sequence has not yet been set up and is left as an exercise for you. See the section on Auto Sequence Setup for details.

2700 REPORT MODULE CONFIGURATION

Now that you've had a chance to look at the various reports available to you, let's get this system configured for your own purposes. Choosing the Configuration option from the main menu will give you the following options:

1) Locations: From this screen you will enter all information pertaining to each location being processed. Note that there is already a location defined, Location #999, which is the demo data. After you click on the button, the field that becomes highlighted has no label, but it is where you enter the location name. The "Location Number" is a required field and you may enter any number you like. Put an [X], by clicking with the mouse or pressing , on the "[ ] Active" check-box (by not checking the box, the location will be considered inactive and will not be processed). The "Files To Process" field contains a list of all files that the system can process. These are the ASCII files that are exported from your 2700 register and that the system will use to update the historical databases. Note that for Location #999, not all files are checked. It is not necessary to keep history on every file, unless you are interested, or will be interested in the future, in seeing reports for that information.

For example, you may only be interested in keeping track of data at a very high level, and so may only want to see System Balance information. You would then place a check-mark next to the "System Balance File" on the list and that would be all. Or, you may want more detailed information than that ... you may want reports down to the individual menu items level. Simply check the "Menu Item File" and history will then be kept on each menu item. There is only one major concept to keep in mind at this point. Once you start processing information, if you should decide a month later that you really needed to see reports on Time Period data, and you didn't have the "Time Period File" checked, you will only have Time Period history from the point in time that you place a check-mark next to the file and not before! Initially, then, you may want to keep history on most of the files and weed out want you definitely don't want later, after you've had a chance to get used to the reporting capabilities of the system.

2) Definitions: There are other files, besides the data files, necessary to complete the database picture. These are the definition files. These files contain information such as the menu item name, the major group name, the time period label, etc. However, unlike the actual data files which need to be polled every day, these definition files only need to captured once. Once the information has been obtained from these files and stored to the appropriate databases, it is not necessary to poll these files again unless the information changes. This option will first check on whether all definitions have been processed initially. It will tell you if there are definition files missing and which files they are (if you have forgotten to export a definition file in your initial setup). The next step is to update the databases only if there are definition files available. This whole process is also done in the Daily processing cycle, but if there are definition files missing, your update for that location will not be done, and you will have to repeat it after you provide the necessary definition files. Thus, you may want to initially update your definitions separate from your Daily updates. Please review the Appendix for a list of all the necessary files to be exported from the 2700 register, and their filenames.

An example: say you have changed a menu item name. You would then need to export the Menu Item Definition file and choose this "Definitions" option. The system will see that the MNUx.DFN file has been exported and will use it to update the MNUDESC database to reflect these changes.

3) Auto Sequence Setup: Every day that you process data and run a report is a significant day. It could be the end of the week, the end of the month or the end of the year. For each report displayed on the left side of the screen you can specify whether you want to see that report based on your processing date. In addition to specifying that a report be run on that day, you can also specify the reporting period for the report (today only, week-to-date, month-to-date or year-to-date).

For example, you may want to see a report of your menu items every day and at the end of every week see a summary of your items. You would choose the "Menu Item Daily" report and under the "Daily" group of buttons, choose "Today Only". The rest of the buttons would all be left at "No Report". Then you would choose the "Menu Item Summary" report and under the "End of Week" group of buttons, choose "Week-to-Date". Your remaining buttons would be "No Report".

Another example: say you are interested in reporting on your major group categories. You don't need to look at the report every day, but you would still like to see every day listed on the report a week at a time. You would choose the "Major Group Detail" report and under the "End of Week" group of buttons, choose "Week-to-Date".

All of the "Daily" reports show you totals for only one day. All of the "Detail" reports show you totals for each day in the reporting period. All of the "Summary" reports, summarize the entire reporting period.

DAILY UPDATES

All that's left to do is to start the update process each day and run your reports. The "Daily" option on the main menu gives you several choices for doing this, all self-explanatory. If you have exported the ASCII files from your 2700 registers for several days without updating each day, then you will also have a choice of dates to process when you select the update option. You have the choice of processing data in any order that you please, it does not have to take place chronologically, although it most likely will in all circumstances. The reports that print will be based on how you have set up the auto sequence. Note that there is an option on this "Daily" menu to display both the Audit Trail and the Reports. This is because you have the option of turning off the automatic printing of these reports (see the "System Parameters" screen from the "Configuration" menu option).

This software can also can be run in a command line mode by specifying

PW2700 /B mm/dd/yy (the date is optional)

This allows you to run the 2700 Report Module from a DOS batch file if desired. By not specifying the optional date, the software will process every file it finds. If you specify a date, only the files for that date are processed.

DEMO PERIOD

This Demo is set up to be used for 30 days and then it will expire. The Demo period can be extended if you call ProfitWare for the appropriate code. It can also be converted to a full system which will include full documentation.

APPENDIX

The following files need to be exported from the 2700 cash registers. If you are doing the exports yourself by manually invoking the PC2700 Interface Utility, you need to follow the naming conventions set forth in this appendix. If you are using ProfitWare's ProfitPoll, the filenames will be correct. In all filenames, an "ll" indicates the location number and a "dd" indicates the day of the month. If your registers are programmed with information by Revenue Center, then for the files that are exported by Revenue Center, substitute the Revenue Center number for each "r". If your registers are not programmed by Revenue Center, then substitute the number "1" for the "r".

Files To Process Filename Definitions Filename
Cashier/Shift CSHll_r.0dd Cashier/Shift Definitions CSHll.DFN
Tracking Group Definitions TRKll.DFN
Employee EMPll_r.0dd Employee Definitions EMPll.DFN
Tracking Group Definitions TRKll.DFN
Family Group FGll_r.0dd Family Group Definitions FGll.DFN
Major Group Definitions MGll.DFN
Menu Item Definitions MNUll.DFN
Major Group MGll_r.0dd Major Group Definitions MGll.DFN
Family Group Definitions FGll.DFN
Menu Item Definitions MNUll.DFN
Menu Item MNUll_r.0dd Menu Item Definitions MNUll.DFN
Major Group Definitions MGll.DFN
Family Group Definitions FGll.DFN
Revenue Center RVCll_r.0dd Tracking Group Definitions TRKll.DFN
System Balance SBll.0dd Tracking Group Definitions TRKll.DFN
Time Clock Detail TIMll.0dd Job Code Definitions JOBll.DFN
Employee Definitions EMPll.DFN
Time Period TPll.0dd Time Period Definitions TPll.DFN
Tracking Group Definitions TRKll.DFN




The following two definition files are needed regardless of which files you are processing:

System Descriptors SYSll.DFN
System Parameters SPll.DFN






Also, note that some of the files require multiple definition files and that some of the definition files are needed for more than one processed file.


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Last updated on 12/19/97.

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