Contents for SupportDesk Help

The Contents groups the Help topics available for SupportDesk. Click on the required area to list the associated topics or find the appropriate topic using Search.

To learn how to use Help, press F1 or choose 'How to use Help' from the Help menu.

Supervisor Only Functions

Company Details and System Configuration

User

Event Configuration

Event Transfer

Database

Support Level Functions

Products

Customers

Functions for All Users

Event

Report Designer

Presentation Options

Listing Events at the Main Window

Ancillary Features

Other Information

Recent Additions

Menu Commands


Supervisor Only Functions

Company Details and System Configuration

User

Enter User Details

Delete Users

Reactivate Users

Print a Summary of Users

Event Configuration

Set Up Event Categories

Define Extra Event Fields

Event Transfer

Archive Closed Events

Restore Closed Event

Database

Import External Data

Import Formats

Export SupportDesk Database

Initialise SupportDesk Databases

Backup/Archive SupportDesk Databases

Restore SupportDesk Databases

Rebuild SupportDesk Indexes


Support Level Functions

Products

 	Enter Product Details

Enter Product Versions

Delete a Product

Print a Summary of Products

Customers

Enter Customer Details

Customer Product Inventory

Customer Contacts

Delete a Customer

Print a Summary of Customers

Output Customer Details


 Functions for All Users

Event	Report Designer

Add a New Event	Input a New Report

Add Extra Event Details	Update a Report

Enter a Reply	Delete a Report

Update an Event	Re-run a Report

Delete an Event	Export a Report

'Go To' an Event	Report Field Widths

Print Event Summaries

Presentation Options	Listing Events at the Main Window

Fields Option	View Selected Events

Fonts Option	Text Search Events

Colours Option	Select Events by Date Range

Tool Bar Option	View History

Status Line Option	View By...

Field Widths

Field Positions

Ancillary Features

Change Your Password

Printer Setup

Use The Clipboard


Recent Additions and Menu Commands
 Other Information

Recent Additions

What's New in SupportDesk 2.00

Menu Commands

File Menu Commands

Edit Menu Commands

Options Menu Commands

View Menu Commands

Event Menu Commands

Report Menu Commands

Product Menu Commands

Customer Menu Commands

Supervisor Menu Commands


File Menu Commands

Password...	Allows you to Change your Password.

Print	Print a report of all your Events, either in Summary or  with Full details.

Printer Setup...Takes you to the Windows Printer Setup dialogue.

Exit	Leave SupportDesk.


  Edit Menu Commands

Copy	Copies details of selected Event to Clipboard.


Options Menu Commands

Fields	Define the Event fields to be presented at the Main window.

Fonts	Define styles for Report Output.

Colours	Define the Colours used at the Main Window.

Tool Bar	Switch the Tool Bar on or off.

Status Line	Switch the Status Line on or off.


View Menu Commands

Select...	Allows you to selectively view certain Events.

Hidden	Keeps the current Select active but hides the Select box.

Search...	Search Events for a text string.

Date Range...	Display Events at the Main window within certain date parameters.

History	Switch the display at the Main window to Historical Events.

View By	Re-group the Events at the Main window into Customer, Product, Assignee or Category order.


Event Menu Commands

New...	Create a new Event.

Open...	Open an existing Event.

Delete...	Delete current 'closed' Event.

Go To...	Start Main window list from a known Event.

Print	Print a report of all your Events, either in Summary or  with Full details.


Report Menu Commands

New...	Create a new Report.

Open...	Open an existing Report

Delete...	Delete selected Report.

Run...	Run an existing Report

Export...	Export an existing Report

Field Widths...	Specify the widths of fields in report output


Product Menu Commands

New...	Allows you to add New Products and Versions.

Open...	Change a selected Product's Details.

Delete...	Delete selected Product and its Versions.

Print...	Print a summary of your Products


Customer Menu Commands

New...	Allows you to add a New Customer.

Open...	Change a Customer's details.

Delete...	Delete a selected Customer.

Print...	Print a summary of all Customers.

Output...	Output Customers depending on Product Inventory details.


Supervisor Menu Commands

User	Add, Change or Delete SupportDesk Users

Categories...	Modify user definable Event Categories.

Details...	Change your Company Details for Reports etc.

Extra Event Fields...	Define upto 5 extra fields for Events

Archive Closed Events	Transfer Closed Events to the History File.

Restore Closed Events	Transfer Closed Event from the History File.

Database	Initialise, Load or Backup SupportDesk Databases.


User Menu Commands

New...	Add a New User.

Open...	Change details or privileges of a User.

Delete	Delete a User from System.

Clear Users	Reactivate locked out Users.

Print...	Print a summary of Users.


Database Menu Commands

Backup...	Backup selective Databases.

Import...	Import text (CSV) File records into Databases.

Export...	Export Databases as CSV files.

Initialise...	Initialise all SupportDesk Databases.

Restore...	Restore Databases.

Rebuild Indexes...	Rebuild SupportDesk Indexes.


Company Details and System Configuration

This window allows  the Supervisor to enter the Name and Address details of your Company. You can configure aspects of the system to be applied for all Users. For example, whether you require automatic generation of Event Reference Numbers. The Company Name and Department fields will appear on the top of all Reports and Summaries produced by SupportDesk.

To activate the Company Details dialogue:

 From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                              Then, click on Details...

Fields

Name:

The Name of your Company.

40 characters.

Department:

The Name of your Department.

40 Characters.

Address:

The Address and Postal Code of your Company.

5 lines of 40 characters each.

Phone No:

The Telephone Number of your Company or Department.

20 characters.

Date Format

 Select one of the 2 radio buttons to determine which date format you require for the input and display of dates. By default, UK date format is set.

UK     DD/MM/YY

USA    MM/DD/YY

Reply Audit Trail

Leave this check box marked with an 'X' if you wish Replies to be created automatically when details are altered at the Event dialogue. Replies are created when the Product, Customer, Assignee or Category fields are changed.

Event Reference

You can define whether you wish SupportDesk to generate Event References for you and whether a fixed prefix is required.

Generation

Leave this check box marked with an 'x' if you require automatic generation of Event  Reference Numbers. The Event Reference Number is an 8 character field. Automatic references start at '00000001' and increment by 1 up to '99999999' providing each Event with a unique reference.

Prefix:

Use this field if a Prefix is required on your generated Event Reference numbers. The numeric portion of the reference will reduce accordingly, leaving the total Event Reference length as 8 characters,.

3 Characters

Product List

You can define whether the Products listed at the Event dialogue should be a full list or simply a list specific to the selected Customer.

Customer Only

Check this box on, if you wish the Products displayed at the Event dialogue to be  a list of  the selected Customer's Product Inventory.

Serial Number

This box becomes active if Customer Only has been switched on. If checked, the Product Serial Number will be appended to the Product Reference and Version Number in the Product List displayed at the Event dialogue. The Serial Number being taken from the Customer Product Inventory information.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to save the details you have entered.

To amend the Company Details, return to this window and over type the existing data. Again, clicking on OK will save the information.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to exit this window without performing any updates.

After activating either of these buttons, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.


Enter User Details

As SupportDesk is a  Multi-User product, it is necessary that all Users of the system be uniquely identified.

The Supervisor is responsible for the set up and maintenance of User Details. The privilege assigned to a User determines the functions that User may perform within SupportDesk. It is permissible for another User to be created with Supervisor status, allowing this new User the full range of functions and responsibilities.

The number of Users of SupportDesk is determined by the version of the system in operation. You are informed that the maximum number of Users has been reached, when a further attempt is made to activate the New User's dialogue. SupportDesk responds with an Error box.

To enter New User Details:

From the Main SupportDesk  window, click on Supervisor.

                                              Then, click on User.

                                            Finally, click on New...

To amend User Details:

From the Main SupportDesk  window, click on Supervisor.

                                              Then, click on User.

                                              Then, click on Open...

      Finally, select the required User and click OK

Fields

Name:

This is a mandatory field for the input of the unique Name of the new User requiring access to SupportDesk. The User Name is displayed in the SupportDesk banner at the Main Window when the User is logged on.

32 Characters, mandatory.

Tag:

This is a mandatory field for the input of a unique User Reference. An Error box appears if the Tag in not entered or is not unique. Events reported by Customers are assigned to Users of SupportDesk. After logging in to SupportDesk, the Main window displays all the Events in chronological order. The information displayed includes Assignee, i.e. the User (referenced by their Tag) assigned to resolve the Event.  If the User Tag is modified, the Tag against existing Events is also changed.

8 Characters, mandatory.

Position:

The User's title within the Company.

32 Characters.

Narrative:

Supervisor definable input field.

60 Characters.

Login:

In this field, specify the unique User's 'Login' identifier, which is required at the SupportDesk Login window.

8 Characters, mandatory.

Password:

The User's Password associated with the Login above. Again, this must be supplied at the SupportDesk Login window.

8 Characters, mandatory.

Configuration

A User may modify and close an Event that has been input by or assigned to the User. (A Supervisor can automatically modify all Events.) Events for the User are listed at the main SupportDesk window.

Events can be deleted by a Supervisor or the Owner of the Event (i.e. the User who initially input the Event Details).

When a Reply is added to an Event, the text may only be altered prior to clicking the OK button at the Event dialogue. After this time, the text can only be viewed and not updated.

The following seven configuration check boxes enable the Supervisor to over rule these standard User functions.

Enabled

Leave this check box marked with an 'x' if the new User is allowed to use SupportDesk immediately.

Delete Events

Events can only be deleted by Supervisors and the User who originally input the Event. Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to delete 'closed' Events.

View All Events

Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to see all Events listed at the Main SupportDesk window. Only Events entered by and assigned to the User may be modified, unless the following check box is also selected.

Modify Events

Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to alter the detail of any Event. Note, for all the Events to be listed at the Main SupportDesk window, the previous check box must also be selected. Modify Events includes the ability to close an Event.

Modify History

Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to amend Reply detail after it has been entered.

Modify Dates

Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to amend Open and Close Date and Times. Please note that as Events are listed in Event Reference order, changing the Open Date and Time will not effect the Event's position in the Main Window list.

E-Mail Enabled

This is an optional extra and is disabled if not installed. Mark this check box with an 'x' if the User is allowed to send and receive EMail messages.

Privilege

Select one of the five radio buttons below:

Supervisor

SupportDesk Supervisors are allowed to perform updates on Users, Category Codes, Products, Customers and Events. A Supervisor has access to all parts of the system.

Support

A User with Support privileges may update Customers, Products and Events.

Analyst

This is the default privilege and allows Users to input Events and add Replies to Events that have been assigned to them.

Hotline

This privilege level allows the User to access the Event and Reply dialogues only. On completion of the Login procedure, the User is taken directly to the Event dialogue. When all the Events have been entered, and Exit has been requested, the User is taken out of SupportDesk.

 Engineer

This privilege enters the User in the list of Assignees that can be selected at the Event dialogue. An Engineer has no Login and Password. Consequently, selecting this option disables the Login and Password fields. The 'Enabled' check box is switched off and cannot be updated as the Engineer has no access to SupportDesk.

Buttons

OK

This button adds a new User to the System. An enabled User can then Login, perform any of the allowed tasks and report on Events assigned to them using the Report Designer. After activating this button, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

Return to the Main SupportDesk window without creating a new User.


Delete Users

A User may only be deleted by a Supervisor and only if the Events assigned to that User have been 'closed'.  Any outstanding Events must be reassigned prior to the removal of the User.

To activate the Delete Users... List:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on User.

                                           Finally, click on Delete

The window displays a list of the SupportDesk Users. The controlling Supervisor, is not included in this list, nor are any Users who are currently active in  the system.

Buttons

Close

This button returns you to the Main SupportDesk window. No Users are removed.

Delete

To delete a User, click on the required entry and then click on Delete.

Alternatively, double click on the entry in the list.

You are asked to confirm your request to delete the selected User


Reactivate Users

In the event of a hardware or software failure,  the Supervisor will have to re-enable Users who were using SupportDesk at the time of the failure. If this action is not taken, these Users will not be able to re-enter the System.

To Reactivate Users:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor,

                                             Then, click on User.

                                          Finally, click on Clear Users.

An Information box appears to confirm that the action has taken place.


Print a Summary of Users

If a hard copy of all the Users created is required, then the Print of a Summary of Users can easily be requested by a Supervisor. The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing the output to be redirected.

To Print a Summary of Users:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on User.

                                           Finally, click on Print...

The Users' Configuration details are printed, using the following codes:

D - Delete Events

E - Enabled

H - Modify History

M - Modify Events

V - View All Events

T - Modify Dates

A - E-Mail


Set Up Event Categories

An Event can be considered as any incident relating to a Customer and / or Product that needs to be recorded to ensure that the Event is progressed to its conclusion without 'getting lost' within the 'hustle and bustle' of a busy office.

Within SupportDesk, Events are categorised by the Supervisor in four ways:-

i) Type of Event

I.e. the type of incident or situation to be recorded. For example, Fault, Query, Documentation.

ii) Status of Event

I.e. the current stage the Event has reached in its life cycle, terminating with closure. For example, Opened, Waiting more Evidence, In Progress.

iii) Priority of Event

This Category determines how imperative it is for the Event to be resolved. This could be because the Customer reporting the Event is deemed to be an important site for future sales. Hence, the speedy conclusion of Events, in this situation, could have a significant influence in the turn around of an imminent sale.

iv) Level of Event

This Category can be used to identify a level of escalation or an area of concern.

Within SupportDesk, the terminology of Event Categories is fixed. (I.e. Type, Status, Priority and Level.) The system is supplied with a number of defaults for each Category, but these may be changed at any time to suit your own requirements. New categories may be entered and existing ones may be renamed or deleted.  Upto 100 Categories may be established.

If a Category is assigned to an Event and the Category is subsequently renamed, then the Event will have the renamed Category attributed to it. SupportDesk does not allow the deletion of a Category that is currently in use by an Event.

To activate the Event Categories dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                            Then, click on  Categories...

Alternatively, from the Main SupportDesk window, click on the Event Category icon.

The same dialogue is used for each Category subset. The Radio buttons determine which subset is listed. When the dialogue is activated, the Event Types are listed by default.

Radio Buttons

Click on Types, Status's, Priorities or Levels to change the Category subset listed.

Buttons

New...

Click on New to enter a new Category into the current subset.

Rename...

Click on the listed entry that you wish to rename and then click on Rename.

Alternatively, double click on the required listed entry.

Delete

To delete an entry, click on the Category to be removed and then click on Delete. You will be asked to confirm your request.

Close

Click on this button at the Categories... dialogue, if you wish to return to the Main SupportDesk window, performing no further updates.

For the New and Rename buttons, you are presented with the Category Name dialogue, described below, to input the new or amended Category Name.

Fields

Name:

Enter the Name of the new Category, or the revised Name of an existing Category.

16 Characters, mandatory

Buttons

OK

To update the Category Name, click on the OK button, you are then returned to the refreshed Categories... list.

Cancel

Clicking on Cancel simply returns you to the Categories... list.


Define Extra Event Fields

This feature allows the Supervisor to define upto 5 extra fields with a maximum length of 16 characters, which can be attached to the Event record.

The fields required must be set a Prompt and Length. The fields defined are then available for update when an Event is initiated or amended and have the same definition for all Users.

To activate the Extra Fields dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Extra Event Fields...

Fields

Names:

Enter upto 5 prompts for the fields to be made available at the Event dialogue.

16 Characters

Lengths:

For the Names entered, selected the length required by clicking on the scroll bars and marking the length required.

The default length is 0, maximum length 16.

Accumulated:

For the Names entered, mark the adjacent 'Accumulated' check box with an 'x', if the User Defined Field is to be accumulated by the Report Designer.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to define the Extra Event fields. Please note that you can define a field with a Name and zero Length, this allows you to use more than one Name as a prompt to a field. You can also set a field to have a Length and no Name prompt. On completion, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main SupportDesk window leaving the definition of Extra Event fields unchanged.


Archive Closed Events

This feature allows the Supervisor to archive Closed Events to the History File. All Closed Events will be transferred. The option is only available when the Supervisor is currently viewing the 'live' Events. If 'View History' is active then the Archive Closed Events menu item is disabled and appears grey.

To Archive Closed Events:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                              Then, click on Archive Closed Events

A Confirmation box appears, asking you to verify your request.

Buttons

Yes

Click on Yes to copy Closed Events to the History File and then remove them from the live Event Database. On completion of the task you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window. You will notice immediately, that any Closed Events that were previously listed have now been erased.

No

Click on No to return to the Main SupportDesk window. No transfer will be performed.


Restore Closed Events

This feature allows the Supervisor to restore a Closed Event from the History File to the 'live' Event Database. Just the highlighted Closed Event will be transferred. The option is only available when the Supervisor is currently viewing History. If  'View History' is not selected, then the Restore Closed Event menu item is disabled and appears grey.

To Restore a Closed Event:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                              Then, click on Restore Closed Event

A Confirmation box appears, asking you to verify your request.

Buttons

Yes

Click on Yes to copy the Closed Event from the History File to the live Event Database. On completion of the task you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window. You will notice that the Closed Event has been removed from the list of History Events.

No

Click on No to return to the Main SupportDesk window. No transfer will be performed.


Import External Data

SupportDesk has the ability to load external data files directly into the Databases. This allows the Supervisor to download data from any existing Customer support package and swiftly populate the SupportDesk Databases.

The files to be imported must be flat text files with 'Comma Separated Values' (CSV). Each line in the text file represents a SupportDesk record of a particular type. The first characters in each line indicate the type of record to be loaded.

To activate Import dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Database.

                                           Finally, click on Import...

You are presented with the Windows 'Open' dialogue; allowing you to name or select the DOS file containing the Import records.

Buttons

Cancel

Clicking on Cancel returns you to the Main SupportDesk window.

OK

Click on OK to import the data from the selected file. A Message box appears for you to confirm your selection. Click on Yes to proceed with the import. Clicking on No, returns you to the Import... dialogue.

On completion of the Import, an Information box is presented, summarising the results of the Import.

If you have any errors, you will be given the opportunity to view the offending records. The Error log is listed to the file suppdesk.err .

For full details on the format of the Import records and validation please refer to Import Formats


Import Text Formats

SupportDesk Databases can be loaded directly from Comma Separated Value (CSV) Text Files. Use the Supervisor + Database + Import... menu option. See demoload.txt in the SupportDesk directory for an example Import CSV file. The topic of Importing data is described under Import External Data.

The record Types are as follows:-

Product

Product Version

Customer

Customer Product Inventory

Customer Contact

Event

Reply

User


Product Record Type
Product record type - 'P'

[ P, Reference, Name, Description, Creation Date, Status, Analysis Date, Price, Supplier, Manufacturer, Maintenance Contract]

Reference	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory and unique.

(The Product must not currently exist.)

Name	Up to 40 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Description	Up to 250 Characters.

Creation Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Status	Up to 16 Characters.

Analysis Date	8 Characters, DD/MM/YY.

Price	10 numeric characters, 2 decimal places.

Supplier	Up to 40 Characters

Manufacturer	Up to 40 Characters

Maintenance Contract	Up to 40 Characters


Product Version Record Type
Product Version record type -  'PV'

[ PV, Product Ref, Version Ref, Environment, Creation Date, Description, Status, Analysis Date, Price ]

Product Ref	Up to 16 Characters.

(Product must exist.)

Version Ref	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory and unique for this Product.

Environment	Up to 16 Characters.

Creation Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Description	Up to 250 Characters.

Status	Up to 16 Characters.

Analysis Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Price	10 numeric characters, 2 decimal places.


Customer Record Type
Customer record type - 'C'

[ C, Reference, Name, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, Address Line 3, Address Line 4, Address Line 5, Post Code, Phone No 1, Creation Date,  Account Manager, Narrative, Fax No,  Phone No 2, E-Mail, Modem, Maintenance Expiry Date, Service Level, Market, Department ]

Reference	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory and unique.

(The Customer must not currently exist).

Name	Up to 40 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Address Line 1	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 2	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 3	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 4	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 5	Up to 40 Characters.

Post Code	Up to 16 Characters.

Phone No 1	Up to 20 Characters.

Creation Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Account Manager	Up to 40 Characters.

Narrative	Up to 250 Characters.

Fax No	Up to 20 Characters.

Phone No 2	Up to 20 Characters.

E-Mail	Up to 20 Characters.

Modem	Up to 20 Characters.

Maint Expiry Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Service Level	Up to 16 Characters.

Market	20 Characters.

Department	Up to 40 Characters.


Customer Product Record Type
Customer Product Inventory record type -  'CP'

[ CP, Customer Ref, Product Ref, Version Ref, Date, Narrative, Serial No, Asset No, Status, Analysis, Maintenance Start, Maintenance End, Maintenance Period, Maintenance Fee, Maintenance Code, Purchase Date, Purchase Price, Pur Order No, Pur Invoice No, Pur Contract No, Installation Start, Installation End, Location ]

Customer Ref	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory.

(Customer must exist.)

Product Ref	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory.

(Product must exist.)

Version Ref	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory.

(Product Version must exist.)

Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Narrative	Up to 250  Characters.

Serial No	Up to 16 Characters.

Asset No	Up to 16 Characters.

Status	Up to 16 Characters.

Analysis	Up to 16 Characters.

Maintenance Start	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Maintenance End	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Maintenance Period	Up to 16 Characters.

Maintenance Fee	10 numeric characters, 2 decimal places.

Maintenance Code	Up to 16 Characters.

Purchase Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Purchase Price	10 numeric characters, 2 decimal places.

Pur Order No 	Up to 16 Characters.

Pur Invoice No	Up to 16 Characters.

Pur Contract No	Up to 16 Characters.

Installation Start	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Installation End	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

Location	Up to 40 Characters.


Customer Contact Record Type
Customer Contact record type - 'CC'

[ C, Reference, Date, Name, Department, Location, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, Address Line 3, Address Line 4, Address Line 5, Post Code, Phone No 1, Phone No 2,  E-Mail, Fax No, Narrative ]

Reference	Up to 16 Characters, mandatory.

(The Customer must exist).

Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Name	Up to 40 Characters.

Department	Up to 40 Characters.

Location	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 1	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 2	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 3	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 4	Up to 40 Characters.

Address Line 5	Up to 40 Characters.

Post Code	Up to 16 Characters.

Phone No 1	Up to 20 Characters.

Phone No 2	Up to 20 Characters.

E-Mail	Up to 20 Characters.

Fax No	Up to 20 Characters.

Narrative	Up to 250 Characters.


Event Record Type
Event record type - 'E'

[ E, Event Ref, Customer Ref, Product Ref, Version Ref, Type, Status, Priority, Level, Owner's Ref, Open Date, Open Time, Close Date, Close Time, Subject, Customer Contact, Assignee's Ref, Customer's Own Ref, Medium, User Defined Fields, Serial No ]

Event Ref	Up to 8 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Customer Ref	Up to 16 Characters.

(Customer must exist.)

Product Ref	Up to 16 Characters.

(Product must exist.)

Version Ref	Up to 16 Characters.

(Product Version must exist.)

Category Type	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Status	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Priority	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Level	Up to 16 Characters.

Owner's Ref	User ref. Up to 8 Characters, mandatory.

(User must exist.)

Open Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Open Time	5 Characters HH:MM,  24 hour clock.

If omitted, the current time is used.

Close Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, Event is still open.

Close Time	5 Characters HH:MM,  24 hour clock.

Subject	Up to 60 Characters.

Customer Contact	Up to 40 Characters.

Assignee	User ref. Up to 8 Characters, default to Owner's Ref.

(User must exist.)

Customer Ref	Up to 16 Characters.

Medium	1 - phone, 2 - fax, 4 - letter, 8 - disk, 16 - E-Mail

or combinations,      e.g.  6 - fax & letter

User Defined Fields	5 fields of up to 16 Characters each

Serial Number 	Up to 16 Characters


Event Reply Record Type
Event Reply record type - 'ER'

[ ER, Event Reference, Author, Creation Date, Creation Time, Windows Application, Attached File Name, Type, Status, Priority, Level, Job Time, Reply Text... ]

Event Ref	Up to 8 Characters.

(Event must exist.)

Author	User ref. Up to 8 Characters, mandatory

(User must exist.)

Creation Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Creation Time	5 Characters HH:MM, 24 hour clock.

If omitted, current time is used.

Windows Application	8 Character Program Name e.g. Write.

Attached File	Up to 12 characters e.g. dgmetal.wri.

Category Type	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Status	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Priority	Up to 16 Characters.

Category Level    	Up to 16 Characters.

Job Time	5 Characters HH:MM, 24 hour clock.

Reply Text	Up to 10,000 characters.


User Record Type
User record type - 'U'

[U, Ref, Name,  Position, Narrative,  Creation Date, Login, Password, Privilege, Configuration ]

User Ref	Up to 8 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Name	Up to 32 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Position	Up to 32 Characters.

Narrative	Up to 60  Characters.

Creation Date	8 Characters DD/MM/YY.

If omitted, today's date is used.

Login	Up to 8 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Password	Up to 8 Characters, mandatory.

Privilege	0 - Supervisor

1 - Support

2 - Analyst

3 - Hotline

4 - Engineer

Configuration	1 -  Enabled

4 -  Modify History

8 -  View All Events

16 - Modify Events

32 - Delete Events

64 - Modify Dates

128 - EMail enabled

or combinations, e.g. 37 = Enabled and Modify History and Delete Events


Export SupportDesk Databases

Within SupportDesk, the Supervisor has the ability to export the current Databases into a named file. The output is in the form of  Comma Separated Values, individual records having the same layout as the corresponding Import record.

To activate the Export Databases dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Database

                                           Finally, click on Export...

Fields

Databases

Use these check boxes to mark which of the SupportDesk Databases you wish to export. By default, all the Database boxes will be crossed.

Event Selection Details

All the Events are exported by default, if the Event Database box is checked. However, you may use these selection boxes to export a subset of Events. If the Event selection options are used, part or all of the Event Database will be exported.

The selections Categories, Customers and Products can all be used in the same way to define the subset of Events to be exported. In each selection list, all the available values are listed. Use the scroll bars, by clicking on the up or down arrows,  to view the options in each list. If there are no more than five entries in a list, then the scroll bars are not seen, as they are redundant.

Under each list, you may select either the All or None buttons. If you click on All, all the entries in the list are selected. You can then de-select any entry by clicking on it. Highlighted entries will be used to determine the Events to be exported. If you click on None, none of the entries in the list are selected. You can select an individual entry by clicking on it.

Only those Events meeting all the selection criteria will be exported.

Date

You may enter From: and To: dates, Events created on and between these dates will be included in the Export. The date must be in the appropriate UK or USA format. Invalid dates will be ignored.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to perform the Export. You will be presented with a 'Save As' dialogue where you can supply a drive, directory and file name for the Export File. The default will be export.txt on the SupportDesk drive and directory. If this file already exists, you will have to confirm your request to replace the existing file. While the Export is being performed, a dialogue will appear, asking you to wait. On completion, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Initialise SupportDesk Databases

The Supervisor is allowed to Initialise the SupportDesk Databases. This feature may be used if  the Demonstration Data has been installed and now needs  to be removed. Initialising the SupportDesk Databases may also be useful if you have imported data from an existing Customer Support package and the operation has not run smoothly due to data errors.

Initialising Support Desk Databases, clears all the Databases except the User Database. If you need to purge the User records, then this task must be performed on each individual User record. Refer to  Delete Users The Initialise Database function is not allowed if any other User is currently active in the system.

Before utilising this operation, it is advised that a recent DOS backup of the Databases has been taken.

To Initialise SupportDesk Databases:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Databases.

                                           Finally, click on Initialise...

Buttons

Yes

Click on Yes to clear the Databases On completion of the task you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window. You will notice immediately, that any Events that were previously listed have now been erased.

No

Click on No to return to the Main SupportDesk window. No initialisation will be performed.


Backup SupportDesk Databases

Within SupportDesk, the Supervisor has the ability to take a full backup of the current Databases in to a named directory. Alternatively, a specific groups of Events may be archived.

To activate the Backup Databases dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor

                                             Then, click on Database

                                           Finally, click on Backup...

Fields

To Directory:

Enter the name of the directory and/or disk where you wish to backup the Databases to. If the directory does not exist, SupportDesk will create it for you. You are not allowed to archive the Databases to the directory where SupportDesk has been installed, because the backup files have the same names as the working Database. The file names are listed at the end of the Restore Databases point.

Mandatory, 128 characters.

Merge

Check this box if you wish to merge the backup with data previously archived.

Databases

Use these check boxes to mark which of the SupportDesk Databases you wish to archive. By default, all the Database boxes will be crossed.

Event Selection Details

All the Events are archived by default. However, you may use these selection boxes to archive a subset of Events. If the Event selection options are used, part or all of the Event Database will be archived, irrespective of whether the Event check box is crossed.

The selections Categories, Customers and Products can all be used in the same way to define the subset of Events to be archived. In each selection list, all the available values are listed. Use the scroll bars, by clicking on the up or down arrows,  to view the options in each list. If there are no more than five entries in a list, then the scroll bars are not seen, as they are redundant.

Under each list, you may select either the All or None buttons. If you click on All, all the entries in the list are selected. You can then de-select any entry by clicking on it. Highlighted entries will be used to determine the Events to be archived. If you click on None, none of the entries listed in the list are selected. You can select an individual entry by clicking on it.

Only those Events meeting all the selection criteria will be archived.

Date

You may enter From: and To: dates, Events created on and between these dates will be included in the backup. The date must be in the appropriate UK or USA format. Invalid dates will be ignored.

Remove Closed

Click on this check box if you want 'closed' Events to be removed from the current working Database following the Backup. The Events will be archived before they are purged.  Please note that the Closed Events will be archived to the backup file and not transferred to the History database.

Closed

Click on this check box, if you only wish to archive those Events that have been 'closed'. Closed Events hold a Closed Date and are marked with a tick at the Main SupportDesk window. Refer to Closed Events.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to perform the backup. On completion, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Restore SupportDesk Databases

SupportDesk also provides the Supervisor with the facility to Restore Databases archived using the SupportDesk Backup facility. SupportDesk will not allow you to proceed with the Restore function unless there are no other Users currently active within the system.

To activate the Restore Databases dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Databases.

                                          Finally, click on Restore...

Fields

From Directory:

Enter the name of the directory and/or disk where the archived SupportDesk Databases exist.

Mandatory, 128 characters.

Databases

Use these check boxes to mark which of the SupportDesk Databases you wish to restore. By default, none of the boxes are crossed.

For all the Databases except Events, the archived Database will completely replace the current working Database. As you are able to take only a partial backup of the Events Database, SupportDesk has to restore this Database in a different fashion. When restoring Events, SupportDesk will replace any Events on the current working Database with the archived Events on the backup. Events on the backup that do not exist on the current working Database will be added.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to perform the Restore. On completion you are returned to the Main Window.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Rebuild SupportDesk Indexes

The Supervisor is allowed to Rebuild the SupportDesk Indexes. This feature should not need to be called upon in the normal course of events, however it can be used if the indexes have been lost or corrupted.

To Rebuild SupportDesk Indexes:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Supervisor.

                                             Then, click on Databases.

                                           Finally, click on Rebuild Indexes...

Buttons

Yes

Click on Yes to rebuild the Indexes. The index files are deleted and recreated, no other Users must be active on the system. On completion of the task you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

No

Click on No to return to the Main SupportDesk window. No correction will be performed.


Enter Customer Details

The Customer Details dialogue allows Supervisor and Support Users  to enter Customer details and define the Products that the Customer has.

To enter new Customer Details:

From the Main Support Desk window, click on Customer.

                                              Then, click on New...

To amend existing Customer Details:

There are 2 stages to this activity, with a window for each stage.

1. Display Customer... List

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Customer.

                     Then, click on Open...

Alternatively, you may simply click on the Customer icon displayed at the Main SupportDesk window.

2. Select Customer from the List:

Double click on the required listed entry.

Alternatively, click on the entry and then click on Open...

Fields

Name:

Full Customer Name.

40 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Ref:

Unique Customer Reference.

16 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Dept:

Customer's Department.

40 Characters

Address:

5 lines of 40 Characters each for the input of the Customer's Address.

Postcode:

16 Characters

Phone 1:

Customer's Telephone Number.

20 Characters

Phone 2:

Alternative Customer Telephone Number.

20 Characters

Fax:

Customer's Fax Number.

20 Characters

E-Mail:

Customer's Electronic Mail Id. For example Compuserve.

20 Characters

Modem:

Customer's Modem Number.

20 Characters

Expiry Date:

Enter into this field the date of termination of any Maintenance agreement. The field will be displayed at the Event dialogue when the Customer is selected, as a reminder. The date must be supplied in the correct format or it will be ignored.

Date field.

Service Level:

Category Level pulldown. Select a default Level for the Customer. When Events are created for this Customer, the Level Category will default to this setting. This feature is useful for recording and acting upon Service Level Agreements.

Acc Mgr:

Enter the name of the person within your Company who is handling this Customer's account.

40 Characters.

Market:

Enter a Market Area for the Customer. This could either be a region or industry sector.

20 Characters.

Narrative:

Any descriptive text.

250 Characters.

Date:

This field displays the date the Customer was created. In the case of New Customers, this is today's date.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to add or amend the Customer. You will then be returned to the Main SupportDesk window for new Customers, or to the Customer List for amended Customers.

Please Note, that if you wish to assign any Products to this Customer then you should click on the Inventory button prior to selecting OK. This also applies for Contacts added at this time.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return  performing no update.

Print...

The Print button is not available for New Customers. When modifying existing Customers, click on the Print button to produce a hard copy of the Customer Details and the assigned Products. The Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect your output.

Inventory...

Click on Inventory to assign Products to the Customer or amend Product assignments. This is covered in detail in Customer Product Inventory.

Contacts...

Click on Contacts to add or update any Customer Contacts. This is covered in detail under Customer Contacts.


Customer Product Inventory

SupportDesk allows Supervisor and Support Users to record which Products and Versions a Customer has.

There are 2 dialogues associated with assigning Products to Customers.

The first lists the Products the Customer has and allows you to chose the function you wish to perform: assign another Product,  alter a current Product assignment or delete a Product / Customer association. The Customer Inventory dialogue is activated from the Customer Details dialogue when the Inventory button is selected.

The second dialogue, Inventory Details, is activated from the Customer Inventory dialogue described above. This window allows you to update the Customer's Product Inventory list.

1. Select the Product Inventory function you wish to perform.

To activate the Customer Inventory dialogue:

From the Customer Details dialogue, click on Inventory...

If the Customer has no Products assigned to it, then the list box will be empty. In this case, you should click on Add... to record the Products the Customer has.

Fields

Product

Click on the pulldown, to list the Product and Version combinations currently assigned to the Customer. Please note that a Customer may have more than one entry for the same Product and Version combination.

Serial No

Under this heading the Serial Number of the Product is listed, should one exist.

Buttons

Add...

Click on Add to add a Product to the Customer's Inventory list. The Inventory Details dialogue will be activated.

Open...

Click on the Product in the list that you wish to alter and then click on Open. Alternatively, you may just double click on required Product. You will be presented with the Inventory Details dialogue, displaying the current information regarding this Product assignment.

Delete...

Click on the Product you no longer wish to assign to the Customer and then select Delete. You will be asked to confirm your action.

Close

Clicking on Close at the Customer Inventory dialogue returns you to the Customer Details window.

2.  Update Customer's Product and Version Inventory List.

To activate the Inventory Details dialogue:

Click on Add... at the Customer Inventory dialogue to assign a new Product to this Customer.

Click on Open... at the Customer Inventory dialogue to amend the selected Product assignment.

Fields

Date:

This field displays the date the Inventory Item was created. In the case of Added Product Items, this is today's date.

Product Details

Products:

For New Product assignments this field will be empty. If you have Opened an existing Product assignment, the Product and Version will be displayed here.

If you click on the pull down, a list of the available Product Version combinations will be displayed. Click on the required entry and this will be substituted into the Products field.

The selection of a Product is mandatory.

The remaining fields are optional, all or any additional fields may be completed as required.

Serial No:

16 Characters.  This field may be searched in the Customer Output Routine.

Asset No:

16 Characters.  This field may be searched in the Customer Output Routine.

Status:

16 Characters

Analysis:

16 Characters

Purchase Details

Date:

Date field, in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date option selected. Invalid dates are ignored.

Price:

10 Numeric Characters in the range 0 to 9999999.99

Order No:

16 Characters

Invoice No:

16 Characters

Contract No:

16 Characters

Warranty/Maintenance Details

Start Date:

Date field, in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date option selected. Invalid dates are ignored.

Expiry Date:

Date field, in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date option selected. Invalid dates are ignored.

This field may be searched in the Customer Output Routine.

Period:

16 Characters

Fee:

10 Numeric Characters in the range 0 to 9999999.99

Code:

16 Characters

Installation Details

Start Date:

Date field, in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date option selected. Invalid dates are ignored.

End Date:

Date field, in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date option selected. Invalid dates are ignored.

Location:

To record the location of a Product.

40 Characters

Narrative:

250 Characters

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to assign the Product and Product Version to the Customer. You will be returned to the Customer Inventory dialogue.

Cancel

Returns you to the Customer Inventory dialogue, performing no update.


Add Contacts to Customers

SupportDesk allows Supervisor and Support Users to build a table of Customer Contacts. The list of Contacts could also be used to record various office sites as an alternative address can be associated with the Contact. The Contact plus the Location are displayed at the Event dialogue when a Customer and Contact are selected.

There are 2 dialogues associated with adding Contacts to Customers.

The first lists the current Customer Contacts and allows you to chose the function you wish to perform: add another Contact,  amend the details of an existing Contact or delete a Contact. The Customer Contacts dialogue is activated from the Customer Details dialogue when the Contacts... button is selected.

The second dialogue, Contact Details, is activated from Customer Contacts described above. This window allows you to update the Contact information.

1. Select the Contact function you wish to perform.

To activate the Customer Contacts dialogue:

From the Customer Details dialogue, click on Contacts...

If the Customer has no Contacts, then the list box will be empty. In this case, you should click on Add... to input the first Contact.

Fields

Name

Under this heading, the existing Contacts are listed by Name.

Buttons

Add...

Click on Add to input another Contact. The Contact Details dialogue will be activated.

Open...

Click on the Contact in the list that you wish to alter and then click on Open. Alternatively, you may just double click on the required Contact. You will be presented with the Contact Details dialogue, displaying the current information regarding this Contact.

Delete...

Click on the Contact you wish to remove and then select Delete. You will be asked to confirm your action.

Close

Clicking on Close at the Customer Contacts dialogue returns you to the Customer Details window.

2.  Update Customer Contact Information.

To activate the Contact Details dialogue:

Click on Add... or  Open... at the Customer Contacts list.

Fields

Name:

Contact Name.

40 Characters, Mandatory

Dept:

Contact's Department.

40 Characters

Location:

Contact's Location.

40 Characters

Address:

5 lines of 40 Characters each for the input of the Contact's Address.

Postcode:

16 Characters

Date:

This field defaults to the date the Contact was created. However, it may be updated. Invalid dates are ignored.

Date field.

Phone 1:

Contact's Telephone Number.

20 Characters

Phone 2:

Alternative Contact Telephone Number.

20 Characters

Fax:

Contact's Fax Number.

20 Characters

E-Mail:

Contact's Electronic Mail Id. For example Compuserve.

20 Characters

Narrative:

Any descriptive text.

250 Characters

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to update the Customer Contact. You will be returned to the Customer Contact list.

Cancel

Returns you to the Customer Contact list, performing no update.


Delete a Customer

To remove a Customer from SupportDesk, a Supervisor or Support User needs to identify the Customer to be removed from the Customer List and then select the Delete button.

To activate the Delete Customers... dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Customers.

                                             Then, click on Delete...

Buttons

Delete

Click on the required Customer and then select the Delete button. SupportDesk will then ask you to confirm your request by presenting a Confirmation box.

If there are Events outstanding relating to this Customer, then the delete will not be allowed and an Error box will be displayed.

Close

Click on Close to return to the Main SupportDesk window. No delete will be actioned.


Print a Summary of Customers

Supervisor and Support Users can request the printing of Customer List. The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect the output.

After making your request, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

To produce a Summary Listing of all the Customers held on SupportDesk:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Customer.

                                              Then, click on Print...


Output Customer Records

Supervisor and Support Users can output certain Customer and Customer Product Inventory records dependant on values held on the Product Inventory records. The output can be directed to the printer as a report or as a file of Comma Separated Value records in the same format as Customer and Customer Product Inventory Import records.

Records can be output based on either Maintenance Expiry Date, Product, Serial or Asset Number.

The output can be used in the production of form letters to remind Customers that their Maintenance contracts are due for renewal. The feature can also be used for determining the Customer who has a Product with a particular Serial or Asset Number.

To activate the Customer Output dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Customer.

                                              Then, click on Output...

Fields

Inventory Search Option

Choose one of the available search options; Maintenance Expiry Date, Product, Serial Number or Asset Number. The selection criterion corresponding to the specified radio button will then become active.

Maintenance Expiry Date

The fields in this box become active when the Maintenance Expiry Date radio button has been clicked. Customer and Customer Product Inventory Records will be extracted where the Maintenance Expiry Date complies with the following rules.

Select one of the Comparison Radio buttons either:-

<=

The Maintenance Expiry Date must be less than or equal to the specified Month and Year.

=

The Maintenance Expiry Date must match the specified Month and Year.

>=

The Maintenance Expiry Date must be greater than or equal to the specified Month and Year.

Month

The Month defaults to the current month, but can be altered by selection from the list box of 01 to 12.

Year

The Year defaults to the current year, but can be over typed with any other number.

Product

The field in this box becomes active when the Product radio button has been clicked.

Click on the pull down and select the required Product or Product/Version combination. Records will be extracted where there is a match on the selection.

Serial Number

The field in this box becomes active when the Serial Number radio button has been clicked.

Enter the required Serial Number in the available field. Customer and Customer Product Inventory Records will be extracted where there is a match on Serial Number.

Asset Number

The field in this box becomes active when the Asset Number radio button has been clicked.

Enter the required Asset Number in the available field. Customer and Customer Product Inventory Records will be extracted where there is a match on Asset Number.

Buttons

Print...

The report output is in the same format as the Customer Report produced at the Customer dialogue, except that only the Inventory records that match will be included in the report. There will be a report for each Customer where a match has been found. The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect the output.

Export...

If the output is exported as a file, then by default the file will be called custexpt.txt on the directory where SupportDesk is installed. The Windows 'Save As' dialogue is activated to allow you to save the file where you wish. If the chosen file name already exists, then you will be asked to confirm whether the existing file should be replaced.

When the file has been created, SupportDesk will check whether you wish to Browse the output. This is enabled by activating Notepad. You should note that Customer records are prefixed "C" followed by their Customer Product Inventory records, which are prefixed "CP". If no records have been found, then the file will be empty.

On leaving Notepad, you are returned to the Customer Output dialogue, allowing you to make another request.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Entering Product Details

Enter Product Details

The Product Details dialogue allows Supervisor and Support Users  to enter Product details and define the Versions of the Product that exist.

To enter new Product Details:

From the Main Support Desk window, click on Product.

                                              Then, click on New...

To amend existing Product Details:

There are 2 stages to this activity, with a window for each stage.

1. Display Products... List

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Product.

                     Then, click on Open...

Alternatively, you may click on the Products icon displayed at the Main SupportDesk window.

2. Select Product from the List:

Double click on the required listed entry.

Alternatively, click on the entry and then click on Open...

Fields

Name:

Full name of the Product.

40 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Ref:

In this field, you must enter a unique reference for the Product.

16 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Status:

This field is designated to hold a release Status for the Product.

16 Characters.

Description:

In this field you may enter a full Description of the Product.

250 Characters.

Price:

This field can hold the current Price of the Product. The data entered should be numeric with 2 decimal places. Entering 999 will be interpreted as 999.00 The Price entered must be within the range 0 to 9,999,999.99 . The input of invalid data, for example alphabetic characters or a Price out of range, will be ignored.

10 Numeric Characters, in the form £££££££.00

Analysis Date:

In this field you may enter a date for your own analysis purposes. The date entered should be in the format DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on whether UK or USA date format is required. The input of a date in the wrong format or the input of an invalid date will be ignored.

Date field, DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY.

Date:

This field displays the date the Product was created. In the case of New Products, this is today's date.

Supplier:

This field is intended for the input of a Supplier Name.

40 Characters

Manufacturer:

This field is intended for the input of a Manufacturer Name.

40 Characters

Contract:

This field is intended for the input of Maintenance Contract information.

40 Characters

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to save the Product details you have entered. On acceptance of the data, you will be returned to the Main SupportDesk window for new Products, or the Product List for amended Products. If you wish to define Versions of the Product before departing, you must click on New prior to selecting OK. In this case, you will then be transferred to the Version Details window.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return without adding or amending the Product information.

Print....

This function is not available for New Products. You may produce a hard copy of the Product and its Versions when you Open an existing Product.  The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated.

New...

Click on New to add Product Versions. This action should be taken before clicking on OK.

Open...

This button allows you to alter an existing Product Version, it is only available when amending an existing Product. You select the Version by clicking on the required entry in the Versions list. You will be transferred to the Version Details window. Alternatively, you may simply double click on the required listed entry.

Delete...

Click on Delete to remove a Product Version. As for Open, this button is only available when amending an existing Product. You select the Version to be removed by clicking on the required entry in the Versions list. You will be asked to confirm your request.

SupportDesk checks that there are no Customers or outstanding Events referring to this Product Version. If so, an Error box will be presented. Otherwise, the selected Product Version will be removed and the Product Details window  re displayed.


 Enter Product Versions

When a Product is developed, various Versions of it may be released. To accommodate this, SupportDesk has the ability to hold multiple Versions for any defined Product. A Customer incident or Event can then be related not only to a Product, but its Version as well. Product Versions may only be defined by Supervisor and Support Users.

Product Versions can be established either when a new Product is being added or when an existing  Product has been opened for amendment. This is achieved by clicking the New... button at the Product Details window.

To enter new Product Versions:

From the Product Details window, click on New...

To amend existing Product Versions:

From the Product Details window, click on the required Version and click Open...

Fields

Version:

In this field you must enter a unique Version reference.

16 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Environment:

Here you may enter the machine or operating system platform.

16 Characters.

Status:

The release status of the version. For example Beta or Development.

16 Characters.

Price:

This field is supplied to hold the current Price of the Version. The Price must be entered in the range 0 to 9,999,999.99 . The input of an invalid Price will be ignored.

10 Numeric Characters, in the form £££££££.00

Analysis Date:

This field is designated to hold a date for your own analysis purposes. The date should be entered as DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY depending on the date format set by the Supervisor, either UK or USA. The input of an invalid Date will be ignored.

Date field, DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY

Description:

In this field you may enter a full Description of the Version.

250 Characters.

Date:

This field displays the date the Product Version was created. In the case of New Versions, this is today's date.

Buttons

OK

Click the OK button to add or amend a Version for the current Product. On acceptance of the data, you will be returned to the Product Details window. For new Versions, you will notice the Version added to the list of Versions.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Product Details window without adding or amending the Version.


 Delete a Product

SupportDesk allows Supervisor and Support Users to delete a Product and all its Versions. However, you are prevented from taking this action if outstanding Events refer to the Product or any of its Versions. Similarly, a Product and Version cannot be removed if it is currently assigned to a Customer.

To activate the Delete Products dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Product.

                                             Then, click on Delete...

Buttons

Close

Clicking on the Close button returns you to the Main SupportDesk window, performing no further Product deletes.

Delete

To delete a Product, simply click on the required listed entry and then click on Delete.

You will be asked to confirm this action.

If you click on Yes, SupportDesk will then check if there are any outstanding Events referring to the Product or any of its Versions. If this is so, you will be presented with an Error box and the removal of the Product will not be allowed. If the Product  is deleted, you will note its absence from the Delete Products... List when you are returned to this window.


Print a Summary of Products

Supervisor and Support Users can request a summary listing of all the Products. The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect the output.

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Product

                                             Then, click on Print...


Add a New Event

An Event consists basically of two parts, a Header Form which describes the Event's main attributes, followed by a number of  attached Reply Items. The Event Header is the initial Customer related incident or piece of correspondence, which requires a response of some sort. The Reply Items record the subsequent conversations, phone calls, letters etc. which occur in order to resolve the original Event.

To activate the Event Details dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Event.

                                             Then, click on New...

Alternatively, you may simply click on the Event icon displayed at the Main window.

Fields

Ref:

If the system is set up for automatic Reference generation, then this field will display the next generated Reference. Otherwise, you must input your own unique Reference.

8 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Category

Type, Status, Priority and Level:

These four fields operate in the same fashion. You are not able to key in a Category Code, you click on the pull down to display the options available for each of the four Category Codes. Click on the code required and it will be substituted into the field. Should you require a different Category Code to the ones on display, then discuss this with your Supervisor who is entitled to update the available Category Codes.

For those Users who are allowed to modify Events, selecting a Status of Closed automatically marks the Event as being closed. You will note that this check box is now marked with an 'X'. For more information on User privileges, see Configuration under Enter User Details.

If a Customer is selected where a Service Level Agreement has been specified, the Category Level will default to this Customer setting.

Product

Ref:

In this field, you may identify the Product related to the Event. Click on the pull down to display the Products and Versions available. Select the Product by clicking on the required listed entry. The selection will be entered into the Product field.

If the system has been configured at the Company Details dialogue for the Product List to be 'Customer Only', then this list will simply display the Products attributed to the selected Customer. If no Customer is selected, then the full list of Products is available. If 'Serial Numbers' has also been requested at Company Details level, then the Serial Numbers of the Customer's Products will be appended to the current Product and Version information.

Serial Number:

This field is available if 'Customer Only' and 'Serial Numbers' have been selected at the Company Details dialogue, as described for Product above. A Serial Number or the start of a Serial Number may be entered here, reducing the number of Products listed in the Product pull down.

Subject:

This is a free format area for you to describe the incident you wish to record. If you leave this field empty, it will default to the first 60 characters of the first Reply text. The Event Search facility uses the contents of this field when attempting to find a match on the search criterion.

60 Characters.

Customer Name:

In this field you may identify the Name of the Customer relating to this Event. Click on the pull down to display the Customer List and make a selection. Click on the Name you require  and it will be substituted in the Customer Name field.

If your Customer list is extensive, you can enter the first character or string of characters of the Customer Name, subsequently clicking on the pulldown displays the subset of Customers conforming to the selection criterion.

For those Users with Supervisor or Support level privileges, the Customer need not currently exist on the SupportDesk Customer Database. The Customer details can be entered at this time by clicking on the Details button.

40 Characters

Tel:

This field displays the Customer Telephone Number, as entered on the Customer Details dialogue. If a Customer Contact is subsequently selected, the Contact's Telephone Number is displayed, providing that one is available. This information is taken from the Customer Contacts Detail dialogue.

20 Characters, output only.

Expiry Date:

This field displays the Customer Maintenance Expiry Date, as entered on the Customer Details dialogue. If a Customer's Products only are listed, and a specific Product is selected, the Product Maintenance Expiry Date is displayed, providing that one is available. This information is taken from the Customer Inventory Details dialogue. (To configure the system to list Customer's Products only, see Company Details and System Configuration.)

Date Field, output only.

Contact:

This field enables you to name a Customer Contact. You may use the pull down to list the Contacts already named for the Customer and click on the required entry. The Location of the selected Contact is displayed, as specified on the Contacts dialogue. If no Customer has been identified, then there will be no entries in the selection box.

40 Characters.

Ref:

Enter here any Reference the Customer wishes to associate with the Event .

16 Characters.

Medium

The five check boxes: Letter, Phone, Hardcopy, Disk, and E-Mail can be used to specify the Medium by which the Event was reported by the Customer. Click any of the required boxes with your mouse.

Owner:

This field displays the name of the User inputting the Event Details.

Assignee:

Assignee defaults to the name of the User displayed in Owner. You can click on the pull down to list the Users and select an entry from this list. The Event will then be assigned to the selected User; who is prompted by a 'bleep'.

The Event will be listed at the Main SupportDesk window for the Supervisor, Owner (or initiator) of the Event and the Assignee, plus any other User who may View All Events. (If the assigned User has Engineer privilege, then this User will be unable to view the event, as Engineers are not enabled to use SupportDesk.) For more information on User privileges, see Configuration under Enter User Details.

Open Date:

The date the Event was input into the system is displayed here. For New Events, this is today's date. This Date may be amended providing that the User has been configured to perform this operation, see Configuration under Enter User Details. The date must be in the correct UK or US format, invalid dates will be ignored.

Date field, DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY

Open Time:

The time the Event was input into the system is displayed here. For New Events, this is the current time. The Open Time may be amended providing that the User has been configured to perform this operation.

Time field, HH:MM

Close Date:

If there are no more Replies to add, then the Event may be Closed by clicking on the Close check box. To perform this action, the User must be the Owner, Assignee or a Supervisor. Users who have been configured to 'Modify Events' can also check the Close check box. For more information on User privileges, see Configuration under Enter User Details.

For Events that have been 'closed' Today's date will be entered into this field. On return to the Main SupportDesk window, you will notice that the Event is marked with a tick. Closed Events can be transferred to the History File by the Supervisor using the Archive facility. Alternatively, the Supervisor can remove Closed Events by taking a Backup  or by using the Delete Event feature.

For those Users who are allowed to modify Events, selecting the Category Status of Closed also results in the Event being Closed.

This Date may be amended providing that the User has been configured to perform this operation, see Configuration under Enter User Details. The date must be in the correct UK or US format, invalid dates will be ignored.

Date field, DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY

Close Time:

Clicking on the Close check box substitutes the time the Event was closed into this field. The Close Time may be amended providing that the User has been configured to perform this operation.

Time field, HH:MM

Elapse:

This field displays the elapsed time since the Event was input, in days, hours and minutes. Amending the Open and Close Dates and Times will effect the Elapse Time.

Reply History

This box displays the history of the Event. Against each Reply line, the Author, Category Codes and Date of input can be displayed by switching on the appropriate button, see below. For new Events there will be nothing to display and the box will be empty. Reply History lines can be added by clicking the Add... button. Existing lines that have just been added, can be amended by clicking on the line to be changed and then selecting the Open... button. The update of Reply History is covered under Enter Replies.

Buttons

Details...

For Users who have Supervisor or Support level access, then clicking on Details will display the Customer Details window. The Customer Name entered will be displayed at the Customer Details window. If this Customer has not previously been added to SupportDesk then you are able to swiftly input the new Customer information. If the Customer already exists, then its details will be displayed ready for checking or update. Clicking on OK or Cancel at the Customer Details dialogue returns you to the Event Details dialogue.

For Users with Analyst or Hotline level privileges, this box appears grey and cannot be selected.

Author

Click on Author to display the Tag of the User who input the Reply text. When the Author is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Type

Click on Type to display the Category Type set against the Event when the Reply was input. When the Type is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Status

Click on Status to display the Category Status set against the Event when the Reply was input. When the Status is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Priority

Click on Priority to display the Category Priority set against the Event when the Reply was input. When the Priority is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Level

Click on Level to display the Category Level set against the Event when the Reply was input. When the Level is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Date

Click on Date to display the Date the Reply was input. When the Date is being displayed, the button text is suffixed by '-On'.

Add...

Click on Add to input details of conversations regarding this Event. You are transferred to the Reply dialogue.

Open...

To alter a Reply line for this Event, select the appropriate line and then click on Open. You are transferred to the Reply dialogue.

OK

Click on OK to add the Event. You will be returned to the Main SupportDesk window where the new Event will be included in the list.

More

The More button allows you to insert the current Event. The Event dialogue is refreshed retaining the pull down selections, ready for the input of another Event, ideally for the same Customer and Product. This allows for the swift input of multiple Events for the same Customer and Product. The pull down details may be changed if required.

The More button is only available when inputting new Events. When an existing Event is opened, this button does not appear.

Cancel

Clicking on Cancel reactivates the Main SupportDesk window and no update is performed.

Extra...

The Extra button caters for the input of extra data to be assigned to this Event. This is covered under Extra Event Fields.

Print...

For new Events the Print button is disabled and appears grey. For existing Events, that have been opened, the Print button produces a report of the Event and its Replies. The Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect your output.


Add Extra Event Details

Extra Event fields defined by the Supervisor, are available for update by all Users who are allowed to modify the Event. For set up details, see Define Extra Events

To activate the Extra Event Fields dialogue:

From the Event dialogue, click on the Extra... button.

Fields

The prompts defined by the Supervisor are associated with fields of the specified length. Key in the required data into the appropriate fields.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to add the extra information to the Event record and return to the Event dialogue.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Event dialogue making no change to the Event record.


Enter a Reply

Having input a summary of the Event details, you now need to record the responses to and from the Customer relating to this incident. Within SupportDesk, these are termed Replies. The Replies are logically attached to the Event to which they belong, in chronological order, thus providing a full history of the Event from its initial input to its final closure.

New Replies may be added and existing Replies may be opened for amendment. However, only a Supervisor, the Owner or Assignee of the  Event may automatically perform any updates regarding the Event or it's Replies. Other Users can update Replies providing that they are configured to do so. The Reply is marked with the User Tag in order to discern, at a later date, who input the response. Against the Reply, the current Categories are also recorded, plus the input date and time. This information can be viewed in the Reply History box at the Event Details dialogue.

Replies can only be associated with an Event. Therefore, the Reply dialogue is activated from the Event Details dialogue, attaching the Replies to the current Event.

While the Event is open, Replies that have been added during the current 'Open Event' session may be updated. Replies input  during a previous session may not be updated, unless the User's configuration permits this activity. See Configuration under Entering Users for more information on configuration.

To Add a New Reply:

From the Event Details dialogue, click Add...

To Amend or View an existing Reply:

Click on the required Reply in the Reply History box, at the Event Details window.

Click on Open...

Alternatively, you can double click on the required Reply.

The Reply dialogue will be activated and the current Reply details displayed. Users may alter the Text and Document information by simply over typing the current data.

Fields

Event:

The Event Reference is displayed here.

Author:

The Author, i.e. the User inputting the Reply details, is displayed here.

Category:

The four Category Codes, Type, Status, Priority and Level are displayed here, separated by commas.

Date:

This field displays the Reply's creation  date. When adding new Replies, this will be today's date.

Time:

This field displays the time the Reply was input. When adding new Replies, this will be the current time as determined by your PC.

Reply:

The sequence number of the current Reply is displayed here, for example 2 of 3.

This is followed by a free format area for you to input any information regarding the Event. For example, you may wish to record a summary of a telephone conversation held with the Customer about the problem or detail that the incident has been resolved and a response to the Customer has been sent in the post.

If this is the initial Reply for an Event then the first 60 characters will be used as a default for the Event Subject matter.

The first 80 characters of each Reply can be used in the Quick Search feature, hence it may be useful to include some key words in the first part of the text.

Reply text can only be altered prior to saving the Event, unless the User has specifically been configured to 'Modify History' at the User Details dialogue. In which case, the User can update the Reply text at any time.

Using the keys Ctrl plus Enter introduces a line skip.

10,000 Characters.

Job Time:

This field can be used to enter a job time in hours and minutes.

5 Characters, in the format HH:MM.

Application:

You may attach to your Reply an associated document. This document must exist as a physical file in your working directory and have been created via a Windows application such as 'Write' or 'Winword'. If you wish to utilise this facility, you should enter the name of the Windows application in this field.

8 Characters.

Name:

In this field you should enter the Name of the document / file created by the Application described above. These 2 fields are used by the Edit... button, to start the Application with the Named file.

12 Characters.

Buttons

Edit...

The Edit button starts the Windows application identified in the Application field using the Named File. The Edit button will not operate if the Application is not valid or cannot be found on your Path.

Previous and Next

When the Reply of an established Event is viewed, the Previous or Next Reply can be displayed by selecting the appropriate button. If the text of the current Reply has been amended, then you are asked to confirm the alteration before switching to another Reply. If there are no Previous or Next Replies to view, then the buttons are disabled and appear grey.

OK

Click on OK to save the Reply. You will be returned to the Event Details dialogue.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Event dialogue without saving the Reply.


Update an Event

Events will need to be updated when  new Replies are added. At this time, you may also wish to alter the Status or Priority of an Event. For example, the Status may change from being 'Assigned' to 'Response sent to Customer', or the Priority may be upgraded to 'Urgent' from 'Medium' if, after investigation, the problem appears more serious.

All Events can be altered by a Supervisor. Events can also be updated by their Owner (i.e. the User who originally input the Event) or the Assignee. These Users will have this particular Event included in their Event list at the Main window and it follows that they can view and modify their listed Events. However, other Users can also update an Event, providing that the User has been configured to 'Modify Events' at the User Details dialogue.

To activate the Event Details dialogue for an existing Event:

At the Main SupportDesk window double click on the required Event listed,

or click on the required Event and hit the Enter key.

You will be presented with the details of the Event.

Alternatively, from the Main SupportDesk window, click on Event.

                                                               Then, click on Open...

You will activate the Open Event... dialogue where you can enter the reference of the required Event.

This method will be most useful in the situation of having pages of Events listed at the Main window and the Reference of the particular Event to be opened is known. If the User is not allowed to modify the Event, then the Event details can only be viewed.

A successful Open activates the Event Details dialogue.

Fields

The use of fields is covered under the earlier Add a New Event. Please note that the More button is not available when opening an existing Event. For Users who are not allowed to modify the Event details, all the fields are 'grey' and cannot be altered.

Buttons

The use of most Buttons is also been described under Add a New Event.

Add...

Click on Add to add more Replies to this Event. The Reply dialogue will be activated. Before leaving the Event Details window, you should click on OK to store the added Replies.

Open...

Click on Open to view / update Replies. Prior to this, you should select the Reply by clicking on the required entry in the Reply History box. Only Replies entered during this current 'Open Event' session may be updated. However, Users configured to 'Modify History' can update the Reply text of their own  Events at any time. This option can be set for the User at the User Details dialogue.

OK

If any Replies have been added, then you should click on OK, irrespective of whether any updates have been made to the Event Details themselves. If not, the new Replies will be discarded. If existing Replies have been modified, then the updates will be saved irrespective of whether OK is selected.

<=

This button refreshes the Event dialogue with the previous Event listed at the Main window. (The list being subject to any of the View criteria.) Changes that have been made to the Event and its Replies will be saved prior to the new Event being displayed. An error message is displayed if the User attempts to go beyond the start of the list.

>=

This button refreshes the Event dialogue with the next Event listed at the Main window. (The list being subject to any of the View criteria.) Changes that have been made to the Event and its Replies will be saved prior to the new Event being displayed. An error message is displayed if the User attempts to go beyond the end of the list.

Extra...

Click on Extra to enter or alter any extra fields associated with the Event. If the User can only view the Event, the Extra Event fields cannot be amended.

Print...

Click on Print to produce a hard copy of the Event and its Replies. The Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated.


Delete an Event

SupportDesk allows Supervisors and Event Owners and Assignees to delete an Event providing that it is marked as 'closed' with a tick. Other Users can also be configured to perform the delete operation. For more information on User privileges, see Configuration under Enter User Details.

To delete an Event:

At the Main SupportDesk window, highlight the Event to be deleted.

Then, click on Event.

Then, click on Delete...

You will be asked to confirm your request.

If the Event is not 'closed', the delete request will be rejected. If you are not configured to delete Events, the request will also be rejected.

On completion of the task, you are returned to the Main SupportDesk window.

Events can also be deleted using the Backup facility. Alternatively, Closed Events can be archived to the History File for later recall or enquiry.


'Go To' an Event

SupportDesk provides you with the ability to start the Event list at the Main window from a known Event Reference. This is particularly useful in the situation where there are many Events to display.

To activate the Go To Event dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Event.

                                             Then, click on Go To...

Fields

Ref:

The Reference field defaults to the currently selected Event Reference. I.e. the Event highlighted. To change this, simply over type with a new Reference. The Event with this Reference must exist or the request will be rejected with an Error box.

For valid References, the Events listed at the Main window will start from this Reference, but will also comply with any Select or Search criteria set.

Buttons

OK

The OK button actions the new Go To request, returning you to the Main SupportDesk window with a refreshed screen.

Cancel

Cancel, returns you to the Main SupportDesk window without effecting the current display.


Print Event Summaries

The reports contain a list of Events that would appear at the Main SupportDesk window. I.e. the Events in the report are subject to any active Select and Search options.

To print a Summary of the Events input by or assigned to you:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Event.

                                             Then, click on Print.

         Finally, select Short or Long.

The Short report list the Events with Summary information only, one per line. The fields included in the Report are determined by the Fields Option. The fields are presented in the same order as those displayed at the Main Window. Refer to Field Positions.

The Long report produces an individual Event Report for each of the selected Events. Each Event starts on a new page.

Prior to printing, the Windows Print Setup dialogue is activated, allowing you to redirect the output. You are subsequently returned to the Main SupportDesk window.


Input a New Report

Report definitions are input and updated at the Report Designer dialogue. To add a Report, this dialogue must be initiated as New to define the report parameters for the first time.

To activate the Report Designer dialogue for the input of a New Report:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Report.

                                             Then, click on New...

Fields

Title:

Enter the text which is to appear at the top of the Report. For example, 'Summary Of  Faults Over One Month Old'. This field is mandatory and must be unique as it is also used to identify existing Reports when they need to be updated or run again. An error box will be presented if this field is not supplied satisfactorily.

60 Characters, mandatory and unique.

Include

The Include subset of fields all operate in the same fashion. If there are more than 5 entries to display, then you can use the scroll bars to view other entries. Click the corresponding All button to select all the entries, subsequently clicking with your mouse on an individual entry deselects it. Click on the corresponding None button to de-select all the entries, subsequently clicking on an individual entry selects it.  Events meeting the highlighted selection criteria will be included in the Report.

Categories:

All of the Category Codes are listed here. Each Code is prefixed by its Category Group Name, i.e. Level, Priority, Status or Type. You can click on the scroll bars to view all the available options. By default, none of the Categories are selected.

Customers:

A full list of the Customers is displayed. Mark the required entries. Events relating to selected Customers will be reported on. By default, none of the Customers are selected.

Products:

Products are listed with their Versions. As before, Events for highlighted Products will be included in the Report. By default, none of the Products are selected.

Users:

The Users are listed here and by default, they are All selected. For Users accessing SupportDesk with Analyst privilege, then only that User's tag is displayed here. Analysts can only report on their own Events. If the Supervisor designs a Report, then all the Users are listed, enabling the Supervisor to produce a report of all Events, irrespective of User, or to list Events being handled by a particular group of Users.

Date

There are a variety of ways of defining the Date parameters, the method is determined by the radio button you select. Only one method can be selected. The default is All. In other words, all Events will be included in the Report, irrespective of age.

All

Click on All if you wish Events to be included in the Report, regardless of Date.

Less than

If you click on Less than, then the Number of  Time Units fields become active. Events less than the number of time units old will be included in the Report. For example, if the Run Date is 28/03/95 and the date parameter is 'less than 7 days old', then Events created since 21/03/95 will be considered for the Report. This is useful if you wish to report on recently opened Events.

More than

Clicking on More than makes the Number of Time Units fields and the For Number of  Time Units fields active. Events more than the number of time units old will be included in the Report. For example, if the Run Date is 28/03/95 and the date parameter is 'more than 2 months old', then Events created before 28/01/95 will be considered for the Report. In addition, you can specify an end range for  the report. For example, More than '30 mins For 90 mins' would result in Events that are 30 minutes upto 2 hours old being included in the report.

Number of Time Units:

These fields are unlabelled but become available when you click on Less than or More than. Enter the number of Minutes, Hours, Days, Months or Years that are required for the Less than / More than request and then select the Time Unit from the adjacent list box.

3 Numeric Characters.

For Number of Time Units:

These fields are unlabelled but become available when you click on More than. Once you have entered a Number of Time Units, you may also select an end limit for the More than request. The Time Unit already selected (described for previous field) is repeated for clarity. For example, 'More than 2 days For 5 days'.

3 Numeric Characters.

From

When you click on From, the To date field becomes active. You may now input a date range. Events with Open dates on and within this range will all be included in the report. Both date fields should be entered, in either UK or US format as defined by the Supervisor. The From Date must be earlier than the To date and both fields should be valid dates. Invalid input will be ignored. As an example, From could be set to 01/01/95 and To could be set to 31/03/95 in order to report on Events in the first quarter of the year. If you click on a different Date Selection radio button after having input From and To dates, these dates will remain, but because the From radio button is no longer active, the Report Designer will not refer to this date range.

Using

The Date selection criteria described above, evaluate an Event for inclusion in the Report based on its Open or Closed Date depending on the radio button selected.

Sort

The Event record fields to be used for sorting must be listed in the Order box in the required order of priority. You make your selection from the list of fields, using the arrow buttons.

>>

The currently selected Field will be transferred to the Order box. When the Report is run, Events will be sorted on this field.

<<

The currently selected Order entry will be returned to the list of Fields. Events will no longer be sorted on this field when the Report is run.

List of available Fields

The Fields available for sorting are; Customer, Date (Open), Level, Priority, Product, Status, Type and User.

Order:

The fields selected for sorting are listed here in the Order required.

When choosing your sort fields and their order, you should consider the other parameters you have supplied for the report. For example, if you have already selected that the Events must relate to one Customer only, then there is no point including Customer as a sort key field as there will never be a change of Customer.

The first Sort field will be used as a sub-heading to break up the report. The other sort fields will only be printed if they have also be specifically included in the detail line.

Orientation

Select either of the radio buttons Portrait or Landscape.

Options

The following check boxes allow you specify page throw and sub totalling options.

Page Feeds

Click the Page Feeds check box on, i.e. marked with a cross,  if you wish to have a page throw after a change of the primary sort key. (The primary sort key is the first entry in the Order box.)

Sub Totals

Cross the Sub Totals check box, if you wish the Report to detail the number of Events in each primary sort key. Any User Fields, that have been defined as 'Accumulated', and are included in the Report will be summed. This is also true of the Event field Elapsed Time, providing that it is included in the detail of the report.

Grand Totals

Cross the Grand Totals check box, if you wish the Report to state the total number of Events. A grand total for any User Fields, that have been defined as 'Accumulated', and are included in the Report will be printed. Again, this is also true of the Event field Elapsed Time, providing that it is included in the detail of the report.

Fields

The fields available for printing in the detail of the report are listed here. Fields are available from Customer, Event and Reply records. The width of the fields can be adjusted at the Field Widths dialogue. You make your selection from the list of fields, using the arrow buttons.

Excluded:

The Fields available for printing are listed here in alphabetical order.

Included:

The fields selected for printing are listed here in the order required.

>>

The selected field, currently Excluded from the report, will be transferred to the Included list after the field currently highlighted. When the Report is run, this field will be printed.

<<

The selected field, currently Included in the Report, will be returned to the list of Excluded Fields. This field will no longer be printed when the Report is run.

The fields available are:

Field	Source/Description

Address 1	Customer

Address 2	Customer

Assignee	Event

Close Date	Event

Close Time	Event

Contact	Event

Country	Address Line 5, Customer

Cust Ref	Customer's Own Event Reference, Event

Customer	Customer Reference

Customer Name	Customer Name of Customer referenced on Event

Date	Open Date, Event

Elapse Time	Event

Expiry 	Expiry Date from Customer or Customer's Product as shown on Event dialogue.

Level	Category Code, Event

Medium	Event

Owner	User who input Event

Phone No	Telephone Number from Customer or Customer Contact as shown on Event dialogue.

Postcode	Customer

Priority	Category Code, Event

Product	Product Reference, Event

Product Name	Product Name of Product referenced on Event

Reference	Event Reference

Region	Address Line 4, Customer

Replies	All the Event's Replies

Status	Category Code, Event

Subject	Event

Time	Open Time, Event

Town	Address Line 3, Customer

Type	Category Code, Event

Version	Version Reference, Event

User Defined Fields will be included in the above list in their alphabetical position.

Buttons

OK

Save the Report parameters and return to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

Return to the Main SupportDesk window, without saving or activating the Report parameters.

Run...

Click Run to execute the Report using the current Report parameters. The Windows Printer Setup dialogue will be activated to enable you to redirect the print output.

Export...

Click Export to execute the Report using the current Report parameters. Output will be created as a file of Comma Separated Values. The standard Windows 'Save As' dialogue is activated so that you can specify the directory and name of your export file. By default, the file is repexprt.txt on the SupportDesk directory. You are given the option of viewing the output immediately, by selecting Yes on the query dialogue that is presented. Notepad is initiated for you to browse the results.


Update and Reprint a Report

Existing Reports can be recalled for updating or reprinting at anytime. You simply select and open the Report you require, reactivating the Report Designer dialogue. Any of the parameters may be changed, as described under Input a New Report. These changes will not be saved unless you click the OK button. If you Run the Report, the parameters displayed will be used. This allows you to tailor the parameters for one run, but leaving the original parameters unchanged.

To Select a Report for Update :

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Report.

                                               The, click on Open...

The Reports... List is also activated by clicking on the Report icon, displayed at the Main SupportDesk window.

Buttons

Open...

Click with your mouse on the Report you require and then click Open. The Report Designer dialogue will be activated and you can process the Report as desired.

A Report can also be selected by double clicking on the required entry.

Close

Click on Close if you wish to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Re-run a Report

Existing Reports can be re-run at anytime. You simply select and run the Report you require.

To Select a Report for Reprinting :

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Report.

                                               The, click on Run...

Buttons

Run...

Click with your mouse on the Report you require and then click Run. The Windows Printer Setup dialogue will be activated to enable you to redirect the print output.

You can also double click on the required Report.

Close

Click on Close if you wish to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Delete a Report

To delete a Report, you must identify the Report to be removed from the Report List and then select the Delete button.

To activate the Delete Reports... List:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Reports.

                                            Then, click on  Delete...

Buttons

Delete

Click on the required Report and then select the Delete button. SupportDesk  will ask you to confirm your request by presenting a Confirmation box.

Close

Click on Close to return to the Main SupportDesk window, no delete will be actioned.


Export a Report

Existing Reports can be exported by simply selecting the Report you require from a list.

To Select a Report for Exporting:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Report.

                                               The, click on Export...

Buttons

Export...

Click with your mouse on the Report you require and then click Export. The report output will be a file of Comma Separated Values. The widths of the exported fields will be determined by any Field Widths set.

The standard Windows 'Save As' dialogue is activated so that you can specify the directory and name of your export file. By default, the file is repexprt.txt on the SupportDesk directory. You are given the option of viewing the output immediately, by selecting Yes on query dialogue that is presented.

Notepad is initiated for you to browse the results.

A Report can also be selected by double clicking on the required entry.

Close

Click on Close if you wish to return to the Main SupportDesk window.


Report Field Widths

The Field Widths dialogue allows you to state the lengths of the fields in Report Designer output. The changes will also effect the lengths of these fields where they appear in standard reports and exported reports.

To specify field widths for reporting:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Report.

                                            Then, click on  Field Widths...

Once set, the widths will come into effect for all report output; however, the widths can be different for each User.


SupportDesk Fields Option

The Fields Option allows the User to tailor the Event information displayed at the Main SupportDesk window. The available fields are listed, those included in the display are marked with a tick. You can click the fields on and off with your mouse.

To select Event fields for display:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Options.

                                            Then, click on  Fields

To alter the fields on display, simply click on the field, to add or remove it as appropriate. The fields available are:

Reference

Customer Ref

Customer Name

Product Ref

Product Name

Version

Type

Status

Priority

Level

Date

Assignee

Subject


SupportDesk Fonts Option

The Fonts Option allows the User to tailor the Fonts used when producing print output from SupportDesk.  Various Fonts can be selected for the headings and detail lines of the reports.  The font styles can be altered at any time, and the standard defaults can be re-established.

To select Font styles:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Options.

                                            Then, click on  Fonts

Three choices are then available;

Window...	Not currently available.

Reports/Summaries	See below.

Restore Defaults	To reset the standard font styles.

For the Reports/Summaries menu item, one of four choices can then be made;

Page No/Date...	The first Heading Line

Co. Name/Dept...	The second Heading Line

Title...	The third Heading Line

Detail Lines...	The body of the report

Each of these 4 options, when selected, activates the standard Windows Font dialogue. Simply, identify the style required and it will be used when printing the appropriate line. On completion of the current selection, control is returned to the Main window.


SupportDesk Colours Option

The Colours Option allows the User to tailor the Colours used at the Main SupportDesk window.

To select Colours:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Options.

                                            Then, click on  Colours

Two choices are then available;

Background...

Highlighted...

Both options activate the standard Windows Colour dialogue. Simply, identify the colour required and it will be used for the selected area.


SupportDesk Tool Bar and Status Line Options

These Options allow the User to switch the Tool Bar and/or the Status Line on and off

To switch the Tool Bar:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Options.

                                            Then, click on  Tool Bar

The Tool Bar appears at the top of the Main SupportDesk window and provides quick access to various dialogues. A tick indicates when the Tool Bar is being displayed.

Exit SupportDesk (All Users)	Password Dialogue (All Users)

Printer Setup (All Users)	New Event (All Users)

Report List (All Users)	Product List (Supervisor & Support)

Customer List (Supervisor & Support)	User List (Supervisor)

Categories Dialogue (Supervisor)	Help (All Users)

To switch the Status Line:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on Options.

                                            Then, click on  Status Line

The Status Line appears at the bottom of the Main SupportDesk window and summarises current details. A tick against the menu item shows when the Status Line is being displayed.

The items displayed are as follows:-

1. SupportDesk Database Directory, or

    Quick Help for Menu Items.

2. Total Number of Events.

3. Search String / Date Range Selection Parameters.

4. Current Case, Live or History


Alter Field Widths at the Main Window

The width of fields at the Main window can be adjusted dynamically by clicking on the edge of the field title box and then stretching or shrinking the field to the required size using your mouse.


Field Positions  at the Main Window
SupportDesk Field Positions at the Main Window

The position of fields displayed at the Main window can be adjusted by positioning the cursor on the appropriate field column and clicking on the right mouse button. A  menu 'pops up', with the following entries:-

Remove - To remove the selected field column from the Main Window.

Move	  - To move the selected column to the Left or Right.

Align	  - To align the column entries Left, Centre or Right under the column heading.

Exit	  - To exit SupportDesk.


View Selected Events

SupportDesk allows you to select which Event subsets are to be listed at the Main window. This is achieved at the Select dialogue, where you indicate which attributes an Event must have to appear at the Main window.

The Select dialogue can be left active on your desktop as long as you want and you can alter your selection criteria when desired. Note, that if you exit SupportDesk with the Select dialogue active, then it will automatically be activated when the system is next initiated. If you leave the Select dialogue on your screen, but wish to move it, then click on the  title bar and drag the window with your mouse to a more favourable position. You may also minimise the Select dialogue. You can hide the Select dialogue but leave it active by checking Hidden from the View Menu or clicking on the Hide button on the Select dialogue.

If you cancel the Select dialogue, the display at the Main window will revert to a full Event list. The Select window can be closed by clicking on Cancel. You may also close the Select window by clicking on Select at the Event Menu pull down. You will note that Select is marked with a tick while it is active.

To activate the Select dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on View.

                                             Then, click on Select...

Fields

When the Selection dialogue is first activated, all the Categories, Customers, Products and Users will be selected. (This reflects the full display of Events at the Main Window.) Selected entries appear highlighted. The 4 selection criteria, Categories, Customers, Products and Users, operate in the same fashion. If there are more than 6 entries to display, then you can use the scroll bars to view other entries. Click the corresponding All button to select all the entries, subsequently clicking with your mouse on an individual entry deselects it. Click on the corresponding None button to de-select all the entries, subsequently clicking on an individual entry selects it.  Events meeting the highlighted selection criteria will be displayed at the Main SupportDesk window when you click the Refresh button.

Categories:

All of the Category Codes are listed here. Each Code is prefixed by its Category Group Name, i.e. Level, Priority, Status or Type. You can click on the scroll bars to view all the available options.

Customers:

A full list of the Customers is displayed. Mark the required entries. Events relating to selected Customers will be presented at the Main SupportDesk window.

Products:

Products are listed with their Versions. As before, Events for highlighted Products will be displayed at the Main window.

Users:

A  list of the Users of SupportDesk is displayed. Mark the required entries. Events relating to selected Users will be presented at the Main SupportDesk window. Note, the term Users includes Engineers, who can be assigned Events but are not able to log in to SupportDesk.

Buttons

All

For each of the 4 selection criteria; Categories, Customers, Products and Users, the All button selects all the entries. Particular entries can then be de selected by clicking on them with your mouse.

None

Click on the None button to de-select all of the entries in a selection list. Clicking on individual entries will then reselect the entry.

Refresh

The Refresh button causes the Event list at the Main SupportDesk window to be renewed, according to the selections you have made. The selections may be altered and the Event list refreshed at any time while the Select dialogue is active.

Hide

This button hides the Select dialogue, but it remains active. In the View menu, the entry 'Hidden' will be marked with a tick when the Select dialogue is active but hidden. If Select is not active, then the 'Hidden' entry is disabled and appears grey.

Cancel

The Cancel button cancels the Select window; the Main window reverts to displaying a full Event list.


Text Search Events

SupportDesk provides a Text Search facility, searching the Event Subject field and the Reply History, for a defined string of characters; only displaying those Events that meet the Search criteria. The Events listed will also meet any Selection criteria set.

To activate the Search dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on View.

                                             Then, click on Search...

Fields

For:

In this box you enter the string of characters you wish to search for. SupportDesk will only display those Events where the Subject (or Subject and Replies) contains this string. If you wish to remove an active Search, then delete the current character.

60 Characters

Case Sensitive

Click this box on, if you want a match in characters and case.

Replies

Check this box if you want to search the Replies as well as the Event Subject matter.

Short Search

This check box is disabled, unless Replies is checked. Click this box if you just want to search the first 80 characters of each Reply plus the Event Subject matter.

Buttons

OK

Click OK to start the Search. The Main window will be refreshed with Events meeting the Search criteria. Remember, that the display will also comply with any Selection options defined. The Search will remain in operation until altered or cleared.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main window without effecting the Search.


View Events by Date
 Select Events by Date Range

Events can be evaluated for display at the Main Window based on Elapsed Time.

There are a variety of ways of defining the Date parameters, the method is determined by the radio button selected. Only one method can be selected at a time. The default is All. In other words, all Events will be included in the list, irrespective of age, but still subject to any other View specifications that may be active.

To view Events by Date:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on View.

                                              Then, click on Date Range...

Fields

All

Click on All if you wish Events to be listed, regardless of Date.

Less than

If you click on Less than, then the Number of  Time Units fields become active. Events less than the number of time units old will be included in the list. For example, if today's date is 28/03/95 and the date parameter is 'less than 7 days old', then Events created since 21/03/95 will be considered for the display. This is useful if you wish to list recently opened Events.

More than

Clicking on More than makes the Number of Time Units fields and the For Number of  Time Units fields active. Events more than the number of time units old will be listed at the Main Window. For example, if today's date is 28/03/95 and the date parameter is 'more than 2 months old', then Events created before 28/01/95 will be considered for display. In addition, you can specify an end range. For example, More than '30 mins For 90 mins' would result in Events that are 30 minutes upto 2 hours old being considered for display.

Number of Time Units:

These fields are unlabelled but become available when you click on Less than or More than. Enter the number of Minutes, Hours, Days, Months or Years that are required for the Less than / More than request and then select the Time Unit from the adjacent list box.

3 Numeric Characters.

For Number of Time Units:

These fields are unlabelled but become available when you click on More than. Once you have entered a Number of Time Units, you may also select an end limit for the More than request. The Time Unit already selected (described for previous field) is repeated for clarity. For example, 'More than 2 days For 5 days'.

3 Numeric Characters.

From

When you click on From, the To date field becomes active. You may now input a date range. Events with Open dates on and within this range will all be included in the display. Both date fields should be entered, in either UK or US format as defined by the Supervisor. The From Date must be earlier than the To date and both fields should be valid dates. Invalid input will be ignored. As an example, From could be set to 01/01/95 and To could be set to 31/03/95 in order to list Events entered in the first quarter of the year.

Buttons

OK

Click OK to activate the selected Date Range. The Main window will be refreshed with Events meeting the Date Range criteria. Remember, that the display will also comply with any Select and Search specified. The Date Range will remain in operation until altered or reset to All.

Cancel

Click on Cancel to return to the Main window without changing the current Date Range specification.


View History

The View History feature enables the User to list at the Main window, Closed Events that have been archived to the History File by the Supervisor. The Events can only be viewed and not updated. Supervisor Users can transfer Closed Historical Events back to the live Event Database.

To view History:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on View

                                            Then, click on  History.

The Main window will be refreshed listing the archived Closed Events. The list will also be subject to any active Select, Search and Date Range settings. When Historical Events are listed, the History View Menu item is marked with a tick.


View By...

This View option is only available to Supervisor Users.

Various secondary indices are maintained against the Event database. The  'View By' options utilise these to re-order the list of Events at the Main Window.

The choices available are:-

View By 	Customer

 	Product

Assignee

Priority

Status

Type

Level

For example;

To View By Customer:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on View

                                            Then, click on  Customer.

The Main window will be refreshed, listing the Events in Customer order, ascending alphabetically.

If you 'View By' one of the Category bands, the Events are grouped in the order the Category Codes have been input. (This is also the order the Category Names are listed at the Category Dialogue.)

An active 'View By' option can be identified by a tick against the menu item. To re-instate the usual Event Reference order, click with your mouse on the 'ticked' entry.


Change Your Password

The procedure to change the Password associated with your Login is very straightforward, however you must know your current Password in order to login to perform this update. If you have forgotten your Password, consult your Supervisor who is able to enquire upon this information.

To activate the Password dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on File.

                                             Then, click on Password...

Alternatively, you may simply click on the Key icon displayed at the Main SupportDesk window.

Fields

Password:

Enter your new Password. The contents of the field remain hidden.

8 Characters, mandatory.

Buttons

OK

Click on OK to update your Password and return to the Main SupportDesk window.

Cancel

The Cancel button returns you to the Main SupportDesk window without changing your Password.


Printer Setup

SupportDesk allows access to the standard Windows Printer Setup dialogue so that you can redirect print output.

To activate the Printer Setup dialogue:

From the Main SupportDesk window, click on File.

                                             Then, click on Printer Setup...

Alternatively, you may simply click on the Printer icon displayed at the Main SupportDesk window.


Use the Clipboard

The Windows environment provides a Clipboard facility for pasting information to a common area for inclusion in similar Windows products.

SupportDesk has the ability to paste Event information as comma separated text to the Windows Clipboard. This can then be retrieved from the Clipboard by other Windows products. The fields copied correspond with the Fields currently being displayed at the Main Window. This is determined by the Fields selected from the Options Menu.

To copy Event detail to the Clipboard:

At the Main SupportDesk window, click on the Event to be copied.

                                              Then, click on Edit.

                                           Finally, click on Copy.

For the selected Event JSS00003 above, the following is copied to the Clipboard:-

JSS00003,AlumEng,Gamma,2.0,Enhancement,Open,Medium,1 Year Warranty,06/02/95,13:45,16d 00h08m,Agatha,Support for local printer,

Note:

To view the current contents of the Clipboard, double click with your mouse on the Clipboard icon in the Main Group of the Windows 3 Program Manager.


SupportDesk Settings

The following is a description of the suppdesk.ini file settings. These attributes are set automatically by the software. No changes should be made directly without first consulting House-on-the-Hill Software.

[SuppDesk]

Editor=notepad	; Which Editor to Run when Browsing Files

ToolBar=1	; Toolbar on/off

StatusLine=1	; StatusLine on/off

Override=0	; Login (Clear all Users Override)

NoMail=0	; Removes Mail/Send SupportDesk Menu completely

Select=0	; Whether Select ToolBox Active when SupportDesk terminated

SelectHidden=0	; Whether Select ToolBox Hidden  ""       ""         ""

3D=1	; Chizelled Gray 3D Effect

Refresh=0	; Automated Refresh (Seconds)

Syncronise=5	; No. of Seconds between Database syncronisations

Indexing=1	; Whether Indexing is enabled

FileLock=1	; Whether File Locking is enabled

SelEvent=00001673	; Last Selected Event on termination

DocumentDir=	; Directory Prefix for all attached Reply Documents

CaseSensitive=1	; Case Sensitive Databases

DefaultCategories=0	; Whether to select Default Categories

UseRepHeadings=0	; Whether Main Window should use Report Field Headings

State=1	; SupportDesk Window state Min,Max or Def

[DLL]

EMail=c:\suppdesk\sdmapi.dll	; Optional E-Mail DLL

Extern=c:\suppdesk\sdextern.dll	; External Interface DLL

[Reply]	; Which Reply Fields active in Event Dialogue

Author=1	; On=1,  Off=0

Status=1

Priority=1

Date=1

Level=1

Type=1

[Table]

Lock=0	; Whether to Lock Databases when locking records

Flush=1	; Whether to force record flush on every write.

[Backup]

Merge=0	; 'Merge Databases' Checkbox

Dir=	; Previous Backup Directory

[Colours]	; Background Colours

Select=255,0,0	; Select Event

Unselect=255,255,255	; Unselected Events

History=255,255,0	; Unselected History Database Events

[Fonts]	; Current Fonts

Window=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,

RepPageDate=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,

RepCoDept=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,

RepTitle=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,

RepDetail=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,

StatusLine=-13,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,Arial

[Database]

Directory=	; Use different database directory to SupportDesk's

Trace=1	; Database Trace

[1.60]

CustomerConfigStyle=0	; Old Customer/Product Listbox

[Reporter]

CharAdjustment=0	; Character Adjustment

WordBreak=1	; Whether to break up Reply sentences on word boundaries

MultiplyAve=3	; Character Width based on 3 x AveCharWidth plus

MultiplyMax=2	; 2 x MaxCharWidth / (2+3)

[Folders]

History=History.fld	; History Database Subdirectory

;User's own Data-Dictionary of all Database Fields

;Key=Field No.,  Active,  Window Width(Pixels),  Reporter Width(Chars),  Alignment,

;        Details Report Column Position, Reporter Field Heading

;Field No. = Col Position on Main Window

;Active    =  not active=0, active=1

;	      0x01 Event Summary/MAin Window,

;	      0x02 Customer Summary,

;                 0x04 Product Summary,

;	      0x08 User Summary

;                 0x16 Available for reporting

;                 0x32 Last Active Event Field

; Alignment = Left=0, Centre=-1, Right=-2

[Event]

Reference=0,17,75,9,0,8,Reference

Customer=1,17,75,8,0,8,Customer

Customer Name=2,16,200,40,0,12,Customer Name

Product=3,17,75,8,0,8,Product

Product Name=4,16,200,40,0,8,Product Name

Version=5,17,75,8,0,8,Version

Type=6,17,100,16,0,40,Type

Status=7,17,100,16,0,40,Status

Priority=8,17,100,16,0,40,Priority

Level=9,17,100,16,0,40,Level

Date=10,17,90,8,0,70,Date

Time=11,17,75,5,0,70,Time

Elapse Time=12,17,100,12,0,70,Elapse Time

Assignee=13,17,75,8,0,60,Assignee

Subject=14,17,250,60,0,8,Subject

Cust Own Ref=15,48,75,8,0,40,Cust Ref

Contact=16,16,150,40,0,12,Contact

Serial=17,16,100,16,0,8,Serial

Phone No=18,16,75,20,-2,12,Phone No

Address 1=19,16,100,40,0,8,Address 1

Address 2=20,16,100,40,0,8,Address 2

Address 3=21,16,100,40,0,8,Town

Address 4=22,16,100,40,0,8,Region

Address 5=23,16,100,40,0,8,Country

Postcode=24,16,75,16,0,8,Postcode

Owner=25,16,75,8,0,60,Owner

Close Date=26,16,90,8,-2,70,Cl Date

Close Time=27,16,75,5,-2,70,Cl Time

Replies=28,16,250,0,-1,0,Replies

Medium=29,16,100,40,0,40,Medium

Expiry=30,16,90,8,0,40,Expiry

[Customer]

Name=36,2,0,32,0,8,Name

Reference=37,2,0,8,0,8,Ref

Dept=38,0,0,40,0,8,Dept

Address 1=39,0,0,40,0,8,Address 1

Address 2=40,0,0,40,0,8,Address 2

Address 3=41,0,0,40,0,8,Town

Address 4=42,0,0,40,0,8,Region

Address 5=43,0,0,40,0,8,Country

Postcode=44,0,0,16,0,8,Postcode

Phone1=45,2,0,20,0,50,Phone1

Phone2=46,0,0,20,0,50,Phone2

Fax=47,0,0,20,0,50,Fax

E-Mail=48,0,0,20,0,50,E-Mail

Modem=49,0,0,20,0,50,Modem

Expiry=50,0,0,8,0,50,Expiry Date

SLA=51,0,0,16,0,50,Service Level

Acc Mgr=52,0,0,40,0,50,Acc Mgr

Market=53,0,0,20,0,50,Market

Date=54,2,0,8,0,50,Date

Narrative=55,2,0,250,0,8,Narrative

[Contact]

Name=56,0,0,40,0,8,Name

Dept=57,0,0,40,0,8,Dept

Location=58,0,0,40,0,8,Location

Address 1=59,0,0,40,0,8,Address 1

Address 2=60,0,0,40,0,8,Address 2

Address 3=61,0,0,40,0,8,Town

Address 4=62,0,0,40,0,8,Region

Address 5=63,0,0,40,0,8,Country

Postcode=64,0,0,16,0,8,Postcode

Phone1=65,0,0,20,0,50,Phone1

Phone2=66,0,0,20,0,50,Phone2

Fax=67,0,0,20,0,50,Fax

E-Mail=68,0,0,20,0,50,E-Mail

Date=69,0,0,8,0,50,Date

Narrative=70,0,0,250,0,8,Narrative

[Inventory]

Product=71,0,0,33,0,8,Product

Date=72,0,0,8,0,50,Date

Serial=73,0,0,16,0,8,Serial No

Asset=74,0,0,16,0,8,Asset No

Status=75,0,0,16,0,8,Status

Analysis=76,0,0,16,0,8,Analysis

Warrenty Start=77,0,0,8,0,8,Warr Start

Warrenty Expiry=78,0,0,8,0,8,Warr Exp.

Warrenty Period=79,0,0,16,0,8,Warr Prd.

Warrenty Fee=80,0,0,10,0,8,Warr Fee

Warrenty Code=81,0,0,16,0,8,Warr Code

Purchase Date=82,0,0,8,0,50,Pur. Date

Purchase Price=83,0,0,10,0,50,Pur. Price

Purchase Order No=84,0,0,16,0,50,Pur. Order

Purchase Invoice No=85,0,0,16,0,50,Pur. Invoice

Purchase Contract No=86,0,0,16,0,50,Pur. Contract

Installation Start=87,0,0,8,0,50,Inst. Start

Installation End=88,0,0,8,0,50,Inst. End

Location=89,0,0,40,0,50,Location

Narrative=90,0,0,250,0,8,Narrative

[Product]

Name=91,4,0,32,0,12,Name

Reference=92,4,0,8,0,12,Ref

Date=93,4,0,8,0,60,Date

Description=94,4,0,60,0,12,Description

Price=95,0,0,10,0,12,Price

Status=96,0,0,16,0,60,Status

Analysis=97,0,0,8,0,60,Analysis

Supplier=98,0,0,40,0,12,Supplier

Manufacturer=99,0,0,40,0,12,Manufacturer

Contract=100,0,0,40,0,12,Contract

[Version]

Version=101,0,0,16,0,12,Version

Environment=102,0,0,16,0,12,Environment

Description=103,0,0,250,0,12,Description

Price=104,0,0,10,0,12,Price

Status=105,0,0,16,0,60,Status

Analysis=106,0,0,8,0,60,Analysis

Date=107,0,0,8,0,60,Date

[User]

Name=108,8,0,32,0,8,Name

Tag=109,8,0,8,0,8,Tag

Position=110,0,0,32,0,8,Position

Narrative=111,0,0,60,0,8,Narrative

Login=112,0,0,8,0,8,Login

Password=113,0,0,8,0,8,Password

Privilege=114,8,0,10,0,50,Privilege

Configuration=115,8,0,14,0,50,Configuration

Date=116,8,0,8,0,50,Date


 Common Causes of Paradox Engine Error Messages

 "Error# 4: File is locked"

       One possible way around this error is to create a retry

       loop which performs the desired operation 10 times. The

       engine will do a validity check of the lock after approximately

       four iterations, which may clear up the contention.

  "Error# 8: Primary index is out of date"

       This error messages can occur if the sort order of the

       Engine app is different from the sort order of the table. A

       common cause of this is using the International sort order

       with Paradox while using the Engine with its default ASCII

       sort order. The sort order can be changed by using the

       PXSetDefaults function.

  "Error# 15: Multiple Paradox net files found"

       One paradox.net ( or pdoxusrs.net ) file controls access to

       any given table.  This error occurs when two application

       using different net files try to access the same table. A

       common cause of this error is using different drive mappings

       on different machines. The Paradox Engine uses the directory

       path ( minus the drive letter ) to determine the location of

       the PDOXUSERS.NET file. Configure all workstations to

       reference the network control directory using the same path.

       This error is also caused by using the same directory for

       controlling version 3.5 and version 4.0 locking mechanism.

       This would result in both a paradox.net and pdoxusrs.net

       file existing within the same directory. Delete the .net

       files and change the net directory of one of the

       application.

       This error will also occur if there are old lock files (

       .lck ) from a previous application lying about ( through a

       crash, for example ) which reference a different Paradox net

       file. Delete the .lck files.

       WINDOWS:

            The location of the net file is set in

            win.ini. There is a Windows utility provided,

            pxengcfg.exe, which will modify the setting in the

            win.ini file. Use this to utility to change the net

            directory.

            Also make certain that all workstations are using the

            same DLL. Having the Engine 2.0 DLL on the path before

            the Engine 3.0 DLL will link in the wrong version of

            the Engine. This will cause network concurrency issues

            among other things.

   See also 'TITLE  :  Understanding the PARADOX.NET file' at the end of this Help section.

  "Error# 21: Insufficient password rights"

       Trying to access a 4.0 table from Paradox 3.5 or PXEng 2.0.

       Can also happen when trying to run Paradox 4.0/PXEng 3.0 on

       the network from a directory controlled by PX 3.5 ( contains

       a paradox.net file ).

       WINDOWS:

            This error can be caused by using the wrong

            DLL. Check the path for old versions of the Paradox

            Engine DLL ( from the root directory,

            'dir px*.dll /s' ).

  "Error 33: Invalid Parameter"

       From PXTblEmpty():

            The PXTblEmpty function from v3.0 of the engine can

            incorrectly return this message. Workaround: create a

            new table with the same structure as the old, delete

            the original table ( PXTblDelete() ), and copy the new

            table back to the old.

       From PXSrchFld():

            This error can occur when the table has been opened on

            a secondary Index and an attempt is made to search on

            a field which is not part of the index.

  "Error# 40: Not enough memory to complete operation"

       Use PXSetDefaults() for a DOS application, or pxengcfg.exe

       for a windows application, to increase the amount of swap

       buffer space available to the engine application. The

       documentation for PXSetDefaults() gives more information

       about the swap buffer. If in the IDE, make certain that

       Options | Debugger | Program Heap Size is set to 640K.

       From PXTblOpen - Besides the above, this message can also

       mean that the table being used has become corrupted. Try

       running TUtility.exe on the table to test for corruption.

  "Error# 50: Another user deleted record"

       This message can occur when a table has been opened more

       than once ( from one application or multiple applications)

       and a record deleted in one opening of the table is the

       current record for the other opening of the table. This is

       standard engine behavior, so some method will need to be

       used to reposition the record cursor ( pointer that the

       engine uses for the current record ). Please see ti-1003 for

       more information regarding this error.

  "Error# 53: Invalid offset into BLOb"

       This error can occur when the offset into a BLOb is larger

       than the size of the BLOb. A common situation which causes

       this error is calling the PXBlobPut() function when the

       offset plus the size of the buffer are larger than the size

       of the BLOb specified in the PXBlobOpenWrite() statement.

  "Error# 89: Record not found"

       This message indicated that an exact match was not found.

       This is expected behavior when doing a CLOSESTRECORD search

       when an exact match is not found. There is a known problem

       with PXSrchFld() returning this message when it actually

       found the record. There is a maintenance release to the

       Paradox Engine 3.0 available on our local BBS at ( 408 )

       439-9096 in the 'patch' section, and on CompuServe in the

       BDEVTOOLS forum, lib 11. The file pxall.zip contains the

       libraries for the maintenance release. Disks are also

       available from our Customer Service department.

  "Error# 96: Secondary index is out of date"

       Besides having an out of date index, this message can occur

       if the sort order of the Engine app is different from the

       sort order of the table. A common cause of this is using the

       Intl sort order with Paradox and using the Engine with its

       default ASCII sort order. The sort order can be changed by

       using the PXSetDefaults function.

  "Error# 98: Could not login on network"

       This error comes up when the application does not have read,

       write, and create access to the network directory specified

       in either PXNetInit for DOS applications, or in win.ini for

       windows applications ). Can also be caused by using the

       LOCALSHARE parameter to PXNetInit() when share.exe is not

       loaded.

       DOS:

            make certain that the path uses double backslashes as

            opposed to single backslashes. Strings in C and C++

            treat a single backslash as the escape character. For

            example, "\n" is a carriage return, line feed. Use

            "f:\\pdx\\netdir\\" to specify f:\pdx\netdir\.

       WINDOWS:

            Run the pxengcfg.exe utility to specify the net path.

  "Error# 101: End of table"

       This error can be generated when the table is opened on the

       primary index, but a PXSrchFld() is being done on a field

       which is part of a single field secondary index. The table

       will be sorted according to the secondary index, but the end

       of table will be determined by the primary index. Open the

       table on the secondary index and do the search.

  "Error# 107: Engine not initialized with PXNetInit"

       The Paradox Engine has not been initialized in a shareable

       mode. This can occur when the PXNetInit function with the

       NOTONNET parameter was used to initialize the engine. The

       NOTONNET parameter, as well as the NOSHARE parameter, do not

       allow the creation of any locks on your system.

  "Error# 118: Table is busy"

       This error happens when the application tries to lock a

       table when the corresponding prevent lock already exists, or

       when the application tries to set a prevent lock and a

       conflicting lock already exists.   Check for old, unused

       lock files. Delete any .lck files that may exist after all

       engine apps have terminated.  Also run the TUtility program

       to test for table validity. See pg. 31 of the Paradox Engine

       users guide for more information on locks.

  "Error# 120: Table is not found"

       Besides not being able to find the table, this error can

       also occur when the sort order that the engine uses is

       different from the sort order of the table. A common cause

       of this is using the Intl sort order with Paradox and using

       the Engine with its default ASCII sort order. The sort order

       can be changed by using the PXSetDefaults function.

  "Error# 126: General Hardware Error"

       This error can occur from any network error which the

       Paradox Engine does not specifically handle. This error can

       also be generated when accessing a corrupted table. Run

       tutility.exe on the table to test for table corruption.

  "Error# 134: Can't share Paradox net file -- is SHARE.EXE loaded?"

       Besides not having share loaded, this message can come up if

       share is loaded but the application does not have access to

       the directory where paradox.net is located. This error also

       occurs if the net file has gotten corrupted. Delete the net

       file to resolve this problem.

  "Error# nnn: Internal Error #nnn "

       The most likely cause of this message is some sort of memory

       corruption,.  Make certain that the code is compiled with

       all warnings turned on and test stack overflow turned on.

       Then try doubling the size of the stack because test stack

       overflow does not work in Windows or with any of our

       functions ). Memory corruption also occurs when a previous

       engine function failed but was not detected. Make certain

       that the return code for all engine functions is being

       checked. Get TI-738 on memory corruption and TI-1001 on

       Internal Errors. Also run TUtility on the table to test for

       table corruption. There were also certain cases where

       internal errors would be erroneously generated by v3.0 of

       the engine which were resolved in the maintenance release.

       The libraries, and the libraries only, to the Paradox Engine

       3.01 maintenance release are available on our local BBS at (

       408 ) 439-9096 in the "patch" section. Disks are also

       available from our Customer Service department.

  "Error# 400: Invalid Engine Type ( Database Framework )"

       The database library for the Paradox Engine 3.0 is built

       with "treat enums as ints".  This means that the BEngine

       constructor is expecting a full two byte value coming in on

       the stack.  If the project is built without this switch on,

       the compiler will assume the size of the BEngineType is a

       byte, and it will pass an argument which the libraries

       constructor will not read properly.  Effectively, the

       compiler will do this:

            mov al, 1 ; if we used pxLocal

            push ax

       which leaves garbage in the high order byte.  This would be

       OK if the library was expecting a byte on the stack, but

       because it uses a whole word, it will read the garbage from

       the high order byte. Re-compile your application with the

       "Treat enums as ints" switch.

  "Error 404: Table not open"

       This error can come from the testrest.cpp example which

       ships with the Paradox Engine and Database Framework if

       share is not loaded.

  "Floating point error: Domain"

       Most likely caused by compiling the Paradox Engine in the

       small memory model. The Paradox Engine must be compiled in

       the LARGE memory model. Stack overflow can also cause this

       problem.

TITLE  :  Understanding the PARADOX.NET file

  The Paradox Engine uses the Paradox net file in the same way that

  Paradox does--to keep track of the number of users.  Each Paradox

  user is given one count, while the Engine is assigned one count

  for all users.  So, for example, if three Paradox and three

  Engine users use the same Paradox net file, the user count would

  be four (one for each Paradox user, and one of the three Engine

  users).

  The net file also regulates access to tables.  Table access is

  enforced through the use of lock files, which are written out to

  the directories containing Paradox tables.  A lock file points to

  a particular net file, which has exclusive control over the

  table.  This means that any user wanting access to the table must

  use the net file that controls the table.  In practice, this

  means that when your Engine program shares tables with Paradox

  users, you must initialize using PXNetInit, with netpath set to

  the Paradox net path.  In the case of two Engine programs sharing

  tables, the net paths must be identical.

  The message "Multiple Paradox net file found" (Error

  PXERR_NETMULTIPLE) indicates that these rules have not been

  followed.  If you are certain that all current users have the

  same net path, this message usually indicates that an old lock

  file exists that points to a different net file.  Old lock files

  can be deleted if care is taken to ensure that no one is

  currently using them.  Deleting active lock files can produce

  unpredictable results and could cause loss of data.


What's New in SupportDesk 2.00

Event Dialogue

- Extra Category band, Level, to record escalation level or area of concern. Defaults to value set on selected Customer record. (Level was introduced in V 1.64.)

- Option for only Customer's Products to be listed in the Product pull down. Product Serial Number can also be optionally appended to the Product and Version in the pull down list. These options are set at Company Details.

- Customer's Telephone Number is displayed. If a Contact is subsequently selected, the Contact's Telephone Number is displayed instead.

- Contact's Location is displayed.

- Customer's Maintenance Expiry Date is displayed. If a Customer's Product is subsequently selected, the Product Maintenance Expiry Date is displayed instead.

- Suitably configured Users can amend the Open and Close Date and Times.

- New buttons to determine which Reply fields are displayed at the Event dialogue in the Reply History Box.

- New buttons to display previous or next Event when opening an existing Event.

- Users assigned Events are notified by a 'bleep'.

- Closed Events can be transferred to History File.

Event Summary Report

- Report only includes selected Event fields.

- The User may choose either a Summary (Short) or Full (Long) report. The full report is an Event report for each Event currently displayed at the Main window. (Introduced in V 1.62)

Reply Dialogue

- Field to record job time.

- First 80 characters used in 'Quick Search'.

- Enter key to introduce a line skip.

Customer Dialogue

- Field to record Maintenance Expiry Date, displayed at Event dialogue.

- Reference increased to 16 characters

- Name increased to 40 characters

- Narrative increased to 250 characters

- New fields for the input of other communication codes, e.g. modem

- New field to record default Service Level for a Customer. (Uses Level Category.)

- Customer Report to include Telephone Numbers

New Contact Dialogue

- Customer Contacts dialogue for the input of any number Names and Addresses, plus various fields for Telephone Numbers.

- Contact's Telephone Number and Location to be displayed at the Event dialogue.

New Customer Output Dialogue

Allows for Customer and Customer Product Inventory records to be output depending on chosen criteria. The criteria may be set by specifying one of the following from the Inventory Details dialogue; i) Maintenance End Date,  ii) Product iii) Serial Number  or  iv) Asset Number.  (Introduced in V 1.63)

Product Dialogue

- Reference increased to 16 characters

- Name increased to 40 characters

- Description increased to 250 characters

- New fields for the input of Supplier information

Version Dialogue

- Reference increased to 16 characters

- Description increased to 250 characters

Main Window

1. New entries in the Options Menu

- Display a Status Line to reflect current options selected. This includes a 'quick help' for Menu items.

- Facility to switch Toolbar on and off.

- More fonts available in the Fonts Option.

- Dynamic column width adjustment.

- Adjustment of field positions and alignment at the Main Window.

2. New View Menu

- Select dialogue can be hidden. Select options are saved between SupportDesk sessions.

- Search can optionally search the first 80 characters of Reply items.

- Events can be displayed in terms of Date Range.

- Ability to view History Database (switch between current and archived Event records).

- Regroup Events to 'View By' Customer, Product, Assignee or Categories.

Database

- Archive Closed Events to History Database.

- Restore Closed Event to Live Database.

- Merge Backup Files

- Export of Databases as files of Comma Separated Values.

Report Designer

- Customer Address fields and event Replies available for inclusion in reports.

- Fields for printing can be selected and ordered.

- Sub-totalling of Elapsed Time.

- Date parameters to use Open or Close Date. Date parameters also allow for time bands measured in Years, Months, Days, Hours, or Minutes.

- Output can be as a file of Comma Separated Values.

Optional Extras

- Links to Microsoft E-Mail (MAPI)

i) Automatically posting E-Mail message on assignment and reassignment of Events

ii) Ability to compose and send E-Mail messages