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Why we don’t provide per call support

December 16, 2008 by Wayne Schulz

Sometimes a picture says it all.

Below is an image from an online MAS90 technical support chat. An online visitor had taken advantage of our free chat option (since replaced by the Google Chat that shows on each of our pages).

I had already spent way more time than I should have trying to help this person (who was not a client). When it became evident that his problem was more complex than a simple online fix – I proposed that we’d log in and fix it for a flat fee.

Read the message below — especially the very bottom where Charles tells me goodbye in his own unique way.

Link: Schulz Consulting Support Options

Filed Under: Sage 100 ERP, schulz consulting Tagged With: connecticut mas90 consultants, mas200 consultants, mas200 support, mas90 consultants, mas90 support

QuickBooks vs MAS 90 comparison guide now available

October 20, 2008 by Wayne Schulz

Outgrowing QuickBooks?

Thinking about switching to Sage MAS 90 or Sage MAS 200?

Unsure about what the differences between the products are and whether you’ll get enough of a benefit from making the move from Intuit’s Quickbooks software to MAS 90? Then take a look at this new 86 page QuickBooks vs MAS90 document that goes into depth about  the differences between these two products.

Here’ a quick breakdown of the included chapters:

    Chapter 1 – Introduction

    Chapter 2 – Price Value

  • Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
  • Retail Limitations vs. Value Added Reseller Consulting
  • Integration
  • Customization
  • Enhanced User Interface
  • Flexibility to Add Modules as You Grow
  • Core Accounting
  • Distribution
  • Manufacturing
  • Resource and Project Management
  • Business Intelligence and Customization
  • Customer Relationship Management
  • Business Management Applications
  • Add Users as You Need Them
  • Chapter 3 — Feature and Workflow Comparison

  • Feature Comparisons
  • Available Modules
  • System Options
  • Accounts Receivable
  • Accounts Payable
  • General Ledger
  • Inventory
  • Sales Order
  • Purchase Order
  • Payroll
  • Customizer
  • Bar Code
  • Job Cost
  • Visual Integrator
  • Workflow Differences
  • Real-Time and Batch Processing
  • Cash Basis vs. Accrual Accounting
  • Audit Trail
  • Adding Customers and Vendors
  • Working in More Than One Company
  • Memorized Transactions vs. “Copy From”
  • Data Entry
  • Navigation
  • Viewing and Editing Open Sales Orders and Quotes
  • Inventory Costing
  • Functionality That’s the Right Fit
  • Alerts vs. Business Alerts
  • QuickBooks Welcome Window vs. Sage MAS90 Special Edition for QuickBooks Users
  • Business Insights Dashboard
  • Chapter 4 — Conversion Expectations

  • Conversion Specialist Program
  • Training Requirements
  • Before You Begin the Conversion Process
  • What Is Data Migrator?
  • What Data Can Data Migrator Convert?
  • Which Versions of QuickBooks Data Will Data Migrator Convert?
  • What Does the Migration Process Entail?
  • Printing QuickBooks Reports Before Migration
  • Data Migrator Checklists
  • QuickBooks Data Migration Checklist
  • Sage MAS90 Special Edition for QuickBooks Users Pre-Data Conversion
    Checklist
  • Sage MAS90 Special Edition for QuickBooks Users Post-Data Conversion
    Checklist
  • Data Integrity
  • Time Expectations
  • Downtime
  • Chapter 5 — How to Get the Most Out of Your Software

  • Implementation
  • Training
  • Tutorials
  • Anytime Learning and Instructor-Led Training
  • Authorized Training Centers (ATCs)
  • Certified Trainers (CTs)
  • Business Partner Training
  • Support
  • Certified Support Specialists
  • Certified Support Centers
  • Sage Software Support Plans
  • Conclusion

From the guide:

What are Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)?

GAAP is a widely accepted set of rules, conventions, standards, and
procedures for reporting financial information that are established by
the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Sage MAS90
Special Edition for QuickBooks Users adheres closely to these
important industry guidelines.

For example:

  • In Sage MAS90 Special Edition for QuickBooks Users, a user
    cannot change or delete posted transactions without an audit trail.
    With an audit trail of changes to posted transactions, you will
    maintain a clean general ledger that will make your accountant
    and the IRS much happier!
  • QuickBooks allows you to use either cash-basis or accrual-basis
    accounting methods. Cash-basis accounting does not follow
    GAAP. Sage MAS90 Special Edition for QuickBooks Users uses
    accrual-basis accounting, which closely follows GAAP.
  • Although this guide has been designed by Sage Software (developers of Sage MAS 90 and 200) and can understandably be considered a little biased toward their product – it still contains lots of helpful information.

    Whenever I review a vendor provided guide such as this I will use it as a starting point. If you can get even one question from it to ask about a prospective new accounting system then it is worth it.

    Even though this guide is designed by Sage Software, there is an unusual amount of fact checking that happens before it is published.

    For example, there are plenty of charts like this which compare and contrast the available features in QuickBooks and MAS 90.

    The guide is available now through your friendly local Sage Business Partner. If you don’t have a friendly (or a local) partner to ask – then hit up the link below for your very own free copy.

    Depending upon the version of Sage MAS 90 or 200 that you are considering, you should be asking as well about any promotions that are available for owners of QuickBooks (or other competing products) who are upgrading. Sometimes the promotions are only valid on certain versions of MAS 90 – but you won’t get the discount unless you ask!

    Link: QuickBooks Conversion Guide
    (PDF)

    Filed Under: Quickbooks, Sage 100 ERP, Sage software, upgrades Tagged With: mas90 consultants, Quickbooks, quickbooks alternatives, quickbooks comparison guide, quickbooks vs mas200, quickbooks vs mas90, Wayne Schulz

    Sage Summit 2008 promotional offers

    October 10, 2008 by Wayne Schulz

    Have you made plans to attend the Sage Software 2008 customer conference November 17 to 20 in Denver Colorado? Sage Summit is the place to learn all about the various Sage products as well as talk to your fellow users.

    One of the keynote speakers will be Olmpic Gold Medal athlete Bruce Jenner who will talk about his story and share his secrets to what helped him win Olympic Gold at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

    Day one of Summit opens on Monday November 17 with Peer-2-Peer roundtables. Here you can sit with other users from across the country (and world) who use the exact same product as you do. These roundtables last for one hour each – and there are three of them scheduled on Monday.

    Tuesday  features breakout educational sessions starting at 8 a.m. (Don’t worry , the Denver air will help you sleep and get up early.) The opening ceremonies with Bruce Jenner will happen at 1:30 with one lucky participant from the audience getting to throw a flaming javelin toward stage and Bruce will catch it between his legs while blindfolded. Even if you’re not a Bruce Jenner fan, it will be a lot of fun to be in the audience to stare at him and  tell your kids that you saw someone famous.

    From Tuesday through Thursday you’ll have more opportunities to network with other Sage users and learn about complimentary Sage products at the trade show. Each lunch and dinner will be an opportunity to make a new friend and learn how others are using the Sage products.

    As part of the benefit of attending Sage Summit 2008, you will be eligible for all sorts of product discounts.  Sage Software just released their promotional guide which I have included below.

    The prior years’ conferences have been well received. I’ve had clients attend who enjoyed the sessions and learned many new things. Several consultants that I know have also attended and have nothing but positive experiences to share. Unfortunately I will not be attending this year as I’ve been asked to present with Sage at the Sleeter Group conference being held the week before.

    Link: 08 Sage Software Summit Promo Book (50+ page PDF)

    Link: Sage Summit 2008 official site

    Filed Under: Sage software Tagged With: mas90 consultants, sage software summit, sage software user conference, sage summit 2008, sage summit deals, sage summit promotions, sage user group, schulz consulting, Wayne Schulz

    Client Advisory: Do not install any Extended Solutions without calling Sage and asking for the latest version

    October 6, 2008 by Wayne Schulz

    If you are upgrading you Sage MAS 90 or 200 accounting software and are using Extended Solutions from Sage Software we strongly advise you call Sage (or your Sage Business Partner) immediately prior to installing the upgrade and request a free update to  the latest version  of your Extended Solution (Sage tracks the different levels by program release date).

    In many instances you may be told that you’re at the latest release. Don’t let that discourage you from calling each and every time prior to upgrading.

    Update – 10-7-2008: Spoke with Paula Mikkelsen at Sage Software Extended Solutions and she provided me with the name, email and phone extension of the person who is in charge of generating the Extended Solutions for customers and resellers. I’m not going to post her info here because I don’t want a flood of spam to chase her inbox. Send me an email and I’ll be happy to forward you the contact information.

    Why do you need to do this?

    Sage Software does not have an automated way to provide the latest versions of their Extended Solutions to resellers. When solutions are initially available they are sent out in an email to the reseller which announces the availability of the upgrade.

    This email is often weeks (if not months) ahead of when a company may actually install their Sage MAS 90 or 200 program upgrade. In the passing months there are increasingly more program fixes needed for Extended Solutions.

    Unfortunately there is no central place to regularly view what the current release levels are for the Extended Solutions. All of this work must be done via phone call (or email) to Sage Software.

    What We’ve Suggested To Sage

    In the future we are hopeful that what can happen is that the intial link that is sent to a reseller points to the very latest copy of the enhancement (including any patches made since the update was released).

    Another possible solution would be for the enhancement itself to contain a “self check” where it would query a database to make sure that the latest version is being installed.

    Filed Under: Sage 100 ERP Tagged With: extended solutions, mas200, mas90 consultants, mas90 support, Sage 100 ERP, Sage software, schulz consulting, Wayne Schulz

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