MAS 200 SQL v4.45 Pre-Release Guide
July 26, 2010
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There’s a new version of MAS 200 for SQL that’s due out by the end of 2010. Slated for beta in July 2010 followed by a controlled release this version will replace the old MAS 200 SQL which had remained at version 3.74.
Not all modules will initially be available. According to the pre-release guide (see below) only those modules at the version 4.x framework will work with the new MAS 200 SQL.
There also initially will not be any third party conversion tools. Customers using an earlier 3.74 version of MAS 200 SQL will be responsible for their data migration.
Sage MAS 200 SQL Pre-Release Guide v4.45
Unincorporated Extended Solutions Stop Receiving Support & Upgrades February 1, 2011
July 26, 2010
Sage has just issued an update that outlines when certain Extended Solutions that they’ve announced as being added to Sage MAS 90 and 200 will make it into the product.
In addition they’ve indicated that as of October 1, 2010 an additional 24 solutions will stop being sold. On February 1, 2011 the support and upgrades for those 24 will cease.
More information is available from their official statement – which appears to be a draft of one that’s soon to be sent directly to end users.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Solutions Update – BP 7-19-10
ACH Electronic Payment For MAS 90 Accounts Payable – New In V4.4
July 24, 2010
Sage just released a new Product Update #2 for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200. In my opinion one of the top features in this update is the ability to pay accounts payable invoices electronically.
Many times our clients have employee expense checks that are sent out weekly, bi-weekly, monthly or even a few times a week. The employees who receive those checks often are sometimes not in the office which requires the to be mailed.
This introduces delays, increased postage cost and extra administrative time spent stuffing envelopes. Sure this may not be a big issue for those with two or three employees. Ramp the number of employees up to 100 or more — and suddenly you have a potential administrative time sink.
The newest release of Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 – which is available for download to those on the Basic Maintenance plan — adds ACH electronic processing. If you’ve used the Direct Deposit for Payroll – the ACH for accounts payable works nearly identically.
Unlike older versions of ACH for Accounts Payable – this updated feature allows you to create your own customized export of data so that if a bank needs a feed adjusted to fit their required layout you have the ability to do this yourself without hiring a programmer.
Sage has a nice 6 minute vide that showcases the ACH for Accounts Payable.
We can install and configure this during your upgrade – and help you manage the first few exports of data to your bank. Of course we have clients who have been doing this for years and we are happy to connect our clients to those already using the enhancement to get direct feedback on their experiences.
PS - I noticed after composing this article that I mistakenly pasted in the YouTube from last night’s Lou Gramm concert at Mohegan Sun. The video you want of the ACH for MAS 90 is here.
Enjoy Lou Gramm performing Jukebox Hero live at Mohegan Sun 7/23/2010 (former lead singer of Foreigner).
Sage updates MAS 90 and MAS 200 Product Roadmap 7/2010
July 21, 2010
Sage yesterday released their roadmap showing the planned features and product update releases. Looks as if the major change this year is to wisely limit the 12/2010 product update to payroll related updates (tax tables, etc).
MAS 200 SQL gets re-affirmed as on-track for delivery later this year (beta started in July) and pricing surprisingly is the same as regular MAS 200. Sage doesn’t come out and say it but I assume that MAS 200 SQL and MAS 200 co-exist (as opposed to MAS 200 SQL replacing plain old MAS 200) because the SQL version will not initially support non-framework modules like payroll and manufacturing.
There’s a nice explanation of the FRX options when the Sage ERP Business Insights starts rolling out now in August 2010.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Roadmap – PUBLIC 2-1-10
Sage EES is being merged into MAS 200 starting with version 4.5. Details on this are still a little hazy – “Fixed Assets Bundled With Per User Based Pricing” – does this mean that it’s similar to how Credit Card or Direct Deposit is included but you have to pay to use it? I’d be sure to verify these details before quoting.
Lastly I’m still awaiting the introduction of subscription pricing for new module purchases. Sage announced this at Insights but left off all details and I received a quick promise that I’d be seeing details. Don’t confuse this pricing with the subscription that’s currently offered for maintenance renewals where you can pay on a credit card. My understanding from the presentation is that ultimately Sage plans to let customers buy new licenses based on a recurring charge of $ x per month.
Link :
http://www.scribd.com/doc/26259049/Sage-MAS-90-and-200-Roadmap-PUBLIC-2-1-10
What Is Your MAS 90 Rate?
July 20, 2010
We’ve been receiving many calls checking on MAS 90 consulting rates.
For the last 7 years (my guesstimate) we haven’t billed hourly for any technical support calls. These are all handled under an unlimited agreement (full MAS90 Support Agreement here) that provides for as many calls per year as are required to support your MAS system.
For companies with project work – we follow this approach:
1. Understand the problem
2. Discuss whether the problem is solvable in MAS or should be tackled a different way
3. Provide a fixed price estimate to solve the problem – which you agree and approve prior to the start of any work (see copy of sample estimate below).
So the answer to the question -
What’s your rate?
We don’t have one. However we have a pre-determined (and agreed upon) fee to solve a business problem. And we guarantee that fee 100% to be both fixed (within the scope of what we both agree upon) and your ultimate satisfaction.
via: ERPLife
MAS 90 and MAS 200 v4.4 Product Update 2 Released
July 16, 2010
The moment you’ve been waiting for has arrived. Sage promised to deliver Product Update 2 by mid-July and by my calculations they’ve done just that. The latest feature update (detailed what’s new) for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 version 4.4 is now available in the Sage Online Support Center.
To download the latest update navigate online to the Sage Online Support site. If you’re an end user please be sure that you check first with your Sage Business Partner. Naturally, if you have third party enhancements (customizations) you’ll need to make sure that those are upgraded alongside the product update.
New features include:
Whats New in MAS90 Product Update 2
via: DeRosa Mangold Consulting
What Versions Of PC Charge Are PA-DSS Compatible For Use With MAS 90 or MAS 200
June 28, 2010
Apparently there’s some confusion over exactly which versions of the Verisign PC Charge software is compatible with Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200.
Erika Jelovsek, SR Product Manager at Sage Software has this update which was just posted on the MAS 90 LinkedIn Group:
There has been a bit of confusion regarding this topic lately, in part fed by a recent communication from Wells Fargo credit card services to PC Charge customers. Sage and VeriFone (the providers of PC Charge) have been working together to help clear the confusion, and this post is part of that clarification effort.
Version 5.8.3 of PC Charge IS MOST DEFINITELY certified as compliant by the PCI Council, and I have a copy of a letter sent to VeriFone from the PCI Council that verifies this. In fact, because 5.8.3 is compliant is why that version was selected by the MAS team to be autoshipped to our Sage ERP MAS 90 and 200 customers with their version 4.4 shipments.
At this point I do not know if Wells Fargo will be sending a corrected communication to PC Charge customers, although VeriFone has requested that they do so. Meanwhile, version 5.9.1 is currently undergoing quality assurance compatibility testing with the MAS team, and, as always, once it has been verified as compatible, the Compatibility Matrix will be updated to reflect that change in status. However, there is no need to rush to upgrade to that version at this time because version 5.8.3 is PCI Compliant.
There have been some questions about the difference between PABP 1.4 certification and PA-DSS 1.2 certification as stated on the PCI Council’s website. As I understand it, PABP is the certification standard used prior to PA-DSS. As such, it has an Expiry Date in December of 2010, making it acceptable for new deployments until that time. So, versions 5.8.1 and 5.8.2 of PC Charge are also still acceptable for use until the expiry date.
Sage Software Insights 2010 Keynote Videos – Now Online
June 26, 2010
Sage just posted links to all of their keynote videos from their recent Insights 2010 conference held in Denver Colorado May 17-20, 2010.
This is the first time that I’ve noted the videos being available online and think it’s a great idea for Sage to share these presentations for those who otherwise were unable to make the conference itself.
Most of the value of Sage Insights conferences are the networking with fellow consultants and comparing notes with what’s worked well in your business for the last year as well as asking your peers for advice on what new strategies they may be planning for the coming year.
Below are select keynotes that Sage executives delivered during Insights 2010:
Video of Sue Swenson Keynote – CEO of Sage North America
Sage Business Solution Keynote with Jodi Uecker-Rust, Himanshu Palsule & Tom Miller
Sage Channel Strategy – Tom Miller (Channel Chief)
Himanshu Palsule, Executive VP, Product Strategy/Marketing, Sage Business Solutions
Laurie Schultz – Senior VP and GM, Mid-Market ERP Solutions – Mid-Market ERP Keynote
Via: Sage LinkedIn Group
What’s New In MAS 90 4.4 Product Update 2
June 24, 2010
In an email to the consultant channel Sage posted a concise two page list of what new features can be expected in product update 2 for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 version 4.4.
As you may already know Sage is now issuing more frequent updates through the year as opposed to relying only on annual releases. They believe this will deliver more value for the maintenance that customers pay each year for their Sage MAS 90 and 200.
Here’s a copy of the PDF which shows the new features slated for product update 2 which Sage indicates will arrive in late July (that’s code for August).
Whats New in MAS90 Product Update 2
Sage Spirit & Community Service Award 2010 Video
June 22, 2010
Sage just sent out a copy of the award video that was played during Insights 2010 in Denver. This video spotlights the four award recipients – Peter Wolf of Azamba, Debbie Breuls – Bredet Services , Doug Deane of DSD Business Systems, Wayne Schulz.
The award video was played during Sue Swenson’s keynote address. There was barely a dry eye in the house.
Sage Spirit & Community Service Award 2010 Video from Wayne Schulz on Vimeo.
Sage and Trustwave Webinar Series: PCI DSS
June 17, 2010
Sage has partnered with Trustwave, the leading provider of on-demand data security and payment card industry compliance management solutions, to present a series of web seminars about credit card security.
New security guidelines take affect on July 1, 2010 that require businesses that accept credit cards to adopt stricter security standards (read more in this Free PCI Compliance for Dummies PDF). Learn more about the rules and how they may affect your company at any of the following free online seminars:
PCI 101: Get the basics on the PCI DSS, what’s required of your business, and how to take action.
Wading through SAQ and Scanning: This session provides an overview of the various SAQs, providing you with information on how to navigate the process. Vulnerability scanning, often necessary for validating compliance, will also be defined.
PCI 101 for Retail Businesses and Restaurants: Retailers and restaurants have unique challenges for PCI certification. This event will review the basics of PCI DSS, and how retailers and restaurants can take action for PCI certification.
PCI for Health Care: Card acceptance is growing in health care businesses. This event will review the basics of PCI DSS for these businesses, and the unique challenges these merchants face for PCI certification.
PA-DSS 101: This session will provide an overview of the requirements for compliance with the PA-DSS, why merchants must be aware of the PA-DSS, and ensuring the applications you use are PA-DSS compliant.
For more information or to register visit the Sage Trustwave Webinar Series for Customers
MAS90 Accounts Receivable Slow Month End Close – FIXED
June 17, 2010
Sage has just issued a pair of program patches for MAS 90 and MAS 200 versions 4.4 and 4.3.
These patches fix a widely reported issue where the month end processing would take an unusually long amount of time. This apparently was caused by some programming logic erroneously applied as part of an update for the latest PCI Compliance updates.
Sage MAS 90 4.3 Accounts Receivable Patch
Sage MAS 90 4.4 Accounts Receivable Patch
MAS 200 SQL 4.45: A Huge Step Forward In Speed Of Reporting And Integration Ease
June 15, 2010
In a blog post on his site yesterday, Doug Deane President DSD Business Systems describes a recent visit that two of his top technical people made to Sage North America headquarters where they received an early look at the MAS200 SQL 4.45 release.
The session apparently afforded an opportunity to grill Sage development staff about the capabilities in MAS 200 SQL 4.45 and Jon Reiter (pictured below) and Jim Woodhead, both of DSD Business Systems, came away suitably impressed.
According to Doug’s post a small group of channel partners were invited to spend time with Sage in Irvine to provide feedback on the MAS 200 SQL 4.4 product prior to it’s release.
Some of Doug’s comments:
Very large datasets were tested quickly on external custom Crystal Reports
BIE (Business Insights Explorer) was fast
Because there are no SQL Server stored procedures a single code base will be maintained which allows for smoother integration with and support by third party products.
Read Doug’s full post at Sage MAS200 SQL – A Huge Step Forward
Sage MAS Intelligence Slated To Ship To Partners In July 2010 and Customers in August 2010
June 10, 2010
In a posting last night Sage’s product manager for reporting Jacqueline Li tells us that the expected shipping date for the new reporting tool (aka FRX replacement) for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 will ship to business partners in July with customer shipments following a month later in August.
Sage MAS Intelligence is a Sage branded version of a program from Alchemex. The product is positioned to replace the FRX reporting tool which Sage will stop selling in 2010 pursuant to Microsoft’s decision to discontinue support.
Below is the announcement from Jacqueline. If you’re interested in more we have a recorded Sage MAS Intelligence Demo.
via LinkedIn:
Sage MAS Intelligence will be released to Partners in July of this year. We will also start our training in July on Sage University. You can go to http://sageu.com/ns_acs/bp/mas90200.html to get more details.
We would like to give our Partners some time to train and get familiar with the product before we ship to customers, so the product will be available for customers in August.
I hope this helps. Please feel free to contact me if you have any more questions.
Regards,
Jacqueline Li
Product Manager
Sage
New Jersey & New York MAS90, MAS200 User Group With Version 4.4 Demo Now Online
June 8, 2010
Mark Chinsky of Clients First Business Solutions has just posted the recording of his May 20, 2010 user group that was held in their Holmdel New Jersey office.
Prior to joining Clients First Mark operated On-Track Consulting which for most of its 8 years was one of the top Sage VARS nationwide.
During his user group Mark not only gives a great demo of the new MAS 90 version 4.4 but is able to produce crisp audio and a very clear screenshow that documents the new features.
There is also some discussion around the new PCI-DSS rules governing credit card security.
You can view a copy of the video below – click the lower right corner to make it full screen:
via: Clients First Business Solutions – New Jersey
Alnoor Cassim Brings MAS90 Scripting and BOI Training to NJ June 22, 2010
June 8, 2010
One of the most exciting features of the new MAS 90 & MAS 200 business framework has been the ability to use scripts to control aspects of the software.
Almost every consultant and technical end user could benefit from learning how to do some scripting — which in the current 4.4 release is the preferred method of avoiding customizations and add-ons.
Alnoor Cassim is a genius with MAS 90 and MAS 200. He ran the support area worked at Sage for 14 years before striking out on his own last year (Callforhelp.biz). For years while at Sage Alnoor served as the ultimate technical resource and is responsible for many of the advanced level workarounds or problem resolutions.
If you have been thinking of learning more about scripting and the BOI (Business Objects Interface) then be sure to sign up for the class being held at SWK in NJ on June 22, 2010 in New Jersey. There are also two 4 hour remote sessions being held immediately following that date on June 23 and 24.
From the course description:
This training will help channel resellers and ISVs produce User Defined Scripts to solve business process issues and fulfill business requirements using the Custom Office module that previously required a Master Developer enhancement. Prior to version 4.40, Customizer scripts did not have direct access to the MAS 90/200 business objects and could only be activated via button click. However, the new User Defined Scripts are event based scripts no longer requiring a button click and offer direct access to the business objects without having to create a separate front‐end application using the Business Object Interface (BOI).
You may have already read the exciting news from Sage on the capabilities and power of scripting in 4.40 and have seen the exciting presentations on how User Defined Scripts can be used to meet a client’s business requirements. You may have also tried to understand and play with the demo scripts and put all the concepts together. To that end, the primary goals of this class are to:
a. show you what’s “under the hood”;
b. extend and apply what you have already read and seen; and
c. transition your knowledge into real world practice.
For more information – view the PDF registration form today.
MAS90 & MAS 200 BOI and Advanced File Scripting Training June 22-24-2010
MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4 Accounts Receivable Period End Hotfix Available
May 27, 2010
Users of MAS 90/ MAS 200 4.40 Accounts Receivable (which includes Extended Enterprise) who have a mix of open items and balance forward types of customers within a single company code should apply a new patch that Sage issued today.
Apparently there’s the chance in 4.40 that during A/R period end open item transactions can be missing or incorrectly combined in the AR_Transaction Payment History file.
This seems to only be an issue that might arise for those using v4.4 Accounts Receivable and (a) during period end and (b) only for those company codes which have a MIX of balance forward and open item customers.
You can read more on the Sage Community site:
Or read the full knowledgebase entry:
http://infosource.sagesoftwareonline.com/sw_attach/kdb.asp?isResolutionConceptID=524615
As a general rule of thumb what I’ve been doing is:
1. Install MAS 90 / MAS 200 4.40
2. Install Product Update (latest)
3. Do a quick search for individual patches and where appropriate install them
via: Sage
Sage Executive Q&A – Insights 2010 [Google Wave]
May 20, 2010
Sage North America’s closing ceremonies are happening now in Denver Colorado. Eight Sage Executives join the conference for an open question and answer with the attendees.
Sue Swenson Sage North America Keynote – Google Wave
May 18, 2010
Sue Swenson yesterday afternoon delivered her keynote to about 1,000 Sage partners in attendance at the Sage Insights 2010 conference being held May 17-20, 2010.
The main message of the keynote (and perhaps the conference) is that Sage has three goals:
Increase install base sales (now 71% of Sage NA revenue)
Connected services – such as Sage Payment Services for payment processing
Selective new investments in new products
The full Google Wave is below:
Sage Insights 2010 Google Wave Collaboration – Live
May 14, 2010
Are you attending Sage Insights 2010?
Insights is Sage North America’s conference where a few thousand consultants gather to learn about the latest Sage products and the future releases. This year it is being held in Denver Colorado from May 17-20, 2010.
Attending? Watching from home? Would you like to share notes, feedback, ideas and questions with other people attending the conference?
An experimental Google Wave which is unofficial and not sponsored or affiliated with Sage has just gone live. This Wave will offer you a place to make notes or share observations with other people at the conference. These could be centered around the technical sessions and product keynotes offered during the four day conference – or perhaps are just questions that you want to ask or observations you would like to make.
You can view the opening page of the Wave below which I’ve embedded to give you an idea of the topics being discussed. To participate you’ll have to follow these steps:
a. If you do not already have a Google Wave account – apply for one here.
b. Join the Google Group that will give you access to edit the Google Waves that are shared with the group. Once you’re in the group simply create a Wave an add in the contract “insightsconference@googlegroups.com” to your contact list and to your Wave’s which will make them shareable (viewable) by everyone at the conference.
c: For those experienced with Wave — all of the conference content will be tagged with insights10
To find conference waves after you’ve joined the group search for “group:insightsconference@googlegroups.com” (Tip: You must be a group member to see or participate in any Waves)
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Business Intelligence Comparison
May 12, 2010
Sage just released a pretty helpful chart which shows the main differences between some of the most popular Business Intelligence products that companies have been using with MAS 90 and MAS 200.
As you may know Sage is preparing to release a new universal Business Intelligence product which will be used on the Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 product line.
Their current release plans indicate that this will ship in Summer 2010 as outlined in a recent announcement:
Sage MAS Intelligence will soon be introduced as the ideal FRx replacement product for Sage MAS ERP. On target to be released this summer, Sage MAS Intelligence offers powerful and easy to use graphical financial reporting capabilities to access business-critical information, and makes complex reporting easy using a new report designer. Going beyond General Ledger reporting needs, Sage MAS Intelligence will provide Business Intelligence across the entire Sage MAS ERP system, including CRM and Abra.
The products compared are:
Sage MAS Intelligence (Sage’s NEW offering scheduled for Summmer 2010)
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Business Insights Dashboard
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Business Insights Reporter
FRX
BizNet
Crystal Reports
F9
The comparisons provide for ranking a wide range of features under the categories of Data Access, Report Security, Report Delivery and Distribution, Reporting Capabilities, Sorting, Aggregation and Drill Down, Database Support Provided, Operating Systems Support and MS Office Version Support.
SageMAS Intelligence Comparison- FRX, Biznet, Alchemex, Crystal, F9
Search your MAS 90, MAS 200, MAS 500, SalesLogix and Accpac Database With z.Find
May 12, 2010
Ever wish there was a way to quickly search your Sage ERP and CRM database without having to go through multiple lookup screens?
z.Find from Escape Velocity Systems uses a Google-type search to quickly locate data within your ERP or CRM database without the need to hunt from report to report or inquiry to inquiry.
You can search multiple databases as well as link in mulitiple non-ERP/CRM sources.
The product works with:
Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 (pricing TBD)
Sage MAS 500 ($6,000 plus $2,000 recurring maintenance)
Sage Accpac
Sage SalesLogix
Third Party Applications and Customizations
z.find search for MAS 90, MAS 200, MAS 500, Accpac, SalesLogix
More information – and a recorded demonstration – can be found on the Escape Velocity web site linked below.
Press Release:
EVS Launches z.Find for Sage MAS 500 ERP, Sage SalesLogix, Sage MAS 90 ERP and Sage AccPac ERP
Boulder, CO– Escape Velocity Systems, Inc. (EVS), a Boulder, Colorado based ERP innovation group announced today the launch of the z.Find now publicly available for Sage MAS 500 ERPand Sage SalesLogix. EVS also announced today the beginning of the z.Find beta program for Sage MAS 90 ERP. Development work is in progress on z.Find for Sage Accpac as well.
The z.Find is a search application that brings the first ever Google-type search capabilities to Sage ERP products. From a single interface, z.Find can return information that resides in multiple databases, third party add-ons or customized tables. “z.Find breaks away from the traditional, structured way of finding data in an ERP by tearing down the walls between modules and systems,” states Evan Garber, President of EVS.
EVS also announces that the z.Find application can be purchased, downloaded, deployed, and updated directly from the z.AppStore. “The experience of adding functionality to your existing ERP solution should be fast and easy; delivery through our z.AppStore makes that possible,” comments Garber.
EVS was formed in 2001 to combine specific industry knowledge and expertise with industry changing innovation and technology. The company’s focus is to create tools that enable mid-market enterprises to have a better, more effective experience with their ERP.
For more information, visit www.evs-sw.com or contact sales@evs-sw.com.
z.Find – Escape Velocity Systems
Sage Exchange Promises Integration Between Payment Data and Software – Eliminating PA-DSS Certification Fees
May 11, 2010
Sage today announced a new offshoot of their Sage Payment Service they’ve named Sage Exchange.
The promise of Sage Exchange is that it will integrate Sage’s accounting products (and other Certified Business Applications) with Sage Payment Service so that all forms of payment (credit, debit, checks) can be accepted and integrated into an accounting package.
The initial release of Sage Exchange will connect to a new Sage Exchange Virtual Terminal with card swipe capability, new encrypted point-of-sale terminals, Sage software products, and several additional business applications. It will support payments integration in approved software solutions now, and expanded capability with point-of-sale devices in the next release.
Sage Exchange offers a tool kit for developers to enable the integration of payment data with software solutions as well as eliminating developers from PA-DSS certification fees and associated costs.
Out of the box the following Sage products are slated for integration:
- Peachtree by Sage
- Sage ERP X3
- Simply Accounting by Sage
- Sage Pro ERP
- Timeslips by Sage
- DacEasy by Sage
- Sage BusinessVision
- Sage Fundraising 50
- Sage Fundraising 100
- Sage Fundraising 100 – Rainbow Edition
- Sage Millenium
- Sage Intergy
Other Sage products that were not specifically named but are listed as coming soon:
- Sage MAS 90 ERP
- Sage MAS 200 ERP
- Sage MAS 500 ERP
- Sage Accpac ERP
- Sage Medical Manager
There were several Sage products not named – notably BusinessWork, MIP, Platinum For Windows. We’ll be following up with Sage to learn whether that is simply an oversight.
Update 5-11-2010:
Here’s what Rob Bertke, senior vice president for product management, Sage Payment Solutions had to say about our question of why BusinessWork, MIP and Platinum For Windows (PFW) were not mentioned in the release:
All Sage products are capable of integration with Sage Exchange. However, for the release announcement, we only listed those Sage products known to be available within approximately the next several months. Other Sage products are developing their plans to integrate, as well. For example, BusinessWorks will be integrating, but they are not a part of the first go-round. The other two products you mention do not have built-in card acceptance capability, so they did not need to integrate with Sage Exchange at this time. It is expected that these products will join the family when we get to later phases, which will include transactions that can be passed back from third-party systems or terminals. We will provide updates throughout the launch phases.
In response to the question of whether Sage Exchange is a rebranding of the Sage Vault product, Rob had this to say:
No, Sage Exchange is a completely new solution with far broader capabilities than Sage Vault. While Sage Vault offers substantial security, Sage Exchange provides that and much more in terms of integration flexibility and sophistication. Basically, Sage Vault was a product name that referred to a capability (tokenization). Sage Exchange offers tokenization, so the ‘Sage Vault’ is no longer needed.
Link for more information: Sage Exchange
The full press release;
May 11, 2010 10:45 ET
New Sage Exchange Payments Platform Will Allow SMBs to Seamlessly Integrate a Payments Service to Business Management Systems
New Integrated Payments Platform Is a PCI Certified SaaS Environment Designed by Sage North America
MCLEAN, VA–(Marketwire – May 11, 2010) – Sage North America today introduced Sage Exchange, a new secure, Payment Card Industry (PCI) certified payments platform delivered in a Software as a Service (SaaS) model. Sage Exchange will allow small and midsized businesses (SMBs) and organizations to accept all forms and methods of payment, with seamless data integration to a wide range of Sage business management software products and third-party business solutions. Seamless integration between payment applications and back-office software can improve an organization’s cash flow and forecasting, while eliminating manual data entry and the risk of errors.
Elements of Sage Exchange will be released in phases over the next several months. The initial phases will allow businesses and organizations using many Sage software products to accept credit and debit cards in a secure and Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS) validated environment, while automatically updating accounts receivable records. Subsequent phases will expand payments integration to distributed credit/debit card and electronic check terminals, or point-of-sale (POS) devices, and a range of integrated payment solutions to the accounts payable side.
“Every business buys and sells goods or services,” said Greg Hammermaster, president of Sage Payment Solutions, Sage’s payments division. “Sage Exchange will provide a robust platform to accept and make payments for those goods or services, while seamlessly accounting for and tracking those payments. Virtually any small and mid-sized company or organization can benefit from Sage Exchange.”
The first release of Sage Exchange will offer the following benefits:
seamless and secure payments integration into the following Sage software products:
Peachtree by Sage, Simply Accounting by Sage, Sage ERP X3, Sage BusinessVision, Sage Pro ERP, and DacEasy by Sage; Sage Fundraising 50, Sage Fundraising 100, Sage Millennium, and Sage Fundraising 100 – Rainbow Edition; Sage Intergy for medical practice management; and Timeslips by Sage for billing and time-tracking;
enhanced customer experience through the new Sage Exchange Virtual Terminal (or web interface) with key-entered and “card swipe” capabilities that does not time out; and
improved security and flexibility through new encrypted credit and debit card terminals with the latest browser-based technology.
A subsequent release of Sage Exchange will connect to the following Sage software products:
Sage Accpac ERP; Sage MAS 90 ERP, Sage MAS 200 ERP, and Sage MAS 500 ERP; and Sage Medical Manager for electronic health records (EHR).
Sage Exchange will also later support expanded payment functionality in the areas of payroll, procurement, and payables, as well as seamlessly integrate with additional complementary business applications, although some applications may initially be stand alone.
“As a leading global supplier of business management software, Sage is a trusted partner that understands the value of integrated payment systems,” said Hammermaster. “Sage Exchange increases the efficiency of accepting and making payments to help companies achieve two important goals: reduced costs and maximized value of their business software environment.”
In summary, the Sage Exchange platform currently:
Integrates payments with business management software systems;
Improves cash flow management and forecasting;
Eliminates manual data entry and reduces the risk of errors;
and Uses the latest in security & technology, including tokenization, to ensure a safe, secure payment processing environment (PCI certified).
The full Sage Exchange platform will also:
Integrate all methods of payment acceptance: web, phone, terminal, mobile, scanner;
Automate payables settlement, maximizing the customer’s preferred payment method; and
Provide a consolidated view of payment activity.
For additional information, please visit www.sagepayments.com/sage-services/sage-exchange.aspx or call 800-261-0240.
About Sage Payment Solutions
For more than 20 years, Sage Payment Solutions has been providing electronic payment systems for businesses and organizations. Sage’s payment processing and business services are currently being provided to more than 140,000 businesses and organizations, who are delivering improved customer experiences by accepting multiple forms of payment, including credit and debit cards, electronic checks, Check21, gift and loyalty cards, and automatic recurring payment. With Sage Payment Solutions, businesses can also expand the way they accept payments, from card present and mail order/telephone order (MO/TO), to Internet and payments integrated with Sage software applications and third-party solutions. Sage Payment Solutions is Level 1 PCI certified, and is an active PCI Security Standards Council Participating Organization. For more information about Sage Payment Solutions, please call 800-261-0240, or visit www.sagepayments.com.
About Sage North America
Sage North America is part of The Sage Group plc, a leading global supplier of business management software and services. Sage North America employs 4,000 people and supports 3.1 million small and midsized business customers. The Sage Group plc, formed in 1981, was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989 and now employs 13,100 people and supports 6.2 million customers worldwide. For more information, please visit the website at www.sagenorthamerica.com.
© 2010 Sage Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Sage, Sage Software, Sage logos and the Sage product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software, Inc. or its affiliated entities. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Locked out of LinkedIn?
May 10, 2010
Do you have a LinkedIn account which you access infrequently and might have trouble remembering the password?
Here’s a tip from Dawn Westerberg whose LinkedIN account was linked to her old work email address.
When she left her job she had forgotten her LinkedIN password.
Without access to her old work email address she was unable to perform a standard password reset which would have sent a link to her (old) email enabling her to login to LinkedIn.
It turns out that if you forget your password and cannot access your registered email address (in Dawn’s case this was her old work address) then LinkedIn will not – (a) reset your password, (b) update your account or (c) transfer/merge account information to another account.
Their solution? Create a new account and re-invite your connections.
Seriously. That’s the best solution that LinkedIn has to offer?
Think about the time when you are changing jobs. That’s typically when you need to use LinkedIn the most.
And if for some reason you’re unable to remember the password or gain access to your old work email address – you’ll be potentially shut out of important LinkedIn connections!
To be safe, use a primary email address that YOU own to sign up for LinkedIn – and not an employer email that you would lose access to when changing jobs.
LinkedIn allows you to enter in additional email addresses (such as work) so that people can still send invitations by knowing your work email.
Change your primary email address in: Settings – Personal Information – Email Addresses.
Sage LInkedIn Group – Google Wave Test
May 1, 2010
Below is a sample of a public Google Wave embedded into a web site.
This could be useful for any number of things including public shared notes, issues lists, etc.
As of now it appears that you’ll have to view the Wave using either Firefox or Chrome as your browser. The use of Internet Explorer does not appear to work.
“Unable to process lockfile. (Crystal Reports activeX designer – Daily Transaction Register. Processing Cancelled” in Sage MAS 90 and 200
April 29, 2010
I just ran across a rather puzzling error that at first had me stumped.
The error message was occurring during printing of the Daily Transaction Register. All other Crystal printing could be completed just fine.
“Unable to process lockfile. (Crystal Reports activeX designer – Daily Transaction Register. Processing Cancelled” in Sage MAS 90 and 200
When the user moved to another computer they were able to print the register — and if other users tried they could as well.
All symptoms pointed to this one machine.
After much head scratching I finally deduced that the problem was with their MAS200 Paperless Office and a stray lock file that was left in the registry on the user’s computer due to a sudden shutdown.
Here’s the cure (as always – before you mess with your computer registry say a silent prayer – we’re not responsible for registry changes gone wild):
Unable to process the lockfile: when attempting to test Paperless Office PDF Writer
When attempting to setup the PDF writer from Paperless Office, an error message “Unable to process the lockfile” may be presented.
To fix this problem, you need to use the Registry Editor.
From the Start button, select RUN then type in Regedit and click ok.
From the Regedit screen, select EDIT – FIND
Under the “look at” options, remove all the checkmarks EXCEPT for the one next to KEYS.
Search for the key LOCK.
When you find the key, if it is underneath a folder for Extended Solutions PDF Converter — delete the LOCK folder (do NOT delete the Extended Solution Folder itself).
If you have trouble deleting a LOCK folder, it could be that there is something in the folder (typically another folder). In that case delete the other folders inside that LOCK folder. Then go and delete the LOCK folder itself.
Go back to EDIT – FIND – FIND NEXT and look for another LOCK folder underneath an Extended Solutions PDF Converter folder.
If you find any other LOCK folders, delete those as well (they should only be deleted if you find them within an Extended Solutions PDF Converter folder).
Go back to MAS90 and uninstall and then re-install the PDF converter.
Additional Tip: I have also seen the PDF converter not run if acroread32.exe is hung. To fix it I ctrl-alt-del and select Task Manager and Processes then shut down the AcroRead32 process.
Sage Desktop Check Deposit
April 27, 2010
Sage Payment Services introduces a new service that just might save you a few trips to the bank.
While you are always able to use ACH to electronically transmit or receive payments – the Sage Desktop Deposit offers the ability to process all types of checks drawn on U.S. banks – Personal, Business, Government, Traveler’s, Cashier’s, Certified, Equity Lines of Credit checks and Money Orders.
The primary hardware requirement is a 2-sided document scanner (list of compatible devices).
The Sage Desktop Deposit meets all the standards established by Check 21 which is the 2004 legislation passed by Congress allowing for scanned check images to substitute for actual paper based checks.
Hot! – What’s New in Sage’s Product Update 1 for MAS90 & MAS200 v4.4
April 23, 2010
Jeff Schwenk of Bottomline Software has taken a few minutes to produce a great 26 page document that shows exactly what’s new in Sage Software’s new Product Update 1 which has just been released for MAS 90 & MAS 200 v4.4.
Unfortunately the what’s new guide that Sage supplied did not go into enough detail about the exact features – and where to find them.
Never fear because Jeff’s on the job and here’s his guide that he is allowing me to share with you:
Whats New in MAS90 + MAS200 Product Update 4.4.01
via: Bottomline Software
Sage MAS90 Knowledgebase Now Showing Unverified Solutions
April 23, 2010
I just noticed something interesting – and very helpful to both Sage users and consultants.
It appears that Sage has finally started to display knowledgebase information that they have yet to fully verify as a problem. I sent Sage a note inquiring about this matter but have not received any response (not at all an unusual thing).
On the surface you may think that publishing unverified problem reports is bad – but it’s not. At least not when used by tec savvy customers and consultants who understand the meaning of the word “unverified”.
Previously Sage had only published reports of errors and bugs after they’d been able to reproduce them in their engineering department. This potentially caused lag times between when an issue was reported and when it was visible in the knowledgebase to stretch out as long as a few weeks.
In the meantime if several customers all reported the same issue – the problem would not yet appear in the knowledgebase for all to share.
Now it appears that Sage has finally opened up their KB so that unverified problem reports will appear – though with a red “INFORMATIONAL ** THIS INFORMATION HAS NOT BEEN VERIFIED **”.
Many in the Sage community have asked Sage for this feature for years. Being able to access early reports of potential problems is a great tool for helping skilled customers and their support representatives diagnose issues as they occur — and in a much more timely fashion.
Here’s hoping that unverified solutions continue to appear in our knowledgebase searches.
Yahoo Groups Message Setup: Reading Via Email
April 22, 2010
Here’s a quick set of tips to setup Yahoo Groups so that you are reading individual email messages via email instead of having to go online to the Yahoo Groups page to read them.
There appear to be two formats for the email delivery of Yahoo Group email. Be sure you check TRADITIONAL.
First log into Yahoo Groups:
Next select the proper group that you want to view (assuming you’re a member of more than one group):
Then select Edit Membership
Verify that you have the following settings. Note that there is an option for “Traditional” email and that’s what will give you the cleanest email (message by message) delivery.
Be sure you click “SAVE CHANGES” in the lower right after making any updates.
Your email messages should now come through individually — and you’ll be able to reply to them from you inbox.
MAS 90 & MAS 200 v4.4 Product Update 1 Disappears (again)
April 20, 2010
We continue to monitor the Sage MAS90 & 200 v4.4 release in an effort to determine exactly when to recommend installing the upgrade to our clients and newsletter subscribers.
Update: 4-22-2010 – Sage has made the update available
A key feature of MAS 90 & MAS 200 v4.4 as promoted by Sage is the concept of regular product updates.
Unlike the prior practice of issuing periodic (first monthly then ultimately quarterly) bug fixes service updates, Sage intends to issue regular product updates that provide not only program fixes but also add new functionality (see the MAS 90 roadmap for exactly what to expect and when).
One of the eagle eyed Sage consultants in my 90Minds group spotted that the latest MAS 90 & MAS 200 v4.4 Product Update 1 as well as the MAS 90 and MAS 200 version 4.3 service update 18 have again been removed by Sage.
Readers of our web site will recall that we’d previously noted that Product Update 1 (and service update 18) were removed on April 2 before ultimately being reinstated.
From what we understand from our group member, the primary reason for removal of both the product and service update might revolve around credit card issues.
Our understanding, based on Sage communication with other business partners, about product update 1 and service update 18 is that part of the changes to both updates involve PCI-DSS compliance changes. Sage has recently completed an audit of their software to meet the new credit card processing rules effective July 1, 2010 and we believe were using the latest updates to ensure compliance.
W-11 HIRE Act Affidavit Released By IRS
April 20, 2010
Here’s the latest W-11 which is required for any companies looking to take advantage of the latest HIRE legislation.
HIRE – Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment – Explained
Sage Issues Malware Advisory For April 14 Support Knowledgebase Visitors [Updated]
April 15, 2010
We’ve just received a copy of an advisory that Sage seems to have sent about 4pm EST on 4/15/2010 to users who visited their support knowledgebase on April 14, 2010.
UPDATE – 4-16-2010:
The Infosource knowledgebase is live and available to Sage business partners and customers. The message stating the site is down for maintenance has been removed. The site has been tested and everything appears to be in working order. If you come across any knowledgebase issues, please notify Sage MAS Customer Support at (800) 854-3415 immediately.
On Wednesday 4/14/10 we’d been alerted by several users that as of about 10am EST the Sage KB seemed to be attempting to redirect web visitors. Shortly after we began receiving reports of unusual activity the KB site went down and it remains unreachable as of 8pm on 4/15/10.
The notice on the Sage site indicates that the Sage knowledgebase is down for maintenance.
According to Sage’s alert:
Our records indicate that you visited our support website on April 14th, 2010. If you accessed our Sage knowledgebase, you might have been redirected to a malware site. Sage was able to prevent the redirection, and install protection against future intrusions. The knowledgebase will be back in service as soon as possible.
If you visited our website from a corporate environment, your firewall should have protected your systems. Please work with your information systems or technical staff to verify that your systems were not affected.
If you are a Sage partner who accessed our knowledgebase from your site or from a customer site, please alert your IT staff or your customer of a potential compromise. As noted above, the redirection to the malware site has been completely removed and safeguards are installed on our support website.
For more information about the malware, see the Google Advisory:
http://safebrowsing.clients.google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=free22smart.com
This information seems to corroborate the anti-virus alert that one Sage partner sent to us.
Sage Knowledgebase Mostly Offline
April 15, 2010
If you’ve been trying to access the online knowlegebase or download any service updates, PDF files or tax table updates – be advised that the Sage servers appear to be down since about 10am EST Wednesday 4/14/10.
Sage acknowledges the downtime on their site in a posting (shown above) stating that the Sage BusinessWorks, SalesLogix, MAS90, MAS200, MAS 500, Extended Enterprise and PFW knowledgebases are down for maintenance.
Such prolonged mid-week downtime is very unusual as most routine server maintenance happens over the weekends. While logins to the support area are still possible, it appears that large portions of the back end for Sage’s support site have been taken off-line.
It’s presently (as of 4/15/10 9:45 am) not possible to download many (if not all) product updates, PDF files or to search the online support knowledgebase for the affected products.
At least two consultants say they witnessed odd warning messages or alerts about their computer needing to perform some type of scan. This occurred during routine attempts to access the Sage KB. Shortly after receiving the message they say that the KB access went offline.
We have a request into Sage for an update and will post additional information as it becomes available.
MAS90 v4.4 Upgrade Costs Fixed For 2010
April 14, 2010
Upgrading your MAS90 or MAS200?
Schulz Consulting is now fixed cost upgrades for users moving from any version of Sage MAS90 or MAS200 to the current 4.4 release.
Instead of quoting a ranges of hours and rates – and then disclaiming unexpected events while expecting your company to shoulder the liability of any cost overrun – we provide one fixed price.
This price includes your upgrade plus 15 business days of post-conversion support. Plus it also includes all of the items below.
- Upgrade of your current system to MAS 90 or MAS 200 version 4.4
- Conversion of all data – for as many companies as you like
- Migration of custom forms
- Conversion of Visual Integrator jobs
- Conversion of Custom Crystal Reports from v10 to v11
If your system has any MAS90 or MAS200 customizations, including Extended Solutions, which require upgrading we will assist you in locating a developer who can update your customizations for an additional fee.
We’ve segmented our MAS90 & MAS200 upgrade pricing categories down into 5 different tiers. This means that smaller and less complex MAS90 users have a smaller fixed cost to upgrade than the larger companies with more users and complexity.
When needed we will assist you in finding development assistance to provide a quote for upgrading any customizations or Extended Solutions.
Your Pricing Options Will Fall Into One Category Depending Upon Company Size:
Tier 1: Under 3 users with no enhancements or add-ons
Tier 2: 5 or fewer users with enhancements or add-ons
Tier 3: 6 to 10 users with enhancements or add-ons
Tier 4: 11 to 20 users with enhancements
Tier 5: Larger 21+ user companies
Use the form below to request pricing information. We will review this and within 8 business hours provide you with a firm price for upgrading your MAS90 or MAS200:
Image via Flickr
MAS90 4.4 Upgrade Tip: Migrate Don’t Copy System Files
April 13, 2010
Here’s a quick reminder from Sage.
When upgrading MAS90 or MAS200 to their new version 4.4 remember that the migration utilities must be used. This is so that your system files are properly copied into the new company.
You cannot migrate data once and then simply copy over any system files as you may have done in the past. Using the migration utility also means that you’ll be copying back over system files that contain UDF and Paperless Office information.
Plan ahead for testing on these areas. When needed for larger jobs you’ll probably have to export and import UDF (user defined fields) or the migration utility will write over any changes you’ve made.
Read more MAS 90 4.4 Upgrade Tips on the Sage Site
FRX to Sage MAS Intelligence Conversion Tool Is In The Works
April 12, 2010
We’ve already discussed that the financial reporting tool used by MAS 90 and MAS 200, Microsoft’s FRX, is reaching the end of it’s life in 2012. Sales of the product will stop in December 2010 and support ceases two years later.
The replacement for FRX is Sage MAS Intelligence. It’s a private labeled version of a spreadsheet based solution from a company named Alchemex which is already in use with Sage’s Accpac product line.>/p>
We had an opportunity in March to take a first look at what was then termed Sage Insights Intelligence (since re-branded Sage MAS Intelligence).
One of the questions at the time was about how FRX reports would be converted. Many customers who are using FRX have created elaborate FRX layouts for their financial reporting. Understandably many users have been concerned about whether all of this data would transfer to the new Sage MAS Intelligence.
While we don’t know exactly what data will be converted (for example it’s unclear whether reporting tree structures will convert), we can report that last night Alchemex shared the following welcome news:
..nothing new other than we most definitely will release a utility that will convert FRx reports in MAS Intelligence format, but are in discussions with Microsoft regarding the password for the FRx database and using this, so may have some delays, but realize how critical this process/function will be and are paying attention to it.
So it looks as if at least some older FRX layout formats have a chance for automatic conversion to the new Sage MAS Intelligence layout. It’s still too early to tell exactly what will convert (and how accurately) however it’s comforting to know that a conversion option remains under active development.
FRX 6.7 Service Pack 11 for MAS90 and MAS200 Available Now From Sage
April 11, 2010
Sage just posted FRX Service Pack 9 (which had been available directly from Microsoft since December of last year).
The changes appears to be mostly bug fixes with tweaks for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 support. Another user reports that this service pack 11 for FRX also fixed a problem with Microsoft Excel 2007 compatibility.
Of course Microsoft is no longer supporting FRX after 12/31/2012 and the sales of the popular financial reporter will stop as of 12/31/2010.
Sage has announced that Alchemex (rebadged as Sage MAS Intelligence) will be their replacement product for most users. Within an as yet undetermined time Sage also has plans to introduce FR (owned by Sage and presently in use on the ACCPAC product line as the Sage Accpac Financial Reporter or FR) as a reporting tool for the Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 product.
In addition to providing MAS customers with one free user license of Sage MAS Intelligence, Sage will have a promotion for customers who have bought additional FRx licenses to obtain the equivalent Sage MAS Intelligence licenses.
In the long run Sage is looking into bundling more basic FR functionality with no restriction to number of users, but this is not planned for the 4.5 release. This will be basic Financial Reporting. Sage MAS Intelligence will provide more advanced features and capabilities, not just to replace FRx features, but to provide a lot more advanced reporting and analysis capabilities as well.MAS90 and MAS200 FRX SP 11 for FRX6.7
Sage MAS90 and MAS200 FRX 6.7 Service Pack 11 (March 2010) and FRX 6.7 service pack 11 release notes
MAS90 Windows 7 Compatibility Quick Reference [Updated- 4/6/2010]
April 7, 2010
On April 6, 2010 Sage Software issued the following compatibility information. This document shows which versions of MAS90 and MAS200 are compatible with Windows 7.
Note that only versions 4.3 and 4.4 are being supported and that older versions will not be supported under Windows 7.
In order to ensure that MAS90 and MAS200 are Windows 7 compatible, be sure that you download the hotfix which we’ve posted online.
MAS90 Windows 7 Compatibility Statement – 4/6/2010
What’s New in MAS90 Product Update 1?
April 7, 2010
Sage Software is now issuing Product Updates on a regular basis for their latest MAS90 and MAS200 version 4.4 accounting software.
While in the past these were called service updates and primarily included bug fixes and patches – the new Product Updates will also include new functionality.
Product Update 1 for Sage MAS 90 & MAS 200 has just been released March 29, 2010 and here’s the complete listing of what’s new.
MAS90 4 4 Product Update 1 – What’s New March ‘10
MAS 90 Paperless Office Updated for 64 Bit Environments [Links]
April 6, 2010
Sage today released a pair of hot fixes to enable printing to MAS90 Paperless Office on Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 64-bit due to incompatible PDF Driver.
The patches are now available in the Sage Partner File center at the following link. Expect to see similar fixes for Extended Enterprise Suite 1.3. and 1.4 shortly:
Version 4.4 of MAS 90 and MAS 200:
LM4045-T: Enable printing to paperless office under Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 64-Bit
Version 4.3 of MAS 90 and MAS 200:
Note: According to Sage you must be on Service Update 18 to install the patch below
Enable printing to paperless office under Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008
Via: Sage Product Suggestion Completion List
Tips for a successful upgrade to Sage MAS 90/200 v4.40
April 3, 2010
Below are the notes that I took with Robert Wood (DDFCGI) at the April 2, 2010 web session hosted by Sage.
The session topic was “tips for a successful MAS 90 / 200 upgrade to version 4.40″.
Keep in mind that these are tips – and are NOT an exhaustive “how to”. The concepts discussed here were current as of April 2, 2010 but probably will change as future releases fine tune the process.
If you are an end user – please work with a qualified Sage Business Partner to upgrade your MAS 90 or MAS 200 system.
View the notes either by viewing them below — or if you have trouble reading them online – follow this link to:
Tips for a Successful Upgrade to Sage MAS 90 / 200 Version 4.40
MAS90 v4.4 Product Update 1 Temporarily Removed [Update]
April 2, 2010
Sometime yesterday Sage removed their MAS 90 & MAS 200 Product Update 1 service release. They’ve also removed the version 4.3 service update 18 (SU 17 remains available).
Update 4-3-2010: The product update is back – please review the update page for further information on any late breaking news.
Product Update 1 has been temporarily removed until a critical issue is resolved. If you have already downloaded this program update, please review Knowledgebase Article 522847 before proceeding.
There appear to be two issues related to this product update.
The first, is a concern with rounding within the Bill of Materials module. Print Picking Sheets rounds the quantity per bill for non-integer Unit of Measure items to the next whole integer causing additional raw materials to be issued against the bill. Work Orders created using a Bill of Materials rounds the quantity per bill on non-integer Unit of Measure component items to the next whole integer – potentially causing additional raw materials to be allocated against the work order will ultimately result in overstated costs on produced items.
The second, as described in Resolution 522847 applies to users who own the accounts receivable module but not the sales order module. The file SO SalesOrderHistoryHeader cannot be opened” occurs when performing period end processing for Accounts Receivable if Sales Order is not activated for the company. This issue occurs after installing Program Update 1 for Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.40 or Program Update 18 for Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.30.
If you’ve downloaded either product update 1 for Sage MAS 90 or 200 – or – service update 18 for MAS 90 or MAS 200 v4.3 then please don’t use them and wait for an updated patch file which should be re-issued shortly.
MAS 90 & MAS 200 Bill of Materials v4.4 Alert
April 1, 2010
Looks as if there is an issue with the first release of Sage MAS 90 & MAS 200 version 4.4 and the Bill of Materials module.
Several end users were reportedly emailed late yesterday by Sage about this issue which appears to primarily impact the Bill of Materials module.
Apparently the issue affects the quantity per bill on component items on a Bill of Material rounding to whole integers for non-integer Unit of Measure items.
Customers experiencing this issue should contact Sage Customer Support.
Possible Symptoms:
Bill of Materials – Print Picking Sheets rounds the quantity per bill for non-integer Unit of Measure items to the next whole integer causing additional raw materials to be issued against the bill.
Work Order – Work Orders created using a Bill of Materials rounds the quantity per bill on non-integer Unit of Measure component items to the next whole integer:
Potentially causing additional raw materials to be allocated against the work order
Will ultimately result in overstated costs on produced items
Resolution / Workaround:
To address these symptoms, please apply the following resolution or workaround. Additional details are available in corresponding KnowledgeBase entries:
Temporary Workaround:
Bill of Materials – Edit the Crystal Form to use the un-rounded values if no scrap percentage is used. For more information, see Knowledge Article 522358.
Work Order – Manually verify and correct the quantities prior to releasing or processing transactions against the Work Order. For more information, see Knowledge Article 522572.
Permanent Solution:
A Hot Fix is in development to correct the issue.
Via: Beth Bowers – MAS 90 & MAS 200 Consultant
Sage Posts Updated PA-DSS Credit Card Implementation Guide for MAS 90 & MAS 200
March 30, 2010
Sage has just updated their 27 page PA-DSS Credit Card Processing Guide. As scheduled, Sage released updates to version 4.3 and 4.4 of Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 which bring both products up to compliance when the rules in their guide are followed.
From the guide:
The purpose of this PA-DSS Implementation Guide is to instruct merchants, resellers and integrators on how to implement Sage MAS 90 and 200 ERP and Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Enterprise Suite into their environment in a PA-DSS compliant manner. It is not intended to be a complete installation guide. The software, if installed according to the guidelines documented here, should facilitate and support a merchant’s PCI compliance. This guide applies to Sage MAS 90 and 200 ERP and Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Enterprise Suite as released by Sage. Any modifications to the application, for example Customizer, Web Services, Extended Solutions and other Master Developer enhancements, must be reviewed to determine their impact to the PA-DSS requirements.
The Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS) is a set of security standards that were created by the PCI SSC to guide payment application vendors to implement secure payment applications.
Implementation Guide_MAS90v43018__44001.pdf
LinkedIn for BlackBerry 1.0 Connects
March 30, 2010
LinkedIn has just released version 1.0 of their new application for BlackBerry smartphones.
Users of the BlackBerry Tour, Curve and Bold can download the application from BlackBerry App World. Unfortunately there is not (yet) any support for the popular BlackBerry Storm though I suspect that will be added pretty quickly.
From the LinkedIn Blog:
LinkedIn for BlackBerry is a continuation of our efforts to help you leverage the power of your professional network anywhere, anytime. Now, you can walk into any interview, any customer engagement or client meeting with the ability to look up the details on over 60 million professionals worldwide, in real-time.
LinkedIn for BlackBerry includes a full, rich feature set designed to bring the most useful features of LinkedIn to your business smartphone. The application features six modules, each with a user experience designed from the ground up for BlackBerry devices:
* Network Updates. View and share crucial business intelligence and updates with your network. Perfect for those spare moments between meetings.
* Search. Search across over 60 million global professionals, and get the answer back in seconds. We’ve implemented a unified search across both your direct connections and the entire LinkedIn network.
* Connections. LinkedIn is your address book in the cloud. Get quick access to any of your connections to get their up-to-date profile information, and the ability to send them a message immediately.
* Invitations. Why wait to get back to your desk? Accept outstanding invitations immediately.
* Messages. Messaging is one of the reasons that BlackBerry owners love their devices, and we’ve worked hard to integrate your LinkedIn Inbox.
* Reconnect. You can’t leverage your network if you don’t build it. This module brings suggestions for new connections to you anytime. Now you can build your network from anywhere, in seconds.
While the interface of the BlackBerry LinkedIn application is not as pretty as that of the iPhone version – the deep integration to the BlackBerry inbox is a key feature.
When you receive emails from anyone you can quickly use the BlackBerry shortcut menu to lookup their LinkedIn profile – quite a handy feature for those of us who spend most of our time on the road.
For more information -
LinkedIn for BlackBerry Curve, Bold and Tour – Now Available
Connect:
Wayne Schulz on LinkedIn
Sage MAS 90 Extended Solutions Incorporation Plan Updated
March 24, 2010
Sage Software today released an updated Business Partner FAQ to clarify how they’re dealing with the 56 solutions that are being incorporated into MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4x – as well as to explain whether anyone can buy a solution at a level earlier than 4.3 (In a word – no).
What Are Sage Extended Solutions?
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Solutions were originally developed by one of Sage’s leading development partners to meet the specialized needs of the Sage MAS 90 or 200 customer base. Sage acquired this library of over 1,000 titles in January 2004. Because they are so specialized, most of the individual Extended Solutions titles are currently owned by only one or two customers. The more popular titles with broader appeal, such as Paperless Office, contain features and functionality that have high market value. Those titles were evaluated and many of those features began to be incorporated into Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.3.
What is the go-forward plan for Extended Solutions?
Sage has made the decision to focus on continuing to build value into the base product, simplify our product portfolio, and begin phasing out Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Solutions. This phase-out process includes incorporating the main features and functionality of many of the top Extended Solution titles, adding market-driven features to the base product. All customers will receive the benefit of many new features with the new release and product updates as part of being on a current maintenance or support plan without the additional expense of each Extended Solution title. We’ll begin delivering that additional functionality over the next several releases and product updates. Those select titles will continue to be sold until the time they are included in the base product. Since the incorporation will be our focus, we will not be bringing Extended Solutions titles up to compatibility with the 4.4 release. The remaining titles will be provided to Source Code Development Partners so they can utilize their expertise to provide the specialized solutions for Sage MAS 90 and 200 customers. Combined, the above actions cover 96% of all titles and 75% of all customers. We hope you will support us by carrying through messaging that this is a great start to Sage’s goal of continuing to build value into the base product and simplifying our product portfolio
How do I know which of the Extended Solutions title(s)’ main features and functionality will be included in the core Sage MAS 90 and 200 products over the next few releases or product updates, and which will be available to customers only through me, working with Development Partners?
The main features and functionality of the titles that have broad market value, such as ACH Electronic Payment for Accounts Payable, will be incorporated into the core product over the next few releases and product updates. Please refer to the most current Extended Solutions information published on SageMAS.com to see the titles that have been selected for incorporation:
http://www.sagemas.com/products/sagemas90_mas200/extended_solutions
What about Extended Solutions titles that are no longer shown on the SageMAS.com Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Solutions Web page?
Extended Solutions titles that are no longer shown on the Extended Solutions page on SageMAS.com have been retired. You have several options that you’ll be able to use to meet specialized needs of Sage MAS 90 and 200 customers. You may determine that their needs can be met using the enhanced customization and scripting tools built into Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4 Customizer. These tools can be used to provide customers with customizations that survive upgrades, so the customizations do not have to be reapplied to or recreated in a new release. In many cases, you’ll be able to create the modifications at your office, export them, and e-mail them to the customer to import. This will help streamline your deployment, reduce the time spent on this type of custom work, and allow you to do more with your development staff. If their needs surpass the abilities of those tools, you may decide that the best solution is to engage a Sage Development Partner, who can design product modifications outside of those parameters.
Customers not currently on version 4.3, but who have plans to upgrade, will be able to request their retired Extended Solutions 4.3 title updates through the Sage Sales Advisor team until 11/1/2010. Sage will no longer correct defects, or provide year end payroll changes for any retired Extended Solutions titles after 11/1/2010.
Listed below is the current schedule for when a solution is slated to be incorporated (at no cost) into a future release of MAS 90 or MAS 200.
Extended Solution titles are listed on the left, the part number is in the middle and on the right is the product update and estimated ship date when that solution should first appear.
If you are using a solution that isn’t slated for incorporation until 2012 — say for example SO-1530 Enhanced Sales Order Integration with Job Cost — you have the option of paying a developer to upgrade the solution earlier.
In the majority of situations customers using an Extended Solution slated for incorporation but not until 2011 or 2012 won’t have much of an option but to sit and wait for an upgrade to arrive.
Charts shown below are tentative and preliminary – as per Sage’s 3/24/2010 Extended Solution FAQ.
MAS90 Roadmap Updated To Show Extended Solutions Incorporation Schedule
March 24, 2010
Sage North America has just published a March 2010 update to their MAS 90 and MAS 200 product roadmap. New to this roadmap are the expected incorporation dates for the 56 kept Extended Solutions.
Sage previously announced that they would exit the Extended Solutions (customizations for MAS 90 and MAS 200) business and turn over the bulk of their solutions to developers for future enhancement while retaining 56 of the most used parts.
These 56 parts are being gradually incorporated into future MAS90 and MAS200 product updates over the next two years.
This roadmap shows the expected date that each solution is expected to be added.
As always, the roadmap is tentative and subject to change by Sage.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Roadmap – PUBLIC 2-1-10
MAS90 Payroll 941 Form Updated For Q1 2010 Changes
March 23, 2010
MAS 90 users can download the latest form 941 for use with Sage MAS 90 version 4.30.
New to this version:
Quarterly 941 Printing has been updated for the 2010 IRS changes to the 941 Form. The changes are only applicable to the Report Format ‘Entire Form’ and ‘Worksheet’ since the changes are in the text of the 941 Form.
Also the year has changed on the ‘Entire Form’.
The IRS has not made any changes to the Schedule B for 2010.
NOTE: The “Pre-printed Form” format has been designed based on the downloaded 941.pdf from the IRS website. If you use the “Pre-printed Form” format the alignment may need to be adjusted or the form may need to be modified.
To obtain the latest payroll form – log into your Sage online account (free to all users active under a Sage maintenance agreement) and download the update from the link below.
Sage MAS 90 updated Form 941 (3/2010)
Sage Insights 2010 Conference Mini Brochure (PDF)
March 22, 2010
Sage just tweeted out a link to their Insights 2010 conference brochure.
Insights is Sage’s annual conference for resellers and consultants. This year it’s happening May 17-20, 2010 in Denver Colorado. They’ve expanded the guest list to include accountants from their Sage Accountants Network (first time SAN attendees can score a fantastic registration cost of only $495) – Request your Insights discount code from Sage here.
There’s not a whole lot new in here though it does give some added information about the keynote addresses.
For example, on Tuesday May 18, 2010 the Business Opportunity Ahead will feature a trifecta of speakers:
Jodi Uecker-Rust, President Sage Business Solutions gives a talk titled “How We Will Win”, followed by Himanshu Palsule, EVP Product Strategy & Marketing speaking about “The Right Business Model for Sage Business Solutions” and finally Tom Miller, VP Channel Management, speaking about “How Our Partners Will Thrive”.
There’s no word on who the entertainment is (I keep voting for Journey but Sage looks at me as if I’m crazy) so I’m guessing that it’s a no namer.
Here’s a copy of the Insights 2010 brochure:
Insights 2010 Sage Conference Guide
Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) – Explained
March 20, 2010
There are two new tax benefits available to employers who hire previously unemployed (60 days or more – and these employees must file an affidavit). Please consult your tax adviser prior to implementing any changes. As with all tax legislation the rules may apply differently to your company or there may have been additional guidelines issued since we first posted this information.
The first benefit provides an employer who hires a previously unemployed person (some terms apply – for example it looks like hiring your relatives is a no-no) with a tax incentive for the employer’s share of Social Security taxes.
While the implementation guidelines appear to still be in the works – we think you’ll claim the credit on your employment tax forms. Check with your tax professional on whether the new HIRE act applies to your company and for the exact steps you’ll need to take to implement the act.
The second benefit will provide a general business tax credit for each eligible worker retained for at least a year. The credit amount may be up to $1,000 per employee and would be claimed on the 2011 employer tax returns.
Sage Software’s Explanation of The HIRE Act
Synopsis of the portion of the legislation impacting the payroll:
Social Security tax exemption
The Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) imposes two taxes on employers, employees, and self-employed workers—one for Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI, commonly known as the Social Security tax), and the other for Hospital Insurance (HI, commonly known as the Medicare tax). The FICA tax rate for employees and employers is 7.65% each—6.2% for OASDI and 1.45% for HI. There is a maximum amount of compensation subject to the OASDI tax (i.e., $106,800 in 2010), but no maximum for HI.
The HIRE Act provides certain employers with relief from their share of the OASDI taxes on wages paid to a “qualified individual.” A qualified individual is anyone who:
- begins work for a qualified employer after Feb. 3, 2010 and before Jan. 1, 2011;
- certifies by signed affidavit (under penalties of perjury) that he was employed for a total of 40 hours or less during the 60-day period ending on the date the employment begins;
- is not employed to replace another employee of the employer unless that former employee separated from employment voluntarily, or for cause; and
- is not related to the employer (under rules similar to those in IRC §51(i).
- The exemption would be available to any employer, other than a federal, state, or local employer (or government instrumentality). However, an employer that is a public higher education institution could claim the exemption. An employer could elect not to receive this payroll tax benefit.
The bill also provides a similar payroll tax benefit to railroad employers.
It is expected that the Social Security tax exemption would be reported on Form 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return. The first quarter return (January 1 to March 31, 2010) must be filed by April 30, 2010. However, the bill does not allow the Social Security tax exemption to be claimed with respect to wages paid in the first quarter of 2010. The tax benefit that employers would have received in the first quarter of 2010 will be claimed in the second quarter of 2010 instead.
An IRS representative has stated that the IRS will be ready to make changes to Form 941 shortly after the bill is enacted.
The legislation calls for the employer Social Security tax exemption for qualified employers, as applicable, for wages paid to the qualified individual during the period beginning on the day after the date of the enactment and ending on December 31, 2010.
The full IRS release:
WASHINGTON — Two new tax benefits are now available to employers hiring workers who were previously unemployed or only working part time. These provisions are part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act enacted into law today.
Employers who hire unemployed workers this year (after Feb. 3, 2010 and before Jan. 1, 2011) may qualify for a 6.2-percent payroll tax incentive, in effect exempting them from their share of Social Security taxes on wages paid to these workers after March 18, 2010. This reduced tax withholding will have no effect on the employee’s future Social Security benefits, and employers would still need to withhold the employee’s 6.2-percent share of Social Security taxes, as well as income taxes. The employer and employee’s shares of Medicare taxes would also still apply to these wages.
In addition, for each worker retained for at least a year, businesses may claim an additional general business tax credit, up to $1,000 per worker, when they file their 2011 income tax returns.
“These tax breaks offer a much-needed boost to employers willing to expand their payrolls, and businesses and nonprofits should keep these benefits in mind as they plan for the year ahead,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman.
The two tax benefits are especially helpful to employers who are adding positions to their payrolls. New hires filling existing positions also qualify but only if the workers they are replacing left voluntarily or for cause. Family members and other relatives do not qualify.
In addition, the new law requires that the employer get a statement from each eligible new hire certifying that he or she was unemployed during the 60 days before beginning work or, alternatively, worked fewer than a total of 40 hours for someone else during the 60-day period. The IRS is currently developing a form employees can use to make the required statement.
Businesses, agricultural employers, tax-exempt organizations and public colleges and universities all qualify to claim the payroll tax benefit for eligible newly-hired employees. Household employers cannot claim this new tax benefit.
Employers claim the payroll tax benefit on the federal employment tax return they file, usually quarterly, with the IRS. Eligible employers will be able to claim the new tax incentive on their revised employment tax form for the second quarter of 2010. Revised forms and further details on these two new tax provisions will be posted on IRS.gov during the next few weeks.
Disclaimer: We are not in the business of providing tax or accounting advice. Consult with your tax or accounting advisor prior to implementing this information. Always check for the latest rules and regulations as changes may have occurred after our initial post on this topic.
via: IRS and Journal of Accountantcy
Sage Insights 2010 Collaboration via Google Wave
March 20, 2010
The Sage North America Insights 2010 Conference takes place May 17 to 20, 2010 in Denver Colorado. As usual the three days of sessions and networking promise to provide lots of value for Sage partners, CPAs and Vendors.
We’ll be there in the audience for all the major keynotes as well as the all new 1.5 hour Insights 2010 Sage Executive Question and Answer session.
Each year though it’s nearly impossible to sit in on all the major sessions, so this year we’re going to collaborate on note taking – sharing our notes with any others who care to join us. This will help ensure that nothing is missed during product sessions – and also allows those collaborating to make comments or share their own opinions on the happenings.
This year we’ll be using Google Wave which is a free collaborative tool from Google that you access via the Internet and your web browser. It will allow for anyone to update our notes at sessions — as well as to catch up on notes for sessions that they may have missed or want to know more about.
If you’ve never used Google Wave (or if you’ve tried it and given up) it’s a free collaboration tool in open preview from Google. Most of the use of Wave seems to be to jointly take notes or share bits of information — something that we think makes it an ideal tool to use for Sage Insights 2010.
Here’s a short video that explains and demonstrates Google Wave
During the keynotes and other sessions you’ll be able to search for and participate in the live creation of notes – provided that you’re a member of our conference Google Group (which is the only way Google Wave allows for easy sharing with a group of users).
If you’re not attending Insights you can still join the Google Group and participate in viewing the group Waves as well as providing feedback or asking questions. Google Wave’s are updated in real time so you’ll see people creating notes as the sessions are happening.
Here’s how we’ll use Google Wave for Insights 2010 – and you’re invited to join us
First, if you don’t have a Google Wave account — apply for one right now. You won’t be able to read or reply to any of our conference Waves without an account. The approval process for those appying with their Gmail accounts appears to be 3 to 5 days — so you’ll need to apply well in advance of stepping off the plane in Denver.
Secondly, after you’ve applied for the Google Wave invitation – join our Google Group. By being a member in the group you’ll be able to view and edit any of the Wave’s we create at Sage Insights.
Because of the way that Google implements group sharing – these Waves will only be visible and shared with the group.
When you join the Google Group – be sure you join with the same email address you used to sign up for Wave (Do NOT join with your @googlewave.com address).
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A few things to keep in mind:
This group has nothing to do with Sage.
They’re not sponsoring it – though they’re welcome to participate if they wish.
Once you are active with both Google Wave and a member of our Sage Insights Conference Google Group you’ll be able to search for Wave’s that are directed to anyone in the group.
It’s important to note that until you’re a member of our Google Group that any Google Wave search for Insights Conference notes won’t work.
Within Google Wave – simply search for:
group:insightsconference@googlegroups.com
If you’re already on Wave and have questions – contact us at wayne.schulz@googlewave.com or email wayne@s-consult.com.
MAS 90 4.4 Upgrade Tips Page Now Live on Sage Support Site
March 20, 2010
Sage North America have just updated their internal support pages to add in several links that contain tips for a smooth upgrade to their latest version of MAS 90 and MAS 200 – version 4.4.
The new section contains links to the Sage Supported Platform Matrix and Integrated Solutions Compatibility Matrix. Both of these important documents show which operating systems and third party applications have been reviewed and deemed compatible with MAS90 4.4.
Users of Windows 7 and Novell either have a short wait or face the uncertainty of running on an as-yet unsupported platform as outlined by the following announcement on Sage’s support site.
Support for Windows 7 is expected within a short time while the Novell platform has been removed as one that Sage will support for MAS90 and MAS200 version 4.4+.
Sage (login required)
Should I Install MAS 90 4.4 Upgrades?
March 15, 2010
Version 4.4 of Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 is now shipping!
Modules enhanced include: Inventory, Purchase Order and Bill of Materials. Both the accounts receivable customer number and inventory item number receive expanded field sizing.
Curious about the new features?
Here’s an in-depth guide that talks about the changes with some additional screenshots and examples.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4 Pre-Release Guide
We’ve had many clients call asking when would be a good time to install the upgrade.
Starting in early April we’ll be in touch with our clients to offer assistance. You’ll have the option of installing the upgrade yourself (which we typically don’t recommend unless you have some experience) or we will provide you with a fixed price cost for us to install the upgrade.
Business Insights Intelligence for MAS 90 & MAS 200 – First Look
March 15, 2010
Last week the Alchemex folks shared an hour long demonstration of the new Business Insights Intelligence module for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200. As you may remember back in January 2010 we picked up on a semi-official announcement from Sage that Alchemex was MAS 90’s FRX replacement.
Microsoft, the owner of FRX, had previously announced that as of the end of 2010 all sales of FRX would cease. As of the end of 2012 all support for the MAS 90 or MAS 200 version of FRX will stop as well.
Here’s the recorded session. No firm word yet on exactly when this will release though it seems likely you’ll see the first release in the second half of 2010.
Sage Business Intelligence from Wayne Schulz on Vimeo.
Can’t Make Insights 2010? Here’s a Way To Leave Questions for The Executive Q&A
March 4, 2010
Sage have announced that at Insights 2010 their final session will be a 1.5 hour open microphone Q&A with Sage Excutives led by Jodi Uecker-Rust, President Sage Business Solutions.
Since not everyone can make the open Q&A — I’ve started an online spot to leave questions.
This is strictly unofficial – Sage has nothing to do with it.
While we’re not certain of the exact makeup of the panel we think it will be:
Sue Swenson, President and CEO Sage North America
Himanshu Palsule, Executive VP, Product Strategy/Marketing, Sage Business Solutions
Jodi Uecker-Rust, President, Sage Business Solutions
Tom Miller, Sage VP Channel Operations
Paul Johnson, Executive Vice President, Sage Business Solutions
At Insights I’ll take the most popular questions and try to ask Sage before the event – and report on the answers when I return. No promises that I’ll be able to get through all the questions (or even any) but I will do my best.
Sage Executive Q&A Insights 2010 – Leave A Question
Image of Ace Frehley via Flickr
Tom Miller, Sage VP Channel Operations, Named As 2010 Channel Chief by CRN
March 4, 2010
I had a chance to sit with Tom Miller (in the photo above on the left – that’s me on the right) who has recently taken on the role of Channel Operations for Sage. He comes to Sage from Microsoft (and previously Great Plains). Tom reports to Jodi Uecker-Rust and is charged with developing policy for Sage’s extensive US channel.
During my discussions I was impressed by Tom’s understanding that the Sage Channel is, in effect, a customer of Sage and that plans are in place to developer even better programs.
Certainly we’ve already seen some effect from the programs.
In New York City recently we attended a free two day SQL training class sponsored by Sage and directed at the channel. In April we’ll be in New York City for two days of back to back training by Ed Kless on consulting skills and Rob Johnson on sales skills.
Standing by themselves free classes aren’t impressive. Lots of companies sponsor free training.
What’s impressive is that Rob and Ed are able to take mundane subjects and turn them into highly participatory sessions – with little restriction on content. If the class wants to talk about an issue of importance – both Ed and Rob are allowed to facilitate the discussion but there doesn’t seem to be any mandate that they tout a particular Sage policy. The result is far greater collaboration and idea sharing that you typically see at a channel event.
Here’s the press release announcing Tom Miller ad Channel Chief from CRN (Computer Reseller New):
Sage today announced that Tom Miller has been named a 2010 Channel Chief by Everything Channel’s CRN. Channel Chiefs are leaders in creating effective channel programs for solution providers. Everything Channel describes Channel Chiefs as those who consistently defend, promote and execute effective channel partner programs and strategies.
Miller’s selection as a 2010 Channel Chief recognizes his accomplishments in creating and developing programs that foster greater success within the Sage channel. Miller spearheads the Sage Business Solutions channel management team, which was created to focus Sage resources on driving effective business partner programs. Recently created under Miller’s guidance is the Sage Partner Advantage Competitive Series where partners receive education, training and tools to more effectively compete against specific competitors. Also created, the new Sage Partner Advantage Field Based Sales and Consulting Skills Workshops offer business partners more flexible options for education and training and complement existing programs with newly developed content and skills refresher courses.
Miller also has brought focused methodologies to the forefront of Sage’s efforts to capitalize on business opportunities. The Partner Distribution Optimization Tool and the New Customer Market Opportunity Tool leverage methodologies that pinpoint growth opportunities for Sage business partners. These tools help identify unrealized market opportunities from a geographic coverage and product-specific point of view and assist Sage partners to identify more specifically the business opportunities that exist market by market.
For the eighth consecutive year the Channel Chiefs were chosen based on Everything Channel’s editorial criteria including policy and program innovations made during the past year, the amount of revenue their company generates through partners, their willingness to speak out publicly on behalf of the channel, and the number of years they have dedicated to channel activities.
“Our whole focus is on understanding our partners and learning what we can do to make them more effective,” said Sage Vice President, Channel Operations Tom Miller. “Sage is successful when our partners are successful, and I’m very pleased to be recognized by CRN for our efforts at achieving mutual success.”
“Being named a Channel Chief is one of the most prestigious honors in the IT industry. This year’s Channel Chiefs offer tremendous insight into the who’s who of the Channel,” said Kelley Damore, VP, Editorial Director, Everything Channel. “Top channel executives consistently ensure that the Channel’s voice is heard when strategic decisions are being made and continually nurture mutually profitable relationships. We applaud the 2010 Channel Chiefs for their successful partner programs and strategies.”
For additional information on the CRN Channel Chief list, visit www.channelweb.com. The Channel Chief list was published in the February 22, 2010 issue.
About Sage North America
Sage North America is part of The Sage Group plc, a leading global supplier of business management software and services. Sage North America employs more than 4,100 people and supports nearly 2.9 million small and medium-size business customers. The Sage Group plc, formed in 1981, was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989 and now employs 14,500 people and supports 5.8 million customers worldwide. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.sagenorthamerica.com or call 866-308-2378.
About Everything Channel (www.everythingchannel.com, www.channelweb.com)
Everything Channel, headquartered in Framingham, MA, is a technology marketing and sales solutions company. Through its “Complete Technology Channel Solution,” Everything Channel offers the right business tools to accelerate technology sales. From branding and recruiting to marketing and sales, Everything Channel offers technology marketers the unmatched breadth and depth of global brands and market intelligence combined with unparalleled audience loyalty and credibility serving all technology sales channels through an extensive database. Everything Channel provides innovative field sales and marketing solutions to the sellers of technology to achieve measurable and significant results.
About United Business Media Limited
The parent company of Everything Channel, UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetisation of B2B communities and markets. UBM’s businesses inform markets and serve professional commercial communities—from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists—with integrated events, online, print and business information products. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organised into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more information, go to www.ubm.com.
Via: Sage
Sage Extended Solutions For MAS90 & MAS200 Sales Policy – Updated 2/23/10
February 23, 2010
I’ve just learned that Sage will now sell “kept” Extended Solutions for installation to MAS90/200 at level 4.3 AND EARLIER.
Update March 19, 2009:
Now you see it — now you don’t…
Sage initially told us that they would make their 56 kept solutions available on any supported version of MAS 90 or MAS 200 until the solution was incorporated to the next level of MAS 90/200.
Policy change by Sage.
Long story short — Sage won’t sell any of the 56 kept Extended Solutions at any version prior to 4.3.
They’re no longer making them available at earlier levels.
The information above supersedes the post that we wrote below based on lengthy conversations with multiple Sage personnel – who ultimately reversed policy on us while we were mid-stream proposing their solution (with information they provided) to a customer.
Update March 29. 2010: We continue to have issues both ordering and obtaining the most basic of pre-sales support on any Sage Extended Solution sales. We recommend that you not purchase any of the 56 kept solutions and instead wait for them to be incorporated into a future version of MAS 90 and MAS 200.
As you probably know, starting with the release of MAS 90/200 v4.4 Sage announced in 2009 that they’d be doing away with their Extended Solutions catalog of what appeared to be 500 or more custom enhancements while keeping 56 of the most popular Extended Solutions for incorporation to versions 4.4+ of Sage MAS90 and 200.
Sage Extended Solutions in many instances replaced the need for custom MAS90 and MAS 200 programming.
Starting with release 4.4 of Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 Sage will incorporate (add into the MAS product) 56 of their most popular enhancements on a two or three year rollout schedule.
Discontinued solutions are being provided under an open source license to Sage Preferred Development Partners (view the list here) who can upgrade them (possibly for a fee) and resell them.
In the interim there was considerable confusion about whether a licensed user of MAS 90 or MAS 200 could purchase any of those “kept” Extended Solutions at a level other than 4.3.
If you view the Sage Extended Solution web site you’ll see the issue is not entirely clear as the site states that the 56 kept Extended Solutions ” can be added to your Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.3 system“.
What about those customers on a version earlier than 4.3 who needed one of the 56 “kept” enhancements?
Until this policy shift they were being told by Sage that they must upgrade to version 4.3 before they could purchase any enhancements.
Before you suggest to me that I’m crazy – and that Sage was selling the 56 kept solutions for any version – read on.
The prior policy of the sales desk appeared to have been that kept Extended Solutions would only be sold at 4.3.
Sage Refused to Sell Extended Solutions at Versions Prior to 4.3
Here’s the email that I’d received as recently as last Thursday telling me that Extended Solutions that Sage was keeping for incorporation wouldn’t (then) be sold at any version other than 4.3.
From: xxxxx
Date: Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 6:02 PM
Subject: FW: Selling older Extended Solutions to existing customers
To: Wayne Schulz
Hi Wayne
Please see the email below.
xxxx
title
Sage Business Solutions Division
(800)-854-3415 xxx
www.sagenorthamerica.com
Sage. Your business in mind.
From: xxxx
Sent: Thursday, February 18, 2010 2:59 PM
To: yyyyy
Subject: FW: Selling older Extended Solutions to existing customers
We can sell this to them since it’s one of the 56 extended solutions that will be eventually embedded into the product but it has to be for MAS90/200 version 4.3 only!!
Thanks,
yyy
Sage Changes Policy – Will Sell Kept Extended Solutions At Older Version Until Incorporated
Late last night I was told there is a policy shift.
Sage will now sell any of the 56 Extended Solutions that they are keeping (does not appear to apply to the Extended Solutions that they’ve open sourced to developers) at levels earlier than 4.3 – up into when those solutions are actually incorporated to 4.4.
This means if you are on version 4.1 and need a “kept” solution such as AP-1095 Paperless Office AP Checks & Direct Deposit Stubs that you can continue to buy it up until the time it’s rolled into V4.4+.
This is extremely good news for those existing customers on maintenance with a supported version of Sage MAS 90 or MAS 200 prior to 4.3. It means that if their business conditions require them to adopt one of the 56 kept solutions that they can purchase that solution today rather than upgrade to 4.3 solely to qualify for the purchase of an Extended Solution.
There are a myriad of valid reasons that customers don’t upgrade immediately to the latest versions. Some customers have extensive enhancements to MAS90/200 that require testing and custom programming prior to any upgrade. Other customers may be subject to stricter compliance regulations (lending institutions, auditors, Sarbanes Oxley, governmental regulation) that don’t allow for a hasty upgrade.
Here is the link to the list of Extended Solutions to which the policy applies:
http://www.sagemas.com/products/sagemas90_mas200/extended_solutions/
MAS90 & MAS200 Official Windows 7 Compatibility Chart – February 2010
February 16, 2010
Sage has just published their official Windows 7 compatibility chart. Based on the document it appears that the MAS 90 product line (Sage MAS90, MAS200 and Sage MAS 200 Extended Enterprise) will become Windows 7 compatible sometime on or about March 2010.
Although the document conveniently omits stating whether the compatibility will be with 32-bit or 64-bit Windows 7 versions – we recommend sticking with 32-bit for the time being.
Sage MAS90, MAS200, MAS500, Accpac Windows 7 Compatibility Announcement
Sage ACT! Link for MAS90 & MAS200 Suspended
February 16, 2010
Sage Act Link! for MAS90 & MAS200 Suspended
This official update is just in from Sage:
Sage MAS 90 and 200 ERP version 4.4 will begin shipping this month, February 2010. This release will deliver substantial value to customers from Core Financials to Manufacturing and Distribution, with enhancements focused on workflow and business processes. As you are aware, due to the changes in Sage MAS 90 and 200 ERP 4.4, development and support of ACT! Link has been suspended. This business decision was made upon careful consideration of the development efforts required to maintain ACT! Link, coupled with the strategic direction for the Sage MAS 90 and 200 Product line to primarily focus on SageCRM integration incorporated into Extended Enterprise Suite.
Sage will begin communicating the suspension of ACT! Link to customers with the delivery of Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4. Customers who own both ACT!. and Sage MAS 90 or 200 ERP will be offered their choice of:
Migrating to Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Enterprise Suite at an aggressive promotional price
Continuing to use ACT! and be supported by a third party ACT! 2010 integration with Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4 from a Development Partner at an aggressive promotional price.
We believe it’s important to provide alternatives to existing Sage MAS and ACT! customers that enable them to choose a direction that fits their business and product requirements. The specifics of the two offers will be finalized over the next few weeks. Look for a follow-up communication with additional offer details coming soon from the Sage MAS team.
In summary:
ACT! Link is suspended with the Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4 release
Existing customers will be offered their choice to remain with ACT! supported by a third party solution from a Development Partner, or migrate to Sage MAS 90 or 200 Extended Enterprise Suite
Details of the offers will be coming soon
How to Upload 1099 From MAS 90 Electronic Reporting to CT for 2009
February 8, 2010
I just had my second client call to report that they encountered problems uploading 1099 MISC for 2009 to the State of Connecticut.
Both companies were using Sage Electronic Reporting which creates a standard data file for transmission to the government.
Unfortunately in both instances they received messages that their “B” record (payee) had invalid accounts on each line entry.
Ultimately to resolve this issue we had to log out of their CT Tax Account and submit the 1099 data through the screen shown below. After using this option they received an acknowledgement which appeared to indicate that the 1099-MISC for CT was uploaded.
PCI – PA-DSS Security Standards and Credit Card Processing With Sage MAS90: Overview Video & Concepts
February 8, 2010
Sage have released a great overview video that can help anyone unfamiliar with Credit Card security requirements as mandated by the payment application security standards. This Payment Card Industry recording will provide you with an overview of the principals and guidelines necessary to follow PCI security standards.
Use this video as a guide and not a “how to”. Always check with your processor for your specific requirements as well as any updates that may have been issued since Sage issued this video.
PA-DSS Guide for MAS90 & MAS200 Credit Card Processing
February 7, 2010
Payment Application Data Security Standard – aka PA-DSS is a set of security standards created by the PCI SSC to guide payment application vendors with implementing secure payment applications.
This PA-DSS Implementation Guide follows PA-DSS version 1.2 and PCI DSS version 1.2. It is not a complete “how to” nor does it cover each and every situation for every company setup. Check with your merchant/processor for any special instructions.
This guide my be updated from time to time — and security regulations also periodically change. Please check with your processor and review all relevant regulations. While we strive to keep all information current – we disclaim all responsibility for updating this information. You are advised to check with your processor and not rely solely on this document.
The Sage guide for PA-DSS and PCI DSS setup covers Sage MAS 90 & MAS 200 Versions 4.30.18 and 4.40.1
- Secure deletion of sensitive data and protection of stored cardholder data
- Password and account settings
- Logging
- Wireless networks
- Network segmentation
- Secure remote updates
- Remote access
- Encrypting network traffic
View the full guide (as authored by Sage on January 28, 2010) at the link below:
Warning: Always check for updated regulations that may pertain to your company. Use the below Sage document as a tool and not a “how to”. We advise you to always consult with your payment processor for final rules and regulations. Schulz Consulting is not the author of the document below and we are not responsible for results you may encounter from using Sage’s guide.
Update – Erika Jelovsek, Product Manager for Sage MAS provides this feedback over on the MAS90 LinkedIn Discussion Forum:
This Implementation Guide was posted as part of the Sage PA-DSS audit that is currently underway for Sage MAS 90 and 200. It is important to note that the only versions of Sage MAS 90 and 200 that will be submitted for the audit will be 4.30.0.18 and 4.40.0.1. These versions (Product Updates 18 and 1 respectively) will be released in late March 2010. Stay tuned forinformation to be posted on Sage sites and sent in the partner and customer newsletters in the next few weeks. I encourage all Sage MAS 90 and 200 partners to download the Guide from the Sage site and begin to review it.
Implementation_Guide_MAS90v430018_44001.pdf – for Sage MAS 90 & MAS 200 v4.30.18 and 4.40.1 (January 28, 2010)
MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4 Shipping February 15, 2010
February 7, 2010
Sage MAS 90 and 200 version 4.4 has been released to production, and will begin shipping February 15, 2010!
From Core Financials to Manufacturing and Distribution, there is something for everyone in 4.4.
Customers will be able to work even more efficiently the way they want to, with additional features and enhancements focused on workflow and business process — especially in the Inventory Management, Purchase Order, Bill of Materials, and Bar Code areas of their system.
What’s New In MAS 90 and MAS200 4.4
* Using our new Parallel Migration, you’ll seem like a miracle-worker by removing some of the time constraints that have added stress, frustration and cost in the past
* New Custom Office enhancements will add to your miracle-worker status by being able to provide customizations that work with or without user interaction (clicking a button), and will survive upgrades
* Enable the use of Expanded Customer and Item Numbers by company, so that customers can embed additional information such as city name or telephone number to more accurately identify their customers, and improve productivity with smart part numbers such as UPC, special handling or recycling codes, and more
* Turn data into actionable knowledge more effectively with additional Business Insights Explorer views for Inventory, Bill of Materials, and Purchase Order
* Increase accuracy and streamline customer workflows using features in Inventory Management, such as the ability to display the system’s expected quantities during Inventory Counts so only the variances require updating
* Easier access to information using the new Desktop, with links to “tell us what you think”, training, support, the MAS Community Site, Customer eNewsletter, and more
* Enhanced usability and workflow features and functionality from the Business Framework throughout most of the modules, such as Dual Grid Entry, Personalization, Right-Click Menus, Memo Manager, Hyperlinks, Custom Office, User and Date Time Stamps, Reports and Forms, Setup Wizards, Flexible Security, Batch Manager, and much, much more…
* Promote attendance to the FREE Any Time Learning course on SageU, What’s New in Version 4.4.
* Look for new features and functionality delivered through product updates coming throughout the year!
Also new in 4.4, the eBusiness Web Services module will provide an interface to allow third party application integration over the network and the Internet. Once you receive your reference library copies, Log on to Sage Online to obtain your new Sage MAS 90 and 200 system keys to unlock these exciting new features. With an SLP of $1,250, eBusiness Web Services will also be available for 4.4 on February 15.
At this time Sage MAS 90 and 200 version 4.4 Windows 7 compatibility testing is still underway. We expect information on Windows 7 compatibility to be published by the end of March 2010. As always, please consult the most recent version of the Supported Platform matrix for details.
For more on what’s new in 4.4:
* Visit the Sage MAS 90 and 200 Launch site, using the link below, or by clicking on the 4.4 Hero banner from SageMAS.com ( Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.4 Site )
* Read the What’s New in MAS90 4.4 Pre-Release Guide
Sage MAS 90 & MAS 200 4.4 Ships February 15, 2010
Sage Business Objects Interface Reference for MAS 90 and MAS 200 v4.4 Included In Help Files
February 6, 2010
When Sage releases version 4.4 of MAS 90 and MAS 200 on February 15, 2010 (pre-release guide for MAS90 4.4) not only will they be updating their Inventory, Bill of Materials and Purchase Order modules but their end user programming interface – BOI or Business Objects Interface will get a bump up too.
Sage has always offered a much praised (but poorly supported) BOI interface. One of the most frequently requested items has been a copy of the BOI product manual which was only delivered to those who took a class and even then was primarily decipherable by the truly hard core programmer types.
Thankfully Sage has finally seen the light and a copy of the BOI user guide is now included in the help files of all MAS 90 and MAS 200 version 4.4+ systems!
Users of the BOI interface have always been able to use Visual Basic scripting to modify the actions of the MAS 90 or MAS 200 program without touching the underlying source code. Sage has upgraded the BOI interface so that some actions can take place without having to click on any button.
In the past in order to make changes to something like an order expiration date the programmer would have to custom code a specific task to occur during the time that a button such as “Accept” was clicked. Version 4.4 does away with that requirement and actions can now happen without the user clicking any buttons.
Leaving the source code alone and steering users and consultants toward the BOI interface is highly desirable since it makes future upgrade more seamless. In fact Sage has moved away from selling any third party enhancements for their MAS 90 & MAS 200 in favor of bundling in their most popular enhancements to the product and allowing third party developers free access to the rest.
While on the surface it may appear that Sage have abandoned these customizations – known as Extended Solutions of which well over 500 were available at one point – in fact they’ve taken the first steps toward making their product easier and faster for everyone to upgrade.
In the past when a client installed more than one or two enhancements to their system they were shipwrecked at older levels until their enhancement was upgraded. Until that vital piece of programming was upgraded their entire company was frozen at an older MAS version.
Access to the BOI interface in version 4.4 will be via Custom Office where a new menu option will allow authorized users to access and maintain scripts.
One type of script demonstrated by Sage is a situation where a quote date may automatically be set to expire 90 days in the future. In the past this type of change might have required expensive programming. The script also would have required the user to do something – usually click a button or use the Accept button (which the consultant had to add custom program cod to).
With MAS 90 and MAS 200 version 4.4 the user – or more likely their consultant – can maintain this code without having to modify the source program or use a third party developer. And the code can “fire off” without any user intervention or button clicks.
Once the code has been maintained (via User Defined Script Maintenance) the resulting MAS 90 or MAS 200 screens will automatically modify a quote expiration date.
Here’s where you’ll maintain the code in Custom Office (which is an included component of all Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 installations).
Here’s the code in action when a user enters a quote into MAS 90 Sales Order. Notice that the expiration date is automatically set with no intervention by the user:
via: Scott Hickman – ServiceWorld Business Solutions
NetSuite Earnings Call: We’re Losing Them As Fast As We Replace Them
February 5, 2010
Netsuite reported another loss yesterday but you’d hardly know it from their earning’s call. They say the average per customer annual revenue is $38,000. I believe their customer license count was flat (so they lose them as quickly as Sage NA recent earnings reports said they do – http://bit.ly/bHw9wI ).
Except for the use of Cloud Computing this seemed like a similar call that Sage or Microsoft could have held.
FULL DISCLOSURE: Schulz Consulting is a Sage Business Partner so we are not independent or impartial with respect to our thoughts. Use the information here as the starting point for your own good independent thinking and forming your own conclusions.
NetSuite is targeting verticals though they didn’t spend much time saying which ones (I believe it’s wholesale distribution, software companies (same vertical as Intacct) and professional services).
The company is definitely moving away from servicing the low end (seemingly those paying $10,000 or under annually) due to churn. They claim that the users they lost were replaced by better (aka higher paying) licenses.
Recurring commissions are 30% (initial sale and renewal) to the channel. Only 20% of sales are through a channel ( a number which I think is unchanged from prior years).
Interestingly if I read the call right – the flagship (aka high end multi-company consolidation in real time) OneWorld offering ended the year with 50 users. Back in April 2008 when it was unveiled ( http://bit.ly/9Ev49E ) they claimed 38. So that’s a growth of 12 in about a 1.5 year time period. I am not 100% certain this is the same OneWorld flavor since on the call they refer to it was OneWorld SRP (services something or other).
UPDATE: I re-read the call and it looks like NetSuite has a product called OneWorld SRP and the 50 users represents those accounts using both OneWorld and Open World. Personally I find these product names too confusing and similar… but then again isn’t that what ERP has evolved to – using smoke and mirrors to sell…
Going forward Netsuite is changing their internal customer account managers so they each manage less customers. Previously it was a 100:1 ratio and Netsuite sees it moving closer to a 40:1. I think this is probably due to increasing complexity of their deals.
Of those buying the suite – 70% implement CRM.
I believe we have one of the best channel programs in the world and during 2010 it will even get better. -Zach Nelson CEO NetSuite
Nothing I read made me think Netsuite was an opportunity for any but the largest VARS with a heavy vertical tilt who would use Netsuite to complement but not be their complete service offering. This is the same thing that has been on display the last two years at the IT Alliance. The NetSuite partners on stage who tell of their experiences are all using NetSuite as a complement to other service offerings (financing, accounting, mergers, venture capital) and not as a traditional VAR model where they sold software/service plus implementation.
I think cloud computing is still coming and as VARS we’ll have to adapt – though adapting probably means developing a model where the services we offer are not the same ones that the publisher will offer (namely support, training, implementation). Unless we can add some “special sauce” there’s little reason to get back on the treadmill of selling a highly commissioned SaaS offering only to see the commission rug be yanked 10 years down the road when growth in the industry slows (as it will).
Read the full transcript:
NetSuite Earnings Call via Seeking Alpha
Free SQL Server Training for Sage Partners: Irvine CA (2/17,18) and New York (2/23, 24)
February 4, 2010
A little birdie just alerted me to a free two day Microsoft SQL training course available to Sage Business Partners free of charge.
The course is being held February 17 & 18, 2010 in Irvine California or February 23 & 24, 2010 in New York City. Registration is completely free though as of February 4, 2010 at 3pm EST there were only 16 free seats remaining in California and 20 in New York.
The deadline to register for the Irvine classes is 2/14/10 and for New York it’s 2/18/10.
From what we know this training is a requirement for certification on MAS 200 SQL (expected to be re-released in Q4 2010) and certainly handy for any consultants working with Sage MAS 200 EES which uses SQL for the SageCRM portion of the product.
How can you go wrong with two days of free hands-on technical training?
Here’s the course description:
Sage and Microsoft’s SQL Server Team are joining forces together to offer Sage most valued partners, a unique opportunity to take their SQL Server skills to the next level and grow their business.
Understanding the SQL Server administration and management is critical for successful implementations of Sage products in a SQL Server environment. In this course, the most important aspects of working with SQL Server will be covered during a two day workshop that includes practical experience via hands-on-labs. The course covers installing, configuring and managing SQL Server, explains how SQL Server indexes work, shows how to read execution plans, describes how to perform basic performance tuning and diagnostics and provides guidance on planning for high availability options such as clustering, mirroring and log-shipping.
Here’s how Sage Business Partners can sign up (login is required)
First, login to Sage Partner University here.
Next, I was only able to locate the course through a search – but you may be able to follow this link to go direct to the SQL registration page. (Update: It looks as if sometimes this direct link brings you to a search page instead of the course – simply search for the keyword SQL and product line Sage MAS90/ MAS200. The second result – course # MS90611 Sage SQL Server Training should appear for $ 0).
If the link above doesn’t work, simply search for the class using the steps below:
Open the search box (click the image below to enlarge):
Then use the resulting search box to find the course with SQL:
MAS 90 & MAS 200 Roadmap – 2/1/2010
February 2, 2010
Sage have just released their public roadmap for their MAS90 and MAS200 product line. The map displays planned enhancements through 2012 – as well as some new information such as an apparent plan to bring forward a SQL compatible payroll module.
As with all technology plans these are tentative and subject to change as noted in Sage’s footnotes.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Roadmap – PUBLIC 2-1-10
Multi-Company AP, AR and GL for MAS90 – 15% off through 2/28/2010
February 2, 2010
Running multiple companies within MAS90 or MAS200 is easy. The software natively supports as many company codes as you would like to setup – with no additional charge.
The trick is that really big companies often want to run a lot of very small separate MAS90 companies but manage them from one master company.
Confused yet?
Think of it as a parent / child company. The parent pays all the bills but the child still accounts for the expense.
Without an enhancement you would need to manually account for this within MAS 90 or MAS 200 through hours of backbreaking labor (or if not back breaking – it would surely be tedious).
DSD Business Systems Offers Multi-Company Solutions for MAS90 and MAS200
A/P Multi-Company ($2,500) allows a managing company’s Accounts Payable department to process A/P transactions for an unlimited number of “subsidiary” companies. Invoices can be distributed to other companies that have a General Ledger database. Each line item entry of an Invoice contains a new Company Code field. This new field defaults to the current Company – it may be changed to any other company that has been set-up for inter-company processing.
G/L Multi-Company ($2,750) is designed to allow a managing company to process G/L transactions for an unlimited number of “subsidiary” companies. GLMU is compatible with DSD APMU. They can be used together or separately.
G/L Multi-Company Consolidation ($1,750) has been created for firms that run more than one company on their Sage MAS 90 or Sage MAS 200 system and who require combined and separate financial reporting. This enhancement will automate that process using the standard or custom financials. The General Ledger Chart of Accounts must be the same across companies. GLCN is also available for use with our Multi-Currency/International General Ledger enhancement.
G/L Account Copy by Company ($1,910) allows new General Ledger accounts to be copied to other companies during G/L Account Maintenance. There is also an option to update the other company Chart of Accounts when a change is made to an existing account.
G/L Daily Transaction Register ($1,325)by Companies allows the General Ledger user the ability to Print and update the Daily Transaction Register for multiple companies at once.
Through 2/28/2010 take 15% off.
Call Sedal Legesse – 858-550-5900, ext 133 — even better – tell her you’d like 20% because you read about it on the Schulz Consulting web site!
What’s New In MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4 (Mini Brochure)
January 27, 2010
Sage has just released this four page “What’s New in MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4″ brochure. The document is a high level overview of the enhancements to the desktop, increased customer number (20 characters) and inventory item numbers (30 characters) as well as other important enhancements to MAS 90 and MAS 200 that will appear when version 4.4 ships in February 2010.
Sage MAS 90 and 200 – Whats New in 4 4
SDATA: Sage’s “Secret Sauce” In Communicating Between ERP Systems and The Web?
January 25, 2010
Through the years most ERP companies have grown through acquisition.
From humble single product beginnings we’ve seen many companies including Sage North America evolve from a relatively tiny one product company called State of The Art which evolved to a company named Best Software then Sage Software then ultimately Sage North America or simply Sage.
As software companies grow and add products with different code bases the single most difficult issue is making each product share data. Acquired products have different core programming code as well as sometimes incompatible data dictionaries.
A common issue is how to link product A whose customer numbers can be 15 characters with product B whose customer numbers might only be 5.
For example the Sage Extended Enterprise is made up of at least three different products: Sage MAS200 + SageCRM + Sage FAS. Through the magic of programming, and brute force, Sage gets all three products to work together and exchange data.
But what if there was a standard that was simple and didn’t require extensive custom programming to enable communication between different products. This is where Sage’s open sourced SDATA protocols and SDATA extensions might come into play.
Stephen Smith, Chief Architect Sage Software, has done a great job of sharing some details of Sage’s SDATA protocols. Stephen’s job (from his LinkedIn profile) is:
Work on defining the architecture and technology direction for the Sage Accpac ERP line of accounting products. Leading the effort to modernize Accpac into a state of the art web based ERP package. Developing a shared Sage technology platform to bring together a number of Sage products into a unified end to end package with Accounting, CRM, HRMS and other vertical solutions; all sharing a common look and feel as nice user friendly web based applications.
According to Stephen’s blog posts (read the full post here) SDATA is a major new feature of Accpac 6.0:
One of the big features in Accpac 6 is SData support. What is SData? SData is a web services protocol based on REST. What is REST? REST is a web services protocol that is very popular among Internet companies. There are basically two main competing standards for web services. One is SOAP which is promoted by Microsoft, Oracle and IBM; this is a fairly heavy duty protocol which requires a fair bit of infrastructure (which is provided by the companies promoting this protocol). The other is REST which was invented as a University Research project and basically uses existing Web Technologies such as HTTP and RSS to implement a web services protocol. The nice thing about REST is that it doesn’t require any extra middleware. You are basically doing everything via standard web URLs. The infrastructure that supports this is basically just the standard Internet. SData is just an extension to REST, similar to Google’s GData which is also based on REST. REST protocols are used by Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo and all the main Internet companies. Gartner estimates that 75% of web services in use on the Internet are REST based. REST/SData also provides a standard mechanism for performing CRUD (create, read, update, delete) on all records.
While it may be too early to know how widespread the adoption of SDATA will be within all of Sage’s products, Sage certainly appears to be making a major push for it’s use. Sage ACCPAC is one of the ERP products (Sage ERP X3 is the other) that Sage has stated will be marketed worldwide.
I’ll be asking Sage where we can expect SDATA technology to appear next. For now it’s seems like an exciting addition to the Accpac 6.x product and will enable significantly greater interaction between different applications as Stephen explains:
All the new Sage ERP Accpac 6 screens are written entirely using SData. This means the screen can access any Accpac Views via SData, but additionally they can access any SData feeds from any product. In Accpac 5.x, the screen controls were mapped via datasource controls to views and view fields. This was great, but it limited you to only connecting our standard controls to fields in Views developed in our SDK. Now that the controls are mapped to a standards based SData fields, it means they will be able to be connected easily to much more data than just Accapc data. Look for other Sage products to start providing SData interfaces in their coming versions.
Read more about SDATA on the Sage SDATA web site or visit Stephen Smith’s blog via Geni Whitehouse – Even A Nerd Twitter Stream
FRX SP 11 for MAS 90 and MAS 200 Available For Download
January 20, 2010
Been looking for the FRX Service Pack 11 for MAS90 and MAS200?
Consultant Alan Niergarth found it right on Microsoft’s own site.
This 52.5 MB download patches FRX for numerous program issues. Although the “whats fixed” doesn’t mention any fixes for Windows 7 compatibility, at least one site claims that FRX Service Update 11 enables FRX to work with Windows 7. Check the What’s New for details.
While Microsoft has this patch available for MAS 90 and MAS 200 users we must point out that Sage has apparently not yet tested it. So install it at your own risk though at least one person says that “it didn’t blow my system up” when they installed it.
YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). Consult your Sage Business Partner prior to installing – that is unless you are a Sage Business Partner which in that case consult yourself.
Link: FRX Service Pack 11 for MAS 90 and MAS 200
Top 10 Mistakes People Make With MAS 90 and MAS 200 (And how you can avoid them)
January 20, 2010
The end of each calendar year marks the busy season for most accounting software users. They’re hurriedly making adjustments to their accounting records and performing tasks – such as closing the year – that happen only once annually.
Naturally everyone’s a little foggy as they perform tasks that are less familiar. Here’s a quick compilation of the top 10 mistakes we’ve seen users make with MAS 90 and MAS 200 – as well as our advice on how to avoid them.
10. Not making a backup company at year end.
As mistakes go this ones a little teeny one. Best practices followed by veteran MAS 90/200 users say to create a backup of your data prior to the year end close (In version 4.x you’ll do this in company maintenance – versions prior to 4.x use the File – Run SVDATA trick). The backup company comes in handy for researching old information, reprint payroll reports and in general is your safety net in case a main backup should fail.
Come to think of it – anytime you’re unsure of how a transaction is going to turn out (booking a reversal of an invoice) just make a backup company and first test the transaction in the backup company before performing it live.
9. Failing to reconcile the subsidiary ledger detail balances (accounts payable, accounts receivable, inventory) monthly to the general ledger control totals.
It’s far easier to reconcile an incorrect balance within 30 days of when it occurred than a whole year later. Face it, nobody will remember what happened a year ago to cause the balance on your general ledger to stop agreeing to the subsidiary reports (accounts payable listing, etc).
What, you mean nobody ever told you that your debits were supposed to equal your credits?
At a minimum reconcile all your subsidiary reports (accounts payable aging, accounts receivable aging, inventory valuation) to your general ledger accounts. Investigate any discrepancies immediately when you’ll still have a prayer of spotting them in under 12 hours because everything is fresh in your mind.
And while you’re at it eat better, exercise and take your vitamins. All things we know we ought to do – but too often don’t.
8. Trying to agree the subsidiary AGED INVOICE instead of TRIAL BALANCE report to the general ledger (via Michael Pruet).
Here’s a good tip from consultant Michael Pruett (www.integratedaccounting.biz). When you’re trying to reconcile either the accounts receivable or accounts payable detail to the general ledger control – use the trial balance report in the payables or receivables module and not the aging report.
The trial balance report in either accounts payable or accounts receivable reconciles based on posting date. Just like your general ledger. If you try to use the aging reports those will report based on the invoice date and in some cases they’ll reconcile – but not if there have been other transaction between the month end and time the report printed.
Save yourself some headache (and consulting fees) – use the trial balance report found in both the accounts payable and accounts receivable modules to print detail reports that tie out to the general ledger.
7. Setting the data retention periods to any number less than the maximum in any module.
Data storage has been cheap since about the late 1980’s. Until your MAS 90/200 system begins to bog down (it almost never will) I recommend you set the maximum retention period. This is enabled on each individual module next to options that ask “number of months/days/periods to save history” (or similar phrasing).
The danger is retaining too little historical information is that once the data purges you can never get it back. I’ve seen many companies wish they’d saved more of their historical data which they can use for reporting, etc.
If you awaken one day and find that your system has too much data on hand – guess what? You can always purge it. But you can’t make it come back if you’ve chosen not to retain it to begin with.
6. Believing any third party software company who tells you that integration to MAS 90 or MAS 200 is “no problem”.
The happiest day in the ownership cycle of third party software that’s promised to “easily” integrate to MAS90/200 is the day you make the decision to buy it.
From that day forward it’s usually a never ending learning process of hidden limitations and “why didn’t we think to ask” about that.
It’s not that 3rd party software is bad – because usually it’s quite good. What’s usually bad is the integration to your accounting system.
When you think of the words “fully integrated” you’ll be imagining that with the push of one button all the data in the third party program magically sails into your MAS 90/200 system.
When the vendor who sold you the software used the world “fully integrated” what they really meant was that their software could create a plain text file. What you did with that text file was up to you and your accounting software consultant to figure out (usually for an extra fee).
Here’s a tip. If a third party solution provider tells you that it’s “no problem” to integrate their software to your MAS90/200 then reply back …
“If it’s no problem, then may I assume you won’t be concerned if I delay payment until after the integration is created and is working as described”
Tip: Get details on exactly how third party software will integrate to MAS 90/200. Will postings be in detail? Will you be forced to massage the data? Who will be responsible for creating the integration? These integrations are rarely “no problem” – so be sure to get the details in advance of writing a check.
5. Reinitializing any data file other than a temporary data entry file.
The “King Kong” of all data problems is when a data file is “mistakenly” erased. Usually this happens when a user watches their consultant fix a problem. Then, thinking that they can duplicate the steps when a similar error occurs, the client erases all their data files using Reinitialize Data Files in the MAS 90/200 utilities menu.
The moral of the story is: (a) Backup before erasing any file and (b) when you do erase a file be darned sure it’s not a history file (usually the only files that you’d want to initialize are data entry ones).
4. Failing to backup your data every day.
It’s absolutely shocking how many companies don’t have a backup. Some of them even KNOWINGLY don’t backup their data.
A quick and dirty way to back your data is to buy a cheap (under $100) USB drive and just copy the entire \MAS90 folder and all subfolders. This should get all of your core MAS 90 data.
Then go out and purchase a good tape backup drive with backup software (this should cost well under $2,000). For an investment of under $2,000 in proper backup procedures you can save $20,000 more in lost productivity should a drive shut down or crash during a busy month end.
3. Making a change to a payroll tax deduction and failing to check with your tax accountant to verify the proper tax treatment.
All payroll deductions are not treated the same way. Some may be subject to (or deducted before) different taxes. The time to discover this is when you’re initially setting up the deduction and not after using the code (wrongly) for a year.
Consult with your tax professional after you setup any new deduction or earnings codes. Better to disover problems in setup right at day one than during W2 printing at year end (when it’s too late to fix the issue).
2. Closing payroll for the year before printing W2s or making a backup.
Prior to closing out your payroll – but after the last payroll run of the year – make a backup (or two) of your payroll data. Most companies use the company maintenance trick referenced in #10 above.
Having a copy of your data on hand is also handy for those times (or twelve) when employees lose their W2 and as you to print them another midway through the next year.
1. Delete, renumbering or merging a range of customers, vendors, inventory item or general ledger accounts.
And the number one mistake – by far – is to mistakenly use Sage’s powerful delete/renumber/merge utility to combine all of your data. Usually you don’t want to delete or renumber a range of items. Most especially not on a Friday before a long holiday weekend.
The problem is that there’s no undo. Once you’ve merged all your items (almost always by mistake) you can’t make them come back.
Consultant Scott Hickman of Serviceworld Business Solutions and Gene Ulrich of New Solutions NW explain it this way:
How about merging all inventory items into a single part number? Same with customers?The call starts – “all my part numbers are gone except one…. Let me tell you what I did…. “ I interrupt, “you went into an Inventory Utility……” They say “yes, but……..”
Same song for customers……
Tip: Before you delete/renumber/merge (or do anything in MAS90/200 that could alter data) make a backup.
Some honorable mention goofs courtesy Mark Kotyla of Giving Tree Consulting:
One that I see occasionally is reopening a closed GL year and closing again… not realizing that GL is configured to 1. Reset journal & registers at year end and 2. Copy actual to default budget is checked.
Another is configuring allocation journals based on period activity, opening prior periods and not running the allocations before reclosing the period.
Using General Journal Entry to record bank rec activity, and either not entering them in Bank Rec or entering them into Bank Rec as adjustments and not knowing whether to use a positive or negative value
Start configuring AP for 1099 printing mid year and act disappointed when MAS won’t magically recalculate the first 6 months of payment history
Installing service updates, then checking whether enhancements exist or upgrade OS, then ask about compatibility
Set passwords on Paperless office documents, then forget them
Think you have a bug because you can’t find the Invoice Payment Selection Register on the 4.3 AP menu
Incremental backups
Image via: Despair
Sage Announces Alchemex As Their MAS 90 MAS 200 FRX Financial Reporter Replacement
January 18, 2010
Sage yesterday announced on LinkedIn that Alchemex is their new reporting tool that will be bundled with MAS90/200 and serve to replace the FRX Report Writer which Microsoft is retiring in 12/2012.
It’s possible I missed a public announcement about the replacement for FRX Financial Reporting for the Sage MAS90 and MAS200 product line.
While Alchemex has been informally discussed during internal Sage Business Partner roadmap sessions – the only other indication that it was being considered was reportedly during comments public customer demonstrations made at the Sage Summit customer conference.
As we’ve discussed before, FRX is being discontinued at the end of 2012. FRX is a financial report writer bundled with MAS 90 and MAS 200 General Ledger. It has advanced capabilities (consolidations, formatting, structure) that larger companies use to create custom financial statements based on their MAS 90 or MAS 200 General Ledger data.
Microsoft owns the product and made a decision in 2008 to discontinue FRX support. The exact discontinuation schedule changed a few times until it arrived at the final end-of-life date of December 2012.
This means that all software publishers (including Sage) who offered FRX as their primary financial reporting tool needed to either write their own financial reporting package or scramble to find a suitable replacement in advance of the 2012 deadline.
There had been some informal indicationis that Alchmex, an Excel-based reporting tool, would be the replacement. This program is already used in the Accpac, Sage ERP X3 product lines to create financial reports.
Until now I have not seen any public announcement to users or the Sage channel about the use of Alchemex as the replacement for FRX .
Confirmation of the Alchemex use in MAS 90 and MAS 200 appears to be all but confirmed by today’s statement on the MAS90 LinkedIn Group by Erik Kaas, Director of Product Management at Sage Software who states that users should expect to see the first MAS 90 and MAS 200 compatible version in Summer 2010 :
Microsoft has announced an end of support date of December 31, 2012 for FRx. This summer, Sage will start shipping “Business insights Intelligence” as an alternative solution for Financial Reporting within our Sage MAS products. Sage has established an OEM relationship with a business intelligence (BI) vendor (Alchemex) that offers advanced financial reporting, operational reporting, and advanced OLAP analysis capabilities. Sage MAS customers will be provided with one free user license for this product with the option of purchasing additional licenses. This solution will provide robust financial reporting out of the box and will complement the already very strong tools in Sage MAS, including Business Insights Explorer and Dashboard. Sage will also ensure that the next releases of MAS 90 will continue to be backward compatible with FRx Desktop.
Note that FRx Forecaster has been discontinued by Microsoft and is no longer available for sale. It will continue to be supported directly by Microsoft through September 30, 2010.
Update January 18, 2010: According to Sage every MAS90/200 user will get 1 free license as part of the MAS 90 v4.4 Product Update. In addition, they are reviewing a “trade in” program to allow customers that have purchased additional FRx licenses to exchange them for equivalent BI Intelligence licenses.
Sage is investigating if and how custom FRx reports can be converted to the new format and we will make a utility available to assist with the conversion. However, since FRx is a proprietary format it is unlikely that the utility will be perfect – but it should minimize the costs of conversion.
This is the second time a major announcement has debuted on the Sage MAS90 LinkedIn group. The first announcement was earlier this month when Sage stated they would support MAS90/200 v4.3 on Windows 7 with the expected release of Service Update 18 in March 2010.
Sage Spirit Award 2009: Attacked and Unboxed
January 14, 2010
You may remember a few weeks ago that I mentioned Schulz Consulting was named as one of the inaugural Sage Spirit Award Winners. The award arrived today and for a while I thought the packaging tape was going to get the better of me.
Sage Spirit Award 2009 Awarded To Schulz Consulting
What’s New In MAS 90 and MAS 200 4.4: Free Anytime Learning
January 13, 2010
Are you getting excited for the next release of MAS 90/200 version 4.4? Having trouble sleeping at night because you feel like you just don’t have your finger on the pulse of the changes that will occur in your Inventory, Bill of Materials or Purchase Order module (not to mention the other module updates)?
Here’s your chance to get a free look at the new features. Sage offers an Anytime Learning Course for free to those who are Business Partners or Customers.
To view the course simply visit Sage Software University. Register (or supply your user name / password if you already have one) then once inside click this link and you’ll see the page below.
Select the What’s New in MAS90200 4.4 and you can register for free to view this update.
It does not appear that this training is available in the Sage Partner section of Sage University – instead you should go into the regular Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 section listed under Accounting /ERP (or just use this link).
Sage Insights 2010: How to suggest a topic for the conference
January 13, 2010
The Sage Insights Reseller Conference is scheduled for May 17 to 20, 2010 in Denver Colorado.
If you’ve attended prior conferences and wondered how you might be able to suggest topics for next year – here’s one quick way to do so. It’s all online in the Sage Software University site.
Simply login to your Sagesoftwareuniversity account (membership is free) and access the link on the front page.
After selecting the suggestion link you’ll be able to enter in a topic (or topics) that you’d like Sage to cover at Insights 2010!
If you’re attending and would like to collaborate on making notes and observations about the various sessions at Sage Insights 2010 – take a look at our Google Wave collaboration information to see how we’ll be sharing notes between people in our Insights group.
Sage Software University
Sage UK Seeking Digital Content Manager
January 13, 2010
Looking for a new gig managing digital content online?
This lavish Newcastle upon Tyne office cube (Use of the bottle of water left behind by the last occupant is negotiable) could all be yours.
This position involves coordination of various content streams including video case studies, downloadable white papers, blog posts, tools/calculators, podcasts and whatever else the internet dreams up next.
The jpb posting doesn’t say but I think you’ll probably get to attend tons and tons of time wasting meetings too and learn new cliched corporate phrases like “let me reach out to Ted in legal for his opinion before we do anything”.
If this is you – check out their Twitter announcement with links to a more complete job description.
Snaptax from Intuit uses iPhone to file your 1040 for 2009
January 12, 2010
SnapTax makes it easy to prepare and file simple tax returns via your iPhone. Distributed by Intuit, publishers of the popular Turbotax software, this iPhone software will be available January 15, 2010 exclusively for California residents. It uses advanced optical character recognition software to allow
taxpayers to prepare and file their federal and state returns (California only for now) from their iPhones.
The procedure (as outlined below) is amazingly simply. Use your iPhone to take a photo of your W-2. The software uses OCR (optical character recognition) to import data from your pay form. Then it asks you a series of questions until it computes your refund (or payment due).
For the initial release ($10 download fee and due out 1/15/10) you’ll only be able to file California returns and only for simple tax returns like a 1040 or 1040EZ. You must have an iPhone 3G or 3GS in order to run it.
If the program is not able to file your return because your tax status is too complicated then you can take the $10 fee you paid for the software and apply it toward the full Turbotax software.
via: Macworld
Free Kindle Available To ERP Purchasers via Slingshot Software
January 12, 2010
Slingshot Software a provider of Internet based ERP software has an interesting offer. If you register on their site with your contact information, then see a Slingshot demonstration – you’ll be in the running for a free Amazon Kindle (about $270 value).
This promotion applies to anyone who views a Slingshot Software demo and then either purchases Slingshot or one of their named competitors — namely Microsoft Dynamics, SAP, Oracle, Epicor or Sage.
While their site is sparse on screenshots of their software in action they did note in October that their Slingshot version 11 was released.
Some terms and conditions apply as follows:
Offer is valid for all eligible submissions received between December 1, 2009 and January 31, 2010. This promotion is eligible to all qualified residents of the United States and Canada. Limit one Kindle® per company/organization.
In order to meet eligibility requirements, registrants must purchase enterprise software between March 1, 2010 and December 31, 2010 from Slingshot Software or provide proof of purchase of enterprise software from a named competitor. “Named competitors” are hereby defined as Microsoft Dynamics, SAP, Oracle, Epicor and Sage.
Additionally, in order to be eligible, Slingshot must provide a demonstration of one or more applicable Slingshot products to the individuals at the registrant’s company responsible for the software selection.
Participants who meet all eligibility criteria will be shipped the Kindle Wireless Reading Device (6″ Display, Global Wireless, Latest Generation) no later than one month following the determination of qualification. More information about the Kindle can be found here.
Should the Amazon Kindle no longer be available, an alternative gift of equal value will be provided. Slingshot Software reserves the right to disqualify any individual or organization it deems unqualified and to cancel, suspend and/or modify the terms of this promotion at any time without notice.
Slingshot Software Free Kindle
2010 Payroll Tax Rate Cheat Sheet
January 11, 2010
Looking for a quick guide to the 2010 payroll tax rates? Paychex have just published their Paychex Tax Faces for 2010.
This guide provides updated 2010 FICA, Social Security and Retirement information that you may find handy.
Also included is state data (withholding rates, unemployment wage base, state unemployment rate range, minimum wage, minimum wage with tips) for Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
MAS90 4.3 To Be Windows 7 Compatible With Service Update 18
January 8, 2010
It looks like users of Sage MAS 90 and 200 version 4.3 can expect a present for the new year in the form of a Service Update that will provide for support of Windows 7. Service updates are quarterly bundles of minor fixes and updates that are released to keep MAS 90 and MAS 200 running smoothly.
Previously MAS 90 and MAS 200 had not been certified for Windows 7 though many users have been able to run it with some minor tweaks ( With the 32 bit version of Windows 7 and using the Sage CD to install workstation updates).
According to a posting in the LinkedIn group today by Jeff Konstanzer who manages Customer Support at Sage Software users should look for Windows 7 compatibility with the release of Service Update 18 for Sage MAS90 and MAS200.
While not specified in the post we think that the compatibility will be with the 32 bit version of Windows 7 as there are reportedly various errors with the Paperless Office drivers and possibly some of the ODBC integrations when run in a 64 bit operating system environment.
The usual quarterly release cycle for service updates would have Service Update 18 hitting Sage’s online support center in March 2010.
Update January 8, 2010:
From the MAS90 & MAS200 Users Linked In Group -
Sage MAS 90 and 200 will support Windows 7, 32-bit with version 4.4, scheduled for release in early February 2010. In addition, the intent is to support Windows 7 64-bit for 4.4 and both 32- and 64-bit for version 4.3 with Product Update 18, scheduled for release at the end of March, assuming successful completion of all test cases. Older versions will not be supported on Windows 7.
As Jeff mentioned above, WOW mode is the plan for 64 bit.
Kudos to Brett Zimmerman for fleshing out this news via MAS90 LinkedIN Group
How to delete a warehouse in MAS90 or MAS200
January 8, 2010
Sage has an interesting knowledgebase article that describes how to delete a warehouse from MAS90 and MAS200 Inventory Management. As you likely have discovered if someone creates a warehouse and makes an entry into that warehouse then you’ll be prohibited (“You may not delete an active warehouse”) from deleting the warehouse.
Sage’s article advises running the Stock Status Report for the specific warehouse and zeroing any items shown on the report. For details take a peek at the official Sage KB.
How to delete a warehouse in Sage MAS 90 and 200
SAP Business One VS MAS 500 Down & Dirty
January 7, 2010
A Sage Business Partner who represents both Sage MAS 500 and SAP Business one has weighed in with a most interesting assessment of how Sage matches up against SAP in the mid-sized business ERP market.
Super consultant Mark Chinsky posted yesterday a very extensive list of how SAP Business One kicks MAS 500’s ass compares against MAS 500.
Mark’s intimately familiar with both products and for a period of time in the late 1990’s ran the #1 Sage MAS 90 and MAS 500 consulting firm in the United States (he sold the very first copy of MAS 500 then called Acuity).
Here’s a peek at his post – follow the link at the bottom to read the really good stuff on his site:
SAP Corporation is the 2nd largest software company in the world. Sage is much smaller. Sage is basically a UK finance company that has acquired over 100 companies over the years and they operate mostly independently with limited sharing of best practices and solutions. They more often compete with each other rather than complement each other. Sage must spread their R&D over hundreds of different code bases. SAP currently only has 2 code bases. MySAP, the product for very large companies, and SAP Business One for small and mid-size companies. This means their rate of progress and enhancements can be substantially faster in terms of long term improvements.
And to be fair, here’s some positive feedback from Martk about MAS 500:
MAS500 has some built in functionality that doesn’t exist in SAP Business One. It has Inventory Replenishment logic for companies with many warehouses and strict adherence to specialized buying processes. It has out of the box Intercompany GL & AP processing, the available manufacturing modules go deeper on shop floor and work order controls, MAS500 has more advanced bin management as well, SAP cannot tell you what location in a warehouse an item is in, if its in more than one bin location. SAP’s vast third party library can address any of these issues but they aren’t out of the box.
If you are considering MAS 500 vs SAP Business One want to speak with the smartest ERP consultant I know – head over to Clients First, read the post.
Clients First Business Solutions
Joe De Maria DSD Business Systems 2009 Employee of the Year
January 5, 2010
DSD Business Systems proudly announces Joe De Maria as the recipient of its 2009 Employee of the Year Award. DSD’s management team was asked to nominate one staff member who stood out above all others, who made the most significant contribution in 2009. Joe was overwhelmingly selected to receive this distinguished award. He has consistently proven to be a valuable employee as Senior Programmer in DSD’s Sage MAS and Sage Accpac Programming and Custom Development Department.
Doug Deane (wearing the reindeer antlers in the photo at left), president and founder of DSD Business Systems, had this to say, “Joe has been an instrumental part of DSD’s success for the past two years. Joe came to DSD from Sage, where he was a key member of their development staff and was heavily involved in the upgrading of Sage’s MAS90 ERP modules to the new Business Framework architecture. Joe brought that expertise with him to DSD and used it to create DSD’s MAS90 Multi-Language enhancement, and to continue developing DSD’s signature MAS90 & MAS200 Multi-Currency suite.”
“More important than his technical knowledge, Joe brings a set of values that exactly mirrors DSD’s. Joe is always willing to help others and to go above and beyond the call of duty to solve a problem or to complete a project. He is very dedicated to the success of DSD, and to the success of our clients and partners. We are very proud to have Joe as our Employee of the Year,” said Jon Reiter, VP of Engineering, DSD Business Systems.
Joe De Maria Demonstrates DSD Multi-Language for MAS90
ABOUT DSD BUSINESS SYSTEMS
Founded in 1984, headquartered in San Diego, California, DSD Business Systems is a national award-winning Enterprise Software Solutions Provider. Serving the needs of small- to medium-sized companies, we specialize in a service-oriented approach to integrating accounting and business management systems with information technology. By automating our customers’ business processes, we help growth-oriented companies turn disconnected data into reliable information. DSD’s success extends beyond system integration – from network configuration, hardware, and technical support to web development, search engine optimization, and system security. DSD has been a Sage President’s Circle award winner for thirteen consecutive years and has been nationally recognized by Accounting Technology Magazine as a Technology Pacesetter and Top 100 VAR firm. For more information, visit www.DSDinc.com.
Schulz Consulting MAS90 Newsletter Signup
January 3, 2010
Interested in tips, tricks and news about Sage MAS90 and MAS200 accounting software?
Sign up here for our twice monthly (first and fifteenth) MAS90 email newsletter. Each edition contains the latest MAS 90 and MAS 200 news as well as technology tips and tricks of interest to MAS90 users. There’s no advertising and you can unsubscribe from the email list yourself at any time.
The cost is free and we presently have over 2,000 members receiving the newsletter every month.
MAS 90 Newsletter Topics Include (but aren’t limited to):
- Instructions on closing the year in MAS 90 and MAS 200
- News of critical software patches
- Links to whitepapers describing new features
- Information about free web seminars
- Reviews of different add-on solutions for MAS 90 and MAS 200
- Technology tips – mobile phones, social media, web site links
Schulz Consulting MAS90 Newsletter Signup
MAS200 Supported Hardware, Networking and Operating System Platforms – 12/31/09
January 3, 2010
The supported hardware and software platforms for Sage MAS 90 have been updated as of 12/31/09. The list below shows exactly what configurations Sage support.
Note that Windows 7 is stated as not supported with versions prior to 4.3.
Tip: While we do not recommend running MAS 90 on un-supported platforms we’ve found that you may be able to run it on Windows 7 32-bit (avoid 64-bit) by using the MAS 90 CD to run workstation setup on each of your stations. If you don’t use the CD you’ll likely receive some type of error (under Windows 7) about the workstation not being able to map to the server.
FRX does not appear like it will be supported under Windows 7 64-bit.
MAS90 Supported Hardware, Networking and Operating System Platforms – 12/31/09
January 3, 2010
The supported hardware and software platforms for Sage MAS 90 have been updated as of 12/31/09. The list below shows exactly what configurations Sage support.
Note that Windows 7 is stated as not supported with versions prior to 4.3.
Tip: While we do not recommend running MAS 90 on un-supported platforms we’ve found that you may be able to run it on Windows 7 32-bit (avoid 64-bit) by using the MAS 90 CD to run workstation setup on each of your stations. If you don’t use the CD you’ll likely receive some type of error (under Windows 7) about the workstation not being able to map to the server.
FRX does not appear like it will be supported under Windows 7 64-bit.
Reminder: Sage Maintenance Discounts Available For 2, 3, 5 Year Renewals
December 30, 2009
I received this notice yesterday from a client who received an offer from Sage to renew their MAS90 Basic Maintenance on a multi-year contract at a discount.
First noted in August, this promotion apparently is perpetual and continues to allow Sage users to obtain 5, 10 or 15% discounts on Basic Maintenance or Support renewals.
The stipulations we noted in our post on August 28:
1. Does not apply to individual support cases
2. Cannot use any payment plan (aka Easy Pay) to get the discount – must pay the whole amount in advance.
3. Can be used on either Basic of Basic plus Phone Support (prepaid plan).
Contact your Sage Business Partner for more information about how you can save with a multi-year Basic Maintenance renewal.
Sage MAS90 and MAS200 Multi-Year Maintenance Discounts
Data for company XXX will be converted to 4.40 after installing 2010 tax table updates
December 30, 2009
If you’re receiving a message about version 4.30 data being converted to 4.4 (which has not yet been released) after you’ve loaded the latest Sage tax table update (TTU) – it’s safe to ignore the message.
According to Sage this is a cautionary message and your data will only be updated for the latest tax table update and no conversion to 4.40 will occur.
The message occurs because during conversion the highest module level is shown (as stored in SY_Module.M4T) and the 2010 Tax Table Update is 4.40 – therefore producing the somewhat confusing “The data for company XXX will be converted to version 4.40″.
How to create fiscal years and calendar years in Sage MAS 90 and 200
December 30, 2009
Has this happened to you? You aren’t quite ready to close the year in MAS90 or MAS200 but you would like to start entering transactions in the next fiscal or calendar year.
In most situations you can enter future transactions without encountering problems either in General Ledger or another module (provided of course that you have allowed for this in your security preferences).
Where you may run into an issue is printing reports.
If you have not formally created the new fiscal year in MAS 90 or MAS 200’s General Ledger when you go to print a report for the future year you will be unable to select that period as it has yet to be create in the fiscal period file (even though there are transactions posted against it).
The solution?
A. Close the year in MAS 90 General Ledger
or (more likely solution)
B. Create the fiscal period in General Ledger – Setup – Fiscal Year Maintenance by entering in the new fiscal year. Allow MAS 90 or MAS 200 to populate the periods and accept the new year.
Now you will be able to select that year as an option in report printing.
How to create fiscal and calendar years (Sage)
FRX Not Being Updated for 64 Bit OS Compatibility in SP 11
December 29, 2009
I’m unsure whether the feedback on FRX Buzz indicates that FRX will never be updated for a 64 bit OS (that’s my guess) or whether that compatibility just won’t appear in service update 11.
According to a post on FRxBuzz.com the service pack 11 for FRX has been released with these highlights:
Windows 2008 and Windows 7 support
FRX WebPort support for Windows 2008 and Windows 7
NO Office 2010 support (this cycle) – however unofficial limited testing seems to indicate it works with FRX.
64-bit version of Windows will not be supported. Instead customers must make use of Virtual Machines (a kludgy workaround).
Read the full post at FRxBuzz
Via: Bottomline Software, Inc. – Jeff Schwenk
Service Update 17 for MAS 90 and 200 v4.3 Breaks Printing of 2009 W2 Forms
December 29, 2009
We’ve just received a hot tip from consultant Myron Stevenson who experienced a W2 printing issue after applying Service Update 17 to MAS 90 or MAS 200 version 4.3. [UPDATE: Read below for fix ]
He say’s that if you apply service update 17 for MAS 90 and MAS200 version 4.3 that the W2 form printing for breaks printing of 941. Appears the Data Dictionary loses the Cobra fields. Sage is working on a high priority fix. For the time being hold off on applying Service Update 17.
Update: This appears to be a fix for the issue – PR4030-T – downloading the 2009 941 update will correct the issue. You do not have to rename any files just download and install the PR4030-T to the MAS 90 directory.
PROGRAM ISSUE
“Crystal print error: Error in …\MAS90\Reports\###-###\PR941A.rpt. Failed to open a rowset”, occurs when printing 941 form after installing service update 17 for version 4.30 in Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200.
Entry Type: Program Issue
Product: Sage MAS 90 ERP, Sage MAS 200 ERP
Application: Payroll
Version Reported: 4.30.0.17
Status:
For current information on this issue, please click the Engineering Status link above. To record the occurrence of this issue, respond Yes to the question, “Did this answer help you?”
Subject:
“Crystal print error: Error in …\MAS90\Reports\###-###\PR941A.rpt. Failed to open a rowset”, occurs when printing 941 form after installing service update 17 for version 4.30 in Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200.
Steps to Duplicate:
In ABC company:
1. Install service update 17 for version 4.30 (v 4.30.0.17)
2. Expand Payroll, Period End and double click Quarterly 941 Printing.
3. Click on print or preview
Expected Behavior:
941 form should print without error.
Possible Workaround:
Reinstall PR4030-t.
Service Update 17 for Sage MAS 90 and 200 4.30 (4.30.17) released 12/24/09
December 29, 2009
Sage issued Service Update 17 for MAS 90 and MAS 200 on Christmas Eve. This new update for version 4.3 includes fixes for the 1099 Electronic Reporting module required by IRS Publication 1220.
Service Updates are cumulative fixes which do not rely upon prior updates being installed. Be sure that you consider any existing enhancements that are installed on your system PRIOR to installing these updates (Review our list of MAS90 Extended Solutions that need to be upgraded when you load Service Update 17). In certain instances installing a service update may “break” custom programming so please use caution when installing over any enhancements and always check with your Sage Business Partner prior to installing updates such as this.
Users of earlier versions of Sage MAS 90 or MAS 200 will need to download the Interim Release Disk (IRD) in order to resolve any last minute payroll issues as there has not been an updated service update for any release earlier than 4.3.
Payroll Updates
New In Service Update 4.30.0.17
New local Aatrix Tax Types have been added.
A Direct Deposit stubs no longer prints when employee is setup for Electronic Delivery.
Employee W2 Box 14 amounts automatically populate when using eFiling & Reporting. Note:
Before printing W-2 forms, ensure that the desired description appears in the Box 14 column in the State/Federal eFiling and Reporting W2/1099 Preparer window.
In W2 Form Printing a new field FLI Private Plan No. has been added and only available when the State Data check box is selected.
A line for the FLI Private Plan No and Description has been added to the W2 Form Detail for W2 Form Types Laser 2 per page, Single Wide and Laser 4 per page.
NOTE: The FLI private plan number prints only for the state of New Jersey.
Note: If the new the new FLI Private Plan No line is not present on the W2 Form Detail select:
File/Run
Type in SYZCON
Type in run “PRWX04″
Click Yes to Prompt to add the Family Leave Insurance to the W2 forms.
2009 W2 and other End of Year changes (2009 IRD) are incorporated into this release.
Bill of Materials Updates
New In Service Update 4.30.0.17
The Inventory Merge Utility will now abort the merge when the items are a parent item for a Bill of Material.
If a item merge has been performed before this service update, there is also included a new utility to remove duplicate components when BM Options Allow Duplicate Components = No.
Before running tne utility, use Library Master Analyze and Relink for the BM Detail table and then Rebuild Sorts for Bill of Materials.
To run the utility, in MAS90/200, choose File/Run and type *Utl. Choose from the list the BM – Duplicate Component Fix.
Note: Once the Utility has been removed the duplicate components, Analyze and Relink and
Rebuild Sorts must run again.
Inventory Management Updates
New In Service Update 4.30.0.17
In Delete/Renumber/Merge, the Extended Description check box can now be selected.
Material Requirements Planning Updates
New In Service Update 4.30.0.17
The Maximum On Hand quantity is now recognized when the Reorder Method is set toMaximum Stock Level.
DE 88148 PER 106412 Resolution ID 509113
The MRP report will now calculate the Projected On Hand column when a work order is created for the component item on a bill instead of the parent item.
DE 89842 PER 107812 Resolution ID 515127
Auto Generate Work Orders no longer creates a Qty Chg Action for Firm Planned Work Orders (created for Sales Order) every time MRP Generation is run.
DE 89464 PER 107508 Resolution ID 513797
Phantom Component with non-integer units of measure no longer round required quantities resulting from yield calculations.
DE 89056 PER 107483
Magnetic Media aka Electronic Reporting Updates
New In Service Update 4.30.0.17
1099 Electronic Reporting has been modified according to the IRS Publication 1220.
Service Update 17 for MAS90 and MAS200 Version 4.30 and List of MAS90 Extended Solutions requiring upgrade prior to applying Service Update 17
Image via Flickr
Sage IRD 2009 for MAS90/MAS200 Re-Released to Fix W-2 Form Glitch
December 25, 2009
Sage has just re-released their IRD for 2009 which is a patch file users load to make minor changes to their form printing at year end in lieu of a full system upgrade.
Apparently the IRD that was first issued caused the W-2 boxes for:
- Social Security Number
- Control Number
- Voice Indicator
To be incorrectly printed on the W-2 2009 forms. You only need update your system if you previously downloaded and applied the 2009 IRD that was previously available.
Sage has also posted a workaround for manually completing the changes in the W-2 layout.
Visit the Sage Online site to download the 12/23/09 IRD or view RES ID 518461 which has instructions on manually fixing the W-2 layout
MAS90 and MAS200 Payroll Tax Withholding Tables Updated 12/23/09
December 25, 2009
Sage has issued another update for their MAS90 and MAS200 payroll tax tables. This update is dated 12/23/09 and contains tables effective for payroll checks dated in 2010.
The primary changes appear to be the addition of state taxes for Kentucky, Oklahoma and Virgin Islands.
As with all tax table changes we strongly recommend that you manually calculate that the withholding is proper on the first check run (2010 New IRS Withholding Rates – Circular E) . We further recommend that any changes to deductions also be calculated and that the proper taxability (before tax / after tax) be verified with your tax professional.
Below is a list of the latest changes that Sage made to the 12/23/09 payroll tax tables. You may obtain a copy of the tables for Sage MAS90 or MAS 200 (including Extended Enterprise Suite aka EES) versions 3.71+ by logging into Sage and downloading the Sage Payroll Tax Tables.
Extended Solutions Preferred Development Partner List
December 23, 2009
Sage MAS 90 and 200 Development Partners are an important member of the Sage partner community, providing valued specialized solutions for Sage MAS 90 and 200 ERP customers.
The library of over 1000 Sage MAS 90 and 200 Extended Solutions titles have been made available to Sage Development Partners so that they can apply their expertise and provide Sage MAS 90 and 200 customers the specialized solutions that they need. The Sage MAS 90 and 200 Development Partners shown below have expressed interest in the Extended Solutions business, and have made a commitment to provide Extended Solutions customers with a high standard of service.
If you are not already working with a Sage Development Partner, please consider one of these Development Partners.
IRS Releases Tax Tables for 2010 – Circular E (Publication 15)
December 22, 2009
The IRS just released their Publication 15 (Circular E) Employer’s Tax Guide dated December 17, 2009. [UPDATE: We've updated the guide for an IRS revision dated January 8, 2010 ] This free download contains important payroll tax due dates, reminders, forms instructions as well as supplemental wage rates.
Also included are the complete income tax withholding tables for 2010 as well both percentage and bracket method withholding rates.
This guide is especially handy for anyone wanting to calculate the first payroll run taxes to verify their accounting software tax table updates are working properly.
Important Note: Always verify that you have the latest tax tables by visiting the IRS.GOV site. While we strive to present the most current tables and publications we advise you check with your tax advisor and/or the IRS site for the latest updates.
Schulz Consulting LLC is not in the business of providing tax or accounting services. Contact your tax or accounting professional prior to implementing any changes.
Wayne Schulz Named 2009 Sage Spirit Award Winner
December 18, 2009
When Paul Johnson (Executive Vice President – Sage Business Solutions) called me late last night my first instinct was to check the Schulz Consulting web site.
Usually when I get calls from executives at odd hours of the day (or weekend) it’s to “point out” something on the site that I’ve written earlier in the week. The conversation starts out with admiration for “that little blog you run” and the “support for those who blog”.
And oh, by the way, could you remove that item about __.
This happens about once per quarter, and truthfully except for that little mis-understanding about Sage MAS 200 SQL, Sage doesn’t call that much. It’s usually other publishers or consultants who catch their name in a Google Keyword Alert and confuse the term blog with free advertisement.
I quickly scanned for potential issues on the web site. Except for an innocent announcement about MAS90 payroll tax tables there didn’t seem to be anything that would warrant a late night call.
So I call Paul Johnson back.
I’m braced for questions about something on the site – though I’m unsure exactly what questions there could be.
Surprisingly I learned that I’d been awarded one of the two Sage Spirit Awards. This is a new award category that Sage created this year. It’s meant to honor those who don’t sell bazillions of dollars worth of Sage product but who perhaps still should be recognized at the annual Sage President Circle.
Paul was calling to tell me I was one of the winners. (I guess that stuff on TV where people show up with a big check on your doorstep and a bouquet of balloons isn’t how it all happens in real life).
Out of 140 people nominated (I did not nominate myself -honest), the Sage team narrowed the selection to two Sage Spirit Award Winners.
While admittedly stunned I’m thankful and grateful for the award.
The presentation is January 25-27 in Arizona where I’ll presumably take the stage wedged between the men and women who’ve sold millions and millions of dollars of Sage Software and I’ll gladly accept the Sage Spirit Award.
I can’t wait to give my acceptance speech.
ISM and 7 Others Named Sage Preferred Development Partners
December 16, 2009
Angela Goldsmith from Information Systems Management (ISM) just emailed to let me know that their consulting firm, ISM, has been named a Sage Preferred Development Partner. These are partners that Sage is recommending for upgrading Extended Solutions that have not been incorporated to versions 4.4+ of their MAS 90 or MAS 200 software.
A Preferred Development Partner is a firm that has gone through the application process and have 15 positive references on their Providex programming work. They must have 5 partner and 10 client references that Sage checks. If the development partner is already a Gold or Endorsed Partner they get to skip the reference check and are considered a preferred development partner.
The idea behind Preferred Development Partners was that some ISVs might want to help their own customers upgrade their solutions but might not want to be in the general business of supporting & upgrading the ES titles for the Business Partners in general.
ISM is a developer for Sage and one of the leaders in the community with respect to the eBusiness Module. Based in Oregon they work with Sage MAS90, MAS200, MAS500, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft CRM.
Newly added Sage Preferred Developers:
Exeplex – http://www.exeplex.com
ISM – http://www.goism.com
Steward Consulting – http://www.stewardconsulting.com
Accounting Systems – http://www.asifocus.com
xKZero – http://www.xkzero.com
Midwest Commerce – http://www.mcsresults.com
TAIRAQ Systems – http://www.tairaq.com
Innovative Consulting Systems – http://www.innovativeconsultingservices.net
Via: ISM – Information Systems Management- Portland Oregon
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Custom SearchAbout Schulz Consulting, LLC
We are a Glastonbury CT consulting firm specializing in Sage MAS90, MAS200 and related software (FRX, Crystal Reports, Starship, F9, SQL Mirroring, etc).
We provide nationwide consulting services via on-site, telephone or remote connection. Our clients range in size from start-up to $200 million and are located as far away as Alaska, Hawaii, California, Florida, Texas, Montana, Michigan and many other states.
Since 1986 we've provided support for all versions of Sage MAS 90 or MAS 200 under an unlimited client support agreement.
You may contact us via email or review our full support agreement here.
Our phone number is 860-657-8544
If you'd prefer that someone contact you - please review this information.
