JULY 2009

Welcome to July’s edition of the Jonas Insider where we celebrate the official days of summer heat!

Our Featured Article this month is from Construction Business Owner magazine, the Business Management Resource for Contractors.  Read an article written by our very own General Manager, Will Anderson, on the benefits of using construction-specific software for your business.

2009 Jonas User Groups are just around the corner! Check out the details of the upcoming User Group Conference in our News and Events section.

Make the most of your Jonas Software! Take advantage of our online training through our economical webinar courses.  Course descriptions and schedules are outlined in the Upcoming Training Webinars section.  Be sure to register early as space is limited!

Want to know who you’re talking to? Meet the face behind the voice, Louise Li – Customer Support Analyst, featured in this month's Know Your Support Rep section.

Do you think you’re a Jonas Software expert? Test your knowledge in our FAQ’s and Helpful Hints section provided to you by our support team.

Remember to keep your Jonas release up-to-date with the latest enhancements.  Go to Product Updates to guide you through this process.

We want to hear from you!  If you have ideas or suggestions for improving the Jonas Insider, please forward these to us via e-mail.

Written by Will Anderson
Construction Business Owner, May 2009

Contractors who use construction specific accounting software gain a substantial advantage over those that use horizontal packages such as QuickBooks or Simply Accounting (more efficient processes and greater access to in-depth reporting).

Most contractors start out using horizontal packages because they are inexpensive and easy to learn and use. These packages are a good fit when the owner or management team is heavily involved in day-to-day operations and is hands on with the accounting system. However, as businesses grow and add people, management often finds that they need to spend more and more time overseeing the basic functions of their IT systems rather than working to grow the business.

The primary difference between construction specific software and horizontal packages is that construction accounting software offer a complete solution. Products like QuickBooks are, first and foremost, accounting systems that have some basic job cost functionality. Functions such as Progress Billing, integration of payroll to job cost, management of holdback, change orders, sub contract control, among others, either do not exist or are inadequate. Construction specific software systems have all of these functions in integrated solutions that cover every major element of a construction company including accounting, payroll, job cost, work orders, inventory and project management. This integration provides contractors with three key benefits; streamlined processes, improved reporting and a higher degree of control over their data.

To read the rest of this article, please click here.

The highly anticipated 2009 Jonas User Group Conference is just around the corner. This year we are offering a two-day event with courses specific to what you do in Jonas. With three concurrent sessions, you can choose to attend all presentations related to accounting, project management or service management. This is an opportunity for you to network with other Jonas users, share best practices, provide input on product development plans, and learn more about the Jonas solution and how to improve your operations. As always, there will be a mix of training on existing modules, tips and hints, new features in version 11.9 and what you can expect to see in version 12.0. There will also be presentations on current industry-related topics. 

Why Should You Attend?

• Get the most value out of your software – this is a chance for you to see the new software enhancements and get training on how to implement them. Training sessions are presented by our software and industry experts.

• Meet other Jonas customers – discuss best practices and share the current issues you are facing with customers in similar industries across North America.

• Have input into future development of the software – meet members of our development team and let them know what is important to you for future versions of Jonas.

Locations

Option 1: Toronto, Ontario
Venue: 
Accor Novotel Toronto Centre
45 The Esplanade, Toronto ON
Accommodations: 
Group rate of $174 CDN per night has been arranged. Please call (416)367-8900 for reservations.

Date and Time: 
Thursday September 24, 2009: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Friday September 25, 2009: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
*Agenda to follow

Option 2: Las Vegas, Nevada
Venue: 
TBD
Accommodations: 
TBD
Date and Time: 
November, 2009 (TBD)
*details to follow

To register for the Toronto User Group Conference click here and fill out the on-line registration form. 

* Upcoming Webinars are currently being scheduled and will be sent to you in a follow-up email.

Q. Why do my work orders show as unbilled when I have already posted them to Accounts Receivable?

A. What is happening here is one user is billing out work orders on one workstation or in one Jonas session and someone, either on another workstation or that same user in another Jonas session, has the work order open in Service Calls – Work Orders or from the dispatch board.    The workstation that has the ticket open in the Service Calls – Work Orders has all the information to do with that work order in the workstation’s memory i.e. NOT billed, no invoice number or billing date, etc. 
If that user clicks Okay, the program is WRITING the record back to the system with that information AFTER the other user has done the billing.  This is OVERWRITING the work order header record wiping out what was written into the record in the billing process.

Users should be trained that if they are NOT changing a record to click EXIT instead of Okay. ( This is true of any module, not just service billing).   EXIT does NOT write records back to the file and would therefore not wipe out any billing information.  Better yet, train users to use the Inquiry instead of always going into the setup program as nothing writes back to file in inquiries.

Q. What version of Jonas should I download from the Jonas website for a product update: pu119.exe or PU119DN.EXE?

A. Construction clients must download the PU119DN.EXE file as it will allow access to the Design Your Own Forms module.

Q. Q. I purchased the Jonas ODBC module but I can’t see the payroll tables.

A. When a client purchases the ODBC module from Jonas, no tables are created for Payroll information.  The reason behind this, apart from liability, is that once payroll information goes out to ODBC, the confidentiality of this sensitive information is lost.

If a client wants to include payroll information in their ODBC queries, they must send Jonas support a request in writing signed by a person of authourity in their company.  Once Jonas has received that letter,  a Jonas support staff will come onto the system and turn on the payroll tables.

Note:  all users must be off the system for this process.

The Difference between Windows Errors and Jonas Errors

Sometimes clients get error messages on their screen that are generated by Microsoft Windows and not Jonas. This may be caused by network issues, the user hitting a sequence of keys that the system cannot decipher or another underlying cause from the Operating System ( XP, Vista, etc.). These errors look completely different from Jonas errors. See the examples below.

This is the look of a typical Windows error:

Note the difference in appearance between that and  typical Jonas error as displayed below:

IS IT TIME FOR YOUR NEXT UPDATE???

It is important for Jonas users to perform Product Updates on a regular basis to ensure that you keep your Jonas Software current and problem-free. Check the website weekly as a new download is available every Tuesday. It is advisable to install it immediately.


CURRENT VERSION
The current version for Jonas Software is 11.9.


HOW TO UPDATE??
There are two procedures to choose from to obtain the latest Release.

1. Downloading from the Website.
2. Installing the Product Update from a CD.

Before You Begin:

Determine the version of Jonas that you are currently running. If you are unsure, open Jonas and check the version number located in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. Ex. Version 11.6.034 (the release .034 indicates the release level).

Downloading the Product Update from the Website

1. Click on the Product Update that matches the version of Jonas software you are currently running. (Ex. 11.4 or 11.6) You cannot change versions via the website, only by loading a CD. Note that you might have to be above a specific Release level to be able to run a Product Update from the website. Notes at the side of the Product Update will tell you this.

2. Choose the Save option. You will be presented with the SAVE AS screen display below.  Save the Product Update in the X:\GJCWIN\CUSTOM directory (where the X: is the logical drive letter that contains the Jonas programs - usually J:). Note: This is just a suggested directory, but not a mandatory location to save the Product Update. Then you can open and run it. After successful installation, log off Jonas and log back in order for the changes to take place.

Installing the Product Update from a CD
Advanced Release versions do require all users to be out of Jonas for the introduction of new data structures. Loading an update from a CD sent by Jonas will always require all users to be out of the system regardless of the version.

1. Jonas recommends that if you are installing on a network that the Product Update be installed from a workstation. However, if installing the Jonas Product Update via Citrix or Terminal Server, it must be installed at the server console.

2.  Locate the Product Update using any technique (e.g. Windows Explorer or via the Run command on the Start button). Double click on the saved PUxxx.exe file.

3. Wait 5 – 20 seconds and a window will appear. Step your way through the Welcome screens by clicking on Next.

4. Choose the Destination Directory.  If the drive is not correct, please select browse and indicate the correct location. When the correct path is shown, click on Next.

5. The Installation Complete screen will appear upon completion of the installation.

6. Click on the Jonas for Windows icon. The program will automatically start rebuilding the screens and data files.