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Support :: Newsletters

July 2015

DentaLab NewsJuly 2015
from Mainstreet Systems & Software

FAQ  DentaLab News

 

Coming your way  in July

The July DQB 1.43 release for DentaLab for QuickBooks is available for download from our new website:  www.mainstreetsystems.net

If you have an up-to-date service agreement, please call just before you are ready to download to get the current authorization codes and to have your questions answered or if you are new to this and would like tech support.  The download is very fast and very easy.   The list of enhancements is posted on our website in Support/Quarterly Releases and below in this newsletter.  On behalf of the user group, we thank those bright folks who contributed their good ideas.

From Microsoft,  a major new operating system Windows 10 is scheduled for release near the end of this month.   Some of the major advances and soon-to-be-familiar names this version will bring are:

  • Universal Platform to provide a unified experience across devices of all shapes and sizes
  • Edge is their new browser to replace Internet Explorer.   It will provide greater speed and security along with many new features.
  • Read View is an option you can select to devote the screen to your reading by removing extraneous junk.
  • Constanta is a new virtual assistant to assist you in many ways..
  • Continuum can be used to scale down from desktop to tablets and smartphones.
  • You can choose to work in your familiar desktop or have multiple desktops.
  • A wealth of useful apps are included.  You can access these from tiles and, if you wish, separate these into appropriate groups.

For more details, see the article on DQB 1.43 below. 

Never an end to good ideas!

As we wrap up the to-do list and put the final touches on a new release, we sometimes think this is a lot, what more can be done?  But then just like old man river, the stream of good ideas keeps rolling on.  If you would like your voice to be heard and have suggestions to add even more convenience, efficiences or services to your software, be sure to call or email.  If your ideas will be useful to a number of other labs, we will add them to the next list.  

We encounter in our phone conversations the notion that software support is all about trouble-shooting.   This is actually a very small part of it, as our focus remains on providing guidance, education, and continually enhanced, intuitive and reliable software. 

Be sure also that everyone in your lab who is concerned with case management, accounting and finance gets to read these newsletters, which provide regular pertinent information on the software that supports these activities.   It is easy for us to add more email addresses to our Spreading the News list, so please send in any for those who should be receiving this information in your lab.  

The monthly newsletters are also posted on our new website (www.mainstreetsystems.net) as well as the old site (www.mainstreet-systems.com) in the Support/Newsletters section.

 

  Easy, versatile software for the modern dental laboratory.

To answer your questions...

Q:  For a group of dentists, we have been processing all of their cases under one account.   They want us to separate this for each doctor in the group so we have setup each one as a job under the original customer account in QuickBooks.  Can we transfer the records for the cases still open to each specific doctor? 

AYes, this is relatively easy to do.  First of all, be sure you have in Options/QB Synchronization indicated that the jobs are also to be synchronized  Then synchronize automatically by reloading DQB or manually through the options.   Next, you can work with the Case List criteria to select the open cases for the original customer.  You may want to also include cases with statuses out for try-in, on-hold and/or prebooked.   One by one, select each case on the list. then at the top of the case entry/edit screen, click the Change button to the right of the doctor name field to select the specific doctor from the list.  Save the case to record the change.

Before you begin the changes, you may also want to have as a printed guide or checklist the report on Cases by Status and Date with a selection by the original customer and the case statuses you want to include in the changeover. 

Q:  There are some fields in case entry that we never use.   Is there a way to remove these from our screen?

AThere is a way to disable these fields.  In Options/Case Settings, go to the section that displays the major case entry fields with the options to Disable or to Require each field.  If you choose Disable for a field, it will be grayed-out on the screen and bypassed for entry.    If you choose Require, the program will make certain that you make an entry for the field before letting you proceed.   If you ever change your mind on either of these options, you can easily change your setting.

   With the same look and feel of QuickBooks.

The fast and easy way to store digital documents

Traditional paper filing can be a losing battle.

And of course, the more your business grows, the worse the problem becomes . . . until the problem starts to actually impede your business’s ability to grow!

And now as digital dentistry grows, the dental offices are creating photographs and CAD/CAM files to be used in the design and development of each prosthetic.

The solution for those with DentaLab for QuickBooks is to add  the very affordable Images Supplement along with a scanner and/or USB camera to revolutionize their entire document storage and retrieval processes.

With this digital document management solution, images and documents are automatically indexed and stored  so that you can access them within seconds. You can rapidly respond to queries and provide better customer service while streamlining the lab’s operations and saving costs.

This is an excerpt from the latest entry in our website blog. If you would like to learn more, go to our website:  www.mainstreetsystems.net

Choose Blog, you will see this topic at the top of the list.   

July Release DQB 1.43

Responding to your requests and staying compatible and up-to-date with the latest technology, here are the significant enhancements in DQB 1.43:

Compatibility with Windows 10

DQB 1.43 has been tested successfully with Windows 10 which is scheduled to be released this month.   Microsoft will be offering a free upgrade to Windows 10 for a period of one year to those licensed for Window 7 through 8.1. 

Compatibility with QuickBooks 2015

DQB 1.43 has been tested successfully with QuickBooks 2015.   For those using the web-based features of QuickBooks such as credit card processing and other payment services, document storage for transactions, and payroll, Intuit has been requiring an update to 2015 for those with 2012 and prior.

Mainstreet has already provided tech support to a number of labs who have upgraded to QB 2015.   Note that your QB company file may be moved to a new location due to the update.   The QB security features for logins and passwords have been simplified, so it is recommended that you review your settings to make sure they are still appropriate for your lab.

New Preference by Work Center Controls

In Basic Lists/Customers and in the Customer Center of the standard DQB, you can enter preferences by work center for each customer.   The new controls provide a list of the work centers in a frame to the left from which you can select the work center, then add a preference or edit an existing preference.   There is a also a tab to delete a preference.

Yearly Comparison Graph

In Reports/Graph Reports, we have added a new graph that provides for comparing month by month the number of cases received for the two years that you specify.

Mark Completed Items and Completed Items Report

We have added a column for Pan Code both when marking completed items and when reporting on these.

Schedule Summaries:  Show Remaining Units

In Reports/Schedule Summary, the Lab Schedule Snapshot lists for each work center the total units scheduled, total units completed and the limit for the selected date.  We have been asked to calculate and show the units remaining to make it easier to read and comprehend quickly.

To Track New Customers

Previously to track production and sales for new customers, you could setup and then continually edit your new customer group to reflect your "new" definition.   This new feature in Basic Lists/Customer Groups lets you select a First Active Date to have the program create a group of new customers who became active on and after the date.    The name of the group that is automatically generated will include the First Active Date.  This will help you determine if a group you created is no longer considered new so that you can elect to delete it.

Create New Standard Procedure from Existing One

In Basic Lists/Standard Procedures, there is a new option for you to begin with an existing standard procedure to create a new one.   The name will initially be set to Copy of [the copied standard procedure], but you can change this name and edit the contents.

New Controls for Backups of Images

We have added new controls to increase the speed of backing up the images associated with cases.

For those with a very high volume of images, we are recommending that you consider automatic backups to cloud storage at off-hours.

Cases Locked Information

Cases are locked when being updated to prevent conflict with other users that may be trying to update the same record.  The record can remain locked if the process is interrupted or not closed properly.   Whenever a user has reported an error on a locked case condition, we have guided them to Options/Case Settings to the button near the bottom to unlock all cases.  This new feature will determine which user(s) and which case(s) caused the locked condition and display this in a message window.

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Customization is available for all products.

Contact us at 1-800-257-4535 or www.mainstreet-systems.com.

"Thanks for the excellent instructions. You make my job easy."

Shane Purnell
Root Dental Laboratory
Kansas, USA


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