Runtime - June 1999

Why WinUltra? 

Sometimes we assume everybody knows Ultra, but we’ve also added several new people to our mailing list lately, so I’ll tell you that no one else has nearly as many installations order tally software as QDP.  We support users in 46 states and Canada – and talk in hundreds, not handfuls…. or handful.

Benefit from the input and experience of other users. Chances are, if you want your order tally software to do something, Ultra can already to it – or something close to it.

We’re hearing from more and more people who are telling us their data entry operators don’t understand DOS anymore and need to work in a Windows environment. We agree…. and are now in our third release of a windows version. WinUltra v1.2. Version 1.2 is a total windows product.

We’re also hearing from people who tell us their tally system, or their spreadsheet, has limitations; such as 2-digits for designators, when more suppliers are going to 3-4 digit identifiers.

Or that you are moving to the generic catalog form and your system can’t handle it.  Ours can, by listing for you each order entered – so that order accuracy verification is as simple of going down the screen and down the order form.  Order your $99 30-day Trial version to try before you buy.

Why Now?     

Order or Upgrade to WinUltra v1.2 in June and get 15% credit on supplies ordered and paid for at the same time. Order in July and get 10%. Order in August and pay full price.

Why UltraScan 

Most of our 50+ UltraScan users tell us they have doubled their packing speed AND increased their accuracy.  As you can see from our list, most of the major players in the industry are now scanner friendly …. and most of THEM will tell you it was QDP UltraScan users encouraging them to become compliant.

UltraScan tells you IMMEDIATELY if you scan too many of an item or an item that does not belong in that order.  You don’t want to wait until you’ve scanned the complete order to find out whether you were right.

And now, version 2.0 with Report Module PREVENTS you from going on to the next order if the previous order was less than 100% accurate. It can also keep track of orders you “packed short” (packed minus the sausage that is coming in tomorrow, for example). It will also give you a list of product ordered compared to product scanned. It also gives you orders scanned and lets you know if there were any orders NOT scanned….. and if so, which orders those were.

Chances are, if you have a normal sized packing crew, I can show you on paper how to pay for UltraScan in 2-3 WEEKS (not months or years) of normal Fall-time operation.

Why now?

Upgrade to v2.0 in June and get 15% credit toward the Report Module. Order in July and get 10%. Order in August and pay full price.

Scanner Friendly Suppliers

New this month: DaySpring Cards, Hincor and It Takes Two. Actually, we have two additional suppliers who returned our questionnaire indicating that they are 100% bar-coded, but also marked the option for us NOT to list them.

We think our approach to scanning on the pre-pack line is having an effect. Recently, we received a mailing promoting listing three features about that supplier’s product. One of those features was that product was “barcoded for scanning”.  YES!

I also had a phone call with a supplier who told me that “nearly every” customer was telling her she had to get her product bar coded because of QDP’s scanning system.

A new kind of Scanner Friendly

At the beginning of June, we sent a 2-sided letter/questionnaire to 122 AFRDS suppliers describing a new technology. (See I-Scan)

We are currently receiving responses daily, and I promised to recognize them in RUNTIME, so here’s what we have so far.

Cases 100% Bar Coded NOW

• Art Dalziel Associates for Lumi-lite candles
• Fannie May Candies
• Great Way Products
• Impact Confections, Inc.
• Magna-Tel, Inc.

Bar Codes on Cases – No Plans at this time

• Almar Associated
• DaySpring Cards
• Impact Confections, Inc.

Products identified on brochures

• Abbyland – n/a
• Art Dalziel Associates – alpha-numeric
• DaySpring Cards – alpha-numeric
•  Fannie May Candies - numeric
• Great Way – numeric
• It Takes Two - alpha
• Magna-tel – alpha on 9-tem, alpha-numeric on 19-item
• Western Promotions - numeric

Will provide pictures or logos for distributor web sites upon request

• Abbyland
• Art Dalziel Associates for Lumi-lite Candles
• DaySpring Cards
• Fannie May Candies
• It Takes Two
• Pine River

Supplier Web Sites

Additional notes printed with permission

• We will bar code cases upon request. As current stock of printed cases depletes, we will replace with plain stock that will be bar coded using case label system. – Abbyland
• We will provide CD disk for selected products. Need time to prepare. Large orders (full cases) have bar codes. The reason we don’t normally have bar codes on cases is that we ship split product cases. –DaySpring Cards
• We are not currently 100% bar coded on cases but will be upon request. – It Takes Two
• We pack to the piece, so coding won’t help in most situations. We will bar code on full case orders where applicable. – Western Promotions
• We are not currently 100% bar coded on cases but will be.

Ultra and Great Plains Accounting

We have successfully created a bridge program to get tally data, including prizes, from Ultra into Great Plains Accounting. So far, our bridge is a DOS program and takes data from the DOS version of Ultra into the DOS version of Great Plains.

We are meeting with a local Great Plains consultant to see about duplicating that capability from our Windows version of Ultra into the Windows version of Great Plains.

This can be great news for a couple groups of people. Obviously, those who have invested significantly in this top of the price line accounting system, but who would like to use Ultra as the up front tally system can now get the data seamlessly from one program into the other.

Also, people who already use Ultra but want to do more with the data (reports, etc) than we allow, can now use Great Plains to do it.

For additional details and a quote, call John at QDP.

A couple years ago, we abandoned our attempt to integrate our Windows version of Ultra with DacEASY Accounting for DOS.  The “bridge” type approach we took with Great Plains was much easier than the integration approach we had attempted earlier. Now that DacEasy has released their windows version of accounting (finally), we may take another look at a similar bridge effort with that program.

Introducing I-Scan

This newest technology addresses two of the bottlenecks in fundraising.

Bottleneck #2 - Receiving Product

Bottleneck #4 - Managing Physical Inventory

I-Scan. The components

• WinUltra v1.2 Order Tally System.

• QDP's I-Scan Software.

• Percon's Top Gun Remote Batch Scanner. This is referred to as a remote batch scanner. It is not a radio scanner as you see in some types of businesses, where the inventory is always updated instantly for immediate sale at the checkout lanes, for example. Top Gun scans and stores the data in a batch... and then transfers that data to the computer.

• Top Gun's Special Programming Software.

• Cradle and Battery Charger that connects to your computer.

• Rechargeable Batteries.

• Installation / Training.

Receiving Product - One Step instead of Two

You've got to count the boxes for the truck driver and sign the Bill of Lading. But instead of a manual count, you take your specially QDP-programmed Top Gun Scanner out of its battery charger, slip your hand through the wrist grip, point and shoot the first bar code on the first box. 

You can either scan each box or scan a box and enter a quantity. For example, if you have an entire pallet of the same item, scan the first box and enter the total quantity.....then move on to the next pallet.

When finished, Top Gun will show you the total box count. Sign the Bill of Lading for the Truck Driver and get ready for the next step.

The next step would normally be to get the packing slip out and check in the product. But Top Gun already did that. So, instead of messing with the packing slip, you're ready to take the scanner to its cradle and automatically upload the inventory data into the WinUltra Inventory System as Merchandise Received.

Mixed Cases and To The Piece Orders

Mixed cases will not have a bar code to identify the product inside. So, for getting the Bill of Lading box count, you simply key in the number of misc. boxes.  Then, after you take care of the B.O.L and send the driver on his way, you open the boxes, change from case mode to piece mode on the scanner (you'll be pressing one of the function keys to do that) and start scanning the bar codes on the individual pieces.

Physical Inventory

Is your physical count off from your computer count? Do you just want to be sure before placing your last large order? Use I-Scan to take a physical inventory of what every you want to check..... upload that into the WinUltra system and compare the numbers.

But I can’t really sell it yet, because not enough…

suppliers are putting bar codes on the cases. That is why we recently communicated with 122 AFRDS suppliers and why we will continue to emphasize this concept as something they should address.

Hopefully, those suppliers who were slow to react to placing bar codes on product and got burned by distributors refusal to purchase non-coded product…… will react a little faster this time.

Web Site Design

The following is intended to give you enough information to make a decision whether you want to hire QDP Corporation to help you develop a professional image on the Internet. Building a multi-page Web site is much like building a house. The price depends on how big, how complex, and how much custom craftsmanship is required.

If you are serious and want us to be your designer, we will discuss the goals for your Web site, explain the wide variety of choices and help you create a blueprint for the finished product.

www.QDPCorp.com – QDP page

www.PriorityFundraising.com - sample Fundraising site

www.HuntingtonBaptist.org – Sample Church page

http://ideanet.doe.state.in.us/k12/hnhs/ - High School Newspaper

Click here for more information.

QDP Pre-Pack is Different, Legal and Better

Are you one who is going to get cut off when Darlington discontinues their pre-pack service? There will be several alternatives popping up between now and the end of the year, I predict. Here’s a brief list of our advantages I hope you will consider, if you’re in that market.

• We’ve been pre-packing for 15 years. We know what we’re doing.

• We use both the WinUltra Order Tally System and the UltraScan Bar Code Scanning System for Order Accuracy Verification.

• When we tally your order, the printouts you receive will have YOUR NAME on them, not some other company acting as a service bureau.

• The software we use is legal, it is OUR SOFTWARE. If you use another source, ensure that they are either using someone else’s software to do the tally – or, that if they are using Ultra or WinUltra, it is a legitimate and properly licensed copy.

Free if you want it

E-News

Getting one of these newsletters to you is a process that takes several weeks. After it is put together, the thousands of copies to run and collate and stuff and send “Standard” mail….. and wait on the USPS to take its time to deliver can make some of the information old and out dated even before you receive it.

Bulk email is less formal and much faster. I can send you smaller pieces of info at a time but get it to you more efficiently.

My intention will be to use it to give smaller updates to what is going on here, plus perhaps some jokes and such.  You’d always have an opportunity to ask to be removed.

Just email your request to be added to our E-Letter to John@QDPCorp.com .

Last Modified:  05/27/2008