July 2002

1. onTOPS : Welcome to onTOPS!
2. onSoftware : New Training Center Opening
3. onSales: New Version and Job Streaming
4. onSupport : Utilities You Can Use
5. onSpecial : Pool Pass Module
6. onLine : New Stuff on Our Web Site

onTOPS

Welcome to onTOPS, an e-zine produced by TOPS to keep you informed about our products and services. In this issue, we will be announcing the opening of a new training center in Florida, providing information on the upcoming Job Streaming module, explaining the Check/Repair GL Utility, and announcing a new promotion to help you retain the communities in your management portfolio. We look forward to hearing your feedback about the e-zine. Please let us know what things you liked, what you would like to see, and any suggested articles by emailing us at ezines@TopsSoft.com.

by Andrea Drennen  

onSoftware

Do you want individual training? Would you like a vacation in Florida? How about combining the two? We will be starting an in-house training center at our Clearwater, Florida office. You can have customized training on a one-to-one basis. We will offer training for up to 4 of your staff at one time. Please call or email me at CathyF@topssoft.com for more information, and prices. This program is scheduled to start August 1, 2002. We will be taking reservations on a first come, first served basis for date availability.

by Cathy Flynn  

onSales

New Version, and Job Streaming!

We at TOPS are proud to announce the upcoming release of our latest version of TOPS 2000™, v3.1, which is full of added functionality and robust features. In tandem with this release, we are in the process of developing a new, optional add-on which will be available for purchase Fall 2002. This add-on, Job Streaming, is just about done in the "laboratory," after which it will be beta tested in the field, and then it will be ready for purchase!

The Job Streaming add-on, designed for portfolio managers and management companies, will automate repetitive processes to save a lot of time. This is how it works: instead of having to perform certain functions individually for each association, such as owner charges/prepayments or owner/board member mailing labels, the Job Streaming add-on can perform such functions globally for several or all of the associations that you manage. This can provide a significant time savings, and any time savings is always welcome news in our industry!

Pricing for this add-on will be established before delivery time in Fall 2002; please contact Bruce Gran at BruceG@TopsSoft.com for further information.

by Bruce Gran  

onSupport

We are continuing our discussion of "Utilities You Can Use". As you will recall, last month we discussed the ability to export files using the export function in the utilities menu. This month we are going to discuss what to do if your Balance Sheet report does not balance because the General Ledger itself is out of balance at the end of the month. (Sometimes, "stuff happens!")

Of course, the General Ledger needs to balanced for the Balance Sheet report to balance (Assets = Liabilities + Equity) which means, the total of all the Debit transactions must equal the total of all the Credit transactions in the General Ledger. If your General Ledger is not balanced, you may temporarily fix the imbalance using the following quick fix to get you on your way. First, you need to make a one-sided journal entry.

You may ask, "How can I do that since I use a double entry (for every Debit there just be an equal and offsetting Credit) accounting system?" Well, TOPS 2000™ has a way. Go to "Utilities" on the menu bar. Click "Check/Repair GL." This utility examines the General Ledger and verifies if it is actually out of balance, for which month(s), and for what amount.

If it finds an out of balance condition, it will then offer you the opportunity to make the one-sided entry to correct the problem. You will need to know which account is missing the balancing transaction, and for which day of the month it is effective. If you are unsure, you can put the balancing entry against a "suspense" account. A "suspense" account is just a temporary place you are putting the balancing entry while you do research to find the correct G/L account. If you use the "suspense" account, you must later find the correct account and move the balancing entry there by Journal Entry.

Once you click "OK" to the one-sided entry in the "Check/Repair G/L", the system will automatically make the appropriate entry, and the General Ledger will balance. If it prompts you to select a printer, then this utility has found backdated Income or Expense account entries for a previously closed year. These will need to be closed to the Retained Earnings account by Journal Entry backdated to the last year end date (Example 12/31/01).

More "Utilities You Can Use" will appear next month. In the meantime, if you have a specific question or would like to see something addressed here, email me at CathyF@topssoft.com and I will be more than happy to include it in a future e-zine.

by Cathy Flynn and Jeff Hardy  

onSpecial

25% off TOPS On-Site™ when you purchase two or more modules!
Mention this E-Zine to receive your discount.

If you haven't already taken advantage of our time and materials to learn about TOPS On-Site™, now is the time. TOPS On-Site™ is the next step in community management, a way to give staff located outside your main office, such as at a community you manage or a satellite management office, the ability to take over administrative functions like issuing Work Orders, doing CCR/ACC inspections and enforcement, screening visitors at a Guard Gated community and more.

Through TOPS On-Site™, on site staff will have access to the TOPS owner database. They can print owner reports, annual meeting reports, mailing labels and use the form letter program to write customized letters to owners. Available modules include the Owner Database, Work Order, CC&R Enforcement, Pool Pass, Guard Gate Security, and the Palm Pilot Interface.

TOPS On-Site™ is designed with simplicity in mind. It interfaces with your office version of TOPS 2000™ for periodic downloads of the Owner Database to keep the local version in TOPS On-Site™ up to date. Thus, the remote office using TOPS On-Site™ will rely on you for these periodic updates. TOPS On-Site™ does NO accounting functions; it is purely an administrative software application.

The ability to synchronize owner data between TOPS 2000™ and TOPS On-Site™ makes this program an excellent choice for communities that contract out their management and accounting services, but want to perform administrative functions themselves. For management companies, it will lessen the administrative workload in the main office, since on-site staff will be performing tasks previously done by main office staff.

TOPS On-Site™ is very affordably priced. It's a win-win situation for both our TOPS 2000™ customers and our new customers who purchase TOPS On-Site™. Please contact sales at sales@topssoft.com to request a free demo of TOPS On-Site, and experience this phenomenal new product for yourself!

by Jeff Hardy 

onLine

Some of the new stuff online:

• New FAQ Items Added: We have added two new items to the FAQ - One question on prepaid fees displaying as negative amounts in an Income/Expense statement, and one on incorrect address printing in Gate Security Reports.
• Lucy Fox Joins the Website Team: Please join us in a hearty welcome to Lucy Fox, who has joined our website team to help support our web site customers. Lucy will be helping with both design needs and support for TOPS Community Web Sites.
• Website Update List Added: A list of the changes that are included with the Summer 2002 web site update is now available on the downloads page.
• New How To Added: Understanding Basic Accounting in TOPS has been added to the How To section. This is an extensive primer on the accounting methods that TOPS 2000™ uses. We recommend that all users new to accounting in TOPS read this first.
• Version 3.04 Update Added: These changes will be included in TOPS 2000™ version 3.1, but if you do not want to wait, you may download them. You must have a valid Maintenance Support Agreement with updates included in order to download the update.
• Customer Survey Added: We want to know your opinions of our products and services. Please take a few moments to complete our new online customer survey. Your answers will be used to help us improve our products and services. Results will be tallied in a future version of The TOPS News.
• TOPS Forums Added: Our new Message Board Forums will enable you to communicate with TOPS employees, dealers, trainers, and other customers. Sign up for a local account to join our online community.

by Andrea Drennen  

onTopic

Did You Know:  In 1949, forecasting the relentless march of science, Popular Mechanics said computers in the future may weigh no more than 5 tons.

From www.uselessfacts.net