ImportPlus

A tool for import from a wide variety of text, CSV or xml sources (and even some types of binary) to Line 50 sales orders, product or service sales invoices, purchase orders, customers, suppliers, stock, audit trail posting transactions (with 'grouping'), stock transactions, price lists, etc.

There are also facilities for automated allocation of payments against invoices, exporting data (including Memo data) from Line 50 to text, csv or xml, collection of POP3 email text, and calling other applications.

The tool can be run interactively or controlled via a command line interface allowing automated operation. Operations can be 'chained' together so a single call can perform several actions. Source data can collected via http, ftp or POP3 if required. Export data can be uploaded via ftp.

A system integrator's dream?

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What is ImportPlus?

ImportPlus's main function is import to Line 50 sales orders, sales invoices, purchase orders, customers, stock, price lists, transactions, etc. from a wide variety of plain text or CSV formats (including CSV exported from a spreadsheet) or just about any regularly formatted text source, e.g. web form generated e-mails, xml files, EDI,...!

• Highly configurable to cope with a wide range of scenarios. Configurability even extends to pre-processing of the raw data with features like upper, append, decorate and lookup, plus conditional actions. You don't need to learn how all this works - tell us what you are trying to do and we will usually prepare the configuration files for you.
• Run the program interactively, or use the full command line interface to allow automated import (an example "front end" application that calls ImportPlus via the command line is included in the download).
• Run as an independent stand alone application, or alongside Synergy as a plug-in.

The ImportPlus download includes sample interpreter configuration files and data files suitable for use with the Sage Line 50 DEMODATA company, so it's easy to try the system without affecting your live data.

The download also includes ImportPlusDriver a small example "front end" application to demonstrate how ImportPlus can optionally be controlled via command parameters. ImportPlusDriver allows command lines to be built interactively, runs ImportPlus, and displays results.

The best way to start with ImportPlus is to use ImportPlusDriver with the supplied samples and the Line 50 DEMODATA. View the 'Command Line' tab to see the command line equivalent for the chosen operation. Once you have a basic idea of how the system works you will probably want to contact us to discuss detail configuration for your purpose.

For a number of commonly requested operations, pre-packaged configurations are available on the Customisers page.

Examples of current real-life uses for ImportPlus include:

• Modify Line 50 product codes

  Using a csv file to provide a list of existing stock codes and their replacements ImportPlus can changes hundreds of product codes in one go - making the changes not only in the product record but also in BOMS, stock transactions, sales invoices, SOP items, POP items, price lists,....

• Generate Line 50 sales orders from e-mail text

  The e-mail text produced by a web-based ordering system is converted into Line 50 sales orders with little more effort than a few mouse clicks. Imported prices can be net (with the tax being calculated by the import), or gross (with net and tax being calculated by the import) or you can specify both net and tax values to preserve maths from the source system - or you can leave ImportPlus to pick the price from Line 50 defaults, taking into account relevant discount schemes and price lists.

• Generate monthly invoices from a work recording system

  Engineer work records from a fault and work recording system (amberCat Help Desk) are exported to CSV, then selectively imported via ImportPlus to create Line 50 sales invoices. There is one invoice per customer. A lookup table converts the work description into a Line 50 stock code. Reference details of the work are included in each invoice item and certain specific non-chargeable items are not mentioned on the invoice.

• Generate invoices from a fuel delivery system

  Customers identify themselves by swipe card to a VBI Triscan based fuel delivery system. Transaction records are periodically exported from the Triscan PHOENIX software. ImportPlus imports the PHOENIX data to Line 50 stock style invoices. There is one invoice per customer. Invoice item comments detail the driver, the time of supply, vehicle identity and its odometer reading for each supply. The sales price for each invoice item is calculated by applying customer related discounts to prices based on the FIFO cost of the supply - the customer gets the best possible price and the supplier maintains their target margin.

• Copy orders or invoices from one Line 50 set up to another.

  Allow your sales force to collect and enter orders on the road - then transfer the orders into your main accounts using a simple export and import process. A pair of pre-packaged Customisers are available to set up these options.

• PDA to Sage

  A system has been created allowing sales reps to collect orders on Palm PDAs, then upload the data as orders when they get back to base.

• Spicer product file import

  It might seem odd that we include csv import of customers, suppliers and stock when Line 50 already offers that; the answer is that our facility handles a much wider range of data fields, as well as being able to cope with a wide variety of input formats. An example where this has proved useful is with clients who use ImportPlus to import and update over the 20,000 Spicers stock items, including cost price data, from the regularly updated spicerfile text file (spicerf2.dat or spicerf2.csv). A pair of pre-packaged Customisers are available to set up these options.

• Stock take imports.

  A special stock transaction import feature allows the import file to set a target stock level - ImportPlus automatically chooses the appropriate quantity to adjust in or out to match that target level.

• Automated allocation of payments and credit notes

  We have several clients who use ImportPlus to help with large volumes of automated monthly receipts (e.g. direct debit & standing orders). They import the debit payments as Payment On Account transactions using Sage's built in option (or ImportPlus's equivalent), then use ImportPlus to automatically allocate the SA transactions against unpaid invoices. Options allow credit notes to be taken into account and for auto-allocation to be restricted to exact matches in value if desired. It is also possible to apply customers account filters, e.g. only allocate for customers who have a zero balance.

  Another alternative in this sort of situation is to use the recently introduced ability of ImportPlus to import Sales Receipt (SR) transactions directly - with allocation being handled automatically during import.

• Transfer of data to Line 50 from different accounting systems

  ImportPlus has been used to aid setting up Line 50 with historical data from other accounts pacakages, including audit trail histories. Much of this can be achieved with Sage Line 50's built-in import, ImportPlus offers much greater flexibility, more data fields, 'grouping' of audit trail postings, and automated allocation of payments to invoices.

• Archiving and analysis of POS system generated transactions

  ImportPlus has been used to turn Line 50 transactions generated by the Store Trader POS system into equivalent 'invoices' in our Synergy Profile system for profit and sales history analysis.

• Import Price Lists from quotes

  ImportPlus has been used to import prices from quotes or quotation letters into Line 50 'Special Price' price lists.

  A pre-packaged Customiser is available to set up this facility for importing Special Customer Prices from SOP Quotes. With different setups other forms of price import are also possible - including import from Excel and Word based quotes.

• Repeat Last Price for customers

  ImportPlus has been used to automatically generate customer price lists from sales invoices. Running that option periodically (e.g. after an invoicing run, or daily or weekly) updates the price lists so that when the same customer orders the same product again they get the same price. Using Line 50 Price List reports you can also report on these price lists so you can see who's paying what price for which products.

• Import of stock invoices from Line 50 DOS

  A business has front desk staff who like using their Line 50 DOS for recording sales and producing invoices/receipts. Data entry is fast, they are used to it and they don't want to change! This was a headache for accounts as they had to re-enter a lot of data. Now, at the end of the day, the day's invoices are 'printed' to file, then accounts use ImportPlus to import from that file into their Windows based copy of Line 50.

• Import free text / service style invoices

  Using data from a work recording system, a service supplier produces invoices with service style items for monthly billing of clients.

• Import quantity based scheme discounts

  Using the tables A to E on the Discounts tab of the Line 50 product record.

• Import Customer, Supplier or Stock Memos

  ImportPlus can import text into the Memo fields associated with Line 50 Customer, Supplier or Product records.

• Generate HTML Pages

  The export facilities of ImportPlus have been used to automatically generate product html pages. The download includes a sample for producing a HTML table of stock item details along with availability.

We've even used ImportPlus for data recovery, extracting invoices and orders from a partially corrupt set of Sage data and then importing them to the most recent good backup thus saving many many hours of repeated data entry.

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