Client ID

(Required) This field is the unique identifier for the client. It is used in the projects screen to link the project to the proper client. The Client ID can be any combination of letters or numbers, including spaces, up to 10 characters. The suggested entry is some type of abbreviation of the client name. If you wish, you can list the same client more than once (for different representatives or locations), by creating variations on the basic ID (FED EX1, FED EX2 etc.)

Company

Enter the name of the client as you want to see it on reports

Contact        

Enter the name of the primary contact for this client.

Phone1 & 2, Fax

Enter these numbers in whatever format you prefer.

E-Mail

You can record the e-mail address for the client contact here. Once you enter an email address, a button will appear that will allow you to send an e-mail directly from this form. Option: If you right-click the button, it will copy the email address to your clipboard, so you can then paste it into your email system. This is useful if you are using web-based email that isn't actually running on your PC.

If you are using FF&EZ as a "published" server application instead of one that runs directly on your own PC, this button will say Copy instead and will only copy the email address to your clipboard. This is because an application running on the server cannot directly launch your own local email system.

Comment

This field can be used for short notes about the client.

Billing Contact

This field, divided into "first" and "last" name slots, can be used to record an alternate contact for billing purposes. Reports that include billing information will use this field if it is not empty.

Account #

(Optional) The account number assigned to your client by your firm. Will appear on invoices.

Terms

(Optional) Invoice terms that will appear on invoices to this client.

Purchasing Fee %        

(Optional) The default purchasing fee used for this client if a purchasing management project is created for them. This can be overridden on each project. 

Tax ID

(Optional) A government tax number for your client. This will appear automatically on standard invoices if entered.

Street

Enter the street address for the client (one or two lines). Official Post Office guides suggest that suite numbers be listed either above or on the same line as the street address. For example:

  1234 Main Blvd., Ste. 10045a

 If you do not specify a separate billing address on a project record, the address entered here becomes the billing address for the client's projects.

City, State, Postal Code

You know what to do. 

Country

An optional field. If you include it, address formatting will add the country to the end of any addresses built from these "main" address fields. Some entries will automatically select the matching ISO code.

ISO

This optional field is used for the standard 3-letter ISO country code for the country entered. Using this code provides a more dependable way to format "main" addresses where a format is available for a specific country. We recommend that you always enter this code, even if you leave the "Country" field blank.

Shipping Address

If the "Use main address" option is checked, this set of fields is ignored. If you uncheck the option, you must fill in an address here, and it will be used as the default shipping address for purchasing-oriented reports. Note that you can override this address with a specific shipping address on each project record and on each spec, as needed. The format of the address will be used as you enter it, however postal standards suggest that you avoid putting any contact information at the bottom.

This address is used "as is," so be sure to include the recipient name.

Add

Used to add a new client to the system. Choosing this command will create a blank record on the screen. You will then need to fill in an ID for the new client. The system will check this ID to make sure it does not already exist. If the ID is valid, you can enter the rest of the information for the client.

To cancel the Add command, press [Esc] or use the Cancel button. 

Once you have entered the desired information for the record, click on the Save button or press [Alt-S] to save your work and leave the editing mode. While entering the data for an item, you can skip the confirm/cancel step by pressing [F2], which does an immediate save and returns you to List mode.

All new records will be indexed automatically so that they will appear in their proper place in the database. 

Edit

The Edit command is similar to the Add command, except that you are working with an existing record. The Edit command always acts on the record currently highlighted on the screen, so if you wish to edit some other record, use the up and down arrow keys or the Find command to highlight the desired record first.

Changes you make to a client record will be reflected in any projects listing that Client ID as the project client. If you change the spelling of the Client ID, the system will change the spelling in all related projects as well.

Once you have made the desired changes, click on the Save button or press [Alt-S] to save your work and leave the editing mode.

To cancel the Edit command, press [Esc] or use the Revert button.

Clone

Use this command is used to create a new client entry from a copy of the currently highlighted client on the client list. This is useful when you want to keep up with more than one version of a client (such as a different contact or location). When the command is chosen, you will see the Client editing screen with all of the information copied, except the Client ID. After supplying a new ID, you can change any information on the screen.

To cancel the Clone command, press [Esc] or use the Cancel button. 

Delete

The Delete command is used to permanently remove a client from the system. If you choose this command, you will be asked to confirm your choice. While using the list at the top of the screen, the shortcut for the Delete command is the [Del] key (this key works on text as expected when you are actually editing text entries).

Note: The system will not allow you to delete a client which is still listed on one or more projects. 

Export

The Export function can be used to create a file containing client data that can be imported or used by other programs. There are several options for both the type of format and for the level of detail contained in the export file. See "Importing Data"

Import list

Opens the "Import Data" form to update the list with the contents of an FDA file. See "Importing Data."

Query

When you choose this command, the system will display the Query Form. This command is used to limit the display (and subsequently, reports) to clients that meet certain conditions. For more information, see the Query Form topic.

You can close the Query form by pressing [Esc].

Print

This function displays the Reports Form, on which you can select and print reports specific to this form. For more information, see the detailed descriptions and procedures about reporting elsewhere in this manual.