At the top of most report output windows, icons on the toolbar enable you to select:

This output option is only available for some Document reports.

The document will be sent by the delivery method selected on the Documents tab card on the Customer or Supplier record. If no entry has been made for the Customer or Supplier, then the alternative default for the particular report will be used.

When processing Transactions from a Batch, this will be the pre-set option. However it can be de-selected, and the individual output options can be selected instead.

If processing 'live' (i.e. not from the batch), this option will not be selected automatically, and you will have to select the destination manually, you can still select Default if you wish.

Selecting this option, and clicking on Print displays an Output Details window, where you can enter additional information if the destination is Email or Fax.

If Email or Fax are the selected destination but have not been set up, the output will default to Printer to ensure that a hard copy of the document exists.

If for any reason the output fails, then a hard copy will be printed.

This output option prints to screen and can be used as a preview. On the screen display at the top right, there is a 'P' hotspot. Clicking on this opens a menu which enables you to print the current page or the whole report.

Printing via the screen is not regarded by the system as printing 'To Printer', so printing Audit reports; Invoices; Delivery Notes etc., in this way, will not give you the opportunity to 'Update' them to mark them as printed.

(the system default) If you have printed to Screen, you may then print the displayed report by using the 'P' at the top right of the report.

This icon on the toolbar of any print output window enables you to select to print to a printer.

If you select this option, the report you have selected will be printed to your default printer.

You can select to print to a different printer by clicking on the Select Printer icon if it is available, or by opening the Page setup window from the File menu.

When Print to File has been selected, or you are producing a report that can only be output to a file, an Output window will open to enable you to enter a file name and select the destination directory for the file.

Depending on the report you are producing, you may be able to select the output format for the file being produced and there may be an option to enclose text in quotation marks.

File name - You can change the default file name to any valid name you choose. Care should be taken that the name is acceptable to any software that will be used to access the file and to avoid overwriting existing files.

Output format - Some reports can be ‘printed’ to file in a variety of formats:

Importer format - A number of reports can be printed to File in a format that can be imported immediately by the Import Utility, they will then already be in the correct format required by this Utility.

File destination - By default, most report files will be written to a Access Accounts Reports folder in your "My Documents" folder. The destination directory will be displayed in the lower part of the Output window and can be changed by browsing to a new location.

Enclose text in quotation marks - This option enables you to enclose text in quotation marks; this is required by some software.

This feature uses a 3rd party software application.

Reports - On many reports output windows there is a FAX option (see also System Options - Documents tab - Fax Settings), to send the report directly to FAX. This assumes that the necessary hardware and software is installed and that the FAX has been correctly set up as the default printer in Control Panel. In System Options > Documents > Stationery Options, you should set the Left Margin and the Page Size. These will depend on the particular FAX machine that you are using. If this FAX output option is selected, then the report will be output in the normal way, but will be intercepted by the FAX software, converted to FAX format, and sent to your FAX/Modem for transmission.

Documents - Many document output windows also have a Default icon on their toolbar, which enables you to output the Document as a Fax (or as an attachment to an email), determined by the settings in the Customer or Supplier Documents tab cards. Documents that can be faxed from Access Accounts include:

This feature is designed to be used with Microsoft Outlook and Exchange only.

On Document and Report Output selection windows, the toolbar enables you to select where the output is to be 'printed'. Output sent by email will be converted to a file and sent as an email attachment.

To send the output by email, on this Output selection window:

Click Print to produce the file that will be sent as the email attachment.

Sales and Purchase Documents will be sent to the email address held on the Customer or Supplier record using the email profile of the User entering the transaction (as recorded in User Email details).

For Reports, the email window will open for the entry of an email address for the recipient.

If an error occurs in the production of the attachment or in sending the email, a message will be displayed.

Please also refer to the notes, at the end of this topic, on naming file attachments.

The Email window - When sending reports by email, if the Users Email profile has not been entered in User Email details you will be prompted to enter it now. Then the email window will open with the report file attached.

At this point, the attachment file has already been created and saved and so will still exist even if the email window is closed without sending the message.

Important note: If during the batch processing of documents, you are presented with an Outlook Logon prompt which you cancel, then the entire batch process will be cancelled. The Cancel button will be treated as a Cancel Batch Process request.

If the document is no longer available, perhaps because Access Accounts cannot find the file at the expected location, no email will be produced.

Naming files and housekeeping - Care should be taken when naming the files that are created for delivery by email.

You should regularly archive files created for delivery by email.

Document and report files will be created in the Email Reports folder contained within the same directory as your Access Accounts application.

These files may also be saved to the Documents folder (of the User making the entry) if the Save as a Document option has been selected. The Documents folder can be selected in System Options.

If you do not want or need to keep the files, then you can delete them.

Multiple Document Email - This feature enables you to send multiple documents by email e.g. SOP Invoices/Credit Notes (from SOP batch), SL Statements, PL Statements and Remittance only documents (i.e. without Cheque).

What is meant by Multiple?

Within Transactions an option Always print a hard copy ensures that, at the end of the delivery of SOP Invoices and Credit Notes by email, (i.e. not printed or sent to file), the system will print the document on the current user's default printer.

The default delivery method for documents can be set on the Documents tab card on Customer and Supplier records. You may only select email as the delivery method if the relevant address record contains an email address.

Multiple Addresses - On the Multiple Address windows for both Customers and Suppliers, there is an 'Email address' field and a 'CC Email address' field for each address. Both fields are 64 characters in length. Addresses are validated to ensure they are in the format of '[email protected]'. If Statements or Remittances are being printed, then the email address from the address flagged as Statement address or Remittance address will be used.

Batch Processing - Within the SOP and POP batches an additional filter has been added to the batch selection window. This filter is a pull down menu and allows you to load transactions only for a particular delivery method - for example Email only. This filter does nothing more than build a limited list of transactions in the batch window for Customers that have their Invoice output method set to email.

Important note: If during the batch processing of documents, you are presented with an Outlook Logon prompt which you cancel, then the entire batch process will be cancelled. The Cancel button is treated as a Cancel Batch Process request.

Error Handling - If the email send fails:

Sales Order Invoices, Credit Notes and Order Confirmations, and Purchase Orders can be sent as XML attachments to an Email.

So that the recipient can read these as formatted Documents, an XSL (Style sheet) may optionally be sent with the XML attachment.

Setup - Before XML output can be selected as the output method for the Documents listed above, the following settings are required:

Sales Order Processing - Sales Order Invoices, Credit Notes and Order Confirmations can be sent by XML, either live or from a Batch. There is no requirement for any Transaction Options to be set.

When you save the Order the print Output window is displayed.

If XML is the Default method set on the Customer record Documents tab, then the XML output is pre-selected.

If you send the Document by XML, you are then taken back to the print Output window and offered the opportunity to print the Order again.

If XML was pre-selected, but you choose not to print any Document (you click on the Cancel icon), the Order process continues as normal.

If you choose not to send the Document by XML, but choose an alternative method, the Order process continues as normal.

If you choose XML, but the Email fails to send, you are warned of this, and returned to the Output window. Even if you choose a different print output, the Order process continues as normal.

If you are printing the Invoice live (i.e. not from the Batch), the rules are the same for the Invoice process as they are for the Order process.

If you are processing Invoices from the Batch, then invoicing by XML will form part of the document delivery methods:

If the Document is being processed from the Batch, (as a bulk process), or from a report, then it will be processed as follows. (These outputs will always be treated as a multiple Document even if only one Document is chosen).

The report Output window has a Default Icon. This will be selected by default.

If selected this will send Documents by the Default Delivery method set on the Customer or Supplier record Documents tab card.

If the Batch has been selected according to a filter (i.e. list all orders for Email Customers), then the delivery method icon will be pre-selected accordingly (i.e. Email).

If the Batch has not been selected according to a filter, or the Documents are being printed from a report or a bulk process, Default is the selected icon. This can be changed.

If the option Always print a hard copy of invoices and credit notes in Sales Order Options is set, then a copy will be sent to your default printer after the originals have been sent.

If the Email or XML fields for the selected Address are empty, then the main record’s Email will be used.

If you have chosen to Save as a Document (live processing) or Save Emailed reports as Documents (batch processing), then this document will be saved in the Document folder, and each document given a name of Document type + Account code + Document number

e.g. S-INV-ABL01-98765.

If the appropriate XSL (Stylesheet) does not exist in the Documents folder, then it too is saved into the Documents folder.

If the Order has been sent by XML already, you are warned and asked if you are sure that you want to continue.

Purchase Order Processing - Within POP, when you save the Order, the print Output window is displayed for the Purchase Order.

If XML is the default delivery method for Purchase Orders, set on the Supplier's record Documents tab card, then the XML output is pre-selected.

If you select to Save as a document, then this document will be saved in the Document folder, and each document given a name of Document type + Account code + Document number.

e.g. P-POP-BEL01-76501.

If the appropriate XSL (Stylesheet) does not exist in the Documents folder, then it too is saved into the Documents folder.

If you send the Purchase Order by XML, you are then returned to the print Output window, and offered the opportunity to print the Order again.

If you choose XML, but the system fails to send, you will be warned and returned to the Output window. You can then choose a different Print method.

If you cancel the XML and the Order is not printed, it will be shown as Not Yet Printed in the Order Documents report.

If the Order has been sent by XML already, you are warned and asked if you are sure that you want to continue.

If printing to a printer, you have the option to select the printer to be used. If selecting to print to a different printer you may need to change the Page setup in the File menu.

Select this option to prompt Access Accounts to ignore any search criteria and ensure the report includes all suitable records or transactions.

You can use Simple Search to select the data that is printed.

You can use Select Search to select from previously saved searches.

You can use Sort Order to change the sequence in which the report is printed, and add Subtotals on change of key fields.

When you have made your selection, clicking on the Print icon starts the report. When report printing has started, reports that are likely to be very large have a Cancel button. Clicking this will stop the printing of the report.