Insight eNews
A Monthly Newsletter from AVF Consulting, Inc.
Microsoft Dynamics NAV Solution Center &
Microsoft Gold Certified Partner
April 2008
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In this edition:
From the President: Eight Ways to Integrate Microsoft Dynamics NAV
Tips and Tricks: Change Log
Changes in FTP Access: New Process for Accessing FTP
From the President: Andrew Fass
Eight Ways to Integrate Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 with Other Microsoft Applications
One of the best features of Microsoft Dynamics NAV is the ability to integrate it with other Microsoft applications. Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 enables you to integrate like never before. If you are not currently on NAV 5.0, here are eight reasons to make the upgrade.
1.
Work fast in Microsoft Office Excel spreadsheets
Integration with Microsoft Office Excel makes everyday tasks much
simpler and less time-consuming. There's no need to jump from one
application to another. For example, let's say a sales manager needs to
hand out a customer list to his team, but wants to modify it in Office
Excel first. The sales manager can click the Export to Excel icon in
Microsoft Dynamics NAV. Then the sales manager can use Office Excel as
usual, adding columns and inserting comments with additional
information, such as the responsible account manager, a priority number,
and other information about each customer.
2. Use
Microsoft Office Word formatting when you need it
It's just as easy to export data to Microsoft Office Word as it is to
Microsoft Office Excel. If a salesperson wants to send a customer a
letter, for example, the salesperson can export all the necessary
information from the customer card in Microsoft Dynamics NAV directly
into a sales letter style sheet in Office Word. The salesperson might
also want to export information that requires a calculation, such as a
price list with availability of products. Once the data is exported, the
salesperson can continue to use Office Word formatting as usual,
including adding headings, making text bold, inserting images, and so
on.
3.
Save time and hassle by synchronizing with Microsoft Office Outlook
Any field from any table in Microsoft Dynamics NAV can be synchronized
with Microsoft Office Outlook. The only limitations are the restrictions
your administrators place on a given user. People can schedule meetings,
manage contacts, and send e-mail messages in just one program, and the
data will automatically be updated in both Microsoft Dynamics NAV and
Office Outlook.
4.
Exchange data in a cost-efficient way with Microsoft BizTalk Server
Tight integration with Microsoft BizTalk Server helps you reach out to
new trading partners. You can exchange data cost-efficiently, regardless
of the system a trading partner uses or the standards they require.
Information sent or received is automatically updated in Microsoft
Dynamics NAV. This eliminates the need for manual data entry and
significantly increases data accuracy.
5.
Create links to control and share unstructured data
Companies often have a lot of relevant information they need to refer to
in unstructured formats and sources such as e-mails and Web sites. In
Microsoft Dynamics NAV, you can add links to any Web site or file stored
on a document management system, such as Microsoft Office SharePoint
Server. For example, you could create links from an item in Microsoft
Dynamics NAV to a product Web site, a video demo of the product, images
of the product, or to other documents created in the Microsoft Office
system. Links can be created from any form in Microsoft Dynamics NAV.
6.
Find maps and directions directly from the program
Integration to Microsoft Windows Live Local Search gives you access to a
valuable, time-saving function. You just click a button next to the
relevant address in Microsoft Dynamics NAV on the customer card, for
example, and then follow the simple driving directions on the screen.
You can also print out a map and step-by-step directions. You can view,
print, and get driving directions between any two addresses stored in
the system.
7.
Make decisions confidently with built-in business analytics
With tools such as online analytical processing (OLAP) enabled by
Microsoft SQL Server, you can draw upon table relations within Microsoft
Dynamics NAV for a multi-dimensional view of data (for example, how a
particular product is performing in a certain region in a given time
period). You can access the cubes in a reporting application tool, such
as Microsoft Office Excel or the Business Analytics Advanced Viewer.
8. Get
the right information to the right people
You can easily store and share information from Microsoft Dynamics NAV
with your people. For example, if a manager wants to make weekly sales
reports available to salespeople in the field, the manager can maintain
the list in just one place. The relevant salespeople (who have been
given access rights) can then view the sales report using Microsoft
Dynamics NAV Employee Portal. Employee Portal connects Microsoft
Dynamics NAV to Microsoft Office SharePoint Server to give people a
simplified view of important business data on their own personalized
intranet home pages without having to be trained on Microsoft Dynamics
NAV.
*Article from Microsoft Partner Source Website.
If you
would like more information about scheduling an update to Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 please
contact
AVF 's
Customer Care Department.
Change Log
The Change Log can be set up and activated to log record insertion, modification, or deletion. This is helpful in tracking changes made to the system.
The Change Log Setup List Window lets you specify what the program must record for a given table. Typically you would not want to set the Change Log to record all table changes, as this would quickly increase the size of your database (i.e. setting it to record insertions made to the G/L Entry table would record every G/L entry). Instead, we recommend setting the Change Log to record and track changes to key master tables like the G/L Account, Customer, or Vendor tables. Setting up the Change Log in this way will provide you with a record of all changes to the G/L Account, Customer, or Vendor Cards and a copy of the original entry.
For more tips and tricks, check out the FAQ tab on the AVF Help Desk website! If you need a login please contact Customer Care.
The Process for Accessing the AVF Consulting FTP Site has Changed!
In response to a number of requests, AVF Consulting has changed the process for accessing our FTP site. When a customer logs on to the FTP site, they will be logging on to their company FTP folder. Logging on to the FTP folder now requires a company specific username and password. The new process will provide an extra layer of security and ensure that our customers' data is kept private at all times. The process for accessing the FTP site is outlined below.
AVF Consulting, Inc. supports access to the FTP site by use of Microsoft Windows Explorer through Windows XP or Vista. It is recommended that you use the most current version of Windows XP or Vista (latest Service Pack) in order to successfully connect to and access the FTP site. At anytime should you experience an issue with accessing the AVF FTP site, please feel free to contact our Customer Care team at (410) 296-5100 or submit a ticket into the AVF Helpdesk at www.avfconsulting.com/helpdesk and someone will be more than happy to assist you.
How to access the FTP site:
1. Open Windows Explorer (Start > Programs > Accessories > Windows Explorer).
2. In the address bar, type in ftp://ftp.avf.us and press Enter.
3. A security dialogue box will prompt you to enter your username and password. Enter the credentials provided to you by AVF Consulting. The username is not case sensitive, but the password is case sensitive. (See figure 1)
NOTE: If you do not have credentials, please contact Customer Care who will provide you with your own credentials to FTP.
4. Once you log in, you will see two folder options:
a. Upload: Folder is used to send any data from your local site to AVF Consulting, Inc.
b. Download: Folder is used by AVF Consulting, Inc. to put data out on the FTP for client to receive.
You will need to browse to the appropriate folder depending on whether the purpose is for uploading or downloading.
5. In order to download from FTP, you will need to:
a. Browse to the download folder.
b. Click (highlight) file requested for download.
c. Press Ctrl+C (the copy function) while highlighting the requested file.
d. Browse to desired download location on local computer.
e. Press Ctrl+V to paste the file to desired location.
6. In order to upload to the FTP, you will need to:
a. Browse to the upload folder.
b. Click (highlight) the local file on your network or computer for upload.
c. Press Ctrl+C (the copy function) while highlighting the requested file.
d. Go to the FTP window and Press Ctrl+V to paste the file to the FTP site.
7. Once upload or download is complete, close Windows Explorer and you are finished!
8. Notify the AVF staff member you were working with that the file has been successfully uploaded or downloaded so they can take care of the file.
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