June Notes

Chicago ACT! USER GROUP

Meeting Notes

Meeting Date: June 1998

NEWS YOU CAN USE:

As reported last month, Symantec recently issued the 4.0.1 patch for ACT!. This update for ACT! 4.0 users is available via Symantec's LiveUpdate feature or on diskette either directly from Symantec (800-441-7234) or from E Tech Systems (847-352-4770). The patch includes fixes for WordPerfect users (WordPerfect 8 and 7.0.2 are now supported) and includes minor bug and performance enhancements.

Specifically:

ACT! 4.0.1 now supports WordPerfect 8 as well as WordPerfect 7.0.2. Pre-existing ACT!-WordPerfect templates will appear in the Template\Backup folder (in the ACT! program folder).
Note: These pre-existing older templates will not work with ACT! 4.0.1. To preserve them, you must copy the contents of old templates and paste it into a new WordPerfect templates. More information can be found in the README file for the 4.0.1 patch.
If you sort a lookup prior to printing labels, a report, or envelopes, contacts will now print in the sorted order. For example, address labels can now be printed in zip code order.
Remember, the ACT! User Group is on hiatus until the end of summer. (As a result, there is no OPEN FORUM section this month. Nonetheless, we trust you'll find this article up to our usual standards.) The next meeting of the ACT! User Group will be on September 15 (the 3rd Tuesday of the month instead of the usual 2nd Tuesday). ACT! User Group meeting notices are now available via e-mail. If you would like to receive meeting reminders via e-mail, simply send a message to info@etechsys.com.

MEETING FEATURE: What’s New in ACT! 4.0 – Part 2

As promised in the June issue of Hard Copy, we will continue our discussion of ACT! 4.0's features and improvements. To start things off, here's one of our (in)famous "Top 10" lists:

Ten of our favorite ACT! 4.0 features and improvements:

Views such as view list and history/notes are printable as they appear on the screen.
Better integration with e-mail. You may use Eudora or any POP 3 e-mail via standard ISPs (but not America Online). You can now attach e-mail messages to history (in the same way as you can do with letters and other documents).
Now integrated with INTERNET. Instant Yahoo news on a contact company (corporate news), weather for an area, maps, and driving directions are all available. The command is: TOOLS, INTERNET LINKS.
You can now look up people (by name) and get their e-mail addresses via Internet from the ACT! screen. (Some limited address information is also available.) Using simple commands, you can send a message or add the contact to your ACT! contact list.
BACKUP and RESTORE commands have been added to the File Menu. ACT! data can be backed up to floppy disks (using file compression) or to an Internet file storage service such as Connected Online. Connected online charges $20 a month for data backup, offers a 30-day free trial, and can be reached at 800 647 3078 (U.S.A.) or via www.connected.com.
Improved WinFax pro integration - operation is more 'seamless' (cover page, attachments, delivery scheduling).
SideACT!, A new stand alone program, has been added. SideACT! functions as a 'to do' list and incorporates its own mini viewer. You may, at any time, drag and drop activities listed in SideACT! onto ACT! contacts.
Synching has been much improved.
On demand video HELP has been added - however you must leave the ACT! CD-ROM loaded in your CD-ROM drive to access this feature.
When viewing the Contact List, a contact can be quickly located using ACT!'s "typeahead" feature by first clicking on a column heading to select that column then typing the first few letters of the data you want to find. For example, contacts in San Francisco can be located by clicking on the City column then typing "San".

Now that you've been thoroughly convinced of the value of switching to ACT! 4.0, here are some hints for upgrading from ACT! 3.0.X to ACT! 4.0. You won't find these hints in any Symantec documentation!

Moving from ACT! 3.0 to ACT! 4.0:

Hints for upgrading - what Symantec doesn't tell you!

CAUTION: ACT! 4.0 overwrites ACT! 3.0.
As a precaution, before you install ACT! 4.0, copy the entire ACT! 3.0 directory to a newly created folder called "c:\tempact" (or any other folder). Make a second copy on a floppy disk, network, zip, or "zip-like" disk.
Though field names, popups, layouts, history, and activities will all be automatically transferred to from ACT! 3.0 to ACT! 4.0, other types of customization may be lost in the transition. To preserve any other customization you did for ACT! 3.0, do the following:
Make "screen shots" (using the "PrtSc" or Print Screen key on your keyboard) showing modifications you've made to serve as a guide in recreating them. You may want to make screen shots of the Commands and Menus tabs (the command to get to the tabs is TOOLS, CUSTOMIZE) or of any icons you've added to the contact (or other) screens.
NOTE to create a screen shot, simply press the "Print Screen" key on your PC's keyboard then execute the command EDIT, PASTE after opening Windows 95's WordPad program. Either save the screen shots or print them out.
Make note of all keyboard short cut keys you have programmed as they will also be lost in the transition.
Make copies of letter.tpl (if you modified ACT!'s basic letter template) and new.usr (if you added any words to ACT!'s word processor's custom dictionary.
Items that were added to ACT!'s Write and Reports menus will be carried over to the new version along with the appropriate links to the corresponding files.
After installing ACT! 4.0, copy the letter.tpl and new.usr files to the appropriate spot in the ACT! 4.0 directory, overwriting the existing versions of these files.
Revise custom layouts made in ACT! 3.0 that you would like to use with ACT! 4.0 (using the layout editor) to include the new "ticker" field.
Finally, another word of caution: do not attempt to operate ACT! 3.0 and 4.0 on same machine. ACT! 4.0 is designed to replace ACT! 3.0.

OUR NEXT MEETING …

will be Tuesday September 15, 1998. At that time we’ll update you with the latest ACT! news and information from Symantec and, of course, answer your ACT!-related questions during our Open Forum Q&A session. The meeting will be held at the Schaumburg Prairie Center for the Arts Lecture Hall located at 201 Schaumburg Court (just off Schaumburg Road, between Plum Grove and Roselle Roads).

The ACT! User Group (a SIG of the C.C.S.) holds meetings on the second Tuesday of the month, eight months out of the year. User Group meetings are free and open to all C.C.S. members. Call E Tech Systems at 847-352-4770 to get meeting notices or e-mail us at info@etechsys.com.

E Tech Systems is an ACT! Certified Consulting firm and Symantec Authorized Training Center. E Tech has installed, configured, and customized ACT! for dozens of companies and trained hundreds of ACT! users. Alan Lee can be reached at E Tech at 847-352-4770 or via e-mail to alee@etechsys.com.

© Copyright 1998 by Alan M. Lee. Other nonprofit computer user's groups may reprint this material providing credit is given the author and C.C.S. Future rights for publication reserved by Alan M. Lee. ACT! is a registered trademark of Symantec Corporation.

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Views such as view list and history/notes are printable as they appear on the screen.

Better integration with e-mail. You may use Eudora or any POP 3 e-mail via standard ISPs (but not America Online). You can now attach e-mail messages to history (in the same way as you can do with letters and other documents).

Now integrated with INTERNET. Instant Yahoo news on a contact company (corporate news), weather for an area, maps, and driving directions are all available. The command is: TOOLS, INTERNET LINKS.

You can now look up people (by name) and get their e-mail addresses via Internet from the ACT! screen. (Some limited address information is also available.) Using simple commands, you can send a message or add the contact to your ACT! contact list.

Improved WinFax pro integration - operation is more 'seamless' (cover page, attachments, delivery scheduling).

SideACT!, A new stand alone program, has been added. SideACT! functions as a 'to do' list and incorporates its own mini viewer. You may, at any time, drag and drop activities listed in SideACT! onto ACT! contacts.

Synching has been much improved.

On demand video HELP has been added - however you must leave the ACT! CD-ROM loaded in your CD-ROM drive to access this feature.

CAUTION: ACT! 4.0 overwrites ACT! 3.0.

As a precaution, before you install ACT! 4.0, copy the entire ACT! 3.0 directory to a newly created folder called "c:\tempact" (or any other folder). Make a second copy on a floppy disk, network, zip, or "zip-like" disk.

Though field names, popups, layouts, history, and activities will all be automatically transferred to from ACT! 3.0 to ACT! 4.0, other types of customization may be lost in the transition. To preserve any other customization you did for ACT! 3.0, do the following:

NOTE to create a screen shot, simply press the "Print Screen" key on your PC's keyboard then execute the command EDIT, PASTE after opening Windows 95's WordPad program. Either save the screen shots or print them out.

Make note of all keyboard short cut keys you have programmed as they will also be lost in the transition.

Make copies of letter.tpl (if you modified ACT!'s basic letter template) and new.usr (if you added any words to ACT!'s word processor's custom dictionary.

Items that were added to ACT!'s Write and Reports menus will be carried over to the new version along with the appropriate links to the corresponding files.

After installing ACT! 4.0, copy the letter.tpl and new.usr files to the appropriate spot in the ACT! 4.0 directory, overwriting the existing versions of these files.

Revise custom layouts made in ACT! 3.0 that you would like to use with ACT! 4.0 (using the layout editor) to include the new "ticker" field.

Finally, another word of caution: do not attempt to operate ACT! 3.0 and 4.0 on same machine. ACT! 4.0 is designed to replace ACT! 3.0.