onTOPS Issue 34

May 2005

Welcome to onTOPS, an email magazine produced by TOPS Software to keep you informed about TOPS products and services.

In this issue:

• SALES: Pool Pass for $495.00
• WEB SITES: The Coming Storm Season
• APPEARANCES: TOPS Comes to You!
• DOWNLOADS: Two New Themes for TOPS 2000™
• UPDATER: New Enhancements to TOPS 2000™
• SUPPORT: Interim Payroll conversion to Windows-based Payroll
• SUPPORT: DOS TOPS Support Ending June 30, 2005

NOTE: TOPS Software will be closed Monday, May 30th, in observance of the Memorial Day holiday.

Enjoy your reading, and we will see you next month!

Feedback: insider@topssoft.com

SALES

Pool Pass For $495.00

Summer is almost upon us and that means hot, muggy days and school children on vacation. It also means that if your community has a pool, then all of those children and all of their friends are going to want to cool off in that pool. Additionally, if there are other communities nearby without pools, residents of those communities may want to welcome themselves to your association's pool too. What's a community to do?

Well, with the Pool Pass module for TOPS 2000™ or TOPS On-Site™, you can create photo ID cards for all of your residents and their approved guests. Then, whenever someone wants to gain entrance to the pool, they just show their photo ID card to the lifeguard or security guard, who can allow them access to the pool. If delinquencies are a problem, then you can print Pool Pass reports for your lifeguard or security guard, based on an A/R cutoff amount. This report will create a list of individuals that are allowed entry and individuals who are not allowed entry, based on their delinquency status. There are no dollar amounts shown on the report, so there is no concern about the lifeguard or security guard having access to sensitive association data.

The Pool Pass module for TOPS 2000™ or TOPS On-Site™ is available for $495.00 plus shipping and handling. Please call the TOPS Software Sales office at 800-760-9966 or e-mail to sales@topssoft.com for additional information.

TOPS WEB SITES

the Coming Storm Season

With Memorial Day just around the corner, the start of summer also heralds the start the Storm Season for many parts of the country.

We've discovered that a number of our Florida-based Communities used their TOPS Community Web Sites as a way to keep residents informed during the 2004 Hurricane Season, and it proved to be a huge success. If you live in an area of the country affected by summer storms, we suggest you add a Storm Center to your community web site today. Here are a just a few of the ways Communities used their TOPS Interactive Web Sites to share all kinds of valuable information with residents, helping them get through some very anxious times.

• Newcomers especially can be caught off guard. Help residents new to your area by providing the location and directions to area shelters and facilities for pets.
• Use your Community Web Site to share advise on what to do and what to have on hand in case of a major storm etc.
• Include links to local and state government agency and the media for easy access to maps, directions, evacuations route and who to contact after the storm.
• The ability to e-mail important updates out to residents (both living on property and those up North!) proved invaluable as a communications tool.
• The photo galleries were used to post pictures of the community so homeowners living away could see how the property fared throughout the season.
• After a storm passed and the damage was done, eforms were used to submit maintenance request and the task manager feature was used to keep track of the repairs process.

According to the experts we can expect another busy storm season. With features like Online AP Approval and regular scheduled updates, a TOPS Interactive Web Site can help you preserve a sense of community during what can be very trying and chaotic time. Having the ability to continue your operations, get bills approved and vendors paid will be easier. Providing up-to-date information and the ability to track repairs will ease the concerns of homeowners while reducing calls to the office.

To learn more about TOPS Interactive Web Sites and how they benefit you, the HOA Officers, and residents go to www.topshome.com or Contact TOPS Web Sales at (800) 556-7852 or websales@topssoft.com

APPEARANCES

TOPS Comes to You!

DOWNLOADS

Three New Themes for TOPS 2000™

This month our new themes are: Solar System, Geometric, TOPS Simple.

To download themes, click View, Theme Manager to access the program. When the Theme Manager appears, click the Download button next to the themes you wish to install. If you wish to uninstall a theme, click the remove button. Once you have finished installing themes, click the Done button to close the Theme Manager. To Switch Themes, click View, Themes, and select the theme you wish to apply.

UPDATER

New Enhancements to TOPS 2000™

Please be advised that the Internet Updater is restricted to customers on a current maintenance support agreement. If you are interested in our support plans, please go to topssoft.com/Support/MSA_plans.htm.

• Released the Convert TOPS DOS Interim Payroll to TOPS 2000™ Windows-based Payroll Utility. (Must already have upgraded to TOPS 2000™ for utility to work.)
• ReadyCOLLECT Interface IP Address corrected.
• A/R Reports (Owner Activity) removed the invalid print option "Print Detail".
• Accounts Payable (Enter AP Invoice) corrected the G/L Sub Acct Number field to allow entry of predefined Sub Account Numbers only.

How to Update Your Files

1. Make sure you are logged into the computer that will be performing the update. (If you are updating in a networked environment, update the server first, as a workstation, and then run the update on each workstation.)
2. If it is open, close TOPS on your computer.
3. Connect to the Internet and navigate to www.topssoft.com/downloads.htm.
4. Under "Program Updates" click the GO button.
5. Click Open, to run the update from the current location.
6. When the TOPS Web Updater appears, click the down arrow next to 'Select Module to Check' and Choose TOPS 2000™.
7. On the bottom right, ensure that the "Workstation Only" option is selected.
8. Click the "Begin Update" button. (The system may prompt you for a User ID. If so, enter in your TOPS Customer ID).
9. Once the update is complete, you can close this window and re-open TOPS 2000™.

SUPPORT

Interim Payroll Conversion to Windows-based Payroll

Great news for our Interim DOS Payroll clients! The long awaited TOPS 2000™ Windows-based Payroll conversion is ready to roll! It's true! Windows Payroll and the conversion utility have gone through some growing pains, but everything has been tested, updated, and retested.

The first thing is to use the Web Updater to download the latest and greatest program files. The actual conversion process is relatively easy. A user guide is available on our manual downloads section on our web site at www.topssoft.com/Support/Manuals. Your old DOS data will remain intact. And, you can continue to use your existing TOPS Payroll check stock.

An important note is to avoid reconverting a converted community's Payroll. If you start using Windows Payroll in a specific community, then reconvert it, your data will be overwritten and lost! There are safeguards in place, so read the screens and messages. Good luck and happy Payroll-ing!

Go to www.topssoft.com, select Downloads, User Manual Downloads, scroll down to the Interim Payroll Conversion option!

DOS TOPS Support Ending June 30, 2005

In the fall of 2001 during the launch of Windows® XP, Microsoft founder Bill Gates announced the demise of MS-DOS with the removal of the 16-bit code from the Windows code base. Each new version of Windows® has less and less compatibility with DOS applications. In the not too distant future, Microsoft will be eliminating the ability to run any DOS applications in a future version of Windows®.

Time is running out on DOS applications and with it, your ability to continue to use DOS TOPS. With less than 3% of our customers on DOS TOPS, it is no longer in the best interest of our customers to continue the maintenance and support of these DOS based programs. Increasing compatibility issues to keep DOS TOPS working under newer versions of Windows® and outdated peripheral equipment is no longer cost effective.

To continue to use DOS TOPS without support is not a practical alternative. That is why we want to make your transition to TOPS 2000™ as efficiently and cost effectively as possible. The costs if on support to upgrade by June 30th to TOPS 2000™ are:

Single Community $495.00
Multiple Communities $795.00
Data Conversion Utility $195.00

All your data can be easily converted from DOS TOPS to TOPS 2000™ with the purchase of our Data Conversion Utility. With just a few clicks of the mouse, you start the data conversion and then go forward with all your community data in place ready to use TOPS 2000™. The data conversion offered in the TOPS 2000™ upgrade is thorough and very easy to implement.

We urge you to upgrade to TOPS 2000™ now to avoid any interruptions to your day-to-day business activities. Along with discontinuing support, program changes like the recent format change to W-2s for DOS TOPS will also end effective June 30, 2005. If you continue to use DOS TOPS after this date and have an issue with the application, we will no longer be able to assist you.

For further information about TOPS 2000™, or a demo of the software, please contact our sales department at 1-800-760-9966 or via email at sales@topssoft.com.

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