Born to run

 Just recently we've had some problems notified to us where Windows will not allow Wessex Pricing Program to run. Just when you thought you'd got the download (see Picture Frame Pricing Programs: Download woes) and installed it, Microsoft puts another obstacle in your path!

Doing a bit of detective work it seems that the problem occurs in new devices. Security that was Off by default is now turned to On.

The root cause is that Windows recognizes "safe" program by a security certificate. So why doesn't WPP4 have one? Simply because they cost upwards of £200 annually and we just don't sell enough to justify that.

So, what to do?  As with most computer related things it's easy once you know.

In Windows go to "Settings" and choose "Apps". Then "Advanced app settings" (the second one down). Now you will see at the top "Choose where to get apps". Make sure this is set to "Anywhere"

Everything should now work properly.

It doesn't? Here are a couple of other things to try.

Go back to "Settings" and this time choose "Privacy and Security", then "App and browser control". Now select "Smart App control settings". Make sure this is set to "Off".

There is one more thing we can do. 

Go back to "App and browser control" and this time choose "Reputation-based protection settings". Make sure "Potentially unwanted app blocking" is set to Off.

No excuses now, Microsoft will now treat us as an adult and everything should work!

I did it my way .... (adding, & deleting Mount, Glass & Sundries items).

 I was looking through some of the Blog posts and realised that I haven't really covered customising the drop-down Mount, Glass and Sundries lists. This is one of the key advantages of using the Wessex Pricing Program (WPP4) - the ability to make the program reflect the work you do and not have to accept the things that someone else thinks you should be doing. 

When you first run the program it suggests that you load some sample lists and values. This is great to practice with, but does it really reflect the framing you offer? For instance you might not offer Plain Mirror but you do offer 3mm glass.

So, down to the nitty gritty how do you go about configuring these drop-down lists?

The first thing to remember is that adding a label to the list and assigning a value to it are two separate actions.

To add the label click "Setup" > "Customise Labels ..." and you will see a form with tabs.

 

The first tab "Address" is where you enter the contact details that are printed on the invoice and workticket.

The other tabs are essentially the same. If you want to delete an item then, in the lower box the downward pointing arrow will display the list, select the one you want to delete and click "Remove".

To add an item, in the upper box type in the new label (upto 15 characters/spaces). Click "Add" and you're done, simples?!

You can check that the item(s) has actually been added to the list by going back to the main program screen. If it doesn't appear, choose the "Jobs" tab, and click "Reset". This causes the program to reread the file that contains the lists.

The new item is now in the list but it's value is zero, so we now need to assign a cost to that item. 

 Click "Setup" > "Values" and this screen appears - 

Select the new item and enter the values you want associated with it. Then click "Save". The Mount and Glass tabs are similar (the price is based on area), whereas in the Sundries tab you will need to select whether the item is to be a single value (eg. a strut back), priced by the perimeter (eg. Liming), or by the area (eg. Needlework) . 

 

The drop-down lists are displayed either in the order the items were entered (fine for a short list) or alphabetically (you can select that option on the "Customise Lists" form). 

Now you're good to go. 

It's always good practice to take a copy of the Lists and Values file, (click "Export"), just in case.