• Recently added ability to include {if(...)} in workshop complete SMS. With example below, the SMS sent would have make padded out. i.e.

...Your Honda                CBR-1000....

instead of

...Your Honda CBR-1000....

Did not notice this on my phone because my phone removes excess spaces.  Now fixed.

• Miner - bulk email filters out archived users as well as users who do not have marketing flag set. Before, all users were considered, including archived ones. Important : existing saved queries will not be automatically fixed after upgrade. You need to load the query, modify the customer, click Disable, then enable on enable bulk sms/email. OK then save for existing saved queries to start to filter out archived customers.
• Customer return deposit.  System would allow user to return a deposit amount that exceeded their balance.  c9 would warn users that they should not do this, but it would let them do it anyway. Modified so c9 disallows this sort of thing.
• Select/View Job. In main workshop screen allow user to access View : so they can easily access functions like reprinting repair authority without having to goto rarely used Browser menu.  Also when selecting a job for something like sell spares to workshop, allow user to view a job during selection process.

• Bug Fixes
• Bug fix in Release 4.243 resulted in a new bug now fixed here.  Spares credit, if customer to credit is an account customer then system would always credit invoice to account only; it would not actually respond to attempts to set a cash amount to credit back; but it would permit user to key in payout method.
• Workshop SMS notification.  System would send notification to email as well, even if email notification was explicitly disabled. Modified so that system pays attention to setup/customer configuration settings.
• UI tweaks
• Workshop complete SMS template. Following is possible to help fine tune construction of SMS messages.

{if(make='' and model='','job',make&' '&model)}

Example of a full template

Hi {contact}. Your {if(make='' and model='','job',make&' '&model)} is now available for pickup

What this will do is it will render unit make and model, i.e. 'Honda CBR-1000' if set, but if the workshop job does not involve a unit then system will instead render 'Job'.  Similar to defining Unit Formula for Stamp Duty Calculation, It is essentially computer programming, using a language called clarion (c9 is written in two languages, clarion and java); so not for the faint of heart.  De-constructing the above:

This version includes database changes.  C9 will force you to log all terminals out during upgrade. 

The upgrade will modify a number of database items that store large amounts of data, including price files and invoice history.  Because of this the upgrade may take up to 10 minutes to complete.

• SMS notification for workshop completion. Allow SMS template to include {make}, {type}, {model} and {contact} place holders.
• Print Spares invoice
• Redesign invoice so that it can be easily stuffed into a a4 window envelope
• Add ability to print line item discount.  Only prints if invoice discount is cost or margin discount and if checkbox in setup to enable printing line discount is set.
• Price file descriptions were limited to 30 characters. Extended to 60 characters.
• Updated all affected sub systems. Stock, price files, orders, enquiries, spares/workshop/unit invoice line items
• Updated all affected reports. Key reports/invoices will print description over multiple lines if there is insufficient space
• Tweaks to barcoding & shelf labels.
• Print multiple lines if required
• Ability to print extra tall barcodes for easier scanning
• Visual improvements to positioning of items on a label.
• Web & Image Management
• Recent changes to better anti-alias resized images was causing C9 to crash when dealing with some colomap image types, i.e. gif files and some png files
• When resizing gif images, convert to png as part of the resize
• Manage slide show and fancy text web images. Preset image size to something specific for these image type
• Gallery : checkbox to make gallery a slide show or a simple gallery. Doesn't do anything yet, but web changes will be following shortly.
• Ability to display additional order notes submitted during checkout.  Website not yet updated to make use of this ability; website update will follow shortly.
• UI TWeaks
• Workshop  : rename reschedule to re-assign.  Disable this button if there are no configured regular mechanics
• Weekly workshop planner : show labour, last mechanic and scheduled mechanic
• Print Order : Print supplier details if known. Phone/Fax/Email.  Preset email address to permit emailing printed report
• Print customer labels : make easier to access this function via customers/reports.
• Print customer labels : allow lines on the label to flow onto multiple lines. i.e. long names/addresses
• Bugs
• Browse customers : resulting list was only a partial list of selected customers.  Now fixed.

• Bugfix with messenger sending SMS and email.  C9 would report that message was not sent.  Messages were being sent but c9 was not recognizing this. Fixed now.

Includes database changes. System will force you to log all terminals out as part of upgrade

• Franchise - track order types supported by franchise. i.e. most Honda dealers these days do not bother with daily orders.  Configured via utilities, add/edit franchise. Setup on a per franchise basis.
• Print barcodes, UI tweak after selecting franchise
• Online stock taking support. Stock take using your mobile phone or tablet device.  New remote online stock taking feature requires upgrade to this version of c9 in order for it to work (you also require online backup service to be installed)
• To access this feature, goto http://c8software.com.au/remote/
• Bug in Point of sale : if you complete a transaction that takes tendered amount  (i.e. receipt txn), but back out at the last minute and instead change the sale to one that does not take tendered amount (i.e. invoice), the system would still record tender amount.  System was not resetting tender value in such circumstances.  In the case of switching to an invoice, it would record payment against the account. Payment methods (i.e. cash/EFT/Cheque) would be reset although, so the tender amount would not record on the cash till report; the recorded payment would effectively be a No Cash payment.  This defect in terms of switching from receipt to invoice would only manifest itself on sites where customers had configured c9 so that they tendered receipts but not tender invoices. If tender invoices was also set, then c9 would indeed correctly reset tender amount in these circumstances.
• Spares Profit and Profit Summary mismatch resolved
• Profit summary was not utilising recent additions of new discounting methods and was miscalculating discount offset for such sales
• Both reports did not handle situation where cost price is recorded at 0.00 same way. c9 assumes this is an error and it picks a different cost price.  Consolidated on using current daily buy price for this purpose
• Modified way workshop delivered by is stored in the database internally.  Was not causing any functional problems, but strictly speaking was incorrect.

• Stock additional groups : provide ability to set this when adding a new part into stock

• Usability Tweaks to recently added find part function.
• Export dead stock, consider parts not sold since a given date to be dead. Same as the report itself
• View account - show summary information on parts on order; retail value of parts, less anticipated discount to be awarded; deposits on invoice held etc.

This version requires database updates and will force you to log all terminals out as part of upgrade

• Point of sale : F2 part lookup completely redesigned to be more powerful and flexible.
• Stock parts : make ability to organise parts into 'additional groups' more prominent on F6 modify part.  Above F2 changes permit filtering based on these additional groups
• Visual tweak to displaying of dates in modify workshop job; so date can completely fit in the visible space in the field

• Fix layout of items on pickup job. Some graphics controls were overlapping others
• Under some rare circumstances, receive order would misprint number of parts required for a given invoice
• modify workshop spares item. Allow user to override spares line item price. Recent changes to make adjusting qty automatically update line item price inadvertently damaged this facility
• Print customer code on units and spares invoice (already printed on workshop invoice)
• Print received barcodes, flush any existing items on barcode list first

• Web and Email
• Fixed anti-aliasing method used for rescaled images in HTML emails and web content. Look much nicer now.
• Improved ability to import HTML source from other HTML generators for HTML bulk email
• Bulk Email : include ability to attach files
• Bug fixes
• Adjust qty of spares items on workshop job. Does not update price of the line item. Now fixed.
• Pass workshop costs onto unit sale;  should not work for deleted jobs.
• Workshop dashboard would allow you to 'modify' a job even if no job was selected. Fixed
• Auto restart of messenger can crash C9 (rare situation, only affects Bolton's because they run 3 separate copies of c9 simultaneously).
• Tweaks
• Select part from master file franchise. Display stock description over price file descrption. Also optimised performance of the list.