View source for Free Trial Guide/en

=Quick Start Guide= 

Welcome to TrackAbout!  This Free Trial Guide will provide you with information and tools to guide you through your 14 Day Free Trial.

The Free Trial Guide is divided into three segments:

#Setting up Data - Set up your TrackAbout environment.  
#Capturing Data - Now that your environment is ready to go, it's time to start collecting data.
#Reviewing Data - Finally, now that you have data, this page will guide you through how to use it. 

If you should need assistance at any point throughout your Free Trial, please contact our Free Trial Experts at

412.269.0446<br> 
sales@trackabout.com

=Setting up Data=

==Logging in==


[[File:CorporateSite_LoginLink.png|right| 800px]]

If you followed through the first stages of your Free Trial you will have received an email with a link for you to set a password and then log into the site. 
(If you've had any problem setting up your password or did not receive an email after registering for your Free Trial please call 412.269.xxxx)

To Log In
*Go to [https://www.trackabout.com/public/login.aspx TrackAbout Login Page] or
*Go to [https://www.trackabout.com trackabout.com TrackAbout Corporate Site] and click the "Login" link in the upper right corner of this page.

*Use your email address and your new password to login to the site.

==Site Navigation==


[[File:TrackAbout_HomePageIntro.png|left|600px]]





Your TrackAbout webpage is split into 4 sections

1. '''The Quick Search box''' - This set of fields allows you to search by particular identifiers.  The Jump To box allows you to search for pages also contained within the Left Pane Navigation Menu. 
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2. '''Left Pane Navigation Menu''' - Click on any of the headings in the left pane navigation menu to reveal an expandable list of reports and tools. 
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3. '''Main content section''' - This section of the page will contain your TrackAbout reports and tools as you navigate through pages.
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4. '''Help and References bar''' - These links will lead you to the TrackAbout Wiki where you'll find information and videos about TrackAbout products.  This section also contains information about how to get in touch with our TrackAbout Support team.
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Check out the page on [[Navigation]] for info about how to get around the website.
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==Setting up Basic Information==

As you may have seen during the hands on demo portion of the Free Trial, there are various kinds of information that need to be set up to track your assets.  The next steps will help you set up your:

*Locations
*Owners
*Users
*Asset Classification and Product Codes

=== Locations ===
[[File:Add New Location.png|right|400px]]

{{#ev:youtube|rHQ6uDlGXeU|400|right|Managing Locations|frame}}

"Locations" in TrackAbout refer to any place where an asset can be located - except for customers (those are treated separately). Every asset is either in a Location or at a Customer. 


* Review and Manage existing Locations via the [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/locations/listLocationsTree.aspx List Locations] page. 
This page can be found in the '''TrackAbout Config''' section of the Left Pane Navigation on your site.


You'll be able to Add New Locations either by clicking '''Add New Location''' from the top right of your List Locations screen, or by going directly to the [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/locations/editLocation.aspx?act=new&id=root Add New Location] page by typing in "Add New Location" in the Jump To box in the upper left corner of your screen.  Or click on '''Quick Adds''' in your left pane navigation to find the Add New Location link.



*Refer to the [[Locations]] page for more detailed information about TrackAbout Locations and how to create them or check out this video on Managing Locations: 








====Owners====

[[File:Add New Ownership.png|right|400px]]

{{#ev:youtube|7LDv4PmhPL4|400|right|Managing Ownerships|frame}}

TrackAbout is designed to track who owns each particular asset. TrackAbout's '''Ownerships''' are used to keep track of vendor owned, customer owned assets, and company owned assets.

* Owners are reviewed and managed via the [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/setup/listOwnerships.aspx Ownerships] page on your TrackAbout website. 

* You can add Ownerships by clicking the '''Add New''' link on the Ownerships page, or by using the Jump To box to navigate directly to the '''[https://www.trackabout.com/clt/setup/editOwnership.aspx Add New Ownership]''' page

Complete the form and Save each Ownership.

You will be asked to assign an ownership to each asset you register in your TrackAbout system. 

Refer to the [[Ownership]] page for more detailed instructions about how to manage Owners.













===Internal Users Accounts===


[[File:Add New Internal User.png|right|400px]]

{{#ev:youtube|LxakutfxwxI|400|right|Managing Internal Users|frame}}



* Whether your users will be using the TrackAbout website or the mobile software (or both!) they'll need to have a user account.  Review and Manager your user accounts from this TrackAbout webpage: [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/setup/listInternalUsers.aspx Internal Users] 

* This page is in the '''TrackAbout Config''' section of the site.  For detailed instructions go to [[Internal_Users|Internal Users]]

* An easy way to add users directly is to just the Jump To box to go directly to the [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/setup/editInternalUser.aspx Add New User] page.  Fill out the form and click Save to create your user account. 

*Each User will be assigned to website and mobile roles depending on what you need them to do.  These determine what permissions your users have within the system. [[System Administrator Role and Requirements]] 






When creating or editing a User Account you will see a section for '''Roles and Permissions'''.  Check the boxes besides each role and set of permissions you want to grant your user. 

[[File:Internal Users_Roles and Permissions.png|right|400px]]

Roles and Permissions have already been created for you as part of your 14 day Free Trial.  Please make sure to assign your Users to a website role and a TAMobile role to ensure they'll have adequate permissions for the trial.














===Asset Classifications and Product Codes===


* In TrackAbout a Product Code is the code used to indicate a specific kind of asset. It is also normally called your part number, item number, stock number, product number or sku. It is the code used by your business system to track your inventory and sell things to customers. 

*These codes are stored in a 4 level hierarchy inside of TrackAbout called your '''Asset Classification'''. This will consist of a Category, Group, and Type - Your product codes will be structured within this hierarchy.
A generic example of an Asset Classification might be:

Category = Boxes <br>
Group = Red <br>
Type = Big <br>
Product Code = RB_Box <br>
Product Description = Big Red Box <br>

This hierarchy will give you multiple ways to review your inventory using TrackAbout's tools and reporting. 

For beginners, we recommend reviewing your Asset Classification structure with a TrackAbout expert prior to loading. 
* Download this Excel spreadsheet template: 

[[File:Free Trial Product Code Template.xlsx|left|thumbnail| Free Trial Product Code Template]]

*This spreadsheet is the template needed to mass map your product codes. 
** Some sample data is in the spreadsheet so that you can see how it is formatted.
** Replace this sample data with your own real data.
* Fill out the spreadsheet based on how you'd like to organize your Asset Inventory
* Email or Call your TrackAbout expert to review and load the data.

Here's another sample of what an Asset Classification might look like:

[[File:Sample Asset Classification.png|600px]]

Refer to the wiki page [[Adding Asset Classifications and Product Codes]]  for more information about Asset Classifications and for instruction to manually create Classifications and Product Codes.

===Adding Customers===


[[File:Add New Customer.png|right|500px]]
{{#ev:youtube|ew-rrqHIvDE|400|right|Managing Customers|frame}}


If you would like to test out Deliveries to customers during your trial, you will need to add in a few customer accounts. 
Customer data can be configured depending on what you need to track, but for testing basic delivery, you just need to add Customer Number, Customer Name, and the primary servicing location from which your customers will receive their deliveries.

*Customers are reviewed and managed through the [https://www.trackabout.com/clt/holder/allHolders.aspx Customer List] page
** For detailed information on how to add a new customer, please see the [[Customers|Customer]] page. 
**If you have a large customer base, you can upload your customers in bulk. To bulk load customers, please see the file template in the Adding Customer in Bulk section of the Customer page.





=Capturing Data=


Now you're all set.  Now that you have your own tracking information set up in the system, repeat all of the mobile app testing you conducted at the beginning of the trial.  

You can always refer back to your [[Free Trial webpage]] for the steps about using the TrackAbout iOs/Android App

If you want a sneak peek at other actions available on the iOS/Android application, refer to our [[Capturing_Data]] wiki page.

=Reviewing Data= 


Once you've started saving records to your TrackAbout system, there are lots of tools and reports at your disposal to use that data. 

Feel free to explore the site, but here are some of the pages we recommend for you:

==Current Inventory==


[[File:Current Inventory_Top Menu.png|left|500px]]


The Current Inventory page is one of the most powerful general search tools within TrackAbout and allows you to view your inventory in many different ways.  There are several search parameters to allow you to search through your inventory.  


Use this report:

- To see how many of a particular kind of asset you have in certain locations/branches <br>
- Look for assets of a particular ownership<br>
- Find out how many assets are Full/Ready at your locations/branches<br>
- Identify which locations/branches may be understocked for particular items.<br>

Play with the parameters to see what kinds of views you can pull about your inventory.















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==Asset Search==


[[File:Asset Search.png|right|500px]]








The Asset Search tool allows you to search for particular assets based on certain attributes.  The page is broken into three sections

# Search by basic data fields like Barcode or Serial Number
# Search for assets based on the customer or location at which they're present
# Search for assets based on detailed parameters.  This list of search parameters can grow based on custom information you decide to track for your assets.  (Custom information can be set up by TrackAbout Support)



















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==TrackAbout Activity==



[[File:TrackAbout Activity.png|left|600px]]


The TrackAbout Activity page allows you to search through all of the records your operators have been creating in your system.  
This page contains several search parameters to allow you to filter through your data.  

Use the page to find out things like:

- who's completed deliveries for today<br>
- what Add New actions have been completed this week<br>
 

For more information about how to usee this report, refer to the [[TrackAbout_Activity]] page.























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= What else can you do? = 

You're tracking your assets and you have valuable data and reporting at your finger tips.

Imagine what else you can do now that you know where your assets are:

* Improve asset utilization
* Calculate value of your assets
* Cut down on paperwork 
* Improve process efficiency

Speak to one of TrackAbout's experts about converting your Free Trial environment into your fully implemented TrackAbout system.  

Contact us at<br>
412.269.0446 <br>
sales@trackabout.com<br>