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*********** Pony Express version 2.00s (Shareware version) **************** The shareware version of Pony Express is the same full featured program as our registered version. To facilitate distribution on a single diskette the memory requirements are approximately 20K more for the shareware version. When you register we will send you the smaller program which will also include any other enhancements. *************************************************************************** ORDER ENTRY FORM ____________________________________________________________ To order the most current version of Pony Express just complete the form below and enclose the proper payment. You can also order by telephone by calling (913)642-5005. Our FAX number is (913)642-5005-6. Contact Name:_______________________________________________ Title:________________________________ Company Name:_______________________________________________ Street Address:_____________________________________________ City:_________________________ St:______ Zip:_______________ Telephone:____________________ Alternate:___________________ Quantity ________ Pony Express software with @ $50.00 ea _______ user's guide, product update notification and voice tech. support (includes shipping) ________ Pony Express software with @$150.00 ea _______ scale interface support and interface cable. (includes shipping) Diskette Format: [ ] 3.5" [ ] 5.25" Kansas residents add 5.85% sales tax _______ Total _________ Method of Payment: [ ] Check with Order [ ] Money Order [ ] Mastercard [ ] Visa Card #:__________________________________ Exp. Date:___ /___ Signature:______________________________________ Cardholder's Name:______________________________ Remit To: Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 ____________________________________________________________ P O N Y E X P R E S S The Pony Express program was developed just two miles from the residence of Alexander Majors, founder of the original Pony Express mail service. In that same spirit we have developed a precision tool for all businesses to improve their efficiency. Bruce Montgomery PONY EXPRESS(R) Copyright (C) 1987, 1992 by Melisco Marketing, Inc. All Rights Reserved Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 Project: SmallWonder Released as: Version 2.00 ____________________________________________________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS FORWARD ...................................................1 NEW ADVANCED FEATURES IN VERSION 2.00 ...........2 OTHER NEW FEATURES ..............................3 NOTICE .....................................................5 LICENSE AGREEMENT AND LIMITED WARRANTY .....................6 ORDER ENTRY FORM ...........................................8 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...........................................9 INTRODUCTION ..............................................10 RATES AND OPTIONS ..............................14 OTHER APPLICATION AREAS ........................16 GETTING STARTED ...........................................18 INSTALLING PONY EXPRESS ........................20 INSTALLATION QUESTIONS .........................21 USING PONY EXPRESS .............................24 PROGRAM INITIALIZATION .........................24 ACTIVATE PONY EXPRESS (modes R, E, S) ..........24 MOVING BETWEEN SCREENS .........................25 ADJUSTING THE SCREEN ...........................25 CHANGING SCREEN COLORS .........................25 DATA ENTRY SCREEN .........................................28 DATA ENTRY FIELDS ..............................28 ALTERNATE ORIGINS ..............................29 OPTION KEY STATUS ..............................29 FUNCTION KEYS ACTIVE ...........................29 SPECIAL NOTE FOR ELECTRONIC SCALE USERS. .......30 RATE SCREEN ...............................................32 OPTION KEY MATRIX ..............................32 SHIPPING INFORMATION WINDOW ....................33 FUNCTION KEYS ACTIVE ...........................35 MARKUP/MARKDOWN SUPPORT ........................36 TRANSACTION LOGGING ............................37 RATE PASTE .....................................38 ESTIMATED ARRIVAL SCREEN ..................................40 ESTIMATED ARRIVAL ..............................40 SCREEN LAYOUT ..................................41 THE SYMBOLS ....................................41 VARYING THE SHIP DATE ..........................42 APPENDIX A - ERROR MESSAGES ...............................43 DURING INSTALLATION ............................43 DURING INITIALIZATION ..........................43 APPENDIX B - PROGRAM COMPATIBILITY ........................45 SIDEKICK USERS- ................................45 LOTUS USERS- ...................................45 APPENDIX C - FILE LAYOUTS .................................46 COMMENT FORM ..............................................54 FORWARD ho! ____________________________________________________________ Pony Express Version 2.00 When we originally developed the Pony Express program we really had one major objective in mind, to help small business. Yeah, the ones that get stuck with the same paperwork and regulations as the big guys. Since 1987 Pony Express has helped thousands of people better understand and use the U.S. Postal service and the United Parcel Service. One of our customers is an entrepreneur who uses Pony Express and a bathroom scale to ship AMWAY products out of her New York apartment. We take great pride that in these days of stiff competition and MegaMartMania we can help small businesses like hers grow. Our customers range in size from small bicycle dealers, mail centers, physicians, etc. all the way to the U.S. Mint. That's right, the big guys like it too. In version 2.00 the Pony grows up and becomes a thoroughbred racehorse. We have taken a small utility program that was unique in it's market and transformed it into a product that competes head-to-head with the finest shipping solutions in the industry. Not for five-hundred dollars, not for three- thousand dollars, but for fifty dollars. Pony Express is unique in that it's not something that just gets stuck in the mail room or by the dock. It is a tool that can be used by everyone in the business. From order entry and customer service all the way back to the back door. We have found that in larger businesses any user department can benefit because it forces people to look at and really think about what they are spending to expedite things. We continue to price Pony Express so it's easily justified by anyone. We have worked hard on version 2.00 to make Pony Express a "must have" for every business. If we're right, we'll all be happy. Our best wishes to you in your business. 1 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE FORWARD ho! ____________________________________________________________ NEW ADVANCED FEATURES IN PONY EXPRESS VERSION 2.00 FEDERAL EXPRESS SUPPORT - Federal Express rate types have been added, bringing the total rate types supported to eighteen (including letter rates). ALTERNATE ORIGINS - Users can now change the origin dynamically to calculate shipments from other locations such as multiple warehouses or for freight analysis. MARKUP/MARKDOWN SUPPORT - For businesses that want to add profit to and/or discount rates, Pony Express includes a comprehensive three level structure for Markup/Markdown. FULL NETWORK SUPPORT - Network locking and control has been included in Pony Express to allow simultaneous use of the Pony Express data and transaction files by network users. TRANSACTION LOGGING - Pony Express Transaction Logging allows users to write transactions to disk for other processing such as upload- ing charges to a host computer or for further processing by a spreadsheet program, report writer, etc. In addition to the rate information other fields such and name and address, etc. are included. The user can use these optional data entry fields for printing FedEx forms, package labels or to help identify the transaction on manifest or other management reports. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 2 FORWARD ho! _____________________________________________________________ ADVANCED FEATURES-continued ELECTRONIC SCALE INTERFACE - For companies with larger volumes an optional scale interface is available in version 2.00. Pony Express with the scale interface sells for one-hundred fifty dollars which includes a scale interface cable. The interface supports the popular Toledo 8213 bench scale. The 8213 is a low-cost ruggedized electronic scale manufactured by the Toledo Scale of Ohio. Memory requirements for the scale interface version are the the same as the standard version. A standard serial port (Comm 1 thru 4) on the PC is also required. OTHER NEW FEATURES AND IMPROVEMENTS IN VERSION 2.00 Rate Paste- Users can now paste a selected rate directly into another screen such as an order entry screen. Command Line Unload- Pony Express can be unloaded directly from the DOS command line instead of using the Hot-key unload. Keypad Plus/Minus- Allows users to move between screens more quickly. Prevent Duplicates- Since Alternate Origin support has been added there is no reason to load duplicate copies of Pony Express. Error checking is now in place to prevent this from accidently happening. Complete Screen Control- Prior to version 2.00, the Pony Express screen was limited to one of three positions. Screens can now be positioned anywhere on the display. Saturday Delivery Indicator- For service rate types that can deliver on Saturday, and indicator will appear if appropriate on the Estimated Arrival screen. UPS Delivery Confirmation Support- This new UPS service has been added to Pony Express. 3 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE FORWARD ho! _____________________________________________________________ OTHER NEW FEATURES-continued UPS 2nd Day Air Letter- This new UPS letter rate has been added to Pony Express. Memory Requirements- Are slightly less for Pony Express version 2.00 than those of previous versions. Registered Users- Were shipped version 2.00 of Pony Express in advance of this announcement as a part of their fifteen dollar rate update. This was done to accommodate the February 24, 1992 UPS rate change. Rate changes have occured about once a year and require zone, structure and rate changes similar to a tax or payroll program. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 4 ____________________________________________________________ NOTICE ____________________________________________________________ The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of the vendor. The documentation and software described in this document are furnished under a license agreement. The documentation and software may be copied only in accordance with the terms of the agreement. No part of this document may otherwise be photocopied, reproduced or translated into any language or computer language without the prior written consent of Melisco Marketing, Inc. Copyright (C) 1987, 1992 by Melisco Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. This publication is provided as a supplement to the Pony Express program. It is not intended to be used as an in- depth reference of the services described herein. For more information about these services, you should contact your local customer service representative of the provider of the service. An order form has been included in this manual. For quantity, site license or dealer pricing you can write or call Melisco Marketing, Inc. TELEPHONE AND ADDRESS INFORMATION Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 Business Office (913)642-5005 9:00 - 5:00 CST FAX (913)642-5005-6 24 Hours/Daily 5 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE LICENSE AGREEMENT AND LIMITED WARRANTY ____________________________________________________________ LICENSE AGREEMENT AND LIMITED WARRANTY This software is not and never has been public domain software. Pony Express is a copyrighted software product developed and owned by Melisco Marketing, Inc. ("Melisco"). Copyright (C) 1987, 1992 by Melisco Marketing, Inc. All rights reserved. Melisco retains ownership of this copy of software. Private individuals and computer clubs are granted permission by the author to freely copy the shareware version of Pony Express disks for evaluation by others as long as the disks are not modified in any way. However, you may not sell the disks for profit. The shareware version has an "S" as a part of the version number (example ver. 2.00S) Exceptions to these rules must be received in writing from Melisco. Use of this software product for any period of time constitutes your acceptance of this agreement and subjects you to all of its contents. Users of the shareware version are granted a non-exclusive limited license to use this software on a single computer workstation solely on a trial basis. The purpose of this free trial access to the software is to determine if the package is suitable for your computer needs. Use of this product, except for the limited purpose of determining if it satisfies your current business or other productive use requires purchase of a software license. To order the current version of Pony Express return the enclosed order form with proper payment to: Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 (913)642-5005 Each license granted to you or any subsequent licensee is subject to the following terms and conditions: Purchase of a software license permits the user to use this software on a single computer. You may not adapt, alter, modify or translate this software or accompanying manual. Restrictions include, but are not limited to, creating derivative works, reverse engineering, decompiling or disassembling. You may not lease, sub-license, rent or distribute either this software or its documentation. You may make copies of this software only for backup and archival purposes. No more than two (2) copies may be in existence at any time. You must include the copyright notice on the copy. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 6 LICENSE AGREEMENT AND LIMITED WARRANTY- continued ____________________________________________________________ EXCEPT AS NOTED BELOW, THIS SOFTWARE AND ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE IS ASSUMED BY YOU. IF THE SOFTWARE OR DOCUMENTATION IS DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION. Melisco may offer from time to time, updated versions of this software. At its option, Melisco will make such updates available to the licensees who have paid the update fee and returned the order form to Melisco. LIMITED WARRANTY Melisco Marketing, Inc. warrants the magnetic media and physical documentation to be free of defect in materials and workmanship for a period of 30 days from date of purchase. Melisco's entire liability and your sole remedy shall be the replacement of the material not meeting this "Limited Warranty" IN NO EVENT WILL MELISCO BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFIT OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGE INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THIS PROGRAM OR ITS DOCUMENTATION. Because some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of consequential damages, the above limitation may not apply to you. This agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of Kansas. This agreement supersedes any proposal or prior agreement, oral or written relative to the subject matter of this agreement. 7 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE ORDER ENTRY FORM ____________________________________________________________ To order the most current version of Pony Express just complete the form below and enclose the proper payment. You can also order by telephone by calling (913)642-5005. Our FAX number is (913)642-5005-6. Contact Name:_______________________________________________ Title:________________________________ Company Name:_______________________________________________ Street Address:_____________________________________________ City:_________________________ St:______ Zip:_______________ Telephone:____________________ Alternate:___________________ Quantity ________ Pony Express software with @ $50.00 ea _______ user's guide, product update notification and voice tech. support (includes shipping) ________ Pony Express software with @ $150.00 ea _______ scale interface support and interface cable. (includes shipping) Diskette Format: [ ] 3.5" [ ] 5.25" Kansas residents add 5.85% sales tax _______ Total _________ Method of Payment: [ ] Check with Order [ ] Money Order [ ] Mastercard [ ] Visa Card #:__________________________________ Exp. Date:___ /___ Signature:______________________________________ Cardholder's Name:______________________________ Remit To: Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 8 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ____________________________________________________________ Pony Express is a registered trademark of Melisco Marketing, Inc. IBM, IBM PC-DOS, IBM-PC, IBM-XT, IBM-AT, IBM-PS/2 are registered trademarks of International Business Machine Corporation. Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation. Microsoft and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Sidekick is a trademark of Borland International Inc. Lotus and 1-2-3 are registered trademarks of Lotus Development Corporation. Metro is a trademark of Lotus Development Corporation. DESQview is a trademark of Quarterdeck Office Systems. U.S. Mail emblem, Express Mail, First-Class Mail, Priority Mail and United States Postal Service are among the registered trademarks, trademarks and service marks of the U.S. Postal Service. UPS logotype, Next Day Air and 2nd Day Air are registered trademarks of United Parcel Service. Federal Express, FedEx, FedEx Priority Overnight, FedEx Standard Overnight, FedEx Economy Two-Day Service are among registered trademarks and service marks of the Federal Express Corporation. MINIMUM HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS IBM-PC, XT, AT, PS/2 or a true compatible with a minimum of 256K, 1 floppy disk drive and a monochrome or color monitor. IBM PC-DOS or MS-DOS version 3.0 or greater is also required. In addition to the above requirements the electronic scale interface requires a COM1-4 port. 9 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________ Pony Express applies to all businesses especially smaller ones. This overview will help you relate it to yours. We realize that the subject matter is a rather dry one so as a reward for reading this intro, we have included several important tips that everyone can use. Let's face it, as businesses and individuals we all use the Postal Service. Privatize it; they need more competition, you say? Well I don't know how many telephone bills you get each month but who wants more complexity in their life. Let's digress for a moment. Many years ago the H&R Block company was founded here in Kansas City by two brothers who realized that people might pay money to get their taxes done rather than stand in long lines at the IRS offices. Several years ago, we had a similar thought while standing in line at the Post Office. After all, the Postal Service needs just one thing from you, the correct postage for the service you want performed. Pony Express does just that. For individuals or small businesses, it will get you out of the lines and back in your office. For large businesses, it can streamline your mail and shipping rooms. Pony Express is a sophisticated program that knows what the window clerk knows. We call it "A Civil Servant in a box" Tm. Before we go on let's look at the Postal Service for what it really is. Forget about the bills and junk mail they bring you. It's not their fault, they were hired to do that. The U.S. Postal Service is the largest delivery system in the world. The system works well and it works hard. Even on holidays when you don't see your letter carrier, internal processing continues and it never stops. Every day the system moves over 450 million pieces of mail thru 29,000 domestic Post Offices. They are at every address in the nation almost every day. And U.S. Postal rates are the lowest in the world. The junk mail is analogous to a commercial on television in that it helps keep rates lower. No system is perfect but if you agree that for us to make the changes we may want is a feat similar to changing the rotation of the earth then it just makes good sense to learn more about how the system really works. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 10 CHAPTER 1 ____________________________________________________________ First let's take a minute to take the mystery out of the Postal rate types. FOR IMPORTANT STUFF FIRST CLASS- Letters PRIORITY MAIL- Packages (*first class-zone rated) FOR UNIMPORTANT STUFF THIRD CLASS- Letters FOURTH CLASS- Packages (*parcel post) *Notice that we have bracketed the old names for these services because you will still hear some people refer to them this way. The above example is an easy way to mentally keep the services straight but it is somewhat oversimplified. While you and I may think in terms of letters and packages, the Postal Service really just looks at weight. Don't worry, Pony Express thinks the same way. In our example, we use the term "Letters" because First and Third Class rates refer to small weights. There are also options that you can use with these rate types. "Special Delivery" gets delivered to you immediately upon receipt at your local Post Office. "Registry" (that's how the Fed moves the nation's gold supply) means that the item is signed for and secured every step of the way. A "Return Receipt" can be returned to you showing when, where, and to whom the item was delivered. "Certified Mail" gives you proof of mailing and of course there are others. The beauty of this system is that you pay only for the options you need. In addition, the rate structures are based on the distance the item travels rather than a single fee to send anywhere. This is referred to as "Zone-Rated". 11 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________ The bad news is that not all options apply to all rate types. Some options feed on others and some are exclusive. When you use the Pony Express program, it watches every keystroke and applies the rules so you can think in terms of: "Deliver it Sunday" "It's worth $400.00 - Insure it!" "I want a receipt" Pony Express figures zones, rates, option fees, and automatically applies discounts. It also blocks out services that don't apply to your objective. Remember, all you need to do is to affix the proper postage amount to pay for this transaction. Maybe now you can see why Pony Express helps sell a lot of postage machines. If you don't have one, stamps work just fine. Before we talk about other Pony Express features, here are some useful tips that can help anyone using mail services. 1. The unsung hero of the Postal Service is Priority Mail. Priority Mail gets delivered to major cities within two days and outlying locations in three. One of our customers saves $35,000 a year by doing this instead of expressing weekly sales reports to field salesmen. For example, two pounds sent by Priority Mail is only $2.90. You can even use it for letters and remember it also delivers on Saturday. Priority Mail stickers are available free from your Post Office. Your item MUST display THIS STICKER (nothing else counts). With this sticker and the proper postage, your item will receive expeditious delivery. If you're hesitant about using this service, I suggest you conduct your own test using Priority Mail with a Return Receipt so you can monitor the actual delivery date. Many large companies are already doing this. 2. Don't give your outgoing mail to the letter carrier when they deliver yours. They have a whole day ahead of them before they get back to the Post Office. You can easily add a day to the delivery by making this mistake. 3. Drop off mail at a drop box but only one with a posted schedule. Pay attention to the schedule because they are strictly adhered to. Different boxes have different schedules so either shop the neighborhood or call the Post Office for schedules if you need flexibility. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 12 CHAPTER 1 ____________________________________________________________ 4. Do NOT use the mail receptacles inside the Post Office. These do not have posted schedules so they are emptied as time allows. Use the drop box outside. 5. Use the morning mail for important items. Most drop boxes have a morning schedule so you might consider batching morning mail and sending it out with someone from your office (early lunch, delivery person, etc.) Here's why: Mail processing occurs in Networks (cycles), morning and afternoon. After mail is collected it must be faced, cancelled and sorted; then it's got a plane to catch. Many of the planes are commercial aircraft so your letter is working with the same schedule that you as a passenger do. Keep that in mind on your next plane trip when you hear the "Thud" up front. Yep, you guessed it, the U.S. Mail is on- board! Remember, if it's important get it to the boxes on time (close doesn't count). To get the most from the Pony Express program we recommend that you try different transactions and experiment with different options on the Rate Screen. For options or services that are new to you, just use the help screens. It's really easy and you'll see not just how smart the program is but also how much more you know. Next, decide which services and options you want to use. Write down any questions you have and contact your local Postal Customer Service Representative to get them resolved. From then on use the Pony Express program to figure the postage. Apply the postage, make sure items are properly marked and use the drop box or the caller window at the Post Office. Stay out of the lines, save time, and save money; it's that simple! And of course when you do have to go to the Post Office try not to giggle at the people in line, it's not polite. Basing rates on the distance moved (Zone Rating) and paying only for the options you need gives you both flexibility and the lowest cost. We already know that from the Postal calculations. One company in the private sector also uses a similar structure for it's services. Because of this similarity we have included support for the United Parcel Service. If your company uses UPS then the Pony Express program will save you even more time. 13 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________ You probably also use Federal Express services for many of your shipments. Starting with version 2.00 Pony Express includes comprehensive support for Federal Express rate types. Pony Express is a precision tool to help you where you need help and by making better use of the Postal system you use every day, you can save both time and frustration. Just another way to make money with the PC you already own. RATES AND OPTIONS The Pony Express program provides complete support for the following rate types and options. United States Postal Service (USPS) RATES Express Mail-Post Office to Addressee First Class Priority Mail Third Class Fourth Class OPTIONS Insurance to $600.00 (Registry to $25,000.00) COD Fees Automatically includes Intra BMC Discounts Oversize Package Fees Return Receipt Special Delivery Special Handling Certified Mail Registered Mail United Parcel Service (UPS) RATES Next Day Air Letter Next Day Air 2nd Day Air Letter 2nd Day Air (except to Alaska) Ground Service (commercial and residential) PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 14 CHAPTER 1 ____________________________________________________________ United Parcel Service (UPS) continued OPTIONS Insurance to $25,000.00 COD Fees Oversize Package Fees Delivery Confirmation Federal Express Corporation (FEDEX) RATES Priority Overnight Letter Priority Overnight Service Standard Overnight Letter Standard Overnight Service Economy Two-Day Service OPTIONS Insurance to $25,000.00 COD Fees Oversize Package Fees 15 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________ OTHER APPLICATION AREAS A lot of careful planning went into the design of the Pony Express program. We took much of the knowledge of corporate mailing and shipping rooms and joined that with an intuitive program interface that anyone can easily learn and use. After you try Pony Express you may quickly see that there are other people in your company that should also be using it. Let's look at a couple of fictional situations to illustrate where Pony Express can really pay off. Scenario A: Dan Smith is a marketing manager for a small manufacturing company. He needs to send a 16 pound display kit to another city 140 miles away. Dan tells his secretary to make sure it arrives in time for the business show which is in a couple of days. She quickly ships it using overnight air. With Pony Express, Dan's secretary interrupts the word processing application on her PC and activates Pony Express. Not only does she get competitive overnight air rates, but by using the Estimated Arrival screen, she sees that the shipment could arrive in one day using Fourth Class or UPS ground service. The cost savings from this one example could justify the total purchase price of the Pony Express Program. Dan's secretary is then able to exit Pony Express and return to her letter, right where she left off. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 16 CHAPTER 1 ____________________________________________________________ Scenario B: Jim Stokes is an account representative for a company that sells micro-computer hardware by mail order. Most of his sales are made over the phone. His current customer wants to know the total order charges so he can prepare his check to cover the COD amount. Jim tells his customer that he will check with the shipping department and call him right back. With Pony Express, Jim could have finished the order, saved a long distance phone call and prevented the interruption to the shipping department. Transactions also work in reverse, so if Jim's customer was a Pony Express user, he could have figured the total charges by himself. With Pony Express you can: Quickly quote shipping charges, options and delivery dates internally or to customers. Alternate origins allow you to figure charges from multiple warehouses or to calculate drop shipments. Markup or discount actual shipping charges. Make your mail or shipping facility a profit center. Charge back user departments for mail and shipping services. Calculate inbound charges and lead times. Set shipping charge standards for your own products. Use the transaction log to upload data to a host computer, print package labels, provide management reports or generate manifests. Audit Federal Express and UPS billing. Eliminate unnecessary expediting. As you learn more about Pony Express, you will be able to apply it to your own situations, so let's get started. 17 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE GETTING STARTED ____________________________________________________________ The program distribution diskettes you received already contain everything you need to get started. Thanks to a proprietary zone compression system developed by Melisco Marketing, the installation program will automatically configure the proper zone information that is unique to your area. So don't worry about zone charts or rate schedules, just answer a few simple questions. Prior to installing Pony Express for the first time, you will need to make a copy of the Pony Express install and program distribution diskettes. You should always work from the copy and store the original in a safe place. If you need assistance in making the copy, you should refer to the DOS FORMAT and DISKCOPY commands in your DOS reference manual. To make the proper rate calculations, Pony Express needs to know the ORIGIN SECTION that you ship from. The origin section consists of the first three digits of the zip code that you normally ship from. Although you can dynamically change the origin, this will be the default. NOTE- If you're in a hurry to get started, then you will be happy to know that during installation, the origin section (question 1) is the only response that does not have a default answer. You can always use the installation program to modify your responses at a later time. The default answers are adequate for most users. During installation you will be asked to choose the PROGRAM MODE. The mode that you choose should be based on your frequency of use and the hardware/software configuration of your computer. When the Pony Express program is active (doing work for you), it requires approximately 133K of your computer's main memory. To help you get the most from both the program and your machine's resources, we have included four different program modes to give you maximum flexibility. If you are using an older version of DOS and you need more available memory, then we suggest that you upgrade to DOS 5.0. NOTE- Memory requirements for the scale interface version are the same as above. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 18 CHAPTER 2 ____________________________________________________________ Mode A allows you to use Pony Express as a stand-alone program. It will use main memory only when active. When you exit the program, all of your computer's main memory is returned to you. It must be loaded each time it is used, the same way as most word processors, spreadsheet programs, etc.. This should be your choice if you plan to use Pony Express within an "operating environment" such as Microsoft Windows or DESQview. Pony Express version 2.00 was developed and tested in Microsoft Windows 3.x. Mode R will keep the program memory resident. After it is loaded the first time (after power-up) you can activate it by pressing the "Hot Keys" (discussed later in this chapter). Unlike the other three modes, mode R does not return memory to you, even when the program is not active. This is the default mode. Mode S is similar to mode R but allows you to use extended memory (beyond 640K) or a hard disk as a swapping media. When the program is not active, most of the program is swapped (stored) on the swapping media. All but approximately 6K of main memory is returned to you. If your computer does have extended memory, then using part of it as a VDISK (see your DOS manual) and specifying program mode S is an ideal choice. If you do not have extended memory, you can also use a hard disk. Although swapping to a hard disk results in a somewhat longer time to activate, it is still very acceptable for most users. Mode E can be used by users that have a LIM (Lotus, Intel, Microsoft) EMS memory option installed. Operationally, it works like mode S. Program modes R, E, S, of the Pony Express can be unloaded to free-up DOS memory for use by other applications without re-booting the system. You can unload the Pony Express program by pressing ALT-U when the program is in use or by typing PEINIT /U from the DOS command line. Error checking is also performed to prevent you from loading the program more than once. **IMPORTANT** BE SURE IF YOU ATTEMPT TO UNLOAD PONY EXPRESS, THAT IT WAS INVOKED FROM THE DOS PROMPT AND NOT IN THE MIDDLE OF ANOTHER PROGRAM. ALSO, IF YOU USE OTHER MEMORY RESIDENT PROGRAMS BE SURE TO UNLOAD THEM IN A LAST LOADED/FIRST UNLOADED SEQUENCE. 19 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE GETTING STARTED ____________________________________________________________ INSTALLING PONY EXPRESS Put the install diskette in drive A. Type: A: Press: RETURN For users with a hard disk. Type: PEINST C: NOTE- If your hard disk is not drive C then substitute that drive letter. The install utility will create/use a directory called \PONY on the drive that you specify. Press: RETURN For users without a hard disk. Type: PEINST Press: RETURN PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 20 CHAPTER 2 ____________________________________________________________ INSTALLATION QUESTIONS Much of the following information is also provided in the help line at the bottom of the installation screen. 1. Origin section- Enter the first three digits of the zip code that you will be shipping from. 2. Program mode (R, A, E, S)- Enter R if you want to use as a memory resident program. Enter A if you want to use as a stand-alone program. Enter E if you have Lotus/Intel/Microsoft EMS memory. Enter S if you want to swap the Pony Express program from and to your hard disk or to a VDISK (virtual disk, also known as a Ram disk). Note- If you choose E or S you must be using DOS 3.0 or a later version. 3. Monitor default color- If you are installing for the first time we recommend that you use the default values. This is discussed in more detail in Chapter 3. 4. Monitor snow check- Some color adapters (IBM color graphics for example) flicker during direct screens writes. If you encounter this problem then you should respond Y to this question. 5. Show first- When you use the Pony Express rate screen and you press the F1 key, the shipment configuration details will be shown for Federal Express, UPS or USPS. This response determines which one you see first. For instance, if most of the rate information that you need is for UPS or Federal Express then you would use 1. 6. Return receipt/Delivery confirmation type- This field is used to determine which rate to use for the kind of proof of delivery receipt you will use for UPS and USPS shipments. 0=Minimal Support 1=Full Detail 3=Full Detail Mail Center 21 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE GETTING STARTED ____________________________________________________________ Minimal support charges will include: USPS return receipt showing who and when delivered. UPS delivery confirmation base charge only. Full Detail charges will include: USPS return receipt showing who, when and where delivered. UPS delivery confirmation base charge and signature charge. Full Detail Mail Center: If you are a mail center you probably want the UPS delivery confirmation to go to your customer instead of back to your address. There is an additional charge for this service from UPS. If you select option three this charge will be included. Please note that option two is meant for expansion and not shown above. Choosing option two in this version will give you the same result as option zero. 7. Commercial Insurance- If you are a frequent shipper, then you may have your own insurance to cover loss or damage to the items that you ship. If you do, then answer Y. If you plan to use only the insurance available from FEDEX, UPS or USPS then respond N for no. 8. Deductible to insure- You will be asked this question only if you responded Y to question number 7. If you have a deductible amount that you would like to insure using FEDEX, UPS or USPS insurance, then enter that amount. Whole dollars are assumed, so use the decimal point for fractional dollars. After you have completed the above questions, you will be asked if you have any changes. Any response other than N will take you back to question number 1. SELECTING THE "HOT KEYS" If you selected R, E, or S as your program mode then you will be asked to select a hot key. This is the combination of keys that you will press to activate (call up) the Pony Express program. Your Hot Key selection should be one of the following. Alt- A thru Z (except U, O or C) Alt- 0 thru 9 or - or = Alt- F3 thru F10 Shift- F1 thru F10 (except F2) PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 22 CHAPTER 2 ____________________________________________________________ Also make sure that you use keys that do not conflict with other memory resident programs that you own. NOTE- You will be asked this question twice in succession to verify that you are satisfied with your selection. DISK SWAPPING INFORMATION If you selected S as your program mode, then you will be asked for the drive and directory to use for disk swapping. Just press enter if you want to use the default. If you have a VDISK with space available, it would be an ideal choice. It is also possible to use diskette storage but this will result in degraded performance. NETWORK USERS Please make sure that DOS SHARE is loaded on your work- station. Many networks load this automatically but if your not sure, try loading it anyway. DOS will let you know if it's already there. 23 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE USING PONY EXPRESS ____________________________________________________________ USING PONY EXPRESS Each time you power-up or re-boot your PC, you will need to load the Pony Express program into main memory prior to using it. PROGRAM INITIALIZATION In order to load (initialize) the program: NOTE- If you just finished installation, you may skip the next paragraph. The installed drive should be the default drive. If you installed Pony Express on the diskette make sure that it is in the default drive. Hard disk users should make sure that they are in the root directory. If you are not sure then type CD\ and press the Return key. Type: PE Press: RETURN It will take a few seconds for the program to load and structure its configuration data. If you selected mode A (stand-alone) as the program mode, then you will already see the Data Entry screen. If you selected a mode other than mode A, then pay particular attention to the box at the bottom of your screen. Any errors encountered during initialization will show-up there. If you have error messages you can refer to appendix A. If you prefer to start Pony Express from your Autoexec.bat file be sure to add a line in your Autoexec similar to "CALL PE.BAT". ACTIVATE PONY EXPRESS (applies to program modes R, E, S) Once you have initialized the program, you may call it up anytime (provided enough memory is available) by pressing the "Hot Keys" that you specified during installation. If you just finished installation you should press them now. Keep in mind that the "Hot Keys" also act as a toggle to take you immediately back to your previous application from any Pony Express screen. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 24 CHAPTER 3 ____________________________________________________________ MOVING BETWEEN SCREENS There are three layers of screens that support the Pony Express program. By pressing F2 (function key 2), you can move forward from the Data Entry screen to the Rate screen. Press F2 again and you will move to the Estimated Arrival screen. To go back to a previous screen, just press ESC (Escape key). NOTE- By pressing the ESC key when you are at the Data Entry screen, you will exit from Pony Express and return to your previous task. A faster way to move between screens is to use the plus and minus keys to move forward and backward between screens. Using minus also keeps you from inadvertently exiting the program. ADJUSTING THE SCREEN The screen can be adjusted to display in different vertical positions. This can be useful if you need to see information from a background screen. Example- You've called up Pony Express from an order entry application and you need to see the ship-to zip code. You can make this adjustment by pressing CTRL+PAGE UP or CTRL+PAGE DOWN. This can be done at anytime as long as you are not in help or logging modes. CHANGING SCREEN COLORS To change the screen background and text colors you must: Be at the Data Entry screen. All data entry fields should be cleared. You can press F3 to do this. Press ALT+C. The cursor will disappear indicating that you are in color change mode. 25 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE USING PONY EXPRESS ____________________________________________________________ Use the CURSOR UP/CURSOR DOWN keys to change the text color. Then, use the PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN keys to change the background color. NOTE- Most monochrome monitors will not change with each key press so a little experimentation is necessary. NOTE- The color number that you have selected will show at the bottom of the Data Entry screen. If you want to make this change permanently, then write this number down and use it as the monitor default color in the installation program. The change that you just made will stay in effect as long as the program resides in memory. Press the ESC key to select the color. The cursor will then return to normal. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 26 CHAPTER 3 ____________________________________________________________ This page intentionally left blank 27 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE DATA ENTRY SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ DATA ENTRY FIELDS The left side of the Data Entry screen contains the following fields: To Section- (always required) You should enter the first three digits of the zip code that you are shipping to. Sections are always checked for validity. Weight- Lbs or Ozs (always required) Enter the shipping weight in pounds or ounces or both (example 5 lbs, 2 ozs). Valid pounds are between 0 and 150 and valid ounces are between 0 and 16. The maximum total weight for a shipment must not exceed 150 pounds. If you have the electronic scale interface you will see the word "Scale" instead of weight and a rotating slash (/) that indicates the scale is operational. The slash will slow or momentarily stop any time motion is detected on the scale. Pony Express constantly monitors the scale port and updates the weight display even when you are busy entering data. Declared Value- (optional) Used for insurance fees and Registered Mail fees. This should be the market value or replacement cost of the shipment. The program uses this field to determine the fee for the amount of FEDEX, UPS or USPS insurance you require. If during installation you responded Y to the commercial insurance question, then it will calculate the fees based on the Deductible to Insure, instead of the entire Declared Value. Values up to $25,000.00 are supported. Whole dollars are assumed. Use the decimal point for fractional values. Note- In order to use Registered Mail, the Declared Value field must contain a value greater than zero. COD amount- (optional) This is the amount to be collected from the recipient at the time the shipment is delivered. This amount should exclude freight. The Rate Screen provides a separate column (Total COD) which totals this amount plus any shipping fees. Values up to $25,000.00 are supported. Whole dollars are assumed. Use the decimal point for fractional values. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 28 CHAPTER 4 ____________________________________________________________ ALTERNATE ORIGINS Notice that the current origin is shown on the right side of data entry screen. The default origin is the one that you chose during installation. You may want to make calculations for shipments from other warehouses or for drop shipments direct from a vendor to a customer. To change the origin from the default to another origin press ALT-O and you will be prompted for the new origin. This one simple change will adjust all rate, zone and Estimated arrival information. This new origin remains in effect until changed or until the Pony Express program is reloaded. OPTION KEY STATUS The right side of the Data Entry screen shows the current status (Off or On) of the Option keys, these keys are explained in detail later in the chapter 5 section titled "Rate Screen". FUNCTION KEYS ACTIVE F5- F10 are discussed in the "Rate Screen" chapter. F1- The help mode, shows a brief description of each data entry field. Once you are in the help mode you may use the PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN keys to scroll information. To exit help mode press the ESC key. F2- May be pressed anytime after a valid Section and Weight have been entered. This performs the rate calculations and displays the Rate Screen. F3- Will reset all data entry fields to zero and return the status of any active option keys (F5 - F10) to Off. F4- Displays the current version number and technical support information. Remember- To exit the Pony Express program and return to your previous task just press the ESC key. 29 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE DATA ENTRY SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ SPECIAL NOTE FOR ELECTRONIC SCALE USERS. As you proceed to the Rate Screen and other functions in Pony Express keep in mind that the program is still watching the scale. When it detects zero again Pony Express assumes that the transaction is complete and automatically returns to the data entry screen to help save you some time. Pony Express also watches for negative scale weights that can result from changes in temperature, etc. and will automatically reset the scale to zero when this occurs. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 30 CHAPTER 4 ____________________________________________________________ This page intentionally left blank 31 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE RATE SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ RATE SCREEN Note- To access the Rate screen you must have already entered a valid section and weight on the Data Entry screen, then pressed F2 or keypad plus. Pony Express will have already performed automatic zone lookup and rate calculations. It will also have considered weight and optional insurance or COD requirements of your transaction. For services that don't meet your objective, the rates will be flagged as -n/a- (not available). If you choose additional options on this screen, Pony Express will continue to apply the rules, blocking inappropriate rates and determining the correct rates and fees. The chargeable amount for each service is shown in the Basic Cost column. The Rate Screen also shows zone information (ZN) which is a real time saver for anyone responsible for keeping a UPS log book. To the right of the Basic Cost column is the Total COD column. This is the total of the COD amount that you entered on the Data Entry screen, plus the shipping charges that have been calculated for that service. This column will also be flagged -n/a- if a particular shipping rate no longer applies. OPTION KEY MATRIX The right half of the Rate Screen is a matrix showing the Option keys available, not available, and in-use for each of the services. Three different characters are used in the matrix: . means that the option does not apply to this type of service. - means that the option does apply to this service but it is not currently being used. + means that the option does apply to this service and it is currently in use. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 32 CHAPTER 5 ____________________________________________________________ You can toggle the options On or Off by pressing the Option keys (F5-F10). They are labeled above the column heading. When an option is toggled On, two things happen: The Basic Cost and Total COD columns will now include the fee for this service. The + will be shown in the appropriate Option column. Any service that does not support an option that you have selected will be flagged as -n/a-. By setting the Option keys, you are letting Pony Express guide you to the rates that are valid for your shipment. This helps take the guesswork out of what rate to use and when to use it. SHIPPING INFORMATION WINDOW This important feature shows all of the details of the current shipment. The Shipping Information Window is the first thing you see when you press the help (F1) key. There are actually two windows, one for FEDEX, UPS and the other is used for USPS information. Once you are in help mode you can: Press F1 again to see the second Shipping Information Window. NOTE- If rates for both USPS and FEDEX, UPS are available, the first one that you see (when you press F1 the first time) is determined by your response to the "Show First" question during installation. Example- A user who ships mostly with FEDEX or UPS would have responded with a 1 to the "Show First" question during installation. As long as a FEDEX or UPS rate is available, the FEDEX, UPS Shipping Information Window would always appear first when F1 is pressed. Press keys 1-C, F4-F10. Since you are in help mode you can use these keys to display help information about a service or option. To exit the help mode, press the ESC key. 33 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE RATE SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ OPTION KEY - COLUMN HEADINGS Lg/P (Oversize Package) When you choose this option, you should have a specific rate in mind. Examples of oversize packages are: First Class- Mail weighing one ounce or less that is longer than 11-1/2 inches or higher than 6-1/8 inches or thickness greater than 1/4 inch. Priority Mail- A parcel weighing less than 15 pounds and measuring over 84" in length and girth. Fourth Class- A parcel weighing more than 35 pounds or more than 34" in length or more than 17" in width or height. You should also use this option if you are shipping an item that is high in density (a paint can etc.), using Fourth Class mail. All UPS Rates- A parcel weighing less than 25 pounds and over 84" in length and girth. All FEDEX Rates- A parcel weighing less than 30 pounds and over 130" in length and girth or exceeds 108" in length. Rr/Dc (Return Receipt/Delivery Confirmation) This will add in the fee for a proof of delivery document that is to be returned to you when your shipment has been delivered to the recipient. The USPS Return Receipt is available in two types. Both of them show to whom and when delivered, but only one shows the actual address where delivered. The fee that Pony Express includes in the basic cost depends on which type (Return Receipt Type) that you specified during installation. The UPS Delivery Confirmation fee will be added into the applicable UPS Basic Cost when this option is selected. If you selected full detail during installation this charge also includes confirmation signature. Sp-D (Special Delivery) The USPS special delivery fee will be included in the Basic Cost for rates that support this option. Sp-Hd (Special Handling) The USPS special handling fee will be included in the Basic Cost for rates that support this option. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 34 CHAPTER 5 ____________________________________________________________ Cert (Certified Mail) The USPS certified mail fee will be included in the Basic Cost for rates that support this option. Certified Mail provides the mailer with a receipt when the item is mailed. Regr (Registered Mail) The USPS registered mail fee will be included in the Basic Cost for rates that support this option. Registered mail provides tracking for a shipment from acceptance to delivery. To calculate the registered mail fee, Pony Express uses the entire Declared Value of the shipment. The USPS insurance requirement is based on that same value unless you responded Y to the commercial insurance questions during installation. If you did, then the insurance requirement is based on an amount up to the Deductible to Insure that you specified. FUNCTION KEYS ACTIVE F1- Pressing this key will put you in the help mode. When you initially enter help mode, the first thing shown is the the Shipping Information Window. F2- Allows you to move to the next screen (Estimated Arrival). F3- Clears (turns off) any of the Option keys that are currently selected (toggled on). This works the same way as toggling off the individual option. NOTE- Any fees associated with the Option keys are backed out of the Basic Cost and Total COD fields. Also, any rates that were flagged -n/a- because of these options will be restored to their normal state. F4- Toggles between standard rates and "flat rate envelope" rates. FRE rates include Express Mail, Priority Mail, Federal Express Priority Overnight Letter, Standard Overnight Letter , UPS Next Day Air Letter, 2nd Day Air Letter. Special envelopes must be ordered from the carrier. Standard rates are the default. When FRE is toggled on "FRE" will show in the service description. Pony Express assumes a practical weight maximum of 5 pounds when FRE is on. FEDEX FRE weight is checked for 8 ozs or less. 35 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE RATE SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ MARKUP/MARKDOWN SUPPORT An advanced feature of Pony Express is the ability to markup or discount rates and fees. This is a feature that can help any business not just mail centers. By using Markup/Markdown you can get very precise in shipping charges to your customers instead of just tacking on a flat fee to cover shipping and handling. Also, you may consider using Markup/Markdown to turn your mail or shipping facility into a profit center, or subsidize part of a departmental usage. Markup/Markdown is a very comprehensive system with three different levels and you can mix and match what you need. Range Checking- First rates are checked against ranges so you can say for example if it's between a penny and ten dollars then add one dollar. You can also use a percent instead of a fixed amount. Flat Fees- Next flat fees are added based on the option keys that are active. For example, you may want to add fifty cents for the time it takes you to fill out the COD paperwork or maybe a quarter for an oversize package to help pay for the chiropractor. One flat rate can be used to add to every transaction. This can be used as a minimum regardless of the other options. Option/1 Option/2 keys- The final level is based on the status (on or off) of the Option/1 Option/2 keys. The status of these keys is changed by pressing ALT-F1 or ALT-F2 respectively. When these keys are toggled on then the amount from the previous calculations is either increased or decreased by a percentage or fixed amount depending on which method you use. One could be used to cover additional labor on a night shift. The other might be used for a preferred customer discount. The status of Option/1 and Option/2 are indicated on the upper-left hand corner of the rate screen. But how do we tell how much money we're making? Just press ALT-M from the rate screen. TAADAAAH! Now you can see your actual cost and the profit from this transaction. Incidentally, this is great for what-if games. Press ALT-M again and your back to your rates. And remember, all three levels can also be discounts. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 36 CHAPTER 5 ____________________________________________________________ Everything that we have discussed concerning Markup/Markdown is controlled by the parameters in the file PEMARKUP.DTA. The file can be easily modified with your favorite text editor. It is heavily commented as to what each field is used for. Pony Express is shipped with all parameters set to zero so the rates you see are actual rates. TRANSACTION LOGGING Another advanced feature of the Pony Express program is transaction logging. If you have ever looked at a manifest system then you'll appreciate what we are doing here. Transaction logging allows you to write selected transactions to disk for use with spreadsheets, report writers, database programs or upload transactions to a host computer to tie back actual shipping charges. Pony Express serves as the "Manifest Engine" Tm to take care of the tough part. Refer to the file layouts section of this manual for information about the transaction record that is generated. If you are going to use these transactions as input to another system then you would probably just want to enter the reference number to complete the transaction. This information (probably an order number) would be enough to tie charges back to the the customers invoice. But what if you don't have these systems in place? That's why we have included many other optional data entry fields such as name and address, etc.. The log file also maintains data constants such as FEDEX id or UPS shipper number. And yes, we remembered to include profit from Markup /Markdown. So even if you don't have other systems in place, you can print package labels, FEDEX forms and all the management reports you want. The log file PELOGTRN.LOG is a comma delimited ascii file so you can do a lot with a spreadsheet program or you may want to purchase a simple database program such as Microsoft Works or PC-File. When you are in the Rate Screen, select any options that you need then press the letter (1-C) of the rate type that you want to use. When the Transaction Logging screen appears, fill in the fields that you require, then press F2 to write the transaction to the log file. You can exit the transaction entry by pressing escape in case you want to select a different rate. At this time we should also mention the fact that the first time that you use the log facility, you will be prompted for 37 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE RATE SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ the beginning transaction number and data constants that should be written to each record. After that you can change the constants, the beginning transaction number and reset the log file to zero at anytime by pressing F3. Network Administrators please note- In order to clear the log file the user must have WRITE access privilege to the PENETWK.DTA file. This was done to prevent unauthorized resets to the log file. If you are processing many items for the same invoice, customer, etc. then you will appreciate the F4 (Duplicate Previous) key. Pressing F4 will duplicate the contents of the last record written so that you can make modifications if necessary before pressing F2 to complete this transaction. After you press F2, Pony Express assumes that the transaction is complete and returns you to the Data Entry screen. RATE PASTE If you are using Pony Express as a memory resident program you can press shift F2 instead of F2 to log the transaction ,exit Pony Express and paste the rate into a document such as an order entry screen. If you don't use the Transaction Logging facility, you can do the same thing by using shift 1-C from the Rate Screen. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 38 CHAPTER 5 ____________________________________________________________ This page intentionally left blank 39 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE ESTIMATED ARRIVAL SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ ESTIMATED ARRIVAL SCREEN This screen was developed to help you estimate how long your shipment will be in transit. This can be very useful for zone-rated services such as UPS ground or USPS Priority Mail or Fourth Class. There is a tendency sometimes to use an expedited service rather than taking the time to make our own estimations. Frequent shippers usually make some quick mental calculations, but allowing for such variables as week-ends or the fact that the shipment may not go out for a couple of days, can make this a very difficult task. Zone rated services give you the most for your shipping dollar because the rates are structured around the actual distance moved. When you are working with very tight delivery dates then you will probably want to use services such as Federal Express Overnight, USPS Express Mail or UPS Next Day Air. These services are built around expedited delivery requirements. Certainly, this costs more but if you're currently using these services then you already know how competitive they are with the rest of the industry. REMEMBER- YOU SHOULD ALWAYS ASK YOURSELF: How much delivery flexibility do I have? How far is the shipment going to travel? If you do that, you're in for some pleasant surprises. ESTIMATED ARRIVAL - THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW It may seem at first that estimating delivery is similar to predicting the weather. To a certain extent that is true, otherwise there wouldn't be as much of a market for expedited services. However, there are consistencies in work schedules, flight schedules, and truck routes that provide stability to our calculations. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 40 CHAPTER 6 ____________________________________________________________ Pony Express goes way beyond rough distance calculations. It makes allowances for such things as week-end delivery, and movement. It is also Option key sensitive, so things like special delivery will improve the schedule. As long as you don't get "analysis paralysis" and use some common sense, we believe you will find that the Estimated Arrival Screen is a great tool to help you get more from your shipping dollars. SCREEN LAYOUT You can get to the Estimated Arrival Screen by pressing F2 or keypad plus at the Rate Screen. Looking at the Estimated Arrival Screen, you will notice that the left-most portion of the screen shows the same Basic Cost information as the Rate Screen. To the right of the Basic Cost column there are eleven column headings showing both the day of the week and the date. The first column is always assumed to be the day that the shipment is ready to leave. THE SYMBOLS There are three different types of symbols used to show the estimated arrival: | Used to show the day the shipment is able to leave your location. Normally this will show under the left-most day/date column unless it must be moved forward to allow for Sat/Sun etc. > This symbol always represents the most probable delivery day. $ Used to indicate that Saturday delivery is available for an additional fee. 41 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE ESTIMATED ARRIVAL SCREEN ____________________________________________________________ [ ] Used to show a range of delivery days with equal probability. The left bracket means "from" and the right indicates "to". Dashes are used to connect these symbols along the horizontal line. VARYING THE SHIP DATE When you use the Pony Express program the first time (after loading the program into memory) the left-most day/date column will show today's day/date (providing the system date has been properly set). Since the left-most column is always assumed to be the day available for shipment, this would indicate that it is ready for shipment today. Many times, this will not be the case. It could be too late in the day or you may need a day or two to process an order. By using the CURSOR RIGHT key, you can move the ship date forward up to 10 days. Once you have advanced the ship date, you can backup 1 day at a time by using the CURSOR LEFT key or use F3 to immediately get back to today. Once you move the ship date forward it will stay there unless you specifically change it. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 42 ERROR MESSAGES ___________________________________________________________ APPENDIX A - ERROR MESSAGES DURING INSTALLATION Files are missing from the program disk- One or more files on the program disk has been corrupted. You should use the distribution copy of the program disk to make a new working-copy and then restart the installation procedure. Invalid drive spec- The drive letter that has been entered on the DOS command line is invalid. DURING INITIALIZATION Configuration file not available- The configuration file ("PECONFIG.DTA") must be located in the default directory. If the file has been accidentally erased, you can re-run the installation program to create a new one. Be sure to start Pony Express by typing PE from the DOS command line. If you start it from your own batch file such as AUTOEXEC, use the DOS command CALL to start PE. Error in SWAP file creation- You have selected S as your program mode and the drive that you specified as your swap drive doesn't have enough available space. You should select a different drive, program mode or you should free-up space on the current swap drive. There should be approximately 266K available on the swap drive. Not enough EMS memory available- You will probably want to select a different program mode. 43 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE ERROR MESSAGES ____________________________________________________________ EMS support requires DOS 3.0 or later- Either upgrade to a later version of DOS or select a different program mode. SWAP support requires DOS 3.0 or later- Either upgrade to a later version of DOS or select a different program mode. PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 44 PROGRAM COMPATIBILITY ____________________________________________________________ APPENDIX B - PROGRAM COMPATIBILITY These considerations apply when you are using Pony Express in program modes R, E, S. SIDEKICK USERS- You should always load (initialize) the Pony Express program before you load Sidekick. As with any memory resident program, you should make sure that there is no "Hot Key" conflict between the programs. LOTUS USERS- Lotus 1-2-3 release 1A does not use the BIOS to set the video mode. This causes a problem for any memory resident program (including Lotus Metro) that attempts to save the Lotus screen. Pony Express will operate correctly; however, it will not be able to properly restore the Lotus screen. This situation does not occur in newer versions of Lotus 1- 2-3. 45 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE FILE LAYOUTS ____________________________________________________________ APPENDIX C - FILE LAYOUTS MARKUP/MARKDOWN CONTROL FILE (PEMARKUP.DTA) THIS FILE IS USED FOR MARKUP OR DISCOUNTING. ** MAKE SURE YOU MAKE A BACKUP COPY OF THIS FILE BEFORE YOU MODIFY IT.** The following fields will be added or subtracted for each transaction. ***NOTE Position 13 must be either plus or minus.*** Decimal positions are implied. For example 0099 means 00.99 FLAT = 0000+ | Add to each transaction always COD = 0000+ | Add if there is a COD amount INS = 0000+ | Add if there is an insurance amount TOG4 = 0000+ | Add if using a flat rate envelope TOG5 = 0000+ | Add if Large Package is toggled on TOG6 = 0000+ | Add if Rr/Dc is toggled on TOG7 = 0000+ | Add if Sp-D is toggled on TOG8 = 0000+ | Add if Sp-Hd is toggled on TOG9 = 0000+ | Add if Cert is toggled on TOG10 = 0000+ | Add if Reg is toggled on OPTN1 = 0000+ | Add if AltF1 key is toggled on OPTN2 = 0000+ | Add if AltF2 key is toggled on If you want OPTN1 and OPTN2 to use a percent then use +% or -% These fields are range fields that can be added or subtracted for each transaction. You can use one or all of these 10 ranges but you must use them in order from RANGE1 to RANGE10. ***NOTE Position 16 must be either plus or minus.*** Decimal positions are implied. For example 0099 means 00.99 RANGE1 < 00000+0000% | For example: RANGE2 < 00000+0000% | RANGE3 < 00000+0000% | RANGE1 < 00999+0100% means add RANGE4 < 00000+0000% | 1.00% to an amount less then $9.99 RANGE5 < 00000+0000% | RANGE6 < 00000+0000% | Without the percent sign the same RANGE7 < 00000+0000% | example means add $1.00 to an RANGE8 < 00000+0000% | an amount less than $10.00 RANGE9 < 00000+0000% | RANGE10 < 00000+0000% | *******END OF FILE********* PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 46 FILE LAYOUTS ____________________________________________________________ LOGGED TRANSACTIONS FILE LAYOUT (PELOGTRN.LOG) Constant/1 | UPS Shipper number for example. Constant/2 | UPS Pickup number for example. Constant/3 | FedX account number for example. Sys/Date | System Date Trans/No. | Incremented by one with each transaction. Ref/No. | User data such as invoice number Aux/Ref/1 | User data such as airbill number Aux/Ref/2 | User data such billing reference info Dept. | User data if needed Attention | Contact Name Company/Name | Company Name Address | Address info City | City State | State Zip | Zip Code Telephone | Telephone Service | Service type code 1-C from the rate screen. FRE | Contains + if FRE toggled on Org/Section | Origin Section Dst/Section | Destination Section Zone | Zone Lbs | Pounds entered Ozs | Ounces entered Total/Wgt. | Weight adjusted upward Decl/Value | Declared Value entered COD/Amount | COD Amount entered Excess/Val | Value to insure, net of deductible Basic/Cost | Basic Cost Total/COD | Total COD amount Profit | Profit/Loss from markup/markdown Lg/P | Contains + if toggled on Rr/Dc | Contains + if toggled on Sp-D | Contains + if toggled on Sp-Hd | Contains + if toggled on Cert | Contains + if toggled on Regr | Contains + if toggled on AltF1 | Contains + if toggled on AltF2 | Contains + if toggled on 47 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE FILE LAYOUTS ____________________________________________________________ FEDERAL EXPRESS RATE FILE LAYOUT (PEFEDX.DTA) If you have special corporate rates from Federal Express and need to modify the default rates you can use a text editor to modify the file "PEFEDX.DTA". Records one thru one hundred fifty represent their respective weights thru one hundred fifty pounds. In each record the rates are all five position and from left to right represent Priority Overnight, Standard Overnight, and Second Day Economy Service. Each record is seventeen positions and every rate is five positions. The rates are separated by commas and any rate less than five positions must be padded on the left by zeros (example $9.95 would be 00995). In addition to the above there are two other records in the FEDEX rate file. Record 151 contains: Field one: = Priority Overnight Letter rate Field two: = Standard Overnight Letter rate Field three: = The amount at which the insurance rate per $100.00 starts. Record 152 contains: Field one: = The minimum insurance charge Field two: = The insurance fee per $100.00 Field three: = The COD fee PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 48 FILE LAYOUTS ____________________________________________________________ This page intentionally left blank 49 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE INDEX (A) Activate Pony Express, 22, 24 Alaska, 14 Alternate Origins, 2, 17, 29 Autoexec, starting from, 24, 43 (B) Basic Cost, 32 (C) Cert, 35 Certified Mail, 11, 14, 35 COD amount, 28 COD Fees, 14 Command Line Unload, 3, 19 Current version, 29 (D) Data constants, 37 Data Entry screen, 28 Declared Value, 28, 35 Deductible, 22 Default Origin, 18, 21 Delivery Confirmation, 15, 21, 34 DESQview, 19 Discounts, 36 DOS 5.0, 18 DOS SHARE, 23 Duplicate Previous, 38 (E) Economy Two-Day Service, 15 Electronic scale, 28, 30 EMS memory, 19 Error Messages, 43 Estimated Arrival, 40 Express Mail, 14, 35 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 50 (F) Federal Express, 2 Fedex id, 37 FedEx rate modification, 48 First Class, 11, 14, 34 Flat Fees, 36 Flat rate envelope, 35 Fourth Class, 11, 14, 34 FRE, 35 (G) Ground Service, 14 (H) Hardware Requirements, 9 Help mode, 33 Hot Key, 19, 22 (I) Installation, 18 Insurance, 14, 22, 35 Intra BMC Discounts, 14 (K) Keypad Plus/Minus, 3, 32, 41 (L) Lg/P, 34 License Agreement, 6 Lotus 1-2-3, 45 (M) Mail Centers, 21, 22, 36 Manifest, 2, 37 Markup/Markdown, 2, 36, 46 Memory requirements, 3, 18 Memory resident, 19 Microsoft Windows, 19 Monitor default color, 21 Monitor snow check, 21 51 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE Monochrome monitors, 26 Moving between screens, 25 Multiple warehouses, 2, 17 (N) Network support, 2, 23, 38 Next Day Air, 14 Next Day Air Letter, 14, 35 (O) Option keys, 35 Option/1, 36 Option/2, 36 Options supported, 14 Ordering information, 5, 8 Oversize Package Fees, 14, 34 (P) Parcel Post, 11 Postal rate types, 11 Priority Mail, 11, 12, 14, 34, 35 Priority Overnight Letter, 15, 35 Priority Overnight Service, 15 Profit, display, 36 Program exit, 29 Proof of delivery, 34 (R) Ram disk, 21 Range Checking, 36 Rate not available n/a, 32 Rate Paste, 3, 38 Rates current thru, 4 Rates Supported, 14 Registered Mail, 14, 28, 35 Registry, 11, 14 Regr, 35 Return Receipt, 11, 14, 21, 34 Rr/Dc, 34 (S) Saturday Delivery Indicator, 3, 41 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 52 Scale interface, 3 Screen Colors, 25 Shipping Information Window, 33 Show first, 21, 33 Sidekick, 45 Sp-D, 34 Sp-Hd, 34 Special Delivery, 11, 14 Special Handling, 14 Standard Overnight Letter, 15, 35 Standard Overnight Service, 15 Starting Pony Express, 24 Swap file, 43 (T) Technical Support, 5, 8, 29 Third Class, 11, 14 To Section, 28 Total COD, 32 Transaction Logging, 2, 47 Transaction number, 38 (U) Unloading from memory, 19 Upload transactions, 37 UPS 2nd Day Air Letter, 4, 14, 35 UPS Delivery Confirmation, 3 UPS shipper number, 37 (V) Valid pounds, 28 Varying the ship date, 42 VDISK, 19, 23 (W) Weight, 28, 35 (Z) ZN, 32 Zone information, 32 Zone lookup, 32 Zone-Rated, 11, 13 53 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE COMMENT FORM ____________________________________________________________ We welcome your comments regarding Pony Express software and documentation. Contact Name:_______________________________________________ Title:________________________________ Company Name:_______________________________________________ Address:_____________________________________________ City:_________________________ St:______ Zip:_______________ Telephone:____________________ How do you rate Pony Express? (1=poor, 10=excellent) Ease of: Quality: Installation ______ Documentation ______ Learning ______ Product Support ______ Use ______ Speed ______ Function ______ General Comments: ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ Send To: Melisco Marketing, Inc. 9719 Ensley Lane Leawood, KS 66206-2246 PONY EXPRESS USER'S GUIDE 54