TimePro gets skinned

‘Skinning’ a product allows it to be customised to reflect an organisation’s branding and visual identify.

When new UK client, Plugin Design, sought a web timesheet solution that could be integrated with their corporate branding and identity, the team at Intertec created a custom TimePro ‘skin’ to reflect Plugin Design’s slick, clean and innovative aesthetics.

Within a day, our designer was able to implement a new colour scheme and incorporate the Plugin Design logo into TimePro – see screen shot. For more information on skinning and customising TimePro to reflect your company’s visual style, please contact us.

Team TimePro

Intertec TimePro sponsors ‘Team TimePro’, a cycling team consisting of TimePro technicians and consultants. Team TimePro has participated in a variety of cycling events, most notably the Great Bike Ride in November last year, where one of our riders, Clayton “Turbo” Austin, finished 4th out of the 1800 entrants in the event. Team TimePro’s next challenge is the 2006 Main Roads LifeCycle Great Western Australian Bike Ride, from Albany to Margaret River in WA.

The following snapshots are from the Great Bike Ride in November 2005:

What's New in TimePro v4.4 (released February 2006)

Major Enhancements

• Weekly Time Entry: TimePro's time entry function has been made even more flexible with the addition of the Weekly Time Entry feature. This gives TimePro users the choice of either entering worked hours by day or by week. Please note that this feature is only available when the TimePro system has been set to enable Worked Hours time entry (done via the 'Settings' tab in TimePro).

In Weekly Time Entry, TimePro users select the Customer, Project and Task as per Daily Time Entry, and enter their hours worked for the Project or Task for each day of the week. The Weekly Time Entry grid will automatically calculate and display the total hours recorded per day and per project/task as they are entered, giving TimePro users an immediate view of the time spent within the week on specific projects.

Weekly Time Entry has been developed with the needs of your staff in mind - it allows staff to more effectively match and manage their time entry activities to work priorities and time recording methods.

• New, easy-to-use Toolbar: Your use of TimePro has been made easier and more accessible with the provision of a new Toolbar. This Toolbar gives you easy access to frequently used functions and timesheet reports, as well as a new timesheet report: the Summary Timesheet, which is explained in more detail below.

The new Toolbar replaces some of the buttons in previous versions of TimePro, and also incorporates new features. Functions that are now available via the Toolbar are:

• Copy Timesheet: This button allows users to copy the time records for the currently displayed period to another time period. It replaces the 'Period Copy' button in previous versions of TimePro.


• Print Summary Timesheet: This button, a new feature with this upgrade, generates a Summary Timesheet report. See the section below for more detail.


• Print Detail Timesheet: This button replaces the 'Print Staff Timesheet' button, previously located adjacent to the 'Quick Reports' button in the Timesheet View screen. The 'Print Detail Timesheet' button will generate a printable timesheet displaying worked hours for all projects and tasks in the time period.


• Print Expenses: This button replaces the 'View Quick Report on Expenses' button, previously located next to the Expenses button in the Timesheet View screen. This button will display an Expenses Quick Report for printing, if your TimePro system has been configured to enable 'Expenses Tracking'.


• Submit Timesheet/Complete Timesheet: TimePro users can now use this button on the Toolbar to submit their timesheet (if Use Authorisation is enabled) or complete their timesheets at the end of the time period. For convenience, this button is also available at the end of the Timesheet View screen. Please note that once a timesheet has been submitted or completed, this button becomes unavailable - shown as a 'greyed out' button on screen.
• Summary Timesheet: With a single click of a button, TimePro will generate a Summary Timesheet report that will show Project Totals and Sub-task Totals of hours worked for the given time period. The report also shows sub-totals for the day and week, and period totals.

Minor Enhancements

• The functionality of time records deletion has been altered. In earlier versions of TimePro, time records were permanently removed when the user chose the Delete option. Now, time records are first marked for deletion and only permanently removed when the user presses "Save Changes" in the TimePro entry screen. This gives the user the ability to back out if records have been deleted by mistake.

• Several very minor miscellaneous bugs have been fixed.

Intertec TimePro's New Weekly Time Entry

The team at Intertec is constantly refining TimePro to better meet the time entry and time tracking requirements of our clients. Our latest release features Weekly Time Entry, which allows users to enter hours by week.

TimePro users will now have the choice of recording worked hours on a day-by-day or weekly basis into the timesheet. In today's diverse workplaces, this flexibility allows staff to more effectively match and manage their time entry activities to work priorities and working styles.

How to use Weekly Time Entry: To access Weekly Time Entry, users click the 'Weekly Add/Edit' button in the Timesheet View.

Intertec TimePro Weekly Time Entry screen

Users select the Customer, Project and Task as per daily time entry, and enter their hours worked for the Project or Task for each day of the week. The Weekly Time Entry grid will automatically calculate and display the total hours recorded per day and per project as they are entered, giving TimePro users an immediate view of the time spent within the week on specific projects.

TimePro Hosted with Weekly Time Entry is due out in February 2006 as part of TimePro v4.4, you will be able to try the Weekly Time Entry feature in the Demo Rooms at the Intertec TimePro website (www.timesheets.com.au). More information will be sent via email upon its release. TimePro + In-house with Weekly Time Entry will be available in April 2006.

How do I upgrade to Weekly Time Entry? TimePro Hosted customers on TimePro version 4.3+ are eligible for a free upgrade upon request.

For other Hosted customers, there is a small once-off migration fee to covers the site setup and data migration. The upgrade fee schedule is based on the number of steps required by the database administrator to upgrade you from your current version, as follows:

• Version 3.4 - $600 inc GST
• Versions 3.5 & 3.6 - $450 inc GST
• Version 3.7 - $300 inc GST
• Versions 4.0, 4.1 & 4.2 - $150 inc GST

TimePro+ In-house customers who are currently on support and maintenance are eligible for a free upgrade when the upgrade is released for TimePro+ in April.

Enhancement Requests: Most of the new features in TimePro are the direct result of feedback from our existing and potential customers. If you have some ideas for enhancements that you would like to share with us then email your comments to support@timesheets.com.au

TimePro versus In-house Software Development

Ever thought about the costs and implications of building your own system versus purchasing a solution? Here are some compelling reasons why you should consider TimePro over developing an in-house solution from scratch.

Cost: Building your own time tracking solution can be very expensive taking into account consulting fees, hardware costs, technical staff and on-going support and maintenance costs. Setting up your own system can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars. TimePro's monthly fees range from as low as $5 per person for a 100 user licence per month or only $7 per person for a 5 user licence per month. There is no minimum contract length so TimePro is a low risk and flexible cost effective solution.

Security: TimePro uses industry standard security including 24x7 monitoring of our service, optional 128 bit (SSL) encryption, automatic logout and nightly data backup. Each customer also has their own distinct data storage area. Can you afford to invest in all of these measures yourself?

Accessibility: Using installed software can be tricky if you don't always work off the same machine. Remote access into Virtual Private Networks and Local Area Networks can also be expensive and difficult to configure. TimePro is available from any computer with Internet access, on your own network or across the globe.

Upgrades: You can spend hours installing and configuring traditional packaged software. Configuring a server can take many hours, and that often is repeated when your business grows and requirements change. TimePro is constantly being upgraded,and users enjoy multiple updates per year at little or no additional cost.

Support: Will your in-house I.T. department be able to assist you with questions anytime of the working day? TimePro offers responsive web-based support for all nominated customer contacts, including updated frequently asked questions and online documentation. Customers on our Premium or Custom plans also receive telephone support.

Some of the ways Intertec TimePro helps you improve time recording & management in your business.

Staff Self-Service: TimePro is 100% web enabled allowing staff to view and modify their own time and expense related information via the Internet/Intranet. Staff can also electronically sign-off a timesheet for a given period streamlining the process and eliminating unnecessary paperwork.

Cost Management: TimePro serves as a central repository allowing managers to easily identify labour and expense costs associated with projects. Reports and access to real-time data provide greater control and the ability to plan and better manage project costs.

Administrative Overheads: TimePro's MYOB module allows MYOB users to automate Invoicing and Purchases thereby streamlining the process and eliminating errors through duplication of data entry. TimePro's standard Data Export Facility allows integration with other 3rd party products. There are also several unique features such as TimePro's Timesheet Authorisation allowing managers to electronically approve/reject timesheets and the Check Timesheet facility which allows the system administrator to easily and effectively chase staff to complete their timesheets.

Implementation: A TimePro fully-hosted service can be setup and running for you the same day you activate the account, and all this can be done on-line. For in-house installations we ship the application on CD which has an installation and configuration wizard that is intuitive and user-friendly.

Extensive Support: TimePro offers responsive web-based support for all nominated customer contacts, including updated frequently asked questions and online documentation. Customers on our Premium or Custom plans or those doing trial evaluations automatically receive telephone support.

Future Trends - Intertec TimePro and PDAs

The term PDA is short for 'personal digital assistant' and refers to a handheld device that combines computing, telephone/fax, and networking features. PDAs are also called palmtops, hand-held computers and pocket computers. The field of PDA development was pioneered by Apple Computer TM , which introduced the Newton MessagePad in 1993. Shortly thereafter, several other manufacturers offered similar products.

The wireless connectivity of the next generation of PDAs using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies is supporting the extension and direction of future applications. Wireless technology in general has become cheaper and much more common over the last few years as more home users and institutions deploy or adopt wireless networks to share lines and devices around the house or within the workplace.

Wireless is also seen as a critical platform for content delivery in the future and in the development of community networks as the population becomes an increasingly mobile one. Fuelled by the need to work in different environments and for different purposes, individuals and organizations need to go beyond traditional computing and information-seeking infrastructures. PDAs and wireless networks are extending these boundaries to the benefit of personal and business applications.

Analysts predict that this rapid roll-out of wireless technology and related applications will drive the development of a new class of handheld devices that incorporate server technology to enable message and service brokering, database hosting and access to selected data. Intertec shares these views and we have already begun working in close partnership with an Australian specialist mobile commerce group to define our strategy and develop a "mobile" Intertec TimePro solution. See first-generation "mobile" Intertec TimePro prototype screens above.

Intertec are interested in hearing from our customers and prospects who feel they have a requirement or an interest in using PDAs for time tracking in their business. Please send us an email with your comments/feedback.

An overview of Intertec TimePro

Intertec TimePro is an affordable, proven and easy-to-use web based timesheet management solution that lets you record and manage time records via the Internet or via your Intranet.

Intertec TimePro is available with an optional MYOB integration module that lets you automate and streamline the process of creating time-based Sales and Purchases Invoices in MYOB.

There are three Intertec TimePro solutions available for purchase:

1. TIMEPRO HOSTED - Fully hosted, subscription-based timesheet solution.
2. TIMEPRO+ IN-HOUSE - Licenced, "off the shelf" application for in-house deployment.
3. TIMEPRO CUSTOM - Built on TimePro and tailored to your specifications.

To find out more, visit the Intertec TimePro website (www.timesheets.com.au) where you can try TimePro in our Demo Rooms, and sign up for a free 30-Day Trial of TimePro Hosted, or download TimePro+ In-house with a free 3-user license.

Welcome to TimePro web timesheets

Welcome to the TimePro Timesheets Blog, for all users of Intertec TimePro web timesheets. The blog will feature news and information about TimePro updates and upgrades, hints and tips for getting the most out of TimePro, and key events associated with TimePro.

We hope you find the information here useful and informative. Feel free to leave a comment or two - we value feedback and ideas for enhancing TimePro provided by our current and prospective clients.

Kind regards,

The Intertec TimePro Sales & Marketing Team