Multi-Package

This feature is used when more than one package is required to ship the products found on an invoice. By using this feature, you can create packing slips to enclose with each package. For example, if three packages are required, the packing slips will be labeled: "1 of 3," "2 of 3," and "3 of 3." Each of the packing slips will list the contents and quantities found in that package. This feature will also keep a record of tracking numbers, weights and shipping cost of each package.

To start the process, first go to the invoice that requires more than package and select SHIPPING TOOLS >> MULTI-PACKAGE SHIPMENTS from the menu bar on top of the screen. The "Multi-package Orders" dialog box will appear:

The top of the dialog box includes the customer's billing and shipping addresses. Midway down on the left, you can select the number of packages required. If four (4) packages are required, use the scroll bar to indicate four packages. You'll notice that the names of the packages will appear in the "Select a Package" list. AnyOrder uses the accepted standard of naming packages: "1 of 4," "2 of 4," etc. Select a package from list. The name of the package that you are working on appears in a large font beside "Current Package."

Once you've selected a package, the next step is to enter the quantities that are found in each package. Quantities are entered on the spreadsheet which occupies the bottom of the dialog box. The spreadsheet consists of the following columns:

Total Invoiced Quantity - This is the quantity of the item that is found on the invoice. In other words, this is the total quantity that you will be shipping to the customer.

Quan All Packages - This is the total amount of product when the quantities in each package are added up. When you first begin, the column will show all zero's (0), but as you add quantities to each individual package, the number in this column will change. When you have completed adding quantities to the individual packages, the number in this column should be the same as the number in the "Total Invoiced Quantity" column. This number will be updated as you move from package to package. If you want an immediate update, click on the "Total All Pkgs" button.

Pkg # - This is an extra reminder of which package you are working on. If you are entering quantities for the 2nd package, then you'll see "2's" in this column. If you are entering quantities for the 4th package, you'll see "4's" in the column.

Quan This Package - This is the column that you be will using. It's the place where you enter the quantities found in that package. For example, if you are working on the first package (1 of 4) and the package contains 20 copies of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn you would type in "20" in this column.

One helpful feature that is built into this portion of the program is the ability to scan the product's barcode. This allows you to scan the barcode as the item is placed in the package. As long as you've entered the product's barcode in your Product Database, the cursor will immediately go that product on the spreadsheet. You can enter the quantity directly on the spreadsheet, or you can enter the quantity in the Barcode dialog box that is triggered when you scan. (For more information, see Scanning Product Barcodes.)

Other functions are available to help speed up the process of entering quantities for each of the individual packages. To the left of the spreadsheet are a series of buttons. (These are also are found in the TOOLS menu on top of the screen.)

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The first is the green button: "Row Only: Invoice Copy." This copies the 'Invoiced Quan' column to 'Quan this Package' column. To use this, place your cursor on the desired row on the spreadsheet and click the button. The numbers in the "Invoiced Quantity" column will be copied to the "Quan This Package" column.

•	"Row Only: Invoice Copy" is a toggle button. If you click it again, Quan this Package is re-set to zero. Click it again and it copies the invoiced quantity

•	To copy all quantities in all rows, click on the blue button "All Rows: Copy Quantities"

•	If you want to start over, click on the pink button "All Rows: Clear Quantities" which will place zeros (0) in the "Quan this Package" column.

•	When moving back and forth between different packages, you may need to occasionally have the program re-calculate the totals. That's done by clicking on the beige "Refresh Totals" button.

•	The beige "Re-new Invoice Quantities" button is used if quantities on the invoice have changed (and not the products).

•	The orange "Re-set Items - START OVER" button is used if the list the products on the invoice have changed.

Along with package quantities, you also have your choice of entering a tracking number, shipping charge and/or weight for each package. While it's not necessary to enter the shipping charge, there are some advantages if you do. First, you'll have a record of each charge, and secondly, you can instruct AnyOrder to add the shipping charges and paste the total amount on the invoice. That feature is reached in one of several ways: 1) by double-clicking when the cursor is in the "Shipping" blank on the Main Invoice Screen; 2) clicking on the "S" button beside the "Shipping" blank; or 3) selecting SHIPPING TOOLS >> SHIPPING WEIGHT & CHARGES from the menu bar at the top of the screen. (For more information, see Shipping & Weight for More than One Package.)

Tracking numbers are also optional, but if you have a scanner, they can be entered quite easily by scanning the barcode on the package. To do so, place your cursor in the "Tracking #" blank and scan. It's not necessary to have a scanner; you can also manually type in the tracking number as well. In addition to providing a record of tracking numbers, you'll also be able to locate an invoice by the tracking number. You can do that by using the Advanced Search feature. Or, even simpler yet, you can scan in the tracking number, and AnyOrder will find the correct invoice. When it finds the invoice, it will tell you which package the tracking number is associated with. This specialized search feature is accessed by selecting GOTO >> FIND BY SCANNING TRACKING # from the Main Invoice Screen.

AnyOrder can also keep track of the weights of each of the packages. Among the weight features is an auto-calculation function. To find out the weight of one of the packages, click the "Calculate Weight" button. (Note that to use this function, you'll need to indicate the weight of each of your products in the Product Information Database.) Upon clicking this button, AnyOrder will add up the weights based on the quantities found in that package. The total will appear in the weight blanks.

The "Switch" button changes from weight expressed as pounds and ounces to weight expressed as a decimal. If you are using the Metric system, the button does not appear since weights are already in decimal form.

If desired, you can override a calculated weight by typing a number into the weight blanks.

When you click on the "Final Check" button, AnyOrder will calculate the total quantities for all packages and compare those with the invoiced quantities. If one or more product quantities do not match the invoice, AnyOrder will notify you. This function is particularly helpful when you have packages with a large number of items. It's easier and more efficient than scanning the spreadsheet with the eye. Rather, it's done internally by the computer processor, and AnyOrder will quickly identify any discrepancies.

If you need to delete a package, use the "Delete a Package" button. The last package is always deleted first.

If you decide that you do not need more than one package for the invoice, delete all of the packages, including the first. When you exit from the Multi-Package dialog box, all record of multi-package activity will be removed.

You'll want to wait until you've entered all products on the invoice before using the Multi-package feature. The reason for this is that if you change the invoice by adding or removing products, you'll need to start over and re-do your work in multi-package feature.

Let's look at this a little closer. Let's say that you've already set up several packages for a multi-package order. If for some reason, you need to make changes in the products listed on the invoice, follow the procedure below:

1. Make the needed changes in the products listed in the Item Area on the Main Invoice Screen.

2. When you are sure that the products on the invoice are firm, activate the Multi-package feature by selecting SHIPPING TOOLS >> MULTI-PACKAGE SHIPMENTS.

4. Click on the orange "Re-set Items - START OVER" button. When you use Re-set button, the list of products on the invoice will be re-built. At this point, you're ready to re-enter the appropriate quantities of each package.

Note that if you change only the quantities on the invoice (and not the products listed in the Item Area), it is not necessary to start over. Instead, click on the "Re-new Invoice Quantities" button to update the quantities showing on the spreadsheet.

Once you've finished entering information on the Multi-package dialog box, you'll be able to print Packing Slips for each package. To print packing slips, you can either click on the "Print" button on the Multi-package dialog box, or you can select FILE >PRINT MULTI-PACKAGE SLIPS from the menu bar at the top the Main Invoice Screen.

A special "Print" dialog box will appear. You can select which packing slip you wish to print, or you can print all of the slips at the same time. Note that if you use the "HTML Print" or "Preview / PDF File Print" buttons, you'll need to select one package at a time.

Printing Packing Slips for Each Package. Once you've finished entering information on the Multi-package dialog box, you'll be able to print Packing Slips for each package. To print packing slips, you can either click on the "Print" button on the Multi-package dialog box, or you can select FILE >PRINT MULTI-PACKAGE SLIPS from the menu bar at the top the Main Invoice Screen.