WHAT CAN IT DO FOR ME?

It is well known that controlling your Accounts Receivable is absolutely essential in any business. The real question is how to do this in an automated way. Our Accounts Receivable system gives you the tools to control your receivables without spending much time on it.

In Starr Accounting you have just two tasks to do to control your receivables. First, print an ageing report regularly. Second, set the customer master credit code and credit limit fields for those customers whose payment history has changed. Credit code is a number that indicates a customer's credit worthiness. Credit limit is the dollar amount that the customer can charge without getting credit approval from management.

Here's how the order entry programs (orders entered from either the Accounts Receivable or Order Entry systems) handle credit issues:

• When a computer operator enters an order header and the customer is over their limit, the system displays their credit code, credit limit, and the amount the customer is over their credit limit. The system will also repeat this message when the operator enters the first line item for this order.

• The Accounts Receivable control file has a parameter you set which is the number of days an invoice can be past due. When a computer operator enters an order header and the customer has invoices past due, a window will open up containing a listing of the past due invoices for this customer.

• If the entry of an order line item puts the customer over their credit limit, the system displays their credit code, credit limit, and the amount this line item puts them over their credit limit.

Here's how the apply credits program uses credit code:

• If the credit code of the customer making a payment is non-zero, the credit code for the customer is displayed. The fact that payment has been received indicates that this customer's credit privileges should now be reviewed.

Of course, the Accounts Receivable system does much more than control credit issues. Here are some of the biggest time savers:

• The system automatically maintains a sales history database for each customer (an abbreviated form of the line items for each invoice). In addition to powerful reports, there is also a customer inquiry program. This means that you will never again have to refer back to the printed invoices. This information is immediately available at your fingertips.
• Comprehensive sales tax reporting covering all states with up to four taxing entities per invoice.
• Daily recap report with deposit ticket.
• Sales analysis report for computing commissions.
• Flexible statement program that can save form costs and postage by only printing statements for customers that are "slow pays".
• Because the Accounts Receivable system interfaces to both the General Ledger and the Check Reconciliation systems, it takes no time to pass information to those systems. This eliminates double work and also eliminates the possibility of entry errors.

With our Accounts Receivable system, you always have up to the minute information on receivables.

FEATURES OF THE SYSTEM

The Starr Computer Systems Inc. Accounts Receivable system is designed as a complete invoicing and monthly statement generating system which keeps track of current and aged accounts receivable.

This package maintains a complete file for each customer consisting of the customer's name, address, and phone number, along with the customer's type of account, current balance, tax rates, and other useful account status information.

Each program within the system contains a complete set of prompts and other helpful messages to allow even an inexperienced operator to make full use of the system with minimal instruction time.

The Accounts Receivable system is designed to interface with the Starr Computer System's General Ledger system to provide automatically monthly journal entries to the General Ledger.

Particular features of the Starr Computer Systems Accounts Receivable system include:

• Interactive, menu-driven programs

• Self-instructing user documentation

• Open item and Balance Forward

• Handles multiple A/R accounts in the General Ledger i.e. Customer A/R accounts, Employee A/R accounts, etc.

• Invoice generation which automatically posts invoice line items to as many as forty sales accounts.

• Automatically generates invoices, for customers you bill repeatedly.

• By use of accounting period, do not need to close one period before you can create transactions for the next period

• Prints detailed, aged, customer statements with dunning notes

• Automatically generates finance charges.

• Aging reports as well as aging CRT inquiry

• Automatic interface with General Ledger

• Automatic credit reconciliation

• Sales tax reporting

• Sales analysis by salesman

• Sales history

• Customer Labels

• Sample data for training

HOW THE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED

The Accounts Receivable system is designed to maintain a record for each customer which is set up using the "Customer file maintenance" program. This file consists of permanent information such as company name, address, phone number, type of account, tax rates, and information which is automatically updated by the system such as aging and statement dates, and year-to-date debits and credits. The "Customer file maintenance" program may also be used to change information in a customer's record, query or examine the information in the record, or delete the customer's record from the file.

The invoice generation programs are used to enter all the information that is to appear on each invoice. After the information is entered and verified on the video unit, the invoice is printed on pre-printed forms (or plain paper) on the printer; then the corresponding A/R transactions are automatically written to the transaction file. The invoices and transactions become part of the customer's record, and are available in screen displays and reports.

When invoices are generated, a sales history record is (optionally) written for each invoice line item. Programs are provided to maintain, inquire, print, and purge sales history records.

Transactions may be applied at any time to the customer file through the "Transaction file maintenance" program. The transactions are available in screen displays and reports.

This system has an apply credits program, which allows credit to be applied directly to a particular invoice or to the oldest invoice for that customer.

The "Statements" program prints a statement for each customer. If the customer has a balance forward account, the balance due at the beginning of this accounting period is listed followed by all invoices generated and transactions entered this period. For customers with open item accounts all invoices with dollar amounts due are listed along with all transactions entered this accounting period. Also includes aged totals and dunning notes.

Several programs are provided to assist the user in keeping track of customers and debit and credit entries. The "Customer master" report list all the current information in each customer's record and all current entries made to that customer's account. The "Transaction file" report provides a detailed list of all transactions. Additional reports are the "Customer A/R activity", "Aging", "Statements", "G/L Distribution", "Sales tax summary", "Sales analysis", and "End-of-period".

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE MAIN PROGRAMS

The Accounts Receivable System contains sixty-one programs which collectively perform the creating, maintaining, updating, and report generating functions of the system. Each main program is briefly described below.

• Control file maintenance - This program maintains the A/R Control File parameters. Predefines up to forty sales, freight, tax, misc. accounts for use by invoice generation and posting to General Ledger.

• Terms file maintenance - This program maintains the A/R Terms file. Up to sixteen different payment terms can be defined.

• Notes File Maintenance - This program maintains the A/R Notes file. Notes can be printed on sales orders, invoices, or statements. Up to ten notes (each up to seventy-six characters in length), can be defined for each note category. There are three note categories: standard notes, aging notes, and point of sale notes.

• Tax file maintenance - This program maintains the A/R Tax file. The tax file is used by the invoice generation program to calculate the sales tax. There are tax records for state and local tax rates.

• Salesman file maintenance - This program maintains the A/R Salesman file. The salesman file is used to give each salesman a number for use by the invoice generation and customer master file.

• Customer file maintenance - This program maintains customer records.

• Alternate key file maintenance - This programs maintains alternate keys (shipping and billing keys associated with a customer key).

• Transaction file maintenance - This program allows for the entering of debit and credit entries directly into the Transaction file (instead of indirectly via the billing or apply credits programs).

• Account inquiry display - This program displays customer master information and associated transactions on the terminal screen in a condensed format.

• Order maintenance - This program is used to enter invoices and credit memos into the A/R system, and prints them on preprinted forms or plain paper. After the information is entered and the user verifies it is correct, the invoice/credit memo is automatically printed, and the corresponding transactions and sales history records are automatically created.

• Order inquiry display - This program displays order information and associated line items on the terminal screen in a condensed format.

• Billing - Bill an existing invoice/credit memo.

• Apply credits - This program is used to enter payments and apply credits in the A/R system. Handles partial and over payments. Automatically applies open credits and credit memos.

• Compute finance charges - This program computes finance charges on receivables which are past-due. Allows for manual skip of customers.

• End-of-period processing - This program summarizes and updates all activity for a period, clearing certain balances to zero in preparation for a new period. G/L distribution records are automatically passed to the G/L Transaction file by this program.

• End-of-year processing - This program summarizes and updates all activity for a year, clearing certain balances to zero in preparation for a new year. It also automatically runs the "Purge A/R transactions" program.

• Reset Transaction File - This program resets the transaction file entry numbers, batch numbers, and accounting periods, in preparation for a new year.

• Customer master report - A complete listing of all Customer Master file is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Customer name & address report - A short form Customer Master file listing is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Customer balances report - A short form Customer Master file listing is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Alternate key report - A complete listing of the Alternate Key (shipto/billto) file is produced this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Print orders (long form) - A complete listing of the Order Header and Order Lines file is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Print orders (short form) - An abbreviated listing of the Order Header and Order Lines file is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Transaction file report - A complete listing of the Transaction file is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Customer A/R activity report - This program produces a detailed listing of each customer's account. The beginning balance, all current A/R transactions, and a computed ending balance is printed for all customers. Has sort and record selection options.

• Aging report - This program prints an aged summary for each customer, with aged report grand totals. Optionally prints detail transactions. Has sort options.

• Statements report - This program prints a statement for each customer on preprinted forms or plain paper. If the customer has a balance forward account, the balance due at the beginning of this accounting period is listed followed by all invoices generated and transactions entered this period. For customers with open item accounts all invoices with dollar amounts due are listed along with all transactions entered this accounting period. Also includes aged totals and dunning notes. Has record selection options.

• G/L Distribution report - This program is provided so that the G/L account distribution can be verified to be in balance, before the "End-of-period processing" program is run.

It produces a detailed G/L distribution of all customer transactions. All accounts are summed and balanced. Any accounts that do not exist within the G/L Master File are flagged. Optionally prints transaction detail. Has record selection options.

• Sales tax summary report - This program prints a sales tax summary for up to fifty states, and up to fifty localities. Both detail and summary reports are generated. Has record selection options.

• Sales analysis report - This program prints a sales analysis by salesman. It prints sales, cost-of-sales, gross profit, and payments received. Optionally prints transaction detail. Has record selection options.

• Recap report - This program produces a detailed G/L distribution of transactions for a date range (usually a single day). All accounts are summed and balanced. Cash and charge sales are split into separate report sections. Prints a deposit ticket. Optionally prints transaction detail. Optionally writes Check Reconciliation records.

• Customer labels - This program prints one to four up labels. customers. Has sort and record selection options.

• Display A/R total - This program calculates the current A/R total and displays the total on the CRT screen. The A/R total is calculated by summing all A/R transaction that have A/R account numbers.

• Sales history maintenance - This program maintains sales history records. Sales history records are normally automatically generated by the generate invoices programs.

• Sales history inquiry display - This program displays customer master information and associated sales history records on the terminal screen in a condensed format.

• Print sales history - A complete listing of the Sales History file is produced by this program. Has record selection options.

• Customer usage report - Reads the Sales History database for a customer, and print quantity and dollar totals for each ship-to location for that customer.

• Promotions report - Reads the Sales History database to provide statistics on sales promotions. Sales promotion codes are entered in the order headers when the order is entered, and get written to Sales History when the order is billed.

• Auto invoice order maintenance - This program is used to enter auto invoices into the A/R system.

• Auto invoice order inquiry display - This program displays auto invoice order information and associated line items on the terminal screen in a condensed format.

• Auto invoice generate A/R orders - Generates regular A/R orders from auto invoice orders.

• Print auto invoices - A complete listing of the auto invoice Order Header and Order Lines file is produced by this program. Has sort and record selection options.

• Purge A/R transactions - This program purges transactions from the Transaction file, and optionally prints an audit trail of purged transactions.

• Purge sales history - This program purges sales history transactions from the Sales History file. Optionally prints transaction detail. Has record selection options.

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