Q. We use TimePilot Vetro and recently bought a new computer running Windows 8. We want to install TimePilot Central on the computer and move the TimePilot database to the new PC, too. How should we proceed?

A. It’s a pretty simple process:

First, copy the folder that contains the TimePilot data and paste it onto the new PC’s hard drive. If you’re not sure where that folder is on the old computer, start TimePilot Central. Click the “Help” menu, then “About.” The “Data Path” is the folder that you’ll need to copy and paste on the new PC.

Next, install the TimePilot software on your new computer using your TimePilot CD. After you’ve installed the software on the new computer, you should update it to the latest version. Here’s how:

  1. Close any TimePilot programs that are running.
  2. Click the Windows Start Button, then “All Programs.”
  3. Scroll down to the “TimePilot IV” folder and click it.
  4. Click the “TimePilot Update Tools” folder.
  5. Click “Check for TimePilot Central Updates.” After the update is complete, repeat Steps 1-4 and click “Check for Vetro Data Manager Updates.”

Now that you have the database and a fully updated version of TimePilot software on your new PC, the last step is to tell the software where to find the database. Start TimePilot Central on the new PC. The “Create or Open a TimePilot Database” screen will appear. 

Click the “Open an Existing TimePilot Database” button at the bottom of the screen and navigate to your database folder. Open the folder and you’ll find a file called “tpData.mdb” – that’s your database. Highlight it and click “Open.”

That’s it. Now you can log in to TimePilot Central and start working.

Q. I am having some difficulty getting the info from my networked Vetro clock to my computer. For a few days everything was fine, but now the data isn't getting into TimePilot Central through my network. I've been transferring  everything with the USB drive, but is there something I need to do to get the network connection back?

A. It sounds like your Vetro Data Manager is not running. Ensure you have the Vetro Data Manager running and have a green connection status for your clock. You can find the Vetro Data Manager by going to Setup > Vetro Data Manager from within TimePilot Central.

Q. I use Internet Explorer 9 as my web browser. When I tried to download one of your payroll exports, the browser gave me the message that the export “is not commonly downloaded and could harm your computer.” Is the export OK to download?

A. Yes. It won’t harm your computer. That message only appears if you use Microsoft’s Internet Explorer; other browsers don’t bother to issue that message. It’s a way for Microsoft to get software companies to jump through a few more Microsoft-created hoops. There’s nothing wrong with the exports—that’s why your antivirus program doesn’t block it.

Pardon me... The average person gets 1 interruption every 8 minutes, or approximately 7 an hour, or 50-60 per day. The average interruption takes 5 minutes, totaling about 4 hours or 50% of the average workday. 80% of those interruptions are typically rated as "little value" or "no value" creating approximately 3 hours of wasted time per day.

Source

3 years = 1,400 hours By taking 1 hour per day for independent study, 7 hours per week, 365 hours in a year, one can learn at the rate of a full-time student. In 3-5 years, the average person can become an expert in the topic of their choice, by spending only one hour per day.

Source

Time is money In 1836 John Belville began to sell time. Every morning when he arrived for work at England's Greenwich Observatory, he would set his pocket watch and would sell the precise time to clients in London's financial district. The family business continued until 1940.

Source
Welcome!
TimePilot newsletter
No. 21

Happy New Year! Whether you're a current or future TimePilot customer, we're glad to see you.

Every month we'll offer news about TimePilot products, tips on how to use them more efficiently, some of the "cool stuff" our employees have come across and a special deal available only to those who receive this newsletter!

In this issue:

  • TimePilot Q&A: Downloading exports; moving to a new computer.
  • Lead Story: TimePilot iButton locks.
  • Cool Stuff: LifeHacker.com's great free apps.
  • The Deal: 20% off iButtons.

Make your iButtons do double duty!

Is your New Year’s Resolution to become more productive? TimePilot has a resolution solution: We sell a line of battery-powered door locks that lock or unlock with the tap of an iButton.

The flagship is our CrossOver X45 door lock. It’s a heavy-duty, weatherproof, battery-powered lock that is operated by iButtons, by a keypad or both. Your employees can tap their iButton to the lock to enter your building and then use the same iButton to clock in at your TimePilot timeclock.

Like all of our CrossOver locks, the X45 is smart and requires no wiring. You manage the X45 with our AccessPilot software, and here are some of the things you can do with it:

  • Set up a single iButton as a “master key”—one that operates all the locks in your facility at all times, replacing a whole ring of keys.
  • Allow individual employees access to a particular location by certain hours in a day, days in a week and even dates on a calendar. For instance, you can set the lock to open for John Smith only during the hours he’ll be working, and to open at all times for Mary Jones.
  • Give repairmen one-time access to your facility or access only on the dates and at the times you specify.
  • Track who used the lock and when they used it--even track failed attempts to open the lock.
  • Re-assign iButtons easily or disable them if lost: Instant security without the need to call a locksmith to re-key the lock and purchase new keys.
  • Use in dim areas or for the elderly or disabled. The lock operates with just a tap of the iButton (no need to turn a key), and the spot where it should be tapped is lit by a small red LED.

Even if you don’t use iButtons, the X45 is worth considering: Employees can also be given a four-digit code to open the lock, and you’ll still have all the features listed above.

The X45 runs on four AA batteries, which last for 10,000 openings or closings. The lock has an audible “low battery” signal, and, just in case, also comes with a traditional key that will open the lock if you accidentally let the batteries run out. The lock’s case is zinc alloy with a stainless steel finish. On the inner side of the lock is a “panic button” which locks the lock instantly.

The ability to track who used the lock came in handy for one of our customers, who had a CrossOver lock securing the back door of their building. After a tenant reported some items missing, the building manager downloaded from the lock a list of who had used the lock and when, and found that one man on the day shift had used the lock in the middle of the night. When confronted, he confessed and returned the stolen property.

The building manager was impressed with the locks, and installed them on each tenant’s office in the building.

They’ve provided even more benefits than she expected:

  • Before the CrossOver locks, when a tenant lost a key, she would call the local locksmith, wait a week or more to get the lock re-keyed and be charged $90 to $100 for the privilege. Now, with the CrossOver locks, she charges the tenant $5 to replace the iButton. If the lost iButton is found, it can be reused.
  • One tenant likes to have a monthly report on who used their office lock and when, just as a double-check on his employees. She  downloads the lock’s usage from the lock into her PC and sends the tenant an Excel spreadsheet listing who used the lock and when.

Each TimePilot CrossOver X45 iButton Lock costs just $325. You’ll need only one Management Kit ($149) no matter how many locks you purchase. The kit contains the software and other items needed to manage the locks. For more details, please see our locks web site, www.CrossOverLocks.com.


News Flash: TimePilot Extreme conquers Africa!

If you use TimePilot Extreme, our ruggedized, weatherproof, battery-powered timeclock, you’re in good company. The clock is also used by a Canadian company, Tour d’Afrique, which runs bicycle races and tours all over the world.

Three years ago, Tour d’Afrique started using Extremes on its 7,500-mile bike race from Cairo, Egypt, to Cape Town South Africa. The clocks are mounted to the outside of the support trucks and are exposed to the deserts and jungles, sandstorms and downpours of Africa.

Recently Tour d’Afrique returned the clocks to us to be updated. After three years and 22,500 miles they were pretty beaten up, but we were happy—but not surprised—that they still worked perfectly.

This month’s special offer
to TimePilot newsletter readers:

20% off iButton 10-packs!

 

Choose from 12 colors!

Special price for newsletter readers:

Just $47.20!

(save 20%—$11.80—over list price)

To learn more about the deal, click here, visit www.TimePilot.com/newsletter/newsletter4.htm or call us at 1-630-879-6400.

Every once in a while, our employees come across “cool stuff.”
This is where they share their finds.

Lifehacker.com

Did you get a computer, smartphone or tablet for Christmas? If you did, and you’re resolving to get more productive and organize your life, the web site Lifehacker.com has the answer.

The site has a article, “Hack your Life in One Day: A Beginner’s Guide to Enhanced Productivity," that will get you started. The story describes eight free programs and/or apps and includes tips on setting them up and using them. LifeHacker says you can get them all downloaded, installed and set up in a total of six hours. Of course, you can do them one at a time, or skip a few and try a few.

Their all-star apps are:

  • CrashPlan, to back up your computer automatically.
  • LastPass, which keeps track of your passwords and helps you generate ones that no one can guess.
  • Evernote, the ultimate note taker. You can type notes, scan pictures or documents with your phone or tablet camera, grab web pages to read later or even record audio notes. This will save lots of paper and Post-Its.
 
  • Dropbox, for cloud storage. We use Dropbox at TimePilot and wrote about it in our April 2011 newsletter, available here.
  • Mint, which will organize your financial life.
  • PhraseExpress (Windows) or TypeItForMe (Mac), will allow you to save blocks of text you use over and over and paste them into documents with just a couple of keystrokes.
  • TeamViewer, a program that gives you remote access to other computers. If you’ve ever called TimePilot Support, you may have seen this in action.

Visit LifeHacker.com