FAQs

Q. How do I install ^WinUSR^TM on MY NEW computer?

A. Assuming your Support Agreement is current* and that you have a current authorization file, follow these directions:

First: Make a backup of your current data using the Backer utility on your "present" computer and set it aside in a safe place for later use in this process.

Second: Click on the link below to install the full ^{^Win}^{USR^TM} system on your new computer, or you may go to www.WinUSR.com, then to the Downloads page, and install the "Full" version which says, in Green lettering, "After Purchasing, Download Your New Program Here!".

Third: After installing ^{^Win}^{USR^TM}on your new computer and rebooting, go to the Backer utility and restore your data to your new computer.

Click Here to Download/Install on your new or additional computer.

NOTE: You may need a new authorization file and it will be provided ONLY if your Support is current.

Q. I sell transcripts on Exemplaris' website. How can I account for the reduced amount I receive for transcripts because of the Exemplaris fees?

A. On the Second tab of the AO44 invoices you can enter Misc. Charges and it will accept a negative number. Therefore, if Exmplaris charges you $3.50 for selling a transcript, you may enter "-3.50" in the Misc. Charges field. The program then requires a description, so you may enter something descriptive, such as "Exemplaris Fees," or some other appropriate language. This will reduce the total amount of the invoice by the amount of the fee and will correctly account for and report the number of pages of the transcript, the correct price per page, and the total amount you have received.

Do not then enter the fee as an expense item in your Expenses in ^{^Win}^{USR^TM}, as it will have been accounted for by a reduction in your receipts.

Q. How can I split the cost of a transcript between two parties?

A. If you split the cost of a transcript consisting of 151 pages, for example, by charging each party half the price of the Original, you will be reporting the total of 151 Original pages twice and would be incorrect for purposes of the AO40A report.

To correctly split the cost of a transcript, you should split the number of pages of the transcript between the two parties. That leaves the possibility for you to either be shorted one page or necessitate charging one of the parties for an extra page, but it is the only way to split the cost of the Original and still correctly report the pages produced.

Q. When I produce Daily Copy and have my associates help me, how can I split the proceeds so that I will report the correct amount received and pages produced?

A. If you split the proceeds of a Daily Copy transcript with associates, much like splitting the cost to parties, you should split pages. If you split by a percentage of the page rate, you will each report the full number of pages, and that would incorrectly report the number of pages produced on your AO40A. Like the example above, if your daily totals 151 pages, you should split the number of pages of the transcript between the two reporters. That, again, leaves the possibility of an odd number of pages and for one of you to be shorted one page, but would correctly report the total pages produced.

In our district, our associates always invoice the parties separately for the pages we have produced (or percentage thereof).

A. Most commonly, the DELIVERY DATE or the DATE PAID has been omitted on an invoice or invoices, or the date entered does not fall within the period being reported. On a report that looks for the period in which pages were produced, i.e., AO40A, the Delivery Date is controllingl, and on a report that looks for the period in which income was received, i.e., AO40B or Gross Receipts, the Date Paid is controlling. These dates tell the report in which period they occur, and if there are no dates present, the data from these invoices will not be reported in ANY period.

Q. Why does the Page count on my AO39 (Transcript Orders & Collections Ledger) not match the Page count on my AO40A (Attendance and Transcripts of United States Court Reporters) Quarterly Report?

A. It would be almost an accident for the AO39 and the AO40A to match, as the AO39 reports pages Ordered within a period, and the AO40A reports pages produced/delivered within a Quarter. Therefore, pages ordered in one quarter but delivered in another quarter will report on the AO40A in the quarter in which the transcript was Delivered but will report on the AO39 in the quarter in which they were ordered..

A. Under the Maintenance Section of the menu there is a submenu called "Transcript Rates." When rates change, you need to add the new rates by pressing the NEW button, date the Beginning Date the same as the Order filed in your local Court Clerk's Office, and fill in the appropriate new rates.

Q. My Rates are correct for most invoices, but when I make a Criminal invoice there are no rates.

A. Starting with Version 1.00.71, there is a new Rate Category in the Transcript Rates submenu in the Maintenance Section for Criminal Transcripts. This was occasioned by the fact that some Districts granted a page-rate increase in Civil cases but not in Criminal cases. We, therefore, had to separate the Criminal and Civil rates to account for this eventuality.

Go to the Transcript Rates Section of Maintenance, select the appropriate Rate Beginning Date (or add a new one if appropriate), and edit or add the Page Rates accordingly. After entering/editing your Civil rates, if your Criminal rates are the same as your Civil rates in your district, you can press the large button in the middle of the screen that says "Criminal - Press to dup. Civil" and you will not have to manually enter the rates in the Criminal Section.

Q. Can I email an invoice from ^{^Win}^{USR^TM} and, if I can, how do I set ^{^Win}^{USR^TM} up to do so?

A. Yes!

HERE'S HOW:

In your WinUSR directory on your computer is a file named fppxxx.exe, with the xxx being a number (depending on which was the current version at the time you received your software), which can be installed by double-clicking on the file. It will install itself as another printer driver similar to the way pdf writers works, and will allow you to make, save, and email pdf copies of your invoices.

Once you have installed the driver, you must, go to the User Information section of Maintenance, then to the Defaults tab, and in the field entitled, "email Printer," type the following text in this field exactly, making sure spaces and case are the same:

pdfFactory (See Note Below)

That's all there is to the installation!

To send an email, highlight the invoice on the table of invoices and press the "Email Invoice" button, then press the Print button on the progress screen. It will then display the invoice in a little different way than the print section does. When ready to send, press the Send button at the bottom of that screen, and it will enter your email program and automatically attach a pdf version of your invoice to the email and await your input of the recipient's email address. You may type any message you wish, just as you would a normal email, because that's what it is, and then press the Send button in your email program and the email will be sent with the attached invoice.

It will then return to the pdfFactory invoice display screen after the email has been sent, and you can press the Close button.

This program, called "FinePrint pdfFactory," is distributed, supported, and sold by a company called "FinePrint." You can find them on the web at www.fineprint.com. You may also download the latest version there for a free trial period. They make two versions of the program, the one I've distributed for trial purposes, and a more expensive version with more features (which we didn't find we needed) called "FinePrint pdfFactory Pro." The less expensive version is $49.95 and did everything we needed.

We receive no royalties or kudos from the company (we paid for the program ourselves), but we have been given permission to distribute it to our users for trial purposes because they think, and so do we, you'll find it useful and will subsequently purchase it. After a trial period, and if you feel it is a worthwhile investment for you, just go to their website and purchase it directly from them.

We do not support nor guarantee the results of the program, but we use it and have found it very convenient. You can also use it to make pdfs of your transcripts or any other printable document you want to send by simply selecting it as your printer before printing, and you may send transcripts with your invoice attached (with a little practice). Again, all of this is up to you, and we do not offer support for your use of the program, but FinePrint has excellent support.

NOTE: Some of our users have found that PDF995 works just as well for them, and the cost is $9.95 (thus the name of the program). You might give it a try also. It can be found on the web at www.pdf995.com.

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If you have had other questions/issues and found solutions for them,