theFoodServiceDirector.com
News Flash! This just in!

A great FREE software program just got better! Visual Solutions is proud to announce the release of NFSMI FUNDamentals 10.1.1! The NFSMI FUNDamentals software is now in it's 11th year.We have taken our User Requests seriously and hope you enjoy the results.

To place a User Request or to report an error not listed below, click HERE.

Current Users may udate their existing installations by clicking HERE.

Version 10.1.1  

Reports and Auto Update Mechanism (8/18/2010)

• Cost Analysis Report has been modified to display Average Daily Meal Equivalents in the Meals Per Labor Hour section. This number may be used along with the Meals Per Labor Hour in a staffing formula.
• The Auto Update Checking mechanism now aborts correctly if an internet connection is not available.

Reports (8/10/2010)

• New Report - Enrollment by Month (Lunch) shows enrollment and eligibility trends and statistics for each campus. This will be a very good report for finding issues with participation variances. In the future, we will be adding a chart showing the same information.
• The Profit/Loss Reports have been fixed to sort correctly when using the 'Kitchen Facilities Only' option.
• The Cost Analysis and Consolidated  Cost Analysis Reports have been modified to round Average Daily Served to whole numbers before calculating ADS ratio to Enrollment and ADS ratio to Application Counts.
• The Cost Analysis and Consolidated  Cost Analysis Reports have been modified to use Commodity Inventory Offset in the calculation of Commodity Value per Student Lunch.
• The Commodity Value per Lunch Report has been corrected. The total for Commodity Expense is now correct.

Report Screen - Show History Option (7/30/2010)

• Corrected a minor problem where the Show History option in the Reports screen did not display 2009-2010 as an option after the Year End rollover had been completed for that year.

Reports - Cost Analysis/Consolidated Cost Analysis (7/29/2010)

• The Cost Analysis and Consolidated Reports have been modified to round Application Counts to whole numbers before calculating % of Enrollment. Additionally, Average Daily Served values are now displayed to 2 decimal places. This was done so that the values for ADS/Enrollment and ADS/Applications can be verified using the information displayed in the report.

Reports - Meal Equivalent Reports  (7/6/2010)

• The Meal Equivalents report has been modified. A new calculated field, Average Daily Meal Equivalents (or ADME), has been added to the report. The original Meal Equivalents report that showed each site's ratio of Meal Equivalents to District (or Administrative Center/Prep Kitchen) Total Meal Equivalents has been renamed aptly as the Meal Equivalent Formula - Site to Total Ratio report.

Labor Hours List Screen - (Access Database customers only)  (7/6/2010)

• Corrected a runtime error when opening the Labor Hours List Screen. SQL Server customers are unaffected by this fix.

Version 10.0.9  

Reports - Annual Budget Reports  (6/21/2010)

• Corrected a runtime error when viewing multiple Budget Reports including the Annual Budget and Annual Budget vs. Actual reports.

Reports - Cost Analysis Report (Detailed and Consolidated) (6/9/2010)

• Added the option to 'Exclude Inventory Offsets' for the Cost Analysis Reports. This is important for districts where the inventory offsets are already included in the financial accounting import.

General Software Maintenance (6/7/2010)

• New!!! Added an Automatic Update Detection feature that will alert users when a program update is available. This feature may be turned off for those customers without an internet connection, or those where the technology department must perform updates manually.

Version 10.0.8  

Reports - Profit/Loss (Short) Report  (5/18/2010)

• Corrected an ordering problem when viewing the Profit/Loss (Short) Report for the district.

Utilities - Mass Update Screen  (5/18/2010)

• Added an option to Delete Unused Detailed Accounts from the software.

Quick Entry - Data Entry Screen (5/10/2010)

• Corrected a minor issue where changing the month/month range in the source screen (either Meal Counts or Revenues/Expenditures Data Entry Screens) would not be reflected in the Quick Entry screen.

Version 10.0.7  (3/23/2010)

Administrative Costs Data Entry Screen (3/16/2010)

• Corrected a problem caused by the absence of meal equivalents on which to base a meal equivalent formula. In previous versions, this would cause the software to get stuck in an infinite loop. The screen now detects that no meal equivalents exist and gives the user an option to distribute to all schools evenly, or to cancel the operation.

Meal Pricing Setup Screen

• Added a checkbox in the Adult/Inkind section of this screen. This option allows the user to apply the Adult and Inkind meal prices to all meal price groups in the software in order to simplify the process of changing meal prices. Through training and user feedback, we found that the Adult and Inkind meal prices are almost always the same regardless of meal pricing tier.

Version 10.0.6  (2/11/2010)

Quick Entry Screen (Revenues Mode)

• Corrected a minor issue in this screen involving the printing of any Revenue and Revenue Sub Account. The heading on the printout showed Expenditures instead of Revenue.

About Screens (Visual Solutions, NFSMI, and FUNDamentals)

• Redesign of these screens with the intention of improving readability.

Substitute Hours Tracking - Data Entry, Distribution, and Reporting

• Added fields in the Labor Hours Data Entry Screen to allow tracking of Substitute Hours. Additionally, Substitute Hours may be entered into the District Substituion Hours Pool and distributed based on meal equivalents.

Quick Entry Data Entry Screen (School Based Revenue and Expenditure Data Entry only) (2/2/2010)

• Corrected an issue that caused the Summary (Major) Account totals for a record to be out of synchronization with the Detailed (Minor) Account totals. The problem was caused by editing or deleting previously saved records.

Mass Update Utility Screen

• Added a new option to Synchronize Major Accounts to Detailed Accounts. This option corrects any database records that have been deleted or written incorrectly due to the issue with the Quick Entry Data Entry Screen noted above. Use this utility if you find that under the District cost center in the Revenue or Expenditure Data Entry Screen, the amount listed for a major account on the left side does not agree with the total displayed at the bottom of the Details section on the right side. If the totals are different, this means that the records are out of synch. Running the Synchronization option in the Mass Update Utility Screen will correct this issue.

Version 10.0.5 (11/18/2009)

All Screens - New Help Documentation is now available!

• All Help Buttons in the software (excluding Add-On Modules, Imports, and Special Utilities) now start the latest Help Documentation available through a web browser. This corrects a help subsystem compatibility issue with Vista and Windows 7 users. Adobe Acrobat Reader^© is required to vew and print the new documentation.

Data Entry Screens (Meal Counts, Labor Hours, and Administrative Financials)

• Added the same date options that were available in the Revenues/Expenses Data Entry Screen to the Meal Counts, Labor Hours, and Administrative Financials Data Entry Screens. This feature makes it convenient to search quickly for monthly totals by clicking in the month drop box and using the mouse scroll button. (Up and Down buttons on the keyboard will do the same thing) Customers utilizing the Prep Kitchen module will also find that the corresponding data entry screens for Prep Kitchen Expenses and Prep Kitchen Labor Hours Data Entry Screens have been updated as well.

Eligibility Data Entry Screen (11/24/2009)

• Corrected a very rare issue where school enrollments were imported incorrectly resulting in much larger numbers than the software was built to accomodate. (over 32,767)

Schools List and Schools Information Screen (12/04/2009)

• Created prompts to prevent mistakes on Program selections.
• Added the ability to Save Column Widths in the Schools List Screen

Cost Analysis Report (12/10/2009)

• Corrected a minor issue when viewing this report as a school that is part of a prep kitchen group with the Kitchen Facilities option selected. The report was showing the application counts for the school only instead of showing the combined application counts for all schools in the prep kitchen group. This was skewing the participation results.

Version 10.0.4 (11/03/2009)

Reports and Charts

• Corrected a runtime error that would occur when viewing the Profit/Loss report.
• Corrected a code error that may cause the ADA Factor (if not 1) to be calculated incorrectly on the Consolidated Cost Analysis Report.
• Corrected several issues where reports and charts which returned no records would cause errors. The behavior of the report viewer and chart screens was modified so that if a report or chart returns no records, the report viewer or chart screen will close automatically. Also, many user prompts warning about 'No Data Found' were changed to more accurately reflect what data is missing.
• Modified the logic to produce many of the reports to improve performance.
• Added the option to Exclude Inventory Offsets from Profit/Loss Reports. This option may be expanded to additional reports in future releases.
• Added logic in the Profit/Loss reports to sort on a custom sort order by Major Accounts. Currently, the sort order must be set by a Visual Solutions technical support person, however, this functionality will be made available to the end user in a future release.
• Corrected the summing of Eligibility Counts in the Cost Analysis report when viewing with the Kitchen Facilities option selected.
• Reworked the Statement of Revenues and Expenditures report so that row totals always fit, and moved the column totals and averages to their own section.

Revenue and Expenditures Data Entry Screen

• Corrected a rare runtime error that may ocurr when transactions exist for minor accounts that have been marked as Inactive.

Check for Updates Screen

• Corrected a runtime error (75 - Path/File Access error) that ocurred after an update was applied. 

Fund Balance Data Entry Screen

• Corrected a rounding issue where the Beginning Fund Balance would round automatically if the number exceeded $99,999.00.

Inventoried Supplies Options Screen

• Corrected a runtime error when updating the settings on this screen.

Version 10.0.3 (08/11/2009)

Database Connection Timeout Setting

• Enabled the saving and setting of the database connection timeout setting used by the program. This setting may be applied to individual users in a district and corrects an issue where the first database connection would timeout, but subsequent connections were successful.

All Reports Major Formatting Overhaul

• Reformatted all reports to allow for wider print margins. Customers were reporting that some printers were cutting off various parts of reports.

Profit/Loss Reports

• Added the option to display Indirect Costs Generated at the end of each school's section. This is important for those school districts (most of them) that pay Indirect to the general fund at the end of the appropriation year. This exense (or theoretical expense) should be taken into account when analyzing the financial position of a school.

Operating Ratios Report

• Added the option for Kitchen Facilities Only when viewing this report. This option displays all schools that particiapate in a prep kitchen scenario as a single unit. Widened column for Admin. Labor as larger districts were running out of space for the total.

Revenue and Expenditure Data Entry Screen

• Corrected an annoying issue with the date range selection on this screen where the wrong ending month would be automatically selected.

Meal Pricing Setup Screen

• Modified this screen to load existing meal prices when setting up a new meal pricing group instead of setting all meal prices to $0.00. This is helpful when only one or two meal prices are different for each pricing group. (usually paid student meals)

FTP File Operataions

• Modified the logic used to connect to Visual Solutions FTP server to bypass the district proxy server if the connection failed. This has only been an issue in one school district to date, but is certainly an issue that needed to be addressed.

Version 10.0.2 (03/19/2009)

Consolidated Cost Analysis Report

• Corrected an issue where the Administrative Labor was being posted incorrectly.

New!!! Menu Option

• Under the Help Menu you will find a new menu item for Registered Downloads. This menu links to a list of additional resources including documents and downloads specific for your school district. *This feature requires a current support contract with Visual Solutions.

Version 9.0.9 (01/05/2009)

Extended Functionality for Prep Kitchen and Distribution Modules

• Added new functionality to the Prep Kitchen and Distribution modules by allowing prep kitchen links to be set by the month. This allows the distribution module and the prep kitchen module to distribute prep kitchen expenses, inventory values, and labor hours to schools that have been flagged as service sites for each month. Previously, the prep kitchen links were defined for the entire year.

Eligibility Screen

• Corrected an issue where eligibility counts for newly selected meal programs did not update when the option for Universal Eligibility was selected.

Schools List Screen

• Added a new column for Universal Free Snacks selection.
• Corrected multiple 'Invalid use of Null' instances.

Reports Formatting - Adjusted column widths on the following reports.

• Cost Analysis
• Statement of Revenue and Expenditures
• Meal Equivalents
• Meals Served Information
• Meals Per Labor Hour

Version 9.0.8 (12/05/2008)

Revenue and Expenditure Data Entry Screen

• This screen underwent major redesign for the last version. User testing exposed several areas needing attention. These issues have been addressed with version 9.0.8.
• Grid rows containing multiple records now display in bold.
• Users are prompted when attempting to edit rows containing muliple records. This is a major improvement over previous versions where the data entry was allowed, but on update, users were told that the records could not be updated, leading to frustration.
• Single records may be deleted by entering a 0 into the Amount cell.

Quick Entry Data Entry Screen

• This screen has also been improved to display multiple records exist in bold and preventing users from editing cells containing mulitple records.
• NEW! Revenue and Expenditure Major Account selection dropbox. Improved navigation by allowing the user to change major revenue or expenditure accounts without closing the screen.
• NEW! This screen is now available from the Administrative Financials screen. This option is particularly helpful for districts having multiple administrative cost centers.
• NEW! This screen is now available from the Prep Kitchen Expenditures screen. This option is particularly helpful for districts having multiple Prep Kitchens. (this option is only available when the SFSD Prep Kitchen Add-On Module for FUNDamentals has been installed)

Administrative Financials Data Entry Screen

• This screen has also been improved to display multiple records exist in bold and preventing users from editing cells containing mulitple records.
• Quick Entry button added to provide an alternative form of data entry.
• Accounts Drop Down menu allows for easy filtering by major revenue or expenditure account.

Inventory Values Duplication

• Corrected a rare issue where initial inventory values carried over from the previous year (through the Year End Rollover) were duplicated. This would cause the Beginning Inventory Values for a report starting in July to be doubled.

Version 9.0.7

Reports - Reworked Inventory Usage Report

• Added new option for the Inventory Usage Report to allow for 'Kitchen Facilities Only' which combines the schools operating as part of a Prep Kitchen Group back into the hosting site. This allows users to quickly see how these Prep Groups are operating as a whole.

Eligibility Data Entry Screen

• The Eligibility Data Entry Screen has been entirely redesigned and now features:
  • All schools listed together for easier data entry.
  • Schools may be sorted by school name or cost center code to match reports from your point of service system.
  • Eligibility or application counts may be entered for all NSLP programs (universal) or for each program separately.
  • Users now have the option to write records for all successive months or for only the month selected.
  • The Average Daily Attendance factor has been removed from this screen and moved to the School Information screen, reducing the amount of data entry required.
  • Totals have been added so that this screen may be printed as an eligibility report for the whole district.
  • The district Free and Reduced percentage is calculated and appears in the grid footer.

Inventory Data Entry Screen

• The sorting function now places the cost center code to the left of the site name making for easier reading.

Revemue and Expenditure Data Entry Screen (Massive Overhaul)

• Summary and Detail Accounts are now together on the same screen. No more double-clicking for detailed data entry, or just defaulting to the default ('Local') detail account. Actually, all data entry now takes place under a detail account. Totals are maintained for all Revenues or Expenditures and for the Summary Account shown in the Detail Account grid.
• You asked for it and you got it! The new Revenue/Expenditure Data Entry screen provides cost center and date navigation controls. Now you can change date ranges without leaving the screen! Print the Grids for Summary and Detail accounts for instant reports.
• Quick Entry has been moved to this screen. Quick Entry allows for viewing, or editing of school based detailed accounts in a different format. Schools are listed vertically for each detailled account. This screen may be sorted by Cost Center code or school name.
• Warning indicator now warns if updates are not available for the selected cost center or summary account.

Administrative List

• Corrected a run-time error that would occur if a new prep kitchen was designated using the new Prep Kitchen Designation screen in the Prep Kitchen add-on module.

Administrative Revenues/Expenditures Data Entry Screen

• Corrected an issue that prevented entered information from being recalled correctly.

All List Screens

• Corrected an issue that prevented the Screen Views feature from working correctly.

Version 9.0.6

This update contains significant changes to the NFSMI FUNDamentals Launch Pad and application menus.

NFSMI FUNDamentals Launch Pad Menus

• Application menus were reordered and regrouped in an effort to improve the logical flow of the process from site maintenance through printing reports.

NFSMI FUNDamentals User's Guide

• The NFSMI FUNDamentals User's Guide has been updated!

Meal Pricing (Meal Counts Data Entry)

• Corrected an issue that caused the Paid Breakfast Category for Severe Need Breakfast sites to not display on the Meal Counts Data Entry Screen. This also affected the Meal Pricing Groups screen.

Reports - Inventory Values

• Corrected an error where commodity inventory was not included in the inventory values for the Food section of the report.
• Corrected an error where the wrong total was used to calculate the average for ending value of supplies.

Reports - Consolidated Cost Analysis/Cost Analysis

• Added a new line item under Other Expenses labeled as 'Gen. Op. Supp. (Non-Inv)'. This item is the sum of all General Operating Supplies Expense that have been flagged as Non-Inventoried Supplies. (via the setup screen mentioned below)
• Changed the Gen. Op. Supplies under the Supplies section to 'Gen. Op. Supplies (Inventory)' to represent those general operating supply subcategories that have been flagged as Inventoried Supplies.

Data Entry - Revenue and Expenditure Quick Entry on Detailed Accounts

• Corrected a runtime error that may occur when accessing this screen.

Data Entry - Inventory Values Screen

• Added, per user request, a sorting option for cost center code. Sites may be sorted by site name or cost center code to match documents, reports, or spreadsheets used as the source of information for inventory values..

Program Setup - Inventoried Supplies Setup

• This new setup screen enables specific subcategories of General Operating Supplies Expense to be used in the report calculations involving Inventory or Operating Ratios.

Version 9.0.5

Major Update!!! This update, released for the start of the 2008-2009 school year, contains many new features designed to add functionality and simplify setup and yearly maintenance of the software.

Copy Calendar Utility

• Corrected a runtime error that would occur when clicking the Copy Calendar Utility button in the Production Calendar screen.

Date Options

• We have removed the Daily, Weekly, Yearly, and Custom date options from the NFSMI FUNDamentals Launch Pad and Reports screen. The new options with this release are Monthly or Month Range.

Meal Pricing Groups - Multi-Tiered Pricing is Finally Here!

• Setting meal prices for a school is now accomplished with a single click! The entire process of setting up and maintaining meal prices for each school has been reworked. Instead of maintaining meal prices for each school, meal prices are arranged in Meal Pricing Groups. Schools may belong to one or more Meal Pricing Groups. This design works especially well for K-12 schools where meal prices differ by grade.
• Added the option to automatically deselect current meal pricing groups upon selection of a new group. This option is provided mainly for the initial setup of the NFSMI FUNDamentals software. If mulitple pricing groups are needed for a single school, then the user may deselect this option when choosing the meal price groups for that school.

Reimbursement Rates

• Federal Reimbursement Rates are now maintained in one screen. The layout of this screen is identical to the form that may be downloaded from the USDA and ASFSA websites.
• Federal Reimbursement Rates are now installed and updated based on your state. This is good news for our Alaska users.
• Federal Reimbursement Rates for Lunch may be set for each school simply by selecting the Lunch Reimbursement Level option in the Schools List or in the School Information screen. (Less than 60%, Over 60%, and Maximum Rate)

Meals Served Data Entry Screen

• Users having schools with multiple meal price groups may now enter meal counts by price group. This is important for the calculation of Student Meal Sales. (optional)
• The Meals Served Data Entry Screen now displays a summary table for meal counts for Students and Adults by meal type. A full-fledged printable report for this screen will be available in the next update.

School Maintenance Screens

• The Schools List screen now contains the option for setting the Lunch Reimbursement Level.
• The Schools List screen now has the ability to define and select user defined column layouts.
• The School Information screen Additional Information tab has been redesigned. Additional settings have been added for Lunch Reimbursement Level and Meal Pricing Groups. Meal Program Options are arranged in a more logical (and visually appealing) format.

Bucket Control - The Bucket Stops Here

• The Revenue Generator module (available for all FUNDamentals users under the Utilities menu) now allows users to link generated meals sales revenue and generated reimbursements to a specific revenue subcategory based on the meal program and meal status. Previously, these settings were not user defined and used a diffent subcategory per meal program, per meal status. This meals that mulitple meal programs and/or status types can point to the same revenue subcategory. Example: All Student Lunch Sales link to a subcategory called Generated Student Lunch Sales under the Student Meal Sales account.
• Users now have the ability to remove a long list of revenue subcategories that were previously blocked for editing and deletion. Having a short list of only those subcategories in use (or likely to be used) is helpful when:
  • Customizing NFSMI FUNDamentals to match a district's financial accounting system
  •  Entering or editing detail revenue records
  • Shortening a Profit/Loss report

Reports

• The Group Tree function is now working for all reports. The Group Tree allows for easy navigation through multiple page reports.
• The Reimbursement Report has been completely reworked and now shows school names (instead of abbreviations) and reimbursement rates to provide the entire calculation of meals * rate = x. The report also shows the sum of actual federal reimbursement revenue and any differences between actual and calculated.

Support Options

• The File Upload Utility now has the option to Zip before upload saving time and bandwidth.

Version 9.0.4

Profit/Loss Report

• Fixed a runtime error that would occur when running the Profit/Loss Report in the Detail Mode.

Database Conversion Automation (for workgroups)

• Modified the startup logic for NFSMI FUNDamentals to check in the Application directory and the Database directory for the existence of a specific file to be used for automatic switching of database environments. This is only used for customers needing to perform an in place database upgrade. (from MS Access to SQL Server)

Application Version Checking (for workgroups)

• Modified the startup logic for NFSMI FUNDamentals to check the database version against the current application version. If the application version does not match, then the user is prompted to update the software. This is important only in workgroups in which the application files are not shared.

Version 9.0.3

New Profit/Loss Report

• Added a new report based on the Profit/Loss report. This report consolidates the Administrative Overhead Expense into a single line item. This format is intended to be more 'Manager Friendly' by allowing them to focus more on local expenditures.

School Information List Screen 

• An error was corrected that may prevent newly added schools from appearing in the School Information List Screen.

Average Daily Labor Hours Data Entry Correction

• This screen has been modified to accept decimal input. Previously all entries were rounded to the nearest whole number. This allows users to enter hours in decimal format.

Multiple Reports - Filtering on Single School or Prep Kitchen Group

• Many reports may now be viewed as a single school or schools belonging to a prep group as selected in the cost center drop box.

Version 9.0.2

 ***New*** Data Entry Screen for Indirect Costs Generated Formula Editor

• This new feature allows for the selection, by site, of expense categories to be used when calculating the Indirect Costs Generated section of the Cost Analysis reports. There may be cases where the expenses are paid directly out of the foodservice fund, and therefore should not be included in the formula.
• Improved Troubleshooting and Support Tools make program maintenance much faster and easier.

Version 9.0.1 This release is considered a major update contains many new features and enhancements.

 ***New*** Data Entry Screen for Production Calendars (now called Production Day Counts)

• In the pursuit toward simplicity in order to reduce initial and yearly setup times, we have done away with the old Production Calendar in favor of a Production Day Counts model which simply accepts the number of production days per month. These Production Day Counts may still be copied as before, and may be updated as a group.

***New*** Data Entry Screen for Daily Budgeted Labor Hours

• Again, in the pursuit toward simplicity and clarity, we have done away with the need to maintain Personnel Types and Personnel Profiles, in favor of a single screen to capture local daily budgeted labor hours by school or prep kitchen.

***New*** Data Entry Screen for Monthly Labor Hours

• This new screen shows local and distributed labor hours by school, or local (to be distributed) labor hours for prep kitchens. For school hours, the sources are identified as local, or as the source of distribution. Also, the Estimated hours are identified in a bold blue font on a record by record basis.

***New*** Data Entry Screen for Monthly Ending Inventory Values

• Due to customer request, we have enabled the tracking of Commodity values by month. This screen has been reworked and simplified to accept the data entry of Monthly Ending Values for Purchased Food, Commodities, and Supplies. User also have the option to enter Initial values for these areas. The seperation of Commodities here is optional. Where seperated commodity inventories are kept, the values are displayed on the Cost Analysis reports.

Version 8.0.8

***New*** Sample Data

• We are pleased to finally be able to provide a fully loaded sample dataset that can be used for training, presenting, or evaluating the NFSMI FUNDamentals software! Users may experiment with the sample data without fear, as a new sample database may be replaced if needed.

All List Screens

• All List Screens now start using the date range from the launch pad reducing load time, and often, eliminating the need for a primary filter on dates. This new feature may be turned off to view all records.

Report Changes

• Profit/Loss Report - Reformatted to eliminate totalling on groups with single entries thereby saving vertical space. This saved space allows this to print one site per page for most customers.
• Labor Report - Redesigned this report to eliminate unnecessary columns. This information is now presented in a more clear and concise format.
• Operating Ratios - Redesigned to match the Expenditures section of the Cost Analysis. This new format includes inventory activity for food and supplies as part of the operating ratio formula. Operating Ratios are evaluated by Expenditure groups: Labor (Local and Administrative), Food, Supplies, and Other. This new design includes totals and averages for all columns and rows.

School Information Screen

• Fixed an issue that would prevent updating School Information for a site that also serves as a prep kitchen for other sites.

Version 8.0.7

Revenue and Expenditure - Detailed Account Data Entry - Quick Entry 

• Fixed an issue where using the Quick Entry feature in the Revenue or Expense Detail Accounts data entry screen did not update the summary screen.

Revenue, Expenditure, and Transaction List Screens

• Fixed an issue where revenues and expenditure summary and detail records fail to display in the list screens. This is caused by running an outdated financial import utility. If you suspect that your financial import utility may be outdated, please call 888-228-3120 to ask about an update.

Version 8.0.6

Site Information Screens 

• An error has been corrected that may overwrite an existing site after clicking the Add Site menu option from the sites list screens.
• Corrected issue where sites could not be accessed from the Site Information Menu.
• Corrected issue where the State Drop box in Site Information screens did not set correctly.

Revenue and Expenditure Budget Screens 

• An runtime error has been corrected that may occur when entering annual budget amounts.

Reports 

• Corrected a formatting issue in the Profit/Loss Report
• Installed a missing report file for the Meals Per Labor Hour Report

Administrative Costs (and Revenues) Distribution Screen

• Corrected error that duplicated Administrative Expenditures as local expenditures.
• Corrected an issue that may incorrectly distribute Administrative Expenses for districts not using the One-Click Distribution Utility.

Meal Pricing Screen

• The Meal Pricing Screen now allows copying prices to Selected Sites instead of All Sites.

Version 8.0.5

File Upload Credentials 

• File Upload Functions and Update Processes have been updated due to new security restrictions by our web host.

Version 8.0.4

Reduced Database Error Checking at startup 

• NFSMI FUNDamentals version 8.0.4 starts as much as 400% faster than previous versions as database error checking is now being run against a seperate database version number. This is especially true when connecting through a network connection.

Test Connection Button 

• The Connection Wizard screen now requires you to test the new or current connection before updating or creating connection files. This is extremely useful when troublshooting a new installation or a newly converted database and does not require restarting the application for testing.

Prep Kitchen Charts and Reports

• NFSMI FUNDamentals now allows for consolidated reports and charts on prep kitchens. This function requires the optional Prep Kitchen Add-On Module.

Internal File Upload Utility 

• We have added a new File Upload screen that enables customers to post any file to Visual Solutions'  secure FTP server. This will be extremely useful for troubleshooting data imports. Just browse to the file you need to post and click Upload. Your files are stored in your very own remote folder unique to your state and district.

New Report Sorting Options

• Due to customer request, we have enabled Sorting by Location Code for the Cost Analysis and the Profit/Loss reports. This feature will be enabled for more reports in future versions.

Version 8.0.3

New Profit/Loss Report 

• This new report displays a detailed accounting by sub-category of revenues and expenditures. The report may be viewed in consolidated mode as a summary report, or in detail mode by cost center.

Improved Budget Reports 

• The Budget - Projected vs. Actual Combined Report has been reformatted to use the same color scheme as the other budget reports. This report now shows budget variances only for months with actual data.
• The Annual Budget Report has been reformatted and corrected to show the correct yearly totals.

Version 8.0.2

Drop-Box Navigation on Site Infomation Screens 

• We have made it easier to navigate between sites inside the site information screens. (School Information and Administrative Center Information) Users may now navigate from site to site using a drop-down selection box.

Detailed Data Entry for Administrative Revenues and Expenditures 

• Users may now enter Administrative Revenues and Expenditures for revenue and expenditure subcategories. These subcategories may be standard or user defined. Naturally, this allows the program to distribute these administrative revenues and expenditures keeping the distributed amounts in the same detailed account. This screen can now work in conjunction with the Administrative Distribution Module by using distribution rules for specific Administrative Sites and Revenue or Expense categories. For example, a rule may be set for Donated Commodity expenses entered for the district to be distributed to the schools as a local expense (Donated Commodity Expense) instead of an Administrative Overhead Expense, affecting any expense reporting.

Expenditure Data Entry Screen

• The Expenditure Data Entry Screen now correctly displays Administrative Overhead Expenses. A double-click on Administrative Overhead Expenses will display the standard Administrative Expenditure category and any other expenditure sub categories that have been distributed as Administrative Overhead Expenditures.

Drop-Box Navigation on Administrative Financials Data Entry Screen 

• We have made it easier to navigate between sites inside the Administrative Financials data entry screen. Users may now navigate from site to site using a drop-down selection box.

Revenue and Expenditure Detail Report

• The date range has been added to the Revenue and Expenditure Detail Report.

Technical Support Tools added for easier on-line problem solving

• We have added several new support utilities specifically designed for troubleshooting database issues. These tools can greatly reduce the time required to find and fix a customer database issue either remotely or as a walkthrough with a technical support person.

New Security Measures are in place

• Visual Solutions, the developer of NFSMI FUNDamentals and all Add-On Modules for FUNDamentals, has been granted a security certificate from Thawte Security Authority. All downloaded and installed executable files for the NFSMI FUNDamentals software application will now have our security certificate embedded. This assures the end user that the files being downloaded and installed are genuine and do not pose a security risk.

Version 8.0.1

Added Functionality for the Cost Analysis Report

• Users may now view/print a consolidated cost analysis report on administrative centers or prep kitchens to show the summary information for those schools serviced by the selected administrative site.

Version 7.0.9

New Help Menu Options

• New Help menu options include direct links to customer support resources including downloads, documentation, live on-line support, and customer error reporting.

New Check for Update menu was added

• This feature alerts customers when an update is available and displays the reason for the update.

New Regenerate Reimbursements utility added

• This utility recalculates existing reimbursements on a record by record basis instead of creating new records based on a date range like the Generate Revenues utility does.

New conversion process when a breakfast program is changed

• Before version 7.0.9, it was possible to lose records by changing a school's breakfast program from regular breakfast to severe need breakfast or vice versa. User's may not realize that the breakfast program is incorrect until they attempt to reconcile against a claim. The software will now convert the existing breakfast meals to the new setting when a change is made to the school breakfast program.

Report Changes

• Cost Analysis/Consolidated Cost Analysis
  • Formatting and grouping of rev/exp
  • Corrected multiple formula errors
• Meal Equivalents
  • Formatting
  • Now displays % of total
• Reimbursement Report
  • Formatting (page margins)
• Plate Cost
  • Formatting (page margins)
• *NEW* Fund Balance and Current to 3 month Average Ratio Report
  • This information previously was part of the Cost Analysis report but was removed per user request. Fund Balances may be tracked at the district or school level based on user setup.

Setup Wizard Datasource Updated

• The information file used to populate the initial setup for FUNDamentals has been updated to 2004-2005. This means that more accurate district and school information is available during the setup resulting in shorter setup times.

Version 7.0.8

Eligibility Data Entry Screen

• The Eligibility Data Entry Screen has been modified to allow monthly entry instead of daily. 

Version 7.0.7

Data Entry for Meal Counts

• The New Quick Entry Screen provides an alternate method for keying meal counts by meal type vs. one school at a time. The list may be sorted by School Name or Cost Center Code.

Reimbursement Rates Setup Screen

• Added ‘Apply to All’ checkbox for clarity.

Meal Pricing Setup Screen

• Added ‘Apply to All’ checkbox for clarity.

Production Calendar Setup Screen

• Added ‘Apply to All’ checkbox for easier modification of production calendar day types on existing calendars.

Previous Program Enhancements

Faster List Screens

• List Screens for FUNDamentals beginning with version 7.0.2 have been redesigned for speed. The new screens will typically load 8-10 times faster than previous versions. We have also added an Autosum feature.

New Sorting and Filtering Functions for List Screens  

• New sorting and filtering functions have been added to the List Screens that allow you to undo the last sort or filter performed.

New Reports

• We have changed the format for many of the standard FUNDamentals Reports to enable school based comparisons. All reports now have a drill-down option which allows the user to more quickly find the information they are looking for. We have also added a few new reports:

  • Reimbursement Report - displays all meal counts and earned Federal reimbursements
  • Inventory Usage Report - displays the average daily usage and days left in inventory for food and non-food
  • Participation Comparatives - new format for the Average Daily Participation Report
  • Revenue and Expenditure Detail - displays the summaries and details for all Revenue and Expense categories. This new report is a great example of using the new drill-down feature.

Redesigned Reports Screen

• The Reports List screen has been modified for easier switching of date ranges. The date selection is identical to that used on the launch pad. We have also added the ability to view reports as site-based or consolidated. This option only displays when appropriate to eliminate confusion.

Personnel Categories Screen

• The Personnel Categories screen now features a cost center drop box for fast switching between cost centers.

New Value of Inventory Data Entry Screen

• This new data entry screen enables the user to enter monthly beginning and ending inventory values for food and non-food. This data is then used to calculate average daily inventory usages and days remaining in inventory.

New Source Columns for List Screens

• New columns in the following list screens allow users to track the source of data. This makes it possible to view only those records that were distributed from a specific administrative cost center.

  • Revenues List
  • Expenditures List
  • Transactions List