Any update you run from the 'Updates' menu can affect all or most of the subscribers to a publication at one time. When you run an update, QuickFill examines all the subscriptions to one or more publications. Then, depending on the status of each subscription, it performs functions such as generating bills or renewal notices, creating issue labels, and/or changing the status of the subscription. Some of the updates perform two or more functions at once. The 'Issue labels' update, for example, generates labels for issues. But it also changes the status of a subscription from "active" to "expired" as soon as it creates the label for the last issue in the subscription.
Unlike many other fulfillment systems, QuickFill doesn't tie you to a rigid schedule for running updates. Depending on the fulfillment policies you chose under 'Definitions', you can run some of the updates as frequently as once a day or as infrequently as once a month. Say, for instance, you want to send new subscribers their first issue as quickly as possible. You can enter new orders daily and run the 'Issue labels' update at the end of each day. QuickFill will generate an issue label for just those subscriptions that have yet to receive the current issue. Click here for details on the factors you should consider in scheduling each of the updates.
Before you run any updates, it is important to understand that many of the policies you set up under 'Definitions' determine what happens when you run the various updates. Therefore, you should make sure you are familiar with each of the definitions.
If you have purchased and installed additional custom update programs, they will appear under the 'Custom updates' menu item. A custom update will only appear as a menu option if it is compatible with the version of QuickFill you are running. If a custom update disappears from the menu after installing a new version of QuickFill, either you forgot to install the updated version of the custom program or we forgot to send it to you. If you cannot find the correct version of the program, please contact Technical Support.
Note: backups
If an update fails to run to completion, you cannot restart it. QuickFill will not let you access your database after an incomplete update. You must restore your database and start the update again. For this reason, it is extremely important that you make a backup of your database before running any of the updates. (Click here for more information on backing up your system.)
The Updates menu offers the following commands:
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The Billing update generates bills, suspends or cancels orders for nonpayment, and writes off small amounts due according to the definitions for your publications and billing series. | |
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The main function of the Issue labels update is to generate labels for issues. However, this update also performs the following actions: it produces labels for premiums, produces bills if you send the first bill with the first issue for a new order, produces renewal notices and renewal labels if you use "by issues" renewal series, reactivates temporarily suspended subscriptions, cancels orders at expiration and writes off amounts due, changes active orders to expired and future orders to active, sets the status of orders to graced, and writes off small amounts due. | |
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The Renewal notices update generates renewal notices and renewal labels for "by days" renewal series according to the definitions for your publications and renewal series. | |
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The Credit card charges update processes credit card charges entered into your database since the last time the update was run. This update creates a file that can be electronically transmitted to your bank. | |
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The Refunds update produces a list of subscriptions that are to receive refunds and changes the subscription's order record to show that a refund has been issued. | |
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Trial subscriptions |
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The Make trial subscriptions update creates subscriptions for existing customers and prospects in your database. | |
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The Cancel trial subscriptions update is used to perform mass cancellations of zero priced, zero paid, non-renewed trial subscriptions. | |
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Controlled subs |
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The Make controlled subscriptions update is used to create controlled subscriptions for prospects or to reactivate expired subscribers. We recommend that you run the Qualified circulation report prior to running this update so that you can determine the impact that the Make controlled subscriptions update will have. (This update may only be accessed from the audit system.) | |
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The Cancel controlled subscriptions update is used to perform mass cancellations of nonpaid controlled subscriptions. We recommend that you run the Qualified circulation report prior to running this update so that you can determine the impact that the Cancel controlled subscriptions update will have. (This update may only be accessed from the audit system.) | |
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The Merge duplicates update searches through your database for duplicate customer records and merges them together. | |
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Purge Updates |
The Purge updates do not cause the size of your database to decrease, but they do make space available for new records so that your files will not grow as fast as they would have otherwise. |
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The Purge expired subscriptions update deletes expired subscriptions. This update also provides the option of creating a prospect record for each subscription being purged. | |
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The Purge history orders update deletes order records that are no longer active, but does not delete the subscription or customer records. | |
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The Purge subscription history update allows you to delete information from the subscription history of customers. | |
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The Purge prospects update allows you to delete prospect records based on mailing list and/or the date on which the prospects were entered into your database. | |
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The One-shot labels update allows you to print the one-shot labels that have accumulated since the last time the update was run. One-shot labels are generated by the 'One-shot labels' update. | |
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Change series |
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Use the change billing series update to switch a group of orders from one billing series to another. | |
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Use the change renewal series update to switch a group of orders from one renewal series to another. | |
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Use this update to manipulate the name and address fields of customers' records. Addresses can be changed to be all upper case or upper-and-lower case, the 'Sex' field can be set based on prefix and first name, and/or the 'Prefix' field can be set based on the 'Sex' field. | |
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Use this update to make mass corrections to orders. You can also use it to extend subscriptions. |