AQHA Leveling - How Will Show Management Handle It?

It's 10:15 PST (1:15 my time) and I'm sitting in the Las Vegas airport waiting for my flight home. My first time in Vegas and I just spent the week out here...beginning at an AQHA show management seminar (also my first) and then observing the new Leveling classes at the Silver Dollar Circuit Horse Show.

Quite a week it's been. It was great to put faces to many of the voices I have been talking to all these years. Good to get kudos of our software as well as get some new ideas for future updates.

The new leveling will be put in place in 2013 by AQHA. What will that mean for show management? Horse Show for Windows already does concurrent classes so setting up the Open classes to run with either the Progressive or Intermediate class is something the software already does. What we have to work on is the Open class results need to include the placings of the Progressive or Intermediate without giving them points for both the Open class and the Progressive or Intermediate.

At the test shows they have held so far, the exhibitors are really appreciating the new system. In the office and the announcer's stand is where the extra work comes in. If you aren't already doing so, a computer in the announcer's stand connected to the network in the office would go a long way to helping with that. Placings for the class overall are being announced as usual but those in just the Progressive or Intermediate class need to be announced as well. With someone inputting the results immediately, the program will figure correct placings for just those entries in the Progressive or Intermediate class and the announcer will be ready to go either by viewing the results on the monitor or having a printout run right away.

Once we make the adjustments to the software to allow for keeping the correct placings, we will outline the best way to set up your shows to let the program do the work. Keep an eye out for the changes.

Update for 2012

Horse Show for Windows' newest update has been posted. It can be downloaded from our website at any time.

A Maintenance Contract expiring 12/2012 is required for installing the newest version of HSW so if you haven't purchased one, you'll need to do so BEFORE downloading/installing.

Cost is $175 to download or $225 to have CD's mailed to you. Credit cards can be used to purchase online or a check can be sent to 3292 Atlin Ave, Dublin, OH 43017.

New items in v7.75

• Rules 2012 - APHA new classes, skill set changes, Walk/Trot division addition and error checking, judge's cards
• Rules 2012 - AQHA new classes
• Rules 2012 - ApHC new classes
• Rules 2012 - PtHA updated classes
• Rules 2012 - NRCHA updated judge's sheets
• Awards - Circuit/Hi-Point - allow to sort by just exhibitor
• Awards - Circuit/Hi-Point - added sex of exhibitor
• Awards - Circuit/Hi-Point - allowed restriction of classes held in the working show to Pre-Set Lists
• Charges - Fixed error in selecting the correct approving association for a class fee when class code was used in more than one association
• Reports - Back Number List - added sex of exhibitor and age group
• Reports - Information for Publication - ability to print Master or Subsidiaries for all options
• Results/Scoring - Verify - added showbill number and number shown to judge verification report to allow for easy posting of results with multiple judges
• Statement - cropped show ID so there will be no wrapping and taking extra lines
• Utilities - Swap Judge for Working or All Shows - can swap judge for a range of classes instead of the entire show

v7.72 Now Available

V7.71 was posted several weeks ago and a few CD's were mailed. It included:

• Rules 2011 - AQHA new classes
• Rules 2011 - AQHA skill set changes
• Rules 2011 - Category X added
• Rules 2011 - NRCHA new judges sheets
• Continuing Windows 7/Vista issue - adding more than one show to database (three dummy shows added to any database that doesn't have three for 2011 already)
• FAQ's updated
• Awards - Circuit/Hi-Points - printing age of horse instead of foal year
• Reports - Announcer's Report - owner information adjusted for less confusion in reading names and city/state
• Reports - Back Number Labels - pushing number of classes listed to new line if they didn't fit on the first line
• Reports - Fee Accumulation - export to Excel, PDF, and RTF added
• Reports - Information for Publication - export to Excel added
• Reports - Results by Class - adjusted judge title from 3th to 3rd
• Reports - Statements - adjusted final balance to print with parenthesis to show a credit
• Reports - Statements - adjusted wrong name printed on continuation page where no charges are printed on final pageResults/Entries - adjusted scoring screen to include correct exhibitor (if horse was ridden by more than one exhibitor, program was just pulling first exhibitor it found)

New 2011 APHA information was late getting to us and has been added so v7.72 is now ready for downloading and all CD's are being mailed today (3/2/11). What's included in v7.72?

• Rules 2011 - APHA new classes
• Rules 2011 - APHA skill set changes
• Rules 2011 – USEF adjustments to data file
• ABRA class list updated – removed unused classes/adjusted names of a few incorrect classes
• Awards – All Arounds – scratched horses are no longer being included so that horses don’t have eligibility for categories where they didn’t actually show
• Awards – Circuit/Hi-Point – allow export to Excel (has some issues still – may need to abort the report but save what was generated and just delete the excess)
• Reports – Judges cards – date of show now printing on AQHA cards
• Excel export updated for any reports with export to Excel available

Update can be downloaded at our website.

Remember that a Maintenance Contract expiring 12/2011 is required for installing the newest versions of Horse Show for Windows so if you haven't purchased one, you'll need to do so BEFORE downloading/installing.

Cost is $175 to download or $225 to have Cd's mailed to you. Credit cards can be used to purchase online or a check can be sent to 3292 Atlin Ave, Dublin, OH 43017.

2011 update available shortly

The first release of Horse Show for Windows for 2011 is coming shortly. A Maintenance Contract expiring 12/2011 is required to run version 7.71.

AQHA rule changes, new NRCHA judge's sheets, and many user requests are being implemented. Our FAQ's are being updated along with generating some YouTube help videos (networking set up has already been posted) that we expect to add to throughout the season.

Anyone who has not yet purchased their contract for 2011 will need to do so BEFORE downloading and updating their software as you will not be able to run v7.71 with contracts that expire in 12/2010. Cost for new contracts is $175 to download all updates for 2011 OR $225 to have us mail you a CD - both options include a $200 credit toward techinal support for the year. Credit card purchases can be done at our website - www.funnware.com/orderonline.php - and license information will be emailed after payment has been received and processed. If you are mailing us a check, please do so at FunnWare Development, 3292 Atlin Ave, Dublin, OH 43017 and include a valid email address for those that are purchasing the download option so we can send license information via email.

As always, thanks for your continued support of Horse Show for Windows. Have a great 2011 show season!

Networking and HSW

Horse Show for Windows is a fully networkable program. As the back-end database is currently Microsoft Access, there are a few limitations. Size can’t go over 2G (extremely rare for our users) and the number of computers actively writing to the database should not exceed four/five or you’ll start seeing major speed issues.

The software itself only needs to be loaded on one computer. The database also sits on that computer usually in the same directory as the program. The directory is then shared across the network allowing all users complete access. Sharing the folder is done easily through Windows Explorer (watch a video to see how it’s done on Windows XP or Vista/Windows 7).

Networking can be done any number of ways. Peer-to-peer is generally easiest with two computers, where the computers are connected directly to each other with a cable. With more than two computers, a router is the better way to go where the computer with the program and database is connected to the router as well as any other computers in the network.

Wireless networking is NOT recommended for any database program and all computers that will be writing to the HSW database should be hard-wired. Wireless connections are prone to drops and if the network has dropped while HSW is writing to the database, data may be lost and the potential for corruptions is high.

Once the folder is shared and the network is up and running, secondary computers will access HSW through the network. An icon on the desktop of the secondary computers can be setup for direct usage (watch a video to see how it’s done on Windows XP or Vista/Windows 7).

Printers can be connected to the network itself (also wired into the router) or connected to each individual computer. HSW uses the Windows printing capabilities so if your printer is accessible through Windows, it should also be accessible through HSW. You can change access to the printer from any Printer Setup box in any of the report restriction screens.

Vacation for FunnWare Development

Midway through the summer already - wow! It's hard to believe but time is passing quickly. And it's time we gave ourselves a break while the weather is still good. No one will be in the office next week starting Monday, July 19th and back in the office on Monday, July 26th.

The iPhone will be with someone so access to phone, email, and voice mail continues to be available. Do note that starting Wednesday of next week, the phone will be on a boat in Chesapeake Bay watching my son sail in the Opti Nationals so be patient with call backs!

If you haven't yet purchased your update for the season, remember that we manually generate license information based on the modules you own so someone needs to be at a computer to do it - not just the iPhone. We will have limited access to a computer and internet but your best bet is to get it done before the end of this week if you need it within the next week or so.

As always, purchasing can be done by sending a check or using your credit card online at our website and we'll send out new license information as soon as possible after payment is received. Cost is $150 to download the updates or $200 to have us mail you a CD and printed manual.

On another note, we are working on several new blog posts regarding networking, show setup, and best practices with HSW so stay tuned.

Two in a Month - is that a record?

Maybe not -but considering it's been months since I posted before the one a week ago, it's close.

By now, many of you have updated and started using the new version of the software and continue with your tech support without breaking the bank. For those of you who have not, it's best to get updated before you really need it (i.e. the Friday night of your first show of the season) as our licenses are manually generated so even purchasing through our website won't give you immediate access to the update.

On that note, no one will actually be in the office next week as we approach the Easter holiday weekend. As usual, someone will have the iPhone and therefore have access to voice and email for any help you might need - however, please realize that someone needs to be at a computer with internet access in order to generate and send you new license information so be proactive with your purchasing to give everyone enough time to get you the information you need to be current.

For those of you who celebrate it, have a blessed Easter.