Linked Software's Vista-ready Front Desk program is the perfect add-on to MMS for controlling access and managing member activity. Combined with the card reader of your choice Front Desk automatically validates the member's card and alerts you if all entry conditions are not met.

Because member photos are maintained in your MMS database expensive membership cards with photos are not required.

The Front Desk Main window is a simple uncluttered screen ready for you to begin accepting card reader (or manual) input.

The buttons across the top show the most important features of Front Desk. From left to right, the first two buttons let you alternatively open and close organizations. In Front Desk you can manage as many different (and independent organizations) as you need. In this window the small Example Organization is open and a member's card has already been scanned.

The third button from the left (Note Pad) lets you leave a message for any member which will be be automatically opened when the member checks in.

The Printer button takes you to the report window and the Chart button let's you display the management charts of your choice.

Click the Down Arrow to learn more about the Check In window.

The Check In window is the "work horse" window of Front Desk. From this window you select the options for the program and validate the member's card when it passes through your card reader.

You can either check members in or check members out by clicking the large In or Out toggle button. By using the optional check out feature you can record and report the time spent in an activity or in the building. In addition you can display and print a list of members "Still here".

When the member's card is scanned all photos in the member's MMS database are available to you. If there is more than one photo for that member you can click the scroll buttons below, the photo, to review them all. You can even click the photo to enlarge it.

If there is a message waiting for the member it will be automatically displayed.

By entering an Event and/or an Activity the member will be automatically logged in to the Event and/or Activity at check in.

The Activity button lets you review (and adjust if necessary) all check in history for the member.

By clicking the Family button all family members will be listed. By clicking the Company button all members of the same company will be shown. These options are especially useful if you have family or company membership plans.

Click the Setup button to enter your own validation criteria as described in the next sections.

A variety of information is stored on this window and its associated tabs to customize Front Desk to suit your needs.

You can automatically test for many conditions in Front Desk. If these conditions are not met at check in they will be displayed on the check in window and optionally sound a distinct audio warning.

Automatically checking for an accounts receivable balance is one of the most valuable features of Front Desk.

The member's MMS Followup Date, Birthday and any other MMS date can also be automatically monitored.

Click the Down Arrow to see how to to set up the audio warnings of your choice.

This tab lets you select the sound to be played at check in to alert you that a monitored condition has been flagged.

Any sound file of wav format can be played by Front Desk. A number of these files are included with the Front Desk program. By searching your hard drive or the internet for wav files you can find and use the ones you like best for your situation.

To change the sound file simply click the Looking Glass button beside the file name and select any wav on your computer.

Aural warnings are useful because an attendant does not need to be watching all check in transactions but will only need to respond to any warning signals. Of course your computer will need a sound card and speakers.

Charting by Front Desk is virtually automatic. To display activity charts click on the Chart button on the tool bar.

The Activity Chart or Graph setup window will be displayed.

On this window you have a choice of ten different display formats including comparisons with prior periods. The Base Date lets you choose the time period for the display. The Activity button lets you display a single activity and the Single Member button lets you chart that member's activity only. Otherwise all members' activity will be shown.

Click the Display Bar Chart button or the Display Line Graph button to create the chart or graph for the selected Display Type.

A sample chart is shown in the next section.

This sample chart was created with two mouse clicks. Charting in Front Desk couldn't be simpler!

On the top are Buttons to change the color of the display and printed report, to select the printer and to print the chart. Any chart or graph you display can optionally be printed.

These charts and graphs can provide you with important management information at a glance. Comparative charts (this year versus last year, this month versus last month) let you spot trends instantly.

Move to the next section to see how easy it is to setup reports to print in Front Desk.

The Report Setup window is very easy to use. Like the Chart Setup window you simply choose the options you want and then click the Print button. You will be given the option to preview the report before you print.

You can choose weekly, monthly or year-to-date reporting periods, with or without comparative information. Then select the content you want to report such as the most active members, least active members or members with no activity at all. Then click the Print button. That's it!

Please take the time to download the "no strings attached" free trial. We believe you will be impressed MMS and Front Desk.

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