eSales handles the primary task of daily business: the buying and selling of goods. eProducts supports eSales with a listing of items, and maintains inventory for those businesses which need that capability.

eSales integrates with UPS WorldShip (PC only, UPS daily pick-up account required. It can run on a Mac through emulation software). This a savings of several hundred dollars compared to third party plug-ins offered by other companies.

eSales makes the buying and selling of goods quick and easy. Create a Purchase Order from a Sales Order or vice-versa. Create multiple Purchase Orders to support a single Sales Order. eSales records are linked directly to eProducts and eFinance records. For example, to a deposit paid on a purchase order or a sales order. Grab the group of records and open them as a crosstab report to calculate the profitability for calculating a commission. Records can be assigned to an agent for calculating commissions, too.

eSales stores three separate dates: Date, Due Date and Ship Date. This gives maximum capability for planning and scheduling, and are viewable in eCalandar by selection. The meaning of these dates changes as the transaction progresses. For example, the Due Date on a Sales Order is when the client expects their goods, but the Due Date on an Invoice is when you expect to be paid.

eSales can fax or e-mail forms (purchase orders, invoices, quotes, etc), and keeps track of if a record has been printed or not. eSales tracks the entire transaction cycle with a to-do status. The to-do stays active until the transaction is completed with the final payment.

Discounts can be handled in three different ways; on a line-by-line basis, through payment terms, and by coding a discount rate in a customer's profile.

eSales can select a grouping in eContacts. For example, select all Sales Orders with a particular item, then select those clients in eContacts. From there, compose a bulk e-mail.

Do not fall into the trap of trying to run your business with a bookkeeping application.

eCalendar stores four types of records: Appointments, Events, To-Do, and Memo. In addition to the Edit and List windows, there are four other windows: Daily, Weekly, Multi-day and Monthly views.

You do not need to keep a busy schedule to make use of eCalendar. eCalendar displays records from other modules! For example, you can see orders from eSales that are due in the Daily view, or payments deposited in eFinance in Week view, or birthdays in eContacts in Month view. It is very flexible in regard to what records appear. eCalendar gives you a dramatically different view of your data, and an action plan for today and the future.

For those with a busy schedule, eCalendar can create recurring records. Just enter the begin and end date, and choose the frequency based on week, day of the week, etc.

eCalendar also stores special dates for holidays, anniversaries and birthdays.

To track and total employee hours, just enter their schedule (daily or as a recurring record) and open a crosstab to see the totals at the end of the pay period.

eCalendar is significantly different than other calendar programs, but can be used as a simple calendar, too.

eCalculator is the best computer calculator in the world.

The Loan Calculator can produce an editable amortization table. Enter extra payments and it will update with your new payment schedule.

World Timer is a world clock, a timer and a stopwatch.

Each module in eTopia contains two primary windows; the Edit window and the List window. The Edit window displays one record at a time.

The Edit window includes a search mechanism called QuickSearch.You use the same text editor to edit and to search! Wherever there is a small triangle to the left of the field title, then that field has QuickSearch. Enter new data into the field (or use the exiting data) and click-hold on the title. The entire database will be searched instantly, and all matching values will appear in the pop-up. Choose the one you want, and you will navigate to that record. If you just wanted to view matching records, release without selecting. Hit Escape to clear the data and return to the original value.

You can set the skin color, point size, font and font color in the Edit and List windows. You can also name and save multiple window settings.

In eContacts, where there are 30 custom fields, you can set four of the text editors in the Edit window to a custom field. If you need more than four displayed, then use the Custom Edit window instead. Saving a window setting also saves its unique custom field setting, too.

Each module in eTopia contains two primary windows; the Edit window and the List window. The List window displays multiple records in a columns by rows format.

The List window contains all the fields in the database, except for eContacts. eContacts has two List windows, a List window and a Custom List window, to accommodate the many custom fields.

Columns can be adjusted for width and moved left or right to get any particular order. You can set the skin color, point size, font and font color, highlight color and line height in the List Window. You can also name and save multiple window settings.

Sorting can be on any column, and Sorting Within other columns is possible, too. The above example is sorted by Last name and then First name.

ListSearch is a mechanism for searching a matching value. For example, type a letter and click-hold on a column header and all records that begin with that letter will appear in the pop-up. Type two letters, and all records with that combination will appear in the pop-up. Use modifier keys to select within, select additional, deselect or find. This may sound confusing, but it is very easy. For example, you can see a list of all your open Sales Orders with a single click.

As you are working, the database is constantly changing what is selected. The List window acts like an internet browser, and it is possible to toggle back to a previous selection. Check open Invoices, then check open Sales Orders, and go back again. eTopia does not have a lot of windows because it is faster to just bring the information you need to the screen you are in.

Every module in eTopia features either clone (Edit More) or Duplicate windows, sometimes both. A Duplicate window does not contain editable record data. For example, the calculators in eCalculator can be duplicated. The calculations themselves are not associated with a record.

An Edit More window is a clone of the Edit window, where record data can be edited. If you were to duplicate a calculator, you could have many calculator windows open with the same data in each one. With a clone window, record data can only appear twice simultaneously. However, you can have many Edit More windows open simultaneously.

Why is this important? Because eTopia keeps all records together. If you need to view a customer record and a vendor record simultaneously (or two customer records and two vendor records) you do so by opening Edit More windows.

It is also easy to select multiple records, and then toggle through them in the Edit window.

In eTopia, there are many ways to locate and view your data.

eTopia has an extremely robust system for printing reports, envelopes and labels. Labels and envelopes can both accept images. Create and store as many design layouts as you need.

It is not necessary to purchase new checks. The check layout window is very flexible and can be adjusted to print on your existing checks.

Importing and exporting is easy and follows standard conventions using .txt files; commas, tabs or tabs without quotes. Data can be opened in Excel, Numbers, and other programs with just a few clicks. In addition, archives can be made of any data file.

Crosstabs are a unique feature of eTopia, and best understood as a 'database of your database.' Records you select are opened in a raw Panorama database, giving you a different look at your information. All standard Panorama commands can be applied, but it is a non-destructive environment. The original data will be untouched. If necessary, changes can be made and the data imported as fresh data, and the old data can be deleted. Power users will appreciate this feature. Crosstab files can also be exported.

eTopia supports vCard, iCal, and QIF formats. If two businesses both use eTopia, one can export a Purchase Order which will then import as a Sales Order.

eClipboard is not a module, but a functionality built into every module. Anything you cut or copy while working inside eTopia is automatically saved to eClipboard.

eClipboard also works with the system clipboard to give you the effect of a multiple clipboard application. The only caveat is that you must activate eTopia between clips for it to read the system clipboard into eClipboard, and it is text only.

If you are harvesting data, or working on complicated texts, eClipboard is a great asset. Plus, the clips are editable in eClipboard, and eClipboard contains search and replace commands. It is great for stripping out characters taken from an internet page.

If you are a student or a writer, you can copy your work before making any significant changes, and have a working copy and historical copies simultaneously. eClipboard does not save when eTopia closes, but you can save the contents to a Notes page.

Each module has its own Notes window (seven in all), which is a multi-page notebook. Use it to store whatever information is useful. The Notes window is not field data, and does not reside on the server in a client-server set-up. Notes is machine local, meaning any user who logs in on that file can read the Notes. It is possible to export and import Notes manually, if it is data that needs to be shared among users.

The old saying about computers is 'garbage in, garbage out.'

Fixing, changing and finding data is why people love to use databases instead of limited programs. With eTopia, you get the best of both worlds: the ability to manipulate data like a raw database, and the commands to accomplish daily tasks.

The two commands that manipulate data best are Replace Text and Formula Fill. They are located under the Record menu. Replace text can also scrub your data, removing leading or trailing blank spaces, and change the capitalization. This is very useful after importing data, such as a mailing list or your current contact file. You can also update prices in eProducts by either a fixed amount or as a percentage.

Formula Fill allows you to apply Panorama commands to your data. Of course, you must know the correct programming language syntax. Power-users will appreciate this feature.

eTopia is a program that will help you to grow your business. You will not be limited as your needs evolve. People have said that the success of Wal-Mart is due to its database infrastructure. Now YOU can enjoy the same power.