ServiceDesk 4.4.89 Update 12/05/10

We must thank David and Paul Manning, at Sharper Electronics in Portland, for this continuing series of improvements.  Their intense need, for perfect and complete PartsProcess management, is what's spurred this flurry of activity.  Aside from one added report (to tally reasons why ordered parts ended up not being used), I believe this installment fulfills their needs -- and likely almost anyone else's, as well. 

1.    We now have much-enhanced secondary filtering of items displayed, in both the current PartsProcess form (F8) and for when reviewing items "not-yet-in-the-grave" via the archived PartsProcess form (Ctrl-F8).  To properly accommodate these enhancements, there was a need to totally re-do the menu system as applicable in both contexts.  It is, indeed, now much modernized.  Here's a comparison in the current context:

Old Menu in the F8 formNew Menu in the F8 form

The archived context is similarly changed, though in a manner unique to that venue.  In lieu of illustrating here, please, just check it live, yourself. 

2.    Core-return management has been added to the SD-Mobile context.  When we first created explicit core-return management back in August, we intended to immediately follow by placing into the Mobile context some corresponding functions.  For example, if for any part you've created a core-return daughter band within ServiceDesk, it's logical that if a tech working via Mobile indicates usage on the part, he should immediately be confronted with an extremely strong message informing him that it's a core-return item, and soliciting his affirmation that he has indeed retrieved the old part for return.  As it happened, I got sidetracked on other projects and did immediately get this related work done.  However, it is done presently. 

3.    Created a "Resurrection" facility to deal with the situation where you forgot to add a core-return daughter band, and the parent process item was already archived.  Just locate the archived item in the archived PartsProcess form (Ctrl-F8), right-click within the right two-thirds of the info-band, then follow the prompts. 

4.    Created a "New-Daughter-Band-In-Archive" facility to assist in better tracking of steps as taken in managing a needed parts return.  The general idea is that you can use the various date boxes, and such, in a manner that parallels what you do in managing a core return (i.e., document when you requested an RMA, when when you shipped, tracking number, precisely when credit was received (and on what invoice number), etc. -- all via an added daughter-band that you add for the purpose.  To invoke, begin by using precisely the same click action as described for #3, above, then just follow the menu in an appropriate alternate fashion.