STI Version 10 Conversion Instructions
for Converting Version 9 Systems and Case Master Version 2

These instructions are used to convert the following STI systems to Version 10:

PracticeMaster vs. Case Master Note:  The Case Master software name was changed to PracticeMaster with the release of Version 10.6 in May 2002.

The conversion program, STCONV10.EXE, will convert all of the above systems at the same time. Check boxes are included in these conversion instructions when the same task must be performed for more than one system. If a particular step applies to systems that your firm is not converting, simply skip that step.

We recommend reading through all of these instructions before proceeding. We realize that these instructions at first glance may seem overwhelming, but they cover all of the issues that have been encountered during the course of our testing. Many of these issues will probably not even apply to your firm. However, all firms converting the software are advised to perform the steps listed in order to isolate any problems and address them before converting.

Because there are many steps involved, it may not be practical to perform all pre-conversion steps at the same time. You can perform the pre-conversion steps at any time before converting.

Our Technical Support Department is available to assist you with any questions you may have. Please call us at (402) 423-1440 if you have any questions regarding this conversion.

Note:  If you are converting software with a version other than those listed above, call STI for a different set of installation and conversion instructions.

Notes

RUNNING ON A NETWORK:  If running on a network, we recommend running the actual conversion during non-peak usage. (Tip:  If you are running on a Windows network, running the conversion from the file server will take considerably less time if you have a large amount of data.)

PREVIOUS VERSIONS:  Previous versions of the programs will no longer be accessible once the conversion has been completed.

WINDOWS OPERATING SYSTEM:  Version 10 requires Windows 95 or greater or Windows NT 4.0 or greater. Version 10 will not run under Windows 3.1, Windows 32S or Windows NT 3.5.1.

HOTDOCS:  If using PracticeMaster’s HotDocs Document Assembly, you must have HotDocs Version 5.2 or greater.

PROGRAM FILE LOCATION:  Version 10 requires that all program files reside in the same directory in order to integrate–even PracticeMaster (provided you want PracticeMaster to integrate with TABS III). If your Case Master Version 2 program files reside in a different directory than TABS III, this conversion program will prompt you to enter the data path of your Case Master Version 2 program files and automatically move the Case Master data files to the directory where TABS III is installed before performing the conversion. (Note: The CM data files are actually moved as opposed to being copied. Report definitions are moved. Although document directories will be created in the new location, the contents of the document directories are not moved. Likewise, any files located in the Case Master directories other than Case Master data files are not moved.)   DO NOT convert TABS III and Case Master separately!

REFERENCE NUMBERS:  Reference numbers of Version 9 transactions may change.

CDS:  Users of STI’s Critical Date System (CDS) can upgrade to PracticeMaster. However, you can still use Critical Date System Version 8 with TABS III Version 10.

TASKBILL: If you are using STI’s TASKBILL software, then you must update TASKBILL to Version 10. Statements that have been updated using TABS III Version 9 can be processed using TASKBILL Version 10.

SPECIAL PROGRAMS:  If your firm purchased any modified or special programs from STI, call STI before converting to Version 10 to see if the program(s) need updating.

CASE MASTER PRACTICE CONVERSION: As a precautionary measure, if you are converting Case Master and TABS III and any of the following situations apply to your firm, you may want to consider performing a practice or test conversion on a copy of your data before performing the actual conversion. This is a standard operating procedure in many large companies where software systems contain critical information. Although we have tried to document issues that may arise, we cannot guarantee that your firm’s conversion will be as smooth as you would like. Performing the conversion on a separate system offers you the ability to easily revert to your current system until a later time when you can better plan the implementation of the new version. We highly recommend performing a practice conversion if any of the following apply to you: a) Fields in the default file definitions for the System Files have been modified (i.e., field lengths, field types, field IDs); b) Duplicate field IDs are found in the Client/Case File; c) Document Assembly constitutes a major area of your practice; or d) Restoring from a backup presents a major obstacle.

Version 10 Pre-Conversion Checklist

  1. TAS EMPLOYEES & TABS III TIMEKEEPERS:  Make sure TABS III timekeepers match the TAS employee numbers. Start TABS III and print a Timekeeper List (Reports | Miscellaneous | Timekeeper List). Start TAS and print an Employee List (Reports | Miscellaneous | Attorney List). Compare the numbers. If there are discrepancies, use the TAS Renumber Employee program to renumber employees so they have the same timekeeper numbers as TABS III.

  2. APS VOIDED CHECK LIST:  If you are converting APS, print a Voided Check List in APS (Checks|Void Checks|Voided Check List). In previous versions of APS, you entered your initials when voiding a check. This is no longer necessary because APS Version 10 automatically tracks which user ID voided a check. However, all previously voided checks will have their initials switched to a special user name of STCONV10.

  3. GLS CLIENT LIST:  If you are converting GLS, print a GLS Client List in GLS (Reports | GLS Client List). Review the GLS Data Path specified for all GLS clients to make sure the paths are valid. Invalid paths will cause the conversion to abort.

  4. TAS & TABS III  NOTE:  If you are converting TABS III and TAS where TABS III uses an Alpha Key Type and TAS uses a Numeric Key Type, contact Technical Support for special instructions.

  5. CONVERT AT SAME TIME:  All integrated systems must be converted at the same time. DO NOT convert systems separately!

Converting Case Master

One of our main goals during development was to make PracticeMaster (formerly Case Master) and TABS III more closely integrated. We have achieved this goal by implementing seamless bidirectional synchronization. No more batch processing is required. The PracticeMaster and TABS III files are “mirrored”. If you add a client in PracticeMaster, it is automatically added to TABS III.  Likewise, if you make a change to a client in PracticeMaster, it is automatically changed in TABS III. The conversion program will automatically synchronize the data after it has been converted. You will be given the opportunity to confirm each resolution or specify automatic conflict resolution based on the information in either TABS III or PracticeMaster. The Help button or the F1 key can be used to read more about the synchronization window.

As a result of this close integration, several changes took place. One of these changes is the consolidation of the Client File and the Case File into a single unified Client File in PracticeMaster. The Client File in PracticeMaster synchronizes to the TABS III client file and has a one-to-one field relationship. As a result of combining these two files into one, there are situations where duplicate field names may be encountered. You will be instructed how to identify and deal with these duplicate fields.

Security has been vastly improved and includes menu level security, client level security and user level security for browsing public and private calendar entries. STI System Configuration is now used to configure users and access rights.  The conversion program will convert your Case Master users to STI System Configuration users. The Employee File in PracticeMaster Version 10 has been eliminated and absorbed by the User ID file and the Timekeeper file. The Case Master Version 2 Calendar File and Document History File used an Employee field; these files now use a User field. As a result, there will be some pre-conversion comparisons you will need to perform and also some mapping during the conversion.

The Related Party File allowed duplicate key fields. Version 10 no longer allows this. However, we have added Full Name, First Name and Last Name fields to the Client File and Related Party File. These fields will be pre-filled based on the Client Name field and Related Party Key field whenever a new record is added to the Client File and Related Party File via the Editor window.

PracticeMaster Version 10 now has two methods of document assembly—HotDocs Document Assembly and the new Word Document Assembly feature. HotDocs document templates used with Case Master Version 2.2 for Windows are compatible with Version 10; however, due to potential field renaming and field type changes, cross reference files may require editing. For example, the employee type field in the Calendar and Document History files is converted to a user type field in Version 10. Any cross references mapped to this field will require editing.

Documents coded for use with Case Master Version 2.x for DOS are not converted.

This conversion will convert your report definition files. However, as a result of the many other changes to PracticeMaster, the conversion of your reports may not be perfect. You will be advised to run your PracticeMaster reports after converting to verify they are the same as they were in Version 2.

Version 10 of PracticeMaster has a different set of system files. There are new files, new field types and new fields. For example, a new Journal File holds PracticeMaster client notes, TABS III client notes, timer records, phone records and e-mails. There is a new Calendar Code File that replaces tcodes used in the calendar program. The billing system files for categories, timekeepers, locations, task codes and transaction codes are now mirrored from TABS III. A new Memo Field Type uses a variable length record and stores up to 45,000 characters. A new Phone Field Type is used to store phone numbers. We have added new fields such as a Gender field and a Date of Birth field to the Client File.  Instead of having two levels of locked fields, there is now only one type of locked field and it is referred to as a Protected Field.  Protected Fields cannot be edited. 

As a result of fields being assigned new field types, the conversion program may encounter invalid values in the new fields. These invalid values will be reported in a conversion log file that you will be instructed to review following the conversion. Invalid values may be a common occurrence in the employee and tcode fields because these fields were previously alpha fields and allowed any alpha character.

How Calendar records are Converted:  PracticeMaster Version 10 has only two types of calendar records:  events and tasks. An event is a calendar record with a start time and end time. A task is a type of calendar record that needs to be completed. Tasks do not have end times but can be assigned a due date and start time. Tasks are not shown on the Event Calendar; they are shown in a separate Task List.

Incomplete "non-To Do" calendar entries (i.e., Date Completed is blank) will have the Date Completed left blank if the Due Date is blank. However, if the Due Date is prior to the System Date, the Date Completed will be converted with the System Date.

Incomplete To Do calendar entries (i.e., Date Completed is blank) that do not have both a start and end time will have the Due Date compared to the date specified during the conversion. If the Due Date is prior to the date specified, then the Date Completed will be converted with the System Date. Otherwise, the Date Completed will be converted as blank.

TABS III Users Only:  PracticeMaster Version 10 handles the fees and costs differently. These files are mirrored with the TABS III fee and cost files. Because there are now several fields that are required by TABS III that were not stored in the Case Master Version 2 Fee and Cost Files, the contents of your Case Master Version 2 Fee and Cost Files will be saved as older Fee and Cost Files named CMFEE0.* and CMCOSTO.*.  The new Fee and Cost Files will be repopulated based on the work-in-process records in TABS III. Because of the way integration works, once a TABS III work-in-process transaction is final billed and updated, it is moved from the TABS III work-in-process file to the TABS III archive file. As a result, these billed and updated transactions are also removed from the PracticeMaster Version 10 Fee and Cost Files. If desired, you can synchronize the files and select the option to include the archived transactions in PracticeMaster. Additional details can be found in PracticeMaster Help under the keyword “Archived Transactions”. The tcode, category and timekeeper fields in the older Fee and Cost Files are converted as alpha fields. You may want to retain these files for historical purposes, otherwise the CMFEEO.* and CMCOSTO.* files can be deleted.

Case Master Pre-Conversion Checklist

  1. RELATED PARTY CATEGORY:  PracticeMaster Version 10 has a special Related Party Category lookup field that is used to categorize related parties. Case Master Version 2 provided an alpha Related Party Category field. Start Case Master and print a file definition for the Related Party File (Utilities | File Maintenance. Click Related Party File. From the File menu, select Print Definition). Find the Related Party Category field. If you are using this field, make sure the Field ID is RP_CAT. If the Field ID was changed or was implemented in an earlier version with a different name, it won’t be converted unless the Field ID is RP_CAT; therefore, you must change the Field ID to RP_CAT using the File Maintenance program in Case Master Version 2.

    Print a Summary Related Party Report using the Report Writer (Reports | Custom Reports | RP_SUM). Review the Related Party Categories shown on the report in the headings. If any of the Related Party Categories are duplicates (i.e., should be merged), fix these before proceeding with the conversion. Only the first 20 characters of the Related Party Category are converted as a single Related Party Category. Therefore, you may want to rename Related Party Categories whose name exceeds 20 characters.

  2. RELATED PARTY KEY FIELD:  Duplicate and blank Related Party Key fields are not allowed in Version 10. If a duplicate or blank Related Party Key field is found, the conversion program will rename the duplicate or blank record by adding a number to the end of the Related Party Key field. A message indicating the record has been renamed will be posted to the STCONV10.LOG file. Related Party Key fields can be renamed in Version 10; however, we recommend that you rename them in Version 2 because it is easier and it eliminates post conversion errors. Before performing the conversion, we recommend that you rename duplicate and blank Related Party Key fields by editing the Related Party Key field of the duplicated or blank record.  Blank Related Party Key fields are shown at the top of a Related Party Lookup window. If you need help identifying duplicate related party records, you can download a report definition that will print a report of these records. This file is named CM2RPDUP.RW and can be downloaded from http://www.SoftwareTechnology.biz/download.html to your \CMREPORT directory. After downloading, you must rebuild your Custom Reports table of contents.

  3. DETERMINE WHETHER ANY FIELD IDs NEED TO BE RENAMED:  Version 10 combines the Client and Case Files into a single file. You may need to rename certain Field IDs as documented in the following.

    Check for Reserved Field Names:       Several new required fields have been added to the Client File. If by chance your firm has added a field to the Case File or Client File that uses one of the new reserved Field IDs, the information in that field may not be fully converted. You must print file definitions and check for reserved Field IDs in your file definitions.

    1. Print a Client File Definition (Utilities | File Maintenance. Highlight the Client File. From the File menu, select Print Definition).
    2. Print a Case File Definition  (Utilities | File Maintenance. Highlight the Case File. From the File menu, select Print Definition).

    3. Check for the following Field IDs in your file definitions.  If you find that your File Definitions include one of the following Field IDs, you may want rename the Field ID to avoid potential data loss. Newly added Version 10 Field IDs include:  Alpha_Search, Country, Phone_Ext, Fax_Phone_Ext, Home_Phone, Cellular_Phone, Email_Address, Location, Task_Based_Billing, Inactive, Secure_Client, Primary_Perc, Secondary_Perc, or Origin_Perc. For example, if you have a 35 character alpha field with a Field ID of Location, it will be truncated to 8 characters because the Client File now has a lookup field to a Location File.

    Resolve Duplicate Client/Case Field IDs:  Because PracticeMaster Version 10 combines the Client File and Case File into a single file called the Client File, duplicate Field IDs should not exist between the two Version 2 files. You must resolve any duplicate Field IDs by renaming one of the fields to eliminate the conflict. To determine whether you have duplicate Field IDs, perform the following steps:

    1. Use the Client and Case File Definitions you just printed. Compare the Case File Definition to the Client File Definition. For each field shown on the Client File, check for a duplicate Field ID in the Case File.  If a duplicate Field ID is found, circle that line on the Case File Definition.
    2. Now review the duplicate fields in the Case File.

 Ignore the duplicate CLIENT_NO field because it will be handled automatically by the conversion.

Ignore the DESC, COMMENT_1 and COMMENT_2 duplicate fields if they exist. By default, the Version 2 Case and Client file definitions were shipped with these three duplicate Field IDs. The conversion program will pause and allow you to rename these duplicate Field IDs.

Check if you have any other duplicate Field IDs in the Case File. If you have any other duplicate Field IDs, you must use File Maintenance to rename the duplicate Field IDs or you may lose the data in the Client file.

Rename Field IDs: Use the following steps if you need to rename Field IDs. These procedures may take some time to complete depending on the size of your file. (Note:  You do not need to perform steps a-j unless you need to rename Field IDs as described above.)
  1. From the Utilities menu, select File Maintenance.
  2. Under the File List, click Client File or Case File (depending which file has the filed you want renamed).
  3. From the File menu, select Edit.
  4. Your data will be exported. Click OK when the message “File data export complete.”
  5. Double-click the field you want renamed.
  6. Tab over to the Field ID field and enter the new Field ID.
  7.  Click OK.
  8. From the File menu, select Save.
  9. The data will be imported back into the File Definition. After the data has been imported, you will be asked if you want to erase the import file. Click No.
  10.  Click the Close button to close File Maintenance.
  1. PHONE NUMBER FIELDS:  PracticeMaster has a new phone number field type. Previously, phone number fields were entered as alpha fields. The conversion program will convert the phone number fields in the Related Party and Case Files from alpha fields to phone number fields.

Related Party File:  The default file definition for the Case Master Version 2 Related Party File included four alpha fields for phone numbers. Compare the Field IDs on your printed Related Party File definition from step #1 to the following: The default Field IDs were WORK_PHONE, HOME_PHONE, FAX_PHONE, CELL_PHONE and the field lengths should be 12. If the Field IDs for these four fields are still the same and the field lengths were not increased, then the phone numbers will be converted correctly and you can skip to the following “Case File” paragraph. If the field length for any of these fields has been enlarged, the field will be converted and possibly truncated during the conversion. If an opening parentheses is found for the first character (i.e., surrounding an area code), the opening parentheses will be deleted and the closing parentheses will be converted to a dash. Any additional information in the fields such as extension numbers will be truncated. You can download a report definition that will print any phone numbers that will be truncated. The file name is RPPHNCHK.RW and can be downloaded from http://www.SoftwareTechnology.biz/download.html to your \CMREPORT directory. After running this report, you can edit any phone numbers. However, if the field length has been enlarged and there is data entered in these fields that you do not want to lose, we recommend changing the Field ID using the File Maintenance program in Case Master Version 2 in order to retain the entire field.

Case File:  The default file definition for the Case Master Version 2 Case File included two alpha fields for phone numbers. Compare the Field IDs on your printed Case File Definition from step #3 to the following: The default Field IDs were PHONE and FAX_PHONE and the field lengths should be 13 (or less).  If the field length for either of these fields has been enlarged or if you used the full 13 characters in the Case File for the telephone number field, the field will be converted and possibly truncated during the conversion. If an opening parentheses is found for the first character (i.e., surrounding an area code), the opening parentheses will be deleted and the closing parentheses will be converted to a dash. Any additional information in the fields such as extension numbers will be truncated.  You can download a report definition that will print any phone numbers that will be truncated. The file name is CSPHNCHK.RW and can be downloaded from http://www.SoftwareTechnology.biz/download.html to your \CMREPORT directory. However, if the field length has been enlarged and there is data entered in these fields that you do not want to lose, we recommend changing the Field ID using the File Maintenance program in Case Master Version 2 in order to retain the entire field.

  1. EMPLOYEES & USERS:  Case Master Version 2 has a User File and an Employee File. The conversion program converts the CM users to STI System Configuration User IDs based on their User ID. There are several issues that need to be addressed depending on whether you are converting Case Master and TABS III together or just Case Master.

All Case Master Conversions:  Make sure that every employee in the employee file is also in the user file. Start Case Master and print an Employee List (Reports | Custom Reports | EMPLOYEE.RW). Next to each employee, write down the associated Case Master user (Utilities | User/Password Setup). If no user exists for the employee, you must add a user record in Case Master Version 2 for the employee before beginning the conversion. These user records will be used during the conversion when mapping employees. (Note: Save this Employee List. You will need it during the conversion process when mapping employees.)

Note:  In Case Master Version 2, the User/Password program let you specify which employees were assigned to users. This information is not converted. Access rights for the Display Calendar are handled differently. If users have employees assigned, printing the user records will assist you when configuring calendar rights in Version 10. To print records, select the desired user record and click the Print button on the toolbar.

Converting Case Master & TABS III: Make sure all corresponding Case Master users and STI System Configuration User IDs use the same User ID. Otherwise, you will have multiple User IDs for the same person in Version 10 (with no way to easily correct them). Start STI System Configuration Version 9 and print a User List (Reports | User List). Compare the User IDs on this list to the User records in Case Master Version 2 User/Password program (Utilities | User/Password Setup). If you have different User IDs for the same person, we recommend deleting the User ID in STI System Configuration. The conversion will automatically add a corresponding user to STI System Configuration for the Case Master user. (This method is recommended because the field is used in the PracticeMaster Calendar File and Document Management File. Using this method will retain any links to that User ID.)

  1. TCODE & EMPLOYEE FILES:  The Tcode and Employee file are now mirrored from TABS III. Any fields added to these files will not be converted. Print a file definition for both of these files to determine whether fields have been added (Utilities | File Maintenance. Click Tcode File. From the File menu, select Print Definition).  Compare these lists to the lists in Appendix D of the PracticeMaster manual. The Title and Registration fields provided with the default Case Master Version 2 employee file definition will not be converted. If you previously tracked additional information for these files, you can create a new user defined lookup file (or enter the records as related party records) after the conversion. If other fields were added, make sure you have a printed report with that information so it can be re-entered.

  2. TABS III INTEGRATION NOTE: If you have TABS III and Case Master but have not been integrating in the past and want to integrate now, you must resolve any duplicate Client ID conflicts before integrating. Otherwise, data will be lost. Call STI for assistance if this situation applies to you. Also, if you are using different Key Types or Matter Lengths for both programs, call STI for assistance.

  3. WORD TEMPLATE DIRECTORIES:  If you have Microsoft Word installed, you will be asked to specify your template directories when you install PracticeMaster. You must enter the Microsoft Word Startup and Template directories in order for the required files to be installed in the correct directory. These directories must be the same as the directories in Word under Tools | Options | File Locations. Start Microsoft Word, determine the directories, and then write the directories in the spaces provided below.

    Word Startup Directory: ____________________________________________________________

    Word Template Directory: ___________________________________________________________

    After writing in the directories, close Microsoft Word. 
  4. CHECK LENGTH OF PROTECTED FIELDS:  Protected Fields in Version 10 cannot be edited. There are fields in the Client/Case files that will be configured as protected in Version 10 but previously were not, such as the address fields. If your firm increased the length of any fields in Version 2 that are now protected fields in Version 10, the length of your fields will be converted. However, if you are integrating with TABS III, the excess length will be truncated during the synchronization process. In order to avoid having future data truncated, use the Client and Case File Definitions printed in step #3 to verify that the following fields have the original field length as shown. If any of the fields have a greater length than the one shown, we recommend you change the length to the original length shown. Keep in mind that any data exceeding the new length will be truncated.

    Field

    Original Length
    Address Lines 1, 2 and 3 35 characters each
    City 20 characters 
    Zip Code 10 characters 
    Contact 25 characters 
    Case Description 50 characters 
    TABS III Misc. Lines 1-3 35 characters each

  5. CHECK FIELD TYPE OF PROTECTED FIELDS: If your firm changed the field type of fields in Case Master Version 2.2 that are now protected fields in PracticeMaster Version 10, it may cause a problem with how the data gets converted. Use the Client and Case File Definitions printed in step #3 to verify that the following fields have the original field type as shown below. If any of the fields have a different field type than the one shown, we recommend you rename the Field ID before converting; otherwise, data may not convert as expected. Keep in mind that renaming a Field ID will require editing of documents and report definitions that use that field.

    Orig. Field Name Orig. Field ID Orig. Field Type
    Contact Name CONTACT Alpha
    Phone Number PHONE Alpha
    Fax Phone Number FAX_PHONE Alpha
    Date Opened DATE_OPEN Date
    Prim. Attorney Number PRIM_ATTY Employee
    Sec. Attorney Number SEC_ATTY Employee
    TABS III Category CATEGORY Alpha
    TABS III Misc. Line 1 MISC_1 Alpha
    TABS III Misc. Line 2 MISC_2 Alpha
    TABS III Misc. Line 3 MISC_3 Alpha
    Date Closed CLOSE_DATE Date
    Address Line 1 ADDR1 Alpha
    Address Line 2 ADDR2 Alpha
    Address Line 3 ADDR3 Alpha
    City CITY Alpha
    State STATE Alpha
    Zip Code ZIP Alpha
    Orig. Attorney Number ORIG_ATTY Employee

Procedure

Note:  Make sure no other users are accessing STI software when this update is installed. This update must be installed over an existing Version 9 installation (or Case Master Version 2). If you haven’t installed Version 9, you must first install Version 9 and convert to Version 9 before installing the Version 10 update (or call STI for a different set of installation and conversion instructions).

  1. TABS III REMOTE: If you use TABS III Remote, merge any data files created by TABS III Remote before proceeding with the conversion. Also, make sure no remote sites perform data entry until they have been updated to Version 10. Print and delete any remote data entry verification lists. This applies to all workstations using TABS III Remote.

  2. MERGE CM/TABS III CLIENT/CASE CHANGES:  When integrating TABS III with Case Master, regardless of how client/case information is passed between the two systems, ALL client/case changes must be merged before updating either TABS III or Case Master. If this is not performed, the conversion will be aborted.
    MERGE CM TIME & EXPENSE TRANSACTIONS:  When integrating TABS III with Case Master, you must use Case Master’s “Export Time Entries” and “Export Expense Entries” programs to export the most recent fee and cost transactions and then use TABS III’s “Merge CM Time and Expense Transactions” program to merge this information into TABS III. If this is not performed, the conversion will be aborted.

  3. PRINT VERIFICATION LISTS:  Any verification lists that haven’t been printed will be deleted by the conversion program. Print these lists (if they exist) before starting the conversion if you want to retain a copy of this information. If you are using a multi-user version of the software, make sure you print verification lists for all users.
    o TABS III    o GLS o APS     o TAS

  4. DATA FILE INTEGRITY CHECK: Run the Data File Integrity Check utility program for all systems. If you are converting TABS III, also run the TABS III Archive Data Integrity Check. Proceed only if there are no errors.
    o TABS III     o TABS III Archive Data Integrity Check   o Case Master   o GLS o APS     o TAS

GLS Note:  If you are configured for multiple GLS clients, make sure you run the Data File Integrity Check program for all GLS clients.

  1. BACK UP: Back up all of the Version 9/Case Master Version 2 data files and program files. DO NOT skip this step. If the conversion program is interrupted for any reason, you must restore from a backup and start over. Use a backup method other than the built-in backup program because the built-in backup program does not back up program files.
    o TABS III  o GLS o APS    o TAS    o STI System Configuration    o Case Master 

  2. DETERMINE PROGRAM DIRECTORY:  During the installation, you will be asked to specify where you want the Version 10 program files installed. Although Browse and Search buttons are available to locate the Version 9 program files, it is helpful to know this location before installing the Version 10 program files. The following steps can be used to determine where the program files are installed.

Note:  If updating Version 9 programs and Case Master, you need to know the Version 9 program directory and the Case Master directory. This conversion program will automatically move the Case Master data to the directory where the Version 9 programs are installed.

Windows Users:  Start TABS III (GLS, TAS or APS). From the Help menu, select the About TABS III menu selection (About GLS, About TAS or About APS). Write down the Program Directory in the space provided (not the Current Working Directory).

Version 9 Program Directory:  _______________________________________________________________

Case Master: If you are converting Case Master, use the following steps to determine where the Case Master program files are installed. You will be asked to specify the Case Master Version 2 Data Path during the conversion.

Case Master Version 2.2 Windows Users:  Start Case Master. From the Help menu, select the About Case Master menu selection. Write down the Current Path in the space provided below.

Case Master Version 2.x DOS Users:  Start Case Master. From the Main menu, press “Shift+?”. Write down the Current Path in the space provided below.

CM Version 2 Program Directory:  ____________________________________________________________

  1. Close any STI programs opened during the previous step.

  2. INSTALL VERSION 10 PROGRAM FILES: Use the following instructions to install STI System Configuration and all other Version 10 programs in the program directory specified in step #6. The conversion program will only convert Version 9 and Case Master Version 2 data.

Note:  DO NOT start any Version 10 programs until after the conversion has been completed.

Note: If updating both TABS III and Case Master, and you want Case Master to integrate with TABS III, you must install the PracticeMaster version 10 programs into the Version 9 program directory—not the Case Master Version 2 program directory. (In the unlikely situation where you are using both TABS III and Case Master but do not want them to integrate, then you must install the STI System Configuration program into both directories. You will also need to run the conversion twice—once in each directory.)

  1. Insert the STI CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive.

  2. A CD Browser program will automatically start. (Note:  If  the CD-ROM Autorun feature is disabled, click the Start button and then click Run...  Click the Browse button and navigate to the CD-ROM drive. Double-click the LAUNCH.EXE file. Click OK.)

  3. Select Install Products and select the products you want to install. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the software.

Note:  If installing from a floppy disk, use the following instructions:

  1. Insert program disk #1 into your floppy disk drive.

  2. Click the Start button, and then click Run...

  3. Type A:SETUP or B:SETUP (depending on the floppy drive used) and then click OK.

  4. Follow the on-screen instructions to run the SETUP program.

  5. Repeat these instructions for each of the products listed.

o STI System Configuration      o TABS III o PracticeMaster  o GLS o APS 
 o TAS    o TABS III Report Writer   o GLS Report Writer

  1. BEGIN DATA CONVERSION: From the Software Technology folder, click STI Version 10 Conversion.  Follow the instructions to complete the conversion.  The Help button or the F1 key can be used to read more about the various questions in the conversion program.

Note: If the STI Version 10 Conversion menu option is not shown, you can use the following alternate method to start the conversion.

    Click the Start button, and then select Run.

    Click the Browse button to navigate to the program directory specified in step #6, and then select the      
    STCONV10.EXE file. Click Open. Click OK.

If the STCONV10.EXE file cannot be found, this indicates one of the following:

s  the installation program was interrupted;
s  Version 10 was installed in the wrong directory.

  1. COMPLETION MESSAGE:  Upon completion, the message “Data conversion completed” will be displayed.

Note:  If messages were generated during the conversion or synchronization, the message “Data conversion completed with X message(s).” will be displayed. These messages can be found in a file named STCONV10.LOG and can be printed using any text editor such as Windows Notepad. We recommend printing this file (provided it is not too large). If the file is extremely large, you will not be able to open it with Notepad or WordPad. Consider trying Microsoft Word to open the file. STI's Knowledge Base on the Internet (http://www.support.SoftwareTechnology.biz) contains details regarding possible messages that may be found in the log file (keyword = Conversion | Version 10). Call STI Technical Support if you need help interpreting the messages.

  1. TABS III USERS WHO DID NOT INSTALL APRIL 2000 ENHANCEMENTS:  Start TABS III Version 10. If the version of TABS III you converted did not have the April 2000 enhancements, a message will be displayed indicating the Client Ledger Detail files are not present. Click OK to clear the message. Click Yes when asked if you want to disable the rebuild warning. If you received this message, use the following steps to create the new client ledger detail data files. Perform these procedures ONLY if you received the "TABS III has detected that the Client Ledger Detail files are not present" message.

    1. From the Utilities menu, select Rebuild Client Ledger Detail.
    2. Make a backup when prompted to do so. If the following process is aborted for any reason, you will be required to restore from the backup.
    3. Select All Clients.
    4. Select Apply Detail Only. (Caution:  Do not select Allocation Detail Only or Both.)

    5. Click OK. Upon completion, the message "Task Complete" will be displayed. Click OK to close the program.

  2. INTEGRITY CHECKS: Repeat step #4 using the Version 10 programs. If there are errors, print the Error Report(s) and resolve the errors. Call STI Technical Support if you need help resolving the errors.

  3. After reviewing the following notes, you will be ready to use Version 10!

Finishing Touches

  1. SERIAL NUMBERS:  Start TABS III. From the Help menu, select About TABS III. Verify that the serial number shown in the About TABS III dialog box matches your TABS III Version 9 serial number. Repeat these instructions for each of the products listed.
    o TABS III  o PracticeMaster  o GLS o APS  o TAS   o TABS III Remote     
    o     TABS III Report Writer  o GLS Report Writer

  2. OLD DISKS:  We recommend that you collect all of your old program disks and recycle or destroy them to avoid accidentally reinstalling the wrong version in the future (should the need arise).
    o STI System Configuration o TABS III  o PracticeMaster  o GLS o APS  o TAS   o TABS III Remote     
    o     TABS III Report Writer      o GLS Report Writer

  1. BACKUP PROCEDURES:  Review your backup procedures—specifically file names and locations. The TAS data file names are now *.DAT and *.IDX as opposed to *.DTA and *.KEY. Furthermore, the location of your PracticeMaster data files may have changed as discussed in "Program File Location" of the Notes section.

  1. WORKSTATION INSTALLATION: Other workstations that access STI software must run the SETUP program so their program shortcuts are modified appropriately and the required files are installed.

    To install the STI software on a workstation:
    1. From the workstation, click the Start button, and then click Run...
    2. Click the Browse button and select the directory where the STI program files were installed. Then, select the SETUP.EXE file found in the STI program file directory. Click Open and then click OK to run the program.
    3. Follow the on-screen instructions to run the SETUP program.

    4. Repeat steps a through c for each workstation that will be using STI software.
  2. DELETE OLD DEMONSTRATION DATA PROGRAM GROUP:  Version 10 software installs shortcuts for the Demo Systems in a folder under the Software Technology program group. Use the following procedures to delete the old Version 9 program group for demo systems: 
    1. Click the Start button, point to Settings and select Taskbar & Start Menu (or Taskbar if using Windows 95 or NT). 
    2. Click the Start Menu Programs tab (or Advanced tab if using Windows ME or 2000). 
    3. Click Remove.
    4. Select the Software Technology Demo Systems program group and click Remove.
    5. Click Yes when asked to confirm that you want to delete the item.
    6. Click Close and then click OK.

    7. Repeat these procedures for each workstation were Version 9 was installed.

  3. SECURITY:  The STI System Configuration Version 9 “Groups” are now called “Access Profiles”. Version 9 Groups are converted to Version 10 Access Profiles. Groups can be defined in STI System Configuration Version 10; however, they are only used for PracticeMaster e-mail and calendaring purposes.


If converting only Version 9 systems, no other changes are required in STI System Configuration. However, you may want to review the rights assigned to the access profiles for new functions. All access profiles are assigned rights to all new programs including Back Up Data Files, Restore Data Files, Support Log, etc.

Case Master Version 2 had three levels of security:  0-read only, 1-read/write, and 2-manager. All users with a security level of 2 were converted as managers. However, all users with a security level of 0 or 1 were converted with no access rights. User naming conventions are more strict in STI System Configuration. All leading and trailing characters are stripped. Furthermore, illegal characters (including spaces) are replaced with an underscore character.
As a result of the expanded security and access rights, we recommend you use the following procedures to review the converted Access Profiles and User information.

Print a list of users in the STI System Configuration program (Reports | User List). Print a list of Access Profiles in the STI System Configuration program (Reports | Access Profile List). Use these lists along with the User Configuration and Access Profile programs to 1) review and edit users’ names if necessary; 2) review and define the appropriate Access Profiles; and 3) review and assign the appropriate Access Profiles to the users who will be using PracticeMaster.

Access rights for Display Calendar are handled differently in Version 10. You can define Groups in STI System Configuration for calendaring and e-mail purposes. Furthermore, each user can specify which other users can edit or browse their public and private calendar records. This is done in STI System Configuration in the User Configuration program via the Calendar Rights button for each user. The user records printed in Case Master before starting the conversion will be helpful when defining calendar rights.

Note: If you converted Case Master, we recommend reviewing the “Security Overview” topic in PracticeMaster Help.  We also recommend reviewing Step #7 under the "Finishing Touches - Case Master" section at this time.

  1. TASK FOLDERS: Version 10 now stores Task Folder customization information in the user profile as opposed to the STI.INI file. This means that no matter which workstation you log onto, your customized Task Folder preferences will be shown. As a result of this new feature, customized Task Folders from Version 9 are not converted. You must customize Task Folders for each user for each system.
    o TABS III  o PracticeMaster  o GLS o APS    o TAS 

  2. EXTENDED CHARACTERS:  If you had Case Master configured to allow extended characters, you may need to edit your STI.INI file in the Windows folder. Previously, the “Allow Ext Chars=Yes” line was under the [WCM3 options] section. It must now be located under the [STI Options] section. Complete details can be found in PracticeMaster Help in the Index under “Extended ASCII characters”.

  3. CONVERSION BACKUP FILE:  If you elected to create a backup file during the conversion, a backup file named CVBACK.ARQ has been created in the BACKUP directory. This file may be fairly large depending on the amount of data. You may want to delete this file at some point; however, we recommend not deleting it right away.

  4. DELETE TMP FILES: Various files with an extension of “.TMP” may be present from previous versions. We recommend deleting these files to recover disk space. It is not unusual to have hundreds of these TMP files.

  5. EDIT OR DELETE DESKTOP ICONS: The names of the programs used to start Version 10 have changed. If you elected to add new desktop icons during the installation, you will want to delete your old desktop icons (i.e., right-click the old desktop icon and click Delete). If you did not install new desktop icons, you will need to edit any existing desktop icons (i.e., right-click the old desktop icon, click Properties and edit the Target field). (Note:  You will also need to edit any shortcuts that are located in your Startup menu.) The following table shows the new and old executable names: 

Program Version 10 Version 9
STI System Configuration * STICONFG.EXE STICONFG.EXE
TABS III  TABS.EXE  WTABS.EXE 
PracticeMaster  CM.EXE WCM3.EXE
GLS  GLS.EXE  WGLS.EXE 
APS  APS.EXE  WAPS.EXE 
TAS TAS.EXE WTAS.EXE 
TABS III Remote RTABS.EXE  WRTABS.EXE
Taskbill * WTSKBILL.EXE WTSKBILL.EXE
* The executable name for these programs did not change.

  1. INSTALL VERSION 10 DOCUMENTATION: The Version 10 manuals and tutorials are provided as Adobe PDF files (Portable Document Format) to make them accessible to you at any time from your workstation. This documentation can be installed from the STI CD-ROM by selecting the DOCUMENTATION menu option and following the on-screen instructions to install the desired documentation.

Finishing Touches - PracticeMaster

  1. PRACTICEMASTER FIRM INFORMATION:  Start STI System Configuration. From the File menu, point to Open and then click Firm. Verify the information in these fields. Change any information as required and click OK.

  2. HISTORY TRACKING:  History Tracking is a new feature used to maintain an audit trail of all additions, changes and deletions to specific fields in a file. If you want to use the History Tracking feature, you must first enable this feature at the system level. To enable History Tracking at the system level:
    1. From the Utilities menu, select Customization.
    2. Select the Use History Tracking check box. Leave the History File Size field set at 5 megabytes.
    3. Click OK.
Once it has been enabled, you need to use File Maintenance to configure which fields will maintain History Tracking information as directed in step #4 labeled File Definitions.
  1. CONFLICT OF INTEREST SEARCHING:  If you want to use the Conflict of Interest or Contact Search features, you must first enable Conflict of Interest Searching at the system level. To enable Conflict of Interest Searching at the system level:
    1. From the Maintenance menu, point to Conflict of Interest and select Configuration.
    2. Select the Enable Conflict of Interest Searching option. If you plan on performing phonetic searching, select the Allow Phonetic Searching check box.
    3. Click OK to build the conflict of interest index files.
    4. Upon completion, the message “Task Completed.” will be displayed. Click OK to close the Building Conflict of Interest Files window.
Once it has been enabled, you need to configure which fields will be included in the Conflict of Interest Search as directed in the following step labeled File Definitions.
  1. FILE DEFINITIONS:  PracticeMaster now has various custom properties that can be configured for each field via File Maintenance.  We recommend you print and review file definitions for each file and make any desired changes. For example, if you want fields spell checked, or included in Conflict of Interest searching, or configured for History Tracking, you need to configure these features at the field level.

Tip:  You can quickly print file definitions for all System Files (or an Area of Practice) at the same time by starting File Maintenance.  Right-click System Files (or the Area of Practice) and select Print File Definitions for All System Files (or Print File Definitions for All AOP Files).

  1. FORM LAYOUTS:  PracticeMaster includes a powerful Form Designer that lets you design your own form layouts. Form layouts determine the layout of the data entry screens for each file. The conversion program converts your data files with Generic form layouts that use the same linear single column layout that was used by Version 2. PracticeMaster Version 10 also provides default Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) form layouts that can be implemented at any time. However, if you switch to the OEM form layouts, most likely some customization of the form layouts may be required so they include fields unique to your firm. Although you can defer this step, keep in mind that this feature is a significant visible improvement. (Note: All system files excluding the Client File and Related Party File are converted using the OEM form layouts.) Use the following procedures to switch to the default OEM form layouts:

    1. Start PracticeMaster. From the File menu, point to Open and select Client to open the Client File Editor window.
    2. From the Edit menu, select Form Designer.
    3. From the Form Designer toolbar, click to open the Control Panel. 
    4. Click Reset to OEM Layout. If an Error List window appears, perform Step e. Otherwise skip to Step f.
    5. If an Error List appears, you may want to make note of the errors. Press F1 to display online help for detailed instructions describing the possible errors and how to resolve them. Click OK to close the Error List window.
    6. Click Yes when asked if you want to erase the layout.
    7. Click Close to close the Control Panel.
    8. At this point, you can add any additional fields and make any other changes as desired. Press F1 to display Help for detailed instructions.
    9. From the File menu, select Close.
    10. Click Yes when asked if you want to save changes to the Form Layout.

    11. Repeat Steps a thru j for the Related Parties and any desired Area of Practice files, Calendar, Journal, Fee, Cost, and Document Management files.

  2. DOCUMENT DIRECTORIES:  The conversion program copies the Case Master Version 2 directory structure to the Version 9 directory. However the document directories are not copied. The easiest thing to do is to modify the Area of Practice’s document directory to point to the original location. [Alternately, you could specify the new Area of Practice directory and manually move the documents. Keep in mind that if you move the documents, you must also modify the HotDocs library file (*.HDL) or the HOTDOCS.INI file if you are using an abbreviated path/filename (i.e., substituting “^”) to specify the document path.]

  3. TIMEKEEPERS, CATEGORIES & USERS:  Since the Employee field in the Calendar File and Document History File and the Performed By field in the Document History File allowed any information and did not check for data validity, there may be instances where these fields do not map to a user or employee. For these situations, the conversion program will create new users in the user file as non-Logon users. Likewise, the timekeeper field in the Version 2.2 Time and Cost File also allowed any information as well as the timekeeper fields and TABS III Category field in the Case File. For instances where the characters specified do not map to an existing timekeeper or category, the conversion program will add a new category or timekeeper to the PracticeMaster data files. An entry is made to the STCONV10.LOG file whenever a record is added. Although it is not necessary to fix the users, we recommend that you print a Timekeeper List and a Category List in PracticeMaster and clean up any records that point to the records created by the conversion because this information is synchronized to TABS III and will affect productivity reports.

    If "0" is specified in the Employee field in the Calendar File or Document Management File, the conversion program will add a user named STCONV10 and convert the Employee field to this User ID. The STCONV10 User ID is a non-Logon user. Do not change or delete the STCONV10 User ID. Doing so will generate Data File Integrity Check Errors.

  4. HOLIDAY DESCRIPTIONS:  PracticeMaster Version 10 lets you assign labels to holidays. You have two options for dealing with holidays:

Option A - Use the converted Holiday Files:  The conversion program converts your holiday file so that any custom holidays defined in Version 2.2 are included. If you use this option, you will have to enter the holiday labels for all holidays including the standard holidays. Holiday labels will have to be entered for each year. The Standard Holidays venue is used to define and label holidays. To verify your holidays:

  1. Start PracticeMaster.

  2. From the Calendar menu, select Holidays by Venue. The Standard Holidays venue will be shown by default. Click each red date and enter the appropriate Holiday name in the description if required.

Option B - Use the Standard Holiday Files: If you don’t have many custom holidays, it may be easier to use the standard holiday files so that you don’t have to enter the holiday descriptions for each year. To use the standard holiday files, copy the CMHDAY*.DAT files from the TUTOR folder under your PracticeMaster program directory to the PracticeMaster program directory. You can enter any custom holidays using the Standard Holidays venue.

PracticeMaster Notes

HotDocs Note:  Each HotDocs cross reference file is actually converted the first time the cross reference file is opened in PracticeMaster Version 10 or the first time the document is assembled in PracticeMaster Version 10. HotDocs cross reference files may require some editing. As an example, default employee values in calendar ticklers and document management ticklers are not converted; therefore, these values will need to be manually edited for each individual cross reference file. If your cross reference files include ticklers, you can edit these default values as they are encountered during document assembly, or you can edit them individually before performing document assembly.

HotDocs to Word Document Assembly Note:  If you will be converting HotDocs document templates to Word Document Assembly templates, there are problems that can occur when bringing in a WordPerfect HotDocs template into Word. Therefore, we recommend not inserting the HotDocs templates but rather inserting the assembled documents. To do this, use HotDocs to assemble the document (not document assembly) and leave everything unanswered. Inserting this document will make it easier to code the template in Word.

Memo Fields:  PracticeMaster now allows Memo field types that are variable length alpha text fields that can hold up to 45,000 characters. Once the conversion is completed, you can edit file definitions where multiple alpha fields were used for a single field. For example, the default Case File originally provided with Case Master included three 50-character Comments fields. If desired, you can use the Export Data and Import Data programs to combine multiple alpha fields into a single memo field. Detailed procedures can be found in PracticeMaster Help under the keywords:  Memo Field Type | mapping multiple alpha fields to a memo field.

Phone Number Fields: PracticeMaster now allows a phone number field type. Previous versions of Case Master used alpha fields as phone number fields. If you will be using the PracticeMaster Phone Dialer, you may want to convert your old alpha phone fields to phone number field types. To do this, you can use File Maintenance to change the field type of the phone number field from Alpha to Phone. (Note: Keep in mind that the conversion program already converted the default phone number fields in the Related Party and Case files as documented in step #4  under the Case Master Pre-Conversion Checklist section. Converting phone number fields whose field length is greater than 12 will truncate extra characters.)

Related Party Categories:  We recommend that you print a Summary Related Party Report using the Report Writer (Reports | Report Writer | RP_SUM). Review the Related Party Categories shown on the report in the headings. You may want to compare this report with the Summary Related Party Report printed in Step 1 of the "Case Master Pre-Conversion Checklist section.

Custom Reports:  Most features in the custom report definitions are converted with no problem. However, you may want to run each report definition to verify that the report output is how it was in Version 2.  The @FOOTER system value is now converted as the footer portion of the global sort element. All sort elements in the report writer now have footers. Because of changes to Field IDs and field types, errors may be encountered in the converted report definitions. A common problem you may encounter is a type mismatch error. For example, the employee field in the Case Master Calendar File is now a User ID field in the PracticeMaster Calendar File. If a report includes an expression based on a numeric employee field, a type mismatch error will occur because the User ID field is now an alpha field. The following default reports provided with Version 2 will generate errors after the conversion:  Calendar by Due Date (_CALDUE.RW), Calendar by Employee (_CALEMP.RW), Case Calendar (_CASECAL.RW) and the Blank ID Calendar Records Report (_BLANKID). You can use the Report Writer to edit these reports. As an alternative, you could use the new default reports provided with PracticeMaster. These reports were installed in a folder named \TUTOR\CMREPORT under the version 10 program directory. To use these reports, 1) rename the *.RW report files that have the same name in the CMREPORT folder under the program directory; 2) copy the desired *.RW report files from the \TUTOR\CMREPORT folder to the \CMREPORT folder; and 3) run the Rebuild Table of Contents in the PracticeMaster Report Writer. Keep in mind that any customizing of the default Version 2.2 reports will not be present in the Version 10 reports.

Case Summary Report:  The Case Summary Report definitions are not converted. You can use the new Client Summary Report feature in the Report Writer to generate a report definition for a Client Summary Report.

Calendar Codes: The Calendar Code File contains predefined transactions for purposes of streamlining data entry as well as classifying the various types of activities in the Calendar File. Previously, tcodes were used for this purpose. The Version 2 Tcode File is used as a basis for your new Calendar Code File. We recommend that you print a Calendar Code List and review the data. You may want to delete converted calendar codes that do not apply to calendar activities.

Tcodes:  The Tcode file has a new field called Exp/Adv/Fee type. This field is used primarily by TABS III. If you are integrating with TABS III, your Case Master tcode file is deleted and is then recreated based on the TABS III tcode file during the synchronization process. If you are not integrating with TABS III, the tcodes are converted with “FEE” for the Exp/Adv/Fee field. Tcodes with an Exp/Adv/Fee field of FEE cannot be used in the cost file. If you are not integrating with TABS III and you plan on using PracticeMaster to enter costs, we recommend you print a Tcode List and review your existing tcodes. The tcodes that are used for costs must have “ADV” (advance) or “EXP” (expense) for their Exp/Adv/Fee field.  You may also want to delete converted tcodes that apply only to calendar activities.

Tcode Lookup Fields:  Tcode lookup fields cannot be added to files in Version 10. If you previously added tcode lookup fields in Version 2, they will be converted as number fields. If you used tcode lookups to streamline data entry, you can now use the powerful Text Macro feature in PracticeMaster to perform this function.

Employee Lookup Fields:  Employee lookup fields are converted as User ID lookup fields.

Calendar Plans:  Version 2 Calendar Plans are now called Calendar Plan Templates. Version 10 calls each batch of calendar entries that are generated a Calendar Plan.  Thus, a Calendar Plan Template can be used to generate multiple Calendar Plans. Calendar Plan Templates are converted; however, Version 2 did not store which Calendar Plan Template was used to create a Calendar Plan (i.e., batch of calendar plan entries). Therefore the conversion program creates a Calendar Plan Template called STCONV with a description of “All plans converted from the previous version of Case Master will be linked to this template”. All version 2 batches of calendar entries are converted as Calendar Plans and are named “Batch 1”, “Batch 2”, etc. and are linked to the STCONV Calendar Plan Template.

Employees and Calendar Plans: Calendar Plans in Version 2.2 whose items were assigned a Responsible Employee of “0” will need to be edited. The conversion program converts the “0” employee as user STCONV10. This is a problem because the user specified in the Version 10 Calendar Plan Template item overwrites the user specified when the Calendar Plan Template is processed. Therefore, if you don’t edit the converted Calendar Plan Templates, then whenever the Calendar Plan Template is processed , all items that previously had employee 0 will be assigned to user STCONV10.

Case Notes:  Case Notes are now stored in the Journal File as a Note record (i.e., Record Type = “N”) and are called Client Notes. The conversion program assigns the date and time the conversion was executed to the Date and Time fields in the Client Note records. TABS III client notes are synchronized as a Billing Note record in the Journal File (i.e., Record Type = "B").

TABS III Notes

Alpha Key Type:  Like Version 9, TABS III Version 10 can be configured to use alpha client numbers. However, if you are using Critical Date System (CDS), the Key Type must remain Numeric. Furthermore, any cost recovery systems that integrate with TABS III may require a Numeric Key Type.

GLS Notes

GLS Report Writer:  GLS Report Writer Version 10 is not available as a Windows application. However, the DOS GLS Report Writer has been modified to integrate with GLS Version 10. 

TAS Notes

Alpha Search: TAS users that integrated with TABS III Version 9 when configured for an alpha Key Type used the TAS Name Search field to hold the TABS III alpha client ID as a work around. The TAS Trust Account Number will automatically be changed to the TABS III alpha client ID during the conversion. Likewise, the TAS Name Search field will automatically be changed to the TABS III Name Search during the conversion.

TABS III Integration:  Previously, it was possible to use the same TAS Trust Account # / TABS III Client ID for different clients. This is no longer possible in Version 10 because of the new synchronization feature. If the conversion program encounters this situation, it will renumber the TAS trust account to the next available number and then synchronize it to TABS III thereby retaining both accounts in both systems. A message will be written to the STCONV10.LOG file indicating that the trust account was renumbered. In some situations, you may not want a new trust account number for the trust account. If renumbering the trust account in TAS was not the desired outcome (due to the name fields being slightly different, i.e., Charles Miller and Charles C. Miller), the client can be renumbered. Renumber the TAS trust account back to the original trust account number in TAS using the Renumber Trust Account program. It will then be necessary to manually change the Name Search field in TAS to match the TABS III Name Search field after renumbering. After the renumber is complete, log into TABS III and delete the Client ID created by the conversion program.

Converting TABS III Archive Data Files

The STCONV10 conversion program automatically converts the archive files founds in the archive path specified in TABS III Customization. Some firms may have maintained separate sets of archive files over the years. If you have more than one set of TABS III archive data files, you will need to convert the other archive files if you want to access them using TABS III Version 10. You can use the following steps to convert other sets of TABS III Version 9 archive files:

  1. Copy the following files from the Version 10 program directory to an empty directory that we will call the archive conversion directory: STCONV10.EXE, STUSER.*, TABS.EXE, TBMAIN.EXE, WTBMENU.EXE and T3CUSTOM.DAT.

  2. Copy all *.DLL files from the Version 10 program directory to the archive conversion directory.

  3. Copy the following archive files from the Version 9 archive directory to the archive conversion directory: T3ARCH.DAT and T3ARCH.IDX.

  4. Edit T3CUSTOM.DAT in the archive conversion directory with a text editor and change the text “TABS10” to “TABS91”.

  5. Run STCONV10.EXE in the archive conversion directory.

  6. When you want to access these other archive files, you will need to change the archive path in TABS III Customization to the archive conversion directory that you just created.

06-05-2002