Startup Options

The first time you use the program it will normally prompt you with three windows before you start. The first one asks for the first year for which you wish to record donations and issue receipts. If you have a backlog from before the current year, enter the prior year that you want to start on here. (For instance, suppose it is early in 2008, and you still haven't done anything with the donations from 2007. When it prompts for the year, enter 2007.)

Next, it will prompt you for your organizations's name, address, charitable number etc., which are required before you can issue receipts.

Finally, it prompts you to put in a list of categories for donations. (It is OK to just stick with the default one, General, if that is all you want.)

You can also come back later and change the basic organization information with Maintenance à Organization Info, or add categories with Maintenance à Donation Categories.

Taking over from a Previous User

If you are taking over using DONATION from a previous user, who used DONATION on another computer, they will have already done most of the required setup. See Move the Program from One Computer to Another for helpful details on transferring the database from their computer to yours, etc.

Passwords

You can set up a password for entry to your program by using Maintenance à Change Password à Program Entry Password. The first time you use this (or any of the password setup windows), leave the Current Password field empty, since there is no Current Password. If you have set up a Program Entry Password, you have to enter it on the password window every time the program starts up. It will be displayed as stars (asterisks) as you type it in. If you want to see it as you type it in, you can check the "Make passwords visible rather than stars" checkbox. If you do specify a password, don't forget it! If you do forget it, contact me and I will assist you.

You can also set up a password for more limited users who cannot see all donor or donation details, with Maintenance à Change Password à Limited User Password. For details on the use of this password, see Using a Limited User Password.

You can also set up a password for generating receipts with Maintenance à Change Password à Receipt Password.

Other Initial Setup

Additional setup you may wish to do before you start using DONATION includes:

See also: the Regular Operating Procedures page for an introduction to your daily activities.