Simple. Powerful. Affordable.

Installation

Quick Start

DONATION normally comes in one compressed file, for instance DONINST.EXE for the regular Standalone version installation. Just download the appropriate file, run it, and follow the instructions.

To install DONATION on a computer with dial-up Internet or no Internet access:

1. Download DONATION's installation file on another computer
2. Copy that installation file to a writeable CD or USB memory key
3. Run the file from the CD or USB key to do the installation on the computer with slow or no Internet access.

Detailed Installation Instructions

First download the DONATION installation file from its Download page by clicking on the appropriate button, labelled "Standalone", "Network Server" etc. Your browser will then prompt you for a directory to download the file into - make sure you take note of what directory you selected. Some browsers will give you an option such as "Run this program from its current location" - that is OK too. (If you select that option, the next paragraph does not apply.)

If you chose to download the program into a specific directory, once it finishes downloading, use My Computer or Windows Explorer to find the downloaded file (such as DONINST.EXE) in the directory you downloaded it into. Run it, by double-clicking on it.

If you chose to Run the program from its current location, your browser will automatically download the program to a temporary location on your disk, and then run it.

If the download gets corrupted... On rare occasions the installation file gets damaged during the download process, or by something on your PC (such as a virus). If you get any bizarre error messages when you start running the install, you may want to check for that. To do so, first make sure that you did download the installation program to a directory on your computer, rather than running it directly from the download page. Then download the file DonationChecksum.exe into that same directory, and use My Computer or Windows Explorer to find DonationChecksum.exe in that directory and run it. It will tell you whether the installation program is damaged. If so, try downloading the installation program again, and running DonationChecksum.exe again. If there is still a problem, contact support, and report exactly what the program told you.

ODBC Requirement... At the beginning of the setup, in very rare cases you might get the following message, or one similar to it:

If you do see that, just follow those instructions carefully.

Assuming your installation goes smoothly... The installation program prompts you through the process via a number of dialog boxes. In each one, make any required selections then click the "Next" button to go on to the next dialog. You will be required to select a directory to install parts of the program into. Unless you have some specific reason to change it, use the suggested default installation directory.

Starting Up DONATION

DONATION's desktop icon is a grey cash register. Double-click on it to start the program (if you didn't already start it by picking "Run DONATION" at the end of the installation process).

When you first run DONATION, it will ask you whether you are a new user, or an existing user with a database backup to restore. Assuming you are a new user, select that option. DONATION will then prompt you for the following:

• The first year of data you plan to enter
• Your organization's information (name, address, etc.)
• Your list of donation categories.

You should now be ready to start entering donors and donations! (You can also return to those last two points again later, if changes are needed.)

Getting Help

Remember to read the help or manual, accessible from the program's Help menu. The Help file and PDF manual contain the same information. While the program is very easy to use and contains context-sensitive help for many areas (accessed with Shift-F1 or a Help button), there are a number of subtle points about issuing legal charitable receipts that you should make sure you understand. There are also valuable tricks and tips about using the DONATION program efficiently that you might not figure out without reading the help or the manual.