W B Myers T/A Accware Chartered Accountants

J2 630

admin — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 21:59:37 +0000

The J2 630 has the rare attribute of combining power with silent operation. Its Intel Atom dual core processor delivers the fast processing speeds needed to both exploit today’s EPoS software and to provide swift and responsive customer service.

It boasts all the muscle of a ‘workhorse’ unit combined with the sophistication of noise-free running and stylish looks. This universal machine, thanks to its fanless technology, fits discreetly into the most prestigious of hospitality settings. At the same time, it excels in harsh food retailing or service environments where it offers dust-free and spill-proof operation.

Exceptional reliability, and a high degree of user independence that includes the ability to change the motherboard and hard drives in seconds, add up to a cost of ownership that is hard to match in today’s EPoS market, especially when supported by J2’s trademark 3-year parts & labour warranty.

J2 is committed to eco-friendly EPoS manufacture, usage and disposal. In common with all J2 products, the J2 630 is RoHS and WEEE compliant.

Model: J2 630
Processor: Intel Atom D525 Dual Core 1.8GHz
RAM: SO-DIMM DDR3-800HMz, 1GB Standard
LCD Screen: 15′ LCD 250nits
Touchscreen: Resistive 5-wire or optional Infrared (IR)
Serial Ports: 4 Serial Ports, RJ 45, power on serial ports 3&4
USB Ports: 4 USB located in the cable well
Networking: One Gigabit, RJ45 in cable well (Realtek RTL8111), wifi optional
Storage Quick change, slide in 2.5” SATA 3.0 Gbit/s,160GB SATA HDD
OS Support: XP Pro for Embedded Systems, XP Pro, XP Embedded, POSReady 2009, CE 6.0, MS-DOS®, Linux
Customer Display: Customer Side VFD display with 2 x20 characters, powered from 615
POS Ready 2009 (or WePOS) POSReady 2009 is a flexible operating system designed to seamlessly connect point-of-service solutions with peripherals, servers, and services.

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J2 615

admin — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 21:57:36 +0000

The J2 615 sets a new standard for price and performance and is the first touchscreen Point of Sale computer to offer a Solid State Drive (SSD) as standard in addition to standard 1GB of RAM.

Providing brilliant performance, the 615 features the Intel Atom processor and the 945SCE/ICH7 chipset. Designed especially with reliability in mind, this system features convection cooling that requires no fan; as well as an 8GB solid state drive for storage, thereby eliminating all moving parts from the system.

The ELO touch controller and the ELO resistive touchscreen gives unmatched touch responsiveness and reliability. This unique computer does not compromise and offers full featured I/O ports. It is one of the best integrated touchscreen solutions available in the marketplace today.

Model: J2 615
Processor: Intel N270 1.6GHz Atom
RAM: SO-DIMM DDR 533HMz, 1GB Standard
LCD Screen: 15′ LCD 250nits
Touchscreen: Resistive 5-wire or optional Infrared (IR)
Serial Ports: 4 Serial Ports, RJ 45, power on serial ports 3&4
USB Ports: 4 USB located in the cable well
Networking: One Gigabit, RJ45 in cable well (Realtek RTL8111), wifi optional
Storage: 8GB SATA SSD in a quick change slot
OS Support: XP Pro for Embedded Systems, XP Pro, XP Embedded, POSReady 2009, CE 6.0, MS-DOS®, Linux
Customer Display: Customer Side VFD display with 2 x20 characters, powered from 615
POS Ready 2009 (or WePOS) POSReady 2009 is a flexible operating system designed to seamlessly connect point-of-service solutions with peripherals, servers, and services.

Buy now from our shop

Significant time savings

admin — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 19:52:37 +0000

A Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning company, who provide a design to installation service had used Sage 50 Professional for a number of years. However, Sage 50 Professional was not used to its fullest potential. Consequently as the business grew, the owners were spending increased amounts of time on routine accounting and administrative tasks. We worked with the business owners to make greater use of Sage 50 Professional’s features, by first installing Sage 50 on all the PC’s on the network, which accessed the Sage data files stored on the business server. We created profiles for employee types, so each employee only accessed the areas they needed to access and also that the workload could be shared. Secondly we implemented Sales Order Processing so invoices could be raised either in full or in part (as a progress invoice) and set up recurring invoices for periodic maintenance work. Invoice layouts were created in the Company’s chosen style using the inbuilt Report Writer, so invoices could be either printed and posted, or generated as PDF’s and automatically sent out using Outlook from within Sage 50. Naturally we provided extensive training and support whilst the changes were adopted. This resulted in significant time savings for the invoicing and distribution process and tightened up overall control of the invoicing of all the job types the business was involved with.

Business Records Checks

admin — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 13:14:07 +0000

HMRC is planning a programme of Business Records Checks that will review both the adequacy and accuracy of business records within the ‘small and medium enterprise’ (SME) sector. No new legislation is proposed in this regard; the programme will use existing law regarding both record keeping requirements and penalties for failure to comply with those requirements, with penalties being imposed for significant record keeping failures.

You can read the full text of the Consultation Document here

The document applies to anyone involved in running a small or medium business; that is, businesses with a turnover of less than €50m and less than 250 employees. Accountants and others providing services of accountancy, book-keeping or tax advice to such businesses will have a particular interest.

If you have any concerns about the proposals or want to ensure your business records are adequate, then please contact us on 07596 117002

Blackburn Rovers Enterprise Centre

admin — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 23:40:03 +0000

I was invited to look around the Blackburn Rovers Enterprise Centre by Claire Stock, whom I met at a recent networking event. I think Blackburn Rovers have done a fantastic job in utilising floor space within the Darwen End stand and would suggest that any small business interested in stylish, affordable office accommodation should take a look.

The Enterprise Centre can be contacted on 0844 2252350.

Xero Bank Feeds Update

admin — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 09:50:42 +0000

When you log into your bank site, if you are asked to use some sort of security token or answer a live question, then this is what the banks call Multi Factor Authentication (MFA). MFA is something that Xero won’t be releasing support for until early 2011.

14th December 2010

Improving business processes

admin — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 20:53:53 +0000

A Professional Services Company receive handwritten paper-based data from a particular client type and wanted to evaluate ways in which time spent processing the data could be reduced. Accware recommended building a web based forms application that could be integrated with Xero using Web services, which would both reduce the manual effort of processing and also eliminate the paper and postage costs associated with the process. We set up a small project team using the client’s key employees to define requirements, design the application and create a workable data model. The development work was outsourced and managed by Accware and a web-based application was successfully delivered. Their clients can now enter data into a familiar form through the web, which can be validated by internal staff before being submitted to Xero. This will result in a significant time and cost saving, by reducing administration and processing costs as well as paper and postage costsas clients are signed up to this service**.

**Project ongoing

Xero announces UK Bank Feeds

admin — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 10:01:26 +0000

Xero have today announced that you now have access to Bank Feeds from many of the major UK Banks. Up to now the only supporting Bank was HSBC, but now you can add the likes of Lloyds TSB, Nat West, Santander, Bank of Scotland etc. to the list.

If you’re not familiar with Xero, a “bank feed” is where bank statement data is sent automatically and securely by your Bank on a daily basis into Xero. The benefit, of course, is that you don’t need to download and import your bank statement data (when you remember! [and assuming you use an online banking service]) so you have an immediate snapshot of your cash position. This helps streamline processes and helps you focus on your cash-flow.

Accware are a Xero Partner and Xero Certified Advisors, we help SME’s improve financial and operational controls, to minimise costs and increase profits.

30th November 2010

WorkflowMax

admin — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 11:24:09 +0000

Accware are now a WorkflowMax partner.

Having spent time reviewing WorkflowMax and recognising the tremendous benefits this online software can bring, we decided to sign up as a partner.

WorkflowMax allows you and your staff to track time, manage jobs, create quotes, purchase orders and invoices. Using the advanced reporting, measure how productive your team is, whether you’re on schedule and more importantly how much money you are making on each job.

See our recent Case Study on the Pro-service Group for an independent view of the benefits WorkflowMax can bring when used in conjunction with Xero.

Accounting Records

admin — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 16:53:35 +0000

Do all companies have to keep accounting records?

The answer is a resounding ‘Yes’. Every company, whether or not they are trading, must keep accounting records.

What must accounting records include?

Accounting records must in particular contain:

entries showing all money received and expended by the company; and
a record of the assets and liabilities of the company.

Also, where the company’s business involves dealing in goods, the records must contain:

statements of stock held by the company at the end of each financial year;
all statements of stock takings from which you have taken or prepared any statements of stock; and
statement of all goods sold and purchased, other than by ordinary retail trade. This should list the goods, the buyers and sellers.

Parent companies must ensure that any subsidiary undertaking keeps sufficient accounting records so that the directors of the parent company can prepare accounts that comply with the Companies Act or International Accounting Standards.

Where must a company keep its accounting records?

A company must keep its accounting records at its registered office address or a place that the directors think suitable. The records must be open to inspection by the company’s officers at all times.

If the company holds the records at a place outside of the UK, it must send accounts and returns at least every six months and keep them in the UK. Those accounts and returns must disclose the financial position and enable the directors to prepare accounts that comply with the requirements of the Companies Act, including where the accounts are prepared using International Accounting Standards.

How long must a company keep its records?
Private companies must keep accounting records for 3 years from the date they were made. Public companies must keep them for 6 years.

The above is an extract from Life of a Company – Part 1 Annual Requirements – GP2 Chapter 3 as modified by the Companies Act 2006 – You can view the full text of GP2 here

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So what should I do?

For those of you who are using Spreadsheets as Accounting Records; Spreadsheets are fantastic tools for listing and analysing information, but they’re not for accounting!

OK, if you list all your financial information in a spreadsheet then that’s a big step forward over businesses who simply file loads of paperwork in Lever arch files. However, it’s time to recycle those spreadsheets. A small amount of effort on your part, with a helping hand from accware, of course, and all your information could be entered in an easy to use online accounting system, such as Xero, which will provide you with up-to-date information on how your business is performing.

Key Features:-

Import your Bank Statements and easily reconcile transactions
Send invoices and statements by email
Set up recurring transactions
Generate your VAT Return
Access your information from anywhere there is an Internet connection
No installation No backups, No maintenance
Start enjoying doing your accounts?

Once you realise how easy Xero is, you can then start to explore the other web based applications that extend Xero further e.g. WorkflowMax, Vend, CapsuleCRM etc.

Click here for a full list of our services around Xero.

Berwyn Myers