IDEA Time Savers


Time Saver #1

 Use Criteria to refine equations and see the results first to avoid creating unnecessary extraction databases.  Suppose you're ready to select some items to test. If you want to know how many significantly large items you have, you could index the file on the amount field in descending order. Or you could pick an arbitrary cut-off amount and do a Direct Extraction that creates a new database. But when the database is large, the dollar amount of those items is important.

Here's a more efficient approach:
  1. Set the control total so you can see the amount total in the status bar.
  2. Click on the green calculator pad at far left of status bar.
  3. Enter the formula: amount >= 50,000 (using appropriate field names and amounts, of course).
  4. Note the new control total amount and number of records/total records for the view. If the number of items or dollar amount does not meet your needs, edit the 50,000 in the criteria status window and click on the green check-mark again.
  5. When you are satisfied with the coverage and number of items, go to the File menu and select Save As. Then give the new file a name and press OK.

Time Saver #2

Use the approach mentioned in Time Saver #1 to test a complicated or compound extraction equation. By using criteria to see the results first, you avoid creating files that you might have to delete later. You save time by editing rather than recreating your extraction equation.


Time Saver #3

Shared IDEA Equations

  1. Dates parsed by slashes (uses the position of the slashes in a character date field to determine the correct date mask in a compound if equation)
  2. NTOD conversion (uses the length of a numeric date field which has been converted to character to determine the correct date mask to utilize in a compound if equation)
  3. Remove alpha (removes all alpha characters from an alpha-numeric text field)
  4. Standardize character date formats (converts irregular character date information into a consistent "mm/dd/yy" format).
  5. Standardize numeric date formats (converts irregular numeric date information into a consistent "mm/dd/yy" character date format).
  6. CTOD for standard date formats (converts the standardized character date information to create date field).

    To download these equations     click here.
Time Saver #4

Q. How can I extract the largest 5 transactions from every general ledger account?

A. Import the year's general ledger transactions. Then do the following steps:
  1. In the imported database, create a new virtual field: ABS_VALUE (if you have debit and credit fields, the value wil be the debit field plus or minus the credit field; if you have a net amount field, the value will be @abs (net amount field).
  2. Sort the file by ACCOUNT_NUMBER (ascending) and ABS_VALUE (descending). This will create a new database in the exact order.
  3. In the sorted database, create a new virtual field: COUNT (in the equation editor, set the value of this field to equal 1).
  4. Use the Run Index.iss script to accumulate the values in the COUNT field by ACCOUNT_NUMBER. (You can get the macro from our website under Solutions/Customer Support/IDEAScripts. To run the macro, go to the Tools menu and select Macro>Run. You will get a Open File dialog box that will let you select the macro from whatever folder you put it in). This script will create a new database.
  5. Open the new database and extract all records where the RUN_TOTAL field is equal to or less than 5.
 
   
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