Getting started
The minimum number of steps to begin using Timesheet is briefly described below. Follow these steps for a basic introduction to the structure and use of the application. However, this is not a guide for optimal complete implementation. To achieve that, please consult the other available documentation and online help.
Create an employee
Hours are registered by employees. After a fresh installation there is one administrator user present in the system with login code "ADMIN". In the page "Timesheet> Administration> Employee” new employees can be entered. The following fields are the mandatory fields that must be entered for a new employee.
employee code
The employee code is also the login code of the employee. The maximum length of this field is 50 characters and the code should only contain numbers, letters, hyphens and underscores. The employee code is used throughout the application for the identification and selection of employees. Make sure that the code is a readable, useful code for all users of the system.
employee name
The employee name is the actual name of the employee.
password
This is the password of the employee with which the employee, in conjunction with the employee code, can use to log into the system.
group
The group to which an employee is assigned determines what that person sees after logging into the application. By default, two groups "ADMIN" and "USER" are included. Which screens employees in a particular group will see can be set in "Timesheet> Settings> Authorization Groups". It is possible to create new groups and to assign pages to it. New groups are created in the screen "Timesheet> Administration> Groups”.
Create a customer
A new customer can be created in the screen "Timesheet> Administration> Customers". The following fields are required and must be entered when creating a new customer.
customer code
The customer code is similar in function to the employee code. The maximum length is 50 characters and the code should only contain numbers, letters, hyphens and underscores. Again, the code is used throughout the application for indicating and selecting customers. Make sure that the customer code is a readable, useful code for all users of the system.
customer name
This is the real name of the customer. When sending a mailing (Contact management module) or when creating invoices (Invoicing module) this is the name that will appear in the mailing.
location
This is the city name of the postal address.
Create a project
A new project can be created in the "Timesheet > Administration> Projects" and “Timesheet > Administration > Projects++” pages. The following fields are required and must be entered when creating a new project.
customer
This is a dropdown list of all available customers, created in the previous step. A customer must be selected before a project can be created.
project code
The project code is similar to the employee and customer code. The maximum length is 50 characters and the code should only contain numbers, letters, hyphens and underscores. The project code is used throughout the application for indicating and selecting projects. Make sure that the code is a readable, useful code for all users of the system.
project name
This is the name of the project. This name is used in invoices (Invoicing module), and other areas of the application where the short code is not used.
type
Type defines if the project has a definitive end date or if it is an ongoing project. Type "project" means a project has a set start and end date. This is as opposed to the "ongoing" type, where no end date is set.
status
The status defines the current state of the project, and is broken down into three different categories. The status of the project is set to "in progress" by default, indicating that the project is currently ongoing. Projects that will take place in the future can be set to the "in preparation" status. Finally, projects that have been completed should be set to the "closed" status.
Create project elements for the project
Project elements are created in the "Timesheet> Administration > Project elements” and “Timesheet > Administration > Projects++” pages. Project elements are separate activities or phases of a project. The following fields are required and must be entered before a project element can be created.
project
This is a dropdown list of all available projects. The project that was created in previous step can be selected here.
element code
The element code is similar to the project code in its use. The maximum length is 50 characters and the code should only contain numbers, letters, hyphens and underscores. The Element code is used throughout the application for the identification and selection of project elements. The project and project element codes indicate where the user should record their hours on the timesheet page. Make sure that the code is a readable, useful code for all users of the system.
project name
This is the name of the project element and is used in invoices (Invoicing module, not available in China at this moment) for the description of the invoicing lines.
status
The status defines the current state of the project element, and is broken down into three different categories. The status of the project element is set to "in progress" by default, indicating that the project element is currently ongoing. Project elements that will take place in the future can be set to the "in preparation" status and project elements that are completed should be set to the "closed" status.
Create resources
In this step, the project elements are connected to the employees. Only after an employee is linked to a project element can the employee register hours for that project element. This connection in MPO is called a "resource". Resources can be created on the screens "Timesheet> Admin> Resources” and “Timesheet > Admin > Projects++”.
project - project element
This is a dropdown list containing all of the available project elements. The project element created in the previous step can be selected here.
employee
In this field, select the employee that should be allowed to register hours for this project element.
status
The default status of a resource is set to "in progress". Resources that will be used in the future should have the status "in preparation" and resources that are no longer in use should have the status "closed".
timesheet
After creating the new user account, project, project element and resource the new user can then log in and record hours in the "Timesheet> Timesheet > Employee" page.