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Opas 9 | |
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OPAS Version 9
The Address Book
Overview - Access Categories
Access Categories subdivide the OPAS Address Book . By default there are three configurations in which the Address Book can be opened:
Address Book - with no indication, the Address book opens all entities, regarless of Access Category
Address Book (Artists) - soloists, orchestras, orchestra members & substitutes, and any other person or entity that perfoms
Address Book (General) - venues, publishers, schools, administrative staff, and any other non-perfoming entity
In OPAS version 8, the distinction between access categories is mostly a matter of convenience and security (you can restrict the Address Book so users can access only entities belonging to a certain category). In OPAS 9, the different Access Categories can also dictate the layout of Address Book screens so you see the fields most applicable to the category. In addition the actual screens and order of the screens can be customized.
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Address Book (Artists)
The structure of this Address Book 'version' is tailored for soloists, conductors, orchestra musicians and ensembles.
The Main screen now has the Instrument, Address Group and Agent grids at the top -- the Agent grid has been moved over from the old "Contacts / Agents" tab -- followed by contact numbers and address.
Scrolling down reveals the order and seat fields used for orchestra musicians and several seldom-edited yet important fields.
The Performance History screen has been situated next to the Main screen for ease of access (if you're looking at a soloist, you want easy access to his/her performance history). Its layout is bacially unchanged.
An important change concerns the Personal Data screen. This single screen in version 8 has been expanded into two screens to make it easier to secure confidentail information (particularly for orchestra musicians). In OPAS 9 the screen labled Personal Data now puts birth and death information at the top followed by the personal notes
Scrolling down reveals the Contact Manger (typically used for Frequent Flyer or other identifiers), Staff (seldom used for artists) and Functions grid (used only for personnel, and then only sparingly in the U.S.).
The new Restircted Data screen stores the more confidential information previously held on the old Personal Data screen:
The Documents, Additional Data, and To-Do List screens have been kept essentially the same although their order has been changed (Additional Data & To-Do List are seldom used for artists and therefore have been moved to the end of the list) and "To-Do List" is likely to be renamed "Checklist"
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Address Book (General)
The structure of this Address Book 'version' is tailored for business, venues, administrative staff, publishers, agents and any other non-performing company or individual.
The Main screen for General entries puts the Contact Number, Address Group and Staff grids at the top, followed by the Address:
Scrolling down revels the other important but seldom-used fields. Note that grids like "Instruments" (which would not apply to non-performers) no longer appear on the main screen.
The Contacts / Agents screen now stores the Agent grid (primarily for publishers), Alernate Residence, Orch/Ensemble and Contact Manager grids:
Just as with artists (perfomers), confidential or personal information has been expanded from the single "Personal Data" screen in OPAS 8 to two screens - the Personal Data screen contains information such as bith/death information, personal notes and the Functions grid. This screen will seldom be used as it pertains only to individuals and rarely to companies.
The new Restircted Data screen stores the more confidential information previously held on the old Personal Data screen. Again, this is primarily intended for non-performing individulas and not companies.
The Performance History, Documents, Additional Data, and To-Do List screens have been kept essentially the same although their order has been changed (Additional Data & To-Do List are seldom used for artists and therefore have been moved to the end of the list) and "To-Do List" is likely to be renamed "Checklist"
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Address Book
Without the "Artist" or "General" indications the OPAS Address Book reveals entities in all Access Categories: conductors, publishers, soloists, venues, schools, ensembles, composers, etc. Because the Address Book must display all types of entities, it must make compromises on layout and as such is not optimized for either performers or non-performers. It is the layout most like the existing view in OPAS 8.
The Main Screen of the Address book puts the Address Group, Instrument, Contact Numbers and Staff grids at the top of the screen in an effort to best accomodate soloists, conductors and businesses (such as venues, schools, etc.). Following that is standard address information:
Srcolling down reveals the Agents grid (for soloists and guest conductors) and other address book fields that are important but not often edited.
Since the Agents grid has been moved to the Main screen, the existing Contacts / Agents screen has been renamed to Alt. Addr. / Others. This screen now contains five grids: Alternate Residences (now just called "Residence" in OPAS 8, the grid contains secondary addresses, primarily for orchestra personnel), Orchestra or Ensemble, Contact Manager (originally designed to store phone/mail/email contacts with the entity, this grid is often co-opted for frequent-flyer or other information) and Functions (seldom used in the U.S. and then only with personnel).
The Additional Data screen remains the same, and is followed by the Personal Data and Restricted Data screens. Just as with the "Artist" and "General" Address Books, confidential or personal information has been expanded from the single "Personal Data" screen in OPAS 8 to two screens - the Personal Data screen contains information such as bith/death information and personal notes. This screen is used primarily for orchestra musicians and soloists / guest conductors.
The new Restircted Data screen stores the more confidential information previously found on the old Personal Data screen. Again, this is primarily intended for orchestra musicians and on occaision, soloists and guest conductors.
The To-Do List, Performance History, and Documents screens have been kept essentially the same., although the "To-Do List" is likely to be renamed "Checklist"
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