MyPostageRateSaver
Question&Answers
Q48 How can I get my Original Data Entry Form back?
Q49 How can I insert clipart?
Q50 "The database file cannot be opened in exclusive mode. Either it is already open in another program or it is marked as Read Only"
Q51 Why is the Address Checker not checking one of my addresses when I know it's valid?
Q52 The specified file is password protected, not saved in a valid database format, or contains special characters.
Q53 How Do I make a backup and restore it on a different computer using a CD?
Q54 "A device attached to the system is not functioning. The numbers.dll file is linked to missing export mfc42.dll:6571"
Q55 How Do I create Labels?
Q56 When I print to a spool-feed printer, the printout skips over labels and prints on every 12th label
Q58 How can I print bulk mail pieces without printing the mail separators?
Q48 How can I get my Original Data Entry Form back?
A48(Answer ID 1221): The program will start a new list file with the template Original Data Entry Form first active in the program. This is a convenient default form that you can use to enter data into your program
If you have lost your "Original Data Entry" template because you have changed it significantly, or if you have simply deleted the template, you can retrieve this layout. Try this first:
Go to the View menu and select Original Data Entry Form. If the template still does not come back, you will need to export your data from your current file, create a new list, and then import the data you just exported to "re-build" the file.
To do this:
Go to the File menu and choose Export. For the Export Mode choose All Records. Click the Add All button and then click OK. On the subsequent dialog, choose the Desktop for your Save In location and leave the File Name setting to the default ExpFile. Click OK.
Next create a new list file by going to the File menu and choosing New File (If you are asked to save changes, answer accordingly). If you are asked to choose a template, Standard Mail List is ecommended. DO NOT choose current design )
Once you have opened a new, untitled file, go to the File menu and choose Import. Locate the file called ExpFile.csv and Double-Click it to open it. Click Yes to the dialog box that appears with the question regarding field name headers. A window Assign Import Fields will appear next. If the bottom-left dialog box for Fields in Import File is completely empty, then simply click the OK button. If the bottom-left dialog box for Fields in Import File has field name entries in it, you will need to assign those fields to an appropriately-matching field from the bottom-right dialog box for Fields in Current File. Do this by left-clicking to highlight a field entry in Fields in Import File list, then finding its appropriate match and clicking on it in the Fields in Current File listing. When you do this, both entries should disappear from their respective lists and re-appear as a field assignment in the top dialog box (For example, you might need to click on First Name in the Fields in Import File listing and then click on its "match" in the Fields in Current File listing, which is First). Repeat this manual assignment process until you have assigned every field from the Fields in Import File listing (so that it is empty), or it contains the leftover fields you have decided you do not need. Click OK when you're done.
Your existing data will now be in a list file with the default standard templates available again - including the Original Data Entry Form Simply choose this layout from the Layouts tab or Printouts listing to view this form again and use it.
A49(Answer ID 1095): To add clipart to a design in your database program, you can choose to add an image file from image file that you have created or downloaded from a website or other program.
To add a clipart image to your output form, you must be in the Output Forms tab.
Here, select the Insert menu and choose Clipart
The Pick Picture dialog box will open. The Pick Picture dialog displays the Clipart folder on your hard drive (the C: drive). Browse through these images to see if there is one you want to use. You can browse to this folder manually by going to C:\Program Files\URGMyPostageRateSaver\Clipart
You can also choose a clipart image that you created, or that you have downloaded from the web or another program. To do so, simply browse to the folder on your hard drive that contains your chosen clipart image.
When you select a clipart image that you want to use, a preview of the picture displays on the right side of the dialog.
When the preview shows the image you want to add, click OK. Position your mouse cursor on the design where you want the clipart image to be added, then left-click to place it. The image will be added to the design.
You can now reposition the image by left-clicking and holding down your left mouse button and then moving your mouse cursor to the new position you want the image to be at. Let go of your mouse button when you have in the place you want.
You can also re-size your image by left-clicking on it to highlight it, then left-clicking and holding down your left mouse button on any of the little square icons that you'll see on each of the corners of your highlighted image. Drag your mouse to resize the image, then let go when the image is the size and shape you want it.
When you are done in the Design view, click the OK button at the top of the screen.
If at any time during your modifications you make changes to your design that you want to "undo", choose the Edit menu and then select Undo. This will undo your last change. If you want to cancel all the changes you have made on the Design view and go back to entering data (meaning that you will abandon all the work you've done in this session of designing), click the Cancel button at the top of the screen instead.
A50(Answer ID 1193): Files from your MyPostageRateSaver program can be copied to CD, but they cannot be opened directly from the CD to use in the program. This is because the CD is read-only and our program needs to be able to access the files and have them available to modify. This need to be able to read and write a data file pertains to many other Windows programs as well.
If you try to open a file directly from a CD, you will get the following message:
The database file cannot be opened in exclusive mode. Either it is already open in another program or it is marked as Read Only
To successfully open a file that you saved to a CD, you will need to Copy and Paste the files from the CD to a folder on your hard drive.
Here's how you can copy your files from your CD to your hard drive:
1) In My Computer or Windows Explorer, click the file or folder you want to copy on your CD.
2) On the Edit menu, click Copy.
3) Open the folder or disk where you want to put the copy.
4) On the Edit menu, click Paste.
5) Repeat for all files on the CD.
To select more than one file or folder to Copy at one time, hold down the CTRL key, and then click the items you want as you hold this key. You will see each file highlight along with others you've clicked. This will also allow you to Paste the files at the same time as well.
After you have made your hard drive copy of your CD contents, you will need to change the Properties for each file so that they are NOT set to Read-only.
To change file or folder properties:
1) In My Computer or Windows Explorer, click the file or folder whose properties you want to change.
2) On the File menu, click Properties.
3) Un-check the "read only" property setting.
4) Click Apply and OK
5) Repeat for each file that make up your list database.
Once you are done you can open the file from your hard drive.
Q51 Why is the Address Checker not checking one of my addresses when I know it's valid?
A51(Answer ID 1219): The MyPostageRateSaver Program that we release every month contain the most recent and up-to-date database of addresses available as maintained by the United States Postal Service. This database is always in flux as new streets and addresses are added along with the destruction/renaming of old addresses. In addition, the Postal Service often re-assigns a Zip code, or its 4-digit extension, or the Delivery Point of an address. Because of the sheer number of addresses and changes to them that occurring all the time, we are required by the Post Office to re-release our address checker every two months to maintain compliance with the most current address list.
Unfortunately, you will - from time to time - have addresses that you know are "right" that are not found or not correctable by the MyPostageRateSaver. For now, those addresses that are not found and correctable must be filtered out of your list and mailed with a regular U.S. first-class stamp. Be assured, though, that the next release of the MyPostageRateSaver will almost always have those addresses included.
A52(Answer ID 1554): This message indicates that you are attempting to open your MyPostageRateSaver file but you are missing the associated files that accompany your main MyPostageRateSaver file.
When you first create a maillist file, the program creates, not one, but four total files that work together to be your data. For example, if you have a list that you created and saved as a file called friends, in addition to the main file friends.mml, you have other files that start with the word "friends", but have different file extensions and names. Here is what you would see in your saved data folder if you browsed to view the contents of your saved list data files (for a list file called friends.mml ):
friends.mml
friendsmml.fsif
friendsmml.msif
friendsmml.bcf
If you look in Windows Explorer (outside of your MyPostageRateSaver program), you should see this set of files in the same place as you chose to create/save your MyPostageRateSaver file.
If you do not, this is because you manually deleted the supporting files (because you incorrectly thought these files were irrelevant, or copies), or you renamed the main *.mml file and didn't subsequently rename the supporting files so that they all have the same naming. All 4 files MUST be in a common folder, such as the Data folder or My Documents. If friends.mml is on a floppy disk, and the other files are on the hard drive, you will not be able to open it from the floppy disk. You will need to get all of the files together, in a common folder.
If you deleted the supporting files and then got this message, Restore them from the Recycle Bin and then try to open your file again.
If you renamed the main file, but not the supporting files, go back and rename the main file again back to exactly what the file was called before (use the naming convention of the other supporting files for guidance if you are not sure what the original name was.)
If the above still does not resolve your issue, then you can try opening your main (.MML) file in the MS-Excel program. Save the file as a .CSV format. You will then be able to import the data from this .CSV file into the MyPostageRateSaver program. Click on "File | Import" to import the data.
Q53 How Do I make a backup and restore it on a different computer using a CD?
A42(Answer ID 1536): 1) Open the file on your first computer
2) Click on "File | Backup"
3) Make a backup to your "Desktop". (For "Look In" option select Desktop and click "Save")
4) Close the program
5) Right click on the backup file that you just saved on your desktop
6) Left click on "Copy"
7) Double click on the "MyComputer" icon and then double click on your CD/RW drive
8) Click on "Edit | Paste".
9) Then burn the file to your CD.
10) Once done, take the CD to your second computer
12) Put the disc in and double click on "MyComputer" and then double click on your CD drive
13) Right click on the backup file and left click on "Copy"
14) Close the window
15) Right Click on your Desktop and left click on "Paste"
16) Now open the program
17) Create a new file using standard template
18) Once in the program, click on "File | Restore"
19) For "Look In" change it to "Desktop"
20) Click on the backup file that you just pasted to your desktop and click "Open"
21) Select "MyDocuments" from the next screen
22) This should restore the data successfully.
A68(Answer ID 1189): This error is a result of conflicting system files on your computer. The problem usually involves one or more copies of:
mfc42.dll
If you are getting a message when you try to open the program that says:
A device attached to the system is not functioning. The numbers.dll file is linked to missing export mfc42.dll:6571
Then this is because you have more than one mfc42.dll file on your system, or the mfc42.dll file you have is corrupted. To troubleshoot this, please do the following:
1) Do a Find or Search on your system (this command is in the START menu) for the file named:
mfc42.dll
on your local hard drive C: Your computer should show at least one of them in the folder:
C:\Windows\System
Leave this file alone. You may have several other mfc42.dll files in other folders as well. Look to see if you have one in either of the following locations:
C:\Program Files\URG
or
C:\Program Files\URG\MyPostageRateSaver
If you do, delete either (or both) of these files (you can do this by right-clicking it, and selecting delete). Now try to open your program again. If your program opens and the error does not appear, you are finished.
If the program still gives the same error message, follow the directions below to repair your mfc42.dll file:
Please print these directions before proceeding, as you will need to re-start your system as you follow them:
1) First, you will need to remove your software.
To do so, open the Windows Control Panel (START -> Settings -> Control Panel or START -> Control Panel) and then double-click Add/Remove Programs. Here, highlight your program entry for MyPostageRateSaver and click the Add/Remove or Change/Remove button to start the uninstallation process. You will get a dialog box that with the options to Modify, Repair, or Remove your program. Select Remove, then click Next, then click OK to remove the application. If you are asked if you want to delete "shared files" answer Yes whenever prompted. Answer any other questions with affirmative responses (Finish, Next, and OK) until the software uninstalls. When you're done, close the Windows Control Panel .
2) Next, you will Rename the folder C:\Program Files\URG\MyPostageRateSaver
To do so:
- Double-click on My Computer
- Double-click on the C: drive
- Double-click on the folder called Program Files
- Double-click on the folder called URG
- Right-Click on the folder called MyPostageRateSaver
- Select Rename
- Type MyPostageRateSaverOld for the new name of this folder.
- Hit the Enter key on your keyboard to accept the change.
- Select Yes to continue with the renaming.
- Close any windows that are open
3) Now, you will be renaming the mfc42.dll file in the C:\Windows\System folder
To do so:
- Click the START button
- Click Shutdown
- Click Restart in MS-DOS mode
- Wait for your system to re-load into DOS
- Type cd system and then hit Enter on your keyboard
- Type ren mfc42.dll mfc42.old and then hit Enter on your keyboard
- Type exit and then hit Enter on your keyboard
- Windows will reappear. If you receive a few messages indicating that necessary files are missing, just click OK to these messages until your desktop fully loads.
4) Last, you will Reinstall the software
To do so, open the Windows Control Panel (START -> Settings -> Control Panel or START -> Control Panel) and then double-click Add/Remove Programs. Click the Install Button, then click Next. Use the default installation settings and answer the questions with affirmative responses (Finish, Next, and OK ) until the software installs. After the program is installed, close the Windows Control Panel, and you should be able to open the program.
A55(Answer ID 1414): 1) Click on the "Data Entry" tab
2) Click on "Format | New Printout or New Layout"
3) Give a name to the printout and press "Ok"
4) In the "Change Printout Size" window, enter (enter the avery template number, ex: 5160) in the "Part Number" field
5) Press "Ok"
6) This will take you to the design window where you can put the fields that you want on your labels
7) In order to input the fields, click and drag the fields from the "Field Tools" to your label or click on MAILING and select Standard and click OK. Left click on Label and it should put the default fields there.
8) Click "Ok" or "Accept Changes" once done
Q56 When I print to a spool-feed printer, the printout skips over labels and prints on every 12th label
A56(Answer ID 1201): On Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows XP, the printouts for tractor-feed label designs may acquire an incorrect page size setting for your printer. The information being sent to your printer may be interpreted as each label occurring once every 11.5" inches as if the label designs are based on a 8.5" x 11" sheet of labels rather than a continuous spool of labels. When this happens, one label prints, then printer spools through labels totalling 11 inches, then prints again on the 12th label on the spool, and so on. For tractor-feed labels that are 15/16" in height, this results in a label printing once, then skipping 11 labels and then printing every 12th label.
This usually happens when the user is using both a sheet-feed and a tractor-feed printer on the same system with their labels program. This "skipping" behavior does not happen on Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows ME systems and only seems to happen on NT-based Windows operating systems (NT, 2000 & XP). Repeatedly switching the printouts between a sheet-feed printer and a tractor-feed printer causes the page size to stay at the 11.5" page height of a sheet printer, and this printer page size causes tractor-feed based designs to skip.
To resolve this problem, you will need to re-build your file as follows to re-set the page size settings of your labels file.
- Open your program by double-clicking on the program's icon in the Start Menu or on your Desktop
- Open your initial labels file that contains the file with which you want to print. If that list is already opened, continue on. Otherwise, choose the File Menu and select Open. On the window that appears, browse to the folder containing your initial list in the Look In drop-down, and then highlight the file name in the window underneath by left-clicking on it. Once the file is highlighted, click the Open button.
- Choose the File menu and select Export.
- On the Export dialog, select the option All Records for the "Export Mode" and then click the Add All button to tell the program to export all the fields for each exported record. When you're done, click OK.
- A Save As dialogue will open. Choose a hard drive or disk location to create the file in by selecting it in the Save In drop-down. Then, give the export file a name in the File Name entry (you can use the default ExpFile name if you want). When you're ready to export, click Save. Make note of the name and location of your file for importing later.
- Open an new file by choosing the File menu and selecting New File. Use the standard template if prompted.
- Go to the Layouts section and choose your tractor-feed label design. If you were using a customized tractor-feed design previously, re-create it by choosing the New Layout option in the Format menu. The command will be either New Layout or New Printout.
- Do NOT change to a different printout or layout design at this point or any point further in the steps! Doing so may cause the problem to re-appear as the program may "hold on" to that incorrect page size of any other design.
- Once you have your new file open with a tractor-feed label design active, choose the File menu and select Import
- In the main window of this Import dialog, you should find the file you just exported. When you see it, left-click on it once to highlight it, then click the Open button.
- A dialog Use First Record for Field Names will appear. Click the Yes button on this dialog.
- A window Assign Import Fields will appear next. If the bottom-left dialog box for Fields in Import File is completely empty, then simply click the OK button. If the bottom-left dialog box for Fields in Import File has field name entries in it, you will need to assign those fields to an appropriately-matching field from the bottom-right dialog box for Fields in Current File. Do this by left-clicking to highlight a field entry in Fields in Import File list, then finding its appropriate match and clicking on it in the Fields in Current File listing. When you do this, both entries should disappear from their respective lists and re-appear as a field assignment in the top dialog box (For example, you might need to click on First Name in the Fields in Import File listing and then click on its "match" in the Fields in Current File listing, which is First). Repeat this manual assignment process until you have assigned every field from the Fields in Import File listing (so that it is empty), or it contains the leftover fields you have decided you do not need. Click OK when you're done.
- The records will be imported and added to your file. You will see them on the Data Table tab in the program. Click on this tab to verify that your information imported successfully. You may wish to Save your changes now.
- Print your records at this point - the tractor-feed based design should print in each label correctly without skipping.
The page size may change back and cause this particular printing error again if you switch this current design back to a sheet-feed based printout. If this happens, you will need to repeat these steps to re-set the page size settings in a new file.
This is a known bug in the program and only occurs on Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows XP when the user is utilizing both a pinfeed and sheet-feed printer on the same system and switching between them when printing. You may wish to consider switching operating systems to Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows ME if you wish to use both kinds of printers at the same time with your labels program.
Q58 How can I print bulk mail pieces without printing the mail separators?
A58(Answer ID 1210): Customers may wish to print their mailing pieces in bulk mail order without the separator labels or pieces printing in between. This is possible, but it involves some management of your mail list data, though it may save you the cost and inconvenience of wasting labels (or envelopes) when printing the pieces in bulk mail order with the separators.
It is strongly recommended that you backup the data before doing the workaround below. Do this by using the Save command in the File menu to save a "backup" copy of your mail list file.
Once the bulk mail order has been established in a mail list file, meaning once you have address corrected the file and you have gone through "Mailing" > "Process Bulk Mail," the data in that particular file will be in bulk mail order. When you click Finish at the end of step 3 of the bulk mail wizard, you'll be at a print preview screen where you normally would print your mailing labels (or envelopes or whatever layout you print on) along with the Postage Statement, Summary Report, and Bar-coded Tray/Sack labels. Go ahead and print the Postage Statement, Summary Report, and Bar-coded Tray/Sack labels, but don't print the actual mailing addresses from this mode. Close this print preview.
You will now increment a field with numerical information to represent this Bulk Mail sort order for use later. Do this by choosing the Data menu and choosing Increment Field. Here, set the Increment Field drop-down selection to "Custom6" as long as you do not have any data at all in the Custom6 field for your record list (if you do not have the "Custom" field, then simply choose a field in your database that does NOT have any data in it at all). Then, make sure the record range is from "1" to the maximum number of records in your list. This is the default setting as well, but verify this to ensure correctness. Click OK.
You have now created an incremented number all the way through your list in the "Custom6" field (or whatever other field you selected). This numerical designation will be used later to re-create the bulk mail sort order.
You will now de-activate the bulk mail sort as follows: go to the Mailing menu and select Define Address Fields. Set the "Address" drop-down to Custom1 and then click OK. Click OK on the warning message that appears next. Again, go to the Mailing menu and select Define Address Fields. Set the "Address" drop-down to Address and then click OK. Click OK on the warning message that appears again. Your bulk mail sort is now deactivated.
Re-sort your list now according to the "Custom6" field to put the records in the same order that they were in when a bulk mail sort was active previously. You'll have the correct printing order, but since the program does not recognize this as a true bulk mail sort, NO separator labels will print. You can perform this re-sorting by selecting the Data menu and choosing Sort. Set the first sorting drop-down selection to Custom6 and then click OK. Your records are now in the proper order again and you can now print them without separators.