The primary purpose of Offline Ticket Entry is to allow you to continue entering tickets and orders when your workstation’s database connection is unavailable. When you are running CounterPoint SQL in offline mode, you are allowed to access Ticket Entry and Touchscreen Ticket Entry and related Point of Sale reports and Drawers functions. In addition, offline mode allows you to add customer records, update workstation-specific settings, and configure OPOS devices.

In offline mode you can view, but not modify, information in other CounterPoint SQL modules. This means, for example, that you can access the View Items form to review your item records, but you cannot access the Items form to add new items or edit existing ones. Similarly, while you are allowed to view vendor records, you are not allowed to edit them.

With the exception of creating new customer records, all CounterPoint SQL “add-on-the-fly” functions are disabled in offline mode, so you cannot add or edit items and other types of records from within other areas of the software. For example, although you can look up items from Ticket Entry in offline mode, you cannot add new items using the Item Look-up form.

So what else is Offline Mode good for?  How about sidewalk sales, or trade shows where there may not be a connection to the Internet.  If you plan on accepting credit cards you may need to add a dial up modem to your workstation. If the Internet is available you can use your existing CPGateway Internet Credit Card authorization service to get authorizations.  All the settling and posting of tickets is done later when the Workstation has a connection to the "Live" database, 

Although posting and settling are not automatic (unless this has been setup on your Server) the transferring of all the tickets, orders and other allowed changes is automatic.  This means that you can run in offline mode for a weekend trade show, get back to the main office and run business as usual.  At night when you're ready to close, close as normal and all Offline Tickets will be posted along with your regular tickets.

If you have questions about adding the Offline Ticket Entry option to your current system, or need some help getting it all up and running, call the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806 or  email_us.

-Bryan