The Edge of Empty

A E is an infinitely curious creature.  He has no qualms about investigating whatever crosses his path.

After a recent update to the .Net version of CryWolf®, I noticed what I believe is a new option to send  invoices and account histories by email while in the history of an account.  Before noticing this option, my staff was opening the history, clicking on the invoice, saving it as a pdf file, and then attaching the file to an email.  Now, a simple right click on the invoice number opens the options window where it is possible to send a pdf of the invoice directly to the email addresses on file in the account.  Simply click on the option  and slide over to the right to select an email address.  As can be seen in the sample, the account holder's address appears on top and the responsible party's  email address is below.  It is also possible to send the item to an email address not on the account by choosing the "Other Email" option.  After clicking the selection, a "Quick Email window" opens and a subject line and message may be added...

IMG_1942 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.

Even sleepy ferrets like tunnels. A E had a friend visit on Sunday  if you missed it. IMG_1914 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.

Occasionally, it has been helpful to send a letter to a group of registered alarm users. If this sounds like something that would be helpful,  scroll down to "Process Bulk Letters" on the File menu in CryWolf®. In the "Bulk Letters" window, there are 3 tabs that can help refine the account selection process: General Search, Based on Outstanding Amounts, and Letter Received. The General Search tab offers options to choose the accounts to send letters.  If the letter needs to be sent to an alarm company, choosing the "Alarm Company" radio button allows the registered Alarm Companies to be searched. The default "Accounts" radio button searches registered users.  The pull down menu to the right of the radio buttons allows the  search to be refined by 7 parameters. The "Based on Outstanding Amounts" tab, allows a search of accounts by the amounts owed and date notification was sent. My favorite tab "Letter Received" allows a ...

IMG_2042 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. I walked out on the back porch this morning and caught the Easter bunny making his visit. I hope that your day is peaceful and spent well with friends and family.

A E has some toys that are perennial favorites.  Eeyore is one of those favorites.  It is rather amusing to see A E dragging Eeyore from room to room, especially since Eeyore is much larger. IMG_1918 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.

Have you ever wished to clear a letter from the print queue in CryWolf® without actually printing it? I can’t tell you how many times a letter with a “bad address” has cluttered up our queue.  It is so frustrating to select that letter only to realize it is “that” letter that we have clicked on several times already. Today, I accidentally right-clicked on the queue and a window popped up with the question “Who are these assigned to?” and the option “Remove from Print Queue”. After a bit of experimentation, I realized that it is possible to remove the offending letter from the queue without wasting paper by printing it.  Simply right click on the offending letter and choose “Remove from Print Queue”.  Be warned that this does not remove the letter from the account history though.  Also, if there multiple copies of the letter in the queue, all of the letters of that type will be removed. My advice would be to print all of the good letters and then delete the...

The other day we were in the car to retrieve Eldest from college for spring break.  I  noticed that the Hubster brought along his lunch bag.  I was feeling a bit peckish, so I decided to see what snack I could  nab from his stash.  Imagine my surprise when this is what I found: IMG_1967 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. When I pulled out my camera, he exclaimed "you will not blog about this." Silly Hubby, a good blogger can't pass up opportunities like this one. Which brings us to the question, what do you call a lunch box with no food in it? If I was carrying the bag,  it would be a purse.  Since it was the Hubsters, it could only be a murse .  The  Urban Dictionary  defines murse as "a male handbag, or man-purse." Who knew that the Hubster was a trendsetter?  Even better, I found a clip of one of Youngest's favorite movie quotes from the time when he used to sport a messenger bag instead of a traditional backp...

It has been quite a while since I had time to post more than once or twice a week.  I certainly haven't had a chance to share amusing sites from my travels. This past weekend, I found myself on the road taking Eldest back to school after spring break.  aAfter 15 hours in the car, I must say that I was not finding much amusing. However, the situation changed when I saw the sign below: If you don't understand why I found this amusing, maybe seeing where it was posted will help. IMG_1991 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. With gas prices hovering around $4 per gallon, I certainly didn't expect to find amusement at a service station.  At least the proprietor seems to have a sense of humor.

20120325_124841 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. Sometimes a ferret just needs to lay down and relax a minute in between running through tubes.

We are going to venture away from CryWolf® today to discuss other technology that can assist in the mission of reducing false alarms.  One emerging technology that can be harnessed by alarm units is the QR code. As an example, the QR code below includes the web address for this blog. A QR code is a form of bar code similar to a UPC code but with the ability to hold greater amounts of data. These codes were developed by an auto manufacturer in Japan to help them track parts.  Although the company holds the patent rights, they have chosen to not exercise those rights. This allows free use of the technology. QR codes may be formatted to hold all manner of information such as phone numbers, e-mail addresses, gps data, or a web address. QR codes can easily be added to business cards, brochures, and other printed materials.  Many Home Owner Associations in our area allow us a small space in their publications and QR codes are perfect for this space.  The codes can...

DSCF0312 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. It occurred to me that we had not added to the travel series in a while. Today, A E wishes to share the items that he believes are a must for traveling. First, the small pet carrier with fleece cuddle bed inside, the small animal play yard  (with mat to contain messes), his water bowl (fountain is optional, but A E won't get enough fluids without it), and toys. A E is using the tunnel in the picture, but his favorite pink swim goggles (stolen from the Hubster) are also shown. (A E was not fond of the plaid carpet at this hotel or the fleas that hitched a ride home with us). When we are home, A E roams anywhere on the first and second floors.  (He is not allowed in the basement because it has not been ferret-proofed--too much junk many hiding places).  When we are at work, he stays in his room.  At hotels, we have found many dangers even in pet friendly hotels.  Ferrets can get under beds and behin...

DSCF0306 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. Even Eldest grudgingly admits to liking the ferret. Eldest has never been a fan of furry creatures, but he has been caught trying to snap pictures of A. E. as he plops down with his head on Eldest's foot. Here, A. E. is testing the limits of tolerance as he reconnoiters Eldest's water bottle.

IMG_1940 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. A E Ferret is a bit of a show-off. When he is in a playful move, he likes to play chase, collect water bottles, and do silly stunts for attention. Here, he appears to be trying to stand on his head. He was hungry and was trying to persuade us to follow him upstairs to feed him fresh food.

Quite often staff members in my unit need to add a document or file to an alarm user's account. CryWolf® makes that task easy.  I am sure that most units are familiar with the upload of multiple scanned documents. However, there are other ways to add documents to user accounts.  One way is to drag the file from your document folder to the "Documents" button on the alarm user account window. This will trigger the Quick Link window to open.Simply click "ok" and the file will be saved to the account. If the file is attached to an email, another way is to "copy" the file and then right click on the Documents button to choose the Paste function. CryWolf® will accept almost any file type from .tif to .pdf.  Once my unit discovered this, we were able to have our fax machine stop printing registration forms and send them directly to email.  From email, it is a simple transfer straight into the account.  This saves several steps and lots of paper.  I hope t...

IMG_1141 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. Just over a year ago, a young ferret, a busy mom, and a laundry basket all landed on these steps at the same time. It was a very chaotic scene that involved blood, anguish, and an emergency trip to the exotic pets veterinarian. It was feared that A E would not be making the return trip home. In fact, it was several days before he made that trip. Now we all are very careful on the stairs (and everywhere else too) because we have learned that ferrets are mighty fast little critters.

DSCF0253 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. A E Ferret and his best buddy Buzzy Bee are in their favorite sleeping nest--the middle drawer of our dresser in Hubster's cycling clothes.

Our family is a family of Chick-fil-A fans.  When youngest was about 4, he told me he wanted to have lunch at the "place with cursive writing".  There have been days that some members of the family have eaten 3 meals at Chick fil A.  On a trip to the grandparents, the boys and I even detoured to one of the original Dwarf House  locations in the suburbs  of Atlanta. Each summer,  we look forward to  Cow Appreciation Day .  The boys went this summer without me to egg them on. Of course, we love the food, but we also love that the company joins in and becomes part of the community. Once again, several northern Virginia Chick fil A locations are partnering with Freedom Alliance to send care boxes to troops .  The boxes can be dropped off throughout the month of February.

The Hubster placed his gym towel bag on the bed one morning.  When he came back to get it later, there was a ferret inside waiting to go. DSCF0258 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.