In-Field Express

An Introduction to
In-Field Express
Last Modified 6/19/2012
About this Manual
Hello, and thank you for choosing In-Field Express, an Internet-based order management system that
was designed to be the easiest way to receive work order requests from your client and to send
completion results back to them. In this document you will learn how to use In-Field Express to check
for new work order requests and send results back to your client.
Contents
About this Manual ........................................................................................................................................ 2
1.
Signing Into In-Field Express ................................................................................................................. 3
2.
Accepting Inbound Orders .................................................................................................................... 4
3.
Navigating the In-Field Express Page .................................................................................................... 5
4.
Viewing Orders and Memos ................................................................................................................. 8
5.
Adding Completion Results to Orders................................................................................................... 9
5.1
Report Forms ................................................................................................................................ 9
5.2
Bids .............................................................................................................................................. 11
IFE Bids .............................................................................................................................................. 12
Marshall & Swift Bids ........................................................................................................................ 12
5.3
Photos ......................................................................................................................................... 14
5.4
Documents .................................................................................................................................. 16
5.5
Memos ........................................................................................................................................ 18
5.6
Closing the Job Screen ................................................................................................................ 18
6.
Routing Orders .................................................................................................................................... 19
7.
Getting started with the In-Field Express Desktop App ...................................................................... 21
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................... 26
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1.
Signing Into In-Field Express
There are two different ways to log into In-Field Express. You may log in through your web browser or
by installing and running the In-Field Express Desktop App.
Logging in Via Web Browser
To log into the In-Field Express website you will first need to open your computer’s web browser.
Common web browsers are Internet Explorer , Mozilla FireFox , and Apple Safari . Please note
that Google Chrome
(a popular third-party browser) isn’t compatible with some of the web
technologies used by In-Field Express, and if you try to log in with it you will receive a message
requesting that you use a supported browser. Once you have opened your browser you need to find the
Address Bar, which is a large text field at the top of the window where you type web page addresses.
Type the In-Field Express web address, www.infieldexpress.com, into that field and then press the Enter
key on your computer’s keyboard. This will load the In-Field Express login screen. Type in your
username and password and then click the Login button to log into the web site.
If you’ve forgotten your password, click the ‘Forgot Password’ link next to the login button. It will ask
you a question to verify your identity and then email your password to you.
Logging in Via the In-Field Express Desktop App
If you have the In-Field Express desktop app installed on your computer you can log in using that. To get
started, look on your desktop for the In-Field Express icon, and double click on it.
Opening the icon will start the desktop app, which you can use in the same way as the web site.
If you don’t have the In-Field Express icon on your desktop or if you are looking for more
information about how to use the app, please see the Desktop App section of this manual,
located in Chapter 7.
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2.
Accepting Inbound Orders
Your client may require you to accept or reject new orders when logging in. If they have this
requirement you’ll see the list of new orders after clicking the ‘Login’ button.
Accepting or Rejecting Individual Orders
You will use the dropdowns in the Accept/Reject column to declare whether you are rejecting the order
or accepting it. Your client may request that you give them notification of when you expect to have the
order completed, and you can use the ‘Est Completion Date’ column to provide that. At the far right
side of the screen is a Comment column, into which you can type any comments you might have
regarding your acceptance or rejection of particular orders.
Accepting or Rejecting Orders En Masse
If there are many orders in your list your client may allow you to accept them all at once rather than one
at a time. If they have allowed this capability you would find it under the ‘Batch Functions’ menu.
The ‘Batch Functions’ menu contains three items. Use the ‘Select All’ option to highlight all of the orders
in the list. After they have been highlighted, you can select either the ‘Accept’ or ‘Reject’ options to
accept or reject the highlighted orders.
Return to Order Inbox
After you have marked all of the orders, click the ‘Save Orders’ option in the menu bar to be brought to
the Order Inbox. If you have not marked all of the orders for acceptance or rejection or are missing
required information you will be given the chance to correct that before being brought to the Inbox.
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3.
Navigating the In-Field Express Page
Once you’ve logged into In-Field Express you can explore the screen. On the left side of the screen is a
menu that lets you view different lists of work orders. If you click any of the buttons in the menu the list
of items that you’re viewing will change. The menu includes:
Inbox – Orders and memos that have been sent to you by your client. You can filter orders in the
Inbox by due date by clicking the “Orders Due Today”, “Orders Due in 1 Day”, etc, options
under the Inbox.
Cancelled – Orders that you’ve cancelled
Outbox – Completed orders that contain results and memos that you’ve marked to send to your
client, but that haven’t been completely uploaded yet
Sent Items – Completed orders that contain results that have been returned to your client
Read Items – Memos that have been sent to you by your client that you’ve opened and read
Inbox Features
The main part of the Inbox screen shows you a list of active orders, and important information such as
due dates, property addresses, and service request types.
Work Order Request
RUSH Order
Memo
Completed Item (Orange ‘Status’ circle)
Order Cancellation
Page Navigation
There is an informational column that contains icons to inform you of special order conditions. If an
order needs to be given priority then it will be tagged as a ‘Rush’ order, with an exclamation mark icon
( ). If your client has sent you a memo along with the order you will see an envelope icon ( ) and
the memo will be shown in the row below the order. If you have received a cancellation request for an
order you will see a red ‘X’ icon ( ). If you click that icon a window will appear asking you to
acknowledge the cancellation. When you click “OK” the cancelled order will be removed from the list.
The ‘Status’ column helps you to differentiate between orders that are due and orders that have been
completed. Most orders in the Inbox will be active orders that demonstrate a grey circle ( ). If you
receive a memo on an order that you’ve already completed, the completed order will reappear in your
Inbox with a yellow circle ( ) to let you know that you’ve already completed that job.
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If you have received a large quantity of orders you might discover that In-Field Express has separated
your orders across multiple pages to ensure that the order list loads efficiently. You can navigate
through those pages by utilizing the navigation buttons at the bottom-right hand corner of the screen:
It’s easy to search for work orders using each column’s filter field. Simply click within the filter field and
enter what you’re looking for and In-Field Express will show all matching orders.
Above the order list there are several tools that let you work with your orders. The first of these, ‘Batch
Functions’, opens a menu that lets you make changes to many highlighted orders at once. To use the
Batch Functions you must first check the box next to each order that you want to be affected.
After you’ve selected all of the orders that you want, click the ‘Batch Functions’ button to open the
menu.
The Batch Functions affect the highlighted orders in the following ways:
Select All Orders will check the “Selected” checkbox of all orders that are being displayed in the list
Mark Orders as Viewed will mark all highlighted orders and memos sent to you by the office as viewed.
When orders are marked as viewed the office will receive notification that you’ve opened them.
Mark Orders as Cancelled will mark the highlighted orders as cancelled. The office will receive a
notification message if you cancel any of your assigned orders.
Reassign Orders will allow you to assign an order to a different In-Field Express user that works for your
parent company. The orders will be pulled out of your Inbox and placed in theirs.
Print Work Orders opens a popup window containing a PDF of all selected work orders. That PDF can
then be printed, saved to your computer, or emailed. If you try using this option and it doesn’t appear
to work, make sure that your browser isn’t blocking popup windows from the In-Field Express website.
Google Chrome
Internet Explorer
Generate PDF Forms creates a PDF file that contains report forms for each selected work order. This is
useful if you have crews working for you and you want to provide them with a paper copy of the
required report to complete.
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The Excel icon (
) will export a list of your orders to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
The Routing icon (
) will map your orders and help you to find an efficient route to reach them. You
can find more information about this feature in Chapter 6.
The final menu option, “Offline Mode”, lets you use In-Field Express even when your computer’s not
connected to the internet. Please visit Chapter 7 for more information on this feature.
Cancelled Orders
The ‘Cancelled Orders’ menu shows a list of all orders that they have cancelled or you have rejected.
If your client allows it, you can reopen your cancelled orders within this screen, sending them back to
the Inbox. To do this, check the ‘Select’ checkbox next to the order(s) that you want to reopen. Once
you have completed this task, click the ‘Reopen Orders’ button in the toolbar. Those selected orders will
then be moved back to the Inbox.
Outbox
The ‘Outbox’ displays a list of orders that have recently been saved using the ‘Save and Submit’ option,
are now queued to be uploaded to the hub. Any orders that appear in the Outbox are not yet available
for downloading by the client, but will be available within a matter of minutes.
Sent Items
The ‘Sent Items’ folder shows a list of all orders that have been successfully uploaded to the hub.
By default, only the most recent month’s worth of orders is displayed in the list. If you need to see
orders going further back, the Search function at the top of the screen will assist you with pulling those
up.
At the far right side of the window (which you may need to scroll over to see) there is a column labeled
‘Results Received’. This column will show you the date and time that your client downloaded the results
into their Field-Comm.net system.
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4.
Viewing Orders and Memos
If you double click on an order or a memo then that item will be opened, and you will see detailed
information about it.
Viewing Memos
Double clicking on any of the Memo lines that you see in the Inbox will show you the full memo that
your client sent to you. To inform your client that you’ve read the memo, click on ‘Mark as Read’. If you
want to reply to the memo, click ‘Reply’. If you want to view the order that the memo was attached to,
click on ‘View Order’. To return to the Inbox, click ‘Cancel’.
Viewing Orders
Double clicking on any of the work order lines will open the order and display all of the work order
details, including property and bank information as well as the work order instructions and any memos
that the office sent to you.
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5.
Adding Completion Results to Orders
5.1
Report Forms
To complete a property condition report click on the ‘Report Forms’ button in the Order Screen menu
bar.
When you click on ‘Report Forms’ the Form Viewer screen opens. Generally, your client has defined a
specific form that they would like you to use, and when you open the Form Viewer that form gets
opened. (If you need to complete an alternative form you are able to choose one – the instructions to
do so are included in the very next section of this manual.)
Forms are filled out by clicking on the form itself and typing. If there’s a section of the form that
requires text, simply click inside that area and begin typing. To circle an option or mark a checkbox just
click on the form page at that particular spot.
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Choosing your report forms
If you wish to fill out the generic form that’s provided you can begin filling it out immediately. However,
there are a variety of alternative reports available to you, which you can view by clicking the ‘Choose
Form’ button in the menu bar. When you click ‘Choose Form’ a new window will open, labeled “Form
Selector”.
If you have completed any forms for this work order those forms will be shown in the “Select a Form”
list. If you’ve previously filled out a form and you want to view it, you can highlight it in the “Select a
Form” list and click the ‘Show Form’ button to display it. If you want to delete one of the previously
filled forms highlight it and then click the ‘Delete Form’ button.
All of the forms that are available for you to fill out are displayed in the “Create a New Form” list. If you
want to fill out one of the alternative forms, highlight the form in the “Create a New Form” list and then
click the ‘Create Form’ button beneath the list. This will add that form to the “Select a Form” list. Then
highlight the form’s name under “Select a Form’ and click the ‘Show Form’ button. The Form Selector
will close and the new form will be loaded, ready for you to complete.
Viewing Order and Report Information
You can view information about the order that you’ve completed and about the form that you’re filling
in using the menu bar at the top of the screen. There are also some notifications below the menu bar.
‘Modified’ Notification
When you open the form screen you will either be looking at a new, blank form, or a form that’s in
progress that you can continue working on. If you’re looking at a new order then the ‘Modified’
notification text will be “New Report Form”, and if you’re editing a form that had been previously
created then the notification text will be “Modified from Original”.
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When you’re filling in a form and you need to research information about the work order, click the
Instructions button to view the services and instructions that were on the work order. If you’ve added
photos from the order to In-Field Express and you need to review them while filling out the form, click
the Photos button.
If you have attached any audio recordings (such as a walkthrough recording) to the job, an audio player
button ( ) will appear in the toolbar. When you click on that button the Audio Player app will open,
and you will be able to play back the recording.
Most of the forms that you’ll find in In-Field Express have built-in validation, which means that they’re
programmed to know sections that must be completed a certain way. If you want to see if the form that
you’re working on passes validation, click the “Validate Form” button in the menu bar. If the form
doesn’t pass validation then the “Error Notification” will appear, and In-Field Express will let you know
which sections of the form have issues.
If you have filled out any part of the form and you decide you want to clear all of your changes and start
over you can click the “Reset Form” button ( ) to revert to the form’s original condition.
Saving the Form
Once you’ve filled out a form and are ready to save it, click on the “Save Form” button ( ) in the menu
bar. In-Field Express will examine the form and make sure that all of the required fields have been filled
out properly. If anything is missing you will be alerted of the missing fields. As long as validation has
passed the form will be saved and you will be returned to the order’s main screen.
If you want to save the completed form to your computer’s hard disk as a PDF file you can click the
“Save to PDF” button ( ) in the menu bar to do this.
If you decide that you want to return to the order’s main screen without saving anything, click the
“Cancel” button ( ). Clicking on “Cancel” discards all changes that you’ve made to the form.
5.2
Bids
In-Field Express lets you easily create bids and submit them to your client for approval. The Bids screen
lets you create and track bids for each of your work orders.
The Bids screen is opened by clicking on the ‘Bids’ option in the order’s menu bar.
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Bids Screen Familiarization
You are able to create multiple bids for each work order that you’ve been tasked with. Because of this,
the bids screen looks and behaves a bit differently from the Report Forms, Photos, and Documents
screens.
In the left-hand side of the screen there is a list of all of the bids that have been created for the current
work order. If you haven’t yet created any bids for the work order then this list will be blank. If you’ve
created bids and want to view one of them, click on the bid in the list and its information will be
displayed in the main part of the page, under the “Bid Services” section.
If you want to print out one of the bids, click the printer icon ( ) next to the bid’s line. If you need to
delete any bid, click the trash can icon ( ) next to the bid.
In the Reports, Photos, and Documents screens the Save and Cancel buttons will both return you to the
main order screen. When working with the Bids screen those buttons will either save the current bid
that you’re working on or cancel changes that you’ve made to it. In order to go back to the job’s main
screen you need to click the “ Return to Order” button in the menu bar.
Creating a New Bid
To begin creating a bid click the plus sign ( ) which is labeled ‘Create New Bid’ and located to the left of
the ‘Bid Header’ text. If your office has enabled the Repair Cost Express estimation module provided by
Marshall and Swift a menu will open with two options: “Marshall & Swift” and “IFE Bid”. If the Repair
Cost Express module has not been enabled the IFE bid creation process will begin immediately.
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IFE Bid Creation
If you selected “New IFE Bid” or if the Marshall & Swift bids are not enabled, the IFE bid process begins.
The Bid Header section of the page becomes enabled and allows you to fill in the bid’s information
including the bid date, bid expiration date, and bid header. In the header there is an ‘Upload’ checkbox
that is selected automatically; this checkbox will make In-Field Express upload the bid after the work
order is marked ‘Complete’.
Bid Header
‘Add Bid Line’
Bid Service
After you’ve filled in the bid header you can add services to the bid by selecting them from the ‘Service’
dropdown and entering details about the services in the ‘Description’ text box. Type the quantity of
items that you’re bidding for, the amount you’re bidding per unit, and also the tax you must charge if
that’s applicable. To make bidding faster and easier for you, whenever you select a service and enter a
bid price for it In-Field Express will remember that price, and the next time you add that service to a bid
the price will be pulled in automatically.
After adding your first item to the bid you can add additional lines by clicking the plus sign ( ) which is
labeled ‘Add Bid Line’ and is located to the right of the ‘Bid Services’ text. If you want to remove a bid
line that you’ve created click the trash can icon ( ) to the right of Sub Total.
When you have finished creating bid lines, click ‘Save Bid’ and then click ‘Return to Order’. Clicking
‘Return to Order’ will bring you back to the order’s main screen. If you click ‘Return to Order’ without
clicking ‘Save Bid’ you will be asked if you want to save. If you click ‘Yes’ then the bid will be saved, and
‘Cancel’ will cause it not to be saved. If you’ve made changes to a bid that you don’t want to keep, click
on ‘Cancel’. Clicking ‘Cancel’ will reset all of the bid’s fields and leave you with an empty bid screen.
Marshall & Swift Bid Creation
East Point System’s goal is give our customers time and money saving tools. East Point worked closely
with Marshall & Swift to integrate their Repair Cost Express (RCX) estimation system with In-Field
Express so that users have the most cost effective way to generate cost estimates using a recognized
data base from a third party.
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Marshall & Swift will provide In-Field Express users with any training, documentation, and assistance
needed for using RCX and generating a cost estimate. Once the user has selected ‘Marshall & Swift Bid’
they are eligible for Marshall & Swift’s training and support, and can contact Marshall & Swift directly by
phone (866-264-9459) or by accessing the RCX Help pages by clicking the Help link at the top of the
page. The hours of operation are 8 am to 8 pm EST Monday thru Friday and Saturday and Sunday 9 am
to 6pm EST.
5.3
Photos
Photos are an essential part of job completion, and the Photos screen lets you upload verification
photos to your client.
Clicking on the ‘Photos’ option in the order’s menu bar opens the Photos page, where you can add new
photos to the work order and view the photos that have already been attached.
Adding New Photos
To add new photos for the order click the “Add Photos” button in the menu bar.
This will open the File Uploader screen, which helps you upload photos to In-Field Express.
Click the ‘Select Files’ button to find the photos that you want to add to the work order. After you’ve
added all of the order’s photos to the list, click the ‘Upload’ button and they will all be uploaded from
your computer to the In-Field Express website. Once all photos have been uploaded, click the ‘OK’
button and you’ll be brought back to the main Photos screen.
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If you’ve added files to the list and before uploading you decide that you don’t want them
sent to your client, click the trash can icon ( ) next to each individual photo to remove it or
the ‘Clear List’ button to remove them all.
Next to the ‘Upload’ button there is a dropdown labeled ‘Max Upload’, containing a list
numbered 1-5. If you have difficulty uploading, which might happen with slower or less
reliable wireless connections, choose a lower number to make the photo upload more
reliable. Every photo will be uploaded when you click ‘Upload’, whether you select 1 or 5.
Working with Your Photos
After your photos have been added to the order you will see them in the Photos screen.
You can see a larger view of any photo that you’ve added by clicking the magnifying glass icon ( ) at
the top corner of each photo. Next to that icon there is an ‘Upload’ checkbox, which signifies that the
selected photo should be sent back to your client when the order is marked ‘Complete’. All photos are
automatically checked for upload when you add them to In-Field Express. If you don’t want a photo to
be marked for upload, uncheck that box. If any photos have already been sent to the client you’ll see a
globe icon ( ) next to the upload checkbox. Finally, you can apply a caption to each photo by changing
the caption text below the photo. By default each photo’s original file name is applied as the caption
when you add it.
Once you’ve added photos you might need to rearrange them. There are two different ways to do this.
One way is to drag the photos to the proper place; if you click on any photo you can drag it around the
screen and place it where you want it to go. This is similar to how you would move icons around your
computer’s desktop. You can also reorder many of your photos at once. To do this, hold down the
Control key on your computer’s keyboard and click on the photos in the order that you wanted them to
be placed. When holding the Control key (Ctrl) and clicking on photos, they are highlighted and
numbered in the order that you clicked. After they have been numbered, click on ‘Reorder Selected’
and the photos will be rearranged in the order that you had clicked on them.
You can make changes to multiple photos at once using the ‘Edit’ menu. Within the Edit menu there are
four options: ‘Set Caption’, ‘Toggle Selected for Upload’, ‘Delete Selected Photos’, and ‘Hide Thumbnail’.
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To use the Edit menu, first highlight the photos that you want to change. You can do this by using the
Control key on your keyboard to select them individually, or by clicking ‘Select All’ to highlight them all.
Then click ‘Edit’, and select the photo task that you want to complete. “Set Caption” will let you apply
the same caption text to many photos at once, “Toggle Selected for Upload” will mark or unmark the
upload checkbox on the highlighted photos, and “Delete Selected” will delete the highlighted photos.
In order to use the tools in the Edit menu you must highlight all of the photos that you want to change;
the one exception to this is the “Hide Thumbnail” option. “Hide Thumbnail” hides the photos’
thumbnail images, which makes the screen faster to use if you have a slow internet connection.
Choosing that option takes effect even if no photos are highlighted. “Hide Thumbnails” only takes effect
on your own In-Field Express account, which means that if you have the thumbnails hidden and you
upload your photos to your client that your client will still be able to see them, even if you can’t.
Saving your Photos
When you are finished with the Photo screen, click on the ‘Save Photos’ button. If you’ve decided that
you want to close the Photos screen and don’t want to save your changes click the ‘Cancel’ button.
After clicking either ‘Save Photos’ or ‘Cancel’ you will be returned to the job’s main screen.
5.4
Documents
The order’s Documents screen contains document files that your client might have sent you as well as
document files that you want to send to your client. You can use the Documents screen to store any
sort of files that go along with the order that you’ve completed: PDF files, Word or Excel documents, and
even short video clips can be uploaded!
To open the Documents screen, click on the ‘Documents’ label in the order’s menu bar.
Adding Documents
To add new documents click the ‘Add Documents’ button found in the menu bar.
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The File Uploader screen will open.
Click the ‘Select Files’ button to find the files that you want to add to the work order. After you’ve
added all of the files to the list, click the ‘Upload’ button and they will all be uploaded from your
computer to the In-Field Express website. Once all files have been uploaded, click the ‘OK’ button and
you’ll be brought back to the main Documents screen.
If you’ve added files to the list and before uploading you decide that you don’t want them
sent to your client, click the trash can icon ( ) next to each individual file to remove it or the
‘Clear List’ button to remove them all.
Next to the ‘Upload’ button there is a dropdown labeled ‘Max Upload’, containing a list
numbered 1-5. If you have difficulty uploading, which might happen with slower or less
reliable wireless connections, choose a lower number to make the document upload more
reliable. Every document in the list will be uploaded when you click ‘Upload’, whether you
select 1 or 5.
Viewing and Managing Documents
If you want to view any of the files in the Documents list simply click on the document’s name and it will
be opened. If you want to delete one of the files click the trash icon. To the right of the trash icon
there’s a checkbox; clicking that box marks that document for upload, and it will be sent to your client
when the work order is saved as “Completed”.
Saving your Documents
Once you’re finished with the Documents section, click the ‘Save Documents’ button to save your
changes. If you’ve added documents to the screen but don’t want to save your changes then click
‘Cancel’. Both ‘Save Documents’ and ‘Cancel’ will return you to the job screen.
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5.5
Memos
The top right side of the screen displays memos that your client has sent to you and that you have
added to the job. To add memos that you wish to send to you client, click the ‘Add Note’ button.
Clicking the ‘Add Note’ button will open the Create Memo screen, where you can type in a new memo.
There is an ‘Upload’ checkbox which is selected by default, and will cause the memo to be uploaded to
your client after the job has been marked completed.
5.6
Closing the Job Screen
When you have finished working with the job screen, click on ‘Save Order’.
This opens a menu with two options: ‘Save Order’ and ‘Save as Complete’. If you select ‘Save Order’
then the updates that you’ve added to the job are saved, and you’re brought back to the Inbox. If you
need to open the job back up and add more results to it then you’re able to do so. If you select ‘Save as
Complete’ then the job is marked ‘Complete’. All of the results that you’ve added that are marked for
upload will be sent to the client, and you won’t be able to add any more results to the job (unless your
office has granted you permission to edit completed orders). If you’ve made changes to the job that you
don’t want to save, and want to go back to the Inbox, select ‘Cancel’ instead of ‘Save Order’.
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6.
Routing Orders
In-Field Express includes a mapping and routing function that will let you visualize where your jobs are
located and help you find the best route to get to them.
To get started with the routing function you must first select the orders that you want to route. After
you’ve selected those orders, click the routing button in the toolbar.
The Routing screen will open up.
The left side of the screen contains the list of orders that you had selected. Right next to the list there
are a pair of arrow-shaped buttons that you can use to reorder those addresses. Below the arrows
there is a trash can icon that can be used to remove a selected address.
If you want to include a ‘home-base’ location into your directions you can type that address into the
fields on the right side of the page, and can tell In-Field Express to use that as both the start and end
address.
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In-Field Express has several options to calculate the best route between addresses. If you choose the
‘Fastest’ or ‘Shortest Distance’ options then the order of the addresses in the list is disregarded, and InField Express will find the directions that take the least amount of time, or travel the least distance. If
you choose ‘None’ then In-Field Express will give you the directions to the properties in the order that
they’re found in the list.
Finally, In-Field Express can route you around toll roads or around seasonal roads if you wish.
After you’ve selected all of your routing options, click the ‘Route’ button and a new route will be
generated for you.
You will see the distance, travel time, and directions from property to property. You can print these
directions out and take them on the road with you by clicking the “Print” link at the top right corner of
the Routing page.
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7.
Getting started with the In-Field Express Desktop App
The In-Field Express Desktop App lets you run In-Field Express without loading your web browser. The
advantage of this is that it behaves more like a traditional computer program, and can be used when
you don’t have an internet connection.
Installing the In-Field Express Desktop App
It is amazingly quick and easy to install the In-Field Express desktop app. First, open your web browser
and log into the In-Field Express website as you normally would. Once you’ve logged into the website
click the Offline Mode menu and select “Install Application”.
A window will appear asking you to confirm the installation. Click the “Install” button.
The In-Field Express Desktop App will then be installed on your computer and you will find the shortcut
on your computer’s desktop.
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Starting the In-Field Express Desktop App
When you double-click the In-Field Express icon the In-Field Express Desktop App will load. Its login
screen appears very similar to the web browser login page with one significant difference: the
Online/Offline mode notification.
When the In-Field Express Desktop App is in ‘Online’ mode you must be connected to the internet to log
in. Once you have logged in your user experience is exactly the same as when logging in from a web
browser.
When the In-Field Express Desktop App is in ‘Offline’ mode then you do not need to be connected to the
internet to log in. While in offline mode you can only interact with orders that you have brought offline.
You may occasionally encounter difficulties trying to log into the In-Field Express Desktop App and you’ll
need to force the program back into Online mode. If you click the line that reads “Current Mode:
Offline” an alert will open letting you know that you’re about to switch back to Online mode. Click the
“Ok” button to accept the mode change and you will be able to log in as normal (as long as you have a
working internet connection).
Uninstalling the IFE Desktop App
If you are switching computers you may want to uninstall the In-Field Express Desktop App from your
old computer. The process to do this is quite simple. First, visit the In-Field Express webpage and then
right-click anywhere within the login window. This will open a menu. Select the “Remove this
application” option from the menu and the IFE Desktop App will be removed. It’s that easy!
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Using In-Field Express in Offline Mode
Taking Orders Offline
Once the In-Field Express desktop app has been installed to your computer you are able to use it even
when your computer has no internet connection. This is great if you want to bring your laptop to the
job site to fill out bids and completion reports and you don’t have a wireless internet connection. In
order to use In-Field Express without access to the internet you need to place it into ‘Offline Mode’.
Placing In-Field Express into Offline mode is extremely easy. First, make sure that you’re logged in to the
In-Field Express desktop app. (Not the website!) While viewing the Inbox, select all of the orders you
want to be able to use while offline. Click the “Offline Mode” menu, and select ‘Go Offline’. In-Field
Express will download the selected orders to your computer and place itself into Offline mode.
Working in Offline Mode
While you’re in Offline mode you will find that working with In-Field Express is slightly different from
usual. Some of the screens are laid out differently, and in some screens you have some limitations.
After you’ve taken In-Field Express into Offline mode the only work orders that you can see are those
orders that you had specifically highlighted and brought offline. None of the other work orders or
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memos are available. When you look at the order list only the Inbox and its subfolders are able to be
accessed; the Cancelled Orders, Outbox, Sent Items, and Read Items folders are all disabled.
While you are offline the Batch Functions menu is restricted to selecting all visible orders and saving a
PDF copy of all of the selected order’s report forms.
Additionally, when in Offline mode you don’t have access to the Routing feature.
Updating Order Results
While orders are in Offline mode you have access to nearly everything you do when you’re in Online
mode. There are a couple of differences.
In each order’s main screen the ‘View Work Order Form’ button used to generate a work order PDF is no
longer available. However, you can still see the work order instructions.
Adding report forms, bids, photos, and order documents is done the same way when you’re offline as it
is when you’re online: click on the appropriate button in the menu bar, and fill in the page. While offline
you can’t see photos or documents that you’ve previously uploaded.
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Once you’re finished with an order you will click the “Save Order” button as usual. While offline you
only have one option in the menu – “Save Order”. “Save as Complete” is disabled until you’re back
Online.
Returning to Online Mode
When your computer has an Internet connection you can set In-Field Express back to Online mode.
When you go back into Online mode all of the bids that you have completed and all of the forms that
you’ve filled out while Offline will be sent back to the In-Field Express website so that when you are
ready you can upload them to your client. To bring In-Field Express back online, first log into the
desktop app. After you’ve logged in, make sure that you’re connected to the Internet, and after you’ve
done this click the Offline menu in the Inbox screen. There is one option available to you: “Go Online”.
After In-Field Express has been brought back Online the full functionality of the website will return.
While you were in Offline mode you were unable to add photos or computer documents to your orders.
Once you’ve gone back Online you can add those files to In-Field Express and will also be able to save
your work orders as Complete so that all of your results can be uploaded to your client.
Caveats of Offline Mode
If you are working with Inspection orders and have set In-Field Express to Offline mode, you may run
into a situation. Your client is able to request that a particular form be used when completing an
inspection, and In-Field Express will download that required form when going into Offline mode. If you
try to use an alternate form that wasn’t requested by your client while in Offline mode, you may receive
a message warning you that the form that you’re trying to use has not been downloaded. Use of the
forms that your client requested is recommended.
When you’ve completed report forms or bids in Offline mode those documents exist only on your
computer until you log in and specifically use the Offline Mode menu to place In-Field Express online. If
you open the In-Field Express desktop app, in Offline Mode, to the Login page and change it to Online
mode from the Login page, anything that you might have added in the recent Offline session will be lost.
(Don’t worry about doing this accidently, because you’ll be warned beforehand.) To make sure that you
don’t lose recent work, only use the “Go Online” mode from the login screen in the case of emergencies.
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Conclusion
Thank you for reviewing this manual; we hope that you have found it helpful. If you have any questions
about using the In-Field Express website, please call the East Point Systems Training line at
860-761-0001 ext 2, or send an email to us at [email protected].
Copyright© 2012 East Point Systems
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