Key Notes Blog

Bringing you weekly posts on conference planning, happenings at Keystone, or how better to put KLAS to work for you!

Update: 7.7 release timeline

Details: Category: Key Notes; Last Updated: Wednesday, 27 March 2019 14:29; Published: Tuesday, 26 March 2019 21:30; Written by Katy Patrick

We keep talking about all of the great new features in KLAS version 7.7 so... where is it? We wish this post was a release announcement, but unfortunately the timeline has been pushed back a bit.

The initial, controlled 7.7 release has rolled out as planned, and we were pushing to start a wider release in March. However, the controlled release uncovered a number of issues that have required additional development time and resources to address. None of them were critical, but added together, it was not the user experience we want to provide.

Additionally, in working with NLS to test Gutenberg integration, we have found several changes that need to be made there as well. Even though this integration is not required for version 7.7's release, it is a high priority and has taken a fairly large amount of development time.

a person running along a set of gears

While we do want to get this upgrade to you as soon as possible, we want to be sure that you will have a stable, reliable connection and no service interruptions. Right now, it's looking like it will be at least another month before we can promise that for our Keystone-hosted customers. For self-hosted customers it will be a bit longer (probably May) before we can get you Live on 7.7, though we should be able to get you started with a preview database prior to launch.

If you're interested in more of the technical details, read on! Otherwise, thank you for your patience as we polish up this major release, and keep an eye on the KLASusers email list for more information next month.

Read more: Update: 7.7 release timeline

KLAS Training: Continuing the Conversation

Details: Category: Key Notes; Last Updated: Tuesday, 19 March 2019 20:11; Published: Tuesday, 19 March 2019 20:11; Written by Andrea Callicutt

Word cloud about training
Training your new staff on KLAS and / or getting refresher training for staff who have been using KLAS awhile is a topic that comes up in conversations with our customers on a regular basis. Back in May of 2018, Katy posted "Training Support", a Key Notes blog post asking for input on ideas for how Keystone can support your staff training goals. Please take a few minutes to go back and review this post again and share your feedback about the proposed Keystone training ideas on the linked "Training: How do you do it and how can we help?" forum post.

But, also please take a few minutes to look at the questions she asked for your input on including:

How do you train your staff?
What materials do you already use or what materials would you like to have?
What are your needs or wants in terms of evaluation, continuing education, certification?

In addition, I would like to continue the conversation with these questions:

What are your favorite KLAS training resources and methods?
What have you found to be the most effective resource to train new staff? What challenges have you had?
How do you keep established employees up to date on new features and functionality in KLAS? What keeps you from doing continuing KLAS training?

Please take some time to share your thoughts and ideas on the "Training: How do you do it and how can we help?" forum post. I'd love for this thread to turn into a valuable place other KLAS Users' looking for KLAS training hints and resources can turn to.

Let's Talk Reporting

Details: Category: Key Notes; Last Updated: Tuesday, 05 March 2019 21:53; Published: Tuesday, 05 March 2019 21:53; Written by Katy Patrick

Hello, KLASusers! This week I thought I'd try something just a little different... let's talk about reporting, and specifically, what do you need to know?

KLAS has a lot of powerful options for finding information, from reports (there are some great ones featured in the Snapshot Reports blog post) to queries (and there are some good query tips on the Forum... check out the KLAS Core section of the Best of the Forum 2018 page). You can even combine queries and excel to search for information that isn't there.

But sometimes it's hard to know just where to look, and sometimes a piece of data you need can remain tantalizingly just out of reach.

A directional sign points to "lost," "found," and "searching" in a dramatic desert landscape.

So I'd like you to tell us what reporting information you're searching for!

Drop into the Forum Q&A: Let's Talk Reporting thread and see if you can stump us on:

"Where do I find how many..."
or "Is there a report that shows..."
or even "Can I tell who..."

Bring all your reporting and data-finding questions and we'll do our best to bring you an answer!

The Stars of Keystone's Staff - Mark

Details: Category: Key Notes; Last Updated: Tuesday, 07 May 2019 20:50; Published: Tuesday, 12 March 2019 17:00; Written by Andrea Callicutt

Our "Stars of Keystone's Staff" series includes some basic info and insight into one of our staff members. We hope these posts will provide you a look into who makes up our diverse, supportive, and knowledgeable staff.

With the upcoming release of KLAS 7.7, we thought it is good time to bring you our latest "Stars of Keystone Staff" so we can highlight our staff member who has helped to coordinate, support, and install many versions of KLAS in his time at Keystone. He is also the person our staff calls when we can't get on the VPN, we need our email account unlocked, or need to be reminded of how to log onto a customer's database after a change in IP address.

Basic Stats:

Name: Mark Gardner

Year Hired: 1985

Current Job Title: Manager of Systems and Networking

Mark stands besides a large red M&M at M&Ms World.

Read more: The Stars of Keystone's Staff - Mark

KLAS 7.7 Installation and Upgrades

Details: Category: Key Notes; Last Updated: Tuesday, 26 February 2019 22:02; Published: Tuesday, 26 February 2019 22:02; Written by John Carpenter

There are a lot of exciting new features included in the KLAS 7.7 release, and they begin with a simplified installation process.

As part of the simplification, there will no longer be any external programs to install. Everything has been put into one installer so there are no longer separate steps to install a web client, support files, or XPrint. If you are currently using KLAS with Open VPN, this will be going away too. KLAS no longer needs a VPN connection to run, it instead will use https to establish a secure connection.

The new installer lets you choose how KLAS should be installed: For everyone who uses a computer – a process that would require admin access, or install for the current user only – which can typically be done without admin access even in secured environments.

Read more: KLAS 7.7 Installation and Upgrades

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