Tips & Tricks

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Subtotal a Report
Tips and Tricks
Is there a report that you wish you could subtotal a group of records by a column? In this Tuesday Training Tip, we'll show you how. To apply a subtotal to a column, navigate to the Advanced Options Tab of a report. If Subtotalling is not an option on the report, it may have either been turned off on the report by an Administrator or is not an option available on the report. Expand the Subtotaling Fields section. In Field 1, click the dropdown button to open a popup box. Select the column you want to subtotal. If you only want the column grouped, uncheck the Display Record Count. If you want the record count included, keep the Display Record Count box checked. Up to six fields can be subtotaled. Execute the report to update. You will now see each selected field is subtotalled. Expand the record to see all rows within the subtotalled field. This change applies to your current session only. Pin the report to apply the subtotal every time you run the report.
September 24, 2024
How to Use a Sticky Filters
Tips and Tricks
Do you want to save your filters without having to pin a report? In this Tuesday Training Tip, we'll look at how to easily save your filters so that they are the same every time you access a report. When you are on the Filter tab of a report, you may notice a little save icon next to the title of a filter. If you want this filter to apply every time you access the report click the icon. The filter will now 'stick' and apply each time you access the report. Click the 'x' next to the filter title if you want to remove the sticky filter. This stickly filter only applies to you, you are not sticking the filter for other users.
September 10, 2024
Quickly Add a Long List to a Filter
Tips and Tricks
Do you sometimes use a long list in a filter and it feels like it takes you forever to add each criteria? In this Tuesday Training Tip, you'll learn how you can quickly add a long list to a filter. There are two ways to add a long list to a filter. The first is to use an external comma-separated list. Copy the list from your external source and paste it into the search field of the filter criteria. The second way is to directly type the list, using a comma in between each value. When you click the search icon (or press enter), the entire comma-separated list will populate the filter criteria. This can save you a lot of time when you have a long list for your filter criteria.
Email from a Report
Tips and Tricks
Welcome to this week's Tuesday Training Tip! Discover how effortless it is to send personalized emails to individuals listed in a report within FAST. Although today's illustration revolves around a student report, this feature is universally applicable across all FAST applications containing a person ID in the report. Whether dealing with employee or student data, you have the flexibility to schedule recurring emails when a report is pinned. To initiate the process, pick a reporting page that generates a set of IDs (employee or student). Click on the 'communication' icon located at the bottom of the page to access the communication center, allowing you to email everyone on the list. The added benefit is the ability to incorporate column values from the report directly into the email. This functionality proves invaluable for instructors aiming to communicate with a class or for HR departments sending monthly updates to all active employees. Dive into the brief video tutorial to witness just how simple it is!
August 13, 2024
Reorder Columns for Everyone
Tips and Tricks
In this Tuesday Training Tip, you'll learn how to reorder a column on a report and apply that change to all FAST Users. Just remember you can only do this if you have Administrator Access. To move a column on a report for all users, access the Administration tab on the report. Expand the Data Grid Options section of the tab. Locate the Sort Order column. Make a change to the Sort Order number. Columns are sorted numerically. If you use the same number value for more than one column, the columns are sorted by sort order first, then alphabetically by the Data Field column. Save your changes and reload the page. Once you execute the report, you will see the columns have moved according to your sort order. This will change the sort order for all users.
Run the Report Execution Log
Tips and Tricks
The Report Execution Log is a relatively new report added with the 4.8.03 release. This report can be helpful to know who is running what reports, which reports are being used, how often the reports are run, and other useful information for administrators. To access the report, locate the Administration menu from any application. Under the Administration menu, locate the Information Submenu and then the Report Execution Log. Don't forget that if you can't find the report, either you do not have access to it, or the location of the report may have been moved. Once you locate the report, select your filters and review the results. NOTE: If you do not see the Administration Menu or the Report Execution log, you may not have been granted access to this report.
Reorder Columns for Yourself
Tips and Tricks
Have you ever wanted to move a column on a grid but didn't know how to? This Tuesday Training Tip is meant for you! To temporarily move a column, use your mouse to click and hold a column. This will grab the column and allow you to move it around on your report. You should see a blue arrow move right above the column heading as you move your mouse. This shows you where the column will drop when you release the mouse click. Note that this will only reorder the column for your existing session in FAST. If you want to make the change permanent, you will need to pin the report. If you would rather a more permanent solution that applies to all users, and you have the correct access permissions, you can change the order of columns from the grid Administration page.
Navigate to a Previously Run Report
Tips and Tricks
Welcome to this edition of Tuesday Tips! Occasionally, you may find yourself needing to revisit the most recent report you executed or even one from 20 minutes ago. Instead of re-executing the report, there are two efficient ways to navigate back quickly. If you wish to view the most recent report, click the left arrow (←) located in the FAST information bar (not your browser's back button). Hovering over the icon will reveal the last report you ran, and by clicking the ←, FAST will promptly direct you to that specific report. For those moments when you want to return to a report from an earlier part of your session, simply hover over the clock symbol (🕐) in the FAST information bar. This action will display a list of reports you've run during your session. Choose the desired report, select it, and you'll be taken directly back to that report.
Keystroke to Execute a Report
Tips and Tricks
Welcome to this Tuesday's Training Tip. Did you know that anytime you want to execute a report from either the Filter or Advanced Options tab, you can quickly execute the report by pressing ctrl-enter? No more scrolling to find the green execute button on a report with a lot of filters. It is the fastest way to execute a report without having to touch your mouse! Are you using a Mac to access FAST? Either control-enter or command-enter will work to execute your report.
Right Click for Custom Filter
Tips and Tricks
In this week's Tuesday Training Tip, discover a quick method for refining your report post-execution. Simply right-click on any field within your report to reveal a pop-up box. From there, you can effortlessly apply a custom filter tailored to the value within that particular field. Check out the brief video tutorial for a step-by-step demonstration!
Cross Tab a Report
Tips and Tricks
A cross tab allows you to display a report using a column value in a grid as the column header. This allows you to analyze the relationship of that value with one or more other columns in the report. For example, you want to see a count of the number of courses offered in an academic year within a specific group of departments. You may even want to know what instructors are assigned to those courses and how many courses each instructor is assigned to. You can create a cross tab to analyze this data. Although this example utilizes Student reporting, cross tabs can be used throughout all of the FAST applications. First, run your report using your selected filters. Open the Advanced Options tab. Expand the Cross Tab section. Select the value in the report that you want to become your column headings. The column headings in my example will be the course subject. Next, determine what you are going to populate the rows with and how you want to calculate that row. I have selected to populate the column heading (Department) with the CRN (Course Number). Next, I'll decide how I want to calculate the field. I am going to count the courses within that subject. When I execute the report, the new report will display how many courses exist within the given subject. I can add additional rows to the report by selecting additional rows to be displayed within the Grid Options section. Once you are satisfied with your cross tab, make sure you pin the result so that you can use it again without recreating the crosstab.
Change a Column Title
Tips and Tricks
In this Tuesday Training Tip, learn how to change the header text on a column. If you have administrative access, you can change the column heading on a report. Access the Administration tab of the reporting page. Locate and expand the Data Grid Columns section. Navigate to the column row and select the header text. From here you can change the name of the column. Once you save your changes, all users will now see the new column header text.
April 23, 2024
Add Columns to a Report
Tips and Tricks
Are there any columns on a report that are not currently visible? In this Tuesday Training Tip, you'll discover how to add and hide these columns from a report. After running any report, click on 'select report columns' in the grid toolbar. A list of all available columns will appear. By selecting the checkbox next to the column name, you can include it in the report. Conversely, unchecking the box will remove the column from the report. Keep in mind that only columns marked as 'on' or 'de-selected' within the Administration settings can be toggled on and off. These are not permanent changes. Use the administration page to make permanent changes to the column settings.
Add a Tooltip
Tips and Tricks
When you're training new employees on a report in FAST, you can save a lot of time by adding tooltips to a column. A tooltip allows you to add text that appears as a pop-up when users hover their cursor over the column title when running the report, which can help with additional explanation beyond the column title. To add a tooltip, access the Administration tab of a report. Expand the Data Grid Columns section. Navigate to the column row and scroll to the right to find the tooltip. Enter the text you would like to display when a user hovers over the column. Save the report and execute it to confirm the changes. Be aware you are limited to 500 characters and only those with appropriate security access can add tooltips.
March 26, 2024
Add a Filter to a Report
Tips and Tricks
In this Tuesday Training Trip, you'll learn that not all filters may be displayed on a report. There could be inactive filters that you can add to a report! If you have the appropriate access, navigate to the Administration Tab of a report. Scroll down to the Filter Options section. Expand that section. You'll see all the filters that are currently active. If you click on the Add New Filter Option button, you will open a pop-up box and select additional fields that can be added as a filter. Note that only one can be selected at a time. Choose your filter from one of the available fields. Complete the filter options to build your filter. After you save, make sure that you reload the report so that the new filter option is activated.
February 13, 2024

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