User manual DYMO ADDRESSFIXER

AddressFixer User's Manual DYMO Corporation. 44 Commerce Rd. Stamford, CT 06902-4561 Voice: 1-203-355-9000· Fax: 1-203-355-9070 www.dymo.com/addressfixer Table of Contents INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................................................3 REGISTERING ADDRESSFIXER................................................................................................................... 4 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS............................................................................................................................ 4 INSTALLING ADDRESSFIXER ..................................................................................................................... 4 REMOVING ADDRESSFIXER....................................................................................................................... 4 OBTAINING HELP......................................................................................................................................... 4 US ING ADDRESSFIXER ...........................................................................................................................5 CORRECTING ADDRESSES FROM MICROSOFT WORD............................................................................. 6 CORRECTING ADDRESSES FROM THE PALM DESKTOP........................................................................... 6 CORRECTING ADDRESSES FROM DYMO LABEL SOFTWARE............................................................... 7 CORRECTING ADDRESSES USING ADDRESS FIXER'S ADDRESS CORRECTION UTILITY..................... 7 STANDARDIZING ADDRESSES.................................................................................................................... 8 USING SUGGESTIONS.................................................................................................................................. 8 FORMATTING ADDRESSES CORRECTLY................................................................................................. 11 ADDING CAPITALIZATION RULES........................................................................................................... 12 Warranty: This product is provided "as is" and without any express or implied warranties whatsoever, including implied warranties as to merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. In no event will the authors or publishers be liable for direct or consequential damages from the use of this product, even if they have been advised of the possibility of such damages. © 2001 DYMO Corporation. AddressFixer and LabelWriter are registered trademarks of DYMO Corporation. DYMO is a registered trademark of Esselte Corporation. All trademarks other are property of their respective holders. Manual version 3.0 0701 AddressFixer User's Manual Page 2 Introduction DYMO's AddressFixer is a utility that uses the Internet to help you eliminate mistakes in mailing addresses. Using the Internet to communicate with the DYMO Address Server, AddressFixer does the following: · Compares any address against the United States Postal Service (USPS) database of US addresses. · Automatically corrects mistakes in addresses. · Changes formatting to meet USPS standards. · Adds the nine-digit (ZIP+4) ZIP code. The result is professionally addressed mail that quickly moves through the USPS's automated sorting equipment and gets to the destination fast. Using AddressFixer You can use AddressFixer in four ways: · On its own, by running AddressFixer's Address Correction Utility program, typing or pasting an address, and then correcting the address. · From within Microsoft Word. AddressFixer installs a Check Address command within Microsoft Word. · From Palm Desktop (Version 4.01 or later) where you can correct one, several, or all of the addresses in your Address Book. · Directly from DYMO Label Software. We are confident that you will find AddressFixer to be as indispensable as your spell checker. We must warn you, however, that AddressFixer is not perfect. In the same way your spell checker can't tell that the phrase "I red a book" includes an incorrectly used word and sometimes questions unusual words even when they are spelled correctly, AddressFixer may attempt to check an address that is actually not in the USPS database or may be confused by an unusually formatted address. To get the most benefit from AddressFixer, we recommend that you read through the rest of this document. Pay particular attention to the Formatting Addresses Correctly section for some tips on proper addressing. Limitations AddressFixer has the following limitations: · AddressFixer can only correct United States addresses (including APO, FPO and Puerto Rico). · AddressFixer cannot help you find someone's address. · AddressFixer will not help you qualify for discounted mailing rates from the USPS. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 3 Registering AddressFixer Please take a few minutes now to register your copy of AddressFixer with DYMO. Registering will allow us to keep you informed about updates as they become available. To register electronically : 1. Choose Register AddressFixer from the AddressFixer Start Menu group. The registration page on the DYMO Web site automatically opens. 2. Enter your registration information. System Requirements AddressFixer requires the following: · Windows® 95, 98, ME, NT® 4.0, or 2000 · Approximately one-half MB of hard disk space It works as a stand-alone program, and also integrates with: · Word for Windows® 95, 97, 2000, and XP · Palm Desktop for Windows® Version 4.01 or later · DYMO Label Software Installing AddressFixer To install AddressFixer: 1. Download the AddressFixer software from the DYMO Web site at http://www.dymo.com/addressfixer. 2. Double-click the afinstall.exe file and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. The AddressFixer program will be automatically installed on your system. Removing AddressFixer To remove AddressFixer from your system: 1. From the Start menu, choose Programs > AddressFixer > Uninstall AddressFixer. 2. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the removal of AddressFixer from your system. Obtaining Help Support for AddressFixer is available through DYMO's Web site at http://www.dymo.com/addressfixer. The Web site will provide you with hints, tips, support information, and news of updates and changes to AddressFixer. If you have problems that are not answered on the Web site or by reading the manual or online help, you can request help from the Web site as well. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 4 Keep in mind that AddressFixer is not perfect, and you will find addresses that cannot be corrected. A large percentage of failed corrections may be due to USPS correction limitations. To verify if this is the case, go to the USPS Web site at: http:// www.usps.com/ncsc/lookups/lookup_zip+4.html If the same address fails to be corrected through the USPS Web site, then AddressFixer will not be able to correct it either. If the address can be corrected on the USPS Web site, then review the section on Formatting Addresses Correctly. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 5 Using AddressFixer AddressFixer is very easy to use. This section describes the following: · How to use AddressFixer to correct addresses from Microsoft Word, PALM Desktop, and DYMO Label Software · How to use AddressFixer's stand-alone program. · How to format addresses correctly to ensure proper delivery. Correcting Addresses from Microsoft Word When you install AddressFixer, the installation program automatically adds a Check Address command to the Tools menu in Word. You use the Check Address command whenever you need to check and correct addresses in Word. To correct an address: 1. Start Microsoft Word and type any address. 2. Highlight the address. 3. Choose the Check Address command from the Tools menu. AddressFixer checks the address against the address database, and corrects and formats the address. Microsoft Word may flag some street names and postal abbreviations (for example, "San Pablo" or "Ave.") as misspelled words. To turn off automatic spell checking: · In Word 95, uncheck the Automatic Spell Checking setting on the Spelling form in the Tools > Options dialog box. · In Word 97, uncheck the Check Spelling as you type setting on the Spelling form in the Tools > Options dialog box. Correcting Addresses from the Palm Desktop Note: This feature requires Palm Desktop version 4.01 (or later). If you have an earlier version, a free upgrade is available from Palm's Web site at http://www.palm.com. When you install AddressFixer, the installation program automatically adds a DYMO AddressFixer selection to the Tools > Addins menu. It also adds an icon to the Desktop toolbar. Both of these items become active any time the Address Book is being viewed. You can use either of these methods to check and correct an address in your Address Book. To correct an address: 1. Start the Palm Desktop application and view the Address Book. 2. Select one or more addresses to be corrected. Choose DYMO AddressFixer from the Tools > Addins menu, or click on the address correction icon on the toolbar. The DYMO AddressFixer dialog box is displayed: AddressFixer User's Manual Page 6 3. Select the current contact, all contacts, or all selected contacts as the addresses to be corrected from the Check Address For:box. 4. Click Correct... to perform the correction. If correcting a single address, the corrected address is displayed in the Replace With box. 5. Click Update Contact to place the corrected address back into the Palm Address Book. 6. To correct multiple addresses, click Skip to move to the next address without updating the current address. When performing multiple corrections, you may find it convenient to have the updates performed automatically. You can do this by selecting the Automatically update contacts radio button prior to clicking Correct. Correcting Addresses from DYMO Label Software The DYMO Label Software includes an address correction button on the Main toolbar and on the List Manager toolbar. To correct an address from the Main toolbar: 1. Open DYMO Label Software and select a label for an address. 2. Type or paste an address onto the label. 3. Click the address correction button. The corrected address will replace the address you entered. To correct an address from the List Manager: 1. From DYMO Label Software, open the List Manager using the icon on the toolbar. 2. Selected the address to be corrected from the list. 3. Click the address correction icon to perform the correction. The corrected address will be displayed in the List Manager dialog box. Correcting Addresses using Address Fixer's Address Correction Utility AddressFixer can also be used as a stand-alone program for correcting addresses when you are using an unsupported application. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 7 To correct an address: 1. Click the Start button in your Windows Taskbar and choose Address Correction Utility from the AddressFixer program group. 2. Type or paste an address into the AddressFixer software. 3. Click the address correction button. Standardizing Addresses AddressFixer allows you to select the address standardization option you want to apply to all addresses. To select an address standardization option: 1. Make sure AddressFixer is not running by closing Microsoft Word, Palm Desktop, DYMO Label Software, and AddressFixer's stand-alone program. 2. From the Start menu, choose Programs > AddressFixer > AddressFixer Options. The AddressFixer Options dialog box is displayed. 3. Select the address standardization option you want and click OK. The options are described below. · Upper Case to convert addresses to all uppercase characters. · Lower Case to convert addresses to all lowercase characters. · Mixed Case to use a mixture of upper- and lowercase characters in addresses. This is the most common selection. The changes will take effect the next time AddressFixer is started. When using the mixed-case option, you may run across some specially capitalized words or company names that are not capitalized correctly (for example, MicroLogic Systems becomes Micrologic Systems). You can easily add new capitalization rules for these specially capitalized names. See the section "Adding Capitalization Rules" for details. Using Suggestions AddressFixer offers suggestions for addresses that it cannot fully correct on its own. This section describes how the Suggestions feature works. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 8 Suppose your letter is addressed to: Harrison Schreppel Delta Biometrics, Inc. 22 W Putnam Ave Greenwich, Conn When you correct the address, AddressFixer searches the address database and finds that this address has two listings in the database. The Suggestions dialog box displays both address suggestions. In this case, AddressFixer is alerting you to the fact that even though it did find 22 West Putnam Avenue, the listings for the address contain no listing for Delta Biometrics. This could be due to one of the following reasons: · The street or suite number was entered incorrectly. · Delta Biometrics just moved into the building. · Delta Biometrics is a new name for a company already listed at the address. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 9 Since you were not provided with a suite number, you would select the first entry in the suggestions list. AddressFixer then completes the address and returns the standardized address with the proper ZIP+4 code as shown in the address below. Harrison Schreppel Delta Biometrics, Inc. 22 W Putnam Ave Greenwich, CT 06830-5355 Some Overall Rules for Suggestions If none of the suggestions are close to the address you are trying to match, chances are you are using an incorrect city or street name and you should verify the address. Also, make sure that you are not adding a suffix to the street number that is being mistaken as a street name. For example, the address 100 A Main Street will return suggested street names starting in A. Changing this address to 100-A Main Street will return the right range of street names. Specifying an Exact Address If the proper address in the Suggestions dialog box is included in a range of addresses, you will be prompted for the exact street, PO Box, Suite, Apartment, or other address designator in order to complete the address assignment. To specify the correct street or PO Box number: 1. Double-click on the correct range displayed in the Suggestions dialog box. The Street/PO Box Number dialog box appears. 2. Type the correct street or PO Box number and click OK. The street or PO Box number and complete address (including the ZIP+4 number) are placed in the document. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 10 Formatting Addresses Correctly The way you format addresses in your documents affects how AddressFixer handles your addresses and how mail is delivered. The topics in this section provide tips on how you can most efficiently format addresses. Including Locators in Addresses You should be careful where you place locators, such as "floor," "room," and "suite" in addresses. Don't put "floor," "room," "suite," and other similar address locators on a line by themselves. In a multi-line address, the USPS always expects the ZIP code to correspond to the address line that is just above the city and state. In most cases, the best solution is to format your street addresses entirely on one line. The example below shows an incorrectly formatted address. DYMO Corporation 828 San Pablo Avenue Suite 101 Albany, CA 94706 ç If you leave the suite number here, AddressFixer thinks it is the street address. The address should be entered as: DYMO Corporation 828 San Pablo Avenue Suite 101 Albany, CA 94706 Dual Addresses Some addresses are dual addresses ­ that is, they contain both a street address and a PO Box number. A dual address can cause a problem because the street address and PO Box may have two different ZIP+4 codes. The following address for ABC Corp. shows an example of a dual address and the possible resulting problems. ABC Corp. 100 Main St. PO Box 250 Greenwich, CT 06836 ABC Corp. PO Box 250 100 Main St. Greenwich, CT 06836 çThe piece will be delivered to this address çZIP for PO Box 250 çThe piece will be delivered to this address çZIP for 100 Main St. The following sections discuss some things to keep in mind when using dual addresses. Place the two addresses on separate lines The ZIP code will be keyed to the address line just above the city and state. Therefore, always place your preferred delivery address on the line just above the ZIP code. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 11 Be careful with Mail Stops and Departments The street address should only include information that the mail carrier requires for delivery. Avoid placing a Mail Stop or Department on the same line as the street address. Instead, enter the Mail Stop or Department on one line and the street address on the next line. The example below shows Mail Stop information correctly placed in an address. ABC Corp. Mailstop: Customer Svc. M/S 2 100 Main St. Greenwich, CT 06830 ç The piece will be delivered to this address More than one acceptable ZIP+4 code for an address Some addresses may have two different ZIP+4 codes, a generic +4 and a businessspecific +4. As an example, the addresses shown below are both valid, but the one on the right has the business-specific ZIP+4 assigned by the USPS. Gene ric ZIP+4 Harrison Schreppel 10057 San Pablo Ave El Cerrito, CA 94530-3992 Business-specific ZIP+4 Harrison Schreppel Pastime Hardware 10057 San Pablo Ave El Cerrito, CA 94530-3949 As far as the USPS is concerned, the ZIP+4 codes 94530-3992 and 94530-3949 will both result in the mail being sorted properly for delivery. The only way AddressFixer can add Pastime Hardware's specific ZIP+4 code is to include the company name, because that is what the USPS uses to assign the business-specific ZIP+4 code. AddressFixer is Not an 'Address Lookup' Product AddressFixer can find some addresses for you, but only for businesses and organizations that are listed separately in the USPS address database. For example, AddressFixer can correctly provide an address for: Pastime Hardware El Cerrito, CA But cannot locate: Harrison Schreppel El Cerrito, CA If you enter the second address, AddressFixer will consider Harrison Schreppel to be a street and will try to find that street in its database. AddressFixer will then display a message that the address could not be located. Adding Capitalization Rules AddressFixer contains a large list of common corporate, personal, and other names and terms that use special capitalization. However, since AddressFixer can't possibly include every case, you can easily add your own capitalization rules. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 12 Suppose your company name is MicroCap Industries. Without a special rule, AddressFixer will return the company name with the capitalization as Microcap Industries, without the capital `C'. To handle this case, you can add a new rule telling AddressFixer how to capitalize this name by editing the file called AddressFixer.ini using a text editing program such as Microsoft Notepad. To add a new capitalization rule : 1. Locate the file AddressFixer.Ini. If you accepted the defaults when you installed the software, you should find this file in: C:\Program Files\AddressFixer 3. Double-click on the file to launch Notepad. Notepad will open the file, and you should see a line that reads: Capitalization Exceptions=Bepress|bePress| 3. Position your cursor at the end of this line and enter: Microcap This is the word typed exactly as AddressFixer incorrectly capitalized it. 4. Add a vertical-bar character (|). This is a separator character. 5. Add the word with the correct capitalization followed by a vertical bar (|): MicroCap| The line should appear as follows: Capitalization Exceptions=Bepress|bePress|Microcap|MicroCap| 6. Save the file . The next time you run AddressFixer, the change will take effect. Example: Using a capitalization rule , you could force XYZ Corporation to always be capitalized by adding: Xyz|XYZ| to the end of the Capitalization Exception line. You can add additional entries up to a maximum line-length of 255 characters. AddressFixer User's Manual Page 13