My Impressions of ACT! 2010 Service Pack 1
Earlier this month, Sage Software released service pack 1 for the ACT! 2010 product. I have worked with the product first in my own environment and with several customers now and wanted to share with you what you can expect with this latest update of the program. There are four main improvements that were most requested by users, and a few others that were worth mentioning from the customers I have the privilege to coach. Hint: it is all good.
My Impressions of ACT! 2010 Service Pack 1
With any software there will be bugs to iron out after initial release, and with ACT by Sage, it’s not different. Truthfully, there were several “hotfixes” released shortly after the program released last fall to address immediate customer needs, with a service pack they often introduce something more than just bug fixes, let me explain.
I put a video together highlighting some things in this ACT! by Sage software patch. If you can’t see it here it’s available directly on YouTube here.
Here are 4 items called out by Sage in their user community as a part of communicating what customers can expect from this update.
One – Group and Company Counts
Quickly understand how many contacts are in a selected group or company.
Two – Search Button Change
Search button on the “big easy” bar no longer restricts access to keyword search.
Three – More Descriptive Info on Mail Merge
This is true for many of the improvements, just making it easier for users to know what to do, or what will be done when an option is selected.
Four – “Location” Field Avail in Task List View
This makes it easier to see “at a glance” where various activities are taking place form the task list view.
Performance
It is worth noting that there are significant performance gains as well.
- Time to Launch ACT! improved by 2 seconds.
- Time to open the Opportunity View improved by 6 seconds.
- Time to perform a lookup by last name improved by 2 seconds.
- Time to run a contact report improved by 40 seconds.
- Time to perform a mail merge to email improved by 10 seconds.
- Time to open ACT! with the Dashboard as the default initial view improved by 27 seconds.
Things to Be Aware Of
- Make a Way Out!: Always backup before applying any software update.
- Use Experts: If working with an expert like an ACT! Certified Consultant, be sure to use so that you understand the full impact this patch has in your environment.
- Outlook: While I haven’t experienced this, in some cases Outlook integration may have to be reestablished (and other preferences), so keep that in mind.
- Training: Improve your ACT! skills by getting instant access to my friend Mark’s training here. It is top shelf professionally done, and reasonably priced.
Access to Download and Details
Here are the details on the ACT! 2010 SP1 Update.
If you want to download any apply the patch, you can learn more here.
Your Turn
Have experience with this support pack? Likes? Dislikes? Chime in the comment boxes below.
