Creating or adding text to sales order header notes

 Advanced Accounting has extensive support for notes.  A single note can be up to 5,000 characters in length and attached (i.e. linked) to a number of different types of accounting software data including:  customer codes, vendor codes, inventory (aka product or item) codes, sales order headers (the main record associated with a sales order containing the customer code, billing and ship to address, terms, etc.), sales order line items, posted invoices (via after invoice maintenance), quote headers, quote line items, purchase order line items, employees, general ledger codes, journal entries, and also in the time and billing module where they are used extensively.   Notes can be accessed through a variety of options and reports.   And in sales orders, quotes and purchase order entry, existing notes attached to those line items can be automatically retrieved and attached as sales order line items, and then edited as necessary (since they then exist separately as a new, cloned note).

While most notes also can be printed on various documents (for example, notes attached to sales order line items), some notes are mainly for internal reference (but all notes can still be via the UT-E Notes Report option).  Sales order and quotes "header" notes are examples of notes used mainly for internal review.

For special customized applications, it may be desirable to automatically assign (i.e. "populate") note instructions into the header field.  The following examples are for programming reference should this type of customization be required and would generally apply to any type of note in the system provided that the appropriate "where from" and link code is provided.  This approach does not require the tas_notes option nor loading the wbknotes program into memory (which happens in the initial_setup call including in almost all Advanced Accounting programs) nor use of the special user defined commands that are included in the ADV60.LCY (encrypted ADV60.LIB) file as normally used when processing notes in other programs.

Example #1: add a header note to sales order that has no current header note

#lib addsum 

(* has the chk_open UDF *)

define bksycbnt_hndl type i size 5

(* the add word reset after "size 5" if used within the accounting software environment and the program has an initial_setup UDC i.e. user defined command which has already opened the notes file*)

(*defines for bksymstr_hndl and bkarinv_hndl should already in the file definition file, otherwise they need to also be defined *)

 

define note_num,so_num type R size 9

define where_from type A size 3

//start: label here if the #FORCERWN compiler directive is used

(*if initial_setup has not been included in the applicable program then open the notes file *)

openv 'bksycbnt' ext 'c'+co() fnum bksycbnt_hndl lock o
bksymstr_hndl=chk_open('BKSYMSTR','R',true)
bkarinv_hndl = chk_open('BKARINV','r',.f.)

where_from='SOH'

(*get the next note number - or replace with bkar.inv.note# if in SO-A*)

(*get the applicable BKARINV record, if bkar.inv.note# is zero, assign a note # *)

//where so_num is the desired so_num with the header note to update

//or you could scan the entire file using the SCAN command

so_num = 123456

findv m fnum bkarinv_hndl key bkar.inv.sonum val so_num

if flerr(bkarinv_hndl) <> 0 then quit 

// and then a ret after the quit depending on program type

if bkar.inv.note#=0
   inc bksy.next.note#
   note_num=bksy.next.note#
   save @bksymstr_hndl nocnf
endif

bkcbnt_note='Desired header note text'
bkcbnt_code = trim(str(note_num),'l')
bkcbnt_who = 'SOA'
bkcbnt_whr_frm = where_from
bkcbnt_date = date(
bkcbnt_time = time()
save @bksycbnt_hndl nocnf


(*bkar.inv.note# should be set to note_num and then save the BKARINV record *)

bkar.inv.note#=note_num
save @bkarinv_hndl nocnf //and probably a noclr

Example #2 -retrieve existing SO header note and add some text to it

define code type A size 25
define where_from type A size 3
define so_note type A size 5000

where_from='SOH'

(*get the bkarinv record similar to the code in example #1 with error handling then exit or quit if bkar.inv.note#=0 *)

note_num=bkar.inv.note#
code=trim(str(note_num),'l')
findv g fnum bksycbnt_hndl key cbnote_key val where_from,code,0,0

if flerr(bksycbnt_hndl)=0 .and. bkcbnt_code = code \\

 .and. bkcbnt_whr_frm = where_from
    //found it
else

   msg 'Could not find the desired note.'
   quit   

   ret

endif

so_note=bkcbnt_note
so_note=trim(so_note,'t') + ' now add some additional text'
bkcbnt_note=so_note
save @bksycbnt_hndl nocnf

//the header note has now been updated with the additional text

Postscript:  the SOH "where from" value stands for sales order header. In quotes, we instead use QUH for the quotes header note reference.

2026 payroll system updates

Software updates for the payroll module of Advanced Accounting version 8 are now available. These include changes that address federal and state withholding changes that are now in effect as well as some internal required changes in our e-filing interface* (which has passed a required testing phase for both W-2 and 1099-NEC forms).  Our first two e-filings for 2025 were made this past Saturday (one of which was for an end user of the software).

Payroll updates for federal 2026 payroll changes that include all of the updates described in the latest IRS Publication 15-T are included including an updated tax table.

No tax on overtime and tips:  This federal provision has caused considerable confusion and as worded on tax forms and in the media has been very misleading.  These items are still fully reportable and subject to withholding  (including social security and medicare taxes and their match) as in the past, i.e. from an employer's point of view, nothing has changed.  And employees will not notice any changes in their net paychecks (absent their making W-4 changes).  

Employers do have new reporting requirements.  While these provisions are effective retroactively for 2025, there is no specific requirement to report them on W-2 forms (yet employers are still required to provide the applicable amounts to employees, even though there won't be any penalties for failing do to so; starting in 2026 the applicable overtime amounts will have to be reported in W-2 form Box 12 with a new code TT).  

Employees will be able to report qualified overtime and tips "deductions" on Form 1040 Schedule 1-A.

Not all overtime pay is "qualified" overtime.  Qualified overtime must first of all meet all of the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA); in other words it must be compensation for over 40 hours in a week that is paid at 1.5 times the employee's normal rate and that is paid to non-exempt employees.   In other words, the following types of overtime are NOT qualified overtime:

(1)  Overtime amounts paid to exempt employees;

(2)  Overtime for hours less than 40 in the employer's defined week;

(3)  Overtime compensation that is paid at a rate of more than 1.5 times the employee's hourly rate.

If all of an employees overtime compensation meets all of the above criteria, then the employee would be able to claim an amount on Form 1040 Schedule 1-A that represents their total 2025 overtime pay divided by 3.  In other  words, only the overtime "premium" is subject to the deduction credit.  So if an employee is paid $10 per hour and receives overtime at $15 per hour, $5 is the overtime premium subject to an individual tax return deduction (and in total is also subject to an overall limit).   So it is not the full $15 overtime payment amount but rather only one-third of that rate, all other things being equal.

If an employer has mix of overtime rates or made overtime payments that weren't all for hours worked over 40, qualified overtime will require manual calculation.

For Advanced Accounting, in order to meet the reporting requirement for 2025, we will default the qualified  overtime compensation amount in Box 14 for employee reference with the abbreviation QUAL OTC; however that amount will need to be carefully reviewed to ensure that it meets the criteria outlined above (the accounting software program allows for individual review and for changing the OTC amount).  How this will be reported in 2026 will change as also previously noted.

The following link may be of some additional assistance: 

https://mrsc.org/stay-informed/mrsc-insight/november-2025/no-tax-on-overtime

Reminder re: form W-2s (in effect since tax year 2024): Employers filing 10 or more information returns, including Forms W-2, must file electronically (absent having received a waiver by the IRS).  Information returns include commonly filed 1099 forms.   Many states have similar requirements including some that are more restrictive than the federal requirements.

Reminder re: employee withholding forms:  Employees do not have to fill out a new W-4 each year (unless they are claiming to be exempt). Employees that make changes must however use the newer form W-4 and there must be on the 2020 and later federal income tax withholding system.  Most states with state income taxes have their own equivalent form and state withholding tax logic more often than not depends on the options selected on that form.  So an employee may need to fill out a new state form without necessarily changing anything on their existing W-4.

Social security limit changed for 2026:   The social security  limit has increased from $176,100 to $184,500 (our payroll update will make that change automatically or it can be manually updated for each payroll division in Advanced Accounting's SY-D Enter/Change Payroll/GL interface option).

State income tax withholding changes:    While there are nine states with no state income tax withholding, of the remaining states at least 27 states have made changes for 2026 for their state income tax withholding rates and/or related logic..  See also State Tax Changes Taking Effect January 1, 2026 (which outlines changes beyond just payroll withholding changes).

As of the date of this blog, we have made changes to Advanced Accounting 8's payroll tax tables and/or internal logic and tested those changes in the following states:  

California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Vermont 

During this review process we have also picked up changes made mainly during the last of of 2025 for:

Ohio, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia

It should be noted some states may parallel the federal "no tax on overtime and tips" changes at the state level, an example of which is the state of Michigan (effective also retroactively) and so employees may be able to claim a state income tax deduction.   

A separate payroll-only update is now available for Advanced Accounting 8:   These 2026 payroll updates will be included in the final Advanced Accounting 8 rel. 14 which will be the subject of a separate blog, however, we now have a payroll-only update that is standalone and does not require any other prior updates nor the rel. 14 update which can be implemented immediately to accommodate these changes.   Contact us to arrange for installation of that update.

*For tax year 2025 W-2 forms, the employer's email address, contact name and phone number are mandatory requirements but  only for electronic submissions to the Social Security Administration (SSA).   The employer name and address of course are also required.