Brief EnCounter is a standalone timekeeping application that works in conjunction with Brief Accounting. It is used by Timekeepers to enter time and disbursement slips.
Each timekeeper can have an individual copy of Brief EnCounter independent of the central Brief Accounting application. Brief EnCounter may be installed on as many computers are required (home, office, laptop, etc.). Each Brief EnCounter installation contains it's own database with the individual Timekeeper's slips.
Matters, Rates, Time and Cost codes, and Staff are created and maintained in the central Brief Accounting application. New Matters from Brief Accounting are sent to the Brief EnCounter users via a Matter list update. This is an export file created in Brief Accounting via the Brief Export Wizard. Slips created in Brief EnCounter are exported to Brief Accounting via a slip export file.
There are various ways to send updated matter lists to Brief EnCounter and to send Brief Encounter slip exports to Brief Accounting. The matter list updates and the slip files are text files that are passed from one user to another.
Matter List Updates
Matter List updates from Brief Accounting refer to and include:
- any new Matters created in Brief Accounting
- remove any matters marked as closed in Brief Accounting
- hourly rate changes
- any new or changed Timekeepers
- and new or changed Time Codes or Disbursement Codes
See link for information on Matter List Updates
Slips Exports from Brief EnCounter
The export files contain time (and/or disbursement) slips created in Brief EnCounter. These must be brought into Brief Accounting to be included on prebills/invoices for billing.
See link for information on Importing Slips into Brief Accounting
Sharing Files/Updates Between Brief EnCounter and Brief Accounting
There are a couple of options for sending Matter List Updates and Slips Files between Brief EnCounter and Brief Accounting. Most commonly these are:
- Create shared folders accessible by all users
- Email the files between users
Using a Shared Folder
For Matter List Updates a shared folder can be created named Current Brief Accounting Matters or something similar. This shared folder must be accessible over the office shared network, or if preferable through DropBox, Google Drive, or any service that allows all Brief EnCounter users access.
When new matters are created in Brief Accounting, a designated Brief Accounting user will export a Matter List Update and save the resultant file to the shared Current Brief Accounting Matters folder.
Brief EnCounter users can then Import the updated matters from the Current Brief Accounting Matters shared folder.
For Slip Exports from Brief EnCounter, there should be shared folders that all users can access. These should be named something like Slips for Import. If required, these can be organized by individual Timekeepers, their initials or names can be added to these folders: Slips for Import - Paul, Slips for Import - Kelly, etc.
The Brief Accounting user can import the slips files from the Slips for Import folders. After import, the Brief Accounting user should move the slips file to a folder named Imported Slips Files or something similar. This will prevent slips files from being imported more then once.
Emailing Files
For Matter List Updates, the Brief EnCounter user can email the updated file generated in Brief Accounting to all Brief EnCounter users, who will save the file and import it to update their matter list.
For slips files, Brief EnCounter users will export and save their slips export file and email it as an attachment to the Brief Accounting user, who will import the slips into Brief Accounting.
It will depend on the Brief Accounting Administrator, and other key users in a given firm how they want to distribute Matter List Updates and import Slips files.
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