Fog lines software?

I have been using Truckn Pro Elite for about 2 months now and I love it. I own two trucks and trailers, and I have 3 drivers. With the elite im able to assign drivers with the particular truck, trailer, fuel card, and more.

Its very easy, great customer service the guy that programmed the software is very friendly and all ways looking to improve the software. It also gives you the option of choosing either LTL, Percentage, Mileage, Tonnage, or Hour which is a great option depending on how you run your loads.

I use the invoice option all the time to make invoices and its easy all you do is assign your load number and the date and you are good to go.

Anyway hope this is useful to someone looking into the software, I was kind of worried in the beginning but trust me you will like it and you can do so much with it.
If you have any more questions or need any screen shots of how I do things please PM me, or navigate through the fogline website there are some videos that would come in handy.

Good luck

 

These tips are great. How easy is it to use on the road? Do you need a laptop to use it?

 

It is pretty easy. I keep a laptop with me on the road. Some owners put the load information in every time they do a load. If you don't have a laptop or want to buy one, you could write everything down and do your books when you get home. That is what a friend of mine does. He uses Trucknpro. He keeps all his load information separated by load and then does his paperwork when he gets home. He leases to another carrier. I think he said that it takes him about 45 minutes to do all his paperwork. I don't think that they have a phone app. I use envelopes for each load. All fuel receipts and expenses along with the bol and rate confirmation goes in the envelope. I can put the miles, fuel, expenses and revenue on the outside of the envelope. For me it is a good way to keep things together and somewhat organized. When I sit down with the computer I can look at the outside of the envelope and have most everything that I need for the load.

 

Regardless of the type of business you own, having current information about your business is critical. You need to know whether you are making money or losing your shirt. If you are doing well, then continue with what you are doing. If you are not making money, it is even MORE important to know what is going on so that you can make changes to your business. My friend often calls me and tells me how much he is making per mile on a particular load (NET) or how well he has done in a particular time period. With the Trucknpro software you can pull up reports on a particular load or for a certain time period. That is a feature that I really like. You would be surprised how many people think that they are making a lot of money just because they have a lot of cash flow. Having cash flow doesn't necessarily mean that you are making money. The software helps you to monitor your progress. The software also informs you how profitable you are on any load and from any broker or shipper. It is simple to see where your breakeven point is and the minimum rate for which you should be running in order to not lose money. Of course, you still need to input the data, but immediately after putting in the load information you can see how much profit or loss, expenses, etc., The immediate access to this information is the main reason why I prefer trucking specific software instead of a general accounting or bookkeeping software, such as QuickBooks or Quicken. Both will do the job, but neither give you the specific information that most of us need in order to keep an eye on our business.

There are other features that I also like and is helpful to be compliant, such as maintenance recording and reporting. You can do most of what the program does, but it will take considerable time to set up and won't likely be as convenient to use. Having quick access to information is important to me. If you have drivers one of the versions of Trucknpro has a driver qualifications file where you can scan in the drivers license, medical or other information. That can be helpful during an audit. You can also scan in fuel receipts, bol, etc., More and more companies are going paperless. This feature will enable you do do that if you choose.

Whether you choose to buy this Trucknpro or something else, you need to know how your business is doing. Even if you are a company driver, it is a good way to keep track of travel expenses.

 

Sorry to bring this back from the dead well no i am not people need to know that the support for this software is top notch I feel more than a dollar sign to him any time I have an issue and that my friends is priceless.

 

I just downloaded the newest version of Trucknpro. It is called Trucknpro Professional Business Manager. It has some new features that I have been encouraging them to put into their software. I went through most of the training video yesterday to get a handle on the new changes. If any of you have not yet checked it out, you can download it for a trial from their website. www.foglinesoftware.com. If you have drivers, you can now do payroll with the software. It will calculate your driver pay hourly, mileage or percentage. I don't think there is a table to automatically do the income and other tax calculations, but there is a feature to do other deductions, such as escrow, savings, etc., But, it will automatically do the gross pay for you and it can be different for each driver.

He has put some interesting other changes. With the last version that I received from them, you could do LTL. That can also be done with this version. But, it is also good for car haulers. You can even upload photo's of each car and document any damages for your electronic records. If you have never hauled cars, you need to fill out an inspection sheet. You can still do that and upload the form, but with the photo upload, you can actually document any damage that might be present on pickups. You can also make notes on each vehicle. I have never seen software with this feature before now. They have also put in a feature for those hauling cans around. It has a feature to put the chassis information. That is another feature I have never seen in trucking software.

In previous versions you could input the invoice number from fuel receipts. It was taken out on the last version and put back into this version. You can also scan and upload all documents for every load. The scanning was available on the last version and I am glad they kept it with the new version.

For those who who have an apu, there is a feature that helps you to remember when to service it. The apu tab is separate from the maintenance for your trucks and trailers.

One other feature that I am looking forward to using is the per diem. With the new version there is a separate tab you can use. With the last version I added the per diem but had to do the calculations manually. This version will help you do it automatically. You key in the last home time and when you get back and it keeps track of it for you. At least that is how it appears to work. I have not tried that feature, yet.

The Professional Trucknpro Business Manager version has an edit feature that makes it easier to add or edit truck stops. That was a problem with some of the earlier versions. I recall having some difficulty editing a truck stop after they were bought out by Pilot or one of the other chains. It appears to be much easier with this new version.

I know they just released this new version, but was wondering if anyone else has downloaded it and what you think of the new features if you have used one of the older versions?

 

I narrowed my accounting down to Trucknpro and Kevin Rutherfords Profit Gauges. I finally decided on Trucknpro software. Profit Gauges has a monthly fee and does not do invoicing. The Trucknpro software is one price and you are done. And it does everything Profit Gauges does plus invoicing and other features mentioned by G/MAN.

One thing to be aware of is if you have a Mac computer you'll need to download Paralells software which will allow you to run Windows on your Mac. Then you can download the TrucknPro software on your Mac (Unless the newest updates include Mac compatibility). It adds some to the expense of the program but in the end Im still better off.

 

I've just got one truck for right now but ill be adding another on next year, would the Truckn pro business manager be a good one to get? and am i able to use it on different computers or does it just have to be the one i download it to?

 

It really depends on which direction you want to go. I think the Trucknpro Business Manager would be a good choice if you plan on running multiple trucks. It offers more options for the fleet owner than the other versions. It can be used if you lease on to another carrier or run under your own authority. But, it would work better for those with their own authority and who have drivers. You don't have to use all of the features and that is one thing that I like about their software. Even if you lease to a carrier the software would help in checking your company to make sure you are being paid correctly. I don't know their policy concerning running the software on multiple computers. I did have a computer crash a few years ago and they were very helpful in reinstalling the software on my new computer. You might send them an email or call. The phone number is on their website.

 

Oh ok sweet. Thanks. Well I purchased it but where do I go to download it?