The Generate Reports Screen ("Report Generator") is reached by clicking on the appropriate button on the Main Menu or choosing MAIN TASKS and GENERATE ROYALTY REPORTS from the Menu Bar.

One of the first things that you'll do when using the report generator is enter starting and ending dates.  Here's some concepts to keep in mind:

Reports after End of Reporting Period. It is best to wait until some time after the royalty period to do your reports.  If you do reports at the end of the year, wait until December 31st has past before generating reports.  If you do a report on December 15, for instance, you may be missing some sales that occurred between December 15 and December 31.

Start and End Dates. To begin the process, enter the start date and end date of the period of time you want the royalty to cover.  To help you enter dates, an automatic insert feature has been built into the generator.  

The automatic insert feature assumes that you base your royalty reports on the fiscal year (the same fiscal year that you set-up in Basic Set-up).   It also assumes that the royalty report that you are generating will cover the previous royalty reporting period.  The following is an example of how the insert feature works, using 2016 as the current year:

Annual Reports.  If you do reports annually and the current year is 2016, the automatic insert feature will insert 01/01/15 for the start date and 12/31/15 for the end date.  Click on the arrows next to the annual button to increase or decrease the year.

Semi-annual Reports.  If you do reports every six months and it's the first half of 2016, the automatic insert feature will insert 07/01/15 for the start date and 12/31/15 for the end date. If it's the second half of 2016, the automatic insert feature will insert 01/01/16 for the start date and 06/30/16 for the end date.  Click on the arrows next to the semi annual button to increase or decrease the half year.

Quarterly Reports.  If you do reports every quarter and it's the second quarter of 2016, the automatic insert feature will insert 01/01/16 and 03/31/16 for the start and end dates.  Note that AnyBook uses calendar quarters for the automatic insert feature. If the starting month of the quarters in your business do not fall in January, April, July, or October, you'll need to manually adjust the dates.  Click on the arrows next the quarterly button to increase or decrease the quarters.

Monthly Reports.  If you do reports every month, and it is March, the automatic insert feature will insert 02/01/16 and 2/28/16 for the start and end dates.  Click on the arrows next the quarterly button to increase or decrease the month.

If you use the insert feature, be sure to check the dates after they've been inserted.  The insert feature assumes that you want reports from the period directly proceeding the one you're in.  The year of the dates will need to be adjusted for the following:

You can also select dates by clicking the "C" buttons.  A calendar will pop-up.  To select a date, double-click on it.