Currency Fields in Conga (aka WHERE'S MY COMMA???)

I received a case a week or so ago, asking me to add commas to the invoice template that we are using with Conga.

I looked at the template, and checked the field from which it was pulling the data within Salesforce.com.

I checked the "view data" on the Conga Dialog window, and it had a comma, I checked the "template builder" and yep - it had a comma.

Looks fine to me.

So I pulled the template - sure enough.. it's not showing up with commas!

Today, I will show you how to fix this problem. It's super easy-peasy, and you'll be a hero, and let's just be honest. Everyone wants to be a hero every once in a while.

First, let's take a look at our original template.  Notice that whoever created the original, apparently realized that the formatting was "wrong" because they added a dollar sign as a static element.

Well, it looks like that was "okay" for a couple of years, but not so much any more. 

So, I did a quick web search, and found this Conga help document called How to Format Number or Currency Values in Word Templates.   *Disclaimer: This method happens to be for Version 7, and I have not yet tested it for any other version. Version 7 is the version that is in use in my org. 

This page gives a really good overview of the different number formatting styles that can be used in a MS Word Template, so if you need to format your number in another way, take a look at that page.

There is a cool format that can change the number to words, which I want to play with, just for the novelty... but I digress! Let's fix our template to format as currency.

Now, right click on your merge field, and choose "Edit Field".

Click in the field name, and hit "End" to bring your cursor to the end of the name. (End is a button on your keyboard)

Then, type or paste in the following:

\#Currency

When you are finished, it will look something like this:

Now click "OK".

Do this for every field that should be formatted as currency. AND - don't forget to take off any static formatting that was on the template, such as the dollar sign that was on my original template. The formatting that we put into the merge field name, will add the dollar sign and the comma!

Now, test your template!

You need to follow your standard process of uploading to Conga Templates, or saving wherever you keep your templates, but now... You're done!

OMG MY SEARCH BAR IS GONE!!!

Seriously... this is funny to me. As a Salesforce.com Admin/BA for two different companies now, I've seen this happen countless times. As a matter of fact, I think I'm going to start a running count on how many times it happens...

Yep, that's right... we don't have Chatter enabled right now. We're a big company, and getting software "changes" approved at least as far as social networking stuff is concerned is big. We're working on it, but we aren't quite there yet.

Here is the scenario:

New users are added... they log on for the first time and they get that pop up. You know the one... it's tricky right? You log on for the first time ever, you have no clue what you're doing, and BAM!

Well... you know... nothing here says anything about it completely changing the way stuff looks... or that it's going to do this for every single person in the company! It's free, and hey, it looks cool... so why not....You click the button

And you're like... hmmm okay cool!!!!  Suddenly people all over the room are yelling!!!

HEY... 

                              Where's my search bar... 

                                                         hey Shannon, our search bar is gone... 

what's going on?  

and... me, in my little office with no windows... 

Phones start ringing, cases are coming in by the bucket full... and I'm thinking oh my gosh... what is going on...

Then I realize... someone has turned on Chatter again!!!

Some of you are super lucky, you don't have to do this, because you've had Chatter from it's inception. I've got to do this about once a month. But... it's an easy fix, which means quick, and I can close out a BUNCH of tickets and everyone loves me for about 12 seconds. :-)

But... I'm a tiny bit twisted... so... I actually kind of enjoy waiting for people to start screaming about their search box being gone, and just saying.. ."oh hold on a second... okay hit refresh... BAM fixed it for you".

MUAH!

A little ray of light...

The Rainy Day

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary; 
It rains, and the wind is never weary; 
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,

And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,

But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;

Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

*~~***~~*

In my last post, I was just seriously down. I'd been having some bad times... it kept going!!!!  I ended up in a terrible accident (I was not at fault btw), and my vehicle was totaled. I was truly lucky to be alive.  

The day following my car accident, my mother had surgery to clear out that carotid artery that caused her strokes right after Christmas. Three days later, the day after she came home from the hospital, she started having seizures, and I had to call 911 again. She was rushed to the hospital, then life-flighted to another hospital. Then, after she got out of ICU from that, and was in her second day of inpatient physical therapy, she had a heart attack, and her heart completely stopped beating. They performed CPR and such and brought her back. A few days, later, they implanted a internal defibrillator, and she went through another round of inpatient physical therapy. She's been home for about a month now, and is learning to walk all over again. This makes the third time just this year! Last Thursday, my son calls, and he's driving himself to the ER, he's "darn near cut both his fingers off".

Please note, that those were his words, not mine. He is fine, it took 10 stitches, but he didn't sever any nerves, and went back to work after one day of recovery.

Mom is walking more and more every day, I finally got a new car, it sure is pretty, and it's starting to look a bit more like there is some good times on the way.

I'd say that I'm finally starting to see some daylight.

Now... I am working for this trend to continue. I honestly am not up to any more drama this year. 

2014 Has Been Rough (crybaby alert)

For those of you who may not know me via Facebook or in person, my parents (mom and stepdad) retired and moved in with me three years ago. I've been struggling a bit trying to keep everything under "control" at home, working long hours, trying to get part time jobs, selling off possessions that I didn't need, etc. In September of last year, I finally started feeling like I was accomplishing some of my goals.

Well the day after Christmas, my mother had a stroke, two days later my step dad and I both ended up with the flu, then he developed pneumonia, and ended up in the hospital too. Mom was in one hospital, Step-dad in another one. So I was bouncing back and forth between hospitals, while trying to recover from the lovely affliction that is the FLU!!!

Step-dad came home three days ago, Mom was in the hospital until yesterday. Now we're attempting to get physical therapy and occupational therapy and home health visits, and medical equipment and everything all lined up for Mom, and follow up doctor's appointments etc. for everyone else.

When I checked my email this morning, I got the news that I wasn't renewed for another term as a Salesforce.com MVP. I have to tell you guys, 2014 has already been seriously rough for me, and that news just makes my heart hurt.

This is a fantastic program, it's one of the most fun things I've ever been a part of. It's also a seriously humbling experience to be grouped with the people that are a part of this program.

Thank you everyone for the ride, it was bumpy but worth it. Now I'm going to go and have a bit of a pity party, and cry a bit. Then, I'm going to come back strong.