Box Office Xpress Help Desk

Box Office Xpress
Help Desk
Click here for the Box Office Xpress Junior Help Desk

Note: Some of these items may not apply to the new BOX 4.
We are in the process of redesigning this section for the new version of the program.

The Box Office Xpress 3 Help Desk may eliminate the need to call technical support through its list of some of the more common issues that customers may experience. In fact, technical support may direct you to this site if your issue is fully discussed here.

This site will ...

Offer tips
Provide examples of how to accomplish certain tasks not covered in the Help System
Address any new issues
Cover any other areas not addressed in the Help System and too complex for the FAQ

Other Support Resources

Video Tutorials on setting up a ticket printer

Help Desk Issues
Ticket Printer - Setting up USB
Tickets (thermal) - Don't print (Scenario 1)
Tickets (thermal) - Don't print (Scenario 2)
Tickets (thermal) - Don't print (Scenario 3)
Tickets - Don't print (Scenario 4)
Tickets - Don't print (Scenario 5)
Tickets - Large batches of tickets skip a few tickets
Tickets - Only partially print
Tickets - Print isn't clear
Reports - Don't print correctly when first installed or after an update
Database - Re-link
User Interface - Windows keep disappearing
User Interface - New features aren't available on menu
User Interface - Out of Memory errors
User Interface - Some windows don't fit on the screen
Venues - Too many sections appear in the Seat Selection window
Orders - Seats are released back to empty before the order is completed
Operation - The program claims "Too many users" and won't let me in
Cash Drawer - New functionality

Category: Ticket Printer - Setting up USB

Issue:
Basically, you just plug in the printer to a USB port and you are done. If a Windows "Found New Hardware" notice shows up, you will want to disable it, because you don't need to set up the printer in Windows.

Solution:
To disable the Windows "Found New Hardware" notice, refer to this document. Also, remember to select the USB option for each user in the BOX Jr Ticket Setup window.

Category: Order information - Wrong customer

Issue:
Sometimes information from one order, such as the customer's name, gets assigned to the next or previous order.

Solution:
This can happen if you start placing an order before the tickets for the previous order have finished printing. You need to let the program finish the printing process before you can interrupt it with a new order. This problem generally occurs with dot matrix printers because of the amount of time it takes to print a ticket. If you find yourself in the situation of having to wait for tickets to print quite a lot, then it would be advisable to invest in a thermal ticket printer.

Category: Tickets (thermal) - Don't print

Issue:
All the parameters have been set - Thermal printer style, correct port, correct print head, and a thermal ticket style.

Solution:
The problem is always related to one of two things. Either the settings haven't been selected correctly, or their are problems related to the cable or printer. Here are various things to check - try a sample ticket after you come across something that needs correcting ...

1. Check that you have correctly selected the following in the Ticket Setup window:
Ticket Styles tab: The Thermal printer style option is selected and you are using the correct Printer Port (don't select LPT1 if your printer is setup for a COM port).
Thermal Ticket tab: Correct print head (only some newer printers use 300 dpi), and make sure a ticket style has been selected.

2. THE MOST COMMON PROBLEM - Make sure you have a high quality, shielded printer cable. Cheaper ($10-$15) cables often don't work with some printers. If we did not supply the cable then this is something you should definitely investigate. Also, don't use switch boxes to switch between the ticket printer and another printer. These have been known to deteriorate the signal and, consequently, prevent tickets from printing.

3. Make sure you are using an FGL thermal printer as opposed to a Windows printer (may be referred to as a PCL printer). There are some thermal printers based on Windows that are not supported by Box Office Xpress (or most any other ticketing software) because they cost more, tend to be slower, are more complicated to install, and offer no real benefit to the end-user. FGL is the original standard and offers the greatest speed and is even easier to install than plug-and-play (no drivers are needed). If you have a Windows thermal printer, you will need to get it converted to work with Box Office Xpress.

4. Read the other ticket printing issues, below.

TIP: Always print a Sample Ticket when testing the printer settings. Don't waste your time by going into the Order Screen to print a ticket for an actual order.

Category: Tickets (thermal) - Don't print

Note:
This topic generally applies to parallel thermal ticket printers with a parallel port connection. Serial printers may experience this problem if you can't locate the correct port (typically COM1) in the Ticket Setup window, in which case the Details and Solution will still apply to you - just substitute COM1 wherever LPT1 is mentioned.

Issue:
The printer port in the drop-down box may show as LPT1, which is usually correct. However, even after all other possible problems (above) have been checked out, the program will still not print tickets.

Details:
The LPT1 Printer Port appears to be available because LPT1 is the program's default setting. However, in some versions of Windows, if you do not have a device (typically a printer) assigned to LPT1, then Windows doesn't know that LPT1 exists. If Windows doesn't know that port exists then Box Office Xpress doesn't know it exists. To test if the port is actually available, click on the drop-down box and see if it is listed within the actual list of the drop-down box. If not, then this is the problem.

Solution:
Close Box Office Xpress and go into the Printers area of Windows. Assign a printer to LPT1 - you can select any printer at all, such as any specific brand or just the Generic Printer setting. Close the Printers window and run Box Office Xpress and go back into the Ticket Setup window. Make sure that the LPT1 port now exists and is selected in the drop-down box. Print a Sample Ticket.

Category: Tickets (thermal) - Don't print

Issue:
When checking the Windows Printer properties, a printer driver (any driver) is assigned to a port, such as LPT1, but the tickets still do not print.

Details:
Check the Windows Printer properties of other printers installed on your computer and see if any of them are also assigned to the same printer port. For example, if you have a LaserJet printer and a Bubble Jet printer (or a Boca printer) connected to the LPT1 port, this may prevent the program from printing tickets.

Solution:
Reassign one of the printers to a different port.

Note:
Box Office Xpress does not need to use printer drivers. It sends data directly to the port. You do not need to use a Boca or Practical Automation driver to use Box Office Xpress. Any printer driver will do - even the "Generic" driver. And the only reason for that is, that it is important that Windows knows that LPT1 (or whichever port) exists, and sometimes the only way that Windows can do that is to have some sort of driver assigned to that port.

Category: Tickets - Don't print

Issue:
The tickets only print correctly for one user and not anyone else.

Solution:
Each user must adjust the settings in the Ticket Setup to their own requirements. This is one of the user-customizable features of Box Office Xpress that, in this case, allows different users to print to different printers, use different styles of tickets, and so on. This may mean having to temporarily grant access to the Configuration Screen so that the user can adjust their settings (or an administrator can do it for them, using the other user's password).

Category: Tickets - Don't print

Issue:
The printer is shared across a network and appears to be set up correctly. If you map a printer and assign a share name that isn't identical to the original printer name, it may not be available in the printer selection drop-down box. If you select the printer under it's default name, the tickets won't print.

Solution:
First make sure you have tried both the port and device options, to get a full selection of available printers to your computer. Failing that, you may need to manually enter the printer's path and share name. You can type directly in the selection field of the Printer drop down box. The information you type is instantly saved. (Note: If you type something in and then select something else, you will need to re-enter the printer information again.

Category: Tickets - Large batches of tickets skip a few tickets

Issue:
When printing tickets for a large order (could be 20, 30, 40, or more tickets), you notice that some tickets don't get printed. You may even get an error (that you can ignore).

Solution:
The problem varies, depending on the printer combined with the speed of the computer. This occurs more frequently in less expensive printers. To resolve the issue, click on the Options tab in the Ticket Setup window. Adjust the values in the two pause fields. You may want to try a value of 15 in each field to start. If you notice the problem still occurs, first try increasing the number of seconds. If you notice that the printer actually stops printing for a few seconds, then decrease the number of seconds or increase the number of tickets. Experiment to see what combination works best for you.

Category: Tickets - Only partially print

Issue:
The tickets only print on a portion of the ticket and/or do not fully eject from the printer.

Solution:
Possible Cause #1. Make sure the tickets are inserted correctly. The ticket stock should be inserted so that the black registration marks on the bottom of the ticket are at the front of the ticket.

Possible Cause #2. Make sure you are using tickets that were designed for your make of printer. For example, Boca ticket stock does not work in Practical Automation printers and vise versa. The registration marks on the back of the ticket are a different size and position.

Category: Tickets - Print isn't clear

Issue:
The print on the tickets appears faded or not solid.

Solution:
Possible Cause #1. You need to purchase ticket stock from a reputable source that fully understands the requirements of thermal tickets. If the incorrect paper is used, the results can be very poor.

Possible Cause #1. If this is something that just happens over time and gradually gets worse, then you just need to clean the print heads using a thermal printer cleaning card.

Category: Reports - Don't print correctly when first installed or after an update

Issue:
After installing the program or after some updates, the reports do not display any information or generate an error.

Solution:
The program's internal reporting program (the Crystal Reports engine) may need to be configured with regard to the location of data and reports, when first installed. Run the Repair reports & invoices function from the Diagnostics window to have the program do this automatically.
Steps:
1- Close and then re-open Box Office Xpress.
2- Go directly to the configuration screen.
3- Select Diagnostics from the Tools menu.
4- Select the Repair reports & invoices option (click OK on the message box that appears).
5- Select All Reports.
6- Click the Execute button.
This process can take anywhere from under a minute to several hours (very rare on some computers). Just in case, I recommend doing it while the program is not needed.

Category: Database - Re-link

Issue:
Error messages appear saying something about not being able to find a database table, such as " ... can't find Series ...".

Solution:
You likely need to re-link the databases tables. Reason? Certain program updates may make a major change to a database. Or, you may have moved the entire Box Office Xpress program to a different location on the computer or to a different computer. The program needs to keep track of where everything is, and if things get changed, it needs to be told where everything is, again. The solution is easy to correct and you can choose one of two ways to do it. Method 1 is the most practical method.

Method 1: When you starting the program for the first time after the change, click the Advanced button on the Login window and select the Adjust all database tables (re-link) check box. Then click OK as normal.

Method 2: Making sure no other windows are open in Box Office Xpress, select Diagnostics from the Tools menu. Select the Re-link all database tables check box. Then click the Execute button. Wait until the program tells you that it has finished.

Category: User Interface - Windows keep disappearing

Issue:
When opening one window, within the program, the previously opened window closes.

Solution:
This is actually a feature of the program that helps avoid clutter. When opening the Admittance Pricing window, for example, the program will close the previous open window because it assumes you no longer need it. This feature can be turned off by selecting (unchecking) the Auto Close item in the Window menu.

Category: User Interface - New features aren't available on menu

Issue:
New features listed in an update don't appear available in the menus.

Solution:
It is possible that the menu items won't show up in your menu because the menu would be configured to your previous settings. There are two methods to add a new feature item to the menu

Method 1
Right click on the toolbars to open the customize window. Then search for the new feature in the lists of available items. Once found, drag the item to your menu or directly onto a toolbar.

Method 2
Exit Box Office Xpress. Go the the Box Office Xpress directory in Windows Explorer. Locate a file called BOX 3 Toolbar Layout.atb and rename it to BOX 3 Toolbar Layout.bak. The downside to this method is, any special configuration you may have done to the menu and toolbars will be lost.

Category: User Interface - Out of Memory errors

Issue:
Whenever the program tries to open a new window, such as Categorized Listings, you get an out of memory error. Ignoring the error, the window will still open, but the Step-By-Step guide will not run. The Step-By-Step guides are the cause of the problem and open by default, unless you select the option to prevent them from opening.

Solution:
There are two options. The Work-around is intended as a temporary solution until you use the Fix, below.

Work-around
The problem you are experiencing has to do with the program's step-by-step windows that show you how to accomplish certain tasks within the program. You can disable them by unselecting the Show Step-By-Step Guide item which is in the Help menu.

Fix
There is a file on your computer (riched32.dll) that is incompatible with a certain component that Box Office Xpress uses, and the installation process was unable to replace it with the correct file. We get to blame Microsoft for this problem (Article ID: Q236286) and they have been good enough to create a small program that quickly fixes the problem on your computer.

Download the richedfx.exe program file and run the program on each computer that is experiencing the problem. The program verifies that the problem exists on the computer and allows you to confirm whether you want to replace the riched32.dll file with the correct version.

Download the richedfx.exe file.

Category: User Interface - Some windows don't fit on the screen

Issue:
Can't see or access all the information on some large windows and the Seat Selection window because a portion of the window is cut off from view.

Details:
This problem is only apparent to those using an 800 x 600 screen resolution. Under an 800 x 600 resolution (the smallest allowed screen size), the program is designed to take up the entire screen area of the monitor and to show every Window in Box Office Xpress fully. There are circumstances which may cause this not to occur correctly. The most noticeable examples are the Bulk Event Setup window and the Seat Selection window. The Bulk Event Setup window may be too big for the screen. When the Seat Selection window slides up, you may notice that the upper portion is cut off. The circumstances which prevent the proper viewing of these windows can be corrected. Check and correct any of the following causes of this problem.

Solution:
1. The monitor must be at least 800 x 600 resolution (see System Requirements).

2. You must set your Windows Display to use "Small Fonts" (Normal size - 96 dpi). If you have it set to display "Large Fonts" (125% normal size - 120 dpi), this will cause problems. To change the Windows Display, right click on your computer screen's background and select Properties. Click on the Settings tab and then click the Advanced button. Different versions of Windows may be set up slightly different but you should be able to find the Display/Font Size settings from there.

3. You can have no more than three rows of toolbars (including the menu toolbar) when working with these larger windows (this is not the case if you are using a larger resolution and have increased the general size of the main Box Office Xpress window).

4. The Windows taskbar must be set to either "Auto Hide" and/or the "Always on top" must be unchecked. Otherwise, the taskbar steels some of your screen's real estate and Box Office Xpress needs all it can get. There is a great tip on the Windows Taskbar in the System Requirements section of the Box Office Xpress Help System.

Category: Venues - Too many sections appear in the Seat Selection window

Issue:
This only occurs with those who are using multiple venues. There are section graphics in the venue area of the seat selection window that are not associated with the currently selected Event. For example, you may see all the sections for two different venues, when you should only see the sections that belong to one venue (the one that belongs to the selected Event).

Details:
This occurs because, when creating a Series, no specific venue was assigned to a Series, or was not done before the Events were created.

Solution:
You will need to go through each Event in the Individual Event Setup window and assign the appropriate venue to it. Version 3.1 has an added safety measure in the form of a warning that will not allow you to create a Series without assigning a venue to it, if you are using multiple venues.

Category: Orders - Seats are released back to empty before the order is completed

Issue:
During or after an order is taken you notice that the selected seats show as being empty. Or, as you are selecting seats, you see the seats change back to empty (blue) shortly after you select them.

Details:
One of the features of Box Office Xpress is the ability to lock seats to prevent the same seat from being sold twice. Those seats need to be released for sale again if they aren't really going to be sold. If you forget to do that, the program will do it for you after a predetermined time (otherwise you would end up with a lot of unsold seats). The problem arises because, for one reason or another, time has run out before the order was completed. This can occur for one of two reasons:

1. The time it took to complete the order was longer than the seat locking limit set by the program.

2. The clock on the workstation(s) is set to a time slower than the clock on the server.

In both cases, the Control Center, running on the server, is releasing seats at what it thinks are the appropriate times. You need to adjust your settings or computer clocks to make sure the time truly is appropriate.

Solution:
1. In the Background tab of the Global Options window there is a place where you can change the time to release seats that were locked during the order process - Release locked seats after X minutes. Increase the number of minutes.

2. Make sure all the workstations are set to the same time as the server's clock. There are programs/methods that can do this automatically for you each time a workstation is started.

Category: Operation - The program claims "Too many users" and won't let me in

Issue:
After running the program a couple of times it no longer lets me in.

Solution:
You need to run the Control Center all the time. It governs use of the program and also maintains locked seats. It can be run from the Box Office Xpress program group in the Windows Start menu. Just run it and hit the Reset button. You may need to wait up to 5 minutes before you can get back in.

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