By Brian Rice
There has been a lot of talk about the improvements included with release of Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 ERP version 4.3. I’m not complaining, because I wrote about here. However, I am interested in taking a look back at a tool that was included in a similar enhancement release. The Advanced Lookup Engine (ALE) was included in the version 3.5 release nearly eight years ago. The tool has undergone some development of its own, but in talking with different users, it seems that not many people are taking full advantage of everything it offers.
ALE is available throughout all of the MAS 90 and MAS 200 modules everywhere the familiar magnifying glass is found (or the F2 hotkey is available). ALE is the gizmo that allows users to sort or search any of the 
columns displayed. The columns can also be resized. The data can be searched by using any of the common operands (begins with, ends with, contains, etc.). The filters allow users to search using multiple criteria simultaneously. If that weren’t enough, users can also add standard columns to the display or calculate new fields to include. The custom search feature also allows users to build and save different searches.
With the ability to custom searches and the capability to export search results directly into Excel, the ALE is a de facto report writer. I have seen users write reports and mail merges for anniversary cards using the ALE. Another useful option is to create a call list for collections by including the following fields: Company, Phone, Contact, and Balance. In the image here, I have found a very specific list of customers: only customers with a zip code beginning 926 and area code 714.
The Library Master module includes a tool allowing supervisors to create, share and secure the customizations for individual users or groups of users.
Let us know how you are using the Advanced Lookup Engine in the comments.
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