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Frustrated with "sunset" of Database View and limited FE NXT functionality

Dana Sterling

Please tell me I am not the only person experiencing this level of frustration as the database view is decommissioned…

I did not care one bit that the database view interface looked outdated. I could do everything I needed to do efficiently and with minimal unresolvable issues over the last 6 years of using this product. Working as a contracted accountant, I would've said last year that Blackbaud was my favorite software to work with. Now, I find myself more and more frustrated with this software, to the point of taking a break during my 60-hour audit prep work week to start this discussion…

Why does it take so long to generate a report preview and why does the system freeze so much? In 6 years I've only had database view freeze on me twice, across two different clients. Ask me how many times I've had to refresh my browser or close it all together just to get the loading circle and faded screen to go away.

Why can I not rearrange columns without the menu reverting back every time I navigate away from the page? This was not an issue in database view.

How come when I type an account number, if I don't hit enter or click the pop-up it disappears as if I didn't just type it out - or worse, it changes to a different account number? I could easily tab through journal entries in database view.

How come recurring journal entries are more clunky and cumbersome than in database view? I used to be able to open a batch, hit CTRL + R, type my recurring JE number, type the post date, and quickly add my recurring JEs for the entire year into one batch - in a matter of 5 minutes I could have all 12 months ready to go. Now I have to search for the batch number, copy the batch, edit the date, and create it - then repeat that 12 times… Now I just import, because it's less annoying - but it's harder to delegate this task now because not everyone should have the ability to import JEs.

How come we are almost a year into this "sunsetting" process and I still can't modify or create recurring invoices in web view? I can view them. I can now generate them as of the most recent update. But if I need to create one or modify one, I still have to go into database view. Why?

How come, despite not having this setup as a rule in our system, we have issues applying payments to invoices in web view due to the invoice line item being distributed to a revenue account setup as "unrestricted net assets" but the payment was distributed to an AR account setup as "temporarily restricted net assets" - if this isn't a rule we chose to enable, the system should not be blocking me from doing this. You know where I didn't have any issues with applying payments? Database view.

Why do I have to fight with the Excel add-on to import a journal entry? Trust me, the cursor is NOT in the cell…the only "issue" I ever encountered with importing from CSV in database view was if I accidentally included empty cells, and that was user-error. This is not. The only way I can seem to fix this issue is to open a new blank Excel document and copy and paste the JE information into the new one - this is my 6th time today doing this, which led to the level of frustration that created this discussion!

I mean, I could go on and on at this point. An "upgrade" should not cause more problems, reduce efficiency, and be less functional than it's predecessor. I have yet to discover anything in web view that is better, or more efficient, than database view was.

If anyone has any work-arounds or tips for the few issues I've mentioned above, I'd be happy to read them. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

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Jenny O'Neill

I completely agree! I am so sorry they are are doing away with the back office version. There are just so many things that are faster, and it seems like in the rush to go to the cloud, they didn't care what functionality they sacrificed! Thanks for venting, it makes me feel less alone.

Jeff Trzaska

#1 You're not alone. You echo 100% of non-Blackbaud employees.

#2 "Why do I have to fight with the Excel add-on to import a journal entry? Trust me, the cursor is NOT in the cell…" I may have a solution to your cursor issue. If you have more than one screen, you may want to test this solution by disconnecting your extra screens and only use one screen. If this solves your problem, then the issue is your additional screens have different resolutions from your main screen. It makes no sense, but if you're having weird issues like this in NXT, that is often why. I can't explain it. The solution is to have all of your screens set to the same resolution. When we converted from Database view to NXT, this happened to maybe one out of twenty computers.

#3 Reporting: I see you made your post 5 days ago. Well, BB has gone through with their threats and have improved reports. Now when you "generate" and not run a report, it "runs in the background". Of course the problems are A. Is it actually running? How many times have you told FE to do something and it just breaks? B. You cannot just preview the report to get the one bit of information you need. Now you have to download the finished report, save it and open it. It isn't a big deal, but sometimes it is an unnecessary step.

#4 This is not an issue with the improved reporting yet, just a question. We have found that if multiple users are running reports at the same time they will be notified "One process ahead of this one." This will also slow down the currently running reports. Will this still be an issue? Is there still the problem that our organization can basically only run one report at a time? Is this new improvement really just BB hiding that their reporting system is still busted?

I actually came back to the forums looking for people who have had experience with the report generation improvements.

BB is not alone in this. Any time a software developer threatens to make improvements, I know it will be a nightmare. I just wish that for once an improvement is an improvement and they act competently and make it work correctly the first time as though it were their jobs and as though they were professionals. But that is unreasonable in the modern age.

Good luck.

Jessica Dolan

Totally agree. After almost 5 years working with this system, I've learned that every time Blackbaud makes an "improvement," it actually reduces functionality and creates more difficulties.

Barbara Murin

I and my staff would echo many of the issues raised in this discussion. I am frustrated that Blackbaud forced us to NXT in the Fall of 2021 and still doesn't have a fully functional product. You can finally process A/R payments in NXT, but it is clunky and time consuming to apply the payment. I still haven't figured out how to change the default account which means you have to change it with each payment. There are good features, but for the cost, I would expect a smoother transition better product.

Karen Patterson

I noticed another issue with NXT vs. database this morning when I tried to apply a credit memo to an invoice in Accounts Receivable. I have a client that double paid several invoices and they have been "paying" subsequent invoices by deducting the amounts from the original overpayment. All fine and good. I have applied some of the credit to an invoice from last month and this morning I received another statement with another deduction that was also supposed to be applied to last month. When you look at a credit to see where it's been applied, it shows that you applied $100 to an invoice in September. If you want to change that to $200 to reflect the "payment" you received today, BB will not let you unless September is open because it thinks that you are changing the amount that you applied originally, on the original date. I'm not, I'm applying more of the credit TODAY, not last month. But I open database and try to apply more of the credit in September, it realizes that your post date is different and lets you do it.

If this functionality doesn't get corrected in NXT, I will have to figure out a workaround, and isn't that what these "improvements" are supposed to eliminate? So frustrating!

Rachelle Boettcher

Eva Adler

https://community.blackbaud.com/discussion/comment/307304#Comment_307304

Please do not eliminate the data base view, it is so much easier and faster to navigate. NXT seems like a step backward. It takes so long to load anything! Also, I can see all the records donations in one place a lot faster on data base view. Please let us continue to use it!

Eva Adler

Karen Patterson

https://community.blackbaud.com/discussion/comment/310411#Comment_310411

Totally agree! Example: when creating a receivables invoice in NXT, you have to scroll a long way to get to the bottom of the input screen. In database, it's all right in front of you. So what if there are multiple tabs, they're all right in front of you also. And nothing is hidden in database. Example: when creating a new A/R client, the name, address, and contact fields are all right in front of you, not hidden behind a link to "Add" information. Ditto the payment terms, relationships, statement options, etc.

Please don't take it away! It's so much easier and faster to work in!

Gayle Morgan

Glad to know that I am not the only one that feels some type of way about Blackbaud getting rid of the database. I use the database for a lot of things in my daily duties and now I have no idea of how to do certain things in the webview.

Karen Cannon

Thank goodness I'm not the only one feeling the database is much more efficient. I have access to both the database and the WebView NXT and find myself going back to the database for inputting my invoices and applying payments as it's much quicker. The way we have to apply payments to line items on our invoices is backwards to the database. NXT is so slow - I get the green dot, which drives me crazy. The database was much easier, quicker and less wait times - no green dots. Hope all of these insights will reach them and they will actually listen. TY!

Lauren Hambidge

Same here. Actually taking time out of my day to find somewhere to send feedback regarding constant inefficiencies and issues. NXT was not an upgrade on the FE side!