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August 2003

Jersey breeders were treated to a virtual tour of infoJersey.com at the first of two seminars held on Friday, June 27, 2003, during the AJCA-NAJ Annual Meetings.

Mark Chamberlain, AJCA Information Technology Manager, showed members how to use the web site and to order programs and services. He and Erick Metzger, AJCA Herd Services Manager, also fielded a variety of questions during the interactive demonstration.

Chamberlain walked attendees through key online services and updated them on new features. By seminar end, they had learned how to purchase JerseyTags, register and transfer ownership of animals, order performance pedigrees, and progeny performance reports and use JerseyMate™ .

By logging on to www.infoJersey.com, registered users can begin using the site by clicking on the log on button. A pop-up screen will ask for user name and password. User name is your AJCA customer number, and the password is selected when the user account is established. Visitors will be given a chance to establish a user account. A welcome screen then appears, with the latest infoJersey news and a menu bar to the programs and services.

One of the newest features to infoJersey is the ability to purchase JerseyTags online at the JerseyTag Store. It is accessible by clicking on the animal services menu, then the JerseyTag option.

Currently, the inventory tags are the only tags available online.

A variety of tag backs and fronts give breeders the opportunity to create the perfect tag for their needs. Each bright yellow or white tag is imprinted in black with the animal’s herd management number and her American identification (ID) number, which will serve as the animal’s AJCA registration number.

Customers can manage JerseyTag orders and check order status through the web site’s reporting functions.

There are two options for payment: online payment with a credit card or billing of the account. It is recommended that credit cards be used for fastest service, since payment must be received before the tag order is processed. UPS will generally deliver tags within a week to 10 business days.

More than half of all registrations are now submitted electronically. The backbone of the business, online registration is much like it’s been for the past five years. However, an animal’s American ID number now is now entered at the top of the form. Sires may also now be identified by short name.

Registrations are entered manually and the registration bin allows customers to manage pending registrations and those needing assistance from AJCA staff.

Customers can avoid rush fees by submitting transfers and registrations online.

Only the seller of the animal can submit transfer of ownership requests. Sellers must have the buyer’s customer number to complete the transaction.

Performance progeny reports are a free, condensed version of Official Performance Pedigrees. They provide a summary of an animal’s performance, but not as much lineage information as performance pedigrees.

Both performance pedigree and progeny report order screens are available by clicking on the animal services menu, then the animal reports option.

Performance pedigrees and progeny reports require that Adobe Acrobat Reader software be installed on the computer for viewing and printing purposes. This free software is available as a download throughout infoJersey, as well as the USJersey website.

JerseyMate’s order screen is reached by selecting the herd services menu, then the JerseyMate™ option.

JerseyMate™ is one of the newer online services and the only one that does not provide instantaneous results. A request may take five or more minutes to process, due to the large amount of data evaluated when creating the report. The customer will be notified by email when the report is ready.

The JerseyMate™ summary gives an inventory of bulls that have been used in mating recommendations and shows registration name and number, stud code, and semen restriction amount. Changes can be made for selecting the group of bulls, based on number of bulls used or the basis on which they are ranked. Changes can also be made to semen restriction amounts on individual bulls.

This summary also lists an inventory of females mated. Changes can be made to the inventory, to include the entire milking herd or a group of heifers, based on age.

The JerseyMate™ report is a two-plus page plan for semen purchases and specific matings for each female. Three mating options are included: one each for balance, inbreeding control and corrective.

One area that frustrates all web site users is forgotten passwords. With infoJersey, a customer can attempt to log on three times unsuccessfully before the "error cow" screen is displayed. The customer can attempt to log on again or visit the infoJersey account doctor. The account doctor will attempt to fix log in problems, including changing the customer’s password.

Since infoJersey is available 24-7-365, it is the quickest and most convenient method of ordering AJCA programs and services. For more information, contact Jonathan Stevens at 614/861-3636 extension 321 or by email at jstevens@usjersey.com.