Trucking-specific software
By integrating many of the productivity functions into one package, many trucking programs allow “one-stop” computing. In addition to organizing customer, vendor and equipment data, tracking finances and providing a channel for written communications, many of the trucking packages also incorporate routing programs to create accurate mileage charges from standardized distance data, as well as fuel-tax accounting programs that automate the calculations and filing of forms. Other features can include maintenance databases to track costs and schedule preventive maintenance.
Some of the larger trucking programs may require a commercial-grade computing platform, such as Windows NT/2000, Unix or AS400, so make sure you choose a package designed for the level of equipment you have or intend to buy. Also, if you’re new to all of this, it may be better to go with an owner-operator focused program instead of the starter level of a fleet-focused package.
Because there is a wide availability of trucking-specific software on the market today, we’ll try to highlight the offerings of a wide selection of vendors, and then provide contact links to help you find out more about the products of most interest.

AntWorx www.loadledger.com
AntWorx recently released an updated version of LoadLedger. The release primarily includes enhanced and additional reports, as well as features for quicker data entry. LoadLedger is an accounting and recordkeeping Windows-based program that helps owner-operators, small fleets and company truckdrivers track their expenses and income, maintenance, fuel tax liability and cost-per-mile.
Karen Randolph, who helped found the company, explains, “Anyone who knows how to use a Windows program can use this software. It’s flexible enough for owner-operators to enter as much detail as they want, yet makes sure their accounts are always in balance so that at the end of the year, tax time is a breeze.” Randolph continues, “Drivers can see where they need to buy more fuel to decrease their quarterly fuel tax payment or when the equipment needs to be serviced. They can also see what income or reimbursable expenses are unpaid.”
The program costs $149 for a licensed CD and User Guide. OOIDA members receive a $25 discount. For information, call (217) 342-6399, fax (217) 347-1024 or e-mail info@loadledger.com.

Edonna www.edonna.com
Profit Tracker from Edonna Products is designed for owner-operators and trucking companies to keep track of their expenses, revenue, mileage, fuel stops, customers, maintenance, preventive maintenance and trip directions. A downloadable demo is available.
Pre-release purchasers of Profit Tracker Plus II can save $75 off the purchase price. For information, call 1-800-846-1802 or e-mail sales@edonna.com.

FastLane www.gofastlane.com
FastTrack will create freight bill invoices, provide profit percentages and average revenue, including cost per mile. Payments, insurance and license costs are allocated for the appropriate time periods to show actual earnings. Reports give the current information needed to make decisions and makes reporting annual income and expenses easy.
The FastTrack Standard Edition helps keep track of up to five trucks, including equipment and driver information, trip information and costs. Users can easily print customer invoices, mileage by truck, equipment lists, as well as profit and loss statements in summary form or detailed by truck.
All trip information is entered from one screen. General expenses are tracked and included in monthly reports with monthly truck expenses distributed across the trips for accurate net revenue per trip.
For information, call toll-free 1-877-928-1464 or fax (956) 631-4705.

Applied Arts www.truckbuddy.com
Log Buddy is a logbook compliance program designed for use on a portable computer. It goes where the driver goes. The program looks and works just like a paper logbook, recording an unlimited number of log entries. It also records and prints the forms required for hours-of-service compliance and automatically calculates the totals of all hours, including daily recap and hours available tomorrow, verifying compliance with 10, 15 and 60/70 hour laws. A built-in data backup and restore function is also included.
For information, phone 1-800-570-2787, fax (859) 225-1021 or e-mail truckbuddy@aol.com.

DeLorme www.delorme.com
Street Atlas USA Deluxe is the latest in street mapping software from DeLorme. The program offers updated maps for the entire United States, in addition to a robust set of mapping and GPS features. New features allow the addition of searchable and routable roads as well as hands-free operation using voice command capabilities.
More than four million points of interest aid with planning fuel and rest stops or searching for exit services along a route or within a radius. The program is GPS and Palm OS compatible.
The maps, however, do not include truck route restrictions, although this can be programmed by the user. For information, phone 1-800-561-5105.

Truckers Helper www.truckershelper.com
The Truckers Helper 2001 recently replaced versions 4 and 5 of the program. A discounted upgrade price is available. The newest versions of the program include licensed use of the ProMiles database, eliminating the need for manual entry of mileage. Depending on the version chosen, features include billing and load information tracking, maintenance history and basic inventory management. Updates (within version) of the program can be downloaded from the Internet. A monthly lease program for the software is also available.
Earlier this year, Land Line conducted an online survey of trucker software products. The Truckers Helper program raked in the most positive reviews. For more information, phone 1-800-875-7435.

ProMiles www.promiles.com
TruckMiles is the newest offering from ProMiles, based on the popular TruckMiles.com product. Realizing the need for CD-based routing software that would be affordable for owner-operators, the company went straight to work on the reversal of the web-only version of TruckMiles.
Features of TruckMiles include the power of the ProMiles Mileage Guide engine with an easy, wizard-based interface that allows truck-legal routing by most practical, shortest or reduced toll road use methods. Expenses can be tracked in either U.S. or Canadian currency, and distances can be calculated as either miles or kilometers.
For information, phone 1-800-324-8588 or fax (409) 697-2650.

PBS Tax www.pbstax.com
Truck Books from PBS Tax handles one or more trucks with customized expense categories, as well as easy-to-read monthly and year-to-date P/L statements. The program utilizes user-friendly screens to produce a cash basis income and expense summary. The program costs $99 plus shipping and handling.
For information, phone 1-800-697-5153.

ALK Technologies www.alk.com
The Pocket CoPilot, designed to work with a handheld PocketPC, includes a GPS receiver, the routing software and a mapping database that allows local-detail segments of mapping to be loaded and unloaded from the PocketPC. This unit retails under $300, not including the PocketPC. CoPilot Truck merged PC Miler’s practical routing and truck restrictions with the CoPilot street-level database to offer truckers dock-to-dock driving directions from a laptop directly in the cab. Spoken instructions and a driver safety screen minimize distractions. The laptop-based software is sold through the CoPilot Truck web site at www. CoPilotTruck.com for $449 including a $50 instant rebate through Dec. 31, 2001. By way of comparison, Pocket CoPilot and CoPilot Truck each offer a single (one-truck) user the routing and mapping functionality of the company’s PC Miler program that sells to fleets starting at $1,500.
Both systems allow door-to-door routing, with frequent destinations stored for quick retrieval. More than 4,000 truckstops and the truck-related route restrictions for more than 658,000 miles of North American roads are built into the database. Bridge and tunnel “waypoints” can be set in the routing process to accommodate toll, traffic, tunnel or hazmat restrictions. Routing can be programmed to avoid tolls. Specific road segments also can be programmed as routes to avoid.
For information, call (609) 683-0220, fax (609) 683-0290 or e-mail alkinfo@alk.com.

HammerLane www.hammerlane.com
HammerLane software, under new ownership, is billed as the total solution software for owner-operators and small fleets. Features include one-entry load setup, trip tracking, logbook hours-of-service tracking, truck and driver settlement and invoicing, bookkeeping, as well as state fuel and mile reports by truck and by company. The company offers free online program updates as well as toll-free telephone and online customer support.
For information, call 1-800-772-2716.

Omni Communications www.2omni.com
Profit Per Mile is an accounting program designed for owner-operators and small fleet owners. Key features include one-click quickfill (the software automatically completes) address selection for less typing, one click Internet mapping, unlimited income and expense categories, easy invoices completed with one-click quickfill, and a profit and loss statement that shows every category broken down per mile.
For information, call (920) 459-9511, fax (920) 459-9117 or e-mail info@2omni.com.

Prophesy www.mile.com
Prophesy offers several software products designed to meet the needs of owner-operators. Prophesy Mileage and Routing is an easy to use commercial-grade mileage and routing system that automates complex tasks such as looking up mileages, optimizing multiple stop trips and routing to and from cities, intersections, truckstops and ZIP codes. TaxTally is a comprehensive and powerful fuel tax reporting tool that offers ease of use, flexibility and reporting capability.
Prophesy’s “mile.com Gold” service includes an “All Stops w/Fuel Prices” report that lists all fuel stops and corresponding fuel prices along a route. A desktop version of the fuel optimization software is also available. It includes all the features of the online version plus mapping and multi-stop routes.
For information, call 1-800-776-6706 or fax (860) 243-2619.

Tom Kelley is a freelance technical writer from Charlotte, NC.