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Site Navigation

1. The layout of the PPM Online website is very different from the CD and paper product.  How is the content organized on the website?
2. What types of documents will I find in each of the 7 topic areas?
3. When I click on one of the 7 topics, I get a page with Quick Links and Highlights.  What are these?
4. What steps should I take to find the information I want?
5. How can I navigate around the site? 

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The layout of the PPM Online website is very different from the CD and paper product.  How is the content organized on the website?

• In the PPM CD or paper formats,  each document belongs to a section, within either Volume I or II.  In the PPM Online website, all the PPM content (along with the Practitioner Advice documents) has been organized by topic areas.   Once you have signed in to the website, the top navigation bar displays, with the 7 topics, as shown below.

• The 7 PPM Online topics are Practice Management, Advisory, Compilation, Review, Audit, Taxation, and Financial Statements Guidelines.   For example, the Sample Quality Control Manual which is found in Section 100 of Volume 1 in the CD and Paper product, belongs to the Practice Management topic in the online version.   The Corporate data request document, which is found in Section 1000 of Volume 1 of the CD and Paper product, belongs to 3 different topics (Compilation, Review and Audit), as this document is relevant to these 3 areas. 
• The Practitioner Advice section can also be accessed from the top navigation bar and contains all the information currently found in the Practitioner Advice section of the PPCD. This includes Practice Alerts, Guidance Bulletins, Tax/Valuation newsletters, and Insurance documents.
• The Provincial Section can also be access from the top navigation bar, and  contains all the documents that were produced by individual affiliates to provide to their own public practitioners.  

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What types of documents will I find in each of the 7 topic areas?

• Practice Management – Includes guidelines and tools needed to manage a public practice in compliance with professional standards and regulatory requirements.  Includes the areas of quality control, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), and the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) legislation.
• Advisory – Includes guidelines to assist you in providing advisory services in the areas of management consulting, business valuation, strategic planning, and FOFI in accordance with recommended standards. Various sample tools (checklists, letters, reports, and financial statements) are provided in each topic to use in the process of accepting, planning, performing, and finalizing the engagement.
• Compilation – Provides useful materials to assist with a compilation engagement through the planning, performing, and finalizing stages.  The materials (including guidance, checklists, correspondence, working papers, and sample reports) are organized around the year-end compilation index file.
• Review –  Provides useful materials to assist with a review engagement through the planning, performing, and finalizing stages.  The materials (including guidance, checklists, correspondence, working papers, process flowcharts, and sample reports) are organized around the year-end review index file.
• Taxation –  Provides guidance for personal and corporate  income tax services. Numerous sample letters and references are available to assist you in conducting the most common types of services – compliance, planning, and appeals. Checklists for specialized tax topics are also included.
• Financial Statements Guideline – Financial statements should be presented in a professional format that provides the user with understandable and meaningful information. This guideline outlines the proper format and presentation of financial statements for audit, review, and compilation engagements. Also included are model financial statements for various types of engagements.  
• Audit – The audit engagement process is illustrated by a handy audit process flowchart. Many useful aids for planning, performing, and finalizing an audit (including guidance, checklists, correspondence, working papers, and sample reports) are organized around the year-end audit index file.

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When I click on one of the 7 topics, I get a page with Quick Links and Highlights.  What are these?

This introductory page for each topic contains a short introduction of the topic, and may also contain some Quick Links and Highlights.  Quick Links is a list of links to practice aids (e.g. checklists)  for that particular topic, allowing you to quickly access many useful resources.  Highlights is a list of links to individual documents (including relevant Practitioner Advice documents) that are most relevant and/or commonly used for that topic area. 

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What steps should I take to find the information I want? 

• Using the search feature to find a document or set of documents is a useful way to start.  Click here to access the Search Tips. 
• If you know which of the 7 topics the information you are searching for belongs to, click on the topic from the top navigation bar.  The topic will remain highlighted in green while you are navigating in that topic.  The left navigation area will list relevant sub-topics and files for that topic area, and the topic introduction page will display, with topic-related Quick Links and Highlights.  You might be able to find the documents or practice aid pages you are looking for within  the Highlights or Quick Links section.   If not, you can select an item from the left navigation area (which will then be highlighted in green), and the selected item will display.  Additional levels of navigation may appear in the left navigation area for your selection as well.  Some topics have up to 3 levels of navigation in the left navigation area.
• You can access the Practitioner Advice documents from the Practitioner Advice button in the top navigation bar.  For the Practice Alerts and Tax/Valuation Newsletters, only the current and previous year's documents will be displayed.  Click on the Archives link at the bottom of each of these lists to access historical documents for these two topics.
• You can access the Provincial section documents by clicking on the Provincial Section button in the top navigation bar.
• You can bookmark frequently used pages, and access them from the My PPM feature.

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 How can I navigate around the site?

• The top navigation bar is your starting point.  It offers access to PPM documents in all  7 topic areas and the Practitioner Advice and Provincial Section.
• Once you select an item from the top navigation bar, links may display in the left navigation bar to allow you to further drill down into that topic area.   In addition, a breadcrumb will appear below the top navigation bar, outlining the path of the current page you are viewing. 
• Each item in the breadcrumb is a link to a page, and will take you to that page if you click on it.
• To return to a previous page, you can click on the previous link item in the breadcrumb, or use your browser Back Button. 
• You can leave the page you are currently viewing at any time and go to any other clickable area on the page.  This includes:

1. Any items in the top navigation bar
2. Any links currently displaying in the left navigation bar
3. Home  (to return to the Home page)
4. Contact Us  (to get assistance)
5. Visit an Association  (to visit other CGA websites)
6. Search Feature  (to search the site)
7. Help  (to access this Frequently Asked Questions page)
8. Français (to go to the French version of the website)
9. Sign out  (to sign out of the website)
10. My PPM (to access your bookmarked pages and manage your bookmarks)
11. My Latest Bookmarks (select a link from the list)
12. Personal Profile (to update your account information)
13. Footer Links (Copyright, Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions and Site Map)

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Site Content

1. How does the content on the PPM Online website differ from what’s available on the PPCD and paper versions?
2. What types of files are on the site and how can I use them?
3. Can I select multiple documents for printing all at once?
4. What is the purpose of the Reference?
5. How can I find out when the website was last updated?
6. Where is the Provincial section for the French users?

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How does the content on the PPM Online website differ from what’s available on the PPCD and paper versions?

The majority of the PPM documents and services that are currently available on the PPCD and the paper product are also available on the PPM Online website.  However, in addition, there is content that can only be found on the PPM Online website, such as current news and announcements, International Standards information, and enhanced resources (links).  Website-only content will be updated more frequently  than the PPCD and paper products.

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What types of files are on the site and how can I use them? 

• Web pages, such as the one you are now reading.  When you click a link to a web page, it will be displayed in your browser.   Most of the website-only content are web pages, and the majority of the PPM documents can be displayed both as web pages and as Word documents (see below).  Web pages can be printed, or saved to your desktop using your browser’s ‘Print’ or ‘Save As’ feature, but this is not recommended, as web pages often don’t print well, and can’t be easily edited. 
• Microsoft Word documents:  Most of the PPM documents that display as web pages also provide you with the ability to open/save/print the document as a Word document.  In the example below, the Compilation Checklist is displayed as a web page, but if you click on the link above the DOWNLOAD image (see circled area), the Compilation Checklist will open as a Word document, so you may print it directly, or save it to your desktop for future use.  The link to the Word document displays the file name, as well as the type and size of the file.  In the example below, the filename is 603-A3.doc, a Word document 130kb in size.

• When you click a link to a Word document, your Microsoft Word application will start.  You may see a File Download dialogue box with three options: Open, Save or Cancel. To view the file, click Open, and from the Word program you can print the file or save it to your desktop using these MS Word features.  To save the document directly to your desktop without viewing it first, click Save and follow the instructions.  To avoid seeing this 3-option dialogue box in the future, uncheck the box "Always ask before opening this type of file” and the file will thereafter always open in Microsoft Word when you click on a link to a Word document.
• PDF documents:  Almost all of the documents in the Practitioner Advice section are PDF documents.  When you click a link to a PDF file, your Adobe Acrobat Reader will start and the file contents will be displayed.  To print or save a PDF document to your desktop, use the Adobe Acrobat ‘Print’ and ‘Save a Copy’ features.

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Can I select multiple documents for printing all at once?

The ability to select and print multiple documents is not available at this time.

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What is the purpose of the Reference?

In the screen above, to the left of the DOWNLOAD link, the REFERENCE is displayed.  This reference refers to the Section that this file belongs to in the PPCD and print versions, and will help you find this particular document in these other formats.

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How can I find out when the website was last updated?

The “What’s New at PPM” section provides the date when that the website was last updated, and will contains information about the most recent update. 

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Where is the Provincial section for the French users?

Provincial content is supplied by some Affiliates and not others.  There are currently no French provincial documents supplied by any of our Affiliates.  In order to access the English provincial section documents, the user on the French site must click on the English link, and then click on the Provincial Section tab.

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Site Features

Where do I find links to useful resources?

Click on the Home link to return to the page where the Resource Centre can be accessed. The Resource Centre contains many pages of useful links.

How can I bookmark a page and manage my bookmarks?

Many pages contain a Bookmark this page button on the right-hand side of the page.  Click on this button to bookmark the page you are currently on.  Use the “My PPM” feature to list these bookmarks, access the bookmarked pages, and delete bookmarks you no longer wish to retain.

What is the “My Latest Bookmarks” feature?

Some pages will display “My Latest Bookmarks” on the right-hand side of the page.  Click on the arrow to the right and your last 5 saved bookmarks will be displayed.  These bookmarks are links that you can use to go directly to these pages.

How do I use the site map?

The site map is available as a link at the bottom of the site, and lists the links to all the main topic and sub-topic documents that are available from the top navigation bar and the left navigation area. This feature will provide you with a quick overview of the site structure.

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Search Tips

1. Is all content on the PPM Online website searchable?
2. How do I do a basic keyword search?
3. What are the search rules for a basic keyword search?
4. How do I refine my search, or do an advanced search?
5. I know the file name of the document in the PPCD, but I want to find it on the PPM Online website. How do I do that?
6. I often perform the same search. Can I save my searches?
7. What are the Best Bets and how do they work?
8. How do I access the documents from the search results page?

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Is all content on the PPM Online website searchable?

No, only the content that is available in the PPCD is searchable (i.e. all content in Volume I and II and the Practitioner Advice and Provincial Section documents).