Welcome to CROSS Systems, Inc.!
The following items are here to help you get started or find answers to your questions at any time. If you are getting back on-track with your CROSS Library, see our first question below to renew your CROSS Library Subscription.
Q: Is there any discount in 2022? I’m having trouble paying for a renewal this year?
A: Unfortunately, at this time it appears costs are rising across the board–others are able to change economic policy to fix this issue. That is outside the scope of our company. Unfortunately, we have to follow the economy like everybody else.
Q: How can I renew my CROSS Library Subscription?
A: First, register or login here
Then, click Renew link here, and you will be automatically directed to the correct starting place depending on your account status. (Note: If you are already a subscriber, you will be taken to Your-account where you can renew your most recent renewal order. (Unpaid renewal orders have a Pay button on the order line.) If you are renewing early, you may do so here. Click the Renew Now button on active subscription line. Otherwise, if you land on the CROSS Library Subscription product page, add it into your cart to sign-up, then proceed to checkout and place your order.)
Q: I never purchased from CROSS before, where do I start?
A: First, register or login here, then this product is what you need to get started. Add that to your cart and checkout, we will send you an email with your account info, and your order emails will include the link to download. Then, call for installation assistance, and we’ll help you get you it all set up.
Q: What is the best way to renew my existing subscription(s) or pay my outstanding renewal invoice(s)?
A: A) If you received an email invoice or wish to pay your last renewal invoice, just click here and click the Pay button on the renewal order you wish to checkout and pay. B) If you purchased via our website before and you are current or just expired, you want to go to your account here and locate your subscription. Then, click the Renew Now button–the purchased subscription term will be added to ANY remainder of your current subscription, so you lose nothing if you renew early. These are the least expensive ways to renew your previous subscription. If your subscription expires for longer than our grace period, you may need to add a new subscription into your cart with this link as our system may have already cleaned up your expired subscription.
Q: I have not purchased support for a few years. How do I get the latest CROSS Library updates?
A: All software updates and support are included in the CROSS Library Subscription. You may add this to your cart, then checkout to renew your CROSS Library Subscription.
Q: Do you sell library supplies like labels, catalog cards, label protectors, etc? A: YES! Click here to view library supplies used in CROSS Library software and purchase other supplies you may need such as labels, label sets, label protectors, pockets, catalog cards, display racks, etc. (Note: If you are looking for something you do not see on our site, call and let us know. We like to add products you are needing.)
Q: How can I update CROSS Library so get the latest updates?
A: For 32-bit Windows, if you are looking to install the LATEST UPDATE of CROSS Library on any system where CROSS Library is currently installed, just download and run this installer to upgrade:
https://www.cross-products.com/pub/InstallOnline.exe
(IMPORTANT: If you cannot currently backup via internet, this update connects you to our new cloud making backups easy with improvements in reliability.
OTHER BENEFITS: Since Dec. 31,2019, this update also improves CROSS Library so it can automatically repair databases if your system was incorrectly shutdown, etc.)
Here is a bit of history on Internet Backup in 2019: In 2019, both Windows Updates along with a few systemic security updates applied by our hosting provider caused issues with our previous internet backup system rendering it unworkable. We had previously identified these issues years ago and had on-going project to replace the system with a more stable web-based system with more capabilities. We were able to bring that new system online and we are now updating everyone to the new cloud-based backup system with this update. This update connects you to the new system with all of the benefits of the up-to-date, improvements, including improved performance and improved security for 2020!
Q: I have CROSS Library Mint, how do I get the Latest Updates?
A: Feel free to try it–just open crosslibrary.com/download and follow the instructions to update CROSS Library Mint (the 2nd link on the page). If you have an older CROSS Library Mint (pre-February 2019), it should be updated for sure! Call if you have any questions or run into trouble–we will be happy to review your current version and either upgrade using the download mentioned or just update the CROSS Library Mint itself since it has improved a lot over the past year with our monthly updates–especially since Febrary!
IF YOU HAVE a GREY CUBE for the ‘CROSS Library Helper’ icon, you can try to update by right-clicking the ‘CROSS Library Helper’ cube in your tray’, then click on Admin/Check for Updates Now…’, then read and click OK on the messages, and click YES on the last prompt to download and install the update. Click through the installer prompts to install the update. It will automatically re-open using the new update when you click the Finish button on the install process. You can always call for support.
Q: Are there recent updates to CROSS Library?
A: YES, Absolutely! We released updates in January 2020 including updates to our automatic database repair utility which fixes your databases when a problem is detected saving you time and hassle even if your system loses power or doesn’t shutdown properly! Before that, an updates were published in December and in Nov. 26 an update was published to link ALL CROSS Library customers to our new cloud-based internet backup system! See our news page crosslibrary.com/news post on Nov. 26th for the update instructions. (CROSS Systems, Inc. has been updating CROSS Library constantly for over 25 years and continues to support Windows XP Pro, Vista, Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10 32-bit along with Windows 64-bit systems and CROSS Library Mint systems based on Linux Mint 19.1, 19.2, and 19.3 with an existing CROSS Library Subscription. See question #1 above to renew, if your subscription has expired.)
Q: What is the long-term support view for 32-bit Windows?
A: While Windows Updates have been been disruptive in Microsoft world, CROSS still plans to support CROSS Library on these systems as long as Microsoft can support Windows 32-bit. Microsoft compatibility has been suffering recently. While we hope it improves, migrating to CROSS Library Mint is likely a good long-term support plan: CROSS Library Mint is filling the compatibility gap in two ways–1. with laptops which run CROSS Library Mint 64-bit WITHOUT WINDOWS, and 2. with CROSS Library Mint 32-bit that runs on 64-bit Windows 10 (as well as Windows 7, 8, 8.1). If you are unable to continue using CROSS Library on your existing Windows, we can help now–call for support. IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to check for Windows Updates FIRST (before calling) since Windows Updates in late November have already fixed the October errors caused by Windows Updates. ALSO: Windows Pro editions began to receive the fix as of 12/11/2019.
A few words on Windows Pro editions: Microsoft tends to delay releases of updates including bug fixes for Pro systems, so you can expect it to take longer for these systems to be fixed when a bad update tanks your system. This delay supposedly lends toward stability via longer testing cycles, but it can also lend toward longer outages when Windows Updates screws things up. We hope you don’t have Windows problems on a Windows Pro edition. We can usually help you uninstall updates to help the best we can. If you have a Windows Pro edition, it’s best to configure your system for the slowest path to Windows Updates to try to avoid them until they are well-tested by the rest of the global community. In other words, stay off the bleeding edge if you have a Pro edition of Windows and intend to keep it running correctly without interruption. If you run into serious trouble with Windows Pro, we might end up needing to migrate your system to CROSS Library Mint if Windows troubles occur and we run out of alternatives.
Q: Having trouble with CROSS Library in Windows? Windows Updates had a fairly bad year in 2019–the reputation is that it breaks things…that’s right! Windows Updates automatically breaks your system many times as it updates and is not likely to be fixed due to the complexity of the design. It breaks other software apps such as CROSS Library. If you can handle downtime several times a year, Windows might work for you. We hope Microsoft stabilizes the situation. Until then, we are providing CROSS Library Mint on Linux which we consider to be more secure and stable than Windows leading into 2020.
FIRST: Install the November 2019 CROSS Library Update and make a backup to our new cloud so you have a backup of your latest data. (up-to-date CROSS Library Subscription required–renew here)
A #1: BEST We at CROSS are offering our new CROSS Library Mint 64-bit Linux Systems (…register first…), so ditch the continuous Windows Updates cycle in favor of a ALREADY SECURED Linux environment.
A #2: CROSS is offering a cheaper alternative–our refurbish to CROSS Library Mint 64-bit option. See here for details.
A #3: CROSS is offering to install CROSS Library Mint 32-bit Linux onto a Windows 10 system (may be slower than our laptop systems above due to Windows overheads).
A #4: If CROSS support had installed 32-bit Windows 10 on your system previously, we can help you re-install to 64-bit if your system has more than 8GB RAM or more. If not, fixing the Windows Updates is the best path for now. The Windows 64-bit / CROSS Library Mint combination provides protection against the continuous Windows Update cycle from negatively affecting CROSS Library. However, it’s not as good protection as our new Mint Laptop systems which do not contain Windows at all! Call 1-877-615-7230 (press 2 when you hear the Support option) for assistance in reinstalling Windows, if desired. You may need to update your subscription if expired. (Note: This may be slower than using our laptop systems above due to Windows overheads.) REQUIREMENTS: We require 8GB (or more) RAM for this option due to complaints about slowness after customers upgraded to 64-bit Windows and found performance lacking with 4GB of RAM. If your system works well on 32-bit Windows 10, we suggest updating Windows, pausing your updates for as long as possible to slow down Windows Updates cycles as of November 2019.
Q: I am getting “unexpected error; quitting” when opening CROSS Library. How can I fix this?
A: FIXED–This has been fixed by Microsoft as of mid-November 2019–you must check for and apply all Windows Updates again to resolve the issue. CROSS Library functions normally after the mid-November Windows Updates are applied. Question #3 above describes the cause of the problem and alternatives. See our news page at crosslibrary.com/news for details and instructions how to fix it based on your version of Windows or call 1-877-615-7230 (press 2 when you hear the Support option) for assistance uninstalling the offending update to allow CROSS Library to function correctly.
Q: Compatibility: At times people ask: Why isn’t CROSS compatible with Windows? (Beyond the fact that this is an incorrect presupposition, we will answer the question as-is.): YOU BETCHA we’re compatible–and expanding it every day!
A: First, if you have a compatibility concern, call and ask your questions. We will help. CROSS Systems, Inc. provides a longer compatibility calendar than Microsoft does for their own operating systems! We do this to help you save money. We support ALL 64-bit and 32-bit Windows (XP Pro through Windows 10) along with Apple OS X and Linux 64-bit systems using CROSS Library Mint. This is FAR MORE COMPATIBILITY than many application vendors provide–most are dropping platform support because it’s too costly. Oh, and we also provide CROSS Library Mint 64-bit and 32-bit installed directly on laptops in case you want to simplify your life and boot Windows out of the picture. So, now that we’ve answered the incorrect presupposition, let’s move to the fears and concerns: Will this continue to be workable? Yes–for the above reason if for none other–we provide even the platform our software needs to operate, so we can run that just about anywhere.
Folks seem to judge compatibility from different perspectives. We’re approaching it like this: If you have an Apple OS X or Windows 64-bit system: We’re compatible using CROSS Library Mint (or an equivalent environment that runs CROSS Library on your system). We provide that environment for your system and CROSS Library runs inside there. This is a common practice today (using an wide array of technologies). Why? Because, system updates often tweak settings, shared program files, etc. that can cause costly repairs to keep software running. We SHOULD CHARGE by the hour to provide this support to our customers, but we cover that AND platform support AND software updates AND hosting AND cloud-backup services ALL in our subscription model. By doing this, we provide a better value to all of our customers. It’s actually easier and cheaper for software vendors to not need to deal with all of the thousands of combinations that can occur by providing an environment where Windows Updates, Antivirus software, utility software, drivers, various windows interfaces, etc. do not affect the behavior of that system to such a large degree.
32-bit: We ALSO provide continued support for Windows 32-bit systems from XP Pro up through Windows 10. So, you get compatibility and support for all Windows platforms beyond what even Microsoft provides–Windows 7 support is being dropped in Jan. 2020 by Microsoft and XP Pro years ago–we’re still supporting both! (These systems actually tend to remain stable as long as your hardware continues to function well and your anti-virus software is up-to-date.) So, feel free to continue as-is, and we’ll continue to support CROSS Library for you!