Software And Coffee

If you’ve ever been in line at a Books-A-Million, you might have heard the phrase “I need backup!”. The lone cashier is alerting fellow employees help is needed up front. I generally giggle, flashing back to “Starsky and Hutch.” But I digress…

Recently I met with a Realtor. I mentioned she needed to backup her data. I don’t provide these kind of services, so I had nothing to gain. She went on and on how she had copies of her data all over the place. She couldn’t comprehend the impending doom of sync: if you delete something you need, the delete is synced to all your copies. Reading this fox news article revived this suppressed memory.

You need to backup your data to tape. A tape drive is not cheap, and you will need a server. Here is the concept: all of your important data should be stored on the server. This data will be archived to tape every night. You rotate tapes each day, and weekly or monthly take one tape off site.

There are other options, such as using USB memory sticks, CD’s or DVD’s as a backup medium. I prefer tape, since the backup is automated.

Whatever your choice, develop a backup plan and follow it. Test a restore of your data quarterly. These are general rules. If you are unsure, contact an IT consultant to help you develop a plan.

If you don’t have a trusted IT consultant, contact us and we’ll make a recommendation.

Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc

Data falls into two categories, detail data and group data. Detail data is limited to a single entity or transaction. A customer, invoice, and payment would all be considered detail data. Group data is an aggregate of the detailed data. For the most part, any report shows group data. Examples would be sales, accounts receivable, and inventory level reports. Group data is dependent on detail data points. If the detail data points are not set correctly, you cannot derive the group data. Here’s an example:

“Moe Autos” sells cars. Here are the data points the software solution uses:

Moe has three cars for sale: a white 2004 Dodge Durango, a red 2003 Ford Explorer, and a green 2005 Chevy Suburban. They each have 14,000 miles on them and are automatic. So far, this fits the data model fine. The Durango seats 7 people, the Explorer seats 5 people, and the Suburban seats 9 and is a four-wheel drive. Since there are no data points to store the number of people and drive (4WD or 2WD), this information is lumped into the description field.

A customer calls, and wants a list of all vehicles that seat more than 5 people. Another customer calls, and wants a list of all four-wheel drive SUV’s. With three cars, it’s pretty easy to scroll thru inventory, or stroll across the lot. Let’s say we bump his inventory levels up to 50 cars. What about 100? 200? Now what happens? You have the data, you’ve taken the time to enter it, but you can’t quickly access it. You need to know what models are selling, to know how to replenish your inventory, but your Sales By Item report is omitting important information.

When you are choosing a software solution, make sure it can track all the data points you need to run your business. Also, make sure the provided reports can operate on the data points you need.

Contact us to learn more about what data points can do for your business.

Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc

As we look forward to 2008, tis the time for resolutions. A few pounds lost, less overtime, more exercise, and on and on. I’d like to bring up your online passwords. How many websites to you have passwords stored on? Amazon, your bank, paypal, credit cards, google accounts, and a host of other “unknown” websites. While I don’t have first hand knowledge of the “big ones” listed, it’s safe to assume they store your passwords in a secure manner. But what about that “unknown” list? How secure is your password? Do they encrypt it? How complex is their encryption scheme? I’ve seen quite a few sites that store user’s passwords in clear text (IE no encryption). That means that Johnny IT guy can rip thru the database and see your password.

Most people use the same password scheme across the board. The passwords used to login to their computer, accounting system and email are closely related with their online passwords. How close is yours?

Here’s your New Year’s challenge: come up with three different password schemes. One for your internal use (computer login, accounting system, and email), one for “high clearance sites” ( bank account and credit cards), and one for all the rest.

You’re on your own with your other resolutions, but good luck regardless!!

Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc.

I’m currently building a custom application for a new client. Part of the process is data conversion, which is moving the data into the new system from the old system. This particular conversion is pulling data from a DOS application. Theoretically, it’s a simple process. You just need to create a “map” to link the fields from the old application to the fields in the new application. Practically, it can be difficult. Limitations in the old app can cause users to enter invalid data. For example, users have entered 02/02/1902 in this DOS application to denote a transaction was taken in an abnormal location. This results in bad data, which is difficult to translate into useful information. (In the new application, a location can be specified for all transactions.)

Some software providers will tempt you to “throw away” your existing customer information. It makes it much easier for them. Don’t do it. You’ve spent years developing relationships with your customers, and this information is vital to analyzing your business trends.

Ninety percent of the time, your data can be converted. I generally create rules that cover the bulk of data, and handle the exceptions by hand.

Contact us to learn more about the possibilities of converting your data into useful information.

Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc

Websites are a fantastic way to communicate with your prospects and customers. Users can find details on your products/services, place new orders, check existing orders and submit information to you. In short, a website is a great tool. But, what if you could make this tool an employee?

To transform your website into an employee, it must integrate with your internal software. There should be no “human” massaging or copying/pasting of data from an email form. It must understand your customer database, be able to enter new orders, and provide shipping information and order status.

The more automated your website is, the greater workload your business can process at the same cost margin. I’m sure you’ve done the math, but that equals greater profit.

Things to look for:

• Your website uses PDF or other printed forms that are faxed in
• You use a third party shopping cart
• You receive customer data via email

Contact us to find out what your website options are.

Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc.

Is custom software an art, science, or some mixture of the two? As if there weren’t enough gray areas already, the answer is: both.

There is a science to software development. Your software provider should follow the systems development life cycle (see Software Development Process). They should have a standard system to determine your business needs, and translate those needs into a solution.

The art is in the translation, and falls mainly into two areas. The first area is documenting the business processes. Every business is different, and it is fascinating to learn their nuances. New ideas can streamline your processes, create new service offerings, and cut costs. The second area is in the design phase, also known as the “coffee and whiteboard” stage. Putting your business into software components definitely has an artistic flair. The components must be robust, extensible, and fast.

It truly is a fun process, and can be extremely exciting as both you and your provider work together to create a solution.

Stephen

Software is released in versions, usually in Major.Minor.BugFix format. So, version 1.0.0 would be the first release of production code. Version 2.3.14 would be the second major release, 3 minor releases, and 14 bug fix releases. 0.0.3 would mean the 3rd release of Beta code (code that is not released to production yet).

What does all this mean to you?

1. Your software provider should use version control

Version control is the tool developers use to govern the development process. Changes made to the software are associated with an issue (bug fix or new development). To create a release, the changes are bundled and assigned a version number (2.3.14).

There are others, but Subversion, CVS, and Source Safe are three popular version control products.

2. Your software provider should give you a list of resolved issues for each release

These could be bug fixes or additional functionality. This provides an audit trail when your software is upgraded.

Version control is the sign of an experienced software development shop. It is crucial to the success of your provider, and therefore to the success of your business.

Stephen

This is a tip for businesses considering, or in the throws of a custom software development project.

Software development has several stages. Geeks refer to it as the “systems development life cycle”. I’ve listed them broadly (and chronologically) below. Each stage is important to you and your business. They are:

1. Gather the requirements

Find a software provider you can communicate with, that understands your business.

2. Design a solution

The provider should understand your processes, and work with you to enhance your service and/or product offerings.

3. Develop the solution

The provider should set a realistic deadline, and keep you updated on the progress.

4. Test the solution

The provider should have a quality assurance mechanism. Deploying untested code wastes your resources.

5. Train end users

The provider should have a good relationship with your employees.

6. Release the solution

The provider should deliver what they promise. Ask for references from other clients.

7. Maintain the solution (fix bugs)

Poor work up front causes huge problems down the road. Make sure the provider has products in maintenance mode. As a matter of fact, make sure they’ve been supporting those solutions for a few years.

The verbiage may differ, but any software provider you meet with should follow these steps at a minimum. Ask them how the process usually works. If it does not match this list, it should raise a big red flag.

Stephen

One of the paradigms of Web 2.0 marketing is the “self proclaimed expert”. The idea is to present oneself as an expert by writing an article or blog, or publishing a podcast. “I’m an expert- just ask me and I’ll tell you!”.

I was listening to a podcast about starting new businesses. A few episodes in, the podcaster made a comment about never successfully starting a business. I was shocked and slightly taken aback. Not much of an expert, if you ask me.

Don’t get me wrong, failing is the first step to learning. But if you never succeed, all you can teach is what doesn’t work. Through this blog I plan to show SMB owners and managers what does work and how to make strategic software decisions.

To demonstrate my experience, I’ll share tidbits of my bio, share customer solutions, and provide feedback from my customers. Along the way, I’ll share tips and processes that will help you assess and resolve your current and future software needs.

Stephen