cwood@hooterville.Central.Sun.COM (Chris Wood Sun SE - Detroit) (07/19/90)
Need your consulting expertise... I HAVE A MUSIC STORE. I AM CURRENTLY NOT USING COMPUTERS. I DO NOT WANT TO BUY A TURN-KEY SYSTEM BECUASE I WILL WANT TO CUSTOMIZE THINGS. I DO NOT WANT TO DEPEND ON A SMALL COMPANY THAT IS LOCATED 2 TIME ZONES AWAY FOR SUPPORT. I DO NOT WANT TO BUILD MY SYSTEM FROM THE GROUND UP. Ideally, an IBM or NCR based system using packages such as Lotus, Dbase IV, etc. would be ideal. These are defacto standards that seem to be malleable and very well supported. How can I tie this to a point of sale system? Assume all the small business needs: inventory control, accounting, etc., etc. Budget: 2k - 10K Do you think Lotus and Dbase are appropriate for this environment? What others packages are applicable? What can you reccommend? Chris Wood Chris Wood
nolan@tssi.UUCP (Michael Nolan) (07/20/90)
[this was originally tried as E-mail, but bounced for a bad path]
Speaking as a consultant from a small business only one time zone away:
It sounds like you don't want somebody else to do your software, you want
to do it yourself. Fine. Unless you are an expert in dBase or Lotus (and
if you don't know whether or not they're appropriate, you're *NOT*), expect
to spend 100 or more hours figuring out how to use the software system you
choose in a way that makes sense for the application you have in mind.
Then expect to spend another 200 or 300 hours writing (and rewriting) software
to do what you want. During this time, you will probably have the whole thing
collapse on you several times. You will also probably redefine the file
or database structure several times, either reloading information by hand
or writing some kind of transfer program each time.
This, of course, all assumes that you made an appropriate choice for the
software system in the first place. If not, then after investing 400+
hours, expect to choose *another* system and more or less start all over
again!
You can probably do what you want in dBase, although Clipper is more powerful
and faster. (and more expensive :-( ) Probably not in Lotus.
My suggestion is to look in the yellow pages of the Detroit phone book for
software consultants, and pay somebody $500 to $1000 to tell you what to do
and help you do it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Nolan "I don't know what apathy is,
Tailored Software Services, Inc. and I don't want to find out!"
Lincoln, Nebraska (402) 423-1490
UUCP: tssi!nolan should work,
if not try something like uunet!frith!upba!tssi!nolan rg@psgdc (Dick Gill) (07/29/90)
In article <379@texsun.Central.Sun.COM> you write: > >Need your consulting expertise... > >I HAVE A MUSIC STORE. >I AM CURRENTLY NOT USING COMPUTERS. >I DO NOT WANT TO BUY A TURN-KEY SYSTEM > BECUASE I WILL WANT TO CUSTOMIZE THINGS. >I DO NOT WANT TO DEPEND ON A SMALL COMPANY > THAT IS LOCATED 2 TIME ZONES AWAY FOR > SUPPORT. >I DO NOT WANT TO BUILD MY SYSTEM FROM THE GROUND > UP. > >Ideally, an IBM or NCR based system using packages such > as Lotus, Dbase IV, etc. would be ideal. These > are defacto standards that seem to be malleable > and very well supported. > >How can I tie this to a point of sale system? > >Assume all the small business needs: inventory > control, accounting, etc., etc. > >Budget: 2k - 10K > >Do you think Lotus and Dbase are appropriate for this >environment? > >What others packages are applicable? > >What can you reccommend? > >Chris Wood > > >Chris Wood Having been in the design and implementation end of business software for 25 years (Ugh!), I have some thoughts on your posting. If you operate a well run and profitable music store, you might first ask the question "why computerize?" Remember that computers are only a means to an end, and that many businesses can get great payoff from "low tech" solutions like better manual procedures. Once you are convinced that y need a computer, I strongly urge you to look for software packages written specifically for businesses like yours. Software firms serving a particular industry (we serve lawyers) will develop a great deal of expertise in providing the specific features that meet the unique needs of, for example, the music store business. (Even though you might not believe it, there are certain software design features that virtually ALL music stores, including yours, need.) Look in your trade magazines or publications like Data Sources to get a line on such vendors. The most important selection criterion is good references from long-time users. Lastly, you have to decide whether you want to be in the music business or the software business. I have law firm clients who spent hundreds of (billable) hours trying to build their own business system before they decided to contract with us for their software and concentrate their efforts on practicing law. I know from personal experience that a small successful software company is a much better bet than home brew business software. As for the time zone difference, good software from a reliable company will be sufficiently bug-free and well documented that support calls should be minimal after the installation period. If they provide modem support, that will make things even simpler. As to hardware and software tools, leave that to the vendor. You will also get more attention from the vendor if you buy both software and hardware from them and you will have a single firm to go to if things don't work quite right. Hope this helps. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dick Gill Gill & Piette, Inc. (703)761-1163 ..uunet!psgdc!rg -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dick Gill Professional Solutions Group (703)761-1163 ..uunet!psgdc!rg