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War between Copy Protection and Piracy

Copy protection and piracy are conflicts that fighting forever. When a new technology is introduced into copy protection, and counterpart will research the corresponding sword to it. Without a very long time, this so called “new technology” can be cracked. It is a truth in the world. It is ridiculous that saying a product is “un-crack able”, because we know everything in the world can be reversed; the only problem is efficiency and time. If we had a powerful computer (it is only an assumption), and we were smart enough (if we were lucky), then we would ***** any algorithm. Maybe you think our pre-condition is not realistic, but we should be serious for this topic.

Since this war is ever taking, no fighter will stop fighting, we should explain this topic for a scientific and realistic point of view.

First of all, we can say no software is completed “un-crack able”. We have explained this topic before.

Second, for software developers or vendors, the only task they can do is to improve the software copy protection, and make it more difficult. There is a balance between software protection and piracy. If the cost of cracking overrides (or too big) the cost of software, cracking such software becomes a meaningless job; no one would like to ***** it any more.

Third, from software developers’ point of view, what they are really doing is not protecting the software; the real aim is to make maximum profit. To keep the maximum profit from the software is the only and most business reason that drive the developers to protection they software. If we looking at the topic from this side, we can say “copy protection” is only a side effect that brought by the commercial aim.

In the next installment, we will present the detailed of software protection.

Part 2. An Overview on Software Copy Protection

Here, we can discuss some techniques on software copy protection.

The general purpose of software copy protection is to prevent un-authorized usage of software. So we can say any method or action to prevent un-authorized usage of software is software copy protection.

We can classify software copy protection into 3 main types.

The first one is “software based”. This type of protection is pure software based, and no extra meta is needed. The members in this type are typical serial number, software packer (also called shell or enveloper).

Serial number

End-users can only use the software or the full function of the software if and only if the user have a correct (or reasonable) serial number. The advantage of such protection is that it is easy and cheap. While cracking such copy protection is not a difficult job for a professional hacker. If we found the authentication code in the file, then we can reverse it and make a general cracker against it.

Packers

Packing a software is a very common method to protect software. It is easy and without any additional programming job. Developers need only several simple clicking, then the

The advantage of pure software based protection is the cost. In general it is relative cheap. While, on the other hand, the disadvantage is easy to see, or we can say the disadvantage is obvious, that it is easy to be cracked. As we said before, nothing is un-crack able, if we leave all the protection at end-users side, we open everything to the hackers, who may find way to ***** your protection finally.

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|               good                      |                   bad             |

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| 1. easy                                   |  1. easy to crack                     |

| 2. cheap                                        |  2. weak license control                |

|                                         |  3. easy for piracy                    |

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The second protection method is “On-Line License”. You can find this kind of protection from everywhere, such like “On-Line Activation” for Windows XP, and Pro Engineering… This kind of protection needs a license server, which holds the database for licenses/activation keys. It will bring a central control for the license. You need a start/initial fees budget for on-line license, since an extra server is needed, well you also can share this server with others.

Compared with “software-based” protection, “on-line license” is better. You can enjoy the convenience of license schemes and a better security. The cost is a little bit higher, and start/initial invest is a must. This protection is good for big software vendors, who sell more than 5000 thousands copies per year and need a rough license control.

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|               good                      |                   bad              |

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| 1. easy                                    |  1. easy to crack                     |

| 2. relative low cost                          |  2. rigid schemes                     |

| 3. centralize license control                   |  3. relative high initial cost             |

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The last kind of software protection is “Software Dongle”, or we call hardware-based protection, dongle-based protection, software copy protection dongle, etc. This kind of protection might be the best, and it can maximum the software vendors’ revenue.

Is a software dongle un-crack able? The answer must be NO, but why it is the best? It is just because it can maximum the software vendors’ revenue. Ok, now we have repeat the same sentence twice, just for emphasis this point. Let me explain it in detail.

First, why we need software protection? Just for anti-piracy? No, anti-piracy is not the real or the root reason, the real aim is profit. We want to make money from the software, while pirated software cannot bring any profit to us, so we need anti-piracy. Now, let come back to software protection, the real goal of software protection is to protect the profit.

Can a software dongle maximum the revenue? How? To explain this question, we have to explain how we sell software. Nowadays, we sell software via our distributors or direct sell on the Internet. We can call them sales channel. The direct software customer is the sales channel. In fact, we do not know how many software has been sold, what the price for each copy. We just collect money from this channel, and check if the number is correct with what they claim. If without a dongle, we do not the specific number, we just know they are selling this software, but we will fell at loss when face to the number of copies, we do not know how to control the license copy. In this sense, the first usage of a software dongle is to get the number.

One may say, if the software is pirated at end-users side, the software vendor will get nothing too. Good question, but thinking from a software vendor point of view, we should not and cannot let piracy disappear from the earth. The pirated software just give a good place for software vendors to cultivate the market. For a software vendor, especially a CAD/CAM/CAE vendor, who is your customer, a company/institute/university or just a poor student/developer? The answer is too simple. The real customer is the people who can buy or may buy the software, i.e the entity who afford this software. The people who cannot afford the software is only potential customer, who cannot buy the software right now. These kind of people might buy your software in the future if they feel good, but now is not the right time. If you want to cultivate the market, let them use the pirated copy is not a bad choice. Remember the words “make money from the people who can make money”. Finally, we should make the one point clear, if we can make money from the people who can make money, it is the point we maximum our profit.

Software dongles can help you implement various software protection schemes. We will discuss this topic in the next chapter.

Now, let me summarize software dongles.

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|               good                       |                   bad             |

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| 1. better protection                           |  1. relative high cost                |

| 2. better revenue                              |  2. longer deliver time               |

| 3. flexible protection schemes                  |  3. need programming experience      |

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The following table show the target customer vs different software protection method

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|  pure software based protection  |   1. low cost software, (price less then 10 USD)         |

|                            |  2. shareware                                     |

|                            |  3. free software (live on donations)                   |

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|  one-line license protection     |   1. low cost software at big volume (price less than 50 USD, volume more then 1000 copies.              |

|                            |  2. shareware                                     |

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|  dongle-based protection       |   1. cost software (price more than 50 USD)            |

|                            |   2. volume software which need license control         |

|                            |   3. customized software                            |

|                            |   4. shareware                                    |

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From the table we can see, dongle-based protection covers more area, and give you a better space for growth. If it is affordable, you’d better choose dongle-based protection.

Part 4. Software Protection Schemes

In this sector, we will discuss the software protection schemes, and also how to implement these schemes with software dongles.

Software protection schemes is based on the software sales model. In order to make a better schemes, you should know well the software function, sales model, and target customers.

Sell per function.

It is common that a software consists of several functions, for example OFFICE consists of WORD, PowerPoint, Excel… a customer can buy the all function or only some of them. You can use software dongle to control this license. In general, this function in dongles called “module” or “license module”

Software lease

Software lease is most based on time. So you need a timing dongle. There is not too many dongle with real time clock embedded. You can use some simple tricks to check the time, for example, check the internet time server. The real time dongle is a good choice. You may refer to HASP-Time. But the cost is high.

Software running limitation

To only let the software run a certain times, for example after execute 50 times, the software stops. Some dongle vendor offer decreasing function, you may take advantage of it. Otherwise, decrease this number and write it back to the dongle every time.

Software credentials

Save digital credentials to the dongles, it will bring your better protection. Do not only check if the dongle is there, leave some thing inside dongle. But be careful, the data should be encrypted, if the dongle has an encryption engine it would be perfect.

Involve the dongle into computation

The ordinary protection is just to check if the dongle is there. This protection is really week. If you can involve the dongle into a computation, it will give your really good effect. Some dongles have a computing engine, which can run a certain algorithm inside dongle, it would be better choice.

Some dongle vendors offer some cook books or other hint on software protection, you may refer to them, they are professional indeed.

Part 5. How to Choose Software Protection Dongles

There are about 20 software dongle vendors all over the world. The big figure in this area is Aladdin ( http://www.Aladdin.com ). Since rainbow was acquired by safe-net, they lost the first position. Well, how to choose a dongle is another topic. We cannot say the biggest vendor offer the best product. The best product is the product which meet your requirements.

In the following paragraph, we will discuss on how to choose a dongle from different aspects.

Price

Doubtless to say, price is always the first topic. We just use the most popular dongle vendors as an example. HASP is expensive, more than 20 USD level. Sentinel is similar, but 1 or 2 USD less. WIBU ( http://www.WIBU.com )  is almost the same with Sentinel (http://www.SafeNet-Inc.com) . Eutron (http://www.Eutron.com) is 10-20 USD level, and similar with UniKey (http://www.eSecuTech.com). You can get a special offer from dongle vendors if you are a really volume customer.

Interface

There are several types of dongle, LPT, PS/2, Serial, USB and even PCI cards. Based on my experience, USB would be best selection, since 95% computer go along with USB ports.

Support

Since software protection is a job need experience, you should know support is also a part of product. Before you buy it, you should check if the support is really good. Try to get more suggestion from their support engineers. If you think the support is not good, you’d better find an alternative to avoid further problems.

Product quality

It is shown that most dongles are produced in China. But it seems that if the production process is controlled under a better management, the product is better. If it is under to bad management, the product is bad quality. It is recommended to choose an international brand, and be careful with the pure Chinese brand even they are cheap.

Functions

The dongle function can help you to implement the software protection schemes. The most basic function is to read and write. All the dongles have this function. If you want to implement more function, you should consult the support engineer from software dongle vendor. If the dongle only has read/write function, it is not a real dongle, it is only a toy.

Trouble shooting

After you buy dongles and send dongles with your software, you will support the dongle for your customers. If you customer meet any problem, you have to help them to trouble shoot the problem. The most common problem is “Dongle Not Found” problem, i.e. after customer install the driver and insert the dongle, the software still say no dongle found. It is a headache for software dongle vendors. But it seems we find a better solution now,. Entron and UniKey provide so-called “Driverless” dongles, which need not install a driver. It is an HID (human interface device), working like mouse. This kind of dongles provide a better solution than traditional dongles.

Part 5.Conclusion

In this simple paper, we discuss the sensitive topic on software protection, and an overview on dongle protection. I just want to share my experience in this area with other developers. Hope you can enjoy it.



About the Author:


Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

A definition of Customer Management Software.

Customer management software has been recently developed and helps to increase sales and productivity of companies that are selling their products and services. Customer management software can help any company to increase the productivity of their sales team quickly. Many companies do not have the money to buy an expensive Customer Management Software, however, you can find Customer Management Software that is cost effective for you company. Customer management software can help your company in many ways and improve the success and profit for your company.

Customer management software provides important contact management.

contact management is very important to every company and Customer Management Software can help a company with this. Customer management software should have contact management features that can help to track and monitor sales opportunities. Customer management software can help a company be sure that no sales slip through the cracks. You can also have your Customer Management Software made specifically for your company. Implementing a Customer Management Software can also help your entire sales team to be aware of all that is going on within the company. If you find Customer Management Software that can accomplish each of these goals then you have found the very best Customer Management Software.

Avidian offers great Customer Management Software.

The company Avidian offers great Customer Management Software that is named Prophet. Prophet is Customer Management Software that is based on Microsoft Outlook and is the type of Customer Management Software that can help any business. You can use Prophet Customer Management Software to help keep customer information organized. Prophet Customer Management Software can also help keep account information up to date and allows the information to be readily accessible to all of the sales team. Each person on your sales team can use the Prophet Customer Management Software to keep leads going and sales going through. You can learn more about Prophet Customer management software by visiting Avidian.com for more information.

Great features and benefits of Prophet Customer Management Software.

There are many features and benefits to be found with Prophet Customer Management Software. When you use Prophet Customer Management Software you will be able to instantly access all of a customers information using the Customer Management Software. You can not only see contact information using this Customer Management Software but also any other records of sales or previous correspondence. You can also use Prophet Customer Management Software to keep track of scheduling so all appointments are kept track of and none are missed. Prophet Customer Management Software makes it easy to schedule and access appointments, which leads to a well-kept schedule.

Prophet Customer Management Software makes tasks easier to accomplish.

When you are using Prophet Customer Management Software you will find it easy to follow up on any leads you may have. You can actually use this Customer Management Software to send automated emails to prospective clients and to follow up on any current customers. You can also use this Customer Management Software to assign and keep track of tasks that need to be completed. If you are using Prophet Customer Management Software you will be able to see more sales made than ever before and will reap the profits of those sales. You can even use this Customer Management Software to keep track of the sales you make and the profit that is generated.

Prophet Customer Management Software makes reporting easier.

Most companies find that reports are important and Customer Management Software can help with these as well. The Prophet Customer Management Software can make the reports easy to deal with. Prophet Customer Management Software will keep track of everything that takes place each day and you can easily find this information. Prophet Customer Management Software comes with 30 reports that are already built in for you to use and you can also use your Customer Management Software to customize these reports as well. You can use these reports to see how your company is doing and the reports generated by your Customer Management Software can help you see where there may need to be improvement. You can use Prophet Customer Management Software to keep track of your reports and these reports can help you develop new methods and strategies to lead you to further success.

Prophet Customer Management Software has won awards in the past.

If you are looking for Customer Management Software a great place to look is at Avidian.com at the Prophet Customer Management Software. In the past Avidian has won several awards for its’ Customer Management Software including being named Best Outlook-based CRM solution. It has won several awards and has proved very deserving of the awards it has won. You can buy this Customer Management Software and rest assured that you are truly buying the best Customer Management Software that is available. You will find that this award winning Customer Management Software can make a great difference in your company as well and lead your company to success.



About the Author:

Author Bio: James Wong is the co-founder and CEO of Avidian Technologies, makers of Prophet, The easiest CRM software for Outlook, Customer Management Software - Your Business Solution.
For more information about Avidian, visit www.avidian.com


Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

Global Description to use this Tutorial  

Main subject of Engineering Software in general, describe the basics of Software Engineering, and solving problems, and methods of software development. The discussion about the sub-field of Operating System contains a computer system, the system operating and working in the computer network. The scope of the material basic algorithms include algorithms and advance algorithms. Sub field Programming Languages take a big portion, including GUI programming with VB & VB.Net, Java programming, C + + programming, Programming of object-oriented and web-based. Sub-sector which is the last part of this tutorial is a data base with the scope of the system databases, conceptual modeling, relational database, Microsoft Access and SQL.

This tutorial is structured in such a way so that for general readers can independently learn and encourage to try. Therefore, in this book, many will be found either in the form of illustration image, the scheme and program listings.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION



Let us see Picture 1,1. For most users, the above picture is fairly familiar. In the picture, the desktop of Microsoft Windows operating system is shown. Several icons is shown in the picture. Double clicking on the icon will open a certain software application that can be used to do a certain task.

These days almost all aspects of life were touched by the use of software. Some software may already been used or seen by us, such as, music

player, cashier application software, document editor, etc. These softwares were the results of a series of process or the activity that was known as the Software Engineering. What is Software Engineering? This chapter

will try to answer such question.

OBJECTIVES

This chapter should enable you to:

Able to explain on software, program, software engineering and procedures. Understand the objectives of software engineering. Understand the scope of software engineering. Understand the position of the software engineering field in the discipline of computer science and its connection with the other fields. Knows the development in software engineering. Known the profession and certification in the software engineering field. Explained solution principles to the problems in the software engineering. Directorate Technical Vocational Education

1.1 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING CONCEPT

The Software Engineering term began to be popularized in 1968 at Software Engineering Conference that was held by NATO. Some people interpret Software Engineering to be limited on how to made a computer program. In fact, there are basic differences between software and computer program.

Software is all the command that can be used to process information. Software could take the form of the program or the procedure. The program was the collection ordered that was understood by the computer whereas the procedure was the order that was needed by the user in processing information (O?fBrien, 1999).

A body of knowledge that discussed all the aspects of the production of software, starting from the early stage that is the analysis of the requirement for the user, determined the specification from the requirement for the user, the design, coding, the testing to the maintenance of the system after being used.

It is clear that Software Engineering is not only related to the production method of the computer program. The statement ?gall aspects of production?h in the above definition, has the meaning of all the matters that are connected with the process of the production like project management, the determination of the personnel, the budget of the cost, the method, the schedule, the quality up to the training of the user was a part of Software Engineering.

1.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING OBJECTIVES



In general, software engineering objectives are fairly similar to other engineering fields. Let us examine Figure 1.2.

Figure 1.2 shows that an engineering field will always try to produce the highest

performance output at the lowest possible cost at exact time. The software engineering aims for,

Lower software production cost. High performance and reliable software in time. Multi platform software. Low maintenance cost.

1.3 SCOPE



As defined above, the scope of software engineering is as follows,

Software requirements related to the requirement specifications of the software. Software design includes software architecture determination, software components, interface, as well as other software characteristics. Software construction relates to the software development, including the algorithm, coding, testing, and debugging. Software testing covers software behavior evaluation and testing. Software maintenance Includes maintenance efforts as software is operated. Software configuration management is related to the configuration of software

to satisfy a certain requirement. Software engineering management related to the management and the grating

software engineering, including planning of the software project. Software engineering tools and methods include the theoretical study on aids

and the software engineering method. Software engineering process is concerned with the definition, the implementation, the grating, the management, the change and the improvement of the process software engineering. Software quality is stressed on the quality and the software life-cycle.

1.4 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER SCIENCE

Computer Science was born at the beginning of the 1940 's that was the integration from the theory of the algorithm, mathematical logic and the discovery of the storage method of the program electronically to the computer. Since then computer science had experienced continuous development and broadening.

The scope of knowledge in computer science often described as a

systematic study in processes of the algorithm that explained and

transformed information (Denning, 2000). It includes the theory, the

analysis, the design, efficiency, the application and it application.

There are several branch of knowledge in the computer science discipline as seen in the Figure 1.4, 1.5 and 1.6.

Based on Denning's (2000) and Wikipedia's

(2007), software engineering was the subsector of computer science that was equal to the other subsector. Whereas according to ACM (Association for Computing Machinery), software engineering is part of Section D (Software). Although being seen separated, in its application, the subsector software engineering always needed the support from the other subsector, especially algorithm and data structure, programming language, database, operating  system and network, and information system.

1.5 SOFWARE ENGINEERING AND OTHER DISCIPLINE

Since the scope of software engineering is quite wide, it relies heavily to other fields.

Not only with other sub sector in computer science but also other fields outside computer science. Software engineering relations with other fields

can be seen in Figure 1,7.

Management field covers accounting, financial, marketing, operation management, economics, quantitative analysis, human resources management, policy and business strategy. mathematical field covers linear algebra, calculus, probabilistic, statistics, numerical analysis and discreet mathematics. Project management field covers project related matters, such as, project scope, budgeting, human resource, quality control, risk management, and project scheduling. Quality management field covers quality system development, risk and reliability management, quality improvement, and quantitative methods. Ergonomics field covers man and machine interaction. System engineering covers system theory, cost analysis, modeling, simulation, business process and operation.

1.6 PROFESSION AND CERTIFICATION

Software Engineer profession is fairly new for Indonesians. Most Indonesians possibly more familiar with the term Information Technology expert, Information System Analyst, Operator or the other term. It is due to the confusion on the term software engineer as described in the early of the chapter. However in countries with mature information technology, Software Engineer term is more often used.

Software engineer certification is still debatable among expert and software vendor. Most certification in software industry is usually product specific. For example, the software company like Redhat Linux Inc., Adobe Inc., Oracle, or Microsoft, give certification to those who master their product.

ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) had run Software Engineer certification program in the 1980. Unfortunately, they have to discontinue due to lack of interest.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) has Issued more than 500 certificates of software profession. Canada has issued a legal certificate for software engineer that was known as ISP (Information Systems Professional).

At this time, there is no software engineer certification in Indonesia. However, the National Competence for Computer Programmer has been defined. Although, it has not fully covered computer programmer field, it can be used for early approach to software engineer certification.

1.7 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING AND PROBLEM SOLVING

Software engineering had conceptually close to problem solving principles. Understanding on the problems, the strategy and the process as well as the system approach in the solution to the problem will help the software engineering processes.

1.7.1 The Problem and The Symptom, A problem can be seen as the difference between the condition that happened and the condition that it was hoped. It might also be interpreted as the difference between the condition now and the aimed condition. For example, a student hoped to receive 80 in a C++ Programming exam, but in fact he only received 60. The existence of this difference showed the existence of a problem.

Often it is difficulty to distinguish between the symptom and the problem. The symptom is a sign of the occurrence of a problem. 1.7.2. Type of Problem

Problem in standard fulfillment. The problem in this group is related to the achievement of the standard that was determined in an organization. It usually relates to the long term objectives of the organization. 

Problem in alternative selection. The problem in this group is in choosing the best solution from various alternatives based on certain criteria. This problem is often encountered in daily life, such as, choose the exact school, choose the residence location, choose field of work. The alternative and the criterion had the weight that was agreed to.

Problem in customer's satisfaction fulfillment. In profit oriented organizations, problem in customer's satisfaction fulfillment is often emerged. The customers may have many wishes and one may be highly different than others. Fulfill all customer's wishes may not possible and very incriminating an organization. One must look for the solution that benefit both the customer and the organization.

The problem in goal achievement. This type of problem resembles the first type of problem, problem in standard fulfillment. The difference, this type of problem is in achieving short term goals that might not be fixed can be altered in a short time. 1.7.3. Problem Solving

Problem solving is a process where a situation was observed and after the problem found, a solution is made by determining the problem, reducing or eliminating the problem or preventing the problem from happening.

to be continued



About the Author:

I was interested in computers and social observer


Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

The best project manager is supported by a project management software tool that caters to unique project requirements. When selecting a software to run a project or business, many buyers overlook key factors that ensure a successful project management software implementation. The purpose of this article is to provide business owners and project  managers with insights on how to select the best project management software.

Ranking Business and Project Management Priorities

When evaluating a project management software or a business software, it helps to have a thorough understanding of the day to day project management activities and needs. This helps identify whether or not and how the software is capable of solving  business and project management problems. Since every project and business has unique qualities, by studying current project management practices and theoretically applying them to the project management software in question one can almost identify one-for-one how each problem or project management need can be resolved using the software. Listing project management software features in order of priority is time well invested into the project management software selection process. By ranking business and software needs, a manager creates a clear picture on how to create a best-fit between project management activity and software.

Assessing Future Project Management Requirements

Although it may be difficult for a manager to predict exactly how project management software requirements may evolve over time, it is possible to understand the degree of flexibility that the software accommodates. Flexible project management software allows a company to grow and change over time. The more flexible the software, the more options project managers will have to accommodate project-specific situations that were not accounted for or expected during the project management software selection process. Project management software that is simple to use, may or may not have the ability to match evolving needs of a company as volume increases or decreases. The ability to change and adjust to as many situations as possible is of tremendous value to a company, and therefore a project manager.  All too often project management and business data is segregated across multiple different software applications that do not synch up with each other and often create additional, undue burden on the company. Yet, the company still needs a means of tracking abnormal situations. An effective project management software solution accommodates change and can be tailored to meet changing business demands without degrading former or existing projects management needs already set forth by existing projects.

Project Management  Software and Accounting Software Integration

It is a reality that there is no one single software that services every business need a company has. Therefore, the ability for one software to share data, import/export or otherwise synchronize business data with another software becomes an essential component to the software selection process. Software product vendors  may put forth "a one size fits all" attitude however the best way to ensure that a project management software can share data or synchronize with an accounting software is to understand the technical requirements of both software systems. This way, the software systems in place and the software being selected may be assessed as a set of integrated software systems that work together rather than single handedly, as how most businesses select software. In fact, software integration as a primary driver to the software selection process will dramatically reduce implementation costs, due to a reduction of data setup and a consistency of terms and language used across different business software systems.

Project Management Software Vendor/Customer Relationship

The project management software vendor and the customer should establish a mutually supportive relationship. When selecting a project management software to run and manage business data and for project management, the project manager should factor into consideration how responsive and competent the project management software vendor is in both the project management software itself and also the business industry that the project management software is intended to serve. The project manager should also observe how willing to help the project management software vendor is, and how promptly and accurately the project management software vendor follows up and follows through. These are all indications of how the project management software vendor will perform when supporting the customer.

Many project management software vendors offer support for project software-specific questions, however such questions often call for business-related questions on how to handle best project management practices, for example, using the project management software. Since a project software is to support projects for the business, there should be no separation between answering technical questions about how to use the project management software and questions on how to solve project-related questions within that project management software.

The vendor should become an active participant in supporting a project manager or company with it's own project management processes, thereby having those project processes clearly defined and managed within the project management software. Once a business is invested into a project management software, the switch can be costly depending on whether or not the company wishes to migrate project management data from one software to another. Therefore, it is in the best interest of a project manager to, when selecting a project management software, to analyze how much effort it would take to switch to a new software, if the company reaches the limits of the current project management software.

Although it may be difficult to assess the cost of moving project management software data to a new project management software without knowing ahead of time what the new project software is, part of the project software selection process should identify how such a switch in systems will be addressed, should such steps be taken in the future.

It is in the best interest of both the customer and A1 Enterprise to provide a project management software that works for our customer and our customer's specific industry. If, in the event, A1 Enterprise feels that the customer needs are better matched with any specific project software, A1 Enterprise makes suitable recommendations and provides assistance in the project management software selection process when needed by the customer. A1 Enterprise has a substantially diverse background in software development and customized software for small businesses and large companies.



About the Author:

Chris Day is currently providing an international framework from which people can communicate, manage work, and payments, while following a process to ensure each person remains responsible for their allocation of time, money, and performance. Find out more by visiting How to Select the Best Project Management Software for Your Business.


Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

One of the best tool for online survey is Web Based Surveys generally falls into two categories. The first type gets installed on your computer and allows you to run the show yourself, and the other type is a hosted application on the web that can be accessed from any computer on the web. The second type gives you the flexibility of operating your software from anywhere on earth.

In a successful business, one of the key factors is to know what your customers as well as employee are thinking - about your business, your products and your services. As a business owner, you\'ll get feedback from your current customers just in the course of day-to-day business. But the results can be skewed by the interaction itself, and so most business owners find it useful to allow their customers to answer questions anonymously. And that\'s where surveys come in.

Some businesses hire market research firms to survey their customers or target customers. For new or smaller businesses, this can be an expensive proposition

Most popular method among retail businesses is a customer survey and Employee Survey. In a Customer Survey, the company allows customers to answer questions that may relate to the quality of service or quality of the product. The answers are usually on a sliding scale of 1 to 5, or something similar. Open-ended questions are not typical, as the numerical data is the goal of the customer survey.

And the Other Method in retail businesses is Email survey. It services supports customer relationship management and offer customer visibility for both sales and customer service teams. As customer-centric marketing strategies adjust sales relationships with targeted consumers, email survey information offers real-time data about needs and wants in the market.

Our Online Survey is a best option of conducting your own business.

Magic Survey Tool online surveying application makes creating online surveys a snap. Online surveys can help to provide important information on your courses. The Magic Survey Tool Works Online Survey tool has a complete array of features and functionality to help you create and send out your online survey in a matter of minutes.

So whether you\'re querying Customers Survey, a potential target market, vendors, or employees, these online surveys can provide valuable tools for smart business owners. You can set up and monitor your surveys or pay someone to do it for you, but online surveys are a great way for you to gain information. The results may surprise you, or send you in a new direction you hadn\'t thought of. But one thing\'s for sure; if you don\'t ask your customers, clients, or employees, they probably won\'t tell!

Magic Survey Tool online surveying application makes creating online surveys a snap. Online surveys can help to provide important information on your courses. The Magic Survey Tool Works Online Survey tool has a complete array of features and functionality to help you create and send out your online survey in a matter of minutes



About the Author:

Devid is authentic author on Survey Tool and if you would like more information on Rental Software then be sure to visit my website. You will find some easiest staples that you will understand in one sitting.


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