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Microsoft Great Plains – Implementing ERP System for Mid-size Business

admin — Mon, 17 May 2010 14:04:40 +0000

Microsoft Dynamics GP MRP product family has various options for small, midsize and large businesses. Microsoft Great Plains Dynamics GP package fits to midsize businesses in various industries: discrete manufacturing, services, staffing, project organization and constructions, wholesale, warehouse management, distribution and logistics. In this small article we would like to concentrate on GP software implementation scenarios, including installation, customization, data conversion, user training, custom reporting, integration with legacy system and EDI:

1. Installation â?? technical overview. GP installation creates DYNAMICS and company databases on MS SQL Server 2005 or 2000. Client workstation side is Microsoft Dexterity application with Dynamics.dic, where application business logic is stored. We are not talking here about integration tom Microsoft Office stack of products, especially MS Outlook

2. Integration Manager and eConnect.. eConnect should be considered as background technology to enable integration, especially new type of integration scenarios. IM helps you in initial data conversion, where you need to transfer open AR and AP to your newly implemented ERP system â?? Microsoft Dynamics GP. Regarding

3. eCommerce and batches Autoposting. eConnect, being set of encrypted stored procedures, does wonderful job in bringing work transactions in Sales Order Processing module, which is typical target for eCommerce websites, however automatic batch posting is outside of eConnect scope â?? you will need Albaspectrum Dexterity posting server to do automatic posting for your e-commerce application

4. Dexterity Software Development. If you need GP business processes advancing, modification and tuning, you should review GP customization tools. Great Plains Dexterity is GP Integrated Development Environment with Sanscript programming language. Dexterity programmers are typically rare resources on the job market, and it is recommended to appeal to Microsoft Business Solutions ERP development partners to do Dex customization job

5. GP Reporting. In our opinion, you can deploy various tools for GP, especially if you will follow the rules of separating report result set generation in MS SQL Server stored procedures â?? if you do so, Crystal Reports, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, and even Microsoft Excel will do wonderful report design job

6. Initial Data Conversion. As our experience indicates, the best approach is to enter GL beginning balances and avoid historical RM, PM, SOP, and POP data conversion, please consider the scenario, when you have old ERP system for data inquiry and lookup

7. GP remote vs. local support. If you work for nationwide public corporation, then you should seek local support for your headquarters or the most important branch. If your ERP system is already implemented, then remote support might be budget saving option

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Automatic Batch Posting in Great Plains Microsoft Dynamics Gp Overview

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:43:29 +0000

If you are ecommerce developer and program web site integration with back office accounting system, Microsoft Dynamics GP, then likely you are deploying eConnect SDK software development to move placed orders and customer payments to GP Sales Order Processing module. eConnect does wonderful job – it creates or updates customer record, creates SOP batch and customer invoice with deposit in the batch created. So far everything is beautiful, now you need just as small step to accomplish your work, post the batch created right from your e-commerce application, and here you got surprised by understanding that eConnect doesn’t post batches, it doesn’t has this functionality. We would like to review Autoposting Server, designed and maintained by Alba Spectrum Dexterity development team

1.       GP Dexterity Source code involvement in the batch posting. Dynamics.DIC dictionary has native GP Dexterity functionality to post batch of various origin and in essence all the origins. However it is not obvious, even for Great Plains Dexterity programmer with decent experience in coding on how to design autopost and how to deploy native Dex posting logic. GP Autopost resolves this dilemma and all you need to do as programmer is to place batch record into custom batch posting status table

2.       Posting all the way automatic from your e-commerce website. In GP posting path is defined in posting settings. If you set GP to post SOP invoices all the way through AR module to GP General Ledger – complete automating will be achieved

3.       Third Party Add-Ons batch posting. Add-Ons, designed by GP ISV partners have their own ways to create and post batches within their satellite modules, however when transactions in the posting cycles will reach Great Plains, Dexterity posting process will take over and so there is high chance that Alba Spectrum Autopost will do the job. We encourage you to check with us

4.       Microsoft Dexterity Customizations. If you need customization design, support or upgrade, we are happy to help you with it through our Microsoft Dexterity Software Development Factory

Automatic Batch Posting in Great Plains Microsoft Dynamics Gp Overview is a post from: wordpressrobot.com

Microsoft Dynamics Gp Autoposting Server Overview

admin — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:42:50 +0000

If you are integrating ecommerce web application with Microsoft Great Plains and deploy such integrating SDK as eConnect, then you should know the option to automatically post batches in GP as they are imported from your e-commerce front end. In GP, as you should know the background technology is Great Plains Dexterity with DYNAMICS.DIC where business logic is stored. eConnect itself is imitating Dex business logic in encrypted SQL stored procedures, however you typically can not or discouraged from modifying these SQL stored procs. Alba Spectrum Posting Server deploys Microsoft Dexterity internal logic and so it is simple and at the same time pretty version-proof. Lets come to highlights:

1. eConnect restrictions. Well, eConnect is great tool and Software Development Kit, however it assumes that you are normal GP user and you post your SOP, POP, AR, AP, IV GL batches through Great Plains user interface. In eCommerce scenarios it is often the requirement to post GP batches automatically on demand, triggered by eCommerce programmer

2. Dexterity Batch Posting programming. Dex is proprietary tool and it is really complex, so we do not recommend you to break through Microsoft Dexterity learning curve to come to the point of being able to program eConnect batches posting

3. Integration Manager batches posting. As SQL programmer, all you need to do is to place IM integrated batch to queuing table for triggering it to be posted by Posting Server

4. eConnect C# and VB programming. These programming languages are recommended to program eConnect integrations

Microsoft Dynamics Gp Autoposting Server Overview is a post from: wordpressrobot.com

Microsoft Dynamics GP eCommerce: Sales Order Processing integration and Autoposting

admin — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:42:18 +0000

If you are ecommerce developer, who is integrating ecommerce web front application with Dynamics GP (often referred historically as Great Plains Dynamics or eEnteprise), you probably target SOP or Sales Order Processing Invoice as target in GP for ecommerce customer shopping cart. Customer Credit Card payment becomes customer deposit to invoice and each item purchased becomes Invoice Line item. If you are using Microsoft Visual Studio C# or VB.Net web project for ecommerce application, then natural way for you to deploy Dynamics GP sConnect libraries and SDK (help info, available in eConnect) to review and imitate code samples. This technology should work in both B2B (where you create real customer, or work only in restricted partner channel) and B2C (where you send all the invoices to so-called Walk In customer, and if required add just new Walk In folk address). In this small publication we would like to review other options and Automatic Batch posting technology directly from ecommerce eConnect application:

1. Microsoft Dynamics GP Integration Manager in ecommerce scenarios. This tool could be either called on demand or scheduled with the scheduling application available for purchase from Microsoft Business Solutions, or you can deploy third party (often free) Windows macro type of small shareware applications available in open software market for download and tryout. If you schedule IM to execute ecommerce to GP integration say every twenty minutes – this method might be a way more powerful (assuming that GP plays master role for Inventory Items maintenance and update and Pricelists). If this is the case – IM can create or update such objects as Customer, Address, Inventory Item, Comments to Customer, Invoice, Invoice Line, Shipping Instructions. With Dynamics GP 10.0 Integration Manager deploys eConnect connectors, which are very efficient from performance standpoint (however eConnect SOP connector doesn’t have SOP Return, but you can realize return via IM OLE technology based SOP connector and for future versions of Dynamics GP IM we hope that that gap will be patched). Integration Manager also does the job, even if your ecommerce is hosted in Linux/PHP/MySQL. In this case you can either use cross platform ODBC bridge, or have Integration Manager integrate text or XML ecommerce shopping cart exports. And as the another good note about IM – if you deploy Advanced ODBC Data Sources in IM, you can base them on Microsoft SQL Server Linked Server to Oracle, Lotus or another non-Microsoft DB platform, which is ODBC compliant and which could be joined in SQL Server View

2. eConnect. This tool opens the door to real time ecommerce integration to GP, if this is something, that is absolutely required. eConnect might be more flexible comparing to Integration Manager, but it might require more programming time to cover all expected (and unexpected) ecommerce customer actions. If real time aspect is not critical, eConnect advantage could be additional flexibility, when eCommerce application is playing master role (new items, price lists, discounts, internet promotions are initiated in your ecommerce application and then propagated to Dynamics GP, as you post new ecommerce shopping carts and download them to Great Plains)

3. Dynamics GP Automatic batch posting directly from ecommerce eConnect or Linux based application. eConnect by its architecture works with GP master records and so-called Work Transactions, where you place work SOP invoice (ecommerce shopping cart image) to the bath for GP user (decision maker or approver) review, approval and posting directly in GP user interface. Dynamics GP is mid-market Corporate ERP and it has layers of security and approval cycles, and eConnect doesn’t allow shortcuts in batch auto posting on eConnect level. We recommend you to deploy Alba Spectrum Posting Server which imitates batch approval and posting initiation through Dynamics GP User Workstation. Even if you are sending shopping carts from Unix, Linux/PHP platforms, you can still enjoy Posting Server functionality, as all you need to do is to populate SOP10100, SOP10200 and other SOP work tables (we have Alba Spectrum Order Connector product, which allows you to do this work on SQL Stored Procedures level) and mark the batch as ready for being posted in custom Batch Prepared for Posting table. Posting Server deploys native Microsoft Dexterity (formerly known as Great Plains Dexterity) batch posting initiation internal procedures

4. How to get additional help? We encourage you to search in google for Dynamics GP video demos and presentations. Our web engineers are deploying web casting technologies, similar to the ones used in Youtube and Google Video to provide free Dynamics GP internet video presentations. Feel free to call or email our office. Service is available virtually Worldwide via remote connections, web sessions and phone conferences. We will be happy to travel to your USA, Canada, Brazil or international based office or facility, if required. Our consultants speak English, Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, Filipino and other languages

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Microsoft To Integrate Rss Support In Windows Operating System

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:33:04 +0000

Last year Microsoft Corporation shocked the world when they revealed their intention to build RSS (Really Simple Syndication) support in the latest version of the Microsoft Windows operating system, which is under the code-name “Longhorn.” The announcement was fittingly made in Seattle at last years celebration of Gnomedex 5.0, an annual conference for avid technology buff and industry influentials that concentrates on RSS, blogging, podcasting and other new media models.
With the RSS functionality of Longhorn, it will make it easier for end users to discover, view and subscribe to RSS feeds. Furthermore, it will also make it easier for the developers to incorporate the rich capabilities of RSS into their applications.
Additionally, Microsoft also introduced Simple List Extensions. This is a set of extensions to RSS, which can be used to make it possible for web sites to publish “lists” like of photo albums, music playlists and top 10 lists as RSS feeds. This specification will be made freely available through the Creative Commons license, the same license under which the RSS 2.0 specification was released.
If you are wondering what the deal with RSS, well it’s simple. It makes things much simpler for both the users and applications developers. By adding RSS features throughout “Longhorn” Microsoft will be making it easier for the broad group of users and developers to take advantage of RSS.
For example, while browsing the Web, “Longhorn” users will be able to easily discover RSS feeds through an illuminated icon and to read the feed even though they are still in the Web browser. Also, subscribing to an RSS feed will be as simple and easy as adding a Web site to their “favorites.”
Another advantage to having RSS features in the Windows “Longhorn” platform is that it will allow application developers to easily employ the capabilities of RSS in their applications. Let’s take this as an example. A business user who is about to attend a conference will be able to subscribe to the conference’s event calendar. They can then use a “Longhorn” RSS-enabled calendar application to view the events in the RSS feed from within their calendar application. Another example is that business managers will be able to subscribe to sales data that notifies them through a line-of-business application when new deals have been closed.
Exactly what is included in this RSS support in the “Longhorn” platform? There are three vital features. The first one is the common RSS feed list. This core feature of Windows maintains a common list of the user’s subscriptions across all applications. This will enable users to subscribe to a feed once and have all RSS-enabled applications able to access the common list to view the subscriptions.
Another feature is the common RSS data store. This feature will provide a single location where applications can access content that has been downloaded to the PC through RSS. This would include text, pictures, audio, calendar events, documents and almost everything else. All applications will have access to this content in order to create rich user experiences.
Lastly, there is the RSS Platform Sync Engine. Now, this feature will automatically download data and enclosures for use by any application. The engine is especially designed for efficiency, using idle network bandwidth whenever possible in order to limit the effect on the user’s Internet experience. Developers may use the platform in order to obtain RSS data without the need to manage details like synchronization schedules or subscriptions.
It was mentioned before that Microsoft has also developed the Simple List Extensions. What is this you ask? Well, this is a set of enhancements to RSS to help Web sites publish lists of content that users can subscribe to, like top 10 songs from a music site, a wish list from an online retailer or a user’s ranking of favorite videos.
Since RSS is mainly designed for subscribing to time-based feeds, it only seems logical to have a Simple List Extensions. This expands the scope of RSS in two significant ways. First is that it boost RSS to capture information vital in representing lists like ordering of items. With the help of these extensions applications may become aware of changes in a list, for instance when an item has changed position or has taken off from the list altogether.
Secondly, it allows publishers to embed useful information about the list itself. For instance, an online retailer can supply additional information about each item in a list such as price, sales rank, average customer rating and type of merchandise. The extensions allow richer flexibility and capability for sorting and ordering. Thus, it makes it possible for users to easily sort their friends’ wish lists by sales rank or popularity.
Web sites that create lists using the Simple List Extensions will also find it quite beneficial. How so? Let’s say a music site will be able to deliver a daily top-10 tracks list to help drive increased sales. This is quite difficult to accomplish today, since it requires significant work for both content providers and RSS solutions. Already shopping sites are enthusiastically voicing out their excitement and support for Longhorn.
A lot of people believe that RSS is indeed the key to how the public will use the Internet in the future, which is delivering important information automatically. Microsoft recognizes this, which is why they are investing heavily in RSS for Windows “Longhorn” to make it easy for users to discover, read and subscribe to RSS feeds as well as enable developers to deliver powerful, smart applications that act on the information on behalf of the user.
Microsoft was founded way back in 1975. For more than three decades now they remain a worldwide leader in software, services and solutions. The company is dedicated to helping people and businesses realize their full potential by providing them with innovative technology. Windows, Windows Media and MSN are just among the many brainchild of this global leader. Today, Microsoft remains true to its promise by introducing their latest breakthrough – Longhorn!

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WordPress Tutorial – How to Upload & Link to a PDF, Microsoft Word doc, or other doc

admin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:56:34 +0000

This beginner-level WordPress tutorial is an update of the existing tutorial on mcbuzz.wordpress.com and YouTube called “WordPress Tutorial – How to Upload and Link to a PDF, Microsoft Word Document, Excel, PowerPoint or Other Doc Using WordPress”. That tutorial was done using an earlier version of WordPress. This tutorial uses WordPress 2.7. This tutorial shows three things 1) How to upload a PDF, Microsoft Word doc, PowerPoint, Excel or other Office-type document using WordPress 2.7. 2 …

WordPress Tutorial – How to Upload & Link to a PDF, Microsoft Word doc, or other doc is a post from: wordpressrobot.com