Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: Bodhi on March 31, 2005, 05:18:53 PM
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I need to set up a new inventory program for our warbird shop. Those of you that are good at programming I would like to solicit help from.
So here's the deal. Email me through this board, and I will tell you what I need. You can tell me if you are interested.
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Hmmm... inventory... which means database, right?
Plenty of off the shelf, right out of the box solutions I think.
Of course, if none of those fit your liking, you could look to someone that understands MySQL and PHP.
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Depends Sandman. Off the shelf software usualy requires getting some contracter to make the off-the-shelf solution work in your particular business.
I would shy away from PHP, unless the solution requires a WEB based front end.
MySQL is hard to beat for database work in business and scales pretty well too. The price performance ratio is definately off the charts.
Pretty easy to work with too. Just wrapper MySQL on the server with a C front end, then do a message based GUI for Windows for a simple and fast inventory program.
Of course, if it needs to be tied to various bar code readers it gets more involved.
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What's wrong with Linux-server with Java (jsp) and MySQL? It's cheap and quite easy...
edit: Sorry, Skuzzy, should've read your post through first.. But for WEB solutions jsp and MySQL are quite simple to do... Well, Apache and Tomcat might require a little tweaking on a Linux, but not too much.. And you can get them to run on a Windows server too. Ofcourse, php and MySQL might work too, I haven't had that much experience with php...
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If I am running a Linux (or any other UNIX variant), then I go with the native languages of those operating systems for the sake of stability.
Java is not stable. It is still evolving and the libraries are a mess right now due to the security problems with it. The Java comittee keeps whacking commands from the language for scripts due to the security problems.
I have used both C and Java. For this type of application I would go with C all the way due to API's and libraries available. C would also blow the doors off of Java in this scenario, in terms of size and performance.
I'll always put my money on a nice stable conservative approach to a business solution. Less chance of getting burned for the business and the programmer. Unless it is a programmer wanting a long term contract for support. I don't play that game though.
And no way would I ever use Windows for a server platform.
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Rgr that Skuzzy.
I've been adminstrating a Linux/MySQL/Java-system (with web frontend for customers made with jsp-pages) for a couple of years now.
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Originally posted by Skuzzy
Depends Sandman. Off the shelf software usualy requires getting some contracter to make the off-the-shelf solution work in your particular business.
I would shy away from PHP, unless the solution requires a WEB based front end.
MySQL is hard to beat for database work in business and scales pretty well too. The price performance ratio is definately off the charts.
Pretty easy to work with too. Just wrapper MySQL on the server with a C front end, then do a message based GUI for Windows for a simple and fast inventory program.
Of course, if it needs to be tied to various bar code readers it gets more involved.
Sorry... you're right. Bodhi did not indicate the need for a web-based solution.
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Access Database stuff isnt bad, I havent dealt with SQL/MySQL stuff yet. In the process of doing the MSCE with SQL now.
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Unfortunately LePaul, the MSCE will teach you all about how MS thinks SQL should work. MS does deviate from the SQL standards. But, businesses do not know it, and could care less.
Just stay away from Oracle or you will be confused after MS gets through with you. :D
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The thing about inventory programs is that if you can't find it, the inventory program isn't worth ****.
-SW
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Originally posted by Skuzzy
Unfortunately LePaul, the MSCE will teach you all about how MS thinks SQL should work. MS does deviate from the SQL standards. But, businesses do not know it, and could care less.
Just stay away from Oracle or you will be confused after MS gets through with you. :D
Dunno, Skuzzy. Several of the bank's systems use MS SQL and they're footing the bill for my training.
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Get a real data base -> Teradata :)
how much data are you talking about and what do you want to do with it?
AS for MCSE & SQL like Skuzzy stated the MS way is not the way the real world works...
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MySQL is certainly easy to manage and reliable with abundant documentation, information and tricks floating around the ether.
I don't think having a browser-based interface is such a bad thing. It would be easy and unintimidating to a new user - a familar face, so to speak. PHP with MySQL are indeed the simple way to ensure upgrade continuity since PHP is so easy to learn or modify. It's child's play. C++ writers are fewer and more expensive for no added benefit in this application.
Where did this "web-based" stuff come from? What does the web have to do with this? Anyway, it isn't a difficult thing to set up, Bodhi.
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Well, we have around a million parts (hardware included) and it is difficult tracking it in Excel like I do now.
For those thinking web... NO! absolutely not. These computers will be isolated from the web to keep any unwanted problems out, and people seeking data out. There is no reason that this would be shared outside our company anyway.
I basically would like to set it up like the standard US parts book, whereby you can type in a part nubmer and it goes to that page, shows how many parts we have and what condition they are in. If it is a high end part, like a Merlin Head, or Bank, have the ability to look at pictures of different ones that are sub numbered. I would also like the IP (Illustrated Parts breakdown) to be available as well.
Sound like a major ordeal or what?
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Originally posted by Bodhi
Well, we have around a million parts (hardware included) and it is difficult tracking it in Excel like I do now.
For those thinking web... NO! absolutely not. These computers will be isolated from the web to keep any unwanted problems out, and people seeking data out. There is no reason that this would be shared outside our company anyway.
Ahem... web-based doesn't necessarily mean internet. There is also intranet.... and I'm off topic. Move along. :)
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From a programming perspective, what you are asking for would be pretty trivial to accomplish.
However, acquiriing all the images you want would take mucho effort (read dinero, mullah, time, mo money!), if they are not already available from another source (such as the manufacturer).
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Theres an off the shelf product called NIM.(network inventory management) You can make containors and sub containors with part numbers and barcoded labels....nice stuff if you want to know where somethings at.
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Originally posted by Skuzzy
MySQL is hard to beat for database work in business and scales pretty well too. The price performance ratio is definately off the charts.
I'm liking it. It's easy & I had no previous DBA experience, just c++, VB, good ol' Pascal (that's what HS taught at the time), and a little assembly.
A web based front end though is no bad thing though. Crossplatform, easy to configure, hit it from anywhere.
price/performance ratio? It should cost $0 :) who needs to pay for tech support when you have google?
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Originally posted by Skuzzy
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And no way would I ever use Windows for a server platform.
:eek:
Are you running AH servers at Linux/UNIX machines?
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Solaris and FreeBSD artik
A WEB based front end is wrought with security issues. It's a bit clumsy for some things, other than look-ups as well.
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See,.. thanks... Actually it is quite expected. You need to run server with 700 connections load and not to reboot it for long time...
I wish there were Linux version of AH2...
I know your answer for this... You can't support two versions... But then I could finally drop MS Stuff.
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Originally posted by artik
See,.. thanks... Actually it is quite expected. You need to run server with 700 connections load and not to reboot it for long time...
I wish there were Linux version of AH2...
I know your answer for this... You can't support two versions... But then I could finally drop MS Stuff.
Worked for PDQ.Net straight out of highschool ('98). Average WinNT 4 server uptime: 29 days. Average unix (linux, freebsd, slackware) mixed: 180 days. The king: ns1.pdq.net - 391 days uptime.. only went down when we moved the entire NOC... couldn't get the UPS out w/o unplugging it, or woulda been longer :(
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"For those thinking web... NO! absolutely not. These computers will be isolated from the web to keep any unwanted problems out, and people seeking data out. There is no reason that this would be shared outside our company anyway"
Wish I got to retire a year earlier for every time a client made a statement like that they they later really really regreted.
Have you asked your suppliers if they have such a program? Do you have an accounting program? do you want purchase and billing integrated with your new inventory program?
"Sound like a major ordeal or what?"
It depends on your real requirments, which would of course be much more then you have stated. Or the worst case that you stated.
For example, if you meant that you would like the parts brake down diagram of a major assembly to be presented to you as a graphic and that you would like to be able to click on the graphic of a sub part and have all the data for that sub part show up. Thats a major deal.
Be sure that whoever you pay to do this has done something like it with references. Be sure you start with a study of what is available on the market like the nice people above have stated.
little issues like.
1 000 000 items. How many of those are like 400 of one item? How many different items? How many do you want the system to be able to handle worst case?
how many concurent users?
How smart do you want this system to be? the book you descibe cant reserve an item for 2 weeks subject to payment, do you want this system to be able to do that?
Do you want it to be able to send do an invoice for 3 merlins to Pongo and note that 3 merlins have to be ordered and know the sources for merlins? Maybe see that that one source has merlins in stock or on 3 months back order? Do you want it to know what washers by exaclty hold the urin tube on an avenger to the side of the cockpit and what sources and prices are typical for those washers? Anyway. Make sure who ever you get to do this askes lots and lots of questions of you and demonstrates that they have done this kind of work befor. No matter how limited you see your need right now decisions you make at the start will impact your ability to enhance the system later.
If someone offers to do the work for you and you will recoupe the cost by him selling it to other customers after its developed and share the profits just hang up.
Might be anoying but you want to hire someone that asks questions that indicate they have walked that road befor. If someone is telling you just what you want to hear it will be an expensive failure.
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Well done Pongo, however, a WEB interface is not always the best interface. There are pros and cons for any choices made. You just have to decide which ones you can live with and which ones you cannot live with.
I find the decision on which type of interface pretty much makes itself after that.
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If you already have the inventory records in an excel database
Use Access- it is a no-brainer to import the files and the simple examples they have in the program will probably be all you need
NwBie