- This topic has 41 replies, 17 voices, and was last updated 22 years ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Re: Customer Database
Hello K,
I was sold on the Mac until you mentioned the electric screwdriver.
Having said the aforementioned, never tried a MAC.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Trev.
Re: Customer Database
I did kinda go off track there.
The point was (and, probably missed) that there has never really been a ground up built system for this industry. What is about seems to be, to me, very much trying to be all things to all men and generally poorly designed.
Usability on all I’ve seen/tried is terrible.
For most you have to train people to do their jobs, again. Only this time they have to be trained in how to use some crazy assed system that makes no sense. To sell the “system” you will be told that it does this and that, and this, and that until your head spins. Then, when you get it home and take it out the box your head will normally spin some more.
Not so with the simple screwdriver.
I prefer simple ways of doing things and multiple uses beyond the initial simplicity if it is required.
K.
we use service and stocknet a system built by Eurorealm who used to write the old washvac system, excelent sytem, i cant recomend it enough, also if you need it do do something that is not part of the standard package they can usually add it on for you.
Re: Customer Database
kwatt wrote:IT is like anything that you happen to keep in your toolbox…
If you know what it is, what it is used for and how to use it then it can save you a lot of time and trouble as well as making the job a lot easier.
IT, for business, touches (or can) on so many areas it can make you massively more efficient and help you waste less time with all the backend paperwork which, as we all know, engineers just love to do. 😉 😆
And that means it saves money.
Gotta know what to do with it though and which tool for which job.
I’ll give you an example…
I used to be a devout Windows user loving the mass of programs and tweaks for it and the fact that it was an almost universal standard as far as IT goes.
IIRC in 2006 I bought my first Mac to play with and liked a lot of what I saw, I liked the simplicity of it for daily use as it just did the job.
Later, in 2007, I took a leap of faith and bought a Macbook Pro as my main “out the office” PC. After a good few weeks wrestling with many things that I was unfamiliar with I got totally converted to using a Mac and now I won’t touch a Doze box unless I really, really have to. They’re slow, cumbersome and difficult to use sat beside a Mac.
But the Macs are much more expensive although better built, almost double the cost in some cases.
To me however it’s worth it as the Macs just work and, keep working. All my stuff is backed up seamlessly without any intervention on my part every hour. I can search stuff faster and more accurately. All my contacts, diary and all that stuff is backed up to the cloud and synched across multiple devices, including my phone and again, I don’t have to touch it for that to happen.
But you try telling a devout Windows user that a Mac is better for work and they’ll bang on about allsorts of downsides and, to be fair, there are some. Not enough to put me off the Mac though and not enough that I can’t justify paying the Apple Tax.
But conversely I’ve never had downtime on the Mac other than the odd reboot.
The question that I asked myself was, how much was my time worth in relation to the extra cost of the Macs? The answer was, my time was worth more than the extra cost of the Mac weighed against the benefits of using that as a PC, for me.
You make the same choice with something as simple as an electric screwdriver. Is the time you spend taking out all the screws from the back of a machine by hand worth more or less than the cost of the screwdriver? Short answer is that, yes, it is invariably worth paying for the screwdriver. Or even whatever other tool you happen to name and some are even required just to do what you have to do, so you nee it just to earn.
Then you find all sorts of other uses for the tool as well though usually, in this case a simple screwdriver.
And this is where the expression, knowing the cost of an item and knowing the value of an item (or tool) are two entirely different things, IMO comes from.
K.
Having read the above and online reveiws, I have since ordered a MacBook Pro.
Re: Customer Database
silverbroom wrote:Had an e-mail from Geoff at BLI Service with a sample of a service call management system.
Said a demo disc would be ready in about three or four weeks, Sure this is on UKW somewhere.
silverbroomYes it’s here:
http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/modules.p … highlight=Just to set the record straight I’m not from BLI Services. BLI Services was one of the businesses I supplied the system to a number of years ago and I sent you and a few other people their paperwork as an example of what it does. I am in the process of chasing my software – writing friend up about where we’re up to with preparation of the demo disc, but she can’t give up the day job yet!
Geoff
Appliance Centre
SaleRe: Customer Database
Sorry Geoff bout including you as part of BLI, looking forward to hearing more re demo disc.
silverbroom
Re: Customer Database
TeeMyob wrote:Having read the above and online reveiws, I have since ordered a MacBook Pro.
It is rather good. 😉
However, do take note of the comments that it takes some getting used to.
If you need any help with it though do ask.
Essential software, IMO…
Parallels, so you can run Windows. You’ll grow to hate it, but it’s required for some things.
iWork ’09. Just brilliant if you use Word and Excel, once you get past Word and Excel.
SAFT, Google it.
Spell Catcher, Google it.
Loads more I use but I wouldn’t say they were essential.
And, that’s about it. Everything else comes with apart from a drive you can use for backup.
K.
Re: Customer Database
TeeMyob wrote:Having read the above and online reveiws, I have since ordered a MacBook Pro.
Have you got it yet and, if so, what do you think?
K.
Re: Customer Database
kwatt wrote:
TeeMyob wrote:
Having read the above and online reveiws, I have since ordered a MacBook Pro.Have you got it yet and, if so, what do you think?
K.
No Not yet, I built it online and waited a while and nothing happened. I rang Apple and they said they did not know what had happened and re-built it over the phone. Just checked my order status and it says “Pending”
Trev
Re: Customer Database
You make the same choice with something as simple as an electric screwdriver. Is the time you spend taking out all the screws from the back of a machine by hand worth more or less than the cost of the screwdriver? Short answer is that, yes, it is invariably worth paying for the screwdriver. Or even whatever other tool you happen to name and some are even required just to do what you have to do, so you nee it just to earn.
You must always consider a compromise though……which is why I settled for a YANKEE screwdriver 😆
Re: Customer Database
trotter wrote:You must always consider a compromise though……which is why I settled for a YANKEE screwdriver 😆
Believe this or believe it not…
For anything where you need to “feel” what’s going on I’d not use anything else other than my trusty and, fifteen (at least) year old Yankee driver. IT just works and I don’t ever run out of charge…. will to use it, yes… but not charge. 😉
Right tool for the job as they say. IT is no different. 😉
K.
Re: Customer Database
Yeap ! Mac Book Pro for me as well ! Extremely well constructed, Cast Iron operating system, No Bloatware, Security and Virus issues all a thing of the past, Much Quicker at everything and they just love demanding tasks which windows would struggle with on most machines, you can even run Windows on it with the likes of Bootcamp, VM Ware and as many instances of it or windows versions as you wish, and Windows runs better on the Mac Platform !
I have an Imac as well and for sure you wont be visiting the MS site for continual updates which MS make a living out of. OSX has no registery for nasty trojans and virus backdoors to hide up in and you wont be needing any virus software either.
To my mind a pure winner !
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.