Hey Guys
I was wondering if anyone of you has ever kept a Database of the installations
and Maintenance call outs from your technicians.
We have several different networks running in different locations.
At the moment I only have two technicians that share the information between each other.
Different locations have different IP ranges, security settings, etc.
What I am trying to do here is to setup something along the line of a wikipedia
Where we can track the documentation of the installation and then every service call
with changes that have been made.
One of the problems is that it would have to be able to be synchronized to be available
local on the techs laptops if they are offline.
So if they go out to troubleshoot a call that says “internet down”
they will still be able to access the information of the installation on their laptops.
If anyone has something like this in place and has some experience with it
I would really appreciate the input.
Currently, we have a database that contains all of our customer info. For access we have a web-based front-end with user-account restrictions (only certain people can make changes to certain things). Within the web front-end, there are fields for adding customer service related data (ie. customer called about a problem, Tech A did this, Tech B did this) - notes are tagged with the username that entered them.
However, if a tech is not able to reach the webserver then he does not have access to the database. :x
In theory, you could set up a database on an in-house server, as well as on the tech’s laptops and have them sychronize every so often - use some kind of keep-alive (ie. ping) for updates after a laptop has been offline for while (ie. tech leaves the shop, comes back and plugs in his laptop. Laptop receives an echo reply from the server, synchronize the database) - could also be done from a customer location once connectivity is restored. :? Complicated.
Anyone else have any ideas?
Aaron
use my cacti version. It has a customer and notes database.
rbox.ca
We use Powernoc for this purpose. We have a segment that is not Motorola, and the Powernoc machine is used to authenticate and provision. It just so happens that we have enough extra room in the database that we can use it to track the rest of the customers. It is not cheap, but it works way better than our original in-house constructed database. It has areas to log calls, track installs, IP addresses, MAC addresses, etc. I can easily justify the price of the software considering how much time and headaches it saves.
All really good ideas.
I have to say… good stuff
What still surprises me, is that there is not really a program available
that does these things with out having to troubleshoot sync issues all the time lol.
I remember we did it with sap r3.0 but that would be a little to expensive.
I am currently developing a web based solution for this purpose in php/mysql. I might open source it once completed
I have an Excel spread sheet with customer info, as well as enter into our Shopware program the customers location, Canopy info (serial number, mac, etc.) and detail of install. It is the same program that keeps track of all equipment that has come in for repair at the shop as well as all service calls. I can then search my customer name, serial number, date etc. Shopware data can then be imported into the Peachtree billing software. Makes life easy enough that we dont have to remember all the specifics sometime down the road.
We’ve been using Shopware here for a number of years and now need to fire up PeachTree but can’t. Shopware doesn’t seem to want to see PeachTree.
How did you get it to work?
Shopware’s Help says hit the PeachTree button in Setup Defaults but there is no button. I’ve already done the usual remove, wipe folders and re-install to no avail.
mhussey wrote: I have an Excel spread sheet with customer info, as well as enter into our Shopware program the customers location, Canopy info (serial number, mac, etc.) and detail of install. It is the same program that keeps track of all equipment that has come in for repair at the shop as well as all service calls. I can then search my customer name, serial number, date etc. Shopware data can then be imported into the Peachtree billing software. Makes life easy enough that we dont have to remember all the specifics sometime down the road.
There is a shopware release that integrates with peachtree. You probably should call shopware support to see what they can get going for you. PM me if you need help before calling them. I can provide some troubleshooting over the web if needed.
I created a webbased (php/sql) “tracking” application along with VB application for data entry at each office location.
From pre-survey customer information collection, to survey information collection (GPS, address, notes, results, gear type, etc) to service calls, trouble ticketing, uninstallations, installations etc.
I realized after a few months that paperwork was great, but turns out to be a disaster when managing things from 2 cities and more in the future so something needed done.
After learning that ShopWare actually comes in two flavours, one with Peachtree Integration and one without (guess which we ended up with), I’d like to introduce you to:
Service Advantage
http://jerseysoftwareinc.com/products.htm
It does quite a lot (Work tickets, Inventory, Dispatching, Networkable, Billing, and much more), has a short learning curve, isn’t nearly as dear as SW, Ptree, doesn’t need a Masters in bean counter, and has wonderful support.
Check it out.
Tridon wrote: Hey Guys
I was wondering if anyone of you has ever kept a Database of the installations
and Maintenance call outs from your technicians.
We have several different networks running in different locations.
At the moment I only have two technicians that share the information between each other.
Different locations have different IP ranges, security settings, etc.
What I am trying to do here is to setup something along the line of a wikipedia
Where we can track the documentation of the installation and then every service call
with changes that have been made.
One of the problems is that it would have to be able to be synchronized to be available
local on the techs laptops if they are offline.
So if they go out to troubleshoot a call that says “internet down”
they will still be able to access the information of the installation on their laptops.
If anyone has something like this in place and has some experience with it
I would really appreciate the input.
Have you tried that service advantage program?
Just curious as to how it relates to SW? We use SW for other purposes, and since we use Peachtree it works out good I suppose, with the exception that I typically want to do myself in ever 2 or 3 months because Access sucks big time.
Yes and I worked with the author to fine-tune a few of it’s areas. I was trying to get LMR Service Centres I was involved with to buy it as there wasn’t (and still insn’t) anything beyond SW out there. The ‘Service’ packs (optional add-ons) other accounting packages offer don’t cut it very well.
During my three year search, I stumbled upon SA which was written by the owner of an electronics store who came to the same conclusion I did from his own search and wrote his own.
SA is Access based but he’s an Access guru and really knows what he’s doing.
We here got SW for our in-house needs a while back but now have actual ‘Clients’ to support. Now we can’t easily send professional invoices or statements with shelling out big bucks. Our group conclusion is to get SA and start over. Eventually, SW can go bye-bye.
amd phreak wrote: Have you tried that service advantage program?
Just curious as to how it relates to SW? We use SW for other purposes, and since we use Peachtree it works out good I suppose, with the exception that I typically want to do myself in ever 2 or 3 months because Access sucks big time.