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Posted to user@ofbiz.apache.org by David E Jones <da...@hotwaxmedia.com> on 2009/04/02 04:11:26 UTC
Re: Features information
On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
> Hi colleagues,
>
> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
> open source products.
>
> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and
> promotions),
> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product
> Manager),
> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
> (through Content Manager)...
>
> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the
> following
> features:
>
> - Reports & analytics capabilities
OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more
can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external reporting tool
(which is still very common, ie companies that use something like
Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that with their OFBiz
applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate building
of user interfaces, and these same tools are used for building
reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and allows
developers to use the same tools they are used to... and in some cases
scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and
populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc or pre-
written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on to
extend it.
> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services
> offered)
The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all
primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of these
services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and
the more complex ones can be exposed as web services (or call web
services) through web services code that maps to them.
> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those cases
the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes and then
building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This
results in something specific to end-user requirements and is far
better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers could
create without specific requirements.
That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since
the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on very
specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change
dramatically between organizations, in many cases even organizations
in the same industry.
The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom
user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any specific process
and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using
the OOTB interfaces is pretty common and is usually best done by
documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the
processes of the organization. In other words, instead of creating a
custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document how
to use the OOTB interfaces, and while not usually excellent this way
it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them more
functionality and ability to automate things than they would have in
most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets
and such. Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate
organizational information that are far more efficient and usable that
a hodge-podge of various systems.
> - Personalization potential
Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning behavior
or data that changes according to the user. There are hundreds of
features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end (manager) apps that
would fit this description.
Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be
happy to comment on them.
> - Multidevice sites available?
It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and
there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a specific UI
then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you
mean specific hardware control (like cash drawers and CC scanners),
then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
> - Accessibility considered?
In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that
accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good
service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty good job
of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-text on images,
and so on.
For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and
to be maintained it must be considered in customizations. These are
primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are very
text-heavy, etc.
> Thank you for your help in advance.
No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
-David
Re: Features information
Posted by Jacques Le Roux <ja...@les7arts.com>.
From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
> On Apr 16, 2009, at 4:04 AM, Jacques Le Roux wrote:
>
>> Hi David,
>>
>> I just read the 3 1st chapters this morning and I think I found an error.
>>
>> Should the sentence
>> In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of the functionality that is custom to your business will
>> likely require about 20% of the total solution cost.
>> not be
>> In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of the functionality that is custom to your business will
>> likely
>> require about 80% of the total solution cost.
>> ?
>>
>> I have changed it, if you feel I'm wrong please revert. I will continue to check all the document tomorrow...
>
> I'm not sure which document you're referring to exactly, but...
> It IS wrong to change that. The original is correct. The scenario for that sentence is where the company builds EVERYTHING
> themselves. In that case the 80/20 rule wouldn't apply because they're starting from scratch.
OK, I changed it back. I read too fast :/ It was this paragraph
With OFBiz your customization needs can be implemented for even less than if you wrote your entire solution yourself. In other
words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of the functionality that is custom to your business will likely require
about 20% of the total solution cost. If you use OFBiz and customize it to your needs you will probably be able to implement the
same functionality for 25-50% of what it would cost developing it yourself as part of a solution from scratch.
At http://docs.ofbiz.org/display/OFBIZ/Is+OFBiz+for+Me#IsOFBizforMe-AskingBuildvs.Buy
I believe it's difficult to read. Because it's not direct facts, you have to think about it. I think for such marketing
argumentations we should write something simpler, direct. But I'm not sure I'd be able to do better in English.
Did you have a look at https://www.ohloh.net/p/162#cocomo ?
Jacques
> -David
>
>> BTW I think we could use this information somewhere (even if of course it's not perfect, like anything on earth anyway)
>> I think about this page (OFBiz for me, cost related sections), and the OFBiz site main page as well
>> https://www.ohloh.net/p/162#cocomo
>> https://www.ohloh.net/wiki/project_codebase_cost
>>
>> Jacques
>>
>> From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
>>> Done at http://docs.ofbiz.org/x/hgM#IsOFBizforMe-SomequestionsandanwserscollectedonuserML
>>> I have also added links from Table of Contents, and removed the line
>>> Written By: David E. Jones, [mailto:jonesde@ofbiz.org]
>>> Please feel free to re-add if you think it should stay
>>>
>>> Jacques
>>>
>>> From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
>>>> Hi David,
>>>>
>>>> I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page like "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make
>>>> your
>>>> choice"
>>>>
>>>> Jacques
>>>>
>>>> From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
>>>>> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Hi colleagues,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
>>>>>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
>>>>>> open source products.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
>>>>>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and promotions),
>>>>>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product Manager),
>>>>>> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
>>>>>> (through Content Manager)...
>>>>>>
>>>>>> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
>>>>>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the following
>>>>>> features:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>>>>>
>>>>> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external
>>>>> reporting
>>>>> tool (which is still very common, ie companies that use something like Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that
>>>>> with
>>>>> their OFBiz applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate building of user interfaces, and these same tools
>>>>> are
>>>>> used for building reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and allows developers to use the same tools they are
>>>>> used
>>>>> to... and in some cases scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
>>>>>
>>>>> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and populating star schemas, which can then be used for
>>>>> ad-hoc
>>>>> or
>>>>> pre- written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on to extend it.
>>>>>
>>>>>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services offered)
>>>>>
>>>>> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of
>>>>> these services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and the more complex ones can be exposed as web
>>>>> services
>>>>> (or call web services) through web services code that maps to them.
>>>>>
>>>>>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>>>>>
>>>>> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
>>>>>
>>>>> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes
>>>>> and
>>>>> then building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This results in something specific to end-user
>>>>> requirements
>>>>> and is far better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers could create without specific requirements.
>>>>>
>>>>> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based
>>>>> on
>>>>> very specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change dramatically between organizations, in many cases even
>>>>> organizations in the same industry.
>>>>>
>>>>> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any
>>>>> specific process and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using the OOTB interfaces is pretty common
>>>>> and
>>>>> is usually best done by documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the processes of the organization. In
>>>>> other
>>>>> words, instead of creating a custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document how to use the OOTB
>>>>> interfaces,
>>>>> and while not usually excellent this way it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them more functionality
>>>>> and
>>>>> ability to automate things than they would have in most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets and
>>>>> such. Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate organizational information that are far more efficient and
>>>>> usable
>>>>> that a hodge-podge of various systems.
>>>>>
>>>>>> - Personalization potential
>>>>>
>>>>> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
>>>>> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>>>>>
>>>>> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be happy to comment on them.
>>>>>
>>>>>> - Multidevice sites available?
>>>>>
>>>>> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a
>>>>> specific UI then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you mean specific hardware control (like cash
>>>>> drawers and CC scanners), then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
>>>>>
>>>>>> - Accessibility considered?
>>>>>
>>>>> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
>>>>> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a
>>>>> pretty
>>>>> good job of this by using styled text instead of images, alt- text on images, and so on.
>>>>>
>>>>> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and to be maintained it must be considered in
>>>>> customizations.
>>>>> These are primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are very text-heavy, etc.
>>>>>
>>>>>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>>>>>
>>>>> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
>>>>>
>>>>> -David
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
Re: Features information
Posted by David E Jones <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>.
On Apr 16, 2009, at 4:04 AM, Jacques Le Roux wrote:
> Hi David,
>
> I just read the 3 1st chapters this morning and I think I found an
> error.
>
> Should the sentence
> In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20%
> of the functionality that is custom to your business will
> likely require about 20% of the total solution cost.
> not be
> In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of
> the functionality that is custom to your business will likely
> require about 80% of the total solution cost.
> ?
>
> I have changed it, if you feel I'm wrong please revert. I will
> continue to check all the document tomorrow...
I'm not sure which document you're referring to exactly, but...
It IS wrong to change that. The original is correct. The scenario for
that sentence is where the company builds EVERYTHING themselves. In
that case the 80/20 rule wouldn't apply because they're starting from
scratch.
-David
> BTW I think we could use this information somewhere (even if of
> course it's not perfect, like anything on earth anyway)
> I think about this page (OFBiz for me, cost related sections), and
> the OFBiz site main page as well
> https://www.ohloh.net/p/162#cocomo
> https://www.ohloh.net/wiki/project_codebase_cost
>
> Jacques
>
> From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
>> Done at http://docs.ofbiz.org/x/hgM#IsOFBizforMe-SomequestionsandanwserscollectedonuserML
>> I have also added links from Table of Contents, and removed the line
>> Written By: David E. Jones, [mailto:jonesde@ofbiz.org]
>> Please feel free to re-add if you think it should stay
>>
>> Jacques
>>
>> From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
>>> Hi David,
>>>
>>> I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page
>>> like "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make your
>>> choice"
>>>
>>> Jacques
>>>
>>> From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
>>>> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi colleagues,
>>>>>
>>>>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning
>>>>> OFBiz. I am
>>>>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main
>>>>> commercial and
>>>>> open source products.
>>>>>
>>>>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation
>>>>> (use of
>>>>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and
>>>>> promotions),
>>>>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product
>>>>> Manager),
>>>>> order management (using Order Manager application), content
>>>>> management
>>>>> (through Content Manager)...
>>>>>
>>>>> However, there are other features I have not been able to
>>>>> document. I
>>>>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the
>>>>> following
>>>>> features:
>>>>>
>>>>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>>>>
>>>> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and
>>>> more can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external
>>>> reporting
>>>> tool (which is still very common, ie companies that use
>>>> something like Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that
>>>> with
>>>> their OFBiz applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to
>>>> facilitate building of user interfaces, and these same tools
>>>> are
>>>> used for building reports. This provides a high level of
>>>> efficiency, and allows developers to use the same tools they are
>>>> used
>>>> to... and in some cases scripts and other things can even be
>>>> reused in reports.
>>>>
>>>> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining
>>>> and populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc
>>>> or
>>>> pre- written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is
>>>> going on to extend it.
>>>>
>>>>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web
>>>>> Services offered)
>>>>
>>>> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all
>>>> primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of
>>>> these services can be exposed externally as web services
>>>> automatically, and the more complex ones can be exposed as web
>>>> services
>>>> (or call web services) through web services code that maps to
>>>> them.
>>>>
>>>>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>>>>
>>>> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful
>>>> way.
>>>>
>>>> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those
>>>> cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes
>>>> and
>>>> then building user interfaces to directly support those
>>>> processes. This results in something specific to end-user
>>>> requirements
>>>> and is far better than any OOTB user interface that even the
>>>> best designers could create without specific requirements.
>>>>
>>>> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization
>>>> since the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on
>>>> very specific requirements... and those requirements tend to
>>>> change dramatically between organizations, in many cases even
>>>> organizations in the same industry.
>>>>
>>>> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in
>>>> custom user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any
>>>> specific process and are instead meant to fit into any process
>>>> desired. However, using the OOTB interfaces is pretty common
>>>> and
>>>> is usually best done by documenting where and how to do common
>>>> tasks according to the processes of the organization. In other
>>>> words, instead of creating a custom UI when you are on a tighter
>>>> budget you can simply document how to use the OOTB
>>>> interfaces,
>>>> and while not usually excellent this way it is quite adequate
>>>> for smaller organizations and gives them more functionality and
>>>> ability to automate things than they would have in most
>>>> software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets and
>>>> such. Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate
>>>> organizational information that are far more efficient and
>>>> usable
>>>> that a hodge-podge of various systems.
>>>>
>>>>> - Personalization potential
>>>>
>>>> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning
>>>> behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
>>>> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end
>>>> (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>>>>
>>>> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will
>>>> be happy to comment on them.
>>>>
>>>>> - Multidevice sites available?
>>>>
>>>> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices,
>>>> and there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a
>>>> specific UI then the hhfacility component is a good example. If
>>>> by "device" you mean specific hardware control (like cash
>>>> drawers and CC scanners), then the pos component (point-of-sale)
>>>> has some good stuff.
>>>>
>>>>> - Accessibility considered?
>>>>
>>>> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that
>>>> accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
>>>> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a
>>>> good service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty
>>>> good job of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-
>>>> text on images, and so on.
>>>>
>>>> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered,
>>>> and to be maintained it must be considered in customizations.
>>>> These are primarily web-based applications and to improve
>>>> accessibility are very text-heavy, etc.
>>>>
>>>>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>>>>
>>>> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your
>>>> needs.
>>>>
>>>> -David
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>
Re: Features information
Posted by Jacques Le Roux <ja...@les7arts.com>.
Hi David,
I just read the 3 1st chapters this morning and I think I found an error.
Should the sentence
In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of the functionality that is custom to your business will
likely require about 20% of the total solution cost.
not be
In other words, if you build the whole solution yourself the 20% of the functionality that is custom to your business will likely
require about 80% of the total solution cost.
?
I have changed it, if you feel I'm wrong please revert. I will continue to check all the document tomorrow...
BTW I think we could use this information somewhere (even if of course it's not perfect, like anything on earth anyway)
I think about this page (OFBiz for me, cost related sections), and the OFBiz site main page as well
https://www.ohloh.net/p/162#cocomo
https://www.ohloh.net/wiki/project_codebase_cost
Jacques
From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
> Done at http://docs.ofbiz.org/x/hgM#IsOFBizforMe-SomequestionsandanwserscollectedonuserML
> I have also added links from Table of Contents, and removed the line
> Written By: David E. Jones, [mailto:jonesde@ofbiz.org]
> Please feel free to re-add if you think it should stay
>
> Jacques
>
> From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
>> Hi David,
>>
>> I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page like "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make your
>> choice"
>>
>> Jacques
>>
>> From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
>>> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi colleagues,
>>>>
>>>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
>>>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
>>>> open source products.
>>>>
>>>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
>>>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and promotions),
>>>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product Manager),
>>>> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
>>>> (through Content Manager)...
>>>>
>>>> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
>>>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the following
>>>> features:
>>>>
>>>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>>>
>>> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external
>>> reporting
>>> tool (which is still very common, ie companies that use something like Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that with
>>> their OFBiz applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate building of user interfaces, and these same tools
>>> are
>>> used for building reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and allows developers to use the same tools they are used
>>> to... and in some cases scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
>>>
>>> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc
>>> or
>>> pre- written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on to extend it.
>>>
>>>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services offered)
>>>
>>> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of
>>> these services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and the more complex ones can be exposed as web
>>> services
>>> (or call web services) through web services code that maps to them.
>>>
>>>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>>>
>>> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
>>>
>>> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes
>>> and
>>> then building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This results in something specific to end-user requirements
>>> and is far better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers could create without specific requirements.
>>>
>>> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on
>>> very specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change dramatically between organizations, in many cases even
>>> organizations in the same industry.
>>>
>>> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any
>>> specific process and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using the OOTB interfaces is pretty common
>>> and
>>> is usually best done by documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the processes of the organization. In other
>>> words, instead of creating a custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document how to use the OOTB
>>> interfaces,
>>> and while not usually excellent this way it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them more functionality and
>>> ability to automate things than they would have in most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets and
>>> such. Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate organizational information that are far more efficient and
>>> usable
>>> that a hodge-podge of various systems.
>>>
>>>> - Personalization potential
>>>
>>> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
>>> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>>>
>>> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be happy to comment on them.
>>>
>>>> - Multidevice sites available?
>>>
>>> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a
>>> specific UI then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you mean specific hardware control (like cash
>>> drawers and CC scanners), then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
>>>
>>>> - Accessibility considered?
>>>
>>> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
>>> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty
>>> good job of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-text on images, and so on.
>>>
>>> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and to be maintained it must be considered in customizations.
>>> These are primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are very text-heavy, etc.
>>>
>>>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>>>
>>> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
>>>
>>> -David
>>>
>>
>>
>
>
Re: Features information
Posted by Jacques Le Roux <ja...@les7arts.com>.
Done at http://docs.ofbiz.org/x/hgM#IsOFBizforMe-SomequestionsandanwserscollectedonuserML
I have also added links from Table of Contents, and removed the line
Written By: David E. Jones, [mailto:jonesde@ofbiz.org]
Please feel free to re-add if you think it should stay
Jacques
From: "Jacques Le Roux" <ja...@les7arts.com>
> Hi David,
>
> I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page like "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make your
> choice"
>
> Jacques
>
> From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
>> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>>
>>> Hi colleagues,
>>>
>>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
>>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
>>> open source products.
>>>
>>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
>>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and promotions),
>>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product Manager),
>>> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
>>> (through Content Manager)...
>>>
>>> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
>>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the following
>>> features:
>>>
>>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>>
>> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external reporting
>> tool (which is still very common, ie companies that use something like Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that with
>> their OFBiz applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate building of user interfaces, and these same tools are
>> used for building reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and allows developers to use the same tools they are used
>> to... and in some cases scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
>>
>> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc or
>> pre- written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on to extend it.
>>
>>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services offered)
>>
>> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of
>> these services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and the more complex ones can be exposed as web services
>> (or call web services) through web services code that maps to them.
>>
>>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>>
>> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
>>
>> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes and
>> then building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This results in something specific to end-user requirements
>> and is far better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers could create without specific requirements.
>>
>> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on
>> very specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change dramatically between organizations, in many cases even
>> organizations in the same industry.
>>
>> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any
>> specific process and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using the OOTB interfaces is pretty common and
>> is usually best done by documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the processes of the organization. In other
>> words, instead of creating a custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document how to use the OOTB interfaces,
>> and while not usually excellent this way it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them more functionality and
>> ability to automate things than they would have in most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets and
>> such. Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate organizational information that are far more efficient and usable
>> that a hodge-podge of various systems.
>>
>>> - Personalization potential
>>
>> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
>> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>>
>> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be happy to comment on them.
>>
>>> - Multidevice sites available?
>>
>> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a
>> specific UI then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you mean specific hardware control (like cash
>> drawers and CC scanners), then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
>>
>>> - Accessibility considered?
>>
>> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
>> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty
>> good job of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-text on images, and so on.
>>
>> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and to be maintained it must be considered in customizations.
>> These are primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are very text-heavy, etc.
>>
>>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>>
>> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
>>
>> -David
>>
>
>
Re: Features information
Posted by BJ Freeman <bj...@free-man.net>.
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1
+1
Jacques Le Roux sent the following on 4/2/2009 12:55 AM:
> Hi David,
>
> I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page like
> "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make your choice"
>
> Jacques
>
> From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
>> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>>
>>> Hi colleagues,
>>>
>>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
>>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
>>> open source products.
>>>
>>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
>>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and promotions),
>>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product
>>> Manager),
>>> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
>>> (through Content Manager)...
>>>
>>> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
>>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the following
>>> features:
>>>
>>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>>
>> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more
>> can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external reporting tool
>> (which is still very common, ie companies that use something like
>> Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that with their OFBiz
>> applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate
>> building of user interfaces, and these same tools are used for
>> building reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and
>> allows developers to use the same tools they are used to... and in
>> some cases scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
>>
>> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and
>> populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc or pre-
>> written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on
>> to extend it.
>>
>>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services
>>> offered)
>>
>> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all
>> primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of these
>> services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and
>> the more complex ones can be exposed as web services (or call web
>> services) through web services code that maps to them.
>>
>>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>>
>> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
>>
>> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those
>> cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes and then
>> building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This
>> results in something specific to end-user requirements and is far
>> better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers
>> could create without specific requirements.
>>
>> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since
>> the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on very
>> specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change
>> dramatically between organizations, in many cases even organizations
>> in the same industry.
>>
>> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom
>> user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any specific process
>> and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using
>> the OOTB interfaces is pretty common and is usually best done by
>> documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the
>> processes of the organization. In other words, instead of creating a
>> custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document
>> how to use the OOTB interfaces, and while not usually excellent this
>> way it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them
>> more functionality and ability to automate things than they would
>> have in most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of
>> spreadsheets and such. Overall this results in tools to keep track
>> and automate organizational information that are far more efficient
>> and usable that a hodge-podge of various systems.
>>
>>> - Personalization potential
>>
>> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning
>> behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
>> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end
>> (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>>
>> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be
>> happy to comment on them.
>>
>>> - Multidevice sites available?
>>
>> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and
>> there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a specific UI
>> then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you
>> mean specific hardware control (like cash drawers and CC scanners),
>> then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
>>
>>> - Accessibility considered?
>>
>> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that
>> accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
>> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good
>> service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty good job
>> of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-text on images,
>> and so on.
>>
>> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and
>> to be maintained it must be considered in customizations. These are
>> primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are
>> very text-heavy, etc.
>>
>>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>>
>> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
>>
>> -David
>>
>
>
>
>
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Re: Features information
Posted by Jacques Le Roux <ja...@les7arts.com>.
Hi David,
I'd see this detailled explanation in a wiki main ENDUSER page like "Some questions and answers about OFBiz to help you make your
choice"
Jacques
From: "David E Jones" <da...@hotwaxmedia.com>
> On Mar 31, 2009, at 2:05 AM, fernando.manzano@vass.es wrote:
>
>> Hi colleagues,
>>
>> I am writing to the list to request information concerning OFBiz. I am
>> doing a eCommerce Software comparative between the main commercial and
>> open source products.
>>
>> I have achieved to find information about client segmentation (use of
>> groups), campaign managment (through Marketing Manager and promotions),
>> stocks management (Facility Manager), product catalog (Product Manager),
>> order management (using Order Manager application), content management
>> (through Content Manager)...
>>
>> However, there are other features I have not been able to document. I
>> would be very grateful if you could send me details about the following
>> features:
>>
>> - Reports & analytics capabilities
>
> OFBiz currently has a few dozens pre-written reports OOTB, and more can be added using the OFBiz tools, or an external reporting
> tool (which is still very common, ie companies that use something like Crystal Reports or Business Objects will use that with
> their OFBiz applications). OFBiz has tools in the framework to facilitate building of user interfaces, and these same tools are
> used for building reports. This provides a high level of efficiency, and allows developers to use the same tools they are used
> to... and in some cases scripts and other things can even be reused in reports.
>
> OFBiz also includes some BI infrastructure to support defining and populating star schemas, which can then be used for ad-hoc or
> pre- written reports. A limited star schema exists, and work is going on to extend it.
>
>> - Integration and Interoperability (SOA Architecture, Web Services offered)
>
> The OFBiz logic layer is itself a Service-Oriented tool, and all primary logic in OFBiz is implemented as services. Many of these
> services can be exposed externally as web services automatically, and the more complex ones can be exposed as web services (or
> call web services) through web services code that maps to them.
>
>> - Usability (for final customers, and administrators)
>
> Usability is very subjective, but I'll try to answer in a helpful way.
>
> OFBiz is often customized for larger organizations, and in those cases the best usability is achieved by analyzing processes and
> then building user interfaces to directly support those processes. This results in something specific to end-user requirements
> and is far better than any OOTB user interface that even the best designers could create without specific requirements.
>
> That is the main design goal behind OFBiz: easy customization since the only way to get a really good UI is to do so based on
> very specific requirements... and those requirements tend to change dramatically between organizations, in many cases even
> organizations in the same industry.
>
> The OOTB user interfaces are primarily meant for easy reuse in custom user interfaces, so they mostly avoid automating any
> specific process and are instead meant to fit into any process desired. However, using the OOTB interfaces is pretty common and
> is usually best done by documenting where and how to do common tasks according to the processes of the organization. In other
> words, instead of creating a custom UI when you are on a tighter budget you can simply document how to use the OOTB interfaces,
> and while not usually excellent this way it is quite adequate for smaller organizations and gives them more functionality and
> ability to automate things than they would have in most software, allowing them to avoid large numbers of spreadsheets and such.
> Overall this results in tools to keep track and automate organizational information that are far more efficient and usable that
> a hodge-podge of various systems.
>
>> - Personalization potential
>
> Personalization is an extremely general term, broadly meaning behavior or data that changes according to the user. There are
> hundreds of features in OFBiz ecommerce and the OFBiz back-end (manager) apps that would fit this description.
>
> Please feel free to send over more details and I (or others) will be happy to comment on them.
>
>> - Multidevice sites available?
>
> It is pretty easy to build sites targeted at different devices, and there are some available OOTB. If by "device" you mean a
> specific UI then the hhfacility component is a good example. If by "device" you mean specific hardware control (like cash
> drawers and CC scanners), then the pos component (point-of-sale) has some good stuff.
>
>> - Accessibility considered?
>
> In ecommerce the templates are often changed so much that accessibility ends up more in the hands of the designers and
> developers who customize the system (so make sure you have a good service provider!). The OOTB ecommerce templates do a pretty
> good job of this by using styled text instead of images, alt-text on images, and so on.
>
> For the OOTB back-end functionality, accessibility is considered, and to be maintained it must be considered in customizations.
> These are primarily web-based applications and to improve accessibility are very text-heavy, etc.
>
>> Thank you for your help in advance.
>
> No problem, best wishes in finding a solution that meets your needs.
>
> -David
>