When Great Plains Software introduced the first graphical accounting application for Mac and Windows in the beginning of 1990th it had Great Plains Dexterity customization tool, IDE and programming language. Dexterity design was based on several longevity principles: Graphical platform independence and database platform independence and easy switch from one DB to the other among the most important ones. Dexterity was written as a shell in C programming language, which was “platform independent” and at the same time very efficient in compilation (close to assembler). Since then we saw new tools and options:
• Modifier with VBA. This tool allows you place custom buttons and editable fields on the forms and attach VBA scripts to these buttons and fields. Theoretically you can deploy ADO and make a call to the database, but typically this would be given to Dexterity programmer. Also Modifier can deal with ReportWriter report - which is rarely used option, but you should be aware of it. Another usufull feature - calling Crystal Reports engine from VBA, so you can print custom Crystal Report - Invoice from SOP Entry screen, instead of regular Report Writer SOP Invoice Form.
• Continuum for VB and Delphi. We do not touch obvious features of Continuum, but would like to mention its advanced use. First - in Dexterity you can not easily target multiple modules (coming from different software vendors - those days Intellisol Advanced Purchase Order Processing, Project Accounting and ForeStar Fixed Assets). This feature could be addressed through Continuum generated VBA code with inclusion of Dexterity Scripts (Sanscript). The second nice feature of Continuum could be Great Plains Integration Manager custom apps, which allows you to switch Great Plains companies automatically and integrate the whole corporation during the night
• Dexterity SQL Support. When Great Plains C/S+ was introduced on MS SQL Server 6.5 platform - instead of using Dexterity cursors - you could use the way more efficient stored procedures and simply call them from Dexterity code. The negative side of this was - you can not have your custom piece running on Btrieve or Ctree platforms, where Dexterity cursors were the only way to work with the database
• Dexterity COM object support. This was new feature of Microsoft Great Plains Dexterity version 7.0. This feature allows you to call something nice, like web service from your COM object and in this case replace, say Great Plains tax engine with the one working from your web server, located in one place and serving numerous subscribers.
• eConnect. This tool was initially designed for eCommerce developer, who deploys Microsoft Great Plains as the back end/ERP. eConnect is SDK with SQL Stored Procedures and parameters descriptions.
• Extender. We’ll wait the next version - but even now it is very promising and it doesn’t require you to be programmer to customize Great Plains.
We encourage you to analyze your alternatives. You can always appeal to our help, give us a call: 1-866-528-0577 or 1-630-961-5918, help@albaspectrum.com
Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer at Alba Spectrum Technologies ( http://www.albaspectrum.com ), serving Microsoft Great Plains, CRM, Navision to mid-size and large clients in California, Illinois, New York, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Arizona, Washington, Minnesota, Ohio, Michigan
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1. Replace Dexterity cursor with SQL Stored Procedure
Dexterity was designed as multiplatform technology (primarily Btrieve, Ctree, SQL Server, potentially Oracle). Dexterity data retrieving mechanism is based on Range start, Range End, Get First and Get Next clauses. It is in fact similar, however a little bit slower to cursors in Transact SQL. Long ranges in Dexterity are good candidates for replacement by SQL stored procedures with update clause.
For example, consider to replace following Dexterity code:
Range clear SOP_HDR_WORK.
Clear ‘SOP Type’ of table SOP_HDR_WORK.
Clear ‘SOP Number’ of table SOP_HDR_WORK.
Range start table SOP_HDR_WORK.
Get first table SOP_HDR_WORK.
While err<>EOF do
If ‘Salesperson ID’ of table SOP_HDR_WORK = “ERIC” then
Edit table SOP_HDR_WORK.
Set ‘Salesperson ID’ of table SOP_HDR_WORK to “BILL”.
Save table SOP_HDR_WORK.
End if.
Get next table SOP_HDR_WORK.
End while.
With the following SQL code
Update SOP10100 set SLPRSNID=”BILL” where SLPRSNID=”ERIC”
Bringing new data into a table in Dexterity is based on change/edit table clauses, in SQL they are equivalent (by performance) to inserting one record at the time.
When having long cycle of change/edit table in Dexterity, consider replacement by SQL stored procedure with Insert Into clause.
2. Use Crystal Reports, call them from via VBA in Modified form
The easy way to call Crystal Report from your VBA code from your modified form:
Const RPT = “D:\Clients\TheClient\Invoice Status.rpt”
Public crwApplication As CRPEAuto.Application
Public crwReport As CRPEAuto.Report
Private Sub Print_BeforeUserChanged(KeepFocus As Boolean, CancelLogic As Boolean)
If SalesTransactionInquiryZoo.Type = “Invoice” Then
If crwApplication Is Nothing Then
Set crwApplication = CreateObject(”Crystal.CRPE.Application”)
End If
Set crwReport = crwApplication.OpenReport(RPT)
crwReport.ParameterFields(1).SetCurrentValue (DocumentNo)
crwReport.Preview
End If
3. Use Direct .Net Web Publishing from Great Plains Database
The easiest and safest way is to use eConnect - SDK with VB samples, created for eCommerce programmers and web designers to call the functionality in Microsoft Great Plains. If your company can not afford eConnect - create your own set of stored procedures to address Great Plains database and go ahead with Visual Studio.Net to do the web publishing.
Happy upgrading and customizing! if you want us to do the job - give us a call 1-866-528-0577! help@albaspectrum.com
Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies - USA nationwide Microsoft CRM, Microsoft Great Plains customization company, based in Chicago, California, Texas, New York, Georgia, Arizona, Minnesota, Washington, Colorado and Florida and having locations in multiple states and internationally (www.albaspectrum.com), he is Dexterity, SQL, C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer.
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Offshore Software Outsourcing invariably results in the loss of lots of jobs. So the country should focus on creating opportunity in their own country to provide more jobs, so that, those who have lost jobs will get new opportunities in the future.
Lots of remarks of experts come against the backdrop of a growing outcry in their own country against the loss of jobs by Offshoring to low-cost locations like India and china. A large number of foreign companies are shipping jobs in Offshore Software Development, BPO and call centers to their Indian subsidiaries or to contractors in India or china with a mind set of cutting costs by the way of Offshore Outsourcing.
The reality of 21st century international economics is that, these kinds of Offshore Outsourcing and dislocations will take place. So it is better to minimize this process and provide new opportunities for employees. This may be a major issue that countries like U.S. will be focusing on in the months ahead and also might focus on too much Offshore Outsourcing.
Credit of Offshore Outsourcing really goes to the Internet system and broadband capabilities, so that information and services can be moved around the world. It helps the countries getting connected to other parts of the world at the speed of light, and the people are taking advantage of that kind of capability. This process really helps Offshore Outsourcing. Offshore Outsourcing of jobs in the United States to Mexico, to China, to other parts of the world is done as the global world develops drastically.
One thing is sure in Offshore Outsourcing is that the people from any country gets the opportunity to serve Worldwide needs. Outsourcing of work overseas is commonly known as Offshoring. That’s why it has come in for criticism from both legislators and workers’ unions because of loosing the jobs and less compensation. It really is strange that on the one hand people are talking about openness and Outsourcing of markets, and on the other hand the countries like U.S. are planning to ban Offshore Outsourcing.
As far as Offshore Outsourcing is concern, it can also be done that the big Outsourcing countries like India and China should allow more and more FDI and create more job opportunities to the countries from where the Offshore Outsourcing is done.
Sojitra Chetan
TavaSoft - Software Outsourcing Development
Ahmedabad - Gujarat,
+9 9824832541
chetan.patel@tatvasoft.com
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