Depending on whom you ask, distribution, warehousing, and trucking applications may or may not also be considered "supply chain" apps.

Written by John Ghrist

One of the many technological issues that seems to be in flux today is the question of whether or not software product types such as distribution, warehousing, and trucking (D/W/T) apps are included when we speak of "supply chain applications."

Traditionally, supply chain apps have been considered more pertinent to the process of moving raw materials to some facility where they are processed, either into finished goods or goods that are later made part of some other finished product. The classical view is that then distribution, warehousing, and trucking apps are concerned with the movement of these finished goods to retail outlets. This, of course, is regardless of the fact that to the average retailer or consumer, the entire process is part of a supply chain from their point of view.

Eyeballing the idea of outsourcing some IT functions to the cloud? If you want to avoid the cloud raining on your enterprise parade, you'll need the protective umbrella of some thorough advance planning.

Written by John Ghrist

In an industry that's been fond of technology fads for decades, cloud computing looks like one that might actually stick around for a while. Although choosing a cloud service provider (CSP) might seem like a decision little more complicated than choosing a software package, there's more to it than that. Hopefully, here you can find some guidance in figuring out how to make a good choice.

Small, fully graphical PDFs with searchable text make document distribution on IBM i a breeze!

Written by Paul Keyes

With the widespread acceptance of Portable Document Format (PDF), IBM i can produce full-color graphical documents for emailing, archiving, or printing. Today, PDFs are smaller than ever and can be created extremely fast. With modern software, even a report that is thousands of pages long takes only minutes to convert into a PDF that is small enough to email or archive.

Are you on an old version of Lotus Notes and considering doing "something"? Maybe you're on MS Outlook and thinking about switching to a cloud-based mail provider like Google Apps for Business? Consider the newest Lotus Notes.

Written by Steve Pitcher

About 18 months ago, I wrote about the then-current IBM Lotus Notes 8.5.2 and gave an overview of some other IBM Collaboration Solutions products like IBM Connections, Lotus Quickr, and IBM Sametime. While Lotus Notes 8.5.3 has been available for almost a year now, there are many functions that you may not be aware exist.

Demand for customer relationship management (CRM) apps remains high, with an emphasis on customization and mobile-device access.

Written by John Ghrist

Managing a customer relationship to promote loyalty and repeat sales has evolved to the point where an initial sale is almost less important for the revenue than it is for providing the gateway to an ongoing relationship between seller and buyer. Especially in times when the general economy isn't booming, keeping customers feeling happy and special is more important than ever.

With document automation, what used to be a mountain of paper and a headache-provoking job for numerous people becomes a streamlined process.

Written by inFORM Decisions

It's no accident that inFORM Decisions has over 30 hotel casino companies in the United States utilizing one or more of its document automation products. With inFORM's iDocs suite, these companies effectively reduce costs, streamline document and report workflow, and receive ROI. In the highly competitive casino and hospitality marketplace, these benefits are essential.

Come for the ROI, but stay for the efficiency, security, and compliance benefits.

Written by Dan Forster

Since the birth of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-1700s, automation efforts have proven to be one of the key catalysts of successful business growth and innovation. One of the most celebrated models of automation and business success was Henry Ford's car company. His implementation of the assembly line is seen as the automation success model of his century. Of course, the advent and proliferation of advanced IT systems have automated nearly every aspect of a business. Surprisingly, however, despite the tangible and rapid ROI of automated accounts payable (AP) processes, a majority of companies have not taken advantage of the technology.

osTicket has paid support if you need it, but a robust user community is there to help the uninitiated.

Written by Chris Smith

In a recent episode of Help Desk, the Web comics cartoon series that parodies the computer industry, Alex (the cartoon's protagonist) is confronted by a caller who asks for a list of questions to which Alex knows he has answers. The reason? "It seems like every time I call, you can't help me," the anonymous voice says. "Whatever problem I have just so happens to be the one issue that is completely out of your hands." The caller's solution to this dilemma is to work the problem backward. "Why don't you give me a list of topics you know you have an answer to, and I'll pick one of them?"