Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Weapons of mass construction!

This world is definitely changing and people are coming to the realization sharing is after all the better  idea. Even if the governments and the corporations hate the idea of transparency which when applied in the software world turns out to be Open Source!
The Open Source community is huge! and those actively involved in it is definitely making a happier living. Maybe not billions but am sure they do have bigger and more contented smile on their face. They do become Godfathers for the average Joe.
So lets dive into few of the freely available weapons I mean softwares!

One of my favs is OpenERP! (http://www.openerp.com) An Open Source Modular ERP package! With a Huge community working day and night improving it! The best part of it is you can add just those modules that you need to run your business. Say Sales , Purchase and warehousing only !? or add HR to it too. Maybe a bit of  CRM too? How about a POS for the counter sale ? . Running on the rugged Postgres DB and with so many add on and modifications available without you getting your hands dirty with any coding! This is definitely my number one choice for most general business requirements! I would definitely take you through more of its features and why   it is  apt for small - medium scale business in UAE in the upcoming posts.

The next BIG BANGER! is Adempiere. (http://www.adempiere.com/) . Another Open Source product ! I mean truly open source. Unlike OpenERP which has a commercial version which can be bought off at various rates Adempiere is pure Open Source . There isn't a company behind it driving its development.Just pure rebels! Jedi Style! This too is quite popular in the Open Source world and is being used by many firms around the world. That's just signs of how their work matches upto the claimed size of their testicles. Again this product is well equipped with a production module and Hr management. Unlike OpenERP this is a tad more harder may it be with customization , ease of use or even looks . But hey for a free software its worth the effort and hardly lets you down. Just make sure you have a Jedi Knight under your payroll to vanquish those bugs. Its written in Java , well documented , there are functional books , developer books available. For a Java Expert this wouldn't be much of a roller coaster ride. And these boys are rolling out new features and updates very often. Like a Mobile client ! Touch Screen POS ! and many many other goodies!

I haven't forgotten the restaurant folks . You guys get FloreantPOS ! (http://floreantpos.com/) This little fellow is power packed! And open source! Documentation is fine. And this software isn't like the gaints above , can be learned by a bit of trail and error :D . But trust me your small little restaurent , cafe is in safe hands .With features like Kitchen printing , Back office support , Report generation , Multiple cashing methods , support for drive thru , dine in , take away , support for coupons and discounts this guy is packed with functionality! And it is truly opensource too! Did I forget to mention it is touchscreen?

A few others worth mentioning is LemonPos and OpenBravoPos.You could check them out too.They kick some commercial POS ass too.

All this can be self learned , customized and finally implemented by yourself! Provided your a bit of a computer geek.Really just a bit. If you don't have the time for all that and really want to just work on running your business.Thats when you call in open source enthusiast like myself and many others who would be glad to help you out!

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