Bar Code Software

By Eddie Tobey

All retail as well as wholesale products are labeled with bar codes today. Even the smallest retail items, like chocolates or pencils, have a unique bar code to identify them accurately. Bar codes have specific symbology that is defined in the height and width of the bars as well as the spacing between the bars. Each of these bars might represent only numeric data, alphanumeric data or character data, depending on the type of symbology being used.

Each bar code has a start bar and an end bar to allow the scanner to read the data precisely. Some bar codes have another bar before the end bar, known as the checksum bar code. After the scanner calculates the sum, it is verified with the value of the checksum bar code for accuracy. This ensures exact calculation with minimal errors.

Bar codes are read by bar code scanners, which are photosensors used to convert the bars in the bar code into electrical signals as it is being scanned. Since the bars are distinguished by their width, height and spacing, these are then measured using software that recognizes and converts the electrical signals from the bars into readable characters. The scanner software then transmits this data to the PC terminal. The whole process does not take more than a few seconds, and is a very fast procedure.

The software used to track the bar code is accurate, and keeps precise records of all the bar codes scanned. This ensures that the software itself keeps track of the data relating to all the products sold. Since the software loaded into the computer records the data, the data can be retrieved with no fuss. Also, since the procedure is faster than manually entering the code into the system, it saves time and ensures more work efficiency.

Bar codes are especially useful when taking note of inventory for the annual report. Retailers find scanning the products time-saving and efficient, with fewer chances of errors in the calculations or recording of data. Supermarkets and shopping malls find it very useful to take care of customer’s needs in less time, rather than make the customers wait in line while cashiers entering the data manually into the PC.

Financial matters are crucial, as even the slightest of problems might give rise to complexities that might take a long time to solve. Medical and surgical fields especially would have a tough time with clerical errors while taking inventory. Using bar code software can eliminate this problem, as the error rate is extremely low.

It is essential for an organization to go in for the best kind of bar code to minimize critical errors and other problems. Bar code scanners and related software are inexpensive compared to the wages paid to clerks. They are long-lasting, easy to use and efficient for all kinds of products.

Bar Code Software provides detailed information on Bar Code Software, Bar Code Scanner Software, Bar Code Printing Software, Free Bar Code Software and more. Bar Code Software is affiliated with Retail POS Software.

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Back Tax Returns- How to Use Old Tax Software to Prepare Your Back Tax Return

By Ronald Robson

Perhaps you have neglected to file your tax return or you were just plain broke even to pay a tax preparer to do your tax return. Do not despair, there are ways to file your back tax returns without breaking your arm and your leg.

Understanding the Release cycle of Tax software?
If you have heard of Turbotax or tax cut or complete tax then you have heard of tax software. Most tax publishers release their tax software early in the year (Jan -Feb) for the previous year. For example you can expect to find Turbotax 2008 in stores by late 2008 or early 2009. But after the tax year is over, you will not find the software in retail stores. So after April of 2009, its very unlikely that you will find Turbotax for 2008 in the retail stores.

What is Old Tax Software?
Older versions of Tax Software that is no longer sold in the retail stores is called old tax software. You can easily file your un-filed back tax returns from previous years using old tax software.

So say you have not filed your 2007 tax return or your 2006 tax return - just find Turbotax 2007 or Turbotax 2006. Load the software on your computer from the disc, answer the interview style questions and you are done. All the tax forms are inside the software itself - so when you are ready you can print the tax return.

Benefits of using Old tax software for your back tax returns

• You do not have to hunt down tax forms from previous years
• Tax returns are accurate
• You will save a lot of money in tax preparation costs compared to going with an accountant.

Where can You find Old Tax Software - since its not sold in stores?
You can find it in the after-market. Sometimes you can find software from the recent 2 to 3 years from the software manufacturers site. Visit this site for some great tips on finding old tax software.

About: Ronald Robson is a free lance writer and avid technology fan. Visit his site http://www.qcktax.com for interesting tools and resources for filing your tax returns at low cost.

Disclaimer: All the trademarks used are of their respective owners. This is not tax advice. You may freely republish or re-circulate this article as long as all the links in this article are active and clickable.

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Video Analytics Solutions For Retail Operations

By Wes Fernley

A growing trend in retail outlets is the use of video analytics software. This intelligent software offers a number of solutions for retail operations, include: reducing shrinkage, increasing safety, improving customer service, ensuring proper compliance with employee procedures and much more. These various solutions can also be tailored to work in specific retail situations.

Overall Advantages

Software programs have been used for many years now to manage surveillance footage feeds. This highly efficient software is able to deeply analyze every last pixel of video feeds in real time. Specific objects can be identified, even recognized by the software. Individuals can be recognized from the rest of the background, some more powerful video analytics software can even perform facial recognition functions. This means that your computer can do a great amount of video analysis for you, without the need for constant human monitoring.

Software can then be used, when it finds something unusual or suspicious in the video feed, to automatically notify required personnel, set off alarms and more. This can greatly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of your security and surveillance systems, saving you time, energy and money.

One of the great aspects of this intelligent software is the ease of remote access. Many video analytics systems are browser based, so they can be accessed from anywhere with an Internet connection. Managers, security personnel, etc. can check on security systems from home, at the office, or even on the road through the use of PDAs and web-capable cell phones. At the same time, security systems are protected by high-powered encryption and multi-level password systems so no unauthorized personnel are granted access.

Solutions for Convenience Stores

Convenience stores have long used video camera systems for increasing security. Due to high volume of traffic, multiple items and relatively easy access, convenience stores have long been targets for petty criminals. The use of video analytics software can greatly increase the effectiveness of pre-existing or newly installed video surveillance systems.

One of the great tools this intelligent software offers for gas stations is the ability to take high quality, real time images of license plates for protection against drive-offs. With its powerful analytical capabilities, video analytics software can identify license plates and capture high resolution images of them. With this photographic evidence, non-paying customers can easily be identified and made to pay restitution.

Solutions for Grocery Stores

Grocery stores are another retail operation which can greatly benefit from video analytics. Shrinkage is a major concern for grocery stores, as theft, spoilage and more can all contribute to the loss of goods. This technology can address these concerns in various ways.

For example, items are often missed at the bottom of the basket while customers are at check-out. Video analytics technology can pick up on these out of place items and alert grocery personnel so the situation can be addressed pro-actively. Out of place items can be identified in a similar way.

The software can also differentiate normal shopper behavior with suspicious shopper behavior. On the ground personnel can be notified of the situation, so that they can monitor suspicious individuals and prevent theft. This is another major benefit of video analytics technology.

Solutions for Fast Food Restaurants

Video analytics technology can even be used to prevent fraud in quick service and fast food restaurants. Questionable transactions can be cross-referenced with specific images and video captured by cameras, to give information on who specifically was responsible for the transaction. All of this information can then be sent immediately to managers and/or other responsible personnel so that they can take immediate action to rectify the situation.

Milestone Systems is a global thought leader and developer of open platform IP monitoring software. The XProtect™ platform, now including video analytics, is easy to use, robust and proven in more than 35,000 customer installations around the world. For more information, visit http://www.milestonesys.com

Copyright (c) 2009 Wes Fernley

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Retail Accounting - The Significance and Benefits

By Alvis Brazma

Whatever kind of mercantile activity be there, it needs the basic knowledge of retail accounting. Retail market is one of the busiest place and buzzing whole day long with financial and marketing transactions taking place rigorously. It is practically impossible to keep track of all the product inventories, retail accounting, and other business transactions happening rapidly. Professionals handling the accounting should be efficient enough to keep the record and monitor the transactions on day to day basis without any interruption and errors.

There is a constant flow of cash in the retail accounting system and it becomes mandatory to keep the record of credits and debits diligently so that accounting department performs efficiently. Retail shops have consistent monetary transactions taking place every minute and it is really difficult to manage all the accounts of different dealers at the same time. So, to combat the work flow in retail accounting expert accountants and finance professionals are required. But, in such expensive times it's not an easy job to hire and maintain large work force. Business organizations and retailers in USA have found retail accounting outsourcing as the best alternative to this problem.

Even a slight mistake in accounting can lead to the disastrous results in the accounting statements and may lead to the fall of market image with a stroke. Entries should be made meticulously with acute calculations so that tallying the data may not take longer time. Outsourcing companies have retail accounting software and sets of expert professionals who work day and night in shifts to manage and regulate the accounting services for your companies. Mostly third world countries are involved in outsourcing business due to cheap availability of labor in comparison to USA.

Since, competition is too high in the market so all the retail accounting outsourcing companies are tight fisted to play the game at their best. The accurate accountancy is the backbone of retail market and this is where various outsourcing companies are forging their standards by employing large work force and accounting software to produce best results.

Error in the calculation of even a single penny may lead to difficult situation so professional accountants are trained to meet such strict requirements. The reasons for the increase in tendency of hiring services for accountancy among the retail shoppers are sensitivity and complexity involved in the job of accounting.

Accurate accounting system in any organization definitely becomes the growth factor. The shop keepers need the services for accounting and record monitoring even if the business is running on small scale. Products buying and selling is routine activity happening every hour and recording its details is a very complex system in itself.

Retail accounting experts are capable and experienced enough to keep sharp look at all the records and account maintenance with the years of expertise supporting them. Credit book, inventory, defaulter book, monthly profit and loss records with sales book require extra attention, which retail accounting experts handle efficiently and complete the reports with complete error free data.

Alvis Brazma gives advice to business owners about how to manage their business efficiently without any hassles.To know more about Accounting help, accounting outsourcing, retail accounting and small business accounting firm visit http://www.impacctusa.com

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Web-Based Application Integration - The Benefits of Getting it All Together

By Peter Binkley

PROBLEM: After the rapid rate of change in business technology over the last ten years, many businesses and organizations find themselves with a hodge-podge of databases and applications that work only in isolation. They were purchased or designed to address a pressing need of the moment, often with little thought given to integrating these systems with the existing infrastructure.

Unfortunately, every new application brings with it new access points that must be secured to prevent malicious attacks or the accidental leak of sensitive information. For applications that communicate with other applications, an intrusion in one system means every system with which it communicates is also vulnerable. Integrating and subsequently securing applications in such an environment can feel like more trouble than it is worth, especially for smaller businesses with fewer IT resources.

Likewise, replacing existing applications and data platforms with newer, more secure technologies can be prohibitively expensive. While retail software can solve some problems for those on a budget, they are frequently too restrictive in their feature set and may still require an expensive migration to be a feasible solution.

Meanwhile, the expectations of users and customers have grown to voracious proportions thanks to the ubiquity of the web. It is becoming truer with each passing year that to compete in business means to make your products or services available online.

SOLUTION: As it does so often, however, technology eventually provides solutions for the problems it creates. Recent trends have seen movement in favor of standardized communication methods and centralized security services.

In addition, an enlightened, incremental approach to the replacement and integration of legacy applications and databases can be used to keep even small businesses from falling behind the curve:

• Efficiency -- No one likes to deal with piles of paper unless there is no other way. A web-based solution not only streamlines established business practices, but makes services and information available from any web-enabled PC. As people become accustomed to mobile technology, they will find it increasingly unacceptable to be tied to their office in order to do business, or to be forced to make a phone call or send a paper invoice to request goods and services.
• Centralized security -- Providing a single sign-on point for users of diverse applications limits the number of access points into a system, thereby limiting the security vulnerabilities. Existing permissions -- such as those stored for users of a local area network -- can be used to permit or restrict access for a user based on his or her login credentials, automatically hiding applications the user is not authorized to use. Virtually any application can use such a front-end access point to control its own access on the back-end.
• Incremental system replacement -- Too often, businesses opt for a complete makeover of an application that is past its prime when a simple facelift will get the job done. For those that can afford it, a shiny new system is always nice to have; for the rest of us, a piece-by-piece replacement is a great way to control costs with more precision, while still getting the most troublesome aspects of the legacy application replaced.

METHODS: Now is a very good time to take a step toward office automation. New models of development theory are making the integration of legacy applications into a web-based strategy more viable than ever:

• XML -- Though it has been around for a few years, XML (Extensible Markup Language) is really coming into its own as a means of transferring data from application to application. It can be easily understood and processed by a wide variety of languages for a wide variety of purposes. Because it is so friendly to basic HTML code, it lends itself well to the integration of diverse applications designed on a web foundation.
• Central Authentication Service (CAS) -- In a CAS-based solution for authenticating users, credentials passed through a web-based login page are handled in one place for many different applications. This means logins and passwords need only be maintained in one place, making administration far easier. It also limits the access into any CAS-integrated application to one point, the central login page, meaning greater security. The language-nonspecific nature of CAS means it can be used for virtually any type of application. As an added bonus, the CAS solution developed by Yale University is open source; integrating the solution is the only cost involved.
• Rapid application development (RAD) -- Applications that required hundreds or thousands of man-hours to create initially may be redesigned for the web significantly cheaper thanks to the sophistication of RAD platforms such as Visual Basic .Net. While the relative ease-of-use of such packages has encouraged sloppiness on the part of some neophyte developers, an experienced and professional developer can use the advantages of RAD to keep down costs.
• Object-oriented design -- While not particularly new, an object-oriented approach to web application design makes the process of integration and upgrading existing systems far more flexible. Compartmentalizing business rules within the objects that depend on them means a change in those rules won't require a massive amount of coding. Moreover, incremental development is aided by the reusability of objects; once a rule has been created for one project, it won't need to be re-created for the next project that uses it.

SUMMARY: Advancing to a web-based strategy for business solutions needn't be the exclusive privilege of large corporations and organizations. Indeed, the web itself is egalitarian by nature. A multitude of opportunities can be found there with an intelligent, guided approach to development. Integrating existing systems within a web-based framework maximizes current assets and increases efficiency, especially when done in concert with an incremental upgrade system. Additionally, the centralization of user authentication tasks eases administration challenges and can be a powerful security tool; it also makes access to applications silky smooth for users. Finally, taking full advantage of emerging technologies that make integration easier means a solid solution is feasible even for the little guy.

Ultimately, acknowledging and responding to the demands of web-savvy users and customers is the first step toward ending up on the right side of the increasing divide between the winners and the losers.

Solid Blue Development provides application development for businesses and organizations, with a special focus on integrating legacy applications and developing web-based solutions for educational institutions. Please contact Solid Blue owner Peter Binkley for more information.

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What Is Online Banner Advertising?

By Joy Smith

Banner ads are text and pictures that are placed on high traffic web sites. When you click on a banner ad, it sends you to the advertised web site. They are largely anchoring or branding devices just like a jingle on a radio- when you hear the jingle over and over; you eventually develop awareness of the business or its product. Most banner ads are generally not designed to generate immediate click-through but to be an awareness and anchoring device.

Instead of placing a traditional focus on the demographics (gender, age, income etc.), banner ads let you narrow and hence intensify your target audience to people who have an acute intellectual interest in your product. It is a form of Psychographic Internet marketing when you promote your website with a banner ad on a high-traffic website that has content related to the product or service you sell.

For instance, if you sell car parts, you would want to run banner ads on high-traffic sites where people browse to know about automobiles because they are likely to have an interest in your products and hence visit our site. A common banner ad package might consist of 100,000 impressions. CPM (cost per thousand) can be from $20 to $100 per thousand impressions.
Ad placement significantly effects the response rates.

A home page may get the most traffic, but placing an ad deeper within the site might provide a more targeted audience. Here are some tips that will be useful when designing banner ads: There are retail software stores that offer inexpensive software packages dedicated solely to banner creation. You can also download banner ad design shareware from the Internet. When designing banners, keep them between 5 and 20K. The faster your banner loads, the more likely it will be seen. Animated banners are more effective than static banners at generating click-through. You should use ALT attribute in the image tags of your banners since many people surf with images turned off.

The ALT attribute will describe the content of the banner and can bring people to your site, even if they cannot see the image. There should be a balance between being too creative and not-creative-enough. Using prompt phrases like, "Click here!" or "Find out more!" and eye-popping graphics makes the banner more appealing. Do measure the success of your banner ad campaign by checking your log files for click through rates from your banner(s). Adjust your campaign when and where necessary- change placements, rework the content banners or images.

Online Banner Advertising is an art that once perfected will definitely give your business that extra edge and you will thereby generate revenues from a different advertising source along with your traditional ways of advertising.

Joy Smith is an Online Marketing Specialist. He has a great command on the different sectors of Online Marketing like PPC Services, Banner Advertisement, Email Marketing, Affiliate Marketing etc. Presently he is working with Rupiz Ads Ltd., a leading Online Banner Advertising Agency in UK.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joy_Smith

DVD Recorders - Tips and Secrets to Save You Time and Money

By P Hershon

DVD Recorders are in my opinion one of the most falsely advertised and promoted Consumer products of all time because while most people know the good stuff, very few people are aware of the bad stuff until after they've purchased them. Having said that, you can still get good DVD Recorders for between $50-$100, the key is knowing what you're planning to use them for. You're now saying "Duh, to record DVDs". Well there are limitations on recording which is the "Bad Stuff" and this article will give you general pointers on how to save money when buying a DVD recorder and DVD recordable media (DVD%2BR, DVD-R, DVD%2BRW and DVD-RW).

There are 3 types of DVD recorders: Internal computer DVD recorders aka DVD burners, external computer DVD Recorders aka external DVD burners and Stand Alone DVD Recorders (Some DVR's have a DVD recording drive as well). You can record TV Shows on stand alone DVD recorders as well as computer DVD recorders if your computer has a card installed that will let you receive broadcasts from Cable TV provided there is a "hub" to connect your cable too. The main difference between the stand alone DVD recorders and the computer Internal and external recorders are that the stand alone DVD Recorders can not as far as I know record in 5.1 sound while internal and external computer DVD recorders can. This is one of the things they don't tell you about Stand Alone DVD recorders. One thing however I found the Stand Alone DVD Recorder to do better/easier than a computer DVD recorder is to transfer old Video tapes to DVD.

The Major Thing they don't tell you about DVD recorders is it's almost impossible to make a DVD recording of a commercially sold DVD as most of them are encrypted, as well as being illegal. I believe that making recordings of non-encrypted commercial DVDs is also illegal. There are no commercially sold retail software or devices as far as I know that will let you record copies of commercial DVDs that have been encrypted. So if you are planning to buy a DVD recorder to make recordings of commercially sold DVDS, you are wasting your time. Note, if you do a search on the internet there probably is software that will allow you to make these recordings, however doing so is illegal.

The other thing they don't really tell you about DVD Recorders is that they are built to self destruct as the lasers eventually wear down, While stand alone and external computer DVD recorders are relatively cheap, they usually don't last more than a couple of years before their lasers break down. The good news is, they're relatively cheap and just consider them a disposable product. My internal computer DVD Recorders have never broken down. You do need software to record DVD's on your computer and a lot of these players come with software. I use Nero Software which I love and which is also good for burning CDs as well.

I recommend if you are buying a stand alone DVD recorder for basic recording of TV shows, to buy any Lite-On DVD Recorder with a built in TV Tuner, that you can get under $100. Lite-On is incredibly easy to use as they have a really good easy remote control program that guides you step by step. The picture and sound are good as well. I say its better to spend under $100 on something that you know will eventually break down then spend $250 or more for a fancier recorder that will also eventually break down. Whatever you do, do not buy a used or refurbished DVD recorder because its life is even more limited as its laser has already been worn down- to what degree you don't know.

If your computer does not have an internal DVD recorder, you can get a decent small external DVD recorder for between $50-$95 new. I would recommend an HP 20x Super Multi DVD Writer (Recorder) which you can get for under $60 new at discount. Most of these players come with free software and as I mentioned I would go with any one that came with Nero software. The external DVD recorders connect easily to your computer by USB and they record CDs as well. They also play CDs and DVDs besides recording them.

I would recommend if you are using a stand alone DVD Recorder to only use DVD%2BRW or DVD-RW media, as these are re-recordable DVDs and you can play them on any DVD player as soon as you finished recording. If you buy the standard DVD%2BR or DVD-R disc, you can not re-record on them and more importantly you will need to do an extra step on your Stand Alone DVD Recorder called Finalize. If you forget to Finalize, the DVD will not play on anything other then your DVD recorder. You do not need to Finalize a DVD%2BRW or DVD-RW disc, which is why I recommend you buy them for stand alone DVD recorders. For internal or external computer DVD recorders you do not need to manually finalize anything as the software does everything itself so you don't need to spend the extra money on re-recordable discs. Having said that, I would still buy at least 10 re-recordable discs as when you're first recording on the computer as you'll probably make a bunch of mistakes, almost everyone does, and this way you can practice till you make perfect. Personally, I would recommend if you have a friend who has recorded DVDs on the computer to show you how to do everything step by step. It's an easy process but like everything else you learn by trial and error.

I also noticed that when I recorded DVDs, the drop in quality from recording at SP to LP and LP to EP, is a lot more prominent in DVDS then video tape. If quality is a concern, I would record at SP when you can and no lower than EP.

I hope you enjoy using your DVD recorder. If you are planning to do things more advanced then editing, then of course I would recommend buying a more advanced recorder but for the basic things, you can get a decent DVD recorder between $50-$100.

I recommend http://www.2008audio.com as a great place to order Lite-On and other DVD Recorders at discount between $50-$100 as well as other other great high quality name brand DVD Recorders, DVD Players,MP3 Players, Ipods , Headphones, Speakers, Subwoofers, Receivers, CD players, Home Theater equipment at the lowest discount prices and fastest service.

I also recommend http://www.SatelliteTVSports.com for free Satellite Sports and Cable Sports Schedules as well as discount, Sports and fitness equipment, including free weights, home gyms, treadmills, abdomen machines, basketball, football, baseball and hockey equipment and sports books and sports apparel.

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Point of Sale Systems of the Future

By Edward Duval

Technology has been moving at an amazing avalanche pace. It continues to grow and develop faster than many companies can keep up with. We’ve come back to one of those lulls where companies are tightening their technology belt. It isn’t that these companies don’t appreciate the technology being launched; instead they’re waiting for the next round. Technology really does move in waves and businesses respond to these cycles. Advancements are made quickly, but it can take time to smooth out the problems that always arise with anything new. Businesses tend to watch new operating systems and software solutions closely before investing heavily in it. With the near release of Vista businesses are gearing back their IT budgets and preparing for the next wave.

The next year is going to be an exciting time especially since it’s been so long since Microsoft’s last Operating System Release. Each time I get nervous and remember back in the early days the trouble I got when I upgraded to DOS 4.0. Of course DOS 5.0 was close at hand and everything smoothed out. Still I wonder what new and exciting things that will happen. This power Microsoft yields over the entire Industry is well earned and no one with any respect for their accomplishments can deny Windows XP is all they said it would be (after numerous lawsuits, revisions, patches, updates and a whole lot of headaches). Today’s Windows XP is a lot different from the one they released so many years ago. A wonderful job has been done to make the application solid and secure with a wide range of features I really use. If we’re lucky Vista will only need one major service update to make it really good, but only time will tell.

The unfortunate side affect of Microsoft’s success is that their releases have a direct impact on the bottom line of a lot of IT companies. At certain times we experience this scary lull light the eye of a hurricane. On the bright side Vista is sure to super charge the IT Industry and generate revenue for a lot of companies outside of Microsoft.

So where does this whirlwind of waves hold for the future of retail software? Many companies are going to hold their budgets until Vista can prove itself. A small minority might venture to Linux and a brave few will dive into Vista with blind resolve. There are some software companies and software applications that have found a unique way to avoid the Operating Fears. Instead of developing software to run and be installed on multiple systems they’re finding Internet Technologies are allowing cross platform development people didn’t dream of five years ago. By developing software that runs through a web browser programmers can focus on writing their software to match standards created by the W3C. Instead of tying themselves down to one operating system they open themselves up to almost all of them.

As Internet Technologies continue to advance we’re going to find the spiral of technology spending will no longer rely so heavily on the releases of specific operating systems, but instead on a set of existing standards created by the W3C. Point of Sale Systems are one of the most common types of computer systems used in business. By leveraging the power of Internet Technology companies are finding software applications that are multi-platform, require no installation and provide dedicated back up services in addition to a wide range of other benefits Hosted Applications can provide.

Please consider this article for publication in your newsletter or on your website. Permission is granted to reprint for free with author box and byline intact. Please send me a copy of your publication if you choose to include my article.

© Ed Duval (2006) Ed Duval is contract writer and software developer for http://www.AndTechComputers.com and Creator of the HotPotato Restaurant Point of Sale Software System. With over a decade of experience in software development he shares his unique insight on today's point of sale software systems.

support@andtech2020.com

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Take What You Need From the Cloud

By Alice Lane

Since computers have become commonplace in business, business owners have purchased software and stored their data on machines in their offices. In larger companies, these machines are supported by IT departments made of a few to dozens of technology professionals. Data is sometimes backed up off site but, for the most part, the data has remained inside the walls of each individual office across the country.

In comes the "cloud." A new revolution in data storage, management and service affording the individual and small business greater computing power than was previously available.

The concept of cloud computing is simple. Data is transferred to and from remote, independently managed servers through internet connections. These servers can be accessed from anywhere and are metaphorically referred to as a cloud hanging above all of its users. The cloud can store data or provide access to Software as a Service TFS.

In its simplest form, your mother might store photos in a cloud for the rest of the family to access from across the country. In its most powerful form, a business can employ the concept of Software as a Service TFS. Cloud computing could mark the end small business servers and the expense of certain retail software packages. Imagine just paying for what you need and when you use it.

The small businesses of America are struggling to grow in these hard economic times. Businesses are struggling to keep pace with the other technology developers. The ideas and the skilled professionals are there but the budget to obtain the needed resources is lacking. Cloud computing services are spreading rapidly.

Let's not kid ourselves; software from the major manufacturers is expensive. Even if your budget can take the financial hit, there is often little money left to manage the data on local servers. What if you have brilliant employees working from different locations? There are technologies such as TFS web access which can be a remarkable change to the way you do business.

Cloud computing is a new approach to computing services that can give the smallest business the power of the big guys. Software and hardware is expensive, often out of the reach of growing businesses. Team Foundation Server hosting can make the cloud are a reality.

This is a paradigm shift. Rather than buying software and storing data in your office, you can place your computer world in the hands of remote servers. Remote servers that are reliable and subject to regular backups. Instead of buying software, you can rent it for a fraction of the retail cost.

The cloud is being mastered by PHASE 2 International. Explore the paradigm shift Software as a Service TFS. Provide your team with the framework that Team Foundation Server hosting can provide. You can access all of this power with TFS web access - the answer that will fit into the budget of your small business.

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Technology In Retail

By Hukum S Negi

Technology adoption in retail and its benefits to SMEs & LS Retail Suite a probable solution

The Retail Market is in a state of explosive growth. One needs to see the mushrooming of malls and shopping complexes in the metros and small towns in India to grasp the enormity of this growth. For many years the retail industry in India has been disorganized and consisted mostly of single- store outlets, a few retail chains and a large number of the friendly-neighborhood "Kirana" shops. These outlets had pre-historic supply chains, inefficient inventory management, very few were customer focused and most were in the small to medium category. The sudden spurt in demand and a greater awareness amongst buyers for quality products and services, created a vacuum that could only be met by an organized retail sector, with fine-tuned supply chains, efficient inventory management and a totally customer focused view that was alien to India.

One of the key factors in achieving an organised and efficient retail operation is the use of technology as an enabler. IT is the key enabler to improving customer satisfaction, operational efficiencies and by extension profitability. A typical pan-national retail operation would have multiple regional warehouses, offices and retail outlets. In such an operation how does the headquarters know the daily turnover at each of its outlets, how does it know which products are selling the most in which region at which outlet, how does one store know if a stock-out item in its own inventory is available at another store location for whom it is slow moving item. Most of these issues can be solved by the appropriate use of technology. The ability to have current information on a real time basis and analyzing that data for better forecasting are some of the payback provided by technology.

Retailers all across the country believe that shrinkage due to inventory recording, handling and administrative errors costs retailer's millions. In an intensely competitive, cost-conscious industry, appropriate IT and telecommunications infrastructure can make a vast difference, and can result in improved productivity and major cost savings through more accurate supply chain forecasting and better inventory management.

For example, given a situation where a retailer wants to increase its loyalty customer base, an organization with relevant IT systems in place, has a ready customer database updated at every purchase, which can be used to send mailers or promotional catalogues. Another example where IT can be beneficial is a store management system that alerts out-of-place or stock-out items. An in-store system that uses magnetic strips or barcodes or RFID to monitor actual versus intended product location on the floor or in the stockroom. By using RFID-encoded shelf edge labels with embedded shelf readers, a grid could be set up for verifying planogram compliance for standard shelving and promotional displays, with a corresponding alert for misplaced items sent to store personnel. Big payoffs could be realized for frequently moved and misplaced items, such as apparel, shoes, CDs and DVDs.

Appropriate investment in technology can impact the business positively through improved operational efficiencies, increased profitability, happier customers and providing a competitive advantage.

LS Retail is an end-to-end retail solution that covers everything from POS to back office and head office. The setup can range from a single store with one POS to a complex, multi-store environment that integrates with your overall business operation.

Landsteiner Strengur is one of the principal companies developing retail and hospitality solutions in the international arena with over 10,500 stores in 130 countries, translated into 30 languages, and is used by customers like IKEA, Adidas, NAAFI, Debenhams, Pizza Hut and Booths Supermarket. An internationally proven retail software solution like LS Retail can provide:

• Increased store efficiency
• Improved Data Integrity
• Streamlined inventory control
• Reduced shrinkage, pilferage and losses
• Comprehensive business analytics
• Reduced paperwork
• POS for Multi-tier Retail
• Complete integration with backend systems

With LS Retail Suite of solutions, localized for the Indian Industry, one can reduce the total cost of ownership & inventory, improve profitability, recognize current consumer trends and prepare one for changes in both, business and customer behaviour. LS Retail provides the ability to make up-to-the minute decisions with fewer mistakes. LS Retail can.

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The Paithani Saree - A Poem In Silk

By Gaurav Doshi

The Paithani saree is known the world over for its uniqueness. It is one of the most beautiful sarees in the world. Beautifully crafted, with an exquisite zari border, this saree is truly a poem in silk. The Paithani saree is chosen by brides to wear on their special day, especially in Gujarati and Maharashtrian families.

The Paithani sarees are mostly woven in Paithan in Maharashtra. Yeola, Pune, Nasik and Malegaon in Maharashtra are the other centres where weaving of Paithani sarees is undertaken. These sarees were initially woven specially for queens and other members of the royal family by weavers in the palaces. However, with the passage of time, these sarees are now easily available both in India and internationally.

In an original Paithani saree, pure silk is used in the weaving of the body and pure gold and silver zari is used in the pallu and the border. The zari used in the preparation of the saree is specially procured from Surat in Gujarat. The process of preparation of a Paithani saree can take a time period ranging from a month to years. It is because of these reasons that this saree is rather expensive. To bring down the price of these sarees, weavers are using silver instead of gold and silk in place of silver.

Traditionally, Paithanis used to have a plain body with a heavy golden border and a large pallu. However, with the passage of time, various motifs began to be used in these sarees.

Though modern-day weavers are trying to develop newer and innovative motifs, usually traditional motifs are used in Paithani sarees. The most commonly used motifs in the body of these sarees are 'kamal' (lotus flower), 'hans' (swan), 'asharfi' (coin), 'asawalli' (flowering vine), 'Bangadi mor' (peacock in bangle), 'rui phool' (cotton flower), circles, stars and clusters of leaves. In the pallu of such sarees, certain motifs are very commonly found. Some of them are 'Asawali', 'Panja' (a flower in a geometrical shape), 'Muthada' (a geometrical shape), and 'mor' (peacock).

Paithani sarees are woven in a number of colors. These colors can be pure or be created using a blend of different colored yarns. The colors that are typically used in these sarees are 'kaali chandrakala' (black), 'uddani' (lighter black), 'pophali' (yellow), 'neeligungi' (blue), 'pasila' (a combination of green, red and pink), 'pheroze' (a blend of green, white and red), 'samprus' (a mixture of green and red) and 'kusumbi' (a purple and red combination).

Artisans in Paithan have been practicing the art of weaving the Paithani saree for centuries, and this tradition has been passed on from one generation to another. MSSIDC i.e. Maharashtra Small Scale Industrial Development Corporation Limited was established in the year 1962.

More on Silk Saree

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Video Production For Free

By Aderemi Simmons

As times have changed technology has made creating a quality video much more attainable for the beginner videographer aspiring to create his/her great film. We will cover a broad overview and establish a great starting point to your career or hobby. All video productions home or professional should follow the same three-part process. Pre-production, production and post-production is the process that must be followed to successfully create your video. We will simplify each phase, but please keep in mind every part of video production can require a level of understanding that can become overwhelming for an individual. We will provide basic understanding that will enable anyone to produce a good film, for a modest or free budget. Lets get started, so that you may begin your professional or home video. Time to create.

Pre-production

Preproduction is the planning stage of your project similar to a game or business plan. Here is where you set your goals and cover how you will accomplish them. This is the most important phase and will determine the success of your project. If done diligently it will allow a production to run smoothly, achieve its goals and reach its potential. First lets determine your goals and what you hope to achieve with your video. Naturally we must ask and answer some questions at this point. What kind of project will it be? (Informative, Horror) What is the purpose of this video? (Marketing, entertainment) Who is your audience? (Clients, general public) What is your audience knowledge level? (Adults, children) What format is needed for your video? (Interview, story based) What style is needed? (Formal, informal) Make sure to match your style and format appropriately. Define available resources, outline your budget if one exist, schedule talent and locations. Depending on your budget a professional camera would be the first option, but several retail camcorders can produce a decent quality picture for your video output. If purchasing a camera is not in your budget try borrowing, but do remember the responsibility that comes with using some else's valuable equipment. Answer all of these questions plus any others that you feel may apply to your project and create a good plan. Let your creativity loose at this point then begin your research and gather all relevant information. Think about elements that will improve your production (e.g. a fan clapping and screaming, for reaction if filming a live performance).

Tip: If you need to write a script, keep your sentences short and simple.

Production

Production is the recording, and everything associated with capturing the video/audio feeds (input). As you can imagine this is the meat of your production. Your audience viewing experience will be determined here; this will require patience and practice in order to master. Enjoy experimenting at this point, but if your shots require other people time and talent please be considerate and avoid loosing valuable resources. First get acquainted with your camera, remember the manual is your friend and will most likely be user friendly. Now lets avoid some beginner mistakes and shorten your learning curve with some:

Filming tips

1. Avoid zooming in and out too much if, or when you do it make sure it is done slowly.
2. Keep shots steady use a tripod if possible or at least brace against something. (E.g. your knee)
3. Where are you? Keep your background in mind a landmark will tell your viewers where you are and can bring depth to your shot.
4. Keep your video clips short an audience can get bored quickly.
5. Lighting is the most important factor of creating a quality shot while numerous techniques exist, for multiple scenarios. Three point lighting will be versatile enough to fit most scenarios. If a lighting kit is not in your budget then keep a light source behind you and make use of natural light. (Properly lighting a scene can become very complicated and require its individual article, coming soon)
6. Always film from multiple angles; be sure to experiment with this it will improve your production.
7. Learn from the professionals look at your favorite movies & videos from the Director of Photography point of view.
8. Always check your audio keep your subject within three feet of your microphone.

Tip: Lighting is measured by temperature, if recording outside film early morning or late afternoon.

Post-production

Post-production mainly consist of compiling all your raw recorded footage and manipulating it with some non-linear editing software. You will need a computer with editing software, a storage device and a video capture device (you can use your camera with the right accessory). With the advances in technology this is another tool that can be attained at a reasonable rate or absolutely free. Final Cut in my opinion is the most powerful retail software, but again if you have a PC, Windows Moviemaker should already be installed and iMovie for Macs either software will suffice. Decide on a main or master clip for each shot and use "cutaways"(E.g. different angles of the same shot) to enhance your video. When editing, make sure your audio is synced with your main video and consider your audience attention span. Experiment with effects, but find a favorite or two and don't over use. Your audience will grow tired of effects very quickly and most don't survive the test of time. Attention to detail will avoid many editing mistakes remember to keep your clips organized and create a system. Once again keep your software manual close.

Tip: Use a static shot as your main clip and keep it interesting by including other clips. The average person attention span is approximately 30 minutes.

Experiment, practice, study, invest time and your videos will soon emulate those professional videos you now marvel at. Video production is constantly improving always continue to learn and evolve.

Aderemi Simmons, (Executive Producer) has a creative touch and his passion for film making is rivaled by few. For more information and a preview of future episodes and other projects please visit GreenHouse Films website at http://www.greenhousecinema.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aderemi_Simmons

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You Don't Have to Fork Out Lots of Money For Great Looking Ebook Covers With the GFX Writer

By Joan Masterson

Ebooks are easy to make. All you really need is a bunch of text and then a PDF converter to make that text into a compiled ebook. The real difficulty is in providing catchy gfx so that people will download and read your ebook enthusiastically. After all, on the Internet, an ebook can sometimes be judged by its cover. This is where you have to step in as a graphics artist to provide the best ebook header graphics ever. Think you can't do it? We say you can.

The GFX Writer Solution

Even if you don't have skills in Photoshop, that shouldn't stop you from making ebook header graphics that look both professional and pleasing to the eye. You can make awesome headers just by using a GFX writer that can be downloaded from the Internet and for only $20. The software itself can be used to start new projects and you can use it as a graphics header creator, a gfx editor, and just to make overall incredible image graphics. You can then use the graphics that you create to make ebook report covers that will scream professionalism.

Beyond Header Graphics

GFX writer software can also help you to make more than just headers. You can use this program to edit gfx files that you already have and you can also use the gfx editor to merge images together to create something new. The edited gfx image that you make can then be used as ebook header graphics or graphics that you will use in another section of your ebook.

About The Software

This inexpensive image header creator, gfx writer, gfx editor, and image graphics manager is a package that you definitely need if you are into creating ebooks. The surprising thing is that for all the things that it can do, it is not such a big program at all. It is a light-weight solution that is a potent graphics editor that doesn't need too long to learn either. Unlike other retail software on the market, the GFX writer is one of the every few that does not have such a steep learning curve. The tools are easily accessed and everything is made in a "what you see is what you get" so that you never have trouble making your own ebook graphics.

This software is also not limited to just helping you make awesome headers; it can be used to make ebook report covers and even box cover art that you might like to use for any products of your own. It can also be used to make CD covers if you want to compile CDs of ebooks that you have already made. This is just one of the very few features that make this software's usability almost limitless in the hands of an imaginative user.

Formats

The software itself accepts a range of different universal file formats. One can import and export headers and gfx in the form of BMPs, GIFs, JPGs, and PNG files. These files can be tinkered with, edited, rotated, and saved as all new graphics that can be used for a number of ebook pages. Edit gfx files so that they look like "high end" images that were created by professionals. And then export the gfx so that they can be used on many different platforms on the Internet, like websites, ebooks, and blogs.

Are you ready to make awesome headers? Or make ebook report covers that will impress your boss or friends? Then make sure that you look into this one of many programs to create headers. The GFX writer is definitely a header creator software solution that will make your life easier and make your ebooks looking a whole lot better.

To see how easy it is to design your own amazing header graphics,box covers and ebook covers visit my site: Image Editor Try it for yourself. You'll wonder how you ever got along without it!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joan_Masterson

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DVD Recorders - Tips and Secrets to Save You Time and Money

By P Hershon

DVD Recorders are in my opinion one of the most falsely advertised and promoted Consumer products of all time because while most people know the good stuff, very few people are aware of the bad stuff until after they've purchased them. Having said that, you can still get good DVD Recorders for between $50-$100, the key is knowing what you're planning to use them for. You're now saying "Duh, to record DVDs". Well there are limitations on recording which is the "Bad Stuff" and this article will give you general pointers on how to save money when buying a DVD recorder and DVD recordable media (DVD%2BR, DVD-R, DVD%2BRW and DVD-RW).

There are 3 types of DVD recorders: Internal computer DVD recorders aka DVD burners, external computer DVD Recorders aka external DVD burners and Stand Alone DVD Recorders (Some DVR's have a DVD recording drive as well). You can record TV Shows on stand alone DVD recorders as well as computer DVD recorders if your computer has a card installed that will let you receive broadcasts from Cable TV provided there is a "hub" to connect your cable too. The main difference between the stand alone DVD recorders and the computer Internal and external recorders are that the stand alone DVD Recorders can not as far as I know record in 5.1 sound while internal and external computer DVD recorders can. This is one of the things they don't tell you about Stand Alone DVD recorders. One thing however I found the Stand Alone DVD Recorder to do better/easier than a computer DVD recorder is to transfer old Video tapes to DVD.

The Major Thing they don't tell you about DVD recorders is it's almost impossible to make a DVD recording of a commercially sold DVD as most of them are encrypted, as well as being illegal. I believe that making recordings of non-encrypted commercial DVDs is also illegal. There are no commercially sold retail software or devices as far as I know that will let you record copies of commercial DVDs that have been encrypted. So if you are planning to buy a DVD recorder to make recordings of commercially sold DVDS, you are wasting your time. Note, if you do a search on the internet there probably is software that will allow you to make these recordings, however doing so is illegal.

The other thing they don't really tell you about DVD Recorders is that they are built to self destruct as the lasers eventually wear down, While stand alone and external computer DVD recorders are relatively cheap, they usually don't last more than a couple of years before their lasers break down. The good news is, they're relatively cheap and just consider them a disposable product. My internal computer DVD Recorders have never broken down. You do need software to record DVD's on your computer and a lot of these players come with software. I use Nero Software which I love and which is also good for burning CDs as well.

I recommend if you are buying a stand alone DVD recorder for basic recording of TV shows, to buy any Lite-On DVD Recorder with a built in TV Tuner, that you can get under $100. Lite-On is incredibly easy to use as they have a really good easy remote control program that guides you step by step. The picture and sound are good as well. I say its better to spend under $100 on something that you know will eventually break down then spend $250 or more for a fancier recorder that will also eventually break down. Whatever you do, do not buy a used or refurbished DVD recorder because its life is even more limited as its laser has already been worn down- to what degree you don't know.

If your computer does not have an internal DVD recorder, you can get a decent small external DVD recorder for between $50-$95 new. I would recommend an HP 20x Super Multi DVD Writer (Recorder) which you can get for under $60 new at discount. Most of these players come with free software and as I mentioned I would go with any one that came with Nero software. The external DVD recorders connect easily to your computer by USB and they record CDs as well. They also play CDs and DVDs besides recording them.

I would recommend if you are using a stand alone DVD Recorder to only use DVD%2BRW or DVD-RW media, as these are re-recordable DVDs and you can play them on any DVD player as soon as you finished recording. If you buy the standard DVD%2BR or DVD-R disc, you can not re-record on them and more importantly you will need to do an extra step on your Stand Alone DVD Recorder called Finalize. If you forget to Finalize, the DVD will not play on anything other then your DVD recorder. You do not need to Finalize a DVD%2BRW or DVD-RW disc, which is why I recommend you buy them for stand alone DVD recorders. For internal or external computer DVD recorders you do not need to manually finalize anything as the software does everything itself so you don't need to spend the extra money on re-recordable discs. Having said that, I would still buy at least 10 re-recordable discs as when you're first recording on the computer as you'll probably make a bunch of mistakes, almost everyone does, and this way you can practice till you make perfect. Personally, I would recommend if you have a friend who has recorded DVDs on the computer to show you how to do everything step by step. It's an easy process but like everything else you learn by trial and error.

I also noticed that when I recorded DVDs, the drop in quality from recording at SP to LP and LP to EP, is a lot more prominent in DVDS then video tape. If quality is a concern, I would record at SP when you can and no lower than EP.

I hope you enjoy using your DVD recorder. If you are planning to do things more advanced then editing, then of course I would recommend buying a more advanced recorder but for the basic things, you can get a decent DVD recorder between $50-$100.

I recommend http://www.2008audio.com as a great place to order Lite-On and other DVD Recorders at discount between $50-$100 as well as other other great high quality name brand DVD Recorders, DVD Players,MP3 Players, Ipods , Headphones, Speakers, Subwoofers, Receivers, CD players, Home Theater equipment at the lowest discount prices and fastest service.

I also recommend http://www.SatelliteTVSports.com for free Satellite Sports and Cable Sports Schedules as well as discount, Sports and fitness equipment, including free weights, home gyms, treadmills, abdomen machines, basketball, football, baseball and hockey equipment and sports books and sports apparel.

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Understanding Retail Metrics

By Scott Kreisberg

I've seen many retailers over the years still running their business by the seat of their pants. While this management style may have worked in the past, it is quickly being replaced by more sophisticated operations using advanced technology to squeeze every penny out of the business.

As most of you have come to realize, running a successful retail business involves more than buying merchandise, marking it up and selling it. When you first got started, you probably had a good idea of what your store would look like, how your staff would present itself, how the merchandise would be displayed...and where you'd be opening up your next store! Like most CEOs, you were and probably still are the visionary. But as you later found out, even great visionaries need a little pragmatism to realize their dreams.

The good news is that you don't have to be a statistician, mathematician or even a rocket scientist to manage your business in both a visionary and more scientific manner.
These days, using specially designed retail software products like Retail Pro and CounterPoint SQL, you can run a few reports on a weekly basis and get an excellent understanding of exactly what is going on with your business.
The information you get enables you to analyze your operation, identify problem areas, and take immediate corrective action before it costs you a bundle. These reports contain the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for your business.

How important are Key Performance Indicators? Think of yourself as the pilot of an airplane. You decide to take a trip and create a flight plan - when you're leaving and where you plan to go. You take off with your flight plan in hand. It's a beautiful day, with no clouds in sight.
But how do you know if you're flying in the direction you want to go, flying level, high enough not to run into any mountains, have enough fuel and flying fast enough to get to your final destination on time?
Well, a pilot uses instruments to systematically get to his/her final destination safely. A retailer is no different, and must have and use the equivalent instruments in order to fly his or her business on a daily basis in a profitable manner. Those "instruments" are closely monitored by KPI.

So start reading those KPI reports! And don't forget to set objectives for the merchandise you are buying.
Why is this important? When you run your KPI report you will know if the item is performing according to your expectations. If not, then you can take quick decisive actions to sell off that item before you get stuck with it and have to lose money on a mark down.

Now, let's take a closer look at how analyzing your inventory performance on a regular basis can keep your business on track.

A retailer has five decisions to make on any given item in stock:
1. Mark up
2. Mark down
3. Buy more
4. Buy less
5. Don't do anything

How does a retailer know what to do and when to do it? Well the answer to that million dollar question lies in KPI's.

Let's take a look at what I consider to be the five most important retail KPI's that should be easily generated from your software program:

Days of Supply

Definition: Days of Supply is a key statistic which tells you how long it will take you to sell out of your present stock, assuming that sales continue at the same rate as recent past sales.

Days of Supply analyzes the last period of sales, and based upon that rate, gives you the amount of days of supply left on that style. It is based upon the numbers of days of selling that you tell your system to examine.

For non-seasonal merchandise which sells at a relatively steady rate, you could use a longer basis period, such as 30 or 60 days. For seasonal merchandise, the rate of sale changes rapidly, and you would want to use a shorter period.

Merchandising Goal: To reduce your days of supply to match lead times, without losing sales.

Turn

Definition: Turn is a measure of how many times your inventory turns over in the course of a year.

Example: If you have an average inventory of 100 jackets in a year and you sell 100 jackets every 4 months, your inventory "turns over" or is totally replaced, 3 times per year. Therefore, your turn is 3.

Turn is often increased by reducing selling price. However, this obviously reduces profit. A balance needs to be reached between the proper turn, and the proper profit margin.

The formula for turn used by Retail Pro is: Annual Sales divided by Average Inventory

Merchandising Goal: Increase your turn as much as possible, without having to take markdowns.

Stock to Sales Ratio

Definition: The ratio of the inventory available for sale to the quantity sold. For every unit I sold, how many units did I have on hand?

Stock to Sales Ratio is the exact inverse of Sell Thru Percentage.

Stock to Sales Ratio is a key statistic for measuring whether or not you are overstocked. If your Stock to Sales Ratio rises, and there is not an accompanying rise in sales, then you are adding more stock without increasing sales, which will reduce your profitability. If your Stock to Sales Ratio decreases, and your sales do not decrease, then you will have increased profitability.

The formula used for Stock to Sales Ratio is: Averaged Units of Inventory Available divided by Units Sold

Merchandising Goal: To reduce your Stock to Sales Ratio as low as possible, without losing sales.

Sell Thru Percentage

Definition: The percentage of stock you had available for sale which was sold.

Sell Thru Percentage is the exact inverse of Stock to Sales Ratio.

Sell Thru Percentage is especially important for seasonal merchandise, since the goal is to be out of stock of seasonal merchandise by the end of the season. Therefore, you can look at your year-to-date sales of seasonal merchandise, and be sure that you were out of stock by the end of the season.

The formula used to calculate Sell Thru Percentage is: Average Units Sold divided by Averaged Units of Inventory Available

Merchandising Goal: On seasonal merchandise, plan out the percentages to be sold out of by month, so that you can ensure being out of stock by season end.

Gross Margin Return on Investment

Definition: For every dollar invested in this style, how many dollars did I get back? (Abbrev. GMROI).

Gross Margin Return on Investment calculates that return based on the gross margin from sales. For example, if you purchase $2000 of inventory, and sold it all in the same year for $6000, your profit would be $4000. The return on your investment of $2000 was $4000. The GMROI in this example is $4000/$2000 = 2.

GMROI is closely related to turn. If your turn increases, your average inventory cost will be lower (relative to your profit), and thus the greater the return on your investment.

The formula for GMROI is: Sales Margin Dollars divided by Months Passed X 12

Your merchandising goal is to increase the GMROI as high as you can, by keeping turn high, at high margins.

As an additional note, always remember to set objectives for the merchandise you are buying. For example, when buying a new style of jeans, set a target for how many pairs should be sold by some reasonable time frame like, sell 12 pairs in the first week.
This is important so when you run your KPI report you will know if the item is performing according to your expectations. If not, then you can take quick decisive actions to sell off that item before you get stuck with it and have to mark it down in an unprofitable fashion.

Our Website: http://www.retailposcounterpoint.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_Kreisberg

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Checkout the Benefits of Retail Management/POS Software

By Tim Russell

What is Retail Management/POS?

POS software originally referred to software applications designed to speed up sales till/checkout processes. Since its origins, however, POS software has evolved to include so many more features that it is now more commonly referred to as Retail Management Systems (RMS).

These days, a good RMS can be expected to offer the following functions:

- POS

- Inventory control

- Automatic purchase order creation

- Automatic price updates

- Barcode scanning

- Accounts receivable + payable

- General ledger

- Payroll

- Customer tracking & follow-up

- E-commerce + website shopping cart integration

- Shop management

- EDI (electronic ordering)

To help you understand what a good RMS can do for your business, here’s TRG’s guide to the main benefits.

1. Increased profits

Obviously, there’s little point investing in dedicated retail software if you’re not going to see a return on your investment, and good RMS software has numerous profit-boosting capabilities.

• Fewer pricing errors

Leaving your staff to price items can lead to pricing errors which cost you money. RMS allows you to set and control the price of every item in your store, minimising such errors. It will also calculate the REAL cost of any discounts you choose to make, e.g. how many more items you need to sell if you reduce the price by 5%.

• Control price points

Every item has a “magic” price point which maximises profits, but finding out what that price point is can take hours of research. RMS can analyse your sales records and tell you the ideal price for each item, i.e. the highest you can go while still selling as much as you can. Why sell at $2.49 when you can sell just as many at $2.99?

• Reduce dead inventory and maximise turnover

Do you really know what sells and what doesn’t? You might have a vague idea but RMS can tell you exactly which items are flying off the shelves and which are piling up in your stockroom, enabling you to phase out unpopular lines and focus on those which sell quickly, thus improving your cashflow.

• Reduce employee theft

Individual log-ons combined with daily profit margin, inventory control and voided/cancelled/deleted sales reports mean any thefts canbe spotted immediately. And by letting your employees know about the full capabilities of your POS software, they’ll be less likely to try and steal from you.

• Critical information

If a line suddenly stops selling (or suddenly starts!) it might take you a while to notice. But your RMS software will tell you immediately so you can adjust pricing to maximise profit or minimise loss.

• Electronic cheque verification

Bad cheques are still a big problem for retailers. But linking your POS system to an online electronic cheque verification service can help you minimise the damage done by bad cheques. Cheque verification services have been shown to enable retailers increase their collection rate on bad cheques to as much as 80%!

• Better rates from suppliers

By tracking any disparity between sales volume and profit margin, RMS can help identify which supplier deals you should be renegotiating! Showing a supplier how much of his product you’re selling is an essential tool in helping you get better deals.

2. Improve your marketing

It is cheaper to get business from existing customers than to go out and look for new ones, but are you doing all you can to get your customers to come back to your store again and again? Good RMS software can help you with this.

• Sales letters to customers

Following up a sale with a thank-you letter, information about related products or special offers/personal discounts is a great way to get repeat businesses. Detailed purchase records combined with professional, stylish letter generation can help you keep in touch with your customers and have them coming back for more.

• Automated mailings

Regular mailings (by post or e-mail) enable you to conduct drip/nurture marketing, a proven technique in retail. Using customer segmentation you can make sure you target the right customers with the right products and offers.

• Reports

Monitoring different types of marketing campaign and resulting sales can tell you what’s working and what isn’t, enabling you to establish what types of campaign work for which products.

• CRM compatibility

If you already have a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, your RMS software can interface with it and enable you to store detailed sales information for every customer. CRM + POS = essential market information more effective marketing.

3. Manage your inventory

Quick stock turnover = better cashflow, and RMS software can help you identify what’s moving, and what isn’t.

• Top sellers + dead inventory

Knowing what’s selling is essential to any retail business, and RMS can tell you what your top sellers are. Not only does this help you stay on top of pricing, but it also ensures you never run out of popular lines by automatically sending purchase orders to your suppliers when stocks start running low.

Equally, having lots of dead stock can tie up your cash and take up valuable stockroom space. RMS identifies slow or non-selling lines, helping you to take remedial action.

• Seasonal sellers

Some products sell especially well at particular times of year. RMS can provide you with detailed monthly or weekly sales breakdowns, identifying patterns and enabling you to time product orders and promotions.

4. Reduce accounting work

Bookkeeping is a time-consuming process and takes up valuable time you could be devoting to selling. RMS software cuts down the amount of accounting work you have to do by automating most of your processes.

• Process automation

RMS can automate tasks such as calculating monthly sales tax, printing monthly statements, entering sales transactions into Accounts receivable, posting receipts to journals, and posting transactions into general ledger software.

• Track debtors and creditors

By keeping close tabs on who owes you money and who you owe money to (and when it’s due), RMS helps you improve your cash flow management and ensures that your customers pay you on time, and that you keep your suppliers happy by meeting their deadlines.

• Maintain a clear audit trail

Everyone dreads end of year accounting and reconciliation, but RMS can take away this particular headache by keeping a clear audit trail throughout the financial year.

5. Make your customers happy

Happy customers mean more sales, and RMS software can help create a POS experience that will make your customer service special and memorable.

• Speed up the checkout process

A good RMS system will offer bar code checking, touch screens and instant credit card authorisation, meaning your customers have minimal waiting time at your checkouts and you get to sell more goods.

• Individual credit/discounts

With full customer data available at the touch of a button, personal discounts or credit can be applied immediately, meaning fewer misunderstandings or problems at the checkout.

• Fast order delivery

Some larger items need to be delivered to the customer’s home. Electronic POS can send details of the order to your warehouse before the customer has even left the store, enabling rapid delivery and a happy customer!

• Paper-free refunds

Mishandling a complaint or request for a refund is the easiest way to lose a customer, but how many refunds do you refuse simply because the customer has lost their receipt? As your RMS software stores a record of all purchases, you can call up electronic receipts and make sure that anyone who is entitled to a refund gets one, receipt or no receipt.

• Professional paperwork

RMS software produces crisp, clean, readable receipts, invoices and delivery notices that make you look professional and avoid any misunderstandings with your customers.

TRG International is proud to offer RetailPro, the global leader in Retail Management Systems. Used by over 55,000 retailers in more than 70 countries, it offers full retail/POS functionality, and combined with our experienced installation and technical support teams, it’s the perfect choice for Vietnamese retailers.

Tim Russell is Marketing Director at TRG International, one of Vietnam's leading providers of IT business solutions and services. Originally from the UK, he has been in Vietnam since 2003. Prior to coming to Vietnam he spent over a decade in the tourism industry in both operations and marketing, before moving into IT where he helped set up a company providing reservations software for tour operators and travel agents. He lives in Ho Chi Minh City with wife Nhung and daughter Emilie.

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Best Practices for Selecting Retail Software

By Austin Merritt

If you are like most retail executives, you don't view yourself as a software technology expert. In fact, you probably approach new information technology (IT) projects with trepidation and hand them off to the back-office staff or third-party consultants. This is an understandable fear, and one of the reasons retailers are still catching up to others in their adoption of technology.

The good news is that you probably already have the experience you need to change your company's success with IT; the same skills that make for effective retail operations can be applied to software selection. Just like opening a new store, selecting software requires meticulous planning and an accurate budget.

Why So Many Software Projects Fail

There are many reasons why IT projects fail, but we've isolated what we believe are the top four:
• Limited budgeting and planning;

• The wrong team for the job;

• Poor requirements planning; and,

• Lack of a rigorous selection process.

Ten Steps to Successful Software Selection

These ten clear steps should retailers through a successful, efficient selection process.

1. Assemble the Right Team. Start with an executive-level project sponsor to ensure the project gets the right funding and attention. Next, assemble a team of a store manager responsible for all details of the project, an IT staff if available, and end-users that will contribute their requirements and ideas.

2. Establish Clear Goals for the Project. All choices throughout the project should be weighed according to how well they help achieve goals such as: "Speed up the checkout process;" or "Improve inventory planning and purchasing.”

3. Build a Detailed Project Schedule. The next step is to create a project schedule that outlines all the major activities and their sub-tasks. Be sure to assign an owner to each activity and task, and to monitor progress with an Excel spreadsheet.

4. Create a Budget for the Project. For a successful project, it is critical to have an accurate budget to work against. Be sure to account for costs outside of the software itself, such as touch screens, printers, barcode scanners, and credit card processing terminals.

5. Define Your Requirements. As the most important step in the entire process, define your functional and technical requirements for the new system. Consider a simple list of features, as well as a thoughtful analysis of "current" versus "optimal" business processes.

6. Draft a Request for Proposal (RFP) and Evaluation Framework. The RFP will take the form of a list of questions, critical features, and technical requirements that can be sent to software vendors for their response. The evaluation framework spreadsheet should track each product's capabilities relative to your unique requirements.

7. Develop a Short List of Products. Create a "short list" of software products - three to five - by answering questions such as:
• Does the company serve your specific trade and business size?

• Do they meet your technology requirements and present a professional image?

8. Evaluate Short List Products. Using the feature-by-feature scores and the weightings for each requirement, rule out any product that falls short of your most critical requirements. After prioritizing the others according to their performance across all of your criteria, select one that you feel is best, and one runner-up.

9. Check Customer References. Do your "due diligence" by checking the winning vendor's customer references. To offset "cherry picking" of their happiest customers, require at least three references and prepare a detailed list of questions that require specific answers.

10. Negotiate the Deal. In determining the final price, consider key areas such as: what type of license does the vendor offer; how is the software priced; and, what are the maintenance and support policies. As a rule of thumb, the larger the check you write, the more room for negotiation.

Software selection is not easy and should never be considered a second tier project. The right software, implemented properly, can have a very positive effect on your business. Follow these guidelines and you are on your way to IT project success.

Austin Merritt is the Director, Operations of Retail Software Advice, a website dedicated to helping retailers research and select software applications. Email Austin at austin@softwareadvice.com or visit Retail Software Advice at http://www.softwareadvice.com/retail

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Shareware - Do You Have a Clue of What it Is?

By Mehmet Onatli

Have you heard of shareware? Are you in need of a software but are not sure if this software is what you need? If a website or any individuals offered you a try before you buy software, then this is what a shareware is. Software that you may use in its demo version and for purchase later on is what a shareware is.

Shareware is a form of marketing campaign where manufacturers induce customers to purchase the software by letting them try the product first. The trial product is most often the complete version with several upgrade or additional features that will unlock when you pay for the product.

Shareware is different from the retail software demo version because a shareware, while it is a trial copy, you can share it with friends and hopefully they get the same interest and will buy the full version.

Retail software trial version most of the time do not have the same features of the full version, retail software trial sometime is just a peak of what is in the actual software version.

Originally, sharewares are game softwares where customers will play the game with complete features up to a certain stage of the game. You can move to the next level if you pay for the product.

Today, however, the popularity and the profitability of sharewares are diminishing. The advent of the internet made it easy for people to download softwares. Some manufacturers even use shareware as a come on for people to give them their email address and the shareware is theirs for free.

Another issue that shareware is facing is the fact that many unscrupulous individuals develop softwares that does not do any good to people in the guise of a shareware.

The term shareware is thus dreaded because of the experience of many individuals with cripplewares, those softwares that are no good. Cripplewares are used to just get the email address of the customers.

The true essence of shareware is thus diminishing because of these factors. However, it may be worthy to note that there are many platforms where shareware could be useful to your computing needs.

Platforms of shareware include Microsoft Windows, Macintosh, Linus and UNIX. Shareware such as for business, education, home, multimedia, design, drivers, games, utilities and for software developments are available.

It may also be important to tell you that any useful software that you may try before you buy is a shareware. Again, you can share this trial version to your colleagues and if they like it, they may likewise buy the full version.

While it may be hard to find good quality shareware, by reading reviews on the internet you may find reputable shareware manufacturers and try these softwares from them.

You can download a free trial of the best registry cleaner from Mehmet website. He shares some of his things he learned in 10 years experience. Visit: http://www.registryheal.com/

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Do Everything You Want on Your PC For Free

By Steven Milbrandt

The owners of personal computers have marveled at all of the things these machines, these 'little boxes with monitor and mouse attached' can do. A computer can only do the amazing things that it does because of the software stored on its hard drive. The software or programs contain hundreds, even thousands of lines of code, which tells the computer what to do. Typically, if you purchase a computer at a retail location, it comes with certain software pre-installed. Often this includes the operating system, some games and word processing software. Manufacturers have license agreements with certain software manufactures and this often dictates what kinds of software you find on a newly purchased machine.

However, software publishers, especially commercial or enterprise publishers, have a keen interest in protecting their software property rights. This falls under an area of copyright law known as "Intellectual Property", and while a full discussion of intellectual property law is beyond the scope of this article, a few points are relevant here. Intellectual property law protects the property rights in creative and inventive endeavors and gives creators and inventors certain exclusive economic rights, generally for a limited time, to deal with their creative works or inventions. This provision is right and fair. However, commercial software owners have typically sought to extend their rights beyond what many consider reasonable.

The result is that many smart computer users have sought alternatives to the commercial software publisher and they have found it with software publishers who embrace the GNU or General Public License (GPL). Under a GPL the end-user is given significant permission, such as permission to redistribute, reverse engineer, or otherwise modify the software. The GPL is a form of open source license. Open source programs are programs that make the source code is available to the general public for use and/or modification from its original design free of charge.

Open source programs with a GPL license provide exciting new opportunities for you and I because it means the computer user is no longer forced to buy commercial or enterprise software, otherwise known as retail or "off the shelf" software in order for their computer to do those amazing things they have come to expect. Many people have taken their computers; machines bought from major retail outlets, and completely erased the hard drive. Why? They see the collective cooperation and efforts to maintain and modify computer program code collectively as not only freeing, but as more responsive to the users of these programs.

Making the underlying source code freely available means that when problems in a program are discovered, the users can modify it, fix it and potentially make it better in some respects than the original program. While the copyright with open source software still remains with the original publisher, the fact that any user can use and modify the original program provides significant advantages over proprietary retail software. One of the most significant advantages has already been mentioned.

Software licenses can generally be fit into one of two distinct categories: proprietary licenses and open source licenses. The main distinction of proprietary software licenses is that the software publisher grants a license to use one or more copies of software, but that ownership of those copies remains with the software publisher. One example of such a proprietary software license is the license for Microsoft Windows. As is usually the case with proprietary software licenses, this license contains an extensive list of activities that are restricted, such as: reverse engineering, simultaneous use of the software by multiple users, and publication of benchmarks or performance tests. However with an open source license ownership of a particular copy of the software does not remain with the software publisher. Instead, ownership of the copy is transferred to the end-user. As a result, the end-user is, by default, afforded all rights granted by copyright law to the copy. In addition to all the additional rights granted open source software users, this software is available free of charge for anyone to download, if you know where to look.

People have taken their computers, erased them and instead installed an entire collection of open source alternatives beginning with the operating system. An excellent open source operating system available free for anyone to download from the Internet is Linux. There are different variations of Linux available, but one of the most popular is Ubuntu because it is user friendly, easy to install and looks surprisingly similar in its graphical user interface to what they are already familiar with.

However, if you want to leave your computer's operating system alone and install open source software for free, that is a hassle free and fiscally responsible way to go. Many people don't realize that for every commercially available retail piece of software available, there is a free, open source program that you can download for free that performs as well or better than its retail competitor. Often, these programs outperform the retail competition

Companies like Source Forge provide wonderful programs freely available for anyone to download. Here are some examples of programs that you can find online. Want a free anti-virus; try Win Clam or AVG Free. Maybe you want a free Office Suite comparable and compatible with Microsoft Office. It is available in Open Office from Sun Microsystems. Perhaps you are a photographer and you want an alternative to Photoshop. Do a Google search for "Gimpshop" if that is the case. These are just a few examples of the hundreds of free high quality programs available for immediate download and use on the Internet.

It is important to know where to look for these programs. At the end of this article there are links to valuable resources in this respect. One simple trick you can use is to put the words "open source" plus the resource type you are looking for in a Google search. For example, the search term "open Source antivirus" will bring list free antivirus programs. It is true that you need to know how to properly search to separate the good from the not so good, but with a little knowledge and patience, you will uncover some gems. Soon you will wonder why you ever paid retail for proprietarily licensed programs. There is nothing wrong with the commercial software available at your local "big box" store or neighbourhood computer retailer, but with so many advantages, variety, and quality found in so many free general public licensed programs, why not give them a try?

For more information, please visit the "Save Hundreds on Software" tab at the top navigation bar of http://www.learnherenow.com You will find additional articles on this website. Please check out our sister site at http://www.stevenmilbrandt.com Thank you. It is hoped you find this article both helpful and informative.

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