ECi Releases DDMS® 8.11
ECi has begun shipping Version 8.11 in waves beginning on Tuesday, November 22, 2006, to customers who have requested the software update.
This message covers the following timely topics:
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What's New in Version 8.11?
DDMS Version 8 includes many features to help your company streamline procedures and take advantage of new technology:
- Customer Price Plans. To help you protect your margins and ensure your profitability, ECi has reinvented contract maintenance formerly handled by the (ET) screen. Enjoy the new wizard-like interface as you build, update, and assign customer contracts, price plans, or pricing matrices.
Look into what-if scenarios without affecting your current price plans. Modify costs and prices to see the effects of different pricing percentages while retaining your original pricing. Modify and recalculate until you have the pricing you want.See Customer Price Plan setup instructions (pdf) »
- Price Modeling. Like its predecessor (SG) [J], you can use the new Price Modeling application to measure the profitability of past sales as compared to initial pricing. Now you have amazing spreadsheet ability to model pricing. For example, pull the history of a very specific item category or customer department. Then filter the list by year to date hits above a certain number or in a certain range. Evaluate the profitability of past sales, compared to your original pricing. Then, use an existing account as a template for a new price model, and/or select new pricing options. Once a satisfactory price model has been created, the on-screen end results can be printed, saved for future price modeling, saved as a new contract, or exported to a Microsoft® Excel® file. See Price Modeling setup instructions (pdf) »
- Furniture Purchasing Communications. ECi has released new purchase order transmission services via the Private Supply Network for two furniture manufacturers. Kimball® and National™ will receive orders and send acknowledgements via the PSN. See Setting Up and Using the Kimball PSN for DDMS (pdf) » and Setting Up and Using the National PSN for DDMS (pdf) »
- Tie Meter to Machine. The Machine database now retains usage meter records for each machine. Previously, meter records were kept solely in the Contract database. Some meter-related readings remain linked with the contract, where related to billing, overages, and so on. Contract reading records can certainly vary as contract types, equipment placement, and ownership change. However, other hard meter readings are now tied directly to the equipment and are available throughout its entire historical life to assist in service analysis and future procurement decisions.
See Machine Meter Enhancements setup instructions (pdf) »
- Improved Furniture Delivery and Install Marking. From time to time, furniture dealers need to adjust the delivery and install dates for an order or line item. You can use the Delivery/Install dialog box to specify the actual install date. The system will automatically update Project Management. In turn, you can generate delivery and install tickets based on the actual dates you need them.
See Marking and Billing Items for Partial Delivery (page 43 in PDF) »
- SQL Reporting of Sales Data. All the information for your sales reports is now available in industry-standard Structured Query Language (SQL), a widespread standard for manipulating relational databases. See Can I Use SQL Tools to Report My Sales Data? below »
- Next Generation Program Architecture. Some applications released in DDMS Version 7.11 and higher use a SQL database engine and .NET programming architecture. This may require some changes to ensure proper file backups and data synchronization. See What's So Important about SQL and .NET? »
This list of enhancements above is not exhaustive. Get more information on our Web site:
- Before you load any software update, check our Web site for last-minute changes that may affect you in Release Notes.
- For information about all released changes, use Program Updates on our Web site to look up all corrections and enhancements released in Version 8.11, Version 8.11.20, Version 8.11.21, Version 8.11.40, and other versions. Note: If a version has a .X extension, it means that we have completed and tested a change, but have not yet assigned it to a specific released software version.
- For information about enhancements released in the DDMS Version 8 software, see What's New in Version 8.
- For additional information about specific features, use your online help after you load the software update. You can search for keywords such as "Modeling."
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How Can I Request My Software Update?
If you would like to take advantage of the new features in Version 8.11, please send a "Request for Version 8.11" to ddmssupport@ecisolutions.com, and include your DDMS account number, contact name, company name, shipping address, and phone number.
For a preview of the Version 8 installation instructions that are included in the package, see Installing Version 8 DDMS (pdf). This document explains how to install Version 8, including.
- Information about using the new EnsiteEBS Utility to validate and import your data into the SQL database used by Customer Price Plans and Price Modeling and other applications written in our Titan architecture.
- Instructions on file "compression" to accommodate new data fields.
- Journal parameter setup steps to
- Important steps to share a new folder on the server before installing the client software update.
- How to adjust your backup scripts to properly back up new SQL database files.
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What's So Important About SQL and .NET?
Some DDMS applications have begun to use a new programming architecture:
- Version 7.11's Campaign Manager and Notes Everywhere
- Version 8.10's Bank Statement Reconciliation
- Version 8.11's Customer Price Plans and Price Modeling
These are the first in a new generation of DDMS®applications incorporating elements of ECi’s new Enterprise Business System (EBS) architecture, codenamed Project Titan. It offers an enhanced user interface and utilizes Microsoft's latest SQL Server database architecture and the Microsoft C# (pronounced See Sharp) for .NET programming framework.
This technology is the key to DDMS's evolution to an enterprise-class business system. It provides ECi with new development tools, improved databases, a new smart-client architecture, a more intuitive user experience, improved enterprise scaling and more.
Action Required To Use These Applications
As a consequence of the new tools and tighter control of data types in this new architecture, some preparations may be required:
Backing Up SQL Data, Version 7.11 and above (pdf) Beginning with Version 7.11 released September 21, 2005, some DDMS® applications use a SQL database engine that stores data in a different folder than the standard volumes. It’s important to ensure a complete backup in the event that you need to restore. Follow these instructions to verify that the SQL data is included in your daily and other period-end backup procedures.
Using the EnsiteEBS Utility Program (pdf) Before you can use Customer Price Plans, Price Modeling, and so on, your DDMS data must be initially validated, corrected as needed, and imported into the SQL database. After this initial processing, your data will be automatically synchronized thereafter. Use the EnsiteEBS Utility program in Version 8.11 and higher to confirm SQL connectivity to the server, ensure your data is valid before attempting to import it, and then import the data required to use the new applications.
Version 8.11 EnsiteEBS Conversion Only Required for New SQL Applications This message is from your ECi Technical Support team, to provide guidance as you implement groundbreaking new features.
On our Web site under Release Notes, more information is available about the new technology: Preparing for DDMS® Enterprise-class Business System (EBS) Applications.
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Can I Use SQL Tools to Report My Sales Data?
Part of the task of creating Version 8.11's Price Modeling application involved rewriting all of DDMS's sales history databases and tables in SQL and .NET.
As a result, all the information for your sales reports are now available in industry-standard Structured Query Language (SQL), a widespread standard for relational databases.
Our goal in an upcoming release is to provide you with standard DDMS reports in SQL format. We are also planning to release an intuitive interface to DDMS SQL data, so that you can make basic report modifications.
In the interim, you can use any third party SQL reporting tool such as Crystal Reports® or Microsoft® Access® to design and save your own reports from DDMS SQL sales data. For example, you can drill down to various levels of detail, customize the headers and footers, and export to Excel, PDF, and other options. All third-party SQL reporting tools are outside the scope of ECi Technical Support. They are designed for users who have experience creating SQL statements for relational databases.
If you don't already use those commercial tools, but are familiar with designing SQL queries and reports, we can make an alternative tool, C1 Report Designer, available to you for free.
ECi has no plans to support custom SQL statements or any third-party SQL reporting tool, including C1 Report Designer. The ComponentOne® HelpCentral offers documentation and a community forum to support C1 Report Designer, which is part of ComponentOne Studio® and ComponentOne Reports™ for .NET Designer Edition.
Of course, ECi supports the accuracy and integrity of the new SQL tables, as required to operate DDMS applications. To test your connection to the DDMS SQL database, and then validate and import your existing inventory and sales history data, you must use the EnsiteEBS Utliity.
*The C1 Report Designer tools require authorization; contact sales@eci2.com. back to top
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