You said you'd much prefer an in-house, FOSS solution over Software as a
Service, so what I'm about to say is probably a nonstarter. However, have
you considered Salesforce.com? It's not just a CRM, there's also a whole
Service & Support application plus you've got the AppExchange were you can
find tons of applications delivered as a service. Also, there's the
Force.com Platform as a Service where you can build and deploy custom
applications and there's an API (with the more expensive package) so you
could integrate it into your existing applications and websites. We don't
use it (at least not yet - too expensive) but are planning on doing some
Salesforce.com API integration work for a client.
Obviously the biggest problem is trusting them with your data. My opinion is
that it's there job to keep your data secure and if they don't do their job,
they're taking on a huge risk of losing customers - there's market pressure
to keep your data safe and secure. Of course, it's still proprietary but at
least there's an API (if you pay for the more expensive package) so you can
get at your data and potentially move it if they do something to annoy you
(certainly very difficult, but not impossible).
I find it interesting that FOSS advocates tend to cringe at the idea of
Software as a Service. What is it that people find offensive about the
concept - that your data is stored by someone else, that it's a proprietary
platform (what if standard protocols are used?), or is it something else? I
quite like the idea of Software as a Service, we use Google Apps for our
business, for example. Perhaps there is a market for an open-source Platform
as a Service so that Software as a Service applications wouldn't be locked
into a particular vendor?
Thanks,
Bradley
On Mon, Apr 14, 2008 at 1:58 PM, sth <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
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> So, my esteemed partner (Zach Chambers) and I are on the hunt for a
> package to unify the various systems we use at ClearBearing to run our
> operations. We're currently using eGroupWare[1], RT[2], MediaWiki[3],
> QuickBooks Pro[4], and a custom app that we've developed in-house over
> the past nine years. Having disparate systems, of course, entails a
> certain amount of overhead (read: duplication of effort), as does the
> maintenance of our home-grown package.
>
> My question is this: are any of you other consultants out there using a
> single FOSS package (or commercial package, for that matter) to run your
> daily operations? Our list of required features is pretty weighty, but
> we're optimistic that there's SOMETHING out there that would hit the
> mark, +/- 5%. Here's what we need:
>
> + transactional history (no, not in the DB sense)
> ++ free-text notes on every interaction with the client
> ++ time/expense/mileage tracking for each of those interactions
> ++ attachment of that time/expense/mileage to one or more tasks, each of
> which is itself attached to a project
> + request tracking ("trouble ticketing", but more broad)
> + project management (project task planning/assignment)
> + flexible reporting (business metrics, planning, HR)
> + invoicing with a flexible business rules management system (BRMS)
> + printed- and electronically-delivered (PDF) invoices
> + easily-edited, structured documentation
> + hosted in-house (this is our business-critical data, and our
> clients' private information; we'd VASTLY prefer to own
> the whole shootin' match)
>
> (Yes, this is why we have 4 established packages and a homegrown app.)
>
> It occurred to me that Amicus Attorney[5] or similar could be bashed
> into fitting the bill, but 1) last I knew, that was a Win32-only affair
> and 2) the less bashing we'd need to do, the better.
>
> So: I cast this out to the Hive Mind and eagerly await your collective
> response. (The part after, "We are the Borg...")
>
>
> Cheers,
>
> - -sth
>
> [1] http://www.egroupware.org
> [2] http://www.bestpractical.com/rt
> [3] http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/MediaWiki
> [4] http://quickbooks.intuit.com
> [5] http://www.amicusattorney.com
>
> sam hooker|[EMAIL PROTECTED]|http://www.noiseplant.com
>
> Yes, my television runs Linux, too. Yes, really.
> http://mythtv.org
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