Technology

[Nickrosis]

What do people have for technology with your businesses? Obviously everyone here has some computer skills, or they wouldn't be here. This is what I'm wondering:

Accounting - is this fully automated or completely by hand?

Proposals - by hand? typed? word processed?

Work Orders - who has a software package that generates these? do people even use these?

Job Records - do you record what you did? how?

Laptops - use them? handheld computers?

Let's put our heads together to find some cost-effective ideas.

Nickrosis

 

[DDM]

I Use Quickbooks accounting Which i find is very useful i can tell in less than a minute what cash flow for the month looks like. I do type proposals from Word
And i Love my PDA it never lets me forget an appointment . It has an annoying reminder buzzer that goes off i even use it for a alarm clock plus it is fully synchronized with my Desktop So all of my contacts ect are on both Plus i Download maps from mapquest onto it saves me from trying to keep up with paper maps.

 

[Greg]

I've been trying to justify a PDA, I didn't think about the maps. I am constantly using mapquest to find houses. It is so good I rarely ask for directions.

I use a cheap invoice software for typed proposals, estimates, & invoces --they look really professional that way, but more often I just hand write out estimates becasue I don't have a laptop in my truck. I try to preprint the billing invoice the day before I do a job, but more often do that by hand also. I keep carbon copys of everything I do by hand.

I track customers in an Excel database that I created.

I also do my books using Excel --I am going to buy Quickbooks before the end of the year, I have friends that use it and love it, even print their own checks.

I use Word for any letters I need to type.

One thing I love about the PC (and miss on the board DARIN) is spellcheck, makes me look smarter --I need all the help I can get.
Greg

 

[treeman82]

Speaking of Darin, has anybody heard from him at all lately? Last time I talked with him (over a month ago) he was down in Virginia I think?

 

[DDM]

Mapquest will Download to a PDA thru avantgo Which works very well. I'm sure i havent even found all the time saving possibilities yet. Im looking into a quickbooks for it to Sync together so i wont have to remember to make estimates when i get in at nite.

 

[Stumper]

Nick, I'm a "primitive" Arborist. I climb with my toenails and gnaw off the limbs with my teeth.
Actually, paper and pen for the proposals and invoices. Old fashioned map for finding unfamiliar addresses.

 

[Nickrosis]

Just want to let everyone know that I am writing a program for Palm Pilots that will allow you to enter the diameter of the ends of a log, its length, and species. The software answer immediately with the log's weight in pounds and kilograms.

I will inform you when it is available, but I need a couple months since I won't be near a computer for the rest of the summer.

Nickrosis

 

[DDM]

Nick when you finish with that one i want a program Where i can take a picture of the tree Scan it and it will let me know how many times i am going to fill up the chip truck.

 

[Kevin]

Nick, that`s already been done but I`m not sure if it`s any different for the pp.

 

[Nickrosis]

Dave, I'll get to work on that right away.

Kevin, what was it written for? A desktop? Palms and Visors have their own operating system, Palm OS, which requires programs to be compiled by a Palm compiler.

If you could talk the original programmer into releasing his source code, we could compile it for the Palm OS and save a lot of time.

Nickrosis

 

[Kevin]

Nick, I just sent you an email on the subject.

Kevin,
The Tree Reaper

How`s that for a handle !

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Tree raper? Rapper?

 

[Nickrosis]

That program is useful, but you would have to calculate the number of BF in the log first. Knowing the end diameters, length, and species would be much simpler when you are in the field. This would have to be a quick deal - punch in 3 numbers and behold! the weight.

Tom Dunlap provided link to a website that works similarly to what I would want to achieve, only in something that is handheld, obviously. His link was: http://www.woodweb.com/Resources/RSCalculators.html ...You'll find these and other great pieces of information at I can't breath! I'd tell where if I could....

Still taking ideas and suggestions.... What other things would you like to see in a handheld unit? Or desktop for that matter...that would be even easier. If there is a formula or equation you have, it can be implemented into a program.

Nickrosis

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

For a proposal i use QuickBooks Invoice with title changed to 'Proposal', then when the job is complete, they both look the same with any additions at the bottom.

i make my own forms in word 50 at a time on colored paper; then feed into Quickbooks to fill in date, number customer and sales info, telling QuickBooks it is a pre-printed form. My QuickBooks from 3.1 still works very well!

How about a laser pointer with a 1" light? OK ma'am; we are taking out this branch , that branch and you don't want any of this other stuff touched................... OK, go get this branche etc.; she doesn't want to 'buy' in to these others.......