Main Feature: The Gordian Knot
We've all heard the term "Gordian Knot", but do you ever wonder about the origins of this particular saying?
The Phrygians occupied an area that is now central Turkey around the 4th century BC. They found themselves without a legitimate king. By and large, it was decreed by an oracle that the next man who entered the city with an ox-cart should become their king. This just so happened to be a poor peasant named Gordias. Must have been his lucky day! And if there was any doubt to the oracle's prophecy, an eagle landed on the cart just as he came in to the gates of the city. All hail King Gordias!
Gordias' son Midas (who gained his own notoriety later as having a golden touch) dedicated the ox-cart to one of the Phrygian gods, and tied on its shaft an intricate knot made out of the bark of the dogwood tree. An oracle further decreed (again, these oracles with their decrees!) that the one to untie the knot would become the king of all of Asia.
Along comes Alexander the Great, who happened to be wintering his army nearby at Gordium, around 333 BC. Not one to forgo a challenge, Alexander the Great studied the problem carefully. The crux of the problem seemed to be that there were no loose ends to begin untying. After no doubt a careful review of the oracle's prophesy, not to mention clarification on the rules associated, Alexander sliced the knot in half with his sword, created his own loose ends, and proceeded to untie the knot.
Now it's not clear if Alexander the Great broke the rules of the prophesy or not, but he did go on to conquer all of Asia. No dispute there.
To this day this type of action is referred to as "The Alexandrian Solution" - taking a bold, innovative and non-traditional approach to problem solving. This is the kind of thing The Socrates Group specializes in - carefully studying the problem, identify possible solutions, and help to implement the one that has the best chance of success.
Leaving you to go on and conquer your own business world!
Employee Profile: Matthew Anderson
Matthew Anderson comes from, in his own words, every undesirable job imaginable Ð bussing tables, dishwasher, sandwich maker, among others. Given the talent he displays in his day to day activities programming for The Socrates Group, heÕs clearly found his calling, and no longer considers his professional life "undesirable". And the restaurant world will have to manage without his contribution, as the business software world clearly has his attention.
A recent graduate of Western Washington University, Matthew has a Bachelors of Arts from the College of Business and Economics, with a major in Management Information Systems. The course of study allowed him to merge the tangible fundamentals of business and commerce with the more esoteric world of software and programming. This makes Matthew a natural and valuable asset to The Socrates Group, whose primary focus is on software applications that run businesses systems.
Matthew has been with The Socrates Group for about 8 months, first as in intern starting February of Ô08, and then as a full-time employee in August. In that time his workload has grown from fine-tuning internal systems to interacting with customers on billable projects. His latest completed work involved querying a database for customer orders and then passing that data into QuickBooks, the customerÕs accounting software package. ÒIt was a challenge,Ó says Matthew. ÒItÕs one thing to learn about creating possibilities in an academic environment, and quite another to actually implement something for a customer who is bound by budget constraints and the need for return on their investment.Ó
Matthew is clearly up to that challenge. One need only ask the customers heÕs supported!
When not working, itÕs the outdoors and all its activities that occupy MatthewÕs time - camping, hiking, climbing, or anything offering time away from the constraints of society. Matthew is truly one of those looking forward to the first snowfall, ushering in the new ski season. But not to be confined to wilderness activities exclusively, heÕs also gained a reasonable proficiency at ÒDisc GolfÓ, shooting a 5 under par on a 9 hole course. (If you havenÕt tried it, itÕs not as easy as it looks!)
The Socrates Group recognized the talents Matthew could bring, and when it came time to transition from ÒinternÓ to ÒemployeeÓ there was whole-hearted and enthusiastic support from all involved. Bob Jones, president of The Socrates Group supports that assertion. ÒItÕs not often that someone of MatthewÕs programming and software talent comes packaged with an understanding of business processes and economics. The combination makes Matthew a valuable contributor on the team,Ó says Bob.
The Bellingham and regional business communities can expect to hear more from Matthew as his skills and experience are further refined!
Microsoft Access: The Swiss Army Knife
Thinking of using Microsoft Access to manage business data? Be careful and think it through, first. Access is like a Swiss Army Knife: lots of blades, many of them useful, but you would not use a Swiss Army knife to build a house.
Access is a database engine, a user interface framework and a report writer, all rolled into a single tool. It is relatively easy to learn and if all you need is a single user tool to manage personal data, Access can be a great choice. On the other hand, if you build something useful to your business, other people may want to use it, and that is where you start running into the limitations of Microsoft Access.
The most significant limitation of Access is its database. Access is fine for small single user applications, but as you add more users and your database grows, performance degrades. Simple example: one of our clients used a simple Access database to capture order shipment information. As the database grew, it could take as much as 5-7 minutes of searching to find a single record.
Fortunately, there is a simple work-around to the limitations of using the Access database engine: use Microsoft SQL Server instead. There is a version that is free and it can be relatively straight forward to convert an Access database to a SQL Server database if (and only if) you have not developed any Òbad habitsÓ in the way you coded your application. Remember that order shipment database I mentioned in the last paragraph? When we converted it to use SQL Server, the search time dropped to less than one second.
What about Access as a user interface development tool? ItÕs OK, but it is not even in the same ball park as Microsoft Visual Studio which is much more powerful, but also harder to learn. Although Access can be used to develop web based applications, they are a bit of a kludge. Access applications execute on the userÕs desktop, so the program has to be distributed to every user. As use grows, support and maintenance challenges grow too.
Finally, Access is a report writer. ItÕs actually pretty good as a report writer, but not as powerful as Crystal Reports or SQL Reporting Services, and Access reports cannot be embedded in web-based applications.
I have been developing data intensive applications that run business processes for over forty years, and have learned that the one-tool-fits-all model seldom does a good job. I have an old Shopsmith multi-function tool sitting in a corner of my garage. It is a table saw, a joiner, band-saw, drill press, lathe and disc sander all in a single tool. I loved my old Shopsmith and still use it for small projects. But if I want to build anything serious, I borrow my sonÕs DeWalt and Bosch tools. They are so much better than my one tool that does anything poorly.
Customer Profile: ProPack
ProPack, located in Blaine, Washington, is a company that manages the logistics of warehousing and shipping products, a field known as Third Party Logistics, or 3PL for short. The services ProPack provides to its customers has clear advantages Ð from wholesale courier rates, to space management issues, to time definite deliveries. ProPack has seen tremendous growth almost from their inception back in 1991.
ProPack teamed up with The Socrates Group back in 2003 with the expressed intention of providing an interim solution to an ongoing problem with their warehousing software systems. As a Pick and Pack provider, ProPack had many clients, each of whom had many clients. Each client had a unique rate structure and services requirements. Faced with continuing to throw good money after problems that the classic software package would never be able to address, Dan Lucht of ProPack asked Bob Jones of The Socrates Group (at the time DeWaard & Jones) to help design an interim solution while they investigated a warehousing software package that could meet their needs.
As often happens, the interim solution turned out to be the basis for an all encompassing solution that The Socrates Group was able to build.
Consider the challenges that ProPack faced before the engagement Ð invoicing customers was a complex manual procedure that could take nearly 3 weeks to manage. The very act of adding new customers eroded profit margins as ProPack would have to add staff and customer support activities simply to manage incremental growth.
Where are they now? Invoicing is now a process thatÕs handled in a matter of minutes. The addition of an online interface allows customers to check their account status, increasing the quality of customer service while decreasing the cost of same. And automated order validation and acceptance further eliminates expenses.
ProPack was able to QUADRUPLE shipments without adding any staff or hardwareÉ doing a LOT more with the same amount of resources.
ProPack continues to use the solutions The Socrates Group put in place. Building that solid foundation early on has allowed ProPack to expand sensibly and effectively, with software managing the tasks that would normally be handled by a large staff more accurately and efficiently. Currently ProPack has 3 buildings and 45,000 square feet of space, an excellent reputation, and continued plans to grow.
Upcoming Events:
Classes and events for Business Professionals in Whatcom and Skagit counties
"SQL Server Certificate Programs (WWU)"
January 2009
405 32nd Street, #209
Bellingham, WA 98225
360-650-3308
Website:
www.acadweb.wwu.edu/eesp/sql/sql_devspec.shtml
SQL Server Development Specialists course, led by Instructor Rob Schripsema, Senior Developer
at "The Socrates Group".
"Ground Rules for a Better Life"
Saturday, Nov. 1, 2008
Whatcom Community College - Kelly Hall #106
9 AM to 3 PM
Website: www.whatcomcommunityed.com
A class for adults who want to take full responsibility for their lives, and live with more integrity and accountability.
Led by Bob Jones of "The Socrates Group" and "The Mankind Project"
"Bellingham Chamber of Commerce"
Various events scheduled throughout the month January
Website: http://www.bellingham.com/
Click on "Events" tab for a listing of upcoming events with the Bellingham Chamber
