Who hates Macola as much as me?

[PhilPPhillips]

How do they stay in business? Their software is horrible. Doing a Macola upgrade is a freaking nightmare. We recently upgraded from 7.6.100a to 7.6.300b. I am still (3 weeks later) trying to fix every issue that has popped up.

Here are the two most ridiculous problems I've encountered that show amazingly retarded programming/decision making by Exact.

Order Entry - I had previously added to our screen (on the line item side) the push button labeled "User Def". When pressing that button screen "OE0101U Line Items User Defined Fields" would open and we would enter data in 3 of the available user fields. It worked great, everyone was happy. After the upgrade, when you push the button (btw it's still called User Def in screen designer)a screen called "OEBEST OE Recalc" opens instead. When I asked Exact about this they just replied "That's the way it works now." HUH??? So how can I get the user defined box to pop up I ask. Can't do it, says they. HUh???? SO what about the users who used the button as you originally designed it, asks I. They will just have to recreate the whole order entry screen from scratch says Exact. Nice... I ask them why they didn't just create a new push button called "OEBEST" that opened the OEBEST screen leaving alone the User def push button so that the users who previously had used it had no problems. Never got an answer.

Billing - Before 7.6.300b when billing a customer order the tot_dollars field (in OEHDRHST_sql) would be updated so that it equaled tot_sls_amt + sls_tax_amt_1 + sls_tax_amt_2 + sls_tax_amt_3 + frt_amt + misc_amt. This worked great, tot_dollars = the amount written to the A/R open table. Everyone was happy and this made complete sense. I used this field in many sales reports and on our customer invoice (I created a Crystal report for our invoices). After the "upgrade" I get a call from one of my users. He tells me some of our customer invoices are wrong (and we had already mailed some out). That the invoice total is now including the backordered items too. HUH?? I was totally confused. I quickly realized that the tot_dollars field now equaled everything before plus the sum of the backordered items. That was a double HUH??. When I asked Exact about this they claimed many people had requested that change. I called them out on that claim because I couldn't figure out how anyone could possibly use that new total as it now meant nothing. No one at Exact could answer that question either. "Thats just the way it is now" was the response I got again.

So basically, they will just change their software without any regard for how it affects current users. I mean, I wasn't doing anything not supported. I was using the push button and tot_dollars field as they originally designed them to be used, but they just willy nilly changed the meaning of those to items leaving me with alot of cleaning up to do. They could have easily addressed the two issues they were trying to add to Progression without screwing around with what was already there. This was just lazy programming and horrible decision making.

We will be replacing Progession in the coming year so hopefully this will be my last upgrade. Sorry for the rant but I'm just venting.

 

[dgillz]

Its OK to rant, I do it all the time.

On item 1, you must have OE Best modified source code, or else some flexiblity or something. This is NOT the way standard, non-modified Macola 7.6.300b works. I can demonstrate if you'd like.

On item 2, I cannot address this without a significant time investment, but if you do have modified code (as I strongly suspect) then all bets are off.

There are several good Macola consultants that frequent this board, and most of them are better than anyone you'll talk to at Exact. Maybe of them can help. Good luck.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports

http://www.gainfocus.biz

 

[PhilPPhillips]

dgillz - I don't have any modified code or flexibility code. Unless you consider using the screen designer in Progression as modifying code but I have only hidden/unhiden or moved fields and changed tab orders there. That's it. If you go into a order entry screen and add the User Def button (for line items), it will pop up the oebest screen. Exact acknowledeged to me that now that is the proper response to that button.

I have read this board for quite awhile and have gotten alot of excellent answers from you and some of the other gurus here. Thanks for your time.

 

[dgillz]

Phil,

First of all, Best of OE in 7.6.100 IS modified source code. Now Exact did take parts of Best of OE and put it into 7.6.300, it did not take them all.

Secondly, and I don't mean any offense by this, I cannot believe your statement. I have 7.6.300b, both pervasive and SQL platforms, installed on my laptop and it does not work this way.

I also tested it at my client today, who has 7.6.300a, and it does not work that way there either.

Who are you dealing with at Exact? Are you dealing with Exact NJ? Or the support dept in Columbus, OH? If you are not dealing with OH, this is another sure sign you hve modifed code. I was dealing with Exact-NJ on a modified source code issue for AR Lockbox for one of my clients this week. Although I considered it a support call and called OH, they redirected me to NJ.

Everything else you say about Exact may be true (in fact I agree with a lot of it) but you are being steered wrong, I'll wager on it.

Let me know if I can help.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports

http://www.gainfocus.biz

 

[keain]

dgillz sprechen: "Who are you dealing with at Exact? Are you dealing with Exact NJ? Or the support dept in Columbus, OH? If you are not dealing with OH, this is another sure sign you hve modifed code. I was dealing with Exact-NJ on a modified source code issue for AR Lockbox for one of my clients this week. Although I considered it a support call and called OH, they redirected me to NJ."

Just a point of clarification here. The Columbus office does not field all support calls. The regional offices do have clients they support directly; and it is entirely possible to not have a single piece of modified code and still deal with the NJ office on support issues. However, if you do have modified code and the problem is with the modified code or as a result of it, you will be directed to the NJ office. Please note that screen designs do not count as modified code, but Best of OE does. You dont' have to modify the code yourself for it to be considered modified.

The Columbus office does serve as the escalation point for the regional support depts, so if there is a problem a regional office can't solve, the regional office contacts the Columbus office on behalf of the client and acts as a middleman. Or at least they should.

However, there are always exceptions. EDI and 'systems' calls always go to the Columbus office and do not get passed to the regional offices.

As for Phil's problem, even if he's switching to a new package next year, there's no reason for him to run into constant problems. As Dgillz said, if Exact can't help you, find a consultant who can.

Another potential issue for the runaround he got when he called is that Exact's Columbus support department just went through a massive reorg that put a lot of good support techs into positions where they have to start learning all over again from scratch.

 

[kscheeler]

I'm going to throw my 2 cents in as well as I like to do.

I agree with dgillz that the box on the OE screen works correctly in 7.6.300b.

The OE0101 screenset was changed in 7.6.300a or just 300 I believe. The screen ID that used to be for OE0101U (#102) was reset for the ATP push button. The new screen ID for OE0101U IS #120. You need to start over, recopy the MACOLA screenset for OE0101 to a user, like SUPERVISOR and recustomize it. Yes, I have had to do that as well for a few clients. Exact tells you that the screen customizations may or may not work after an update depending on changes to the screenset.

If you want everyone to use the same customized screenset, one thing that I read previously on this site and has worked well is to copy a customized screenset to MACOLAED. Everyone who doesn't have a customized screenset under their own ID will then use that one. You can't modify the MACOLAED one so you'll first have to modify it under a user like SUPERVISOR.

Now for point #2. I disagree with how you were using the tot_dollars field, especially for your invoices. Yes, it worked in your case but in a crystal report, you should be extending the line items, building in a line discount, totaling the lines and then adding to the sub total the freight, misc charges, sales tax 1,2,3 and any prepaid amount if applicable. Doing it that way, you can't go wrong.

Though you may be replacing Progression with something else, remember, the grass isn't always greener.

Kevin Scheeler

 

[abaldwin]

Could not resist but to put my $0.02 worth in.

The grass IS ALWAYS greener on the other side. Just that grass is going to be expensive to get to.

Macola has only made one mistake that I can tell in its entire history. Now granted this mistake (IMHO) has spawned a multitude of problems. When Macola decided to move to SQL they failed to re-write their software. Instead they wrote that d$%$#^#^@ middle layer to run on both db platforms. Since their implementation from DOS to windows was sloppy all further developement is going to be sloppy.

Construction Buddha say "If foundation is bad, building may look pretty but will be flushable in the end!"

I have the oe line button on one of my forms and it works like it is supposed to. I assume since the code is the same base stuff that it runs on both SQL and BTRIEVE.

Macola has one benefit for consultants. There is never going to be a lack of work needed. As one of my buds and I say....."Nothing that 10,000 hrs of programming wouldn't solve!" Yes you know who you are!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Of course your clients have to be willing to pay you to fix something the software should be doing in the first place. If Macola would refund maintenance and support fees to customers with problems directly related to macola updates, changes, etc. they would either.
1. Fix their software problems OR
2. Go broke trying.

Laterdays

Andy


Andy Baldwin