Point of Sale Software

Here are some Articles from the Blog Subject - computer -

Digital Counting now with weighting Scales

POS SOFTWARE

 

Counting scales

Counting coins, screws, componentry, pills, and other items can be a real pain for many of you. So what is a real timesaver is the counting functions available with the new weighing scales. Imagine trying to count these items in this video. Without such scales, I doubt you could sell items like this successfully. 

 

Now you are going to find using such scales is so much better than counting by hand. It will open up many new products for you.

Note a common problem with scales.

My advice with scales is to overbuy. It's false economy to restrict yourself to what you think you need. Invariably, you will need more than what you believe, you will not be sorry if you get slightly bigger.

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Some keyboard shortcuts in POS software 

POS SOFTWARE

Everyone wants to supercharge their data entry. For this reason, we provide many windows shortcuts to speed up data entry.

These keyboard shortcuts can provide you with some real-time savings.

Go to the data entry point, enter many characters, cover them with the cursor, and press Ctrl+C on the keyboard. This will copy what you have covered in memory. Now press the space bar a few times. Then press Ctrl+V. This will paste what you put in memory. If you need to repeat what you have written many times, this can save time.

If you make a mistake, don’t worry. Would you please press Ctrl+Z on your keyboard? It is the undo. By selecting Ctrl+Z, you roll back your last operation. This can be a real saviour.

Another shortcut I often use in our software is Win+D. This minimizes all your open windows. This allows me to deal with some things else on the computer immediately. Now press Win+D again, pretty nifty, huh.

Another one that I like to use if I have to leave a computer quickly and I have security concerns is Win+L.

Try to get used to using these shortcuts because they are a real timesaver so we have done a lot of work to make sure they work in your POS software.

Comments

The one to switch to the main window is very useful. Can you give us more such tips

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Look at this pink computer people we are selling now.

POS SOFTWARE

 

People try very hard to make the shop look good. To fit into this image, few people today want an old computer on the front counter. It is a bad look and gives your business the wrong impression.

So for a little more, people are buying cool computers like this for the shop. It comes with flashing lights too.

Its also a trend I have noticed for home computers too, more and more people want computers that not only are good but look fabulous too

 

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Xero outage shows the problems in cloud

POS SOFTWARE

Cloud computing is when you do not have the software on your computer but run online on someone else computer.

Latest night, one of our users contact us because Xero was not working. We thought it might have been their password, so we recommended that they changed it. But, they told us that they could not log in to change the password. So we investigated and discovered that Xero was down. Xero admitted the problem. Unfortunately it did not release an ETA time when it would be fixed, something I'm not too fond. Luckily it was not the end of the month, all we could is wait. I did check about 2 am and was relieved to see it was fixed.

This incident highlights one main problem of the cloud: many factors need to happen to make it work. Often like Xero here, besides both your own and Xero computer and equipment, it needs a continuous internet connection to make it work. So the best you can do with the internet connection often is Telstra or Optus and both go down.

That is why we recommend critical systems, e.g. EFTPOS, have a *LOCAL* mode to work offline. That way, if the cloud goes down, you can still function.

That is also why our POS System has a hybrid cloud option.

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Integrating Biometrics in your POS System

POS SOFTWARE

Biometrics security is when you use peoples fingerprints, facial pictures, etc rather than passwords. Many mobile phones use it. Many of our clients use it on their POS Software for over four years since we first introduced it to our marketspace. 

One of my clients met a credit card, where the information was swiped. The owner of the card did not know it was swiped. Swiping leaves no trace. A girl with the info went on a shopping spree. She did not take long to spend just under $30,000. With the new biometric cards, this will be impossible. 

Soon I suspect all retailers will have no choice but to use biometrics as the banks move to this security. So if credit card details are known, even with the PIN without the owner's finger, it cannot be used.

In theory, whether in practice one hack is proposed for the most popular types of biometrics security, which most of us use. It is claimed that it can be cracked.

Now we use the fingerprint method.

This involves some new equipment that is not expensive. Its big plus is that even if others know the password, they cannot get in so its much more secure

Yet, although people talk about the advantages of biometrics, it does have some drawbacks.

Delay: This is the big one. It takes too long. You have customers queued up, and the operator, if they have to wait a few seconds to process, is just too long. That is why we currently do not use it on the cash register.

COVID, as fingerprints are contact-based, people do not want to keep pressing the same pad as everyone else. 

Errors caused by the sensors, which are not perfect, cause problems. Although a fingerprint is better than a pin, errors still occur. Some court studies show the error rate, fingerprints errors showed they vary from 3% to a dismal 20%.

Shops are dirty environments, so people have wet hands, dirty fingers, etc. Often the operator has to wipe their hands, then try again. This causes more delays.

Our system is often used by people with physical disabilities, e.g. MS. They can have problems using the fingerprint scanner. 

Have a chew and if you want to know more, let us know. 

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A problem with Windows 11 upgrade: The security

POS SOFTWARE

 

Most people say to wait until Windows 11 is bedded down, which is sound advice. Many cannot wait.

We all want to have the latest technology, so I have installed a few Windows 11 Development systems.I would say that about half the installs are good. On these, it runs well, although you can see that it is not yet a complete system. For the rest, I have been reversing the upgrade because of problems. The problem is often huge.

What after speed is the factor that most of us look at - SECURITY. 

How often do we hear nowadays of security problems on the computer, EVERY DAY?

Windows 11 is both faster and is based on better security. Yet on many computers after the upgrade, the security is off and cannot be turned on. Then I found that few antivirus software works on these computers, although I got a good run with Bitdefender. Then there is more than the security functions not working. Weird other errors happen on these computers. The security function not working is a symptom that something else is wrong. Then you often get on those computers the green screen of death.

So far, I have never had a problem reversing the upgrade going back to Windows 10. I then set the Windows Insider Program to beta, and in a month, we will try again.

Some tips if you can't wait and want to try out the latest Windows 11 as soon as possible.

Only install Windows 11 Dev version on a second computer lying around. I used my home media player first. Worst case, I thought, I will reformat it, then make a new media player. Although I do not know why the sound is much richer on Windows 11.

Windows 11, I can see, does have bugs. 

Also, be aware that there will be incompatible driver issues. Many of you may, in the upgrade, will lose a working peripheral, such as a printer. This is as many manufacturers have stated that some of their models will not get Windows 11 drivers. 

Acknowledge you are upgrading only for fun and experimentation now. 

Also would you please not buy any computer that cannot run Windows 11? I know some of these are at a good price, but still, you want something that will give you many years of service. 

A good way of checking is using this Detection Script to help identify why your PC is not Windows 11 Release Ready

Microsoft hasn't yet revealed the actual release date of Windows 11, but it is generally expected in October if nothing goes wrong. Then give it six months before the business community starts to buy it, so we are looking at about April 2022.

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Pepper, the robot sacked after repeated firing.

POS SOFTWARE

 

Pepper is a robot that they told us would revolutionise the retail market is a semi-humanoid robot designed to read emotions. Using this it could they claim chat to customers in a grocery shop. So one company in Scotland hired a one to direct people to where various products are. Pepper was fired soon because no matter what product people asked for, it told them to "look at alcohol." Now some here may  like such a robot but not the owner of the grocery shop. It was also suppose to do stocktakes that apparently did not work out either.

It was also hired by a Japanese nursing-home company to keep residents company and lead group singalongs. Peppers was fired thereafter for taking "unplanned breaks" at work. Plus the residents did not like them. It got fired from a funeral home and schools for similar reasons too.

It's being used now in a vaccination centre in Wyndham, Victoria. Anyone see it, please tell me about it.

Here is an interview with pepper the robot, its very interesting.

POS Solutions was invited to attend an Australian launch of a similar product which was very interesting but at the time we felt that this technology was not moving as fast as we were told.

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Tips to clean a monitor

POS SOFTWARE

Screens get dirty in a shop. They can also get easily be damaged. Then even a tiny flaw on the screen stands out.

For deep cleaning, you need some household or commercial grade disinfectant that states on the label it is viricidal or listed with specific COVID-19 claims. So first wet a microfibre cloth. Now wipe the screen with this damp cloth. Do not use force.  Now wipe with a dry microfibre cloth.

But do not clean the monitor while it is on as it is hot. Let it cool down. A good time to do it is in the morning before you start it up. What can happen is the evaporation of the cleaning material can cause streaks. 

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Check if Your Computer will Run Windows 11?

POS SOFTWARE

This post will show you how to test if your computers can run Windows 11

Generally, a computer most people, banks, government, etc., see as a five-year investment. So they expect that a new computer, will run the latest stuff for a few years. Then almost everything for a few years after that.  After that, what you get is considered by them a bonus.

Not surprisingly, we now know that Windows 11 will not officially support all computers. What is surprising is how many modern computers it will not support. So many people are disappointed that their expectation of a quick and free upgrade is wrong. What they now have is a computer that will become obsolete in a few years. This isn't very pleasant to someone that just brought a new computer.

Conversely, now is an excellent time to buy computers. This is as you know if it can run Windows 11, you will have about five good years with that computer. 

The good news for our clients is that we checked most of our recently marketed computers. We are happy to say that so far, all these computers have passed the Windows 11 test below. It pays to do business with a company like ours with a Microsoft connection. 

Now is Windows 11 worth it? 

The answer appears to be *YES* for commercial purposes. POS Systems need speed, and Windows 11 is fast. 

Testing whether your computers will run Windows 11

Unfortunately, Microsoft has removed the official Windows 11 test. Yet, an unofficial test with the current known requirements is available here

On this page halfway down, click on *Download latest testing release*

Now run a script (WhyNotWin11.exe) to help you determine if your computer can run Windows 11. If it cannot run, it will tell you why you cannot run it. So it is an easy way to determine if your computer is ready to support Windows 11 based on current requirements. 

If your computer fails the Window 11 test.

You need to check further as sometimes you need some items in the BIOS activated. Would you please not play with the BIOS unless you are a *power* computer user? Playing around with the BIOS can cause significant problems! 

So other people have been saying that they have a hack that works. I might recommend it on a games computer, where you do not care if it has problems but not on a business computer. 

Please let me know how you go.

 

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Will your computers run Windows 11?

POS SOFTWARE

This is what your POS Software looks like under Windows 11. We are starting to turn our software into Windows 11.  

What is the big and entirely unexpected problem is that it appears that many computers will not run Windows 11. When we went to check some PC running Windows 11, we got messages like this.

This was true on computers that should be based on the Windows 11 System Requirements page be okay. Double-checking with the Compatibility for Windows 11 documentation we found some disagreements with the requirements page. Now it appears the new PC Health Check app is removed till they work it out.

When we went and checked further, it appears that some computers still being sold, like Microsoft's Surface Studio 2, will not be upgradeable to Windows 11. This is unbelievable as this computer is a $7,500 PC actively sold now by Microsoft agents. It is considered now classy and expensive computer yet it appears that it cannot run Windows 11, it is stupid to buy them. So just in case, we are actively reviewing all the computers that we are marketing now as we do not want our users running old software. 

So at present, my suggestion is not to rush into new computers as it's a mess.

Hopefully, this will all be sorted out soon but don't count on that.

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Windows 11: Three features that will excite our users

POS SOFTWARE

 

It was funny last night. Microsoft goes on about what a great cloud provider they are, and their presentation on Windows went down. So most of us to listen to their presentation went to youtube (Google) to listen to this presentation. 

Anyway, as I stated, Windows 11 is coming, late 2021. For many of our users, on Windows 10, the switch will be free. I would suggest that our users remain on Windows 10 till Microsoft bed down the product. If all goes well, I expect that most organisations will start to switch over about 3 to 6 months later. It all takes time. 

The good news is that it is faster. It will load and display faster. I particularly liked the new Direct Storage, allowing us to upload to the graphic card directly. This will give us shorter load times and instant graphics. Soon you will have less waiting for our software to load. 

The graphics are better so we should be able to make clearer screens. This will be a big plus for people who have poor eyesight. 

The other exciting point is that we will be able to load Android apps into our software directly. This will help a lot with our growing integration with smartphones and tablets. Imagine soon you will just be able to find a product in Google Play and then just using it in our software.

They also have added an improved voice to computer text. I am not sure whether we will drop dragon speak yet. This is important as our system is the only one in our marketplace that I know used by people in the MS community. I will get back to you about this.

Overall it's good news, and many of our clients and we cannot wait to check it out.

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Windows 11 is coming, what in it for you?

POS SOFTWARE

Windows 11 looks all but inevitable. It is expected that it will be announced at the Microsoft Windows Event tomorrow at 1 am tonight.

If you want to watch the LIVE stream, click here. I will be watching.

That a new version of Windows was coming was a surprise. With Windows 10, Microsoft was adamant that Windows 10 would be the last version of Windows. Now it announced that Windows 10 would be supported till 2025. If you are wondering what your Microsoft product's status is, you can find your answer here.

What is the situation with Windows 11, I can only guess. If it moves forward like Windows 10, we will soon get an official trial version to test very soon? We and just about everyone else as a result of the leak now have a Windows 11 developer version. What we did notice that it ran faster than Windows 10. Although there is more to this, this alone is a critical point for us. Soon more advanced copies will come as time goes along. Sometime in October, it will be mass released unless something goes terribly wrong. Then we expect that some people will be able to update free to the latest copies of Windows for a limited time. But it will only be after a few months that manufacturers of computer and components will release their new firmware and drivers to run on the latest version of Windows. Some equipment we will be told they are dumping. This last bit has always been the major problem for us, as many people switching to the newest version of Windows suddenly discover that much of their equipment no longer works and/or their equipment does weird things, etc. Then a significant upgrade of Windows is released, which is mainly a bug fix. It takes time before things are worked out.

Almost certainly, more information will be released tonight.

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What to be aware of when buying POS scanners.

POS SOFTWARE

 

 

 

Scanners have dropped in price a lot, so now we see ones designed with a specific purpose in mind. This is as if you are a scanner manufacturer; you can offer your scanners less to people who do not need a function by not putting it in.

If you buy a scanner for the back office, when they use it on the front counter,  you may have problems. This is because many back-office scanners have a button to press to activate them. This works great for people who only need to scan occasionally. For people on the front, they find it a pain to keep pushing the button for each sale.

The reverse can be true too. Front counter scanners often have a bright laser. In the back, it often gets directed against their eyes. This is because they do not have the scanner beam positioned away from them as it is in the front. This is actually dangerous.

Many scanners can be programmed to overcome these problems. The problem here is that programming them is a real pain and requires a person who knows what they are doing.

So please let us know precisely what you need.

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If internet is down, much stops working in retail.

POS SOFTWARE

Anyone that uses computers in business should use a UPS for essential services. Many products and services include Eftpos, which need you to be connected to the internet, but there is often a lot more, e.g. the local WiFi to your phone. Annoyingly, this includes the NBN connection, which is often not the best and for which there is little that we can do.

Still, there is something that we can do, and one of them is plugging the router into a battery backup unit (UPS).

What happened to one of our clients is interesting a few days ago. They brought a UPS and plugged it into the computer and the router. A short time later, they started to smell a strong electrical fire odour. Something was burning. They traced the scent to something inside the UPS. So they decided to turn the UPS off. Then they returned the damaged unit to the shop and got their money back. So leaving them without a UPS.

Then, as sure as day follows night, the power went out for about 20 minutes a few days later. Besides everything else, they had no internet in the shop. So they pretty well lost most of their business until the power came back on. One of their staff got a problem with excessive data usage on her mobile. She was using youtube a lot then and did not realise that she was using her public mobile data.

I would suggest if you have a router to plug the router for internet to the UPS.

If this is impractical we do sell small UPS that can be linked to the router.

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Why you may need a longer range barcode scanner?

POS SOFTWARE

 

Scanner range can be a big problem in the retail industry, especially if you stocktake or sell goods in bulk. 

Generally, most scanners in retail are designed to be close-range,  about 20 cm from the target. 

A typical problem can be if someone buys a heavy or large box. The operator on the cash register must then either lift the item onto the counter or move the scanner to get into the scanners reading range.

Also, if you have high or low shelves, there may be problems when counting with items on these shelves. 

Often here, there is a speed issue. If you can save 10 seconds of scanning time, you will save an hour of work after about 300 scans. Consider that an hour's work is often 20 dollars to the shop. So over the scanner's service life, an extended range scanner can save a lot of money. 

If you are concerned about these issues, consider using a medium or long-range scanner. For example, we regularly go to about 10 meters.

To see your requirements is easy:

1) Check where your barcode scanner would be. Now measure from there to where the largest distance barcode you need to measure would be. Add 25% more as you will need more.

2) Measure the least distance you need.

This gives us the ranges over which your scanner will need to measure. 

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See below the latest computer screen made for your front counter

POS SOFTWARE

The front counter area is an integral part of your shop. A much as possible space there should be for selling.

 

Also, the front counter must be attractive to your customers. As today a significant part of the front counter is your POS system, if it looks old fashion, it sends a wrong message.

 

A stylish and modern appearance sends a better message.

 

This is why we have a range of monitors designed for the front counter of a retail store.

 

Here is one above that we recommend as they look good and take up very little room. Often it's placed in the counter. 

 

They also have Touch-screen technology built-in so:

1) They are easier to use; it is more natural to press buttons highlighted on the computer.

2) They are much easier to use as your eyes do not have to keep looking away from the screen to the keyboard.

3) It is faster to use as most people today are not touch typist.

 

And, depending on your needs, you can even add colour to the hardware.

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Problems with your old printer?

POS SOFTWARE

Old printers being prepared for the tip

Nothing seems to cause more problems than old printers being retired. People tend to get more attached to their printer than any other item of their computers. When they find one that worked well and prints well, they are reluctant to switch. 

The first problem is that printers have many moving metal and plastic parts. Over time these parts do break. Soon all will reach a point when they need to be replaced.

Interestingly, if a printer is put on a shelf for a long time unused, these parts will dry and crack.  They are not something you can store and leave.

Another problem is that even if the printer hardware is working correctly, often we discover that Microsoft and many printer manufacturers no longer support them. If so, you may not find a software driver for it. This makes them useless, so requiring an excellent printer to be replaced.  

Often options people need to consider: 

Dump it: Many printers have an internal printer hard drive. As such, a copy of everything you may be stored in the printer. This is why major organisations smash and dump them.

Sell. You can try to sell your old printer. 

Trade-in: Some printer manufacturers will offer trade-ins when you buy new printers. Sometimes we do accept trade-in for spare parts.

Relatives: Family members can use it for example kids often need a printer to do assignments. 

Recycling. Many companies will take your old machine, for charity. Consider this if you are looking to do something philanthropic. We use this one.

 

 

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Elon Musk's Starlink is now going in Australia. Will it really deliver?

POS SOFTWARE

About 10 million Australians can now finally get Starlink. What the rest are hoping is that it will shake up NBN. Currently, many cannot get NBN. Of those that have it, about a quarter of NBN users report having poor connections. 

I often hear from my colleagues and clients horror stories about their current internet. Here is one I got today.

"My performance and reliability were both better on ADSL 2 than they are on NBN.

Last year, when schools were closed for COVID for a couple of weeks, our town's NBN went down every day. It got to the point the schoolteachers were dropping work off at each student's house in the morning and collecting it in the afternoon.

It turned out they were doing upgrades to the tower, although no one could tell us that until they finished. And when did they pick to do it? 9-5, Monday to Friday, in the first two weeks back after school holidays, when every school kid was going to need it for school. Don't know what *work* they were doing because it didn't improve anything once it was finished."

What really hurt was the former ISP using dial-up days, used to run a regional ISP that never cut off the service entirely for hours on end during business hours. They used to do his planned maintenance, from midnight to 5 am. They also had backup systems in place.

So no wonder some of our clients are already signed up to Starlink. One has told me that he cannot wait to get it. If it goes according to plan, we will soon be testing our cloud system over Starlink.

Based on Starlink's specifications, I would not suggest that anyone try to run a non-cloud POS system on it. The big problem is that the service is non-continuous. From what I can see there, it fails up to a few times a day. Yet, while it works, the specs are very impressive. Users report 150 Mbps to 250 Mbps with about 20 minutes of outages a day, with speeds now promised to go up to 300Mbps. This is the perfect scenario for our cloud system.  

We cannot wait to test it. 

 

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Computer Sales have skyrocketed

POS SOFTWARE

There is a tremendous increase in computer hardware sold. We have been moving heaps. Here above are some pictures of yesterday.

The big problem is the troubled supply line because of COVID. 

This is partly because of the increase in the tax concessions for computer hardware now available. So now accountants are advising their clients to buy as they can write off more. You can probably write off a lot of money now. 

It is also because new computers are much better than the previous ones. Some of the new AMD ryzen and Intel chips are a qualitative leap in technology. We see a 50% increase in raw speed on benchmarking. This is together with their dramatic price decrease. In a typical retail system, upgrading one computer, the server can increase the systems speed. So if you get one computer, make the old server a new cash register, and you have a more extensive and faster computer system.  

Also what people are doing is moving from the older hard drives to the newer hard drives here that are much faster. It is a low-cost way of increasing your speed.

It is also because of COVID. The lockdowns have forced people to see that they need more than a mobile to meet their technology needs. For example, if you need a home office,  you need a proper computer, large screens and webcams for zoom and printers at home. 

As I said, the biggest problem is the import complications of getting computer hardware into the country. So we have many people just waiting for gear.

If you want to know more give us a call.

 

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If Windows 10 March update is crashing your computers

POS SOFTWARE

Fortunately, most of our users took our advice and have set Windows 10 to delay its upgrade by a few days. This is to give Microsoft time to work out the various glitches in its updates.

Some of those that have not have found the latest update has been affecting some computers connections to specific printers. This has resulted in system crashes.

If you are affected, please contact us as we have a fix for our printers.

Your other alternative is to remove the update and wait till the okay from Microsoft come.  The problem here is that this update includes some critical security patches, which you should have. Knowing Microsoft, there can be a month delay before the fix arrives.

 

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