Make Initial Install Work Out of the Box By Filling In Defaults #386
Replies: 5 comments 11 replies
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This is something I have thought about a lot over the years, but it is very hard to define any defaults. For instance, the tax setup varies hugely by location. It looks completely different in Europe to the USA for example. Same with inventory categories and items. It would look entirely different in a hospital to the inventory system in a wholesale distributor, or in a manufacturing company. The best idea I had was to have a list of scripts which have to be completed on first logging in after install, and you wouldn't be able to move on until all those scripts had been visited. Might be an idea to use this thread to try and define such a list. Thanks |
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@timschofield with all respect, I would strongly suggest NOT to create "a list of scripts which have to be completed on first logging in after install, and you wouldn't be able to move on..." and I would argue this would violate WebERP's stated principles of (Imho) of "simplicity over all except when required for performance". Imho the initial config workflow should include a set of reasonable defaults and a simple "just click next" to result in a working system when you don't know the answer to all the questions yet. Tryton.org seem to have managed a "basic universal chart of accounts" and have kept manual configuration to a minimum (although can be just as cryptic as WebERP so far as non-obvious data dependencies... ;-) I would also suggest the new database update system in which updates cannot be run individually from a command line for debugging or other special purposes falls into the same category. rant off ;-) |
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Hi Dale, there are some things for which "reasonable defaults" don't exist. The most obvious being tax. I could set up defaults for the UK, but in Canada you would have to delete out all the defaults in order to create different ones. In the US they would have to delete and put in more different ones. CoA is another one. For instance, in the Francophone world the governments (most anyway) proscribe a CoA that all businesses must use. In the Anglo Saxon world, however we have free form charts where companies can do their own thing. The govt doesn't even proscribe whether you use numbers or letters, or a mixture. So again there are no "reasonable defaults". The database upgrade system isn't available via the menus, all you can do is force a rerun by changing the value of DBUpdateNumber in the config table. Rants (polite ones anyway) are always welcome :) Tim |
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Thank you for putting some time to consider this. I just notice that some feature are considered a 'hard fact' but for me is not really that obvious.
Put another way, what are the steps needed to create a first counter sale, invoice, purchase or any kind of transaction. |
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I think “easy setup” and “ERP” do not match. ERP are difficult to set up by definition, as ERP is designed to manage all bits and pieces of an organization. There are thousands of different types of organizations, needing different things, with different jurisdictions, different skilled work force, etc. Hundreds of settings must be synchronized to declare “success”. My perfect setup will be different from yours, and each one of the ERP installations will be different. Trying to simplify all these variables into a universal “easy N screens setup” I think is not achievable without a massive effort. I have been using webERP for 16 years now, and there are still parts of it that need reconfiguration occasionally, or I discover the side effects of modifying a random setting. webERP is becoming more complete, with more functionalities, so more complex. Moreover, we should keep in mind we are a tiny team, so we must focus our effort towards the best outcome. We can't do everything, everywhere like SAP, Odoo, Tryton, etc due to our size. I think, the main goals we should focus on now are consistency and documentation. Consistency in coding, in results, in appearance, etc. Probably, devoting a fraction of the effort needed to create this universal easy setup, into proper and detailed documentation on how to set up webERP will be of better use. My 2 cents ;-) |
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I'm loitering around fresh install and I notice that after installation, there's a lot of initial setting that need to be done before actual use of the application. I would like to suggest that defaults are included so upon first install the app can be use (like entering transactions)
I have to stop at 2 as that's where I get the idea of 'out of the box' . I just encountered a crash when adding a user but without complete info - like location...
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