A BETTER MOUSETRAP? Last year I started looking at as many pieces of printer's software (primarily estimating) as I could get my hands on, with the idea of doing an article, not comparing the various applications, but rather doing one on the one I considered the "best buy". I contacted as many software publishers as I could find in the attempt to get review copies (not a great deal of luck there - with a couple of exceptions they either ignored my request or sent crippled versions that didn't give me full access); borrowed copies from printers who were using various programs (a copyright infringement by the letter of the law, but all I wanted to do is compare them - not use them in my company); and finally, spent a lot of time in trade shows looking at everything that was exhibited. The programs I looked at ranged from the very high end pricey programs by big name publishers down to simple spreadsheet applications. I spoke with users of many of the various applications, when I could find them, and finally identified what, in my estimation, was the "best buy" - a sleeper that is so powerful that as Jack Stewart of PDX Press in El Paso, Texas says, "For the last seven years I have searched for software that would give me the total capability I needed. Dr. Karl Golling was the only author who would listen and give me the software I needed". Once I had identified the program I wanted to do this article on, I started deviously establishing a rapport with the author (I wanted to know as much about the application as did the author). To say that Karl is an unusual individual is as much of an understatement as would it be to say that his software is a "pretty good piece of software for printers." His father was an internationally respected mathematician who worked with, among others, Albert Einstein. Perhaps when Einstein was bouncing young Karl on his knee, some of that grey matter was absorbed by Karl. When Karl started working on his dissertation for his Doctorate, he selected as his topic the effect on employees of changes in the way a company operates - something that was a major consideration in the development of GB. Karl is a practicing psychoanalyst, a master at computer programming, and a "listener". He got involved with writing software for the graphic arts industry by doing the original programming for the computerized version of the Linotype at the tail end of that technology's being a major factor in the typesetting industry (old timers, please note that I did not say "the end of that technology's life" - we oldtimers all know that letterpress is not dead). A decade or so later he started working with a printer who wanted an estimating program created. That arrangement didn't work out so he continued on his own. He was intrigued by the needs of printers and in his spare time he started working on a new concept for software for the printer. The result of that effort is Gutenberg 2001 (GB). The major difference in GB and other software created for the management of a printing company is that Karl constantly is asking questions of printers, uses his expertise in the art of listening, and immediately incorporates those valid ideas into his program rather than waiting for a major upgrade to be issued at sometime in the future. GB is a highly sophisticated, fully integrated and continually improving program. Some users are totally satisfied with using only the estimating part of the program, never getting into the other parts of the program. But the estimating program is only the tip of the iceberg. Those who go deeper into the application and take advantage of the ability to turn that estimate into a job, create the job ticket, track the job ticket through each department (typesetting, camera/platemaking, press, bindery, and delivery. Still others milk the program dry and use it for determining productivity on an employee-by-employee basis, tracking order outs, as a cash register for over-the-counter sales, invoicing and statements, and accounts payable. In the works is a fully integrated general ledger. The early version that I worked with had a Lotus type menu bar across the bottom of the screen. For users of Lotus that might be comfortable, but for Cy Stapleton who finds PFS First Choice all I need for my simple one-page spreadsheets, it took some getting used to. Evidently there were some other printers who had the same comment because it wasn't more than a couple of months before Karl updated GB to where it used simple pull-down menus like those in Windows and the Mac environment. The same was true of my two major complaints - the cumbersome way the initial version handled booklet estimating and paper inventory - and minor complaints of some of the terminology used - i.e. "outs" rather than "up", etc. The beautiful thing about it is that you don't have to wait until a major upgrade is issued to get these updates. All you have to do is to dial the GB bulletin board and download the updates as they are written. More on that BBS later. Let's take a quick look at some of the features of GB, starting with the estimating part. GB will generate detailed estimates so easily that it can be done by the salesperson rather than waiting for the estimating department to work it up. A pop-up window shows your costs and gross profit on the job. If you have a fax modem, with a single keystroke you can either FAX a customized quotation letter to your customer, print a hard copy or simply read it on the screen. If the customer isn't ready to order, you can save the estimate for future retrieval. Once your customer has entered the order, you can immediately generate a job ticket or work order, schedule production, pull stock from inventory or order stock, etc. With the optional bar-code reader, due in early second quarter of 1992, the software will print a bar-code on the work order where each employee can scan the work order when he starts and stops working on the job and GB will give you real-time data collection, along with a report of estimated production time compared with real time. I have seen the prototype of this and it works. The inventory section automatically tracks inventory and lets you know when you need to re-order. A highly detailed reporting section gives you complete and accurate details on your financial position at any time. Most of these reports can be user defined. The over-the-counter section allows you to enter cash sales and generate a receipt for your customer, accumulating these sales daily for entry into your general ledger (or into GB's own general ledger in the not too distant future). The price list section allows you to generate not only price lists for particular items, but also counter price books with the touch of a keystroke. In the copier section you can generate prices on the step method, slope method or increment method - and calculate any additional charge for different types of stock. The blueprint section calculates the cost based upon the square feet and the selected stock. One of the most outstanding features of GB is its user-defined formula section. This unique feature enables you to customize GB for your shop rather than you having to change ways you do things to work within GB's environment. GB has a sophisticated password system that enables the shop owner to determine who can access what portion of the program and data. In otherwords, you may want a salesperson to be able to generate an estimate but you might not want him to be able to offer any discount on that estimate, authorize credit, see the margin of profit window, etc. As Karl says, "Gutenberg 2001 is not just a software package, it is a better way to run your shop." Study after study has proven that through the effective use of computer technology, profits can increase up to 400%, and GB appears to be an excellent way to start. Whether you have a 1 person copy shop or quick print operation or whether you are running a line of 4- and 5-color presses with over 200 employees, GB is designed to make your operation more efficient. An example is that the shop owner can make each employee a profit center and easily track individual employee's productivity. A future article will go into this area in more depth. In my estimation, the one thing about GB that might scare off potential sophisticated users is the price. How can it possibly be as good as that program which costs ten times as much? At the other end of the scale, that entry level potential user might ask how he can justify purchasing GB when there are estimating programs available for less money. The obvious answer to me, after looking at many, many programs, is that in bottom line dollar cost GB is the least expensive of all of the programs I have looked at and is destined to be the software of choice in our industry. Back to the support . . . Karl was wise enough to see that if he were to continue to improve GB he would have to delegate some of his responsibilities. With this in mind he decided to continue to do what he did best - program. After looking at several marketing firms, he decided to get in bed with Custom Micro Systems - an Orlando, Florida based solutions-oriented computer company. CMS's long suit is providing comprehensive, needs- based solutions that make sense. Immediately after becoming involved with Gutenberg 2001, CMS realized that an experienced printing professional would be required, so they recruited industry veteran Danny Young. Danny has been a printer for 23 years, owned his own commercial plant for 11 years and spent the other 14 years working in various management capacities in both sheet-fed and commercial plants. Danny heads up the unique user support program for GB. The foundation of the support program is the traditional, one-on-one telephone support from knowledgeable personnel, but it goes much further than that. A computer bulletin board allows users to log on at any time and receive information and technical assistance. The bulletin board contains databases of commonly asked questions and commonly encountered problems, as well as the corresponding answers and solutions. In another section of the bulletin board the user can find program updates, formulas that can be used to customize GB, etc. A newsletter features articles on such topics as employee productivity tracking, press profitability analysis, managing for maximum efficiency, and more. In November 1991 CMS sponsored the first of a series of regional workshops where users have the opportunity to learn how they can get more out of GB and network with other users. In addition to the sharing of information and experiences with the system, these discussions provide feedback to Karl on the users likes and dislikes of GB - providing the framework for future development. GB is already available in German and in early 1992 there will be a Spanish and French language version. This multiple language capability promises to make GB a serious contender in the international market. I have always heard that it doesn't take elegant offices, a large staff, and millions of dollars to come out with a great piece of software. Years ago Jim Buttons proved that dynamite software could be written by an individual who had a logical mind, a kitchen table and an inexpensive computer. Dr. Karl Golling perpetuates that scenario with Gutenberg 2001.