The Feature

What To Remember Not To Forget When Transferring Knowledge

March 25, 2006 on 9:18 am | by Marian Crkon | In Ideas and Opinions, Worth Noting | Enter Comments |  Print |  Email

Let me post this while I remember not to forget. The PeoplesoftConer posted a smart little piece with a list of tasks I always forget to remember when in the middle of knowledge transfers. Since the list is applicable to any software package, I will try to remember not to forget it:

• Contact list with roles and responsibilities
• Architecture Diagram for Dev, Test and Production that shows the servers and various PeopleSoft Internet Architecture components
• Server List with description/purpose, IP addresses, memory, CPU, and disk capacity
• Database Instances and corresponding PS Environments
• Documentation index – what documentation exists and where it is
• Password lists, including server, application and database accounts
• Customization lists
• Issues list
• Current tasks and projects that the person you’re replacing is involved with
• Access to servers, applications
• Remote access software and instructions for using it
• Interface diagram
• Time reporting procedures
• Production Change Management procedures
• Migration procedures

Thanks PeopleSoft Corner!

7 Guaranteed Questions from New Oracle Users

March 14, 2006 on 7:26 pm | by Marian Crkon | In Ideas and Opinions | 2 Comments |  Print |  Email

I love novice Oracle Applications users. They help me keep my perspective fresh and remind me that things are not always seen by others the way I see them. Like anyone else involved in this business for a long time, I have developed an “operational blindness” where I avoid certain pitfalls by memorizing the ways around them. Here are few sample questions you are guaranteed to hear when introducing new users to the applications. Go ahead to add your fun user experiences as comments below.

• How do I get in the system? You are thinking that’s silly but you’d be amazed in how many different ways users get to Oracle Applications: desktop icons, instance maps, links on company intranets, links sent via email, bookmarks saved in browsers, and even browser’s recent addresses…
• How do I change the date format? Once a new user gets in the system, that’s the guaranteed next question. I realize Oracle sells applications in a hundred or so countries, so it is impossible to have a common format that fits everybody.
• How do I get to my stuff? Thank goodness for those menus. They make those who can navigate them look like geniuses. I understand there are some major UI improvements coming up in Release 12. All I can say is: keep it simple!
• Why do I see things I don’t need? That’s the price you pay for out-of-the-box applications. There is some flexibility to remove menus and functions, and when available, use folders to customize the forms any way you want. But in general, there will always be fields that others use and you don’t.
• Where is my report? This is my favorite. There may be a 100+ standard reports in each Oracle module, but it always comes down to this question and you have to produce that one report that users are familiar with.
• How do I get my data into Excel? Whether we like it or not, Excel is THE tool of our times. We can argue that the data is available online or on the web, but somehow, it always ends up in Excel. It is good to see that Oracle acknowledged the fact and keeps providing easier integration with Excel (WebADI, Folders, XML Publisher).
• Is this an entry mode or query mode? We have all seen the “%” records people entered assuming they were in a search mode. It takes some time before that CTRL-F11 becomes second nature. A related question: How do I stop that run away query submitted by accident…?

No Buzz at the Oracle Applications Day in Seattle

March 13, 2006 on 5:02 pm | by Marian Crkon | In Ideas and Opinions, Worth Noting | 1 Comment |  Print |  Email

I attended the Oracle Applications Day in Seattle today and I can summarize the event in two words: no buzz. I left with a feeling that everyone was tired of the status quo. There isn’t really much to talk about until the Release 12, due in late 2006. Oracle spent a good part of the day reassuring everyone that everything is going according to the plan, and delivering the official message:

• Oracle Fusion is the next application release after Release 12, not a project.

• Oracle Fusion is not a code merge, in contrary to what the competition would have you believe.

• Oracle Fusion is EVOLUTION, not revolution. Customers can choose to upgrade when they are ready.

• Current releases of Oracle, Peoplesoft, JD Edwards and Siebel applications will be supported until 2013.

• Oracle will give customers compelling reasons to upgrade before that.

I thought the most exciting presentation of the day was the XML Publisher: Applying Concepts delivered by Tomas Milowski from the Oregon Health and Science University.

3 Suggestions to Improve the Percent Complete Form

March 10, 2006 on 4:54 pm | by Marian Crkon | In Ideas and Opinions | Enter Comments |  Print |  Email

It must have been a day off at Oracle when the Percent Complete form (Oracle Projects 10.5.10) was created. It somehow fell through the cracks. It is very, how shall I say, impractical. The form’s main purpose in Oracle Projects is very simple – to enter percent complete amounts for percent complete billing or revenue recognition. Ignoring the current bug, which prevents you from saving the record and proceeding (to be resolved on Metalink), the form shows you how little emphasis was placed on business usability and user friendliness. What is really annoying is the fact that you cannot do even the most basic functions like delete or inactive records enterred in error, and you see values entered previously.

To give Oracle some credit, they provided a new API named UPDATE_PROGRESS, which lets you upload the percent amounts. However, in order to use it, you need to create custom code to upload the amounts.

So here are my three humble suggestions to improve the Percent Complete Entry process:

• Enable an option to delete or end-date percent comlete amounts

• Provide an audit trail of previously entered amounts. An audit report would also be nice.

• Provide a Web ADI Integrator for uploading percent complete amounts directly from Excel.