Archive for the ‘Software short’ Category
June 10, 2009
Every now and then I’m complimented on the way my charts look. I’m not going to give myself all the credit. I mainly give the credit to the CHARTrunner and its designers. Each month, I create a chart for our monthly newsletter, Quality eLine. I have found myself utilizing CHARTrunner’s chart style options more and more. I would like to go through some of the advantages that I have found.
A few benefits of chart styles include:
- Helps produce consistent charts each time they are drawn;
- Allows you to assign fonts to different areas on the chart;
- Has many options for color management;
- Provides options for other various styles like line styles and data marker styles;
- Properly used, it can make charts easier to read;
- And there is no limit to the number of styles (each one is a file ending in .csc).
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April 24, 2009
Last month we released GAGEpack 8.5 that includes a new software utility GAGEmail. GAGEmail is a separate application that improves the way automated emails are sent.
- 24/7 email alerts (emails even with GAGEpack is closed)
- IT folks can manage this as they do other applications that run as a service
- GAGEmail can run on a separate PC, so the GAGEpack PC can be shutdown and users still get alerts
- Automated emails will not affect the performance of GAGEpack
GAGEmail also makes email options from GAGEpack more versatile. Here are a few options that before now, were not possible:
Posted in GAGEpack, Software, Software short | Leave a Comment »
March 27, 2009
Customers often request that we add very specific statistical features to our software products. Before we decide to implement new features, we consider several questions. Is the feature within our realm of core competency? Is the feature related to the types of analysis we already do? Will the feature appeal to a narrow or wide swath of our customers? Is the feature aligned with our mission of providing the simplest solutions that apply practical statistics to improve our customers’ quality?
If the feature makes it though this gauntlet, we study the specifics of the new feature. What algorithms are required? What formulae will be used? How will the feature be tested? Where will the feature be visible in the user interface? This process takes time. We are continuously improving our turn around on feature requests, but many steps exist between getting the idea from the customer into a working product.
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March 16, 2009
Each week I get calls from GAGEpack users who need to create new reports. It just so happens that we have an easy way to create new reports without having to know a single line of SQL coding. Creating your own report allows you to pick all the columns and design it just the way you like. I’ll outline how to make a report in 9 easy steps.
1. Open the Reports List.
2. Click on the ‘New’ button.
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February 27, 2009
For 20+ years we have been selling our software based on a per-workstation license. The idea is that for each computer where the software is installed, the user must purchase one license. This has worked well and we will continue to offer this option into the future.
One of the trends we are watching is software licensing based on how much it is used. There are different usage-based pricing models but most of them tie the price to how many people use the software rather than the number of computers where it is installed. In the past, the technology for managing this type of license added complexity to the installation and deployment experience. With networks, the internet, and new license tools, the usage-based license model is becoming more appealing.
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February 16, 2009
I recently received a call from Tom who was keying gage data into SQCpack through a keyboard. Tom called because his company was interested in reducing the amount of time that it was taking to get their data into SQCpack. I learned that he was writing down the readings, walking across the plant to the PC, then typing the numbers into SQCpack. There were multiple ways to make their data entry more efficient.
First, I suggested moving the computer to the production area. This was not an option as this PC was in use by the supervisor and could not be moved. My next suggestion was to purchase another PC. This solution was also denied due to the cost. Eventually, the company agreed to move an unused PC from an old production area to the current production area. This move alone saved them a great deal of time.
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Posted in SQCpack, Software, Software short | Leave a Comment »
January 30, 2009
I spoke with a customer the other day who wanted multiple labels along the x-axis of his control chart. His data set and original chart looked like this:
Did you notice how the x-axis labels contain only the date column? He also wanted the batch number as part of the x-axis label. In the chart definition form, you can select only a single identifier as the label as shown below:
The solution lies on the data definition tab.
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January 23, 2009
Many people are surprised when they see GAGEpack’s Search and Replace function in action. This is a powerful feature that I think most every GAGEpack user could use. But, use this feature with caution, as ALL gages can be modified.
First, let’s suppose you name all of your gages with a 3-digit code for department. In this example, we will say your gage numbers in the plating department start out with the letters ‘PLT’. Next, we assume you are interested in using the group field to record the department the gage is assigned to.
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January 16, 2009
Recently I was given an Excel file that contained some data for the time it took to complete a task. The data had a column that listed the “time” and the data was in time-of-day format. I wanted to make a control chart showing how long, in minutes & seconds, a task took. Unfortunately, Excel categorized this as a Date/Time field, which can not be easily charted. Since the column listed the time the task took in hours:minutes:seconds, I needed a way to convert this to a number that I could chart on a control chart.
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