[Tfug] Looking for a volunteer

[Bexley Hall]

Hi, Paul,

I poked around but found only open source solutions.  :<
Too much legwork to get them in place and *maintained*
(over the long haul).

But, came up with a MS-centric solution so they should be
all set...

<shrug>

Thanks!
--don


--- On Tue, 9/23/08, Paul Lemmons <paul at lemmons.name> wrote:

> From: Paul Lemmons <paul at lemmons.name>
> Subject: Re: [Tfug] Looking for a volunteer
> To: bexley401 at yahoo.com, "Tucson Free Unix Group" <tfug at tfug.org>
> Date: Tuesday, September 23, 2008, 12:09 PM
> -------- Original Message  --------
> 
> Subject: [Tfug] Looking for a volunteer
> 
> From: Bexley Hall <bexley401 at yahoo.com>
> 
> To: tfug at tfug.org
> 
> Date: 09/22/2008 05:45 PM
> 
> 
>   Hi,
> 
> WorldCare is looking for someone to hack together a
> bit of "attendance tracking" software.  They
> track
> the time folks spend on the premises -- sort of like
> a timeclock.
> 
> I suspect something like MSAccess would be a good
> place to start as it would give them something that
> others could maintain down the road -- as well as
> letting them create new "reports" as needed.
> 
> I've been working on a system to computerize most
> of their business (donations, inventory tracking,
> etc.) and had hoped to integrate this functionality
> with that.  However, their need is more immediate.
> Hence, the petition, here.
> 
> Superficially, this is a simple problem... :>
> But, of course, the devil is always in the details!
> 
> Here is a description Joe Alwine had proposed:
> 
>   
>   
>     
>       
>         
>           Person enters WorldCare. Swipes card. Enters
>           
>         
>       
>     
>     personal code. Someone from WorldCare authorizes
> transaction. Machine enters information into database.
> Machine prints transaction for backup paper trail.
> 
>     
>     
>       
>         
>           Person leaves WorldCare. Swipes card. Enters
>           
>         
>       
>     
>     personal code.
> Someone from WorldCare authorizes transaction. Machine
> enters information into database. Machine prints
> transaction
> for backup paper trail. 
> 
> ??? Questions. Who makes cards? Where to get cardreader?
> Can you buy cardreader for Windows? Is there something
> already written and not too expense to do this? If you
> can't do this, who can?? 
> What if someone forgets card? Need to be able to enter
> information. 
>     
>     
>       
>         
>           So, why do you need a card, and card reader??
>           
>         
>       
>     
>     Just have number for each person. Key in number,
> machine
> reads number and enters information on screen. Worldcare
> person authorizes transaction.
> 
> What do you think? Can this be done in Access or Excel??? 
>     
>   
>   
> It leaves out many of the little details, of course.
> But, perhaps it is a starting point for someone interested.
> 
> I can an interested party the direction I was planning on
> taking but would leave the actual design to your discretion
> (I am not aware of MSAccess's capabilities or
> limitations
> so can't comment on what is or is not possible, there
> -- I
> was planning on a standalone kiosk implementation).  Note
> that WorldCare's staff -- especially the users whose
> time you
> will be tracking -- are not very computer savvy so
> you'll
> probably have to be able to think this through completely.
> 
> I'm not interested in a public discussion about how to
> or
> how NOT to do this -- though anyone wanting to take it on
> as
> a project can elect to enlist other folks' opinions! 
> :>
> 
> If you've any interest, please reply OFF LIST.
> 
> Thanks!
> --don
> 
> 
>       
> 
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> 
>   
> 
> This is a wheel that is pretty well rounded by now and may
> not need to
> be invented again. I would spend a few minutes on
> http://sf.net or
> http://freshmeat.net looking for "Time Tracking"
> or "Time Sheet"
> applications. Some will be over complex but may open your
> eyes to
> greater possibilities. Others my be limited enough in scope
> to match
> what you asked for. It is definitely worth taking a look.
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Sometimes I wonder.  Were our faith able to stand upright
> and look around, would it be looking down at the mustard
> seed or standing in awe of the height and breadth of it.