[sims] Sims 8 new version?

[sparkeh]

Ballmer sells windows1.0 - YouTube

 

Awesome.

Anyone else think of this:

[LosOjos]

Do you know why I called the SIMS7 main applicaiton Pulsar.exe ? Its because the internal name of the product was Super Star, Star being the internal product name of the previous edition. Thus a Pulsar is a Super Star. Geeky but my kind of in-joke.

 

...and just like that I feel like a SIMS geek!

 

So out of interest, is that why some of the reports are called STAR reports, or is that from some legacy DfE thing?

[matt40k]

@PhillipHamlyn I think you missed out on the timeout errors - been nice to see a bit of Scotty injected into the messages. Still April 1st first coming up, perhaps it's a chance to add a easter egg or two.

[PhilNeal]

STAR is Student, Teacher Academic Records. It dates back to when SIMS was a single module that did everything. Edited March 7, 2014 by PhilNeal

[GREED]

STAR is Student, Teacher Academic Records. It dates back to when SIMS was a single module that did everything.

 

You mean it isn't/doesn't now?

[matt40k]

Like a trip down memory lane, out of interest how many of those old MIS systems do you remember, like SMAC?

 

You mean it isn't/doesn't now?

 

No, it's all bolt-ons. He's a businessman now!

[creese]

I remember carrying a set of Floppies around to about 40 schools to upgrade SIMS.

[matt40k]

SOLUS3, it could be worse...

 

I remember carrying a set of Floppies around to about 40 schools to upgrade SIMS.

 

Upgrade failed. Why, cause floppy disc corruption.

[creese]

Press A, Then Press C then......

 

No pretty pictures.

[matt40k]

At least the documentation would have been simple - is it a word, is it a password, no it's SIMS procedure!

 

We were ripping out the DOS version the first year I started - went from DOS version to SIMS .net (with a spell of WinFolder and BroDIS along the way). So worse thing I remember was the LANID as the Laptops for Teachers was rolling out at the time and trying it juggle them around so everyone could get on was... fun.

[creese]

We were ripping out the DOS version the first year I started - went from DOS version to SIMS .net (with a spell of WinFolder and BroDIS along the way). So worse thing I remember was the LANID as the Laptops for Teachers was rolling out at the time and trying it juggle them around so everyone could get on was... fun.

 

LANIDs and LFTs, that takes me back.

[PhilNeal]

@matt40k "No, it's all bolt-ons. He's a businessman now!"

 

No that's not the reason. Because we're a significant player, we are obliged to offer optional add-ons. Personally I hate that approach and would much prefer to develop a holistic solution.

 

Systems of the past - SCAMP, SAMS, SCRIPT, Key Solutions, Morgan Barnett, Phoenix, IBM ??

Edited March 7, 2014 by PhilNeal

[matt40k]

If that was true, you'd be leaving Capita and starting up a new company. (I kinda expect\hope to find out you've secretly got shares in another MIS provider).

[PhilNeal]

@matt40k - and see the shares lose value?

[matt40k]

Kinda just proved my point - Seriously, we know why we're here, why it's the way it is. It's not ideal. It's the problem with success. You've personally invested alot of time and effort getting here and you've done well for staying on top. Despite what the "haters" might say, you and your team have truly earned it - we're just all sooo jealous.

[GREED]

I completely agree @matt40k and actually I think I said that all though my Aspen tenure: while I understand it, I loathe the fact that you cannot make the system as good as it possibly could be because you have had to make it open to the rest of the market, and personally I don't feel that is fair. But then it was the same with Microsoft, they made the best products (lets not argue that point before anyone starts, I'm making a point) but forced to do things so others had a fair chance.

 

End of the day, other providers a) need to step up to the mark in terms of making it equal or better, and these days there are one or two! And b) are actively selling in vast numbers, taking away just as many as you are gaining, as each MIS is different. I have always said, there is an MIS for every school, not necessarily the same one. One just fits better.

[vikpaw]

Matt40k,

 

Do you know why I called the SIMS7 main applicaiton Pulsar.exe ? Its because the internal name of the product was Super Star, Star being the internal product name of the previous edition. Thus a Pulsar is a Super Star. Geeky but my kind of in-joke.

 

I'll try and inject some levity :-)

 

Will you completely reorganise the reason codes and give them names?

SIMS cannot start : reason code Turnip.

Unable to logon: reason - your father is a window dresser.

 

That would make supporting it so much fun and the users might even smile too...

[GREED]

Or even... give a useful reason, perhaps a possible way to fix the error... or is that too stupid?

[localzuk]

Or even... give a useful reason, perhaps a possible way to fix the error... or is that too stupid?

 

You've obviously gone crazy.

[GREED]

You've obviously gone crazy.

 

Clearly

[matt40k]

Or even... give a useful reason, perhaps a possible way to fix the error... or is that too stupid?

 

You just made some at Capita cry. They thought they're error messages were really useful

Should I confess I was quite impressed how they got the error no, still I always wished they had a way to provide feedback and ideally a way to customize them.

[vikpaw]

Or even... give a useful reason, perhaps a possible way to fix the error... or is that too stupid?

 

Dude, you're putting a lot of innocent people out of work by requesting that. Shh

[zag]

pete,

 

As you can understand, I can't comment or disclose a great deal of technical information about our future product ranges, not least of which because technology is a very moveable feast, but our initial version approaching initial release in Northern Ireland do include Silverlight components but by the time it is on general release it will include no plugins or proprietary client technology and will work on an HTML compliant browser.

 

I have a question for the community - what percentage of your schools use or are planning to use Office 365 or Google Apps (with associated Drive and SkyDrive document storage) for their main line-of-business office automation ? As technical people, what is your feeling for the level of adoption these platforms will eventually reach within schools, and are these mainly driven by license cost, operating simplicity, total-cost-of-ownership, or reach across devices ?

 

Just saw this link in another thread, looks like they went Google Apps! Bad times for us Office 365 users?

 

Google Apps for Education NI | Capita - Managed IT Solutions

 

Its now 2 years on from the original thread, anyone know any more details?

[Barcrest]

We were told we could say. It's coming. It's used in a basic form by 2 small N I Primary schools. It would be about 2016 before it was released.

 

It's now 2016 and this thred has been dormant since 2014, any news?

[PhilNeal]

You can expect some news around BETT 2017.