ESS SIMS 3 Year Contracts

[paulkerton]

I know some staff wish we kept SIMs, they knew how to use it and people don't like change but some are happy we have a new updated system and accessible from home.

As I've always said, if people are resistant to change, then education is not the place for them. It's the only profession where people think they can stomp their feet at changes in software and hardware.

If you worked in any other role and they changed their customer management system, people trying to stop the change would be told if they didn't want to use it, they had an opportunity to leave.

 

We've got a bunch of things we want to announce to our staff in regards to change in the near future. They're being told in advance as a courtesy and so they're used to the idea - not as a chance for them to push back.

[supportman]

I bet you £10 that if you ask them in 6 months they will have changed their minds Ours did!

[gumbygaz]

SIMS/ESS told us that we'd be getting Sims NextGen (Basically, just website for doing registers I think, not the RDP client in the cloud solution) in April.......

 

Just curious if anybody had seen, or got this yet? It's not something that would help in the decision to stay or leave SIMS as it doesn't seem much of a game changer, I'm just interested to see if there are updates actually happening.

[mavhc]

I worry that SIMS 7 is coded with a 4 digit year system and the new version that supports 5 digit years won't be released on time.

 

No updates are happening, they have no clue, if they've hired new people it'll take them years to understand the code. All they can do it recreate it module by module, with the added problems of syncing data and being bug compatible, whereas everyone else can move 10x faster.

[supportman]

SIMS/ESS told us that we'd be getting Sims NextGen (Basically, just website for doing registers I think, not the RDP client in the cloud solution) in April.......

 

Just curious if anybody had seen, or got this yet? It's not something that would help in the decision to stay or leave SIMS as it doesn't seem much of a game changer, I'm just interested to see if there are updates actually happening.

 

It was delayed again I believe.

[paulkerton]

It was delayed again I believe.

I am absolutely shooketh! SHOOKETH TO THE CORE!

:lol:

[simpsonj]

In a small pilot of primary schools at present...

[paulkerton]

In a small pilot of primary schools at present...

So was SIMS Primary/SIMS 8 and was the web based predecessor to SIMS Primary/SIMS 8 in some primary schools in Ireland...

Any screenshots available?

Does anyone know who these primary school are as well? I'm not sure I've bumped into anyone whose piloted anything for SIMS in the last 7/8 years.

Edited May 11, 2022 by paulkerton

[supportman]

In a small pilot of primary schools at present...

Yeh not done for secondaries yet.

We’re in the process of rolling out Take Register to a small pilot group of primary schools before beginning a rigorous period of feedback to iron out any teething problems. At the same time, we’re starting to develop Take Register for secondaries – with more of a focus on lesson attendance. We are, of course, also developing a Welsh language version, too.

And this is even better! It actually syncs back to your local SQL database. How modern.....

 

Take Register is a web-based product, hosted by ESS. In plain English, this means teachers don’t require a specific device to use it, instead it can be accessed by mobile phone or tablet. It is easier than taking a paper register and is, in fact, so simple to use - there is no need for any training. Critically, it takes just five minutes for Take Register’s data to be synchronised back into SIMS.

Edited May 11, 2022 by supportman

[mavhc]

Takes them 10 years to make a web version of 1% of the features?

[DrCheese]

Yeh not done for secondaries yet.

 

And this is even better! It actually syncs back to your local SQL database. How modern.....

 

So it's basically GroupCall emerge... (Another product that's withered on the vine but surprised capita didn't buy up years ago)

[simpsonj]

So was SIMS Primary/SIMS 8 and was the web based predecessor to SIMS Primary/SIMS 8 in some primary schools in Ireland...

Any screenshots available?

Does anyone know who these primary school are as well? I'm not sure I've bumped into anyone whose piloted anything for SIMS in the last 7/8 years.

 

There was a screenshot of it somewhere, I'll see if I can dig it out. It was, as I recall, a very basic web register. After all the talk from SIMS representatives over the past 6 months or so, I thought ESS would have brought something tangible to the table by now.

[paulkerton]

This very feature was available 15 years ago, and was called "SIMS Web Parts" or "SIMS Learning Gateway Web Parts" and it would just plug into a SharePoint server.

 

But it also included a lot more than just register.

[David44]

Take Register is a web-based product, hosted by ESS. In plain English, this means teachers don’t require a specific device to use it, instead it can be accessed by mobile phone or tablet. It is easier than taking a paper register and is, in fact, so simple to use - there is no need for any training. Critically, it takes just five minutes for Take Register’s data to be synchronised back into SIMS.

 

This quote says so much without saying anything.

 

"It's easier than taking a paper register"

Okay, that's a great selling point for a product released in 1997 but I can't believe the user base for this product will be people who currently take paper registers. They should be aiming for "It's as easy as taking the register in SIMS" as their very base selling point and ideally "It's as easy as taking the register in other comparable products in 2022".

 

"Critically, it takes just five minutes for Take Register’s data to be synchronised back into SIMS"

Why does it take 5 minutes for the data to sync back? Our staff already take registers in EduLink One and this writes directly to SIMS, there is no sync process. Why can't ESS do that with their own product and APIs?

 

"In fact, so simple to use - there is no need for any training".

Change this to "We won't supply and documentation, we will expect your local IT support to work out how it works and write documentation for you"

 

And why no mention of the sign-in process, ESS? Anyone with any experience of the broken SIMS ID system will know that this isn't ESS's strong point. Maybe this should be "No training required but you will need to jump through several hoops just to sign in each time and it will stop working at some point for no reason."

"Teachers don’t require a specific device to use it, instead it can be accessed by mobile phone or tablet"

Change to "Simply install Flash/Silverlight/Java/Internet Explorer 11 and Sharepoint, click through the security warnings and away you go"

 

 

 

EDIT: Just did a bit of digging and found this URL...

https://qa.takeregister.sims.co.uk/

 

Seems it really is using SIMS ID, at least at this (QA) stage. I was joking!

Edited May 11, 2022 by David44

[supportman]

This is how it looks from their promo video

 

[enjay]

Just curious if anybody had seen, or got this yet?

 

Due for release in early 2022, according to their publicity.....

[paulkerton]

This is how it looks from their promo video

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]65444[/ATTACH]

 

Is this real, and functioning or is it another mock up where none of the links worked and we weren't allowed to click on things like SIMS Primary at the last BETT they attended?

[DrCheese]

^ lol at this. Christ.

 

& yes thought the same re: the promo banging on about Paper - Who is it aimed at? Network managers in 2004??

[mavhc]

Paying today for a feature to possibly be available later is charity, not a business, if they want to be a charity open source it and we'll fix it

[Ditto]

I've just bought shares in Beiersdorf. I believe they are due to have a surge in sales. Perhaps you're not sure what this is doing in this thread - this will explain?

[howartp]

I've just bought shares in Beiersdorf. I believe they are due to have a surge in sales. Perhaps you're not sure what this is doing in this thread - this will explain?

 

Nice!!

[sefton]

^ lol at this. Christ.

 

& yes thought the same re: the promo banging on about Paper - Who is it aimed at? Network managers in 2004??

 

They are developing some new cutting edge input method called an OCR

[paulkerton]

Paying today for a feature to possibly be available later is charity, not a business, if they want to be a charity open source it and we'll fix it

Traditionally this is very true, but we've been taught to accept paying for betas over the years with "early access"

[Ditto]

They are developing some new cutting edge input method called an OCR

 

What!!! I did that for AQA personally about 20 - 30 years ago. It was a fun project. I think OMR had been done long before then . Maybe I should enquire about consultancy rates!

Edited May 12, 2022 by Ditto

[Skewiff]

Non data or MIS person here, left running MIS migration project for our schools including secondaries. I am trying to create a project risk register, but feel like there are things I do not understand so therefore cannot be sure I have captured everything. Would anyone have a risk register that they would be willing to share so that I can cross reference with what I have so far please?