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DIY
POS Article
It Takes Time, Lots of It
By jgbreeden
Installing a computerized point-of-sale system in your retail
business can be a very time consuming process. It is often more
complicated than any other equipment purchase the small business
owner will make.
The time it takes will vary dramatically for different businesses.
Which means any attempt to estimate how long it takes to find a POS
system for any particular retail shop has to be taken with a huge
grain of salt.
Installing your first POS system will go through phases something
like this:
- planning
- software evaluation
- hardware selection
- hardware installation and configuration
- software installation and configuration
- data setup
- training
- go live
- adjust software and data setup after real-world use
Planning
This includes listing what you want to get out of the system. If you
have seen or used POS systems in other businesses like yours, you
have a good start, and can probably come up with a complete list in
an hour. If not, think in terms of your current pain points and what
you expect to resolve. You should spend at least a week evaluating
your own business process.
Software Evaluation
It takes a lot of time to evaluate software. And every other aspect
of your POS system is dependent on the software.
How long it takes depends partly on how much time per day you can
devote to the evaluation process. This is not a one day project.
To select a software program, you will need to first search for
options, then narrow down your options, then install demo versions
of your most likely options. Then refer to your list of needs to
make sure they do everything on your list.
Most POS programs do all of the most common tasks, but every
business and software program is different, and some are a better
fit than others. Pricing and technical support options can be so
different that it makes direct comparisons difficult.
If you can devote 2 hours per day to studying POS systems, and you
have a general idea about what you expect to find, plan at least 2
weeks to study software. If you are just getting started
understanding what is available, or don’t have much time to
allocate, or have an uncommon business model, or a very long list of
demands you need to meet, then plan on 2 to 4 months of studying
like you were prepping for college finals.
Hardware Selection
Once you completed the evaluation process for the software, you can
then select compatible hardware. You may have a few options, but in
most cases you will rely on the software vendor to make
recommendations for hardware. At the very least, you will need to
know what POS hardware is compatible with the software you intend to
use.
There are pros and cons to buying hardware from your software
vendor, or from a POS hardware site. But in either case, the
selection process is straitforward compared to software. Depending
on shipping times, figure a one to two weeks.
Hardware Installation and Configuration
The hardware setup often proves tricky. If you purchase hardware
based specifically on the suggestions of your software provider, you
can probably get everything set up in a day.
But if your hardware is not a standard option for your software, you
may spend considerable time getting each component working properly,
and you may end up using work-arounds where things are simply not
compatible (if the cash drawer won’t open automatically on each
sale, people will resort to using the key to open it every time). In
that case, this time line is open ended.
Software Installation and Configuration
If you purchase a fully supported software package, all you have to
do is answer your vendor’s questions so they can set up the options
to match your operation.
If you are doing it yourself, and you have a very simple operation,
you might get setup in a day. But if you have a more complicated
business model or networked systems, you could easily spend 2 weeks
or more fiddling with options.
Data Setup
Data setup time will depend on a combination of the size of your
inventory, the complexity of categorization and related items, and
the current format of the information.
A store selling only a small selection of items could manually enter
all of their data in less than a day. Even if the information is in
a computer file, entering by hand might be the fastest method.
A store with thousands of items in a computer file, like a
spreadsheet or old POS program, may find it cost effective to
purchase data conversion services from the software vendor, or
attempt their own importing of data if the software allows for it.
Assume at least a few days of fussing with the data, maybe a week or
two if your vendor is handling it.
If it is a long list and must be entered manually, and there is no
budget for a data entry clerk, it may become an ongoing project. It
is also likely that better ways of categorizing and linking items
will become apparent after using the program, so this timeline is
also open ended.
Training
If it takes more than an hour to train your cashiers, you picked the
wrong software. Assistant managers or closing staff will need a
little more time. The manager or owner will probably need a day or
two to learn the list management, and may spend a couple weeks
finding all the necessary reports. Learning new features will be an
ongoing process.
Go Live
If you are the belt and suspenders type, consider running your old
cash register side by side with your POS for the first day. This
will allow you to compare totals to ensure accuracy.
You may want to pick a starting day that coincides with your
accounting period, but it’s not critical. Assume the first day or
two will be a little stressful.
Adjustments
No matter how carefully you plan, you will probably discover things
that should have been implemented differently. Some changes can be
done quickly, others require more planning.
Conclusion
It is not very telling when the estimated range is so wide, but if
you add up the low and high guesses above, you get a minimum of 1
month, and a maximum of 6 months or more.
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Free POS Software Explained
By jgbreeden
Getting something for free is always a lure. But there is always a
catch, and software is no different.
Software programs generally require the user to agree to the terms
of a license before using the program. While most software licenses
require an up front purchase or subscription fees, some software is
licensed for free, and may be copied or accessed by anyone, with
only minimal restrictions.
Note that the term “free software” is not meant to include
time-limited demos. Many programs allow for 30 days of free usage to
allow potential buyers to try out the program. Once the time limit
expires, if a software license is not purchased, the program will
stop functioning, so it has no use beyond evaluation.
Free POS software will fall into one of four general categories:
- Restricted editions
- Merchant supported
- Open Source
- Personal projects
Restricted software is produced by traditional software companies
that sell their software licenses. To entice smaller companies and
those with tight budgets to use their software, they produce a free
edition of their standard software that has the most powerful
functions disabled, or has a restriction on the number of customers
or number of items that can be saved. Or, they may sell training,
technical support, and accessories to help cover the costs of
offering their software licensing for free.
The goal of the software company is that when your business grows,
you will purchase the full version of the program, or additional
support and services.
Merchant supported software is provided by companies in the credit
card processing business. To get the free software you must sign up
your credit card merchant account through them, so the software is
the mechanism they use to get merchant customers for their primary
business.
Open Source software is software that has the program source code
made available to the public. This means anyone with programming
skills can modify the program in any way they choose. Even if the
software is supported by a commercial software company, once you
have the source code you are not dependent on the parent company,
since you could effectively hire your own technicians.
Some open source projects are managed by a traditional software
company, and others are managed by an individual or non-profit
group. There may not be any company certified support available at
all, only user-based support forums.
Personal projects are programs created by individuals who do it for
the satisfaction of seeing their work appreciated by others. Support
will be limited to the one individual that created it, and other
users.
Software supplied by a commercial software company will always have
some type of profit model to support it. Licensing the software is
only one cost of the many costs associated with having a POS system
in your shop. Technical support is often the critical element that a
business owner cannot do without, and the cost of support will
quickly override any money saved on licensing. Be sure to consider
how much assistance you will need, and how much it will cost to get
it.
Check our list of the most common free POS programs available today
(coming soon).
Serial Port Emulators Explained
By jgbreeden
The serial port, or COM port, is a standard computer connection that
has been in use for decades. Most modern devices have evolved to the
new standard, the USB connection. The POS industry is one market
that continues to make heavy use of serial ports.
This leads to a need to adapt modern USB devices to work with
software applications that require serial connections for receipt
printers, cash drawers, or other devices. This can be accomplished
with software known as a serial emulator.
The serial emulator software creates a “virtual” serial port. When
the POS software scans the hardware for serial ports, it should see
the virtual port as a valid serial port. Any text for printing, or
any other data, that is sent to that serial port will be redirected
by the emulator to a device plugged in to a USB or other modern
connection.
Emulators are often written for a specific device, so it is
necessary to find the correct emulator for the device you are using.
It will be installed similar to any other software program. It may
also include a configuration program and a test program, but
emulator itself does not have a user interface. The configuration
program should allow you to specify a COM port number to use as the
virtual port, but once that is set, the emulator will work silently
in the background.
Within your POS software, there will be configuration options that
include specifying the COM port number to be used for devices like
the receipt printer. Once the emulator is installed, your software
should have the virtual port available as an option. If the POS
software has a limited number of COM port selections, you may need
to use your emulator configuration program to select a lower port
number.
Many computers still have one or two serial ports reserved in the
hardware, even if there are no external ports. This may require
using a higher port number for the virtual port. If it is necessary
to use a lower port number, it may be possible to disable the
hardware ports from the BIOS setup screen, which is accessible
briefly during the computer start up process.
It may require testing several different configuration options, but
a serial port emulator should allow you to use modern equipment with
POS software that is optimized for serial ports.
Saving Files when Downloading
By jgbreeden
Many software installations and hardware drivers are downloaded from
the Internet rather than loaded from a CD. Downloading files is not
complicated, but it can be a little confusing understanding the
series of questions that pop up, and sometimes difficult to find the
file you just downloaded.
It can be different depending on many factors, including the
operating system you are using, the browser, the versions of that OS
and browser, the anti-virus you have installed, whether you clicked
on a web page or an email, and possibly network settings if you are
on a managed network.
The sequence will generally go as follows:
1. Click on a link to download (some web sites take you through a
series of pages first)
2. The browser will look at the type of file, and decide if it knows
what type of file it is.
3. It will ask what you want to do with the file, such as Run, Open,
or Save the file.
4. It may pop up a warning about the dangers of downloading files.
If it is an executable file (like a program), there will be more
warnings than other types of files.
5. If you have a 3rd party anti-virus program installed, it will
probably pop up an additional warning, and possibly ask if you want
to scan the file.
6. If you selected “Save”, you may or may not be given the
opportunity to select the folder where it will be saved.
7. When the file is finished downloading, you may or may not be
given an option to Open or Run the program, or you may see a list of
downloaded files.
Some files consist of multiple files compressed into a single file
(such as “zip” or “tar” files), meaning that you will need to
“extract” or “uncompress” them before using. That requires one more
decision as to where you will extract the files.
Should I Save, or just Run or Open the file?
In most cases, you should Save. In some cases, such as running a
minor update, or looking up a single piece of information in a
document that you have no other use for, it makes sense to Open or
Run your download. Saving unneeded files is not really a problem in
terms of space, but it does add potential for confusion when you are
looking for your new downloads and you have lots of old files in
your download folders.
If you save it, you can choose to run it now or later, and you have
the original in case you ever want it without having to find it
online again. You just need to be able to find it on your computer.
Where do I find my downloaded files?
Browsers and email programs will have a folder specified in the
setup options to use for downloaded files. Sometimes that will
default to an obvious folder on the user’s desktop or menu, but it
some cases it may not be obvious. You may have noticed a folder
named Downloads, but it could be a sub-folder of another, and not
the same one you see on your desktop.
Look for the “options” in your browser menu, and look for the
download folder location. You will find your downloaded files in
that folder.
It says it could harm my computer! Is it ok to download?
The safety of any downloaded file is entirely related to the source.
What company, or what person, is supplying the file?
Most of the warnings you receive when trying to download a file are
generic warnings. Any computer program can be written to do useful
things or bad things, so anytime you download a file that is a
“program”, you will get the most alarming warnings. These warnings
are simply pointing out that this is a program with instructions for
your computer, so you better trust the people who wrote it. It is
not making any determination whether the program is trustworthy or
not, it is pointing out that you are responsible for that decision.
Your antivirus program, on the other hand, is specifically trying to
determine the difference between safe and malicious programs. The
antivirus program will likely attempt to scan every program you
download run to ensure it does not look like it is infected or known
malware.
Malicious code can also be inserted into many types of files, such
as pictures and PDF documents, among others. Again, the most
critical point is knowing who is supplying the file.
Why can’t it open the file?
Downloaded files will fall into one of two general categories:
executable, and data. Executable files are programs, so the act of
“opening” an executable file means to run the program. As long as it
was written for OS you are running (Windows, Mac, or Linux), it
should run.
Most other files contain some kind of data: documents, pictures,
movies, music, mail lists, or just text. When you attempt to open
one of these files, the computer must decide what type of data is in
the file, and what program is used to display or play that data. If
you have a music file, you need a music player program to open it.
If you have a spreadsheet file, you need a spreadsheet program.
Sometimes you have the program, but your computer does not recognize
it. On some systems, the name of the file contains a suffix to
identify the file type (such as .txt, .doc, .pdf and many others),
and if that suffix is truncated, it will not recognize the file
type.
Depending on your reason for downloading, you may not need to “open”
it. Some files are intended to be useful to only one program, so the
OS is never informed what to do with that type of file. Some
hardware driver files are only recognized by the hardware setup
process, and are not intended to be “opened” in the traditional
manner.
Or you may have downloaded a data file that is newer than your
program. If you download the latest version of a word processor
file, and you are using an older version of the word processor, it
may not recognize the newer file format. You would then need to
either update your program, or find a way to get a copy of the file
saved in the older format.
The Cash Drawer – Receipt Printer Combo
By jgbreeden
The accessories for a computerized POS system can work together with
a wide variety of possible connections. The most common combination
for POS systems is a paring that gives control of the cash drawer to
the receipt printer.
Almost all receipt printers include a port for a cash drawer
connection, since they are primarily used at the register. It will
be an “RJ” socket, the same style used by telephone and network
connections. The wiring, however, is entirely different.
The receipt printer just sends voltage, not a computer command, to
the port to open the drawer. Every brand of printer may expect
different “control codes” from the computer to tell the printer to
send voltage to the cash drawer port. So most POS software programs
will have an option to specify the brand of printer, so that it can
send the appropriate codes.
Only one cable is required for this type of drawer, which connects
to the printer. Most printers send a 24 volt signal, although some
use 12 volts.
Alternatively, cash drawers can use serial or USB connections, so
they are not dependent on the receipt printer. These drawers cost a
little more, since they have circuitry to interpret a computer
signal, as opposed to simply applying voltage like the printer
connected drawers.
Receipt printers can also use either serial or USB connections, or
in multi-printer installations, they can use an Ethernet connection.
Again, some POS software may have difficulty with any type other
than serial connections, but printer options will usually be more
flexible than cash drawer options.
(Serial connections are the older style port that is disappearing
from most new computer models, but is still very common in POS
systems. USB connections are the newer type of connection, but be
aware that many POS software programs are not prepared to deal with
USB parts.)
If you choose a drawer that connects to the printer, you need to
make sure you get the correct cable. The cable must be matched to
both the printer manufacturer and the cash drawer manufacturer.
One situation where it makes sense to get a cash drawer that
connects directly to the computer is when a receipt printer is not
needed. If full page invoices or handwritten receipts are used, the
cost of the receipt printer may not be justified. The extra cost for
a “smart” cash drawer is only 10% or 15% of what would be spent on a
receipt printer.
Just Enough Technology
By jgbreeden
It is easy to get carried away with technology. Once you begin
considering the possibilities, it can be tempting to go after more
than you need for your business.
The bigger a business grows, the more they will find technology an
indispensable part of business. But for the very small business that
has managed to get by on paper and ink, the efficiency of each new
gadget is measured differently.
Computer systems take time to install, configure, and maintain. To
be worthwhile, they must save time, save money, or increase sales.
It may be difficult to gauge how well a POS system can increase
sales, but it’s easy to see the efficiency of saving time and money.
Efficiency with computers is at it’s best for large data sets, such
as big inventory lists or big customer lists. While shops with very
small item lists may still find time savings with the computer, if
the difference is minimal then the return on the initial investment
could take longer than the lifespan of the system.
If you handle cash, you need a drawer. If you do more than a couple
transactions per day, it would be nice to get them summed up. If you
have employees that handle cash, you want them to be accountable. If
you have inventory to keep track of, you need an efficient method.
And if you depend on repeat business, you need to know your
customers.
The more that each of those issues represents a pain point for the
business owner, the more they can make use of technology and still
be cost effective.
Any POS sales rep will point out that having good data about your
business can help you in ways that you may not have considered. And
it is true that knowing which items sell best, when they sell, and
who is buying them, can give you new insight to ways of maximizing
sales and profits.
But technology is not an “all or nothing” proposition. Large
technology investments require significant research time, so
immediate needs may be put off in the hopes of addressing a wider
scope of issues. It is a valid goal to have all technology in the
business integrate smoothly, but many times it makes more sense for
the business owner to make a smaller investment to address a
specific concern, while they continue to research more comprehensive
solutions.
In other words, if you have a strong need for more accurate price
entry, but customer list management and inventory replenishment only
impress you as “nice to have”, you may find that an electronic cash
register that allows you to download prices would meet your needs
without as much complication or support cost as a complete POS
system.
It is natural to look at expensive purchases with an eye toward
growth and future needs. And it is true that if you purchase an
electronic cash register, it would not be a part of any future POS
system.
But for the small business owner, balancing the needs and available
resources of the present with the plans for the future often means
that adoption of new technology proceeds in small steps, rather than
giant leaps.
What does it take to put together your own POS
system?
By jgbreeden
The typical small retail business owner can certainly find benifits
in a computerized POS system compared to a simple cash register. But
the cost of most systems, and the reality that most systems are
designed for larger businesses, make it difficult for the very small
business owner to justify the investment in a fully supported
system.
This leads to the question of whether it is possible to save money
by putting together your own POS system.
The two factors that determine the answer are time and technical
skills. For most business owners, even if they have the technical
skills, the time required is more than they have in their schedule.
But time is the one resource that does not require cash up front
from the business owner, so a select few will choose to go it alone.
Or, with limited help from a technical friend or associate.
Between you and your tech assistant, you will need at least the
following skills:
- experience installing various programs, and an understanding of
the idea of “dependancies”, or programs dependant on other things
being installed
- experience using setup and options screens to change the way a
program works
- experience installing drivers, and an understanding of ports,
including serial ports
- a strong knowledge of the operating system that will be used
- the ability to search online for answers to technical questions,
use knowledge bases, and user forums.
- the ability to read and understand cryptic and incomplete
instructions
- patience, and the willingness to keep trying
If you understand all of that, then you probably have the ability to
set up your own POS system, if you can also allocate enough time. If
not, your money and time are better invested by sub contracting the
job.
Announcing the DIY POS website
By jgbreeden
The Do-it-yourself Point-Of-Sale website is being launched to help
the small retail shop owners who are attempting to install or
maintain their own POS system.
This site will attempt to give shop owners a good understanding of
what it will take, and the technical details to complete the task.
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