Saturday, February 25, 2006
FAQs about NextLogic product
My customers or potential customers always ask me similar questions. I thought of summarising them here too. The rest can be found at our website
http://www.nextlogic.org/index.php?file=faq.html
Frequently Asked Questions about our PRODUCTS & SERVICES:
What is the payback period for the new customized software solution? Is it worth?
For the software that can be finished within 1 - 2 months by team of up to 3 team members, you would have to pay about US$3 - 6,000. Of course prices are being localized. Even a small business can afford such a customized solution because even if the payback period would be 6 months, it will bring the affect and savings for the period of minimum 2 – 3 years when it has to be updated again to reflect your business growth.
Did I have to invest something extra for the Internet connection or new computer?
No, for our solution your old PC would be most probably enough and NextLogic will provide you with server space for hosting of your solution. The server price is included in the annual maintenance price, which is usually 10 - 15% of the development cost each year. It is suitable for initial simple software solution, but might be upgraded in the future if the application grows. Of course, you need to have Internet connection. Our solutions are optimized for Mozilla Firefox web browser, which is available for free.
Do I have to pay everything at once on delivery?
You pay based on iterations. One iteration takes usually 2 weeks to one month. Every month a working application is delivered to you based on the priorities set for the development. Thus, your payment is split into 3 to 4 payments till you get the final solution. The option is also to just “rent” the application from NextLogic and pay a smaller amount every month for minimum of 2 – 3 years.
Do I have to attend some training to know how to use the system? Is it included in the price?
We develop systems that are simple and user friendly. Our philosophy is that less is sometimes more. System reflects what you are doing everyday so well, you will be very familiar with the process and can follow the logic behind the screens very easily. You are also fully involved in the development process and every month you see the application, you can use it, you can test it immediately, you do not have to wait until it is complete. Thus you do not need any extra training after system is completed. In practice, we provide orientation to the software application for 2 – 3 main users of the system for free. Additonally, if customer buys annual maintenance, training for new users is included.
Who is maintaining the system for me, how much extra does it cost ?
System can be maintained by NextLogic as a part of annual maintenance contract for 10 -15% of the development cost.
If I want to add some functionality or features to the system, how does it work?
You will inform us about your requirements, we meet you, discuss the requirements, plan how much time it would take and add the functionality to the system. New features can be added anytime and every new development phase you would pay amount comparable to the price you paid at the beginning. (If the whole system currently has for example 30 main features and functionalities and you require additional 10, you would pay 1/3 of the price you initially paid.)
How is the system licensed? Do I have to buy new licenses for every new user?
The system developed for you is one of its kind. You own the system and can use it for your business. You have a full license for the system, for using it, sharing it with other employees, even installing on another server. What you cannot do is to re-sell the system to the third party. To sum up, there are no user or server license fees on our solutions. Source code is also provided to you.
What if my new employees want to use the system too. Can they use it at the same time?
The question is if more users can use the system at the same time. The answer is yes, system can be used concurrently and all changes users make will be updated in real time.
I can buy an out of the box solution. That would be cheaper and faster, right?
You can certainly do that. Or you could ask any other software vendor to develop a solution according to your needs. There are many options but consider following challenges:
standard solution is suitable for automating business core (standard) processes only because the solution needs to fit all (f.e accounting software)
basically it means you have to adjust your business flow to the system, system will not adjust to you
standard solution usually covers one function of the core business (or few of them) as complete solution combining different aspects of business would be far more expensive and it is usually called ERP solution
standard solution can also be customized or functionality can be added, the problem is that if you want only 2 features you need to buy the whole extra module with 10 other features you do not need now (maybe not even in the future)
standard solutions are overcomplicated or too simple to reflect just what you need, not more and not less
standard solutions want to cover as many different ways of doing business as possible and thus usually have way too many functions and buttons you will never use
customized solutions on the other hand are usually too expensive for small companies and they cannot afford them
How come then that NextLogic provides customization and still at the affordable price? Where is the trick?
The trick is first of all in the reason of the existence of our company. We have a passion for contribution that brings growth and progress to all and we believe all small or medium sized companies can and should grow. We want to help. In this state of mind, we are trying to find the best way of how to develop the applications to be useful and still affordable. Our secret lies partially in utilizing Open Source resources that we rationally use for the cost and quality benefit of our customers, we also use such a technologies that will be easy to change and moderate when system will be growing (f.e. Java / Ruby).
Also, we apply agile software development approach, which is meant to eliminate double work and mistakes by heavily involving customer into the process of application development. We work with the customer from a very first day and show him regularly everything we develop to make sure that every feature and functionality in the system is wanted, needed and will be used.
We try not to waste our resources (time) and resources of our customers (money) at the same time. Instead of spending months writing long requirement documents or proposals, we prefer simple face to face communication, one page proposal that will cover most important things for the initial phase of the system development because we expect requirements to change over time as system is being developed. We try to stay as flexible as possible.
