ETD: 834 Linux-Based Datavantage POS; IBM To Add Hosted
Service for Web Conferencing; Christmas Shopping 2004: Up 5.6 Percent
E-Tailer's Digest
etd_post at gapent.com
Thu Nov 11 05:19:07 GMT 2004
E-Tailer's Digest --- Everything for the Retailer
Issue #0834 November 11, 2004
George Matyjewicz, Moderator mailto:georgem at gapent.com
Published by: GAP Enterprises, Ltd. http://www.etailersdigest.com
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CONTENTS
[1] Greetings
[2] Linux-Based Datavantage POS
[3] IBM To Add Hosted Service for Web Conferencing
[4] Christmas Shopping 2004: Up 5.6 Percent
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[1] Greetings.
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Hi All:
I read about a Linux-based POS system that fascinated me. Is Linux
becoming mainstream with business applications? Or are there still only a
few out there? Do any of the major software houses offer Linux-based
solutions?
IBM sure is moving slowly now-a-days. They really missed the boat by
letting Microsoft becoming the leading player in the corporate world, when
they had the best groupware solution on the market. Lotus Notes had 90
million users worldwide, which is way down now. So what do they do? Enter
the hosted Web Conferencing arena!
Pam Danziger has an excellent report on Christmas shopping so far this
year. How are you doing?
44 days until Christmas - 6+ weeks! What are you doing this year to
increase business?
Tell us about your business which will remain for posterity at
our "Members: Who Are You?" site. Anything to do with the retail world,
i.e., supplier, retailer, consulting,
etc. http://etailersdigest.com/resources/members/index.htm And we have a
form there for you to tell us about you. As I said when I first proposed
this idea, we have "known" each other for a long time, yet we often don't
know anything about each other. So, tell us who you are and what you do.
Now, let's get to everything for the retailer.
Sincerely
George Matyjewicz, PhD
Chief Global Strategist, GAP Enterprises, Ltd.
mailto:georgem at gapent.com
http://www.etailersdigest.com
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[2] Linux-Based Datavantage POS
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Ritz Camera Centers selects Datavantage Xstore as its new POS and store
management application. The Beltsville, Maryland retailer operates more
than 1,100 photo locations and 110 Boater's World Marine Centers.
The retailer will implement the solution in both store formats on a Linux
operating system and a PostgreSQL open-source database.
Ritz Camera selected the solution because its Java architecture flexibility
in selecting an operating system and database. Xstore also offers a
dynamic, easy-to-use interface that can shorten training time for store
associates.
"Our existing POS lacks the flexibility and functionality available in an
open-source, Java-based platform such as Xstore," says Bob O'Hern, vice
president of information systems for Ritz Camera Centers.
The retailer plans to use the solution's deal pricing accuracy and labor
management tools to improve its store efficiency and enhance its customer
service experience.
Article at...
http://www.imakenews.com/edgellris/e_article000325337.cfm?x=b3VGkHD,b1PJcv1q
+++ [Moderator's Comments] +++
What interested me in this article was the fact that it operates on the
Linux O/S. Does anybody use Linux-based software applications? Or is
Linux mainly for developers? IMHO, it is a great O/S that operates very
efficiently and should be able to do well in the POS world where you need
speed and efficiency.
Anybody have any experience with a Linux-based application?
George
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[3] IBM To Add Hosted Service for Web Conferencing
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The Yankee Group predicts the worldwide market for Web conferencing
services will grow to US$700 million this year, compared to $480 million a
year ago. IBM's Lotus Web Conferencing Service is nothing new, but the
hosted aspect of its offering is. The subscription-based approach makes the
service more affordable for the SMB market.
In a move to compete in one of the Internet's fast-growth markets,
IBM yesterday announced plans to start offering hosted service for its Web
conferencing. Big Blue will target small- to mid-sized businesses (SMB)
with an offering planned for December.
Web conferencing software integrates teleconferencing and the Web to allow
users to gather in an online forum. Web conferencing allows real-time
collaboration and document sharing.
Analysts call it a smart move. IDC reports global sales of hosted software
is expected to grow at a 26 percent annual rate, from $2.1 billion in 2002
to $8.1 billion in 2007. That figure represents exponential growth compared
to traditional software sales.
IBM faces some entrenched competition in the hosted Web conferencing space
from WebEx Communications, a leading provider with ever-growing revenues.
The company recently reported 20 consecutive quarters of revenue growth.
Microsoft entered the market last year with its acquisition of PlaceWare,
which has been made over as Live Meeting. Macromedia also entered the
fray recently with its Breeze online presentation service. Others are also
vying for a slice of the hosted Web conferencing pie.
Can Big Blue make a big splash in the market? Paul Ritter, research
director for Wainhouse.com, told the E-Commerce Times that IBM has to give
it a shot.
"IBM needs to help the users of its Lotus Sametime, Lotus Notes and Domino
see the benefit of Lotus Web Conferencing," Ritter said. "If IBM can do
that, it gives them a real leg up because they've got more than 10 million
users. That is a good base to tap into."
While Ritter said IBM still needs to overcome marketplace confusion about
being slow to change the names of its products and the stigma of the "mish
mash" that it has created in the Lotus line, Big Blue is nonetheless poised
to capitalize on the market trend toward converged communications.
"IBM Lotus has a platform on which to build that satisfies the growing
demand in the marketplace for a single unified solution," Ritter said.
Of course, IBM is not the only one. One of Microsoft's publicly stated
goals is to introduce a complete converged communications platform. Other
players are also racing toward that Holy Grail.
"Firms like WebEx, Raindance and other providers will have to keep an eye
out for big companies like Microsoft and IBM Lotus because they have a lot
of dollars they can throw into this," Ritter said.
Article at...
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/38039.html
+++ [Moderator's Comments] +++
We use WebEx almost daily and find it to be an excellent tool. IMHO, IBM
is very late getting into this market. In it's heyday, Lotus Notes had 90
million users worldwide. I don't know the number today, but it is down
significantly as major corporations moved on to other platforms.
Lotus Notes happens to have the best natural replication tool of any
groupware product. A user can replicate a database to a laptop, work
offline, and replicate back to the server. Conflicts are identified by
field.
So why not go one step further and offer worldwide Web Conferencing?
George
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[4] Christmas Shopping 2004: Up 5.6 Percent
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Before the election, consumers were expected to increase their holiday gift
spending by a modest 4.5 percent. But a survey conducted by Unity
Marketing (www.unitymarketingonline.com) post election points to an even
more positive outlook. The re-election of President Bush will be very good
for gift shopping this year. Consumers overall are likely to increase
their holiday gift spending by 5.6 percent, from $648 last year to $678
this year.
Shoppers' psychology got a boost once the campaign was over. Consumers
feel better than they did a month ago thanks to the closure of knowing who
our president is for the next four years.
That will translate into more generous gift-giving this holiday season,
especially among consumers Unity identifies as 'serious' gifters (i.e. one
who spent $250 or more through October on gifts). That highly-involved
gift shopper, who comprises about 60 percent of the total gifting market,
will spend 6.3 percent more this year, up from $843 in 2003 to $896 this
year," Danziger explains. The 'serious' gifter is most likely to be a
woman, aged 25-to-54 years old, with a household income averaging over
$50,000.
Entertainment Tops Gifters' List, but Store Gift Certificates Will See
Greatest Boost in Giving
Shoppers are going to turn first to entertainment and/or recreational goods
as gifts this year. Hot items will include electronic entertainment
equipment (i.e. hardware) and entertainment media (i.e. software), as well
as photographic equipment and back-to-basic toys.
Next on shoppers' gift lists will be clothing, fashion accessories and
jewelry and watches. Shoppers this year will be drawn to more luxurious
costume and 'faux' jewelry that makes a strong fashion statement for under
$100.
An increasingly popular gifting alternative this year will be store gift
certificates. Last year about 53 percent of gifters gave a store gift
certificate, while 63 percent this year say they are very or somewhat
likely to choose this gift. Retailers are beginning to get smart about
this most profitable gift offering and are combining token gift items like
chocolates with a gift card, thus vastly increasing the gifting pleasure on
Christmas morning.
A traditionally popular gift category that may get less attention this year
is home furnishings. While 48 percent of gifters chose a home gift last
year, only 40 percent say they are likely to give something for the home
this Christmas. With people fighting to eliminate household clutter, many
gift recipients will get greater satisfaction from a gift that they can
enjoy, like gourmet food, wine, or candy or something more personal such as
perfumes and bath products.
Only beginning to rise on the gift-givers' radar screen are gifts of
experience, such as a day at the spa, a fine dining experience, a ticket to
the opera or a favorite jazz club. Nearly one-third of the 'serious'
gifters plan on making an experiential gift this Christmas.
The results of this year's Christmas holiday gifting survey updates Unity
Marketing's Gifting Report, 2004 Update: The Who, What, Where, How Much
and Why of Gift Giving and Shopping. This consumer insight study of
gifting combines qualitative and quantitative research among gift
givers. It reveals gift giving incidence and spending by holiday and
occasion, including seven major gifting holidays and 12 gifting occasions,
such as birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, friendship. The key attributes
of a good gift are presented, as are the types of stores where gifters
prefer to shop. How people choose across the range of gifting options is
explored. Finally the personalities of three different types of gift
givers with different gifting motivations are
explored. http://www.unitymarketingonline.com/reports2/gifting/gifting.html
Pam Danziger, President
Unity Marketing
and author of Why People Buy Things They Don't Need
717-336-1600
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