Unforgiving ERP and real life situations.

Unforgiving ERP and real life situations.

I would like to discuss how ERP implementations fail or if not fail cause major distress to all the end users due to the rigidness in the ERP.

I have developed 3 ERP solutions from scratch. I was the lead when I did the 3rd one with around 30 plus developers working for over a year. All through that we would insist that the users need follow the process otherwise we cannot help.
Then for a years I developed custom Java applications that met the users needs exactly and also realized that following agile PM techniques allowed less user distress and less issues with usage of the system.

Around 2006 I got introduced to NetSuite. I was amazed at how perfect the architecture was. Later I started working with companies that implemented NetSuite. Again the approach was we can customize to a certain extend but “users have to follow the process”.

Now I work at a company that uses NetSuite and I see first hand what happens after an ERP is implemented. The people who are impacted are my colleagues that I have to see every day.

Simple example is a transfer order that NetSuite offers. We ask a warehouse to Transfer 200 items from one warehouse to the other. They fulfill 200 items and when the load into the truck they find that they have to ship it in two trucks. The first truck arrives at the next warehouse and now they cannot short receive if ‘Use Transfer Price’ is checked on that. Now we have to either wait till the next 100 arrives or split that fulfillment into two 100 manually.Problem is magnified when we use serialized inventory. Now we can discuss whether to check on uncheck that ‘Use Transfer Price’ to allow short receipts. But that is not my point.

The technical architecture of NetSuite ERP is perfect but the design leaves a lot to be desired. I suggest that the data entry should be in a disconnected manner.
So a transfer Order Receipt should be independent of a Fulfillment. The approach should be to reconcile the receipt against the fulfillment at a later time. Not at the time where some one is scanning in goods. At core the system should be flexible with options to slowly introduce rigidness into the process to allow the maturity of the organization in their quest to a perfect process. I chose the transfer order as a simple example.

This is a generic approach to design where the system should be flexible to allow exceptions to be handle gracefully without significant manual interventions. This allows an organization to ease into an implementation by monitoring bad behavior and exceptions gracefully and then slowly introduce rigidness into business processes. This makes it much less traumatic to the actual people on the ground. This will also lead to more successful ERP implementations.

Some of the simple features of NetSuite does support this although we don’t think of it too much. Allowing transactions to be back dated is such an example. This is a huge help since this supporting a real life need. I hope NetSuite will extend this approach to other aspects of their system.

I'm OK You're OK

Well I finally decided that I had to write about my opinions about “God bashing” that seems to be very common in Social media. Particularly people seem to be against Christianity and Jesus a lot.

If you feel so strongly about shouting out your propaganda about Atheism you should definitely spend time to understand what is it that you are opposing. Without knowing something how can you say that it is wrong? If you don’t know enough of something and you take a very conclusive stand against it then that just shows your sheer ignorance.

Please note that I will not take the side of believers or atheists in this write up. As a person who feels strongly that I am indebted to God for my existence and for all the blessings in my life. As a person who believes that suffering is a way for you to prepare yourself. Kind of like you go to the gym to suffer for a little while to make yourself stronger. Kind of like the soldier who endures a harsh training to face a battle.

I still question my faith every now and then. I do not go to some one who does not believe in God and tell him that he is a fool because I simply have not proof to convince him that God exists. Everyone has to seek out God for himself no one should force it on anyone. Whatever religion someone chooses to believe I don’t go around telling him or her they are wrong and I am right. I don’t think that is any of my business. If I do that I would be a complete idiot.

Powerful people have used God and religion to mobilize people for their own selfish interest. That’s when all the nasty things happen. A group of people gathered to pray for the greater good of humanity couldn’t be that bad of a thing, in fact is its great, its awesome. Look at mother Theresa and all the other people like her. But there are people out there who have selfish interests. There has been since the beginning of time. They will use any means like religion, caste, skin color, nationality, and language, even Democracy for evil purposes.

We cannot throw the baby out with the bath water. Just because so many bad things happen in the name of religion does not mean that we should stop that. I am 100 percent sure that much more good has come out of it than the bad.

All religion is half spiritual and half man made. As such there are flaws in the practices it follows, such as stoning to death. I cannot quote for other religions but Jesus clearly opposes these acts where he tells people to throw a stone if they have no sins and they are perfect (John 8:1-11). "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. (mark 2:27)” He simply points out the mis-interpretation of what God intended man to do in his name.

Another standard argument people seem to have is there is so much suffering in this world hence God does not exist. Well Jesus and most of his disciples were killed. They suffered a lot, they knew they would suffer and they had no absolute plan to enjoy a luxurious life. I always wonder why they did that. If they did not have a convincing reason to spread the word of God, why would they do that? Has is been mentioned anywhere in the Bible that there would not be suffering or that you will have a luxurious life if you are a pious Christian? Absolutely not!! In fact it is just the opposite, it is predicted that Christians will suffer a lot. They will bear a cross but the cross will be just big enough that you will be able to bear it.

Don’t for a minute think that I can prove to anyone else with 100 percent certainty that God exists. Don’t for minute think that I don’t question my faith every once in a while. But I take refuge in my God and I feel strong in his grace. Who are you to tell me that I am a fool? Who are you to tell me that I am wrong? Can you prove that I am wrong? You cannot. So don’t judge others by your standards.

When the US dollar was printed they wrote: In God we trust. I just love that they wrote that, they didn’t write in Jesus we trust. They were good people who believed that every one should have the right to practice whatever they believe.

We all need to accept that people who believe in God can be offended when some one goes on a spree of God Bashing in an obscene and vulgar manner. A fruitful discussion or a debate is another question. Where every one gets to voice their opinions in a very civil manner then it is fine to have a debate or an argument.

If you ask me is there God, I will say yes there is and he has a purpose for me. I know that I would have died much earlier in my life had there not been any purpose. The purpose may not be very glamorous. It may just be that I will raise two kids and be a caring father to them. Maybe he has a bigger purpose for me but it is not for me to decide what or when.

Death is a very sorrowful experience. The mental agony when a near or dear one passes away is un-bearable. I can’t imagine the pain when that occurs in a man made tragedy. I hope no one has to have to deal with it. We had an aunty near our house that was certain of her death. She was a believer in God till the very end. People like that give us direction I wish my faith were as strong as hers. Just because there is suffering we cannot conclude that God does not exist. When God himself suffered, we definitely cannot say that.

Bible is neither a history book nor a science book. Don’t try to find flaws in that based on science. It has been written over the ages so that the word of God may be passed on to generations. Some of the things written in it may be interpreted by people over time for their own gain and in fact even to hurt other people.

We should not seek a very simplistic explanation for such a complex topic. I definitely do not have the knowledge to explain, argue, or write about God. But what I have written here is just so that all my Atheist friends should stop mocking Jesus because that is not fair to me or to other people like me.

I would like to conclude with the title of the famous book. Which every one should read. “I’m OK you’re OK.

List of recipes

http://www.vazhayila.com/2009/04/kuttanad-fish-curry-meen-curry.html

Quote of the day Collections

Quote of the day Collections

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." -- Henry David Thoreau

"Happiness is good health and a bad memory." -- Ingrid Bergman

"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." -- Dr. Seuss

"People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do." -- Isaac Asimov

"A healthy male adult bore consumes each year one and a half times his own weight in other people's patience" -- John Updike

"The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty, and all forms of human life." -- John F. Kennedy

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others" -- Nelson Mandela

"Accept responsibility for your life. Know that it is you who will get you where you want to go, no one else." -- Les Brown 

"If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans." -- Stephen Hawking


"You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty" -- Mahatma Gandhi

"There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting" -- Buddha


"Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldn't be done" -- Amelia Earhart

"The duty of comedy is to correct men by amusing them" -- Moliere

"We have the best government that money can buy" -- Mark Twain

"Be careful that what you write does not offend anybody or cause problems within the company. The safest approach is to remove all useful information" -- Scott Adams

"The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time" -- Abraham Lincoln

"As you walk down the fairway of life you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round" -- Ben Hogan

"Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they've got a second" -- William James

"The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits" -- Albert Einstein

"You're only given a little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it" -- Robin Williams

"Adults are obsolete children" -- Dr. Seuss

"America's a family. We all yell at each other. It all works out" -- Louis C. K

"To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often." -- Winston Churchill

"I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves" -- Anna Quindlen

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life" -- Steve Jobs

"Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer" -- Ted Williams

"Inspiration usually comes during work, rather than before it" -- Madeleine L'Engle

"Many a trip continues long after movement in time and space have ceased" -- John Steinbeck

"There is no such thing as fun for the whole family" -- Jerry Seinfeld

"Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes" -- Jim Carrey

"Where there is shouting, there is no true knowledge" -- Leonardo da Vinci

"In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure. -- Bill Cosby"

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -- Bernard M. Baruch

"When you practice gratefulness, there is a sense of respect toward others --" Dalai Lama

"True friends stab you in the front" -- Oscar Wilde

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." -- Nelson Mandela

"Never go on trips with anyone you do not love" -- Ernest Hemingway

"It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer" -- Albert Einstein 

 "If you saw a heat wave, would you wave back?"-- Steven Wright
"Experience is not what happens to you; it's what you do with what happens to you" -- Aldous Huxley

"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter" --Mark Twain

 "I'm not the smartest fellow in the world, but I can sure pick smart colleagues" -- Franklin D. Roosevelt
"When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt" -- Henry J. Kaiser

"The first wealth is health" -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people." -- John F. Kennedy

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt " -- Abraham Lincoln 

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle." -- Steve Jobs 

"What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality." -- Plutarch 

"Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain." -- Joseph Campbell 

"Try to be like the turtle - at ease in your own shell." -- Bill Copeland 

"It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light." -- Aristotle Onassis 

"The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook." -- William James 

"If you can dream it, you can do it." -- Walt Disney 

"A hot dog at the game beats roast beef at the Ritz" -- Humphrey Bogart

"Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been" -- Mark Twain

"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody" -- Bill Cosby

"Be less curious about people and more curious about ideas" -- Marie Curie

"Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working" -- Pablo Picasso

"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear." -- Rosa Parks

Thoughts on USA

Ohh USA.
What a beautiful vast country. It's full of all kinds of people.
Some good some bad. Mostly good.
But it's a mad rush and in the rush people often forget who they are.

I remember a boss of mine who once told me that everything has a purpose. He was a wonderful person. He and his family were people that I admired as to how they lived their life, how they treated others and how he treated his subordinates.

I see a lot of people live a good life, helping the community, fighting away the enemies of the country. Overall I think that this is the best place to be on earth. The society accepts you as who you are. Religious, Agnostic, foriegners, everyone is accepted here.
Get on a bus in NY and you see people that represent almost all the coutries in the world. No one would look at you with a strange look on their face.

This is the land of opportunities, the people here can Work hard make a good life and contibute postively to the progress of humankind. Much more than anywhere in the world.
I am surprised as to how few people see this aspect of USA. The power that the people of USA holds to postively impact the entire world.

But some how I still yearn for the place my parents were born. I feel I don't belong here. I am torn between the life I have here and the place where my roots are.

.... .... ...

Configurable Software using XML and XSD

I would like to share with you the cost advantages of configurable software using XML and XSD and the beauty of such a solution.
Working as a consultant I design and develop software. At the same time I also maintain and enhance existing software .
I have noticed that most of the time we are reinventing the wheel. There is an application that needs to read a tab separated flat file, remove a column from the file and store it in a folder. The complexity of the application is that it has to process various groups of files. The files are grouped by a product code and file types. The column to be removed varies for each file type and each product code. The typical method would be to write one processing logic per product and file type.
The approach I took in this case is to write a generic processor based on an xml configuration. The processor would read the xml configuration to find out how to process the files. I don't intend to explain the details of the solution here due to confidentiality agreements.
The way the solution works is that when a new product code is added with a new set of files to be processed all that needs to be done is to add the product and the processing rules to the xml configuration file. So no program changes required.
The beauty of xml and xsd is that the person modifying the xml configuration can immediately find out if he/she has made a mistake by validating the xml against the xsd.
The cost advantage of the above solution is the saving of development time. In the time that it takes to develop individual classes for a number of products a configurable solution can be developed. So there is no addition development time required. When a new product has to be added there is zero development time.
Many people will say, "What is so great about this? We do it all the time." Well Good for you. I write this because there a lots of solutions I have come across that do not follow this strategy and I assume it is because people think it is too costly or because it is never considered as an option.

Links

Technical Links
===============
z/OS concepts for Java developers
http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/eserver/library/es-zos/?ca=dgr-jw22Jave4Zos

SAML
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAML

WebServices
http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/webservices/edu/ws-dw-ws-understand-web-services1.html

Using Spring and Hibernate with WebSphere Application Server
http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/websphere/techjournal/0609_alcott/0609_alcott.html


Complexity Theory: A Modern Approach
http://www.cs.princeton.edu/theory/complexity/



Miscellaneous Links
=========================
Malayalam Songs
http://www.devaragam.com/vbscript/MusicNew.aspx?MovieId=754


Division Of consumer Affairs - Online Complaint Form
http://www.nj.gov/oag/ca/ocp/ocpform.htm

Tenants' Rights in New Jersey Chapter Index
http://www.lsnjlaw.org/english/placeilive/irentmyhome/tenantsrights/

NJPAC
http://www.njpac.org/default.asp?Trying=ON

ANCIENT HIGH TECHNOLOGY
http://s8int.com/

Kerala Government
http://www.kerala.gov.in/

Brain and Cognitive Sciences
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Brain-and-Cognitive-Sciences/9-66JFall-2004/Readings/index.htm

Poetry
http://poetry.eserver.org/

Representational State Transfer (REST)

http://www.ics.uci.edu/~fielding/pubs/dissertation/top.htm