September 3, 2002

In this edition of Synerg-E-News: Incorporate Synergy/DE's product release and retirement plans into your product or IT strategies; find out how Synergy/DE powers transactions at the Cambridge Press Bookshop; and more!

Click here to read the Web version of Synerg-E-News.

Incorporate Synergy/DE Release and Retirement Plans into Your Product and IT Strategies
To help you plan your Synergy/DE updates, we have posted a roadmap to current and upcoming versions on our Web site. Visit this chart to make sure that you know what the current and upcoming versions of Synergy/DE include. For example, did you know that Synergy/DE 7.5.3 will provide an XML API that enables you to parse and assemble XML documents, and Synergy/DE 8.1 will deliver support for Synergy® objects and HTTPS? Both are now available in beta.

Visit the retirement information page to learn when your Synergy/DE versions will be retired. For example, 7.5.1 is the current ("active") version, 7.3.3 is "mature," and all versions prior to 7.3.3 are "retired."

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- By reading about other customer successes, they will learn all that's possible with their Synergy/DE-based applications.

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- Industry news and roadmaps will keep them informed.

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Support Tech Tip

Q: Can I use an older Synergy/DE server product with a newer Synergy/DE client product? For example, can I access Synergy/DE xfServer 7.1 with my Synergy/DE 7.5-built application?

A: For all Synergy/DE client/server products, the major revision of the server must be equal to or higher than the major revision of the client. (The major revision is the second number in a Synergy/DE version, so "1" and "5" in the above question.) For instance, a Synergy/DE 7.5.3 client can run with a 7.5.1 server, but a 7.5.3 client cannot run with a 7.1 server. This rule applies to all Synergy/DE client/server products, which include:

-- Synergy application clients with xfServer

-- xfODBC or SQL Connection clients with the SQL OpenNet server

-- xfNetLink clients with xfServerPlus

-- Synergy application clients with the License Manager server

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Where in the World is Synergy/DE Now?
Ever buy a book from the oldest bookshop in the UK, otherwise known as the Cambridge Press Bookshop? If so, that transaction was powered by the Synergy/DE-based Enterprise™ application from Gould Hall.

The oldest printer and publisher in the world, Cambridge University Press (CUP) is now one of the largest as well, operating on a truly global scale with over 1,000 employees worldwide, and actively selling its products in 200 countries. Their prestigious "show-piece" shop in the center of Cambridge, sells all of the books on the CUP list—totaling more than 20,000 titles.

Several years ago, CUP commissioned Gould Hall to write a Point-Of-Sales system that could integrate with their VMS VAX-based Vista publishing system. In addition to integrating Point of Sale tills to the back-office systems, the new system allowed capture of sales via barcoded ISBNs, till analysis, sales analysis, and an ordering facility for stock replenishment.

Last year, the bookshop approached Gould Hall again, in search of a more modern look that could integrate with the Alpha system each night. Wanting to become self-contained, the bookshop no longer wanted to rely upon the OpenVMS machine, which hosted their software but was in another division of the Press. Gould Hall proposed a conversion to a Windows 2000 based system that could integrate with the Alpha system each night and use the latest equipment. They redesigned CUP's Point of Sale (POS) screen for Windows, and provided the shop with flatscreen monitors, customer display PODs, new receipt printers, automatic till drawers, and the latest bar code scanners. They then integrated a Visual Basic front end with the back-end Synergy logic.

"We now have a Point of Sales system to match our prime position within the historic city center of Cambridge," states Heather Stevens with CUP. "We may be the oldest bookshop in the UK, but our technology certainly couldn't be more modern."

Have an interesting story about Synergy/DE? Tell us about it! Don't worry, we'll do all the writing—just send your ideas to Liz Marmins or give her a call at +1-800-366-3472 or at +1-916-635-7300. If your story is published in Synerg-E-News, you'll receive a Synergex polo shirt!

Awards.com Chooses Synergex!
Awards.com chose Synergex to integrate their Web-based operations with their salesforce.com customer relationship management (CRM) system in preparation for the initial rollout of five Awards.com stores located inside selected Kinko's copy center locations. A "fast track" initiative, Kinko's and Awards.com worked diligently to move from initial discussion to store opening in less than seven months. The first two of these locations, on 7th Avenue in Manhattan, and in Paramas, New Jersey, opened this month.

Read the press release in its entirety.

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