C9 as of version 4.344 is getting a user interface overhaul. This page explains the changes to c9 and how the look and feel of the application change.

In summary, all the menu screens of c9 are gone and are replaced with controls on the top and on the side of the c9 application.

Illustrating this by comparing old version to new version side by side.

Basic Navigation

To access functions in c9 you firstly click at the top to indicate the section you want to access. Then on the left you click on the sub option you want.

C9 only lets you have one thing on the go at a time (with exception of fiche diagrams, see below).  But the new layout means you can switch from one thing to another without having to exit one thing and enter another.  You can just jump straight there.

Other features - Memorization and Favourites

C9 memorizes your last selections and jumps back to where you were last.

Also c9 builds up a list of favourites in the sub menu.  For things you use alot , c9 will memorise these and make it easier to re-select these.

Other features - search

Under the main option, you can search for functions. Key in search type and c9 will allow you to jump to various sections that provide this.

Other features - fiche diagrams

You can now switch between fiche and point of sale using top menu structure without losing the diagram you are currently looking at.  Means you can look at diagrams while in the middle of other tasks and switch back without losing your progress. Also switch back to the last diagram you were picking from while in the middle of point of sale.

Keyboard control

Main menu options are hot keyed.  You can press hot key to access that option.  If you are on a screen that also has that hot key, then you can try and press Alt + Function Key to switch to the menu.

Another way is to press F1. F1 moves focus from the content part of the system to the menu part.  When focus changes, background color of the side/top bars changes to dark blue. To indicate keyboard focus is now there. Illustrating

After selecting an option you can use arrow keys to up and down to move around the sub menu. Use left and right arrow keys to expand/collapse options.

Also you can use letters corresponding to underlined options to jump to/expand sub menu options. i.e. Press 'S' for point of sale

Logging out/Exiting

To logout you now need to select 'Main' then logout.  To exit you can either select 'Main' then 'Exit' or as before either select 'File' -> 'Exit' or click on cross in top right of c9.

 

• Import Fiche
• Added support for diagrams from Piaggio website:  Aprilia and Moto Guzzi
• Tweak to MV Augusta import : could crash on bad login
• QLD paperwork : include Form 61 & 63
• Workshop promise report : print details on techs working on the job (clocked, scheduled and last techs)
• Receive backorder parts on accessories. Do not allow parts from different supplier to be added

• Restoring online backup has been modified so you can get system up and running from backup data much faster.  See prior post.
• Delete received ordered item in orderbook or in view order.  Now asks you if you want to restock the part.'
• Print Receive Order :  make back ordered items more visually obvious on printouts
• Edit franchise:  do not allow user to modify name or master flag for the special 'Accessories' franchise.
• Rollback unit :  c9 was putting spares back into stock but it was not creating a credit note record; meaning qty of spares sold in profit report for spares did not reflect parts returned to stock from a rolled back unit sale.  Only works for units sold after this update is applied
• Stocktake entry  : display max and min qty. Also pressing F6 view/change part does not move keyboard focus.
• Browse Workshop -  allow sort by start date or promise date
• Browse Workshop - unscheduled job listing not working. Now fixed
• Weekly calendar : option to jump to todays date.
• Allow ability to add part to stock (or pricefile) while in the middle of receive order

If you subscribe to online backup service and your server's hard drive fails, to recover you download your backup from c9 website.  The backup will contain all your data, including up to the minute invoices right up until the point of the server failure.

The complication though is trying to download your backup file if you have lots of data. Especially if you have parts diagrams  installed in c9 you will have massive amounts of data.  As much as 3 Gb. The process of downloading the data can possibly take upto several hours.  Meaning your downtime could be the better part of a day.

New changes to c9, available shortly, mean this downtime is now much shorter.  When you download the backup file, the download only contains critical information needed to get back up and running as fast as possible.  Things such as diagrams, images, and invoice information older than 12 months is not downloaded.

Once c9 is back up and running it will automatically download the remaining information in the background; getting your system and the online backup into synchronization while you are using c9.

Result is from point of failure you can have system up and running with the database on a new computer and processing sales in as little as 30 minutes.

Antivirus is a necessary evil.  The problem with antivirus is they are as invasive as the malicious software they are designed to thwart; and occasionally damage your ability to compute.

C9 has always recommended Microsoft Security Essentials because it appears to be the least invasive of the lot in terms of interfering with the operation of c9.  But as of Christmas Eve, a number of users of c9 have reported problems with c9 database not working.

We believe the problem is connected to Microsoft Security Essentials and updates Microsoft made to MSSE around about this time.  We need to sit tight and wait until either Microsoft of the community behind PostgreSQL fix the issue.  In the mean time a couple of workarounds exist.

Workaround 1 - start the database manually

This solution is simple but must be done every time you reboot.

The problem appears that the database cannot automatically start when computer is rebooted; it needs to wait until MSSE finishes it's startup tasks first and the databases own startup process gives up waiting for this to happen.  After the server has started and you have logged into the server and things appear to be stable and idle you can try manually starting the database.  There are a few ways to do this. Here are two:

Method 1

Open Computer/My Computer and navigate to local disk C: and then the following folders:

• c9db
• 8.4
• c9install

Double click on entry that says start ( or start.vbs).  You will see following:

Upon clicking, keep clicking the buttons. Sequence should be something like this:

Method 2

Right click on the link below and click "Save Link As..." (or similar) and save it to your desktop.  Unzip it.  Now click on new item on your desktop.  Screen with flash black.   Database should be running.

http://c8software.com.au/download/pg_start.zip

 

Workaround 2 - add an exception into Microsoft Security Essentials

This workaround is harder but permanent so only needs to be done once.

Click/Right click on Microsoft security essentials in bottom right in system tray and click on Open

Click Settings, then click Excluded Processes, then click Browse.

Now navigate to the following file:

• Local disk C:
• c9db
• 8.4
• bin
• pg_ctl.exe

Click OK

Then click Add to copy the selected file to the exception list.

Now click on save changes to apply the exception. From now on system should boot and start the database automatically.

The new backup server is now mostly provisioned.  C9 backup databases and content of c9  powered websites replicate near instantaneously.  Most other non critical resources, including this website comment only replicate overnight. Part of this comment is to verify successful automated replication of less critical data.

Bug fix with hierarchy lists.  i.e. View workshop estimates in standard mode.  When you select and click to modify items sometimes item modified would be a completely different one.  Problem is more obvious for large collapsed lists and when trying to select items towards the bottom of the list screen.  Regression bug caused by recent changes to hierarchy lists.  Now fixed; also included automated regression tests; prior tests only tested behavior of items close to top of the list, not the bottom so tests failed to detect the bug. Tests now test across entire range of items on screen.

Also deployed new version of remote client as bug is likely to manifest in the remote client itself.

Two thirds of C9 customers now subscribe to our online backup service.  Taking ownership of protecting your business data is an awesome responsibility.  C9 is a software company; so protecting our own data against information loss is fundamental to our ongoing success as a business operation also.

As such backups are something we spend alot of time thinking about.  Our backup solution could be considered to be massively over-engineered, yet in spite of this we are constantly thinking about the integrity of the solution.  There is no room for complacency.  You can never have too many backups, or systems of control to ensure the fidelity of those backups.

We are currently in the process to adding another backup server into our solution.  The server will serve dual roles, as another backup server and also as a backup to our primary web server; so that if there is a hardware fault with our web server, we can switch internet traffic to the secondary server if necessary.

Whenever you raise an invoice in c9, if you have online backup that information is within a few seconds copied onto:

• 4 physically separate computers. (Our main server, three backup servers)
• 7 different hard disks (under c9's direct control)
• In addition to the above, CDP server is managed by our internet partner, web24, precise disk topology is unknown to us, but I would expect it to be at least a 3 disk RAID 5 array; this is in addition of the 7 disks we directly control.

The addition of a new backup server increases backup coverage from 3 servers and 5 disks.

Online backup is more than just backup. It provides:

• Infrastructure for web based access, web sites. mobile remote inventory management, aussie bike finder and bikesales listings
• Active read verification that the backed up data is both accurate and readable.  Even the most diligent users of c9 do not test that their backups can actually work.  Online backup does this automatically and invisibly in multiple tests and contexts

Server computers do fail, typically we receive one support call every two months relating to server/hard disk failure.

New online backup network infrastructure looks like this:

Includes database changes.  Upgrade will force you to log all terminals out first

• Print/export/receive orders  : tweaked so that clerk key test is on a new clerk key setting : handle orders.  On upgrade any staff member with spares permission will have handle orders permissions.  If you want to disable clerk keys on orders, goto setup/general and untick the handle orders option
• Staff report : benchmark result was not factoring in fact that work on jobs may of involved work done outside reporting period. Now fixed.

A new version of remote access tool has been uploaded.  A number of tweaks:

• Tree lists now work correctly
• Miner query results list now works
• Recent UI changes are also reflected here. Specifically:
• changes  to list control focus rules (empty lists can gain keyboard focus)
• Sheets can be traversed via ctrl+tab and ctrl+shift+tab