SI4 vs SI5 vs Nothing - D-Tools Forum

JordanC · 08-10-2007, 01:42 AM

After using SI5 for a while, I have come to decide that SI4 is MUCH faster and easier to use. Simple. I want to find from those who have tested out SI5 and have used previous SI releases, if you will continue to use your previous verison or upgrade to SI5.

dharmonyav · 08-10-2007, 09:04 PM

SI5 is installed on my machine, but all its doing is taking up hard drive space. I don't have time to continuously get disappointed when more and more bugs get found. I will continue with 4.6 and wait for 5.1 to be released. I am excited about v5, but have to wait, its still beta IMO.

David_Haddad · 08-10-2007, 09:54 PM

I am not able to use 5.0 currently as it is not stable enough. I am hoping the upgrade that will be available on Monday will solve that. However we will not be able to move to 5.0 until it supports the adjustment of quantities on packages as they are added to a project. We currently have many base packages that allow us to choose the quantity of items in the package. Without being able to adjust quantities we would have to create 50 packages instead of one. I would like to see this as a top priority for D-Tools to fix.

I too am very excited about 5.0, but disappointed and worried that we will not be able to use it until the package issue is fixed. It seems to me this is something d-Tools could fix very quickly and I hope to see it happen in the next week or two. I do not want to have to wait 2 months

.

While 5.0 has IMO some serious problems, I am very pleased with the responses I am seeing from D-Tools and believe they on the job!

JordanC · 08-10-2007, 10:21 PM

Much agreed David! I created a simple 2-room proposal in SI5 in about 30 mins, that would take me 5 mins to do in SI4. The ability to add an item to a package or an accessory to a product using the new interface, to me, has decreased in speed beyond comprehension.

Reed Phillips · 08-10-2007, 10:25 PM

We get it... The service pack will address all the know stability issues. Of course, there may be some we don't know about. Some but not all of the feature issues will be addressed in V5.1. We have many requests for V5.1 features and we will not be able to address them all. Hopefully we will solicit as much user input as possible before having to decide what will not make the cut.

08-16-2007, 03:16 PM

My feeling are that SI5 is much simpler to use and work with for a Non Techie.

David_Haddad · 08-20-2007, 10:18 PM

Jordan,

Have you applied the new patch yet? See my comments here.

Great Work Guys!

JordanC · 08-20-2007, 10:30 PM

No I have not applied the patch. I have removed the SI5 version from my pc. I will not apply any patches or reinstall the software until I am able to operate SI5 with the speed and simplicity I am currently able to on SI4. The biggest factor I am set on is the building of proposals in text. I REALLY do want to use the newer features and benefits the new release, and I had as much anticipation for it as the next person, but I do just not have the time it takes to build projects at SI5 speed.

Let me know when the package adjustment capability is enabled and I will give it another look.

David_Haddad · 08-20-2007, 10:42 PM

Jordan,

I understand your comments, especially regarding packages. However it is my belief that 5.0 is with a few very important exceptions, faster to work in, in almost every regard. But I do understand that those exceptions may be deal killers for you.

Other than the ability to adjust packages on the fly, would you explain what else you find faster in 4.6? You stated above 'The ability to add an item to a package or an accessory to a product using the new interface, to me, has decreased in speed beyond comprehension" but you don't really elaborate.

I'm also not clear on why it would take you 30 minutes to do a proposal in version 5 that you can do in 5 minutes in version 4, unless you are referring only to the inability to adjust package quantities on the fly. Please explain.

09-11-2007, 02:24 PM

I have to agree that for the average user, 5 is a lot easier to work in. We are currently training a new designer, and he was using Si5 for about 2 weeks, until other circumstances (Tigerpaw Integration - still not quite worked out, btw) sort of forced our hand into waiting, and we have everyone back on Si4.6 at the moment.

He says daily 5 was much easier to use. Almost everyone who used 4.6 prefers 4.6, though. I dunno if they just don't like change, or if they feel there were a lot of "changes made simply for change's sake" (which is what I feel, as the resident IT guy), or what.

So, new users prefer 5, old users prefer 4.6. I cannot tell you why. I can say it seems like features were removed in 5 for no apparent reason other than "it's new and different!" Not trying to be derogatory, but there seems to be a LOT of features that are like that. Removing the ability to export to Excel (EXCEL of all things) seems asinine. Sure, you made "Excel Reports" but those require a LOT more interaction on the part of the end user than using a standard report and then exporting. I cannot train everyone on the use of excel reports, I simply do not have the time. Why would you remove the ability to add an item to a package or an accessory to a product from the text interface, and require them to load up MMPD? MMPD is a wonderful tool. I wish I could use it without having to log in to D-Tools 5. It'd be extremely useful in that case. As is, I don't see the benefit over the old master table editting tools in Si4.6.

All of this adds up to a lot of little things that make people feel 5 is NOT the way to go yet. Particularly returning customers. When you call and ask for technical support, and get told "Um, I don't know. Why don't you post on the forums?" it also sends technical confidence down the tubes. I cannot support 5 yet because of it's various issues. I installed SP2 today, which will hopefully fix many of the issues my company is facing. I will try to give more feedback after testing.