Category: Projects

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Updating Mac Operating System and Development Components Before Starting a New Project

As a developer, it is crucial to ensure that your system and all related development components are up-to-date before starting a new project. This ensures that you have access to the latest features, security updates, and bug fixes that can help you work more efficiently and deliver high-quality work. In this blog post, we will discuss the steps involved in updating your Mac operating system and related development components to the latest version.

Step 1: Check System Requirements Before updating your Mac operating system, it is essential to check if your system meets the minimum system requirements for the latest version. You can find the system requirements on the Apple website or in the release notes for the latest version.

Step 2: Backup Your Data Before starting the update process, it is crucial to back up your data to avoid losing any important files or data during the update process. You can use the Time Machine app on your Mac to create a backup of your system.

Step 3: Update the Mac Operating System Once you have backed up your data, you can start updating the Mac operating system to the latest version. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Go to the Apple menu and select System Preferences.
  2. Click on Software Update to check for any available updates.
  3. If updates are available, click on the Update Now button to start the update process.
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the update process.

Step 4: Update Development Components After updating the Mac operating system, it is essential to update all related development components to the latest version. This includes updating tools such as Xcode, Homebrew, and any other development tools that you use.

To update Xcode, follow these steps:

  1. Open the App Store on your Mac.
  2. Search for Xcode and click on the Update button if an update is available.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the update process.

To update Homebrew, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Terminal app on your Mac.
  2. Run the following command: brew update
  3. After the update is complete, run the following command: brew upgrade
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the update process.

Step 5: Verify Updates After updating the Mac operating system and related development components, it is essential to verify that everything is working correctly. Test your development environment and tools to ensure that they are functioning correctly.

Conclusion In conclusion, updating your Mac operating system and related development components to the latest version is crucial before starting a new project. This ensures that you have access to the latest features, security updates, and bug fixes that can help you work more efficiently and deliver high-quality work. By following these steps, you can ensure that your development environment is up-to-date and ready for your next project.

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Preparing upgrade from BC 14 to BC 17

This week preparing multiple extensions upgrade from Business Central on prem 14 to 17.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is a popular enterprise resource planning (ERP) system used by businesses worldwide. Business Central Extensions are a crucial component of the system as they enable businesses to add new functionality and customize the system to their specific needs. Upgrading Business Central Extensions is an important process that ensures your system is running smoothly and utilizing the latest features. In this blog post, we’ll discuss the steps involved in upgrading Business Central Extensions from version 14 to 17.

Step 1: Review the Upgrade Guide Before starting the upgrade process, it’s essential to review the upgrade guide provided by Microsoft. The upgrade guide outlines the steps involved in upgrading Business Central Extensions and highlights any changes or considerations specific to the upgrade.

Step 2: Take a Backup It’s always a good idea to take a backup of your Business Central environment before proceeding with any upgrades. This ensures that you have a copy of your data in case something goes wrong during the upgrade process.

Step 3: Upgrade the Base Application The first step in upgrading Business Central Extensions is to upgrade the base application to version 17. This is done by importing the new application file into your Business Central environment. Once the application is imported, you will need to compile and synchronize the application.

Step 4: Upgrade the Extensions After upgrading the base application, you can proceed with upgrading the extensions. To do this, you will need to follow these steps:

  1. Identify the extensions that need to be upgraded.
  2. Check if there are any dependencies or conflicts with other extensions or the base application.
  3. Uninstall the old version of the extension.
  4. Install the new version of the extension.
  5. Compile and synchronize the extension.

It’s important to note that some extensions may require additional configuration after the upgrade. For example, you may need to update settings or reconfigure workflows.

Step 5: Test the System After upgrading the extensions, it’s essential to test the system thoroughly to ensure that everything is working correctly. This includes testing the new features and functionality introduced by the upgraded extensions.

Step 6: Go Live Once you have tested the system and confirmed that everything is working as expected, you can go live with the upgraded Business Central Extensions.

Conclusion Upgrading Business Central Extensions is a critical process that ensures your system is utilizing the latest features and functionality. The process involves upgrading the base application to version 17 and upgrading the extensions by uninstalling the old version and installing the new version. It’s essential to review the upgrade guide, take a backup of your data, and test the system thoroughly before going live. By following these steps, you can upgrade your Business Central Extensions with confidence and ensure that your system is running smoothly.

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Preparing release of Progress Reporting Management app

General

o Introduction of “Sync on Sign out” if an app user is being signed out with unsynced data.

o Visual updates and introduction of new colour schemes across app

Measure

o Introduction of Horizontal scrolling in Measure sheets. (user based permission, can be set based on app user preference in app user setup)

o Introduction of “Company Scope” on Column setup to allow narrowing of companies from drop down lists eg on Cable schedules

Allocation Module

o User based permission to allow exceed clocked values (NAV app user setup)

o Introduction of Data limits for types of resource eg Operatives, 24 and Company, 5000 per day.

o On WBS selection, Introduction of Tree like function to enable user quickly find value. User can search this also

o On System/Asset selection, the system list has a search function aswell as select from list function.

o Both WBS and System Asset also have a feature that shows last selected entry on top of list for repetitive data entry tasks

o The “Company Scope” of Measure columns list will obey the same setup, ie help narrow the list of systems under a resource

o Introduction of cross device sync, all app users can see previous entries from different app users for same Resource

o Introduction of complex entries, app user can add additional entries for same Resource & system, but with different WBS and System/Asset allocations

o Clock value for current day now comes into allocation view, app user can exceed this value, but not for previous days

Diary

o On WBS selection, Introduction of Tree like function to enable user quickly find value. User can search this also

o On System/Asset selection, the system list has a search function aswell as select from list function

o Both WBS and System Asset also have a feature that shows last selected entry on top of list for repetitive data entry tasks

Testing

o Bug fix on rejected test sheet where user could not see rejected sheet on device from which previous test sheet was completed, but could see from different device

Snags

o On WBS selection, Introduction of Tree like function to enable user quickly find value. User can search this also

o On System/Asset selection, the system list has a search function aswell as select from list function

o Both WBS and System Asset also have a feature that shows last selected entry on top of list for repetitive data entry tasks

o Changes to Mandatory fields in snag card inline with QA dept requirements

o Draft Snags (incomplete mandatory fields) will not transfer to NAV and assigned app users

o Search bar now can handle multiple search requests, so for example you can search a Discipline, an Assigned Company and System/Asset by placing a space between key words eg ELEC YR

o New Power BI visual to allow BI users interact with project layouts using assigned WBS for snag locations

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Improving Timesheet Portal: New MVC Actions, CSS Changes, and Integration with Backoffice Project Management

Keeping track of employee hours and project tasks is critical for any business, and a timesheet portal is a great way to simplify this process. In this article, we’ll explore some recent improvements to a timesheet portal, including new model-view-controller actions, CSS changes, and integration with a backoffice project management system.

New actions: Model-view-controller (MVC) is a design pattern that separates an application into three interconnected components: the model (which represents data), the view (which displays data to the user), and the controller (which handles user input). The timesheet portal has been updated with several new MVC actions, such as the ability to add a new timesheet entry or edit an existing one. These actions improve the user experience by making it easier to enter and update timesheet data.

CSS : Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a language used to describe the look and formatting of a document written in HTML. The timesheet portal has undergone some CSS changes to make it more visually appealing and easier to use. For example, font styles have been updated to be more legible and a new color scheme has been introduced to provide a more modern look.

Integration : A backoffice project management system is used to manage projects and tasks for a business. Integrating the timesheet portal with this system provides several benefits, such as centralizing project-related information and reducing data entry errors. An employee can now submit a timesheet for a project directly through the integrated portal, which eliminates the need to manually enter data into multiple systems.

Conclusion: Improving your timesheet portal can have a significant impact on your business by making it easier to track employee hours and project tasks. The recent updates to this timesheet portal, including new MVC actions, CSS changes, and integration with a backoffice project management system, provide a more streamlined and user-friendly experience.

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Time

“Timesheet Entry Journal” is a great tool that simply gets the job done. Full Stop. 

However.

Our PRINCE-2 methodology PM system is not for just time recording – for that we have used Excel spreadsheets from years ago and could have used them now. The purpose of any management system is to attempt as better planning as possible and record the history of such planning, which then should be used to improve on new tasks. 

That is why we are creating Programmes, Projects, Products and Actions for granular control, management and reporting. And as with any planning, a glance into the future is always quite difficult, because you have to budget time and then adjust it as the project progresses, which is not always applicable and much depends on specific needs.

The correct way in my mind is when I can create a plan for at least two weeks ahead and then update my planned actions as I progress through them. Not only this simplify my goal of tracking my own time, but it also gives the management an overview of what each resource is going to do and allows allocation scheduling onto correct tasks.

Analogy from the standard system is General Journal Line of type Invoice, which when posted produces a General Ledger Entry with amount and date. If you try invoicing either of them to a customer, it won’t go well, because you must have supporting documentation and that’s where sales documents come into play, which also in the end produce General Ledger Entry.

I believe, if you are doing a simple registering of past events and it works for you, it’s good only for you, but if you can plan ahead in a sustainable manner, it’s better for everyone.