Software supplier easyLog came to us because it wanted to improve the functionality of one of its products and give the whole thing a fresh new look. Although the Home Care application was already well established, the company felt it needed updating to keep pace with its target market - residential and domiciliary care providers - and make the interface more user-friendly.
easyLog is a British software house, providing ready-made and bespoke applications for the service sector. Its main focus is on creating employee and data management systems for organisations with large numbers of casual staff, often working away from the main administrative centre.
The company asked us to make Home Care more attractive to users by rewriting the code to make it more up-to-date, introducing a new graphical user interface (GUI) and adding web-based functionality. It chose to outsource to Future Processing because, as an experienced company with a highly-skilled workforce, we were able to deliver the quality of service it required at a competitive price.
Home Care is a data storage and management tool for providers of domiciliary care. It has many uses, including scheduling carer visits to clients, recording medical information and financial administration. Because data needs to be accessed at numerous locations, easy-to-use, fast and efficient internet connectivity was essential.
One of the first challenges we faced was a lack of defined specifications for the project. We had been asked to create a new application on the basis of a previous version of the software. In addition, the new Home Care program had to be compatible with the same database used by the previous one.
Our new Home Care application is based on client-server architecture, a web-based system that allows software to be used easily by employees in their homes or remote offices. It also features Click Once technology, so clients can run it via their web browsers just by clicking on a link. This is much simpler and more efficient for both easyLog and its clients because there is no need to go on-site to install software - customers can just be sent an e-mail. The solution was developed mostly in C#.
Effective communication with the client was an important element of the project. The task was divided into four general steps and after each one easyLog checked on progress and fed back information. At the same time, easyLog was making some adjustments of its own to Home Care, so we needed to work closely to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort.
The new version of Home Care is easier to use and more marketable as a result of its practical architecture, new technologies and modern GUI.
"Working with Future Processing has definitely been worthwhile in terms of value for money and the team's creativity and understanding of our clients' needs. We were particularly impressed with their innovative attitude to new technologies, which will save us time and money and make life easier for our customers."
James Clark
Development Manager
easyLog Ltd
