Where is that address, did it come in email, mail with the battery or sms? How do I print nice labels? Spreadsheet, what the hell is a spreadsheet? I've got "Google" helping me. I don't know what I've spent so much money on.
First you need to prove there is a business worth building in battery restoration. Mark has managed that, without question. And he sorted out his own logo and web interface. As his friend, I've been awe of his single minded dedication. Questions such as the above ring warning bells as while they can be answered over time, as the workload of the actual business of fixing batteries increase there is else time to learn to use spreadsheets, learning Inkscape to product labels and certainly less time for disorganisation.
What does a good mate with Honours in Media with an internet focus do? Do I spend time teaching Mark each of the required applications? How do I get him to use an accounting program? Should I set up a business management system for ToolBattery using Drupal?
What works for Yani, isn't going to work for Mark. And what works for Yani, well it doesn't work that great, it's Drupal, Obsidan, the local file system... Imagine, "here you go, take over my life and sort this out". This is one of those jobs that the devil hands out in hell!
Mark and I have this kewl thing going on where there has never been a project or problem that their collective minds can't resolve. It's served both of us well on our separate projects. If you were to imagine your skills as a sphere where the greater the skill the more pointy the bit is that pokes out, Mark and I have specific streams of knowledge we share, however our "vertical" information on specific topics and experiences is very different. That's what enables kewl things to happen. Somewhat enhanced by the tribalism of living on Ngudooroo.
I can sort this using Open Source software and web interfaces. It can be done, there really is no reason to look further for a solution. Except for one thing, how would this system perform if a member of it was removed either temporarily via sickness or more permanently due to some chronic condition or death?
"To begin with the end in mind."
From The Seven Habit of Highly effective People, written by Stephen R. Covey and Sean Covey, perhaps the most important phrase in the book and it leads to ensuring all possible futures are consider in advance.
Living forever has never been achieved and building complex solutions without succession planning is a known recipe for business failure.
What Toolbattery really needed was one web based software program that could do everything had the scope for Yani to customise and what as simple as possible for Mark.
Ten minutes of Google later and a few reviews and odoo was looking pretty decent. We are still in testing mode but it seems to be a gift for heaven! Yani doesn't have to take on the job of IT manager until the end of time and odoo has AI. In fact, if odoo's AI knew us better the admin wouldn't be typing this.
You can scan or use your phone camera to capture bills and receipts, which are AI processed and the results inserted into the correct fields on accounting forms. Just integrating the website with the accounting package had won me over. The program is on another level compared to previous systems that mixed this and take to form a software solution to a business problem.
Only problem is that we are poor and starting multiple small businesses. It seems we will need to talk to out secret agent "The Drip Bear" because we could be one hell of a reference sales site for odoo.