Archive for the ‘iMIS Modules’ Category

MiSync 1.0 for MS CRM & Exchange Synchronization to ship this week!

Monday, October 27th, 2008

Metisc today confirmed that V1.0 of MiSync for Microsoft Dynamics CRM will ship on Friday October 31st. In a surprise anouncement, this will not be a Beta, but will be a fully functional production ready version that includes full one way synchronization of Contacts from Microsoft Dynamics CRM to shared folders in Microsoft Exchange.

Metisc had earlier announced that a beta was expected by the end of October, but sources today confirmed that instead of shipping a beta version, Metisc will be shipping a fully production ready version - with Synchronization limited strictly to contacts.

Existing MiSync users of the ASI iMIS CRM system will need a license upgrade if they are switching to Microsoft Dynamics CRM as a synchronization source.

For further information on MiSync for Microsoft Dyanamic CRM or ASI iMIS CRM, contact Metisc directly at www.metisc.com

iRemote plugs gap in iMIS CRM to provide functionality equavelent to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Offline Client

Friday, October 3rd, 2008

Up to now there has been no tool in the ASI IMIS CRM world equivalent to the Microsoft CRM Offline Client. The Offline Client allows users of Microsoft CRM systems the ability to take snapshots of data offline and access them while out the office and on the road.

Now ASI iMIS users can rejoice - no longer the poor cousins to Microsoft CRM - as Metisc is announcing Version 1.0.0.6 of iRemote - the leading iMIS Offline Client for the iMIS CRM system.

In our opinion, when an organization of the size and sophistication of Microsoft recognizes the need for an offline client - it shows just how important such a feature is. The lack of this feature for the ASI iMIS CRM system has been a major stumbling block for the older ASI system as it seeks to rejuvinate its product line to compete against Microsofts latest offerings.

The iRemote Offline CRM Client for ASI iMIS is available immediately and provides an instant solution to offline iMIS data browsing. 

JOOMLA Authentication Services for websites using ASI iMIS CRM

Friday, October 3rd, 2008

Metisc, the leading open source developer for Microsoft CRM and ASI’s iMIS CRM systems today announces the release of its JOOMLA Authentication Services.

Traditionally, customers wanting to authenticate website users against their CRM system have had very few choices. Metisc now provides a cost effective solution allowing JOOMLA powered websites to authenticate their users against customer/member records in their ASI iMIS database.

Metisc’s JOOMLA Authentication solution works with ASI iMIS Versions 4, 10 and 15. It also with iMIS sites with or without ASI iBO.NET services. If you do not have iBO.NET - then Metisc’s JOOMLA Authentication Solution will read user information directly from the underlying SQL database that is powering your CRM System. 

JOOMLA Authentication Services is the latest in a series of middleware products from Metisc. Other solutions include a DRUPAL Authentication Services, and the cross platform MBO WebServices - the only truely cross platform WebServices API to support access to both Microsoft Dynamics CRM and ASI iMIS CRM - allowing developers to deploy websites that can work on EITHER CRM target platform without recoding.

For more information on Metisc and JOOMLA Authentication for ASI iMIS - visit their website at www.metisc.com

Acccessing ASI iMIS CRM using Microsoft Entourage on Mac OSX

Friday, September 26th, 2008

Today Metisc announced its support for accessing the ASI iMIS CRM system by users of the  Microsoft Entourage Email client on the Macintosh OSX platform.

“To date, Microsoft Entourage users on OSX have not been able to access information in their ASI iMIS CRM databases. We now support Entourage users with our MiSync product - allowing direct synchronization of CRM data from ASI iMIS into Microsoft Exchange. Once data is in Exchange, it can be accessed via the Entourage Email client for OSX.” said a Metisc spokesperson.

This support is available now. If you are interested in learning more, contact metisc at www.metisc.com

Synchronizing iMIS Members to your Windows Smartphone PDA

Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008

A commonly asked question at Metisc is “How do i synchronize my iMIS members with my Smartphone?”.

Most smartphones are capable of synchronizing their contact information with Microsoft Outlook. So the question becomes, how do i get my iMIS contacts into Outlook?

The easiest and most cost effective way is to use the MiSync iMIS to Outlook and/or Exchange module. MiSync will synchronize your iMIS membership data to your Exchange or Outlook System - and then Microsoft Active Sync will synchronize your contacts onto your Windows Smartphone PDA or your Pocket PC.

If you are using a Palm Pilot or Palm based Treo phone such as the Centro then the steps are the same. Instead of using Active Sync to synchronize between Outlook and your Palm device, you will use the free software provided by Palm and included with your device.

For blackberry users, you can use MiSync to synchronize iMIS to your Exchange server, and then use RIM’s (the maker of Blackberry) Exchange Push tools to synchronize from Exchange to your Blackberry devices.

If you are using a PDA from other manufacturers, then you can check your PDA instructions on how to Synchronize your contacts between Outlook and your PDA. Most PDA phones include this functionality out of the box.

So the next time you want to make sure that you have the latest contact information for your customers at your fingertips, consider using MiSync to do the hard work for you!

SMS Messaging using iMIS

Sunday, August 24th, 2008

SMS Texting has become a huge part of our lives. And it seems to be a technology that has widespread appeal not only with the business crowd, but also with younger generations.

SMS Texting is an easy and cost effective way to send text messages to large groups of people. It has the advantage of being able to touch people whereever they are - whether they are on the internet or not.

Savvy businesses and membership organizations understand the power of texting and are harnessing it to help drive revenues and memberships. Whether you are trying to organize a political rally, or help save the whales - if you need to get a message to your customers and members, then SMS Texting is a great option.

Metisc’s iMAIL for iMIS provides an easy to use, safe, secure and 100% legal way for iMIS customers to add bulk emailing, faxing and SMS messaging to their systems. This inexpensive and high value tool works with numerous third party communications and delivery systems including Xpedite (for fax and sms), Blue Hornet and Magnet Mail.

So if you are looking for a quick, easy and highly cost effective way to get started with SMS, Fax or  Email marketing campaigns, then look no further than iMAIL by Metisc.

Using iMIS with Blackberry Phones and Microsoft Exchange

Friday, August 22nd, 2008

You’ve all seen them. Hordes of smug business people running around with their Blackberrys like they are members of some elite crowd. Dashing off emails and looking like they own the world. Well, just maybe they do! Because how cool is it to be able to get your email and contact information any time of the day, any where in the world? Like totally!

So now have a rabid case of Blackberry envy. You rush out and pick up one for yourself, and may be a dozen or so for everyone else in the office. Perfect - you install the Blackberry Synchronization tools into Microsoft Exchange and in just moments you are up and running. Now your emails are popping up on your Blackberries 24×7 and you are in Blackberry heaven!

Or are you?

Hey, what about my iMIS contacts? My Blackberry is nothing more than a paperweight when it comes to working with my real contacts - those in my iMIS database.

Well fret no more, because Metisc has you covered. Simply install our MiSync software and you can be synchronizing your iMIS contacts into Microsoft Exchange in just minutes. And MiSync deals with the notoriously famous iMIS “Cell Phone Field” issue. With MiSync your Blackberries can be accessing iMIS contacts in minutes. This is a production proven solution that works for MiSync customers.

The elegance of this solution is that it reinforces Microsoft Exchange as your corporate communications hub. Countless businesses are already running Microsoft Exchange and RIM’s Blackberry Synchronization tools. It’s a known standard that works. Both Microsoft and RIM back their products with solid support. So using MiSync to bridge your iMIS system into your Exchange/Blackberry environment makes a lot of business sense. 

So if you are looking for a highly cost effective and simple way to integrate iMIS with Blackberries - consider using MiSync.

Accessing iMIS offline

Friday, August 22nd, 2008

This article might be subtitled, “HELP - The internet is down and im not in the office!”. 

When you are out of the office and not connected to the internet you dont have a lot of options when it comes to accessing your iMIS database. No Internet means no iMIS. Thats like a total “OMG - what are we going to do” situation. Thankfully Metisc gives you not one, but two clever options for accessing your data, iRemote and MiSync. So forget Cell Phone Broadband cards (and their very expensive data plans). And instead consider these easy, simple and 100% legal options for accessing YOUR data as and when YOU want!

With iRemote you can synchronize either a full or partial copy of your main iMIS database onto your laptop for use out of the office. If you have ever used a tool such as ACT, then you will understand the benefits of using iRemote. Its also a very handy tool to use if you are running reports and dont want to tie up your main production database - you can point your reports to run against your iRemote database instead of your main iMIS database.

The other option for accessing information offline is to use Metisc’s MiSync tool and Synchronize your iMIS contacts into an Outlook Folder (Syncing to Exchange is also fully supported). So when you are on that business trip and you need to access some information on a member record, simply open Outlook on your Laptop, and your contacts are at your fingertip. Synchronization can be run either on demand or at regular times (like 3AM in the morning).

Now you know how to access your iMIS contacts while you are out of the office, there is no reason not to book that business trip to Tahiti. Or maybe Fiji, or Bali (stop me, im about to start singing Enya’s Orinoco Flow…)

How totally cool is that?!

Using Crystal Reports in your iMIS database - Is it a good idea?

Friday, August 22nd, 2008

You know the drill, someone needs a membership analysis report from your Customer Relationship Management System and so you decide to break out Crystal Reports. You start creating complex reports and all of a sudden your users are screaming at you because your CRM has become unresponsive.

 So you look for options. How can i gain access to my customer data for reporting purposes without slowing down my system?

You may consider database replication. Its certainly a good idea. You create a replica of the database which is either populated on a daily basis or even kept up to date in realtime. The challenge is the cost of the database licenses and the time involved in setting up and maintaining your replica.

Another option may be to extract your data using a tool such as iRemote. With iRemote you can synchronize your membership database from vendors such as ASI iMIS to your local hard drive. Install a copy of Crystal Reports or Business Objects and you can now create as many reports as you like without impacting other users in your office.

So the next time you need to create some complex management reports, consider using iRemote to create a snapshot of your production data and then report away without fear that you are going locking other users out of your iMIS system.

Open Source Drupal compares favorably to ASI iMIS e-Series

Monday, August 18th, 2008

Metisc today announced that it has developed a specific packaging of its products for those customers wishing to save money and deploy an industry standard and open source Content Management System.

To date there have been limited choices in the ASI iMIS & Content Management System’s worlds. While ASI e-Series may be a potential option, many organizations have looked for alternative for several reasons. No one can deny the popularity of free open source content management systems. Now, there is a standard, cost effective and powerful alternative for organizations wishing to integrate their websites with their membership databases.

Metisc’s Drupal MBO WebServices Kit provides customers with a fully functional website platform, built on the wildly popular open source Drupal Content Management System. The Drupal CMS is recognized as one of the most powerful and flexible Content Management Systems available today. It works on Linux, Solaris and Windows hosts, to provide your organization with a powerful community portal through which you can engage your customers.

Drupal is a free open source product, which can save cost conscious and savvy business owners litterally hundreds of thousands of dollars in software licensing and maintenance costs.

Pairing Drupal with Metisc’s cost effective MBO middleware platform ensures full integration with your ASI iMIS (or Microsoft CRM) database. Whether you are using V4, 10 or 15 - with iBO.NET or without, your Drupal CMS will offer your customers the ability to authenticate, renew memberships, view targeted content based on membership level and payment status, purchase products defined in iMIS and so much more.

From Unions managing membership Dues, through to not for profits who wish to drive value and engage customers in new ways, Metisc’s Drupal MBO middleware platform provide extreme value and convenience.

For further information contact www.metisc.com