FMProdConf text

What's FMProdConf

FMProdConf is a product configurator for internet shopping.

It is suitable for selling through the internet of any kind of products composed from multiple parts which can't be combined anyway, but must obey to certain rules.
It can also be used for selling any other standard products which don't require special configuration, but in this case his strength will only be partially used.

It works this way:
- vendors can create and maintain their own databases with products, components, prices and rules for configuring products starting from components.
- buyers, by querying these databases, can configure the desired products, using a simple, form-based interface which (based on the configuring rules) ensures that the selected product has a valid configuration. Finally, the internet buyer get an automatically generated HTML document with the chosen configuration and the calculated price, being ready to place an exact, unambiguous order.

FMProdconf Features:

the system only allows the selection of valid configurations, conforming to the configuring rules entered by the database maintainer (the vendor). For example:
- if a PC buyer add a SCSI hard drive, the system will force him to also add a SCSI controller, required for that hard drive to work
- if a car buyer select a model with a small engine, the system won't present him the possibility to chose automatic transmission for that car, because this option is only available for bigger and stronger engines.
- if a buyer select a big sized pizza, additionally ketchup will be automatically added (eventually with zero price, as a bonus)
nothing to download or configure:
- a vendor only need to point to the URL of this application with his java-enabled browser and he can start to create databases or update databases previously created by him (obviously, for updating a database one must know the update password)
- a buyer only need to point to the URL of this application with his java-enabled browser and to get a query password for desired database from the database maintainer (the vendor) and he can start examining the offer of that vendor by querying the database.
access controlled by password: each database has a update password (to be used by the vendor - the maintainer of the database) and one or more query password (to be used by the buyers, when querying the database).
different vendors can create different, independent databases (with computers, cars, pizzas,...)
multiple query profiles, allowing for different price levels for different buyers, depending on which query password the buyer receive from the vendor
the buyer can get a html page, automatically generated, containing the results of the query (complete description of the selected configurations, price and additional notes entered by the vendor)
the buyer can also query for spare parts, without being forced to configure a full product.
configuring rules are entered by the database maintainer as arithmetical expressions, which are interpreted by the program and used for giving to the buyer only the valid choices for configuring the desired product.

Test FMProdConf right now:

Anyone can test this application using the databases whose names start with "DEMO ".

When you select such a database, the password field is disabled and you can directly press the "Query" or "Update" button to see the system working.

However, if you update such a database the changes to the database aren't saved (although if you confirm the updates and your changes are consistent you receive a message telling that the database was updated successfully, in order to simulate the system behavior with an effective database as much as possible)

Use FMProdConf:

As a vendor, you can create your own databases, according to your needs and give to your customers this URL and the appropriate query password (entered by you, as a database maintainer) for querying your databases.

You can start doing this without any payment, but if the traffic generated by the buyers querying your database(s) became significant, you may expect to be asked to pay for this. In that case, you may prefer to buy FMProdConf for using it on your own site.

Buy FMProdConf

By buying FMProdConf and installing it on your own site, you'll have the following benefits:

a good integration with another services offered on your site
possibility to customize the page from where the applet is started and the content of the help file
the FMProdConf users will see better response times (definitely, the bandwidth and response time of this site aren't the state of the art...)
the databases with prices will reside on your server

If you're interested in buying it, follow the steps below:

Step1::	Read FMProdConf license. If you don't fully agree with the contents of the license, then don't take any step further and go away
Step2:	Download the trial version of FMProdConf. You need the client component and one of the two versions (Unix and Windows) of the server component. Please send me an e-mail to tell me the URL where you intend to install FMProdConf. I also need your e-mail address for keeping in touch with the people interested by FMProdConf.
	Step2a		Download FMProdConfC.zip (size: 39758 bytes), which contains the client component:.
	Step2b		Download one of the two available versions of the server component. Although only one version is needed for the system to work, you can download both versions if you want to test the system both on Unix and Windows
			Windows: FMProdConfSW.zip (size: 851186 bytes)	Unix FMProdConfSU.zip (size: 5013 bytes)
Step3:	Install both the client and the server component of the FMProdConf system on your site. You have installation instructions included in the zip files. If however you encounter problems, feel free to e-mail me for support and troubleshooting. Or, instead of e-mail we can use the chat system residing on this site.
Step4:	Test the system. You have no more that 30 days for testing, after which you either buy it or stop using it. The trial version has the following limitations: - one can only maintain databases with no more than 20 components - the About... message tell that this is a trial version and can't be used for more than 30 days
Step5:	If you're not satisfied with the product, please send me an e-mail to tell me what determined you to abandon using FMProdConf, because this way you'll help me a lot in improving FMProdConf. Then remove all the copies of all the files composing the product and finish here..
Step6:	If you're satisfied with FMProdConf, please send US$100.00 in my following account:
		-account owner: Florin Marusteri -account number: 475121628440 -bank name: BANCA COMERCIALA ROMANA, Sucursala jud. Dolj -bank address: str. A.I.Cuza, nr. 1, 1100 Craiova, ROMANIA
Step7:	Send me an e-mail to let me know that you made the payment. You must also mention in your e-mail message the following: -Which version of the server component have you decided to buy. -The URL where FMProdConf will reside. This URL isn't hard-coded in the program, I only need to know it in order to keep track of my installed products. You may change the FMProdConf URL if you want, as long as you don't use it simultaneously in more than one place. If you make such a change, please let me know. -Your company name, as you want it to appear in the About... box of the product: `This product is licensed to Your Company Name`
Step8:	You'll receive by e-mail the full version of FMProdConf (without the above mentioned limitations of the trial version).