My apologies for not one but two (or three) obscure references to cola ads from the 1970s. Maybe it's just the caffeine talking, but I'm very excited to share lots of big news with you this month. Here at xTuple, we've been working very hard behind the scenes on several new initiatives to help you get more out of your investment in our software, including a huge new xTuple University with new training options, the RC or release candidate of version 4.10, and more (like earning extra credit with every support purchase!).
First — xTupleUniversity.com
We're pleased to announce a massive overhaul of all the product and technical knowledge we've built over the past fifteen-plus years — now for the first time, all under one roof. xTupleU is not just the in-depth documentation, how-tos, and FAQs, it's also hundreds of demonstration videos. You can drill down and find what you're looking for in several different ways — by your role in your company (what do I need to do my job better?) or by the specific area of the application or technology you want to learn about. There's also a new and improved search engine which spans all of our multiple websites, including xTuple's GitHub repositories. Take it for a spin, and let us know what you think!
Second — Version 4.10 of xTuple ERP
You may have already heard that the long-awaited version 4.10 of xTuple ERP is now available in a Release Candidate. That means it's passed all of our rigorous quality tests, and we've deemed it ready for testing in your environment, prior to final release. The release includes hundreds of bug fixes and dozens of exciting new features, including a fully functional Dashboards visualizations package for all our commercial customers. (Check out the Introduction to Dashboards video from Dave Anderson, head of the coveted New Zealand office!) Concurrent with this release, we've also made updates to a number of supporting packages, including xTuple Connect, the Updater and CSVImp utilities, OpenRPT, the xTuple Desktop package, and more. Check out director of development Gil Moskowitz's blog post for important information on how to safely plan your upgrade — or, if you're a customer of our super-fantastic XTN upgrade services (or you want to be), contact us now, and we'll set up a pilot system for you to test.
Finally — New Training
In addition to the content at xTuple University, we're continuing to expand our training offerings. Many of you who have been with us for some time have probably attended one of our terrific "Boot Camp" classroom sessions at our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters (and we've got another one coming up in November). There's really no substitute for being together in person for a week — and of course, the chance to meet, eat, drink, and sometimes sail with your fellow xTuple users is great fun. We've been working hard to expand our online training offerings — and, in fact, just last week delivered our first "ERP Basics" class, designed to train specific people in the tools they need to do their specific jobs in the organization. You've asked for more online classes, and we intend to deliver them — we know it's getting harder and harder to travel for this kind of in-person experience.
And — New Training Credits
We also know that not every company decision-maker may be as excited about ERP software training as we are — and so we've developed a new concept that we hope will make it much, much easier for you to take advantage of ALL of our training offerings (online and in-person). We're very happy to announce the general availability of xTuple Training Credits for every commercial customer who contracts with us for direct helpdesk support. Effective immediately, every annual support contract will include — at no additional cost — an allowance of credits which you can use for any paid xTuple training offering. The credits will be allotted by the hour; as an example, the online Basics class ran for a total of 18 hours over three days, while the Boot Camp class is a full 40-hour week. Here's how the math will work — for every $200 you spend on your support contract (the total of support on both the core ERP and xTupleCommerce, if applicable), you earn an hour's Training Credit. So a customer who spends $3600 per year on support will essentially earn a FREE ticket to the ERP Basics class.
Last one — Earn Extra Credit
Questions? Please Contact Us. And if you purchase a new Support Contract before the end of September, we'll throw in an additional 12 hours of Training Credits! Take The xTuple Challenge!
Thank you, as always, for your support of xTuple, the world's #1 open source ERP.
"I'd like to teach the world to sing" || "Me and My RC" || "The Pepsi Challenge"
Ned Lilly
In October 2001, Ned co-founded xTuple, originally called OpenMFG, with the aim of bringing the worlds of open platform software and enterprise resource planning (ERP) together to solve the unmet needs of small- to mid-sized manufacturers. In 1999, he was a co-founder of Great Bridge, an early business built around the PostgreSQL database which is also the core technology for xTuple today. Great Bridge was incubated inside Landmark Communications, a mid-sized media company where Ned directed corporate venture investments, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and startup activity. Prior to Landmark, Ned worked for a regional technology group in Washington D.C. and had a brief first career in political media — television, radio and a non-partisan news wire. He holds a B.A. from the University of Virginia and an M.A. from George Washington University.