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Resort Data Processing, Inc. Providing
Quality Hospitality Software for Vacation Rentals, |
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| Search | Hotels/Resorts | Vacation Rentals | Condo-Hotels | Timeshare/Fractional | Internet Reservations | Travel Services | Support | Contact Us | ||
Created 1/1/2002.
RDP has been supporting both Novell and Windows 2000/2003 for many years, and we have discovered that customers are much happier when using Windows 2000/2003. We have now converted over 400 customers from Novell to Windows 2000/2003, and they have all discovered that their systems work faster, more reliably, and with better support. Additionally, they can use the new RDP products (RDPWin, IRM, Crystal).
RDP's goal is to provide high performance and feature rich, reliable software to our customers, which we are able to do very well with Windows 2000/2003. This goal is not achievable with Novell for the reasons explained in this document. As a result, we will discontinue support for all versions of Novell and Windows NT on 3/31/2003. We understand that some customers may need additional time to plan a conversion from Novell or Windows NT to Windows 2000/2003. To receive a support extension, please call RDP's President, Barry Biegler at 970-845-1157.
When purchasing a new data server, RDP suggests Windows 2003 instead of Windows 2000, since it is more current. Any customer who already has a Windows 2000 server does not need to upgrade to Windows 2003. See Hardware Requirements for details.
The Windows 2000/2003 platform allows RDP to provide our customers a much faster and more reliable product, along with better support. Additionally, we have been able to develop new products that take advantage of features only found in Windows 2000/2003. For example, our new windows-based property management system, RDPWin, along with the Internet Reservation Module (IRM), are simply impossible to create within a Novell framework. This document details the reasons for RDP's change to a Windows 2000/2003 data server, which are:
Conclusion - Customers Love Windows 2000/2003
In 1999, RDP released the Internet Reservation Module (IRM), which allows guests to book reservations 24 hours a day from any web browser. RDP has now installed the IRM at over 200 locations with great success. Many customers are generating more than $1,000,000 per year with the IRM. The IRM is installed on a Windows 2000/2003 bridge server, which communicates with the data server. This communication works much more reliably when the data server is also running Windows 2000/2003. Novell servers simply cannot be used to run the IRM reliably, which is the first reason we are phasing out Novell.
RDP has created a new windows-based property management system RDPWin which incorporates a full Graphical User Interface (GUI) as well as hundreds of new features. RDP uses Microsoft ".Net" technology to develop RDPWin which does not work with Novell Data Servers or Windows NT Data Servers.
RDPWin is the future of property management software for RDP customers, and is the second critical reason that existing customers should transition from Novell Netware/Windows NT to Windows 2000/2003 data servers.
Please see The future of RDP - RDPWin and New Modules for details.
RDP has already created over 200 reports using the powerful Crystal Reports. New reports are released regularly. These reports run over 100 times faster than DOS-based reports and can include graphs, charts, fonts, etc. Crystal Reports works much more reliably with Windows 2000/2003 servers than Novell; the third reason why Novell customers will find Windows 2000/2003 much better.
| Crystal Reports and RDP Reporter Links | |
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Starting in 1982, RDP systems used Novell Print Queues to share printers among more than one workstation. This technology worked very well for 15 years. However, starting in about 1997, things started to change.
The result was that Novell Print Queues stopped working with RDP software when Windows 2000 or Windows XP was used on a workstation. We worked with Novell and Microsoft to attempt to correct the problems, but each pointed to the other and were not able to solve the problems.
It is now impossible to print to Novell Print Queues from a Windows 2000/XP workstation; the fourth major reason RDP suggests that Novell customers transition to a Windows 2000/2003 data server.
RDP requires that all new workstations run Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP Professional (see Hardware Requirements). It has been RDP's experience that Windows 2000 and XP workstations are much faster and more reliable when communicating with a Windows 2000/2003 server, rather than Novell Netware of Windows NT.
When a customer has Windows 2000/XP workstations and a Windows 2000/2003 data server, there is only one vendor (Microsoft) involved. Your technical staff only needs to learn one operating system. Additionally, if there is a problem, Microsoft support is excellent when dealing with a "Windows 2000/2003 to Windows 2000/2003" problem. Microsoft isn't very helpful when support issues deal with a Windows workstation communicating to a Novell Netware server. Microsoft blames Novell.
Windows 2000/XP workstations communicate faster and more reliably with a Windows 2000/2003 server; yet another reason that Novell customers should transition to Windows 2003 data servers.
RDP's first system was installed in 1982. Over the last 20+ years, there have been countless versions and sub-versions of:
It is not cost-effective to train RDP support on all these versions and sub-versions, and we can't possibly test our software on all combinations of old operating systems, databases, servers, etc.
RDP performs quality control testing and trains support staff only on Windows 2000 and 2003 data servers with Windows 2000/XP workstations. RDP suggests that Novell and Windows NT customers transition to Windows 2003 data servers (32-bit version only; not 64-bit).
RDP has now converted more than 400 customers from Novell to Windows 2000/2003, and they have all been extremely happy with the change. Systems work faster and more reliably and only need to deal with Microsoft for workstations and servers. They can use the new RDP products: RDPWin, the IRM, and Crystal Reports which are designed to generate more revenue. The consensus from these customers is, "Why did we wait so long to move to Windows 2000/2003?....We love it!"
Resort Data Processing (RDP) software has been installed since 1981at over 1000 locations worldwide (see customer list). Please use the links below to learn more about RDP software for Hotels and Resorts. If you are renting homes or condominiums on a short term basis, please start with Vacation Rental Overview. Timeshare properties should begin with our Timeshare Resort Overview. Our Campground management system is also available. Our systems are fully integrated, so all features in our hotel system are available for vacation rentals and timeshare resorts and vice versa.
A printed brochure and pricing is available by calling 970-845-1140 or download the brochure in Microsoft Word or Adobe format.
