Board index » delphi » Point Of Sales Systems

2004-07-12 09:19:14 PM
delphi271
Hi,
We've been requested to quote for a fairly simple POS application - Touch
Screen, Check Printer, Cash Drawer. The application itself looks to be very
straightforward but we've no experience of the required hardware and can not
find much of relevance that is specific for developers that describes the
operational requirements of the hardware. We are reluctant at this time to
consider leasing / purchasing such equipment and were wondering if some kind
soul could point is in the right direction to help us find such information.
We'd also like to know about dedicated POS hardware such as the Sharp /
Casio range of products ... we can not even figure out how the OS gets loaded
onto these devices !
Many thanks
Andrew
 

Hi, Andrew.
I worked on POS systems years ago.
Most POS systems are just PC's with a different look.
The hardware is not that complicated (At least under Windows).
- Touch screen has a mouse driver and user just clicks on buttons or
whatever. We made a giant on-screen keyboard for cases where soma data
entry was needed.
- Printers: Either you use the driver or just print directly using print
codes. I think that EPSON has a standard set of commands (ESC/POS?)
- Cash drawers: Either serial or via the printer (You send a special
code to the printer and it opens the drawer)
- Bar code readers: They plug on the keyboard (very easy) or to a serial
port (A little more work)
- Other devices like additional LCD screens to show total amount, etc..
are usually programmed via the serial port.
Unfortunately I have no experience on Sharp/Casio POS.
Regards,
Gerard Visent.
Andrew Jameson writes:

Dummies". There is no such thing. You can buy decent systems for next to
nothing, so why re-invent the wheel here for a one-off?
 

as they prevent further sensible discussion about what I have actually asked
... such comments are ill-considered and are ... well I leave it to your own
intellect ...
My client has a very specific and almost unique requirement and he and I
both realize that it is highly unlikely that there is an 'off the shelf'
solution ...
 

Still looking ... but touchscreens ... what mouse messages exist from a
touchscreen ... I have gathered that I won't get MouseMove but what about
MouseUp and MouseDown ? Also should I design for 800x600 resolution ?; I've
seen many monitors that seem to have this as their maximum but there are
others than can cope with much higher resolutions.
Thanks
Andrew
 

On Mon, 12 Jul 2004 20:50:24 +0100, "Andrew Jameson"
<XXXX@XXXXX.COM>writes:
question come up many times here. Try searching
www.tamaracka.com/search.htm
or your favorite and you will probably come up with some more answers.
Good luck.
 

Andrew Jameson writes:
and click. I am not sure about dragging. There should be no problems
using "normal point'n'click" user interfaces with touch screens. Of
course buttons should be bigger and remember that typing isn't piece of
cake with touch screen.
depends about your hardware. Usually touch screens are indeed smaller,
because big touch screens cost more..
www.elotouch.com/
 

Thanks for your help ... that is been useful.
Andrew
 

Check out www.symbol.com
They have all kinds of hardware, both wired and wireless.
I've used the WaveLink product for programming Symbol devices with Delphi
and it is a powerful combination.
"Andrew Jameson" <XXXX@XXXXX.COM>writes

business, moved to new SW market), so maybe I know a smidge about the
subject. The fact is, POS software is non-trivial and mission-critical with
many moving parts, both SW and HW and ACCTNG and therefore does not lend
itself to easy one-off solutions. Remember the old adage: "Whatever you
don't understand seems simple."
This is kind of like doing a real quick-and-dirty CAD program.... Why don't
you unburden yourself of the "almost unique" requirement and let's see if
there's something off-the-shelf?
 

If you actually did as you say then why not do what most of the users on
this forum do and help and support ? ... otherwise I would suggest butting out
as your comments aren't helpful nor well considered nor wanted. If you are
able to overcome your personal inflated ego then answer the questions posed
... it is not necessary that I provide details of the actual project.
Andrew
 

being /unhelpful/ when he keeps saying "Your bungee is not tied to the
platform", but the fact is, the guy is doing him a favor by holding him
back. Have you thought about why a company that does not do POS software,
which is a big marketplace, is being asked to quote a "simple" little
one-off thing?
 

there still. They can only be "configured", not "programmed".
 

BOB-O-MATIC writes:
they've already looked at off-the-shelf software and found it wanting,
considering their requirements.
--
Dave Nottage [TeamB]
 

"BOB-O-MATIC"
who supply POS applications have not?
And why, just because it is been done before, does that mean someone can't
innovate a new design or put a new spin on things? If everyone thought the
way you do, and Apple hadn't raided Xerox's labs, then we'd all be stuck in
DOS..."err, it reads disks and, like, allows you to create documents and
such..why reinvent the wheel?".
Tsk indeed.