Re: [seul-edu] Cafeteria Software?

["Jeff Knox" <jknox@thestuph.com>]

    I  think if there isnt any software out there, it should be laughably
easy to make. The actually front end and database probabl would not take
more then a day of programming if we are just talking about keeping track of
students meal accounts (how much are in them, subtracting what they get for
lunch, adding when they deposit new money). In fact, you probably dont even
have to make a program, a php and mysql database should suffice plenty.
    The only difficult part of would on the entry. If the cafeteria just ask
for student id number and they type it in, thats a non issue. If they scan
barcodes it becomes more difficult but not much. I know at Clark College we
have a barcode scanner that scans the student ids and it imputs the number
it scanned into a web form that is processed by perl. So it should be fairly
easy to find a barcode system that just paste what it scans into a field in
any program or web form.
    Ryan, you mention free, reduced, pay ahead, and all that. That should be
super easy to keep track off.

Jeff Knox
LITC

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ryan Booz" <ryanbooz@alumni.psu.edu>
To: "Comp Ed List" <seul-edu@seul.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 22, 2000 6:06 PM
Subject: [seul-edu] Cafeteria Software?


> Hey gang,
>
> This may be a little obscure right now, but I thought I'd ask.  Many of
> you have probably figured out (if I haven't said) that I work for a
> small private school of about 340 students, VERY rural PA.  Although
> I've been getting many things set up this summer and all my Linux boxes
> are working very well, a new question was proposed to me this week.
>
> We've been looking to get some software for doing the cafeteria stuff.
> And there's plenty of it out there (for Windows or Mac).  However, it
> obviously costs a bundle.  The cheapest we can get someone is $3000 for
> the software, but that's because the also HAVE to come and do the
> training for two-three days.  The software (if there are
> building/district computer people out there, you probably know more than
> I about this) will track each student, what they owe, what the costs
> are, blah, blah, blah.  Point of sale stuff - in other words - a
> glorified database.
>
> So, my question is, anything like this out there in open source?  I'm
> guessing not for this particular situation, but anything that could be
> adapted easily?  Man, talk about selling a school on open source... if
> my principle saw we could do this with open source, he wouldn't know
> what to do with himself!!  Any other suggestions from people that have
> experience with this type of software?
>
> Thanks a bunch!
>
> Ryan Booz
> Tech Coordinator
> Belleville Mennonite School
>
>