The MASTER-Tour software package consists of several blocks: “Formation of a tourist product” (main block), “Sale of a tourist product”, “Working with partners”, “Working on the Internet”, “Administrator block”, “Statistical”, “Reference” , "Financial". All necessary forms are created in MS Word or MS Excel formats.
Tours are formed from individual services ordered by the client. The compiled tour can become part of another, more complex tour, which allows the customer to choose the best option without leaving the standard parameters of the program.
The formation of a tourism product occurs as follows:
1. “Directory” mode: preparing tourist services for sale. The work begins with filling out directories (entering basic reference data: countries, cities, hotels, excursions, air travel, etc.)
2. “Service Quotas” mode: existing quotas for specific services are introduced, for example, for certain air travel. The rating system and discounts are assigned and edited.
4. “Tour Designer” mode: tours are designed for sale, standard tourist blocks are formed, from which group and individual tours are made up.
In addition to the formation of tours, “MASTER-Tour” allows, in particular:
Calculate commissions and planned profits;
Prepare documents for tourists - one or more tour packages;
Print price lists, tour packages, lists of tourists, vouchers, application forms for embassies, financial reports;
Monitor the conduct of the tour, assess the overall current financial condition of the travel agency;
Calculate the expected profit on the tour and the amount of commission to the agent;
Monitor information about contracts and their completion dates;
Flexible system for creating rules for calculating agency commissions;
Monitor the preparation of documents for a visa and the deadlines for submitting documents to the client and the consulate;
Control the loading of services with the ability to sort by departure city;
The program provides the possibility of sending by fax and e-mail, and on specific dates and at specific times.
New features have been added to the latest version of the MASTER-Tour program: automatic calculation of hotel prices using formulas, export of prices from Excel, as well as improved mechanisms for creating and canceling tours, and significantly expanded administration functions and setting rights for program users.
The advantages of MASTER-Tour include the fact that it comes complete with a licensed SQL server SQLBase from Centura. The composition may include a module that allows the program to work with servers: MicrosoftSQLServer, Oracle, etc.
For tour operator companies working to receive tourists, it is possible to pair MASTER-Tour with the MACTEP-InterLook PC.
The MACTEP-InterLook complex is designed to automate the work of the receiving party, i.e. a tour operator that owns tourism products and has an extensive network of agents to whom it sells these tourism products. Currently, the English version of “MACTEP-InterLook” has been implemented.
The Master-Web software package allows a tour operator working with Master-Tour to open an online store to sell their tours or air tickets in real time. To do this, in addition to installing “Master Tour” and “Master Web”, the operator only needs to define tours and segments offered for sale online, assign access rights to various categories of users or clients (travel agencies or ordinary users).
Clients, by connecting to the operator’s Web server, can view information in real time about tours of interest, air tickets, special offers, get acquainted with the programs of group or individual tours, calculate their cost, and book the tour they like. Connecting to the tour operator's server can be done from a standard browser.
The program can be divided into five functional blocks.
The first and main block - "Tour Constructor" - is intended for creating packages of services and tour programs that are ready for implementation, calculating their costs, calculating profits, commissions, etc., and each service, for example the cost of hotel accommodation, may be different and depend on the host tour operator or even the package in which the stay at this hotel is used in combination with these services and transfers. By entering “net” prices for services, changing profit or “gross” prices, the manager is able to calculate the cost of the assembled block (tour) for different seasons, assess the competitive ability of the tour and, ultimately, create an optimal tour. It should be noted that the program has a flexible pricing apparatus that allows you to distinguish between prices for services sold to a client in a package or individually, prices for the same services offered by different partners, as well as the amount of commission given to partners when selling a tour.
The second block of the software package is “Sales of tourism products”. By quickly compiling a tour according to the client’s individual wishes or calling up a standard tour program (in this case, when selling a tour to the client, you can show a graphical view of any service included in the tour - a view of the hotel, hotel room or attractions included in the tour program). By entering the clients' passport data, the manager is able to generate all the documents necessary for registration (contracts, vouchers, lists of tourists, application forms for the embassy, etc.) automatically. All reports are made in the format of the popular Microsoft Word editor, which makes it easy to edit them if necessary. In addition, the program has a built-in mode for sending faxes via modem. Any of your documents can, if necessary, be sent to one or more places at a time convenient for you. If you have chosen delayed fax sending, the program will begin sending your faxes to the numbers you need at the specified time.
The third block “Working with partners” - allows you to create a database of your partners, information from which is used by the fax distribution wizard. Thanks to the third block, each partner can be assigned certain characteristics and commissions can be assigned depending on the tour.
The fourth block of the software package is “Financial Condition”. The program allows the cashier to print out receipt/expenditure orders, invoices, various financial reporting documents, export data to the 1C Accounting program, makes it possible to control mutual settlements with partners and payments for tours by clients, and assess the real financial condition of the company at a given point in time.
The fifth block of the software package is “Administrator”. This block of the program should help the company organize safe work. The program also helps to determine the authority to work in the software complex for each employee of the company - from determining which modes the employee can work with, to which tours, countries or individual services he has access to. In this part of the program you have the opportunity to configure templates for output documents (reports).
The sixth block of the software package is reference. In this section, countries, cities and hotels are formed. The manager can easily add a new category - any other directory.
The program has a nice graphical interface, where all modes are interconnected. For example, during the registration of a tour, a manager can access the partner database and refresh his memory of graphic images of hotels intended to be included in the tour.
The structure of the program allows it to become a universal automation tool for any tourist office - from a travel agency to the largest tour operator.
3.3 Analysis of the implementation of specialized software Master - Tour using the example of the travel agency “Saimaan Liikenne”
The introduction of specialized software for a travel company is intended to automate the manager’s work, so it is necessary to calculate the savings in the time spent by each manager.
The cost of the program includes about 40 standard types of documents (reports) - these are all kinds of lists, reservation sheets, tourist vouchers, accommodation sheets, statistical reports, questionnaires for embassies and other reports that are easily customized for a specific company. The cost of the program depends on the number of jobs, taking into account exchange rates.
Cho=, where Kv.n=1
T r.v - planned work fund;
Te- labor intensity
Those= tperson*person
| Operation name | Time spent (per month) | Number of people | Te | Time spent (per month) after automation | Te |
| Telephone work | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Working with clients | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Work with documents | |||||
| Error correction | 0,5 | 2,5 | |||
| Search documents | 2,5 | 12,5 | |||
| Telephone work | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Working with clients | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Development of a new direction | |||||
| Work with documents | |||||
| Error correction | 0,5 | 2,5 | |||
| Search documents | 2,5 | 12,5 | |||
| Telephone work | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Working with clients | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Development of a new direction | |||||
| Work with documents | |||||
| Error correction | 0,5 | 2,5 | |||
| Telephone work | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Working with clients | 1,5 | 7,5 | |||
| Development of a new direction | |||||
| Work with documents | |||||
| Error correction | 0,5 | 2,5 | |||
| Search documents | 2,5 | 12,5 | |||
| Total: |
Thus, the table presents the results before and after the implementation of the automated “Master Tour” program in the travel agency.
Consequently, after implementing the program, the organization can reduce its staff by 1 person.
Thus, the introduction of the specialized software tool “Matser-Tour” will allow the company to increase the efficiency of the company and customer service, reduce costs by reducing the number of personnel per employee.
After implementing the software, the manager’s functions will be automated, thereby reducing the time required to perform his daily duties. By reducing the time it takes to process information, the manager will be able to serve more clients and reduce the time required to complete documentation, and this will ultimately contribute to an increase in his salary and will indirectly affect the increase in the profit of the organization as a whole. In addition, the timely receipt by management of the necessary statistical information using the Master-Tour software interface will improve its awareness and efficiency in management.
In general, the company's work will be more efficient, management decisions will be more informed, and this will help reduce costs and increase revenues.
Conclusion
While studying the material for my final qualifying work, I studied issues related to the use of information technology in the tourism business:
types of information technologies used in the tourism sector;
the concept of an automated workplace for a travel agency employee;
I analyzed the capabilities of various tourism information systems, examined the functionality of the Master-Tour SPS from the point of view of their use in the tourism company Saimaan Liikenne
The analysis of the implementation of the specialized software "Master - Tour" using the example of the travel agency "Saimaan Liikenne" allowed us to conclude that it is advisable to use this program not only in this company, but also in similar travel companies.
Literature
Innovative development: Materials of the 1st Youth Economic Forum
Morozov M.A., Morozova N.S. Information technologies in socio-cultural services and tourism.
Gulyaev V.G. New information technologies in tourism. - M.: PRIOR Publishing House
Shirokova R.D. Information technologies in tourism business management // Bulletin of SP GU. Ser. 5, 2005
Papiryan G. A. International economic relations: marketing in tourism. - M.: Finance and Statistics, 2001.
Gulyaev V.G. Organization of tourism activities. M., 1996.
Shakhovalov N.N. Internet technologies in tourism
http://www.megatec.ru/?m=0
http://www.samo.ru/
http://www.amadeus.ru/
http://www.turwin.ru/
http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/IT
Content
Introduction 3
1. Information technology in tourism 5
2. Characteristics of the Master Tour software package 8
3. Description of the functioning of the Master-Tour software package 12
Conclusion 15
List of used literature 17
Introduction
Over the past few years, Internet-based technological solutions have made it possible to create a very special service infrastructure in the hotel business. Software products have appeared that make it possible to book seats on airliners and hotels via the Internet. All operations involving contact between a hotel and its potential client are performed by computers connected to each other by high-speed communication lines. The connection and data transfer process takes seconds. The cheaper and more efficient communication between hotels and their clientele via the Internet has been appreciated by both parties. And now the technologies that made such communication possible are developing in accordance with the wishes of the largest corporations.Perhaps today you can’t find a tourist office that doesn’t have at least one computer. But few people think about the fact that this rather expensive equipment is used in most cases only as an ordinary typewriter. The product of the Megatek company, the MASTER-TOUR software package, is an attempt to change this situation.
“MASTER-TOUR” is a software package that transforms the work of a tourist office employee of any rank into creativity: you always have at your fingertips any information about each tour, each client, each partner and mutual settlements; accuracy in performing tour calculations; instant filling of any standard document forms: questionnaires, reservation sheets, vouchers, rooming sheets, travel vouchers, and so on.
The philosophy of the program is based on the concept of not a tour, but a service - a small “brick”, which, together with other services, makes up the program of any tour. Moreover, any other tour or package (a set of services provided by the host tour operator) can become such a “brick” (functional element) if they are included in the program of another, more complex tour. This composition allows the manager, while working with a client, to add, or if permitted by the senior tour manager, to remove any service, even from the standard tour program.
1. Information technology in tourism
Currently, information technology is considered as a strategic resource for the development of all business activities, as a way to increase the competitiveness of a company. This approach requires an answer to a number of non-technological questions: what is the income from the implementation of information systems (IS), how to measure it, what organizational and personnel changes should be made for the full implementation of the IS project.The world of modern business has changed so significantly that organizations created to operate in the same stable conditions cannot adapt to the new environment without improving their operating principles and structure. It is in this context that the concept of “business reengineering” should be interpreted, which is defined as “a fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of a business process to achieve fundamental improvements in today's key performance indicators such as cost, quality, service and speed” 1. Information technologies provide real opportunities for reengineering and gaining significant competitive advantages.
Harnessing the potential of technology to change a company's business processes and significantly outperform competitors is not a one-time event. It takes a pragmatic view and creative thinking to see the potential of a technology that may initially seem to have no obvious application to a company's operations, or to see innovative applications of information technology beyond the obvious. If companies want to succeed in an era of constant technological change, then they need to consider the ability to use information technology as a key skill.
The use of information technology requires serious investments, which must be used to achieve strategic goals, be able to evaluate and control costs, and apply proven methods to improve the efficiency of their use. It is impossible to give general recommendations for each specific issue. Another thing is important - to understand the general methodology, the philosophy, which, refracted in a special way in each specific business, will allow us to extract from information technology the unique thing that it gives - leadership in world markets. The technological race is not for everyone, so there are many ways to improve the efficiency of information systems: targeting end users, independent development of application software, transferring your information resources to companies specializing in information processing, etc.
The strategic goal of information technology is to help the organization's management respond to market dynamics, create, maintain and deepen competitive advantage. Completing this task requires building information technology systems that have the following attributes: 2
- maximum accessibility - everyone can access IT resources at any time and from anywhere;
- any information object must be accessible to many at the same time;
- application agility - a transition to a network architecture is required, which leads to serious changes in the organization and work of IT departments.
The tourism industry is one of the largest consumers of telecommunications technology, and has one of the highest levels of computer technology in the business world. Part of this stems from the nature of the information that is used in the travel industry. Firstly, this information is very time sensitive, since various dates - events, schedules, etc. - change very often. Secondly, information about tourism products must be available in a timely manner from various parts of the globe. Third, the tourism product consists of a large number of components - transport, accommodation, entertainment - which also require the rapid delivery of information to coordinate their satisfactory delivery.
The largest and most important information systems in the travel industry are computer reservation systems (CRS). They provide access to travel planning and reservation information for most industry sectors, including accommodation, cruises, transportation, tours, currency exchange and entertainment. Unlike CSR, hotel reservation and car rental systems cannot be used directly by a travel agent, but only indirectly through airline computer reservation systems or by telephone. Videotext, widely used in the UK and France, combines the capabilities of CSR, email, telex, electronic newspapers and others, combining them into a single system. Marketing of travel agency services is provided using a telemarketing system. To handle the operational aspects of business, travel companies use office support systems. Electronic networks, in particular the Internet, currently provide not only the opportunity to obtain certain information about tourism products, but also to make reservations on airlines, hotels, etc.
The spread of information technology in tourism will depend on a number of additional sociocultural, economic and political factors. Information technologies themselves cannot create “new combinations” of tourism services. Only the combination of technologies with a number of social, institutional, sociopolitical and cultural factors will lead to the creation of new combinations of goods and services, methods, markets, etc. The impact of tourism on host countries, increasing pressure on the environment, changes in vacation time, technological competition, globalization, the spread of IT and other factors are influencing the change in the nature of tourism products from a rigidly packaged one to one based on flexibility, segmentation and diagonal integration 3 .
The use of telecommunications networks and increasingly user-friendly interfaces are making computer systems accessible directly to the traveler.
When the system is properly applied, IT provides high quality service, thereby better satisfying customer requirements. However, a certain balance is required between high technology and proper personal attention.
2. Characteristics of the Master Tour software package
The software package consists of several workstations: 4- formation of a tourist product;
- sale and registration of tour packages;
- work with partners;
- work on the Internet;
- Cashier's RM (WM - workplace);
- RM of the financial director;
- RM of the database administrator.
- sending faxes;
- sending faxes via the Internet;
- sending messages via E-Mail;
- statistical reports on the database;
We can say that the software package allows you to implement almost all the functions necessary for the functioning of a tourist office.
- create a tourism product
prepare special offers with fixed or floating markups discounts NEW
calculate the expected profit on the tour and the amount of commission to the agent
calculate bonuses for agencies NEW
cancel orders with deduction of penalties NEW
control information about contracts and their completion dates NEW
message and warning service when working with agencies NEW
register any number of tourists for any tour in one or more tour packages
control the processing of documents for a visa and the deadlines for submitting documents to the client and to the consulate NEW
print the entire package of necessary documents (tour packages, various lists of tourists, vouchers, application forms for embassies, financial reporting forms, etc., all reports are made in MS Word or MS Excel format)
control the tour
quickly issue documents using barcodes and a NEW scanner
control the loading of services with the ability to sort by departure city NEW
place quotas on any services that make up the tour, which excludes the possibility of resale
track the progress of payment for the tour and assess the current financial condition of the company
handle deposit payments NEW
registration of payment at the rate on the date of creation of the application, date of payment or date of confirmation of the application NEW
numbering rules for each document type NEW
determine the cost of services in various currencies
send messages via E-Mail that supports MAPI interface
display a diagram of the vehicle by location, with the location of the tourist indicated (for example, a bus)
display the number of rooms by floor for hotels or decks for ships and ferries NEW
configure access rights to various functional blocks of the program
English interface for foreign partners NEW
company data on financial guarantees NEW
All reports are made in MS Word or MS Excel format, which is very convenient for travel agency staff.
The program implements the following interfaces:
- with programs for sending messages via E-Mail that support MAPI interface;
- with the fax distribution program “Delrina WinFax Pro”.
- with the Global-Fax Internet fax distribution system.
- exchange between Megatech products using XML “MasterML”.
Advantages.
- the main advantage: “Master-Tour” is a really working program. To date, the total number of tourists through the program in different companies approaches the figure of 500,000.
- “Master Tour” is a universal and very flexible program. It allows you to work with both group and individual tours of any complexity. The program developers guarantee that they will be able to create and calculate any tour used by a travel agency.
- “Master-Tour” allows you to quote and track the load of any service that makes up the tour, and not just air travel or hotel accommodation. In fact, the program allows you to control the progress of the tour at the level of any service included in it.
- “Master-Tour” has a fairly simple interface close to the interface of standard Microsoft products.
- Already today, “Master-Tour” can work in remote access mode in real time (for example, via the Internet).
- Currently, “Master-Tour” is becoming a standard in the automation of travel agencies.
- “Master Tour” is used as the basis for further projects related to automation of the tourism business.
3. Description of the functioning of the Master-Tour software package
The program can be divided into five functional blocks 6.The first and main block - “Tour Constructor” - is intended for creating packages of services and tour programs that are ready for implementation, calculating their costs, calculating profits, commissions, etc., and each service, for example, the cost of staying at a hotel, can be different and depend on the host tour operator or even the package in which the stay at this hotel is used in combination with these services and transfers. By entering “net” prices for services, changing profit or “gross” prices, the manager is able to calculate the cost of the assembled block (tour) for different seasons, assess the competitiveness of the tour and, ultimately, create an optimal tour. It should be noted that the program has a flexible pricing apparatus that allows you to distinguish between prices for services sold to a client in a package or individually, prices for the same services offered by different partners, as well as the amount of commission given to partners when selling a tour.
etc.................
The Master-Tour software package covers all the main aspects of the activities of a travel company - from creating a price list and catalogs to selling tourism products, from calculating actual costs to maintaining mutual settlements with suppliers, from operational accounting to management.
PC "Master-Tour" turns the work of an employee of a travel agency of any rank into creativity. When working with him, all the necessary information about the client, about each partner and mutual settlements with him is always at hand.
The peculiarity and uniqueness of the Master-Tour PC is its flexibility in settings, which allows the work of both multidisciplinary tour operators in different directions, as well as operators working with individual tourists, companies engaged in cruises and bus tours, small hotels and boarding houses.
The program has been developed and supported since 1995. To date, the Master Tour PC has been installed in more than 350 companies in Russia and the CIS countries.
The ongoing development of PC "Master-Tour" guarantees continuous adaptation to the changing needs of the tourism market
Main functions and capabilities of the Master-Tour program:
We can say that the program allows you to implement almost all the functions necessary for the functioning of a tourist office. Master Tour allows you to:
Advantages of the Master Tour program:
the program actually works in more than 350 travel companies in Russia
universal and very flexible program - allows you to work with both group and individual tours of any complexity
allows you to quote and track the load of any service that makes up the tour (not just air travel or hotel accommodation)
has a fairly simple interface close to the interface of standard Microsoft products
there are opportunities to work with the program remotely in real time (for example via the Internet)
all modes of the program are interconnected, for example, during the registration of a tour, the manager can access the partner database and refresh his memory of graphic images of hotels intended to be included in the tour.
The program implements the possibility of remote agency-operator access, allowing the travel agency manager, by connecting to the tour operator’s server, to assess the availability of available seats and make a reservation.
The program includes about 40 standard types of documents (reports) - these are all kinds of lists, reservation sheets, tourist vouchers, accommodation sheets (roaming sheets), statistical reports, questionnaires for embassies and other reports, the appearance of which is easily customizable
ready-made solutions for communication with the host company's office" Master Interlook"
ready-made online store based on "Master-Tour" - " Master Web"
connection with the program for travel agencies "Master Agent"
Great opportunities for expanding the program and add-ons (creating new reports, connection with 1C...)
The Master Tour program is divided into several functional blocks:
Tour designer Designed for creating service packages and tour programs ready for implementation, calculating their cost, calculating profits, commissions, etc., and each service, for example, the cost of hotel accommodation, may be different and depend on the host tour operator or even the package, in in which accommodation at this hotel is used in combination with these services and transfers. By entering “net” prices for services, changing profit or “gross” prices, the manager gets the opportunity to calculate the cost of the assembled block (tour) for different seasons, assess the competitiveness of the tour and, ultimately, create an optimal tour. It should be noted that the program has a flexible pricing apparatus that allows you to distinguish between prices for services sold to a client in a package or individually, prices for the same services offered by different partners, as well as the amount of commission given to partners when selling a tour.
Sales of tourism products Having quickly compiled a tour according to the individual wishes of the client, entering the clients’ passport data, the manager is able to generate all the documents necessary for registration (contracts, vouchers, lists of tourists, application forms for the embassy, etc.) automatically. All reports are made in the format report generator "Report Sharp-Shooter", making it easy to edit them if necessary. Any of your documents can, if necessary, be sent to one or more places at a time convenient for you. Working with partners Allows you to create a database of partners. You can assign certain characteristics to each partner, assign commissions, and track the duration of the contract. Take into account the work of agency managers, as well as transfer an agency employee from one agency to another if he moves to a new job. Financial condition Allows the cashier to print receipt/expenditure orders, invoices, various financial reporting documents, and export data using PC "Master Payment Center", in the 1C program makes it possible to control mutual settlements with partners and payments by clients for tours, to assess the real financial condition of the company at a given point in time.
Administrator Organization of safe work. You can determine the authority to work in the software package for each employee of the company - from determining which modes the employee can work with, to which tours, countries or individual services he has access to. In this part of the program you have the opportunity to configure templates for output documents (reports). Help block In this section you can edit the list of countries, cities and hotels. Your manager can easily add a new category - any other directory. Requirements for software and hardware of the Master-Tour program:
Net Any network software that supports the TCP/IP protocol with an open port 1433 can be installed in the company's office. The base network is MS Network, as it is more convenient for administration and promising in terms of implementing remote access (access to global networks, such as the Internet). Server computer Pentium iV / 1024 OP. The database + software takes up 80 MB on your hard drive. Client computer At least Pentium-II, 128 MB RAM. The client part on the hard drive takes up about 40 MB. Monitor and video card Must support a screen mode of at least 800x600 pixels.
Technical characteristics of the Master Tour program.
The program is written in client-server architecture. MS SQL Server 2000 is used as the database server. C# and Centura Team Developer 2000 are used to develop the client part.
You can download the demo version of "Master Tour" on the website www.megatec.ru
The purpose of the complex is similar to the previous one.
The complex allows you to create a tourism product, calculate the expected profit from the sale of a tour and the amount of commission to the agent, assemble groups of tourists, generate the entire set of documents for registering the sale of services: air travel, transfer, hotel accommodation, several excursions, visas, insurance and additional services specific to the tour .
The complex is implemented in the form of two modules: tourist and financial.
The tourism module implements the functions of creating and selling tourism products, working with partners and accessing the Internet. In administrator mode, access rights to the information base are differentiated - the sales manager, as a rule, receives the right only to sell, but not to create a finished product.
The financial module is designed to generate statements of settlements with agents and partners, reflect the movement of funds through the cash register, evaluate costs and financial results for the arrival and for the enterprise as a whole.
The SQL Server program from Centura is used as a means of processing queries during group work.
MORE DETAILS
Master tour
Automation tasks for a company arise from the moment it moves to a new office or from the moment when the capabilities of existing communications are no longer sufficient for effective work. The speaker Sergey Kobyzev (MEGATEK) spoke about his vision of the problem and the experience of his company. His main recommendations were:
- The use of integrated chipsets and a reasonable set of peripherals in an office computer (motherboards on the Intel 810 chipset, made, for example, by Chaintech; a Fujitsu or IBM hard drive with 5400 revolutions and a minimum capacity of about 6.4 GB; memory of 64 MB; do not skimp on CD, because it is necessary to work with modern advertising materials; and no Refurbished components).
- The fundamental requirement for monitors is a resolution of 800 by 600. Manufacturing companies, gradually shifting their emphasis towards seventeen-inch (17’’) models, are beginning to forget about the quality of fifteen-inch ones. Therefore, the difference of $100 will pay for itself in the longevity and greater efficiency of the employee.
- Upgrade, as a type of activity for computer specialists, is quite a satisfying piece of bread and butter, but for the consumer, upgrade is in some cases unprofitable. It can be considered acceptable to increase the memory on older machines to 32 or 64 megabytes or replace hard drives with very small capacity, i.e. up to 1 Gigabyte. Replacing processors, motherboards and cases cannot be considered acceptable in most cases - it’s cheaper to buy a new machine.
- Buying a second computer is a reasonable time to build a local network. Construction of a network on twisted pair (in terms of reliability and scalability exceeds coaxial cable) and bi-standard equipment - 10/100 Mbit hubs (with the ability to connect an old laptop). We must not forget about uninterruptible power supplies (on computers of ordinary users - the most inexpensive ones, from $50, on a server - from well-known manufacturers (such as APC) for 30-40 minutes of battery life.
- In terms of total costs, buying an office machine in parts and assembling it with the involvement of third-party, but “our own”, interested specialists ultimately justifies itself both economically and politically.
- It is preferable and much more reliable to use a fiber-optic cable than a copper cable (which was clearly “demonstrated” to us by the heavy rainfall that day in Moscow). And it is necessary to completely abandon wires “on the floor” in your office. Stepping over them shortens the life of the system by tens of times.
In the second part of the seminar, Vitaly Golovchenko (MEGATEK company) spoke with his vision of the approach to choosing software for intra-office work and for creating your own online store.
The software package of a travel company is the creative work of its employee, when the necessary information about each tour, each client, each partner and mutual settlements is always at hand; instant filling of any standard document forms: questionnaires, reservation sheets, vouchers, etc.
The philosophy of the program is based on the concept of not a tour, but a service - a small “brick”, which, together with other services, makes up the program of any tour. Moreover, any other tour or package (a set of services provided by the host tour operator) can become such a “brick” (functional element) if they are included in the program of another, more complex tour. This composition allows the manager, while working with a client, to add, or, if permitted by the senior tour manager, to remove any service, even from the standard tour program.
“Tour Design” is a mode designed for creating packages of services and tour programs that are ready for implementation, calculating their costs, calculating profits, commissions, etc.
When working with a client, the manager has the opportunity to change the program of a standard tour (while showing a graphic view of the hotel and the interior of its rooms) in accordance with the client’s wishes and automatically receive the final cost of the tour. The program determines the availability of free places for quota services, which prevents resale.
By entering the clients' passport data, the manager is able to generate all the documents necessary for registration (contracts, vouchers, lists of tourists, application forms for the embassy, etc.) automatically. All reports are made in the format of the popular Microsoft Word for Windows editor, which makes it easy to edit them if necessary.
The program maintains a database of company partners, information from which is used to send faxes and e-mails. We also maintain a database of regular customers, which allows us to work with them personally.
Financial module of the program allows you to control payments for tours by clients, mutual settlements with partners, assess the real financial condition of the company at a given point in time, print out receipt/expenditure orders and invoices for the cashier.
Software package “Master-Web” developed on the popular Centura Web Developer web application creation tool using Java technology and is used by tour operators to display their tours on the Internet and then be able to book them. Computer requirements for installation: Pentium 133 or higher, 64 MB RAM, 100 MB hard disk space. The remote client can operate in several modes:
- guest mode,
- travel agent mode,
- mode of full access to tour operator information.
The work of a remote client when booking a tour will occur in exactly the same way as simple work in a browser when viewing HTML pages. Agencies do not need to install special software.
Description:
The Master-Agent software package is designed to automate the activities of a travel agency. Since the release of the first version in 2002, our clients have become more than 1,200 agencies and agent networks operating in a variety of areas, and their number continues to grow.
The program is designed for a user who has basic computer skills, basic knowledge of the Microsoft Windows operating system, and the Microsoft Office office suite. No special technical knowledge is required to work with the program.
Competitive advantages for a travel agency:
- RESERVATION AND IMPORT. All data when booking on the operator’s website is transferred to the agent’s working database. All you have to do is print out the documents to hand over to the tourist.
- AUTOMATIC CHANGE CONTROL. There is no need to call and find out information about changes to the application. Now you have at your fingertips a mechanism that allows you to quickly receive changes: by status, service, cost.
- LINKING FILES. The function of linking files to a specific trip. File linking allows you to store and easily find correspondence, photographs, forms and other documents related to the application.
- DIRECT CONNECTION WITH THE RESERVATION SYSTEM. Quickly go to your application in the tour operator’s online booking system.
- SYSTEM OF REMINDERS AND TASKS. Function for assigning tasks and control with the ability to attach a request.
Main functions of the program:
Advantages of the program:
- Ability to work in both single-user (local) and network mode.
- There is no need to fill out reference books before starting to work with the program.
- Data exchange between the Master-Agent PC and online booking systems from tour operator websites.
- Storing in the program logins and passwords for online booking systems of tour operators and automatic login to the online booking system without re-authorization.
- The ability to expand the client and travel descriptions by dynamically creating additional description fields.
- Access control system at the level of user actions.
- Ability to connect additional reporting forms.
- Ability to edit existing reports yourself.
Implementation:
In order to implement the program in your office, you must follow a few simple rules:
Select a computer for the server application (not necessarily a dedicated server, a regular computer is enough).
Develop rules for working with the program for employees (what actions should employees perform when working with a voucher, with a tourist, who should enter daily exchange rates and maintain contracts). So that in the absence of any manager, other employees can quickly understand his requests and take the necessary actions. To do this, you need to describe in detail the information on the application, note its status and payment.
Configure correct access rights for each employee, which will ensure the security of your database.
Enter complete information about clients, hotels, your partners and suppliers into the program database. This will help you in your future work.
Think in advance about what documents and their templates you will need in your work (contracts, application forms, acts, reporting to suppliers, etc.). The program already includes various forms, but their content may differ from your requirements. To do this, you can use the built-in editor to change the required document or order it from us.
The Megatek company is constantly modifying and improving the program; you can learn about all the new products and achievements in the program on our website.
If you think that the program lacks any function necessary for work, you can write us a letter with a proposal for improvement. Your proposal will be analyzed and implemented in future versions if necessary. We will do our best to make the Master Agent program the best assistant for you in your work.
Hardware and software requirements:
As a server computer:
- IBM compatible computer at least Pentium IV / at least 2 GB;
- Operating system MS Windows, version 2000 and higher;
- MS SQL Express 2005 (included) or Server 2005 or higher;
- Framework 2.0. (included in delivery).
As a client computer:
- IBM compatible computers not lower than Pentium III / not less than 1024 MB.
- Operating system MS Windows, version XP and higher
- Framework 2.0. (Included in delivery)
A correctly functioning MS Windows network using the TCP/IP protocol with open port 4817.
Internet access - for exchanging data with the tour operator, for downloading Central Bank courses.
Specifications:
The program is written for the Microsoft .NET platform. The program is built on a three-tier architecture; interaction between the client program and the application server is carried out using Remoting technology. Microsoft SQL Server 2000 is used as a DBMS. TourML format is used to exchange data with external systems.
Escort:
The cost of the program includes 6 months of technical support.
Technical support will help resolve any problems as quickly as possible; minimize downtime and increase productivity; reduce operating costs by 10-40% and free up your company's resources for more important tasks.
