I seek guidance and views on the following. Perhaps i have a lack of understanding.
I would prefer if replyies focused on what is required for a timely order system rather than my own negative experience.

I expect to be able to visit a potential customer and if they like what they see and being a registered developer:

  1. Register the appropriate client licenses via the internet while at the client site similar to purchasing any other product or license via the internet.
  2. When payment has been processed - receive an email back with the license details to complete the installation, while on site.
  3. Sometimes that process may be completed via the clients email system, rather than say the developers laptop.
  4. I expect that license process to take less than 1 hour.
  5. I expect that process to be available 24/7.
  6. I expect an annual reminder to reregister.
Living in New Zealand the experience is somewhat different. I seems we must order through DAW Asia Pacific.

Annual reminders ceased years ago. I have asked for these to be reinstated but to no avail.

The Asia Pacific web site for ordering is confusing. Although there is an instant reply confirming an order is placed there can be no license details received for several days. I believe that is unacceptable business practice. It appears the australia region suffers from time differences.

I have recently had a bad experience when placing an order on Wednesday this week for an important infrastucture client in a badly damaged earthquake city. client stress levels are high and delays could cost this client large amounts of money.

I can deliver on the spot but it was not until Friday that i received a query back saying i had ordered incorrectly and the license would not be supplied. I believe the confusion arose because i have personally held a developers license back to about version 2.3, but in later years market my product through a company owned by myself and two others. I still develop personally. I have twice asked the Asia Paficic rep at training courses if i needed to change the developers license to our marketing company name and was told not to. although i logged on to the local ordering site personally from a fellow directors computer to place the order using his credit card rather than my own, i ordered in our company name. I cannot recall in the website having to enter the order site to enter my developers registration no.

As a developer i log onto the order site with credentials i thought must have been specific to me. I now have doubts that is correct and great confusion has arisen as to who placed the order.

As a developer of over 20 years i suggest that the level of service i set out above is the minimum we should expect.

The experience has soured a whole local maritime community against Visual dataflex and, quite frankly, Data Access Asia Pacific ability to deliver in a timely fashion is under the microscope.

If i did make a mistake ordering through the confusing web site then i would expect that to be advised to me within an hour. Not on Friday and not after i had to send an inquiring email when i was left wondering why no license details were received.

The current experience is now known by the Minister in Charge of Earthquake recovery because of the importance of the infrastructure client. Not a good look for Visual Dataflex. There are some very important eyes viewing the length of time it will take to have this client running.

I inquire if there is any procedure to obtain a license for my client immediately as we expect to be running by 8am Monday Morning. New Zealand time with up to 10 users.

Personally i would like an international ordering system that complies with the points listed above.

Am i missing some simple method?

Simply i need to know how to obtain a new 10 user Client License by 8am Monday time. Daw Asia Pacific already have the Credit Card details for the order.

As a second issue:

I also inquired how to order licensing for a new Client running on citrix who will have one server running three separate databases workspaces to be accessed from three physical sites. Two in one city and the third in another city. There was no response at all from Daw Asia Pacific about that query. Just the rejection of the order mentioned above. Again i find that unacceptable business practice. There are other clients in the queue and they all know each other and are viewing DAW Asia Pacific ability to deliver in a tiemely fashion.

Lastly to end on a positive note -

I am very happy with all aspects of the Visual Dataflex Product and the support via the support groups is exceptional. It is the contrast of the Local supply issues above to this international level of excellence that concerns me.

Daw is losing money because of this.

I would appreciate any guidance whatsover on a method to obtain what i want on time and delivered in an efficient time frame.