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Microsoft Great Plains Dynamics GP version 10.0 is out there and a lot of existingGP customers are in the process of version upgrade. In the case when you haveMicrosoft Dexterity customization or modification, you should deploy professionalDexterity developer to help you with custom logic update. Let s come through GreatPlains Dexterity technology and upgrade process step by step1. Dexterity is C shell. It was designed in earlier 1990th to provide DB andcomputer platform transferability for new ERP application Great Plains SoftwareDynamics. Dexterity determines such attributes of GP as DYNAMICS.DIC, Dynamics.Set,Dex.ini, Dex.exe, Reports.dic, Dex_row_id. Dexterity supports its own DB indexingand table structure schemas as well as it own forms and reports, plus it has its ownscripting language sanscript. If you have custom dex business logic, programmedfor you in the past by GPS software development partner, you should haveDynamics.dic with your custom logic and scripts, in some cases former partnerprovides you with extract.dic2. What is new in Dexterity. Dexterity has some features of .Net, however they arenot really critical, if you have legacy Dexterity customization to be upgraded. Inthis case you need your old sanscript codes to be reviewed and if former programmersdeployed Dex cursors, possibly you will need this old logic to be moved to SQLstored procedures3. COM objects support. This functionality was introduced in Microsoft Dexterityversion 7.0. If you think about software development architecture COM objectsupport allows your dex code to penetrate into Windows platform and be in control ofyour workstation and its custom applications: XML web services, MS Exchange comobject custom logic, integrations, etc. In 1990th GPS Dexterity evangelistsprobably could not consider such proprietary technology as Microsoft Com objects tobe supported as they had the goal to keep dex computer platform independent: Mac,Windows, Sun/Solaris, Unix, etc. But, when Microsoft purchased Great PlainsSoftware, Dexterity was revised4. Dex customization update. GP Dex upgrade is pretty much the same process as 5years ago. You should handle Dynamics.dic with your custom sanscript codes to yourMicrosoft Dynamics GP customization partner and give them some hints on your customlogic and all the technical documentation, if you have it5. VBA/Modifier. Alternatively, you may have modified GP business logic programmedin VBA scripts, attached to so-called Modified GP forms. If this is the case, youshould furnish Dynamics.VBA file to your MBS development partner with relevantdesctiptions6. Dexterity Reporting. In the late 1990th Dexterity was used to create customreporting for Great Plains Dynamics/eEnterprise. In that time Crystal Reports werecoming on the scenes to become reporting tool, plus Dex has better integration withGP security model and works in multiple databases: Pervasive SQL/Btrieve,Ctree/Faircom, MS SQL Server 2005/2000.7.0/6.5. In customization upgrade you cankeep dex reports, but we recommend you to switch to either Crystal Reports orMicrosoft SQL Server Reporting Services SRS
Andrew Karasev, Alba Spectrum Group http://www.albaspectrum.com help@albaspectrum.com 1-866-528-0577 1-630-961-5918 - Microsoft Business SolutionsGreat Plains partner, serving corporate customers in the following industries:Aerospace & Defense, Medical & Healthcare, Distribution & Logistics, Hospitality,Banking & Finance, Wholesale & Retail, Chemicals, Oil & Gas, Placement & Recruiting,Advertising & Publishing, Textile, Pharmaceutical, Non-Profit, Beverages,Conglomerates, Apparels, Durables, Manufacturing and having locations in multiplestates and internationally.We are serving USA Nationwide: CA, IL, NY, FL, AZ, CO, TX, WI, WA, MI, MA, MO, LA,NM, MN, Europe: Germany, France, Belgium, Poland, Russia, Australia, New Zealand,Oceania
