1. Why would someone want an ROI-Calc Model
(Calculator/Simulator/Calc)?
Stunning presentation: Custom
graphics and interactivity allow you to present compelling yet
easy-to-understand ROI models and business summaries that are fully
interactive in Microsoft PowerPoint, the Web, intranets, and portals.
Visual modeling: bridges the gap between data analysis and visual
presentation, so know you can use interactive sliders on the screen to
allow you to quickly evaluate multiple what-if analyses by altering the
underlying assumptions, and immediately see the impact of the results
directly on the model.
2. What are the minimum system requirements
needed to run the models?
• PC with
Pentium 3 equivalent processor with 512 MB of RAM (recommended)
• Microsoft Windows 2000 or XP Microsoft Office 2000, Office XP or Office
2003
3. What is the final output that is
provided when the model is complete?
We
will email you a model in .SWF form that you can easily post to your
website (it is as easy to add to your website as a .gif or .jpeg). We
will also send you a fully interactive PowerPoint version that you can use
without an internet connection. The PowerPoint must be in “SlideShow” mode
to function properly (PowerPoint Menu: Viewà SlideShow or use the F5
shortcut). The PowerPoint version can be used as part of any PowerPoint
presentation deck as one of the presentation slides---just remember to be
in Slide Show mode to get the functionality.
4. Can the
results of the model be saved for future reference?
Yes, during your
presentation you can save the scenarios you create to your local drive for
later reference. To enable users to save, load, and delete scenarios, we
added a Scenario component to the model that saves the whole model. When
running the model, users can press the Scenario component to bring up the
three option buttons for the scenarios: Save, Load, and Delete. After one
of the three options is chosen (obviously you have to have saved a model
to Load it or Delete it later), a standard file dialog will appear,
allowing the user to complete the operation. An unlimited number of
scenarios can be saved in every model, as long as enough local storage is
allocated for the Flash Player on the computer of the person saving the
model.
5. Can the results
of the model or the output be shared with others?
Our models are
optimized for interactive presentations (online and in-person) where
everyone can see the results immediately and the results can be saved and
recalled for future reference. We don’t support internal based printing
or collating, however there are alternative methods such as image
snapshots, model share, and a PDF print capability that can be
accomplished through free or very inexpensive external PDF applications.
The PPT version can be emailed (no saved scenarios can be sent, only the original version) to as many people as you want.
We put a ‘scenario’ button on the Calc to save and name multiple scenarios, understand that ONLY the person who saves a Calc is the ONLY person who gets the saved information. Once a Calc is opened on a ‘new’ PC the Calc will not have access to any prior scenarios.
Background for computer geeks follows…
While using complex Web-based applications, you are often required to save information on your system. JavaScript cookies help you do that, but they have their limitations as well, such as deletion of the cookie files from the browser itself. Flash offers a simpler and more powerful option for this task, called shared objects.
Local shared objects (LSO) can store data on your system when the Flash app is closed, and can be retrieved once it reopens. Also, LSO can store data types, such as array and object, which cannot be done using JavaScript cookies.
Persistent local shared objects have the extension .sol and are stored on the client machine in a directory associated with the user who created the shared object.
On Windows, the default location is C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Macromedia\Flash
Player\#SharedObjects\a unique name of some kind\LocalHost
SOL's can't be read by programs associated by Windows. You need an SOL editor which will reveal the variable contents of the complete model (yes...that includes all the stuff you don't care about).
Anyway...each time someone uses the save or scenario program a unique sol is created and stored.
Long story short (to answer the question):
1) There is no known process to find, collect and send a useable file from these sols.
2) Because of the unique naming process a new model will never associate with the old model.
6. Is there a
suggested method for printing individual screens in the Calc?
To the
printer:
You can use Ctrl+P and print each screen.
To create a PDF file and save it on your computer: You must have a PDF print license from Adobe or a discount provider like pdffactory (I think they charge $50). It is important to open up the Calc in PowerPoint's presentation mode and select the screen you want to print. Once the selected screen is open you should get out of PowerPoint's “Slide Show” presentation mode to set up the model for printing.
On the File menu, click Print (or Ctrl+P). Select the pdf icon and click on it (this will save a picture of the current page).
If you are going to make copies of all of your pages you should leave the new pdf open (this will allow you to have one pdf with one page for each page of the model you capture).
Now go back to PowerPoint's presentation mode and open up the next page you want to capture.
Repeat the open and capture process until you have all of the pages that you want inside the new pdf file. Save the pdf file to a folder location on your computer that will be easy to locate and you now have all of your scenario pages in one file. I suggest doing a simple test case to get comfortable with the process before attempting to do a big job.
7. What else
should be known?
1) It is always
best to interact with the model on the computer where you want the
information to be saved (remember…only the computer that saved the model
can retrieve the saved data)
2) Unless you are the user or are watching what the user is doing you can only view the result later, if the user pulls it up on their computer or sends you a static printout or a (non interactive) electronic copy like a PDF.
3) The models are not connected to an external database and there is no tool kit and no port to extract information.
4) Because of the security measures that we have in place you can send the fully interactive PowerPoint version to as many people as you want and never worry about them easily breaking into the model or ever seeing any of your saved scenarios.
5) We suggest posting the model to your website and providing the PowerPoint version as a download option so that your prospect can spend time learning about and seeing the ROI benefits they can get with your product, service or solution.
8. How do you handle updates to models versus
derivative works?
An update is a universal modification to a current model (i.e.,
there is only one model in circulation). A derivative work is
a modified version of an original model (i.e., there is more than one
model in circulation) and we will often price it at 50-100% of the price
of the original model. Point to consider: we price all of our models
the same way we teach you how to price and sell your products and
services...the measurable business value that it provides to the customer.