simple program...need your help!
Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 3:59 pm
Hi everyone,
I'm not sure if this is the right sub-forum for this topic, so please direct me elsewhere if it's more appropriate.
So I'm trying to create a program to make things run more efficiently at my business. Let me explain.
Right now, I have 4 employees that do 'field' work. That is, it's their job to visit a number of stores every day and make notes about what is going on at that store. Currently we are using an excel spreadsheet that works like this: One sheet has a master store list for each employee, listing the store names, numbers, addresses, and zip codes. When an employee visits a store, they copy and paste the appropriate store from this master store sheet into a sheet for their store visits. This sheet is formatted with columns noting the store name, store number, address, and zip code. All of that info is just copied and pasted from the master store list. There is then 4 columns where we indicate if a specific type of training occured (column 1, did you train a sales associate? column 2, did you train a store manager? and so on), and then a column to make any notes.
Needless to say, this has become rather cumbersome in excel and I'm seeking to create a php program that will run on a web server and make this process a bit simpler. For example, an employee will login and see their master store list. They will select a store they visited and then be asked if any trainings occurred, and if so, what kind of trainings. They would then be presented with an area to type any notes. Press 'submit' and do it again for another store. Something along those lines. Of course all this info would be stored in a database and easily retreivable and exportable.
My programming skills are minimal, but this just seems like a series of if() statements to me. What I'm struggling with is a way to get started. Any help or guidance would be appreciated. I also had the thought that there may already be some sort of php program out there already that does something like this that is easily modifable.
Thanks again for any help/guidance you are able to provide.
I'm not sure if this is the right sub-forum for this topic, so please direct me elsewhere if it's more appropriate.
So I'm trying to create a program to make things run more efficiently at my business. Let me explain.
Right now, I have 4 employees that do 'field' work. That is, it's their job to visit a number of stores every day and make notes about what is going on at that store. Currently we are using an excel spreadsheet that works like this: One sheet has a master store list for each employee, listing the store names, numbers, addresses, and zip codes. When an employee visits a store, they copy and paste the appropriate store from this master store sheet into a sheet for their store visits. This sheet is formatted with columns noting the store name, store number, address, and zip code. All of that info is just copied and pasted from the master store list. There is then 4 columns where we indicate if a specific type of training occured (column 1, did you train a sales associate? column 2, did you train a store manager? and so on), and then a column to make any notes.
Needless to say, this has become rather cumbersome in excel and I'm seeking to create a php program that will run on a web server and make this process a bit simpler. For example, an employee will login and see their master store list. They will select a store they visited and then be asked if any trainings occurred, and if so, what kind of trainings. They would then be presented with an area to type any notes. Press 'submit' and do it again for another store. Something along those lines. Of course all this info would be stored in a database and easily retreivable and exportable.
My programming skills are minimal, but this just seems like a series of if() statements to me. What I'm struggling with is a way to get started. Any help or guidance would be appreciated. I also had the thought that there may already be some sort of php program out there already that does something like this that is easily modifable.
Thanks again for any help/guidance you are able to provide.