XTuple PostBooks. The free open source ERP platform is PostBooks Edition (PostBooks) for small and medium-sized enterprises. It has a PostgreSQL open-source database and a Qt open-source C framework and gives a range of enterprises and industries the ultimate in power and flexibility. Xtuple ERP - Free and Open Source Software I recently published an article that looked at using GNUCash for personal budgeting on Linux. The comment thread made for a fascinating read – it seems that many people feel that personal Linux accounting is just too painful right now, and opt for Quicken (using Wine front-end PlayOnLinux). Many elements go into localizing an ERP system. First is language. Each xTuple ERP client loads a translation file at runtime, so one user can see the application in US English, for example, while others see it in Mexican Spanish, Simplified Chinese, etc.
Company:- Add xTuple to your QuickBooks Desktop and get the full power and functionality of xTuple ERP — robust Inventory Management, MRP, Manufacturing, Planning & Scheduling and so much more — without disrupting your accounting process. Learn More and Schedule a Demo to see how xTuple helps make it better. Real-Time Visibility & Critical Insight.
- After last year’s inaugural event I posted a recap, referring to xTuple itself, an open source ERP solution provider, as A Small Company with a Big Reach. If you are (still) not familiar with xTuple, and/or are (still) not aware of the premise behind open source, you might want to click on the link above and read last year’s post.
Headquarters: Norfolk, Va.
Technology Sector: Software
Key Product: Postbooks ERP
Year Founded: 2001
Number of Channel Partners: 30 North America, 40 worldwide
Ideal Channel Partner: Business process consultant
Why You Should Care: In the commoditized ERP market, xTuple has achieved differentiation by building an active community of users around its open-source ERP product.
The Lowdown: As enterprise resource management software becomes commoditized, vendors are looking for new ways to add value that go beyond feature sets. xTuple, a purveyor of open-source ERP software, has managed to achieve this by cultivating a community of users that contribute to the development of its products.
Small and midsize companies looking to dip their toes into ERP represent xTuple's sweet spot, and many choose to kick the tires on Postbooks, its free open-source ERP product, to see if it's right for them. Postbooks, which is available on Sourceforge.net, has a vibrant community of users, something that ERP competitors haven't been able to duplicate.
'Features and functionality in ERP are becoming commoditized, but what gives us the long-term advantage is our active community of users, many of whom we don't have any commercial relationship with,' said Ned Lilly, CEO of xTuple, Norfolk, Va.
xTuple started out in 2001 with a plan to build commercial ERP software on top of open-source components, a path that many software startups have taken to generate revenue while minimizing costs. That strategy led to the creation of OpenMFG, xTuple's commercially licensed ERP system.
But in the summer of 2007, xTuple decided that a completely open-source model would be more effective, and launched Postbooks with this in mind. Unlike other vendors using elements of open source, xTuple chose not to cripple or limit the functionality of Postbooks, Lilly said.
'Instead of carving off a piece of OpenMFG and making it open source, we chose to make the open-source piece the core, and kept the same code base,' Lilly said. Since then, xTuple's business 'has taken off like a rocket ship,' according to Lilly, who says xTuple's revenue grew 250 percent year-on-year in 2008.
The fact that xTuple stands alongside the open-source community helps ensure continuity and longevity of support for the system, says Will Bralick, president and CEO of Paladin Logic, an xTuple partner in Irving, Texas. 'Additionally, the explicit commitment to the Mac, Windows, and Linux platforms helps us leverage a growing segment of the SMB customer base,' Bralick said.
xTuple also offers two commercially licensed ERP products: one aimed at distribution and retail, the other at high-end manufacturing firms that require advanced serial tracking and tracing features. The graphical user interface for all three ERP products is identical, Lilly said.
Why Should I Enroll In Xtn Xtuple Open Source Erp For Mac Download
xTuple's typical channel partner has the experience and skills necessary to successfully deploy ERP, which has long been notorious in the IT industry for high project failure rates, said Lilly. 'ERP is different from other software because it's so pervasive in the organization, and the selling process is equal parts business process consulting and technology,' he said.