| Q: |
All
of the document management systems I have looked at take control
of the user's desktop. The developer is left out of the loop
entirely. Is Co-Star going to solve that problem? |
| A: |
Absolutely.
There is a tightly woven relationship between the software
developer, and Co-Star's integration tools. Not only
do we keep you in the loop, we make it possible for you to
offer document management as an integrated add-on to your
existing software solutions. The user interface is literally
part of YOUR application!
|
| Q: |
How
do I offer document management to a client who has a multi-user
host computer, and dumb terminals? |
| A: |
Co-Star
does require Windows-based workstations to retrieve and display
documents. Any dumb terminal can be replaced by a Windows
workstation running Co-Star and a terminal emulator.
In addition, Co-Star's Gateway command interface will
support printing, faxing and other commands to be executed
from dumb terminals.
|
| Q: |
How
many documents can the Co-Star Image File system handle? |
| A: |
The
Co-Star filing system was designed to keep track of
4.3 billion objects, each with a unique object ID.
Objects include Table of Contents folders.
|
| Q: |
What
does the term document enable mean? |
| A: |
The
Co-Star document management system provides the user
the ability to add document management to his EXISTING computer
environment. This process is called document enabling. For example,
with amazingly little time and effort, an existing Accounts
Receivable package can be 'document-enabled', allowing the user
to view documents of signed customer agreements and receipts
on-screen simultaneously with his normal accounting data.
|
| Q: |
How
does Co-Star enable an application? |
| A: |
Using
a very simple command set, the host program issues requests
for Co-Star functions to be performed. View, rotate,
scan, print, fax and other commands are just a few of the functions
that can be initiated by simply imbedding a sequence of escape
codes followed by an ASCII command into your code. If you are
using Windows PCs with your data application, you can control
Co-Star through object calls, scripts or DDE and OLE
methods.
|
| Q: |
Does
Co-Star require additional power on a multi-user host? |
| A: |
No.
In fact, you will most likely not have to upgrade the existing
system at all. To completely document-enable a system with a
50,000 item master file would require slightly more than 1 megabyte
of disk storage on an existing system, and would require no
extra memory. This would have no significant impact on the performance
of most business computer systems.
|
| Q: |
But
I thought documents such as images required a lot of storage
space. How can you store so many documents in such a small area? |
| A: |
Remember,
Co-Star provides a client-server environment. The documents
themselves are stored in our IFS object repository, dedicated
to that purpose. The existing data base remains on the data
server you are currently using. The only data that needs to
be added to the existing environment are pointers to the documents
residing on the documents file server.
|
| Q: |
How
much storage is required on a document file server? |
| A: |
This
depends greatly on the type and volume of documents you wish
to store. For example, a typical image of an 8 1/2 x 11 page
of text occupies 1 Megabyte of data storage. Co-Star's
efficient compression routines, however, compress the image
before storing, reducing storage requirements to less than 50
KB. Using these numbers as a guideline, you could store approximately
20,000 pages in 1 Gigabyte (GB)
of storage.
|
| Q: |
My
client needs to store 2,000,000 pages. Does this mean he needs
100 Gigabytes of hard disk? |
| A: |
Not
at all. Co-Star supports many different types of storage
devices, including on-line magnetic, on-line, near-line, and
off-line optical and tape storage.. On-line, magnetic storage
allows you the fastest access to your images, usually measured
in times of less than one second. Near-line optical or tape
storage allows retrieval times range from 2 to 10 seconds, depending
on the type of device and the traffic on your network. Off-Line
storage provides additional storage capacity for back-up and
archiving applications. KeyNet can assist you in determining
the best storage combination for each customer situation.
|
| Q: |
You
mentioned network traffic. Does Co-Star support a local
and wide-area network? |
| A: |
Yes.
In fact, whenever there are more than one workstation sharing
a Co-Star document objects, Co-Star depends on
the presence of a network. Co-Star will work with all
popular networks and intranet and internet environments.
|
| Q: |
How
do the documents get stored in the Co-Star file system? |
| A: |
Co-Star
has a comprehensive document input and filing module which allows
the input of images from scanners, video, fax machines, document
folders, Email inboxes, the Windows clipboard, or even other
document repositories and databases. Once Co-Star has
acquired the documents, the operator simply asks Co-Star
to save them in the file system. Co-Star will always
return an object ID for the objects it has saved, allowing the
operator (or host program) to associate this ID with a host
data structure.
|
| Q: |
What
ability do I have to select groups of related documents? |
| A: |
Co-Star
allows temporary documents to be created dynamically from your
host application. As long as you have the ability to select
the set of records associated with the documents you wish to
see, Co-Star has the ability of viewing and otherwise
manipulating those documents as if they were all filed in the
same folder. This Virtual Document, as it is called, is just
another example of the flexibility Co-Star gives the
software integrator.
|
| Q: |
I
like the idea of helping my clients add document management
to their environments. However, I don't feel comfortable enough
with some of the hardware and applications. Can KeyNet help
me in some of these areas? |
| A: |
Yes!
The KeyNet's Reseller's Program was designed for that very purpose.
We want you to get into document management at your own pace.
When you identify a prospect, we will help you decide what portion
of the project installation, integration and conversion you
feel comfortable in doing yourself. KeyNet will participate
as a partner in providing the missing pieces. We can provide
pre-sales support, consulting, site surveys, network design,
systems integration and test, software installation, document
conversion, training, and hardware maintenance. Together we
decide how to best serve the customer.
|
| Q: |
I
have several clients who could use Co-Star right now.
How do I get started? |
| A: |
Simply
contact KeyNet by calling our toll-free sales hotline: 1-888-keynet-1.
Ask for information about the KeyNet Partner Program
|
