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The article provides a brief history of POS technology in the hospitality industry and studies the pros and cons of its applications in the restaurant industry. The study, published in 2004, focuses primarily on handheld POS devices that allow consumers to place orders and order checks independent of serving staff. The article finds that handheld POS systems have potential in this market to bring additional profits and increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Many restaurants are choosing to go to hand-held POS systems for the many advantages they provide. Perhaps the number one reason to chose a hand-held POS system is time saved. A restaurant can save up to four minutes by placing the order via a hand-held POS system. This leads to more selling opportunities, and greater time with the guest. Information on 86'd items is immediately available, and the system can suggest possible "upsell" options. Order accuracy is increased, because the order is placed right at the table as it is given. Drawbacks include the durability of the unit, considerable start up costs, and complexity of the unit. Many of the durability issues have been addressed, but the units are still pricey. Costs have come down as the technology becomes more widespread. The complexity of the unit still remains an issue, as servers tend to focus more on the unit and placing the order, rather than engaging the guest.

I have seen these work very well at Chick-fil-a recently. They utilize these systems during high traffic times by having two associates out in the drive through line taking orders along with the intercom. By doing this, they are able to take three orders at a time and the line is very minimal. If used correctly, this is a great system to have.

HippoFM is a facility maintenance software program that provides preventative maintenance schedules, work orders, CAD graphics, capital planning features, and handheld mobile devices to help ensure hotels provide timely service to guests and provide tools to make the maintenance department more effective. The article states that this system can reduce maintenance costs, increase work-order closing speed and use handheld devices to access the system where ever you go. For any large hotel or restaurant chain I believe that a maintenance management software system is important. The company I worked for ran many restaurants in several hotels and when we implemented this type of system it made tracking and fixing equipment a breeze and managers became less disgusted with the maintenance department.

This is a great program for a hotel to have. It seems great that there are hand held devices for the maintenance people to have while they are walking around the property. I also like that it sets up a maintenance schedule for you so you do not have to worry about it yourself.

From this article, I can get some information that the new technology bring convenience both hotel and customers. The customers just press the simple button to control everyting in the hotel room that is a good experience difference from home. And the hotel can utilize the high technology to satisfied the customers and thus improving the competitiveness in the industry. However, high technology means high cost. The hotel that adopt the high technoloty should has the ability to maintain and update which will become a huge cost. So keeping up with the development of technology is the biggest difficulty problem in the hotel industry.

The latest technology gives hotels an opportunity to provide new products and services to guests but also the challenges . The biggest difficulty is the speed at which technology is evolving which makes it impossible for hotels to keep up with the latest developments. On the other hand there are many hotels are embracing the new technologies. Such as guest's smartphone, which will allow for interactive channel guides to appear on the handheld and can store guest preferences that travelers can take from one hotel to another. And the Plaza provide iPads in every guest room. which provide an easy way for customers to make reservation checking airline schedules and printing boarding passes.

E-commerce is based on the process of buying and selling products or services on the internet or other computer networks. Ecommerce rapid growth in these last years can be accounted to very important key factors, such as: Technology, thanks to this important factor now computers are not the only way for ecommerce, you can also use mobil phones and handheld PCs to make any transaction. Easiness, is another important factor, thanks to it you can order anything with the same day delivery option. Price factor, with ths option you can compare prices with the rest of the world so you can decide which is more convenient for you. Safety/Guarantee, online sellers provide safe product delivery guarantee. Online Gift Shops, you can book gifts like flowers, cakes, perfumes, stuffed toys, etc. and send it to your loved ones anywhere in the world. Thanks to their focus on comfort ness, easiness and tension free shopping ecommerce will keep going further and improving their sales.

Yea, I agree with you. Ecommerce proved its significant based on the fact where time is important. In the commercial markets, time plays an extremely important role to both the business and consumers. From the business perspective, with less time spent during each transaction, more transaction can be achieved on the same day. As for the consumer, they will save up more time during their transaction.

The PCI Security Standards Council published the PCI Mobile Payment Acceptance Security Guidelines for Merchants and End-Users on February 19, 2013. "The PCI Security Standards Council's mission is to enhance payment account data security by driving education and awareness of the PCI Security Standards. The organization was founded by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard Worldwide, and Visa Inc." The guidelines educates merchants on risks that they must be aware of in order to protect their customers' data when they are using mobile devices for payments, such as smart phones and tablets. As more merchants turn to handheld devices for payment options, they must consider new security risks. With these new guidelines and procedures, merchants will learn what is needed to isolate and prevent card data from exposure to the public. 

Aloha has a mobile pos that has been proven to increase turnover, customer spending, and customer satisfaction in restaurants.

GuestLogix provides technology for airlines that require onboard store and merchandising solutions. It creates, manages and controls onboard retail for airlines and other travel operators by tailoring to their needs and their passengers. Their main focus is ensuring onboard transactions are conducted in a secure and trusted way. It recently upgraded its onboard handheld POS device to help airlines perform transactions quicker in a PCI-compliant and secure environment. These handheld devices include features such as a barcode scanner, integrated printer and magnetic stripe reader while improving processing power, communications and security.

It says the sooner the service is provided to the guests, the guests will more satisfied with the hotel. The telecommunication can help to reach the goal, for example, the system will determine which room need to be cleaned or not, the security camera also is a telecommunication system.

From my point of view, Mtech tracked service can really help the managers to save the cost on the management fees.

POS is necessary management tool for a hotel operator to own because it enhances greatly the effectiveness of food, beverage, accounting, back-office management and saves food cost and labor cost and also save manager to deal with amount of numbers to analysis. As a operator of a hotel, to invest in a new POS system, there are some important features need to look for which include data reporting, back office management & integration, customer relationship management, wireless computing & handheld devices, payment security, self service technology. Wireless point of sale system is a booming field in recent years. In traditional environment such as a restaurant or a hotel, this technology helps to save time rather than waiting in a line for a long time and reducing service quality. Through wireless POS terminal, each order transmitted instantly and avoid overwhelming to back office and speed up the effectiveness of service staff. Self-service technology created a buzz in recent years. We can see this kind of service devices in supermarket, buffet restaurant and many other places. It saves labor cost on the one hand and also saves customers' time for checking out. 

Source: Successful Meetings; Mar2005, Vol. 54 Issue 3, p28-34; Author: Ben Chapman bchapman@successfulmeetings.com I am posting this article because if points out another netiquette issue, which is having consideration for those outside your internet access zone, such as the public nearby, companions, and most importantly, your business supervisors and peers. This article discusses the pitfalls of technology when it comes to conducting meetings, whereas the attendees are not fully engaged due to their focus on their personal devices. While it was posted in 2005, and stating that establishment of etiquette rules are yet to be established, I still do not see indication seven years later that this trend of attentiveness towards one's device over the person next to you (or presenting to a group) has changed for the better. Not only that, but apparently meeting attendees have actually emailed the presenter to express their boredom with the meeting, and while it's good for coordinators to know how engaged the audience is, it still is very rude. The article does say that "awareness of etiquette is rising as technology matures" and "it's hip to have manners," but I don't see it in school nor in the workplace. Employers have all adopted guidelines regarding use of personal devices to limit use during work hours, and even to constrain employees online social activities to forbid use of their company name or to post disparaging comments. I find it sadly amusing that the very instruments which are meant to increase productivity and provide increased communication and professional interaction is becoming the very opposite in the workplace and during professional development venues.

Hotels around the world are looking for way to cut unnecessary expenses and costs, and are increasingly turning to technology to find a solution to this problem. InvoTech Systems, Inc. has introduced RFID to the JW Marriott Hotel Santo Domingo (in the Dominican Republic) in order to keep track of linens and staff uniforms. RFID (radio-frequency identification) is a growing method in the hospitality industry to collect, store and manage data. All losses will now be accounted for and that will reduce the purchase of replacement uniforms and linens. It is a great way to increase revenue as the hotel will be able to allocate more funds to other pressing matters such as making guests' stay more enjoyable; funds that previously would have had to be disbursed to replace missing linens and uniforms. Also, thanks to handheld readers, this technology is portable and the software seems to be fairly user-friendly.

The use of RFID to track employee uniforms is a phenomenal idea! When people hear RFID they usually think of the ability to fill a shopping cart and walk out while having funds automatically withdrawn from an account or applied to a credit card, but this use is innovative and a sure-fire way to reduce costs associated with inventory loss. At my previous property, the uniform department found that uniforms not being returned was so rampant that they eventually just accepted it as a cost of doing business. The department didn't even attempt to have items returned and employees of the department were always shocked when someone returned an item, especially after leaving the company. Needless to say, this practice probably cost the department a very pretty penny.

The articles talks about trends in Point of Sale systems, with new software and devices that offers more options such as mobile use, customer preference tracing, and table management.

Aloha has been widely used in the hotel industry worldwide. Aloha Point of Sale software is much more than a replacement for a till or cash register. This powerful restaurant EPOS software optimises restaurant and bar management, whilst increasing revenues. It supports handheld devices and that mean serving staff can take orders and payments at tableside. With Aloha restaurant management technology, serving staff can speedier service, it can helps streamline restaurant operations. Further, with the help of the Aloha EPOS system, restaurant can create the perfect dining experience that brings customer back again. Service and payment are swift and accurate , and the Aloha EPOS system helps restaurant managers to create targeted offers that hit the mark and promote loyalty. Also, Aloha EPOS system provides a better cash management. Aloha restaurant POS tracks all transactions in real time and that means total accountability for every bill. In a nutshell, Aloha EPOS system can helps restaurant maximize revenue, reduce costs and enhance customer exp erience with cutting-edge technology developed and manufactured.

This article focuses on attendees using a modern day technology- mobile phones, tables and laptops at events and how event planners should engage more in incorporating them in to events and NiceMeeting, has done just that for event coordinators. NiceMeeting has introduced a presentation tool developed to enhance event engagements and maximize the value of knowledge exchange through live events.  Some cool features NiceMeeting also offers even planners is an AV application that turns attendees mobile device, such as iPad, iPhone, Tablet, laptop into a full-featured personal conference display.  

This article suggests that the use of handheld technology, such as mobile phones, tablets, and laptops at events has become so widespread, that event planners need to incorporate them into daily use if they want an edge on business. Nicemeeting is just one of many new hospitality applications that enhances the event managing process for event planners. According to the article, it has the capability to turn technology, such as an Ipad or mobile device, into "a full-featured personal conference display." It creates an entirely interactive space. I think that this idea was brilliant, because regardless of whether people like it or not, cell phones are going to be present in the meeting space. This application makes the most of that occurrence and turns it into a positive thing.

Disney has been working on this technology for quite some time. They are hoping to have this up and running within the next few years. The wristband would allow them to personalize their guests' experience.

The rise and rise of consumer technology and the increasing take-up of this technology by our guests combined with the shorter life cycles of this technology creates considerable challenges for both operators and owners of hotels. In the past we stayed in a guest room to experience technology that we could not get at home but now this changed completely and in most instances the reverse is true today where what we have at home is far superior to anything that is in hotel guestroom.

New technology brings new capability. Within the retail POS hardware industry, new technology is driving change in retail hardware platforms. Cloud-based software, coupled with the emergence of powerful and feature-rich mobile devices, offers new possibilities for retailers to better serve and engage their shoppers at the Point of Purchase. Typical construction of a Point of Sale cash register is centered on a PC workstation. These cash register systems are often positioned in one or more fixed locations in the retail store. They might be served by an array of peripheral devices: a touch display, a customer pole display, a handheld scanner, a receipt printer, and a cash drawer. These peripheral devices are typically configured with serial or USB interfaces and connect to a port on the PC workstation dedicated to each device. Software developers engage each device through OPOS or native DLLs drivers created by the hardware manufacturer. In this setting, a shopper is compelled to queue up at the cash register and stage their goods for itemized sale. By contrast, software functionality and mobile device technology allow a retailer to bring the Point of Sale transaction to the shopper at their Point of Purchase. In this way, a retailer can increase shopper loyalty by providing a more convenient, more personalized, and more interactive transaction experience. A purpose-built Point of Sale solution can be developed from the ground up for the mobile transaction faster than ever. Hardware manufacturers are creating new solutions to support this trend. By selecting hardware that maximizes the benefits of a mobile transaction, a retailer can significantly improve system performance and significantly reduce the total cost of the system. However, the current PC-centric workstation architecture presents several technical challenges as a retailer chooses to deploy a mobile POS solution. Consider this example: A mobile credit transaction performed on a smart phone