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No compatibility issues on hardware

Hardware fails are easy to remedy

Lightweight

Cons of the Cloud But this isn't necessarily a sales pitch for why everyone in the hotel industry should go out and buy cloud-based technology for all their operations. These are some things to consider before making the switch, even incrementally. 

Security must be maintained

Speed depends on your internet connection

You'll need backup connectivity

If fails centrally, all users are down

Provide Training

Install New System

Backup Data

Its principle duty is to direct thepatron’s attention to those items that the operator desires to sell and is reflective of thedecisions concerning what to serve, how it should be served, and the prices to becharged for menu items.

Technology has provided restaurateurs with limitless opportunities to improve theirmenus.

Put differently, e-tablet menus should be able to deliver richerinformation contexts in the service encounter than traditional paper-based menus.

irst, nearly 50 percent of the sample were 50years or older. Although a relatively younger demographic may be examined later infuture research, the very fact such palpable differences prevailed with the so-calledlaggards of technology adoptions (older demographic) is significant in itself

the enhancement of guestexperience

. However, at a fundamental level, menus play an important role inalleviating consumers’ perceived risk over the menu items they order in a restaurant.

在2015年，在信息存储产业联盟，包括惠普企业，IBM，甲骨文和Quantum，与学术研究团体的摆沿着一个组织，发布了它所谓的“国际磁带存储路线图。” 该预测预测，到2025年，磁带存储的单位面积密度将达到91 Gb /平方英寸。推算趋势表明，到2028年，它将超过200 Gb /平方英寸。

它应该以每年约33％的历史速度继续运行很多年，这意味着您可以预期容量大约每两到三年翻一番。可以将其视为磁带的摩尔定律。

尽管有所有这些优点，但公司使用磁带的主要原因通常是简单的经济学。磁带存储的成本是将相同数量的数据保留在磁盘上所需要支付的费用的六分之一，这就是为什么在几乎所有存储大量数据的地方都可以找到磁带系统的原因。

Disk drives are reaching their limits, but magnetic tape just gets better and better

Indeed, much of the world’s data is still kept on tape, including data for basic science, such as particle physics and radio astronomy, human heritage and national archives, major motion pictures, banking, insurance, oil exploration, and more. There is even a cadre of people (including me, trained in materials science, engineering, or physics) whose job it is to keep improving tape storage.

Tape has survived for as long as it has for one fundamental reason: It’s cheap. And it’s getting cheaper all the time. But will that always be the case?

Indeed, it should continue for many more years at its historical rate of about 33 percent per year, meaning that you can expect a doubling in capacity roughly every two to three years. Think of it as a Moore’s Law for magnetic tape.

But the rate at which data can be written to tape is, surprisingly enough, more than twice the rate of writing to disk.

To enable this degree of scaling, we had to make a bunch of technical advances. For one, we improved the ability of the read and write heads to follow the slender tracks on the tape, which were just 100 or so nanometers wide in our latest demo.

For example, in 2011, a flaw in a software update caused Google to accidentally delete the saved email messages in about 40,000 Gmail accounts. That loss occurred despite there being several copies of the data stored on hard drives across multiple data centers. Fortunately, the data was also recorded on tape, and Google could eventually restore all the lost data from that backup.

Data loss is a costly fault that can happen to anyone or any business. This is why it is always advised to keep backups of data to ensure data safety. Cloud services automatically does that for you.

You can manipulate the software configuration according to your choices.

Another good thing about cloud computing is that businesses do not need to manage the hardware as there is no hardware involved from the users’ end.

Most educational institutions have already started teaching about cloud computing and its benefits.

WebRezPro runs via the Internet, so there is no need to install or maintain computer software.

WebRezPro users always have access to the system’s latest features — and updates are free and seamless.

While on-premise hotel management software can cost thousands of dollars to set-up and maintain, WebRezPro is a SaaS [Software as a Service] that costs $5/month/room (min $60/month) — with minimal upfront costs. Discount rates apply to larger hotels and hotel groups.

Featuring an integrated online reservation system, there is no need to allocate separate room inventory for Web bookings.

WebRezPro has two-way interfaces to Expedia, Booking.com and many others.

Your reservation data is automatically stored in a secure computer facility with redundant Internet connections, 24-hour monitoring and diesel-powered electrical backup.

WebRezPro is accessible from any mobile device (tablets and smartphones) connected to the Internet, allowing you to manage your property anytime and from anywhere.

I guess what an operator needs to look at are the pros and cons of the two and formulate the plan that best fits their organization.

Security is always a concern.

Access outside the hotel

Access anywhere from the internet

Does it cost less? Or are those cost now rolled in to the cloud hosting costs?

This is great, but it does come at a cost $$$. Internet service providers charge a premium to business customers. We are talking thousands per month. Not the fast cheap connection you get at home.

Lose the internet or the host based cloud and you now have many locations dead in the water instead of just one.

Where are these internet cloud PMS/POS providers securing your data? How are they securing your data? Any organization can hobble together a data center and host their applications from it. But how much time have they spent on securing it from the outside world

Micah Solomon:  Can you bring me up to speed on how the Chili’s digital service came to be deployed, and how it’s going so far? Wade Allen, vice president of digital innovation and customer engagement, Chili’s Grill & Bar: We started our digital guest experience journey in Sept. 2013 as the first mover in the casual dining industry to bring tabletop technology to our restaurant tables. The goal was to remove common guest pain points around paying the bill and re-ordering drinks. We’ve seen rapid adoption with 75 percent of guests using the tablets to quickly pay their bill. Furthermore, we’ve been able to gather valuable insights through real-time feedback where 25 percent of guests use the tablets to complete the Chili’s survey at the end of their dining experience. This feedback allows us to make improvements on an individual restaurant level, as well as, provide proof points for national-scale decisions around our Fresh Tex and Fresh Mex menu favorites. Once we had the tablets in place, we took a different approach and launched a fully digital loyalty program, “My Chili’s Rewards,” in May 2015. The goal was easy access/participation for all guests. We also included unique elements around gamification to keep guests engaged. In six months, we went from no loyalty program to 4.2 million members. Furthermore, approximately 18 percent of transactions in restaurant are tied to loyalty members. We’re building on this for what we call “loyalty 2.0” with our latest partnership with the Plenti rewards program, as the newest partner to join representing the casual dining industry. This will allow guests to earn points at partner locations and redeem for their Chili’s favorites.

Solomon: Is the human element getting lost?  Allen: Absolutely not! A key differentiator of casual dining is the personalized service model. Our technology innovation is not only a win for our guests, but also a win for our team members. With technology, we’re able to remove some of the mundane tasks of the server and allow them to make our guests feel special with a memorable dining experience. Furthermore, technology is completely optional and guests can choose to opt out if they wish. These tablets do not eliminate the personal service our guests receive from servers. In fact, these tablets have served as a good tool for our team members to help eliminate some transactional pain points, such as paying the bill or ordering dessert, and have helped our team members do their job more efficiently. This allows our team members to focus on the duties that make a personal impact on the dining experience, such as getting to know the table, taking entrée orders and delivering meals, among other duties.

Solomon: What are the backup plans for when guests want human rather than kiosk service? Allen: Our model is based on personalized service to make guests feel special when dining with us. So, the personalized aspect will always be a part of what guests experience at Chili’s. The technology innovation is completely optional and guests can choose to opt out if they wish.

The potential for human error is greater when employees are manually completing accounting procedures.

The advantages of manual or computerized accounting systems may be equal when it comes to reliability.

Manual accounting can function independently of machines so that work continues when "the system" isn't working.

modern backup systems and increased functionality, the disadvantage of reliability in computerized accounting may be lessened.

the subtlety and focus of an analysis’ conjecture or hypothesis depends on the person operating the system.

manual accounting may have an advantage over computerized accounting systems.

computerized accounting systems lose their potential for sophisticated analysis.

analysis may be hampered or obstructed by software design.

Computerized systems can cost millions of dollars to purchase, implement and maintain. It may be necessary to purchase updated software with some regularity.

automatically updated and instantly available.

It can be costly to staff qualified accountants to complete manual accounting processes, but it can also be costly to staff accountants familiar with specific computerized accounting software and programming.

Computerized systems can produce invoices, purchase orders and other documents more quickly.

small business owners who are not tech-savvy may prefer to use physical records instead of software

All calculations are performed manually, which eliminates the risk of duplication mistakes and corrupt data

Computerized accounting systems are significantly more complex and involve a learning curve

Additionally, there is no risk of data loss or leaked financial information due to data breaches.

Some may require switching to the latest computer technology, leading to higher costs

manual accounting is prone to human error

computerized accounting provides companies with financial intelligence

Working to handle the needs of 24 properties, Coakley & Williams Hotel Management Company's two-person IT department found it was spending much of its time responding to simple requests for information

Additionally, by utilizing the Benchmarking tool in Operations Management when considering new properties, HP was able to view a quick snapshot of where the potential hotel compares with like brands in the system

After adopting a streamlined staffing model, HP Hotels needed to manage the bulk of their accounting above property, which would eliminate the need for full-service accounting staff at the hotel level

The solution directly addressed C&W’s needs by allowing each of its managed hotels to access its financial information directly and providing the ability to look at the day-to-day performance of each hote

Prior to the adoption of the M3 platform, the IT department, was spending up to 50 to 60 percent of their time serving as backups for information requests. Now, C&W’s IT staff says it spends less than 5% of its time on hotel-related issues, allowing the department to offer its services to other clients as a way to generate revenue for the company

Functionality: Allows each hotel to access its financial information directly and provides the ability to look at the day-to-day performance of each hotel. Business impact: The access to real time and individual hotel-specific information led to a 55% reduction in resources spent by IT on property-specific requests. This allowed IT to offer additional services to clients and generate additional revenue for the compan

On August 29, 2005, everything changed. Hurricane Katrina tore through the Mississippi Gulf Coast, destroying much of the Biloxi office of Encore Hospitality as well as flooding their IT room. Deploying their disaster-recovery plan, the team righted ship and ultimately moved to Dallas, TX, deciding on a location that was less at-risk for natural disaste

By implementing M3’s products and solutions, Encore was able to downsize its IT department to just two team members, and the offshore accounting team has been reduced to a few associates who input hotel accounting data remotely into Accounting Core

It’s evident that M3’s platform allows for resource efficiency as well as real time business intelligence and analytics, and the outcomes above speak to that fact. Adopting the M3 platform allowed for each company to streamline their headcount and accounting process, compare properties in real time, and secure their data in the event of a natural disaster. In the ultra-competitive landscape of hotel management, M3 has provided a leg up to HP Hotels, Coakley & Williams, and Encore and helps to ensure each company will stay ahead of the pack for years to come

Called Project Basecamp, the program will reach out to 500 students at 10 universities with hospitality programs and educate them about technological and financial security. "I've jokingly said if I do agood enoughjob, they should actually need less service from us," he said.

Companies may have incredibly advanced equipment, firewalls and encryption, he said, but all it takes is one accidental mistake from someone within the system and all of that technology becomes moot. "So that's why we focus on what we call the human firewall," he said. "They are the most valuable asset in all of this." Sidebar

Chances are that your IT department is directly and indirectly one of the largest power consumers in your company.

The benefits range from lower costs to happier employees:

Reducing environmental impact.

Lower operating costs.

Improved morale and workplace health.

Improved company image.

Lower capital costs.

Consolidate

Rightsize.

The five principles of green IT

use devices that perform more than one function so that you only have one device to power.

Virtualize.

Virtualization is one tool you can use to consolidate multiple workloads onto a single server while making it easy to move them from server to server in order to balance workloads or take systems offline for maintenance or replacement.

“Where to start?” You start by taking a baseline measurement of where you are today, making incremental improvements, and measuring the impact you’ve had.

Manage your waste stream

Your network connections (and power) come in at the top, meeting a core router that’s probably in your data center. (You may have a data center, or you may have a closet, but you probably have some place with a set of central switches, servers, storage, and backup devices). The tree gets wider as your network fans out to your offices, where you may have an IP phone and workstation in each office, plus copiers, fax machines, and printers in common areas.

Techniques for greening your office space.

Use one PC per employee, and size the machine to the task being performed.

LCD monitors are the norm today.

Set up sleep schedules on your PCs and your monitors;

Consider the waste stream that office equipment generates.

Measure.

Measure your energy consumption

Set goals

Make incremental changes

Measure again to evaluate

Repeat.

Control.

Get Experienced Help.