The Practical Handbook of Computerization for Distribution Managers

1: The Computer and the Transportation/Distribution Manager.- 1. The Computer as a Management Tool.- What Computers Do Well.- 2. Computers as Information Providers.- The Value of the Tool.- Assembling Decisional “Parts”.- Information and Transportation.- 3. The Computer and Time Management.- “On the Road”.- In the Office.- “Undoable” Work.- The Computer as a Time Manager.- 4. Distribution Modeling Techniques.- 5. Transportation Cost-Finding and the Computer.- ICC Standards.- Complexity of ICC Form Costing.- Limitations of Costing Software.- 6. Computerization of Transportation Rates—A Viewpoint.- The Tool Shapes the Handiwork.- ZIP Rates & Co.- The Drawbacks.- Consequences, and Alternatives.- And Another Viewpoint.- 2: The Computer and the Transportation User.- 7. The Manager and the Technician.- Technicians and Managers.- How the Computer Fits In.- The Technician’s Tool.- The Manager’s Need.- 8. Demands on the Computer User.- Disillusionment at Home.- ... and Sometimes in the Office.- Whither the “Revolution”?.- The Need for Skill.- Learning How It Works.- Of Power and Complexity.- The Meaning of “User-Friendliness”.- The Point of Diminishing Returns.- The Consequences of Complexity.- 9. You Don’t Have to Be a Programmer.- The Mystique of Expertise.- Computerization Without Fear.- A Better Way.- 10. Be Your Own Computer Expert.- Expertise v. Results.- Who’s the “Expert”?.- Some Simple Criteria.- The Tale of the Artist’s Pig.- 11. Keyboardphobia.- The Roots of Keyboardphobia.- The Dictates of Technology.- The Limitations of Keyboard Alternatives.- Some Keyboarding Aids.- The Dvorak Keyboard.- 3: The Computer in the Organizational Structure.- 12. Justifying Computerization to Higher Management.- Why Computerize?.- Approaches to Cost-Justification.- Obstacles to Cost-Justification.- 13. “Selling” Computerization to Higher Management.- Problems With a Demonstration.- Doing It Right.- 14. MIS-Management and Mis-Management.- A Tower of Babel.- Microcomputers and Colinos.- The Limits of MIS.- Eliminating the Middleman.- 4: The Start-Up Process.- 15. The Problems of Starting Up.- The Computer Arrives.- Mastering Your System.- Data Input.- Some Ideas for Easing the Transition.- A Personal Lesson.- A Semantic Misunderstanding.- 5: Computer Security.- 16. The Failings of Security.- The Fallacy of Passwording.- A History of Break-Ins.- Improving Security.- 17. Computers and Foreign Travel.- 6: Computer Software in General.- 18. A Guide to Programming “Languages”.- 19. Word Processing.- Neatness Counts.- A Key Office Tool.- What Word Processor?.- Important Features.- A Curious Addendum.- 20. Spreadsheets.- 21. Data-Base Managers.- 22. Free Software—How to Get It and Use It.- 7: Specialized-Applications Software.- 23. Some Rules for Buying Software.- 24. Shopping for Software—A Personal Approach.- 25. The Meaning of “User-Friendliness”.- A “Do-able” Job.- Screen Displays.- Inputs and Errors.- Other Features.- How Feasible?.- 26. User Manuals and Their Problems.- 27. Aftermarket Support for Software.- 28. Things to Watch Out for With Software.- Operating Speed (or Lack Thereof).- Displays.- Coded Input/Output.- User Manuals.- Confusing Commands.- “Vaporware”.- 8: Software Copying.- 29. About Piracy.- What’s Legal.- ... and What’s Not.- An Easy Crime.- 30. The Importance of Backups.- A Personal Story.- The Lost Chapter.- “UNERASE” & Co.- Learning From Experience.- Care About Backups.- 9: Some Lessons From Experience.- 31. Using a RAM Disk.- Why a RAM Disk?.- Eliminating the Mechanics.- How to Use the RAM Disk.- Getting a RAM Disk.- Some Cautions.- 32. “Bugs”.- 33. Monochrome Screens and Their One Color.- 34. Modems and Telephone Lines.- 35. Planning for System Upgrades.- The Un-Adaptability of Software.- New Hardware Developments.- Minimizing the Burden of Upgrading.- Appendix A: How Computers Work (and Other Details).- Appendix B: “Ports” and “Peripherals”.- Appendix C: A Primer on Binary Math.- Appendix D: Hex Codes—An Explanation.- Appendix E: All About ASCII.- Appendix F: Open and Closed.- Appendix G: Computers and Numbers and Errors.- Appendix H: EDI.