IN THE FAST-PACED WORLD of project management, proposals and just-in-time projects, even the most experienced project managers crave the speed of fast and simple software to handle daily mundane chores. It has arrived! I discovered a supersonic way to create schedules for last-minute proposals: software aptly named Milestones Simplicity™ by KIDASA Software, Inc. A software company based in Austin, Texas, KIDASA has the right idea about getting schedules and calendars out in a hurry.
Milestones Simplicity is one of two exceptional project management software products marketed by KIDASA. Its flagship product, Milestones, Etc., lets you track and schedule cost, manpower, and other numerical data. It also allows easy use of filtering resources and tasks. Small wonder that this excellent product is used by major companies such as Boeing, which purchased a worldwide license for Milestones, Etc. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to introduce everyone to an easy, productive experience with Milestones Simplicity.
After opening the package, I popped the trial CD into my computer and it “auto” started. With a professional installation interface, installation took less than two minutes and the CD used only 10 megabytes of disk space. Then, it started a short overview demo. Following the demo, I started the program and produced a work schedule in about five minutes—easily, quickly, and painlessly.
As someone who normally uses Microsoft Project, I found this software to be a quick and easy solution for “11th hour” proposals. For example, when a sales person at the office is preparing a proposal and wants a “quick” schedule (10 minutes before it is due), Simplicity would be the tool of choice.
Charlie Howe, CQA, CSTE, is a contributing editor on various project management, quality assurance, and configuration management topics. He is an independent IT consulting based in Houston, Texas and can be reached via e-mail at [email protected]. Comments on this column should be directed to [email protected].
Milestones Simplicity has a Schedule Setup Wizard interface that will walk you through the steps to produce an excellent Gantt-type schedule or calendar. After the Schedule Setup Wizard starts, you can use a template or design the schedule from scratch. Just give it a title, then input the project start date, duration, and number of tasks. Tasks can be added or deleted after generating the schedule or calendar.
After selecting how many predefined columns you would like, the schedule is ready to be generated. These predefined columns are Start and End date, Outline level, and Task number. A legend can also be generated that may be modified after the wizard completes. Just click Finish and, presto, your schedule or calendar is generated.
Once displayed, you can easily color-code your schedule. Background, cells, and all objects can be modified to your choice of easy-on-the-eyes or attention-getting colors. All the normal Windows-like menus such as File, Edit, View, and Insert are displayed and the floating toolbar is very intuitive and easy to understand. This customizable bar lets you add, change, or update text, symbols, connecting lines, and progress bars. Tool tips (mouse-over help) for buttons are used throughout the entire process. If the reason for a button is unknown, just move the mouse pointer over the button and Help pops up to easily explain its use.
Another attribute of the package is its large assortment of symbols, including all known government and commercial ones. You can use this symbol library to easily and intuitively modify or update the auto-generated calendar or schedule. If the library's 55 symbols are not enough, the package lets you design your own. You can even paste a bitmap as a symbol.
Flexible formatting lets you adapt Milestones Simplicity to your unique schedule rather than changing the processes in place at your business. Additionally, ease of formatting lets you change connecting lines, grid lines, and other screen objects. All of these can be initiated from the floating toolbar. With its easy-to-use outlining utility, Milestones Simplicity lets you organize projects into both steps and sub-steps. This outlining utility, with nine levels, makes the schedule easier to read and manage. Also, projects can be indented or outdented using the same keystrokes as with MS Office products such as Word. Toolbar buttons may be inserted on the toolbar for both indenting and outdenting steps of the project.
Charlie's Recap
VERY GOOD
Milestones Simplicity™
A good schedule and calendar tool with ease-of-use for a PM novice and great time-saver for the seasoned practitioner. Makes exciting Gantt charts.
Price: Single User: US$49; 5 User US$225; 10 User US$430
Pros: Many easy PM features for the novice. Quick drag-and-drop and colorful printouts. Easy on the budget.
Cons: Not for large projects or projects where costs and resources must be tracked.
KIDASA Software www.kidasa.com +512-328-0167 +800-765-0167
One feature I really liked is the ability to insert clip art and graphics. These give the schedule real pizzazz that is especially appealing on a schedule embedded in a proposal. Adding a graphic is as easy as clicking on the Insert menu choice and choosing Picture. Milestones Simplicity will use several of the standard choices of graphics, including BMP, JPEG, GIF, PCX and EPS. Once inserted, the graphic may be moved, deleted, or resized with normal Windows-like look and feel.
For everyone actively using web technologies, the Internet Publishing Wizard walks you through generating HTML and JPEG files for uploading to any web server. When I tried this, my Internet connection time was actually slower than the time required generating the schedule with a simple click of the button.
A key feature is that this package is appropriate for project management practitioners at most skill levels. For example, it allows the novice to produce a professional-looking calendar or schedule at blazing speeds. But, the package does not contain certain high-end project management software functions, such as work breakdown structures, PERT charts, completion percentages, critical path, and resource management.
However, the bottom line is that Milestones Simplicity lets users with little or no project management experience easily track their projects and produce great-looking schedules. Similarly, this inexpensive package is ideal for executives who need to produce schedules quickly but have a limited amount of time to learn new software packages. With a list price of $49, Milestones Simplicity is just what the doctor ordered for all types and sizes of businesses. Even if you step up to the Milestones, Etc. package, the cost is only $169.
With its super Microsoft Windows look and feel, you can prepare a schedule/calendar and e-mail or paste it into an MS Word document or Power Point presentation. It will also save a calendar or chart in GIF, JPEG, or HTML format. However, if you e-mail the schedule or calendar to someone who does not have Milestones or Simplicity, they must have a viewer. No problem, the recipient can easily download the free viewer from the KIDASA website at www.kidasa.com. Then, with this 2.6-megabyte download, the schedule can be viewed and printed easily.
MY CONCLUSION? Anyone involved in designing, proposing, and presenting projects should have this handy tool. Just download this package and a demo on the Internet and, in record time, get a graphical picture of your proposed project. ■
Reader Service Number 119