Frequently Asked Questions
These are introductory answers to frequently asked
questions about AWARE web-based
case management system. Click on the questions below to link
to the answers. Should you have any further questions,
please consult our
Contact Us page.
Questions
-
How can I learn more about
AWARE?
-
What makes
AWARE unique?
-
How much does
AWARE cost?
-
Is
AWARE
adaptable?
-
Is AWARE accessible for
Screen Reader Users?
-
What is the size of
AWARE?
-
What programming languages are used to write
AWARE?
-
How many entry and inquiry screen are available in
AWARE?
-
What case types can
AWARE manage?
-
How many tables/datapages are available in
AWARE?
-
How are reports generated in
AWARE?
-
What are the security system components in
AWARE?
-
How many users can AWARE
accommodate at an agency?
-
How does the licensing agreement for
AWARE
work?
-
Are there software
maintenance contracts available for AWARE?
-
Can an agency use a vendor other than Alliance to
implement AWARE?
Answers
Q.
How can I learn more about
AWARE?
Schedule a
webinar for a hands-on tryout of the system in your office, please
contact Lisa Gifford,
lisa@AllianceEnterprises.com for scheduling. You can also
schedule a two-day on-site presentation to better understand your
business and to conduct a series of demonstrations for a larger
group.
Q.
What makes
AWARE unique?
Designed to mirror the case management process, the
system utilizes web technology to automate essential functions.
AWARE sophisticated architecture supports workstation access in the
field, works well with accessibility tools and provides a secure
information environment. Staff in all states using
AWARE have cited
their respective system as the greatest innovation in their agency's
history. AWARE includes the ability to manage multiple case types.
This includes Vocational Rehabilitation (VR), and Independent Living
(IL) as well as Agency defined case types.
Q.
How
Much does AWARE cost?
The total
cost of acquiring a license to the AWARE
VR Software and implementation ranges greatly depending on the size
of the agency, the amount of customizations required and the extent
of services that Alliance provides. When
establishing a high-level estimate, we suggest agencies consider
costs in the following categories:
-
License to the
AWARE Software
-
Data
Conversion
-
Interfaces (especially an interface to an accounting/check write
system)
-
Customizations (to the core
AWARE product)
-
Training in adaptation, implementation, system administration,
and technical administration
-
Project Management
Also, most
agencies also have some costs in upgrading hardware and server
software (database server, web server)
Q.
Is AWARE
adaptable?
Yes, AWARE allows extensive adaptation without requiring
modification of the software code. These parameters control what
fields are displayed on the datapage, what fields are required, what
values are available in lookup tables for which cases in what
circumstances, and what functions users can and cannot perform. For
example, there are over 50 parameters used in Authorizations and
Payments alone. As another example, all 50+ AWARE
lookup tables have Available and Expired dates. When an agency wants
to change the lookup values available, perhaps due to a federal or
state law change, an authorized user accesses the Tables Pages (part of the Help Desk Module) to modify the date values. The
next time the lookup table is displayed, the page will display the
new values.
Q.
Is
AWARE accessible for Screen Reader Users?
Alliance works closely with screen readers and other accessibility
software and devices, including:
Q.
What
is the size of AWARE?
In terms
of the size of AWARE, there are 16
modules (applications), approximately 300 database tables, 200+
datapages and at least 400 reports! This equates to approximately
540 technical documents (specifications, standards, process
documents) and 1,300 programs. Phew!
Q.
What
programming languages are used to write
AWARE?
-
ASP.NET
-
Visual
Basic
-
Active Reports
-
Transact SQL
Q.
How
many entry and inquiry screens are available in AWARE?
Last
count AWARE had approximately 221 datapages. When we counted, we did
not differentiate between the type of datapage. In the AWARE
web-based format, most datapages can be used for both inquiry and
update.
Q.
What
case types can AWARE manage?
The
system manages several "case types": Vocational Rehabilitation (VR),
Independent Living (IL), Older Blind (OB) and has the ability to
setup new case types using the "generic" case type.
Q.
How
many tables/datapages are available in AWARE?
AWARE
operates using a single relational database with 300+ tables.
Q.
How
are reports generated in AWARE?
In AWARE v5 Reports are generated using
ActiveReports and output in PDF and RTF (MS Word) format.
Large-Print versions of many reports are also available.
AWARE
v4 currently use two ActiveX controls IEMenu.ocx and the Crystal
viewer.
Q.
How
many users can AWARE accommodate at an agency?
AWARE
is built on a multi-tiered architecture, making it possible to scale
the system from 10 users to 10,000 users by redefining the physical
hardware
platform and redistributing the logical tiers in different ways on
physical equipment.
Q.
How does the licensing agreement for
AWARE work?
We have developed a flexible licensing arrangement
wherein we base the cost of the license on the total number of users
in "chunks" of 50 users. This eliminates the "onesy-twosy"
management of users.
We offer two types of licenses:
-
License to adapt, operate and extend the system.
AWARE has extensive capabilities for changing business rules through
parameters (adaptation) and to add custom fields, rules and reports
outside the core source code (extend). Some agencies implement
AWARE without any changes to the source code.
-
License to the source code (for modifications).
This license allows you to modify the core source code assuming your
agency plans to take over maintenance of the system. The additional
cost of the source code license can be purchased at any time (ex:
from the beginning of the project or after implementation).
Q.
Are there software maintenance contracts available for
AWARE?
We became involved in vocational rehabilitation in 1993 after having
developed custom software systems for 11 years. We never thought we
would end up developing a (COTS) customizable, commercial, off-the-shelf system
-- but life has its ways of taking you through twists and turns!
When we did make the commitment to develop and implement
AWARE (the
web-based version) in 1997, we decided that the business model of
supporting various states, each with a different version of the
source code, wouldn't be cost-effective for our customers and
wouldn't be any fun for us. So we worked with our launch customers
to conceptualize a new business model. We call it the
Upgrade,
Maintenance and Support program.
Currently 9 of our customers are participating in the program. They
all operate the same source code, they contract with Alliance
directly, and then Alliance combines the annual fees into a "bucket"
to fund changes to the system. Upgrades are relative to changes to
federal regulation/reporting requirements, upgrades to the
underlying technology (it changes so fast!), and enhancements
prioritized and designed by a collaborative Users Group.
Also, agencies
participating in the Upgrade, Maintenance and Support program
benefit from the customizations we do for new implementations. For
example, we are expanding the Order of Selection programming for a
new implementation. Since we'll be adding that to the core system,
all agencies participating in the program receive this new
functionality. Using parameters, agencies can elect if they want to
activate it and how they want the rules to work for them. The
program is a bit "outside the box" and it takes a bit more Alliance
management time. It provides a great return on investment for
agencies and it has turned out to be more fun for us. (Agencies
have received AT LEAST a 4:1 return on their investment in terms of
development hours).
As an alternative, we have customers who acquire a license to the
source code, maintain the source code themselves, and contract with
us to provide training and technical support for their maintenance
activities on an hourly basis. We usually contract for the first
couple years and then they don't need us any more.
Q.
Can an agency use a vendor other than Alliance to implement
AWARE?
Alliance has had the opportunity to work with 14 public VR agencies
and has maintained an excellent relationship with all of them. If
you are interested in talking with any of them, Alliance would
gladly provide references with your agencies counter-part in each
agency.
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