Introducing myself and some questions about the use of Panorama X

Hi there! Yesterday I downloaded Panorama X and I’m going through the quick start videos while trying to create a simple database of some suppliers that are sending me inventory for my private practice (veterinary medicine). I plan to also store records of my patients, clients and other stuff related to the practice. I’d appreciate some feedback related to how you are using panorama x for your business or personal endeavors (I’m not sure if I should also store series I’m watching and movies for example), to gain a better understanding on how to use this great software. Thank you!

Welcome Jvet93. I don’t have enough hours left in the day to write down everything I do and have used Panorama to accomplish. That applies to both personal and professional tasks.

Most closely related to your interests, I’ve built a very involved EHR system for secure storage of patients’ medical data accessed via a web portal or via an app for iPhone and Android. Besides that I’ve built a system for electronic funds transfers using up to the minute exchange rates, an image cataloguing system, contacts management, accounting modules and even a replacement for Keynote when I wanted more options than it offered.

Ultimately I’ve always found that the limitations of what I can do with Panorama originate between my ears.

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OMG all your examples sound great! Thanks for providing your them, now I’m more excited to start learning how to use Panorama!

Panorama has unlimited capabilities. I’ve used it when working with Realtors to determine listing information that their MLS Board did not want to reveal; with a medical practice that needed to electronically file CMS-1500 reports; to collect patient info and automate the creation of echocardiogram reports for pediatric & caridology groups. For patent attorneys filing and maintaining patent applications world wide; for attorneys managing client time and court filings.

I’ve yet to find a need that Panorama can not handle. It has been an absolute pleasure creating solutions that seem to make the computer dance and sing and make work not seem so much like work.

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Hello Jvet93.

I’ve created almost 100 solutions with Panorama for clients in various industries including real estate, doctors offices, veterinarians, publications, online and retail sales, manufacturers, etc. I’ve worked with small businesses to Fortune 100 companies and each time Panorama has given me the capabilities to create exactly what my clients wanted. I even created fault analysis databases for Apple computer.

I’ve also run my Macintosh consulting, training and programming business with Panorama for the last 30 years. I use it to track clients, vendors, potential contacts, etc. I schedule techs with a calendar that can be accessed online with a browser. They can also print work orders and receipts online. Lastly, I do all my invoicing, product purchases and client communications in Panorama as well.

It will take some time to come up to speed, but I’m sure you will be delighted with the capabilities you discover.

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Thanks! I got intrigued by the reports and the automation to create echocardiogram reports, that is something I can relate.

Amazing!

I schedule techs with a calendar that can be accessed online with a browser. They can also print work orders and receipts online. Lastly, I do all my invoicing, product purchases and client communications in Panorama as well.

That gives me ideas for an appointment calendar :slight_smile:

They can also print work orders and receipts online. Lastly, I do all my invoicing, product purchases and client communications in Panorama as well.

This idea will come handy when I start to manage also my inventory with it.

Thanks for providing all the examples, I was also glad to see you have created solutions for veterinarians because I am one. I’ll take my time to learn it, I’m watching a couple of videos a day from the quick start section. Later I think I’ll buy the intensive training program.

I was involved with the Commercial EHR, AllScripts, for six years at a medical clinic. Though AllScripts did a fair job in tracking “tasks” required in the patient/provider interactions, it was lacking in Administrative reporting - for example, logging which nurses were given prescription privileges and at what level, or which Providers had the highest number of overdue ASAP tasks, etc.

I could extract that information from the backend with a SQL app, then import it into Panorama for excellent record keeping and analysis.

I recommend you go slow, and make simple databases at first. And expect, as you go along, that you might scrap a work-in-progress in mid-progress when you get an insight that leads down a different path/method.

You might start just making a database of your clients. So you’ll want their contact info and a way to assign them a unique ID (Panorama has plenty of ways to do that). You’ll be designing a form for a more refined data entry than just moving from field to field across what looks like an Excel Spreadsheet. You can see how various attributes - like automatic capitalization - result in more consistent data entry. And when you move on to your Supplier database, you’ll see that the Patient Database and your Supplier database might look pretty much the same - including a unique ID for the Supplier.

From there it can be fun, building your medicine inventory and tying it to your suppliers, and getting a little fancy if the prices change depending on the quantity ordered.

it continues from there …

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A suggestion Jvet93: when you get around to mapping out the framework for your application, try to make it as comprehensive as you can - include every possibility that you might want to include at some future stage. You don’t have to incorporate all of it now or maybe even ever but, when you do, you will have planned for it. That’s often quicker and more elegant than building multiple add-ons.

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I recommend you go slow, and make simple databases at first. And expect, as you go along, that you might scrap a work-in-progress in mid-progress when you get an insight that leads down a different path/method.

Great advice along with providing unique IDs for clients, suppliers (I didn’t think about that) :slight_smile: and tying databases.

Thanks for providing those use-cases, they gave me a better grasp on how to use Panorama.

Thanks for the advice

Like Columbo - one more thing. Once you decide what fields you want in your database, I suggest adding an extra numeric, text, and date field. They won’t cost you much in database size and can come in handy from time to time. For example, you may want to temporarily identify some records. You could put a character in that extra text field when you manually “mark” the record, then select all records with that character in the extra text field. The extra number field could be handy for short-term sequencing. Once you are done with it, just clear the field so it’s ready again.

Also, at the opening of a file, it can be handy to know exactly what condition it’s in - what records are selected, how it’s sorted, etc. So when thinking about “first steps” - I’m referring to procedures after the stage where fields are defined - would be, for example, to do a SelectAll, empty fill those extra fields, and Sort on the appropriate data field. That way you always start from a known condition.

Any more complicated machinations of selections/sorts can be saved procedures so you can just select them from an Action menu rather than re-invent them each time.

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Great, thanks for your advice!

I’m going to push back on this just a little bit. Unlike other database software, Panorama makes it so easy and fast to add a fields that there’s really no reason to have extra fields sitting around. On the other hand, the cost of extra fields is minimal, so I won’t strongly push back, it really doesn’t hurt to have extra fields. But I do think this is a habit that may be very useful when using other database software but really isn’t necessary in Panorama.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve definitely used fields like that in some databases, this is a useful technique. But when I did, I explicitly set up fields for these purposes, rather than using “extra” fields.

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Looks like I’m still living in a “design sheet” world. :smile: I’ll join the “new” PanX world eventually.