7 ms·
No you couldn't. You could build something half-baked that didn't work in the majority of cases. If you think you could build a fully-operational EDMS system
by ig1 12y ago
No you couldn't.
You could build something half-baked that didn't work in the majority of cases.
If you think you could build a fully-operational EDMS system capable of handling a variety of documents coming in from different source, provide workflow management, change control, auditing, accurate search, reporting tools, analytics, third-party integrations (CRM, email,etc.), FOIA support, etc. in a couple of days then I'd suggest you try it.
There's a reason USPTO wanted an off-the-shelf solution rather than building their own, it's a lot cheaper and faster to buy something pre-made than to spend millions building your own.
- dredmorbius 12y agoIf you think you could build... Oddly enough, The Internet Archive did a substantial portion of just that: https://openlibrary.org/dev/docs/bookreader https://openlibrary.org/dev/docs/bookreader It's used by numerous other organizations as well: https://openlibrary.org/dev/docs/bookreader#users https://openlibrary.org/dev/docs/bookreader#users
- ig1 12y agoI don't think you understand what USPTO need, it's not just a scanning system, it's an entire workflow system.
- phkahler 12y agoBut workflow systems can't do shit with scanned documents other than route them via human instructions.
- dredmorbius 12y agoI didn't claim TIA created everything the USPTO requires. I did point out that they created precisely the element you indicated was challenging: accomodating different document types from different sources. Given that the USPTO's system is likely based on electronic filings at this point, even the scan-and-present aspects of the BookReader solution are likely more than is required. Another salient point is that by breaking the problem into discrete components, you're more likely to come up with a viable solution, or at least significant portions of one. And I've worked on a number of systems (FDA clinical information systems) which address a great deal of your other feature points. Suffice to say: such systems do in fact exist. They do, in fairness, take more than a couple of days to assemble.
- nawitus 12y agoI think the problem is the "competition free" part.
- ig1 12y agoRead the linked document, they looked at other vendors, all the other vendors that could meet the requirements needed to make significant (charged) customization to their product to bring up to spec. LM had the only product that could be used off-the-shelf.
- danielweber 12y agoWhile I generally agree that the government should buy something off-the-shelf that's already built -- and at a quarter-million dollars, this doesn't even come close to boondoggle territory -- sometimes the requirements are set explicitly to grant the purchase to a specific buyer the government had in mind, instead of the requirements really being generated in a neutral manner and then looking at the marketplace.