What Kind of Computer Hardware do I need to run KitchenTools PCMS™?
What Kind of Software will I need to run KitchenTools PCMS™?
Will Kitchentools Software, Inc. install my hardware?
How many workstations can I install the KitchenTools PCMS™ program on?
What is MSDE? Do I need to purchase Microsoft SQL Server?
Is Bartender® Label Printing Software included with my purchase of KitchenTools PCMS™?

What Kind of Computer Hardware do I need to run KitchenTools PCMS™?

These are only recommended configurations limited to issues related to operating KitchenTools PCMS™ and do not cover general hardware issues such as monitors, keyboards, etc. You may find that you can run KitchenTools PCMS™ satisfactorily with a lesser configuration. You may also find that if you have other demands on your systems that you need to put more into your hardware.

• Pentium III (2 GHz) or higher.
• At least 1 GB RAM on machine where SQL Server is installed
• 500 MB RAM (or higher) on other machines (1 GB preferred)
• 80 GB HDD (or higher)
• Network – 10/100 hub and cables
• Printers – for KitchenTools PCMS™ reports, any recent windows ink jet or laser printer should do nicely (not dot matrix). For labels, see http://www.seagullscientific.com/aspx/thermal_95.aspx for a list of printers supported by BarTender®.
• Printer sharing – There are various ways that your label printers can be set up in order to run from KitchenTools PCMS™. Whether or not you require additional hardware for this will depend on your needs.
• SERVER MACHINE: We highly recommend that the machine that will run the database server be configured for maximum performance. This means using the best quality, most reliable and highest limit hardware you can manage. MSDE 2000 will support dual processors (Standard edition can use up to 4 CPUs) and up to 2GB RAM (see notes below on SQL Express). If you can manage that, we highly recommend it. Since workstations are relatively inexpensive, we also recommend that you not use the database server machine as a workstation. This can cause system resources needed by SQL Server to be used up by other applications thus decreasing performance on other workstations while accessing the database. You will need to make the final decision based on the performance you wish to achieve. Consult your hardware specialists for further recommendations including issues related to types of hardware, UPS and RAID configurations (recommended).
• We have designed most of the forms (screens) in KitchenTools PCMS™ to be run on a minimum of 17 inch monitors at a resolution of 1024x768. However, there is a lot of information built into many forms and you will find that 19 inch monitors set at a resolution of 1280x1024 will be easier to work with. If you can find good prices on 19 inch widescreen monitors that have optimum resolutions of 1440x900, you’ll find that even better. The forms that handle Menu Item Labeling are designed so that you can use 17 inch monitors set at a resolution of 800x600 if necessary.

What Kind of Software will I need?

• In order to make use of the Menu Item Labeling features that are built into KitchenTools PCMS™, you will need to have one or more licensed copies of BarTender® Enterprise Edition installed (version 7.75 or higher).
• Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP Professional (see footnote #3 below). According to Microsoft as of 2007 MSDE 2000 will not be supported under Windows Vista.
• Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition (or MSDE 2000 if appropriate (see footnote #2 below)).
• High speed Internet connection to allow our staff remote access to your system. This will allow us to more quickly correct problems that may arise without the time and expense of travel. This will also enable us to email you KitchenTools PCMS™ licensing files which are need to unlock your copy of the program.

Do you install my hardware?

• KitchenTools Software, Inc. will not install hardware or network equipment or any other software except KitchenTools PCMS™, Microsoft SQL Server 2000® Standard Edition (or MSDE 2000 if appropriate (see footnote #2 below)). For any on site installations that we do you must have your system ready for the installation. If we have to return to your facility to complete an installation that we could not complete due to lack of equipment or equipment readiness, you will be billed for travel, lodging and installation time expenses for subsequent visits.

How many workstations can I install the KitchenTools PCMS™ program on?

• We will install the KitchenTools PCMS™ program (see footnote #4 below) on up to 10 workstations in the same physical location as the data server (additional workstation installations will be charged at an additional hourly rate per workstation). If necessary we will also install your own properly licensed copy of either Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition (or MSDE 2000 if appropriate (see footnote #2 below) (the database engine required by KitchenTools PCMS™).

What is MSDE? Do I need to purchase Microsoft SQL Server?

• MSDE 2000 (Microsoft SQL Server 2000® Desktop Edition), which is intended for single users or small workgroup environments, is a limited/restricted edition of Microsoft SQL Server 2000. We are able to provide and install MSDE 2000 for you free of charge. There are some limitations as to its capabilities and features such as how much data it can store (2GB maximum data file size), the resources it can make use of (2 GB memory, 2 CPUs, etc.) and how many concurrent workloads it can maintain at one time (see http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa933149(SQL.80).aspx for more information or contact Microsoft directly).
• We cannot guarantee that MSDE 2000 will be adequate for your business. If it is not, then you will have to purchase the appropriate SQL Server 2000 licenses. These costs are not included in the purchase price of KitchenTools PCMS™. If it becomes necessary for you to obtain licensing for Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition then there are several places where you can purchase 5 licenses packs (you need one license for the server and one for each workstation running KitchenTools PCMS™).
• If you plan to move to Windows Vista please contact us for further information regarding SQL Server. We plan to migrate the system to MS SQL 2005 sometime in 2007. Most of our customers should be able to use SQL Express (which is the free version of SQL 2005 - similar to MSDE 2000) for quite a long time without any losses in performance. Issues that might cause a customer to have to purchase a SQL 2005 license would be if they do not wish to summarize some data that can tend to make the database large and might exceed the 4GB Sql Express limitation. Also customers who desire to take advantage of more than one CPU or 1 GB RAM in the server machine would need to purchase a SQL 2005 license (Note that the 1 CPU and 1 GB RAM limitations for SQL Express are lower than the limitations for SQL MSDE 2000).

Is BarTender® Label Printing Software includd with my purchase of KitchenTools PCMS™?

• BarTender® Label Printing Software by Seagull Scientific is not included with your purchase of KitchenTools PCMS™. BarTender® will need to be purchased separately. For more information about Bartender® professional label printing software from Seagull Scientific, please click here: http://www.seagullscientific.com/aspx/btw_table_of_contents.aspx.

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