Windows 95 changing the face of software for managing Thoroughbred operationsWhat data management software is best for your farm?
Depending upon the size and type of operation of your farm, the answer will vary. Software that has been available on the market for years is being revamped, and new software is debuting ready for Microsoft Windows 95.
Data programs that use a single point of entry for maintaining horse inventory, health, breeding activity, and accounting records are already capable of running under Windows 95. This operating system, which can run word processing and spreadsheet programs, is written in 32-bit code. Other operating systems, including earlier versions of Windows, are written in 16-bit code. Windows 95 will run software written in 16-bit code, but not as fast as it will run software written in 32-bit code.
What does this mean to office managers at breeding, boarding, and racing establishments? As software is updated to meet the new millennium, the hardware needed to run it will require increased capacity (see box).
"Windows is driving the market in hardware," said Steve Gale, general manager for Equine Manager Systems, a software company headquartered in Clovis, California.
EMS produces Ranger, which was first marketed in 1979, and boasts a worldwide customer base. The current version of Ranger is "not 100% compatible with Windows 95, but it can interface with Windows," Gale said. EMS expects to have a new version of Ranger ready for Windows 95 by fall.
The Jockey Club Information Systems acquired the software developed by Carl Hamilton, now president of TJCIS, after an early version was introduced to the Thoroughbred market in 1986. Although the current software is compatible with Windows 95, "We are rewriting the system to function in a Windows environment," Hamilton said. A summer arrival date for the faster software is projected.

Bluegrass software
The Jockey Club system offers two modules-one for general management of horse inventory, board billing, and receivables, and one for stallion management.
A popular feature of the Jockey Club's stallion management module is its ability to create a file containing the report of mares bred information, which farm office staff can send by floppy disk to the Jockey Club registration department on a direct tie-in. Other registration tie-ins are planned, Hamilton said.
Hill 'n' Dale Farms, a commercial breeding operation with a division near Lexington, is currently in the midst of its first breeding season standing two stallions.
The direct tie-in for the report of mares bred was a factor in proprietor John G. Sikura's choosing the Jockey Club as the first equine data system used at Hill 'n' Dale. Office Manager Caren Callahan also liked that it is compatible with Windows 95, which the farm installed for other programs.
Discussing the system rewrite in terms of existing customers who wish to upgrade, Hamilton said, "We are trying to have the option to import all information from the existing system so that all the historical information can be maintained" without farm office staff having to manually reenter years of records. Price for the software varies depending on whether a stand-alone PC or a network is used.
Greentree Applied Systems produces Greentree software, which was originally written in 1984. "We provide a 'turn-key' system: Hardware, software, installation, training, maintenance," said Greentree President Don Putnam.
Greentree has modules for broodmare, stallion, and racing stable management. The software is compatible with Windows 95, and the company is working on putting its software on the new operating system.
"By and large, our greatest market is for people who board horses for outside owners," Putnam said. "In terms of size of farms that use our software, we might have somebody with ten or 15 horses, up to (farms with) 400 and 500 horses. We will support owners that just want to keep medical records and expense information on their own horses."
Ashford Stud, near Versailles, Kentucky, uses Greentree to maintain records for its nine stallions, and the records are a separate division: Creekview Farm, Inc., near Paris, Kentucky. Ashford first installed Greentree in 1988. When time came to upgrade, the farm imported old files into a new system with ease, said office manager Linda Busby.

New kid on the block
One equine software package has debuted on Windows 95.
Windows Horse Information Program (WHIP) was introduced in 1995 by Advanced Systems Group International, Inc., a company in Jacksonville, Florida. Already, WHIP has about 30 customers in several states, including some as far away as Puerto Rico and Canada, said Mike Rafferty, senior vice president of the company.
Payson Stud in Lexington installed WHIP last fall. The farm, which is not typical of most boarding operations, stands eight stallions and raises the homebred runners of Virginia Kraft Payson. "We chose to take a giant step forward as far as the Windows-based system" was concerned, said farm spokesperson Tim Overton.
WHIP offers a module for racing stable management. "The fact that it has accounting for horses in training is a big plus," Overton said.
New systems normally do have their kinks, and Rafferty acknowledged that WHIP is having its "growing pains."
"I couldn't say that everybody is completely happy, but I would say that most of our clients are bearing with the changes," Rafferty said. "The market is fairly competitive. In our view, the horse farms are looking for innovation."

Shed-traffic controller
Payson Stud still uses Ranger for some of its needs.
Ranger is useful for a stallion operation because it allows the user to see at a glance how full a stallion's book is for a total of nine possible shed sessions over three consecutive days. By entering a mare's name into the field for a Tuesday morning shed, the mare booking secretary reserves that time slot and can offer the next available shed to the next client wanting to book a mare on Tuesday. Overton praised Ranger for this feature, and noted that the program helps to eliminate last-minute confusion at the breeding shed, such as what might occur when two or more mares are booked for a stallion at the same time. Vinery, near Midway, Kentucky, stands 28 stallions and uses Ranger.
Two other equine data programs are produced by EMS-Trainers Assistant (for racing stable management) and Veterinary Assistant, designed specifically for equine veterinary clinics. "We're not claiming to be the cheapest. We're usually the last one people will buy," Gale said.
Software companies offering good, practical programs for horse businesses welcome and heed customer feedback. Ashford's Busby offered her philosophy on the evolution of data management software designed exclusively for equine operations.
"I feel like the feedback they get from us, in how we need to do (our job), probably helps them in upgrading and updating the software that they have," Busby said. "(Because) they're not in the horse business ... I feel like they need us as much as we need them."


Words to the wise
HERE are a few tips for farm office managers:

Hardware
Cost. One farm owner who recently purchased new computers prioritized his long-run needs over saving money at the moment. Do not cut corners. Upgrading hardware is ultimately as expensive as buying it new. Buy the highest capacity hardware you can afford. That will allow you more options in upgrading software.
Accessories. Install a CD-ROM drive and a modem to tie into on-line services and to surf the Internet. Above all, install a tape backup, advised Hill 'n' Dale's Caren Callahan, who added, "Don't leave yourself out in the cold."
Software
Customer service. Except for EMS (which offers 60 days of free support for Ranger), the software companies listed in the accompanying article provide one year of free support when you purchase their software. If this will be your first time using a particular program, you might want to ask a current user about the quality of support that you and your staff can expect to receive.
Importability. If you switch to a new system, will you be able to import the past several year's worth of records from your old system? Reentering stacks of records is time-consuming and labor-intensive, so be sure to keep the importability factor in mind.-Bettina Cohen


Computer hardware

Minimum requirements recommended:

• 486 DX-266 CPU
  
• 8 mb RAM
  
• 635 mb hard drive (with equal capacity tape backup drive)
  
• 14.4-baud modem
  
• 2X CD-ROM drive
  

• Pentium PCI 100mhz CPU
  
• 16 mb RAM
  
• 1.2 gig hard drive (with equal capacity tape backup drive)
  
• 28.8-baud modem
  
• 4X CD-ROM drive