DLF Data gets faster and easier to use!

We have made some improvements to make our web pages load a lot faster and look a lot simplier, we hope you notice the difference!

Tables improved!

We have improved our tables, which are now bigger and more accurate! View them all here. If you have any requests for new tables send an email through to dave.clarke@dlf.org.uk.

New supplier website search and product comparison tables added!

We hope you are enjoying the new minimal design!

We have just finished three new features for you to try:

Some product categories now have product comparison tables, these are the same quick look up tables that appear in the Hamilton Index, for a full list have a look here! We are currently updating the wheelchair tables, they will be full of updated information within the next couple of weeks.

Secondly, we our proud to present our own custom built Google supplier search, which means that you don't need to fight your way through irrelevant results in a bog standard Google search. Our custom search is set up to search the web sites of all the UK suppliers and manufacturers we know of! Go to our home page and select "Google supplier search" from the search options near the top of the page!

Last but not least, on product detail pages we have added a link to perform a search for a product on any suppliers' site - much faster than fighting you way through a suppliers website looking for the product! Check out the supplier section of any product record to find the search links!

Improved searching and design!

Based on our last survey we have made some changes to DLF Data:

Search now permits you to search on any one of our 25 categories of products, i.e. search just with wheelchairs. This should help avoid unwanted results and improve your search accuracy

We have refined the visual design of the site and removed a lot of the extra colours and other quirks that crept in together with the addition of new features over the last few months. It's a little easier on the eye now!

The category list now appears on the login page so that you can browse without needing to use the menu.

Breadcrumbs for the product pages have been cleaned up and spaced out

The product page has been redesigned to put dimensions nearer the top and the whole page is designed to be easier to scan!

Last but not least PRODUCT FILTERING is back! When products can be filtered by dimensions a filter bar will appear at the right of the product list. A good example of this is CLASS 3 FOUR-WHEELED SCOOTERS

Let us know what you think!

What else do you want to see on the My DLF Data page?

The My DLF Data Page has a few handy panels on there to help you use DLF Data but there is always space for another gadget.

The page is here http://www.dlf-data.org.uk/my_dlfdata.php (make sure you are logged in if you use the link).

At present there is:

• Password change function
• Recommend a DLF Data Trial to a friend or colleague
  
• Basic account details
• Some useful DLF contacts
• Some RSS feeds related to recent DLF Data updates

What else would you find useful?

Here are a few ideas but you might well have some related to what you need!

• Keep a list of favourite products
• Make notes
• Change your email address

You can add comments to this page or email us at devteam@dlf.org.uk

Ian Lewis
[DLF Product Development Team]

Adaptawear photos from DLF visit

Adaptawear paid a visit to DLF's demonstration centre. Here are some photos from the visit, you can see a sneak preview of their new bra design as well as other clothes from the latest range. You can see more over at their website:

We hope to start posting more photos from demonstrations as well as videos over the next few weeks!

Product detail page makeover

We have been using tabs for a while to provide information on the product detail page. It worked quite well but was always dogged by the fact that it didn't show all of the available information including useful information from suppliers.

See below for an annotated description of the page. Your feedback is appreciated so we can improve the quality of the information presented to you.




UPDATE
We have added a short and long supplier detail view:

Choose between 'Helpline View' and 'Full view'.

Helpline View - brief contact information



Regards,
Ian Lewis
[DLF Data Development Team]

Local Retailer information now available

We have just added local retailer information to the database. If you want to find who supplies AT equipment in or near your town or within your county then use the search box to get a list.

What do you think about having the ability to update this information yourself or add new retailers?

UPDATE - 26th July 2007
The product detail page has been revised and you can now click through to the Retailer search. Be warned that the search by town doesn't always produce a result, however you can usually get a decent list from the Regional search.













As ever if you have any questions please get in touch.

Regards,
Ian Lewis
[DLF Data Development Team]

Go faster with DLF Data...

Go Faster stripes...
We're making a few changes to DLF Data and its servers to speed everything up to provide a quicker page download time and to simplify the Product Detail page.

Our target is to make sure that web pages are downloaded to your screen in 4 seconds or less. Of course there are all sorts of things that can get in the way of this but we've tested it lots and reckon that the bigger product detail pages which used to take 8 - 10 seconds in the past now take 2.5 - 3 seconds.

Why do this?
As ever we want to make the service we provide as good as it can be by bringing together the information you need and putting it all in one place. Fast!

How can you help?
Lots of ways. We always encourage feedback to our devteam@dlf.org.uk email address or you can leave comments on this blog.

• What do you like best?
• What do you like least?
• What information or feature would you like to see?

Ian Lewis
[DLF Development Team]

Supplier's product information has arrived in DLF Data Online.

Supplier Self service has now been incorporated into product records on DLF Data Online.

Over 300 suppliers and manufacturers of AT equipment of the 1600+ listed in DLF Data have made use of the Self service feature. The information they provide does not replace the DLF's own description of products but may provide added information and allow another easy way for you to compare product information.

Images and documents can be uploaded by suppliers and we list them for you there.

Prices. Many suppliers and manufacturers will list their price and may take the opportunity to give an up to date price.

Note: The descriptions provided when the system was set up were loaded from the DLF's own edited versions. Many suppliers have updated these but you will often see the description repeated, this will change over time as suppliers update their product information.

Coming Next! There is more.
The supplier contact information that is maintained in the Self Service site will shortly be included in DLF data.

Coming soon - Suppliers own product information.

For a while now we have been collecting information from a number of suppliers by giving them a mini website connected to DLF Data.

There is such a lot of information hidden away there that we are about to bring it into DLF Data for you to see. Typically the information will be a supplier's or manufacturer's version of the one we provide.

This feature is being built now and of course when it appears we'll look forward to hearing your comments.

Ian Lewis
[DLF Development Team]

Using the inventory

We have put together a quick tutorial for using the inventory feature in DLF Data:

Step 1: Select the new inventory menu option
Before you can start filling up an inventory with products you must create one, and give it a name and description.













Step 2: Enter the new details for the inventory











Step 3:Add products to the inventory
Browse the product directory or use the search engine to find the product you want to add to the inventory:







Step 4: Choose a supplier
Each inventory item must have a supplier, DLF lists all the national suppliers that it knows of, if the supplier does not exist you can use the 'Add one yourself' link on this page to add a new one!








Please feel free to contact me, Dave Clarke dave.clarke@dlf.org.uk if you need more help and advice on setting up and using your inventory, or if you have ideas for new features!

Dave.

New features

Hi,

You may have noticed our recent update, we hope you don't mind us improving the menus but people told us they would prefer somethng a little simpler and friendly than our blocky blue menu!

Also, you told us several times to add fast print buttons, which we have now done on product listing pages and on product detail pages, keep an eye out for the printer button:



We are also continuing to work on our general news panel, to give you a little condensed version of what is being talked about on the web regarding health in the UK every day! We will add more sources of news as we find them.

Finally, we have simplified the building of reports and created a report box beow the left hand side menu. It shows how many products are in the report and provides big buttons for printing the report in short or long form!

Please do let us know if you would like to see more new features! And if you really like or dislike anything!

Are you making use of the Inventory?

You may have noticed that DLF Data has a menu option called inventory. This allows any organisation or individual to manage an inventory of products and share it with other DLF Data users. DLF is working hard to complete the inventory of all of the products in its London demonstration Centre, no mean task, as we have over 1000 items of equipment. Why don't you give it a try for your own centre, apart from being a convenient way of keeping track of your items (at no cost!), a label printing option is available.

Furthermore, DLF would like to make available inventories for DLC's around the country in AskSARA, so that anyone who wants to see equipment demonstrated after answering SARA questions online can find there local centre! Of course, we would ask your permission before making the list public, if you are interested in doing this then email me

If fact email me with any comments about DLF Data and I will do my best to answer them.

David.

Welcome Notes for Trial Users

Thanks for taking the time to try out DLF Data Online. As the developers of the system we're keen to see people using it and getting the best from it. The Disabled Living Foundation (DLF) was set up over 35 years ago to provide impartial information about Assistive Technology equipment and now the Internet brings everything we have to your desktop or PDA.

You will see from the blog that we like to keep users informed of developments as well as listen to requests and add features or modify the system to make it better for everybody.

Here is a list of the key features on the system:

• Information is categorised and can be browsed or searched.
• Reporting and Printing of information. Building reports is a primary function of many of our users and we provide quick and simple ways to do this.
  
• Searches use our own Google Mini specifically set up to provide the data in the correct format. As such you can use all the powerful Google search functions.
  
• Product updates are uploaded as they happen. The records are maintained by the DLF Data Services department who oversee over 14,000 records.
• Comparison of products. Up to four products in a category can be compared, useful when assessing the correct choice for a client's requirements.
  
• Supplier information is available for all 1600+ suppliers on our database.
  
• Manufacturers and suppliers will shortly be able to provide their own versions of our product records and manage their contact information.
  
• An Inventory system has been developed for use by any user with a stock of equipment to manage. Our own Equipment Display Centre is currently building an inventory of display equipment.
• Contacts. Over 1600 useful organisations are listed by the DLF.
• News Feeds. We collect together feeds of interesting and relevant information for health professionals.
  
• Coming soon: 'My DLF Data' page for managing various snippets of your account, such as passwords.
• In Development: Helpline case manager, a simple tool for recording call information and sending letters with reports; More useful resources for students, let us know what you feel we should include to make the database useful for career development and learning.
  

Please have a good look around as DLF Data Online has lots of dark corners, although we try to highlight what it can do, and is a very powerful everyday tool for many professionals. The information is used by a number of helplines including our own to provide much needed information to the General Public. We know that it is often used to find unusual or specific items of Assistive Technology equipment.

If you want to arrange a visit from us to demonstrate DLF Data Online and our other products to your staff (anyone from CEO/CIO to Therapist) please make sure you get in touch with our Sales and Marketing Department (020 7432 8003) . Hamilton Directory users may find a trial of the system very helpful.

If you are interested in finding out more about the Disabled Living Foundation or about Training or Volunteering opportunities please visit our main website: www.dlf.org.uk

The self sign-up trial period is two weeks. If you need a bit more time please call DLF Sales and Marketing on 020 7432 8003 today.

Innovation is a key element of the DLF's IT operations and as a result we won an award from ICT Hub recently which we're very proud of. ICT Hub Award link

Let us know how you get on [DLF Development Team]

See us at NAIDEX

Some of our colleagues will be at NAIDEX so if you're there please let them know what you think of DLF Data Online.

You might want to :

• find out about DLF Data training/tuition
• learn about how to get more from DLF Data
• get on the database if you are a manufacturer or supplier
• find out more about how the DLF works and the importance of DLF Data
  
• get a free trial if you are an OT/Physiotherapy student
• volunteer for the Disabled Living Foundation

DLF Contacts:
Marketing
Development Team
Helpline Information

[DLF Development Team]

Coming soon - April updates to DLF Data Online

The latest updates and additions to the database will include:

• Case mode - for helplines (beta testing initially). If you would like to see and try out this mode you will have to request it. devteam@dlf.org.uk
  
  
• Assistive Technology news feeds
• Free Trial sign up. Handy if you want to let a colleague/manager/buyer try it.
• Supplier and Manufacturer maintained information.
  

What is 'beta testing'?
It's a term we use in IT Development when a feature has been developed and is usable but needs to be put to the test in the real world to help iron out any bugs or problems. See this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_stage#Beta

As you should be well aware by now we really like to hear about your experiences with DLF Data Online and how you feel it can be improved.

It's also good to get to know how you use the database and how you might like to use it in the future. Is there anything missing? Tell us now devteam@dlf.org.uk

[DLF Development Team]

We have improved our search!

We have spent some time improving our search feature. It now returns more accurate results and adding items to a report is very simple. Give it a try and let us know what you think.

David.

User power - Faster loading product detail pages

A user called us today with a few suggestions for improving DLF Data Online. We always welcome emails and calls from you so we can make DLF Data even better.

Today's tweaks include:

• faster loading product pages
• information appearing higher on the page

If there's anything else you would like to add to the list please get in touch, you can comment here on the blog as well if you like.

[DLF Development Team]

March updates with improved Inventory now available

We have been through our list of requests from the users of DLF Data Online and have made a number of changes. You'll notice we haven't changed the layout significantly, it can be annoying when things move around unexpectedly as almost anyone who has upgraded to Internet Explorer 7 will tell you.

Please report any problems you have so we can fix them and don't hold back if you want a new or improved feature, just ask and we'll get it on the list. Getting a new feature is like voting, the more votes or requests we get the more incentive there is to develop the new feature or function.

Here are the changes.

• Report items are now selected with a tick or select all option when you are building the list.
• Inventory now has the following additional features
  - view by A-Z sorted or by DLF Category
  - Add your own supplier
  - edit Inventory description
  - add a product web link
  
• New products - Top 10
• Contacts Search has live keyword search - find as you type!

On the way are further improvements to the inventory: adding notes, stock levels and at some point a bar code output for the labels.

As ever, please keep us up to date on how you are getting on with DLF Data and let us know if there is anything that you think would make it better to use for yourself, or others.

Regards,

[DLF Development Team]

Tell Someone about DLF Data Online

As the developers of DLF Data Online we're really keen to let other people know about what it can do. If you're already a user you will know about the amount of time saved by having the information at your fingertips.

Please use the form below to let someone else know about DLF Data Online.

Their Name:
Their email address:
Your name:
Your email address:
Subject:
Message:	I wanted to tell you about DLF Data Online.
Send Message:

Is your team making full use of DLF Data?

Your colleagues might already be entitled to use DLF Data under your organisation's current licence. Ask your manager if you are unsure how many users your organisation is entitled to, it could be more than you think!

• If you have lost your login details please use the recover password page which is here http://www.dlf-data.org.uk/user_details_recovery.php
• If you are the account administrator for the DLF Data Online licence your users will need the subscription code in order to register their login details to use the system. Call or email Sales if you have any problems. 020 7432 8003 or sales-support@dlf.org.uk
  
• Users of CDs or the old online system are encouraged to try the software on a free short term licence. If you would like to talk to someone about using DLF Data feel free to call Sales or the IT department if you wish.
• Get in touch too if you want to find out more about who else uses DLF Data.
  

We developed this software to be the best there is and really need more people to see it and use it to help make it better than ever.

There are some small updates on the way soon but the overall look will not be changing.

[Development Team]

Getting more from Google on DLF Data.

DLF Data Online uses the power of a Google search engine to search through the thousands of products and suppliers we have listed.

Most searches are very simple but there is much more you can do. We give a few examples to illustrate the simple tricks you can use on DLF Data. You can find some other helpful information on Google at Advanced Searching or print out the Cheatsheet.

To try out the examples below you will need to be logged in to DLF Data Online. Feel free to add comments below to help others use the system better.

Use the minus symbol to leave keywords out:

Use the plus symbol to keep certain words in:

Use the * symbol to find words in close proximity:

Login issues are now fixed..

We have now fixed the login issues that some users were getting.

As with all issues you can report them to us by emailing support [at] dlf.org.uk

--

Ian

Some users are reporting login issues...

Some users are reporting that when they log in they are immediately booted out when browsing by Category.

The product development team are looking into this urgently so please let us know if you have experienced a problem.

1. The site requires cookies so it may be possible your browser has cookies turned off. See http://www.google.com/cookies.html for instructions on how to turn cookies on.

2. Let us know if you experienced the problem but fixed it yourself.

Fed up with being logged out automatically?

Users of DLF Data Online will now stay logged in all day when using the system to find information. This has been one of our most requested features so we're delighted to announce it.

A number of other improvements requested by users have been made in line with the DLF's policy of constant improvement.

DLF Data Online has now been updated with a series of new and improved features. The product developers at the Disabled Living Foundation have worked with the users of DLF Data Online to improve the usability and features available.

Here is the new list of features:

• Inventories (new). Create and share your own list of products
  
• Daily Updates (new). The database is now updated on a daily basis
  
• Product Feedback (new). Share information on products with other professionals
  
• Product Comparison (new). Compare up to four products in a section
  
• Product Filtering (new). Only see products you need to look at
• Report Builder. Create reports to send to clients or contacts
  
• Full descriptions with pictures and dimensions
  
• Google search functionality. Search the entire database with Google
• Supplier Information

Please note that DLF Data require cookies to be enabled in your browser for the system to work. A cookie is a small text file in which small amounts of data are stored, it helps the browser 'remember' stuff.

Product Comparison Feature

The recently added Product Comparison Feature allows you to compare up to four products when you are using DLF Data Online.

One of the popular benefits of this has been the quick and easy way you can see how a particular product looks against others in the same group.

Live updates are Here!

Updates made by the Data Services Department at the DLF now appear immediately online subscribers of DLF Data Online.