Is your Online Rota Software compatible with Mac?
Aug 2014 ⋅ 3 min read
At RotaCloud I think it’s safe to say we are all self-confessed ‘Apple fanboys’. Okay, we don’t camp outside our local Apple Store the second we hear rumours about the latest iPhone (honest!), but we do own our fair share of Apple tech, much of which we rely on for our day-to-day business operation.
As an early adopter of Mac computers I am no stranger to the long-standing issue of software compatibility, something that has plagued both the consumer and professional markets since day one. Microsoft’s original dominance of the operating systems market made it easy for developers to push Mac compatibility to the side, or in many cases, forget about it altogether.
Nowadays, Apple’s iOS has a significant share of the mobile market, and Mac sales continue to chase PC's, and so a time has come where developers can no longer afford to neglect cross-platform compatibility.
Enter cloud computing and SaaS (software as a service)…
Cloud Computing
Cloud computing - a term you can't avoid within the technology industry - is the delivery of computing as a service over a network (most often the internet), rather than as a product. In turn, SaaS is the delivery of software over a network, where the infrastructure and data is hosted by a Cloud provider and provided to the client on-demand.
This is the exact approach we’ve taken with RotaCloud, and I’ll briefly explain some of the key reasons why online rota software is a much more effective solution for staff schedule management.
Cross-Platform Online Rota Software
First and foremost, compatibility. RotaCloud runs in your browser, meaning all you need is an internet connection (fairly easy to find nowadays!), and an up-to-date web browser (comes installed on every new Mac and PC). That’s it! If you don’t believe me, give it a try.
Sign up for your free trial and within minutes you’ll be in. No installation, no CD’s to store, no “your version of Windows is too old, get with the times maaaannnn”, no trying to remember where you installed the software. None of that, just immediate access to the software regardless of which operating system you’re using.
Oh, and it’s probably worth mentioning that you don’t need to worry about your data. Everything is stored securely by us. Log into RotaCloud on a different computer, and everything will be there, exactly how you left it; all your employee information, staff holidays, leave requests, everything!
Access Your Work Rota, Anywhere!
One of our core features, and something we get brilliant feedback on by our users, is the ability for employees to log in and track their shifts themselves, from work and from home! This simply wouldn’t be practical with installation-based software…
Traditionally, you installed software on a particular computer, and that was it. You either needed to purchase additional licenses for extra machines, or manage everything from one location. With RotaCloud you can log in from absolutely anywhere with an internet connection, and the same goes for your staff. Provide email addresses when setting up your employees and we’ll automatically send them an invite to log in and start viewing their rotas themselves. They’ll be emailed whenever there are changes or updates to their shifts, too!
Stay Up To Date with Immediate Updates
Windows Update. Two words which strike fear into the hearts of Windows users. Okay okay, us Mac people need to update too (just to prove I’m not one-sided). Anyway… updates are a nightmare for everyone… Will all my software still work afterwards? Will my computer even turn on afterwards?! Why has it been stuck on 99% for the last 30 minutes?!?! DAD, CAN’T NETFLIX WAIT I’M TRYING TO DOWNLOAD UPDATES?!?!?!
It doesn’t matter if you’re at home or at work, keeping things up-to-date is as annoying as it is important. We regularly update our rota software to bring you new features, and as soon as we release an update, it’s yours! RotaCloud is updated automatically, instantly, for you and your staff, with no input from you.
One less thing for you to think about!
Anyway, I think that’s quite enough tech talk for a Monday afternoon! If you’re not already a RotaCloud user, check out our 30-day free trial and save yourself valuable management time by moving your rotas online!
