Open Forum

I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks ------------------------------------------- Patrick Santillo General Manager Frick Art and Historical Center Pittsburgh PA -------------------------------------------

We were formerly on Vista, as well, but we migrated to Siriusware about two years ago. We really like the software, and I have seen many other colleagues at other large museums move to this as well. If you'd like more information on our experiences, please feel free to reach out to me. ------------------------------------------- Shawn Mummert Informatics Champion Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal Cincinnati OH -------------------------------------------
Original Message: Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM From: Patrick Santillo Subject: online reservation software I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks ------------------------------------------- Patrick Santillo General Manager Frick Art and Historical Center Pittsburgh PA -------------------------------------------

Hi Shawn, Vista was very clunky, rigid, and not very user friendly; could you relate your experiences using Siriusware regarding the flexibility of the system, ease of use, programming, and cost. I would appreciate it. Thanks! ------------------------------------------- Patrick Santillo General Manager Frick Art and Historical Center Pittsburgh PA -------------------------------------------
Original Message: Sent: 10-24-2014 05:41 PM From: Shawn Mummert Subject: online reservation software We were formerly on Vista, as well, but we migrated to Siriusware about two years ago. We really like the software, and I have seen many other colleagues at other large museums move to this as well. If you'd like more information on our experiences, please feel free to reach out to me. ------------------------------------------- Shawn Mummert Informatics Champion Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal Cincinnati OH -------------------------------------------
Original Message: Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM From: Patrick Santillo Subject: online reservation software I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks ------------------------------------------- Patrick Santillo General Manager Frick Art and Historical Center Pittsburgh PA -------------------------------------------

We find the system to be really flexible, which it has to be to accommodate the complexity of some of our offerings. We have a skilled technical staff here, and I wouldn't want to recommend Siriusware or any other enterprise-style system unless one has that type of staff in place (or the commitment to build one). We looked at Gateway Galaxy as well, but we thought the calendar and scheduling function was better in Siriusware at the time that we looked at it. We're not talking about cheap systems here, but we think that it's a strong value.

If you want more information feel free to reach out to me here, or to private message me.

Shawn.

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Shawn Mummert
Informatics Champion
Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
Cincinnati OH
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-25-2014 10:38 AM
From: Patrick Santillo
Subject: online reservation software

Hi Shawn,

Vista was very clunky, rigid, and not very user friendly; could you relate your experiences using Siriusware regarding the flexibility of the system, ease of use, programming, and cost. I would appreciate it.

Thanks!

-------------------------------------------
Patrick Santillo
General Manager
Frick Art and Historical Center
Pittsburgh PA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-24-2014 05:41 PM
From: Shawn Mummert
Subject: online reservation software

We were formerly on Vista, as well, but we migrated to Siriusware about two years ago. We really like the software, and I have seen many other colleagues at other large museums move to this as well. If you'd like more information on our experiences, please feel free to reach out to me.

-------------------------------------------
Shawn Mummert
Informatics Champion
Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
Cincinnati OH
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM
From: Patrick Santillo
Subject: online reservation software

I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks

-------------------------------------------
Patrick Santillo
General Manager
Frick Art and Historical Center
Pittsburgh PA
-------------------------------------------

We use Open Table for restaurant reservations and Galaxy (POS) for tour and planetarium show reservations. The latter was just launched and so far so good! ------------------------------------------- Melissa Felder Chief Marketing Officer California Academy of Sciences San Francisco CA -------------------------------------------
Original Message: Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM From: Patrick Santillo Subject: online reservation software I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks ------------------------------------------- Patrick Santillo General Manager Frick Art and Historical Center Pittsburgh PA -------------------------------------------

I am piggybacking off of that question- We are currently migrating to Galaxy, and are having some difficulty making it function the way we want it to for School Program bookings. Might anyone have any insight into this?

-------------------------------------------
Allison Hague
Program Coordinator
Bronx Zoo
Bronx NY
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM
From: Patrick Santillo
Subject: online reservation software

I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks

-------------------------------------------
Patrick Santillo
General Manager
Frick Art and Historical Center
Pittsburgh PA
-------------------------------------------

Hello, I am Molly Lowell, Exec. VP, Operations & Communications at the Mercer Museum and Fonthill Castle in Doylestown, PA. I have been in the field for 35+ years and here at Mercer for 25. I love the Mercer buildings and Bucks County.

We too use Vista for school and program reservations and front desk ticketing. We are looking for another software to incorporate online ticketing as well as program reservations. I'm interested in what others find effective.

-------------------------------------------
Molly Lowell
Executive Vice President, Operations and Communications
Mercer Museum - Bucks County Historical Society
Doylestown PA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-29-2014 09:29 AM
From: Allison Hague
Subject: online reservation software

I am piggybacking off of that question- We are currently migrating to Galaxy, and are having some difficulty making it function the way we want it to for School Program bookings. Might anyone have any insight into this?

-------------------------------------------
Allison Hague
Program Coordinator
Bronx Zoo
Bronx NY
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM
From: Patrick Santillo
Subject: online reservation software

I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks

-------------------------------------------
Patrick Santillo
General Manager
Frick Art and Historical Center
Pittsburgh PA
-------------------------------------------

Bumping this thread because I'm interested in school tour booking software solutions and didn't want to start a whole new thread.

It seems like a lot of the software out there really needs to be forced into service to book school tours - anyone have a school tour booking system that really works for them? 

-------------------------------------------
Alexander Tronolone
Senior Educator
Brooklyn Historical Society
Brooklyn NY
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-30-2014 08:37 AM
From: Molly Lowell
Subject: online reservation software

Hello, I am Molly Lowell, Exec. VP, Operations & Communications at the Mercer Museum and Fonthill Castle in Doylestown, PA. I have been in the field for 35+ years and here at Mercer for 25. I love the Mercer buildings and Bucks County.

We too use Vista for school and program reservations and front desk ticketing. We are looking for another software to incorporate online ticketing as well as program reservations. I'm interested in what others find effective.

-------------------------------------------
Molly Lowell
Executive Vice President, Operations and Communications
Mercer Museum - Bucks County Historical Society
Doylestown PA
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-29-2014 09:29 AM
From: Allison Hague
Subject: online reservation software

I am piggybacking off of that question- We are currently migrating to Galaxy, and are having some difficulty making it function the way we want it to for School Program bookings. Might anyone have any insight into this?

-------------------------------------------
Allison Hague
Program Coordinator
Bronx Zoo
Bronx NY
-------------------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 10-24-2014 04:01 PM
From: Patrick Santillo
Subject: online reservation software

I manage The Cafe at The Frick Art and Historical Site, and we take reservations for lunch in The Cafe as well as reservations to tour Clayton Mansion (home of Henry Clay Frick). Our current software is Vista, which we use to take Cafe reservations as well as Clayton tours. We are looking for alternative online reservation software to replace Vista, and would like to know if anyone has experience with software other than Vista. Thanks

-------------------------------------------
Patrick Santillo
General Manager
Frick Art and Historical Center
Pittsburgh PA
-------------------------------------------