en:wiki:tech:devspe

====== ======-specific developments

Software is a living thing, and the features of Gestan are constantly evolving! This involves taking into account:

regulatory changes, such as Factur-X
ideas for improvements from the development team Gestan
ideas and requests for improvements from users, submitted via the forum.

These fall into two categories:

generic development, where the feature will benefit many, if not all, businesses. These developments are free of charge
specific development, which concerns a small number of users, or even a single user. These developments are subject to a charge (approximately 500 EUR per man-day)

Custom developments are integrated into Gestan:

via the use of extensions (the equivalent of Windows DLLs), programmes executed by Gestan that utilise data already present in the database or stored in additional files
by replacing certain screens with others that have been specifically developed, or certain reports with others. It is therefore possible to replace the standard invoice or the standard service order form with a template of your own design.
by adding extra tabs to certain screens, such as the contact record or the product record.

Request a bespoke development

You can start describing your request on the forum.

The forum team will ask you for any further relevant information if necessary, and may categorise your request as either a generic development or a bespoke development.

If it is a generic development, you will receive an acknowledgement email specifying the priority level assigned to your request. You will receive a second email when the relevant development goes live.

If it is a specific development, the support team will be able to provide you with a rough estimate of the likely cost of the project. The next step will be the drafting of a project brief – either by you or by us – and of specifications, drawn up by us (often, these two documents are combined into one). We will present you with the corresponding quotation, and the development work will commence upon receipt of your approval.

It is possible to use the software Etats and Requêtes, but we do not provide support for them, nor do we provide training on the other tools offered by PCSoft.

Who carries out bespoke development for Gestan?

Bespoke development is carried out:

either by ICS-informatique,
or by one of the software publishers who have signed a development partnership agreement and a confidentiality undertaking with ICS (see Devenir partner).

For the attention of partner software publishers

To carry out bespoke development for Gestan, you must:

be familiar with Windev, or other PCSoft tools (Windev Mobile, Webdev). Currently, Gestan is developed using Windev 2024. Recent developments at PCSoft, particularly the publisher’s desire to lock developers into an unfair contract that makes them dependent on the company, mean that we will probably stop at Windev 2024/2025, before perhaps selecting another development tool.
or become familiar with another development tool capable of accessing HFSQL databases, notably via ODBC

All specific source code must be documented in this manual and uploaded to the ICS GDS to ensure its long-term preservation.

Developer partners have access to a partner portal providing the following resources:

technical and commercial terms of the partnership
the ‘ Gestan ’ analysis: the definition of database files and fields.
Template Gestan: screen styles.
Icons Gestan: the set of icons used on Gestan.
Development standards
Examples of extensions for Gestan
Examples of specific reports for Gestan (Invoice and Service Order)

ℹ️ Other “Technical” articles