I do some freelance graphic and website design and I am at the point I need some software to help me manage the projects, create invoices, allow for file uploads etc. I know of a few online services but I was just wondering if anyone has first hand experience using one and if they would suggest it. Would be using it alone so no need for multi user license services or anything.
Really depends on the detail of what you need to do, but take a look at basecamp for project coordination. I used it briefly and it was okay, though it could almost all be replicated using google docs/google drive, dropbox, skydrive, etc. Evernote also useful. For invoices, look at gnucash. Quite capable accounting package. Otherwise, take a look at www.alternativeto.net. great resource for finding software options... Sent from Bittech Android app
When I first saw the title, I thought "What's wrong with MS Project?"; in this case, it doesn't seem as if you're only after traditional project management software though. Usually project management software will allow you to plot your timescales, deadlines, milestones, etc, as well as add resources (people, equipment, rooms, etc). It produces things like Gantt charts and can work out where you're short on resources or someone will be over-worked, etc. It can even go as far as working out the overall cost of resources, if you set it up correctly. You could incorporate MS Project (or some other alternative) into what you do though. For example: you can set a deadline for when you expect to complete the work, set another task to send an invoice and set a further task to chase the invoice in the case of non-payment. All these dates can be tied together ("predecessors" in MS Project), so if the work is delivered late or early, then the tasks tied to that date will change their due dates automatically. I use MS Project in work on very large projects involving dozens of people, months of work and multiple workstreams; it does the job very well in this case. In your case though it may be like using a very expensive sledgehammer to crack a nut; we pay £260 per person for a Project license and that's a corporate rate without VAT - at retail you're looking at around £350 to £500, depending on which version you want... If you want that sort of task scheduling capability, I'd seriously take a look at open-source alternatives. I can't look at the BaseCamp website in work as it's blocked, but it looks like it's a good starting point - alternativeto.net also throws up some other suggestions. If you're talking about producing work orders, invoices, purchase orders, etc, then it sounds like you need an accounting package. To be honest, the only experience I've had with that sort of stuff is Sage, and that was a long time ago; the shop I worked for used it for all their accounts, stock levels, purchase orders, invoices and over-the-counter sales. I'd try taking a look at open source alternatives to Sage and see what you can find that suits your needs - again, as GMC suggests, gnucash is a good place to start. For file hosting, by far the simplest solution is something like DropBox. If you want total control over security and privacy though, you're probably going to need your own server/VPS. A home server, adequately configured, would work well as a starting point.
I use an Open Source piece of software called Redmine. You host it for free on a service called Heroku. It's good for setting up projects and tracking individual tasks against them. I've also added a free Scrum project management plugin as my team use agile development. Took about 30 minutes to set up and cost nothing. Plenty of on-line help to get you started and if you have web dev skills you can customise it.
