[iHRIS-announce] ANNOUNCE: Release of iHRIS Manage and iHRIS Qualify Version 3.1

[ihris-announce at lists.intrahealth.org]

We are pleased to announce the release of a major upgrade to iHRIS
Manage and iHRIS Qualify. You may download the full iHRIS Suite from the
Launchpad hosting site at:

http://launchpad.net/i2ce/3.1/3.1.0/

The full download includes the latest versions of all three components
of the iHRIS Suite--Manage, Qualify and Plan--and all supporting
software. Each component may also be downloaded separately at:

http://launchpad.net/ihris-manage/3.1/3.1.0

http://launchpad.net/ihris-qualify/3.1/3.1.0

New in this release is the ability to design custom reports for
aggregating and analyzing data. A new module for managing in-service
training programs offered to employees is new in iHRIS Manage only.

If you would like to try out any of the software programs before
downloading, please access our demo sites. Go to the HRIS Strengthening
site at http://www.capacityproject.org/hris/ to get started.

The full release notes follow.

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iHRIS Full Suite: Manage, Qualify, Common, I2CE and TextLayout

Version 3.1

Release date: 2008-08-15

== CONTENTS ==

1. Contact Information

2. About This Software

3. New Features in This Release

4. Hardware and Software Requirements

5. Getting Started

6. About the Capacity Project


== 1. CONTACT INFORMATION ==

HRIS Strengthening team of the Capacity Project

Web: www.capacityproject.org/hris/

Email: hris at capacityproject.org

Voice: 1-919-313-9100

IntraHealth International

6340 Quadrangle Drive, Suite 200

Chapel Hill NC 27517 USA

== 2. ABOUT THIS SOFTWARE ==

The Capacity Project develops in the iHRiS Suite core solutions
addressing specific issues in human resources for health (HRH)
leadership. The iHRIS Suite is free and Open Source software distributed
under the GPL.

iHRIS Manage is a human resources management tool that enables an
organization to design and manage a comprehensive human resources
strategy. iHRIS Manage helps an organization manage its workforce more
effectively and efficiently, while reducing costs and data errors. Using
the system, the HR professional can create a hierarchy of positions for
an organization based on standard titles, job classifications and job
descriptions, even spread over diverse geographic locations, offices and
facilities. HR staff can solicit job applications for open positions,
assign employees to fill positions and maintain a searchable database of
all employees, their identifying information and their qualifications.
Managers can track each employee's history with the organization,
including their position and salary histories, and record the reason for
departure when the employee leaves. iHRIS Manage is primarily intended
to be used to manage health care workers employed by a country's
Ministry of Health, a hospital or other large health care organization,
or a private provider of health care services. However, it may be
readily adapted to other types of organizations and workforces.

iHRIS Qualify is a health worker training, licensing and certification
tracking system. The system enables a licensing or certification
authority for a health worker cadre, such as nurses or physicians, to
track data on the complete cadre in a country from pre-service training
through attrition. The database captures information about health
professionals from the time they enter pre-service training through
registration, certification and licensure, and it is updated every time
a professional's license or certification is renewed. This system is
also capable of tracking continuing medical education attained by health
workers, capturing data about foreign-trained workers applying to work
within the country and recording out migration verification requests. 


iHRIS Common includes common page classes, template files and images for
the iHRIS Suite of software: iHRIS Manage, iHRIS Qualify and iHRIS Plan.

IntraHealth Informatics Core Engine (I2CE) is a set of classes for
handling database-driven HTML forms with templates and database
abstraction. It is the core programming engine for the iHRIS Suite of
software. 

TexLayout is tools to handle text layout designed to create nicely
formatted PDF files. This is used to generate PDF versions of reports. 

== 3. NEW FEATURES IN THIS RELEASE ==

* Design custom reports for analyzing and aggregating data
* In-service training management module (iHRIS Manage only)
* Evaluate competencies including competencies earned in in-service
training (iHRIS Manage only)

== 4. HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS ==

The following software is required to be installed before installing
iHRIS:
* Webserver (Apache is recommended)
* MySQL
* PHP version 5.2 or greater
* MDB2 from PEAR
* MySQL driver from PEAR
* APC from PECL
* Mod_rewrite for Apache

In order to generate PDF reports, the tcpdf package found at
http://tcpdf.sourceforge.net is required. 

== 5. GETTING STARTED ==

Before starting, you should read the User's Manual, which can be
accessed by clicking the Help button on any screen. The section "Before
Installing the System" provides helpful worksheets for collecting the
data needed to enter in the system.

If you have questions or need support, please visit the iHRIS Website by
clicking that button on any screen and use the Contact Us form to send
us your question. 

== 6. ABOUT THE CAPACITY PROJECT ==

The Capacity Project is developing free, Open Source HRIS solutions,
distributed under the GPL, to supply health sector leaders and managers
with the information they need to assess HR problems, plan effective
interventions and evaluate those interventions. We don't provide just
software but rather a program of technical assistance and expertise to
ensure that the technology is transferred effectively and serves the
ability of decision makers to use data to lead and manage. Our
participatory approach results in systems that are appropriate for the
context in which they are used and sustainable after we leave.

The Capacity Project helps developing countries strengthen human
resources for health to better respond to the challenges of implementing
and sustaining quality health programs. The Project is funded by the
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by
IntraHealth International and partners IMA World Health, JHPIEGO,
Liverpool Associates in Tropical Health (LATH), Management Sciences for
Health (MSH), PATH and Training 
Resources Group, Inc. (TRG). Find out more at www.capacityproject.org

Development of this software was made possible by the support of the
American people through USAID. The contents are the responsibility of
the user and do not reflect the views of USAID, the United States
Government or IntraHealth International.

---
Shannon Turlington
Senior Systems Development Manager
IntraHealth International/The Capacity Project
sturlington at intrahealth.org | 919-313-9131