BARS. Budget

The Russian market of accounting software for budgetary institutions is saturated and stable. Nevertheless changes in the budget policy of the state and in requirements to automation involve changes in the market. Since January 1 of the current year became effective the Federal law of May 8, 2010 N 83-FZ "About making changes in separate legal acts of the Russian Federation in connection with improvement of a legal status of the public (municipal) institutions" and also Order No. 157n of 12/1/2010 "About the statement of the Unified plan of accounts of accounting for public authorities", events for transition to new techniques of compensation are held, and as the general trend for automation of public sector the priority of use of the open source (OS) remains.

In December, 2010 the BARS GROUP announced entry into the market of the first free product for budget accounting – a software package of BARS Budget. This product is known in the market of automation of financial and economic activity many years, more than 15,000 users work with it. Today, after one and a half years of work of the best specialists, BARS Budget begins a new stage of the history.

New BARS Budget represents the uniform software package covering all sections of work of accounting and financial services of budgetary institutions. For the first time in Russia the possibility of budget accounting on the open source (OS) opens.

Two models of the proposal of BARS Budget are possible:

• the commercial model – software is delivered free of charge, and updates (after the first three months) and maintenance are paid;
• the free model is developed on the basis of the license BSD and grants to the user the right to independently modify a product, to distribute its copies and not to depend on the developer at all.

Significant changes occurred in functional product characteristics and its interface. Now the user of BARS Budget will be able to see before himself a single window on which the functions necessary for its work are provided. 22 preconfigured roles of the user (Bank, Fixed assets, "Invoices", "Suppliers and contractors", Power supply, etc.) are for this purpose set. If necessary the administrator mzht independently to supplement them and to appoint to personnel new features. Developers aimed to make the new interface the user-friendliest up to separate function or an icon.

Sagdullin Ruslan, the director of business center "BARS Budget" tells about the vision of this project and advantages of accounting Open Source to budgetary institutions:

- The open source today – very relevant and often repeated concept. What contents do you put in an abbreviation of Open Source? � We put the standard and commonly accepted contents in this abbreviation. New BARS Budget provides all freedoms which Open Source should provide. It is freedom to start the program for any purposes, freedom to study how the program works, and to adapt it for the needs, freedom to repeatedly distribute copies, freedom to improve the program and to publish results of work on improvement of the program. Linux and any other free software product is in the same way offered. Distribution kits and source files are in open access, and each budgetary institution or department can use them.

– Long time of BARS Budget it was offered as the proprietary software, – what causes transition to free model? � This step was not for us sudden. If to look at the history of our business, then it is completely justified and natural. We always wanted that BARS Budget became an alternative to the monopolists existing on this segment of the market. The standard course used both by producers, and suppliers of proprietary accounting products – to automate the large customer and further quietly to receive from it royalties or money for support. Can someone this simple technique arranges, but it has a mass of shortcomings: the great number of small clients who are interested in automation not less is left in the basket. And sooner or later the client begins to think of correctness of the costs. To create the most convenient conditions for clients and to exempt them from a payment for software, two years ago we made the decision to offer BARS Budget free of charge, having left paid only updates and support. Now, with transition to free model, the user of the solution of BARS Budget can become completely independent. It is enough to create own center of support at the level of department independently to perform all technology and methodological works. Naturally, we also offer the services through our partner network in regions. These services will cost a certain money, but the client can do also without us. The user should have a possibility of the choice – and this main advantage of Open Source.

– How did migration from the technology point of view look? � Our developers used a number of free components, including – the Harbour programming language, the QT Nokia interface and also Leto DB DBMS. Thanks to these components, BARS Budget became multiplatform and can work without emulators with the Linux, Mac OS and Windows operating systems. It is even more important that free components allowed us to take a step forward in respect of a product usability. During the existence BARS Budget acquired impressive functionality, but time does not stand still. Now there was a set of methods it is more convenient to make use of this functionality. Of course, first we had an illusion of the fact that free components concede proprietary also. But it – no more than illusion. Free technologies for years were created by community of the qualified developers for own needs. One it can serve as the sign of their quality. As a result of migration on Open Source we have completely updated, friendly to the user the interface of a product which up to each icon was created by a team of our programmers and designers.

– You have the customer base, there are partners who are engaged in service – and here a product with which they already work, becomes free. For what reaction do you wait from them? � The commercial version of a product and the existing service model will not disappear anywhere. As BARS Budget works already for a long time, and the number of users approaches ten thousand, it would be incorrect to do some sharp movements from our party. The existing users will receive more user-friendly interface of a product and also advantage of multiplatformity. For them also the full service package on support and also all terms which we offer now will remain. In the long term they will be able independently to select between free and commercial model, proceeding from the opportunities and interests. Something will not be imposed by us as it would contradict the idea of freedom.

– Why does a single school or hospital need multiplatformity of software? � You watch what occurs now: Russia is integrated into world structures with respect thereto developers insist on copyright compliance more and stronger. Order from itself therefore budgetary institutions will appear before the unambiguous choice will begin to bring the state: or tough licensing and regular payments, or search of an alternative. Still it was noticeable only in the field of education, but it is obvious that also other industries will follow further. That in the choice of solutions during tenders it is necessary to give a priority to free products, it was told in March, 2009 in the draft of "Methodical recommendations about development and acquisition of software for public authorities and budgetary institutions". Now, when the prime minister of the Russian Federation already approves the plan of transition of federal authorities and budgetary institutions for Open Source, this work should be sped up. We calculate that our software product will take the worthy place in this process. The same can be told about process of creation of the National software platform.

– Whether you studied the possible barriers existing at implementation of Open Source? � Certainly, we represent a situation, but we have bases to look at the future of our project with optimism. Let's pass well-known questions – such as, for example, retraining of employees or deficit of the qualified administrators. We see that transition to Open Source can be performed most effectively only under one condition – all park of computers of the organization is translated. Of course, 100% of a covering manage to be reached not always, the main thing it is necessary to aim at maximizing a share of the computers working for Open Source.

Quite often migration of state employees on Open Source rested against an accounting problem. An exit of free multiplatform BARS Budget for automation of financial and economic activity of state, budget and autonomous institutions completely removes this problem and gives green light to the free software. The national software platform which will be created shortly would be incomplete if the PCs which are got most used to use accountants, would be left without free alternative.

Many did not see sense to transfer to Linux only a part of computers and waited for emergence of accounting Open Source since there were only 2 options: leave accounting on Windows or work via emulators. Both options have the shortcomings. And the essence of work on proprietary products via the emulator not absolutely fits into the idea of transition to Open Source.

– What specific advantages are brought by your product to budget departments? � Using free BARS Budget, budget departments are exempted from need to pay considerable license fees to suppliers of proprietary software products. The cost structure on automation changes. Completely such article as software cost disappears. A part of money which was spent under this article is passed to support of software, including technology completions and consulting. The most important that the money spent for support will remain in the same region. And it is unimportant who will perform support: departmental service or our partners in the region.

In general new BARS Budget when using both commercial, and free model, is urged to reduce the price of automation essentially. We offer the software package as the standard solution for budgetary institutions of the subject of the Russian Federation. For this purpose there is a number of the bases. First, significantly implementation costs cheaper. Even for training of specialists it is not obligatory to go round all thousands of organizations, it is enough to bring together accountants in the district center. Secondly, in the course of maintenance it is not necessary to pay several suppliers for the same work. It is quite relevant now when budget accounting is on a threshold of conversions. Became effective 83-FZ according to which three types of organizations are entered: state, budget and autonomous. All of them will work by a unified plan of accounts. Only transfer of autonomous organizations from self-financing on a unified plan, will make the large volume of works in the near future. Already now all changes in the software product are implemented in the new version. It was necessary to wait for release of the regulating documentation on transition to the new chart of accounts.

Other example – transfer of budgetary institutions on a new wage system which requires considerable labor costs. In this case use of BARS Budget as the standard solution showed the efficiency in the Republic of Tatarstan. In two months more than two thousand schools were transferred to NSOT. During this time it was succeeded to promodelirovat changes in the salary with detailing to each employee and change in the budget, to correct techniques and to implement.

– Do you expect support from those companies which specialize in automation of financial and economic activity? Whether work with Open Source will be interesting to them? � Certainly, at us is what to offer our colleagues. First, they will have an opportunity to enter the market with the unique solution and not just to occupy some niche, and to take part in creation of a new segment of the market. After the past crisis competitive environment became much more aggressive, and the companies are forced to perform dumping to hold the market. As a result also market participants (from decrease in profitability), and clients suffer (from the decreasing service quality). Getting into gear on promotion of free software, it is not necessary to play the infinite game on the price any more, and it is rather simple to offer the client model which essentially differs from what exists now. Secondly, our potential clients are ready to accept new offers right now. Recent crisis forced managers to look at many things in a new way. If earlier the large role was played by the established relations and usual methods, then today on the first place – economy of means and effectiveness of investments. Thirdly, our existing and potential partners will be able to feel all advantages of a new appearance of a product. It is much simpler to achieve recognition if you offer not just functionality, and the same functionality, but in a qualitative and beautiful cover.

– Whether you wait for a response from those players whose main kind of activity – free software? � Certainly. We already cooperate with Alt Linux company – the Russian producer of the Linux distribution kits. The first distribution kit of BARS Budget for Linux is implemented under Alt. Any budgetary institution passing to this OS will be able to set it from a repository of BARS Budget and to work in it.

As for the companies, whose profile – implementation and support of Open Source, for them it – too a good opportunity to master the direction in which before nobody was engaged. And the wealth of experience which they have, undoubtedly will be demanded. The lack of free accounting products was a serious barrier to their business. Offering the potential client automation, they always risked to hear a question: "And what you offer for accounting?". After an exit of the updated BARS Budget this question it is possible to answer with specific proposal and it is essential to increase interest in Open Source.

– As far as did your vision of the project from its beginning to end exchange? � In the main thing vision did not change at all. There was underestimation of labor input of this process and those prospects which are offered by Open Source in respect of improvement of a usability of a product. It was originally supposed that we will cope for half a year. But by the time of an exit of release passed more than a year of work of the best specialists of our business center. We in practice were convinced of advantages of free technologies and now are ready to inform of our experience all to whom Open Source and to those who else doubt it is interesting.