FAQs| BI Connected Cars|Home Automation | Healthcare Dashboard Reports|M2M

1. What is SiD^TM?
- SiD^TM stands for Simply Intelligent Data. SiD^TM is a first of its kind Marketing platform for OEM's (Original Equipment Manufacturers) that design and manufacture products equipped with built-in intelligence features. SiD^TM provides any OEM producer of "smart" devices a dynamic mechanism with which to connect to their devices as well as to their customers. SiD^TM provides the OEM with a simple to use vehicle to gain insight into critical product and consumer data that would otherwise be unavailable or much more difficult to collect and unreliable in nature. SiD^TM enables the OEM to analyze incoming product and consumer data and to input that data into customized dashboards and reports. The OEM can then use that data to make intelligent product and marketing decisions that are based on reliable, real-time data. A tangible competitive advantage for any OEM.
2. What is Software as a Service (SaaS) cloud technology?
- Software as a Service, or SaaS, is an environment running on a cloud server. SaaS is a technique for providing software applications to end users without requiring the end users to run the application on their own computers. Users of SiD^TM do not need to be concerned about disk storage locations, computing power, memory requirements, etc., since the application itself is hosted and maintained on the cloud server. The SaaS platform provides a straightforward set of API hooks that can be used for working within the scalable on demand cloud environment.
3. How does SiD^TM approach data security?
- We take your data security very seriously and use all the latest technologies to provide state of the art security and protection. SiD^TM is hosted at RackSpace^TM and offers all the security benefits they have to offer. Additionally, SiD^TM uses stored procedures so intruders cannot directly modify or affect our database tables, delete or update a query. We use encryption techniques (Symmetric Key Encryption with 256 bit private key) for URL and query string values. Additionally, users must be authorized through security rights and privileges to access or modify data by the owner of the account. We use a proprietary security package to insert sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers, and addresses in an encrypted form. Finally, we employ both antivirus and firewall level security on the SiD^TM cloud server. If you have additional questions about SiD^TM security, please contact us at 1.800.852.0927.
4. What are the advantages of using SiD^TM over traditional enterprise BI solutions?
- SiD^TM was specifically developed with the OEM producer of intelligent devices in mind. SiD^TM was developed with the ambition of providing OEM's with a game-changing Marketing platform that would provide competitive advantages in the critical areas of marketing strategy, product development, and customer support. No other traditional BI solution offers the OEM the unique set of capabilities offered by SiD^TM. SiD^TM provides the OEM with dynamic accessto real-time product and customer data, on demand, via any hardware device including desktop, laptop, tablet or mobile phone. Additionally, SiD^TM allows connection to multiple data sources so that all data can be accessed within one platform. SiD's innovations enable connection to web services, social media, and machine to machine (M2M) communication data to extract business intelligence: none of which are available in traditional enterprise BI platforms. Moreover, SiD^TM does not require any installation or upgrade maintenance, so the cost of deployment is reduced and the ROI is accelerated.
5. Is there anything that other BI solutions can do that SiD^TM cannot do?
- SiD^TM is the first solution of this kind that specifically addresses the needs of the OEM producer of intelligent products. In addition, many BI solutions require sophisticated, expensive, multi-month implementations. As part of that they automate creation of specific performance reports and predetermined sophisticated analytics that allow users to monitor fixed KPIs easily. However, this requires a lot of upfront work, and by definition, the platform is very rigid and does not allow for easy manipulation of data, ad hoc queries, or any significant interactivity needed for real-time decision making. SiD^TM foregoes static customized reporting in favor of creating a platform that allows end users to simply create their own reports easily and quickly, thus making their data "Simply intelligent."
6. Does SiD^TM support Data Mashups?
- SiD^TM Data Management allow enterprises to capture and consolidate complex data types such as web feeds, metadata, audio/video files, unstructured email content, live stream data, and social media content. The platform feeds the processed data directly to the end user for graphically compelling, power visualization and intuitive analysis.
7. What can I do with my dashboards once I have created them?
- The possibilities are virtually unlimited. You can save your dashboards and set up a recurring refresh schedule. You can also share your dashboards with internal and external stakeholders. You can embed them into webpages and reports. You can also download your dashboards into Microsoft Office or a PDF format for use in presentations for additional data modeling. You can click onto a data set within your dashboard to drill down into the source of that data for a detailed view on what is happening with your product and your customer.
8. What is the scale and cost of a SiD^TM implementation?
- SiD^TM uses a subscription-based payment model. You can choose a monthly, 6-month or annual plan. You earn a discount by signing up for longer subscription plans. Since SiD^TM uses a cloud server and SaaS technology, there is no implementation or upgrade cost required. Additional costs may be incurred should you choose to have a SiD^TM consultant log into your databases and create your dashboards for you based on your individual requirements.
9. Is there a cost to upgrade SiD^TM?
- There is no cost to upgrade SiD^TM. Since SiD^TM is hosted on a cloud server, all upgrades and updates are passed directly on to you for the same subscription price.
10. How can I see a demo of SiD^TM?
- Log on to view a demo video or send a request to to set up a personalized demo.
11. What if I want to cancel my SiD^TM subscription?
- You can cancel your SiD^TM subscription at any time without penalty.
12. Does the SiD^TM team have IT professionals that have Hadoop expertise and can handle potential operational glitches for clients?
- Since the SiD^TM implementation is 100% cloud-based with on-site hardware or software there are no implementation issues to deal with that are common with enterprise BI systems. In addition, SiD^TM has experts with an extensive knowledgebase in both traditional databases and warehousing systems as well as Hadoop, HBase, and Hive technologies to help our customers create custom reports and applications or for any other consulting needs.
13. How can I get SiD^TM Support?
- You can get support by emailing or by submitting a question to support@sidnow.com, and a SiD^TM support technician will call or email you to assist you with your SiD^TM needs.