Notes from the Fishbowl trenches
How-tos, field reports, and the things we actually run into on engagements: reconciliation, inventory accuracy, reporting, and integrations.
All posts
Fishbowl Queries, Part 1 (with Israel, Aleksa, and guest AJ Murrer)
Watch Israel teach a new student, AJ Murrer, the basics of Fishbowl database queries and SQL joins to help with reporting.
April 26, 2021 →Check out the Learn SQL Series on YouTube!
Our Learn SQL Series teaches the basics of SQL and Fishbowl Inventory through clear, informative videos on YouTube.
May 20, 2020 →NetSuite and Fishbowl: Let's Break it Down
A look at NetSuite and Fishbowl for inventory management, comparing the two systems for growing businesses.
April 21, 2020 →Podcast Transcript (Episode 1: Go Live)
Transcript of the first ILC Business Podcast episode, where Israel Lopez and Joshua Klar introduce the show and share their backgrounds.
January 27, 2020 →BI Script For Fishbowl Inventory
An early look at Fishbowl's new BI Script reporting: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript reports replacing iReport, why it changed, and how to prepare.
August 17, 2019 →Fishbowl Inventory: Business Intelligence in 2018
A look at the Business Intelligence options in Fishbowl's 2018.7 release, from Legacy Reports and the Data Module to Excel ODBC, Power BI, Tableau, and BI Script.
August 4, 2018 →Adventures in SSL: TLS 1.2 & Klipfolio
How an old Windows Server 2008 box broke TLS 1.2 and stopped our KExtract tool from publishing data to Klipfolio, and why upgrading was the fix.
March 14, 2017 →Strategies for Inventory Control
A bit of inventory humor after a busy on-site, sparked by a conversation about inventory aging strategies.
February 22, 2017 →Microsoft Dynamics Navision 2017 - Register Interest
We are gauging interest in a Fishbowl to Microsoft Dynamics Navision integration, including a phased path from QuickBooks to full Navision.
February 15, 2017 →Fishbowl 2017 Audit Table List
A reference list of the Fishbowl 2017 audit tables (suffixed with _AUD), plus an example query for reading them.
February 6, 2017 →Fishbowl 2017: ILC Software Compatibility List
An up to date list of ILC software ready for Fishbowl 2017, with status notes for Beep1, KExtract, and the ShipWorks and ShipRush integrations.
February 6, 2017 →Upgrade Policy for Fishbowl 2017 Integrations
How ILC handles upgrading existing Fishbowl integrations and custom software for the Fishbowl 2017 release, including cost and scheduling policy.
February 6, 2017 →Preparing for Fishbowl 2017
Fishbowl 2017 moves the database engine from Firebird to MySQL. Here is what changes, the risks, and how to prepare for the upgrade.
February 6, 2017 →Adventures in Accounting: Broken and Corrupted QuickBooks Files
Two QuickBooks corruption cases in one week: the errors we saw, how we found them with Verify Data, and how to recover and prevent it.
November 25, 2016 →Automate Paper Invoicing with Lob
How we use Lob to mail paper invoices like a web service: send a PDF and address, skip the print, stuff, and stamp routine, and save staff hours.
November 14, 2016 →Fishbowl 2016.13: Unable to Export/Connect to QuickBooks Desktop
Changes in Fishbowl 2016.13 break the QuickBooks Desktop connection for some users. Here are the symptoms, root cause, and the fix.
November 13, 2016 →Allocated, Committed, Fulfilled Oh My: Explaining Inventory Status in Fishbowl
A simple Excel chart that walks through the inventory status changes a part goes through in Fishbowl, from allocated to committed to fulfilled.
October 21, 2016 →Evaluating the Clover Mini for Fishbowl
ILC is testing a Clover Mini developer kit to bring chip, NFC, and Apple Pay payments into Fishbowl as an integrated point of sale option.
October 19, 2016 →How to Divorce Your ERP Consultant
A real Fishbowl story about migrating off an old ERP, plus five practical steps for leaving your ERP consultant on good terms.
October 16, 2016 →Adventures in Accounting: Where are your backups?
A set of practical questions to ask about your business backups, plus a real QuickBooks crash story from a customer site before a trip to Australia.
September 26, 2016 →Shipping Solutions for Fishbowl
A 2016 review of shipping solutions for Fishbowl: carrier apps, third-party shipping apps, and developer tools, with notes on how each integrates.
September 5, 2016 →Adventures in Accounting: Reconciling Inventory Asset
Why QuickBooks and Fishbowl inventory valuations drift apart, the risks it creates, what causes it, and how to fix it.
August 29, 2016 →Beep1 Hardware: Intermec CN50 Initial Impressions
First impressions of the Intermec CN50, a Windows Mobile 6.1 warehouse computer running Beep1 for inventory management.
August 24, 2016 →Fishbowl and QuickBooks Enhanced Receiving
Why QuickBooks Enhanced Inventory Receiving breaks the standard Fishbowl reconciliation workflow and leaves Inventory Asset unadjusted.
August 23, 2016 →How to make iReport for Fishbowl Faster
Speed up iReport file compilation for Fishbowl by adding only the JAR files you actually need to the classpath instead of all of them.
March 26, 2016 →Reviewing Fishbowl Anywhere
A look at Fishbowl Anywhere, with a walkthrough video and a playlist of real-world tests of the remote Fishbowl client.
January 20, 2016 →Power BI for Fishbowl Warehouse and Manufacturing
A walkthrough video on using Microsoft Power BI for reporting and analytics with Fishbowl warehouse and manufacturing data.
December 20, 2015 →Excel 2016 and Fishbowl: New Query Features
A short video walkthrough of the new query features in Excel 2016 and how they work with Fishbowl Inventory data.
December 13, 2015 →The Dirty Secret of Benchmarks: How Your Server Could Be Holding You Back
Many servers ship in an Eco mode that quietly caps performance. Ask your IT pro whether High Performance is turned on.
November 15, 2015 →Fishbowl 2015.9 Warehouse and Manufacturing: Release Highlights
A walkthrough video covering the highlights of the Fishbowl 2015.9 Warehouse and Manufacturing release.
September 17, 2015 →Klipfolio for Fishbowl: Business Dashboards
How to build cloud business dashboards for Fishbowl Inventory using Klipfolio, including how it works, what it costs, and how to get started.
August 19, 2015 →Fishbowl Warehouse & Manufacturing 2015.8 - Release Highlights
A video review of the Fishbowl 2015.8 release, plus a Windows 7 vs Windows 10 font comparison on the Sales Order report with downloadable PDFs.
August 15, 2015 →Fishbowl Warehouse & Manufacturing 2015.7 - Release Highlights
A video walkthrough of the highlights in the Fishbowl Warehouse and Manufacturing 2015.7 release.
July 21, 2015 →Introduction to SQL for Fishbowl Warehouse & Manufacturing - Free!
Announcing a free premium online course on SQL for Fishbowl Warehouse and Manufacturing, free for signups until July 1st.
May 25, 2015 →Fishbowl Warehouse & Manufacturing 2015.5: Dropbox Integration and Shipping Automation
Fishbowl 2015.5 release notes from 5/14/2015: new Dropbox and Magento integrations, Xero accounting options, and shipping carton automation.
May 14, 2015 →Fishbowl Warehouse at 500 Miles Per Hour
Notes from a Fishbowl USA visit and a plan to build resilient Fishbowl Warehouse and Mobile Warehouse solutions for poor connectivity.
May 11, 2015 →Fishbowl Inventory System Administrator Guide - 1st Edition
A one-page guide for the System Administrator or IT company supporting a Fishbowl Inventory deployment, with a downloadable PDF.
May 6, 2015 →Fishbowl Inventory 2015.4: Shipping Invoices and Xero
A walkthrough of the Fishbowl Inventory 2015.4 release, including the new Xero accounting integration and improved shipping invoices.
April 13, 2015 →How to Setup ODBC for Fishbowl Inventory
Walkthrough videos and the Firebird ODBC driver and client DLL downloads you need to connect to Fishbowl Inventory over ODBC.
April 11, 2015 →Becoming a Xero Certified Advisor: Xero Tracked Inventory
Now Xero certified. A quick run through of Xero's new Tracked Inventory feature and where it falls short of Fishbowl Inventory.
March 29, 2015 →How To Create Refreshable Excel Data from Fishbowl Inventory
A short video walkthrough plus the ODBC setup and Fishbowl user group links for building refreshable Excel data from Fishbowl Inventory.
March 29, 2015 →Fishbowl Inventory hints at a Xero Integration?
A new Fishbowl Inventory video mentions Xero, hinting at an integration alongside the existing QuickBooks Desktop support.
March 9, 2015 →Fishbowl Inventory 2015.3: Voiding Shipments!
A walkthrough of the Fishbowl Inventory 2015.3 release, including voiding shipped orders, math in number fields, over picking, and pricing updates.
February 14, 2015 →Why Custom Software is Good For Business
Off-the-shelf software rarely fits a business perfectly. Here is why custom-built software can turn a problem into a competitive advantage.
February 11, 2015 →Fishbowl Inventory 2015.2: Part Tracking and Picking Updates
A look at Fishbowl 2015.2: auto-generated part tracking numbers, a can-I-pick-complete indicator, and pick user assignment in the Pick module.
December 21, 2014 →A Crash Course in iReport
A recorded video answering a common question: what is it like writing reports in iReport?
November 24, 2014 →Fishbowl Inventory 2015.1 - The Update You Have Been Waiting For
A walkthrough of the best Fishbowl Inventory updates in the 2015.1 release: Document Auto Sync, the Data Module, LDAP authentication, and much more.
November 21, 2014 →New Fishbowl Inventory Introduction Videos
Fishbowl released two new videos this month promoting the warehouse and manufacturing sides of their inventory software.
November 21, 2014 →The Fishbowl Open House
Notes from the Fishbowl Inventory open house in Orem, Utah, covering the rewritten persistence layer, UI improvements, and a mid-market focus for 2015.
November 19, 2014 →New Case Study: Stego Industries Now Online
A new case study covering Business Intelligence and Fishbowl work done for Stego Industries is now live on the site.
November 14, 2014 →Just Announced: Fishbowl SQL and iReport Courses
New online video courses for Fishbowl Inventory customers covering SQL, iReport, and best practices, starting January 2015.
November 12, 2014 →A New Way To Price Freight: Freightview
Freightview pulls your real LTL freight rates from major carriers in one place, replacing slow phone and online quote shopping for shippers.
May 22, 2014 →