Meal Tikit Pro

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About Us

History
Our Mission
Who We Are

	Meal Tikit and Meal Tikit Pro came about as a result of a conversation with a local Southern Oregon restaurant owner, Tony Antunes, of the Port Hole Cafe in Gold Beach. Tony wanted a POS system, but he wanted it HIS way --- not the typical cookie-cutter approach that every other POS system developer takes.
	Tony wanted only the functionality he would actually use and he couldn't see (or justify) spending $18K-$20K on something he'd only use 10% of. He wanted his POS system to be intuitively obvious (form and function), easy for anyone to learn and for it NOT to require a degree in computer science to configure or operate.
	Approximately 2 days prior to the first meeting with Tony, which was arranged by Bill Johnson of Western Merchant Services in Brookings, Oregon, I prototyped an application (based solely on Tony's website menu) to demo for him. The first version of the software, Meal Tikit, was very close to exactly what Tony wanted and within about 2 weeks of our initial meeting, I delivered the first system.
	The Port Hole Cafe is currently running Meal Tikit Pro v2.0, with a more advanced touch-screen driven user interface and numerous improvements and feature additions to the original (baseline) software. Tony, his manager and all the waitresses LOVE their POS systems (he has two now) and can't imagine doing business without them. If you would like to talk to Tony about his software and POS systems, feel free to give him a call at his restaurant. He would be more than happy to tell you how his Meal Tikit POS systems have made life easier for him and his staff.

	From it's inception, Meal Tikit, Meal Tikit Pro and Shop Tikit Pro have been 100% custom software. There is no "standard" or cookie-cutter version of Meal Tikit, nor will there ever be. Our intent has been and will always be to provide only the POS functionality that our customers desire. Nothing more and nothing less.
	We at Brookings POS will NEVER tell a restaurant or bar owner what WE think is best for him or her, nor will we ever force our customers to adhere to any hard and fast rules, in terms of graphical user interface design or functionality. Why would we? It isn't our job to create functionality that will never be used. Rather it is our desire to interpret what an owner TELLS us they want --- not what we THINK they should have.
	Since Meal Tikit, Meal Tikit Pro and Shop Tikit Pro are 100% custom software packages, it is up to the customer to tell us what they want and what THEY want the software to do for them. Whether it's someone's vision of a user interface or just an idea about how to improve their process of placing orders and cashing out their receipts, that is what we are best at; innovative solutions to simple AND complex problems.
	There is no limit to the variations in user interface design or functionality and whatever can be conceived, can be created. All we need is your menu and a description of what you want the software to do and within a few days, you'll be reviewing a prototype of your new POS system software. It is truly that simple and quick.
	And if you don't like? We change it or customize it or start over from scratch and keep working until it is exactly what you want. If we fail to meet your expectations, it doesn't cost you a dime. The prototyping of the software is on us (at our expense). What this means is that we are very confident that we CAN give you exactly what you want.
	When all is said and done, Point of Sale software should be as unique as the business it supports. If it isn't, someone didn't do their job, but when it IS, you get exactly what you paid for.

AL Stroh - Developer of Meal Tikit, Meal Tikit Pro, Shop Tikit Pro and Custom POS Systems

Susan (my WAY better half) and I moved to Brookings, Oregon in 2007, and we love it here. Having grown up in a small town in the Midwest, Brookings feels like home to me. The first time Susan and I came to Brookings, in 1999, was at the invitation of the Southern Oregon Kite Festival (SOKF), which is held on the third weekend in July (2009 will be our 17th festival). We have attended the SOKF every year since but for 2008, we don't have to go far to get home because we LIVE here now!

As a software developer and computer specialist since 1975, I've worked on everything from mainframes, minis and micros to embedded systems for the US Government, the US Navy and the private sector. I've worked in a wide variety of technologies including robotics, aerospace, security systems and on military defense projects, to name a very few.

I have developed software under numerous operating systems including, MS Windows, UNIX, Linux, DEC ULTRIX, DEC VMS and several real-time operating systems (QNX, VxWorks and a few embedded derivatives). When mission critical applications are needed, a real-time operating system is the only way to go.

I am fluent in a fairly broad set of languages including C, C#, Fortran, Pascal, Assembly (808x and 68000), Common Lisp, Perl, HTML, JavaScript, VBScript, .NET Framework, Visual Basic and a little known embedded language called INCOL86 (which was used in robotic motion control systems). Over the years I have become very spoiled using the MS Visual Studio IDE (Integrated Development Environment), but I am just as comfortable and at home using 'vi' (a command line text editor) and building applications by hand in UNIX.

I am also a Vietnam Era Veteran and having served my country honorably, it is something I am very proud of. There are quite a few retired military folks in Brookings, and I like that aspect of it as well. Ex-military people always have some GREAT stories to tell, and I do enjoy a good tale.

Having grown up in the Midwest, I'm part of the last generation to actually receive a good education AND real values. Being taught the difference between right and wrong by people who actually live by their word, look you straight in the eye when they talk to you and are completely honest, well, it just doesn't get any better than that. The people I grew up with, as are the good people of Brookings, comprise the very fiber of the best our country has to offer.

I am very proud to be a resident of the town of Brookings, and Susan and I don't regret moving here for a micro second. It is, I think, the best move we ever made.

Brookings, Oregon | Sales@MealTikitPro.com