Lettuceshare is all about food, but until now the ordering system has left that up to you to visualize!
That can now change, with the introduction of a new format which displays product images along side names in the grid:
This combined grid format includes the price and units, as well as the grower or producer information which was previously displayed at the top of the page. If your group uses pack sizes in your stock list, then quota information will also be displayed in the grid:
The coloured box number to the right of some products is a short hand for the full quota information that is shown at the top of the ordering page. Red means under 20% full, orange is under 50% and green is over 50% in the first box. Anything over the first box will also be shown in green, because you have at least met the quota for one full box.
You will also notice that not all products in the screenshot above have pictures. That's where you come in! If you would like to see more product images in Lettuceshare, please take photos of your produce when packing and get them to your stock team. They can now upload images on the stock page, which will also make them available for other groups to share. I'm hoping this will be a collaborative process, so we can all do a little bit to make Lettuceshare look great!
If you would like to start using the new grid format now, just go to the settings page. You will see the settings page in the menu in the top right corner, when you're logged in to your account. From there you just need to click Combined Format in the Purchase section:
If you would like to make this the default setting for your whole group, just get in touch! (maybe after discussing it with the rest of your group first...)
This is a new buyer's group started by Alison Dillon and other volunteers in the Cooran area (located between Gympie and the Sunshine Coast, check it out on the map!).
They have been operating for a few weeks now and place a weekly order. If you know anyone who might like to join you can direct them to their sign up page: https://lettuceshare.org/cooran
A small update this week, but useful for those doing the admin work looking after their groups. The manager and payments pages now both support inline grid editing.
On the manager page, once you've done a search you can edit the quantity field in the grid. On the payments page you can edit both the comment for a payment and the amount. Below is an example from the manager page. (p.s. definitely excited about trying Barambah's new cold pressed coffee this week!)
Today marks one year since the last set of changes to the stock page in Lettuceshare. It appears to be working pretty well for everyone now, but I've received plenty of feedback and ideas since then so thanks for your input. I've just rolled out some changes based on that feedback, which simplifies a few things and adds a few new features. This post will go into detail about those changes, which affect both the stock page and the accounts page.
The first thing you will notice is that there are a few less buttons. Using the full width of the page seems like a good default for these pages, so a button to set a wide grid isn't required (though it can still be shown by going to the settings page).
We've also found that the way extra columns were added to the grid was a bit hard to use, so the column checkboxes are now found in the new Edit Display dialog. This dialog also sets the type of data that is loaded into the grid. When you change these options, the grid updates automatically. The type of data shown previously depended on which columns were displayed, which was a bit confusing. The columns displayed and the type of data are managed separately now, and you will notice a message at the top of the page explaining what data is currently displayed.
Profiles are now easier to manage on the stock page too. There's an option at the bottom of the Edit Display dialog to save the columns you've just selected as a profile. There was previously no option to update your current profile, so this has been added. Profiles will now also remember your column order, so if you have a stock page layout that you really like to use, give profiles a go! (If you're wondering how to re-order columns, just trying clicking a column title and dragging left or right to the other side of another column.)
There's also a couple of new special key combinations you can use in the filter row. As well as string matching, you can now filter by numeric values. A filter starting with the less than symbol '<' or greater than symbol '>', will filter by the value you provide after it. For instance, here's an example listing everything under $5. One last thing: the filters are also applied on the server when downloading files. So the data you're currently looking at on the screen is what will be provided when you click download.
I love what The Orca Project have done this year, so it's great to see some videos they've created about the group and what they've been up to. I'm really happy that using Lettuceshare has worked out for them, especially their dedicated packing team and everyone doing data entry!
Most co-ops and bulk buying groups are starting to wind down this time of year, but Damara Co-op are just getting started so it's nice to see a few orders happening! They are a group who order bulk dry goods about once a month, and are located near Peregian on the Sunshine Coast.
The new Lettuceshare pricing structure is perfect for this sort of group. When you only place a few orders you get all the benefits of using the software without needing to worry about the cost.
For everyone who is taking a break soon, I hope you enjoy the holidays! It's been great working with everyone this year and I'm looking forward to seeing what we can do in the new year.
Barefoot Bio Farming run a farm in Ravenshoe, far north Queensland and have been using Lettuceshare for a few months. They heard about the software from another group using Lettuceshare, Hairy Legs Organics near Cairns.
As a primary producer they supply other groups, but also pack boxes directly for their own customers. Lettuceshare is a great way for farmers to manage that process and can handle the fortnightly ordering process that Barefoot Bio Farming uses. A warm welcome to all the new members up north!
I've just added a map to the Lettuceshare home page showing buying group locations. The website gets a few requests from people wanting to join a group, so hopefully this will point them in the right direction. I also want to help people discover an amazing group that could be right next door!
It's centered around Brisbane, because that's where most of the groups using Lettuceshare are based, but I'm happy to change that. I would love to hear from other food co-ops and buying groups that would like to be added to the map! If you have suggestions let me know, they don't need to be using Lettuceshare, just an interest in being contacted by new potential members.
Have any of your members mentioned that they don't receive email from Lettuceshare because they have a Bigpond or Hotmail account? There hasn't been much of a solution for that until now, because the companies that run these services decide who they want to deliver mail from.
To get around this problem, I've added a new feature to Lettuceshare that will deliver your mail via a gmail account. The idea is that Bigpond, Hotmail and anyone else holding up email delivery are more likely to trust email from Google. You can enable this feature on any account by going to the settings page and clicking the forward email button:
You will then get an email from Google, asking you to confirm that Lettuceshare can forward you email from lettucesharesender@gmail. Once you have followed the link provided, all your email from Lettuceshare will be delivered this way. You can turn off forwarding at any time too. Hopefully this feature is helpful for some members in your group.
Pictures!
That can now change, with the introduction of a new format which displays product images along side names in the grid:
This combined grid format includes the price and units, as well as the grower or producer information which was previously displayed at the top of the page. If your group uses pack sizes in your stock list, then quota information will also be displayed in the grid:
The coloured box number to the right of some products is a short hand for the full quota information that is shown at the top of the ordering page. Red means under 20% full, orange is under 50% and green is over 50% in the first box. Anything over the first box will also be shown in green, because you have at least met the quota for one full box.
You will also notice that not all products in the screenshot above have pictures. That's where you come in! If you would like to see more product images in Lettuceshare, please take photos of your produce when packing and get them to your stock team. They can now upload images on the stock page, which will also make them available for other groups to share. I'm hoping this will be a collaborative process, so we can all do a little bit to make Lettuceshare look great!
If you would like to start using the new grid format now, just go to the settings page. You will see the settings page in the menu in the top right corner, when you're logged in to your account. From there you just need to click Combined Format in the Purchase section:
If you would like to make this the default setting for your whole group, just get in touch! (maybe after discussing it with the rest of your group first...)
Welcome Cooran Food Collective
This is a new buyer's group started by Alison Dillon and other volunteers in the Cooran area (located between Gympie and the Sunshine Coast, check it out on the map!).
They have been operating for a few weeks now and place a weekly order. If you know anyone who might like to join you can direct them to their sign up page: https://lettuceshare.org/cooran
Manager and Payments page editing
On the manager page, once you've done a search you can edit the quantity field in the grid. On the payments page you can edit both the comment for a payment and the amount. Below is an example from the manager page. (p.s. definitely excited about trying Barambah's new cold pressed coffee this week!)
Stock Page Updates
The first thing you will notice is that there are a few less buttons. Using the full width of the page seems like a good default for these pages, so a button to set a wide grid isn't required (though it can still be shown by going to the settings page).
We've also found that the way extra columns were added to the grid was a bit hard to use, so the column checkboxes are now found in the new Edit Display dialog. This dialog also sets the type of data that is loaded into the grid. When you change these options, the grid updates automatically. The type of data shown previously depended on which columns were displayed, which was a bit confusing. The columns displayed and the type of data are managed separately now, and you will notice a message at the top of the page explaining what data is currently displayed.
Profiles are now easier to manage on the stock page too. There's an option at the bottom of the Edit Display dialog to save the columns you've just selected as a profile. There was previously no option to update your current profile, so this has been added. Profiles will now also remember your column order, so if you have a stock page layout that you really like to use, give profiles a go! (If you're wondering how to re-order columns, just trying clicking a column title and dragging left or right to the other side of another column.)
There's also a couple of new special key combinations you can use in the filter row. As well as string matching, you can now filter by numeric values. A filter starting with the less than symbol '<' or greater than symbol '>', will filter by the value you provide after it. For instance, here's an example listing everything under $5. One last thing: the filters are also applied on the server when downloading files. So the data you're currently looking at on the screen is what will be provided when you click download.
Pretty happy packing my first box of the year tonight! Hope everyone is enjoying starting the new year with their co-ops and bulk buying groups.
The Orca Project
Also: How The Orca Project got started
Welcome Damara Co-op
The new Lettuceshare pricing structure is perfect for this sort of group. When you only place a few orders you get all the benefits of using the software without needing to worry about the cost.
For everyone who is taking a break soon, I hope you enjoy the holidays! It's been great working with everyone this year and I'm looking forward to seeing what we can do in the new year.
Welcome to Lettuceshare, Barefoot Bio Farming!
As a primary producer they supply other groups, but also pack boxes directly for their own customers. Lettuceshare is a great way for farmers to manage that process and can handle the fortnightly ordering process that Barefoot Bio Farming uses. A warm welcome to all the new members up north!
Buying Group Map
It's centered around Brisbane, because that's where most of the groups using Lettuceshare are based, but I'm happy to change that. I would love to hear from other food co-ops and buying groups that would like to be added to the map! If you have suggestions let me know, they don't need to be using Lettuceshare, just an interest in being contacted by new potential members.
Email Delivery
To get around this problem, I've added a new feature to Lettuceshare that will deliver your mail via a gmail account. The idea is that Bigpond, Hotmail and anyone else holding up email delivery are more likely to trust email from Google. You can enable this feature on any account by going to the settings page and clicking the forward email button:
You will then get an email from Google, asking you to confirm that Lettuceshare can forward you email from lettucesharesender@gmail. Once you have followed the link provided, all your email from Lettuceshare will be delivered this way. You can turn off forwarding at any time too. Hopefully this feature is helpful for some members in your group.