Well, it was bound to happen, they were just too small to keep up. Looks like I'll be moving to Centershift in the near future.
Any opinions about Centershift or is it time to start looking for something altogether different?

Here's the email I received just minutes ago:

"August 27, 2010

To Our Valued Customers and Friends:

It is with great pleasure that I am able to announce to you today that RentPlus, Hi-Tech’s self storage management software product, has been acquired by Centershift, Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Why sell?

There are a number of reasons, but mostly it has to do with trying to ensure that our customers have a software system that will best meet the needs and demands of 21st century storage facility operators.

I believe that only a centralized data model is viable in the long run, mostly because you now need to access that data from a variety of locations and devices, not just the PC sitting in the office. Today customers want to make payments, reservations and rentals or view their account on your website. Kiosks, smart phone applications and call centers are also in demand and are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the technology devices we will be seeing in the near future.

With centralized data, a ‘software’ company is no longer just that. We have to also become an information technology company in order to provide the security, reliability and redundancy that hosting customer data requires. Further, as a centralized system grows, the volume of transactions quickly escalates into the millions, further increasing the demands and responsibilities of the hosting company.

This is a great challenge for small software companies, as we generally do not have the resources or capital to invest in the hardware, software and personnel to adequately meet those responsibilities.

Why Centershift?

In our industry, Centershift clearly stands out as the technology leader. From its inception, Centershift has demonstrated a commitment to a centralized data model, and their willingness and ability to invest millions in the hardware, software and people that are needed to create a great software package is unmatched. With the infrastructure to support their goals and the financial acumen to ensure long term viability and growth, I am confident Centershift will continue to lead the industry.

What happens now?

In general terms, the long term plan is to migrate customers from RentPlus to Centershift and eventually retire RentPlus. For now, Hi-Tech will continue to provide support for RentPlus.

Hi-Tech and Centershift have worked together to create a very comprehensive migration process that includes seamless, overnight conversion of the data, training, special documentation, informational webinars and financial incentives.

We are preparing the details of these programs for each type of RentPlus customer (V2.0 on-line, V20, and V1.8 desktop, etc.) and will be sending a follow-up letter that outlines the details of the migration process for you and your facilities. Once you have that, we encourage you to attend one of the informational webinars to get started (details will be in the follow-up letter).

Visit us at the SSA Trade Show in Las Vegas September 1-2

Centershift has dedicated a section of their booth to Hi-Tech for the next SSA trade show, and I will be there to answer any questions you may have and to introduce you to Centershift’s executive team. This will also be a great opportunity for you to see a demo of Centershift’s software and learn more about it.

Change is never easy, and we know that changing software is not something anybody ever really wants to do. That said, we are very excited about this acquisition and believe it to be a great opportunity for your organization to leverage the latest technology and make your business more successful than ever.

Finally, on behalf of all of us at Hi-Tech Smart Systems Inc., please allow me to thank you for your business and support over these many years. The best experiences for me have been the opportunities to meet and get to know so many smart and interesting people from all over the world.

Sincerely,


Michael Richards
President
Hi-Tech Smart Systems, Inc."

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In no way affiliated with Storman software, but I would imagine they're good guys. Don't blame them for the crap I say.

It was bound to happen as I was getting a lot of calls (over the last year) about people taking a moment to re-evaluate their software options and most of the time those folks were on RP. It'd be curious to see how they peg a value to a company when they are essentially buying the client list with no certainty those clients while switch over.

Storman, take my advice...NOW is the time to evaluate OTHER self storage software providers!!! if you want more advice, email me.

Storman, what Lisa T said. Now is the perfect time to look at everybody' software. Also, as Lisa T said, call or email and I will be glad to share what I know about Centershift, etc.

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Bob Taylor (Astro)
Blue Ridge Self Storage
Cashiers, NC

Disclaimer: What Gina said....'cause the the cheese fell of my cracker.

Well...crap. As much as I've griped about RentPlus 2.0's various problems, the program was the best I've evaluated in the last 3 years.

Being forced to go to a web-based program sucks. Fast response time, and smooth typing go right out the window with most web-based apps. I'm not a happy camper...

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James A Mathews
Facility Manager
CBD Indoor Mini Storage

I concur JAMiAM, I was very happy with RentPlus 2.0. I'm hopeful that Centershift integrates some of the look, feel and usability of RP, and they didn't just buy a customer list that they migrate to Centershift.

I'm not looking forward to getting into all of this again, right now everything is working fine and very stable......argh.

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In no way affiliated with Storman software, but I would imagine they're good guys. Don't blame them for the crap I say.

I wouldn't get my hopes up, Storman

We went from hitech 1.8 to their online server..our pre pays were completely screwed up. We had to move out (in the computer) and move back in all of the customers with 1 year prepays to get this right. We started looking at other software a couple of months ago and domico looks pretty good. We are worried about all the prepays that we have and we dont want that messed up and we aske hitech for a back up of our files on a disc and were told that they could not give us a backup...so I figure that whoever we go to will have the ability to grab our info. I have also been trying to find the Taskmaster web site and can't find it..can anyone help us find new software..thanks in advance for any help.

One thing I found while Googling around about Centershift is that their largest customer is Extra Space Storage, also based in Salt Lake City. I've had dealings with Extra Space, and what I absolutely DON'T want is to end up running software that Extra Space might one day own (if they don't already), or that Extra Space can dictate pricing, features, service, etc. to non-corporate users. If there is a queue for support help, who thinks my little one man shop is going to be taken care of as well as an Extra Space in Hoboken?

I appreciated that about RentPlus, Mike Richards is a storage facility owner himself in Hawaii, he wrote a good program that worked for him, and by extension, me.

I'm THRILLED I didn't migrate to RP online, at some point I'm guessing that will cease to exist and just become Centershift. I suppose I could just run my current RP forever, with no tech support, no updates, no nothing.... At least I won't have a gun to my head in regard to finding a replacement program.

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In no way affiliated with Storman software, but I would imagine they're good guys. Don't blame them for the crap I say.

We don't know how much they (center point) will charge and we don't know if they will make us pay for "their" software and hi-tech made us switch to PPI paymovers and we find out that they have not finished the credit card encryption software that we assumed was in place..(so say's PPI). We have learned to get aroung their software glitches and now we have to learn something else??? Also..doe's anyone know anything about Task Master?