Implementing SmartList Builder: SmartList Builder vs. SmartList Designer

This post is part of the series on Implementing SmartList Builder from eOne Solutions.

As mentioned in the last post SmartList Builder was directly sold by Microsoft under a licensing agreement for many years until, with the launch of Microsoft Dynamics GP 2013 SP2, the product was released back to the original ISV; a Fargo based ISV called eOne S0lutions.

I understand this was because the new top person in charge of Microsoft Dynamics GP did not like licensing products from the ISVs and release quite a few back to the original developer. However, this left a gap in Microsoft Dynamics GP in that users could no longer create new SmartLists. And so, SmartList Designer was created.

In theory it fulfils the same job as SmartList Builder; you can create new SmartLists by joining tables together or by linking in a SQL view. When it was first released, I took a look at it as an alternative to SmartList Builder on the basis it was free as opposed to needing to buy SmartList Builder.

However, in every area, it is an inferior product. It is not as functional and it is not as easy to use.

The table below, is copied from the eOne Solutions website and shows a functional comparison of SmartList Builder against SmartList Desinger.

Feature	SmartList Builder	SmartList Designer
Create new SmartLists
Modify default SmartLists
Create new SmartLists from default lists
Link tables
Combine work, open and history tables
Use SQL Views as tables
Use SQL Tables as tables
Use SQL Scripts as tables
Use SQL objects from other databases
Use Extender resources as tables
Use SmartLists as tables
Create Go Tos		Limited
Add fields to display by default
Add fields as available but hidden by default
String formatting
Date formatting
Edit list items
Display numbers as currencies		Limited
Display variable decimal places
Display numbers as percentages
Display numbers as negative
Display account indexes as accounts
Display note indexes as notes
Bulk edit field settings
Calculated fields		Limited
Restrictions		Limited
Multi-company SmartLists
Summary SmartLists
Reorder columns
Preview data
Preview SQL Script
List level security
Table level security
Record level security
Functional security
Create Excel Reports		Limited
Create Navigation Lists
Create drill downs
Table finder
Import and export setup
Duplicate lists
Create new SmartList from existing SmartList Favorite

As you can see from the comparison table, above, SmartList Builder has far more features and capabilities than the in-built SmartList Designer.