iDempiere enthusiasts share many examples of how iDempiere changed people’s lives for the better. Here we present to you our hero of the month for his contributions during December.

Andres Lopez is a constant contributor, he’s always eager to help people in the forums, and he has been really active on every community day since the triage day in 2020. During December, he was the most active participant in the testing day before the release of iDempiere 10, he found a blocking bug affecting instances running Oracle, which gave the project time to fix it before the release.

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Tell us a little bit about your childhood and where you grew up.

I was born and raised in Ambato, it is a city that is close to the capital of my country, Quito.

I am the second of three children, since I was little I was very restless, mischievous and curious, my parents taught me not to be afraid to ask questions. I had a happy childhood with my parents, brother, sister and grandparents.

How did you get into programming?

My older brother studied computing at the university in Quito, when he returned home on weekends I saw how he programmed and I asked him to teach me, he gave me two manuals on FoxPro and C++ and told me “read and learn”, from there I started to figure out how to make programs on my Apple IIc and then on an IBM PC.

How long have you been part of iDempiere?

I started with my first project in 2008 with an Argentinian distribution called Lybertia, then I discovered that the code came from Compiere and from there I went to ADempiere, in 2016 I started working with iDempiere

How and why did you get involved with iDempiere?

I worked in a multinational where we implemented SAP R3 in 2005, due to tax issues they opened a new company and we needed a low-cost production system, there I started with open source, then I became independent to work with my company on projects with leather companies and footwear.

In 2016 I saw the potential of iDempiere and migrated the systems of 6 clients and since that day we only work with this platform.

What is your experience in other OS projects?

My main training is as a programmer in Oracle Forms and Database Administrator, today I work with Oracle APEX to complement the information portals in iDempiere, but with the new improvements in version 10, I am migrating the command panels to a single platform

Is there something that makes you passionate about open source in general and iDempiere in particular?

My first option for clients is always free software, I love iDempiere because it is not only a system for administrative and cost control, but also a platform where you can build complementary information systems, for example, I have clients who manage information on workplace safety, control of vehicle fleets, medical appointment schedules, anything you need can be implemented in minutes, therein lies the difference, a single platform, simple and easy that works

What does your typical day look like?

I get up at 5:00 a.m. to check my to-do list and answer emails, I have breakfast with my wife and children and we go to work, since the coronavirus pandemic we have become used to working remotely, I have meetings with clients until 1:30 p.m., I have lunch with my children and in the afternoon I work until 5:00 p.m., at night I check pending for the next day and I usually go to bed between 11 and 12 at night.

If you have your customers for whom you implement or customize iDempiere, what are they like and what do they typically want?

Most of my clients are footwear, textile and leather industries. Since the pandemic, I started working with construction companies and this year with hospitals and poultry companies.

What they are looking for is to put order in the information, in the systems they normally use, the sales reports do not match those of logistics or accounting, it is a challenge to change the mentality of companies, especially family businesses, which. in Ecuador, they are more than 80%, with iDempiere the work is facilitated since it has an ideal process structure for the work

How does it feel to win the December 2022 Hero of the month title?

I felt very happy, it’s like having a second Christmas gift, being able to collaborate with other people, trying to improve their processes and having the community recognize you for your collaboration, it’s a pat on the back that commits you to continue collaborating with the rest

What would you like to say to other community members? Any advice or suggestions?

Collaborating with the community is gratifying, learning about other realities and being able to share experiences with people from other countries is priceless. Since I’ve been involved in the project, I’ve met many people through forums and meetings, this is like learning to speak another language, if you don’t let go, you won’t learn.