Houston by Praxis Lab · Previous research
The supplier sent a new file. What changed?
A date moves, a quantity changes or a row disappears. Houston compared spreadsheet versions so the person checking the file could see the old value, the new one and where each came from.
Houston is archived. The examples below show how it worked.
The file may be useful. Checking it takes work.
A supplier sends an updated delivery schedule. It looks much like the last one. To see which promises have changed, someone has to compare the two files.
Houston put the old and new values together and kept the source of each. Where records couldn't be matched confidently, it showed that too.
The delivery date moved by four weeks.
The supplier's new date was 29 August. The previous file said 1 August. The person reviewing it could see both.
Promise date: 1 August → 29 August
The date changed from 1 August to 29 August. Both values and their sources are available to check.
How the comparison worked.
- 01
Keep the working file
The team continued using its spreadsheet. Houston compared the versions.
- 02
Compare the next version
It matched the rows, then showed what had been added, removed or changed.
- 03
Review the evidence
A changed date needs someone to decide whether it matters. Both values were there to check.
The Track workflow
Configure the file, upload the next version, review the changes and inspect the source evidence.
The same question comes up with other files.
A revised price list, an updated order book or a new stock file can need the same kind of check. Which rows changed, and who needs to know?
A changed value still needs a decision.
Moving a delivery date by four weeks could delay a customer's order. Or the team may already have allowed for it. The changed cell doesn't tell you which.
The comparison gives someone a place to start checking. It doesn't make that decision for them.