The PI Connector For UFL does not have a graphical INI file editor, so customers must either use the one from the PI Interface For UFL or write the code manually. In the user guide, there are text descriptions of how to write the code and how it is executed, but it can be difficult to visualize, and customers end up either wasting a lot of time learning the language or using the PI Interface For UFL instead.

Please make a video that walks through the execution and flow of control of the INI files, highlighting line-by-line which part of the INI file is being executed and highlighting which part of the input file is being processed.

Problem

OSIsoft's advertisement videos so far are vague and boring. They simply reiterate the ideas of easily accessing your data from a central location and saving lots of time and money. They throw some statistics and success stories in your face, and then say that the PI system is responsible. This is not enough to make someone want to buy PI. There is not enough information on how PI helps achieve success. The PI system is barely shown off, and the viewer is left scratching their head, not quite seeing how the pieces fit together.

In addition to the poor content, the videos have plain thumbnails and plain titles that fail to grab viewers' attention. Nothing about the videos makes viewers want to show them to their boss or coworkers. Poor spread means that people won't be familiar with PI, which means that they will be reluctant to give it a chance or will see its setup as a disruption to day-to-day business. People don't like foreign, unfamiliar things. We get protective and defensive. That's why we're racist.

For a multi-billion dollar company that has been around for 40 years, surprising few people have heard of it, and this is backed up by the fact that the view rate of each video is very low. The "keep it serious and professional" approach has been a terrible idea for over a decade now. People judge less on professionalism these days and more on relatability/interaction. OSIsoft needs to better adapt to the times, the people, and their environment.

Solution

These days, effective advertising means going viral. Vat19 and Linus Tech Tips are good examples of this: do something daring, funny, or ridiculous with a product to get people's attention and then remind them of how the product should be used. This is a good use of both the foot-in-the-door and the door-in-the-face techniques.

Perhaps you could have a character (in a baseball cap, for the extra casual/mischievous appeal) who gets bored at work and abuses the company's PI system for his own silly projects. But "good thing we have Enterprise Agreement", otherwise his projects wouldn't make it off the ground. The guy can walk through how he does his projects, especially the PI part. It would also be a great chance for OSIsoft to collaborate with the vendors of sensors and other materials needed for the projects or with experts in the topic of the project.

I will list examples of projects a comment so that I can edit it in the future. OSIsoft has a bunch of millennials working for them. I'm sure that they'll think of some very good viral video ideas and have fun making the videos.

The increased attention on PI might even spark a market for a smaller-scale version of PI.
https://feedback.osisoft.com/forums/555148-pi-server/suggestions/18705397-community-edition-of-pi

Understanding that PI VISION is not going to provide a 1-to-1 solution to that of PI Processbook's SQC Symbol in the near future (see below referenced link) I believe it would help many people if a course will be created @ OSISoft learning website which will explain in details how to cover the SQC topic using PI data archive SQC points ("RTSQC"), PI AF (Attributes and Analysis) & PI VISION.

Generating SQC alarms is possible using the PI SQC Alarms mechanism (config. wizard via PI SMT) which helps to build the critical PI Points (LCL,UCL, CL, etc) needed for SQC. The SQC points can then be used to create SQC charts in PI Vision and AF\Analysis can be used to generate EventFrames for EF table to be displayed in VISION with "SQC Events\Alarms".

(reference:https://feedback.osisoft.com/forums/320517-pi-vision/suggestions/10745121-sqc-statistical-quality-control-symbol)

When registering for courses, it recommends using your own PI system if possible rather than the cloud environment. However, when in the last three sections of the Configuring a Simple Pi System course, a lot of the videos are simply following what the instructor is doing in the cloud environment, which is not applicable to those not using it. In that case, I'm OK with a "how-to" but maybe more of a description of the "why" behind what is being selected and what to do if you are not in the cloud environment.
For example, Creating PI Points in PI System Explorer, explain what the different elements are used for and a general process for adding points rather than jumping right into creating points for a pump.
The "What are Backups of the PI Data Archive & Why Are They Important?" video is a great video that applies to cloud and non-cloud students. More videos like this would be great.
Exercises 6 and 7 do not even have recommendations for non-cloud users.

OSIsoft currently offers OSIsoft Cloud Services and PI Cloud Connect, and it will only continue to expand its offering of cloud-based technologies and programs that integrate with cloud services.
https://www.osisoft.com/Solutions/OSIsoft-Cloud-Services/

Please make a course about these and allow the customer to practice in a Training Cloud Environment. As with any multi-program course, the benefits are that the customer will learn how to use their current cloud setup more effectively and that they will understand parts of the OSIsoft cloud that they don't currently use. The latter will help them see the benefits of the OSIsoft cloud, which translates to more business for OSIsoft.

The creation of such a course will also help assert the idea that OSIsoft's cloud technologies are just as important, to customers and to OSIsoft, as the classic PI system.

OSIsoft has currently not posted any videos about OSIsoft Cloud Services. The videos on YouTube that do cover OSIsoft Cloud Services were not posted by OSIsoft.

Some topics to cover could include what it is, how to use it, what problems it solves, why even a small business might want to use it, how it differs from PI Cloud Connect, etc. This would not only be helpful for current users, but it would also help advertise OSIsoft Cloud Services and attract more customers.

I feel that some customers are in the same boat as me. They know that the cloud is the next big thing, but they've never dealt with it before. OSIsoft Cloud Services is a mystery that seems to be aimed at big corporations with super smart PI administrators. Some customers are reluctant to try OSIsoft Cloud Services because the barrier to entry seems high, they don't understand it, and their current PI system seems to be sufficient (ignorance is bliss). Please enlighten us!