ASC Software Register

Register of Software for Statistical and Social Survey Analysis, September 1999

ISBN: 0 9521682 5 1, ii+43 pages, listing details of 123 packages

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For many years the ASC has produced a register of software of interest to members. The first edition was published in 1973 and the last to be published only on paper was the tenth. We now use the Internet as the primary medium for distribution.

The paper version of the register is produced for distribution to ASC members, but does not contain as much detail as the web pages. The web pages also contain direct links to the software producers and distributors, and will be updated much more frequently. We intended to produce paper versions at least once a year, and more often if the volume of change is large.

Data is collected through a questionnaire page on the ASC web site. Respondents are asked to give a textual description of the main features of the package, and to classify the main function of the system. A number of explicit features of packages are listed and the respondent indicates whether these apply to the package. The list of features has been much expanded compared with the previous paper versions of the register. However, it is now much easier to update the questionnaire, so if you feel that important information is missing, please let us know (send a message to SRManager (a) asc.org.uk) and we will consider adding it.

The first few pages of the register list the features requested and the packages that claim them. This is followed by an alphabetic list of the packages, with the textual descriptions, an indication of price and the number of sites using the package. Where we know about a web site dedicated to the package, that is also shown, but in this version there are only a few.

The final section of the register lists the organisation that responded to the questionnaire, with contact details and their (organisational) web addresses. This is not an exhaustive list of the suppliers of the listed packages. It is recommended that you visit the web site of the main developer of a package to find out about suppliers in your own area. We do include multiple suppliers for packages, not in any attempt to be exhaustive, but rather to indicate that a supplier handles a range of packages.

This is the first year of the web-based version of the register, and we now have information about 123 packages. This is fewer than in previous paper editions, but unlike those we have only included packages where a questionnaire was completed – in the past we carried forward entries from the previous edition, now we show the last time an entry was updated. There are some obvious omissions, but we expect that publication of this version will generate additional entries, so do keep an eye on the web site.

The information presented in the Register has been supplied by the various organisations completing the register questionnaire. The ASC presents this information in good faith, but can give no undertaking as to its correctness or suitability for any purpose. Any errors or inconsistencies in the information presented here are the responsibility of the respondents, but may be reported to the Register Manager at SRManager (a) asc.org.uk .