On Tue, 26 Apr 1994, Guy Tingos wrote:

I also use BirdBase, but I am unhappy with it. My feeling is the
developer is trying to squeeze every penny he can out of his customers.
I use version 1.0 which is copy protected with a key disk (something I
detest). I bought it anyway because at the time there wasn't much else
available and I was new to birding. When version 2 was issued, the data
was in a new format so in addition to paying for the upgrade, the
developer wanted to sell me a program that would take the data and
reformat it into the new format. Talk about a low thing to do. I've
been working in computers since 1969 and have never heard of such a
thing. Birdbase lost my support then. So I still plug along on version
one, inserting the key disk and swearing mildly when I forget and the
error occurs.

I also use AVES. It doesn't have a list by state feature per se, but it
does allow you to pick out an area, highlight it and select likely birds
by both habitat and by winter or summer. It also has a very extensive
system for entering notes. You can enter long notes on both the trip and
on each individual siting. The section where you select birds is easy to
use. If you don't know how to spell a particular bird, you just type in
the general name. Sparrow would cause all the sparrows to be listed out
and you can then select the species you want. In addition it allows you
to put in a generic sparrow, flycatcher or whatever so you can make notes
about birds you cannot quite identify. Finally, it is not copy
protected, the programmer just has your name displayed as part of the
opening screen.

Of the two, I'd recommend AVES and avoid the over commercial BirdBase.

> I've been using BirdBase for years and am very happy with it. There will
> be an associated product Bird Area, which will list the range of the birds
> of the world by US state, Canadian province, and every country, that should be
> out this year. I've been involved in beta testing Bird Area and it is an
> incredible resource that will run in conjunction with Bird Base or as a
> standalone program. Feel free to contact the developer, Bob Eisberg, at
> (805) 963-4886 if you have any questions about either program.
>
> Guy Tingos
> Santa Barbara, CA
> gtingos at coyote.rain.org
>

.....................................................................
Michael Conner &=8-)} YORTMTC at henson.cc.wwu.edu
1809 H
Bellingham, WA 98225-3121
Searching for the 3 B's: the Bard, Baseball, and Birds.