Jack,

Just to add to Jack's comment, what did me in was my first birding trip
outside of the Western P. area. I had just about decided to then start
putting my notes in the NGS when I began to comprehend the world of splits
and rejoinings, as I would see three birds become one become two become
...... , and tried to enter "corrections" into my NGS. Then I heard that NGS
was going to be coming out with a new edition. I, too, bought Avisys and
really like it.

Diane Bagues
Milwaukie, Oregon
dbagues at teleport.com



----- Original Message -----
From: Jack Stephens <Jsteph02 at sprynet.com>
To: Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, October 05, 1999 6:08 AM
Subject: Lost sighting records-computer backup


> Nancy Taylor mentioned that her sighting records were stolen from her car
at
> Iona. I used to keep my first sightings of birds scribbled in the margin
of
> my field guide. Paranoid that I would loose the guide some day, I went
ahead
> and sprung for the Avisys computer program several years ago. It is now a
> core part of my birding, I can easily tell which species I have seen
where,
> when and with who. I often generate a list of birds seen on a particular
> outing and print or e-mail copies to birding companions. When I travel, I
> can generate a "hit list" of life birds I haven't seen that are found in a
> given state. I have a permanent record of my sightings, backed up onto
> floppy disks.
> A word of warning though, it can turn you into something of a lister.
> Without Avisys (which automatically records these things) I would have no
> idea I am 7 species away from 500 ABA area birds (but who's counting?)
> For those interested, Avisys is available from the ABA or from the web
site:
> http://www.avisys.net/
> I have no financial connection, just a satisfied user.
>
> Jack Stephens
> jstep02 at sprynet.com
> Edmonds, WA
>