Frequently Asked Questions: General
- Running RAMAS on a Mac
- RAMAS Demos
- Return Policy
- What are the relative advantages of using professional programs?
- Independent Reviews
- User Names
- RAMAS Metapop or RAMAS GIS
- Meaning of RAMAS
Q. Can I run RAMAS programs on a Macintosh computer?
See our Macusers page for the details.
Q. Is there a demo version of RAMAS?
The book Species Conservation and Management: Case Studies comes with a demo version of RAMAS GIS. We do not have independent demo versions. The reason is that most users would need to read the manuals before they could effectively use a program. What we do have are a return policy and available independent reviews:
- Return policy: After you order a
program, you can read the manual (which describes all the screens and all the
input parameters and output options) without opening the disk packet. If you
think that the software would not meet your needs, you can return the manual
and the unopened disk packet for a full refund.
- Independent reviews and applications: We can mail you copies of published reviews of RAMAS (perhaps you can also find them yourself). See also software descriptions, quotes from published reviews, publications describing the methods used in RAMAS, and applications of RAMAS to specific cases.
The main advantage of "custom-designed" programs (also called "homemade" when designed by amateurs) is that they can be very specific for a particular situation. The main advantages of professional (pejoratively called "canned") programs are reliability, flexibility, and ease of use.
RAMAS was tested by a large group of modelers before each release, and all the major bugs were found and corrected. In addition, hundreds of users have helped us find various minor glitches, even after a release.
A generic program like RAMAS is considerably more flexible than programs written for a specific species. RAMAS has been applied to many species, including plants, invertebrates, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. There are very few species that cannot be modeled adequately using a program such as RAMAS GIS, considering the typical availability of data, and the large number of program features, model parameters and options available.
Various features of RAMAS make it very easy and convenient to use. These include detailed manuals and help files, interactive user interface, and large variety of results.
There are two common misunderstandings about professional programs. One of these relate to cost. Although RAMAS is not free, its cost is much lower than writing your own program, if you factor in the time you will have to spend in development and testing. Another misunderstanding involves transparency. RAMAS has a lot of features specifically designed to make it transparent. In contrast, programs written for a specific case can sometimes be "black boxes", because of their complexity and because resources are often not available for developing detailed documentation.
We do not like to impose on current users by giving their names or numbers to others. However, if you are a current user and wouldn't mind talking to prospective users in your (geographic and/or scientific) area, please let us know.
Q. If I get RAMAS GIS, do I also need RAMAS Metapop?
No. RAMAS GIS contains RAMAS Metapop, in addition to other programs for interface with geographic information systems (GIS) and for sensitivity analysis. See also other Frequently Asked Questions About RAMAS GIS
One rumor is that it stands for Risk Analysis and
Management Alternatives Software.
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