With all the electronic communications that are now perking about, it seems that the printed page of CAAN still has its place. Many people have sent in subscription money to keep CAAN coming. When Lee Sailer and I decided to start CAAN, we realized that to survive in this real world of threatened budgets, it had to be financially independent in its own small way. But the money just pays for the paper and postage. What makes CAAN really alive are the contributions that our readers send in for publication. So keep them coming. Don't classify CAAN as something that just publishes this or that. It has a broad-based magazine format. While not very glossy, it accepts both articles and news items.
This summer has been an interesting one. Powerful truly-portable microcomputers are appearing, and many anthropologists setting out for the field are thinking of taking one with them. There are full-feature PC compatibles with battery-operated disk drives that you can put in a briefcase. The article by the Dyson-Hudsons in this issue tells how they ran one on solar power. This level of liberation makes the use of a field computer a matter of taste not a technical problem.
Also the world is getting wired together this summer. Electronic mail networks are growing and integrating. Academic deans are beginning to realize that it doesn't cost much to provide electronic mail for faculty members. The cost of using electronic mail for many of our readers has dropped significantly. But these systems are complex, and CAAN will devote space to explaining them. Lee and I do our computer talking over several networks. One path jumps through four networks MAILNET, ARPANET, CSNET, and UNIX-UUCP, and the software is smart enough to send a message along this path with a simple "reply" command. There are now two electronic bulletin boards for anthropologists, the NAPA (National Association for the Practice of Anthropology) bulletin board for their members and the SfAA (Society for Applied Anthropology) bulletin, board, called ABBS, open to all members of all anthropological organizations. The details of how to use these BBS, and other electronic communications appear later in this issue.
Anthropologists who collect masses of data find that the data can best be analyzed by computer. Unfortunately those who do their fieldwork in remote places find that the electricity is usually non-existent or, at best, unreliable so this has made the field use of a computer impossible. Consequently these anthropologists have had to spend months entering data into a computer after returning from the field. Now miniaturization has produced IBM-compatible transportable computers that use small battery packs, so it is possible to take computers to the field. In addition, the drop in computer prices along with attractive discounts offered to university faculty, students, and staff have made these computers affordable. Now that these transportable computers are available 4, they should be a mandatory piece of field equipment. Entering data into the computer while still in the field not only greatly speeds up the data collection, it also allows checking out any ambiguities while informants are still available for questioning. In addition one can create multiple back-up copies of data disks, and a set of disks occupies very little space compared to a comparable set of notes. Because most transportable computers use rechargeable batteries, it is possible to set up a solar recharging system to recharge them in the field. Our solar recharging is unique in that the batteries are charged outside of the computer so the computer can be used during the day while the batteries are charging in separate location!
Enterprising anthropologists have developed systems for operating "lugable" computers such as the Osborne and Kaypro II from 12-volt truck batteries and using solar battery chargers to recharge the truck batteries. However these systems are suitable only for fieldwork from a fixed, reasonably accessible base station, where weight is not as critical. The new generation of transportable computers, because of their relatively small size (11-12 pounds) and their low power demands, has greatly expanded the conditions under which computers can be used in the field. It is now possible to put together a computer and printer system with solar battery chargers, all of which together weigh less than 25 lbs. and can be easily fitted into a backpack.
Unlike the small true laptop computers (e.g., the TRS 100 and the NEC 8202) which journalists use for note-taking, transportables are fully IBM compatible and are available with 2 disk drives and 256 K of memory. Some recently introduced models even have a hard disk drive, although this optional extra adds considerably to the weight, price, and power demand. Transportables for field must use 3 1/2 inch double-sided double-density diskettes. The 3 1/2 disks with their hard shell and metal shutter over the exposed area of the disk, are much more durable than 5 1/4 disks which are really floppy disks. Another advantage is that the standard 3 1/2 disk stores twice as much information (720 K vs. 360 K) as the standard 5 1/4 disk. The LCD screens used by transportables display 80 characters across by 24 lines down, the same as a normal monitor, but the LCD screen is more rectangular than the square face of a monitor so the display looks "squashed." Ironically the LCD screen which is difficult to read in normal, multi-source, room light, is best read in the field under natural, single source, (the sun) light.
The transportable field computer should be IBM-compatible, have two 3 1/2 disk drives (one for the program disk and one for the data disk), have a low power display (LCD or similar technology), and have at least 256 K of memory. Programs can utilize more memory, up to 640 K. Above that, memory can be used as a RAM disk to save on the power used by disk accesses. Data General pioneered the affordable, transportable computer with dual 3 1/2 disk drives and LCD display. The Data General One, a battery-powered MS DOS computer came on the market in the fall of 1984 and listed for about $4200. Less than 2 years later, even IBM is producing a transportable computer with dual 3 1/2 drives and LCD screen. The DG/One 5 or basic IBM can now be purchased for a discounted price of around $1500. The Quadram DataView, Grid Compass, and new DG/One transportables are available with an optional back-lighted screen, for improved legibility, at a higher cost and higher energy consumption.
We will give the details of the portable, solar charged computer-printer system which we have developed for use in collecting data on changes in kinship and co-residence among the nomadic pastoral Turkana of northwestern Kenya (summer 1985 and summer 1986). We used the DG/One computer because it was the only one available in 1985: since it withstood three months of abuse while working with the Turkana, we can recommend it highly.
The power source is a 11 x 14 Arco Solar panel. 6 During the 1985 field period, we found that this recharged a DG/One battery in about a day and a half of sunlight, and that a fully charged battery provided between 3 1/2 to 5 hours of computer time. This year, we will use two solar rechargers, and also a recharger which works off the cigarette lighter of the truck when it is being driven, so power for the computer should never be a limiting factor for data collection and analysis in the field.
During the 1985 field season, a Canon Typestar5 with RS232 port was used as a printer. Although this typewriter is inexpensive (about $175), rugged, and uses either alkaline D-batteries or a rechargeable nicad battery pack, it requires either a one-strike carbon ribbon or thermal paper, takes single-sheet paper only, and is slow. This field season, we will test the newly-developed Axonics battery operated printer (cost about $450), which is lighter, is much faster, has a reusable nylon ribbon, and takes continuous-feed paper. It also has an optional pin-feed. 7
Since the manufacturers expect their transportables to be used in clean environments where power is available for 24 hours a day, the normal battery rechargers are designed to recharge the batteries inside the computer. This system is not appropriate for fieldwork, since sunlight for battery recharging is available only when the computer and printer are most likely to be in use. Also, in a dirty environment electronic equipment should only be taken out of its dustproof case when it is being intensively used for data collection. So we designed a system for re-charging the lightweight factory-supplied batteries outside the computer and printer.
All the materials needed for a solar charging system are available in semi-assembled form and are quite easy to wire together. The major difficulty was locating suppliers of the electrical hardware, so we have listed the supply sources of the necessary components (see footnotes). 9
The solar panel must be connected to a voltage regulator to protect the batteries from too high voltage. The regulator in turn must be connected to the battery, a diode can be inserted in the positive line to prevent damage if the positive and negative wires are reversed during hook-up. At the regulator end of the solar-panel-to-regulator wiring, we used the complimentary connector to the plug of the computer-supplied battery charger. Therefore when electricity was available, the battery alone could be re-charged with the computer's charger. This connector had to be mail ordered from a large supplier. 8 If the voltage and current of the external charger provided with the computer are correct for the battery, then the regulator should be by-passed for charging from the computer's charger. Because the printer and the computer had different connections, we inserted a cigarette lighter plug and adapter into the wiring between the solar panel and the regulator, so each solar panel could be used to charge either the computer or the printer battery. Usually the charger will indicate which part is positive and which part is negative. The connection to the computer battery from the regulator must be the opposite part of the connector on the battery. This connector may be difficult to obtain either locally or by mail order. Contacting the manufacturer or a repair station is often the only way to secure this part.
The DG/One, Axonics printer, program diskettes, and information diskettes, all fit easily into the DG/One soft carrying case, and can be carried as hand luggage on the plane where we expect them to be hand-examined by Airport Security and stowed in the luggage compartment. The less delicate parts of the system will be packed in other luggage to be checked through to Nairobi.
Dust, heat, and bumpy off-road travel proved to be the major hazards in Turkana. We learned through experience that at all times when the computer was not in use it should be kept in a DG/One hard case which in turn was stored in 17x19x23 inch dust-proof aluminum insulated travel case. 10 After a disastrous experience of setting up camp on powdery river alluvium, we learned to choose a gravely site as far as possible from heavily used paths, and always pitched a lightweight Moss Parawing 11 to provide shade and protection from debris falling from trees. A tent would have been too hot. When the DG/One blew a disk drive about seven months after returning from the field, the repairman shook his head in wonder as he blew out and vacuumed the machine: how could this computer have been operating so well when it was so full of dust? This experience also speaks well for the durability of the 3 1/2 disks; only 6 of them, about 5%, failed due to the extreme environment. A 5 1/4 disk would have been doomed from day one.
On-site collection and analysis certainly tripled the amount of data collected during the first field season, and enormously increased the accuracy of the data because any inconsistencies could be checked while informants were still available. Best of all, on completing the final fieldwork in August, 1986, we will be able immediately to begin preparing the data for publication.
1. The authors wish to thank the H. R. Guggenheim Foundation and the National Geographic Society for their support of this research.
2. Ithaca Enterprises, P.O. Box 6555, Ithaca, NY 14851 (Tel. 607-272-8389 days)
3. Department of Anthropology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853
4. Portable Computers, 144 Exchange, Rochester, NY 14614, (Tel. 716-423- 6022), Mark Hannabury.
5. At the time of writing, Boston University Bookstore, Steve Doona at 617-236-7464, had 20 DG/Ones left at $1495 on a university discount. This includes faculty, staff, and students at other Universities as well.
6 We obtained Arco Solar panels from Atlantic Solar, 6455 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21227, (tel 301-796-8094), Paul Apple, Market Development Manager. Paul Apple contacted the technical people at Data General, advised us on the right size panels, and ordered correct regulators. The solar panels were available for immediate delivery: the regulators took about a month to supply.
7. Axonix Corp., 417 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City, Utah 84108. Saied Nakhai, Customer Support Manager.
8. Mouser Electronics, P.O. Box 1125, Lakeside, CA 92040, (tel. 619-449- 6650)
9. The Axonics battery has its own connector design. Ten dollars got us half a dozen male and female connectors delivered C.O.D by UPS Blue Label. The DG/One battery connector is a standard 4 pin molex connector. Be careful when wiring the DG battery pack because it is two sets of cells each with its own, separate, positive and negative wire. The external charger connectors for the D/G, Cannon, and Axonix units are 2.1 mm pin dia. DC power jack (male), and 2.1 mm barrel (female). Both male and female are available from Mouser Electronics (see above).
10. The cases are made by Fiberbilt. Most camera stores can order the case for you or contact Nigel.
11. Moss Inc., Mt. Battie St., Camden, Maine 04843, (tel. 207-236-8368)
Copyright © 1985 Dennis O'Neil
There are three categories of commercially marketed software that have become highly valuable tools for academics. They are word processors, database managers, and electronic spread sheets. Until recently, none of these programs were written specifically with academic needs in mind. They were all mainly aimed at the business community. We have had to adjust our specific usages to the sometimes frustrating quirks of these programs. This problem is nowhere more acute than in the area of database managers. Most of this software has serious limitations for data that consists of variable length texts. R:base 4000, dBASE III and virtually all of the other leading systems have fixed field lengths. This is due to the fact that most of their potential customers want to store and retrieve data that consists of short, set length codes, names, phone numbers, prices, etc. Some anthropological data (especially in archaeology) is comparable to this in being short and having relatively consistent lengths. However, much of it consists of highly variable length research notes running to tens of thousands of characters. With most database managers, extremely long texts can not be dealt with due to relatively short field length limits. For example, dBASE III is limited to 4000 characters per field and R:base 4000 can handle only 1530. Furthermore, with fixed length fields, short records take up just as much disk space as long records which results in slow operations and the need for inordinately large storage capabilities. Several new database management systems are now available that overcome these limitations. In this category are Notebook II by Pro Tem and, to some extent, Cornerstone by Infocom.
Once in a while you come upon software that stands out above all of the others in its class. Notebook II: The Database Manager for Unlimited Text by Pro Tem may be just such a program. It is an unusually efficient yet easy to use file manager designed specifically for storing, sorting, and retrieving long, variable length texts. It is well suited for handling bibliographies, article abstracts, reading lists, as well as lecture and research notes. Data can be entered directly from the keyboard, from text files created with a word processor, and from local or public databases. The possibilities are mind boggling. Data can also be exported easily to other programs, such as word processors, for inclusion in reports or other databases. All functions are carried out through a series of sensible menus. Context related help screens are always available. The screen-oriented text editor works like a word processor for rapid data entry, updating, and printing in any format you choose to create. It even allows the use of extended ASCII characters. This is particularly handy for anthropologists who need to enter foreign accents, Greek letters, or unusual mathematical symbols. The most valuable feature of Notebook II is its ability to expand fields as data is entered--no wasted space needs to be reserved. It can handle up to about the equivalent of ten double-spaced, typed pages per field and record.
Notebook II is remarkably flexible for a file manager. In the EDIT mode, you can rapidly and easily move through a database. There is an UNDO command like those found in full featured word processors. This allows you to undo every change made to a record since you called it up. When you quit the EDIT mode, all changes to the database are automatically saved on the data disk. File saving can be done electively at any time during a session as well. Records can be reordered based on any field to create views or subsets of a database that are kept for later use. In this capability, Notebook II is similar to the more extensive relational type database management systems. Selection operators include: begins with, not begins with, include, exclude, >, r, s, and, or. Selection also can be based on text in different fields. Changes made to a view automatically change the record in the parent dataset at the same time. Unfortunately, finding records is cumbersome. If you are searching by a key word that appears in several different records, you have to return to the FIND menu for each record. This requires three key strokes each time. You can choose to have the search go forward or backward through a database. Modifying or adding field headings to the end of the heading list is quick and easy. Inserting headings within the list requires restructuring the database. With the currently available version 2.02, this is a cumbersome process involving nine steps and disk swapping. Fortunately, restructuring is made quite simple with the soon to be released version 2.1. Deleting records is rapid and simple, but it leaves "ghost" copies of the records in the database. These can be removed to save disk space and speed up searches with the COMPACT command. Notebook II can function as a shell program for DOS file housekeeping operations in any drive. Returning to the database operations is as simple as typing EXIT and hitting the return key. There is a RECOVER utility to save damaged databases. There is also a warning when you only have 30 K of disk space left (ca. the maximum size of one record).
Notebook II comes with a well written manual and an easy to use on-disk tutorial. Installing the program disk is straight forward, but it requires the careful following of eleven steps (twelve if a hard disk system is used). Pro Tem would be wise to simplify this procedure. There is an accompanying handy auxiliary program on a second disk called Bibliography II. This compares citations in a word processing manuscript file with entries in a Notebook II master bibliographic database and creates a bibliography of all entries cited. The newly created manuscript bibliography can be formatted for printing to suit the requirements of any journal. The installation for the Bibliography II disk requires five steps. There is an on-disk tutorial and a concisely written manual for it. Unfortunately, the on-screen menus are not as attractive as those in Notebook II. Another minor limitation is that Bibliography II fields can not be over 40 characters long.
Both disks are copyrighted but not copyprotected. Regrettably, there is not a quick reference guide or a keyboard template for the function keys. However, there is a ninety day warranty and a phone number and address are provided for technical support. Pro Tem seems to have a genuine interest in listening to users and in improving their software.
Cornerstone by Infocom is a relatively powerful database management system having relational capabilities along with variable length files. It is primarily a business oriented package, but it's ease in handling text type data makes it appropriate for academic uses. Unfortunately, it also has some peculiar quirks that may get in the way of a user.
Cornerstone employs a nested menu command structure. The menus are always showing horizontally across the top of the screen, above the data entry area. At the bottom of the screen is a status information line. This screen layout, along with the menu structure, are a bit awkward--the screen always appears jumbled and a bit confusing. This problem is somewhat alleviated by numerous context specific help messages and by the ability to turn off the menus. It can only be hoped that Infocom will radically revise the screen appearance in future versions of the program. Defining and later modifying the structure of an existing file are relatively easy procedures but still more involved than with Notebook II. When data is entered into a field, space is automatically added. However, before you reach 4000 characters, you have to create subrecords for each additional 4000 character chunk of data. This is cumbersome to say the least. Infocom would do well to significantly expand the normal possible field length. Cornerstone shows off some of its power on entering data. When fields have a pre-specified set of entries, the program will automatically complete an entry as soon as enough of its letters have been entered to distinguish it from all others. There is also a thorough data checking option including mandatory fields, cross-file checking, and minimum/maximum numeric values. These abilities would be more useful for maintaining inventories than keeping bibliographic references or research notes. Cornerstone allows complex selection criteria when searching files. These include all of those available in Notebook II plus wildcards. The selection criteria can be saved for later use. There is a sophisticated report writing mode which allows full screen design. It permits derived fields and includes some statistical capabilities (e.g., standard deviation and variance). One of the most valuable characteristics of Cornerstone is its ability to import and export data using an unusually wide variety of file formats. Being able to handle PFS:file with its proprietary Pascal system is particularly impressive.
The Cornerstone manual was written in an understandable fashion. A well written on-disk tutorial and a keyboard template are provided to make learning even easier. Installing the program disk is simple. It even sets up the necessary subdirectories when a hard disk system is being used. The program disk is copy protected, but it allows several working backups to be made. The sheer size and complexity of the program results in it being frustratingly slow at times in comparison to Notebook II. Part of the Cornerstone program is transferred to the data disk which also results in a limitation of 118K for databases stored on 360K floppy disks. This limitation can be somewhat relieved by erasing the help file. The only really satisfactory solution is switching to a hard disk drive. There is a ninety day warranty. An annual support plan, which includes free updates, can be purchased additionally for $150.00.
Almost all currently available database management systems fail to efficiently handle variable length text entries. The two programs described here go a long way in satisfying this need. Both are apparently bug free and do what their advertisements claim. However, Notebook II is cheaper, somewhat faster, and more intuitively easy to use due to its logically organized menu driven command structure. It also has a more expansive field size without having to resort to subrecords. Cornerstone offers greater power; but with the exception of the impressive import and export capabilities, it may not be worth the confusion of working through the poorly designed menus and cluttered screens.
There is always room for improvement in software. Notebook II and Cornerstone are no exceptions. Both could be helped by the addition of a macro capability and a conversational query language system like Clout, which responds to colloquial English with its usual redundancies and misspellings. However, Notebook II, at least, is now more than adequate for the task of handling extensive textual data. Perhaps, future versions of Cornerstone will be also.
FEATURE Cornerstone Notebook II
Ver. 5.1 Ver. 2.02*
OPERATING PC-DOS or MS-DOS PC-DOS or MS-DOS
SYSTEM 2.0 or higher (128K with DOS 1.0;
(256K required; 192K with DOS 2.0 or 3.0);
512K recommended) CP/M (Notebook I only)
NUMBER OF DRIVES 2 floppy (hard disk 2 floppy (hard disk
REQUIRED highly recommended) convenient)
EASE OF SETTING 4 5
UP FILES **
EASE OF USE ** 4 5
MAXIMUM variable to 4,000 variable to 30,000 *
CHARACTERS
PER FIELD
MAXIMUM FIELDS 160 50
PER RECORD
MAXIMUM 4,000 (expandable by 30,000
CHARACTERS subrecords; each up
PER RECORD to 4,000 characters)
MAXIMUM RECORDS 2,000 if records are limited only by disk space
PER FILE 4,000 characters long
MAXIMUM NUMBER any/all any/all
OF KEY FIELDS
MAXIMUM FILES 30 1
OPEN AT THE
SAME TIME
FILE IMPORT ASCII; dBASE II; DIF; ASCII; dBASE II;MailMerge
AND EXPORT MailMerge; PFS:file;
METHODS 1-2-3
COST $495 $189
COMPANY Infocom Pro Tem Software, Inc.
55 Wheeler Street 814 Tolman Drive
Cambridge, MA 02138 Stanford, CA 94305
* The soon to be released Ver. 2.1 requires PC-DOS or MS-DOS 2.0 or 3.0 and
256k. It is limited temporarily to 26,000 characters per field.
** This is scored with a scale from one to five with five being the most easy and
one the most difficult.
Department of Anthropology, Temple University
The Anthropology Department at Temple University has recently acquired the MINARK database system for use on two microcomputers, an IBM compatible Columbia VP and a Kaypro IV. For our purposes, MINARK appears to be far superior to any of the business-oriented micro DBMSs with which we are familiar. Almost all of these place severe limitations on the types and numbers of variables which can be stored, and impose constraints on formatting of data, and some require fairly complex programming. MINARK is menu driven and easy to learn, but very sophisticated in its capabilities. It will accommodate large numbers of variables, and offers great flexibility in formatting data.
MINARK also compares very favorably to a mainframe DBMS which we have been trying to implement over the last several years to manage a large site registry. While the mainframe system has an almost unlimited data capacity, this advantage is offset by a data base structure that is difficult to amend once the schema for it has been written, and by the need to enter, update, and retrieve data in "batch" mode. In this system, the addition of new variables requires a complicated series of operations. Individual entries can be altered only by means of user-written retrieval/update programs. In MINARK variables can be added as the need arises (they can even be added for individual cases), and data items can be entered and edited very easily on-screen.
With MINARK, it is possible to have a data base up and accessible in very short order. There is no disadvantage to leaving some fields blank for later filling in, a thing I would avoid at all costs with the mainframe system. Another nice feature, for users with existing computerized data bases, is a merge utility which easily converts external data files to MINARK files. This was one of the first features which we used.
A final but important note: the software is well supported by its author. As an archaeologist, he has a perspective on the special data management requirements of archaeologists that the best-intentioned of computer consultants usually lack, and he is clearly interested in users of the system having something that works.
Although we have had MINARK only a short time and have not really begun to utilize all of its capabilities, it promises to be extremely suitable for a wide range of applications, from the management of all types of archaeological data to more mundane administrative tasks. We plan to find a lot of uses for it. I would be happy to provide more information on how we are using the system and on the results we achieve with it to anyone who may be interested.
The developer and supplier is Ian Johnson, Minark Research, Department of Anthropology and Sociology, University of Queensland. (More information on Minark appears in the Product Announcements section of this issue of CAAN.) -- Doris Weiland, Department of Anthropology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, Tel. 215-787-1423
Oakland University
I had a dream. So, I programmed it. Now what do I do with it? Henry Harpending (CAAN 1(4):19) suggests selling it. Lee Sailer (CAAN 1(1):4) suggests giving it away. I am a bit bewildered. Harpending (CAAN 1(4):19) says that software is like a freshman textbook, since intellectually it represents nothing new. This, it seems to me, is like comparing a portable rocket launcher with the handbook for using it. The former is likely to have much more impact than the latter, although "intellectually" the former represents nothing new over the latter. Software is power. It does a job. It works for you.
When I began to use my new program, it awed me enough to say to myself, "Do I really want to give it away?" So I decided on a compromise. It isn't a big program so I thought I would sell it for a small price ($20.00). Perhaps individuals can buy it. And, those who have grants will save money in that area. Which brings me to my next problem.
I use computers creatively, which means I use them to get grants not to finish them. I need to be set up with some good software before I commit myself to completing a research project. I have to know that the software will work and do the job. I have to know if the proposal is feasible. If Harpending wrote his software after getting a grant to do it, then he is in bigger trouble than he realizes. Selling it under those circumstances is not what NSF has in mind. Obviously he did not, then what does he suggest the creative grant-getters do?
I am going to fix up my program creatively as I feel like it. Twenty dollars is not enough for me to start worrying about other users who might not like it the way it is. However twenty dollars is enough to make me feel that my creative efforts have not gone unrewarded.
Northern Arizona University
In CAAN (1-3) there was mention of the expense of running SPSS on a mainframe (Grosboll and Salomon:2). More and more often, mainframe statistical analysis is becoming incompatible with reduced departmental budgets or even grant budgets in these cost containment times. Then there was mention of the cost of purchasing the less than ideal attempt made by SPSS to scale down their package for micro computers (report of Watson's letter). SYSTAT was mentioned as a reasonable alternative to mainframe packages by yet another author (White:9). Finally, a program for matrix manipulation and multivariate data analysis was announced (Harpending:20-22).
In fact, there are now a number of excellent alternatives to using mainframe statistical packages such as SPSS or BMDP. These alternatives are micro computer stat packages that were first developed for micros, not scaled down from mainframe or mini programs. Most of them use double precision numbers, will handle from 2000 cases upward, and will accommodate as many as 255 variables per case. They already include most of the routines of mainframe packages, and they are evolving constantly and quickly. You give up a bit of speed to save a bundle of bucks, when you use them. You do not give up any precision, sometimes you gain a bit. And you do not give up ease of data entry, you can even gain there with some of the packages. Finally, you do not give up your favorite statistical routine. All of the packages have the most commonly used statistics, and some even have the exotics (such as SYSTAT's canonical correlation and cluster analysis routines).
Choosing the right micro statistical package is a matter of personal need and preference. I reviewed five excellent, professional-level statistical packages for the March 1985 issue of Profiles, a computer magazine for Kaypro owners (Trotter 1985). These five (ABstat, Walonick's StatPac, Microstat, NWA Statpak, and Systat) contain between 35 and 75 statistical routines (descriptive, non-parametric, parametric, etc.). They allow recoding of data, subset creation, editing, merging, and a bunch of other data management functions. Better yet, most of them allow you to use already existing data sets, such as dBase II and III files, DIF files, and files downloaded from mainframe computers. So if you absolutely, positively have to run one routine on the mainframe, you can run the rest on your micro.
The main differences between the packages I reviewed consisted of the number of routines that were available, and the style of operation (menu as opposed to command driven). The other difference was the main purpose for which the package was designed. For example, Walonick's StatPac was created with social science survey data in mind. You can use the package to select sample sizes, generate random numbers, choose 3 different data entry modes (depending on how much prompting and protection from mis-coding you want), and then run the most commonly used social science statistical routines, from frequencies and cross-tabs through multiple regression and 3 way ANOVA's. NWA Statpak's designers were interested in the ability to utilize existing, as well a newly created, data sets and with providing you with as many well designed interactive statistical routines as could be crammed on a disk, without causing problems. They succeeded, since the CP/M version has 69 routines, at last count (including 6 non-parametric routines, as well as useful exotics like geometric, harmonic, and quadratic means, moving averages, hypergeometric and inverse normal functions and Fourier analysis). Then there is Systat, with 75 routines in its CP/M configuration, and more than that on its MS/DOS incarnation. It is very powerful. It is also very complex, the one being a direct function of the other. In addition to doing what the other packages do, it also does log linear models, correlation matrix, repeated measures, discriminant analysis, and other routines (to give you a basic idea why White (CAAN 1-3:9) wrote enthusiastically about it.
However, some of you may not want all that power, nor the complexity, not to mention confusion and choice anxiety, that goes along with the most powerful packages. Two of the other packages provide a comfortable alternative. The easiest package to learn and to get up and running in virtually no time at all is ABstat. It has a nice, if not exotic set of statistical routines, and will not scare statistics phobes. Microstat is another alternative, since it balances between the simplicity of ABstat and the power of Systat. The profiles article compares each of these packages, in terms of statistics and data management and entry routines available.
If you don't want to take my word for it (or want to look at packages that run on Apple DOS, PC/DOS, or UCSD pascal, as well as CP/M and MS/DOS) you can read an article in Byte (Carpenter, Deloria, and Morganstein 1984). It compares the features of 24 statistical packages for micro computers. And it discusses their strengths and weaknesses in some detail.
Both articles are now outdated, since several of the companies have recently released new, improved versions of their packages. But both will give you enough information to narrow the search down to packages that you can both afford and can be confident in, when you submit an article for publication that needs some number crunching in it.
Carpenter, J., D. Deloria, and D. Morganstein. 1984. Statistical Software for Microcomputers: A Comparative Analysis of 24 Packages. Byte (April):234-264.
Trotter, Robert T. II. 1985. Statistical Software Smorgasbord: Powerful Number Crunching Programs for the Pro. Profiles (March):60-67.
Dept. of Anthropology, UCLA
Anthropologists at UCLA are compiling a Standardized Cross Cultural Time Allocation Database. Working with an NSF grant, they are developing a series of monographs that will soon begin to be published by HRAF Press. The monographs, accompanied by ethnographic descriptions prepared by the original ethnographers, will be presented in a dual format consisting of the activity pattern data as originally coded, plus standardized codes of the same data. They expect to have fifteen to twenty such monographs published this year, with each package consisting of a booklet and data diskette. Any scholars interested in contributing to or learning more about the project may write for further information to: Time Allocation Project, c/o Dr. Allen Johnson, Anthropology Department, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90024. -- RAJHNSN@UCLASSCF.BITNET
COLLEGIATE MICROCOMPUTER is a quarterly journal for the exchange of ideas on the role of the microcomputer in all subjects and areas of college and university life. Material appearing includes uses of hardware and software, descriptions of courses, units and topics using microcomputers, results of research using microcomputers, analysis of experiments using microcomputers, student projects, suggestions and tips, writeups of experiences as microcomputer consultants, reviews of the literature, evaluation of microcomputer use in the office and in materials preparation for teaching and research. Subscription rates are $28.00 per year and $36.00 per year for non-US subscriptions. For further information write: COLLEGIATE MICROCOMPUTER. ROSE-HULMAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, TERRE HAUTE, IN 47803 USA.
Oakland University
Many people would like to make use of electronic mail to speed communication with their colleagues; however the variety of systems is so bewildering that some people who could benefit from the more modern form of communication are continuing with the more traditional paper mail systems.
Computer communication, or data communication as it is more commonly called, is the communication of symbolic information from one location to another electronically over phone lines, satellite links, or microwave links. As computers invade our lives, the potential for them talking to each other and to humans at remote locations increases.
In data communication technology, symbols are represented by a sequence of on-off, binary, signals that are sent out one by one at a quick rate over a communication line, which in its simplest form is just a pair of wires. The rate at which the binary signals, bits, are sent is called the baud rate, and is given in bits per second. Usually the communication is simultaneous two-way communication, which is called full-duplex communication in computerese. In full-duplex communication the computer can send to the user at the same time the user is sending to the computer. If wires are used, this requires two separate pairs of wires. There is also a present de facto international standard for converting Roman letters, accents, and a few other symbols, into groups of binary signals. This is called the ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange). The symbols are coded into 7 binary bits which makes 128 different symbols available. Microcomputers often are able to add an eighth bit by dropping a parity, check, bit and by doing their checking in another manner. Thus 256 characters can be sent with standard hardware today, but there is no agreed on interpretation of the extra 128 characters. The ASCII system is a blessing in that practically all machines from terminals to giant computers use it for their serial data communication now.
Modern software can also send binary data, which means that anything that is stored in one computer can be sent to another computer; however this requires a "communication protocol" that both the sending and receiving software recognize.
Normally, a telephone system is used for much of this communication, and this requires that the binary signals be modulated on some sort of carrier, usually an audible tone, the steady beep that you hear when you call a computer on the telephone. The tone shifts up and down according to the binary signal, zero or one, that is being sent. Telephone communication therefore requires that a modulator-demodulator, or modem for short, be placed between the equipment and the phone line. With a modem and a computer terminal you are ready to talk to almost any computer on the telephone, and it is becoming easier and easier to do this. The typical computer reachable by regular phone lines communicates at a rate of 300 or 1200 baud, and usually both.
The mechanisms required to process data are conventionally separated into two groups: hardware and software. Hardware are those physical devices that switch electronic currents at amazing speeds. If you take the top off your microcomputer you can see the hardware in the form of integrated circuit chips soldered to printed circuit boards. The software mechanisms you can't see because they exist only as programs in the hardware memory units. Programs are numbers that are interpreted by the hardware as instructions for doing something. The hardware is pretty dumb without the programs to tell it what to do. Hardware is hard because it can't be changed by the user. Software is soft because it can be changed. Computer communication, like all data processing, requires both hardware and software.
The most elementary computer communication software system is electronic mail. Electronic mail is something like telegrams that are left in the computer to be picked up when the addressee calls into the computer. They can be read only by the person to whom they are addressed. The great advantage of electronic mail is its speed. The message is delivered the moment it is composed. Some electronic mail systems deliver the message line by line, which can get to be confusing if the addressee starts to respond to the message before it is completely sent. Sophisticated electronic mail systems provide for multiple addressees, forwarding, "carbon" copies, storage bins for old mail, subject titles, and searches among other things. A number of information utilities have these systems: CompuServe, The Source, and BRS-After Dark. Packet switching networks such as Tymnet, and Telenet also offer electronic mail.
Electronic mail systems, which are often referred to as "networks" when they involve more than one computer, are useful when one wants a relatively quick response and simplicity. Once mastered they are simpler than paper mail because sending the message just involves using a few commands at the keyboard. For example to send a message to user "Sam" on a UNIX system once types the line:
mail sam
then the message and then a Control-D. The operating system takes care of the rest. The computer notifies Sam that there is a message waiting the next time that he signs on. He reads the message with the command
The computer gives him the option of saving or deleting the message. It's not very complicated.
When you have limited connect time or funds, the best method of using electronic mail is to utilize a good microcomputer communication package. I use PROCOMM Version 2.3 on my PC-XT compatible. PIBTERM, and QMODEM are also recommended for IBM type microcomputers. With CP/M computers I use MEX or TEXCOM. Macintosh computers can use Red Ryder. Most of these programs are in the public domain. You sign on, download the mail, sign off, compose your responses on your own computer with your favorite editor, sign on again, and upload your responses. If you have free connect time you can compose replies on the mail computer often without having to retype addresses. However they may not provide the kind of editor that you like.
A major drawback of all forms of electronic mail is that only a minority of people, often the ones with which you don't want to communicate, know how to use them and check electronic mailboxes regularly. Once you know how to do it, checking an electronic mailbox need not be difficult; furthermore it can be more convenient because it can be done at any time of day from any location where there is a computer terminal and a phone. The solution to this problem is to get the people who are important in your communication network to use electronic mail. I know that this can feel uncomfortable, because one has to be a bit of a missionary and risk being labeled a computer nut, or whatever, by the diehards. I expect these prejudices will be changing soon as people discover the convenience. It is important however to talk to people and convince them to get going on something that will help them.
Bulletin boards are electronic mail systems in which there are public messages that can be read by anyone with access. The software is not complicated and is available on most microcomputers. It is likely that there are a number of privately run bulletin boards in your city. They have names like CBBS, CONNECTION-80, etc. Much of the original software was set up for particular microcomputers, the vendors of which hoped that the bulletin boards would increase the interest in their machines. Most of them at present are still run by computer enthusiasts for their own benefit; however a number of more professional ones, for example for teachers, and anthropologists, are beginning to appear. A user has the opportunity to read all the public messages that have been posted and to post any of his own. Most bulletin boards have enhancements to make them more useful: a private message system, a means for searching for words in a label, etc.
The following glossary will acquaint you with some of the things that now exist in the world of electronic communication. After that there is information on the two national bulletin boards for anthropologists.
ECHOMAIL - A special new software facility on Fido nodes that allows a single BBS conference to appear on a number of local Fido computers throughout the world. It makes use of FidoMail (See FIDO). New entries in the BBS are automatically sent to participating nodes by FidoMail, so that people making use of their own local Fido computers in other cities can read and respond to what is being discussed. Of course somebody has to pay for the phone calls that automatically transfer the new conference messages, so if you want to set up an echomail system, a small amount of phonecall funding is necessary.
FIDO - A network of microcomputers maintained by computer enthusiasts. Now contains almost 1000 computers worldwide. Fido software runs on almost any PC-XT type computer using PC-DOS or MS-DOS. The software is free, and anyone can set up a fido node. Once the software is set up the operator, called a SYSOP, applies to the head of the local Fido group to become a node in the network. Permission having been granted. All other Fido systems throughout the world are made aware of the new node through the FidoMail facility. The node is now able to send and receive FidoMail.
FidoMail is the electronic mail system between the Fido computers. It passes over a two-level star network in the following manner. First a user writes a message on a local Fido computer. In the wee hours of the morning, the computers stop receiving local calls and start calling each other. Computers with mail to be sent to other computers call computers in their local network. One of these is the outgoing host computer. Then the worldwide outgoing hosts call the worlwide incoming hosts to transfer the mail between networks. Then the incoming hosts call local network members. The next day the recipient can find the message under his name on his local Fido computer. Most communication between the computers is now at an efficient 2400 baud. The system provides overnight delivery of mail for about twenty-five cents per 2 kilocharacters. One prepays the local SYSOP for the messages and then draws on this account. Binary files, ie. computer programs and graphics, can also be sent.
Each local Fido node is also a BBS (bulletin board system) containing any number of conferences (BB's), indexed documents and programs for downloading. Fido nodes contain documents listing the phones of the other Fido nodes. ABBS (The Anthropologist's Bulletin Board System) is a full fledged Fido node, Node 20 in Network 105, and contains this information. The NAPA-BBS runs Fido software for its conferences, but is not a node in the network. Members of the SfAA (Society for Applied Anthropology) may get help from the SfAA ECC if they are having trouble locating a Fido near them.
GATEWAY - A computer in two or more mail networks which has continuiously running (daemon) software which is able to pass messages from one network to another. For example CSNET-RELAY a NSF computer in Washington passes mail from CSNET to ARPA. WISCVM at the University of Wisconsin passes mail from BITNET to ARPA. MITVMA at MIT will pass mail from BITNET to MAILNET, but it is not used normally by the Cosswell mailer software on BITNET computers, which normally passe MAILNET messages through WISCVM and over ARPA to MIT-MULTICS in Cambridge.
MULTICS - An operating system now running Honeywell main-frame computers. Multics was developed as an advanced ideal operating system at MIT and was the inspiration for UNIX. Multics is bigger. Because MULTICS is too large an operating system for microcomputers, its impact on microcomputers is felt mainly through its offspring UNIX. Multics computers are not common.
NAPA-ECC - The Electronic Communications Committee of the National Association for the Practice of Anthropology. Robert Trotter is Chairman. His address is Department of Anthropology, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona 86011.
NETWORK - is perhaps the most confusing of the computer, cybernetic, and high-tech words because it can refer to many different things. In the realm of computers, network can refer to an interconnected system of computers, or an interconnected set of computer users, all of which can utilize the interconnections to perform a wide variety of functions. Packet-switching networks such as ARPA, MERIT, TELENET, TYMNET, UNINET, etc. are networks of computers which are dedicated to passing digital communications between each other. Their functions tend to be totally transparent to a user who may notice no difference between the network and the phone system. Now more sophisticated functions are being added which makes some of these networks respond to the users commands. Actually the phone systems are being converted to digital networks without the callers being aware of it.
A computer mail network is a collection of users that can send electronic mail and files back and forth with the assistance of an underlying computer network often organized somewhat differently than a packet-switching network. The academic mail networks like BITNET recognize a user name and a site address. Some sites that are able to open gateways to other networks also recognize other network addresses.
NODE - A term that refers to a computer in a network. A node is often the link between telephone callers and the network.
SfAA-ECC - The Electronic Communications Committee of the Society for Applied Anthropology. James Dow is Chairman. To contact the SfAA-ECC use the same addresses for James Dow as Editor of CAAN at the end of this issue.
UNIX - An operating system running on many main-frames, minicomputers, and microcomputers. The system has standard commands and features, so that once you learn how to use it on one computer you can use it on most others. Unix has created standards that are being implemented now for microcomputers and it could become the most standard operating system language. It provides a common ground for main-frame and microcomputers. At present CP/M and MS-DOS are more widely used on microcomputers, but they do not have the same level of standardization as Unix.
Members of the National Association for the Practice of Anthropology (NAPA) have an electronic bulletin board and file transfer system (BBS) available to them. The BBS is a joint project of NAPA and the Department of Anthropology at Northern Arizona University.
A BBS is a combination of electronic mail service and information system that NAPA members can access from any remote location, using a computer, modem, and any available telephone service. The BBS is a free service to the membership. The only cost for using the system is the cost of the long distance service used to call into the BBS.
You can use any kind of computer to call the BBS. In addition to a computer, you will need a modem and a communication program. The modem is an electronic device that allows any two computers to communicate over telephone lines. The baud rate of a modem is the speed at which information can be transferred. We recommend a 1200 baud modem. Its higher speed will save you a lot of long distance charges.
NAPA members may call the BBS with their computer equipment at
602 523-7473
between 5 pm and 8 am (Mountain Time) Monday through Friday and all weekend. Please do not call between 8 am and 5 pm. The SYSOP is Robert Trotter, Chairman of the NAPA-ECC.
ABBS is sponsored by the Society for Applied Anthropology and Portland State University. It is open to all members of all professional anthropological societies including, but not limited to, those with interests in archaeology and physical anthropology. ABBS is based on the latest Fido software and includes messaging, conferencing, file transfer, and electronic mail. ABBS is a full fledged node in the Fido Network, Node 20 in Net 105, and can send and receive electronic mail with any of the other Fido nodes throughout the world. ABBS has just started up and will begin with cooperation, general discussion, employment, and news message areas. Special interest groups within anthropology are invited to apply to the SYSOP, Marc Feldesman, for their own message/conferencing areas. Departments of anthropology, and other anthropological groups who can set up a Fido node on their own PC computers, are also invited to join with ABBS in a worldwide network for anthropological discussion making use of the Fido "echomail" facility. Members of any professional anthropological organization may call ABBS and register their name, organization, and desired initial password.
ABBS is located in Portland Oregon. The phone number is
503 229-3081
The computer hours are: 5 pm to 8 am Pacific Time Monday through Thursday and 5pm Friday to 8 am PT Monday
Messages, including entries for the various bulletin board areas may be sent to ABBS from local Fido nodes. Fido nodes cannot be used to read the discussions on ABBS unless they have an echomail agreement with ABBS.
CAAN is asking for readers to send in their electronic mailbox address. We will publish these in a CAAN directory of electronic mailboxes so that our readers may communicate via computers. Send in addresses on national mail and conferencing systems, computers linked to national networks, and even local computers, if you think that other anthropologists will have access to them.
CAAN'S electronic mailboxes are published at the end of this issue. There have been questions of why the BITNET address, James_Dow%UMich-MTS.Mailnet@MIT-Multics.ARPA is so long. The reason for this is that the mailbox is actually on another Network called Mailnet. The BITNET computers have to find a gateway to send the mail into Mailnet. Some BITNET computers do not have software that can do this. However, others may respond to a smaller address, James_Dow@UMich-MTS.Mailnet. The software that does this address interpretation is ultimately under the control of the local university computer center and each computer center has a different idea of how, if at all, they should deal with these problems. The former long address is one that is recognized by a popular mailer program called the Crosswell mailer. Mr. Crosswell did such a good job writing it that it has become a standard. If one does not have good mailer software at one's computer center, there is a way to get the computer called MITVMA on BITNET to do the work by sending the message to a program, not a person, there. This information is contained in EDUCOM document 609-734-1878 from INFO@BITNIC.BITNET or from the SfAA-ECC.
The Sun Belt Social Network Conference will be held from February 12 to 15, 1987, at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort, Clearwater Beach, Florida. It is being cosponsored by the International Network of Social Network Analysts, the University of Florida, and the University of South Florida. Session topics include: corporate networks, inter-organizational networks, intra-organizational networks, structural similarity, models and applications, communication networks, cognitive networks, biological networks, and much more.
There are several special features this year: The keynote address will be presented by Everett Rogers of the Annenberg School of Communications, USC. Stanley Wasserman is offering a six-hour tutorial to introduce colleagues to network analysis. Ron Burt will demonstrate his STRUCTURE program in a special workshop. During most of the conference, PCs will be available for participants to share and compare their favorite programs. Those who wish to participate in the workshops or present papers in the sessions are urged to communicate soon, because places are limited, with the conference co-organizers: H. Russell Bernard (Anthropology, U. of Florida, Gainesville, 32611, Bitnet: CY$EFH3@NERVM) or Alvin Wolfe (Anthropology, U. of South Florida, Tampa, 33620, Bitnet: DLIABAA@CFRVM)
One of the potentially important functions of electronic communication and publication in anthropology is that it may encourage people such as myself to re-establish a firm connection with the discipline after having withdrawn from anthropology in its traditional academic form.
I conducted my computer-based dissertation research in Central Australia in 1970-71, had a post-doc at Berkeley, taught for three years at McMaster University in Ontario, had a research appointment at Dartmouth, published much for awhile, served as Director of Academic Computer Services for a small college in northern Vermont, and finally got tired of the academic scene. I now live in a remote corner of Northern New Hampshire, teach for a branch of the University System of New Hampshire that caters to the needs of remote regions, and earn most of my income by writing user documentation for several small software publishers in New England. Although I don't regret having severed the traditional academic connection, I do miss the intellectual stimulation that was one of its perqs. If CAAN, in conjunction with other computer communications technologies, does the kinds of things for anthropology that it has the potential for doing, I can have my cake and eat it too.-- Woodrow Denham, P.O. Box 356, Franconia, NH 03580.
MINARK is the product of five years research into the recording of archaeological data. Unlike commercial systems, MINARK was designed specifically for coping with the peculiarities of archaeological data and the data entry and retrieval requirements of archaeologists. Such is its flexibility that it is now used in other fields including socio-cultural anthropology, linguistics, zoology and geomorphology.
APPLICATIONS: Site registers; survey data; excavation data; laboratory data; museum catalogues; specimen records; annotated bibliographies; field note indexing; photographic records; library catalogues; mailing lists, etc.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dr. Ian Johnson
Subscription requests should be sent to the Computer Assisted Anthropology News at any of the addresses which follow. The subscription policy, which we regret was not clearly articulated in 1985 is as follows: The four issues of Volume 1 (1985-1986) were $5.00 US. The four issues of Volume 2 (1986-1987) are $6.00. If monies were sent in 1984 or 1985 they were credited toward paying for Vol. 1, even if the person had already received several issues on a free mailing. The "free" issues were billed retroactively. As one might expect this rather odd system is giving everyone a lot of trouble, so CAAN will normalize its subscription policy by mailing out invoices in the future. Back issues of Vol. 1. (Nos. 2, 3, and 4) and Vol. 2 (No. 1) are available at $1.50 apiece. All of Vol. 1 is available on 5 1/4 disk for $10.00 for a MS-DOS disk and $15.00 for other formats. We would like to be able to produce and send you CAAN without charge, but in order to have it survive there seems to be no other means than to make it self-supporting.
Material should be submitted to James Dow, Editor, CAAN, at any of the addresses which follow. CAAN has a magazine style in which news, letters, notes, and articles are welcome. We prefer material submitted electronically, on diskettes or via network mail. Most 5 1/4 disk formats can be read. To avoid the problems created by the ever increasing number of word processor formats, 5 1/4 disk text should be in one of the following formats: Word Star, unformatted MS-Word, or plain ASCII with CR, LF, and TAB as the only control characters. Please do not use any printer controls in the text. Text on 3 1/2 disks should be in Mac Write format.
CAAN ADDRESSES
US MAIL: Dept. of Soc. and Anth. Oakland University,
Rochester, Mich. 48063, USA
FIDOMAIL: James Dow, Fido #5 Net 120
MAILNET, BITNET, CSNET, ARPA:
James_Dow@UMich-MTS.Mailnet or
James_Dow%UMich-MTS.Mailnet@MIT-Multics.ARPA
COMPUSERVE: 70150,266
UUCP: ihnp4!mb2c!edsdrd!ahxenix!dow
MCI Mail: 281-2421