My original note was far too brief to be complete and should not be
construed as giving a complete run down on each program--or programs that
go together, like the K6STI suite that includes terrain analysis and Yagi
design software. It was designed more to get those who were interested in
programs for the first time to look into other resources that give more
complete data on each program. THose thinking about such software should
also pay close attention to the user reactions--especially as they apply
to the kinds of modeling they do most.
It is a fact of life that for many folks, the first modeling program you
learn will end up being your most used--unless you make a big turn in the
sorts of things you model. So choose as wisely as you can, but knowing
that you cannot be too far off optimum with your choice, since all of the
packages noted have high competency within the limits of their cores.
I have been asked whether I shall someday post at my site a feature by
feature comparison or review. It is not likely, since my judgment on a
feature's importance can legitimately differ from the judgment of someone
else who has either more or less use for the feature. However, you should
do a feature comparison for yourself, estimating how important a feature
is for your intended work and weighting the most important ones in making
your decision. Raw number of features is not always a reliable guide,
either, since such matters as ease of feature use and other factors get
into the act--and ease of use may also depend on a wider context of how
you have set up programs in your operating system. For example, I am only
to clicks away, without shutting AO down, from saving an AO RUN file
under a different name for archival use, although this file changes from
run to run.
I suspect that, like evaluations of tribanders, the idea of the best
modeling program will be a hortserace for a long time to come.
-73-
LB, W4RNL
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