I have been using excel until now, but we are getting more and more different colonies, so excel tables are getting really messy and confusing. We need to be able to follow and account for each individual animal at the end of the year, so a good software tool would make life easier. I'm contemplating whether to write a basic one myself, but if there is a good one available for free, this would obviously save time. Any input would be very much appreciated.
Hi Susanne,
I'm using SoftMouse, a web-based mouse colony database that I developed several years ago. I had the same issues with excel as you're experiencing and that became increasingly unmanageable to maintain. Softmouse resolved these problems and has many additional advantages. You said that you are looking for free software, SoftMouse is not free and costs $350.00 / year but it's worth the savings it provides in mouse costs and your time spent managing the data. System upgrades and support are free. SoftMouse is managed by my company Iseehear Inc. located in Toronto Canada.
If you are interested in a free 30 day trial of SoftMouse please contact [email protected], she would be more than happy to assist you. Or you can sign up for a free trial directly at www.streamcell.org
I hope this helps you.
Elena
Hi Elena,
thanks for the info! Funny enough, I've already seen the SoftMouse website and was considering if to check out the 30day free trial version. I might just do that!
Thanks,
Susanne
Hi Susanne,
Thanks for the reply! Yeah it's a great coincidence that you found SoftMouse on your own. One thing I would recommend is using the Data Importing tool to import your existing data from excel into the softmouse - that will allow you to get started a lot easier. There is more information on the website www.streamcell.com. If you click the Data Import menu, it will walk you through exactly what you need to do . If it is ok with you, I would be happy to put you in touch with Kelly Rodriques from our team so she can directly answer any questions you may have and discuss if SoftMouse would be a good fit for your work process. And of course if you have any questions or need feedback, I would be happy to share my experience with you! Feel free to contact me anytime.
Hi Nicole,
SoftMouse can definitely be adapted for reptilian models. We originally designed SoftMouse with the idea that with a few tweaks it can be used for additional model organisms.
In order to assess how quickly this can be done, I have forwarded your message to my colleague Kelly and she has a few initial questions for you:
- What kind of data are you looking to track related to reptiles?
- What type of system are you using right now? (e.g. paper, excel, another program, etc.)
- What type of features would you find useful in such a system?
Are you free for a quick 10 minute call to discuss your needs in more detail and to see how SoftMouse can be quickly adapted to the reptilian model?
Kelly would be happy to call you at your earliest convenience. This is Kelly's email address [email protected]
Thanks!
Elena