Comparison of PC-ORD and R

Although some similar tools are available in PC-ORD and R, the user experience differs radically. PC-ORD is a Windows software program with a graphical user interface that does not require coding. PC-ORD offers ease of use, expert-driven analysis preference options, the power and flexibility of interactive graphics, a built-in help system, and free dedicated technical support. PC-ORD also allows advanced users to develop scripts through its "Batch" facility (introduced in v.6), as well as the ability to incorporate user-developed modules into the menu system.

PC-ORD puts most of the tools you need in one place so you can spend your time on what really matters—exploring your data, answering your questions, and testing your hypotheses. PC-ORD lets you clearly see the options for your dataset and objectives, and helps you interpret your outcomes with powerful graphics and detailed explanatory listings of results. Wild Blueberry Media answers questions and provides support.

PC-ORD Features not Found in R

Testimonials

by Dr Winfried Voigt
University of Jena, Germany

Thank you for the wonderful news that v. 7 has now been released.  Even though practically every multivariate statistical technique/method could alternatively be done using R language, I still prefer using PC-ORD for teaching ecology students multivariate statistics.  PC-ORD is very user-friendly and offers, in just one self-contained package, many powerful methods and a great toolbox (“Modify Data”) that ecology students really need and can quickly utilize in their research.  An excellent feature is the textbook-like, built-in documentation explaining theoretical background in detail.

We also offer courses on how to use R efficiently, but there are always students without experience or who have not attended such a course, or regardless, still have problems with R and so in a classroom setting, they hold back progress.  Hence, in practical, hands-on courses that are also quite limited in time, students using PC-ORD can focus much more on the statistical and ecological background rather than by spending too much time with programming.  The objective of my courses is the understanding of the process of multivariate data analysis and not so much on the technical part, even the latter results in a more thorough understanding of the procedures applied.  When students understand why and how to effectively do multivariate statistical analyses of their data, they can then use, with little effort, other programs or packages as well.

by Dr. Peter R. Nelson
University of Maine at Fort Kent

In the world of increasing use of open-sourced statistical platforms like R, some might wonder if there is a need for proprietary stats programs.  Despite this trend, I find myself still going back to PC-ORD, even though I also use R, Python and other scripting platforms.  The reason I keep using PC-ORD is simple: PC-ORD is clearly superior to trying to code the same functionality in R or other popular open-source analytical platforms.  Another reason I keep using PC-ORD is the great documentation that is almost like a course in multivariate stats built in to the software.  You can find answers to many of the common questions or even detailed descriptions regarding most of the algorithms used in the software, all of which has citations to primary literature for the even more curious user.