"Does ToxCalc come with a user's guide?"
ToxCalc is shipped with a printed manual that discusses all aspects of using the software, and limited discussion of statistics.
"What user support is offered?"
Email and phone support is provided free of charge for one year. After one year, phone support is offered on a case by case basis.
"What is the updating policy for ToxCalc?"
Licenses are granted for an indefinite period, therefore annual renewals are not required. Minor updates are generally free, whereas major updates require a fee for purchases more than one year old.
"What is your software return policy?"
Software cannot be returned for a refund if any seals are broken or the shrink wrapping is removed. Please consider this return policy before you break any seals or remove the shrink wrapping.
"Is there an end-user license agreement that governs the use of the software?"
You are bound to the terms and conditions explicitly outlined in the End User License Agreement (EULA) found on the inside front cover of the user's manual. Any deviations from the EULA must be approved in writting by Tidepool, or you risk losing the rights to use the software.
Yes, ToxCalc can support multiple simultaneous users, but the network version of ToxCalc is required. The network version is only provided when multiple copies of ToxCalc are purchased.
ToxCalc applies country specific locality settings, therefore you enter data and view reports with formatting set to your specific locality.
"Do you offer an academic discount?"
A substantial 58% academic discount is offered to qualifying academic institutions. To qualify, the purchase must be made through the institution's purchasing system or the purchaser must provide proof of employment with the institution.
"Can ToxCalc be used with the Vista operating system?"
Yes, ToxCalc can be installed and can run on Vista. However, ToxCalc is not compatible with Excel 2007.
"I am required to create and monitor quality control plots of my reference toxicant data. This is a very time consuming task and can be fraught with errors. How can ToxCalc help me better manage my reference toxicant data and create useful quality control plots?"
ToxCalc provides a QC plotting utility. Reference toxicant data such as EC50/IC50 estimates extracted from the database can be easily graphed as a Shewhart type QC plot.
"We are a Canadian lab that must follow the EPA 1/RM/46 guidance document. Will ToxCalc address all of the statistical methods required by EPS 1/RM/46?"
No, ToxCalc was written before the release of EPS 1/RM/46, therefore new methods listed in that document were not incorporated into ToxCalc 5.0. However, CETIS addresses all of the required methods and Tidepool has worked closely with the Method Development and Applications group that was responsible for publishing the EPS 1/RM/46 document.
"Our laboratory tests both effluents and sediments. Can ToxCalc analyze data from sediment and ambient water tests, as well as dilution tests?"
ToxCalc is mostly designed for single sample dilution tests, such as effluents and reference toxicants. Multiple sample designs such as sediment or ambient water tests can be analyzed for significant difference between the samples and the designated control, but cannot perform all pairwise analysis like CETIS can.
"The decision flowcharts I need to follow to correctly analyze my toxicity data can be complicated and overwhelming. How will ToxCalc help me to insure I am analyzing my data correctly?"
ToxCalc implements limited decision-making logic for hypothesis testing. You can also override and decision and manually select a method and options of your choice.
"I am required to report and apply Test Acceptability Criteria to my test results. How can ToxCalc help me implement this review process?"
ToxCalc has not implemented Test Acceptability Criteria (TAC) review. If you require this feature, you should consider CETIS instead.
"Is the ToxCalc database a relational database that can be linked to other databases?"
No, ToxCalc implements a very efficient proprietary database based on a number of linked binary files. If you need a relational database, you should consider CETIS instead.
"In addition to the toxicity test data, I require an application where I can also input, track and report test measurement data. Does ToxCalc address test measurement data as well?"
ToxCalc supports the entry and reporting of test measurement data, such as temperature, pH, salinity, hardness, light level, etc. You can also add new parameters if the substantial set of parameters shipped with ToxCalc are insufficient for your needs.
"CETIS is our standard statistical package. Beyond just providing analysis that meet USEPA and ASTM protocol requirements, the many features of this program have allowed us to monitor our lab's performance over time and improve our in-house QA/QC procedures with relative ease. The data export feature has also proven to be invaluable in terms of efficiencies gained and added value to our clients."