Windows Vista 64 Support Status

• The Data Manager Upgrade
• LOGDRAFT Version 5.0
• The Past (Windows 95, 98 and Windows ME)
• The Cost

At this time, several of our programs are not compatible with Vista 64 or with Windows 7. Unfortunately, one of them -- the Data Manager program -- serves as the file manager and database system for all of our laboratory test programs (Swell/Consolidation, GrainSize, LabSuite, California Bearing Ratio, Moisture-Density (Proctor) and SHEAR), along with the LOGDRAFT boring log drafting package and our QC-Density field density program. The upshot is that our QC-Concrete program, which does not use the Data Manager, is the only GEOSYSTEM program that currently works under Vista 64 or Windows 7.

We're currently running extensive tests on a new 64-bit compatible Data Manager package. The tests are going great, and the software is running perfectly on the 64-bit Windows 7.

Automated Data Manager Test Program After a 12 Hour Test

We expect to release the new Data Manager program the second week of December. At the same time, we'll also be releasing:

• A 64-bit compatible version of the QC-Density program
• A 64-bit compatible version of LOGDRAFT (more on that in a moment)

Unfortunately, we will not have 64-bit versions of the Resistance R-value or Swell/Consolidation available. (We expect to release a fully-compatible version of R-value by the end January, and the Swell/Consolidation update should be available by mid March.)

The Data Manager Upgrade

The Data Manager upgrade will have a more modern interface and a completely rewritten database system. (We're particularly excited about the system's defensive capabilities that automatically reconnect to network file servers after connection interruptions.) Also included is support for a network-based shared directory where users can store a common set of LOGDRAFT report forms, GrainSize specification envelopes, Proctor test specifications and Swell/Cons machine deflection tables.

LOGDRAFT Version 5.0

LOGDRAFT 5.0 Running on Windows 7

The new LOGDRAFT will have a ton of new features, some of which we've documented in past newsletters, including:

• Selection lists that allow you to create popup lists of, e.g., drilling contractors, engineers and field personnel, standardized location descriptions, etc.
  
  
• "Print from preview" allows you to send the report you're currently previewing directly to the printer, without needing to go through re-selecting the borings you need to print.
  
  
• "Read-only" mode allows reviewers to open projects without worrying about making inadvertent data changes.
  
  
• Create Adobe .PDF files of your reports without using any third-party software (i.e., you do not need to buy Adobe Acrobat).
  
  
• Major changes to the report form editor, including WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editing for the form's header and footer, multiple simultaneous open report forms and copy and paste capabilities between forms.
  
  
• Export to GIS shapefiles, Windows bitmap, .PNG and .JPEG image files and Microsoft Access databases.
  
  
• Much faster file access over network file shares -- opening a report form for editing can be as much as 10X faster.

The Past (Windows 95, 98 and Windows ME)

None of our upcoming releases will be supported on Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME or Windows NT.

The Cost

There will be a charge for the LOGDRAFT, R-Value, Swell/Consolidation and QC-Density upgrades (unless the software was licensed within the last year), and a Data Manager upgrade charge for other clients who haven't licensed software in the last year, along with laboratory software upgrade charges for users still running version 1.x of the GrainSize, Soil Classification, Atterberg Limits and Proctor software. We'll send all of our licensed users a customized upgrade quote sheet in early October detailing the upgrade costs.

• Corporate IT directors: Please contact our sales staff at +1 970/223-8788 x114 for corporate-wide upgrade costs.

If you aren't planning on moving to Vista 64 or Windows 7, the upgrade certainly isn't mandatory, but we will be dropping all technical support and updates for the outdated Data Manager, LOGDRAFT and Swell/Consolidation programs immediately on release of the new program versions.