nitrc:Comparing Tools/Resources
From NITRC Wiki
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You've found some great tools/resources on NITRC, but now you need to choose which will work best for your research. NITRC allows you to compare tool/resource attributes and provides ratings and reviews from other users to help you decide which tool/resource fits your needs the best.
Comparison is initiated from the Tools/Resources results tab. There are several ways to get to this page.
- Perform a Tools/Resources search through the search mechanism in the banner. (For more information on searching, refer to the Search: Tools/Resources section of this User Guide.)
- Click the Browse by Attribute sub-menu link under Tools & Resources. (For more information on browsing by attribute, refer to the Browsing by Attribute section of this User Guide.)
- Click the Compare Tools/Resources sub-menu link under Tools & Resources.
Tools/Resources Tab
Selecting Tools/Resources
Check the box next to the tool/resource name to select that tool/resource for comparison. If you want to compare all the tools/resources on the page, click "Select All." If you want to compare all the tools/resources in the entire result set, change "Results per page" to "All," and then click "Select All."
Once a tool/resource is selected for comparison, it remains selected until you actually deselect it. You can go to another page of results or initiate a new search, and any previously selected tools/resources are remembered. The selected tools/resources that are not part of the search results currently shown on the page are listed simply by name above the search results.
Deselecting Tool/Resources
Click the checkbox next to a previously selected tool/resource to deselect that tool/resource. Click "Unselect All" to deselect all previously selected tools/resources, including those not showing in the current result set but listed simply by tool/resource name above the search results.
Comparing Tools/Resources
Click the Compare button at the top or bottom of the list. You are switched to the Comparison tab.
Comparison Tab
The Comparison tab shows the number of tools/resources selected for comparison in parentheses in the tab label. All the selected tools/resources are shown in a table on the tab. The table includes the tool/resource name, the date of the latest file release (if applicable), the activity percentile, the number of downloads, the average overall user rating, and all the assigned attributes for each tool/resource.
Adding Tools/Resources
To add a tool/resource to the table, go back to the Tools/Resources tab and select the additional tool/resource for comparison.
Removing Tools/Resources
To remove a tool/resource from the table, click the 
preceding the tool/resource name. To remove all tools/resources from the table, go back to the Tools/Resources tab and click "Unselect All."
Sorting
Initially, the sorting is by average overall rating with a secondary sort alphabetically by tool/resource name. You may re-sort the list by activity percentile, alphabetical listing of tool/resource names, number of downloads, latest file date, or number of user ratings. For all sort options except alphabetical listing, there is a secondary sort alphabetically by tool/resource name.
Tool/Resource Summary
Clicking the tool/resource name takes you to the Summary page for that tool/resource.
Reviews/Ratings
The average overall rating is represented by the circles. You may hover over the average rating circles to see how many ratings contributed the overall rating. Clicking on the rating circles takes you to the Display Reviews/Ratings page for that tool/resource, where you can see the individual ratings and read the user reviews.
Attributes
All the assigned attributes for each tool/resource are shown under the label for each of the nine standard attributes. Clicking "Expand All" shows all attributes below each standard attribute label. Clicking "Collapse All" hides all attributes below each standard attribute label.
Clicking an attribute takes you to the Tools/Resources tab, where your results are narrowed down to those tools/resources with that assigned attribute. All the tools/resources you previously selected for comparison are still selected, but you may add more or remove tools/resources for comparison based on the results displayed on the Tools/Resources tab.
If you need the definition of an attribute, click the Glossary link in the footer.
| Note: It is important to recognize that as you modify your search results, the tools/resources you selected for comparison remain selected even when they are no longer part of your search results. This gives you the ability to compare tools/resources with different search criteria. You must physically deselect any tools/resources that you no longer want to include for comparison. |
