StatSoft continuously analyzes feedback from users and develops quality products in direct response to consumer need. It is largely due to this two-way communication with the customer that STATISTICA has enjoyed a remarkable and unmatched record of reviews and awards since its first release in 1993. The following page is a detailed summary of every known review of STATISTICA, various awards received throughout the years, and published user comments.
2004
In his recent article "How to Choose a Data Mining Suite", Dr. Robert A. Nisbet reviews five popular data mining suites to help companies evaluate which suite is best for their particular needs, including STATISTICA Data Miner, SPSS-Clementine, Affinium Model, Insightful Miner, and KXEN.
The article contains an extremely detailed comparison of procedures and features of these five products on over 100 dimensions (with a detailed table reproduced in the article), concluded with the final composite scores. STATISTICA Data Miner has received a total score of 1,147 (almost two times higher than its closest competitor, SPSS Clementine).
| Product | Total Score |
| StatSoft STATISTICA Data Miner | 1,147 |
| SPSS Clementine | 641 |
| Insightful Miner | 565 |
| Affinium Model | 474 |
| KXEN | 562 |
Referring to his comprehensive table showing a weighted comparison of the features and functions of the different tools, Dr. Nisbet notes that by comparing the relatively moderate cost and the weighted score across all features and functions, STATISTICA Data Miner is "the clear winner" and is "in a class by itself". He goes on to state that "no data mining suite available today provides more tools for performing data mining projects" and proclaims STATISTICA Data Miner as his "personal favorite" among the tools he evaluated.
Dr. Nisbet lists the pros of STATISTICA Data Miner, including "the richest combination of parametric statistical and machine learning data mining algorithms", "highly flexible tools for model output", "powerful tools for reduction of dimensionality", and "scalability (STATISTICA Data Miner can more rapidly process larger data sets both in terms of their dimensionality and the overall size than the other products)".
Dr. Nisbet has over 30 years experience in complex systems analysis and modeling as a Research Professor (University of California, Santa Barbara) and as consultant in data mining sciences. While at NCR Corporation and Torrent Systems, he pioneered the design and development of configurable data mining applications for retail sales forecasting, and Churn, Propensity-to-buy, and Customer Acquisition in Telecommunications and Insurance.
Click here to read Dr. Nisbet's complete review in pdf format.
| Back to Top |
A review in the February 2003 issue of DM Review describes how STATISTICA Data Miner's impressive array of data mining algorithms solved a variety of classification and prediction problems for Oklahoma State University graduate IT students.
STATISTICA Data Miner was the "premier choice" for OSU's Department of Management Science and Information Systems, according to Dr. Dursun Delen, Assistant Professor. Delen states, "Based on my years of experience in industry and in academia, I can confidently say that STATISTICA Data Miner has one of the most comprehensive data mining algorithms on the market." He also calls the graphical tools and their outputs "phenomenal."
Delen lists many other advantages over other data mining tools, including a graphical, interactive, user-friendly interface, rich set of visualization tools, processing speed, and its ability to be launched as a Web application. In spite of these many strengths, Delen also found STATISTICA Data Miner to be "less expensive than other comprehensive toolkits in the market."
OSU students used STATISTICA Data Miner for the prediction of diabetic illnesses based on demographic, social and recreational parameters; target marketing models for better promotional mailing; prediction of financial indicators such as the S&P 500; and foreign exchange rates, among others.
| Back to Top |
Felix Grant, a well-known lecturer and reviewer in the UK, recently commented on the latest versions (version 6) of STATISTICA QC Charts, Data Miner, and Neural Networks in a software review published in the September issue of Quality Digest magazine.
In the review, Grant remarks on STATISTICA QC Chart's to handle large data sets, multiple databases, and real-time auto-updating saying, "There must be limits to the density and variability of data flow, but I’ve not yet discovered them -- despite some very demanding work that would make most software packages cry."
In the same review, Grant calls STATISTICA Data Miner "the best tool I've seen yet for actually applying what you learn at the sharp end of industry" and "the easiest to use data mining control I've encountered." He goes on to praise its friendly user interface and strong set of exploratory analytic routines.
Lastly, the reviewer addresses STATISTICA Neural Networks. Although admittedly tentative when it comes to using nn software, Grant finds that STATISTICA Neural Networks has "particular strengths for unfamiliar users and those with reporting or team working priorities."
Grant summarizes,"These new additions to the STATISTICA 6 product range take traditional quality further, make it more accessible, and introduce a new level of integration that yield considerable synergy payoffs. If you have unsolved analytical problems, try STATISTICA 6."
To read the complete review go to the Quality Digest Web site.
| Back to Top |
In a recent article in the Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America (January 2002 issue) reviewers call STATISTICA Neural Networks (SNN) an "excellent package for both new and experienced users of neural networks" and "by far the best, in terms of ease of use, power."
Reviewers Jeffrey Lusk, Oklahoma State University Department of Forestry, and Steven Wilson, of EcoLogic Research, compare STATISTICA Neural Networks with Neural Connections from SPSS and Qnet 2000 from Vesta Services. They agree that "SNN's interface is more intuitive than other packages and allows users to view simultaneously data, network predictions/output, and performance statistics." They conclude that STATISTICA is "the most intuitive and easiest to use of the three packages."
They found the genetic algorithms utility unique to STATISTICA. "SNN can test various combinations of variables against each other to evolve an optimal set for subsequent neural network development. The genetic algorithm also ranks variables in the optimal subset, indicating which variables are most important. This feature is useful for removing noisy, information-poor variables from large data sets prior to further analysis. Neither of the other two neural network packages mentioned above has this capability."
They also praise the simulation tool in SNN as being "much more intuitive and easy to use than a similar tool in SPSS's Neural Connections," while "Qnet 2000 does not provide a simulation tool at all." They go on to say that "SNN will generate classification networks if it detects a categorical dependent variable in the training data set. No additional input is required from the user, and model building is again very fast and efficient....Diagnostic output is very complete, and includes a sensitivity analysis to help determine the importance of different input variable to the final model."
| Back to Top |
In the February 2002 issue of DM Review, John Deere Quality Engineer Navaid Ahmed gave STATISTICA rave reviews for its performance, ability to integrate, data visualization capabilities, and much more.
In the article, Ahmed discussed the variety of reasons why at John Deere "the decision to select STATISTICA was unanimous." According to Ahmed, "The versatility and flexibility of the product were the main reasons for selecting STATISTICA. It can be used for a variety of different forms of statistical analysis. Excellent service support and broad-based statistical analysis capability were the major advantages that this product had over others we considered."
Summarizing what he considers to be the main strengths of STATISTICA, Ahmed offered, "STATISTICA works well with our CMM systems." However, "the interactive ability of the software is its main strength. The different ways that data analysis can be performed and its ease of use with easy-to-read output are also some of the main strengths of STATISTICA. The ability to work with Microsoft Excel is also a plus."Ahmed also applauded StatSoft for its excellent and prompt technical support saying, "Quick email responses and solutions to problems I've faced have been the best part of working with the vendor."
Click here to read the complete article.| Back to Top |
A recent (October 19, 2001) article in COMPUTERWORLD (Polish version) described how ALSTOM Power Elblag Sp. z o.o., a top manufacturer of turbine castings, uses STATISTICA Enterprise-wide SPC System (STATISTICA Enterprise/QC) to optimize its production processes and ensure quality.
Jerzy Slawinski, ALSTOM Power's quality manager, speaks highly of STATISTICA Enterprise/QC in the article, "The STATISTICA Enterprise/QC system is not just a package that runs on the computer on the desk of an analyst. It is an integrated solution which links production, data acquisition, database and analytical parts."
"About 30 operators and engineers" and "a wide group of managers use the system" for data collection, data management, and statistical analysis. The entire process was described in the article:
"STATISTICA Enterprise/QC continuously retrieves data: first, components and raw materials characteristics are measured (this additionally controls reliability of the suppliers), then characteristics of moulding sand (tensile strength and permeability), furnace charge, fire-clay moulders, melted metal composition and pouring process are monitored, parameters of heat treatment recorded, casting quality is measured (repair welding factor), dimensional compatibility checked. Each cast generates several hundred records of data. The factory produces over 400 tons of casts each month. Measurement data are retrieved by the system automatically or sent to the system by operators with measurement devices or keyboard data entry. STATISTICA Enterprise/QC stores measurement data in an external database (in this case it is an Oracle database) and runs on a network server."
Slawinski says, "The global market in our sector is very competitive. Turbine castings dropped in prices by 50% in the last 5 years. In this situation, quality is not a negotiable option, we talk only about costs and time to delivery. Producers who will not manage to change in time will not stay in this market." The comprehensive analytical tools, flexible alarm notification, interactive query facilities, and many other innovative features in STATISTICA Enterprise/QC help ALSTOM Power meet these essential quality standards.
| Back to Top |
For the fifth consecutive year, STATISTICA has been rated one of the top five products in statistical software by Scientific Computing & Instrumentation, a popular magazine among scientists and engineers. Published in the December 2001 issue, the annual selection is based on the products generating the most reader interest, as indicated by the use of the Reader Service Card, in a variety of product categories.
| Back to Top |
Felix Grant, writer for Scientific Computing World, has just published a praise-filled review of STATISTICA 6 - "STATISTICA goes from Strength to Strength". The title seems appropriate, since throughout the review Grant praises practically every new feature in the program!
In general of STATISTICA 6 Grant says, "Down in the works, among the actual processes that a statistical package is there to perform, there are too many small enhancements, evolutions and developments to detail."
Here are some direct quotes from the article that give you an idea of Grants thoughts on STATISTICA 6 features:
On Customization -
"Further evolution of the customisation potential is another welcome feature - STATISTICA has always been highly configurable to suit the user and environment; this quality has now been extended considerably. Option defaults are extensive, and most interface artefacts can now be created, moved, modified or removed in a rapid, efficient, highly intuitive manner. Menu customisation is mesmerically addictive, so easily can objects be moved from one place to another as if playing with children’s building blocks."
"The ability to provide each user (or each group of users) with a version of the analytic tools best suited to their needs, extraneous distractions hidden or removed, is invaluable. Productivity is further enhanced if the user can adopt mnemonics and layouts that mimic other regularly-used software - and this, too, is now easier than ever."
On Graphics -
"Control, throughout, is effortless and precise. "
"Staying with the visual, STATISTICA's already impressive graphics technology has been further developed. There are now a hierarchical style system and intelligent format painting, which (once I was used to them) greatly cut the time and fiddle involved in tuning final output, as do new options in output design."
On VB -
"A variety of professional problems that I encountered during this period were solved quickly, efficiently and glossily with VB-automated STATISTICA, with or without other application interactions. These ranged from data repair macros, and mimic routines for the expert mentioned above, to online data polling and direct data logging, to a sudden need for HTML reports updated on a minute-by-minute basis."
On System Limits -
"STATISTICA as a whole has been overhauled to allow what seems to be more or less unlimited external data access power. Internal limits have also been removed - or, at least, I think they have. StatSoft makes use of the word 'practically' more than once in these contexts, which leaves the ambiguous possibility that limits still lurk out there somewhere. Whatever boundaries may remain, however, I haven't found them - despite a determined attempt, using access to a terabyte store, which tied up my 1GHz/1024Mb machine for more than 36 hours but eventually completed."
On Web functionality -
"Most software products are evolving to survive in this new environment; and STATISTICA is now very strong in the Internet or Intranet capability department."
Click here to read the complete review.
| Back to Top |
A new survey conducted by SCIENCE (the publication of the American Association for Advancement of Science; circulation: over 150,000) of a randomly selected sample of its readers has provided data on how StatSoft, Inc. is perceived by the community of scientists and administrators of science. The following are unedited statements about StatSoft, Inc. and its products volunteered anonymously by the respondents. The data for the surveys, sponsored by SCIENCE magazine, were collected by the Harvey Research Organization, Fairport, New York. The following selection of excerpts has been accepted by SCIENCE for use in this material (reprinted by permission of SCIENCE and Harvey Research Organization):
"I have used StatSoft [STATISTICA] before(...). You can't beat them."
-- Professor of Biology, University
"I know a lot of people that use it (...). The [STATISTICA] graphics are awesome."
-- Research Assistant, University
"We use this in many of our departments. The university appreciates its versatility."
-- Professor of Biology, University
"They make excellent statistical software."
-- Genetic Toxicologist, Industry
"(...) They have a great series of software packages."
-- Associate Professor, University
"(...) I think that StatSoft has a good thing going with this product. You can do a lot with it."
-- Associate Professor, University
"(...) I use their statistical package. I need to get another program from them. They have good quality."
-- Professor, Medical School
"I do know this company. I have a good image of them."
-- President, Industry
"I am familiar with this company. I have a good opinion of them."
-- Program Leader, Industry
"I think that StatSoft is excellent."
-- Vice President of R&D, Industry
"I like their statistics package because you can use it in all different fields. We have used it to make some of our displays. (...) I have always been impressed by them."
-- Botany Curator, Museum
"They have some excellent software. Some of it is very useful. I think the company is on the cutting-edge.""
-- Microbiologist, Government
"I have a good image of this company."
-- Asst. Professor, University
"(...) I am very impressed with them."
-- Sr. Research Associate, Laboratory
| Back to Top |
STATISTICA 6 (Beta) recently received a very warm welcome from reviewer Felix Grant in the review "The future is here...at last" in the July/August issue of Scientific Computing World. Grant begins by reviewing the most obvious change from previous version, the interface, and describes the STATISTICA 6 interface as "extensively customizable to reflect your own requirements." He continues, "This ability to shape a working environment in the interests of maximum personal or team usefulness has, of course, always been one of STATISTICA's strong points; but the means now reflect current Windows trends."
He goes on to compare the functionality in STATISTICA favorably against that of one of the most popular software products in the world, "Menus adapt automatically to application frame context, in a way that is better managed and more flexible than Microsoft's, and customization can be made to reflect this. So far, I have not yet hit the limits of this customization potential."
In the remainder of the review Grant praises many other areas of the program, including the new integrated STATISTICA Visual Basic - "well cool", the workbook system - "a definite advance," and many others... "Graphics benefit from an impressive range of incremental improvements with new types, more visual and intuitive access selection, enhanced brushing and zooming, style management, and interactive sectioning of 3D constructs. There are new statistical procedures in modelling and data mining, and improvements in a swathe of others. The whole package, never slow on its feet, has gained noticeably in speed and responsiveness."
After running STATISTICA alongside competing products Grant concludes, "I have become a fan (of STATISTICA), encountering only superior performance, enhanced handling and no glitches."
| Back to Top |
The July 9th issue of The Scientist featured a brief overview of some of the most commonly used statistical software tools on the market, and STATISTICA's description clearly stands out among the descriptions of its peers.
In his introduction to the comprehensive statistical tools available, Author Paul Wolf notes that "Several large packages are geared toward the statistical expert. These are often more flexible, and some can handle larger and more complex data than their smaller brethren can. Familiarity (and effective instruction) can make even the most cumbersome software user-friendly, but the general trend is toward ease-of-use across the spectrum."
However, later in the same section, he introduces STATISTICA by saying "The difference between simple and relatively inflexible packages and complex and versatile ones is not necessarily clear cut."
Wolf describes STATISTICA as "a very flexible and widely-used application that could appeal to both experts and beginners" and goes on to say, "the entire approach to the software is scalable, and quality of output is excellent".
| Back to Top |
For the fourth year in a row, STATISTICA has been rated one of the top five products in statistical software by Scientific Computing & Instrumentation, a popular magazine among scientists and engineers. Determined by reader response to items published in over a 12 month period, Scientific Computing & Instrumentation published the year 2000 winners in the recent July 2001 issue. Editors chose the products that generate the most reader interest, as indicated by the use of the Reader Service Card, in a wide variety of product categories.
| Back to Top |
For a fifth consecutive year STATISTICA has received high marks from Scientific Computing and Instrumentation readers in multiple categories. STATISTICA is the winner in the QA/QC software category for the second year in a row in Scientific Computing and Instrumentation's July issue. STATISTICA is also a finalist in the category of statistical software.
| Back to Top |
STATISTICA recently received the Reader's Choice Award and the highest ranking ("Finalist") among general purpose statistics software packages in the "AI Software (Expert, Neural)" category of the Reader's Choice Awards published in the 2001 Bonus issue of Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities. Next to STATISTICA, only very specialized packages, designed specifically for trading/forecasting, received accolades. No other general purpose statistical software package was even mentioned in the results of the vote. The additional fact that StatSoft products have never been advertised in this publication, so readers know STATISTICA only from other sources, makes this award especially flattering.
| Back to Top |
In the February 2001 issue of DM Review magazine, STATISTICA Enterprise-wide SPC System (STATISTICA Enterprise/QC) received a glowing review from Photronics, a leading worldwide supplier of photomasks, high precision quartz plates used in the manufacture of semiconductors. In 2000, after a team from Photronics conducted a thorough investigation of several SPC packages, they chose the unique scalability and versatility of STATISTICA Enterprise-wide SPC System (STATISTICA Enterprise/QC) in order to guarantee the quality of its products shipped to consumers. Photronics recently implemented STATISTICA Enterprise/QC at six sites internationally and plans to have six more sites on-line by March 2001. STATISTICA Enterprise/QC was selected because of its ease of integration with Photronics' existing manufacturing execution system and because it provided flexibility beyond the existing system. According to Barbara Manville, Photronics director of corporate software development, StatSoft representatives worked diligently to resolve issues specific to their organization. Manville stated, "The best part of working with StatSoft has been the expertise of the technical support staff who are well versed in both statistics and the inner workings of the package."
Click here to read the complete review.
| Back to Top |
In his recent comprehensive review of the latest version of STATISTICA (see the next section), Felix Grant, a software reviewer for Scientific Computing World, has summarized comments collected from "existing users [who] allowed detailed examination of (and some experimenting with) one STATISTICA Enterprise installation, two of STATISTICA Enterprise/QC, and one of WebSTATISTICA Enterprise/QC."
The reviewer concluded that "these products display the familiar modularity and contain all the elements necessary for a potential dispersed data web of any kind. A STATISTICA Enterprise/QC/WebSTATISTICA Enterprise/QC set up takes (SPC) data from a database, analyses it using what is essentially STATISTICA, then outputs results in web form instead of on paper."
Grant is extremely complimentary of the STATISTICA Enterprise/QC system, touting its "proven capability at an automated industrial scale" and applauds StatSoft products in general: "No other company, however, has so successfully managed the particular trick of making a range of standalone products appear to be aspects of the analytical package - an extension of the inherent modularity."
| Back to Top |
STATISTICA was ranked extremely high "amongst the small elite pack of leaders" in the August/September 2000 issue of Scientific Computing World.
In his very thorough three page review, reviewer Felix Grant discusses in detail practically all aspects of the STATISTICA family of products including the new, interactive modules introduced in version 5.5 (Visual General Linear Models, Visual Generalized Linear Models, Visual Partial Least Squares, and Visual General Stepwise Regression) as well as the new technologies offered by StatSoft to integrate the software with other applications and computing environments. The author summarizes by saying STATISTICA "excels in delivering clearly branded intuitive methods, ergonomic appeal, responsiveness and adaptability to a wide range of consumers." Grant calls STATISTICA version 5.5 "thoroughly modular, extremely open, and extensively customisable." He claims STATISTICA possesses "a uniquely intuitive usability which weighs heavily with real-world users" and features "the best onboard large database capability of any product in its market."
"Numerous statistical products offer API hooks to developers and OLE to other applications; several provide ready made interaction links to specific in-house or third-party products; a few offer a stable of other products which relate to the analytical package. StatSoft does all of these. No other company, however, has so successfully managed the particular trick of making a range of standalone products appear to be aspects of the analytical package - an extension of the inherent modularity."
| Back to Top |
VISTEON, one of the world's largest suppliers of automotive components and systems, gave rave reviews to STATISTICA Enterprise-wide SPC System
in a recent issue of the popular French magazine,
QUALITE REFERENCES (July 2000). VISTEON representatives claimed "STATISTICA Enterprise/QC is actually only limited by our imagination." In the process of redesigning their SPC system and preparing for QS 9000 certification, they chose the STATISTICA/STATISTICA Enterprise/QC system for a variety of reasons discussed in the article: "STATISTICA Enterprise/QC is really flexible, and we could perfectly match the software to our current system, in a very easy and quick way: each entry is customizable (operator's name, lot number) which allows for very detailed analyses of the process variations. The extensive tools that are offered in STATISTICA Enterprise/QC (DOE, multivariate analyses) was also an important aspect of our choice." VISTEON is clearly more than pleased with their choice, saying "As of today, our system grows very quickly, and is not limited by our
software."
| Back to Top |