- The Peck bird information manager is an already
extensive reference about North American birds that is also
extensible: You can add photographs, recordings, etymology,
checklists, Wikipedia articles, species assessment data and your
own sighting logs. The Peck bird information manager consists of
two components: the Peck application and the optional Peck
multimedia (see the 'Multimedia Options' section below). The
Peck application runs on any device with Palm OS 3.0 or greater,
but needs a card slot and Palm OS version 5.0 or greater to
access the photographs and recordings. Download the application
here
(4.8
Mbyte .zip application updated 17 June 2008).
- auto start is specific to the Palm Operating System.
Copy this start.prc
application (18 Kbyte updated 06 February 2007) to your SD
card's /PALM directory and it will automatically start the Peck
application whenever you insert your card. If the Peck
application is not already installed, this auto start application
will try to find and run the Peck installer application.
- The Species Inventory application (i.e., SI) assists
with the key tasks of managing sightings: logging, searching, and
sharing. When you are logging sightings in the field, SI
saves time and reduces data entry errors by automatically filling
out most of the data entry fields: date, time, observer, site,
group, species, specimen count, and longitude and latitude of
observer (if a GPS receiver is connected). When you
search for a specific logged sighting (e.g., Where did I
see that species before?), SI can quickly filter sightings
according to time, observer, site, group, and species. Or you
can use SI's Quick Find to scroll through the sighting list
searching the species names. Finally, and potentially its most
valuable capability, SI makes it easy to share sightings: simply
exchange sighting files. And that exchange can be via beaming,
email, or on-line
spreadsheets. The Species Inventory application requires a
device with a card slot, Palm OS version 4.0 or greater, and the
Peck application installed. Available for download (1.0 Mbyte
.zip updated 25 May 2008).
- The Birder's Expectation gadget (version 8.5.2, updated
2008 May 16), for your iGoogle page or any gadget container,
lists the likelihood (based upon eBird statistics) of species
being sighted in your region during the current week.
- The eBirder's Report gadget (version 8.5.1, updated 2008
May 21), for your iGoogle page or any gadget container, compiles
bird counts from one or more online spreadsheets and generates a
report that can be imported into your eBird account.
- The Birder's Abacus gadget (version 8.5.3, updated 2008
May 16), for your iGoogle page or any gadget container, compiles
bird counts from one or more online spreadsheets and generates a
bird sighting report. The user
manual was last updated 2008 May 06.
- Birder's
Mapplet (version 8.5.1, updated 2008 May 16) runs within Google Maps, maps sighting
locations compiled from one or more online spreadsheets, and
displays report lists similar to the reports by Birder's Abacus.
If you have questions or comments about any of these applications,
please email them to the discussion
group.
| application |
multimedia |
device compatibility |
operating system |
North America coverage |
individual state / province coverage |
| Peck |
recordings, etymology, 240x240 pixel images |
any device with a QVGA screen running Windows Mobile 6,
Windows Mobile 5 for Smartphone, Windows Mobile 5 for Pocket
PC, or Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC (e.g., HP
iPAQ 111, Motorola
Q) |
Windows Mobile running StyleTap in 100% display mode on
devices with a QVGA display |
$15.95 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form) |
$8.45 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form) |
| Peck |
recordings, etymology, 320x320 pixel images |
Centro,
Treo
755p, Treo
700p, Treo
680, Treo 650, T|X
handheld, Tungsten
E2 handheld, Tungsten T5 handheld, Tungsten C handheld,
Zire 71 handheld, Garmin iQue 3600
(Windows
Mobile) Treo 750, (Windows
Mobile) Treo 700w|wx |
Palm OS on device with at least a 320x320 pixel display or
Windows Mobile running StyleTap in 100% display mode on
devices with a 320x320 pixel display |
$16.95 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form)
Or for convenience, you can get the multimedia already on an
SD card for $39.50 at Google
Base
|
$8.95 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form) |
| Peck |
recordings, etymology, 480x480 pixel images |
any device with a VGA screen running Windows Mobile 6,
Windows Mobile 5 for Smartphone, Windows Mobile 5 for Pocket
PC, or Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC (e.g., HP
iPAQ 211, HTC Touch
Pro) |
Windows Mobile running StyleTap in 100% display mode on
devices with a VGA display |
$18.95 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form) |
$9.95 download available at Google
Base (remember to submit the order
completion form) |
| Peck |
text of Wikipedia bird articles |
any |
any |
free download available of zipped
Wikipedia article text. Just copy the unzipped
/Eduneer/Wikipedia/Peck directory to your SD card. |
free download available of zipped
Wikipedia article text. Just copy the unzipped
/Eduneer/Wikipedia/Peck directory to your SD card. |
The Peck multimedia is a compilation of photographs and recordings
that are encrypted, stored on Secure Digital cards, and presented by
the Peck application. The North America coverage multimedia option
(last updated on January 2008) includes 1595 photographs and 1244
recordings. The state / province coverage multimedia option limits
the multimedia to cover only those species that occur in your
particular state or province. The state / province coverage option
offers about half the multimedia for about half the price. In
addition to the Peck multimedia options listed above, there are a
couple more options in the Peck
application support documentation:
- an update option (for those who have previously
purchased the Peck multimedia) is available under the "for users"
heading,
- a free public domain Peck multimedia sample (for
potential users interested in trying out the Peck application on
a small set of photographs and recordings) under the "for
potential users" heading.
If you are interested in downloading the Peck multimedia, please
review the somewhat lengthy download
instructions and copy
instructions before downloading. The multimedia installation
instructions are in the copy
instructions and can be summarized in one phrase, "Copy
instead of hotsync." Although quite a few people have saved time
and money by downloading and copying the multimedia themselves, a
good guideline is that if thoughts of using an FTP client application
and an SD card writer are not particularly pleasant then your best
choice of multimedia is the 'multimedia on 1-GByte micro/mini/SD
card.' With that, the installation / setup is trivial: insert the
card into your Palm OS device.
As you might expect, efforts have been made to minimize the
environmental impact of these field guides.
- reduce - If you opt to download the multimedia, you
eliminate the cost and packaging waste associated with shipping.
If you opt to buy the multimedia on a micro/mini/SD card, the
card is purchased in bulk and therefore avoids the large PVC
blister pack that comes with retail purchases of micro/mini/SD
cards.
- reuse - If you opt to buy the multimedia on a
micro/mini/SD card, your card has read / write capabilities and
can be reused in other applications (e.g., photography). To
promote reuse, the SD card shipped by Eduneer is what SanDisk
calls a microSD 'Mobile Memory Kit.' It is a microSD card along
with miniSD and full size SD adapters so you will be able to
reuse this one card in devices with micro, mini, or full size SD
card slots.
- recycle - If you opt to buy the multimedia on a
micro/mini/SD card, your mailer is composed of recycled paper
(10% post-consumer) and recycled plastic.
For more ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle, visit the EPA Web site.
The following table compares some recently developed electronic
guides for birders.
| Eduneer's Peck |
National
Geographic's Handheld Birds |
MightyJams'
birdJam |
Wildlife
Acoustics' Song Sleuth |
| initially released |
September 2005 |
June 2006 |
2005 (see note 1) |
2005 |
| government project |
no |
yes (see note 2) |
no |
no |
| updated |
yes (see note 3) |
yes (see note 4) |
? |
yes (see note 5) |
| target devices |
smartphones and PDAs |
smartphones and PDAs |
iPod |
custom hardware |
| target device has built-in speaker |
yes |
yes |
no |
no |
| # of images included |
1595 (mostly photographs) |
"1600+" (mostly drawings) |
99 (see note 6) |
none |
| additional user included images allowed |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| slide show capabilities |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| # of recordings included |
1244 (2.7 hours of recordings) |
"nearly four hours of [...] playback" |
depends upon CD selection |
about 500 per module (see note 7) |
| additional user included recordings
allowed |
yes |
no |
yes (see note 8) |
(see note 9) |
| audio search capability |
yes |
no |
no |
yes |
| ID tips searchable |
yes |
no |
(not applicable) |
(not applicable) |
| life history descriptions searchable |
yes |
no |
(not applicable) |
(not applicable) |
| bird size filter available |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
| bird color filter available |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
| bird shape filter available |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| typical time to scroll to any species |
< 5 s using Quick Find text search |
? |
< 15 s using scroll wheel |
(not applicable) |
| etymology |
common/scientific names of 736 species |
none |
none |
none |
| species assessment data |
yes, compiled by Partners in
Flight |
no |
no |
no |
| AOU
check-list |
complete |
partial (see note 10) |
no |
no |
| up to date AOU check-list |
yes (supplement 48) |
no (supplement 46) |
no |
no |
| bird record committee check-lists |
236 |
? |
0 |
0 |
| distribution maps |
none (see note 11) |
650+ |
none |
none |
| localized sighting statistics |
yes (see note 12) |
yes (see note 13) |
none |
none |
| sighting logger |
yes (see note 14) |
yes |
no |
no |
| sighting log uploadable to eBird |
yes |
yes (see note 15) |
(not applicable) |
(not applicable) |
| sighting log displayable in Google Maps |
yes |
no |
(not applicable) |
(not applicable) |
| free user manual available |
yes |
no |
? |
no |
| free trial version available |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| personalized support |
yes (support
group) |
yes (online contact form, email, chat) |
yes (online contact form) |
yes (email, toll-free telephone support) |
| private support |
no (see note 16) |
yes |
yes |
yes |
| application registration required |
no (see note 17) |
yes |
no |
yes |
| multimedia distribution options |
download or 1-GByte micro/mini/SD card |
512-MByte SD card or 1-GByte miniSD card |
CDs or loaded iPod |
download |
| price |
$8.95 - $39.50 (see note 18) |
$37.50/year - $99.95 (see note 19) |
$178.95 (see note 20) |
$299.95 (see note 21) |
- note 1: MightyJams' birdJam was called birdPod before 2007.
- note 2: The development of Handheld Birds was funded by NSF
awards #0232945
for $99,968 and #0422158
for $1,042,427.
- note 3: The Peck application updates are free, and there can be
several per month while mistakes are being fixed or new features
added.
- note 4: The National Geographic's Handheld Birds application
has been updated once.
- note 5: Wildlife Acoustics offers free software updates for one
year after purchase.
- note 6: To get photographs in birdJam, purchase Photoset:
Common Eastern Birds for birdPod/birdJam.
- note 7: Wildlife Acoustics offers 14 modules at $39.95 per
module or $249.95 for the complete set. Each module contains
about 500 recordings of about 60 species. In total, the 14
modules cover 157 species.
- note 8: To include your own recordings in birdJam, purchase birdJam
Maker Software, Eastern and Western North America.
- note 9: The Song Sleuth can record bird songs, but those
recordings do not update its song identification database.
- note 10: National Geographic's Handheld Birds application does
not include the AOU list, but can sort its list of birds
according to the order of the AOU list (supplement 46).
- note 11: Although the Peck application currently displays no
distribution maps, distribution information is inherent in the
Peck application's localization capabilities that offer 48
distributions throughout the year for each of the 696 documented
species. In other words, you don't need to look at 696
distribution maps to determine which species are currently in
your region. Instead, just check your region in the BCR
list.
- note 12: The time resolution of the sighting statistics in the
Peck application is one week. The locale resolution is one Bird
Conservation Region.
- note 13: The time resolution of the sighting statistics in the
Handheld Birds application is one month. The locale resolution
is one state.
- note 14: The logging of sightings is implemented by the Species
Inventory application, which integrates with the Peck
application.
- note 15: A PC running Microsoft Windows OS is required by
Handheld Birds to upload sighting logs to eBird.
- note 16: A public support forum reduces support duplication and
therefore reduces support costs. By the way, it also provides an
incentive (i.e., avoiding public humiliation :*) to quickly fix
mistakes in the application.
- note 17: Although the Peck application is free to copy, its
multimedia is encrypted according to your micro/mini/SD card's
ID.
- note 18: The $8.95 price is for a download of the
high-resolution multimedia limited to state-wide coverage. The
$39.50 price is for the high-resolution multimedia on a 1-Gbyte
SD card. The price of other Peck multimedia options are listed
under the heading "Multimedia Options".
- note 19: The $37.50 price is for a one year online
subscription. The $99.95 price is for the application and
multimedia on a 512-Mbyte SD card.
- note 20: The $178.95 price is for the Stokes Field Guide to
Bird Songs (Eastern and Western regions), the birdJam Maker
Software (Eastern and Western North America), and the Photoset of
Common Eastern Birds for birdPod/birdJam.
- note 21: The $299.95 price for the Song Sleuth includes one
bird song module covering about 60 species.
Perhaps the best way to determine if the Peck bird information
manager runs on your handheld or smartphone is to copy the Peck
multimedia sample to your SD card, install the Peck application by
running the peck-Installer.prc, and try it out. However, for people
who do not yet own a handheld or smartphone, I’ve compiled the
hardware
compatibility reports (9 KB, .pdf) I’ve received from
users.
- Palm OS devices, such as Treo
650, Treo 680, Treo 700p, Treo 755p, Tungsten TX, Tungsten E2,
Zire 31, or the Centro. For details about supported Palm OS
devices, see the Peck
Bird Information Manager Hardware Compatibility document.
- Microsoft
Windows Mobile devices with or without touchscreens. Examples of
devices with a touchscreen are the Treo 700w/wx, Treo 750,
Cingular 8125, Cingular 8525, Dell Axim X51v, HP iPaq hw6500, HP
iPaq hw6900, Verizon Vx6700. Examples of devices without a
touchscreen are Motorola Q, Cingular 3125, Samsung BlackJack,
T-Mobile Dash. To run on a Windows Mobile device, the Peck
application requires installation of the StyleTap application. (A
native Windows Mobile 6 version of the Peck application is being
developed, but there is no release date set yet.)
- Nokia Internet Tablets
N770, N800, N810 can now run Palm OS applications via the ACCESS Garnet VM
(Virtual Machine).
- Beginning in the first quarter of 2008, Symbian OS devices running UIQ
3 or S60 3rd Edition, which includes smartphone models from
Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola. To run on a Symbian OS
device, the Peck application requires installation of the StyleTap application.
(StyleTap currently has an alpha version of their Palm OS
emulator running on Symbian OS devices, and plans to publicly
release the product in the first quarter of 2008.)
- Beginning in the second half of 2008, hardware from the Open Handset
Alliance (OHA) will be available. Porting the Peck
application to OHA devices is an active project.
- Any desktop/laptop OS. The Peck application does not
require a desktop or laptop at all (i.e., no conduits!), and the
Species Inventory application is designed to work with any
desktop or laptop that can read the text of the sighting files
and reports (e.g., the eBird upload file) saved to your SD
card.
- Support documentation for users, potential users, database
collaborators, recordists and photographers is available at www.eduneer.com/peck.
- Anyone can read or join (to write) the Peck application discussion
group.
Outlined below are the steps to setting up the Peck bird
information manager. A good option for those with dial-up Internet
access or those not interested in using an FTP client application is
purchasing the multimedia on a 1-GByte SD card because it avoids the
first four steps, and simplifies the fifth and sixth. (In addition
to containing the multimedia, the 1-GByte SD card has the application
installer and an auto start application that installs the Peck
application when you initially insert the card into your Palm OS
device, and starts the Peck application on subsequent insertions.)
- get an SD card - There are lots of tips about SD cards
in the copy
instructions.
- get some multimedia - See the options under the heading
'Multimedia Options'. Note that if you decide to purchase a
download of the multimedia, you should first read the download
instructions.
- copy the multimedia to your SD card - Follow the copy
instructions.
- get the application(s) - Download and unzip the Peck
application. If you are interested in logging your sightings of
birds, download and unzip the Species Inventory application.
- install the application(s) - To install the Peck
application, run the downloaded and unzipped peck-Installer.prc
application on your Palm OS device. Similarly, to install the
Species Inventory application, run the si-Installer.prc
application.
- start the Peck application - To start the Peck
application, go to your Palm OS device's application launcher
(i.e., tap the home icon) and then tap the Peck application's
icon (i.e., the bird beak icon). If you happen to start the Peck
application before copying the Peck multimedia to your SD card,
that is okay also. However in that case, after you copy the Peck
multimedia to your SD card, you should then select the AOU list's
'Select/Link to Multimedia' menu item.
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