Arctos v. Specify: A comparison

	Arctos	Specify
Description	Enterprise software, hardware, backups (one in Fairbanks, one in Austin, one in San Diego), professional sysadmin.	Software. User responsible for hardware setup, sysadmin, backups, etc.
Cost	Software freely available to noncommercial enterprises. Hosting, development, and administrative costs are shared and negotiable.	Free software, requires hardware, someone to maintain it, a defensible backup strategy, and network access.
Development Model	Release early, release often. Let the users intimately guide every aspect of progress. Formalized issue tracking, Steering Committee, Advisory Committee.	Release infrequently. May consider user input from the Specify Forum.
Front End	ColdFusion (system works under PHP, Java, et al.)	Java (including business rules)
Data Model	Highly normalized; easily “pluggable” and expandable. 83 tables, 836 columns	Denormalized. 143 tables, 2400 columns (as of 1 May 2009)
Back End	Oracle – an enterprise-class RDBMS known for its concurrency management and stability.	MySQL – a lightweight open-source RDBMS designed for fast query access. Not designed for archival usage. Limited concurrency management.
Business Rules	In DB, where they’re always enforced.	In application layer, where they may be bypassed (by DB updates, add-on applications, or Application bugs)
Permissions	In DB, where they’re always enforced. May be used to define Virtual Private Databases.	In application layer.
Security	Independent layers in application and DB. Professionally managed and audited.	In application layer, determined by system administrator.
Bulk Import	No practical record limit.	2000-row limit.
Interfaces	Intuitive customizable web applications.	“Roll your own” queries against tables.
Taxonomy	Formal separation of taxonomy and determinations. Accommodates composite taxonomy (hybrids, multiple taxa in one object) through identification formulae.	Determinations treated as taxonomy.
Object Tracking	Individual Specimen Parts are tracked and loaned.	Cataloged Items are tracked and loaned.
Online Access	Integral	Coming soon? Limited to query only - limited data available?
Batch edits	Most data; many access points	None
DiGIR/Tapir	Integral and automatic. Live data served.	Coming soon? Manually maintained cache.
Media	Relate to any “node.” Stored anywhere on Internet, or uploaded to server. ( +100K images, 3.8 TB at TACC)	Stored on local filesystem or MorphBank.
System Requirements	Reasonably modern browser and Internet access	“Lowest common denominator”
Publications/Citations	Inherent	Unclear
Living Collections	No apparent obstacles, but untested.	Possible future development if the community wants to develop a separate schema.
Business Model	Short-term NSF and institutional (MVZ, UAM, MCZ, & MSB) support.	Short-term NSF and institutional support.
Data Quality	Defined and enforced by the Arctos community.	Left to individual operators.
Customizations	User-customizable search and results. Collection-specific appearance and CSS.	Operator customizable search and results.
Mapping	BerkeleyMapper, Google Maps, Google Earth, download KML. Uncertainty represented as error circles.	Point mapping via downloadable KML
Saved queries	Save, name, email dynamic queries	Save static results sets. Email to agents with email addresses.
Taxon-specific attributes	User-definable, infinitely expandable determinations. Allows adding any biological collection.	Predefined assertions.