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SonoAnalyzer beta now available for download

<Update 09 Oct 2009>
I'm still getting enquiries about this long after the beta trial has finished. Please note that this trial software is no longer available for download and no more beta versions will be released. I'm still working on the production version and aiming to release it soon.
<End update>

The new, stand-alone, Java-OpenGL version of the aging Sonotrode calculator is finally available for limited release. This is a copy of the e-mail which has just gone out to the registered beta-testers.

Hello hopeful beta-testers!

Sorry for the delay getting this program out, and thanks for your patience so far. I have now finally got everything in place for limited publication of the first release version: 0.20 beta.

I'll be putting together some detailed instructions shortly but for anyone keen to try it as soon as possible, you can now download a copy from the powerultrasonics.com website. As a registered beta-tester, you can go to the site (if necessary, log in with your username and password) and in the menu on the left of the page, directly below your username you should see a link "SonoAnalyzer beta" which leads to the downloads page.

Currently available are downloads for Linux (RedHat, SUSE and similar distributions) and Windows. I'd be interested to test it on other systems also so if you need something else please ask.

There are many things that still need to be added (and I think many of these are noticeably missing from the current version) but I don't want to steer your opinions towards the improvements I have planned so I'll wait a while before publishing my ideas. Meanwhile I would welcome your thoughts and feedback about the installation process, the current functionality and extra features you'd like to see.

If your feedback is in any way confidential then you can contact me privately by e-mail or via the website contact form. But if at all possible I encourage you instead to share your comments publicly on the forum. Sharing discussions with several others with different experience and ideas will, I believe, expand and develop the proposals better as well as reducing the duplication of effort (not least for me!). I've placed a copy of this e-mail on the forum as a starting point for such discussions.

Thanks again for your interest in the PowerUltrasonics SonoAnalyzer software, and for any feedback you can give me to help me improve it.

Regards
Chris Cheers

Under Windows Vista (not XP) there seems to be a problem installing to the "Program Files" directory, even if your user has admin privileges. I'm going to try a signed jar to see if that makes a difference, but if not the workaround is simply to select a different directory when prompted during installation. Installing under the user directory doesn't seem to cause the same problem.

Update: I believe this is now fixed by wrapping the Java installer inside a setup.exe file, as now linked on the download page. If you still encounter this problem using the new installer please let me know.

Also, I've seen on some systems that the 3D sonotrode image in the graphics window appears very dark. For comparison, the image in the program should look like the logo image at the top left of this page - if yours looks much darker you should upgrade to the new version 0.21 where the bug is fixed.