I have been using AGROBASE since 1993, the AGROBASE/4 DOS version. It has helped us keep all our data together. Where previously our data was all over all the computers, read plural, in our division, it was now connected to an entry for that specific year in a specific file, experiment or trial. With some power play, the data could be manipulated as I wanted it to analyze or display/print out. When moving to AGROBASE Generation II, major problems were eliminated:

1. Names of traits, entries, localities, etc. needed to be changed only in one place and have it reflected through the whole program instead of searching through all files for the names to be changed.

2. All the info on an entry is connected over years and localities so that comparisons over years is quite easy to do.

What I enjoy most about Agronomix Software is that they are open to communication with their customers. Any complaint, error reporting or suggestions receive immediate response from them, whether it is from their customer care desk, programmers or Dieter himself -- you will receive a reply!!

I can personally vouch for that as I have made a few suggestions and error reports myself which were incorporated or rectified as soon as their schedule allowed it, in some cases within 10 days.

I would strongly advise anybody looking to buy software for their research to take a closer look at AGROBASE Generation II as it is still growing and developing.

I have been a plant breeder for over 40 years and I have used Agrobase for some time – I believe the first licence I used was AGROBASE 95, and I remember AGROBASE 97 came on 4 greenish-coloured stiffies!

I graduated to Agrobase 98 which I used until August 2004 when the Seed Co team I was part of converted to Generation II.

The main motive to upgrade to Gen II was mainly for the research team to standardise software and to consolidate research data into crop-wide groups. We converted in August 2004 and Dieter Mulitze came to Zimbabwe to conduct a training course.

It took me some time to get my research groups created, especially as I wanted to go back in time and import as much ‘historical’ data as possible as I believe the true value of Gen II is being able to include as many years and locations into the conduct of variety comparisons. Gen II does a magnificent job summarising variety performance and comparison. The head-to-head analysis is great!

I have just recently joined a young seed company and have been given responsibility for improvement of a range of crops including self- and open pollinated crops, and to improve data management. With a total of about 8 crops, I do not believe I would manage this number of programs without Gen II.

Gen II allows our programme to be ready for planting considerably earlier than normal. This is made possible by more efficient handling of crosses, selections, populations and nurseries, and the designing of experiments. Seed preparation, labelling and printing of field record books are quickly and easily done.

I have found Gen II to be an extremely powerful tool and I would recommend it to all practicing plant breeders.

I was first introduced to Agrobase in graduate school at Louisiana State University when it was a DOS program. I used some of the first Windows versions and now use Generation II. Agrobase Generation II covers plant breeding from beginning to end.

The software is flexible and powerful and makes quick work of data manipulation tasks that could take hours. Generation II is the sole warehouse for data from our peanut breeding program at the University of Florida. We use it to generate experimental designs for yield tests and for breeding nurseries. It has easy to use reporting tools for labels and field books, which also saves lots of time.

One of the best aspects of using Agrobase is the ability to call the support staff and have questions answered quickly. I also like the fact that we, the users, are asked for input to improve the software and most often, the improvements are incorporated into future releases.

I highly recommend Generation II for plant breeders who need a complete software package.

I am a research technologist and I have been involved in plant breeding for 16 years. I have used AGROBASE since it was a DOS based program and have graduated up the versions over the years and converted to Generation II in January 2006. I found the conversion of all my old data very easy and the usefulness of Gen II to be phenomenal.

I had never taken advantage of many of the functions in the older versions of AGROBASE because I found them cumbersome and difficult to manipulate, relying on other programs like SAS and Excel to execute what I needed. Gen II has changed all that file manipulation for me. I now use the program as it was intended, from entry list to final output, it does it all.

Over the years I have taken three training courses, that last one prior to our conversion to Gen II. Dr. Mulitze is an excellent instructor and answered many of the concerns I had about the program.

The support staff at Agronomix is exceptional from the Office Staff (Trish), to the Software Support Staff (Kim), to Mr. Blatta in Product Development, to Dr. Mulitze. Everyone is always willing to listen to my comments and suggestions for possible advances for Generation II or helping solve problems, which make my job easier.

Vadim Jitkov a technologist on another breeding program in our college, who had also been using the same older version of the program we were using, chose to switch to Gen II at the same time we did. We both went on a campaign, of sorts, to introduce AGROBASE to four other research programs via the training session Dr. Mulitze teaches. We now have four additional research programs that are using Gen II. Having that many users in one locale to discuss AGROBASE issues is a great advantage. We all have constructive discussions and can learn together, and would highly recommend that the more users you have in one place the better.

I have used Agrobase Generation II in my work here at National Starch for three years. I create my entire testing program with Generation II. The process follows our growing season from seeding and finishes with analysis and reports. I utilize the system in all aspects from creation of individual trials, multi-locations, pinning sheets, packaging labels, note taking printouts and analysis reports. The Gen II system has saved me considerable time in managing our testing program.

I have also taken the Generation II training course. It was well done and was of tremendous help in answering my questions to accommodate what we require for my company’s program. The support staff is always there for any question or problem that might arise. The support staff at Agrobase is phenomenal from the Office Staff, to the Software Support Staff, to Mr. Blatta in Product Development, to Dr. Mulitze. Everyone is always ready to listen to suggestions for possible advances for Generation II or helping solve problems.
Thanks for making my responsibilities easier.

I have been using Agrobase for nine years and made the switch to Gen II when it came out in 2003. Being an older two finger typing fellow in the variety testing business I have enjoyed using this mouse driven software for setting up tests and analysis of data.

The switch from the old agrobase to Gen II was a painfully steep learning curve for me. It is worth the effort. Gen II is a flexible program that is quick to use. For example, importation and analysis of data directly off a portable combine pc can take less than a hour. Universal across years name change is available. The field mapping feature gets better every year.

I can say without hesitation that the support staff at Agrobase is excellent. Even during the busiest time of the year such as fall harvest season I can call and, amazing as it might seem, get a real live person on the phone that is pleasant and knowledgeable at walking me through some aspect of Gen II that I have not become proficient at. What I especially like is their responses to suggestions for improvement that I occasionally make. You have all experienced the thought when using software that it should do this or that---there should be a back button or an option available that would be useful. Well, I call and talk it over and maybe the next update will have the very feature we discussed that makes using Gen II more intuitive or useful for variety test personnel. Every year the program gets better.

I am head of Plant Breeding at the University of the Free State, in South Africa.

We have been using Agrobase from the early days of the program. We are using it very successfully to train post-graduate students in Plant Breeding from all over Africa. Our students work on crops as diverse as coffee, citrus, vegetables, field crops and ornamentals.

The program provides them with a sound knowledge of all aspects of breeding program management and data analysis.

AGROBASE Generation II is the main program that I use for my breeding program. Though I am still learning all of its capabilities, it does all of the tasks that I need for efficient breeding management and analyses.  It has lots of additional capabilities that I look forward to learning.