Ian

Can you post some specifications of your computer (operating system, memory, CPU), also how many records you are likely to have in the database so we can give you some ideas as to what you might expect from Recorder 6.

Thanks

You should see excellent performance for most tasks in Recorder 6 with this specification of machine.  Can someone else comment on the BOU 2004 checklist issue?  In Recorder 6 there are no distinctions between lists you import against and those you view against, though some lists are marked for browsing only and not for data entry.

Dear Ian,

Thank you for your kind offer of help. I haven’t had chance to look at the 2006 list yet (it was only published this week!), but there shouldn’t be a problem in any case.

We include two versions of the BOU list within the Species Dictionary: “British Ornithologists' Union British List (Categories A, B, C)” and “British Ornithologists' Union categories D and E”.

Both lists are maintained with the help of Steve Dudley (lead author of the new British List) and track any changes and additions that the BOU make, so are fully up to date and should remain that way in the future. We’ve also ensured that a full taxonomic hierarchy and naming authorities are included in the copy of the British List that we hold.

Including the lists as maintained (i.e. dynamic) versions means that we do not need to add an entirely new list whenever an update such as the 2006 list is produced. This is a far more efficient way to manage the data and hopefully less confusing for the user. If there is a pressing reason why the 2006 list should also be added as a stand-alone product, please let me know though.

I’m not sure whether JNCC have included the above lists in both Recorder 6 and 2000, but they should certainly be in Recorder 6 and will include the naming that you requested in your original post.

Please contact me directly if you’d like further detail,
John

Ian, Recorder 6 does not include a seperate 2006 list. However, from what John says above, the 'dynamic' birds list used by R6 - BIRDS Natural History Museum/British Ornithologists' Union checklist of British birds (Class Aves) - contains the same data contained in the 2006 publication. If anything, it should be even more up-to-date. So, I would say in answer to your query that, yes, the equivalent of the BOU 2006 list is included in R6. To be absolutely sure, though, are there any particular taxa I can check for you as a tester? Also, the following metadata associated with the list as found in R6 might be interesting to you:

Metadata for Taxon List: BIRDS Natural History Museum/British Ornithologists' Union checklist of British birds (Class Aves)

Taxon List Type: Other checklist

Description: This is our recommended checklist for British birds and is actively maintained by staff of the Natural History Museum. The list includes a comprehensive hierarchy and details accepted scientific and common names for species recorded from the UK (i.e. England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, surrounding islands and British Economic Waters (200km)). The Republic of Ireland and the Channel Islands are not included. The list is based on the revised checklist of the British Ornithologists' Union (BOU), the body responsible for maintaining the official British List. It includes all species that have been recorded at least once in an apparently natural state as well as introduced species that have established self-maintaining breeding populations. It excludes species for which there is reasonable doubt that they have ever occurred in a natural state along with introductions, transportees, or escapees from captivity whose breeding populations (if any) are thought not to be self-sustaining. Hence, the list covers their categories A-C, but not D or E. Further information is available through the BOU website at http://www.bou.org.uk/. Scientific nomenclature follows Voous's List of Recent Holarctic Bird Species (BOU 1977, revised edition) and the online BOU British List. Vernacular names follow the BOU Checklist of Birds of Britain and Ireland (6th Edition, 1992) and the online BOU British list. The original list was compiled in 2000 by Mark Adams and is maintained by John Tweddle (both of the Natural History Museum). This list is current.

Update Method: Ad hoc (updates supplied whenever necessary)

Installed Locally: Yes

Version: 1

Version Authority: The Natural History Museum

Version Applies From: 01/01/2000

Version Quality: The final copy was checked against the original NHM intranet version and the BOU website by John Tweddle.

thanks John, I stand corrected.

An important point on this issue - the next update of R6 (version 6.8), which is due soon I believe, decouples program updates from dictionary updates. This means dictionary updates can be rolled into R6 independently of program updates, which means dictionaries can, in theory, be added to Recorder on an ad-hoc basis, whenever they are ready. At present, we have to wait for the program itself to be updated before we receive dictionary updates, which is why there are seemingly large gaps between dictionary updates.

Charles

Dear Ian

We are looking into revising the BOU check list and updating this as part of the consolidation of the species dictionary in version 6.8. We aim to release V6.8 by the end of August, and will provide regular updates of our progress on this forum.

Please see "Announcements> Consolidation of Recorder 6" for more details.

Regards

Sarah
Biodiversity Information Assistant
JNCC