SilverBiology

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Purchasing & Maintenance

1.1 How much does SilverCollection Cost?

1.2 How do I purchase SilverCollection?

1.3 If we have more then one collection do we get a discount?

1.4 Do I need to buy a license for SilverCollection?

1.5 What kind of support do we get with SilverCollection?

1.6 How do we purchase a maintenance contract and how much does it cost?

1.7 What if we want special features other then what is offered in SilverCollection?

1.8 Is SilverCollection open source?

2. Requirements

2.1 Do we need our own server?

2.2 What are the server requirements for SilverCollection to run?

2.3 What browsers (internet explorer, firefox, etc...) does a person need to use SilverCollection?

3. Setup & Installation

3.1 What do we need to do before the software can be installed?

3.2 Can we install the software ourselves?

3.3 Who will manage our server?

3.4 What if our server goes down?

3.5 How long will the installation take?

3.6 How do we update SilverCollection when we add or change information about or specimens?

3.7 What happens after installation?

4. Support & Customization

4.1 Do we have to have all the features?

4.1 How do we customize SilverCollection to fit our collection?

4.2 Can certain information be suppressed? (eg. Endangered species locality)

4.3 What if we want to use data from another sources?

4.4 Can we make our own plugins?

5. Collection Database

5.1 Which collection management software do you support?

5.2 How does SilverCollection use our collection data?

5.3 Our collection software is unique so how does SilverCollection use our data?

5.4 What if we change our collection management software?

5.5 Why doesn't SilverCollection use our database?

6. Other Questions

6.1 Will our web portal be in Search Engines?

6.2 Can we bookmark a specimen record?

6.3 Can anyone view our collection?

6.4 How do we represent a lot of information for one specimen?

Purchasing & Maintenance:

How much does SilverCollection Cost?
SilverCollection is a commercial product and is not free. Please refer to our price sheet.

How do I purchase SilverCollection?
To purchase SilverCollection please contact us through our website contact's form and a representative will get back with you.

If we have more then one collection do we get a discount?
Yes, the actual discount will depend on the type of collection databases so please contact us to discuss how we can best work with you.

Do I need to buy a license for SilverCollection?
Yes, SilverCollection is a commercial product and requires a license for each collection database that you wish to use.

What kind of support do we get with SilverCollection?
With the purchase of SilverCollection you get a customized installation specific for your collection database. For on going changes and upgrades please consider our maintained contract.

How do we purchase a maintenance contract and how much does it cost?
You can find our maintenance contract on our price sheet.

What if we want special features other then what is offered in SilverCollection?
SilverBiology always offers custom solutions and are happy to create something that is unique for you. We want to provide useful solutions for all our SilverCollection clients and encourage you to suggest new features so that we can offer them in our upgrades, free of charge with any maintenance agreement.

Is SilverCollection open source?
No, SilverCollection is not an open source software and does require a license per collection to use. Many of the files are readable and possible to change but these files are copyrighted by SilverBiology and should only be modified by a SilverBiology technician.

Requirements

Do we need our own server?
No, we offer a hosting solution for collections if you do not have a server access.
We reserve a location at http://collection.silverbiology.com/<name you want to use>.

What are the server requirements for SilverCollection to run?

PHP 5+
MySQL

What browsers (internet explorer, firefox, etc...) does a person need to use SilverCollection?

Internet Explorer 6+
FireFox 1.5+ (PC, Mac)
Safari 3+
Opera 9+ (PC, Mac)

Setup & Installation:

What do we need to do before the software can be installed?
In order for SilverBiology to install the software

Can we install the software ourselves?
No, SilverCollection is a general product but does require a SilverBiology technician to install and setup the software.

Who will manage our server?
If you choose to run Silvercollection web portal it is up to your system administrator to maintain the server. SilverBiology is only responsible for SilverCollection installation and make sure that is properly running. If SilverCollection is run on the SilverBiology server then we only require that we have access to synchronize with the authoritative data source.

What if our server goes down?
This is the responsibility of your system administrator.

How long will the installation take?
Depending on the which collection database you use and which features you wish to have, installation may take 2-4 weeks.

How do we update SilverCollection when we add or change information about or specimens?
With each SilverCollection installation we setup an administrative interface to harvest and synchronize your authoritative database with the SilverCollection web portal.

What happens after installation?
After the installation, your web portal is fully operational. We encourage a maintenance contract because SilverBiology is always improving our software and will do regular upgrades for the new services.

Support & Customization

Do we have to purchase and use all the features?
No, we offer specific packages that build upon our core package. To find out more about the pricing of each package see our price sheet. Once you have selected the packages as much or little of the features can be turned on or off during the customization process during installation.

How do we customize SilverCollection to fit our collection?
During the installation process we provide choices which tell us how you customize your version of SilverCollection. We use that list to make sure we design a solution that fits your needs.

Can certain information be suppressed?
In cases where you have sensitive data (eg, endangered species localities) and do not wish to display certain information, we can setup filters to keep from synchronizing all data fields.

What if we want to use data from other sources?
If you wish to take advantage of other data that are not part of your primary collection, situational specifics can be discussed to provide a quote for the cost to integrate the extra data.

Can we make our own plugins?
No, at this time we only allow plugins that are created by SilverBiology. If you have ideas for additional add-ons that are not available please send us your comments so that we can know what your requests are. If you are looking for an immediate solution, please contact us.

Collection Database

Which collection management software do you support?
We are proud to support "Specify" collection management software and also any other collection database that is accessible via an ADODB connection. If you are not sure if your collection fits these criteria, please contact us so that we can discuss a solution.

How does SilverCollection get our collection data?
During the installation process, we install a graphical interface tool to synchronize your collection database with SilverCollection's database. This feature is anadministrative tool and can be used as frequently as necessary to keep your web portal up-to-date.

Our collection software is unique. How will SilverCollection integrate our data?
In cases where your database is unique, we always like to discuss the format of the database. If the data are in a general format your data migration tool will be covered with the purchase of the core package. Unususal databases will need special consideration for data migration.

What if we change our collection management software?
When this occur, SilverBiology will need to setup a new migration tool for your new database. This will incur a new setup charge. See our price list for these changes.

Why doesn't SilverCollection use our database?
SilverCollection uses a DarwinCore v1.4 format that is compatible with international standards and allows us to provide a universal solution for our clients.