OVER 2 YOU 175 (06/04/04)

EARTH MOVING EQUATIONS

I would be grateful for recommendations for basic software that can calculate volumes for earth moving and excavation. The intended application is farming and landscaping work using data based on an area plot measurements and laser profiles.
Derek A Rogers, via email

Your correspondent would do well to look at the software offered by NRG Surveys who are based in Wales (www.civeng.demon.co.uk, email nrg@nrgsurveys.co.uk). It produces a number of software packages for both handheld/desktop systems including Cross-Sections and Volumes, Volumes Manager, Digital Terrain Modelling and Volumes and a suite of site orientated applications collected into a package called Engineering Calculator. I should add that I have never had any contact with this company but know their products quite well.

Fraser Jordan, Diss, Norfolk

I have on occasion used software from a company called Trakware, in particular a program called EarthWorks. This contains all of the tools you need for working out excavation quantities. It’s geared towards the construction industry but it is designed to be simple to use and easily scales down to smaller projects. The company has a web site from where you can get more information and order an on-line demo, it can be found at: www.trakware1.com/

Cliff Hawes, via email

I was in the construction industry, man and boy as they say, for more than 45 years and for much of that time relied on nothing more technical than a pen, paper, slide-rule and eventually a calculator. I have to say though that during the last five or six years, before my retirement, I was gradually won over by the progress made by computer programs and now I wished I had converted earlier. I trialled several packages for the company I was working for but I was most impressed by one called SiteWork, which includes everything you are looking for, and much more besides, or are ever likely to need, unless you’re thinking about going into the excavation business in a big way. I image it is quite expensive but it costs nothing to look and there is a lot of information on the company web site: www.insitesoftware.com/

Reg Stevens, via email

I am not an expert but colleagues have spoken favourably about Cut and Fill by Roctek software (www.roctec.com) one of them used it in the construction of his swimming pool of his holiday home in Florida. I am told you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to use is, which is just as well in my business, and the company proved most helpful sorting out the early problems.

T. L. Kent, via email

IPOD VOLUME

I like to use my iPod at the gym but I can’t turn up the volume loud enough to drown out the piped music. Has anyone solved this problem?

Mark Kirwin, via email

I have every sympathy with Mark because I have the same problem at our gym. My solution is very cheap, I ask them, most politely, to turn the sound down, they can you know. I agree with an earlier correspondent, about the damage done to hearing by extra loud noise.

G. M. Brown, via email

WEEKEND WOES

I am using Excel Chart to graph a price series against time. However, the time axis of the data is for business days only, i.e. it excludes weekends. Unfortunately Excel Chart insists on adding back the weekends and so distorting the shape of the graph. How can I avoid this?

Howard Skipp, Guildford

Howard needs to use the command NETWORKDAYS, which calculates the number of days between two dates, & excludes weekend days. By adding dates of known holidays, e.g. Easter, Bank Holidays, and Christmas it will exclude those as well. e.g. Cell A1 contains 01/04/04 Cell B1 contains 13/04/04, Cell C1 has the formula " =NETWORKDAYS(A1,B1,D1:E1)", and cell D1 contains date "09/04/04", E1 "12/04/04". In this case the formula calculates 7 working days, excluding weekends & Good Friday and Easter Monday.
Graham Mason, via email

DISTANCE LEARNING

I am a very frequent traveller and like to record the distances I travel. I used to use my old Psion 5MX, enter my location and destination and it would give me the total distance in miles. My new iPaq does not have this function. Can anyone suggest any suitable software, or a web site, that can calculate the distance between 2 locations, worldwide?
David Hardy, via email

I have recorded flight distances for 40 years (now over 2 million) using the 'ticketed point mileages' table from the ABC World Airways Guide, which gives point-to-point statute mile distances between airports worldwide.  I am not sure if the current version still has this section (I have an old copy, which is still valid of course, except for new airports.  You could ask your local travel agent for an old copy as they replace them frequently for other data.

Secondly, if you only want major city distances and can use Palm-based software (it may be available for other OS too), there is a PDA add-on package called City Time, which has a distance calculation function between major world cities.
Jeremy Burton, via email

CAN YOU HELP

I am intrigued as to how they manage to paint those apparently misshapen advertisements on cricket, football and rugby pitches, that appear correct when viewed on TV cameras. Is there a software program that resizes and shapes the design to the correct proportions and some sort of printer for grass surfaces, or it is done by hand?

Steve Hunter, via email

Can anyone recommend disc or web site containing clip art devoted to the 1920's and/or Art Deco? Further, would be illegal to sell items decorated with clip-art at craft fairs

Michael Rose, via email