ORPA-1 tutorial - Free software for OR

Alistair&Ester

Description

Operational Research Practice in Africa (ORPA) series First ORPA conference, 7-8 April 2005 Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Tutorial Free (and nearly-free) software for OR Alistair Clark, University of the West of England, Bristol. Aims: Awareness of what OR-relevant software is available for free or very cheaply. Target audience: OR practitioners and academics in poorer countries with very limited financial resources to perform OR. Pre-requisite: None. Learning outcomes: Awareness of free and nearly-free software for OR, including their strengths and limitations. Developing countries differ very much • From the technologically advanced (e.g., Brazil, Chile, India, China). • To the relatively deprived (e.g., West Africa). Brazil & Chile: • High availability of IT. • Strong OR presence and university researchers. • Sophisticated OR projects, eg, Agro-business and industry (Miguel Taube, Andrés Weintraub). • State-of-the-Art tools, e.g., AIMMS, Cplex. Resource-Poor Developing Countries • Less apparent demand for OR. • Less OR presence and fewer university researchers. • Fewer resources for IT. Specialist OR software • is often expensive and maybe difficult to purchase. • has little or no local technical support in poorer nations. Ł Can OR use free (or nearly free) software? Benefits of free software Free! Disadvantages of free software Often less powerful than paid-for software List of free software ...

Informations

• Publié par: Mazeg
• Nombre de lectures: 21
• Langue: English

Extrait

Operational Research Practice in Africa (ORPA) series First ORPA conference, 78 April 2005 Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso  Tutorial Free (and nearlyfree) software for OR  Alistair Clark, University of the West of England, Bristol.

Aims: Awareness of what ORrelevant software is available for free or very cheaply.  Target audience: OR practitioners and academics in poorer countries with very limited financial resources to perform OR.  Prerequisite: None.  Learning outcomes: Awareness of free and nearlyfree software for OR, including their strengths and limitations.   

Developing countries differ very much ·   From the technologically advanced (e.g., Brazil, Chile, India, China). ·   To the relatively deprived (e.g., West Africa).

 Brazil & Chile: ·   High availability of IT. ·   Strong OR presence and university researchers. ·   Sophisticated OR projects, eg, Agrobusiness and industry (Miguel Taube, Andrés Weintraub). ·   StateoftheArt tools, e.g., AIMMS, Cplex.

ResourcePoor Developing Countries ·   Less apparent demand for OR. ·   Less OR presence and fewer university researchers. ·   Fewer resources for IT.

 Specialist OR software ·   is often expensive and maybe difficult to purchase. ·   has little or no local technical support in poorer nations.

 èCan OR use free (or nearly free) software? 

Benefits of free software  Free!    Disadvantages of free software  Often less powerful than paidfor software   

AlistairClark

List of free software (or nearlyfree) for OR (with weblinks) at  _ _ www.cems.uwe.ac.uk/~arclark/free or software.htm  Compiled & maintained by  to whom suggestions & corrections should be   



emailed

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Data Envelopment Analysis Frontier Analystfor performance measurement (Free demo/student version) EMS  Efficiency Measurement System,  Forecasting Neural networks forecasting (regression & classification), including public domain software, and open source codes. Free CD with source codes & demos of commercial software.    

Mathematical Programming AMPL programming language with the Cplex a mathematical and Minos solvers (free student version). GLPK Gnu LP kit, for solving lLPs and MIPs. HOPDMfor solving large scale linear, convex quadratic and convex nonlinear programming problems. Lindofor mathematical programming modelling (free student). NEOS serveroptimisation solvers. OPL  Optimisation Programming Language (free student v). XpressIVE mathematical programming language and solver. (Free student version). 

Metaheuristics Stochastic Local Searchimplementations and codes. Ant Colony Optimizationpublic software.  MultiCriteria Decision Making DISCandPPP. VIP(Variable Interdependent Parameters) Analysis. 

Queues QtsPlus(Excelbased). QtsPlus4Calc (CalcOpenOffice version ofQtsPlus). 

Soft OR Compendiumfor collective sensemaking and group memory. Decision Explorerfor ideas mapping & strategy) (Free demo/student version). STRAD(Statregic Choice approach for developmental decision making) £120 reduced price for academic users in developing countries  Simulation Simul8 simulation software, available at very low cost to poorer countries and for free to appropriate PhD students.  

Spreadsheets CalcOpen Office spreadsheet (Windows & Linux).  See alsoPorting ExcelVBA to Calcand somesample code. Linux’sGnumericandKSpreadeets.spreadsh Critical path analysis spreadsheet models.  General OR JavaScript Elabs learning objects for decision making. OR methods webinterface(opensource  GPL license). OR WebEnhanced Courses.  