A collaborative effort to create free tools for Gene Expression Profiling analyses. AppleScript and Apple centered project.
Contacts: and . Main: Index
First thing first: Credits
The index page layout and css file are slight modifications of a design by Minz Meyer, published in CSS Zen Garden (entry 037). All other pages are adaptations of the same. Graphics are from Antoine and should improve as a digital artist is working to create something better. Cristian and Thierry revise the the texts.
FAQ
A call was made thought our French speaking blogs. Some questions came back and replies lead to discussions. We report here the more frequently asked questions and try to answer them. If you don t find the answers you are looking for please feel free to contact us.
Why should I participate? How do I know you don't plan to build bio-armaments? We do plan to build armaments. Against cancer, cystic fibrosis, hemochromatosis etc. Pharmacogenomics are about improving the use of existing ones and discovering new, more potent. Tools serve whatever the user wish. Using matches, you can burn a forest or light a fire and cook food.
Why don't you use a more portable language? I suppose more portable meant Java. I do read Java, I don't write it. And I don't have time to invest in learning a new scripting language. Previous experiences with javascripters showed me that I am unable to follow the evolution or the projects tightly enough to avoid major errors. I do have bits of Java code (a few thousands lines) producing erroneous results and I am unable to review them. On the other hand I have reproduced whatever they should do using Applescript in less than 2 days of work. So, I will stick with Applescript. Feel free to use our diagrams/blueprints to built more portable scripts. You may even distribute them through our pages if you wish. I am not a Mac evangelist. I use Macs just because they improve my efficiency.
Should I use a Macintosh to use GeneScripts? They are quite expensive! Come on guys. Macintosh was expensive; ten years ago. Anyway, compare the price of a PowerBook with that of a single microarray experiment (n=6). You can get a 17" , 1Ghz, 1Go laptop for 50 % of the experiment's price. And be able to work on your data wherever you are. Is it that expensive?
Should I learn Applescript to use GeneScripts? Of course not! Our aim is to provide ready-to-use scripts. But if you do understand Applescript, and are able to introduce slight modifications, you may make them fit more tightly to your particular problem.