Blair Jarvis, Administrator
I find the software (both MediaLab and DirectRT) to be extremely user friendly. The software has been instrumental in reducing the amount of time required to program complex experiments. Customer support is exceptional. Blair is strongly committed to producing a quality product that is both user friendly and readily meets the experimental needs of his clients.
Ana Franco-Watkins,
University of Maryland
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
I have found DirectRT to be a very useful tool for conducting experiments requiring the accurate assessment of response times. It is incredibly easy and intuitive to program, and it has been flexible enough to handle most of the experimental designs I've dreamed up. Moreover, the program's developer provides excellent product support.
Antonio Luis Freitas,
State University of New York at Stony Brook
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
Simply put, MediaLab makes experimental design easy. A researcher can design experiments with minimal computer experience and no programming knowledge. The program is extremely flexible as it is, and it is constantly growing and developing to add new features. Regardless of the type of stimulus materials, dependent measures, or experimental designs I've used, MediaLab has been up to the task. DirectRT, the reaction time tag-a-long program it also quite easy to use. The programming is very intuitive. Now that I've used it for a few studies, I can usually design something like a sequential priming measure or lexical decision task in under an hour. One of the greatest "features" is the support. Whenever I've had any problems, Blair has been quick to offer suggestions or to fix any problems. He also willingly takes (and solicits) suggestions for future improvements in the program, allowing the program to grow with the needs of those who use it. All-in-all, I've had nothing but good experiences with the program. I would strongly recommend this program to anyone doing experimental or questionnaire research in the social sciences.
Ken Demaree,
Ohio State University
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
Overall, I have been quite impressed with MediaLab. I have only had experience with one other software package for conducting experiments (xxxxxxxxx) and I have to say that MediaLab is a much more sophisticated software package and extremely user friendly.
Celeste Alvaro,
Simon Fraser University
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
I have been able to quickly and easily create a wide variety of priming procedures including IAT and Fazio evaluative priming procedure. My collaborators and I have run about 20 experiments using this paradigm and have obtained not only reliable patterns of moderation, but also substantial correlations (r = .5 range) between evaluative priming procedures and conscious attitude measures and motivation measures. This speaks well of the interface with DirectX in measuring precise presentation and response times. I think that if you are looking to dabble in priming methods, or if you have more complicated measures in mind, this is a great program, low investment in time, high return.
Jamie Barden,
Howard University
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
I think MediaLab is an excellent program for conducting in-person interviews, which is what I do most often. Our lab has successfully conducted over 100 interviews with older adults (60 or more years old) and even those with no experience with computers at all were able to understand the process, enter their answers to a questionnaire of over 200 items and were still cheerful at the end. Creating questionnaires is not difficult, and the program enters and saves the data; no more data entry! And cuts way down on missing data, the bane of survey methodologists everywhere. And the purchase process couldn't be easier; download and go! No waiting for CDs to come in the mail. Best of all, however, is customer support. No automated response system H***. Empirisoft answers even the dumbest questions (like mine) with patience, kindness and humor. They have created additions for special needs, been helpful to my students as well as myself, and are an all around stand-up company. I couldn't be happier with MediaLab, and expect to use it for many years to come.
Aurora Sherman,
Brandeis University
Blair Jarvis, Administrator
MediaLab is the easiest program I have used for questionnaire-based experiments. The experiment editor interface is very intuitive, so it takes very little time for even a beginner to get an experiment up and running. Also, there is less room for user error than in an more complicated interface. MediaLab is also very flexible, even for a beginner. I am often able to select a pre-programmed option that in other programs would require custom programming. Related to this, the data is produced in a format that can immediately be imported and analyzed in SPSS, unlike some other programs. Again, this saves time and reduces the possibility of errors. Finally, the tech support is simply unparalleled. I generally receive helpful responses to my questions within a few hours. In sum, I would recommend MediaLab to anyone doing questionnaire-based experiments!
Amara Brook,
University of Michigan
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