To help you decide, here is a comparison table:
NTSYSpc requires a strict text-based matrix format. You can create this in Notepad or export it from Microsoft Excel as a tab-delimited text file. The file header must follow this exact syntax: 1 n_rows n_cols 0 Use code with caution. 1 specifies a standard data matrix. n_rows represents the number of samples (OTUs). ntsys pc 2.02 software
Users must manually track several intermediate file extensions ( .ntx , .nts ), increasing the chance of organizational errors. To help you decide, here is a comparison
Proximity and Distance MatricesBefore creating a visual tree or cluster, the software must calculate how similar or different each sample is from the others. NTSYSpc contains a vast library of coefficients to achieve this. For qualitative or binary data (such as presence/absence data in ecology), it computes coefficients like Jaccard, Dice, or Simple Matching. For quantitative or continuous data (such as anatomical measurements), it utilizes Euclidean distance, Manhattan distance, or correlation coefficients. 1 specifies a standard data matrix
Ecology: Ecologists input species composition data across different sampling sites to cluster similar habitats or ordinate environmental gradients.
Beyond simple clustering, the software provides tools for: