Sponsored by
BARGAIN HEADQUARTERS -- Quality Components at Liquidation Prices
Weighting Factors:
Functionality (20%)
What does the software product do? How complete is the implementation? How many functions and features does it have? How useful is the product?Performance (15%)
How fast does the product initialize? How fast does it process data? How small is its memory footprint? How small is its storage footprint? How much data can it handle?Usability (15%)
How flexible is the user interface? How easy is it to learn? How well does the user interface make the power of the program available without clutter and excessive clicks or keystrokes? How well does it integrate with the operating environment? Does it allow user selection of data formats and storage locations?Reliability (15%)
How stable is the product? How consistent are the responses to user input? How consistent are the output data? How gracefully does it handle unexpected inputs or stresses?Compatability (10%)
What input and output data formats are supported? How well does the product reside in the operating system without causing other things to fail? How well does it support open standards and protocols? How well does the product interact with other products, if it is designed to do so?Installation (5%)
How easy is the program to install? How quickly does it install? How flexible is the installation to allow selectable file locations and selection of a subset of the program's functions? How well does the installation work, without causing conflicts with other products already on the system? How well does the program re-install and de-install?Documentation (5%)
Is a written manual included or available? Does the online help work correctly? Is the terminology easy to understand? How complete are the help topics? Are the topics indexed thoroughly and correctly?Technical Support (5%)
What are the company's support policies? Is a website available? What are the hours of live telephone support, if any? How knowledgeable and friendly is the support staff? How prompt is the service?Upgradeability (5%)
How well is the product designed for future expansion? What are the company's plans for future versions?Overall Value (5%)
How favorably does the product compare to its street price? What kind of quantity discounts are available?
Rating Scale:
All products will be rated on a scale of 0 to 10 (both inclusive) for each of the categories listed above. Each product will be assigned one of the following ratings for each category:
10: Exceeds all requirements and expectations.
8-9: Meets or exceeds all requirements.
5-7: Adequately fulfills most requirements.
1-4: Fails to meet most requirements.
0: Fails to meet minimum product standards.
After multiplying each category score by the listed category weighting factor, the total will be a net score from 0 to 10 (both inclusive). Products which rate at 8.0 or above will be awarded the HQ-Approved logo.
