Ovo Solo - FAQ
Purchasing Ovo Solo
How much does Ovo Solo cost? What sort of license is it? What are the restrictions associated with the license?
One license of Ovo Solo costs $499. It is a single-seat license that you can install on one machine. This is the machine on which you will create all projects, run/record your studies, and do your analysis. In addition, you can install the Ovo Logger Freeware version on as many other machines as you need. The Freeware can be used to create new studies, analyze existing ones, or log on during a study session to remotely view Ovo Solo's recording feed and log notes, time tasks, etc. The license is an annual license: this means you will have full functionality for a year from your purchase date. After the year has expired, you will need to renew the license. If you choose not to renew, you will still be able to access your existing projects for further analysis, but you will no longer be able to record video or collect new user data. To view our End User License Agreement, click here.
How do I purchase Ovo Solo?
There are a few ways to purchase Ovo Solo. You can buy it from our website using the Add Ovo Solo to Cart button at the top of this page, you can contact us using our Contact Us page, you can email us at sales@ovostudios.com, or you can fax a purchase order to 440-287-6094. Once we receive your order, we will verify your contact and payment information, calculate applicable sales tax, and send you a download link and a product activation key. You will also be set up with an account for our customer extranet. The extranet includes our online help system with video tutorials, access to product downloads and updates, and more.
What type of support do you offer?
Ovo Solo licenses come with access to all patches and version updates for as long as you have an active, paid-in-full license. Our help system offers a comprehensive, step-by-step guide to using the software with embedded video tutorials. It was written by usability professionals, so it will speak your language and also describe features from a methodological perspective. Phone and email based support is offered on a time and materials basis. Training sessions are available either onsite or remotely for a fee.
Do you offer discounts of any sort?
Absolutely. We offer volume discounting for purchases of 3 licenses or more. For existing MoraeTM users, we offer a 50% conversion discount off of the first year of their Ovo Solo license. For students enrolled in an approved program, we offer Ovo Solo for free during their tenure as students. To learn more about these discounts, please contact us using our Contact Us page or email us at sales@ovostudios.com.
Deployment and Requirements
What are the minimum requirements for the software? What operating systems to you support?
Ovo Solo was built on the .NET version 3.5 framework, and can run on Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. You'll need a late-model machine (we recommend a laptop for portability) that has the following specifications:
- dual-core processor, Intel preferred
- 1GB of DDR-RAM or more
- 128mb of onboard video RAM
- a 5400RPM or faster hard drive, the larger the better
- USB 2.0 ports for plugging in a webcam
- preferably, a DVD burner for offloading content
In general, the faster the processor and hard drive, and the more RAM, the better.
Are there any OS or networking requirements I might need to prepare for?
Ovo Solo communicates using the Windows Communication Foundation specification, which simplifies data transfer security and authentication. What this means for you is that a lot of the typical firewall exceptions and logon settings you'd typically need to make with software of this sort go away. On Vista and Windows 7, you might find you need to run the software as an Administrator or turn off User Access Control, but this depends on how locked down your user account is on the computer. If you have a restrictive firewall, you might need to open up the HTTP ports we use for remote logging and observation, which are 50903,51108, and a video streaming port which you can specify.
What kind of webcams can I plug into Ovo Solo?
Ovo Solo will recognize and can record from any webcam that has WDM drivers available. This includes all Logitech webcams from 2004 forward. If you want to use composite video devices, including our own device cameras, you can input them using a USB-capture solution such as the Pinnacle DVD Recorder.
Comparisons
How does Ovo Solo compare to your Ovo Logger product?
Ovo Solo is based on the same framework as Ovo Logger 7.0. All of its study setup characteristics are the same. All of the analysis capabilities, with the exception of the Report Homepage and Findings/Recommendations features are the same. Ovo Logger allows for multiple observers concurrently, whereas Ovo Solo is limited to one. Ovo Logger allows for recording up to 8 independent sources of video and VGA, including our hardware-based screen capture; Ovo Solo is limited to its laminated two-source recording engine. Ovo Logger allows for Lab Control for our fixed labs which lets you control camera pan/tilt/zoom and video distribution from within the Ovo Logger software. Ovo Logger comes with a year of support embedded in its price, and is a perennial license with a smaller maintenance fee year-to-year.
How does Ovo Solo compare to MoraeTM?
Simply put, Ovo Solo does pretty much everything that MoraeTM can do, for a third of the price. Moreover, in a lot of cases, the implementation of Ovo Solo's features are more comprehensive and useful that those of MoraeTM. Consider the Questionnaire feature: While MoraeTM limits the types of questions you can create, and does only limited analysis, Ovo Solo lets you create short answer, essay, bulleted answer, likert, multiple choice (pick one or many, multiple choice matrix (pick one or many) and ranking questions, AND it auto-generates and analyzes the industry-standard SUS, USE, and QUIS survey formats. It provides analysis for your entire sample or broken down by your user demographics, generates 3D charts of all analysis, and even does word frequency of all qualitative responses. For a more comprehensive comparison of Ovo Solo and MoraeTM, please contact us using our Contact Us page or email us at sales@ovostudios.com for access to our feature comparison matrix.
How does Ovo Solo compare to other usability software?
By basing Ovo Solo on the Ovo Logger framework, we feel like we are providing a very compelling feature set at a competitive price point. There are specialized software tools out there that might do things that Ovo Solo cannot. Ovo Logger definitely does more, but at a greater price. We feel that we've hit a sweet spot for consultancies and smaller usability teams. If you don't see a feature listed that you are interested in, please contact us using our Contact Us page or email us at sales@ovostudios.com and tell us about it!
Design and Feature Set
How did you decide what features to put into Ovo Solo? What is your design process?
Ovo Studios is run by two long-time usability professionals (see more in About Us > Staff). We've been developing usability tools for years as Ovo Studios and in that time we've held extensive design sessions and customer interviews with practitioners across our client base. We utilize a typical iterative, user-centered design process, taking functional requirements, mocking them up into use cases and wireframes, then developing prototypes, testing them, and then implementing them in the software. We roll new features in constantly based on user feedback. For more on our dedication to customer needs and requirements, make sure to read our testimonials page.
What did you use to develop Ovo Solo?
Ovo Solo was developed using Visual Studio 2008, and includes a combination of C#, VB.NET, and C++ code. It utilizes aspects of DirectShow, Windows Media, Windows Communication Foundation, and Windows Presentation Framework for its various features. Its skinnable user interface allows for flexibility and scalability, as well as future localization to other languages.