====== External tools and libraries in RegMAS ======
===== Agent-based frameworks =====
Selected: **none**

\\ 
Rejected ideas:
  * [[http://swarm.org|swarm]] - Old, odd and low-performance language (C-Object), decreasing trend. + large user community,
  * [[http://repast.sf.net|repast]] - Much fewer user base, lack documentation (tutorials, how-to, API), java: still not best in performance and difficulties in linking with C libraries + more "modern approach", used by many computational economists, GIS module, XML capability by default in java, multiplatform;

===== GUI toolkits =====
Selected: [[http://www.trolltech.com/products/qt|Qt]]

  * (+) Include in one framework xml and threads/processes API, easy to run the same code in Linux/Windows/Mac, lot of doc, tutorials and community;\\
  * (-) non-standard make (qmake), GPL, one-company project,

\\ 
Rejected ideas:
  * [[http://www.wxwidgets.org|wxWidgets]] - Miss some cross-platform libraries other than GUI (xml, threads/processes), no good ide under windows. + LGPL, simple to use, "my first love", community drive project, regmas already implement a simple GUI in wxWidgets;
  * [[http://www.gtk.org|GTK]] - it's a little bit a mess :-( + wide usage, LGPL, community drive project.
  

===== XML library =====
Selected: Embedded in QT

\\ 
Rejected ideas:
  * [[http://xml.apache.org/xerces-c/|xerces-c]] - Seems to have windows binaryes only for MS Visual studio. An other requirement. + Olready implementing and working in regmas;
  * [[http://xmlsoft.org/|libxml2]] - Same as for the GTK.. it seems a little bit a mess for an unexperienced user.

===== Solver library =====
Selected: [[http://www.gnu.org/software/glpk/|GLPK]]

  * (+) Already proved to work well in both Windows/Linux, fast, integer capabbility;
  * (-) GPL.

\\ 
Rejected ideas:
  * [[http://lpsolve.sourceforge.net/5.5/|lp_solve]] - Untested + LGPL.
  * [[http://www.coin-or.org/|COIN-OR]] - Messy, yet don't understood which is the MIP solver. + They may exist unlinear solvers too.


===== GIS library =====
Selected: direct parsing/writing of GRASS / ArcInfo ascii text grid files.

  * (+) Not requiring further libraries
  * (-) Only I/O, not GIS library, only plain ascii grid support

\\ 
Rejected ideas:
  * [[http://www.gdal.org|GDAL]] - Not needed.. only I/O, not a real GIS library, not proved on Windows
Maybe:
  * [[http://www.saga-gis.uni-goettingen.de/html/index.php|SAGA GIS]] - Untested, project not so large as GDAL + Should be able to perform spacial analisis.. a //real// GIS library!

===== UML designing tool =====
Selected: [[http://uml.sourceforge.net/index.php|Umbrello UML]]

  * (+) Tested, easy to use, works fine and lot of features (including imports)
  * (-) On some Linux distros it crashed importing very large projects
  //Note: give a try also to [[http://bouml.free.fr|Bouml]]//

===== Documentation generator =====
Selected: [[http://www.stack.nl/~dimitri/doxygen//index.php|Doxygen]]

  * (+) Tested, easy to use, works fine and lot of features.
  * (-) ??