Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!mizar.usc.edu!burhans
From: burhans@mizar.usc.edu (Mustang Sally)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: More birder questions
Message-ID: <31315@usc>
Date: 22 Mar 91 19:52:45 GMT
Sender: news@usc
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
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Nntp-Posting-Host: mizar.usc.edu
Originator: burhans@mizar.usc.edu

Being so successful last time, heres more:

Does anyone out there use birding software (e.g. Plover, Birdbrain,
etc.)  and can you give me a review of how you liked it? I'd like to
get one for a PC as a present for someone but am interested in the mac
one too.  How is the user interface? Do they have graphics which show
the birds?  Could you use one as a sort of on-line field guide to
study--don't suppose you could take one with you to the field (maybe a
portable? :-))) Any information about someone coming up with one for
Windows on the PC.

On a slightly different tack, I recently went to the new Bird Hall in
the L.A. County Museum on Natural History (I recommend this!) and they
had a pc with a cd room or laser disk or something....you pick the
bird you are interested in and it runs a little show showing the bird
in flight, playing a tape of the sound...cool!

Second question: bird identifying. In my back yard (in L.A.) I was
watching mockers, house sparrows and house finches and juncoes and saw
this similar bird pecking around on the ground. Seed cracking bill,
brown body, smooth light grey head with black stripes. Four stripes,
two thru eyes and two more on crown evenly spaced. That's all I caught
before it flew. Couldna find it in me book but then, I'm new and it
took me two days and four picking thru the book to positively id a
green backed heron. Ah well.

Thansk!
-- 
Jackie Burhans (burhans@usc.edu)          
Data Stylist, USC Student Affairs