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ANDI encounters delays In an attempt to develop standardfileformats for the analytical instrumentation industry, a subcommittee of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) had planned tofinalizea standard for MS by December 1998. However, delays have pushed the deadline to spring 1999. The standard, Analytical Data Interchange Protocols (ANDI), would set definitions for data outputfiles,so that data could be shared by instruments made by different manufacturers. It would also simplify archiving of data even after a new instrument has been purchased to replace an old one. A similar protocol for chromatography was approved in September 1998 (Anal. Chem. 1998, 70, 447 A) and is available online at http://www.astm.org. To make them more accessible to the public, both standards passed to ASTM from the Analytical Instrument Association (now known as the Analytical and Life Sciences Systems Association) in 1997. The chromatography standard passed with only cosmetic changes to bring it into ASTM format, but the MS standard has had a bumpier road. It drew criticism at a May meeting in Atlanta, mostly because variable names and other references were not consistent with the chromatography standard. The subcommittee had planned to review those criticisms and modify the MS standard to address them, but work commitments interfered with a thorough review by the volunteers. "We trod over some (of the criticisms) a bit quickly We realize [now] that we were perhaps trying to railroad the standards through for the sake of getting it into a proper [format]," says Pete D'Arcy, director of Software Technical Marketing in the Finnigan MassLab Group factory in Manchester, U.K. and chairperson of the MS Task Group of the ANDI subcommittee. "It isn't surprising that the MS standard has had a more difficult time than the chromatography [standard]," says Lynn Matthews, president of Thru-put Systems (Orlando, FL) and chair of the subcommittee. "It's twodimensional data (chromatography) versus three-dimensional [data] (MS)." Although the standards work, that additional complexity presented greater challenges to keeping the standards consistent. At presstime, the subcommittee hoped to have the MS stan90 A
dard rewritten to be consistent with the chromatography standard by mid-January. Although the MS standards are proving to be a challenge, Matthews expects the effort to pay off in the long run. "This example will lay the groundwork to do future standards, because we'll agree on key variable names." The current version works only with single MS instruments, but she predicts that the MS standard will be quickly revised to include tandem MS and similar instruments. "Our intent was to get the [chromatography and MS] standards into ASTM format and then talk about merging or extending them. We need to [establish] a baseline [for other standards]," Matthews says. The subcommittee will likely consider IR spectroscopy and photodiode array standards in the coming year, as well as initiate round-robin testing involving manufacturers and end-users to work any bugs out of the chromatography and MS standards. But the ultimate success of the effort hinges on attracting support from manufacturers and end-users. Not all are enthusiastic. Hewlett Packard is not participating, whereas Varian and Bruker have shown some interest but are not yet on board. "This is a market-driven process," says Matthews. End-users and companies "need to know [the movement] exists and ... help us continue to create [them]." Anyone interested in participating can contact Lynn Matthews at lynn_matthews@ tp.com. Jim Kling
Online analytical complaints Forensic chemist Matthew Vona—like many other scientists—has on occasion had trouble with various analytical equipment vendors. But, rather than sit back and pay the bills again and again, he and his wife, a chemist with an environmental company in California, decided to do something about the problem. They are building a Web site that will allow analytical chemists to compare their experiences with instrument packages and vendors before making a purchase. "We both felt that our respective labs were not properly serviced by the larger analytical instrument providers even though a significant amount of money was spent to 'not' have them properly serviced,"
Analytical Chemistry News & Features, February 1, 1999
explains Vona. "We started the Web site to give labs an unbiased resource with which to make their buying decisions," he adds. The approach differs from the normal process of assessing equipment, which might include reading reviews in the scientific literature, the trade press, and company flyers. Unfortunately, that strategy can never produce a detailed assessment based on real-life experiences. Vona hopes that their Web site "will give anyone and everyone a chance to post their experiences with various analytical instrument brands and vendors for others to read". Such an open forum for all analytical chemists will turn the wordof-mouth approach into a more formal affair. In true 1950s techno style, Vona has called the Web site "Rate-A-Vendor". Users can search the database of posted opinions for comments on a particular instrument or service package they might consider buying. By giving users an opportunity to air their thoughts and experiences, the forum will bring to light key issues for others to consider before making a potentially expensive purchase. "After all," says Vona, "we're not talking peanuts here. These instruments range from hundreds to millions of dollars." A secondary role of the Web site is to provide a platform for smaller companies to state their case without big-budget marketing. Users can search for items they need through the "Manufacturer's Listings" section and then compare notes with the Ratea-Vendor forum. How companies will perceive Rate-aVendor will depend on their track record, says Vona. "So far, the response has been positive. As long as everyone keeps in mind that one person's opinion is rarely Gospel truth, it should provide a positive experience for everyone." He points out that there is some censorship on the site so that "too hot" or "foul" postings never make it to public view. "The vast majority of users are referred from professional listservers chat rooms or personal invitations. The majority of people want to use it as part of their own due process of diligence " he told Analytical Chemistry. Rate-a-Vendor has been running only since October 1998 and has yet to prove whether it will meet Vona's aspirations. It can be found at http://www.ChemicalAnalysis. com/ for those who would like to throw in their two cents' worth. David Bradley
