Design-Expert 6 Read Me

Design-Expert^® version 6
software for experiment design

2/3/2005 DX 6.0.11

ON-LINE REGISTRATION

If you purchased the full version of Design-Expert (single user or network license) and haven't registered, you can do so on-line at www.statease.com/dx_register.html.

WHAT IS NEW SINCE VERSION 5?

A description of what's new can be found in the help system. In the program, choose Help/Contents from the menu bar. Under the topic, "Welcome to Design-Expert 6," you will find a section titled, "What's new in version 6 (the highlights)."

HELP?

See technical support.

INSTALLATION NOTES

Possible DLL conflicts

When you try to run Design-Expert 6 for the first time, you may see the following message:

C:\Program Files\DX6\DX6.EXE
A device attached to the system is not functioning.

The MSVCP60.DLL file is linked to missing export
MSVCRT.DLL:_lc_collate_cp

This error message indicates that you have an older version of MSVCRT.DLL on your system and it is being loaded instead of the one supplied with DX6. The best way to avoid this problem is to install the DLLs to the system folder.

If you did install the DLLs to the system folder, check the version on the msvcrt.dll located file there by right-clicking on it and choosing properties. It should be version 6.00.8397.0 or later. If it isn't, the install was not successful and you should try to reinstall.

For Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 2000, you will need to log on with an account that has administrator privileges in order to install the DLLs in the system folder.

WINDOWS NT 4.0:

When you choose "Install Design-Expert 6" from the main menu, the setup program will warn you if you do not have the proper authority to install system files. You will need to log out of your current account and log in as an administrator then restart the installation.

WINDOWS 2000:

If you do not have administrator rights, Windows 2000 will give you an opportunity to enter a suitable account and password when you launch the install program.

MISSING FUNCTIONALITY / KNOWN BUGS

The following are minor bugs or missing functionality that will be fixed in future updates of Design-Expert 6. Patches will periodically be posted on the Stat-Ease web site at www.statease.com under the software section. You may want to check it periodically for updates.

None reported.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.10

These bugs noted in version 6.0.10 have been fixed in 6.0.11.

Mostly cosmetic fixes.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.10

Improved network diagnostics.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.9

These bugs noted in version 6.0.9 have been fixed in 6.0.10.

If your factorial design has curvature, and you remove the curvature from the model, the residuals in the diagnostics are incorrect.
In earlier versions, pure error included any extra degrees of freedom from replicates across blocks. Since this was not deemed to be true pure error, the degrees of freedom reported was changed to only include that from replicates within blocks. With 6.0.10 a compromise has been struck where we include replicates across blocks adjusting for blocks. The total DF for pure error is now DF of replicates within blocks + DF of replicates between blocks - number of blocks.
Factorial models that have a saved model with no main effects show incorrect effects on the normal plot and effects list.
Simulation and Equation-Only do not accept designs with more than 30 factors. That limit has been increased to 75 in 6.0.10.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.9

Network version supports installing the program executable on workstation for users with slow network connections. Details on new network metering.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.8

These bugs noted in version 6.0.8 have been fixed in 6.0.9.

Editing the numeric optimization ranges in coded values gave an "out of range" error message when it wasn't out of range.
The addition of the [Network] section to the CUSTDATA.INI in version 6.0.8 introduced a new problem. With the DeleteBeforeSave=1 setting a fatal error occurs if you try to save your design to a new file name. In 6.0.8 you can correct that by changing the value to DeleteBeforeSave=0. In version 6.0.9 the error condition has been resolved and this directive now works properly.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.8

"Export Design to AAO file" now includes the standard, run, and block numbers.
New Network Metering: Built-in metering on earlier versions was implemented by a third party product, softSENTRY, which has been discontinued.
The new metering product, Protection PLUS, works in a similar fashion to softSENTRY, but is more robust. See Details on new network metering.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.7

These bugs noted in version 6.0.7 have been fixed in 6.0.8.

Couldn't augment a crossed design that had categorical process factors.
In some environments the model for previously analyzed responses would be lost when loading from a file.
On some network configurations you could not save over an existing file. The error message, "Access to [filepathname] was denied." A correction can now be enabled by adding the follow two lines to the CUSTDATA.INI file located in the program application folder:

[Network]
DeleteBeforeSave=1

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.7

Added "Export Design to AAO file" for some special automation applications. This feature exports just the factor names and values in a text table.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.6

These bugs noted in version 6.0.6 have been fixed in 6.0.7.

Program would crash when analyzing certain partially aliased designs containing categorical factors and forced model terms
Program would crash if you tried to save a candidate set to a read-only file.
Better error checking, minor problems with user interface, and various other corrections to the internal operations of the program.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.6

Improved handling of aliased factorial designs.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.5

These bugs noted in version 6.0.5 have been fixed in 6.0.6.

Network installations that use Universal Naming Convention (UNC) path names may produce an error when opening Help. This is a problem inherent in the Win2000 help format that displays the index and content side-by-side in the same window. The cure for that was to map a drive letter to the program location. For administrators who want to stick with pure UNC names, we have added a standard single-pane version of the help.
Problem with partial sum of squares choice causes crashes in some cases, and possibly errors in other situations.
Equation only fails if you change a factor from numeric to categorical without changing the equation to correspond.
Various other minor corrections we made to the internal operations of the program.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.5

The following functionality has been added or changed.

Program preferences formerly stored in DX6.INI are now saved in the registry under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Stat-Ease\Design-Expert 6. This change was made to conform to current Windows standards. Users who did not have full access to system files could not save preferences as they were not allowed to update the DX6.INI file.

NOTE: Your old preferences from earlier versions will be lost. You will need to restore them in the program.

If you wish to keep using the INI file instead of the registry, you can do so by manually adding the following lines at the beginning of the DX6.INI file:

[special]
UseIniPrefs=1

This will direct Design-Expert to the INI file for preferences, and your old settings will not be lost.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.4

These bugs noted in version 6.0.4 have been fixed in 6.0.5.

A problems with factorial models in version 6.0.4 was discovered. When you change a design model by ignoring a row or augmenting the design, you lose the normal error terms to the ignore model in the design evaluation.
In the model graphs perturbation plot, the displayed factors may be mislabeled if there are factors missing from the analysis model.
Copy / paste into Design Layout can get confused if the target column has both data and empty cells.
On optimization overlay graphs, particularly on Windows 95 and 98 systems, some regions that should be shaded as bad are not.
Predicted values are incorrect for center points when you take curvature out.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.3

These bugs noted in version 6.0.3 have been fixed in 6.0.4.

In Numerical Optimization graphs, the sheet view of the factor tool doesn't update when switching between different solution points while the gage does.
Augmenting a design with LOF points results in extra points being added. Also problems with adding center points.
When you switch from plotting mixture components to process factor the mixture component levels do not default to their centroid values.
There is an order of magnitude increase in the time to rebuild the design in 6.0.3 vs. 6.0.1. This has been speeded up in 6.0.4.
Program can crash when attempting to use a 1 Factor factorial created by DX5 as the model wasn't converted correctly.
When doing a backward selection on a design with more than one block you will not be asked to correct a nonhierarchical model.
Flag could appear off the graph in the graphical overlay plot with certain data sets.
Values reported for responses in Point Prediction used a different precision (format) than the design layout screen.
If the plot range for either effect of Interaction graphs are extended (say from -2 to +2), the plotted prediction line only goes from -1 to +1.
Under some combinations of data and computer configuration, the graphical overlay plot would display some of the yellow areas as gray.
Graphical optimization is very slow with many responses, even if you constrain just a few. This was speeded up by computing the regions and other information for only for the constrained responses.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.3

The following functionality has been added or changed.

You can now analyze design data from other sources using the new historical data feature. To use this feature, select "New Design..." from the File menu then choose "Historical Data" from the RSM tab.
Added the ability to change the y-axis on an evaluation and other standard error graphs.
When pasting into Design Layout, a period (.) was set to 0.0 in earlier versions. That is now interpreted as a missing value.
Significant Speed up of the D-optimal design building process for highly constrained designs.
Flags planted in the graphical optimization overlay plot now only show data for the constrained responses.
New Microsoft C / C++ DLLs are included in the update.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.2

These bugs noted in version 6.0.2 have been fixed in 6.0.3.

POE calculations were incorrect in some cases—particularly in crossed designs. The reported problems have been corrected.
D-optimal selection wasn't always optimal. The algorithm was corrected.
Corrected several problems relating to unbalanced designs and nonhierarchical models.
Couldn't turn off the design point display in the graphical overlay plot. The menu item has been added.
Equation Only now returns you to the equation edit screen if an error is detected in the model.
On NT4 and Win98 Design-Expert would hang when trying to insert a column after the last response following an analysis.
Changing the number of levels on categorical factors could cause the levels to reset to the default of two.
Factor tool in graphics needed to be disabled for one-factor designs as it doesn't apply.
Program could crash if you tried to open a read-only file that is being shared.
If you selected “force precision' then integral values like standard order, run order, etc. were also displayed with decimal points and trailing zeros.
If the program folder in mapped directly to a drive letter, as may be done for a network install, then Windows 95 / 98 would not find the serial number file. NT and Win 2000 worked OK.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.2

The following functionality has been added or changed.

Up to 6^th order polynomial models (maximum of 400 terms) are now available. Must be configured to use, and existing designs need to be rebuilt to take advantage of this option. For details, go to the “What's new in version 6 (the highlights)” section to the sub-topic of “More flexibility.” Follow the imbedded link in the last bullet, “Analyze higher order models….”
Additional new topics and updates were made to help system.
Added a “Reset to default” button in the graphs where applicable.
Added a Cancel button to the design builder to allow you the exit gracefully from long operations, particularly in the candidate-based designs.
In the alias list view of effects the default for highest order term listed was changed from 4FI from 3FI.
On perturbation graphs, only factors present in the model will be displayed.
Under Edit Preferences, the areas “Math Analysis” and “Math Design” were renamed “Math” and “Design” respectively.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.1

These bugs noted in version 6.0.1 have been fixed in 6.0.2.

There is a problem with reading DX5 files that contain categorical factors. In Design-Expert 6 we changed the internal coding for 2-level categorical factors to be consistent with multilevel categorical factors. The old coding used -1 and +1 for the low and high levels while the new coding uses 0 and 1. This coding is corrected automatically when DX6 read in the design, but the old optimization models are incorrect. If you attempt a numerical optimization you will get the message, “-1 is outside the range of 0 to 1.”
Resolution: You need to force DX6 to clear the models then reanalyze them. The easiest way to force DX6 to clear the models is to change something in the factor table. Go to the design view and change a single value, click on a different cell then return to the altered cell and change its value back to the original value. Now reanalyze your responses and the optimization will work correctly.
Design-Expert will crash if you attempt open a file with a path name that exceeds 128 characters, an older windows standard. It will be corrected in 6.0.2.
The shading on the Graphical Optimization graph is incorrect in some cases when the graph resolution is set to High in Graph Preferences. We recommend that the resolution be set to Normal when viewing this graph.
The block generators for two of the 4 block, 2-level factorial designs are incorrect and should be edited to the correct generators when you use these designs. The two designs are: 14 factors with 4 blocks in 64 runs (the correct block generators are 1=CDE and 2=BCF) and 15 factors with 4 blocks in 128 runs (the correct block generators are 1=ABEF and 2=ACEG).
You cannot print a selected region of a report, or specific pages. You must print the entire document.
If your display is in the 256 color mode, some of the graphics, such as the splash screen and design builder graphs, are displayed in the Windows 16 color palette. We recommend you use a larger palette.
Changing the column width in the numerical optimization solution reports deactivates the window and does not update the screen. To remedy this, you need to change the window to another window and back again. For example, click on Ramps and then Reports.

OTHER CHANGES SINCE DX 6.0.1

The following functionality has been added.

A new font choice, “Graph legend font,” has been added to the fonts and colors preferences.
A cancel button has been added to the progress bar for operations that are known to take a long time to complete.

The following functionality has been changed.

The “Force everything exponential” feature under the Edit Preferences (Math) has been changed to “Force precision.” The old form forced all data to be displayed in E notation with the prescribed number of significant digits. The new form will display in standard floating notation unless the number of significant digits won't fit. In that case, the E notation is used.

The following missing functionality has been removed as a feature for the current version.

Print preview does not work for graphs.

BUGS FIXED SINCE DX 6.0.0

These bugs noted in version 6.0.0 have been fixed in 6.0.1:

On any crossed design with a reduced model, the actual equation on the ANOVA report may be inaccurate. Use the coded equation for predictions.
If you build a 3-factor D-optimal Factorial design, the program will hang on the progress bar. To avoid this, go to the Edit / Preferences / Math design and change the number of "D-optimal random bootstraps" to 0.
Copy/paste of cells in tables only works with black highlighting, not the windows default highlighting (typically blue).
POE is disabled for mixture designs crossed with categorical factors.
When rebuilding a CCD design, the number of center points is not retained.
Factorial Candidate Points shows a maximum of 1000 levels, but the actual maximum is 20. This is a text display problem only.
If you add center points to a numeric with categorical design via the design augmentation feature, they get added but, due to the categorical factor, you don't get the warning about having more center points than specified.
If you have multiple responses, and click on the Numerical Optimization node after you have only analyzed one, the optimization may later report that subsequent responses are empty. You have to force a reanalysis to get them to show up properly.
On some systems, the text entry fields on the rotor control for the 3D graphs will only allow the user to input numbers 2 digits long (not 3 digits).
When printing a contour graph, shaded regions do not print.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Here is a sampling of what can be found in the Help system. In the program, choose Help/Contents from the menu bar. Expand the topic node, "Welcome to Design-Expert 6," and you will find a sub-topic titled "Program Hints and Frequently Asked Questions."

Q.	I can't find a command that I expected to be here. Where should I look for it?
A.	Try clicking the RIGHT mouse button. In conformance with Windows standards, the right mouse button is used extensively throughout the program for various options.

Q.	How can I import data from a spreadsheet?
A.	Data can be imported and exported using the standard Windows cut and paste operations. Simply highlight the group of cells (or select all) and select copy (Ctrl-C). Go to the program you want to paste them into and select paste (Ctrl-V). If you are trying to import a new design from a spreadsheet, first set up a similar dummy design in Design-Expert making sure the factor levels are correctly defined. Next duplicate (or delete) rows in the design layout to get the desired number of rows. Last, copy and paste the data from the other source into the design layout over the old dummy data.

Q.	Why do I get different results than the program gives me when I do the calculations myself?
A.	Differences between program results and hand calculations are normally due to a loss of significant digits when transferring values from Design-Expert to the program or calculator used to make the calculations. These differences can be particularly pronounced when a transformation is being used. For example, for readability, coefficients for the model on the ANOVA sheet are, by default, only displayed with 2 decimal places. You can increase the number of decimal places displayed by choosing the "force precision X decimal places" option under Edit/Preferences/Math. To make sure you are not using truncated values, use the standard Windows cut and paste operations to copy the values (e.g., from the ANOVA sheet) and paste them directly into the spreadsheet or calculator program you are using to perform the calculations.

Q.	How do I view a graph of actual vs. predicted values, or some other combination of variables, which is not already provided in the program?
A.	This can be done by inserting one or two blank responses in the design layout and copying data from reports, like the Diagnostic section at the bottom of the ANOVA. Then choose Graph Columns using these new columns. The extra responses can be deleted when you are finished looking at or printing out the graph.

Q.	In many cases, it's cost-prohibitive for us to replicate the experiments to account for experimental variation. Is there a method using DX6 for us to utilize repetition (multiple samples) in each trial run?
A.	When there are multiple samples for individual runs, it is important to distinguish between experimental error (variation in control factors) and sample error (variation in sample measurements). You need to replicate the whole experiment to measure experimental error. To handle sample error, you can take multiple samples for a particular run and enter the mean and standard deviation of the measurements as two separate responses. This will provide you with a single value (the mean), and a measure of the sample error (the standard deviation). It does not, however, give you any more information about the experimental error than is already provided by the hidden replication of the design.

Q.	How can I change the coding of a factor, or several factors, when the coded values have gotten messed up? This can happen if you enter actual values while displaying coded factors or edit the highs and lows in the design layout rather than the factor info dialog.
A.	Follow these steps: Display the data in the design layout in actual units. Click on a factor header to highlight the data in the column. Copy (Ctrl-C) to the clipboard. Right click on the column header and select "edit info..." Change the +1 / -1 levels to the actual factor levels. Watch out for CCD's so that you don't enter the alpha values here. Click OK and you will see the actual factor levels change to new incorrect values. Paste (Ctrl-V) the original values back into the column. You will get a warning message. Click OK! Repeat steps 2 to 7 for the remaining factors. Unfortunately, this trick won't work with mixtures as you can't edit the pseudo ranges. You will need to rebuild the design.

Q.	In the design builder, parts of the display appear to be missing or overlapping.
A.	The program was designed for a minimum resolution of 800x600 using small system fonts. If you are using 640x480 or 800x600 with large fonts, not all views in the design builder will appear as they should. You can make these screens usable by turning off the design descriptions that appear at the top of the screen. To do this, follow these steps: Get out of the design builder and go back to the main view. Select Preferences from the Edit menu. In the "Math Design" section, check the box that is labeled: "Do not display design descriptions."

NETWORK ISSUES

Prior to release 6.0.9 the built-in network metering was controlled by a third-party product, softSENTRY. That product, and support for it, has been discontinued by the vendor. Because of some recent issues with that product we needed to find a replacement. Starting with version 6.0.9 the built-in metering is now handled by Protection PLUS which addresses several problems reported with the earlier product.

1. Network license lockup.

If the program terminated abnormally, softSENTRY did not release the license for other users. The PLUS system will release the unused licenses.

2. Restricted user issues.

If the user had limited privileges on his own computer he might get the error, "cannot save message," when trying to launch the program. softSENTRY attempted to write information to protected system areas on the disk which the user didn't have access to. Protection PLUS does not attempt write data to the local system areas and thus will work with restricted user privilege.

3. Launch from a data file.

On many systems you could not launch the network version by clicking on a data file. The error message "cannot write meter file" would appear as the system could not locate the control folder. This has been corrected with the new scheme.

4. Install the executable on the workstation.

Users with slow network connections can now improve the performance of the program by installing the executable on their local hard drive. The WrkSetup.exe gives you the choice of either running from the server or locally. When you choose a local install, the program executable and two help files are copied to the designated drive. A CUSTDATA.INI file is also created with the following two lines:

[Network]
NetworkPath=<path>

Where <path> is the location of the program on the server. When you run the local copy it will check the the server application for an available license.

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

For Technical Support or other information contact:

Phone:	612.378.9449
Fax:	612.378.2152
E-mail: Program Use	support_at_statease.com *
E-mail: Design / Statistics	stathelp_at_statease.com *
Web site:	http://www.statease.com
Other info:	info_at_statease.com *

* To use e-mail address replace _at_ with @ in your mail client.

Design-Expert^® is a registered trademark of

Stat-Ease, Inc.
2021 East Hennepin Avenue
Suite 480
Minneapolis, MN 55413