What are the differences between the Columbus Conductor and Columbus Scope systems?
Columbus™ Conductor is licensed for unlimited user seats and multiple simultaneous users. Columbus Scope is licensed for 5 users.
Columbus Conductor is pre-installed on a multi-core, rack mounted server with extensible (up to 100 TB) storage. It also provides remote access via the Internet.
Columbus Scope offers the same Columbus software pre-installed on a tower computer with 4 TB storage.
Is the usage of the Columbus system limited to a certain period of time?
No, the usage of the Columbus Server and Client Software in the current release is unlimited.
Does PerkinElmer provide software updates?
PerkinElmer offers a Software Maintenance Agreement (SMA) that includes upgrades to all new Columbus releases while the SMA is valid. 12 month SMA is included with every new Columbus system.
Which image formats are supported by Columbus?
Columbus supports the LOCI Bioformats (http://loci.wisc.edu/software/bio-formats) via OMERO Importer version 4.1.1. The High Content Screening image reader formats supported include but are not limited to:
- PerkinElmer Opera® QEHS, LX
- PerkinElmer Opera® 2.0
- PerkinElmer Operetta®
- BD Pathway
- GE® IN Cell 1000, IN Cell 2000, IN Cell 6000 (XCDE)
- MDS Discovery-1
- Thermo Scientific® ArrayScan®
- Yokogawa® Cell Voyager
If you can’t find your high content imaging system, image reader or microscope listed here, please contact us.
Can I perform analysis on images taken with non-PerkinElmer instruments?
Yes, you can perform the same image analysis across all images from any supported file format using the Columbus system. You can construct image analysis routines rapidly using the powerful and flexible building block solutions and perform batch process analysis of images from high content instruments on the server, freeing up user time and resources.
How do I extract images, metadata and results from the Columbus system?
There are multiple ways to extract data from the Columbus system. You can export images in batches as single or multi image TIFF and results can be exported as Excel compatible csv or html files. Various third party software vendors provide interfaces to the Columbus system to pull images, metadata and results out of the database (e.g. Accelrys® PipelinePilot, IDBS ActivityBase, Genedata Screener).
Is the Columbus system compatible with OME?
The Columbus system is based on OMERO, a development of the Open Microscopy Environment (OME), and so it is compatible with OME.
Can I access my Columbus images with any Web browser?
Currently, the Columbus system supports:
- Internet Explorer 8 and 9
- Firefox 8
- Safari 5
Is single cell data stored in the Columbus system?
You may select either to store well based or cell/object based results during the batch analysis. Cell/object based results can be exported e.g. to the MIT/Broad CellProfilerAnalyst.