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    1: Interpolated Marlov Chain (IMaCh program)
    2: 
    3: This program is GPL licensed for the part the code that we wrote at
    4: INED. But currently (version 0.97b may 2004) maximization routines use
    5: a modified version of the patented routines from "Numerical Recipes in
    6: C". If you have the right to use the sources of their software you can
    7: get access to the source code and to the CVS tree of IMaCh.
    8: 
    9: The program estimates Health Expectancies from Cross-longitudinal
   10: studies.
   11: The main publication is Lievre, A. Brouard. N, Heathcote
   12: Ch. Estimating Health Expectancies from Corss-longitudinal surveys,
   13: Mathematical Population Studies, 10(1), 2003, pp. 1-52.
   14: 
   15: To be brief, for each people interviewed we have the age and health
   16: states at each interview. Also the month of death is known. We model
   17: the probability to be observed in any state at any age via a
   18: parametric model and estimate the parameters and their confidence interval
   19: by maximum likelihood, many tables and graphs are output in
   20: HTML. Graphs are built using gnuplot.
   21: 
   22: In the Windows version, gnuplot is also distributed. Version 4 is out
   23: since early 2004 and is used by latest version of Imach (at least
   24: version 0.38i is required).
   25: IMaCh is supposed to work on Linux, MacIntosh and Windows (9X or
   26: NT/XP).
   27: 
   28: WINDOWS
   29: On Windows it is distributed via a setup file (no more a zip file). As
   30: usual you can put the 'imach' directory in Program Files or
   31: wherever. The directory contains at least 2 directories, 'bin' for the
   32: binaries which are imach.exe and gnuplot.exe, doc for some of the
   33: documentation, and 'mytry' in order to test the program on a parameter
   34: file name 'mypar.imach'.
   35: 
   36: You still can click on the imach.exe icon (which opens a DOS window)
   37: and drag your parameter file into the DOS windows and enter
   38: return. But with the newly installable version (>0.97) you can use the right
   39: click (once your mouse cursor is on an foo.imach file) to either edit the
   40: parameter file (with wordpad) or execute this parameter file via
   41: imach.
   42: If the program runs well you get a main foo.htm file which can be viewed
   43: with your browser and which includes all the results.
   44: 
   45: As the program output a file named foo.gp which is executed by gnuplot
   46: in order to draw all the graphs, you can edit it and customize it at
   47: your will.
   48: 
   49: By default the file gnuplot.exe is located on the same directory as
   50: imach and is used by imach with its absolute path. Thus if you have
   51: another gnuplot program which is in your path it will not be used by
   52: imach (we tried to simplify the installation process).
   53: 
   54: If you download a newer version of IMaCh you are supposed to Uninstall the
   55: former version with the standard Install/Uninstall process of Windows.
   56: 
   57: The Windows version is compiled via cygwin (gcc -mno-cygwin -o imach
   58: imach.c). It can be used on a command line with the command "imach
   59: foo.imach". But then imach.exe must be in your path. 
   60: The program can be used (with more comfort?) on Linux or on a
   61: MacIntosh.
   62: 
   63: Enjoy (?) using IMaCh.
   64: 
   65: You may subscribe to imach-users@listes.ined.fr by sending a mail at
   66: imach-users-subscribe@listes.ined.fr and you can unsubscribe with a
   67: mail to imach-users-unsubscribe@listes.ined.fr .
   68: 
   69: Nicolas Brouard (brouard at ined point fr)
   70: Agnès Lièvre (lievre chez ined dot fr)
   71: Christopher Heathcote
   72: 
   73:  
   74: