On this page, you can find all tools created and/or administered by the Methods Lab.
ChatAI
WI now offers unrestricted access to generative AI tools via Academic Cloud, a platform hosted by the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. Unlike many commercial tools, ChatAI is free without a licensing model, and based in Germany. It includes text, image (ImageAI), and speech (VoiceAI) generation capabilities. Researchers can access it through the Academic Cloud by logging in with their WI credentials via Federated Login. The platform allows users to switch between tools easily and select from various language models, enabling innovative research and creative applications without usage restrictions.
Computation resources
In this blog post, the Methods Lab provides an overview of different cloud services, HPC clusters, and other computation resources that are available to researchers at WI and other institutions. This overview is updated regularly as existing services change or new ones are established.
LimeSurvey
LimeSurvey is a tool for creating and managing online surveys. It is an open-source tool, and the Weizenbaum Institute hosts an instance on its servers to facilitate the creation of surveys for both research and internal purposes. It can be used for free of charge by Institute members and their external collaborators.
MART
MART is an app that can be used to collect data using multiple methods, including surveys, experience sampling, event logging (Android), and data donations (iOS). Having been used for a research project on mobile media use, it is currently under further development and will be available for free use by other researchers.
MaxQDA
MAXQDA is a proprietary research software for computer-assisted qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods data analysis. The Weizenbaum Institute offers several network licenses for both the basic and the pro version that can be used for free of charge by members of the Institute. If you are interested in using it, please contact the Methods Lab through the support form.
OpenQDA
OpenQDA is an open-source research software for computer-assisted qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods data analysis. It is a free alternative to MAXQDA, and it is developed and hosted by researchers at the Centre for Media, Communication and Information Research (ZeMKI) at the University of Bremen who cooperate with the Methods Lab. OpenQDA is fully web-based and supports collaborative working in shared projects. Version 1.0.3 was recently released, so the software is still in its infancy, with many additional features still under development. Feedback is very welcome!
Overleaf
Overleaf is an online text editing tool based on LaTeX that allows scientists of the WI (and external collaborators) to edit documents synchronously, similar to Google Docs. It is an open-source tool, and the Weizenbaum Institute hosts an instance on its servers to facilitate scientific writing. It can be used for free of charge by Institute members and their external collaborators.
Weizenbaum Panel Data Explorer
The Weizenbaum Panel Data Explorer is an interactive dashboard that allows anyone to explore data collected by the Weizenbaum Panel over the course of several years. It includes multiple categories of questions, specific items, and allows for grouping of data by age group, gender, education level, and place of residence.