QualCoder is free, open source software for qualitative data analysis. You can code text, images, audio and video, write journal notes and memos. Categorise codes in a tree-like hierarchical categorisation scheme. Coding for audio and video requires the VLC media player. VLC must be installed for QualCoder to work with audio and video data. Coder comparison reports can be generated for text coding. A graph displaying codes and categories can be generated to visualise the coding hierarchy. Most reports can be exported at html, open document text (ODT) or as plain text files.
The use of QDA software in social science research is so common that many people tend to see QDA software as a tool primarily for social science research. However, applications like MAXQDA are invaluable productivity tools for research analysts in industry or government as well.
Remarkably scalable, MAXQDA employs a database architecture that can handle research projects ranging in size from several dozen pages to tens of thousands of pages. Many projects today involve identifying connections found among information stored in PDF, Powerpoint presentations, Word documents, photos, videos, and audio recordings. MAXQDA allows users to code relevant sections of each document, identify interrelationships among documents, build relationships among diverse sets of documents and identify thematic trends.
MAXQDA features a simple 4 pane interface that makes it easy to use. The Document System- is where you place documents (text, images, video, or sound files) you want to analyse. The Document Browser is where you view the content of the document. The Coding System shows the various codes that you create and assign to documents. The Retrieved Segments Pane shows search results.
I used Qualcoder to code 100 hours of public hearings transcripts and I found it a very pleasant experience. The workflow is intuitive and quick. Even though some transcripts went over 150.000 characters, I was using about 50 codes, and have transcripts with over 100 different coded segments, the program remained stable. Using the | character in the search field allows for the use of multiple keywords at once, which was very effective. The report function allows you to produce overviews of interview segments per code and various kinds of statistical analysis, which can be integrated with R-Studio. Many thanks to Dr. Colin Curtain for the development and software support.
QualCoder is one of the best CAQDAS I have used not just because it is free and open source but also because of the functionalities and constant improvements.
I really like using QualCoder 3.0 for its ease of use and intuitive interface.
NVivo - Buy NVivo now for flexible solutions to meet your specific research and data analysis needs.
ATLAS.ti - ATLAS.ti is a powerful workbench for the qualitative analysis of large bodies of textual, graphical, audio and video data. It offers a variety of sophisticated tools for accomplishing the tasks associated with any systematic approach to "soft" data.
Taguette - A spin on the phrase "tag it!
RQDA - RDQA is a R package for Qualitative Data Analysis, a free (free as freedom) qualitative analysis...
Quirkos - Quirkos is a simple qualitative analysis software tool that helps to sort, manage and understand text data.
Dedoose - A cross-platform app for analyzing qualitative and mixed methods research with text, photos, audio, videos, spreadsheet data and more.