Statistical analysis requirements depend upon the level of environment (i. e. organization, industry, business, engineering, scientific research, planning etc. ), the extent of computational needs (computation, tabulation and averaging) and the need for elaborate multivariate analysis dealing with inter-relationships of many variables. Computer libraries of statistical programs which can be grouped as general purpose packages, includes a variety of elements. In general, statistical packages can be classified into three broad categories: statistical techniques application packages; survey and data processing packages; and special purpose statistical packages. The various statistical software applications packages available and presently in-use include: SAS, SPSS, BMD, OSIRIS-III, BMDP-70 VOPP-STATISTIK, GENSTAT, NAG, SSP, STATPACK, and IMSL. A brief description of each is given in the paper. Also discussed are special purpose application packages, package evaluation criteria, a case study application in India, and others.
