MetarWeather 1.78

Overview

MetarWeather is a weather utility that is capable of decoding the METAR weather codes that are used by the International Civil Aviation Organization.

Pilots regular use the little known METAR codes to access weather reports including a weather briefing as part of the pre-flight preparation. Meteorologists prepare the weather reports to provide the best weather forecasting possible for the aviation industry and associated personnel.

METAR codes for weather reports actually come out as a string of capitalized codes which looks completely unintelligible to people who have no knowledge of this type of weather information.

The software can check, receive and decode this information to make it more intelligible for the end user. METAR data is pulled in by the MetarWeather application from the Texas A&M Weather Page, Aviation Weather Brief, Surface Observations, Aviation Digital Data Service, and the NOAA web site for METAR data access.

The software has a GUI that can display decoded weather information, but the software also has extensive support for command line options.

Installation

The software does not need installation as it is a portable app.

There was no adware, spyware, malware or toolbars included with the file archive.

MetarWeather requires Windows 9x/ME, NT, 2000, XP, Vista and 7.

Interface

The GUI interface has a menu system with access to all the commands within the app. The menu system has top-line options for File, Edit, View, Units, Links, and Help. Below the menu is a row of small toolbar buttons to provide more immediate access to key commands within the application.

The display below the toolbar includes a single row representing each METAR code. Columns are completed with relevant information. These include METAR code, Station Name, Country, Elevation, Time, Temperature, and many other columns of information.

The interface is nothing flashy but it is perfectly functional with all the information needed by interested parties.

Pros

• Access METAR weather code information from 5 weather sources
• Online weather sources includes Texas A&M Weather Page, Aviation Weather Brief, Surface Observations, Aviation Digital Data Service, and the NOAA web site for METAR data access
• GUI access to display METAR information in an organized manner
• Command line access for users who wish to access information via script
• Simple interface

Cons

• Plain interface

Alternatives

WeatherMate provides fast access to a basic weather reports directly from the Windows desktop.

Conclusion

MetarWeather provides convenient access to weather reports from METAR weather sources used by the aviation industry.