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AIPS++ Quarterly Report: 1995 Q2

The state of the Project at the beginning of 1995 Q2 was close to that described by the December 1994 Review Panel report. The actions of this last quarter were targeted towards many problems in the Project, but mainly those identified by the Review. The following major changes occurred:

1. A full-time Project Manager was appointed to provide leadership and direction,
2. The strategy to be followed by the project has been defined: we will test and extend the infrastructure library by writing a few key astronomical applications,
3. We have instituted development plans, schedules, milestones and resource allocations; all of which are required to run a project of the size of AIPS++,
4. We have instituted closer ties with the astronomical community within NRAO.

Overview of developments in 1995 Q2

Inside NRAO, AIPS++ is now treated as a construction project with dedicated staff and budget. The AIPS++ group splits into two principal groups: one in Charlottesville concerned mainly with support of Single Dish processing, and another in Socorro, concerned with Project Management and Synthesis support. In addition, NRAO plans dedicated AIPS++ programmers at both the Green Bank and Tucson sites.

The immediate goals of the Project have been defined to be consolidation and testing of the AIPS++ Library, and development of a few key applications chosen to provide unique astronomical capabilities. The long-term goal of the Project has been defined to be the achievement of functional equivalence to AIPS by 2000. At that point, AIPS will be a very small subset of AIPS++ and most applications areas will look quite different from the corresponding areas in AIPS.

A development plan for the next 12-18 months has been instituted to provide a coherent overall picture of the direction of the Project in the intermediate term. Tracking of progress in AIPS++ is now performed using a Target Dates mechanism.

The following applications are now present and being developed further:

• A tool for On-The-Fly mapping using the 12m telescope in rapid scanning mode,
• A self-calibration/deconvolution tool used principally on ATCA data,
• A tool for plotting and manipulating data from the GBT systems integration tests on the 140' telescope.

Documentation for both Users and Programmers is now available via the World Wide Web (WWW) and is being developed further.

The following Infrastructure Library changes have occurred:

• A system for class documentation is now in place,
• Numerous improvements have been made to the Glish system used for task control and Command Line Interface (CLI)
• A very capable tool for visualization (AIPSView) has been developed by the BIMA group at NCSA.

Intellectual developments are also crucial for the long-term success of AIPS++:

• A partial design for UV plane Calibration and Imaging (UVCI) was completed by a team drawn from ATNF, NFRA and NRAO.
• A collaboration of NFRA and ATNF personnel has developed a very general formalism for the calibration of synthesis polarimetric observations.

Management

The structure of Project management is now simpler and leaner. The structure above the Project Manager is easier to deal with than the previous Steering Committee and affords the correct degree of latitude to act. There is currently little substructure within the Project. With a couple of exceptions, either I or my deputy, Brian Glendenning, intend to be very closely involved in overseeing all areas of the Project. The main exceptions are the Single Dish development, for which Bob Garwood is responsible, and the Coordinate Classes development, for which ATNF, in the guise of Neil Killeen and Wim Brouw, is responsible.

The overall strategy and the plans for the next 12-18 months are described in the AIPS++ Development Plan.

We have adopted a more formal way of structuring the work that is to be done. First a specification is written, usually by a scientist. Secondly, a design document is prepared by a programmer/architect. Third, a development plan is put together to state what is done when and what the required resources are. Then implementation of the design is performed. We then expect testing and validation to be performed. Tracking of progress towards these subtasks is via a list of target dates that is updated weekly (see an example in Appendix B). We plan to extend slightly this formality of work structuring by adopting some ideas developed by the NFRA Software Engineering Group.

Work on the critical path is limited to those participants in AIPS++ who have demonstrated a capability to devote a known and predictable fraction of time to AIPS++ work. This includes all those in the NRAO AIPS++ Project division, some NRAO programmers and scientists outside the division, and a (small) number of people at consortium sites. The intention of this restriction is to achieve reliability of prediction of milestones, something that is vital for efficient planning. Participation by others is eagerly welcomed but is for the moment restricted to tasks not on the critical path. An example of the latter is the possible development of additional, supplemental User Interfaces.

Links to Astronomers

We have started to strengthen the links of AIPS++ to the astronomical community by involving specific NRAO astronomers in a number of aspects of AIPS++. Astronomers are involved in writing specifications of elements of AIPS++ (e.g. the properties of the AIPS++ tasks SDCalc and SDImager that are to be used for analysis of singled dish spectral data and single dish data for imaging). An astronomer (Alan Bridle) is developing the User Documentation. We have chosen to try to form astronomer-programmer alliances of the sort described by the Review Panel. At the moment, this is limited due to the overall paucity of applications. However, we expect the situation to improve in the next two quarters.

In Spring 1996, we intend to start more formal interactions, via an AIPS++ Scientific Advisory Group.

Consortium Interaction

Distributed development of AIPS++ has not yet been successful. It only seems to work in those few cases where work of a specific and limited nature is to be carried. Examples of successful distributed development include the AIPS++ Table system (a collaboration between Brian Glendenning of NRAO and Ger van Diepen of NFRA), the Code Management System (developed mainly by Mark Calabretta of ATNF), and the AIPSView visualization task (developed by a group at NCSA). Failures of distributed development are the Green Bank model for calibration and imaging, and the coordinate system (until the recent work by Brouw). The message is clear: development of complex things requires either one person working mainly alone, or good communication between a number of collaborators. Bearing this in mind, we have deferred some of the more complex development until the right people can be in the same place (e.g. Mark Wieringa, Brian Glendenning, and Tim Cornwell for Synthesis Calibration and Imaging, which will occur in September 1995 when Mark visits the AOC for an extended period).

Relations amongst the principal AIPS++ consortium members have been fruitful and basically harmonious. The main interaction between the Project Management (Tim Cornwell) and the principal consortium site managers (Jan Noordam, Dick Crutcher, and Neil Killeen) is via e-mail and telephone. So far, this seems to have worked reasonably well though there have been a few examples of poor or non-existent communication (mainly due to the Project Management).

The core consortium members, ATNF, BIMA, NFRA and NRAO, are contributing significant personnel and have, with only a few passing exceptions, produced what has been expected of them by the Project Management. The main contributions of the various consortium partners have been:

• NRAO has contributed to Project management, infrastructure development, documentation, Single Dish support, and design in various areas,
• NFRA has provided "seed" money for the second position in Socorro, thus enabling the appointment to be made this year, instead of early next year,
• NFRA's chief contribution to the software development has been the continuing work on the AIPS++ Table system that is the key storage mechanism for all data inside AIPS++. In addition, NFRA contributed to the design of the documentation system.
• NFRA has continued to investigate the theoretical unification of calibration of different interferoometric arrays.
• ATNF provided personnel for the maintenance and development of the AIPS++ Code Maintenance System that maintains copies of the AIPS++ system at all consortium sites.
• ATNF, NFRA and NRAO provided the personnel for the UV calibration and imaging design effort.
• As part of the UV calibration and imaging effort, ATNF developed a self-calibration / deconvolution tool.
• ATNF developed an early version of a hypercube storage manager.
• BIMA provided first and second alpha versions of the AIPSView visualization tool (see Appendix C for details of the capabilities of AIPSView).

Plans for 1995 Q3

The development plans for the next 12-18 months are given in the AIPS++ Development Plan (see Appendix A). Here I summarize the expected developments over the next quarter. These can be assigned to various categories:

In Single Dish support, we will support the GBT systems integration work on the NRAO 140' telescope. This requires reading of astronomical and engineering data into AIPS++ Tables for manipulation and plotting using the Glish User Interface. We will continue to support the On-The-Fly mapping tool developed for and installed at the NRAO 12m telescope. We will specify SDCalc (for analysis of Single Dish spectra) and SDImager (for imaging from Single Dish data). We will choose one of these for high priority development by the Single Dish group.

In Synthesis support, we will develop tools for advanced imaging using the Briggs NNLS deconvolution algorithm in a selfcalibration cycle. This will be important for high dynamic range VLBI imaging. We will develop a complete calibration package for the ATCA. With the recent development of a very general formalism for UV calibration, it may be possible to make this largely consistent with calibration for other telescopes such as WSRT, VLBA and BIMA. Otherwise, calibration of these telescopes is expected to await completion of the ATCA calibration, due in early 1996.

In AIPS++ Infrastructure, we will develop the Glish system (the User Interface and Control Hub) according to the Glish Development Plan. We will complete the design of and start implementation of the support for task control within AIPS++. We will complete design of the Coordinate classes and start upon implementation. We will add support for hyper-tiled access to the AIPS++ Table System.

In Visualization, we will continue to add functionality to AIPSView as needed by other AIPS++ applications (for example support of selection of regions of interest and visualization of visibility data). In addition, extension of AIPSView to include 3D visualization will continue. We will select a package for line graphics inside AIPS++.

In the System area, we will add support for automated testing of AIPS++ classes. We will investigate use of the new Sun native code C++ compiler. We will also re-assess any possible use of the IBM compiler.

In Personnel, we will complete hiring of two positions in Socorro, one of which will be supported initially by funding from NFRA. Wieringa will visit Socorro for a 6 month period starting in September (Funding for this comes from ATNF and NFRA).

In Documentation, we will continue the development of the overall documentation system, paying particular attention to the programmer level documentation. We will remove defunct design documents and update those that apply to current code but are out of date.

In Management, communication between consortium partners will be improved by frequent visits of Project Management to consortium sites. We will request new requirements documents from consortium partners to allow planning to target the highest priority areas of development. We will continue to formalize work structuring by adopting approaches similar to those proposed by the NFRA Software Engineering Group. A number of long term, operational issues must begin to be addressed. For example, the Project must decide how system versioning and updating are to be accomplished. Code acceptance procedures must be made realistic and enforceable.

Areas of Risk

To summarize the progress that has occurred in the Project, I think that it is illuminating to consider explicitly the risks inherent in the Project. My current list of risks is given below. The current answers are given after each point.

• The Project is very ambitious. Either consortium partners or oversight bodies may preceive overall progress as being too slow to warrant continuing support. In my opinion, this possibility has been exacerbated by the prior use of over-optimistic timelines.
  • Focus on specific areas of development. Plan carefully and conservatively. Be careful about quoting timelines. Track progress closely.
• The goals for AIPS++ of extensibility, programmability and maintainability have not yet been balanced against each other. Thus we might, for example, end up with a system that is extensible only by expert AIPS++ programmers.
  • No real answer yet. This is best addressed once some applications exist. The standard answer has been that programming by astronomers at a high level will be reasonably straightforward but that programming at a deep level will be restricted to a few cognoscenti. I think this view is probably correct.
• The "architecture" of AIPS++ is too poorly documented and implemented to support development of complex application suites.
  • Complete the documentation of the architecture and implement all the major components. Then test it by implementing a few key applications. This is the current overall strategy.
• The Project will not provide applications sufficiently rapidly to avoid the need for continuing development in other packages such as AIPS, MIRIAD and NEWSTAR. This would leach away personnel from AIPS++.
  • Ask each consortium partner to consider carefully what the key areas of application development are. Aim for generic, shared solutions such as calibration and imaging for a generic interferometric array.
• "Invention", rather than adoption, of too much technology (for example array classes, database technology, distributed objects).
  • A problem with developing at the cutting edge is that the marketplace will not have developed future, long-lived solutions. All we can do is track such solutions and adopt them when they become mature and widely available. (Indeed, the C++ language itself is only settling down now).
• Links with astronomers are too weak to drive the Project towards astronomically important solutions.
  • Arrange informal contacts. Within a year, formalize via an AIPS++ Users Group or Scientific Advisory Group.
• The Project is too reliant upon a few key people.
  • Document architecture, designs and implement well enough to assure continuity.
• Distributed development cannot work for a Project of this complexity.
  • Restrict distributed development if possible. Monitor necessary distributed development very closely. For complex areas, either find one overall architect/designer or arrange extended visits to one place, e.g. the AIPS++ Center.
  • The Project is not addressing the issues of performance, for example, how best to implement AIPS++ on parallel machines.
    • The Project must find an appropriate group and plan a line of development specifically targeted to High Performance Computing.

Requests for action or approval

1. I expect the Executive Committee to review this document closely and to comment as it pleases. However, I would specifically appreciate comments on the Areas of Risk. Are all the areas of risk identified? For those given, are the solutions plausible?
   • The Executive Committee approved the list of risks after minor modifications..
2. I am not in favor of starting another active AIPS++ site until the current sites can be shown to collaborate well. An important test of a higher level of collaboration is the development of the Coordinate Classes that ATNF has agreed to pursue. This will be done away from the AIPS++ Center but will make significant requests of the Center to address any required changes in the Infrastructure Library. In addition, personnel will be allocated by the Center to work on the Coordinate Classes under the direction of ATNF managers (Killeen and Brouw). If this is successful, we will try further collaborations of this sort. For work that cannot be split up in this way, it is important that the Project be given more manpower at the Center. With this in mind, I request that consortium members consider the possibility of sending people to work at the center for extended periods (6-12 months).
   • The Executive Committee approved this approach.
3. I strongly prefer to make publicly available many of the Project management documents. With this in mind, I would like to make this report publicly available, preferably via the WWW.
   • The Executive Committee approved the release of this report.

Appendix A: AIPS++ Development Plan

The development plan is updated every few months. Here I attach the version from 1995 June 9. The current version is available on the WWW.

AIPS++ Development Plan

Introduction

This document describes and records the development plan for AIPS++ from March 1995 (when new management of AIPS++ was instituted) until mid-1996. The plan will evolve and change with time. Revisions since the last version are shown in bold. Items subject to continuing discussion are given in italics. With the exception of this section, which has some general observations, the style of this document is direct. It says what we will do with relatively little emphasis on saying why we will do it or who will do it. This plan is mirrored in the AIPS++ Target Dates where names and time-scales are given. I have matched the goals here to the personnel available rather than give a wish-list. I have also described areas where we will not be active.

First I give some general observations that drive the plan:

• The goal of AIPS++ is to be the next generation software system for astronomical data analysis. The strategy to achieve this goal is to follow three phases:
  1. Develop the infrastructure library,
  2. Test and extend the library. We will do this by tightly focused applications development. To attract early adopters of AIPS++, we will preferentially add key, unique applications that do not exist in other packages,
• Expand out to completeness.
  Phase 1 is mostly complete. We are embarking upon the second phase in which the infrastructure will be tested and extended. This will occur principally at the two main NRAO sites (Socorro and Charlottesville). Once the libraries and central design concepts are shown to be robust, applications development (Phase 3) can accelerate and spread to more AIPS++ sites.
• Adoption of AIPS++ by applications programmers requires robust, reliable, well-designed, well-documented libraries. It would be irresponsible to develop designs that are not documented. This will a key part of the AIPS++ intellectual heritage. The completeness of the documentation of the early design of IRAF serves as a good example.
• I expect that the libraries will change and grow significantly as applications are written. This requires close communication between application developers and those responsible for the library. The distinction between infrastructure and application code is hard to make at this early stage since most applications should produce code that will eventually end up in the library.
• To maintain focus and to provide simple feedback concerning the library, applications development should proceed in a few tightly focused areas. These applications will be drawn from single dish support (specifically GBT commissioning and observing), and synthesis support. Once these applications have been demonstrated, we expect that further application development will proceed more rapidly and with the active involvement of other sites.

AIPS++ is conceptually broken down into various sub-components: Infrastructure, System, Documentation, Single Dish Processing,Synthesis Processing, Image Analysis,Visualization, Observing support, and Management.

Infrastructure

• Object persistence: A mechanism for allowing object persistence is required.
• User Interface: We will continue to use Glish as the CLI. There is a separate development plan for Glish.
• Tasking: We will develop further and implement the design for Tasking described in Glendenning's memo on the architecture of AIPS++. As part of this work, the Inputs Classes must be redesigned to support more complex applications for example convert input file name to an image directly.
• Graphical User Interface: Paul Shannon will be responsible for the adoption of an existing GUI or the development of a prototype GUI. Harvey Liszt and Rick Fisher will advise. This will be done in partnership with the GBT Monitor and Control group.
• Coordinates: The ATNF group will be responsible for the completion of the design and implementation of Coordinate and Measure classes.
• Image Class: The Image class will be integrated with the new Coordinate and Measure classes. Masks and weights will be added.
• Plotting Capabilities: 1-D plotting is needed in some form for the GBT work. For the GBT Systems integration work, we will use a commercial widget, Xrt/Graph. We will evaluate alternate, public domain solutions. Paul Shannon will be responsible for this with advice from Harvey Liszt and Rick Fisher.
• Table development: Storage managers and optimization will be the key to efficient use of the Table system, particularly in the "Big Table" model of Measurement Sets. This work will be under the supervision of Ger van Diepen. The key remaining development is of a hyper-tiled storage manager.
• FITS Classes: The FITS classes will be augmented to support random access i/o, to avoid the down-casting now required, and to improve the interface.

System

• Code Management System: We will add support for automated testing.
• Compiler Support: We will evaluate the beta version of the Sun native compiler. As a second priority, we will also investigate use of the IBM compiler.

Documentation

• Overall Documentation: Much of the existing documentation is out-of-date. We will attempt to update key documentation. We will distinguish between up-to-date and outdated documentation.
• User Documentation: User documentation is proceeding well under the direction of Alan Bridle. Decisions must be made on directory structure and development of tools.
• Programmer Documentation: One person will be given overall responsibility for programmer documentation and will work in close collaboration with Alan Bridle to provide a unified approach to user and programmer documentation. Design documents must be regarded as a necessary part of the development of a new class or of a substantial revision of an existing class. For major existing classes, we will write post hoc design descriptions. Defunct design documents will be removed from active directories.

Single Dish Processing

• On The Fly Mapping: We will finish the OTFTool developed by Bob Garwood for the 12m and support it for use at the telescope. However, substantial additions or augmentations will take second priority to the GBT support discussed below.
• GBT Commissioning support: AIPS++ will support the GBT systems integration work on the 140' telescope. This requires filling into an AIPS++ Table, plotting and some simple manipulations of engineering and astronomical data, all by July 1995.
• SDCalc: After support for the commissioning of the GBT, we will start development of a Single Dish Calculator of the sort envisaged by Harvey Liszt and Rick Fisher. This will require development of a GUI and plotting capabilities.
• SDImager: After SDCalc, we will develop imaging capabilities for Single Dish Observing in both spectral line and continuum modes. These will be analogous to the advanced imaging capabilities important in interferometry.

Synthesis Processing

• Advanced Imaging: We will develop tools for advanced imaging using the Briggs NNLS deconvolution algorithm in conjunction with self-calibration and careful editing of visibility data.
• Calibration: We will develop a complete calibration package for the ATCA. Calibration for other telescopes is deferred until a workable scheme for the ATCA has been developed. Calibration for BIMA, VLBA, WSRT is tentatively planned to be addressed early 1996.

Image Analysis

• Image Analysis will be deferred until the initial applications in Single Dish and Synthesis processing are complete. This is likely to be until early 1996.

Visualization

• Visualization will continue to be developed at BIMA sites. The code will be checked into the AIPS++ Code Management System. AIPS++ Classes will be used where possible. A second round of revisions and augmentations to AIPSView will be made with the goal of supporting the planned applications development (for example, AIPSView will supporting editing of visibility data)

Observing support

• The VLBA Observe program (also known as Gnomes) will be ported to AIPS++ starting Fall 1995.

Management

• This plan is predicated upon the following personnel being available and dedicated to AIPS++ with high predictability but not necessarily 100% time allocation.
• The AIPS++ group inside NRAO will be composed as follows:
  • Socorro: Cornwell (Project Manager), Glendenning (Deputy), Roberts and two new hires will work on Management, Infrastructure, and Synthesis Applications. Hjellming is a scientific advisor. I expect several long-term visitors to be present in Socorro at any time over the next few years. Mark Wieringa will visit the AOC for at least 6 months starting in September 1995 to work on ATCA calibration. In Fall 1995, Young will join the AIPS++ group. In early 1996, Beasley will begin work on VLBA calibration inside AIPS++.
  • Charlottesville: Garwood, Shannon, and Schiebel will work on Single Dish and Infrastructure. Bridle and Liszt are scientific advisors for User Documentation and Single Dish.
  • Green Bank: Payne will support Single Dish. Fisher is a scientific advisor for Single Dish and Infrastructure.
  • Tucson: There is currently no AIPS++ support person at Tucson. Darrel Emerson is a scientific advisor for Single Dish.
• The AIPS++ group at ATNF will be: Killeen (Local Manager), Brouw, Calabretta, and Wieringa.
• The AIPS++ group at BIMA/NCSA will be: Crutcher (Local Manager), Baker, Baxter, Ravlin, and Pixton.
• The AIPS++ group at NFRA will be: Noordam (Local Manager), van Diepen, and Olnon.
• The other AIPS++ sites (HIA/DRAO, NRAL, NCRA) are expected to provide substantially less than 1 person each to this plan.
• The Project Management will report quarterly to the AIPS++ Board on progress in the last quarter and plans for the next quarter.
• Plans for AIPS++ development will be described in this document that will be updated as required.
• Tracking of progress in AIPS++ will be via a Target Dates list that will be updated and distributed to

Appendix B: AIPS++ Target Dates for June 26, 1995

The Target Dates are accessible via the WWW. Here I attach the list of Target Dates from 1995 June 26. These are discussed and updated during the Monday Morning Meeting held every week. In addition, each active worker is expected to submit a progress report at the end of every week.

Date               Target             Who?                Original           

6/17/95            Specification of   Noordam             9/1/95             
                   WSRT calibration                                          

6/26/95            Quarterly Report   Cornwell            6/26/95            
                   to AIPS++ Board                                           

7/1/95             Specification of   Liszt               7/1/95             
                   SDCalc                                                    

7/1/95             Image masks and    Roberts             7/1/95             
                   weights                                                   

7/1/95             Plan for           Cornwell            7/1/95             
                   programmer                                                
                   documentation                                             

7/1/95             Specification of   Cornwell/Emerson    7/1/95             
                   SDIMager                                                  

7/1/95             Cleanup of         Cornwell            7/1/95             
                   defunct design                                            
                   docs                                                      

7/5/95             Design of generic  Olnon               7/5/95             
                   filler                                                    

7/5/95             Plan for work in   Cornwell            6/1/95             
                   Synthesis                                                 

7/7/95             Design of          van Diepen          9/1/95             
                   Hypercube/tiled                                           
                   storage manager                                           

7/10/95            Design of design   Cornwell            6/15/95            
                   documentation                                             

7/15/95            GBT initial test   Garwood             7/15/95            

7/17/95            Design of          Glendenning         7/1/95             
                   Tasking, etc.                                             

8/1/95             Second Hire in     Cornwell            11/1/95            
                   Socorro                                                   

8/1/95             First Hire in      Cornwell            8/1/95             
                   Socorro                                                   

8/1/95             Specification of   Wieringa            8/1/95             
                   ATCA calibration                                          
                   package                                                   

8/1/95             Implement          Wieringa            8/1/95             
                   polarization                                              
                   solve and apply                                           

8/1/95             Design of          Young               8/1/95             
                   Programmer                                                
                   Documentation                                             

8/1/95             Select Graphics    Shannon             8/1/95             
                   package                                                   

8/1/95             Automated testing  Calabretta          7/1/95             

8/1/95             Move Functionals,  Glendenning         8/1/95             
                   Fitting                                                   

8/1/95             Move Lattices,     Roberts             8/1/95             
                   Images                                                    

8/1/95             Plan for First     Cornwell            8/1/95             
                   Generation Image                                          
                   Analysis                                                  

8/15/95            Design of          Brouw               8/15/95            
                   Coordinate                                                
                   classes                                                   

9/1/95             Development plan   Brouw               9/1/95             
                   for Coordinate                                            
                   classes                                                   

9/1/95             Move               Garwood             9/1/95             
                   MeasurementSet                                            

9/1/95             Move Correctors    Glendenning         9/1/95             

9/1/95             Implementation of  Glendenning         9/1/95             
                   Tasking design                                            

9/15/95            12-m Continuum     Garwood             9/15/95            
                   OTF data handled                                          
                   by OTF tool                                               

10/1/95            Select GUI         Shannon             10/1/95            

10/15/95           GBT second phase   Garwood             10/15/95           
                   test                                                      

10/22/95           ADASS meeting      Cornwell            10/22/95           

12/1/95            Reimplement FITS   Young               12/1/95            
                   classes                                                   

1/1/96             Plan for Image     Cornwell            1/1/96             
                   Analysis                                                  

1/1/96             Specification of   Teuben              1/1/96             
                   BIMA calibration                                          

2/1/96             Design of          Garwood             2/1/96             
                   SDImager                                                  

2/1/96             Specification of   Beasley             2/1/96             
                   VLBA calibration                                          

3/15/96            GBT third phase    Garwood             3/15/96            
                   test                                                      

5/1/96             Implement alpha    Garwood             5/1/96             
                   SDImager                                                  

7/1/96             Design of SDCalc   Garwood             7/1/96             

10/1/96            Implement alpha    Garwood             10/1/96            
                   SDCalc                                                    

Appendix C: AIPSView Capabilities

AIPSView is now in a second alpha test. It has the following capabilities.

• Easy to use, intuitive graphical user interface (Motif based).
  • Input of FITS image files.
  • Display of 2D images
  • Display of any orthogonal 2D slice from a 3D image cube (for example, display of RA vs. Dec for a given velocity, display of RA vs. velocity for a fixed Dec, etc.).
  • Movie or animation function for time-sequence display of third dimension of 3D images.
  • Simultaneous display of images from multiple data sets.
  • Zooming.
  • Time synchronized movies of two (or more) data cubes of the same area of sky (that is, the same velocity of each data cube is displayed as the two movies are run).
  • Blink function for animation display of two (or more) single planes of different images.
  • Interactive display of data values, pixel values, and world (e.g., RA, Dec) coordinate values as pointer is moved around image.
  • Interactive vector (line drawing) plots of data value Vs coordinate value, for example, for line profile plots or intensity tables and creation of new tables.
  • Interactive (mouse) manipulation of zero point and contrast of color look-up table.
  • Subregion selection, with subregions being rectangular areas defined by mouse selection of opposite corners.
  • AipsView will use the full virtual memory available.
• Glish for communication with and support of AIPS++ visualization.

Appendix D: Personnel

The following changes have occurred:

• Brian Glendenning is Deputy Assistant Director for AIPS++ Project. Effective July 1 1995, he will relocate to Socorro.
• Jim Hortskotte and Gareth Hunt have left the AIPS++ Project. Both are being replaced by appointments in Socorro. Hiring for these two positions is now under way. Wes Young is joining the Project in Socorro. Tony Beasley will start work on VLBI calibration in January 1996.
• In Dwingeloo, Jayaram Chengalur has become the NFRA AIPS++ Project Scientist

The total roster of programmers and managers working on AIPS++ is shown below, along with percentage time allocated to AIPS++ work:

• NRAO:
  • Socorro: Cornwell - Project Manager (100%), Glendenning - Deputy Project Manager (100%), Roberts (100%), Young (75%), plus two hires in progress (100%).
  • Charlottesville: Garwood (100%), Shannon (100%), and Schiebel (100%).
  • Green Bank: Payne (25%).
• ATNF: Killeen - Local Manager (30%), Brouw (50%), Calabretta (100%), and Wieringa (50%).
• BIMA/NCSA: Crutcher - Local Manager (25%), Baker (50%), Baxter (50%), Ravlin (75%), and Pixton (100%).
• NFRA: Noordam - Local Manager (50%), van Diepen (100%), and Olnon (100%).
• The other AIPS++ sites (HIA/DRAO, NRAL, NCRA) are not involved significantly.

You could now go back to the:

• top of this document
• AIPS++ Home Page

Copyright © 1995,1996,1999,2000 Associated Universities Inc., Washington, D.C.