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Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL [message #35 is a reply to message #30]

Wed, 20 February 1991 17:12

eckman
Messages: 8
Registered: February 1991

Junior Member

In article <KHB.91Feb20141957@chiba.Eng.Sun.COM> khb@chiba.Eng.Sun.COM (Keith Bierman fpgroup) writes:
>
> So the question remains. What are the technical differences (other
> than point and click front end)?

While I can't comment directly on the technical differences between IDL
and PV-Wave, I have been using IDL for over 10 years and have used a demo
copy of PV-Wave. I still remember the days when !HIVOLT was a system
variable back on the PDPs! My impression is that there's minimal difference.
It's clear that the Precision Visual folks do have some new features but these
appear to be related primarily to support new graphics devices (e.g., TEK
4100).
The beauty of IDL for the scientific researcher is the ability to use it
as a programming language. It's far more than just a plotting package.
While point and click interfaces might be great for managerial types,
it seems to defeat the whole purpose of the package. Admittedly,
I haven't tried the new PV-Wave point and click front end, but that's my
initial impression.
Precision Visual does also offer a support hotline and a slightly prettier
manual but I've never had difficulty in getting the RSI folks to solve a
problem in short order.
The main difference that pushed me towards RSI, rather than PV-Wave, was
cost. IDL was substantially less expensive for our VAXstations and
DECstations. I'd personally rather deal with the people who wrote the
original software, no matter how competent the folks at Precision Visual
clearly are.

Richard Eckman
NASA Langley Research Center
eckman@dobson.larc.nasa.gov

disclaimer: Opinions are obviously my own, not those of NASA.

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[Message index]

		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: sterner on Thu, 21 February 1991 13:13
		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: khb on Wed, 20 February 1991 14:19
		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: khb on Wed, 20 February 1991 13:23
		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: lbreid on Wed, 20 February 1991 12:26
		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: ali on Wed, 20 February 1991 11:50
		Re: Response to question about PV-WAVE and IDL By: eckman on Wed, 20 February 1991 17:12

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