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Re: Object boundaries [message #40328 is a reply to message #40209]

Mon, 02 August 2004 14:54

Paul Van Delst[1]
Messages: 1157
Registered: April 2002

Senior Member

David Fanning wrote:
> Michael Wallace writes:
>
>
>> As I continue my IDL education, I see more and more that IDL is a
>> *product* rather than a *programming language*.
>
>
> I think the original concept was a "programming language
> for scientists". Which meant, I suppose, a dumbed down
> language, maybe part "product" and part "language" if you
> like. But certainly just that part of a language scientists
> could be expected to know (or learn in a relatively short
> time).
>
> I'm not sure where IDL is going now. I have heard of
> people outside of RSI writing programs with iTools,
> but they have spent the past six months writing their
> own documentation so they can figure it out. I'm pretty
> sure no "scientist" is going to program in iTools (or
> object graphics either, for that matter), so
> I presume the concept now is "tools for scientists".

Hmm. I think "toolbox for scientists' graduate students" is more accurate. ;o) All the
bits and pieces are there.. which you can hand off to your grad student (or freshly minted
Masters grad now working for a contractor :o) and ask him/her to make pretty pictures for
the next budget review/conference meeting/paper. For people that aren't into programming,
the IDL object stuff is too complicated, or too slow/unresponsive (via the various iTools).

I am quite boggled by the fact that people are still having to futz with tick mark objects
(or whatever) in creating plots.

> I think the jury is still out on whether this will
> be a successful strategy in the long run, but I'm not
> too excited about it in the near term. :-(

I'll second that.

But, just in case people think I'm being overly crotchety, I still haven't found a peer to
the simplicity of reading in and direct-graphics PLOT-ing data in IDL. At least in
Linux. Dunno about Windows (although there is this company in Golden, CO that makes a
*sweet* suite of windows-based graphics tools, Grapher/Surfer, etc.).

paulv

> P.S. Have you ever wondered if it's just the Luddites
> who hang out here on this newsgroup. :-)

We're the only ones who need the help as we're dragged kicking and screaming into the
world of objects, no? :o)

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[Message index]

		Object boundaries By: Michael Wallace on Tue, 27 July 2004 10:56
		Re: Object boundaries By: James Kuyper on Tue, 03 August 2004 07:46
		Re: Object boundaries By: mperrin+news on Wed, 04 August 2004 14:41
		Re: Object boundaries By: Rick Towler on Mon, 02 August 2004 16:05
		Re: Object boundaries By: Karl Schultz on Mon, 02 August 2004 15:44
		Re: Object boundaries By: David Fanning on Mon, 02 August 2004 14:58
		Re: Object boundaries By: Paul Van Delst[1] on Mon, 02 August 2004 14:54
		Re: Object boundaries By: Rick Towler on Mon, 02 August 2004 14:38
		Re: Object boundaries By: David Fanning on Mon, 02 August 2004 14:11
		Re: Object boundaries By: Michael Wallace on Mon, 02 August 2004 13:46
		Re: Object boundaries By: David Fanning on Mon, 02 August 2004 13:32
		Re: Object boundaries By: Michael Wallace on Mon, 02 August 2004 13:19
		Re: Object boundaries By: David Fanning on Mon, 02 August 2004 12:44

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