[Fwd: HDF5 prototype]

[Ray Osborn]

>
>>
>>	A related question: Will it be possible to read HDF4.2 and lower
>>data files
>>using the HDF5 API?
>
>We plan to do this, but we are now debating just how to do it.  We would
>like to provide a relatively lightweight library, and that conflicts with
>our desire to support all older formats.  So the exact approach we will
>take is still under discussion.  I would be interested in knowing what your
>requirements are, so that we can including them in our discussions.
>
>Mike
>

In responding to this particular point, a key question is going to be the
time scale over which HDF5 becomes available.  If sufficiently fast, we may
not have enough legacy HDF4-based NeXus files to worry about backward
compatibility.  Even if we do have a reasonable number of files, it may be
possible to write simple conversion utilities from HDF4 to HDF5 using both
sets of code.  It would be interesting to hear from Mark, who is probably
further along than the rest of us in using NeXus, what he considers an
appropriate time scale to be, and how easy it would be to write conversion
programs.

If we reach a consensus on this point, will you carry on the correspondance
with NCSA, Nick?  We should try and speak with a coherent voice.

Ray

------------------------------------------------------
Dr Ray Osborn                  Tel: +1 (630) 252-9011
Materials Science Division     Fax: +1 (630) 252-7777
Argonne National Laboratory    E-mail: ROsborn at anl.gov
Argonne, IL 60439-4845