Signal and Axis

[Eric Boucher]

> I'm not sure about adding too many axis_id attributes to a data set
> (axis_id1, axis_id2 etc).  The names rapidly start becoming very
> inelegant,

Either we store this information in one place (the signal data set) or we
spread it all over the file by storing this information as axis attribute
for other data sets.
In my opinion, you will seldom have data of rank greater than 4 (at least in
our case) that will make the names become inelegant.

> and I'm not sure they add much extra functionality.  Actually, if
> the users
> are not going to use the default axes, then they will probably be involved
> in making a manual decision about which axes to use (e.g. by clicking a
> mouse). As long as they have enough information to make an intelligent
> choice, we probably don't have to worry about it.

In any case, we would have to give users enough information to identify
possible axis, so instead of forcing them to look at axis attributes in
different places, the browser could easily make a list of all possibe X, Y,
Z, ... axis. The users would just have to choose in those lists.

So just by looking a what you want to plot, you know all the possible axis.
Neither the browser nor the user woud have to search the file for axis
attributes.
Simplier, faster so more efficient.


Eric.




Eric Boucher
Beamline Control and Data Aquisition
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 South Cass Av
Argonne IL, 60439
Tel: (630) 252 9748
Fax: (630) 252 9303
email: boucher at aps.anl.gov