SeaDAS Startup Syntax

Differences between IDL and Unix commands for data processing programs in SeaDAS

SeaDAS uses IDL to manage a variety of GUI's for satellite image analysis and processing. Within the SeaDAS environment, IDL code serves as a wrapper around many Unix processing binaries and utility tools. In other words, SeaDAS IDL processing procedures are simply wrapper scripts that call Unix binaries.

Therefore, SeaDAS processing programs can be run in either IDL at the SeaDAS prompt, or at the Unix command-line. There are differences in the formats of each method, and the two formats look so similar that it is sometimes difficult to tell which format is being used.

SeaDAS IDL commands use commas to separate each parameter, while the Unix commands use spaces instead of commas. In most cases, the command names and parameter names used in either method match, although in some cases the parameter names may differ or be missing altogether.

Examples of command line processing:

General command:

SeaDAS IDL:	l2gen,ifile='A20060761.L1B',geofile='A20060761.GEO',ofile1='test.hdf',resolution=250,slat=20, elat=40, slon=-80, elon=-65
Unix:	l2gen ifile=A20060761.L1B geofile=A20060761.GEO ofile1=test.hdf resolution=250 spixl=32 epixl=176 sline=4 eline=1450

Command using parameter file:

SeaDAS IDL:	l2gen, par='l2gen.par'
Unix:	l2gen par=l2gen.par

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Authorized by: gene carl feldman

Updated: 26 August 2009