Creation and Usage of Simple Macros

Often the same sequence of data analysis operations will need to be repeated for many different data-sets. The instructions here show how a simple ``macro'' may be created for this purpose and automatically run on the sequence of files. More versatile and sophisticated macros may also be developed, their creation is described in Appendix B (Section 30, Page ).

The simplest way in which you create a macro file is to perform the normal data analysis of one file, but to enter the MACROS / LOG FILE interface before and click on the CREATE MACRO button, and afterwards to return and click on the STOP MACRO button. When you click on the CREATE MACRO button, you will be asked for the name of the macro file to create.

FIT2D will save this macro to an ASCII file. This contains the instructions for the data analysis sequence, but will only run on the file which has just been treated. Using your favourite editor the file name(s) can be found and replaced by ``variable names'' which will be automatically generated by FIT2D.

e.g. A standard basic macro has one input file and one output file, so the input file name would be replaced by the ``variable'' #IN and the output file name by the ``variable'' #OUT. (Note: These variable names are case sensitive. #in is not the same as #IN.)

Having edited the macro it is ready to use with RUN SEQUENCE button. See Section 8, Page  for further information. This prompts for the names of the first and last input files (corresponding to #IN). From these files the changing numerical part is deduced. The user is prompted for the increment between files. By default this is 1 (or -1), i.e. every file in the series is treated, but by entering larger integers every secong, third, etc. file can be used and the others ignored. The output files (corresponding to #OUT) are given the same name as the input files except for the file extension. The user is prompted for the file extension which replaces that of the input files. This will then automatically generate the sequence of file names and run the macro on each set of input and output files.

It is also possible to define and run macros from the ``KEYBOARD'' interface using the START MACRO, STOP MACRO, and SEQUENCE commands. This is much more flexible (and complicated): more than one input and output files are possible, and other variables can be generated to make macros more versatile. See Section 30, Page  for further details.