1<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//IETF//DTD HTML 3//EN"> 2<HTML><HEAD> 3 <TITLE>User's Guide - Graphical User Interface: Control Panels, Interactors, and Macros</TITLE> 4 <META HTTP-EQUIV="keywords" CONTENT="GRAPHICS VISUALIZATION VISUAL PROGRAM DATA 5MINING"> 6 <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=ISO-8859-1"> 7</HEAD><BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" link="#00004b" vlink="#4b004b"> 8 <TABLE width=510 border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0> 9 <TR> 10 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=80 HEIGHT=1></TD> 11 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=49 HEIGHT=1></TD> 12 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=24 HEIGHT=1></TD> 13 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=100 HEIGHT=1></TD> 14 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=3 HEIGHT=1></TD> 15 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=127 HEIGHT=1></TD> 16 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=6 HEIGHT=1></TD> 17 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=50 HEIGHT=1></TD> 18 <TD><IMG SRC="../images/spacer.gif" WIDTH=71 HEIGHT=1></TD> 19 </TR> 20 <TR> 21 <TD colspan=9><IMG src="../images/flcgh_01.gif" width=510 height=24 border="0" alt="OpenDX - Documentation"></TD> 22 </TR> 23 <TR> 24 <TD colspan=2><A href="../allguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_02.gif" width=129 height=25 border="0" alt="Full Contents"></A></TD> 25 <TD colspan=3><A href="../qikguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_03.gif" width=127 height=25 border="0" alt="QuickStart Guide"></A></TD> 26 <TD><A href="../usrguide.htm"><B><IMG src="../images/flcgh_04d.gif" width=127 height=25 border="0" alt="User's Guide"></B></A></TD> 27 <TD colspan=3><A href="../refguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_05.gif" width=127 height=25 border="0" alt="User's Reference"></A></TD> 28 </TR> 29 <TR> 30 <TD><A href="usrgu042.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_06.gif" width=80 height=17 border="0" alt="Previous Page"></A></TD> 31 <TD colspan=2><A href="usrgu043.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_07.gif" width=73 height=17 border="0" alt="Next Page"></A></TD> 32 <TD><A href="../usrguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_08.gif" width=100 height=17 border="0" alt="Table of Contents"></A></TD> 33 <TD colspan=3><A href="usrgu040.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_09.gif" width=136 height=17 border="0" alt="Partial Table of Contents"></A></TD> 34 <TD><A href="usrgu080.htm"><IMG src="../images/flcgh_10.gif" width=50 height=17 border="0" alt="Index"></A></TD> 35 <TD><A href="../srchindx.htm"><IMG SRC="../images/flcgh_11.gif" width=71 height=17 border="0" alt="Search"></A></TD> 36 </TR> 37 </TABLE> 38 <H2><A NAME="HDRUNDUS3" ></A>Chapter 7. Graphical User Interface: Control Panels, Interactors, and Macros 39</H2> 40 <P><A NAME="PToC10"></A>Partial Table-of-Contents 41 <MENU> 42<LI><A NAME="PToC_200" HREF="#HDRBUICO">7.1 Using Control Panels and 43Interactors</A> 44<MENU> 45<LI><A NAME="PToC_201" HREF="#HDRCPI">Building Control Panels</A> 46<LI><A NAME="PToC_202" HREF="#HDRINTRACS">Placing Interactors in a New Control 47Panel</A> 48<LI><A NAME="PToC_203" HREF="#HDRADIN2CP">Adding Interactors to an Existing 49Control Panel</A> 50<LI><A NAME="PToC_204" HREF="#Header_204">Selecting, Moving, and Deleting 51Interactors</A> 52<LI><A NAME="PToC_205" HREF="#Header_205">Changing the Size of an Interactor</A> 53<LI><A NAME="PToC_206" HREF="#HDRLOCSTI">Locating Interactor Stand-ins</A> 54<LI><A NAME="PToC_207" HREF="#Header_207">Deleting Control Panels</A> 55<LI><A NAME="PToC_208" HREF="#Header_208">Saving and Restoring Control 56Panels</A> 57<LI><A NAME="PToC_209" HREF="#HDRCCP">Customizing a Control Panel</A> 58<LI><A NAME="PToC_222" HREF="#HDRCPADBS">Control Panels as Dialog Boxes</A> 59<LI><A NAME="PToC_223" HREF="#HDRCPA">Control Panel Access, Groups, and 60Hierarchies</A> 61<LI><A NAME="PToC_224" HREF="#HDRCMD">Creating, Modifying, and Deleting Control 62Panel Groups</A> 63<LI><A NAME="PToC_225" HREF="#HDRRCPA">Restricting Control Panel Access</A> 64<LI><A NAME="PToC_226" HREF="#HDRSTARTCP">Specifying a Startup Control Panel</A> 65<LI><A NAME="PToC_227" HREF="#HDROCP">Opening Existing Control Panels</A> 66<LI><A NAME="PToC_228" HREF="#HDRINTERAC">Using Interactors</A> 67<LI><A NAME="PToC_246" HREF="#HDRDDINTER">Using Data-Driven Interactors</A> 68</MENU> 69<LI><A NAME="PToC_247" HREF="usrgu044.htm#HDRMACROS">7.2 Creating and Using 70Macros</A> 71<MENU> 72<LI><A NAME="PToC_248" HREF="usrgu044.htm#HDRCREMAC">Creating Macros</A> 73<LI><A NAME="PToC_249" HREF="usrgu044.htm#HDRLODMAC">Loading Macros</A> 74<LI><A NAME="PToC_250" HREF="usrgu044.htm#HDRUMACVP">Using Macros in a Visual 75Program</A> 76<LI><A NAME="PToC_251" HREF="usrgu044.htm#Header_251">Viewing and Changing 77Macros</A> 78</MENU></MENU><HR><P> 79<A NAME="IDX762"></A> 80<A NAME="IDX763"></A> 81<A NAME="IDX764"></A> 82<HR> 83<H2><A NAME="HDRBUICO" ></A>7.1 Using Control Panels and Interactors 84</H2> 85<P> 86As you create a visual program, you may have inputs whose values are subject to 87frequent change. 88You can use interactors as an easy method for controlling those input 89values. 90<I>Interactors</I>, which appear only in Control Panels, are the 91interactive devices that you use to manipulate inputs to a visual program 92in order to change the image that is produced (see 93<A HREF="#HDRINTERAC">"Using Interactors"</A> for detailed descriptions). 94<A NAME="IDX765"></A> 95<P> 96<I>Interactor stand-ins</I> are used to indicate which input to a 97module a given interactor is to control. 98While you are building the network in the VPE, you select interactor 99stand-ins from the tool palettes and place them on the canvas, 100as you do with other tools. 101Like any tool, the output of an interactor stand-in can be connected to 102more than one input. 103Interactor stand-ins are named, in general, after the type of data they 104output: 105<TABLE CELLPADDING="3"> 106<TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Integer stand-ins 107</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output whole numbers. 108</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Scalar stand-ins 109</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output real numbers. 110</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>String stand-ins 111</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output text strings. 112</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Value stand-ins 113</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output scalars, vectors, and tensors. 114</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Vector stand-ins 115</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output vectors. 116</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Integer list stand-ins 117</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output integer lists. 118</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Scalar list stand-ins 119</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output scalar lists. 120</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>String list stand-ins 121</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output string lists. 122</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Value list stand-ins 123</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output value lists (e.g., vector and 124scalar lists). 125</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Vector list stand-ins 126</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output vector lists. 127</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Selector stand-ins 128</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output values and strings, 129representing 130a choice of one from many. 131</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Selector list stand-ins 132</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output values and strings, 133representing 134a choice of none, one, or more among many. 135</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>FileSelector stand-ins 136</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output both a fully qualified path 137name and an individual file name. 138</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Reset stand-ins 139</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output one value when executed the 140first 141time after being set and another value thereafter. 142</TD></TR><TR VALIGN="TOP"><TD><P><B>Toggle stand-ins 143</B></TD><TD><P>Represent interactors that output one of two values. 144</TD></TR></TABLE> 145<P> 146Data Explorer allows the visual programmer to associate comments with each 147Control Panel. 148To access these comments, use the <TT><STRONG>On Control Panel</STRONG></TT> 149option of 150the <TT><STRONG>Help</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu in the Control Panel about 151which you want to learn. 152If no comments exist for the Control Panel, the <TT><STRONG>On Control 153Panel</STRONG></TT> option is grayed out. 154<P> 155<H3><A NAME="HDRCPI" ></A>Building Control Panels</H3> 156<A NAME="IDX766"></A> 157<P> 158<A HREF="#FIGUSEA">Figure 60</A> illustrates the organization of a Control 159Panel. 160<P><B><A NAME="FIGUSEA" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGUSEA">Figure 60. Control Panel 161Window</A></B><BR> 162<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/ctrlpan.gif" ALT="Figure ctrlpan not 163displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 164The menu bar, discussed in <A HREF="usrgu045.htm#HDRCPMENU">"Control Panel Menu 165Bar"</A>, contains categories of 166available menu options. 167The open area is called the <I>layout area</I>. 168<P> 169You can create any number of Control Panels for one visual program, and you can 170also place a single interactor in multiple Control Panels. 171The configuration of a Control Panel and the values of the interactors 172are saved when you save the visual program. 173You can also customize Control Panels, and save or restore them 174independently of the visual program. 175<P> 176If you are going to control a tool input through an interactor in a 177Control Panel, then you must first connect an interactor stand-in 178to that input in the VPE. 179Using a stand-in as a tool input is an alternative to using the 180module's Configuration dialog box every time you want to 181change the value of the input. 182<P> 183<H3><A NAME="HDRINTRACS" ></A>Placing Interactors in a New Control Panel 184</H3> 185<A NAME="IDX767"></A> 186<A NAME="IDX768"></A> 187<A NAME="IDX769"></A> 188<P> 189To place interactors in a new Control Panel: 190<OL COMPACT> 191<LI>On the VPE canvas, select the interactor stand-ins you want in 192the Control Panel (other tools can be selected as well). 193<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>New Control Panel</STRONG></TT> option of the 194<TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> menu. 195This causes a new Control Panel to appear with the selected interactors 196in the layout area. 197Each interactor is labeled with the name of the tool to which its output 198is connected, unless its output is connected to more than one tool or 199not connected to any tool, in which case the interactor is labeled 200with the interactor type (e.g., an integer interactor is labeled 201with "Integer"). 202You can also double-click on one of the selected interactor stand-ins to 203create a new Control Panel automatically. 204</OL> 205<P> 206When a new Control Panel is created with the selected interactors, the 207interactors are placed in a vertical column in the order in which 208their stand-ins were placed on the VPE canvas. 209<P><B>Note: </B>If you select a group that includes tools other than interactor 210stand-ins, only the interactors appear in the Control Panel. 211Therefore, the quickest way to place all the visual program's interactors in 212one Control Panel is to use the <TT><STRONG>Select All</STRONG></TT> option of 213the 214<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> pull-down, then select the <TT><STRONG>New 215Control 216Panel</STRONG></TT> option of the <TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> pull-down 217menu. 218<P> 219<P> 220<H3><A NAME="HDRADIN2CP" ></A>Adding Interactors to an Existing Control Panel 221</H3> 222<A NAME="IDX770"></A> 223<A NAME="IDX771"></A> 224<P> 225To add an interactor to an existing Control Panel: 226<OL COMPACT> 227<LI>Open the Control Panel. 228<LI>Select the interactor stand-in on the VPE canvas. 229<LI>In the Control Panel window, click on the <TT><STRONG>Add Selected 230Interactor(s)</STRONG></TT> option of the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu. 231<LI>Move the cursor to where you want to position the tool in the 232Control Panel. 233Note that the style of the cursor changes when you move it onto the 234panel. 235This is similar to how tool icons are placed on the VPE canvas. 236Exact placement of the interactor depends on the grid settings (see 237<A HREF="#HDRCCPGRID">"Changing the Alignment of Interactors in the Control 238Panel"</A>). 239<LI>Click the mouse. 240The interactor appears at the specified location. 241</OL> 242<P> 243Alternatively, you can use "drag and drop" to add an interactor 244to an existing Control Panel: 245<OL COMPACT> 246<LI>Select the interactor stand-in on the VPE canvas. 247<LI>Press the middle mouse button while the cursor is positioned on the 248stand-in icon. 249<LI>Drag the cursor to the Control Panel and release the mouse button. 250<LI>The interactor appears at the new location. 251</OL> 252<P> 253You can add more than one interactor at a time to a Control Panel. 254To do this, select multiple interactor stand-ins on the VPE canvas, 255then select <TT><STRONG>Add Selected Interactor(s)</STRONG></TT> in the desired 256Control Panel. 257After doing this, you can use the mouse to place the interactors in the 258Control Panel one at a time. 259They are placed in the Control Panel in the same order that they were 260placed initially onto the VPE canvas. 261Similarly, you can drag and drop multiple stand-ins from the visual program 262to a Control Panel. 263You can also drag and drop interactors from one Control Panel to 264another, as long as both are associated with the same Data Explorer 265session. 266For more information on drag and drop, see <A 267HREF="usrgu041.htm#HDRMACTS">"Moving and Copying Tools"</A>. 268<P> 269You can put the same interactor in more than one Control Panel and in 270the same Control Panel more than once. 271For example, you may want to have one Control Panel that contains 272<I>all</I> the interactors for a visual program, and another that 273contains only the most frequently used interactors. 274You can also place multiple instances of an interactor, with different 275styles or step size increments, in one Control Panel. 276This provides both coarse and fine control over a parameter value. 277The user interface ensures that each instance of the interactor 278is consistent. 279If you change a value in one instance, it changes in the others. 280<P> 281<H3><A NAME="Header_204" ></A>Selecting, Moving, and Deleting Interactors 282</H3> 283<P> 284To select an interactor, click on it. 285<P> 286To select a group of interactors, use one of the following methods: 287<A NAME="IDX772"></A> 288<UL> 289<P><LI>Hold down the Shift key and click on each interactor in turn. 290<P><LI>Position the mouse pointer on the canvas near a corner of the group 291and drag the mouse to draw a selection box around the interactor 292you want. 293To select an interactor, you must completely enclose it in the 294selection box. 295As an interactor is encompassed by the selection box, it is highlighted 296(indicating that it is selected). 297</UL> 298<P> 299To deselect an interactor, shift-click on it. 300<P> 301To deselect a group of interactors, use one of these methods: 302<UL> 303<P><LI>Shift-click on each interactor. 304<P><LI>Shift-drag to draw a box around the interactors you want to 305 306deselect. 307As a selected interactor is encompassed in the box, it becomes 308unhighlighted. 309Release the button to deselect the interactors. 310</UL> 311<TABLE><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP"><B>Note:</B></TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" 312VALIGN="TOP">Clicking on an empty part of the layout area deselects all 313selected interactors. 314</td></tr></table> 315<P> 316To move an interactor: 317<A NAME="IDX773"></A> 318<OL COMPACT> 319<LI>Depress the mouse button on the interactor and drag it to the 320desired location. 321While the mouse button is depressed, an outline of the interactor 322follows the motion of the mouse, but the interactor remains in 323the original location. 324<LI>Release the mouse button. 325The interactor moves to that location. 326</OL> 327<P> 328To move a group of interactors: 329<A NAME="IDX774"></A> 330<OL COMPACT> 331<LI>Select a group of interactors to be moved. 332<LI>Position the mouse pointer on any member of the group and drag it. 333An outline of each interactor appears and follows the mouse. 334<LI>Release the mouse button. 335The interactors move to the new location. 336</OL> 337<P> 338To delete one or more interactors: 339<A NAME="IDX775"></A> 340<OL COMPACT> 341<LI>Select one or more interactors to delete. 342<LI>Press the <TT><STRONG>Ctrl+Delete</STRONG></TT> accelerator key or click on 343the 344<TT><STRONG>Delete</STRONG></TT> option of the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> 345menu. 346</OL> 347<P> 348If you delete an interactor stand-in from the VPE, the interactor 349in the Control Panel is also deleted. 350However, deleting the interactor in the Control Panel does not affect 351what is displayed in the VPE. 352<P> 353<H3><A NAME="Header_205" ></A>Changing the Size of an Interactor 354</H3> 355<A NAME="IDX776"></A> 356<A NAME="IDX777"></A> 357<P> 358You can change the size of interactors in a Control Panel. 359Some interactors (e.g., Selector) resize automatically, depending on 360their contents, but others (e.g., String) do not. 361You can resize any interactor by pressing the control key (Ctrl) and 362the left mouse button. 363<P> 364<H3><A NAME="HDRLOCSTI" ></A>Locating Interactor Stand-ins</H3> 365 366<P> 367As you are building and modifying visual programs and Control Panels, you may 368find 369it desirable to locate that interactor in a Control Panel that 370corresponds to a specific interactor stand-in. 371To locate an interactor corresponding to a stand-in: 372<OL COMPACT> 373<LI>Select the desired stand-in in the VPE by clicking on it. 374<LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu <TT><STRONG>Show Selected 375Interactor(s)</STRONG></TT> option in the Control Panel. 376</OL> 377<P> 378The interactor corresponding to the stand-in will become selected. 379If no interactors in the Control Panel are associated with the selected 380stand-in, the <TT><STRONG>Show Selected Interactor(s)</STRONG></TT> option 381will be grayed-out. 382If you have more than one Control Panel and you are unsure which of 383them contains the interactor corresponding to the stand-in, 384Step 2 (above) can be applied to each Control Panel. 385Alternatively, you can double-click on 386the stand-in. 387This will highlight the corresponding interactor. 388<P> 389To locate a stand-in corresponding to an interactor: 390<OL COMPACT> 391<LI>Select the interactor in a Control Panel by clicking on it. 392<LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu <TT><STRONG>Show Selected 393Tool</STRONG></TT> 394option in the Control Panel. 395</OL> 396<P> 397The stand-in corresponding to the interactor will be selected. 398If the stand-in is not in the currently displayed portion of the visual program, 399the display will be updated so the selected stand-in is visible. 400<P> 401<H3><A NAME="Header_207" ></A>Deleting Control Panels</H3> 402<A NAME="IDX778"></A> 403<P> 404To delete a Control Panel: 405<OL COMPACT> 406<LI>Delete the interactors in the Control Panel. 407<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Close</STRONG></TT> option of the 408<TT><STRONG>File</STRONG></TT> menu. 409</OL> 410<P> 411<H3><A NAME="Header_208" ></A>Saving and Restoring Control Panels 412</H3> 413<A NAME="IDX779"></A> 414<P> 415The <TT><STRONG>Program Settings...</STRONG></TT> option of the anchor 416window allows you to save your own configuration of the Control 417Panel(s) independently of the rest of the network. 418You can save the values of the Control Panels as well as the 419configuration of all of the stored Control Panels for the 420current visual program. 421<P> 422Select the <TT><STRONG>Program Settings...Save As</STRONG></TT> option on the 423<TT><STRONG>File</STRONG></TT> menu anchor window bar. 424You can retrieve Control Panels in the anchor window by using the 425<TT><STRONG>Program Settings...Load</STRONG></TT> option. 426<P> 427If you have made changes that you do not want to keep, click on the 428<TT><STRONG>Program Settings...Load</STRONG></TT> option of the 429<TT><STRONG>File</STRONG></TT> menu, and 430select the file again without saving. 431This procedure restores the original configuration. 432<P> 433<H3><A NAME="HDRCCP" ></A>Customizing a Control Panel</H3> 434<A NAME="IDX780"></A> 435<P> 436This section describes the customization that can be done while building 437the Control Panel from the VPE window or while actually viewing 438the image in the Image window. 439<P> 440The Control Panel <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> menu provides several 441possibilities 442for further customizing the Panel and its interactors, as described 443in <A HREF="usrgu045.htm#HDRCONPOP">"Control Panel Options Menu"</A>. 444<P> 445<H4><A NAME="HDRCHCPNM"></A><U>Changing the Name of a Control Panel</U></H4> 446<P> 447Every Control Panel is given the default name of "Control Panel," 448as shown in the title box across the top of the window. 449If you want to customize the name in any particular Control Panel, you 450can do so by clicking on the <TT><STRONG>Change Control Panel 451Name...</STRONG></TT> option on the <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> 452menu 453and entering a new 454name in the dialog box that appears. 455The new name can contain any number of characters including any letter, 456number, symbol, or space that you find on the keyboard. 457<P> 458If you have several Control Panels in your visual program, you should assign 459names 460to them. 461Data Explorer allows you to open each one individually, by name, from a Control 462Panel, Image window, and VPE. 463To open a Control Panel by name from any of these three primary windows, 464do the following: 465<OL COMPACT> 466<LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Open Control Panel by Name</STRONG></TT> option 467from the <TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu 468in the VPE and Image window, or 469from the <TT><STRONG>Panels</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu 470in the Control Panel. 471This reveals a cascade menu with a list of the existing Control Panels. 472<LI>Click on the name of the Control Panel you wish to open. 473The desired Control Panel appears. 474</OL> 475<P> 476<H4><A NAME="HDRADCM2CP"></A><U>Adding Comments to a Control Panel</U></H4> 477<A NAME="IDX781"></A> 478<P> 479If other people are going to use the visual programs you create, it may be 480desirable to document how the interactors are used. 481You can associate comments with the Control Panel to describe how it 482uses the interactors to control input values in the visual program. 483<P> 484To add comments to a Control Panel: 485<OL COMPACT> 486<LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Comment...</STRONG></TT> option from the 487<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu in the Control Panel. 488A dialog box appears, with a large text field in which you can type the 489comments. 490If a comment has been entered previously for this Control Panel, it is 491displayed in the text field. 492<LI>Enter your comments in the text field, editing the same way as 493with any text field. 494This text field has multiple lines; you can break the lines using the 495Enter key, or allow them to flow automatically as you type. 496<LI>Click on <TT><STRONG>OK</STRONG></TT> to store the comments. 497</OL> 498<P> 499These comments can be viewed, but not edited, by using the <TT><STRONG>On 500Control Panel</STRONG></TT> option of the <TT><STRONG>Help</STRONG></TT> 501pull-down menu 502in the Control Panel. 503To edit the comments, you must use the <TT><STRONG>Comment...</STRONG></TT> 504option 505of the <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu. 506<P> 507<H4><A NAME="HDRCCPGRID"></A><U>Changing the Alignment of Interactors in the Control Panel<BR> 508 </U></H4> 509<A NAME="IDX782"></A> 510<P> 511You can specify whether the interactors you place in the Control Panel 512automatically align on a grid pattern. 513To do this, select <TT><STRONG>Grid...</STRONG></TT> from the 514<TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> 515pull-down menu. 516The <TT><STRONG>Grid</STRONG></TT> dialog box appears; it works the same way 517as it 518does in the VPE (see <A HREF="usrgu041.htm#HDRWINDSET">"Customizing the VPE 519Window"</A>). 520<P> 521<H4><A NAME="HDRCHINST"></A><U>Changing the Interactor Style</U></H4> 522<A NAME="IDX783"></A> 523<A NAME="IDX784"></A> 524<P> 525A particular default interactor might not be the most desirable style 526for your particular application. 527For some interactor types, you can change this in a Control Panel at 528any time by using the following procedure: 529<OL COMPACT> 530<LI>Select the interactor. 531<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu <TT><STRONG>Set 532Style...</STRONG></TT> option. 533<P><B>Note: </B>Be sure to highlight the interactor in the panel before 534selecting 535this option. 536Otherwise, most of the options will appear grayed-out. 537If the interactor is not a type whose style can be changed, the style 538option will remain grayed-out. 539A cascade menu appears for you to choose a new style. 540</OL> 541<P> 542<H4><A NAME="HDRRESZINT"></A><U>Resizable Interactors.</U></H4> 543<P> 544You can change the size of the interactors in a Control Panel. 545Some interactors (e.g., Selector) resize automatically; others (e.g., 546String) do not. 547To resize any interactor, press the Control key and then drag the 548border of the interactor. 549<P> 550<H4><A NAME="HDRCHINDI"></A><U>Changing the Interactor Dimensionality</U></H4> 551<P> 552When vector and vector list interactors are created, by default, their 553dimensionality to set to 3. 554Dimensionality can be changed using the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu 555<TT><STRONG>Set 556Dimensionality</STRONG></TT> option. 557<P> 558<H4><A NAME="HDRCHINLA"></A><U>Changing the Interactor Layout</U></H4> 559<A NAME="IDX785"></A> 560<A NAME="IDX786"></A> 561<P> 562When an interactor is created, its layout is vertical, that is, the 563interactor label is placed at the top of the interactor. 564Data Explorer allows you to choose between this vertical layout and a horizontal 565layout. 566The horizontal layout places the label on the left side of interactor. 567<P> 568To change the layout of the interactor: 569<OL COMPACT> 570<LI>Select the interactor. 571<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu 572<TT><STRONG>Set Layout...</STRONG></TT> 573option. 574A cascade menu appears for you to choose the layout you desire. 575</OL> 576<P> 577<H4><A NAME="HDRSETATDB"></A><U>Setting Interactor Attributes</U></H4> 578<A NAME="IDX787"></A> 579<A NAME="IDX788"></A> 580<P> 581You can have several instances of the same interactor. 582Each instance can be a different style (stepper, dial, or slider) and 583can have a different increment value. 584However, all instances of an interactor have the same value and the same 585minimum and maximum limits. 586As you change the value or range of one instance, the other instances 587of that interactor are automatically updated. 588<P> 589To change the <I>range</I> of values of an interactor, select the 590interactor, and select the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> option 591in the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu; or double-click on the 592interactor in the Control Panel. 593The <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> dialog box 594(<A HREF="#FIGSETLIM">Figure 61</A>) 595appears. 596<P> 597<P><B><A NAME="FIGSETLIM" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSETLIM">Figure 61. Set 598Attributes Dialog Box</A></B><BR> 599<A NAME="IDX789"></A> 600<A NAME="IDX790"></A> 601<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/setattr.gif" ALT="Figure setattr not 602displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 603In this box you can: 604<UL> 605<P><LI>Set maximum and minimum values. 606<P><LI>Change the step increment. 607<P><LI>Change the number of decimal places displayed. 608(In the case of an integer interactor, the decimal place field is 609disabled.) 610<P><LI>Choose whether to update the image continuously as you change the 611interactor values, or to update only when the mouse button is 612released. 613This applies only when <TT><STRONG>Execute on Change</STRONG></TT> is enabled. 614<P><B>Note: </B>Many interactor types can also be data-driven, meaning that 615their attributes are derived at run time from data in the 616visual program. 617See <A HREF="#HDRDDINTER">"Using Data-Driven Interactors"</A>. 618</UL> 619<A NAME="IDX791"></A> 620<A NAME="IDX792"></A> 621The increment and update options can be applied to the either just the 622current instance or to all instances of the interactor. 623To affect all instances, click on the option box for the attribute you 624want to set (increment or update), and select the Global option 625from option menu. 626To affect only the current instance, select the Local option. 627Having multiple instances of an interactor with different increments 628allows coarse and fine controls. 629For example, you may want one instance of a scalar interactor to change 630by increments of 1.0, another instance by 0.10, and a third instance 631by 0.01. 632 633Note that the "global" option will not override interactors which have 634been explicitly set to "local". 635 636<P> 637<H5><U>Vector interactors</U></H5> 638The <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> dialog box for vector 639interactors 640has an additional field, <TT><STRONG>Selected Component</STRONG></TT>, included 641at the top of the box. 642You can use this field to set different attributes for the different 643components of a vector. 644Do this by changing the component number with the stepper, and setting 645the attributes desired for that component. 646Repeat this process for all components of the vector. 647<P> 648To assign common attributes to all components of a vector interactor, 649set the option box at the top of the dialog box to <TT><STRONG>All 650Components</STRONG></TT>. 651When you do this, the component stepper is disabled, and any attributes 652you set are applied to all components of the vector. 653<P> 654<H5><A NAME="HDRSETSEL"></A><U>Setting Selector and SelectorList Interactor Attributes<BR> 655 </U></H5> 656<A NAME="IDX793"></A> 657<A NAME="IDX794"></A> 658The Set Attributes dialog box for the <TT><STRONG>Selector</STRONG></TT> and 659<TT><STRONG>SelectorList</STRONG></TT> interactors (<A HREF="#FIGSELATT">Figure 66062</A>) 661differ from the dialog box for other types of interactors 662because the behavior of those interactors is different from 663other types of interactors. 664<P> 665The Selector and SelectorList interactors are similar to an option menu, 666with the current choice(s) displayed by the interactor. 667(The Selector offers a one-of-many choice; the SelectorList, a choice of 668none, one, or more among many.) 669Each choice on the interactor represents a pair of outputs: a value and 670a string. 671The string is what appears as the choice on the interactor. 672The value can be a string, integer, scalar, vector or matrix. 673All the values must be of the same type. 674By default, the values are integers. 675A value is associated with a string using the 676<TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> dialog box 677(<A HREF="#FIGSELATT">Figure 62</A>). 678<P><B><A NAME="FIGSELATT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSELATT">Figure 62. Set 679Attributes Dialog Box for a Selector Interactor</A></B><BR> 680<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/selattr.gif" ALT="Figure selattr not 681displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 682<P> 683You can use the Selector or SelectorList interactor for many purposes. 684A common use is as a switch control in your visual program. 685You can use an integer output, for example, as input to the Switch 686module to switch easily among several objects. 687You can use a string output, for example, as input to the Select or 688Import modules, allowing you to easily select different members 689or data file names. 690You can also use a string output as input to the Caption module to 691annotate the image with the current selector setting. 692A discussion on how to use the Selector and 693SelectorList interactors can be found in 694<A HREF="#HDRSELINT">"Selector and SelectorList Interactors"</A>. 695<P> 696The default choices for the Selector and SelectorList interactors are: 697<UL COMPACT> 698<LI>1, "on" 699<LI>0, "off" 700</UL> 701To modify the choices, do the following: 702<OL COMPACT> 703<LI>Open a Control Panel with the selector interactor in it. 704<LI>Open the selector's <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> 705dialog box 706by double-clicking on the interactor, or by selecting the interactor 707and then choosing the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> option in the 708<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu. 709A dialog box appears, similar to the one shown <A HREF="#FIGSELATT">Figure 71062</A>. 711<LI>The procedure for modifying the choices in this list is similar to 712that for modifying the list elements in a list interactor (see 713<A HREF="#HDRLISTINT">"List Interactors"</A>). 714To enter a value in this interactor click on the <TT><STRONG>Value</STRONG></TT> 715box, 716enter a value, and press the Enter key. 717Then click on the <TT><STRONG>Label</STRONG></TT> box, type a string, and press 718the 719Enter key. 720For more information about how to modify, add, and delete elements, 721see <A HREF="#HDRLISTINT">"List Interactors"</A>. 722<TABLE><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP"><B>Note:</B></TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" 723VALIGN="TOP">If you wish to change the type of the values in the value field, 724for example, entering values other than integers when initially 725configuring the interactor, you must first delete all the 726entries in the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> dialog 727before entering new ones. 728This is required since the type of all values must be the same. 729</td></tr></table> 730<LI>When you are finished modifying the choices, click on 731<TT><STRONG>OK</STRONG></TT> to apply the changes. 732</OL> 733<P> 734Because the selector interactor yields both the value and the string as 735outputs, you can use either output, or both, in a visual program. 736In the selector stand-in, the output on the left is the value, while 737the output on the right represents the string. 738<P> 739<H5><A NAME="HDRCHINLB"></A><U>Changing the Label on the Interactor</U></H5> 740<A NAME="IDX795"></A> 741<A NAME="IDX796"></A> 742<P> 743The default label on any unconnected interactor is the name of the 744interactor stand-in. 745If the interactor is connected to one input, the default name of the 746interactor is the name of the tool followed by the input 747parameter name. 748If the interactor is connected to more than one input, its default 749name is the name of the interactor stand-in. 750You can change the default name by doing the following: 751<OL COMPACT> 752<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Set Interactor Label...</STRONG></TT> option on the 753Control Panel <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu. 754<LI>Enter a new name in the dialog box that appears 755(<A HREF="#FIGLABEL">Figure 63</A>). 756</OL> 757<P><B><A NAME="FIGLABEL" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGLABEL">Figure 63. Set 758Interactor Label Dialog Box</A></B><BR> 759<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/intlabl.gif" ALT="Figure intlabl not 760displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 761<P> 762The new name can contain any number of characters, including any letter, 763number, symbol, or space that you find on the keyboard. 764(If you want a blank label, enter "\0" for the name.) 765<P> 766The interactor label can have multiple lines: type "\n" where 767you want a line to break. 768For example, 769<PRE> 770 First Line\nSecond Line 771</PRE> 772<P> 773<H5><A NAME="HDRSETOGAT"></A><U>Setting Toggle and Reset Attributes</U></H5> 774<P> 775You can set the output of Toggle and Reset interactors for both their 776"button down" (set) and "button up" 777(unset) states.. 778The output value can be string, integer, scalar, or vector, and the 779set and unset outputs do not have to be of the same type. 780<P> 781<H3><A NAME="HDRCPADBS" ></A>Control Panels as Dialog Boxes</H3> 782<P> 783It is possible to customize Control Panels so that they appear as 784dialog boxes. 785This is intended for building applications to be used in 786<TT>-image</TT> or 787<TT>-menubar</TT> mode 788(i.e., with the Image window or menu bar 789as the anchor window). 790The appearance of the dialog box can be modified with the options 791<TT><STRONG>Label</STRONG></TT> and <TT><STRONG>Separator</STRONG></TT> 792under <TT><STRONG>Add Element</STRONG></TT> in the 793<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu 794of the Control Panel. 795These will add the specified element to the panel at the point where 796the mouse cursor is positioned. 797Separators can be made vertical using the <TT><STRONG>Set Layout</STRONG></TT> 798option 799of the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu. 800The size of the separator can be controlled using the mechanism 801described in <A HREF="#HDRRESZINT">"Resizable Interactors."</A>. 802The color and font of labels can be specified using the dialog box that 803appears when the label is created. 804These can be changed by selecting the label and choosing 805<TT><STRONG>Set Attributes</STRONG></TT> from the 806<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu of the Control Panel. 807<P> 808Once the Control Panel has been created, select 809<TT><STRONG>Dialog 810Style</STRONG></TT> 811in the <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu to create the dialog 812box. 813The size of the box will vary to accommodate the interactors. 814The empty canvas to the right of the interactors will be truncated. 815The placement of the interactors will also change if the box size is 816changed, to maintain the same relative positions. 817In <TT>-editor</TT> mode, the <TT><STRONG>Close</STRONG></TT> button returns 818to an editable Control Panel. 819In <TT>-image</TT> or 820<TT>-menubar</TT> 821mode the, 822<TT><STRONG>Close</STRONG></TT> button closes the dialog box. 823To enable a "dialog style" dialog box, save the visual program with the 824Control Panel in dialog-style format. 825<P> 826<H3><A NAME="HDRCPA" ></A>Control Panel Access, Groups, and Hierarchies 827</H3> 828<A NAME="IDX797"></A> 829<A NAME="IDX798"></A> 830<P> 831You may wish to organize your Control Panels into groups or hierarchies 832depending on how the interactors in the Control Panels relate. 833For example, you may have a few Control Panels that are tightly related 834and wish to have them treated as a group. 835Data Explorer provides you with the means of placing these Control Panels into a 836group so that they can be opened together. 837<P> 838If you have a master Control Panel that should be open before any other 839controls, Data Explorer provides you with the capability of restricting 840access to these Control Panels from any Data Explorer window except 841the master Control Panel. 842Access to Control Panel groups can be done in a similar fashion. 843Restricting access to Control Panels in this way allows you to build 844Control Panels into hierarchical structures. 845<P> 846A special type of Control Panel access can be achieved by specifying 847which Control Panels are automatically opened when Data Explorer is started 848with the Image window or menu bar 849as the anchor (using the 850<TT>-image</TT> or 851<TT>-menubar</TT> 852option). 853<P> 854<H3><A NAME="HDRCMD" ></A>Creating, Modifying, and Deleting Control Panel Groups 855</H3> 856<A NAME="IDX799"></A> 857<P> 858The following describes how to create Control Panel groups, restrict 859access (build hierarchies), and specify which Control Panels are 860open at startup. 861<P> 862Control panel groups are created using the <TT><STRONG>Control Panel 863Group...</STRONG></TT> dialog box. 864The dialog box is opened by selecting the <TT><STRONG>Control Panel 865Groups...</STRONG></TT> option under the <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> 866menu in the VPE window (<A HREF="#FIGPPROMX">Figure 64</A>). 867<P><B><A NAME="FIGPPROMX" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGPPROMX">Figure 64. Control 868Panel Group Dialog Box</A></B><BR> 869<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/ctpangrp.gif" ALT="Figure ctpangrp not 870displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 871<P> 872The right side of the dialog displays the list of Control Panels. 873Associated with each Control Panel is a toggle button to the left and an 874ellipsis toggle to the right. 875The left side of the dialog is a list of the existing groups. 876This list remains empty until a group is created. 877At the bottom of the dialog box is a series of pushbuttons that are used 878for creating, modifying, and deleting groups. 879Clicking on the ellipsis causes the corresponding Control Panel to be 880opened (or raised to the front if it is already opened). 881Clicking on the ellipsis when it is depressed closes the corresponding 882Control Panel and releases the toggle. 883<P> 884To create a Control Panel group: 885<OL COMPACT> 886<LI>Select the Control Panels that you want in the group by activating 887the corresponding left toggle button. 888<LI>Enter the name of the group in the text field next to <TT><STRONG>Group 889Name</STRONG></TT> 890Although it is not required, select a name that is unique compared to 891the names of other Control Panels or other groups. 892<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Add</STRONG></TT> pushbutton at the bottom of 893the dialog box. 894</OL> 895<P> 896The new group is added to the list of groups displayed on the left side 897of the dialog box. 898The group is also added to the list of named Control Panels that is 899displayed by the <TT><STRONG>Open Control Panel by Name</STRONG></TT> option in 900the <TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> menu. 901<P> 902Once a Control Panel group is created, it can be modified. 903Modifying a Control Panel group can include changing its name, adding 904new Control Panels, and removing Control Panels from the group. 905<P> 906To modify a Control Panel group: 907<OL COMPACT> 908<LI>Click on the Control Panel group name that is to be modified. 909This causes the name of the Control Panel group to be displayed in the 910group name text field and causes the toggle buttons of the Control 911Panels that are members of the group to be activated. 912All other Control Panel buttons are released. 913<LI>You may now change the name of the group by editing the 914text field. 915Add a new Control Panel by clicking on its toggle button (this causes 916 917the toggle button to be activated). 918To remove a Control Panel from the group, click on its toggle button to 919release it. 920<LI>Once you have made the desired changes to the Control Panel group, 921click on the <TT><STRONG>Modify</STRONG></TT> button at the bottom of the 922dialog box. 923This causes the change to take effect. 924</OL> 925<P> 926To delete a Control Panel group: 927<OL COMPACT> 928<LI>Select the group by clicking on its name. 929<LI>Click on the <TT><STRONG>Delete</STRONG></TT> button at the bottom of the 930dialog box. 931</OL> 932<P> 933<H3><A NAME="HDRRCPA" ></A>Restricting Control Panel Access</H3> 934<P> 935Access to Control Panels is restricted using the <TT><STRONG>Control Panel 936Access...</STRONG></TT> dialog box. 937This dialog box is opened by selecting the <TT><STRONG>Control Panel 938Access</STRONG></TT> in 939the <TT><STRONG>Option</STRONG></TT> menu of the VPE, Image, or Control 940Panel 941windows. 942The <TT><STRONG>Control Panel Access</STRONG></TT> dialog is used to restrict 943certain 944Control Panel names or Control Panel groups names from appearing 945in the <TT><STRONG>Open Control Panel by Name</STRONG></TT> option in the 946<TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> window. 947<P> 948A <TT><STRONG>Control Panel Access</STRONG></TT> dialog box appears in 949<A HREF="#FIGPROGMX">Figure 65</A>. 950<P><B><A NAME="FIGPROGMX" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGPROGMX">Figure 65. Control 951Panel Access Dialog Box</A></B><BR> 952<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/ctpanacc.gif" ALT="Figure ctpanacc not 953displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 954Each Control Panel and Control Panel group is listed. 955To the left of each is a toggle button. 956This toggle button is used to select which Control Panels or groups can 957be accessed from the window in which the dialog box was opened. 958To the right of the Control Panel names is an ellipsis toggle. 959(Note that Control Panel groups do not have the ellipsis.) 960The ellipsis toggle is used to open (or raise) the corresponding Control 961Panel when the button is activated. 962Once activated, selecting the button again closes the Control Panel and 963pops up the button. 964<P> 965To restrict Control Panel access: 966<OL COMPACT> 967<LI>Click on each Control Panel access toggle button that you wish to 968exclude so that those toggle buttons are deactivated. 969(Initially, all the toggle buttons are activated.) 970<LI>Once you have indicated which Control Panels and Control Panel 971groups you wish to exclude, click on <TT><STRONG>OK</STRONG></TT>. 972</OL> 973<P> 974Selecting the <TT><STRONG>Cancel</STRONG></TT> pushbutton causes the dialog 975box to 976be closed and any changes to be canceled. 977<P> 978<H3><A NAME="HDRSTARTCP" ></A>Specifying a Startup Control Panel 979</H3> 980<P> 981Data Explorer allows you to choose whether a Control Panel opens automatically 982when you start the system with the Image window or menu bar 983as the anchor 984(using the 985<TT>-image</TT> or 986<TT>-menubar</TT> 987option). 988Using this option, you can have the appropriate Control Panels be 989immediately available to a user running your visual program. 990The <TT><STRONG>Startup Control Panel</STRONG></TT> option in the 991<TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> 992pull-down menu is a toggle button, and is toggled on by default. 993If you do not want a particular Control Panel to open automatically, 994toggle the option off by clicking on it in that 995Control Panel. 996<P> 997The automatic startup feature can be suppressed by using the 998<TT>-suppress</TT> startup flag when you run Data Explorer. 999See <A HREF="usrgu074.htm#HDRCMDLOPT">C.2 , "Command Line Options"</A> for more 1000information. 1001<P> 1002<H3><A NAME="HDROCP" ></A>Opening Existing Control Panels</H3> 1003<P> 1004You can open existing Control Panels associated with a visual program in the 1005following ways: 1006<UL> 1007<P> 1008 <LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Open All Control Panels</STRONG></TT> option from 1009the 1010<TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> menu in the VPE or Image window, or from 1011the <TT><STRONG>Panels</STRONG></TT> menu in an already open Control Panel. 1012 1013 <P> 1014 <LI>Select the <TT><STRONG>Open Control Panel by Name</STRONG></TT> option 1015from the 1016<TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> menu in the VPE or Image window, or from the 1017<TT><STRONG>Panels</STRONG></TT> menu in an already open Control Panel. 1018From the list of Control Panel names, click on the one you want to open. 1019(If there are no accessible 1020Control Panels, no names are displayed.) 1021 1022 <P><LI>Double-click on the interactor stand-in in the VPE whose Control 1023Panel you want to open. 1024All Control Panels that contain that interactor are opened. 1025If the selected interactor does not currently have a Control Panel, 1026Data Explorer creates one for it. 1027<P> 1028Alternatively, you can select one or more interactor stand-ins in the 1029VPE, then choose <TT><STRONG>Open Control Panel</STRONG></TT> from the 1030<TT><STRONG>Windows</STRONG></TT> menu in the VPE. 1031All Control Panels associated with the selected interactors are opened. 1032</UL> 1033<P> 1034When Data Explorer is started with the Image window or menu bar 1035as the anchor window, some 1036Control Panels may be opened automatically as a visual program is loaded. 1037For visual programs you create, you can decide whether a Control Panel should 1038open 1039automatically (see <A HREF="#HDRSTARTCP">"Specifying a Startup Control 1040Panel"</A>). 1041<P> 1042<H3><A NAME="HDRINTERAC" ></A>Using Interactors</H3> 1043<P> 1044You use interactors to dynamically change the inputs of a tool without 1045making modifications in the VPE window. 1046Interactors reside in Control Panel windows. 1047As a visual program is built in the Editor window, the user selects the 1048interactor 1049stand-ins from the Tool Palettes and places them on the canvas. 1050Then the corresponding interactors are placed into existing Control 1051Panels or into a new Control Panel, as described in <A HREF="#HDRCPI">"Building 1052Control Panels"</A>. 1053Different interactor stand-ins can be represented by different 1054interactor styles. 1055<P> 1056<H4><A NAME="HDRINTSCAI"></A><U>Integer and Scalar Interactors</U></H4> 1057<A NAME="IDX800"></A> 1058<A NAME="IDX801"></A> 1059<P> 1060Integer and scalar interactor stand-ins can be represented by 1061four styles: 1062<UL COMPACT> 1063<LI>Stepper 1064<LI>Dial 1065<LI>Slider 1066<LI>Text 1067</UL> 1068For both integer and scalar stand-ins, the stepper is the default. 1069You can change the style at any time by using the <TT><STRONG>Set 1070Style</STRONG></TT> 1071option from the <TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> pull-down menu 1072on the Control Panel. 1073<P> 1074<H5><A NAME="HDRSTEPER"></A><U>Stepper</U></H5> 1075<P> 1076<A NAME="IDX802"></A> 1077The Stepper (<A HREF="#FIGSTEP">Figure 66</A>) enables you to enter a value by 1078typing 1079it into the text field or by using the arrow buttons to increase 1080(right arrow) or decrease (left arrow) a displayed value. 1081The arrow buttons have a built-in acceleration function so that the 1082longer you depress a button, the faster the value changes. 1083<P><B><A NAME="FIGSTEP" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSTEP">Figure 66. Stepper 1084Style</A></B><BR> 1085<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/stepint.gif" ALT="Figure stepint not 1086displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1087<P> 1088<H5><U>Dial</U></H5> 1089<P> 1090<A NAME="IDX803"></A> 1091The Dial (<A HREF="#FIGDIALINT">Figure 67</A>) has circular shape. 1092You can specify a value by manipulating the dial indicator, or you can 1093directly enter a value in the field at the bottom of the interactor. 1094<P> 1095To manipulate the dial indicator, press and hold the mouse button in the 1096circular part of the interactor. 1097Turning the dial clockwise increases the interactor value, while turning 1098it counterclockwise decreases the value. 1099If you move the cursor within the dial, shading occurs in intervals 1100around the dial indicator. 1101The shading indicates whether the value change is positive or negative. 1102The shading is light if you move in a clockwise direction (positive); 1103it is dark (negative) if the movement is counterclockwise. 1104If you click the pointer within the shaded area, the dial indicator 1105jumps to the mouse pointer location, and the value changes 1106accordingly. 1107<P><B><A NAME="FIGDIALINT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGDIALINT">Figure 67. Dial 1108Style</A></B><BR> 1109<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/dialint.gif" ALT="Figure dialint not 1110displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1111<P> 1112The dial indicator can move clockwise or counterclockwise as many 1113times as determined by the increment values and minimum and 1114maximum that are set. 1115These limits can be set in the Set Attributes dialog box, which you can 1116display by selecting the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes...</STRONG></TT> option on 1117the <TT><STRONG>Options</STRONG></TT> menu. 1118When the interactor reaches the limit, it can no longer be turned in 1119that direction. 1120<P> 1121<H5><U>Slider</U></H5> 1122<P> 1123<A NAME="IDX804"></A> 1124The Slider (<A HREF="#FIGSLIINT">Figure 68</A>) enables you to enter a value by 1125either moving the tab on the Slider, typing in a number, or 1126clicking on one of the arrow buttons to increase (right 1127arrow) or decrease (left arrow) a displayed value. 1128<P><B><A NAME="FIGSLIINT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSLIINT">Figure 68. Slider 1129Style</A></B><BR> 1130<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/slidint.gif" ALT="Figure slidint not 1131displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1132<P> 1133<H5><U>Text</U></H5> 1134<P> 1135The Text style (<A HREF="#FIGTTINT">Figure 69</A>) enables you to simply type in 1136a 1137value. 1138For more information on how to enter and modify text in a field, 1139see <A HREF="usrgu037.htm#HDREDTXT">"Editing Text Fields"</A>. 1140<P><B><A NAME="FIGTTINT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGTTINT">Figure 69. Text 1141Style</A></B><BR> 1142<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/textint.gif" ALT="Figure textint not 1143displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1144<P> 1145<H4><A NAME="HDRSTRINT"></A><U>String Interactor</U></H4> 1146<A NAME="IDX805"></A> 1147<P> 1148The string stand-in has one style of interactor, which cannot be 1149changed. 1150This interactor consists of a text field (<A HREF="#FIGSTINT">Figure 70</A>). 1151(For information on how to enter and modify text in a text field, 1152see <A HREF="usrgu037.htm#HDREDTXT">"Editing Text Fields"</A>.) 1153It enables you to enter strings by typing directly into the text field, 1154then pressing the Enter key. 1155<P><B><A NAME="FIGSTINT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSTINT">Figure 70. String 1156Interactor</A></B><BR> 1157<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/strngint.gif" ALT="Figure strngint not 1158displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1159<P> 1160<H4><A NAME="HDRVALINT"></A><U>Value Interactor</U></H4> 1161<A NAME="IDX806"></A> 1162<P> The value stand-in has one style of interactor that cannot be changed. This 1163 interactor consists of a text field. (For information on how to enter and modify 1164 text in a text field, see <A HREF="usrgu037.htm#HDREDTXT">"Editing Text Fields"</A>.) 1165 This interactor enables you to enter scalars, vectors, and lists by typing directly 1166 into the text field and pressing the Enter key. The input into the text field 1167 must either begin with a numeric value, or be enclosed by brackets ([ ]) 1168 for vectors. See <A HREF="../usrguide.htm">"Vectors, Matrices, and Tensors"</A> 1169 and <A 1170HREF="../usrguide.htm">"Lists"</A> for more information on the syntax of vectors 1171 and lists. 1172<P> 1173<H4><A NAME="HDRVECINT"></A><U>Vector Interactor</U></H4> 1174<A NAME="IDX807"></A> 1175<P> 1176The vector stand-in has two styles of interactor; a stepper style and 1177a text style. 1178The Vector interactor works like one, two, or 1179three Steppers stacked in a column. 1180With it, you can specify the components of a vector (e.g, 1181x, y, and z) from top to bottom. 1182See <A HREF="#HDRSTEPER">"Stepper"</A> for detailed information on the operation 1183of a 1184Stepper. 1185You can also change the dimensionality of the interactor using the 1186<TT><STRONG>Edit</STRONG></TT> menu <TT><STRONG>Set Dimensionality</STRONG></TT> 1187option. 1188The text style vector interactor is similar to that of the value 1189interactor. 1190<P> 1191<H4><A NAME="HDRLISTINT"></A><U>List Interactors</U></H4> 1192<A NAME="IDX808"></A> 1193Data Explorer provides six types of list stand-ins and interactors: 1194<UL COMPACT> 1195<LI>Integer 1196<LI>Scalar 1197<LI>Selector 1198<LI>Vector 1199<LI>String 1200<LI>Value 1201</UL> 1202<P> 1203With the exception of Selector, these list interactors can have two 1204styles: list-editor and text. 1205The text-style list interactor is similar to that of the value 1206interactor. 1207 1208 <P> 1209The list-editor style list interactors consist of the following parts: 1210 1211 <UL> 1212 <LI>Title 1213 1214 <LI>List of values 1215 1216 <LI>Pushbuttons for adding and deleting elements 1217 1218 <LI>A single stepper (for integer and scalar lists), three steppers 1219(for a vector list), or a text field (for string and value lists). 1220 1221 </UL> 1222 <A HREF="#FIGVECLIST">Figure 71</A> shows an example of a Vector list 1223interactor. 1224For the SelectorList interactor, see <A HREF="#HDRSELINT">"Selector and 1225SelectorList Interactors"</A>. 1226<P><B><A NAME="FIGVECLIST" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGVECLIST">Figure 71. Sample 1227Vector List Interactor</A></B><BR> 1228<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/veclist.gif" ALT="Figure veclist not 1229displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1230<P> 1231The top portion of the list interactor shows the current list of 1232values. 1233If the list exceeds the length of the display area, a vertical scroll 1234bar is provided. 1235If the list values exceed the width of the display, a horizontal scroll 1236bar is provided. 1237<P> 1238<H5><U>Modifying an Element in the List</U></H5> 1239<P> 1240To modify an element, select it by clicking on it. 1241The stepper or text field is updated to show the element's values. 1242Use the stepper or text field to change the values of the elements. 1243<P> 1244<H5><U>Appending an Element to the List</U></H5> 1245<P> 1246To append a value to a list, make sure that no list elements are 1247selected. 1248(An element can be deselected by clicking on it.) 1249Use the steppers or text field at the bottom of the interactor to 1250specify the value, then click on the <TT><STRONG>Add</STRONG></TT> button. 1251<P> 1252<H5><U>Adding an Element to the Middle of the List</U></H5> 1253<P> 1254To add an element to the middle of the list, select the element 1255following the position you want the new value to occupy. 1256Click on the <TT><STRONG>Add</STRONG></TT> button. 1257A copy of the selected element is added to the list, becomes selected, 1258and the steppers or text field display its current value. 1259Use the steppers or text field to adjust the value of the new element. 1260<P> 1261<H5><U>Deleting an Element from the List</U></H5> 1262<P> 1263To delete an element from the list, select it by clicking on it, then 1264click on the <TT><STRONG>Delete</STRONG></TT> button. 1265After deleting the item, the next item in the list becomes selected. 1266<P> 1267<H4><A NAME="HDRSELINT"></A><U>Selector and SelectorList Interactors</U></H4> 1268<A NAME="IDX809"></A> 1269<A NAME="IDX810"></A> 1270<A NAME="IDX811"></A> 1271<P> 1272The Selector interactor (<A HREF="#FIGSELECT">Figure 72</A>.) can be used as a 1273switch 1274control in a visual program. 1275<A NAME="IDX812"></A> 1276It can appear as an option menu (with only the current choice shown) or 1277as a "radio button" interactor, with all possible choices shown, 1278and only the current choice highlighted in the radio button 1279next to the label. 1280The SelectorList interactor always appears as a list of toggle buttons. 1281 1282<P><B><A NAME="FIGSELECT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGSELECT">Figure 72. Selector 1283Interactor (Radio-button Style)</A></B><BR> 1284<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/selctint.gif" ALT="Figure selctint not 1285displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1286<P> 1287<A HREF="#HDRSETSEL">"Setting Selector and SelectorList Interactor 1288Attributes"</A> describes how to configure the selector interactor 1289for your visual program, and also describes its various uses. 1290<P> 1291<H4><A NAME="HDRFSELINT"></A><U>FileSelector Interactor</U></H4> 1292<P> 1293The FileSelector interactor can be used to select a file from within 1294the file system (<A HREF="#FIGFSELINT">Figure 73</A>). 1295<P><B><A NAME="FIGFSELINT" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGFSELINT">Figure 73. 1296FileSelector Interactor</A></B><BR> 1297<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/flselint.gif" ALT="Figure flselint not 1298displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1299<P> 1300The interactor consists of a text field containing a string and a 1301button labelled with an ellipses. 1302Clicking on the button causes a file selection dialog box to be opened. 1303The file selection dialog box, illustrated in <A HREF="#FIGFILESB">Figure 130474</A>, 1305functions in a similar manner to other file selection dialog boxes (for 1306a description on how to use file selection dialog boxes see 1307<A HREF="usrgu041.htm#HDRSAVERVP">"Saving and Restoring a Visual Program"</A>) 1308with the exception of the buttons at 1309the bottom of the dialog box. 1310<P><B><A NAME="FIGFILESB" HREF="../usrguide.htm#FT_FIGFILESB">Figure 74. File 1311Selection Dialog Box</A></B><BR> 1312<B><BR><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/flseldb.gif" ALT="Figure flseldb not 1313displayed."></CENTER><BR></B><BR> 1314<P> 1315<TT><STRONG>OK</STRONG></TT> causes the file name in the Selection area to be 1316set in the text field of the FileSelector interactor and closes the file 1317selection dialog box. 1318<TT><STRONG>Filter</STRONG></TT> applies the filter string specified in the 1319Filter area. 1320<TT><STRONG>Close</STRONG></TT> closes the file selection dialog box without 1321any modification to the FileSelector interactor text field. 1322<TT><STRONG>Apply</STRONG></TT> causes the file name in the Selection area to be 1323set 1324in the text field of the FileSelector interactor and leaves the 1325file selection dialog box open. 1326<P> 1327An alternate way of specifying or modifying a file name in the 1328FileSelector text field is to directly type into the field. 1329See <A HREF="usrgu037.htm#HDREDTXT">"Editing Text Fields"</A> on how to enter 1330and modify text in a text field. 1331<P> 1332The FileSelector interactor produces two outputs: the first output is 1333the contents of the text field (typically a fully qualified path 1334name set from the file selection dialog box). 1335The second output is the name of the file as it appears in the 1336directory (that is, excluding any directory name). 1337<P> 1338<H4><A NAME="HDRRSETINT"></A><U>Reset Interactor</U></H4> 1339<A NAME="IDX813"></A> 1340<A NAME="IDX814"></A> 1341The Reset interactor outputs one value for the first execution after 1342its toggle is set, and a different value thereafter. 1343This interactor appears only as a toggle button. 1344<P> 1345<H4><A NAME="HDRTOGLINT"></A><U>Toggle Interactor</U></H4> 1346<A NAME="IDX815"></A> 1347<A NAME="IDX816"></A> 1348<P> 1349The Toggle interactor outputs one of two 1350possible values. 1351The values can be strings, scalars, vectors, or matrices. 1352This interactor appears only as a toggle button. 1353<P> 1354<H3><A NAME="HDRDDINTER" ></A>Using Data-Driven Interactors</H3> 1355<A NAME="IDX817"></A> 1356<P> 1357Most of the interactor types may be <I>data-driven</I>, meaning 1358that their attributes, such as minimum, maximum, increment, and 1359label, may be set by connecting the output of a tool to the 1360input of the interactor stand-in in the VPE or by a 1361value typed into the interactor stand-in's 1362Configuration dialog box, rather than by 1363using the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes</STRONG></TT> 1364dialog box for the interactor. 1365<P> 1366If an interactor is data-driven, then the information transmitted via 1367connections or set in the Configuration dialog box overrides the 1368values set via the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes</STRONG></TT> dialog box 1369and causes 1370the corresponding values in the <TT><STRONG>Set Attributes</STRONG></TT> 1371dialog box to be grayed out. 1372<P> 1373Data-driven interactors allow you to create visual programs that will 1374work with a variety of input data sets without the need to reset the 1375interactor attributes to be in a range appropriate for the data 1376being used. 1377For example, a scalar interactor controlling an isosurface value can be 1378data-driven by connecting the input data field to it. 1379The interactor is then automatically set so that its minimum and 1380maximum span the range of the data. 1381<P> 1382Data-driven interactors have a data input to which an input data field 1383may be connected. 1384In this case the interactor automatically chooses the minimum, maximum, 1385and increment. 1386However, if you would like to have more control over the exact values 1387that are used, the interactors allow you to specify them directly 1388through other input tabs that are by default hidden. 1389For example, you may wish to set the minimum and maximum for an 1390interactor to go from the minimum of the data values to the 1391midpoint of the data values, rather than to the maximum. 1392In this case, you can use the "min" and "max" input tabs of 1393the interactor rather than the "data" tab. 1394<P> 1395The interactors that can be data-driven are 1396Integer, 1397Scalar, 1398Vector, 1399IntegerList, 1400ScalarList, 1401VectorList, 1402Selector, 1403SelectorList, and 1404Toggle. 1405In <A HREF="refgu009.htm#HDRFMD">Chapter 2. Functional Modules</A> in <I>IBM 1406Visualization Data Explorer User's Reference</I>, 1407the inputs for each of these interactors are described on the manual 1408page corresponding to that interactor. 1409<P> 1410Each time an input to a data-driven interactor is changed (for example, 1411by importing a new data set) the interactor is reexecuted, updating 1412its attributes. 1413If the current setting of the interactor lies within the new range 1414allowed, the interactor value does not change. 1415If the current setting is outside the new allowed range, the current 1416setting is reset to the midpoint of the new minimum and maximum. 1417 1418 <P> 1419 <HR> 1420 <DIV align="center"> 1421 <P><A href="../allguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/foot-fc.gif" width="94" height="18" border="0" alt="Full Contents"></A> <A href="../qikguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/foot-qs.gif" width="94" height="18" border="0" alt="QuickStart Guide"></A> <A href="../usrguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/foot-ug.gif" width="94" height="18" border="0" alt="User's Guide"></A> <A href="../refguide.htm"><IMG src="../images/foot-ur.gif" width="94" height="18" border="0" alt="User's Reference"></A></P> 1422 </DIV> 1423 <DIV align="center"> 1424 <P><FONT size="-1">[ <A href="http://www.research.ibm.com/dx">OpenDX Home at IBM</A> | <A href="http://www.opendx.org/">OpenDX.org</A> ] </FONT></P> 1425 <P></P> 1426 </DIV> 1427 </BODY></HTML> 1428
