IDL 6.1 and ION 6.1 Release Notes

The information found in these release notes is separated into the following sections:

ID numbers are included where applicable to allow RSI to respond to inquiries more easily.

New Features in IDL 6.1

For information on new features in this release, see the What's New in IDL 6.1 manual. What's New is included as part of the IDL online help system, and is available in PDF format in the help subdirectory of the IDL distribution. It is also included in the /info/docs directory of the IDL CD-ROM.

Additional information on new features that did not make it into the What's New manual can be found (along with known problems in the IDL 6.1 documentation set) in the Documentation Errata section of this file.

Visit the RSI Web site at www.RSInc.com for additional information on this release, and for release notes added after the IDL installation CD-ROMs were created.

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Backward Compatibility Issues in IDL 6.1

All Platforms

ID Description
25706 Improvement to IDLanROI::ComputeMask Method
The IDLanROI::ComputeMask method has been updated so that when MASK_RULE=0 (boundary only) or MASK_RULE=2 (boundary and interior), if an ROI edge is smaller than a pixel, the mask pixel through which it passes will be set within the mask. (In previous releases of IDL, the pixel was not set.)
30826 iTools Curve Fitting Is Enabled for 3D Plots
The curve-fitting operation has been modified so that it only creates curves of X vs. Y for both 2D and 3D plots. (Previously, applying curve fit to a 3D plot created three curves, one each for X vs. X, X vs. Y, and X vs. Z.)
33170 Errors Generated by EXECUTE Are Now Displayed Properly
In previous releases of IDL, errors generated by the EXECUTE procedure were not always displayed properly when an CATCH block was defined prior to the EXECUTE call. This problem has been corrected.

As a result of this fix, existing code that experiences an error in EXECUTE when a CATCH block was previously defined may now display errors where before it did not.

Note that errors generated by EXECUTE can now be suppressed entirely by setting the new QuietExecution argument to a non-zero value. The new QuietExecution argument is described in the What's New in IDL 6.1 manual.
33173 Change to iTool Image Data Export
You are no longer offered the option to export image data to binary or ASCII files in the iTools. (In IDL 6.0, the iTools Data Export Wizard offered binary and ASCII options for image data; this was an error and has been corrected.)
34603 Improvements to MAP_PROJ_INVERSE with GCTP Goode Projection
In versions of IDL prior to IDL 6.1, when using the GCTP Goode or Interrupted Mollweide projections, the MAP_PROJ_INVERSE function returned arbitrary longitudes/latitudes if the input UV coordinate was within an interrupted region. Now in these cases, MAP_PROJ_INVERSE returns the value NaN for the longitude and latitude.
34984 !P.T Value Now Initialized Correctly
Prior to IDL 6.1, on IDL startup, the !P.T transformation matrix was set to all zeroes. In IDL 6.1, on IDL startup, the !P.T matrix is set to the identity matrix. This matches the behavior of calling T3D with the /RESET keyword.
35598 ISV Files Saved in IDL 6.0 Might Not Honor Original Pixel Scale in IDL 6.1
If you displayed an image in IDL 6.0, applied a pixel scale operation (which had the effect of changing the dataspace range to honor the pixel scale request), and then saved the results to an .isv file, there is no guarantee that when that save file is restored in IDL 6.1 that the pixel scale will still be honored. The new pixel scale will, however, be correctly reported in the image panel. After restoring to IDL 6.1, you might want to take the following steps:
  1. Reset the X and Y range of the dataspace so that it includes the entire image. To do this, set the X minimum, X maximum, Y minimum, and Y maximum values of the Dataspace property sheet to match the image extents.
  2. Re-apply isotropic scaling. (Isotropic scaling was turned off when the pixel scale operation was applied in IDL 6.0.) To enable isotropic scaling, set the "Isotropic scaling" value of the Dataspace property sheet to "Isotropic."
  3. Re-establish requested pixel scale. To do this, use the View Zoom manipulator (or combo box) to zoom in or out until the desired pixel scale is reported in the iImage tool panel.
36018 Improvements to MAP_SET and MAP_PROJ_INIT with Conic Projections
For MAP_SET and MAP_PROJ_INIT with conic projections (Lambert, Albers, Equidistant Conic A/B), if the standard parallels were on opposite sides of the equator, the map code would always clip one hemisphere at 10 degrees latitude and the other hemisphere at 75 degrees latitude. Now, if the standard parallels are on opposite sides of the equator, both hemispheres are clipped at 75 degrees latitude. If you have code that relied on the clipping being at 10 degrees, then you might need to specify the LIMITS keyword to MAP_SET or MAP_PROJ_INIT.
  IDL Structures with New Fields
The following structures have new fields. If you have a SAVE file accessing these structures created in a previous release, use the RELAXED_STRUCTURE_ASSIGNMENT keyword to RESTORE to avoid errors when restoring the SAVE file.
  • QUERY_TIFF Info structure
  • WIDGET_CONTEXT event structure
  • WIDGET_PROPSHEET_SELECT event structure
See the What's New in IDL 6.1 manual for details.
  Widget Blocking in Runtime and Virtual Machine Modes
Beginning with IDL 6.1, the XMANAGER procedure honors the value of the NO_BLOCK keyword in Runtime and Virtual Machine modes.

Because XMANAGER did not honor the NO_BLOCK keyword in previous releases, widget applications that worked properly (that is, not blocking) when run in a licensed full version of IDL behaved differently when run in Runtime or Virtual Machine mode. This difference in behavior has been removed; widget applications should behave identically (with regard to blocking behavior) in all IDL licensing modes.

Other differences between IDL's Virtual Machine mode and full licensed mode, such as the fact that programs that call the IDL EXECUTE function will not run in the IDL Virtual Machine, are still in effect. If you have modified your widget application to work around the old blocking behavior by removing the NO_BLOCK keyword from calls to XMANAGER or by substituting the JUST_REG keyword, you may need to reinsert the NO_BLOCK keyword to achieve the desired behavior.
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Windows Platforms

ID Description
35038 Change to Value Returned by WIDGET_INFO for Number of Table Rows or Columns
In previous releases, the WIDGET_INFO function returned the number of visible rows or columns in a table widget when the XSIZE or YSIZE keywords were specified. This error has been corrected; WIDGET_INFO now returns the total number of rows or columns, which may differ from the number of visible rows or columns. If you have existing code that worked around this problem, you may need to alter or remove it.
35742 WIDGET_TABLE Retains Edits Without Needing a Carriage Return
In previous releases, changes to a table cell were not accepted until the user pressed the carriage return key in the cell. Changes are now accepted either when the user presses the carriage return key or clicks into another cell or another widget. The behavior under Microsoft Windows is now the same as the behavior under UNIX.
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Macintosh Platform

ID Description
  Building External Applications Using XCode
If you are building external applications (e.g., callable, linkimage) on Mac OS X, you will need to install and use XCode 1.2, due to the omission of system libraries in earlier versions of the XCode package.
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Problems Corrected in IDL 6.1

All Platforms

ID Description
14548 Conic Projections Can Now Be Rotated
In versions of IDL prior to IDL 6.1, for the Lambert's conformal conic projection (selected via the CONIC keyword), there was an undocumented behavior in which the P0lat, P0lon, and Rot arguments would be used for the standard parallels and for the center longitude, respectively. This prevented the P0lat, P0lon arguments from being used for the projection center, and also prevented the Rot argument from being used for the rotation. In IDL6.1, this behavior has been corrected, and the P0lat, P0lon, and Rot arguments now behave as documented. For the Conic projection, users should use the STANDARD_PARALLELS keyword to specify the latitudes of the standard parallels. Also, the Rot argument (which controls the map rotation) now works correctly with the Lambert Conic, Lambert Conic Ellipsoid, and Albers Equal Area Conic projections.
21360 CONVOL Makes Better Use of Multiple Threads
The mechanism used by CONVOL to send array data to multiple processors has been improved. In previous releases, because of the time spent assigning data to different threads, a calculation could take longer when multiple threads were in use than when only a single thread was available.
28128, 28138, 28139, 28925, 30092 iTool Text Annotation Improvements
In the iTools, text annotations (including contour labels) can now be resized, copied, or zoomed without changing the size and font of the text.
29419 SURFACE No Longer Reverses Non-rectangular Data
In previous releases, the SURFACE procedure would display data in reverse order if the provided data was not on a rectangular grid. Now, the display is reversed only if the entire array provided is in decreasing order.
29660 Additional Routines Now Available in the IDL Virtual Machine
The ANNOTATE and READ_INTERFILE routines can now be used with the IDL Virtual Machine.
29825 Line Profile Manipulations Can Now Be Undone in the iImage Tool
If a line for a profile is added to the iImage tool, any manipulation performed on that line can be undone.
29878 Rotation in iImage's Data Range Mode No Longer Causes Unexpected Zooming
In IDL 6.0, rotating an image when the iImage Data Range manipulator was in effect sometimes caused unexpected zooming of the image. This behavior has been corrected.
30709 Translating an Axis, Then Performing Range Zoom in iTools Preserves the Axis
In the IDL 6.0 iTools, manually moving an axis and then using the Range Zoom manipulator would in some cases cause the axis to disappear. Now, axes stay in the same screen position when using the Range Zoom.
30772 POLY_2D Cleans Up Temporary Variables
In previous releases, POLY_2D did not release memory correctly when multiple threads were in use, which could lead to warning messages noting that temporary variables were being cleaned up. This problem only appeared when nine or more threads were in use; it has been corrected.
30798 Improved Entry Checking with HDF_VD_READ with the FIELDS Keyword
IDL does a better job of checking for the case of entries that look similar up to a certain character, to avoid returning the wrong type and causing a segmentation fault.
30814 MAP_SET Now Avoids Roundoff Issues with Latitudes
Latitudes have been clipped to -90 to +90, to avoid roundoff issues.
30870 Improved Memory Handling with GRIDDATA
In previous releases, GRIDDATA would occasionally request more memory than was available when using the Radial Basis or Kriging methods. When this happened, errors would result, sometimes causing IDL to exit. Now IDL will issue an error in the IDL Command Log if the data to be gridded contains more points than can be processed in available memory.
30951 Added Large File Support for NCDF_VARPUT, NCDF_VARGET
The NCDF_VARPUT and NCDF_VARGET routines now support files larger than 2 Gbytes.
31033 Improved Texture Rendering with IDLgrSurface, TEXTURE_HIGHRES=1
A problem in IDL 6.0 caused IDL to select a low-resolution texture even when the TEXTURE_HIGHRES property of the IDLgrSurface object was set to True. This problem has been corrected.
31307 READ_BINARY Correctly Handles Scalar DATA_DIMS in Virtual Machine Mode
An error in the IDL 6.0 Virtual Machine caused the READ_BINARY routine to create an 8-dimensional array even when the DATA_DIMS keyword specified a scalar value. IDL now correctly converts scalar a dimension value into a vector array.
31496 CASE and SWITCH Statements Improved
CASE and SWITCH have been modified so that either scalar or 1-element arrays are accepted as the predicate expression.
31508 IDL's 'H5...' Routines Are Now Compatible with the Latest HDF5 Version
IDL now uses version 1.6.1 of the HDF5 library.
31596 Threading Improvements for CONVOL
For arrays, CONVOL now packages up multiple rows and sends them to each thread, instead of sending a single row to each thread. This change slightly improves speed for all arrays and significantly improves speed for arrays with a huge number of short rows. For vectors, CONVOL now returns the correct values for the threaded case.
31695 iPlot Handles Overplotting of Logarithmic Data Correctly
In IDL 6.0, overplotting logarithmic data in iPlot sometimes caused an incorrect dataspace range value to be inserted. This behavior has been corrected.
31771 XROI Completely Updated to Remove LIVE Tools
All references to the obsolete LIVE Tools have been removed from the XROI utility.
31786 Include Files Can Now Be Found with IDL 6.0 (Path Cache)
The @ statement has been modified not to use the path cache in cases where an include filename includes a path component and is not just a plain name.
31827 IBETA Works with Large Arguments
The IBETA algorithm has been adjusted so that large A and B values work correctly.
31890 EOS_SW_DEFTIMEPERIOD Accepts Four Arguments
The function signature for EOS_SW_DEFTIMEPERIOD has been changed to accept four arguments.
32022, 32879 IDL Virtual Machine No Longer Checks Out idl_rt Licenses
An error in IDL 6.0 caused the IDL Virtual Machine to attempt to check out an idl_rt license in some situations. This no longer occurs.

This fix also allows the Windows Remote Desktop and Windows Terminal Server to work properly with the Virtual Machine.
32117 Improved Handling of Large Arrays by TOTAL Function
A memory-allocation problem in the TOTAL routine prohibited it from handling large arrays correctly. This has been corrected.
32349 iImage Tool Line Profile Manipulator Works When X and Y Arguments Are Used
In IDL 6.0, the iImage tool's Line Profile manipulator did not behave correctly when the image data included X and Y pixel spacing values. The manipulator now works correctly.
32466 POLY_2D Uses the MISSING Keyword If Input Array Is Type Float
The POLY_2D routine now properly uses the MISSING keyword if it is supplied and the input array is type float.
32447 Axis Tick MarksĘ Trailing Zeros Have Been Removed
In versions of IDL prior to 6.1, the default tick labels on axes (in both direct and object graphics) would sometimes have an unnecessary trailing zero after each label. This has been corrected.
32500 IDLgrView LOCATION Property No Longer Ignored by IDLgrClipboard Vector Output
Problems with placement of views in vector output have been correted.
32520 Improved IDLgrText Rendering Quality
IDL's algorithm for rendering IDLgrText objects now creates text primitives that are closer to the required size on the screen, improving the appearance of the text.
33040 Improvement to iPlot Scaling of the X-axis for Small X Values
iPlot now handles time-series data, with values of X < 1, correctly.
33067 Setting NTERMS = 3 in GAUSSFIT No Longer Results in a CURVEFIT Error
GAUSS_FUNCT now returns the correct array dimensions if the number of terms is three.
33106 READ_ASCII Cleans Up if No Data Are Read
The READ_ASCII routine now cleans up pointers if no data are read.
33360 Improved Handling of Unames in WIDGET_INFO
In IDL 6.0, if WIDGET_INFO with the UNAME keyword set encountered a widget with no UNAME, subsequent calls to retrive the UNAME would fail. IDL now loops over all widgets, properly handling those widgets that do not have user names.
33388 Improved Behavior with Embedded Formatting Commands
The character sizing for the !U and !D commands, and the character spacing for !U, !D, !L, !E, and !I commands are now the same for both object and direct graphics
33472 TOTAL Routine Improved When Solution Is Found Quickly
The TOTAL algorithm now checks early guesses and returns if a solution is found.
33630 TRIGRID Now Handles Out-of-Range Values More Gracefully
TRIGRID now checks for out-of-range values for Triangles argument so that it doesn't run off the end of the array. IDL throws an error message for out-of-range values and halts execution.
34117 Cleaner Export of One-Dimensional Data to an ASCII File
The default format string used when exporting one-dimensional data to an ASCII file has been improved. In previous releases, unreported errors that prevented the file from being written occurred in some cases.
34174 iContour Now Accepts 2D X and Y Arguments
iContour now accepts two-dimensional arrays as the X and Y parameters.
34240 WIDGET_CONTROL, SET_TABLE_SELECT Scrolls to Display Selected Cell as Documented
IDL now examines the current selection in a table widget and positions its upper left cell to be in view.
34640 FILE_COPY with /RECURSIVE Works When Source Is Read-Only File System
FILE_COPY can now copy read-only directories. In previous releases, the directory mode bits were copied before the files in the directory; this mean that the copy would fail if the directory was read-only.
34677 Improvement to PostScript Output
In previous releases, identical graphics sent to the PostScript device could be displayed differently in some situations. This problem is now avoided.
34726 LOGICAL_AND and LOGICAL_OR Successfully Compare Sequence Arrays
In IDL 6.0, if either operand to the LOGICAL_AND and LOGICAL_OR routines is an array, these functions may, under some conditions, quietly produce incorrect results. This flaw does not occur if both operands are scalar, or single element arrays. This behavior was corrected in the IDL 6.0.3 release, and is also corrected in IDL 6.1.
34851 iTools Can Import Data from Nested Structure Variable
The iTools data import wizard now has better handling of nested structure variables.
34985 Saving an MPEG File with Nonconsecutive Frames
Support has been added to the MPEG library for missing frames.
35023 FILE_SEARCH Can Search in Folders with Wildcard Characters in the Name
In previous releases, FILE_SEARCH could generate incorrect results if directory names included shell metacharacters. Directory names are now treated as literal text, allowing FILE_SEARCH to correctly locate files in directories whose names contain metacharacters.
35099 IDLgrAxis Text Now Scales Properly
Some Axis text objects were not honoring the RECOMPUTE_DIMENSIONS setting. This oversight has been corrected.
35187 IDLgrPolygon Objects Appear Correctly After Calling the IDLgrWindow::Select Method
Previously, calling the IDLgrWindow::Select Method caused IDLgrPolygon to be rendered incorrectly. This problem has been fixed.
35319 Improvement to Anonymous Structure Handling by RESTORE procedure
When restoring anonymous structures that contain a named substructure whose definition has changed, when using relaxed structure assignment, or when the named structure tag has at least one sibling tag that is an anonymous structure, IDL ensures that the reference count for those sibling tags has a correct reference count (2 instead of 1). This prevents IDL from releasing the anonymous structure definition before the last referencing variable has been destroyed, and thus prevents IDL from accessing already freed memory.
36954 IDLgrPlot Handles MIN_VALUE and MAX_VALUE Consistently
The values returned via the MIN_VALUE and MAX_VALUE keywords to IDLgrPlot::GetProperty (if not previously set to a valid value by IDLgrPlot::SetProperty, and if no plot data have been provided) are now NaN rather than 0.0.
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Windows Platforms

ID Description
29847 FONT Keyword to WIDGET_COMBOBOX No Longer Ignored If XSIZE Keyword Is Set
IDL now builds the font for a combobox widget when the widget is first created. As a result, the font can also be used for natural sizing.
30851 Using USERSYM with METAFILE to Plot Color Symbols
USERSYM now correctly draws shapes and borders as desired.
31077 TAB Widgets and Their Children Inherit Visible SENSITIVE Setting from Insensitive Parent
Sensitivity inheritance now works properly.
31924 Improvement to IDLanROI::ComputeMask Method on Windows
In previous releases, the ComputeMask method of the IDLanROI object would sometimes unexpectedly return all zeros on Windows. This problem has been corrected.
33339 GUI Builder Can Now Set Table Widget Property FRAMES to TRUE
An error that prevented the GUI Builder from being able to set the table widget's FRAMES property to TRUE has been corrected.
33623 WIDGET_TREE: Improved Placement When Adding a Node to a Top-Level, MULTIPLE=1 Node
In previous releases, adding another node to a top-level tree widget that had already been realized and with the MULTIPLE keyword set equal to one would add the node to the last selected node instead of the root node.
34145 WIDGET_CONTROL, GET_VALUE Now Retrieves Value of Unrealized Text Widgets
IDL now correctly handles the value of an unrealized text widget, and returns it when the GET_VALUE keyword to WIDGET_CONTROL is specified.
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UNIX Platforms

ID Description
27931 Improvement to Combobox in a Modal Dialog
In previous releases, creating a modal dialog with a combobox widget on a Motif platform would cause the Motif desktop to freeze. This problem has been corrected.
29669 FLEXlm license manager support on Red Hat Linux 9
The license manager now starts properly on Red Hat 7, Red Hat 9 and Red Hat enterprise.
30796 Remote Display of IDLDE
In some cases, using a 32-bit platform to display an IDLDE session running on a 64-bit machine would cause bus errors on the display machine. This problem has been corrected.
31364, 31390, 32351 Improved Handling of Image Graphics on the Virtual Machine
The IDL Virtual Machine handles colormap initialization and X connections properly, exiting safely upon any failure.
31740 ROUTINE_INFO(/SOURCE) Now Returns Full Path If Routine Was Restored from a SAVE File
IDL now fully qualifies non-qualified paths for routines restored from an IDL SAVE file.
31787 Improved Font Handling in WIDGET_COMBOBOX
Using invalid or bad fonts in a combobox no longer causes an error.
31792 WIDGET_COMBOBOX No Longer Generates Erroneous Events
In previous releases, setting the value of a combobox widget using WIDGET_CONTROL would generate a spurrious widget event. This is no longer the case.
33101 WIDGET_TABLE No Longer Generates Erroneous Events
In previous releases, the table widget would generate extra widget events when a user edited the value of a table cell. This has been corrected.
33214 Improvements to CW_FILESEL
Extra characters are no longer added to file names when using CW_FILESEL under UNIX.
33474 Ability to Run in Demo Mode If Network License Is Not Available
If you answer No to waiting for an available license, IDL will now run in demo mode instead of exiting.
34839 SPAWN No Longer Fails on Solaris after Allocating a Large Array
This change restores the previous behavior of SPAWN.
35141 MPEG: Save Method Improved on 64-bit AIX
The IDLgrMPEG::Save method will now succeed on 64-bit AIX.
35318 IDL Editor Backwards Search Utility Searches Backwards Correctly
A problem that prevented the IDL Editor's backward search function from operating more than once has been fixed.
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Macintosh Platform

ID Description
30778 YSIZE of Windows Now Correct on the iMac
Under Mac OS X 10.3, a problem in which IDL windows would not honor the specified YSIZE no longer occurs.
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Known Problems in IDL 6.1

All Platforms

ID Description
3820 DEFAULT_BUTTON and CANCEL_BUTTON Keywords to WIDGET_CONTROL Are Not Functional
The DEFAULT_BUTTON and CANCEL_BUTTON keywords to WIDGET_CONTROL are not currently functional.
14220 Using 'Save As' with an IDL Project for a New Location Does Not Resolve Directory Change
If you save a project in a directory different from the original location, the files contained within the IDL Project appear to be included in the Save As operation. In reality, the files underneath the project still reside in the original location, and the IDL Project does not resolve the new directory path.
19086 The FIT_PTS Field in the IDLffDXF Object Returns Null Pointer
The FIT_PTS field of the IDL_DXF_SPLINE structure of the GetEntity method of the IDLffDXF object always returns a null pointer regardless of the value stored in that entity.
20122 Intermittent Problems Reading Compressed HDF SD Data Sets
You might encounter intermittent problems reading compressed HDF SD data created with HDF version 4.0r2 or earlier.
25785 MAP_PROJ_FORWARD Does Not Always Clip Polylines Correctly
For some of the oblique Mercator projections, if an input line segment happens to cross the back side of the planet, the polylines returned will incorrectly clip the projected points, causing points plotted using the polylines to indicate segments to be plotted across the entire map display.
26111 Incorrect Number of Rows and Columns Displayed When WIDGET_TABLE Data Is Replaced
When the data in a table widget is replaced via the SET_VALUE keyword to WIDGET_CONTROL, the data area of the table may not automatically display the correct number of rows or columns.

Workaround: Use IDL code similar to the following:
  WIDGET_CONTROL, table, SET_VALUE = new_value 
  WIDGET_CONTROL, table, TABLE_XSIZE = N_ELEMENTS(new_value[*,0]), $
     TABLE_YSIZE = N_ELEMENTS(new_value[0,*])
27578 Setting GREYSCALE Property of an IDLgrImage Object to True Does Not Always Result in Luminance Image
For both of the following cases, the GREYSCALE property is set to True. If the color model of the display (a window object) is set to RGB mode (COLOR_MODEL = 0) and palette of the image object is set to a non-grayscale color table, the palette is not ignored (the image should be shown with a grayscale color table). If the color model of the display is set to indexed mode and the palette of the display is set to a non-grayscale color table, but the palette of the image object is not set, the palette of the display is used (the image should be shown with a grayscale color table).
27874 WIDGET_CONTROL, SENSITIVE=0 Has No Effect on Individual Tree Widget Nodes
The nodes of an IDL tree widget cannot be desensitized, but the entire tree widget can be made insensitive.
28545 BASE_ALIGN_* Keywords to a Base Widget Are Ignored by Modal Widgets Using the XSIZE Keyword
Modal bases cannot be aligned with the BASE_ALIGN_* keywords if the XSIZE keyword is also set. However, the XSIZE keyword can be specified for a second base inside the top level modal base. Then the BASE_ALIGN_* keywords work for the top level modal base.
30162 Edit → Select All or Box Selection Options in iImage Tool Do Not Select ROIs
Any ROIs (Regions Of Interest) in the iImage tool are not selected when either the selection rubberband box or the Edit → Select All option are used to try to select all the objects within the tool's display.

Workaround: You can select the ROIs by multi-selecting with the combination of the Ctrl key and a left mouse button click on each ROI.
30467 Changes in iTools Print Preview Do Not Persist
Any changes made in the iTool print preview dialog to center the display or modify the margins will only appear on the printed page if you print from the print preview dialog. If you close the dialog and print through the File → Print dialog, the changes will not persist, and will not appear on the printed page.
32436 The THICK keyword to the IDLgrPolyline Object Is Being Ignored by IDLgrPrinter
This is a known problem with no workarounds.
32710 Palettized Textures and Alpha Channel Not Working with Software Rendering
Alpha channel features and palettized textures are not working with software rendering. These features work with hardware rendering. This is a known problem with no known workaround.
32793 MORPH_DISTANCE with NEIGHBOR_SAMPLING=3 Is Not Computing Distances Correctly
When using MORPH_DISTANCE with NEIGHBOR_SAMPLING set to 3 (Euclidean distance), the results returned are not correct.
35064 Presence of Separator in Button Pull-down List Can Hinder WIDGET_BUTTON Destruction
If you have a pull-down menu of buttons and one has a separator, you cannot destroy the button with the separator if the order of widget destruction is top-down.

Workaround: Destroy the buttons in the reverse order, from the bottom up.
35134 EOS_GD_BLKSOMOFFSET Routine Not Returning Correct Values Even After Initializing Offsets
The EOS_GD_BLKSOMOFFSET routine, when used to read block offsets from a MISR file, returns all zero values. Moreover, the routine requires the parameter that will receive the offsets to be defined prior to its use in the EOS_GD_BLKSOMOFFSET call. This is not expected behavior because function or procedure output parameters are dynamically defined.

Workaround: Since the block offset values are stored in the file using an HDF vdata structure, you can access the values using the HDF vdata routines.
35541 Image Plane Translate Operation in iTools Not Added to History Folder or Macro
Moving an image plane in iVolume is not added to the History folder in the Macro Editor, and does not get added to a macro.
35543 Macro with Change of Values for Isosurface or Interval Volume in iTools: Properties Cannot Be Changed
A macro that contains SetProperty items for changing values in a isosurface or interval contour does not let you change the values in the macro. The same is true for interval volumes.
35639 Polygons with STYLE=0 (Points) Might Appear Smaller Than Expected
IDLgrPolygon and IDLgrSurface objects using STYLE=0 might display smaller than expected points in IDLgrPrinter output in bitmap mode. This is a known restriction from Mesa 4.0.
36146 Editing SetProperty:Color Items for Contour Line Colors in an iTool Macro Will Not Apply New Colors
When recording a macro that changes the colors of individual contour lines, if the colors in the SetProperty items of the iTool macro are changed and the macro is re-run, the new colors are not applied.
36298 Cannot Export Entire View in iTools If View Size Is Larger Than Displayed Portion
If a view in an iTool is larger than the portion of the view that is displayed, the entire view cannot be exported. When exporting the view, only that portion that is displayed is actually exported. The same problem occurs if you start with a view that is exactly the same size as the displayed portion, zoom in with the View Zoom, and then export.
36874 Cropping an Image in 3D Space in iTools Displaces the Crop Region
When using the crop manipulator on an image that is displayed in a 3D data space (as when a surface or 3D contour has been added to an image), the location of the crop region does not align with the location of the mouse events used to place the crop region.
37154 iImage Row Order Property Does Not Flip Data
Changing the Row Order property of an image visualization in an iTool causes the image to appear to be flipped upside down. This is because the Row Order property controls the order in which pixels from the image are drawn on the screen.

The data used to create the image visualization are not modified when the Row Order property changes. This means that operations that use the image data may produce unexpected results after the Row Order property has changed. For example, the Pixel Value displayed in the iImage panel will correctly report the value of the (unchanged) data pixel underneath the cursor. The displayed value will in most cases not match the value of the pixel displayed underneath the cursor.

Solution: If you need to display image data in Bottom-to-Top order rather than Top-to-Bottom order (or vice versa), use the Flip Vertical operation rather than the Row Order property of the image visualization. This will transpose the data array used to create the image, causing the image to flip.

To flip your image data, do the following:
  1. Select the image visualization.
  2. Select Operations → Rotate or Flip → Flip Vertical.
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Windows Platforms

ID Description
319 IDL Events Not Handled While Slider Widget Is Dragged
Due to a Windows limitation, IDL events cannot be handled while a scroll widget is being dragged.
3257 Escape and Enter Key Behavior in Widget Dialog Not as Documented
In the WIDGET_CONTROL description in the IDL Reference Guide, the description for the CANCEL_BUTTON keyword states that pressing the Escape key is the same as clicking the Cancel button. Similarly, the description of the DEFAULT_BUTTON keyword states that pressing the Enter key is the same as clicking the default button. Although this is the desired behavior, once any widget within a base widget is given focus, pressing the Return or Escape keys does not return an event.
26556 IDLgrPlot Data with Large Differences in Magnitude Might Cause IDL to Exit
When an IDLgrPlot object containing data of large differences in magnitude (more than 1.0e5) is drawn, a Windows system error message is displayed and IDL exits.

Workaround: To avoid this issue, keep the magnitudes of the data within roughly 1.0e5 of each other, which is similar to maintaining the ratio of minimum data value to maximum data value greater than single precision EPS.
27486 Scroll Bar Drag Events Are Queued Up Until Mouse Is Released
When dragging a scroll bar on Windows for a draw widget, if the mouse is over the drawable region, drag events are queued up until the mouse is released. When the mouse is anywhere else during the drag, only a single event is fired when the mouse is released.
27598 Separator Causes Invalid Widget ID in Pulldown Menu If Buttons in Menu Are Deleted
For pulldown menus containing buttons on both sides of a separator, if you realize the base containing the menu and then delete all of the buttons, one button remains.
30026 Mouse Motion Events Do Not Update X and Y Offsets of Floating Child Bases
The values of the XOFFSET and YOFFSET keywords to WIDGET_INFO for floating child bases are not updated when the base is moved by dragging it with the mouse.
33734 Debugging Disabled If "Enable Open on Debug" Is Unchecked
On the IDLDE's File → Preferences... → Editor tab, if the "Enable open on debug" box is unchecked, debugging no longer works in the editor.
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UNIX Platforms

ID Description
3803, 12625 Attempts to Position a Top-level Base Widget Before It Ss Realized Will Fail
The TLB_SET_XOFFSET and TLB_SET_YOFFSET keywords to WIDGET_CONTROL do not work unless the widget on which the offsets are being set has been realized.
3951 Child Widgets Must Be Within Parent Bases to Appear
Due to a Motif limitation, child widgets placed with offsets must be within the parent to be displayed.
7419 Table Widget Row Labels Might Be Truncated
In table widgets, the width of the column containing row labels might not be wide enough to accommodate the longest row label. For example, the following code causes the first row label to be truncated:
   PRO row_labels
      base = WIDGET_BASE()
      values = INDGEN(2,4)
      rLabels = ['This is a long row label','Two','Three','Four']
      wTable = WIDGET_TABLE(base, ROW_LABELS = rLabels, VALUE = values)
      WIDGET_CONTROL, base, /REALIZE
   END
Solution: To change the size of the row label column, use the COLUMN_WIDTH and USE_TABLE_SELECT keywords to WIDGET_CONTROL, as shown in the following example:
   PRO row_labels
      base = WIDGET_BASE()
      values = INDGEN(2,4)
      rLabels = ['This is a long row label', 'Two', 'Three', 'Four']
      wTable = WIDGET_TABLE(base, ROW_LABELS = rLabels, VALUE = values)
      WIDGET_CONTROL, base, /REALIZE
      WIDGET_CONTROL, wTable, USE_TABLE_SELECT = [-1,0,-1,3], $
         COLUMN_WIDTH = 150
   END
See WIDGET_CONTROL in the IDL Reference Guide for more information on the COLUMN_WIDTH and USE_TABLE_SELECT keywords.
14241 Project → Export Path/Project Name Cannot Contain Spaces
When using the Project → Export feature or make_rt script on UNIX, the export operation will fail if either the name of the .prj file or the name of the directory to which the project is being exported contain any spaces.
17648, 17971 IDL Requires a Patch for Solaris OS
The Motif library supplied by Sun in Solaris 8 requires a patch, available at http://www.sunsolve.sun.com before it will work properly with IDL. Without this patch, editable text and table widgets may cause the IDL program to crash. The patch to use depends on the hardware architecture on which you are running Solaris. For Sparc hardware (both 32- and 64-bit), the patch number is 108940-23.
19976 IDLgrWindow Does Not Minimize in Linux Red Hat 7.1 with KDE Desktop Running the Kwin Window Manager
On Intel Linux Red Hat 7.1 using the KDE desktop with kwin window manager, the minimize action for stand-alone object graphics windows in IDL is inactive.
20320 EOS_EH_CONVANG Fails on Some 64-bit Platforms
The EOS_EH_CONVANG functions fails on some 64-bit platforms because of a bug in the HDF-EOS library.
22329 HDF NetCDF Support Fails on 64-bit Platforms
Attempting to access a NetCDF file with IDL's HDF routines generates the error "HDF_SD_START: Unable to start the HDF-SD interface." Note: On 64-bit platforms, NetCDF files can be accessed through the NetCDF routines.
26569 Table Widget Not Generating Disjointed Deselection Events
Beginning with IDL 5.6, the table widget generates a new event type, WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_DESEL, when the table is in disjoint selection mode and group of selected cells are selected again. This event is identical to the WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_SEL event except for the name and the TYPE value. On UNIX platforms, events of type WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_SEL are erroneously generated when the table is in disjoint selection mode and a group of selected cells are selected again. Selecting the cells a third time generates an erroneous WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_DESEL event.

Workaround: Check the selection mode of the table (using the TABLE_DISJOINT_SELECTION keyword to WIDGET_INFO) when processing events of type WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_SEL.
27393 Last Item of Context Menu Is Not Displayed If It Represents a Submenu
If the top level base containing a context menu has already been realized and if the last item in the context menu is a submenu, then this last item is not displayed.
28711, 30938 Table Widget Event Structure WIDGET_TABLE_CELL_SEL Is Incorrect for Right-to-Left Events
If you select multiple columns in a table widget from right to left, or multiple rows from bottom up, by holding down the button and dragging along the column or row headers, the selection is incorrectly reported in the event structure.
29251 IDLDE Editor Window Only Prints in Landscape Mode on Red Hat 8
On Red Hat 8, printing from the IDLDE Editor Window always comes out landscape, even if portrait is specified in the print dialog.
29400 Red Hat 9 Reports XLib/XFree86 Errors after the IDLDE or iTools Are Launched
When starting the IDLDE or any iTool on Linux Red Hat 9, a "Xlib: extension "XFree86-DRI" missing on display ":0.0"." error message is displayed. However, IDL is not stopped, the IDLDE or iTool will appear, and work as expected.

Solution: This error message can be ignored. See Techtip Article 3497 for additional details.
29703 Linux Window Manager Focus Must Be Set to "Click" for Pulldown Menus to Work in Property Sheet Widgets
The focus behavior of some Linux window managers is set to "enter-exit" or "enter-only" by default. The pulldown menus provided in IDL property widgets do not work with these settings. However, the pulldown menus will work if you change the focus behavior of the Linux window manager to "click."
29771 Not Able to Use AWT or Swing Objects in the IDL-Java Bridge on Linux
AWT and Swing object classes cannot be created by the IDL-Java bridge on Linux systems. This issue is a known problem in Java: http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/bugParade/bugs/4638291.html (registration required). If the application (IDL) that loads JNI uses X, Java does not load the AWT library correctly. Swing depends upon AWT and is also crippled.
30564 DIALOG_PRINTERSETUP Causes IDL to Hang When Called from Modal Widget
This is a known problem with no known workarounds.
30752 No 64-bit Java Virtual Machine for Solaris 8
Sun does not provide a 64-bit Java Virtual Machine for Solaris 8. Because the IDL-Java bridge uses the JVM, this means that the IDL-Java bridge will not run under Solaris 8 in 64-bit mode.

Solution: To use the IDL-Java bridge under Solaris, do one of the following:
  • Run IDL in 32-bit mode by specifying the '-32' switch at startup: idl -32
  • Upgrade to Solaris 9, which includes a 64-bit JVM
31295 .idl Directory (Created by iTools) Causes Problems for GNOME Desktop on Linux Red Hat 8
Some users have reported problems logging out of the GNOME desktop on Linux Red Hat 8 after the creation of the $HOME/.idl directory. (The .idl directory is created by some IDL applications, including the iTools.)

This does not appear to be a problem under Red Hat 9.
31586 Switching Tabs Too Often on a Tab Widget on IRIX Leads to Eventual Event Mishandling
IRIX seems to have a very small limit of "tab switch events" that it can process correctly in a single IDL session before clicking-on-a-tab events start to be handled incorrectly. This problem occurs on IRIX only.
31744 "Class Not Found" Error Reported When Attempting to Use ZIP Compressed Jar File on Linux
The problem is a mismatch in the zlib that IDL uses (1.1.4) and the one Java uses (1.1.3). The specific bug is that a C/C++ application linked with zlib (IDL) cannot use zlib via the JNI interface (loading a class from a zlib compressed jar file via the bridge). This is a known issue in Java: http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/bugParade/bugs/4953050.html (registration required).

Workaround: Un-jar the zip-compressed file and work with the class files or re-jar it as uncompressed.
35163 XML Objects Fail to Initialize on Redhat Enterprise 3
Incompatibilities between the standard Red Hat Enterprise libraries and IDL cause XML objects not to initialize correctly.

Solution: Users installing Red Hat Enterprise System Linux need to install the libstdc++ compatibility libraries. Locate and install an RPM (such as compat-libstdc++-7.3-2.96.118.i386.rpm).
35743 WIDGET_TREE: Events Not Generated When Nodes Are Deselected on UNIX Platforms
When nodes of a widget tree are selected or deselected on Windows, an event is generated. On UNIX, an event is generated only when nodes of a widget tree are selected.

Additionally, when you use the Shift key to make selections, the entire range of selected items generates an event, not just the one clicked on.
37075 Using Java AWT/Swing with IDL GUIs and Java 1.3.* or 1.4.*
Due to Java's implementation of AWT on Linux and Solaris, it is not possible to create an IDL graphical window (such as a widget or an iTool) and also create a Java AWT or Swing GUI using the IDL-Java bridge. Doing so will cause IDL to crash or lock up.

This limitation has been addressed in Java 1.5.0 Beta. If you are using Java 1.5, set the AWT Toolkit to XToolkit via an environment variable or system property. For more information, see http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.5.0/docs/guide/awt/1.5/xawt.html.
37272 IDL-Java bridge fails under IRIX if IDLJAVAB_LIB_LOCATION variable ends with "/"
Under IRIX, if the IDLJAVAB_LIB_LOCATION environment variable ends with a slash character ("/"), IDL will issue an error when attempting to create an IDLJavaObject. Removing the slash character from the end of the environment variable solves the problem.
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Macintosh Platform

ID Description
26833 WIDGET_CONTROL, /SET_BUTTON Cannot Set Exclusive Buttons
When an exclusive button is set through WIDGET_CONTROL, /SET_BUTTON, the windowing system highlights the button, but it does not appear as the active button. Moreover, clicking another button in the exclusive base will not make that other button active. However, button bases created with the EXCLUSIVE keyword still work correctly.
26877 Some Keyboard Equivalents to Menu Commands Do Not Work by Default
The key mappings for Control, Alt, and Option, as well as the use of these meta keys for opening, closing, quitting, and so on are nonfunctional in the default Macintosh OS X installation.

Workaround:
  1. Change the keyboard mapping by creating a ~/.Xmodmap file. Add the following lines:

        clear mod1
        clear mod2
        add mod1 = Meta_L
  2. Let the new keyboard mapping work and prevent X11 from stealing accelerator keys. Run X11 and bring up its preferences. Under "Input," uncheck the following two options:

    • Follow systems keyboard layout
    • Enable key equivalents under X11

  3. Optionally, you can update the appearance of the menu items. Do this by editing the following file:

    /resource/X11/lib/app-defaults/Idl

    Find occurrences of "acceleratorText" that use the Alt key and change "Alt" to either "Command" or "Apple.". This string is for display purposes only. For example, find the acclerator text for the Copy menu item. By default, it says "Alt+C." Changing it to "Command+C" will cause the menu to accurately describe the key combination. The actual accelerator, Meta<Key>c, should not be changed.
26883 Cannot Install in a Directory with Spaces in Its Path
If the installation folder or any folder in the path to the installation folder contains spaces in its name, the installer will not recognize the path.

Workaround: Rename the folder without spaces before you install, or use the default /Applications/rsi installation path.
27599 Mouse Clicks in Draw Widget Windows Generate Extra Widget-Tracking Events
Mouse clicks in a draw widget window generate tracking exit and entry events without ever leaving the draw window on Mac OS X.
36935 IDLffXMLDOMDocument Does Not Find File in Current Directory
The IDLffXMLDOMDocument object on Mac OS X does not find files in the current directory.
  Installing PDF Index Files from the UNIX CD-ROM
If you install IDL for Macintosh from the IDL for UNIX CD-ROM, Macintosh users will see an error that looks like this when opening a PDF file:

The index associated with this document could not be loaded. You may need to rebuild this index.

Macintosh users will need to do the following in order to use the full-text search option of the IDL documentation set:

  1. Open one of the PDF files in the IDL documentation set and select Search from the Edit menu.
  2. Click Use Advanced Search Options at the bottom of the search panel.
  3. Select "Select Index" from the Look In: pulldown menu.
  4. Click Add on the Index Selection dialog.
  5. Navigate to the help subdirectory of the IDL distribution and select the file INDEX_6.PDX.
  6. Click OK on the Index Selection dialog.
  7. Repeat this process for each PDF file used.

Note: This process is only necessary when installing IDL for Macintosh from the IDL for UNIX CD-ROM. If you install IDL from the IDL for Macintosh CD-ROM, the correct index files are associated with the PDF files by default.

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Documentation Errata in IDL 6.1

ID Description
34335 Java Documentation: Array Handling
The function, procedure, and Init areas of the IDL-Java docs should be amended to state that arrays will always be copied back to IDL after the Java constructor or method call is made. Also, the type of this "back copy" will be the same as the type of the IDL array before the call and might cause some downcasting between IDL and Java.
36733 CW_ITMENU, CW_ITPANEL, CW_ITSTATUSBAR, CW_ITTOOLBAR, CW_ITWINDOW: Notification Messages
The documentation for the iTools compound widgets is currently somewhat misleading in terms of notification messages. The text implies that changes to the items in the container automatically trigger notification messages in all cases (i.e., developers do not need to trigger the messages themselves). Except for the ADDITEMS and REMOVEITEMS messages for CW_ITMENU and CW_ITTOOLBAR, this is not true. For all other notification messages with the CW_IT* widgets, developers need to call DoOnNotify for the widgets to receive the messages.
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Problems Corrected in ION Script 6.1

All Platforms

ID Description
31855 Support Added to ion-i for HTTPS Protocol
ION Script now allows HTTPS to be used as a protocol for the Image Server URL and Parser URL (Data Server URL is no longer used), allowing 100% HTTPS data transfer in ION.
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Known Problems in ION Script 6.1

Windows Platforms

ID Description
21585 Process ID Is Not Unique as Extension to Log File Names
Consider an ION Script page containing multiple ION_DATA_OUT sections. Each ION_DATA_OUT within the page may create an ion-out###.txt file in the cgi-bin directory if the DEBUG option is on. The ### value is the ID of the new ion-p.exe process. Under certain load conditions, a series of a small number of pool process IDs may be reused for each ion-p.exe process, thereby overwriting the previous log file with the same ID extension.
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Problems Corrected in ION Java 6.1

All Platforms

ID Description
31373 IONCallableClient::getIDLVariable() Accepts Argument That Is (or Has) an Empty String
ION now checks to make sure strLen is > 0 before trying to read the string. Otherwise, the string returned is "". Note that in general, an empty IDL string is returned as a "" string in Java.
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Known Problems in ION Java 6.1

UNIX Platforms

ID Description
  Unable to Create Swing/AWT Objects on Linux
You cannot create Swing/AWT objects on Linux. This is due to a known limitation in Java for Linux and ios: http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/bugParade/bugs/4638291.html (registration required).
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Platforms Supported for IDL 6.1 and ION 6.1

Hardware Requirements for IDL 6.1

Platform Vendor Hardware Operating System Supported Version
Windows Microsoft Intel x86e Windows 2000, XP
Macintoshb,c Apple PowerMac G4, G5e OS X 10.3
UNIXc HP PA-RISC 32-bit HP-UX 11.00
HP PA-RISC 64-bita HP-UX 11.0
IBM RS/6000 32-bit AIX 5.1
IBM RS/6000 64-bita AIX 5.1
Intel Intel x86e Linuxd Red Hat 7.1, 9, Enterprise 3.xb, f
SGI Mips 32-bit IRIX 6.5.1
SGI Mips 64-bit IRIX 6.5.1
SUN SPARC 32-bite Solaris 8, 9
SUN SPARC 64-bita Solaris 8, 9

On platforms that provide 64-bit support, IDL can be run as either a 32-bit or a 64-bit application. When both versions are installed, the 64-bit version is the default. The 32-bit version can be run by specifying the -32 switch at the command line, as follows:

% idl -32

a The DXF file format and IDL DataMiner are not supported on 64-bit IDL platforms.

b IDL DataMiner is not supported on Mac OS X or Red Hat Enterprise 3.x.

c For UNIX and Mac OS X, the supported versions indicate that IDL was either built on (the lowest version listed) or tested on that version. You can install and run IDL on other versions that are binary compatible with those listed.

d IDL 6.1 was built on the Linux 2.4 kernel with glibc 2.2 using Red Hat Linux. If your version of Linux is compatible with these, it is possible that you can install and run IDL on your version.

e IDLffDicomEx is supported on Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and SPARC 32-bit Solaris.

f For Red Hat Enterprise users: Some functionality in this IDL release requires the libstdc++ compatibility libraries to be installed. To check if the libraries are already installed, issue the following command:

rpm -qa | grep compat

and look for compat-libstdc++-<version_number>. If this is not listed, install the appropriate RPM for your distribution (from your installation CD-ROMs).

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Software Requirements for IDL 6.1

Platform Software Requirement
Windows Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher
Macintosh Apple X11 X-Windows manager
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Hardware Requirements for ION 6.1

Platform Vendor Hardware Operating System Supported Version
Windows Microsoft Intel x86 Windows 2000, XP
UNIXa Intel Intel x86 Linuxb Red Hat 7.1, 9, Enterprise 3.xc
SGI Mips 32-bit IRIX 6.5.1
SUN SPARC 32-bit Solaris 8, 9

a For UNIX, the supported versions indicate that IDL was either built on (the lowest version listed) or tested on that version. You can install and run IDL on other versions that are binary compatible with those listed.

b ION 6.1 was built on the Linux 2.4 kernel with glibc 2.2 using Red Hat Linux. If your version of Linux is compatible with these, it is possible that you can install and run IDL on your version.

c For Red Hat Enterprise users: Some functionality in this IDL release requires the libstdc++ compatibility libraries to be installed. To check if the libraries are already installed, issue the following command:

rpm -qa | grep compat

and look for compat-libstdc++-<version_number>. If this is not listed, install the appropriate RPM for your distribution (from your installation CD-ROMs).

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Web Server Requirements for ION 6.1

In order to use ION, you must install an HTTP Web server. ION has been tested with the following Web server software:

If you do not already have Web server software, the IDL 6.1 CD-ROM contains the following Apache Web Server software:

For more information on Apache software for your platform, see http://www.apache.org (opens in a new window).

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Java Virtual Machine Requirements for ION 6.1

ION 6.1 supports the HTTP 1.0 protocol. The following are provided as examples of popular Web browsers that support HTTP 1.0:

Browsers differ in their support of HTML features. As with any Web application, you should test your ION Script or Java application using Web browsers that anyone accessing your application is likely to be using.

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Hardware Requirements for the IDL-Java Bridge

Platform Vendor Hardware Operating System Supported Version
Windows Microsoft Intel x86 Windows 2000, XP
Macintosha Apple PowerMac G4, G5 OS X 10.3
UNIXa Intel Intel x86 Linuxb Red Hat 7.1, 9, Enterprise 3.xc
SGI Mips 32-bit IRIX 6.5.1
SUN SPARC 32-bit Solaris 8, 9
SUN SPARC 64-bit Solaris 8, 9

On platforms that provide 64-bit support, IDL can be run as either a 32-bit or a 64-bit application. When both versions are installed, the 64-bit version is the default. The 32-bit version can be run by specifying the -32 switch at the command line, as follows:

% idl -32

a For UNIX and Mac OS X, the supported versions indicate that IDL was either built on (the lowest version listed) or tested on that version. You can install and run IDL on other versions that are binary compatible with those listed.

b IDL 6.1 was built on the Linux 2.4 kernel with glibc 2.2 using Red Hat Linux. If your version of Linux is compatible with these, it is possible that you can install and run IDL on your version.

c For Red Hat Enterprise users: Some functionality in this IDL release requires the libstdc++ compatibility libraries to be installed. To check if the libraries are already installed, issue the following command:

rpm -qa | grep compat

and look for compat-libstdc++-<version_number>. If this is not listed, install the appropriate RPM for your distribution (from your installation CD-ROMs).

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Java Virtual Machine Requirements for the IDL-Java Bridge

IDL supports version 1.3.1 and greater on all platforms with the following exceptions:

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These release notes were created on 13 July 2004.