Histo-Scope and NPlot Version 5.0 7/14/98
Histo-Scope is a tool to select and display histograms, n-tuples, and scalar values from a program as data is being created or analyzed. Using HistoScope, physicists can interactively "browse" through the large quantities of statistical data that their analysis and data acquisition programs gather as they run. It is intended to complement existing physics applications, providing immediate access to data while a program is running, as well as new interactive methods for viewing data.
Histo-Scope has two parts. The first is a small library of routines which can be inserted in physics analysis or data acquisition code without significantly changing its behavior. The other part is the "scope" process. Invoked upon user demand, the scope requests and displays data continuously from the analysis process. The scope concentrates on interacting effectively with users. It responds to mouse and keyboard input and provides the interactive graphing and plotting that enable users to view their data quickly and effectively. The scope program, on its own, can read HBOOK and Histo-Scope format files.
NPlot is a tool for quickly plotting columnar data from text files. It is a simple re-packaging of the Histo-Scope n-tuple interface with a file reader.
Both Histo-Scope and NPlot produce highly interactive graphs and plots. These include: multi-variable graphs, two and three dimensional scatter plots, one and two dimensional histograms, and a number of specialty plots such as adaptive histograms and cell plots. Users can re-scale, zoom, and pan these plots by dragging on axis scales and other sensitive areas. The three dimensional widgets, 2D histogram and 3D scatter plot, can be rotated accurately using the mouse as a hand on a "virtual track ball" sphere surrounding the plot. The plots can also be combined with animation sliders to reflect additional variables or to re-bin histograms.
Histo-Scope V3.0 and beyond include an enhanced application programming interface for working with n-tuple and histogram data independent of HBOOK, as well as methods for setting variables and activating routines within the connected executable.
Histo-Scope V3.1 and beyond include configuration files for saving complete Histo-Scope sessions, windows for viewing groups of plots, new XY plot types, and the ability to transform ntuple variables with arbitrary arithmetic expressions. V3.1.1 and beyond include a conversion utility to convert Histo-Scope files to Hbook files. To use this utility, read the release notes file: $HISTO_DIR/doc/tohbook_rel_notes.txt.
Histo-Scope V4.0 adds support for multiple selections in the Histo-Scope Main Panel, overlaid plots, and display of color and various fill patterns. In the API, V4.0 adds grouping of data items and an experimental C++ Binding (courtesy of the University of Pennsylvania).
Histo-Scope V5.0 adds support for disk and memory resident column wise ntuple. It adds support for colored 2D Histogram and colored cell plot.
Histo-Scope is available in executable form for Windows NT, IRIX, AIX, Ultrix, OSF/1, Linux, and Solaris by anonymous ftp to ftp ftp.fnal.gov, in the /pub/histoscope directory. For further information, see the Histo-Scope User's Guide. This is available via a www page at:
http://www-pat.fnal.gov/histo_doc/histo_ug.html
A Postscript file of the user's guide can be found in $HISTO_DIR/doc. A hardcopy of the user's guide is available from the Fermilab Computing Division Library (Wilson Hall, 8th floor, NE corner). The hardcopy version of the user's guide includes an index.
Send questions or comments to histoscope_support@fnal.gov.
WINDOWS NT INSTALLATION
Before installing histoscope you need the unix like environment provided by cygwin (b19). It can be found at
http://www.cygnus.com/misc/gnu-win32/
You also need to install Motif libraries. They can be found at
http://dao.gsfc.nasa.gov/software/grads/win32/X11R6.3/
UNIX INSTALLATION
To install Histo-Scope on a system with Fermilab's UPS/UPD software, follow the normal procedure for product installation. To install Histo-Scope on a system without UPS, copy and unwind the appropriate tar file to any suitable directory on your system. Histo-Scope users should add the following commands to their .cshrc files:
setenv HISTO_DIR <path-to-Histo-Scope> set path = {$PATH, $HISTO_DIR/bin)
These variables must be defined before invoking Histo-Scope. They must also be added to your .cshrc file on any node you intend to call the histoscope library routine hs_histoscope. If you will be building programs with Histo-Scope library routines, also define:
setenv HISTO_INC $HISTO_DIR/include
RUNNING HISTO-SCOPE AND NPLOT UNDER UNIX
If you have used telnet or rlogin to access the host Unix system, you need to set the UNIX environment variable for the display:
setenv DISPLAY <devicename>:0
On systems with Fermilab's ups software, you must also setup the histo or nplot software before using it by typing:
setup histo
Or for nplot, type:
setup nplot
To run Histo-Scope, type:
histo
The examples directory in the tar archive contains example data files for Histo-Scope and nplot (random.hs, and Diabetes.txt respectively), and example programs using the Histo-Scope library routines.
DOCUMENTATION, LICENSE, AND SUPPORT
Full documentation can be found in the Histo-Scope User's Guide, available in PostScript form in the file histo_users_guide.ps in the tar or VMS backup archive files, and in printed form from the Fermilab Computing Division Library (SP0034). Information on licensing and support can be found in the files LICENSE and SUPPORT in distribution tar or backup savesets.
CONTRIBUTED SOFTWARE: C++ Binding
For Histo-Scope V4.0, a C++ Binding for the Histo-Scope Application Programming Interface (API) was contributed by Roque D. Oliveira at the University of Pennsylvania. These files can be found in the contrib directory in the Histo-Scope V4.0 kit.