Using IDL to Manipulate and Visualize Scientific Data
Course 3015

IDL (Interactive Data Language), a versatile package running under the X Window System, will enable you to perform a wide variety of operations and computations either interactively or by writing scripts. You can use IDL to perform array operations, data manipulation, matrix manipulation, curve fitting, triangulation, gridding, statistics, and image processing, and also to solve systems of equations. You can also use IDL for graphing, surface plotting, contouring, volume visualization, and animation.

Benefits: After completing this tutorial, you will be able to:

• use the IDL command language
• write and run IDL scripts
• import data into IDL
• manipulate and perform operations on data
• produce graphs and surface plots
• animate image sequences
• save and print your images

You can access an online version of this tutorial: "Online IDL Tutorial"

For more information, see "Tutorials" on the SCV home page: http://scv.bu.edu/

Prerequisites:

• Getting Started with UNIX (Course 4000) or Getting Started with UNIX, Video Version (Course 4001) or Getting Started with UNIX, Accelerated Version (Course 4005) or equivalent UNIX experience
• Getting Started with the X Window System (Course 4030) or equivalent X experience.