Hivel2D users manual
Appendix A
File Formats
This section contains the file formats for files used by HIVEL2D. The files used by
HIVEL2D use a "card" type format. With this format, the components of the file are
grouped into logical groups called "cards." The
first component of each card is a short name which serves as the card
identifier. The remaining fields on the line contain the information associated with the
card. In some cases, such as lists, a card can use multiple lines.
There are many advantages associated with the card type approach to formatting
files. Some of the advantages are:
1. Card identifiers make the file easier to read. Each input line has a label which
helps to identify the data on the line.
2. The card names are useful as text strings for searching in a large file. All input
lines of a particular type can be located quickly
using a find command in a text editor.
3. Cards allow the data to be input in any order in many cases, i.e., the order that
the cards appear in the file is usually not important.
4. Cards make it easy to modify a file format. New data can be included simply by
defining a new card type. If the new card is optional (which is often the case for
new cards) old files are still compatible. If an old card type is no longer used, the
card can simply be ignored without causing input errors.
HIVEL2D Super File
A HIVEl2D super file is a file which contains a list of other files. Each of the files
in the list must be one of the basic HIVEL2D file types (geometry, hydrodynamic flow,..).
If a super file is selected using the Read command in the File menu, each of the files
listed in the super file are opened and read. This makes it possible to quickly read in
several files at once without having to identify each file individually in the file browser.
The file format for a super file is shown in Figure A1. The first line in the file is a SUPER
card which identifies the file as a super file. Each of the other cards shown are optional.
Each of the cards has a card identifier representing the type of file. The identifier is
25
Appendix A File Formats
Previous Page
