iTool User's Guide - Exelis VIS

26 Chapter 2: Importing and Exporting Data
About the Data Manager
All data used by any iTool is first loaded into the iTools Data Manager, which keeps
track of which data items are associated with an iTool visualization. The Data
Manager provides a convenient and structured environment in which to import and
view files and variables.
The process of loading data into the Data Manager is entirely automatic if you
specify data when launching an iTool at the IDL command line, by dragging from the
IDL Workbench Variables view to a Workbench action, or if you open a data file
using the Open command from the iTool’s File menu. In these cases, the iTool will
import the data in the specified file or variable and create a visualization of the default
type for the selected data and the iTool you are using.
If you want more control over the process of creating a visualization, you can load
data into the Data Manager manually, either from a data file or from one or more
variables that exist in your current IDL session. Once a data item is placed in the Data
Manager, it is available to all iTools until it is removed.
The IDL iTools support several data types. Data import and export capabilities within
each iTool allow you to access these various types of data. Methods used to place data
into the Data Manager are described in this chapter. File readers allow you to import
data stored in binary formats, ASCII files, and several image file types.
Note
You can also create file readers for other data types besides those provided in IDL.
For more information on creating file readers and creating your own iTools, see
Chapter 9, “Creating a File Reader” (iTool Developer’s Guide).
About the Data Manager
iTool User’s Guide