Introduction

XTC Explorer is a GUI-based tool to explore interactively the XTC data files.
Data is extracted using the LCLS framework pyana.
This application is implemented as a Python module for pyana.
GUI is implemented on PyQt,
visualization of data uses matplotlib, data processing algorithms are accelerated by NumPy and SciPy libraries.

Based on selections made in the GUI, xtcexplorer writes out pyana configuration files with names xb_pyana_XXXX.cfg, where XXXX is a random four-digit number. You can use them to run pyana directly from the command line. But they accumulate, so you might want to remove these regularly...

Naming conventions:

project name: XTC Explorer
package name in the offline software releases: XtcExplorer
executable name: xtcexplorer

Manual: XTC Explorer

Author: Ingrid Ofter

Latest tags:
2012-Aug-20 ofte V00-01-37
...
2013-Mar-14 salnikov V00-03-00

This tutorial shows how to set up environment, start application, explore content of the xtc file, etc.

Set up environment

See for details Analysis Workbook. Account Setup
Log onto any machine of the interactive pools psananeh or psanafeh:
```
ssh -Y pslogin
ssh psananeh
or
ssh psanafeh
```
Once per session execute one of the following scripts
- for bash shell:
```
. /reg/g/psdm/etc/sit_env.sh
```
- or for csh shell:
```
source /reg/g/psdm/etc/sit_env.csh
```
You should always run this application from your own release working directory:
```
    newrel ana-current my_tutorial_release;
    cd my_tutorial_release;
    sit_setup; 
```
At this point you are ready to go.

Optional: if something need to be changed in code, check out the latest version of package and "compile":

    addpkg XtcExplorer HEAD
    scons

Exercise 1: Start xtcexplorer and select the XTC file

Application GUI can be started by the command

    xtcexplorer

To proceed the xtc file name should be pointed using one of four methods:

use command line parameter

    xtcexplorer /reg/d/psdm/XPP/xpptut13/xtc/e308-r0008-*.xtc
or
    xtcexplorer /reg/d/psdm/SXR/sxrtut13/xtc/e306-r0366-*.xtc

use Instrument-Experiment-Run number-Load buttons in GUI
use file browser
type-in the file name
Once a file or more has been connected, another GUI will pop up (possibly after a short delay while the file(s) content is being investigated). This GUI displays information about the file content and help with further processing of the data in pyana.
Exercise 1:

References

XTC Explorer
HDF5 Explorer
Pyana User Manual
Migration from pyana to psana

Python
PyQt
matplotlib
NumPy
SciPy

Page tree

XTC Explorer Tutorial

Introduction

Set up environment

Exercise 1: Start xtcexplorer and select the XTC file

Exercise 1:

References