20010808: MCTABLE_READ and MCTABLE_WRITE

>From: Wayne Bresky <address@hidden>
>Organization: Cornell
>Keywords: 200108061802.f76I2w118924 McIDAS-XCD mcsour.sh

Wayne,

>The other day you had to modify the MCTABLE_READ and MCTABLE_WRITE
>settings in .mcenv on my machine in order to get the ADDE server to
>work properly.

Actually, the biggest thing in getting the remote server stuff to work
was changing the location of the 'mcidas' account in the mcserv and
mccompress files in /etc/xinetd.d.  The modifications to MCTABLE_READ
and MCTABLE_WRITE were needed, but they were not the biggest problem.

>I was looking over the settings for the mcidas user and
>observed that they were different from the mcadde user (see below).

Yes, absolutely.  This is by design.

>Can you explain why they are different?

This is explained in the web documentation on setting up the remote ADDE
server (follow the 'Next' links at the bottom of each page):

Installing the McIDAS-X ADDE Remote Server
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/mcidas/780/mcx/adde_mcx.html 

Please review this and see if you still have questions.

>Also, I should point out that
>/usr/local/mcidas/workdata/MCTABLE.TXT does not exist.  Should it?

No.  That is the point.  The entries in MCTABLE.TXT and ADDESITE.TXT (in
the ~mcidas/data directory) tell McIDAS processes which server to go
to to fulfill a data request.  If the remote server was told to go to
itself, it could end up in an infinite loop.

>Should this setting match the mcadde user setting?

The setup for 'mcidas' is different than that for 'mcadde'.  The web pages
you can get to from the UFL above go into this.

>I guess it would
>also help to know why there is a MCTABLE.TXT file as well as an
>ADDESITE.TXT file.

This is also in the documentation.

>mcidas user:
>
>MCTABLE_READ=/usr/local/mcidas/workdata/MCTABLE.TXT;/usr/local/mcidas/data/ADD
> ESITE.TXT
>
>MCTABLE_WRITE=/usr/local/mcidas/data/ADDESITE.TXT
>
>from .mcenv file:
>
>MCTABLE_READ='$MCHOME/mcidas/data/MCTABLE.TXT'
>MCTABLE_WRITE='$MCHOME/mcidas/data/MCTABLE.TXT'
>
>MCHOME=/usr/local/mcidas
>
>
>One last thing.  We are using an X-window system software package
>(called exceed) on several of the PCs here to export the McIDAS display
>from the Linux workstation.  I noticed that the Alt+ commands do not
>work (e.g., Alt+L to loop imagery).  Would you have any idea how to fix
>this??

This would be related to how the X server is using those function keys.
In particular, X servers/window managers seem to like to define special
ALT- key sequences to do specific things.  The McIDAS F key menu uses
ALT- key sequences for many actions, so there is a conflict.  I routinely
change the shortcut definitions for window managers on Unix systems.  The
latest example of having to do this is the modification of Sawfish settings
under RedHat 7.x.

>Thanks in advance.

After reviewing the web documentation on installing and configuring McIDAS,
please let me know if your questions above have not been answered.

Now, back to the McIDAS workshop...

Tom