Re: NetCDF and HDF V4.0r2

> From: address@hidden (Steve Hankin)
> Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1996 14:13:08 -0800
> To: address@hidden
> Subject: NetCDF and HDF V4.0r2

Hi Steve,

> We just installed the latest HDF library (V4.0r2) and guess what" It clobbered
> our ncdump executable, which was located in /usr/local/bin and replaced it 
> with
> a new copy linked against the HDF libraries.
> 
> Guess what else? The HDF-linked version of ncdump is **not** compatible with
> Unidata NetCDF files:
> 
>       > ncdump -h zuri.cdf
>       ncopen: Not a netcdf file

Oops, this sounds like either there was an error in the way HDF was
configured and built, or this is a bug the HDF folks should be informed
about.  It's my understanding that the HDF netcdf library should be
able to open Unidata netCDF files as well as HDF-format netCDF files,
and that this hasn't changed with HDF V4.0r2.

The HDF support address is address@hidden.

By the way, we're currently talking to the HDF developers about a common
file format for the next version of netCDF and HDF, since netCDF-4 will
require a new format anyway to support packed data and files larger than
2 Gbytes.  Of course we're also planning to keep backward compatibility
so that current netCDF files will be readable and writable with the
netCDF-4 library.  Since the HDF group also needs a new format for the
next version of HDF, we are trying to agree on developing one new format
instead of two.  Stay tuned for a joint announcement, if we succeed.

--Russ

_____________________________________________________________________

Russ Rew                                         UCAR Unidata Program
address@hidden                     http://www.unidata.ucar.edu