What is a front-end and why do I care?

A front-end is another program / interface that provides an alternative user interface for modeig. Rather than having to use the command line style interface that is provided, a graphical interface, or an entirely different program can be made to work with modeig. An example of this is the Modeig98 GUI Preview. This is a good example of a standard GUI front-end.

Now, why do I care? You should care, because not only can the available front-ends make your life easier, but you can develop your own front-end. The interface between modeig and any other program is a very simple file interface, and this page should provide you with all the information about how this works, and how to make your own front-end. All we ask, is that any front-ends that are made for use with modeig, be free of charge and available to anyone if at all possible. We would even like you to send us a copy, so that we could see what people are doing, as well as post the front-end to this website for everyone to access.

Modeig98 File Interface Details

The file interface works in the following way. When modeig98 starts, it will read the modeig98.cfg file. In this file, it is expecting to see specific information on each line. The file can range from 8 lines (min.) to 29 lines (max). See the table below for a description of each line.

Lines 1-3 are ignored. Typically, they will contain comments stating that the file is overwritten frequently (modeig98 will actually overwrite the file everytime it is executed). Line 4 tells modeig98 to print the cricket character (astrix as first character of first line of all output files - used to assist cricket graph program). Line 5 tells modeig98 the input file name to use (if in manual mode, the file will be used as the default when program starts). Line 6 specifies the output file prefix. Line 7 specifies the execution mode. If it is set to MANUAL, then modeig98 will present the user with the standard command line interface. If it is set to AUTO, then modeig will execute the command specified on Line 8 using the input file name and output file prefix specified on previous lines. Line 9 specifies the reference file if the overlap command is specified in Line 8. Lines 10-30 specifiy the comparison files for the overlap command. NOTE - the list of comparison file names is terminated with a '.' (i.e., if the overlap command is used, then the last line should contain a '.' as the first character.

The commands are the same as the commands that a user would enter when using the command line interface. See the Modeig98 User Manual for a list of commands.

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email marleym@seas.smu.edu