XCONV

Introduction

XCONV provides for the conversion of various image data files to BSL format with the aid of an OSF/Motif-based graphical user interface (GUI). It replaces the CONV program. The XCONV window is split into two sections relating to the input image data file(s) and the output BSL file (header file + data file) , TIFF file or Text file. These are described below.

Input section

• Filename ...
  The path and filename of the input image data file(s) can be entered directly in the text window or selected using the File Selection Tool, which is opened by clicking the "Browse" button. If no path is specified, the current directory is searched. For multiple file input, where filenames differ only in their run numbers, the wildcard characters "%" and "#" may be entered in the text window. % marks the position in the filename where the run number is to be inserted. If the run number is to be written into a fixed number of positions in the filename, # is used to indicate the position of a digit.

  For example, my_data_%.dat would expand to:
  my_data_1.dat, my_data_2.dat, ... , my_data_10.dat, ...

  whereas my_data_###.dat would expand to:
  my_data_001.dat, my_data_002.dat, ... , my_data_010.dat, ...
  

• First run number, last run number and increment ...
  If the input filename contains wildcard characters, the run numbers to process can be specified with this option.
  
• File type ...
  The following file types are allowed:
  1. float - float
  2. int - unsigned int
  3. short - unsigned short
  4. char - unsigned char
  5. smar - small MAR image plate (1200 x 1200)
  6. bmar - big MAR image plate (2000 x 2000)
  7. fuji - Fuji image plate (2048 x 4096)
  8. fuji2500 - BAS2500 Fuji image plate (2000 x 2500)
  9. rax2 - R-Axis II image plate
  10. rax4 - R-Axis IV image plate
  11. psci - Photonics Science CCD
  12. riso - RISO file format
  13. tiff - TIFF (8,12,16-bit greyscale with all Compression type)
  14. ESRF Id2(KLORA) - ESRF Data Format
  15. LOQ 1D - one dimensional ASCII data files recorded at LOQ
  16. LOQ 2D - two dimensional ASCII data files recorded at LOQ
  17. SMV - used by ADSC CCD detectors (8 bit unsigned, 16 bit unsigned, 32 bit signed integer, 32 bit float)
  18. ESRF Id3 -ESRF Data Format
  19. BRUKER -Area detector Frame format Siemens/Bruker file format (8 ,16 or 32 bits per pixel)
  20. Mar345-MAR345 Image Plate (File extension mar1200, mar1800, mar1600,mar2400, mar2000, mar3000, mar2300, mar3450)
  21. BSL - The BSL file format is described in the BSL manual.
  22. ILL_SANS -ILL-SANS Treated data formats.
• Swap byte order ...
  If this toggle button is activated, the byte order of the input file(s) will be swapped.If the input file type is tiff,ESRF Id2,LOQ 1D,LOQ 2D,SMV,ESRF Id3,BRUKER ,Mar345 and BSL the field is non-selectable.
  
• Input pixels and rasters ...
  If the input file type corresponds to one of the first four primitive types listed above, then the number of pixels and rasters in the input file(s) must be entered in the text fields provided. These fields are filled automatically for the non-primitive types smar, bmar, fuji, rax2, rax4 and psci. For RISO,tiff,ESRF Id2,LOQ 1D,LOQ 2D,SMV,ESRF Id3,BRUKER ,Mar345 and BSL format files, the input pixels and rasters are read from the input file header.
  
• Bytes to skip ...
  If there is some header information to be skipped at the beginning of the input file(s), the starting point of the data can be entered in this field. If this field is left blank, the number of bytes to skip is taken as 0. The field is filled automatically for the non-primitive file types.
  
• Aspect ratio ...
  If the image consists of non-square pixels, the X/Y ratio of the pixel dimensions can be entered in this field. If no number is entered, the aspect ratio is taken as 1.0. The field is filled automatically for the non-primitive file types.
  
• Dynamic range ...
  This field may be used to specify the dynamic range for Fuji image plates. If the input file type is not fuji, the field is non-selectable.

Output Section

• Filename ...
  The path and filename of the output BSL header file can be entered directly in the text window or selected using the File Selection Tool, which is opened by clicking the "Browse" button. If no path is specified, the current directory is selected. Multiple input files or multi frame BSL or TIF will be converted and written to consecutive frames of the output data file or TIF file . The BSL file format is described in the BSL manual. BSL header filenames must be of the form Xnn000.XXX where X is any alphanumeric character and n is a digit. The corresponding BSL data file will be named Xnn001.XXX. For multiple tiff output, where filenames differ only in their run numbers, the wildcard characters "#" may be entered in the text window.
  
  For example, my_data_#.tif would expand to:
  my_data_1.tif, my_data_2.tif, ... , my_data_10.tif, ...
  
• File Type ...
  Specifies the output file type :
  1. BSL - The BSL file format
  2. TIFF8 - 8 bit greyscale tiff image
  3. TIFF16 - 16 bit greyscale tiff image
  4. Txt - text output.
  
  
• Data Type ...
  Specifies the data type of the output BSL file If the output file type is not BSL, the field is non-selectable: :
  1. float32 - 32 bit floating point
  2. float64 - 64 bit floating point
  3. int16 - 16 bit integer
  4. uint16 - 16 bit unsigned integer
  5. int32 - 32 bit integer
  6. uint32 - 32 bit unsigned integer
  7. int64 - 64 bit integer
  8. uint64 - 64 bit unsigned integer
  9. char8 - 8 bit char
  10. uchar8 - 8 bit unsigned char
      
• Output pixels and rasters ...
  The number of pixels and rasters in the output data file frame(s) must be specified in the fields provided. If either of these fields is left blank, the corresponding input file dimension is used. If the output dimensions differ from those of the input data file(s), bilinear interpolation is used to determine the pixel values at the new positions.
  
• Headers 1 and 2 ...
  Two lines of text to be included in the output BSL header file may be specified in these fields. If the output file type is not BSL, the field is inactive

Save profile (not supported in windows version)

The "Save profile" button may be used to save the contents of the following fields to an ascii file:

• File type
• Input pixels and rasters
• Bytes to skip
• Aspect ratio
• Dynamic range for Fuji image plates
• Byte swapping on/off
• Output pixels and rasters

The saved profile can then be reloaded on another occasion using the "Load profile" button.

 Load profile (not supported in windows version)

The "Load profile" button can be used to open a previously saved profile.

Run

If all information has been entered correctly, clicking on the "Run" button will cause the file conversion to proceed. Once the conversion has been completed successfully, a message to confirm this will be displayed.