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1.1 Quick Start

If you are already somewhat familiar with Matlab and OPeNDAP, you may find it simplest to jump right in. (You might want to consult OPeNDAP Quick Start Guide before this book, for a brief description of how OPeNDAP works.) After the OPeNDAP Matlab GUI has been installed, Can't exec program: /usr/local/bin/giftext.pl and the necessary environment variables set (See Appendix A), run Matlab.

$ matlab

>> browse

Three windows will pop up. One big one, for selecting geographic regions in which to search for data, and for displaying it, and two smaller ones. One of these is for selecting datasets to browe or display, and one for selecting the variables you want to display.

Use the mouse to select a dataset to look at. (Click once to selet a dataset. Click twice to open a dataset folder.) You'll see that the lists of available variables changes to list only those variables in that dataset. Move to the Variable window, and choose a variable from the list presented. Now, switch to the big main window and use the Set Data Range button to outline a geographic rectangle and a time and depth range to look at. Click Get Details to get an indication about where the data is, and some information you can use to estimate the size of the dataset you're requesting. Click Get Data, and follow the directions, and you should soon see a map of your data in the display window. The browser imports data in a consistent set of units, so that data from any source in the list will appear in the same units.

Subsequent requests for data will not overwrite the original ones. Each set of downloaded data is stored with a unique Matlabvariable name, so that many requests can be made in each Matlabsession.

You can also begin by setting a data range to specify a time period or geographic area of interest, and then selecting a dataset and variable, or the other way around. All of these parameters must be set before making a data request, but they can be set in any order.

You will find a useful reference to the OPeNDAP Matlab GUI buttons and menus in Chapter 2.