Re: [ferret_users] Embed Ferret in Fortran program : A Solution

[Ryo Furue <furue@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Haoguo,

| I do not like the Ferret window keep opening and closing, and it
| also waste 2 seconds on sleeping (without sleeping you can see
| nothing), but it is something better than nothing.
| 
| I'm not sure whether or not there is some way Fortran and Ferret can
| know each other, interactive communicating will make the Ferret more 
| powerful.

The named-pipe trick I mentioned would help here.

Basically, you run

  $ mkfifo mypipe.jnl               # creates a named pipe.
  $ sleep 999999999 > mypipe.jnl &  # keeps the pipe from closing.
  $ ferret -script mypipe.jnl < /dev/null &

from somewhere. ( "$" is the shell prompt. )
Effectively, you have set up a Ferret "server".

Then, you can control the Ferret server
by sending messages to it, that is, by
writing to the named pipe.  For example,
you can see what I mean by typing

  $ echo "use levitus_climatology" > mypipe.jnl
  $ echo "fill/k=1/l=1 temp" > mypipe.jnl
  $ echo "quit" > mypipe.jnl

Don't forget to delete the pipe or to kill the sleep process
when you are done with the server.  (You can write a simple
script which takes care of all that.)

Regards,
Ryo