[McIDAS #TSV-261063]: Hi

Hi Jane,

re:
> Is the McIDAS-X downloadable on Windows 7?

There is a version of McIDAS-X that is usable in Windows 7, but its use
requires installation of XWindows software in Windows 7.  Also, the distibution
that is available is the one from UW/SSEC, and it does _not_ containe
Unidata-added bugfixes and enhancements.

FYI: I have a Windows 7 laptop, and it is the basis for my McIDAS-X development
environment (I am the support contact for Unidata McIDAS-X and an active
contributor to the McIDAS-X code base.  The Windows 7 environment I use is
not direct:  I run a 64-bit CentOS 6.5 virtual machine in VMware Player,
and I run McIDAS-X in it.  This is a great environment for me as I am much
more comfortable in Linux than Windows.  I would recommend this environment
to users that have a pre-disposition for Linux.

re:
> I can't seem to find one that
> will allow this.

Do you mean the download?  I have not updated the Unidata McIDAS download area
with the distribution for Windows 7.  The main reason for this is the extra
package the end-user has to install to run directly in Windows 7.  The
other reason is the availability of the IDV or McIDAS-V packages that run
nicely under Windows (and MacOS and Linux).

re:
> And another question, what's the difference in McIDAS-X
> and McIDAS-V?

McIDAS-V is the fifth generation of McIDAS that is being developed by
UW/SSEC.  The great majority of McIDAS-V is written in Java; this is
in great contrast to McIDAS-X which is a combination of Fortran and C.

re:
> I want to retrieve satellite imagery for the South Pacific
> (0S to 60S and 120E to 120W) region, which do I need to download, or do I
> need both? Thanks for you help!

Retrieve satellite imagery from where and how?  If your main use will be
access to imagery served remotely, then either/both McIDAS-V and McIDAS-X
will work nicely for you.  If you want to download and save images that
are served remotely, then McIDAS-X is a bit better as images can be
saved locally in the world standard AREA format.

I do not think that you need to download both flavors of McIDAS.  If I
more fully understood what you want to do with the images you want to 
"retrieve",
I could better give you my opinion on which package would be best for
you to use.

Cheers,

Tom
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Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: TSV-261063
Department: Support McIDAS
Priority: Normal
Status: Closed