From hack at stsci.edu Thu Nov 16 08:57:48 2006 From: hack at stsci.edu (Warren J. Hack) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2006 08:57:48 -0500 Subject: [AstroPy] TABLES/STSDAS v3.6 and STScI_PYTHON v2.4 now available Message-ID: <455C6E5C.7010201@stsci.edu> ******************************************************* TABLES/STSDAS v3.6 and STSCI_PYTHON v2.4 NOW AVAILABLE ******************************************************* The Astronomy Tools and Applications Branch of the Space Telescope Science Institute wishes to announce the availability of version 3.6 of the Space Telescope Science Data Analysis Software (STSDAS). Concurrent with the STSDAS release, we have also released v3.6 of the TABLES external package. Both of these packages are layered upon IRAF as external packages; it is therefore necessary to obtain and install IRAF (from http://iraf.noao.edu) before installing TABLES and STSDAS. STSDAS is linked against libraries in TABLES, so TABLES must be installed before STSDAS. STSDAS includes some Python-based tasks; running these requires the STScI Python Libraries to be installed (all the non-Python tasks can be used in the traditional way and do not require Python or the STScI Python libraries). These tasks can only be run from PyRAF using standard IRAF CL task syntax, or within Python scripts using Python syntax. The Astronomy Tools and Applications Branch of STScI also wishes to announce the availability of version 2.4 of STSCI_PYTHON. This release includes updated versions of Multidrizzle and CALSTIS as used by the HST ACS pipeline, along with new versions of aXe, saaclean, numarray, PyFITS and PyRAF. Use of the Python tasks requires upgrading to this version of STSCI_PYTHON. LAST RELEASE TO USE NUMARRAY ============================ This release will also be the last release which uses numarray. The next release (V2.5, expected in spring 2007) will include software which relies on numpy instead. numpy is a 3rd-generation array package for Python that includes all of numarray's features and capabilities (and more) though with some changes in the user interface. The next release will present details on what will change. We will also post on the numarray web site in a few months details to aid users of numarray in the switchover to numpy. The switch to numpy will unify the Python scientific community in the use of a common array package. This is a very desirable outcome despite the inconvenience in making the switch. Support for numarray will start to be phased out after the next stsci_python release. Currently numarray is being maintained and any major problems found will be fixed. No more significant enhancements are being made. By V2.7 we will completely stop support for numarray. PyFITS 1.1 will support both numarray and numpy (beta versions have long been available). The dual support will end when support for numarray is stopped. WHERE TO OBTAIN THIS SOFTWARE ============================= STSDAS/TABLES v3.6 can be downloaded from the STSDAS web site http://www.stsci.edu/resources/software_hardware/stsdas/download Installation instructions are available on the web site. Precompiled binaries also exist for some of the ports supported by NOAO, including Sun Solaris, RedHat Linux and Mac OS X. STSCI_PYTHON v 2.4 be downloaded from the PyRAF web site http://www.stsci.edu/resources/software_hardware/pyraf/stsci_python/current/download Installation instructions are available from the PyRAF web site. Please contact us through e-mail (help at stsci.edu), by telephone at (410) 338-1082. -- Warren J. Hack SAA Project Lead Space Telescope Science Institute 3700 San Martin Drive Baltimore MD, 21218 (410) 338-4943