news.txt

basic median filter simulation

6-Aug-2007:  MATCH2 - New procedure to find every matching element in 2 arrays

3-Aug-2007:  LEGEND - 13-Jul update introduced a bug for /NORMAL coords
             FXADDPAR - Bug fix for long string convention
	     OBSERVATORY - Added info for Mount Graham observatory
	     WCSSPH2XY, WCSXY2SPH - Correct treatment of PVi_j parameters

13-Jul-2007: WEBGET() - Partially upgrade to support HTTP 1.1
             LEGEND - Don't modify position keyword
	     DATE_CONV() - Add Julian date capabilities

06-Jul-2007: HPRECESS - Fix for case where CROTA2 is in the FITS header
             PUTAST - Allow PC matrix to updated when CD matrix is supplied

02-Jul-2007: QUERYSIMBAD - Update for parsing new /NED format

24-Jun-2007: WEBGET() - Now has a POST keyword for POST rather than GET queries

22-Jun-2007: FITS_READ - Added /PDU keyword to always inherit primary header 
                      even if INHERIT=T is not present (pre-April 2007 behavior)
             MRDFITS() - Fix for variable length arrays when used with the 
	              virtual machine.

29-May-2007: LINMIX_ERR, MLINMIX_ERR - Improved Bayesian prior for more reliable
   results

25-May-2007: CHECK_FITS - Work again for a null array

17-May-2007: New procedures supplied by Brandon Kelly (Steward U.)

   LINMIX_ERR : Bayesian approach to linear regression with errors in both X 
      and Y
   MLINMIX_ERR : Bayesian approach to  multiple linear regression with errors in
      both X and Y 
   MRANDOMN : Generate random vectors from a multivariate normal density. 
   MULTINOM : Genereate random vectors from a multinomial distribution.
   RANDOMCHI : Generate random numbers from a chi-square density.
   RANDOMDIR : Generate random vectors from a Dirichlet density.
   RANDOMGAM : Generate random numbers from a gamma distribution.
  RANDOMWISH : Generate random matrices from a Wishart density.

15-May-2007: FITS_READ, READFITS(), WRITEFITS - Set data variable to LONG64 
                 for handling very large files

08-May-2007: MEDARR - Added /DOUBLE keyword to force double precision

07-May-2007: PSF_GAUSSIAN() - Do not modify NPIXEL input keyword 

24-Apr-2007: REM_DUP() - Use faster algorithm when flag parameter not given
             FORPRINT - Fix error message when variable is undefined

23-Apr-2007: FXADDPAR - Now has an ERRMSG output keyword to capture error 
                        messages.

14-Apr-2007: FITS_OPEN - Warn user that compressed files cannot be updated

13-Apr-2007: WEBGET - Friendlier error recovery

12-Apr-2007: FITS_READ - Don't inherit the primary header unless INHERIT = T

9-Apr-2007:  GCIRC - Use internal double precision for U=0 mode as advertised
             EXTAST, MAKE_ASTR - .CRPIX tag now double instead of float

6-Apr-2007:  MRDFITS - Convert ASCII table array output to DOUBLE if needed to 
                       preserve precision 

28-Mar-2007: HEXTRACT - Work for dimensions larger than 32767

21-Mar-2007: TBINFO - Now has a /NOSCALE keyword to skip TSCAL, TZERO 
             TBPRINT, TBGET() - Avoid pointer leaks due to TBINFO call
	     TBDELCOL - Use /NOSCALE in call to TBINFO

13-Mar-2007: MODFITS - Update the file control block (FCB) structure if the
                        file size changes

09-Mar-2007: AD2XY, XY2AD - Use CRVAL ref. point for non-WCS transformations

08-Mar-2007: DBDELETE - Fix problem when deleting final entry
             FXMOVE - Use a case-independent search for EXTNAME

06-Mar-2007: QUERYSIMBAD - Update NED query to account for new IPAC format 

05-Mar-2007: SKY - Fix problem for very large (>5000 x 5000) images
             
02-Mar-2007: MWRFITS - fix problem where strings were being right-justified 
                       instead of being written exactly as supplied.

21-Feb-2007: TVELLIPSE - Added /MAJOR, /MINOR keywords to add major, minor axes

16-Feb-2007: FTAB_PRINT - Check for empty extension

15-Feb-2007: LIST_WITH_PATH - Restore pre-Sep 2006 behavior of not searching
                     subdirectories 

12-Feb-2007: PCA - fix bug in computation of attribute projections 

9-Feb-2007:  DBMATCH - Fixed bug where /FULLSTRING was always being set

8-Feb-2007:  CREATE_STRUCT - Added a descriptor type 'K' for LONG64 data

7-Feb-2007:  REMCHAR - Work for string arrays with more than 32767 elements

6-Feb-2007:  QUERYSIMBAD - Now use the more reliable Simbad Sesame name server,
                   added /VERBOSE,/CADC  keywords

20-Jan-2007: TEXTOPEN - Make sure output keyword MORE_SET is always defined 

             EXTAST - Now includes .NAXIS tag in output astrometry structure
	     PUTAST - New /NAXIS keyword to write .NAXIS values to FITS header

09-Jan-2007: DBPRINT, DBEXT_DBF - Remove use of EXECUTE() statements

03-Jan-2007: READCOL - Now has /PRESERVE_NULL keyword.   This was formerly set
                        as the default

28-Dec-2006: DBEXT, WFPC2_READ, FTAB_EXT - Avoid EXECUTE()  for V6.1 or later

26-Dec-2006: DBINDEX- Automatically enlarge index (.dbx) file if necessary
                      Fix serious bug introduced 18-Dec

19-Dec-2006: CONVOLVE() - Avoid unnecessary recomputation for double complex

             TVCIRCLE - Make default integers LONG so largest postscript circles
	                display properly.

18-Dec-2006: DBSORT, DBINDEX - Avoid use of EXECUTE() for V6.1 or later 

16-Dec-2006: MRDFITS(), HEADFITS() - Can now specify FITS extension by name (in
                 the EXTNAME keyword) 
	      FXMOVE(), FXPOSIT() - Added EXT_NO, ERRMSG keywords 	 

13-Dec-2006: MRD_SKIP - Restored check to avoid POINT_LUN with compressed files

8-Dec-2006:  WEBGET - Added case for reading FITS images from FIRST survey

1-Dec-2006: EXTGRP - Restored to Library (needed by WFPC2_READ)

24-Nov-2006:FITEXY - normalize input data before processing 

22-Nov-2006: CHECK_FITS - Fix dimension error introduced 14-Nov

20-Nov-2006: RDPLOT - Major upgrade, added BACKGROUND, /ACCUMULATE keywords
                 fixed full cursor display for different setups

15-Nov-2006: EXTAST - Use GSSS astrometry if WCNAME = "DSS" (as in 
                recent DSS images from the STScI server)

14-Nov-2006: CHECK_FITS - Removed support for STSDAS headers

2-Nov-2006: APER - All additional keywords to be passed to MEANCLIP

1-Nov-2006: ONE_RAY, ONE_ARROW - Now accept /DATA and /NORMAL keywords

25-Oct-2006: FITS_READ - Fix bug when using /DATA_ONLY keyword

20-Oct-2006: QUERYVIZIER - Set target='NONE' for an all-sky search, accept
                            '+/-' constraints 

17-Oct-2006: TBINFO - treat Logical type as character 'T' or 'F'

13-Oct-2006:GCIRC - Option (U=2) to supply input longitude, latitude in Degrees

3-Oct-2006: TVELLIPSE - Now uses _EXTRA to pass optional keywords to PLOTS

2-Oct-2006: MRD_SKIP - now uses POINT_LUN for compressed files since it is as 
                   fast as any other method
            READFITS() - Now calls MRD_SKIP to select fastest possible method
	           of skipping bytes

26-Sep-2006: FITS_OPEN, FITS_READ, FITS_WRITE, MODFITS - now use 
             /SWAP_IF_LITTLE_ENDIAN keyword to OPEN

25-Sep-2006: Library now requires V5.5 or later.    VMS support has been removed
             from most procedures
	     
	     The following "stale" procedures have been removed from the Library
	     They can still be obtained from 
	     http://idlastro.gsfc.nasa.gov/ftp/obsolete/
	     
	     afhread - Used for mostly obsolete WFPC1 data 
             astrmfix = Used for mostly obsolete FOC data
             conv_stsdas - Mainly for converting between VAX and unix
             conv_vax_unix() - Vaxes rarely used
             conv_unix_vax - Vaxes rarely used
             datatype() - JHUAPL routine
             dbcompress - TRUNCATE_ON_CLOSE makes it unnecessary
             def_dirlist -- Mainly for VMS
             extgrp - mainly for old WFPC1/FOC data
             getfiles -- Use dialog_pickfile instead 
	     getlog.pro -- mainly for VMS
             imgread      -- for mostly obsolete WFPC1/FOC data
             mid_*.pro  -- Midas I/O routines, no evidence that they are used
             osfcnvrt.pro -- mainly for VMS
             strd - only worked for small set of (mostly obsolete) GEIS files
              stsub, stsubim - only worked for small set of (mostly obsolete) 
	            GEIS files
            spline_smooth  -- Never worked properly
            redshift -- 1970's cosmology, from JHUAPL library
            sxhedit -- just use a regular editor
            table_conv.pro - mainly for vax/unix conversion
            wfpcread -- WFPC1 data rarely used


12-Sep-2006: FITS_OPEN - Support very large files by using 64 bit variables

9-Sep-2006: DBDELETE -Use TRUNCATE_LUN (if V5.6 or later) to compress the .dbf
                       file after deleting entries.    DBCOMPRESS moved to
		       obsolete directory.

1-Sep-2006: READCOL, STRNUMBER() now have a /NAN keyword to specify that
                   empty strings should be interpreted as NAN values

30-Aug-2006: STRNUMBER() - An empty string is a valid number (=0.0)

25-Aug-2006: HASTROM - Account for half-pixel shift when using nearest neighbor

23-Aug-2006: FORPRINT - Warn if supplied vectors are not all the same size

11-Aug-2006: TBPRINT - Fixed check for multiple values

08-Aug-2006: MWRFITS - Allow logical columns to be specified as bytes

04-Aug-2006: PLOTHIST - fix possible color problem introduced May 2006

26-Jul-2006: TBINFO - Added ERRMSG keyword, Treat repeat count for strings as 
                 specifying string length, not number of elements

25-Jul-2006: FITS_OPEN - FCB.Filename  now expands any wildcards

21-Jul-2006: DBFPARSE - Don't convert DATE/TIME to numeric for string items

14-Jul-2006: DBCREATE - New MAXENTRY keyword to override hardcoded #maxentries

12-Jul-2006: QUERYVIZIER - Removed V6.0 notation to restore V5.4 compatibility

06-Jul-2006: MWRFITS - Make 29-Jun-2006 fix work for pre V6.0 versions

29-Jun-2006: MWRFITS - Fix problem introduced May 2006 with multi-dimensional 
                       strings
		       
             MRDFITS - Better error catching for gzip files, fix handling 
	               of unsigned integers when BSCALE not present

27-Jun-2006: PLOTHIST - Now supports logarithmic axes (/XLOG, /YLOG)