Re: Top 10 IDL Requests

["Joseph B. Gurman" <gurman(at)gsfc.nasa.gov>]

In article <MPG.13db815b76724572989b5b@news.frii.com>, 
davidf@dfanning.com (David Fanning) wrote:

> Hi Folks,
> 
>[snip]
> 
> So, here is the deal. If you feel inclined to
> submit a couple of ideas to this newsgroup, I 
> will collect them and submit them personally 
> to the VP. I'll even follow up and make sure 
> he has, uh, read them. :-)

    Dave -

    Thanks so much for the "RFC." If I had my druthers, I would ask for:

1. support for interlaced GIFs via a keyword to WRITE_GIF (how hard can 
this be?), and

2. support for QuickTime video at least as an output option (e.g. 
WRITE_QT), even if this means paying an additional license fee for 
various CODECs.

    The programming support functions people have been listing as their 
druthers, and expanded object programming really mean very little to 
those of us who produce lots of Web content. I suspect this is a much 
bigger area nowadays than object programming, and would in fact be 
thrilled to see a rebundled product:

3. with NO object interfaces, since it's scientists who are doing a lot 
of the programming, and I can't see why we're paying for features we 
never use (however gnarly).

    Please send flames and explanations of why the gnarliness is useful 
to /dev/null.

    Best,

                  Joe Gurman

> 
> Please restrict yourself to a paragraph or so
> about why you think your suggestion is a good
> idea. Suggestions can either be fixes to something
> currently in IDL, or requests for future capabilities.
> Items that make it to the top of the list
> will be written with some wit, intelligence,
> and humor. Items at the bottom of the list
> will be written with a lot of whining. I reserve
> the right to edit submissions if I think it is
> unintelligible to the average computer dolt.

-- 
| Joseph B. Gurman, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Solar Physics
| Branch, Greenbelt MD 20771 USA / Federal employees are still
| prohibited from holding opinions while at work. Therefore, any
| opinions expressed herein are  somebody else's.