IRSA Gator Interface to the XSC

A new version of Gator is now under development that will greatly improve the speed and efficiency of using the XSC. The following text file contains the newly proposed Gator view of the XSC, that exploits the improved user interface.

• Gator Catalog Query of the XSC
  

1. "Name" contains the names of the DB fields or table columns. Note that they are all in lower case, because the DB doesn't distinguish between upper and lower case names. If there is a number in parentheses after the name, please refer to the numbered notes at the end of the descriptions for more information. NOTE: The "cntr" column MUST be the first column in each table.

2. "Description" contains short descriptions of the field contents.

3. "Units" contains the units of the values in the fields.

4. "DBType" contains the DB data storage types for the fields. Note that some data types are further defined by values in parentheses following the type name. Also, these types are NOT cast in stone and could change, especially for the position fields.

5. "Null" indicates (y/n) whether the DB fields accept NULL values.

6. "Idx" contains a code indicating whether fields are indexed and what type of indexes they have. If the code is "0", the field is not indexed. If it is "1", the field has a simple index. If there is a "u" after the digit(s), the index is a "unique" one. If the code has a 2-digit number, the first digit indicates to which composite index the field belongs, and the second digit indicates the ordering of the fields within the composite index. If the code has a 3-digit number, the field will have both a simple and composite index.

7. "Fmt" contains a C-like description of the best formats for displaying the field contents, *excluding* a leading space for field separation.

8. "gcntr" is the *new* Gator parameter that keeps track of the order of appearance (the order of the columns as viewed by the user). It should not be confused with the "cntr" parameter that corresponds to the unique number tagged to each source in the database. Gator "gcntr" (order of appearance) is also used for the "groupid" parameter (see below).

9. "groupid" is the *new* Gator parameter that allows groups of columns to be linked together. For example, the mag, delta-mag and mag flag can be grouped together such that the group is always displayed and/or printed (given to the user) as a group (hence, forcing the user to look at important flags associated with the mags). The "gcntr" (see above) is the parent id number of the group.

10. "tableflg" is the *new* Gator parameter that controls what is displayed (viewed by the user) at a given time: 0 = short view, 1 = standard view, 2 = long view (everything).

11. "sel" is the *new* Gator parameter that controls whether the parameter is "selected" by default: "y" = yes, "n" = no, and "h" = hidden.

[Last Updated: 2002 Aug 27; by Tom Jarrett]