.help mkcatalog Aug91 noao.digiphot.photcal

.ih
NAME
mkcatalog -- create or edit a catalog, usually but not necessarily
a standard star catalog
.ih
USAGE
mkcatalog catalog
.ih
PARAMETERS
.ls catalog
The name of the new output catalog to be created or a previously existing
catalog to be edited.
.le
.ls review = no
Review any pre-existing entries?
.le
.ls verify = no
Verify each new entry?
.le
.ls edit = yes
Enter edit mode after entering all the values?
.le
.ih
DESCRIPTION

MKCATALOG is a script task which permits the user to create or edit
the catalog \fIcatalog\fR, usually but not necessarily, a standard star
catalog.  MKCATALOG has two modes of operation, entry mode and edit mode.
In entry mode MKCATALOG prompts the user for input.
In edit mode MKCATALOG calls up the default editor specified by
the IRAF environment variable \fIeditor\fR.

If \fIcatalog\fR is a new catalog, MKCATALOG prompts the user for 
the name of the object id column, the names of the data columns,
the names of the error columns (these are optional), and the widths
of the columns. Typing the end-of-file character <EOF>,
usually ^Z or ^D, terminates column definition
and places the user in entry mode.
In entry mode MKCATALOG prompts the user for the object ids and data values.
Entering carriage return, <CR>, after MKCATALOG prompts for a new object id
writes a blank line to the output catalog.
Entering <CR> after MKCATALOG prompts for any other column
value writes INDEF (the IRAF undefined value) in that column of the
output catalog.
Entry mode is terminated by typing <EOF> in response to a query for
a new object id.  The user may verify each new
entry by setting the parameter \fIverify\fR to "yes".

Each new catalog created by MKCATALOG has an associated format
description file listing the column names and numbers associations defined by
the user. This file, referenced by its parent catalog name, can be
used as input to the MKCONFIG task.
The actual name of the format description file on disk is constructed by
prepending the catalog name \fIcatalog\fR with the string "f" and
appending the string ".dat". For example if a new catalog 
called "UBVcat" is created by MKCATALOG, a format description
file called "fUBVcat.dat" will also be created. Any pre-existing format
description file of that name, which does not have an associated catalog
file, will be deleted.

If the catalog \fIcatalog\fR exists and was created with MKCATALOG,
MKCATALOG reads
the number of columns, the column names, and column widths from the
header of the catalog, and enters entry mode positioned at the end
of the file. If the parameter \fIreview\fR = "yes", then the user can
review and verify existing catalog entries before entering new ones.
When entry mode is terminated MKCATALOG enters edit mode
in the usual way. 

If \fIcatalog\fR exists but was not created with MKCATALOG, MKCATALOG
enters edit mode immediately.

If \fIcatalog\fR is a standard star catalog, the user should be aware
that the object ids he/she has typed in, are those against which the object
ids in the standard star observations files will be matched by the
fitting task FITPARAMS.
Normally the user is expected to edit the object ids in the standard
star observations
files to match those in the standard star catalog.
For example, the PHOTCAL APPHOT/DAOPHOT pre-processor tasks MKNOBSFILE
and MKOBSFILE, produce observations files whose object ids
are of the form "field-#", where "field" is the name
of the observed field and "#" is a sequence number, which is defined
only if there is more than one observed star in the field.
In this scheme the id of the  the fourth observed star in the field "M92"
is "M92-4". If this star is actually the standard star "IX-10" in
\fIcatalog\fR, the user must change the object id in the observations file
to "IX-10". Alternatively the user can set up the naming
convention in \fIcatalog\fR itself, to match  the naming
convention of MKNOBSFILE
or MKOBSFILE by assigning the standard stars names like "field-#" and
subsequently measuring the standard stars in the same order as they
appear in the catalog.  In this scheme star, "M92-4" in
the observations file would also be "M92-4" in the standard star 
catalog, and no editing would be required. This technique is most useful
for standard sequences in clusters.

THE MKCATALOG TASK AND THE ENTIRE PHOTCAL PACKAGE IMPOSE THE FOLLOWING
RESTRICTIONS
ON BOTH STAR ID NAMES AND THE COLUMN ID NAMES THAT MAY BE ASSIGNED, AND ON
THE FORMAT OF EACH FIELD.

Object id names must be composed of characters in the set [a-z,A-Z,0-9,+,-,_].
Other characters may be included as part of the user id, but 
will be ignored by the PHOTCAL id matching code. Object id names are
case insensitive. To the id matching code the name "BD+61_305" is the
same as "bd+61_305".

Column names must be composed of characters in the set [a-z,A-Z,0-9]
and the first character of the column name must be a letter of the alphabet.
This means for example, that an individual column cannot be assigned the
name "B-V", since "B-V" will be interpreted as an arithmetic expression not
as a variable, by the PHOTCAL equation parsing routines.
"B-V" may be replaced with something like "BV" or "BMV".
MKCATALOG will complain if the user tries to enter an illegal column name.
Column names are case sensitive. Column "BV" is not the same as 
column "bv".

Whitespace  is not permitted in either the object ids or in the column
values. MKCATALOG will truncate any id or column value at the first
whitespace encountered. The column widths entered by the user are used
solely to determine
the maximum width of each field (excess characters will be truncated)
and to align the columns for ease of
visual inspection by the user. The column widths are not used by the 
PHOTCAL catalog reading code.

.ih
EXAMPLES

1. Create a new standard star catalog containing the 3 photometric indices
V, B-V, and U-B and their respective errors. Note that MKCATALOG supplies
default names of the form "error(name)" for the error columns where "name"
is the name of the previous column. Users are strongly urged to use the
default names since they simplify the use of the statistical weighting
scheme in the FITPARAMS task. If no error information is available
error column entry can be skipped by typing <-> in response to the query
for an error column name.

.nf
ph> mkcatalog UBVcat

... enter the column names, error column names and widths as prompted
    and shown below, note that the end-of-file character <EOF> is
    actually ^Z in this case

Enter the id column name (name, <CR>=ID, <EOF>=quit entry): 
    Enter width of id column (width, <CR>=15): 
Enter a name for column 2 (name, <CR>=COL2, <EOF>=quit entry): V
    Enter width of column 2 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for error column 3 (name, <CR>=error(V), <->=skip): 
    Enter width of column 3 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for column 4 (name, <CR>=COL4, <EOF>=quit entry): BV
    Enter width of column 4 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for error column 5 (name, <CR>=error(BV), <->=skip): 
    Enter width of column 5 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for column 6 (name, <CR>=COL6, <EOF>=quit entry): UB
    Enter width of column 6 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for error column 7 (name, <CR>=error(UB), <->=skip): 
    Enter width of column 7 (width, <CR>=10): 
Enter a name for column 8 (name, <CR>=COL8, <EOF>=quit entry): ^Z


Catalog UBVcat in file UBVcat has 7 columns
	Column 1:  ID             
	Column 2:  V         
	Column 3:  error(V)  
	Column 4:  BV        
	Column 5:  error(BV) 
	Column 6:  UB        
	Column 7:  error(UB) 


... note that the <EOF> character terminates column definition

... enter values for each defined column as prompted

... type <EOF> to terminate entry mode

... review the entries with the editor
.fi


2. Add new entries to the file created in example 1.

.nf
ph> mkcatalog UBVcat

... enter new values as prompted

... type <EOF> to terminate entry mode

... review the catalog with the editor
.fi


3. Edit an existing catalog created with a foreign program.

.nf
ph> mkcatalog VRI.usr

... review the catalog with the editor
.fi

.ih
TIME REQUIREMENTS

.ih
BUGS

The longest line permitted by an editor varies from editor to
editor. Users should be aware that it may not be possible to use
edit mode on very long text lines.

.ih
SEE ALSO
photcal$catalogs/README,mknobsfile,mkobsfile,mkconfig
.endhelp
