Wrappers to Ifeffit for Perl, Python, and Tcl
---------------------------------------------

For each language, the wrapper made here will give you access directly to
Ifeffit from within the scripting language itself.  This merges the power
of the scripting language and the functionality of Ifeffit.  From the
scripting language point-of-view, this is called an _extension_ to the
language.  From Ifeffit's point-of-view, this is called a _wrapper_. 

Building and Installation instructions are given in the README file
in each subdirectory. 

To build each wrapper, you will need a working installation of that
language.  The latest versions of these languages, and a wealth of 
information about them can be found at:
  Perl:     http://www.perl.com/
  Python:   http://www.python.org/
  Tcl:      http://www.scriptics.com/

For Perl, you'll need version 5.0003 or higher, and version 5.6 or higher
is recommended.  For Python, you'll need version 1.5.2 or higher, and
version 2.1 or higher is recommended. For Tcl, you'll need version 8.0 or
higher.

You will also need a working installation of Ifeffit.  That is, the Ifeffit
library __Must Be Installed__ before these wrappers can be built.

On some systems (notably linux), there are some problems with pre-built
fortran installations, especially when trying to make shared-objects, as
needs to be done for the extensions made here.   If you have problems, 
please consult the Fortran.Notes file in this directory.

Perl Notes
----------

Perl 5.6 made a substantial change from Perl 5.5 (aka 5.005) in how
extensions are made.  Because of this, the internal parts of the Ifeffit
perl wrapper are different for perl 5.6 (and later) and 5.5 (and earlier).

If you have perl 5.6 or 5.8 (as is recommended), follow the instructions 
in wrappers/perl.  For perl 5.003 to 5.5, follow the instructions in 
wrappers/perl_old.  

Note: The way programs USE Ifeffit.pm is not affected by this change!!

If you don't know which version of perl you have, type 'perl -v'.



Matt Newville <newville@cars.uchicago.edu>
