AVS5, the Application Visualization System from Advanced Visual
Systems (AVS) is an interactive scientific visualization application.
It's primary claim to fame is the ability to create custom applications
using a visual programming interface that lets you link together
"modules" into a workflow that achieves some specific objective. In
addition, you can write your own custom modules, thereby extending
the functionality of the base system. AVS5 also provides some
rudimentary charting/graphics capabilities, along with "helper"
applications for things like creating Animations.
The Visualization Group Supports AVS on the following platforms: Sun/Sparc
Solaris, SGI Irix, AIX and LINUX
AVS5 streamlines the creation of scientific and technical
visualization apps on UNIX and Linux systems by providing traditional
plots and graphs, 3D interactive rendering and volume visualization,
and simple interfaces to common visualization techniques.
AVS5 is a licensed product and is available on the NERSC analytics
server. Users may take advantage of a large number of floating network
licenses.
Features
Built-in software renderer that allows you to produce
feature-rich images even on low-cost 2D hardware platforms.
Network Editor, a unique Visual Programming Environment in which
you graphically connect AVS modules together to build a reusable
visualization network.
In addition to included modules, lets you write new modules and
include existing C, C++, or FORTRAN routines.
Handles platform-dependent technical issues and porting, including
3D Rendering, User Interface, File I/O, Data Transport and
Communications.
Features presentation capabilities for print and video, including
high-quality animations.
Geometry Viewer. Allows you to compose "scenes" that contain
geometrically-defined objects. The objects must have been created by
programs or AVS modules that use AVS's GEOM programming library. You
can transform the objects themselves (move, rotate, scale); you can
change the viewing parameters (e.g. move the eye point, perspective
view, etc.); and you can control the way in which the graphical images
are rendered (lighting and shading, Z-buffering, etc.).
Image Viewer. A high-level tool for manipulating and viewing
images.
Graph Viewer. A high-level tool for graphing data.
New Product Features in Version 5.5
Approximately 50 defects fixed and new documentation provided on existing features.
New example modules, including Write Geom, Test Field, and Corout_F.
New Geometry Camera module.
New support for event masking.
AVS/Animator now unlicensed and available to all users; source code included in the release.
Expanded OpenGL support now covering all platforms including HP10.20.
OpenGL stereo support enhanced (full screen and stereo-in-a-window) and
expanded to include SunOS 5.7, Compaq Tru64 UNIX, HP10.20 as well as SGI
N32 and N64.
AVS 5 Documentation set online in PDF format for viewing,
searching, printing (all manuals except Technical Overview,
AVS/Graph User's Guide and UCD Builder User's Guide).
New Release Notes chapter on Debugging Modules in AVS 5.
Linux port (purchased separately) - AVS/Graph now supported and
shared library version of AVS kernel enables users to link against
hardware graphics accelerator versions of OpenGL.
Accessing AVS5
AVS5 is available on NERSC platforms using the
module
command. First load AVS5 by typing
module load avs
and then start AVS5 by typing avs at the command line.
AVS5 has a rich set of demos. To try them out after starting up AVS5:
select AVS APPLICATIONS, then AVS DEMOS, and then select a demo from pulldown
menus in the AVS Demo window.
For help, select the help command button available in the upper left hand
corner of the leftmost window.
Local documentation downloads (Use shift left-mouse to download files)
AVS Meta Documentation.
Documentation about AVS documentation, sort of a roadmap to
the AVS documentation.
Chemistry Developer's Guide
AVS has a "molecular data type" and a "Chemistry Developer's Kit" to
help with the development of Chemistry-specific AVS5 modules.