1. If other displays and data are already loaded, select the Edit->Remove All Displays and Data menu item or the icon in the toolbar to clear them out.
2. In the Data Source Chooser go to the Point tab.
3. In the Server: entry box, select the remote ADDE server "adde.ucar.edu".
4. In the Data Type: entry box, select the choice "Surface (METAR) Data" and click on Connect.
5. The IDV will connect to the ADDE server at adde.ucar.edu and download metadata about the available METAR data.
6. Select Absolute times to see a list of data times that you can get from this server.
7. The bottom time in the list, the most recent time, should be highlighted. If it is not, click on it.
8. Hold down the control key and click on the second to last time so that two times are selected.
9. You could also select Use relative times and select Most recent 2 times.
10. Make sure the Layout Model: is "Observations>METAR".
11. Click the Add Source button.
12. Because the Create Display checkbox is selected the IDV automatically creates a point data plot.

Unidata IDV Workshop for version 2.7u2 > Accessing and Displaying Data > Point Observations