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Re: [netcdfgroup] Netcdf 4 examples

Roy,

> The new features of netcdf-4, such as user-defined types, compound
> types and variable length arrays,  open up a lot of possibilities for
> storing data, such as profile data that is taken at a variable number
> of depths.  But as is often the case,  when there are a lot of
> possibilities, usually some uses of these features make for better or
> more efficient design then others.  We are looking for example files
> and/or code that use some of these new features in netcdf-4 to see
> different approaches that people have taken.
>
> Any help greatly appreciated.

I was away from my email when you posted this question, but I have a few
suggestions.

First, I have a draft of a document on "Developing Conventions for
NetCDF-4" that has some examples and discusses some issues in use of
new netCDF-4 features:

  http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/netcdf/docs/nc4-conventions.html

Second, I'm trying to construct some more realistic examples for testing
with the netCDF-4 version of ncdump, including these:

  tst_comp.c
  tst_vlen_data.c
  tst_string_data.c
  tst_opaque_data.c
  tst_enum_data.c
  tst_group_data.c

each of which creates a netCDF file that ncdump is tested against with
output expected as

  ref_tst_comp.cdl
  ref_tst_vlen_data.cdl
  ref_tst_string_data.cdl
  ref_tst_opaque_data.cdl
  ref_tst_enum_data.cdl
  ref_tst_group_data.cdl

These should all be available in the ncdump directory of recent
releases.

Third, a talk I gave in June on "Best Practices" contained some
suggestions for netCDF-4:

  http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/presentations/Rew/bp-seminar.pdf

I hope these are of some help.  In any case, I'd appreciate feedback.  I
realize I still need some more realistic examples, e.g. for the Dapper
conventions for soundings or for some of John Caron's observational data
conventions for netCDF-3.  We need real users trying out some of these
features and reporting back on what's actually useful.

--Russ