• Main

  • Intro

• Documents

  • Background
  • Workflow approach
  • Technical details
  • FORS
  • Amber

• Installation

  • Required hardware
  • Required software
  • Download Reflex kit
  • Reflex kit Installation
  • Download test data
  • Custom Installation
    • Required software
    • FORS recipes
    • Amber recipes
    • Graphviz installation
    • Reflex Installation
  • Release notes
  • Bug reporting

• Instructions

  • Starting up
  • Command line
  • Overview
  • Loading a workflow
  • Configuring the inputs
  • Running the workflow
  • Configuring a recipe
  • Viewing the outputs
  • Editing a workflow
  • List inputs
  • Using interactive tools
  • Using Python
  • Using PyRAF
  • Using IDL
  • Plastic processor

• Examples

  • Workflow examples
    • FORS MXU
    • AMBER
    • Interactive tools
    • Nested Workflows
    • Plastic Workflows
    • Web Services Workflows
    • External applications
    • Python
    • IDL
  • Python examples
  • PyRAF examples
  • IDL examples

• Interactive tools

  • FORS WaveCalibTool
  • FORS SkyLineTool

Plastic processor

PLASTIC (PLatform for AStronomical Tool InterConnection) is a protocol for communication between client-side astronomy applications. Although widely adopted by members of the IVOA, PLASTIC is not endorsed by the IVOA. However, the Applications Messaging Group of the IVOA is currently developing an applications messaging protocol, codenamed SAMP, that has a similar scope and design to PLASTIC.

Through PLASTIC applications can do tasks such as instruct each other to load VOTables, highlight a subset of rows or load an image of a particular area of sky. The philosophy is that the astronomer should have a suite of interoperating tools at his disposal, each of which does one thing well and which can be composed according to his particular needs.

PLASTIC is a specification for a simple messaging system. The two key concepts in PLASTIC are the Plastic Hub and Plastic Messages. Plastic Hub is a daemon application for routing Plastic Messages. Plastic Message is a request sent from one client to another via a Plastic Hub. Although that specification has ivo://votech.org/fits/image/loadFromURL message and api documentation FITS_LOAD_FROM_URL constant, only sending VOTable works with Astro Runtime/workbench v2007.1.1 implementation. Eso Reflex use unpublished code which support also fits files.

The plastic API (Application Programmer Interface) has deficiency when connecting the hub. If the hub is not running, call the hub starts waiting. The normal way to fail case unsuccessful connection would be better because it would allow reflex to start hub. Now user must start the hub.

ESO Reflex

ESO Reflex has Plastic processor which you can add to a workflow from Available Services window, ESO/Sampo External Plastic fits viewer menu. To run any workflow using Plastic processor, the plastic hub and some plastic aware application must be running. The hub located in the reflex/reflex_current/lib directory and user can start it by giving the command: java -jar lib/z-plastic-hub-2007.1.1-app.jar Aladin is a good example application which can recieve both fits images and votables. ESO Reflex can only send Plastic Messages, not recieve them. Plastic processor can send anything: URLs, VOTables, FITS files, before sending user must be sure that receiving application can receive it. Plastic has no error messages, you must know.