Ocean Primary Production

Software Package for Calculation of Oceanic Primary Production 
Biological Oceanography, Ocean Sciences Division
Bedford Institute of Oceanography
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada

Backend: T. Platt, S. Sathyendranath, and G. White
Interface: I. Levesque

Copyright 2000.
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read_me file

This file contains important information about the Primary Production software package.

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Topics:

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Installing the software

Run the program called SETUP.EXE. It will unzip the compressed file(s) containing all the necessary files to run the software. It is strongly recommended that you install the software in the suggested directory to avoid possible problems. If installing to a custom directory, keep the directory name short. Some of the backend executables are unable to deal with paths that are beyond a certain length, so keep the application's path short to avoid problems.

To distribute, do not simply copy the executable from one computer to another. This will result in missing or unregistered DLL files. Use the installation package to distribute the software.

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Uninstalling the software

In the Settings sub-menu of Start menu is the Windows Control Panel. In the Control Panel, run the "Add/Remove Programs" utility. To uninstall the application, select the Ocean Primary Production software from the list and click the Add/Remove button.

If you have moved the application's files within your directory structure after it was installed, the Add/Remove Programs utility will not be able to find it. In order to uninstall the application completely using the utility, you must restore the original directory (the default is C:\WinOP).

Upon un-installation, you may be asked whether certain shared files should be removed from your system (COMCTL32.OCX, SCOMCTL.OCX, TABCTL32.OCX, MSCHRT20.OCX, and certain DLL files). These are contained in your Windows/System directory. If you are certain that these are not used by other applications, remove them. If you are uncertain, leave them on your computer. These files should not cause any problems as they are files used by the application for graphics.

Once it has uninstalled the application, the utility will likely complain about not being able to uninstall all components. This is due to the fact that new files (data, results, etc.) were created in the application's directory when running the software. Let the process complete. Then, simply delete the leftover files along with the directories if you so wish.

If you must re-install the software, uninstall any previous versions first.

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Running the software

To run the software package once it has been installed, go to the Start Menu's Programs group and select the Ocean Primary Production item from the group of the same name. If you wish to create a Desktop shortcut icon, open the application's directory in My Computer or the Windows Explorer (the default is C:\WinOP). Drag the application (Ocean Primary Production.exe) icon to the Desktop. This should create a shortcut to the application. This can also be specified explicitly by dragging the icon using the right mouse button, and selecting the Create shortcut option from the popup menu.

NOTE: When running the software for the first time, the DOS process window for the first three components will remain open and normal sized on the Windows Desktop. The main application will be suspended in the background. If you wish this window to close automatically in the future (recommended), you must select the "Close on exit" property of RUN.BAT. Simply right-click the RUN.BAT icon (located in the "\bin" sub-directory of the installation directory), select the Program tab, and check the "Close on exit box". To have the process run in minimized window, select the Run: Minmized property. instructions on what to do are also given in the actual processing window.

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Viewing the Help file

The Help file can be viewed from within the software application by selecting the Help-View Help menu item or by pressing F1. It contains important information about the software and it is suggested that it be read. It can also be viewed independently by selecting the Help item from the Start Menu-Programs-Ocean Primary Production program group. This will open it using the default text editor (usually Notepad). Opening it this way also makes printing the file possible.