Re: Question about reading in data

It has nothing to do with fortran.
netCDF-3 does not support strings only characters.

    sta_id_c = f->stationId
    sta_id_s = tostring(sta_id_c)
    delete(sta_id_c)

or, better

    sta_id = tostring(f->stationId)

    print(sta_id)

---
netCDF-4 supports strings
Good luck
On 11/08/2011 03:58 PM, Gerald Creager wrote:
> Howdy!
>
> I've got a known netcdf file with some interesting attributes.
> Apparently string variables are inserted as arrays, perhaps to support
> older Fortran applicaitons...
>
> Excerpting from an ncl_filedump output:
>      dimensions:
>         ncl_scalar = 1
>         maxLDADmessageLen = 512
>         maxSkyCover = 6
>         maxSkyLen = 8
>         maxStaTypeLen = 11
>         maxProviderIdLen = 12
>         maxStaIdLen = 6
>         maxNameLength = 51
>         maxHomeWFOlen = 4
>         maxWeatherLen = 25
>         maxSensor = 2
>         maxLDADtestLen = 51
>         QCcheckNum = 10
>         QCcheckNameLen = 60
>         ICcheckNum = 55
>         ICcheckNameLen = 72
>         maxStaticIds = 30000
>         totalIdLen = 24
>         nInventoryBins = 24
>         maxPSTEntries = 300
>         recNum = 5288  // unlimited
>         character stationId ( recNum, maxStaIdLen )
>            long_name :    alphanumeric station Id
>            reference :    station table
>
>         character handbook5Id ( recNum, maxStaIdLen )
>            long_name :    Handbook5 Id (AFOS or SHEF id)
>            reference :    station table
>
>         character stationName ( recNum, maxNameLength )
>            long_name :    alphanumeric station name
>            reference :    station table
>
> And a print of the data for stationName yields:
> ncl 16>  print(stnName)
>
>
> Variable: stnName
> Type: character
> Total Size: 269688 bytes
>               269688 values
> Number of Dimensions: 2
> Dimensions and sizes:	[recNum | 5288] x [maxNameLength | 51]
> Coordinates:
> Number Of Attributes: 2
>     long_name :	alphanumeric station name
>     reference :	station table
> (0,0)	C
> (0,1)	h
> (0,2)	e
> (0,3)	r
> (0,4)	r
> (0,5)	y
> (0,6)	
> (0,7)	P
> (0,8)	o
> (0,9)	i
> (0,10)	n
> (0,11)	t
> (0,12)	,
> (0,13)	
> (0,14)	W
> (0,15)	A
> (0,16)	0x00
> (0,17)	0x00
> ...
>
> ncl 19>  print (stnId)
>
>
> Variable: stnId
> Type: character
> Total Size: 31728 bytes
>               31728 values
> Number of Dimensions: 2
> Dimensions and sizes:	[recNum | 5288] x [maxStaIdLen | 6]
> Coordinates:
> Number Of Attributes: 2
>     long_name :	alphanumeric station Id
>     reference :	station table
> (0,0)	C
> (0,1)	H
> (0,2)	Y
> (0,3)	W
> (0,4)	1
> (0,5)	0x00
> (1,0)	A
> (1,1)	P
> (1,2)	1
> (1,3)	6
> (1,4)	4
> (1,5)	0x00
> (2,0)	A
> (2,1)	P
> (2,2)	2
> (2,3)	0
> (2,4)	4
> (2,5)	0x00
> ...
>
>
> Is there a good way to read in the data so that the character data are
> read as strings?
>
> Thanks gerry
-- 
======================================================
Dennis J. Shea                  tel: 303-497-1361    |
P.O. Box 3000                   fax: 303-497-1333    |
Climate Analysis Section                             |
Climate & Global Dynamics Div.                       |
National Center for Atmospheric Research             |
Boulder, CO  80307                                   |
USA                        email: shea 'at' ucar.edu |
======================================================
_______________________________________________
ncl-talk mailing list
List instructions, subscriber options, unsubscribe:
http://mailman.ucar.edu/mailman/listinfo/ncl-talk