New IDL Virtual Machine

RSI now offers a freely distributable utility known as the IDL Virtual Machine. The IDL Virtual Machine is designed to provide IDL users with a simple, no-cost method for distributing IDL applications to colleagues and customers. It runs on all IDL supported platforms (see Requirements for this Release) and does not require a license to run.

The IDL Virtual Machine will run a compiled IDL .sav file even if no IDL license is present. RSI's aim with the IDL Virtual Machine is to facilitate IDL code collaboration and application distribution. However, a few restrictions exist:

The IDL Virtual Machine displays a splash screen on startup.

.sav files must be created using IDL version 6.0 or later.

No access to the IDL command line or IDL compiler is provided.

IDL programs that call the EXECUTE function will not run in the IDL Virtual Machine.

Callable IDL applications and applications that use the IDL ActiveX control will not run in the IDL Virtual Machine.

The IDL Virtual Machine must be installed via the installation program provided by RSI. You are prohibited from modifying the IDL Virtual Machine distribution.

See the Building IDL Applications manual for more information on creating applications for the IDL Virtual Machine.

Getting the IDL Virtual Machine

The IDL Virtual Machine is included with all IDL distributions, including the freely-downloadable IDL installer available from RSI's website (http://www.RSInc.com). During installation, you can choose to install either a full IDL distribution (which includes the IDL Virtual Machine) or just the IDL Virtual Machine distribution.

Using the IDL Virtual Machine

When you attempt to run a .sav file, IDL will first attempt to execute the file using a licensed version of IDL. If no licenses are available, the .sav file will be executed in IDL Virtual Machine mode.

To explicitly use the IDL Virtual Machine when an IDL license is present (for debugging purposes for example), do one of the following:

Windows Platforms

Drag the .sav file to the IDL Virtual Machine desktop icon.

At the command prompt, use the following command:

idlrt -vm=file.sav

where file.sav is the name of the IDL .sav file.

UNIX Platforms

At the command prompt, use the following command:

idl -vm=file.sav

where file.sav is the name of the IDL .sav file.

New VM Keyword to the LMGR Routine

The LMGR function has a new VM keyword that allows you to test whether the current IDL session is running in IDL Virtual Machine mode. IDL Virtual Machine applications do not provide access to the IDL Command Line.