Spike Window Commands

These commands are for creation and manipulation of spike windows.

 -AddPlot <Window Name> <Acq Ent Name> 
Adds a new plot to the specified window.  The type of the window determines what type of  plot may be added to the window.  Once a plot is added, the acquisition entity whose data is displayed in the plot cannot be changed.  All plots are displayed in the order that they are added to the window.  The display order of the plots can be changed through the Properties Dialog.  All data in the window will clear when a new plot is added to the window.  Each acquisition entity can be added to a window only once.

Example :   -AddPlot "SpikeWindow" SE1
Default:  All plot windows are created with no plots.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window that will house the new plot.
Acq Ent Name The acquisition entity name that will be the data source of the plot.  The acquisition entity must  be of the appropriate type in order for it to be successfully added to the window.

Example:  Assume a configuration file has the following two commands:
-CreatePlotWindow Spike "My Spike Window"
-AddPlot CSC1
If the acquisition entity CSC1 is a continuously sampled channel, it will not be able to be displayed in a Spike plot window, and the command will fail.

 -CreatePlotWindow <Window Type> <Window Name> 
Creates a new plot window in __prod_name.  Once created, the window type cannot be changed.

Example :  -CreatePlotWindow Time "My Time Window"
Default:  __prod_name starts with no plot windows.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Type
Specifies the type of window you wish to be created.  This value must be one of the following:
  1. Histogram:  The window will only be able to display Histogram plots.
  2. Spike:  The window will only be able to display Spike plots.
  3. Time:  The window will only be able to display Time plots.
  4. Video:  The window will only be able to display Video plots.

For a more detailed description of each plot type, see the -SetPlotWindowPlotType command.
Window Name The name of the plot window you wish to create.  This name must be unique throughout the __prod_name system, otherwise the command will fail.  Window names can be changed after the window is created through the Properties Dialog.

 -SetPlotWindowCurrentPlot <Window Name> <Acquisition Entity Name> 
This command has the same effect as either clicking on a plot, or selecting a plot in the Properties dialog's tree view.  When a plot is current, you will see a purple background in the title bar of the current plot, and the plot name will appear in the title bar of the window.  All menu items with "Current Plot" in the name will be applied to this plot.  There can only be one current plot per window.  Since the Video Tracker window only has one plot, it will always be current.

Example :    -SetPlotWindowCurrentPlot "My Spike Window" SC1
Default:  No Spike or Time  plot will be set to current unless it is 1) clicked on, 2) selected in the Properties Dialog, or 3) selected by this command.  Video Tracker windows will automatically set a plot to current as soon as it is added.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Acquisition Entity Name The name of the acquisition entity associated with the plot you wish to make current.  If there is no plot for that acquisition entity in the specified window, this command will fail.

 -SetPlotWindowFrozen <Window Name> <Frozen>
This command works like a pause button on a DVD player.  It will lock in whatever is currently displayed in the window.  If an action is taken that will clear the window, the last data displayed will be cleared.  No data will be added to the window while it is frozen, but otherwise is processed normally.  It if a window is frozen before it is displayed, the window may contain garbage or a copy of whatever is displayed beneath the window.  Unfreezing and refreezing the window will allow it to clear normally.

Example :    -SetPlotWindowFrozen "My Spike Window" True
Default:  All windows are created with frozen set to false.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Frozen The frozen value can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  The entire window will be frozen and no new data will be plotted.  To begin plotting new data, reissue this command with Frozen set to false.
  2. False:  The window will begin to plot new data.  If a window was frozen prior to this command being issued, all of the data visible in the frozen display will be cleared.

 -SetPlotWindowMaximizeView <Window Name> <Maximized>
Sets the window to fill the entire window with a single plot.  This will maximize the current plot.  If no current plot is selected, the first plot in the list will be maximized.  Video Tracker plots are always maximized as there is only one per window.  All data in the window will clear when the maximized state of the window is changed.

Example :    -SetPlotWindowMaximizeView "My Spike Window" True
Default:  Spike and Time windows are created with Maximized set to false.  Video Tracker windows are always maximized.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Maximized The maximized value can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  The current plot will fill the entire window, hiding all other plots in the window.  To return to normal mode, reissue this command with Maximized set to false.
  2. False:  All plots in the window are visible.

 -SetPlotWindowNumberFeaturePlotsMaximizedView <Window Name> <Value> 
When spike plots are maximized, they are automatically switched to the WaveformFeature plot type.  Since the Spike plot will now have the entire window to work with, extra Feature plots can be shown.  This command specifies how many feature plots are shown in maximized view for all plots that are in the specified window.  All data in the window will clear when the number of feature plots is changed, and the window is in maximized view.

Example :  -SetPlotWindowNumberFeaturePlotsMazimizedView "Window Name" 4
Default:  All Spike windows are created with one maximized view feature plot.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.  This command only affects Spike windows.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value This specifies the number of Feature plots to show when the spike plot is maximized.  The maximized view must have at least the same number of feature plots as the normal plot view (see -SetPlotWindowNumberFeaturePlotsNormalView).  This can be any number between 0 and 9.  If the value is not greater or equal to the number of feature plots in the normal view, or greater than 9, this command will fail.

 -SetPlotWindowNumberFeaturePlotsNormalView <Window Name> <Value> 
This command specifies how many feature plots are shown for all plots that are in the specified window when the window is showing the WaveformFeature or Feature plot type, and is not maximized.  If the window is showing the Waveform plot type, no change will be seen when this command is issued.  All data in the window will clear when the number of feature plots is changed.

Example :  -SetPlotWindowNumberFeaturePlotsNormalView "Window Name" 4
Default:  All Spike windows are created with one normal view feature plot.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.  This command only affects Spike windows.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value This specifies the number of Feature plots to show when the spike plot has a plot type of WaveformFeature or Feature.  The normal view must have at most the same number of feature plots as the maximized plot view.  This can be any number between 0 and 9.  If the value is not less than or equal to the number of feature plots in the maximized view,  greater than 9, or less than 0, this command will fail.

 -SetPlotWindowOverlay <Window Name> <Value>
Sets a plot window's overlay mode.  Overlaid windows will not clear out old data before displaying new data.  This setting effects all plots in this window.
 
Example :    -SetPlotWindowOverlay "MyWindow" true
Default:  Plot windows are created with overlay set to false.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value This can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  The window will not clear out any old data until either a clear command is issued, overlay is turned off, or the window is resized.
  2. False:  The window will clear out old data according to the current plot type.  See -SetPlotWindowType for more information.

 -SetPlotWindowPlotType <Window Name> <Plot Type> 
Sets the plot type that will be used for this window.  All plots in the window will be set to the same type.  All data in the window will clear when the plot type is changed.

Example :     -SetPlotWindowPlotType "SpikeWindow" Waveform
Default:
Window Type Default Plot Type
Spike WaveformFeature
Time Sweep
Video Live
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window that will be modified.
Plot Type The options for a view are dependent upon the type of window that is being set.  If the specified plot type does not correspond to the type of the window (i.e. a plot type of Waveform for a Time window), the command will fail.

Spike Windows:
  1. Waveform:  Shows the extracted waveform for a detected spike.  If more than one waveform is visible, this means more than one spike occurred since the last screen refresh.  The waveform seen in this plot is the exact waveform saved to the spike data records.
  2. Feature:  Shows the calculated feature information in a XY scatter plot.  The features that are plotted can be changed by the -SetFeaturePlotSources command.  To change the features available for an acquisition entity, see the -SetWaveformFeature command.  The data seen in this plot is the exact data saved to the spike data records.
  3. WaveformFeature:  Shows both the waveform and feature plots.

Time Windows :
  1. Flash:  Displays the waveform for single record.  The data shown is indicative of the data that is written to the __prod_name data files. 
  2. Scroll:  Similar to an oscilloscope, new waveform data will be shown on the right, and old data will scroll to the left.  The amount of time shown in this plot can be adjusted with the -SetPlotWindowTimeframe command.   The data shown is indicative of the data that is written to the __prod_name data files.
  3. Sweep:  A cursor will move from left to right across the screen.  New data will be shown to the immediate left of the cursor.  Old data will be cleared as the cursor moves past it.   The data shown is indicative of the data that is written to the __prod_name data files
    .

Video Tracker Windows:
  1. Live :  The image displayed in the window is the live, unprocessed video image.  This is also the same image that will be written to a video output file (-SetVideoFileOutput) when  -SetVideoFileOutputEnabled is true.
  1. Threshold :  The image displayed in the window is the live image with the threshold applied.  This display mode takes into account the threshold settings for Red, Green, Blue and Intensity when displaying pixels.  This is  NOT representative of the data that is recorded to the Video Tracker record file, but is intended as a guide for setting thresholds.
  2. Record : Displays an image of the live video with the threshold applied.  This display mode will only show pixels that are above the threshold for Red, Green, Blue and Intensity.  However, it will only display as many transitions as the video record can hold.  If the thresholds are set too low, the image may become saturated, and only the top few lines of the image will be visible. The image displayed is representative of the data stored into a Video Tracker record file.

 -SetPlotWindowPosition <Window Name> <X Position> <Y Position> <Window Width> <Window Height> 
Set the position and size of the specified plot window.  All data in the window will clear when the window size or position is changed.

Example :   -SetPlotWindowPosition WindowName 200 300 800 600
Default: The position of new plot windows is determined by Windows.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
X Position The position, in pixels, to place the left side of the specified window.  This value is relative to your desktop, and must be within the bounds of your desktop.  If a value is outside the bounds of your desktop, it will be adjusted to that the window is placed as close to your value as possible, while remaining completely visible.  If the width of the window is larger than the width of your desktop, __prod_name will set the x position to 0 and part of the window will not be visible.  Negative values are not allowed.

Example:  You have your screen resolution set to 1600 x 1200, and the following command is processed by __prod_name:

-SetPlotWindowPosition "My Spike Window" 1600 100 800 600

Since putting the window with its left point at 1600 and top at 100 will place the window outside of your desktop, __prod_name will move the window left until it is completely visible.  The top position will not be changed since it is within the bounds of the desktop.  The final position of the window from the above command will be 800, 100.   
Y Position
The position, in pixels, to place the top of the specified dialog.  This value is relative to your desktop, and must be within the bounds of your desktop.  If a value is specified that is outside the bounds of your desktop, it will be adjusted to that the specified dialog is placed as close to your value as possible, while remaining completely visible.  If the height of the window is larger than the height of your desktop, __prod_name will set the y position to 0 and part of the window will not be visible. Negative values are not allowed.
Window Width
The width of the window in pixels. If the width value at the current x position would cause part of the window to be outside the bounds of your desktop, __prod_name will move the window left until either all the window is visible, or the x position is 0.  Negative values are not allowed.
Window Height
The height of the window in pixels. If the width value at the current x position would cause part of the window to be outside the bounds of your desktop, __prod_name will move the window left until either all the window is visible, or the x position is 0. Negative values are not allowed.

 -SetPlotWindowShowIcons <Window Name> <Value> 
Enables or disables the drawing of icons for all plots in the specified display window.  This does not include icons that are part of the title bar (see -SetPlotWindowShowTitleBar).  When icons are hidden, you will not be able to click on them to activate plot commands.  Not all plot types have icons, so this command may sometimes seem to do nothing.  This command can be used to increase the screen space dedicated to showing acquired data or can be used to decrease CPU usage for large channel count systems or older computers.  Since the saved screen space is minimal, it is recommended that you leave the icons visible if possible.  All data in the window will clear when the icon visibility is changed.

Example :  -SetPlotWindowShowIcons Window1 false
Default:  All windows are created with icons shown.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value The value can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  All icons not in the title bar will be shown.
  2. False:  All icons not in the title bar will be hidden.

 -SetPlotWindowShowTextValues <Window Name> <Value> 
Enables or disables the drawing of text values for all plots in the specified display window.  This does not include text values that are part of the title bar (see -SetPlotWindowShowTitleBar).  Not all plot types have text values, so this command may sometimes seem to do nothing.  This command can be used to increase the screen space dedicated to showing acquired data or can be used to decrease CPU usage for large channel count systems or older computers.  Since the saved screen space is minimal, it is recommended that you leave the text visible if possible.  All data in the window will clear when the text visibility is changed.

Example :  -SetPlotWindowShowTextValues "Window Name" true
Default:  All windows are created with text values shown.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value The value can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  All text values not in the title bar will be shown.
  2. False:  All text values not in the title bar will be hidden.

 -SetPlotWindowShowTitleBar <Window Name> <Value> 
Sets the visibility of  title bar for the specified display window.  This command can be used to increase the screen space dedicated to showing acquired data or can be used to decrease CPU usage for large channel count systems or older computers.  Since most of the plot icons are located in the title bar, you will not be able to click on the icons when the title bar is hidden.  Since the saved screen space is minimal, it is recommended that you leave the title bars visible if possible.  All data in the window will clear when the title bar visibility is changed.

Example :    -SetPlotWindowShowTitleBar "My Spike Window" true
Default:  Plot windows are created with the title bar visible.
Usage:  This command can be used at any time.
Arguments
Window Name
The name of the window which will be modified.
Value The visibility value can be one of the following keywords:
  1. True:  The title bar is visible for all plots in the window.  Spike windows have one title bar per plot, whereas Time windows have one title bar for all plots.  Video Tracker windows do not have a title bar.
  2. False:  The title bar is hidden for all plots in the window.