7.3. Default parameter values

When data is imported in ATHENA, all parameters are set to their default values. For most data, these defaults are reasonable in the sense that using them will result in a decent first stab at background removal and Fourier transform. The sequence of choices ATHENA makes in setting those defaults is somewhat complicated and highly configurable. By understanding how the defaults are chosen, you can tune ATHENA to do a good job processing your more of your data without your intervention.

The choices of default values for each parameter is made by walking through a hierarchy of decisions, each subsequent level overriding the previous level. The first decision is made by consulting the program preferences. The program preferences are read from two initialization files when ATHENA starts. The first initialization file is a system-wide file that always contains ATHENA's fresh-out-of-the-box parameter defaults. The second initialization file is your own personal collection of preferences. These personal preferences are typically set using the preferences tool, which is found in Settings menu. The values found among the personal preferences will always override the system-wide set.

Many of the parameter defaults which can be set in the preferences tool have the option of being set to relative values rather than absolute values. For example, the ♦Fft→kmax parameter can be set to a value such as “12”. It can also be set to a value like “-1”, which tells ATHENA to select the value 1 wavenumber from the end of the data as the value for ♦Fft→kmax. All of the range parameters can be set to values which are relative to the extent of the actual measured data. These options are explained in the parameter description in the preferences tool.



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