Comma separated value file format

SD structure file or a file containing a list of identification numbers [Excel or Comma Separated Value (CSV) format] can be uploaded. In the Excel or CSV cases the protocol will automatically look up the structure that corresponds to the identification number, as it does for the text box input. A useful feature (see Databases under Parameters in Fig. 7) is the ability to search multiple databases in a single search. This is made possible by the use of Perl in the Pipeline Pilot protocol. The Perl code is very general and easily allows for the addition of new databases as they become available, thereby further increasing the versatility of this protocol. 

Data from PSpice can easily be exported to other programs by copying the traces displayed by Probe. To copy data from PSpice, you must run the simulation, display the results using Probe, and then copy and paste the data from Probe into MS Excel or another spreadsheet program. Once the data is in your spreadsheet, you can manipulate it or export it to other programs such as MATLAB by using comma separated values (.CSV) formatted data files. 

A word of caution is in order with respect to the use of Listing 9.6 and general data sets. The code uses the routine read dataQ on line 8 to read in data values from a file. This routine assumes that the data is stored on a line-by-line basis with the data values separated by tabs, commas or spaces and each line terminated by a line return character. For data sets stored in other manners, the routine will not properly read in the data sets. The routine will also ignore text lines in the data file following a data set provided fliere is a blank line separating the data from any text lines. If data files are downloaded from the nist.gov data site referenced above, the downloaded data files do not satisfy these requirements and the files must be changed into the proper form for use with the read data() routine. This data mismatch with the read dataQ function is also possible with other data sites, so one must be careful to match the data format to the format assumed in the read dataQ routine. 

---