[Date Prev][Date Next] [Thread Prev][Thread Next] [Date Index] [Thread Index]

Re: Package categories



On Fri, 2008-08-01 at 11:02 +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
> Adam C Powell IV <hazelsct@debian.org> writes:
> 
> > On Thu, 2008-07-24 at 13:44 +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
> > > "Christophe Prud'homme" <prudhomm@debian.org> writes:
> > > > > Salome
> > > > to my knowledge Salome does not provide a fe code !
> > > > 
> > > 
> > > AFAICT from http://www.salome-platform.org/home/presentation/overview/
> > > while salome doesn't perform FEA calculations, it can be used to
> > > create meshes and display results from FEA - which is why I suggested
> > > it in that category. It wouldn't however fit in a numerical methods
> > > category.
> > 
> > Indeed: Salomé proper doesn't include a solver, but it does just about
> > everything else (meshing, MED file editing, post-processing).  And
> > Salomé-MECA adds modules to set up and monitor/control a complex Aster
> > run, so in a sense it is a complete FEA front end.
> 
> 
> And http://www.opennovation.org/ provides a much better categorisation
> of engineering type packages than I did.
> 
> Categories there are:
> 
> Partial Differential Equation (PDE) Solvers
>         General Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
>         Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)
>         Electromagnetism and Optics
>         Software for Phase Field simulations
>         Boundary Element Method (BEM)
> 
>         Pre- and post-processing frameworks and tools
> 
> 
> Computer-Aided Design (CAD)
> 
> Multi-body dynamics
> 
> Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME)
>  (Ab initio and Molecular dynamics codes listed here)

As the owner/maintainer of opennovation.org, I'm struggling with this
categorization, and welcome input.  For example:
      * Is libMesh FEA or CFD?  It is a general FEA lib, but its
        examples and development point toward CFD -- not to mention that
        its authors are the CFD group at UT Austin.  Saturne is clearly
        CFD and Aster is clearly mechanics/heat (as are CacluliX and
        Impact), so why should Aster, CalculiX and Impact be in general
        FEA?
      * Should libraries be treated differently from standalone codes?
        Or is input file vs. short program which calls the library
        functions merely a semantics issue?  Aster calls its python
        scripts "input files" where FiPy calls the exact same thing
        "programs which call its functions".
      * How about "standalone" FEA codes like Aster, vs. an integrated
        pre- post- and solver like OpenFOAM?

These are some of the reasons I think keywords or tags are more
appropriate than "categories".  But keywords/tags don't lend themselves
to well-organized websites...

-Adam
-- 
GPG fingerprint: D54D 1AEE B11C CE9B A02B  C5DD 526F 01E8 564E E4B6

Engineering consulting with open source tools
http://www.opennovation.com/

Attachment: signature.asc
Description: This is a digitally signed message part


Reply to: