18. View and Window

View allows you to browse the output log, data file and control file associated with the current analysis, or any other (text) file with the SPAN browser. It does not allow any editing of these files. Window brings created windows into focus and, if mouse input is allowable, makes the window active for mouse input.

The View:Output browser is fairly crude and is the author's own solution to the problem of reading files (which may be very large) in their entirety into a window.  The buttons at the top of the window allow navigation of the file. There is no right hand scroll bar.  The output log is divided into sections, each section representing the output from a menu item. The Goto button invokes a dialog that lists these sections so that you can jump straight to them. 

Click on Esc  to escape viewing the file. There is a simple Find command to locate a character string in the file.

Certain items of the file will be highlighted in colour, as in the example above. The amount of output that is sent to the output log can be increased if Detailed output option is checked under Options (see 17.7).

Both these files are presented for viewing in their raw form. No additional formatting is done and no editing is allowed.

Added attributes are those created during a SPAN run, usually in the iterative search process. This item allows them to be seen and expanded to their full Boolean expression.

The item will, in addition, add the Boolean combination of the attribute to the control file.  It provides a way of saving a Boolean expression for future use. The Process menu Select Partition dialog Control file combination  can then be used to access the saved partition.

The Window menu allows tiling and cascade of windows and brings created windows into focus. 

Note that a window that displays a particular analysis is overwritten by a repeat of the same analysis. If, for example, aDistibution plot of variable AGE is done and subsequently another distribution is done of some other variable, BWT, the distribution plot for BWT overwrites that of AGE.

Some windows that accept mouse input are automatically re-activated when invoked from the Window drop down item.  However, the Rectangle Diagram window is an example that not re-activated. It is necessary to create a new diagram. 

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