The xlris.html widget used for controlling the LRIS stages allows you to save the current state of the instrument to a file and to restore this state at a later time:

Create a setup script by clicking the WRITE button on the XLRIS interface. You will be prompted to provide a name for the script. The software will then generate the specified script and place it into your ~/setups directory on lrisserver. When run, this script will reproduce the current state of the various movable stages (including slitmask, filters, grating, grism, focus, etc.).
Edit the script as needed to meet your desires, using your favorite Unix editor (vi, Xemacs, etc.). For example, you may want only to configure the blue side of LRIS without moving the red stages. In this case, simply comment out (or delete) sections of the script which change the red side settings. Also, you can add commands at the bottom of the script to reset CCD parameters such as binning, windowing, readout mode, etc.
Execute the script by clicking the GO button on XLRIS. You will be prompted to enter the name of the script to execute. The script will then run to reset the various LRIS stages as recorded in the file.

Customing XLRIS Scripts

Starting from a single setup script, it's quite easy to generate new setups with different parameters; simply find the appropriate keyword and change it to what you like. To convert the script below to use different spectrograph settings you would change:

Keyword	Function
`slitname`	select a slitmask, long slit, or the direct imaging frame in the focal plane
`dichname`	select a dichroic
`blufilt`	select a blue-side filter
`redfilt`	select a red-side filter
`blufocus`	change the blue-side focus setting
`redfocus`	change the red-side focus setting
`grisname`	select a blue grism
`graname`	select a red grating
`grangle`	set the grating angle (wavelength) for the red grating (see below)

Note that the one weak part of this interface is the grangle. Normally astronomers will have a desired central wavelength, and they may not know the appropriate grating angle. In this case you could replace grangle=NNNN with either wavelen=NNNN (when using the longslit) or mswave=NNNN (for slitmask spectroscopy).

Sample XLRIS Script

The following is a sample script generated by XLRIS:

#!/bin/sh
#
# This script generated by xlris:
#
# Script writing rules for the write setup button.
# 
#  1.  All xlris fields are read.
#
#  2.  SLITNAME, REDFILT, REDFOCUS, DICHROIC, GRISM BLUFILT and BLUFOCUS
#      are first and modified with NOWAIT
#
#  3.  GRANAME and GRANGLE/WAVELEN/MSWAVE are last and are modified
#      with WAIT.
#
#  4.  Trapdoor is not included.
#
#  5.  Lamps are not included.
#
#  6.  Polarimeter mechanisms are not included.
#
#
# This is the slitmask move
#
echo Moving slitmask
  modify -s lris slitname=direct &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo slitmask move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the redfilt move
#
echo Moving redfilt
  modify -s lris redfilt=clear &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo filter move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the redfocus move
#
echo Moving redfocus
  modify -s lris redfocus=2351.99 &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo red camera focus move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the blufocus move
#
echo Moving blufocus
  modify -s lris blufocus=-2907.24 &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo blue camera focus move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the dichroic move
#
echo Moving dichroic
  modify -s lris dichname=560 &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo dichroic move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the grism move
#
echo Moving grism
  modify -s lris grisname=clear &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo grism move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the blufilt move
#
echo Moving blufilt
  modify -s lris blufilt=clear &
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo blufilt move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# This is the grating move with wait.  Wait must be used here
# so the MSWAVE or WAVELEN move afterwards will not fail.
#
echo Moving grating
  modify -s lris graname=400/8500 wait
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo grating move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
#
# Move only GRANGLE for the moment.
# Use wait to catch errors more obviously
#
echo Moving grating angle
  modify -s lris grangle=26.45 wait
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
     then
       echo grating angle move failed: $?; exit 10
     fi
echo Script done.
sleep 6

Customing XLRIS Scripts

Sample XLRIS Script

See Also