[Gmsh] Hello, and a question about which file type

Neil Hodge neil.hodge at gmail.com
Sat Aug 9 22:34:21 CEST 2008


All:

I have recently started using gmsh, and it seems that it will suit my
needs nicely.

That being said, it appears that there will still be a bit of a
learning curve.  So, my first question is: which file type should I
use?  Notes:

* I will be using gmsh (at least initially) only for post-processing,
as I typically do everything else myself.  So, I need to write a file
containing results to be able to use gmsh.

* My field is mostly solid mechanics, with a few other things thrown
in.  So, I need to be able to 1) plot scalar, vector, and tensor
quantities 2) at both nodes and elements 3) on unstructured meshes 4)
that are changing in time.

* I would like to use ascii files, as my problems are typically quite
small, and ascii files will be easier to debug.

I notice that most of the questions on this mailing list seem to refer
to the "pos" ascii file type, indicating that it is being used by more
people, but the manual intimates that "msh" 2.0 files are the
preferred format.

So, given my requirements, which file type should I use?

Thanks.

Neil