Running the Interface

The interface executable name will typically be 'postansys', but this may vary from machine to machine. The interface may be activated via a global symbol, icon or script file which has been set up by the system administrator.

By default the program begins in interactive mode with a question and answer session in which the user is prompted to open an ANSYS result file, a FEMVIEW database or Neutral File, and select various translation options. The program then processes data from the result file to the desired destination and terminates.

The program can also run batch mode, reading data from a file called 'postansys.str'. The program will look for this file at the start of every run and will automatically attempt a batch run if it finds such a file.

In either mode of operation the program will produce two additional files called 'postansys.mes' and 'postansys.com'. These files will be overwritten each time the program is executed. File 'postansys.mes' is a logging file which records all information relevant to a particular execution of the program. File 'postansys.com' records the answers from the question and answer session and may be renamed 'postansys.str' to create a startup file for batch mode. Appendix D gives more detailed information on these files.

At any point in the question and answer session the user may type '/' to abort the program. It is also possible to type '@filename' in response to any of the questions in order to draw input from a named file.