[Manifold-l] Does exporting a surface actually work?

[adamw at manifold.net]

> I've spent two days with a arc/info analyst trying to provide him with
> a readable surface I created in Manifold. Here's what he reported to
> me: ...

What version of Manifold are you using? If you are using anything less than 7x, I suggest you switch to 7x. If you are using a build of 7x less than 7.1.17.1432, I suggest you switch to that build.

If you are using 7.1.17.1432:

> -The .bil file imported inverted from north-to-south with only one
> grid value

What was the coordinate system of the original surface? Can it be that the value of the local scale Y parameter is negative? What happens when you import the BIL back into Manifold?

> -The import function choked on the .e00 file

What happens when you import the E00 file into Manifold?

> -The geotiff has lovely stiped artefacts

What export options did you use? What happens when you import the TIFF back into Manifold?

> -The .grd file can't be added to his project.

Which export did you use (there are several exports that produce files with the .GRD extension)? Are there any error messages? What happens when you import the GRD back into Manifold?

> I have an old copy of arcview 3.2 and I can confirm that the geotiff
> in fact has artefacts, ...

Which program you used to confirm that?

> ... the import71 program will not translate any .e00 I've created in
> Manifold, ...

Does this happen with E00 files generated for drawings as well? What are the type and the dimensions of the surface? Does it help if you use Int16 and reduce the dimensions?

> ... and the SDTS raster-to-grid tranlator chokes on an exported SDTS
> from Manifold.

Did you try unchecking the "Use ring registration method" export option?

All in all, if you are using the latest version of 7x, contact tech support. If you are not using the latest version of 7x, upgrade to the latest version and retry the export.

You could also try exporting to ESRI Float Grid, to Raw Binary, or to XYZ.

--
Adam Wachowski
Manifold Development Team