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                            Newsletter #116
                           September 3, 2010 

CONTENTS:

 - Release of HDF5 1.8.5-patch1
 - New HDF5 High Level functions for region references, hyperslabs, and bit-fields
 - Pre-release snapshot of HDF-Java 2.7
 - RFC for h5edit tool
 - Events

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Release of HDF5 1.8.5-patch1
============================

HDF5 1.8.5-patch1 has been released.  It is a full source code release,
containing a few important changes and bug fixes, which include:

 - Numerous memory issues were fixed.

 - A bug was fixed that could cause file corruption when using non-default
   sizes of addresses and/or lengths.  This bug, introduced in HDF5 1.8.5,
   could also cause uncorrupted files with this property to be unreadable.

 - CMake support for parallel Fortran was added.

To Obtain HDF5 1.8.5-patch1, go directly to:
   http://www.hdfgroup.org/HDF5/release/obtain5.html

This link can be reached from the HDF Downloads page:
   http://www.hdfgroup.org/downloads/index.html

The release notes contain detailed information regarding HDF5 1.8.5-patch1:
   http://www.hdfgroup.org/ftp/HDF5/current/src/hdf5-1.8.5-patch1-RELEASE.txt

The documentation did not change for this release:
   http://www.hdfgroup.org/HDF5/doc/index.html

The HDF5 1.8.6 release will be available in October 2010, for those who prefer
to wait.


New HDF5 High Level functions for region references, hyperslabs, and bit-fields
===============================================================================

We are pleased to announce a new set of C and Fortran convenience functions
designed to facilitate access to remote sensing data in HDF5. The data will be
gathered by a new generation of low earth orbiting satellites that monitor
environmental conditions for long-range weather and climate forecasts.
(Refer to the NPOESS project for details: http://www.hdfgroup.org/projects/npoess/)

The source code, installation instructions and a draft of the User's Guide are
available from:

   http://www.hdfgroup.uiuc.edu/ftp/pub/outgoing/NPOESS/source/

The Reference Manual can be found at:

   http://www.hdfgroup.org/projects/npoess/HL_NPOESS/doc/index.html

While these functions were created to facilitate access to NPOESS data, some
of them may be useful to anyone working with HDF5 region references, hyperslab
selections, or bit-fields. For a quick introduction to region references and
hyperslab selections see the HDF5 Tutorial:

   http://www.hdfgroup.org/HDF5/Tutor/advanced.html

We are looking forward to receiving your comments on this new set of
routines.


Pre-release snapshot of HDF-Java 2.7
====================================

A pre-release snapshot of HDF-Java 2.7 is available for download from:

   http://www.hdfgroup.org/ftp/HDF5/hdf-java-2.7-snapshot/snapshot2/

This version of HDFView includes a new feature to display bit-field data
packed into an integer (a.k.a. NPOESS quality flags). It also includes
wrappers to support HDF5 1.8 features. For more information see:

   http://www.hdfgroup.org/ftp/HDF5/hdf-java-2.7-snapshot/snapshot2/RELEASE.txt


RFC for h5edit tool
===================

We are actively seeking input regarding a new tool, h5edit, that is under
development.  This tool is a command-line tool for editing HDF5 files.
See the Request For Comments (RFC) page for more information:

   http://www.hdfgroup.org/pubs/rfcs/


Events
======

September 28-30, 2010: 
   HDF and HDF-EOS Workshop XIV (http://www.hdfeos.org/workshops/ws14/workshop_fourteen.php)


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