AEMC's DataView data analysis software is very versatile.
It accepts raw data recorded by a number of AEMC instrument families, and displays that
data on your PC in a wide variety of ways.
This includes reports formatted with templates that ship with the product, or with templates
created and customized by the user to suit the specific needs of their facilities.
To accommodate the downloading, storage, manipulation, and display of measurement information, DataView
uses a number of different file types and formats.
These files, usually identified by extensions specific to DataView, can sometimes cause
some confusion among new DataView users.
In this video, we review the various file types used by DataView.
We define each type, and explain its role within DataView's features and functionality.
As explained in several other videos available on AEMC's YouTube channel, the primary purpose
of DataView is explained in the product name.
The program takes measurement data recorded on your AEMC instrument, and presents it for
viewing on a PC.
There are four main DataView file types involved in this process: icp, dvb, dvt, and dvw.
By default, these files are stored in the computer's Documents folder, in the DataView
sub-folder.
• Icp files, also called instrument control panel files, contain the raw data downloaded
from the instrument.
These files are created when you open the DataView Control Panel and save downloading
recorded data to the PC.
Note that each DataView Control Panel has its own icp file format.
DataView assigns names to these files as they are created, based on data such as the name
of the file as it is stored on the instrument, the name of the Control Panel creating the
file, and other factors.
By default, icp files are stored in the DataFiles sub-folder in the DataView folder.
• Dvb files, also called DataView database files, contain data that has been specially
formatted for report generation within DataView.
These files are created automatically when you use the DataView interface to create a
report from an icp file.
The name of the dvb file is based on the name of the icp file.
As with icp files, dvb files by default are stored in the DataFiles sub-folder.
• Dvt files are DataView report templates.
These templates determine how the data contained in the dvb files is formatted and displayed.
DataView includes a number of standard templates that come with the product.
You can also create templates to your own requirements and specifications.
Standard templates come with pre-defined names; while custom templates are assigned names
by the user who creates them.
By default, dvt files are stored in the Templates sub-folder in the DataView folder.
• Dvw files contain DataView reports.
Whenever you save a DataView report, the program creates a dvw file to store it on the PC.
The name of the dvw file is assigned by the user when the report is saved.
By default, these files are stored in the Reports sub-folder.
The basic process is as follows: When you open DataView and use the Control Panel to
download measurement data from your instrument to the PC, the Control Panel creates an icp
file to store this data.
If you then choose to view this data as a report, DataView creates a dvb file as the
database in which to store the data derived from the icp file.
DataView then prompts you to choose a dvt file as the template to use to select, organize,
and display the data in the dvb file.
If you then save the report, DataView creates a dvw file in which to store it.
We should note that downloaded data can also be organized and displayed as a Microsoft
Excel-compatible spreadsheet.
You can do this by selecting the "export to a spreadsheet" option in the Control Panel.
When you do this, the data is stored as either an xls or csv file, depending on the Control
Panel used.
Although these file types are not specific to DataView, they can play an important role
in viewing and distributing data recorded by AEMC instruments.
In addition to the ones we've already mentioned, there are two other file types associated
with DataView.
The first is dvc, or DataView configuration file.
This contains the instrument configuration settings specified by the user through the
Control Panel.
Some Control Panels allow you to save these settings to a file on your PC, and then use
this file for future configuration sessions.
This can be useful in situations when you want to configure multiple instruments in
exactly the same way.
Also, some long-time users of DataView may have encountered the file type dvl, or layout
file.
This file contains layout settings that define how the Control Panel displays data on the
PC screen.
Layout files are no longer used by more recently released versions of DataView Control Panels,
so in most situations it's probably unlikely you'll ever have a need to work with dvl files.
This concludes our review of DataView file types.
Be sure to visit our YouTube channel for additional videos about DataView and other AEMC products.