Tutorial-00: CLI Fundamentals

The simplest way to use ThermoParser is via the command-line interface (CLI). This is easily navigable due to its modular structure. To get started, simply type tp into the command line, and a list of modules will be returned along with short descriptions. Pick one and type the full thing in, e.g. tp get, to get a similar list of the available functions. Then type in all three parts to get a detailed description of how to use the function, e.g. tp get zt. If further arguments have been given, this can be accessed with --help or -h.

Typically, you will need one or more data files, which are inputted directly after the command, e.g. tp plot avg-rates mesh.h5. The type of file is hinted at at the top of the --help, e.g. Usage: tp plot avg-rates [OPTIONS] [MESH_H5].... Then there is a list of optional inputs for customisation. Options with a slash, e.g. --total/--nototal are toggles, which can be appended by themselves, while other options normally require something else written afterwards, e.g. -n 1e19. If there is a list in square brackets, the appended text must be from that list. Many options can take multiple values, in which case the tag will usually need to be repeated: -m '*' -m 'o'. A notable exception is in tp plot ztdiff.

Later tutorials will mention if the CLI can be used instead, but will focus on the python interface.