2.3 Variables

CDF variables are the mechanism for storing data. (Attributes are used to store metadata.) A new variable may be created   in a CDF at any time. Two types of variables are supported: rVariables   and zVariables.   The main difference is that all rVariables in a CDF have the same dimensionality   whereas zVariables can have differing dimensionalities. In the following sections differences between the two types will be noted where appropriate.

• 2.3.1 Accessing
• 2.3.2 Opening
• 2.3.3 Closing
• 2.3.4 Naming
• 2.3.5 Numbering
• 2.3.6 Deleting
• 2.3.7 Dimensionality
• 2.3.8 Records
  • Numbering
  • Allocated Records
  • Initial Records
  • Extend Records
• 2.3.9 Data Specification
  • Data Type
  • Number of Elements
• 2.3.10 Record Variance
• 2.3.11 Dimension Variance
• 2.3.12 Majority
• 2.3.13 Single Value Access
• 2.3.14 Hyper Access
  • Example (Fortran application)
• 2.3.15 Sequential Access
  • Example (Fortran application)
• 2.3.16 Multiple Variable Access
• 2.3.17 Variable Pad Values