Course Learning IDL for Building Expert Applications in ENVI in University Twente

Interactive Data Language (IDL) is a popular programming language among scientists and is widely used in medical imaging and remote sensing. IDL is optimised for fast calculations on multidimensional arrays and has a wide range of processing libraries and visualisation tools. Dynamic visualisations and image processing applications with graphical user interfaces can be developed relatively easily within the IDL software development environment. This environment, the IDL Workbench, is based on the open-source Eclipse framework, making it a cross-platform solution.
The image processing package Environment for Visualising Images (ENVI) is written in IDL and adds its image processing functionality to IDL. At the same time, ENVI functionality can be easily customised or extended by adding IDL scripts as a plug-in. The combination of IDL and ENVI makes a powerful image processing tool in remote sensing.
This course gives an introduction to image processing with ENVI, then explains the basics of IDL, and finally, through training on real-life remote sensing problems, demonstrates how to extend ENVI functionality with custom-built user functions.

For whom is the course relevant?

This course is aimed at PhD students and working professionals who wish to create their own ENVI functionality by applying IDL programming. Participants must have experience with remote sensing and image processing. Familiarity with ENVI and programming experience with IDL or another programming language are recommended but not required.

What is the course content?

The course will cover the following topics:

1. introduction to image processing with ENVI
2. programme development in the Eclipse-based IDL Workbench
3. using the IDL command line and online help function
4. variable types and variable operators
5. routines for file and memory management
6. programme types and passing of variables through keywords
7. building IDL functions in ENVI Band Math and Spectral Math
8. building IDL procedures using ENVI image processing routines
9. using ENVI widgets for building simple user interfaces
10. using ENVI routines to do (semi-)automated batch processing
11. integration of custom plugins into the ENVI menu and error handling.

What will be achieved?

On completion of this course, participants should be able to:

• work with the IDL command line, IDL Workbench and Online Help
• write IDL scripts for use with ENVI band math and spectral math
• use ENVI library routines to write ENVI plug-ins and batch programmes
• use ENVI widgets routines to build simple graphical user interfaces
• continue programming with IDL{ENVI on their own.

 NFP registration deadline : 01 Jun 2010
 Registration deadline : 04 Oct 2010
more information to : http://www.itc.nl/Pub/Study/Courses/C10-RES-DED-01