Working with Grail Files

This section explains how to open, name, save, and quit Chalice grail files.

Creating a New File

When you launch Chalice, it creates a new file called "untitled.grail" by default. The name appears in the Chalice title bar in the upper-left corner of the screen. You can also select "New" from the File menu.

Opening an Existing File

You can call a specific file when launching Chalice from a UNIX shell or NT Command Prompt window by typing the "chalice" command followed by the filename. For example:

chalice filename.grail

Or you can use the Open command in the File menu to open a file from within Chalice:

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice Main Menu and select the "Open" command.

  2. Chalice displays a "Load from:" dialog box that you use to specify the file to load.

  3. Specify the directory that contains the file you wish to open.

  4. By default, Chalice file dialogs display your login home directory in the Directory field. You can type the pathname of the directory you wish to access into the Directory field (be sure to press the Enter key when you are done). Alternatively, you can click on directory entries in the Directories List to navigate through your file system.

    You can also use the Jump and Up buttons to navigate through the directory hierarchy:
  5. Jump moves you to recently accessed directories, as well as providing direct navigation to the $JOB and $HOME directories.
  6. Up moves you one step higher in the directory structure.

  7. The Job field will contain the directory path that has been defined for the $JOB variable. Job lets you associate files with a specific project. See "Setting Global Variables " in chapter 6 for more information.
  8. Double-click the name of the file in the Files List that you wish to open.

  9. Alternatively, you can key the name of the file into the "File:" field and click the Accept button.

    Chalice loads and displays the specified grail file.

    Optional: You may click the Cancel button instead of the Accept button to cancel the load operation and dismiss the dialog.

Opening Files Created in Older Versions of Chalice

When you upgrade to the latest version of Chalice, you can open a file that was created in the previous version by following the same procedure outlined above. Chalice will convert the file before opening, as follows:

  • The grail file is converted to the new version.
  • The converted grail file is renamed by replacing the original ".grail" extension with the "v.X.X.grail" extension, where "X.X" represents the current version number.
  • The converted, renamed grail file is saved to the same directory as the original file (the old grail file is not deleted).

Chalice loads and displays the file, along with a notifier informing you that the conversion process has taken place.

Note:
Because a new file is written to disk, you must have write permissions for the relevant directory or you will not be able to open the file.

Saving a New File

To save a new, untitled grail file:

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice Main Menu and select the "Save" command.

  2. Chalice displays a "Save to:" dialog box.
  3. Specify the directory in which you wish to save the file.

  4. (See step 2 of "Opening an Existing File " above for more information.)
  5. Key a new name into the "File:" field.

  6. Chalice assigns new files the name "untitled.grail" by default. You can change the name when you save the file.
    SGI IRIX Users:
    The name must conform to standard UNIX nomenclature. You should avoid using spaces or special characters such as the semicolon (;), backslash (\), ampersand (&), exclamation point (!), asterisk (*), or pipe (|). (For more information, refer to your IRIX documentation.)
    NT Users:
    We recommend that you follow UNIX naming conventions to ensure compatibility when exchanging files across platforms.
  7. Click the Accept button.

  8. Chalice saves the file using the name and directory location you specified.

Files saved in the current version of Chalice cannot be opened in earlier versions of the software.

Using "Save As"

You can save a copy of a currently open grail file at any time by renaming it using the "Save as" command under the File menu. You must assign a unique name, unless you want to overwrite an existing file.

To rename the file:

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice Main Menu and select the "Save As" command.

  2. Chalice displays a "Save to:" dialog box.
  3. Follow the directions for "Saving a New File " above, starting with step 2.

Merging Files

You can merge the contents of another file into the currently open grail file using the Merge command under the File menu.

Tip:
To avoid placing the merged nodes on top of existing nodes, be sure to scroll to a clear area of the workspace before selecting Merge from the File menu.

To merge two files:

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice Main Menu and select the "Merge" command.

  2. Chalice displays a "Load from:" dialog box.
  3. Select the grail file you wish to merge into the currently open file.

  4. See "Opening an Existing File " for more information on navigating the directory structure to locate a specific file.
  5. Double-click the name of the file in the File List that you wish to merge.

  6. Chalice places the contents of the specified file in the center of the workspace of the currently open file.

Exporting Nodes to a New File

You can export any selected node or nodes to a new file using the "Save Selected As" command in the Chalice File menu:

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice Main Menu and select the "Save Selected As..." command.

  2. Chalice displays an "Export to:" dialog box.
  3. Specify the directory in which you wish to save the file.

  4. See step 2 of "Opening an Existing File " if you need more information.
  5. Key a name for the new file into the "File:" field.

  6. See step 3 of "Saving a New File " for information on file naming conventions.
  7. Click the Accept button.

  8. Chalice saves the file using the name and directory location you specified.

Quitting Chalice

  1. Pull down the File menu from the Chalice main menu and select the "Quit Chalice" command.

  2. Chalice displays a notifier panel that allows you to
    • save the currently open file and quit Chalice,
    • discard any changes made to the open file during the current session and quit Chalice,
    • cancel the quit operation.




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