Introducing the Toolbox in SMS 13.2

By aquaveo on March 2, 2022

One of the new features added to SMS 13.2 is the Toolbox. The addition of the Toolbox allows multiple tools to be collected into one location. Many of these tools previously existed in other locations in SMS such as the Dataset Toolbox. In addition to these tools new tools have been developed for the Toolbox.

You can access the Toolbox using the Toolbox macro button located on the macro toolbar. Clicking the macro will open the Toolbox dialog containing a list of available tools.

The tools have been organized into folders in the Tools tab. Examples of folders include: Coverages, Datasets, Rasters, and Unstructured Grids.

  • Coverage tools are used to manipulate coverages and feature objects.
  • Datasets tools are many of the tools that have previously existed in the Dataset Toolbox and are used to manipulate datasets.
  • Rasters and Lidar tools are used to adjust and clean up raster and lidar data.
  • Unstructured Grid tools can manipulate and adjust unstructured grids (UGrids).
Example Compare Dataset Tool in the Toolbox for SMS 13.2

In addition, there will be folders for manipulating data related to specific numeric models. For example, there is a folder with tools that work with ADCIRC data.

The Toolbox also contains a History tab. This tab keeps a record of all the tool runs used with your projects. As a result, it allows you to run the same tool again using the same settings. For example, you might use the Compare Dataset tool to compare the solution sets from two different simulations, then discover that there was an issue in one of the simulations. After you fixed the simulation and ran it again, you could use the history feature of the toolbox to run the Compare Dataset tool using the same settings as before.

The History tab also shows if a tool executed successfully or not. Furthermore, it lets you make notes on the different tool runs, allowing you to clarify why a tool run failed or what you were hoping to accomplish with a particular tool. This can facilitate collaborating with colleagues when working on the same project.

Additional tools will be added to the Toolbox in future versions of SMS. Try out the Toolbox in SMS 13.2 beta today!

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