---
name: "dirfile2ascii"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "libgetdata-tools"
version: "0.11.0-15+b1"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/dirfile2ascii"
---

# dirfile2ascii(1)

output dirfile database vectors as ASCII text

## NAME

dirfile2ascii — output dirfile database vectors as ASCII text

## SYNOPSIS

**dirfile2ascii** \[ *OPTION* \]... *DIRFILE* \[ \[ **-a** \| **-A** \| **-e** \| **-E** \| **-F** \| **-g** \| **-G** \| **-o** \| **-i** \| **-u** \| **-x** \| **-X** \] *FIELD* \]...

## DESCRIPTION

Fetches data from a [dirfile(5)](/dirfile/5.md) database specified by *DIRFILE* and writes it as ASCII to standard output.  Any number of vector *FIELD*s may be specified.  Each specified field is printed in a separate column.

Mandatory arguments to long options are mandatory for short options too.

- **-d**, **--delimeter**=*delim*

  separate columns by *delim*. (Default: a single space.)

- **-f**, **--first-frame**=*first\_frame***-***last\_frame*

  read from frame *first\_frame* to frame *last\_frame* (inclusive).

- **-f**, **--first-frame**=*first\_frame***:***nframes*

  equivalent to **--first-frame**=*first\_frame* **--num-frames**=*nframes*.

- **-f**, **--first-frame**=*first\_frame*

  If *first\_frame* \>= 0, start reading at frame *first\_frame*. If  *first\_frame* is -1 and **--num-frames**=*nframes* is specified, read the last *nframes* frames.  If **--first-frame** is not specified, reading starts at frame zero.

- **-n**, **--num-frames**=*nframes*

  read at most *nframes* frames.  If not specified, or if **nframes** = 0, all frames to the end-of-field are read.

- **-p**, **--precision**=*format*

  use *format* to format output. *format* may contain any of the flag characters, a field width, and/or a precision as specified in [**printf**(3)](/printf/3.md). It may *not* contain a length modifier.

- **-q**, **--quiet**

  don't write diagnostic messages on standard error.  (This is the default behaviour).

- **-s**, **--skip**=*frame\_skip*

  if *frame\_skip* \> 0, output only one sample for every *frame\_skip* frames.

- **-v**, **--verbose**

  write diagnostic messages on standard error.

- **-z**, **--fill**=*STRING*

  Fill columns which go past the end of their corresponding field with the string *STRING*. The default behaviour is to fill columns with floating-point conversions with **NaN** and columns with integer conversion with **0**, which mirrors what occurs when an attempt is made to print data from before the start of a field.  (Note: the default behaviour cannot be reproduced with this option, since *STRING* is applied to all columns, regardless of conversion type.)

In addition to the above, each *FIELD* argument may be preceded by a short option, one of: **-a**, **-A**, **-e**, **-E**, **-F**, **-g**, **-G**, **-i**, **-o**, **-u**, **-x**, **-X**, indicating the conversion to be used.  See [**printf**(3)](/printf/3.md) for the meaning of these conversion specifiers.  The output flags, width, and precision may be specified by using **--precision**. If no conversion specifier is given, **%f** is used.

For conversion specifiers **%a**, **%A**, **%e**, **%E**, **%f**, **%F**, **%g**, **%G**, data is read from the dirfile as double precision floats.  For conversion specifier **%i**, data is read as 64-bit signed integers.  For conversion specifiers **%o**, **%u**, **%x**, **%X**, data is read as 64-bit unsigned integers.

## LIMITATIONS

No native support for printing complex data is provided.  This may be worked around by using [dirfile(5)](/dirfile/5.md) representation suffixes.  For example, the command

-

  **dirfile2ascii** *DIRFILE* *FIELD***.r** *FIELD***.i**

will print the real and imaginary parts of the complex valued field *FIELD* in the first and second columns, respectively.

## AUTHOR

dirfile2ascii was written by Matthew Truch and D. V. Wiebe.

## REPORTING BUGS

Please send reports of bugs to getdata-devel@lists.sourceforge.net

The GetData home page: \<http://getdata.sourceforge.net/\>

## COPYRIGHT

Copyright © 2010 Matthew Truch.

dirfile2ascii is licenced under the GNU LPGL version 2.1 or later.

This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it. There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.

## SEE ALSO

**defile**(1), [**dirfile**(5)](/dirfile/5.md), [**printf**(3)](/printf/3.md)