Flexweb

-How do I navigate through FlexWeb?

How do I navigate through FlexWeb? ‑ FlexWeb consists of several layers of information, and these layers will always be grouped together into a menu box located in the top left-hand corner of each page. The primary layer, which consists of the homepage, and the major sections of FlexWeb (such as Forums, Software, FAQ, ...) will always be visible on every page. When you follow a link in this menu to a specific sections, such as "Software", you will see that a new menu group has appeared. There are a number of subgroup menus that can appear, but at any given moment, only one or two will be visible; one menu for the major section, and another for the section you are in. If no second menu is visible, then there is no functionality associated with that section.

A "quick guide" to Flexweb can be downloaded here: Using_Flexweb.pdf

-How can I download all my files after running FIRST online?

How can I download all my files after running FIRST online? ‑ On every results page there is a tile that is named "Files". It lists all the files associated with that specific FIRST analysis. Each file is a link, and you may download and/or view each one individually. However, if you would prefer to download all the files at once, there are two options. At the bottom of the "Files" tile there are two buttons. One will create a ZIP file, and the other will create a TAR file that has been compressed with GZIP. When you click on either of these buttons, a new file will appear with the appropriate extension. You may download this new file, and decompress it on your own machine for access to all the files.

-I'm in the middle of a project, can I still use the old version FIRST 3.1 on flexweb?
-What is the difference between FIRST 3.1 and FIRST 5?
-What will happen to my old data?

I'm in the middle of a project, can I still use the old version FIRST 3.1 on flexweb? ‑ Yes. We will be keeping the old version of the software available until the end of the year, 2005. After that time, FIRST 3.1 will no longer be available via FlexWeb. You can access the old version here: FIRST 3.1 on FlexWeb. NOTE: Not all of the links on the old site work! Many of the linked files have been removed to make way for the new site. The primary links, "Run FIRSTweb" and "File Cabinet" still work. We highly recommend that you start using the new software as soon as it becomes available, as we are no longer supporting FIRST 3.1.

What is the difference between FIRST 3.1 and FIRST 5? ‑ Development of FIRST 3.1 at ASU stopped in January, 2004. At that time, we began rewriting the various pieces of FIRST3.1, which consisted of modules in four different programming languages. The new software, FIRST release 5, or just FIRST 5, is a single new program written in ANSI C++. The core algorithm, the pebble game, remains the same. However, we have made many modifications to how the program identifies bonds, builds networks, and generates results. Some of these improvements are actually bug fixes for deficiences in the older versions of FIRST. Because of this, you will probably see changes in the way FIRST 5 builds a bond network as compared to FIRST 3.1.

What will happen to my old data? ‑ Your old data will still be available if you access the old site. We will not be linking old data into the new databases. We recommend you download your file, and then run them through.