The IDL Programming Language

When you need to transform complex scientific data from numbers into visualizations to convey meaningful information – such as 2- and 3-dimensional lines, surface and contour plots, or high-quality images – you need a programming language that is intuitive and powerful at the same time, and one that doesn’t require excessive time and effort to produce expert-level results.

IDL is the programming language choice of scientists and engineers because it’s easy to learn, easy to use, and requires fewer lines of code than other programming languages, so getting from data to discovery is easier and faster.

What Makes IDL so Easy and Effective?

Dynamic Type System

Intuitive Rules and Conventions

Access Virtually any Type of Data

Download a complete list of IDL functions and routines.

The IDL programming language requires fewer lines of code than many other languages (bottom). Five lines of IDL code were used to create a contour plot of coastline topography (top).

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