Instructions and Documentation

January 2009

 

Table of Contents

 

What is FLARE? (Back to Table of Contents)

Welcome to FLARE! This program was developed by the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Huntsville, Alabama in 2002 to provide timely, pertinent weather information to local customers.  It displays varying types of weather data, from current conditions, to satellite and radar loops, to current forecast scrolls and graphics, and much more. Since its debut, FLARE has spread across the Tennessee Valley, the Southeast, and the entire United States as a quick and easy weather information display for our media and government partners.  NWS WRH is now adapting FLARE for dissemination in the Western Region for use as a composite weather display tool.  FLARE stands for Fully Localized Atmospheric Research Environment.

Installation (Back to Table of Contents)

To install you first need to install the Java Runtime Environment (JRE).  The newest version of FLARE requires Java 5.0.

At the following link, locate Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 5.0.  Click on DOWNLOAD and the ACCEPT button.

Download Java for your computer operating system here.

For Windows, select the Windows Offline Installation

(Future Reference: For Linux, select the Linux self-extracting file)

Run the JRE executable once downloaded to install Java.

Windows Systems

  1. Download the Windows executable file from http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/wrh/ssd/flare.msi
  2. Run flare.msi
  3. FLARE will install, by default, into C:\FLARE, and place a shortcut on your desktop.
  4. The software installation will prompt for the following variables to generate a default configuration file:
    1. Location         (eg, “Salt Lake City”)
    2. CWA               (eg, SLC)
    3. Metar Site      (eg, KSLC)
    4. Default County           (eg, Salt Lake)
    5. County Code             (eg, UTC035)
    6. Zone Code                 (eg, UTZ003)
    7. Ridge Radar Site      (eg, MTX)

Blank responses to the above prompts will generate a configuration file for the default settings shown (SLC).  These settings may all be modified later via the FLARE Editor GUI described below to create a more customized display.

You may re-initialize the default configuration file by re-running the script C:\FLARE\genflareconfig.bat.

 

** NOTE ** Re-running the installation program or installation script will overwrite the configuration file unless it is first saved to another filename.

  1. Double-click on the desktop icon to run the program.

(Future Reference: Linux Systems are planned for future implementations)

Starting Out (Back to Table of Contents)

FLARE has been pre-loaded with common components. The screen may flicker the first time you run FLARE as the program automatically resizes the components to fit your screen resolution.

The "default" set up will look something like this:

This display is for Salt Lake City.  During installation you will be prompted for default settings that will allow you to enter local information based on your preferences.  You'll learn how to edit these settings further (if desired) for your location below.

What to expect in the initial configuration

-          There are five main panels: a Looping panel, Observation panel, Watch/Warning/Advisory (WWA) Key panel, Period Forecast panel, and a Scrolling Forecast panel.

-          The Looping panel is pre-configured for: Local RADAR, Western Region WWA-map, WFO WWA-map, Local Satellite, GOES West Infrared and Water Vapor satellite images, and CONUS Graphical Temperatures.

-          The images will not begin looping until enough time has transpired to load a full loop of six images.  This may take 20-30 minutes for RADAR and ~90 minutes for satellite images.

-          The High and Low temperatures displayed in the Observation panel reflect temperatures since the start of the application.

-          If a warning is in effect for your selected area then a “Warning is in Effect” banner will be displayed and the scrolling forecast will change to display the warning.

Components Overview (Back to Table of Contents)

Each "element" in the FLARE display is called a component. There are 12 different components available, each of which has a different role in providing weather (or other pertinent) information:

Scaled Image Panel

Displays a static image from your local hard drive.


Scaled Image URL Panel

Displays a static image from an internet location (URL).


Text Panel

Displays a fixed text string.


Looping panel

Displays a series of related images (usually something like radar or satellite images) in one or more animated loops.


Scrolling Panel

Horizontally scrolls a fixed text string.


Observation Panel

Displays the current conditions (temperature, sky cover, dew-point, wind speeds, etc.) for a selected observation site.


Vertical Scroll Panel

Vertically scrolls a fixed text string.


Forecast Scroll Panel

Horizontally scrolls the most recent local National Weather Service forecast for a selected location or county.


Forecast Period Panel

Displays the most recent local National Weather Service forecast for a selected location or county in graphical form (similar to the forecast available on the Internet).


Vertical Scroll URL Panel

Vertically scrolls text from a specified URL.

 

HTML Panel

Displays a dynamic HTML page from a specified URL.

 

Time Panel

Displays the current time.

For an example, here's how the default screen breaks down in terms of its components:

  1. Looping Panel, currently displaying a Salt Lake City RADAR image.
  2. HTML Panel, displaying the regional WWA-map keys.
  3. Forecast Period Panel, displaying the forecast for Salt Lake County, UT.
  4. Forecast Scroll Panel, displaying the descriptive forecast for Salt Lake County, UT.
  5. Observation Panel, displaying the 10:05 am observation from the Salt Lake City Airport.
  6. Time Panel, displaying the day of the week, date, time, and time zone.

 

Update Intervals

The update interval (how often FLARE checks for new information) is configurable for each component.  Here are the default settings:

-          METAR and Climate data = 10 minutes

-          Zone updates = 60 minutes

-          Looping Images = 20 – 60 minutes

-          Warnings = 2 minutes

Adding Components (Back to Table of Contents)

Adding a component to your display is relatively easy.

  1. Find an "open" or "empty" section of the display not being used by another component.
  2. Click the right mouse button. A menu like the one on the left (below) should pop up.
  3. Select "Add Component" and a submenu will open up showing all of the available components (descriptions listed above).

  4. Once you decide which component to add, select it, then click the left mouse button. A default version of that component will appear just below where you initially right-clicked.

Moving, Resizing, and Deleting Components (Back to Table of Contents)

The most basic things you can change about a component are its size and location. To adjust a component in any way, click the right mouse button on the component you wish to move. A menu like this will pop up:

To move, select "Move" and click the left mouse button. The component's current dimensions will be outlined with a yellow line, and it will begin following your mouse pointer. Position the component where you want it, then click the left mouse button to drop it there.

To delete, select "Delete" and click the left mouse button. Note: The program will prompt you before deleting the component.

You may resize the component in 3 ways: proportionally (both horizontally and vertically), just vertically, and just horizontally. To resize in any of these 3 ways, select the appropriate resize option, and click the left mouse button. The component's current dimensions will be outlined with a yellow line (as shown):



Place your mouse pointer over the outlined component first.

If you have a mouse wheel:
To resize up, or larger, scroll your mouse wheel downward. To resize down, or smaller, scroll your mouse wheel upward. Once you are satisfied with the size, click the left mouse button to set the size.

If you do not have a mouse wheel (or prefer not to use it):
Use the up and down arrow keys to resize vertically; up will shrink the item, down will expand it. Use the left and right arrow keys to resize horizontally; left will shrink the item, right will expand it.

 

Editing Component Properties (Back to Table of Contents)

Each component will have several individual properties allowing you to tailor its appearance. To open the FLARE Editor GUI, right-click on the component in question, and select Edit.




Depending on the complexity of the component, you may have any number of items to edit. The Text Panel, for example, will have only 5 properties to edit; the properties window would look like this:



Some of the common properties that can be edited, no matter what the component, include:

name

You may wish to provide a "name" or "label" for the component you are editing.

 

backgroundcolor

Set the background color of the component (this may not actually appear depending on the setting for opaque).


textcolor

Set the text color of the component.


textfont

Set the font of the component (fonts will depend on your system fonts).


opaque

Sets whether or not you will be able to "see through" the component. For example, a TRUE setting for a text panel will show only the text. A FALSE setting will show the text and a shaded box around it (box color is set by the background color setting).

Many components that get their data from the Internet (Scaled Image URL Panel, Looping Panel, Observation Panel, Forecast Scroll Panel, Forecast Period Panel, and Vertical Scroll URL Panel) will have common properties.

URL (or ZoneURL)

Specifies the location of the text file containing the text, or forecast for your area. This is usually configured by adding a county through the general properties GUI.

 

updateinterval (zoneupdateinterval)

Sets how frequently, in milliseconds, FLARE should check the Internet for an updated observation or forecast. The default for the forecast, for example, is usually 3600000 ms, or every hour.

 

pil

NWS identifier for specific products, in an AAABBBCCC format (usually the "XYZ" from the URL above will be part of the identifier).

 

zonecode

Three-digit code for the county or forecast zone you live in (for example, Salt Lake County, UT, is UTZ003; UT for Utah, Z for zone, and 003 for the zone number). This is usually configured by adding a county through the general properties GUI.

Scrolling components will all have common properties such as frame rate and speed, allowing you to adjust the smoothness and speed of the scroll.

General Application Properties (Back to Table of Contents)

Setting the general application properties will help to configure many other components and settings. To access the general applications GUI, simply right-click on any empty part of the display and select "Edit General Properties".



The general properties GUI looks like this:

name

Not used for the general properties GUI.


skinlocation

Java skins can be used to give GUI's and windows a different look and feel. The default location is in the C:\FLARE directory.


newComponentslocation

Not yet available. Future versions of FLARE will allow you to check for software updates, and the URL for the updates would be specified here.


enableWarningComponents

Offers the ability to turn Warning Mode on or off.


warnTotalLocation

A central text file maintained by NWS regions which specify the current watches, warnings, and advisories in effect (default is for Southern Region).


warnUpdateInterval

Specifies how often, in milliseconds, the software should check the Internet for new severe warnings.  These include Severe Storms, Tornados, Winter Storm Warnings, and Flood Warnings. The default interval is 120000 ms (2 minutes).


WarningLeadingLocation

Specifies a URL folder (default is http://www.srh.noaa.gov/data/) where NWS regions maintain a database of text products.


counties

Configure a list of one or more counties or locations you wish to gather data and warnings for. Clicking "Add" (or "Edit" for an existing county) will allow you to specify the county name, its zone code, its county code, and the office it is covered by. Setting this list will make it much easier to configure warning and forecast components.

Background Properties (Back to Table of Contents)

The background properties set the general look and feel of the FLARE display. To access the background properties GUI, simply right-click on any empty part of the display and select "Edit Background Properties".



The background properties GUI looks like this:

name

Not used for the background properties GUI.


backgroundimage

Select a single or repeating image from a directory on your hard drive. FLARE comes with a series of background images in the C:\FLARE\Images directory.


backgroundcolor

Set a single background color rather than an image.


backgroundimageshow

Enables the display of an image for the background.


backgroundrepeat

Enables "tiling" of the background image if the image is smaller than the screen size.

Warning Mode (Back to Table of Contents)

FLARE has a Warning Mode, which will be triggered by the issuance of a severe weather warning. This mode has its own configuration, allowing you to change colors and components to increase your audience's "alert level" or situational awareness. In the example below the "normal" mode is on the left, and the "warning" mode is on the right which includes a small warning banner.   When actual warnings are in effect, the scrolling forecast text/panel will be replaced with the scrolling warning message.  Background colors may also be modified in the warning mode for a greater visual effect.  Currently the warning mode is triggered only for the following PILs (Product Identifier Labels): TOR, SVR, SVS, SPS, FLW, FFS, FFW, WSW, and RFW.

TOR = Tornado Warning,  SVR = Severe Thunderstorm Warning,  SVS = Severe Weather Statement,  SPS = Special Weather Statement,  FLW = Flood Warning,  FFS = Flash Flood Statement,  FFW = Flash Flood Warning,  WSW = Winter Weather Warnings, Watches and Advisories,  RFW = Red Flag Warning (Fire Weather).

There are several ways to set up the warning mode configuration. If you wish to start from scratch, you can right-click on an empty part of the display to open the "main" configuration menu, then select Warning Edit Mode.



This will open a "new" display where you can begin to add and edit components just like in normal mode. Right-clicking an empty part of the display in warning edit mode will offer you the chance to switch to Normal Edit Mode.

Another option is to simply copy your "normal" mode properties, and then edit from there. All you need to do is right-click on a component you'd like to copy to the warning mode, then click Copy Configuration to Warning Mode.

Exiting FLARE (Back to Table of Contents)

To exit FLARE, simply right-click on an empty part of the display, and click the Exit option:

Configuration Files and Locations (Back to Table of Contents)

The full configuration, including details for the general display, and each individual component, are stored in an XML format on your local hard drive. On a Windows machine, this is usually located in C:\FLARE\XMLConfig\currentconfig\ and the default configuration file is WindowsConfig1024.xml.

 

How to Install Extras (Back to Table of Contents)

Not yet available. Check back in future releases of FLARE!

Contact Information (Back to Table of Contents)

If you have problems or questions that can't be solved by this documentation, contact

            Mike Doney, Michael.A.Doney@noaa.gov

or you may contact the developer, Jason Burks, ITO at Huntsville, AL.

E-Mail: Jason.Burks@noaa.gov

Software Disclaimer (Back to Table of Contents)

This software and related documentation was developed by National Weather Service employees in the course of their official duties.  Pursuant to title 17, Section 105 of the United States Code this software is not subject to copyright protection and therefore may be used, copied, modified, and distributed without fee or cost. Parties who develop software incorporating predominantly NWS developed software must include notice as required by title 17, section 403 of the United States Code.   NWS provides no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the correctness of the furnished software or the suitability for any purpose.  NWS assumes no responsibility, whatsoever, for its use by other parties, about its quality, reliability, or any other characteristic. 

The software has been tested, but as with any complex software, there could be undetected errors. Users who find errors are requested to report them to the NWS (see Contact Information above).  The NWS has limited resources to assist non-NWS users; however, we make an attempt to fix reported problems whenever possible.