OpenSees Tcl to Python Converter

Although Python is a more popular programming language than Tcl, I suspect Tcl remains the most used language for OpenSees. Python is gaining ground though as it appeals to newer users of OpenSees. I don't have data to back any of this up. To help the transition from Tcl to Python, OpenSeesPy was designed to … Continue reading OpenSees Tcl to Python Converter →

No Exit

Have you ever seen OpenSees.exe vanish all of a sudden or received a "Kernel died" message when running OpenSeesPy in a Jupyter Notebook? The C++ exit() function is the likely culprit. Or a segmentation fault. But this post will focus on the exit() function. Some grepping and line counting reveals over 2,000 calls to exit() … Continue reading No Exit →

Polymorphic Pitfall

Polymorphism is what makes OpenSees, and other object-oriented software, flexible and extensible. With polymorphism, you can program to an interface, not an implementation. You see this approach all over OpenSees--elements don't care how materials compute stress and tangent (more here); integrators don't care how the elements form resisting force and tangent stiffness (more here); and … Continue reading Polymorphic Pitfall →

Tcl as a Front End for Python

I know I'm not the only one who enjoys converting between scripting languages or between structural analysis programs. I've had fun writing bespoke Tcl middleware between OpenSees and MATLAB, but now OpenSeesPy makes all of that obsolete. But, let's say you have an OpenSees Tcl script that you'd like to run in OpenSeesPy. There's a … Continue reading Tcl as a Front End for Python →