FDS/Smokeview Minor Release 5.5

We have just posted a minor release of FDS and Smokeview, version 5.5. Recall that a minor release of FDS means that there will be some change in functionality related to one or more of the following:

• More accurate properties of various gases and liquids using the JANAF Thermochemical Tables
• Restoration of the baroclinic torque term in the momentum equation
• Improved treatment of droplets and sprays
• Improved treatment of various boundary conditions

You may not notice some of the changes, but because they might affect slightly some results, we decided to release these as a minor release.

Many of these improvements have come as a result of the increased verification work that we see being done by the users. Sometimes we find that very simple test cases submitted to the Issue Tracker reveal a feature of the model that is not working as well as it could. Often, these submittals have nothing to do with fire. They are fundamental thermodynamics issues. Takes us back to the good old days of engineering classes. Thanks to all of you who put together these cases and spend a considerable amount of time working with us to diagnose the problems.

In addition to new versions of FDS and Smokeview, there are updated versions of all the manuals. You'll find some work in the FDS V&V Guides related to developments we refer to as "FDS6", the next major release. We're trying to gradually work in the necessary structural changes to the code to prevent the kind of abrupt change that occurred when we transitioned from version 4 to 5. Hopefully, 5 to 6 will be smoother. We do not anticipate major changes to the input or output formats -- the major changes will be under the hood.

Maintenance Release of FDS 5.4.3

There is a new maintenance release of FDS/SMV on

http://code.google.com/p/fds-smv/downloads/list

Please note that for those of you who are not using the 32 bit Windows versions of FDS, there might have been a change to the name of the executable. After downloading the new version, go to the directory where the program was installed and check that there are no older versions present (or rename them if you want to keep them). When in doubt, simply type the name of the executable at the command line and see that the release number is the most current.

The FDS/Smokeview Issue Tracker

Over the past year, I have noticed that the FDS/SMV Discussion Group has changed its focus from general questions, comments and discussion to bug reporting. This is just a quick note to remind everyone that the best way to report a bug in FDS or Smokeview is via the Issue Tracker

http://code.google.com/p/fds-smv/issues/list

and not the Discussion Group. There are several advantages to using the Issue Tracker:

1. It is easier to upload files.
2. The case is assigned to one person and a record of progress is maintained.
3. The rest of the community need not follow the specific details.
4. It provides a good way to collaborate because there is a running record of who has done what and when.

The most important reason for using the Issue Tracker is that it is vital part of our verification process. If you report a bug, and we fix it, there is a record of what was done and why. There is also a way for you to check that the fix worked, and for us to close the case. When we fix a reported bug, the case is marked "Fixed" and the person reporting the bug ought to get an email notice to this effect. It is very important that the person reporting the bug then go and try the latest version to see if the bug has truly been fixed. It is not enough for the case to be marked "Fixed" by us -- it must be "Verified" by you.

So please, those of you who have reported bugs to the Issue Tracker in the past few months, if your case is still only marked "Fixed", could you let us know if the latest version of FDS or Smokeview really fixed the problem. Then we can close the case.

Thanks.

Appeal for FDS/Smokeview References

Last summer, I broadcast a request to the FDS/SMV user community to send us references to journal articles that involved FDS verification or validation. We have literature survey sections in both the Verification and Validation volumes of the FDS Technical Reference Guide

http://fire.nist.gov/fds/documentation.html

that we would like to keep up to date.

Unfortunately, I received only 5 references in over a year, and 3 were from the same person! I'd like to repeat my appeal. Please understand that it is very important that we document FDS V&V work, both the work that we do ourselves and the work done by others. An added benefit is that these papers can help those who are just starting to use FDS understand capabilities and limitations.

For those who have published articles that involve FDS V&V, could you please do the following:

1. Scan the literature survey chapters of either the Verification or Validation Guide to see if your paper is referenced. If it is, please check the reference for accuracy. If it is not, then

2. Send us the reference. To save us some time, it would be very useful to send the reference in this form:

@ARTICLE{Hostikka:FSJ2006,
author = {Hostikka, S. and McGrattan, K.B.},
title = {{Numerical modeling of radiative heat ...}},
journal = {Fire Safety Journal},
year = {2006},
volume = {41},
pages = {76-86}}

We use LaTeX for our documents, and this is the standard format of a reference in the bibliographic database. Even if you do not know LaTeX, getting the information in something close to this format would be a big help.

3. Send an electronic copy of the article, if possible. We cannot post the article because of copyright issues, but it is nice to have the document on file. Plus, it will enable us to write a few sentences in the V&V Guides describing the work. If you could summarize the work in a few sentences, that would be a great help, too. We do not need too much detail. We only want to provide enough information so that the readers can find and read the paper themselves.

For articles that you think appropriate for the FDS Verification Guide, send the information to

randall.mcdermott@nist.gov

For Validation work:

kevin.mcgrattan@nist.gov

And let's not forget that Smokeview is subject to V&V too:

glenn.forney@nist.gov

Thanks!

Release of FDS 5.4.2

A new maintenance release of FDS, version 5.4.2, is available at

http://code.google.com/p/fds-smv/downloads/list

This release contains a number of bug fixes related to experimental routines known collectively as "FDS 6". These changes should not affect the current FDS 5 default functionality. We are gradually working in these improvements to FDS while continuing to maintain the current capabilities. This should make the transition to the new routines smoother once they have been thoroughly shaken down. Many thanks to those of you who have been playing with the new routines. It is only through this process that we can work out the kinks.