The staff of the Single Dish Development (SDD) group in Green Bank extends their appreciation to the review panel for the comprehensive attention given to evaluating software development activities for the GBT. Furthermore, the group appreciates the recognition that a sound body of material and presentations was crafted within the short time period allotted for review preparations, and that the intended directions for GBT software are well aligned with the Observatory-wide vision. The SDD agrees with all of the panel's recommendations at various levels, and has no substantial disagreement with any of the directions recommended by the review report.
The panel's top three concerns were development of a Science Data Model (SDM) for the GBT, more emphasis on maintenance and getting the most science out of the GBT with existing facilities, and bounding the commitment of resources to the IDL project. Development of the data model has already been initiated and will continue throughout the winter, using IDL development as a means to produce the initial draft. The GBT Project Planning Committee has decided to dedicate a larger resource allocation to maintenance activities each cycle, and to maintain this allocation in spite of pressures from new development projects. Finally, the project management team for the IDL activities agrees to finalize the exact scope of functions to be delivered by NRAO for the IDL project within weeks, with input from external collaborators at other institutions. The outcome will be communicated more extensively to GBT IDL users to ensure that expectations are set early and often with the community.
With respect to remote observing, the panel noted that the physical remoteness of the GBT demands that these capabilities be integrated into the design of all new applications. The SDD agrees with this recommendation. Design for remote observing has already been a consideration for new developments such as the graphically oriented Scheduling Block Builder which was built using ALMA specifications, but this has been undertaken on a project by project basis. Plans for 2005 and beyond will consider the requirements needed to release remote observing capabilities for all Standard GBT Observing Modes in a more unified fashion.
An "expansion of the scientific input beyond Green Bank" as recommended by the panel will also be instituted beginning in the Fall of 2004. Initially, an IDL Design Workshop will be conducted to integrate the needs and desires of IDL users who wish to augment the development effort and contribute lessons they have learned in their development work. Additionally, the SDD will solicit some individuals internal and external to NRAO to act as consultants and evaluate the new observing process which will be reviewed throughout Q4 2004 by staff astronomers. < P>The panel notes that its principal recommendation is "that the GBT software team continue to pay attention to the long-term consequences of the inevitable trades to be made between conflicting demands on the limited resources." As this is the division's key goal as resources are balanced against demands every six weeks, the SDD can confidently ensure the review panel that this will be continually in focus. The SDD appreciates the panel's acknowledgement of the resource limitations and creative solutions that must be identified to optimize new development while effectively attending to maintenance needs, as well as the SDD's past management under these constraints.
As recommended by the panel, the SDD will anticipate and prepare for a follow-up in progress review in March/April 2005, with focus topics to include the IDL-Python transition of data analysis software, the progress on and early results of a GBT Science Data Model, the utility of further collaborations with ALMA and other observatories, progress on balancing the needs of interactive vs. queue-based observing, and adoption of the new SB-based observing system.
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