[Shake-dev] ShakeMap V3.2 available

[Bruce Worden]

Hello Everyone,

I have released a new version of ShakeMap, and it is on our new  
distribution site:

	http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/shakemap/download

The new web page asks for your contact information and for you to  
acknowledge that you understand the limitations of the software.   
We're really doing this for our records and so that we know who is  
using the software.  No one will be denied access to the software or  
require pre-approval to get it.

Once you have unpacked the new software, you will find a new version  
of "SoftwareGuide.doc" in <shake_home>/doc, which is considerably  
more up-to-date that the online version of the manual on the USGS  
site.  Also, during the install process, be sure to go through  
<shake_home>/include/macros very carefully -- there are new macros  
and new documentation and your install will go much smoother if you  
get these right the first time.

V3.2 is an important upgrade and is recommended for all users of  
ShakeMap.  In particular, note the support for V4.1+ of GMT.  The new  
version appears to work with Linux but we have not thoroughly tested  
all versions, obviously.  Let us know if you find any incompatibilities.

Highlights:

o Updates, improvements and fixes to uncertainty plots/data.  grid.xml
   now contains an attribute "nominal_pga_std" that gives the standard
   deviation of the regression used in making the maps.  The SDPGA grid
   field now gives the ratio of actual std to regression std.
o Major improvements to KML: added fault representation to plots; made
   station info a KMZ file to save space and transfer time; made plots
   PNG files for transparency over water; made plots & data network  
links
   for auto-updates; new sleeker intensity scale and USGS logo; etc.
o Now support GMT 4.1+; better support, in general, for various versions
   of GMT.
o Added regression and fault info to metadata.
o Simpson map addon is now more flexible to accomodate old-style  
usage in
   CISN Display
o The system now generates the scalebars, "scale.ps" and "tvscale.ps" on
   the fly during installation.  This should avoide some problems  
that come
   from various GMT versions creating incompatible PostScript.   
(Note: old
   scale.ps and tvscale.ps will have the extension ".BAK" added to them
   should the user want to revert to the old versions.
o Many bug fixes and enhancements.
o Added Brian Flagg's CAPTCHA version of the comment form and related
   files.  This form should help cut down on spam by insuring that the
   comments are submitted by a human.  To use this version, see the
   config file "web.conf" for usage and requirements.
o Added the -gsm flag to mapping for the Global ShakeMap folks in  
Golden.

See the file <shake_home>/doc/dist_3_2 for a more complete list of  
changes.

I'm sure I've forgotten something, so please use this list if you run  
into any problems during installation/upgrade so that other users can  
benefit from your troubleshooting.

Good luck,
Bruce