Starting IDL in Command Line Mode

In command-line mode, IDL uses a text-only interface and sends output to your terminal screen or shell window. Graphics are displayed in IDL graphics windows.

To start IDL in command-line mode, follow the instructions according to your Operating System:

Operating System
Command-line Mode Instructions

Windows

Select Start → IDL <version> → IDL Command Line

Solaris/Linux

At the shell prompt, enter idl.

MacOS X

In your IDL installation folder, double-click on the IDL icon

OR

At the X11 Terminal window shell prompt, enter idl.

For more information about using IDL in command-line mode, see Launching IDL.

Tip
The command line options described above are also useful in command-line mode.