Project releases are .zip files that contain all files needed to use a project. This usually means one or more Igor Pro procedure files (.ipf) but may also include compiled code in the form of external operations (XOPs), source code, and/or Igor Pro experiment files.

There are two types of releases:

• Official releases are ready to use, stable, and relatively well tested.
• Development snapshots may be somewhat incomplete but contain the most recent features, bug fixes and/or bugs. Development snapshots are automatically rebuilt and updated every hour from the most recent code for the project in the repository.

Projects may have any combination of official and development snapshot releases. Some projects may not have any releases. This usually means that the project is under development and the developer(s) has not yet decided to create a release. The files used in the project may be available in the Subversion repository. Keep in mind that project authors may not actively support projects that do not have official releases.

Once you have downloaded and unzipped the release file, you may need to install the files in a way such that Igor Pro can use the files. The project may contain a README.txt or other similar file with specific instructions on how to use the project.

NOTE: Some projects on IgorExchange may contain XOPs but may come only with source code, and not compiled forms of the XOPs. The Igor Pro XOP Toolkit from WaveMetrics is required to compile XOPs on your own from the source code.

The following links may also be helpful:

• Using External Operations (XOPs) in Igor Pro
• Using Procedure Files in Igor Pro