It’s all too easy to get lost in thickets of technical terms. A server, for most CAE users, is a high performance computer which is used for computationally demanding tasks. Engineers tasked with installing / maintaining commercial CAE applications are also familiar with license servers. A Python server is the glue that’s essential for automation: it allows your Python program (i.e. client) to communicate with Pointwise or Tecplot or both (i.e. the server). See this article for a quick outline of the terms involved.

Locating grid points within our region of interest is what grid-generation is all about. A wide variety of methods have been known for several years now, but not all are equal. Algebraic methods are often faster, but differential-equation based methods can sometimes be better. This brief video shows how Pointwise uses interior control functions to fine-tune an initialized grid.

Tecplot can do a whole lot of things, which also means using it can and does give rise to a whole lot of questions. Time-dependent data can be a particular challenge. This recording (accompanied with a transcript) answers questions raised by different users. Email support if there’s anything you’re grappling with that isn’t available in the discussion.