A pipeline is a special process that is composed of several other processes. A pipeline can chain a series of processes and offer a choice between different methods, each implemented in a different process. A pipeline can also contain other pipelines, so it can be a tree of processes.
This type of proceses have a special user interface that shows the composition of the pipeline and enables to choose between several methods and to unselect some optional steps.
In the example below, the structure of the pipeline is visible in the left part of the process window. When you select a step, you can see in the right part the parameters of the current step (process). A check box next the name of the step indicates that it is optional, you can click on the box to modify the selection. A radio button next the name of the step indicates that it is one of several choices, if you select one, the others are automatically deselected. Only the checked steps will be executed when the pipeline is started.
A contextual menu (right click) offers several features to ease the selection/deselection of the steps, to open a step in a new window or to show its documentation. Here are the different options of this menu :
- Unselect before: Unselect all the steps before the current step at the same depth level.
- Unselect after: Unselect all the steps after the current step at the same depth level.
- Select before: Select all the steps before the current step at the same depth level.
- Select after: Select all the steps after the current step at the same depth level.
- Unselect steps writing lock files: Unselect the steps that have a locked file as output parameter. More information about locked files here.
- Unselect steps upstream of locked files: Unselect the steps that have a locked file as output parameter and the steps before.
- Open this step separately: Open the process window of the current step.
- Show documentation: show the documentation of the current step in the BrainVISA documentation panel.