Better Matrix to Zone Conversion

I had to convert a bunch of models from GMS to Vistas this week. As many of you know, when you import a model into Vistas, the various properties like hydraulic conductivity are set up as matrices. That means you just get a bunch of numbers instead of a zone database. If you just want to run the model and make minor revisions, this is fine. However, if you want to recalibrate the model or use some other tools in Vistas, you may want that matrix of numbers simplified to a zone database. The only way to do that was to use Props/Options and turn off the use of matrices. Then you had to wait, often many hours, for the conversion to happen.

I set out to make this process more efficient and have reduced the conversion time by many orders of magnitude. So if you get the Version 5.16 Build 9 update, converting properties from matrix to zone is very quick. You also get to choose the number of significant digits used to determine whether two real numbers are equal. This can help simplify a complex matrix.

You may also notice that we skipped from build 6 to build 9 in the most recent blog postings. The intervening builds were just testing new system code schemes.