Silent atpass

[swhite2401]

By default atpass returns a large array storing all particles at each turn and refpts.
To avoid memory issues it is possible to call atpass with refpts=[], this feature is added to the documentation in this PR

[lfarv]

@swhite: there is no need for that: just set refpts = []. No allocation, the values at the end of tracking are in r_in, as usual!

[swhite2401]

Are you sure about this?
If I tracking 1e6 particles for 1e6 turns with refpts=[] I thought at would allocates an array with shape (6,1e6,0,1e6) in C and return it.
Instead with this PR (6,1e6,refpts,1) is allocated whatever the input, there is the same in matlab actually.

In fact I crashed the cluster doing something similar...am I missing something?

[swhite2401]

Ah no I take it back, atpass returns [] when refpts = []
This is quite unnatural for non experts, I still think it would be worth adding the silent option at least the set refpts=[] at the python level to mimic the matlab inputs...the advantage of this PR is that you can also provide refpts but I am not convinced it is so useful...

[lfarv]

This is quite unnatural for non experts

Why? refpts=[] to get no output looks on the contrary very natural to me ! More than an additional keyword !

The problem with Matlab is that you cannot modify in-place the input argument. There in no problem in python, so all the tracking is done in-place, without needing to allocate anything.

[swhite2401]

Ok fair enough, I'll roll back and update the documentation in this PR to make this clear

[swhite2401]

Ok, this is now just a documentation update, anything to add while we are at it?

[lfarv]

"number of turns", may be ?

[lfarv]

Ok for me !

[swhite2401]

Do I have to build the sphinx documentation or is it done automatically on merge? (sorry I haven't followed very closely your latest developments)

[lfarv]

Do I have to build the sphinx documentation or is it done automatically on merge? (sorry I haven't followed very closely your latest developments)

Nothing to do: the doc will be updated on merge. Magic !