29.2. Options in mevislab.prefs

The syntax of mevislab.prefs is as described in the MDL Reference. All settings must be contained in a "Settings" element like this (example):

        
  Settings {

    // show windows when network is loaded
    RestorePanels = YES

    // autoreload the MDL/script files when a window of a module is opened
    AutoReload = YES

    // autosave networks when changed
    AutoSave = YES

  }   
      

The settings file can contain any variable name. The value of a variable can be queried from scripting with MLAB.hasVariable, MLAB.variable, and MLAB.variableIsTrue. Variable names are case-sensitive. Besides self-defined variables, there are some pre-defined variables for various - sometimes very specialized - purposes, which are listed in the following table. This list does not include (with some exceptions) variables that can also be set from the Preferences dialog in MeVisLab.

NameTypeDescription
Development
PackagePathsComplex

This allows for the definition of additional user packages that should be available in MeVisLab.

This attribute has two subattributes: pathRoot and path. pathRoot specifies a root path to which all subsequent path entries are relative. path should typically consist of a pair of package group and package, separated by a slash.

Example:

                
    PackagePaths {
      pathRoot = "C:/Users/a_user/Documents/Packages"
      path     = MyPackageGroup/MyPackage

      pathRoot = "C:/Users/a_user/Documents/Development/MeVisLab"
      path     = MyOrganization/Package1
      path     = MyOrganization/Package2
    }   
              
LogfileFile path

Writes all console output to the specified file. You can use $(LOCAL) to reference files relative to the settings file.

RestorePanelsBool

Shows module panels when the network is loaded. It is also available from the Preferences dialog.

AutoReloadBool

Automatically reloads the MDL/script files of a module when a module panel is opened (recommended for fast prototyping; no explicit module "reload" is required). It is also available from Preferences dialog.

AutoSaveBool

Automatically saves networks when changed. It is also available from Preferences dialog.

VerboseScriptingBool

Prints messages when entering and leaving command-handling scripting functions.

ShowModulesByUserBool

By default, deprecated modules (or modules in other hidden module groups) do not appear in the module search. If this option is set, modules by the current user will always be shown.

[Note]Note

The author name for a module must be exactly the same as the username in the Preferences dialog.

ExternalDocumentationUrlURL

Overrides the location of the MeVisLab documentation, giving the base path as a URL. A suitable default is, e.g.: https://www.mevislab.de/docs/current.

UserSpellcheckFileFile path

MeVisLab has an integrated spell checker (based on Hunspell) for English text in the module help editor. With this option, users can include an extra dictionary file.

PreloadModuleModule name

With this option, modules can be loaded at startup of the IDE (created in an invisible network), which can in turn execute code and, for example, initialize preference variables. This tag can be specified multiple times.

disableImmediateDebug­OutputConsoleRefreshBool

The MeVisLab debug console, by default, refreshes immediately after each output to remain up-to-date (for example, in the case of crashes). However, this can lead to problems with event handling and may slow down performance. Disable immediate refreshes by setting to YES; then the console is only updated when MeVisLab is idle or processes events for other reasons.

General
ExtraDllLoadPathsDirectory path

Windows only.

Sets additional directories from which to load DLLs. Multiple paths can be specified, separated by “;”; this entry can also be provided more than once.

It is also possible to reference environment variables in a path with ${}, e.g., ${CUDA_PATH_V11_4}, or even ${PATH}.

MLCacheSizeInMBInteger

Sets the cache size for the ML image processing (in MB). It is also available from Preferences dialog.

OverrideCursorDirectoryDirectory path

Allows the specification of a directory that can contain alternative mouse cursors to be used in Inventor scenes. See the comments in $(MLAB_ROOT)/MeVis/Foundation/Sources/MLInventorGUIBinding/SoQtViewerProxy.h.

View2DEnableQtFontRenderingBool

Use Qt for rendering fonts in SoView2D and similar viewers if set to YES (default). Otherwise, it uses a simpler font rendering engine that lacks Unicode support.

GL2DFont_DefaultSystemFontName

Sets the font to use for font rendering.

GLDefaultSystemFontProportionalName

Same as above, but only affects the simpler, not Qt-based font rendering.

GlobalScaleFactorFloat

Scales all MDL panels with this factor. Default is 1.

qmlStyleName

Defines the QML style to be used in the QuickView control.

Deployment
ReleaseOptimizedBool

If set to YES, MeVisLab will not look for updated MDL/script files after the initial load. It is used for application deployment (defaults to YES for applications and NO for IDE).

LowPriorityBool

Runs MeVisLab with a low process priority.

SplashPenColorHex value

Sets the color with which text is drawn on the splash screen. It must be a 6-digit hex value (without '#').

SplashHideMessagesBool

Hides initialization messages on the splash screen.

Advanced
PythonMultiThreadingBool

If set to NO, it disables Python multi-threading support. Disable this in case of issues.

MLRestrictMaxNumThreadsInteger

Sets the maximum number of threads to be used by the ML image processing pipeline for standard image processing. The default is the number of virtual cores in the system.

CoreMaxNumThreadsInteger

Sets the maximum number of threads to use by the GVR framework. The default is the number of virtual cores in the system. It is also available from Preferences dialog.

EnableHighPrecisionLogging­TimeStampsBool

If enabled, time stamps in the log will be printed with a higher precision (the actual precision depends on the system). This can be useful if the exact timing of events is important.

DisableModuleWindowsPersistenceBool

If this option is ON, .mlab files will not store the position and state of module panels if they are closed at the time of saving. This can reduce the changes displayed in DIFF tools when using a version control system.

FullscreenFlickerFixBool

If set to ON, it fixes flickering of fullscreen panels with OpenGL content (for some setups).

PreferReleaseModeExecutablesBool

If set to NO, Debug mode tools (according to the debug suffix of the executable name) will be called from MeVisLab if MeVisLab is in Debug mode. Otherwise, the faster release mode variant will always be preferred. The default is YES.

StoreModuleCacheInUserLibraryBool

Sets whether to store the module cache files in a directory outside the installation directory. Default is NO.

DontShowIconsInMenusBool

If this option is set, pop-up menus do not show icons for their entries (on some platforms this is a no-op, as there are no icons shown anyway).

DisableLicenseExpirationWarningBool

If this option is set, MeVisLab (and applications based on MeVisLab) will not display a warning if the current license is about to expire.