VCIF(1)                                                   VCIF(1)


NAME
     vcif - validate syntax of Crystallographic Information File

SYNOPSIS
     vcif [-option ...]   file-name

DESCRIPTION
     Vcif reads a file in CIF(5) format, and writes  to  standard
     output  any  syntax  errors  it  finds.  Unlike a strict CIF
     parser, which will exit on  encountering  the  first  syntax
     error in a file, vcif attempts to recover and report further
     errors. However, certain errors (such as  unterminated  text
     fields) can confuse the program.

     If file-name is "-", vcif will read from standard input.


OPTIONS
     Options may be given as one-letter  codes  starting  with  a
     single  hyphen,  or  as  long  codes  starting with a double
     hyphen.

     --ciflevel n or -L nn
             CIF level, 0 for CIF 1.0, 1 for  CIF  1.1.   Implies
             appropriate adjustments to defaults of other values,
             in particule, for CIF 1.0 the default  maximum  line
             length  is 80, while for CIF 1.1 the default maximum
             line length is 2048.

     --maxline nn or -l nn
             Maximum line length. Report lines exceeding nn char-
             acters in length (the default for CIF 1.0 if 80, the
             default for CIF 1.1 is 2048).

     --maxdname nn or -w nn
             Maximum length of datanames or data_ block  headers.
             Report  any  exceeding  nn characters in length (the
             default for CIF 1.0 is 75, the default for  CIF  1.1
             is 75).

     --quiet or -q
             Quiet. Report no errors. The  return  value  of  the
             program  is  a count of the number of errors encoun-
             tered.

     --verbose or -v
             Verbose. Give a more complete account of each  error
             on its first occurrence.  This mode will only report
             the first 20 errors, unless this is  over-ridden  by
             the -e option.

     --fullstar or -s
             Do not flag extra STAR(5) file syntax features, such
             as  global_  and save_ frames, as errors. Useful for
             checking the syntax of CIF dictionary  files,  which
             have these additional features.

     --errors nn or -e nn
             Number of errors to report. The  default  is  20  in
             verbose mode, and unlimited otherwise.

     --help or -h
             Print help information and exit.

     --version or -V
             Print version information and exit.

     --debug debug-file-name or -D debug-file-name
             Write (copious) debugging output to the named file.


BUGS
     Embedded nulls in an input file will confuse the program.

AUTHOR
     B. McMahon

SEE ALSO
     quasar(1), sb(1), CIF(5), STAR(5)