CUCC Expedition Handbook - New Survex file

Creating a new survex file

Great, I have discovered a new cave...

If you have not come to this page from the sequence starting at Starting a New Cave" then go and read that first.

This page outlines step 3 of the survey production process. Each step is documented separately.
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7

Process

In principle you do not need any software other than a text editor to create a survex file. So you do not need to have installed survex on your laptop at this point.

Typing in the survey data in survex format

The survey data typed up must include all the notes, including station details and passage names. Make a backup copy to another machine or USB stick as soon as you have typed it in. New users will be using the expo laptop to create the .svx file and you will put it in the folder

/home/expo/loser/caves-{area}/{cave}/{surveytripid}.svx

example:

/home/expo/loser/caves-1623/264/mongolrally.svx

and tell someone nerdy when you have finished and they will ensure that it is saved, committed, and pushed appropriately to the :loser: repo.

If you have several parts of the cave surveyed on one trip, create several distinct .svx files.

How to create a survex file - PDF - Brendan's guide.
From muddy book to survex plot - the survex file format (to be revised)
How to add QM data and cave descriptions - and why this is vital
[survex software docm.] Contents of .svx files - How do I?
[survex software docm.] How do I Create a new survey - example with several surveys joined
[survex software docm.] Survex data files - all the sections and keywords explained

Once you have created the .svx file you will run survex to check that your format is correct without typos and to generate a centre line. Then you will print the survey line, manually transcribe your sketches from the wallet notes onto that paper, scan it again and then use that scanned image to digitise passage layout into tunnel or therion.

Back in the UK - not really part of the process
Cave Surveying - training course slidepack
History of Survex (1996)

[Nerds: survex cave data belongs in the repository :loser: so e.g. :loser:/caves-1623/264/mongolrally.svx". We are assuming that normal users have never worked with an distributed version control system at this point which is why we are only telling them to use the expo laptop.]

Entering the QM data

QMs are the unexplored leads, they are Question Marks because we don't know where they go to. There is a specific format for recording them in survex files.

Read this separate description about entering the QM data into a survex file.

Entering the cave description in the survex file

The last part of the survex file is a description of the passage surveyed. Remember that this is intended to be read by people who have not been to that bit of the cave themselves ;------------ ;Cave description ;(leave commented-out) ; See 2017 description for details of GSH up to the 'p50'. Briefly, on the way to couldashouldawoulda a 22 m entrance crawl from the surface leads to a climb down and a junction. Left leads to easy c rawling passage for a short distance, then another junction where traversing over a shallow hole and down a stooping-height sandy passage to a sharp left turn and a sandy, easy 'squeeze' leading to a straighforward p10. [from couldashouldawoulda_to_bathdodgersbypass.svx]

Note that the description is often written as one long line. Use the word-wrap capability in your editor to make it easier for yourself.

Back to the previous page in this sequence Creating a new survey wallet.
Now go the the next page in this sequence Drawing up your survey.