PyDM Launcher
=============

PyDM provides a command-line launcher that makes it easier for users to quickly run UI files as well as code based screens.
The launcher is responsible for setting up the Python logging module but it mainly just parses the command line parameters
and sends them to the instantiated PyDMApplication.

The Launcher is available for Linux, OSX and Windows and it can be called using the command line:

.. code-block:: bash

   pydm

This will result in the PyDM Main Window being displayed.

.. figure:: /_static/intro/main_window.png
   :scale: 75 %
   :align: center
   :alt: PyDM Main Window

Command Line Arguments
----------------------

The PyDM Launcher accepts many command line arguments, here they are:

.. code-block:: bash

   pydm [-h] [--perfmon] [--hide-nav-bar] [--hide-menu-bar]
        [--hide-status-bar] [--fullscreen] [--read-only]
        [--log_level {DEBUG,INFO,WARNING,ERROR,CRITICAL}] [--version]
        [-m MACRO] [--stylesheet STYLESHEET]
        [displayfile] ...


Where:

=========================  =============================================================================
Argument                   Description
=========================  =============================================================================
-h, --help                 Show the help message and exit
--perfmon                  Enable performance monitoring, and print CPU usage to the terminal
--hide-nav-bar             Start PyDM with the navigation bar hidden
--hide-menu-bar            Start PyDM with the menu bar hidden
--hide-status-bar          Start PyDM with the status bar hidden
--fullscreen               Start PyDM in full screen mode.
--read-only                Start PyDM in a Read-Only mode
--log_level                Configure the level of the display logger.
--version                  Show PyDM's version number and exit
-m MACRO, --macro MACRO    Specify macro replacements to use, in JSON object format
--stylesheet STYLESHEET    Provide the full path to a CSS stylesheet file, which contains styles to be applied to specific Qt/PyDM widgets.
displayfile (positional)   A PyDM file to display. Can be either a Qt (.ui) file or a Python (.py) file
display_args (positional)  Arguments to be passed to the PyDM client application and displays.
=========================  =============================================================================

.. note::
   It is not mandatory to use the PyDM Launcher to run your screen, but keep in
   mind that without it you will need to handle command line arguments, logging
   setup, and the instantiation of the PyDMApplication in your own code.