| High-level Unified I/O | Low-level I/O |
|---|---|
Use read() and write() class methods of output data class, e.g., data = QTable.read("data.fits") returns a QTable. | Interfaces are specific to format, e.g., hdus = fits.open("data.fits") returns an HDUList. |
| Read and write entire file at once. | Support varies, e.g., FITS has memory-mapped read access. |
| Automatically determine file format in common cases. | Specify format explicitly. |
Help documentation via class method, e.g., QTable.read.help("fits"). | Help documentation varies, e.g., help(fits.open) or API docs. |
Comparison of high-level and low-level interfaces
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