Installing

Compilation

The source code must be compiled before you can run Fracion. Thus, check that your system meet all requirements before you begin to compile.

If you compiled ROOT from source and set correctly ROOT environment variables, it is possible that these requirements are meet.

Compiling the source code

1. Download the latest version.
2. Extract the archive
3. Open a terminal and change directory to the extracted directory (ex: $ cd fracion-01)
4. In a terminal run the command
   make
   If all goes to plan, make will create an executable named fracion
5. Run command: ./fracion

User Guide

Using Fracion

Fracion scans 2D binary images (ex: black/white) for fractals. While scanning the image, Fracion saves any interested information in a ROOT file, such that, if you want later, you can analyze the data yourself or use the built-in algorithms to determine the Fractal dimension or lacunarity.

After running fracion (using the command ./fracion), a window should appear. In the left side of the window is the Menu.

Main Menu

Before any Scan or Analysis you have 2 possibilities:

• load an image - in order to scan it
• load a ROOT file - a file that contains data from a previous scan

Scanner Options

You can modify the default options of the scanner. These options are available from the main menu.

• Bailout Counted: this represents the number of pixels counted inside a box, that are necesary to decide that the box is valid.
• Steps (division): Number of steps to perform the box counting method. Default is 100. After each step the image is divided (starting from 1 to this assigned number)
• Background Color: color to be considered in background. (pixels of this color are NOT considered - counted, see Bailout Counted)

Analysis

Fracion contains 2 algorithms for fractal analysis:

• Fractal Dimension: is determined plotting the log(N) - counted boxes vs log(l) - box dimension. The dimension of the fractal is the slope in this graphic (parameter p1 as seen from the linear fit)
• Fractal Lacunarity