---
# System prepended metadata

title: 'PlasmaPy Community Meeting | Tuesday 2021 October 26 at 18:00 UT'
tags: [community, ' minutes']

---

---
tags: community, minutes
---

# PlasmaPy Community Meeting | Tuesday 2021 October 26 at 18:00 UT

### Video Conference Information
* [Zoom link](https://zoom.us/j/91633383503?pwd=QWNkdHpWeFhrYW1vQy91ODNTVG5Ndz09)
* Instant messaging: [Matrix](https://app.element.io/#/room/#plasmapy:openastronomy.org) and [Gitter](https://gitter.im/PlasmaPy/Lobby)
* [GitHub Minutes Repository](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/plasmapy-project/tree/master/minutes)
    * ["Community" Sub-directory](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/plasmapy-project/tree/master/minutes/_community)
* [PlasmaPy on GitHub](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/plasmapy) ([pull requests](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/plasmapy/pulls), [issues](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/plasmapy/issues))
* [PlasmaPy Enhancement Proposals on GitHub](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy-PLEPs) 
* [PlasmaPy Google Calendar](https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=c_sqqq390s24jjfjp3q86pv41pi8%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FNew_York)

## Agenda (please feel free to edit or add items)

1. Introductions
2. 10-15 minutes for [roadmap](https://hackmd.io/@plasmapy/ry0mmnj6v)
3. solicit "Project Issues"
4. Python in Heliophysics Community meeting
5. [Approach in #1229](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1229): Notebook w/ plasma inputs
6. User defined data directory for things like downloaded NiST files...
    * pkg defined variable
    * terminal env variable
7. `numba` and `scipy.special` ?? ...anyone have experience with this?
    * need for lite-func of `permittivity_1D_Maxwellian` which calls `plasma_dispersion_func_deriv` which utilizes [`scipy.special.wofz`](https://docs.scipy.org/doc/scipy/reference/generated/scipy.special.wofz.html)
    * https://github.com/numba/numba/issues/3086
    * https://github.com/numba/numba-scipy
8. Release of `v0.7.0`
    * changelog [PR 1219](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1219)
9. ...
10. Issues
    1. ...
11. Pull requests in progress 
    1. [1219](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1219): changelog review for `v0.7.0` release
    2. [1145](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1145): Lite-function framework and `thermal_speed_lite`
    3. [1308](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1308): plasma_frequency_lite
    4. [1312](https://github.com/PlasmaPy/PlasmaPy/pull/1312): Decompose `plasmapy.formulary.parameters`
12. Pull requests **MERGED**
    1. ...
    
## Attendees

* Erik
* Nick

## Action Items

***Erik***
* Create an issue about having a `.plasmapy` configuration file for custom plasmapy workflow settings...like separate data directory for things like NIST data

## Minutes

* #1229
    * Erik likes the overall approach
    * Put entrypoints in `setup.cfg` file instead of `setup.py`
    * Can have something like this from Erik's old addons branch...
      ```
      [options.entry_points]
      plasmapy.addons = 
      ```
    * Here are docs related to [entry points](https://setuptools.pypa.io/en/latest/userguide/entry_point.html)
    * Erik would suggest creating a `calculator` directory (or `calculator.py`) in `plasmapy.utils` instead of being in the root direcory as `plasma_calculator` (this will help with packaging)
        * Would not have `calculator` exposed to the `plasmapy.utils` namespace since it is never intended to be imported, only launched from script
        * Erik would only backtrack that statement if it significantly helps with documentation.
    * For the future, be able to upload a text file (fomatted like a toml) with parameter values
    * converting to Hz
        * move the "convert to Hz" check box into the frequency tab
        * Or, allow the desired unit to be selected from a drop down for a given frequency
    * Would be good to focus on architecture in this PR rather than the details
    * Follow up with PRs to fine tune it.
    * Add it to documentation only after we've fine tuned it (need to add an issue)
* For Peter's recent PR (detector stacks?) NIST data is needed.  Maybe have a user-defined directory to include that data?
    * Could avoid license issues
        * NIST data itself is (we think) public domain but others like LXCat have license incompatibilities
    * Have a `.plasmapy` directory/file in our home directory
        * to contain configuration data...for example local downloaded data (like NIST data)
        * Maybe a `.plasmapy_config` file too maybe? 
    * We should look into what other packages are doing
    * Like a [`.astropy`](https://docs.astropy.org/en/stable/config/index.html)...maybe?
    * Maybe look into [astroquery](https://astroquery.readthedocs.io/en/latest/) 