.. _Intro:

Introduction to VisIt_
======================

VisIt_ is a free, open source, platform independent, distributed, parallel,
visualization tool for visualizing data defined on two- and three-dimensional
structured and unstructured meshes. VisIt_'s distributed architecture allows
it to leverage both the compute power of a large parallel computer and the
graphics acceleration hardware of a local workstation. VisIt_'s user interface
is often run locally on a Windows, Linux, or macOS desktop computer while
its compute engine component runs in parallel on a remote computer. VisIt_'s
distributed architecture allows VisIt_ to visualize simulation data where it
was generated, eliminating the need to move the data to a visualization
server. VisIt_ can be controlled by its Graphical User Interface (GUI),
through the Python and Java programming languages, or from a custom user
interface that you develop yourself. More information about VisIt_ can be
found online at https://visit.llnl.gov/.

This manual explains how to use the VisIt_ GUI. You will be given a brief
overview on how VisIt_ works and then you will be shown how to start and use
VisIt_.

.. toctree::
    :maxdepth: 1 
    :numbered:

    Understanding_how_VisIt_works
    Getting_started